Syrian rebels now have a tank operated with a PlayStation controller

As Syria's rebels work to overthrow the tank-equipped Assad regime, they've learned that it helps to have tanks of their own. They deserve bonus points for integrating video game technology. This is no exaggeration. Have a look at the opposition forces' "100 percent made in Syria" armored vehicle, the Sham II. RELATED: What Dennis Kucinich Really Said in Syria Named for ancient Syria and assembled out of spare parts over the course of a month, the Sham II is sort of rough around the edges, but it's got impressive guts. It rides on the chassis of an old diesel car and is fully encased in light steel that's rusted from the elements. Five cameras are mounted on the tank's exterior, and there's a machine gun mounted on a turning turret. Inside, it kind of looks like a man cave. A couple of flat-screen TVs are mounted on opposite walls. The driver sits in front of one, controlling the vehicle with a steering wheel, and the gunner sits at the other, aiming the machine gun with a PlayStation controller. RELATED: It's Never a Good Idea to Put Your Torture Victims on YouTube Sham II is heading up to the devastated city of Aleppo to join the combat forces there. Meanwhile, rebel forces continue to close in on Damascus and Assad's shrinking regime. Diplomats have already begun to speculate about what the Syrian president's next move would be. We do know that Assad has been exploring the option of seeking political asylum in the Middle East or in Latin America. However, it looks more likely that Assad and his cronies will retreat to the Alawite-controlled mountains on Syria's Mediterranean coast. The only other alternative -- chemical weapons attack notwithstanding -- would be for Assad to stay in the palace and fight to the end. And can you imagine standing helpless as a fierce machine like Sham II roared up the palace steps? Run, Bashar. Run.

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The Wii U uses less than half the power of the Xbox 360 and the PS3

Nintendo’s (NTDOY) Wii prided itself for being a super energy-efficient console that ran nearly silent and sipped very little electricity. And although Microsoft’s (MSFT) Xbox 360 was originally a loud monster with a penchant for Red-Ring-of-Death-ing itself, the amount of power it consumed was never as much as Sony’s (SNE) launch PlayStation 3, which used more power than a refrigerator. Eurogamer took it upon itself to pit the Wii U against the Xbox 360 S and new super slim PS3 and concluded that Nintendo’s new console “draws so little power in comparison to its rivals that its tiny casing still feels cool to the touch during intense gaming.” Most impressive is that the Wii U maintains its low-wattage while fitting in a chassis that’s smaller than both the Xbox 360 and PS3. According to Eurogamer’s tests, the Wii U draws only 32 watts of power during gameplay of games that are as graphically intensive as the 360 and PS3, with both consoles using 118% and 139$% more power, respectively. To achieve such “green” levels, Nintendo clocks the Wii U’s CPU to 1.24GHz and “uses far fewer transistors than the competition.” While there are still some mysteries as to how the hardware remains cool, Eurogamer also discovered that the AMD-built GPU increases performance by “40 per cent per square millimetre of silicon – another big leap in efficiency.” Most disappointing in Eurogamer’s analysis is that they weren’t able to get the Wii U’s wattage to spike more than 33 watts, suggesting that the console can’t be over-clocked in the future to pump out more polygons. If you’re still on the fence on which console you should buy or play games on, the Wii U looks to be the one that’ll keep your electric bill nice and low.

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'Angry Birds' Movie Arrives in 2016 From Producer of 'Despicable Me'

Rovio Entertainment celebrated the three-year anniversary of the Angry Birds franchise Tuesday by releasing 30 new levels for the game and announcing details for the Angry Birds movie. The still untitled 3D computer generated feature film will debut in mid-2016 with Despicable Me producer John Cohen taking the production helm. Former Marvel Studios chairman David Maisel, a senior adviser to Rovio, will remain as executive producer. . "With John's hands-on producer background and David's expertise in establishing and running his own successful studio, these two are the dream team for making a movie outside the studio system," Rovio's CEO Mikael Hed said in a statement. "Both professionals have the ideal skills and vision to achieve incredible things.” [More from Mashable: 7 Kid-Friendly Games for the Holidays] SEE ALSO: 'Angry Birds' Turns Queen's Freddie Mercury Into an Honorary Character Cohen -- who also lent his talents to such movies as Hop, Ice Age, Alvin and the Chipmunks, Dr. Seuss' Horton Hears a Who, Robots and Ice Age: The Meltdown -- touts Rovio for "trailblazing terrific new ways for Angry Birds fans to interact with these characters." [More from Mashable: Big Boi: Music Piracy Produces ‘Bullsh-t’ Records] No plot details about the movie have been revealed, but Rovio plans to produce and finance the movie to avoid losing "creative control" at the hands of a movie studio. 1. Torchlight 2 The fantasy-RPG sequel to the wildly popular 2009 game Torchlight, Runic Games' latest installment in the franchise, doesn't mess with its recipe too much. And in this case, that's a big positive. Part steam-punk treasure hunt, part magic-heavy flight of fancy, Torchlight 2 capitalizes on the fast-paced, action-filled environment crafted by the designers of Diablo, Diablo 2 and Fate. Expect a lot of loot-grabbing from this game, as a bulk of the fun takes place in expansive and randomly generated cave systems practically filled to the brim with treasure and fancy equipment for your specific character class. Torchlight 2 really gilds the lily with a long-awaited and happily embraced local LAN option — meaning you can raid dungeons with three of your closest friends. This makes the experience, for the first time, a cooperative one, and has been one of the best new features. This game is really a continuation of that old-school play style seen in the previous Diablo installments, so if solo (or small group) hunting is your thing, download away. Price: $19.99 on Steam Platform: Windows Click here to view this gallery.

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Xbox 720 and PlayStation 4 might not launch until 2014

Nintendo (NTDOY) says its kickstarted the next generation of video game consoles with the Wii U. But considering its graphics and processing power are comparable to Microsoft’s (MSFT) Xbox 360 and Sony’s (SNE) PlayStation 3, hardcore gamers are holding out for the next Xbox, tentatively dubbed “Xbox 720,” and next-generation PlayStation, tentatively called PS4. Rumors insist Microsoft and Sony will both launch their next consoles in the fall of 2013, but SemiAccurate, the website that first reported the next Xbox could see a delay, says there is a bit of confusion over how the consoles are progressing and when they’ll arrive. According to SemiAccurate, the next Xbox is currently code-named “Kryptos” and not “Durango” anymore, and the next PlayStation is now code-named “Thebes” rather than “Orbis.” The PS4 will reportedly have a 28-nanometer AMD chipset and will be produced by IBM or Global Foundries. SemiAccurate says the PS4 could be released in spring of 2014 or fall 2014 and the Xbox 720 could still see the delay from fall 2013 to 2014. Xbox World claimed last month that the next Xbox will have a Blu-ray disc drive, Kinect 2.0, directional audio, TV output and input, an “innovative controller” and support for augmented reality glasses – all packaged in a magnesium alloy shell that will supposedly use the same patented “VaporMg” process found on the Surface tablet. Not only that, but Microsoft is also working on an “Xbox Lite,” according to reports from earlier this year. As for PS4 details, VG247 reported in November that Sony has already sent out various developer kits with specs including 16GB of RAM and 256GB of storage. Sony and Microsoft are expected to reveal their next consoles at E3 2013 this coming June.

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Microsoft plots living room domination with 43 new entertainment apps for Xbox 360

Game consoles are no longer simply for video games, as evidenced by last week’s announcement that the PlayStation 3 is the top Netflix (NFLX) streaming device of the year. Yusuf Mehdi, Microsoft’s (MSFT) chief marketing officer for its Interactive Entertainment Division, said this past March that Xbox 360 owners were spending more hours watching online entertainment than playing online games. And now, in a bid to bolster its efforts to conquer the living room, Microsoft Director of Programming for Xbox Live Larry “Major Nelson” Hyrb announced in a blog post that 43 new entertainment apps (mostly video) will launch between now and spring of 2013 in various regions. Ten new apps including ARTE, CinemaNow, CNET, Karaoke, Maxim, Napster, SkyDrive, SPORT1, VEVO and Zattoo will arrive this week. Microsoft’s full list of upcoming apps follows below. 1. All3M (United Kingdom, United States) 2. Ameba TV (Canada, United States) 3. ARTE (Germany, France) 4. Azteca (Mexico) 5. Canalplay Infinity (France) 6. CBC’s Hockey Night (Canada) 7. CrunchyRoll (Majority of LIVE Regions) 8. Deezer (Majority of LIVE Regions) 9. Eredivisie Live (Netherlands) 10. Fightbox (Austria, Germany, Spain, France, Ireland, Italy, Sweden, United Kingdom) 11. Flixster (United States) 12. GameTrailers (Australia, Canada, Germany, Spain, France, Italy, Japan, Mexico, United Kingdom, United States) 13. Globosat Muu (Brazil) 14. Gulli Replay (France) 15. HBO Nordics (Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden) 16. IndieFlix (Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, United Kingdom, United States) 17. Livesport.tv (Austria, Belgium, Germany, Denmark, Spain, Finland, France, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, New Zealand, Sweden, United Kingdom) 18. Machinima (Majority of LIVE Regions) 19. Maxim (United States) 20. MTV (United States) 21. MyTF1 (France) 22. MyTF1VOD (France) 23. Napster (Germany, United Kingdom) 24. Pathe Thuis (Netherlands) 25. PBS (United States) 26. PopcornFlix (United States) 27. Rai TV (Italy) 28. Sainsbury (United Kingdom) 29. Saraiva (Brazil) 30. SBS (Netherlands) 31. SF Anytime (Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden) 32. Slacker Radio (Canada, United States) 33. SPORT1 (Austria, Germany) 34. The CW Network (United States) 35. Televisa (Mexico) 36. TV3 (Spain) 37. Viaplay (Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden) 38. Vidéo à la Demande d’Orange (France) 39. Vimeo (United States) 40. VIVO Play (Brazil) 41. Watchever (Austria, Germany) 42. Zattoo (Germany) 43. Ziggo (Netherlands)

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Healthy Hollywood: Get Movin' Monday - A Toning Must For 50-Plus Women!

Who says everything goes south after 50? Just look at the rock-solid bodies of Madonna, Christie Brinkley, and Sharon Stone and you know mature women can be and are hotter than ever. The celebrity magnet, Physique 57, (a favorite toning regimen of Kelly Ripa & Sofia Vergara) has put together a new class/workout for women over 50. "Our 'Fit for Life' classes are small group training sessions (limited to 10 participants) that we developed to meet the specific needs of women fifty and over. These one-hour classes are done twice a week over a four-week period, combine low impact strength training exercises, light cardio, and stretches that are designed to create strong, lean, supple, muscles leaving participants feeling more energized, confident, and youthful," Physique 57 co-founder, Tanya Becker. Once the ladies finish the four-week session, they'll be up to speed and ready to join the other classes. It's important that older women are extra careful and do the exercises with the proper form since they are more prone to injuries, says Tanya, "Exercises should be modified appropriately, however, you still want to challenge your muscles otherwise you won't achieve your desired results. Physique 57's exercises are non-jarring on the joints (no jumping or pounding), which is also very important to avoid any injuries while still getting a great workout." Tanya helped create the groundbreaking workout that combines interval training with toning exercises. For now, Physique 57 studios are only in New York and LA, but the training center just released a book, "The Physique 57 Solution: Lose Up To 10 Inches Fast" and there are workout DVDs, so women everyone can learn this celebrity-endorsed secret to a long and lean body. Physique 57 shares with Healthy Hollywood 4 good reasons to exercise - especially as you age! 1. As we age, our metabolic rate slows down which can lead to extra body fat. The more lean muscle you have, the more calories you'll burn all day long. Also, the less weight you have to carry on your body, the less stress there will be on your joints- not to mention how fabulous you'll look and feel! 2. Decrease your risk of osteoporosis and loss of bone density. Keeping your muscles toned and strong will keep your bones strong. You'll be able to stand taller and exude confidence and grace. 3. Reduce your risk of injuries. Whether you enjoy playing golf, tennis, or just want to stay active for many years, you want a youthful supple body to enjoy life. 4. Keep a good attitude. When you're healthy and fit, you feel good about yourself. Plus, chances are you'll be less prone to depression and have a more positive perspective on life! "The Physique 57 Solution: Lose Up To 10 Inches Fast" is in bookstores now and available at www.amazon. com.

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US late-night host Conan O'Brien shares his workout playlist

This week, famed American late-night talk show host Conan O'Brien shared his favorite music for staying motivated in the gym. While not known for his rock-hard gym body, O'Brien is a fitness fan and music lover, and he released his top 16 playlist of gym-friendly tunes as part of his weekly series for streaming service Rdio's Guest DJ. Here is Conan's playlist or in certain countries, stream it here at Rdio. 1. Vampire Weekend, "A-Punk" 2. The Dovells, "You Can't Sit Down" 3. Cheap Trick, "Dream Police" 4. The Raconteurs, "Steady, As She Goes" 5. Jay-Z, "99 Problems" 6. The Police, "So Lonely" 7. Kings of Leon, "Use Somebody" 8. Ronnie Hawkins, "Forty Days" 9. The Who, "The Real Me" 10. Naughty by Nature, "Everything's Gonna Be Alright" 11. Thin Lizzy, "The Boys Are Back in Town" 12. The Brian Setzer Orchestra, "Jump Jive An' Wail" 13. Electric Six, "Danger! High Voltage (Soulchild Radio Mix)" 14. Green Day, "Basket Case" 15. Boz Scaggs, "Lido Shuffle" 16. Elvis Presley, "Promised Land"

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World's biggest Titanic attraction opens in Belfast

The largest Titanic visitor attraction in the world opened in the ship's Belfast birthplace on Saturday, some 100 years after the doomed liner was built in the same yards. Almost 100,000 tickets for Titanic Belfast, a striking aluminium-clad building which tells the famous ship's story through special effects, interactive screens and a ride, have been sold ahead of the opening. Organisers hope the £97 million ($155 million, 116 million euro) centre can boost tourism in the British province, which was torn apart by sectarian strife for three decades until the late 1990s. "We want to bring people to Northern Ireland not just to see what a generation 100 years ago were able to achieve, but what this generation can achieve in this new era of peace," said First Minister Peter Robinson. Cyril Quigley, a 105-year-old who watched the Titanic's launch more than a century ago, joined the province's leaders at the opening of the building, which takes the form of four of the ship's huge prows. "All I saw was this big thing sliding out into the water," Quigley said as he recalled watching with his parents. "I was only four and half." Quigley said the new centre, which rose from the derelict Harland and Wolff shipyard, was "wonderful". "I often thought they would make another plastic ship here and have it as a restaurant or something, but this is fantastic," he said. "It's like our Sydney Opera House." The biggest, most ambitious ship of the age hit an iceberg on its maiden voyage across the Atlantic Ocean from Southampton to New York, sinking on April 15, 1912. Of the 2,224 people aboard, 1,514 perished. Organisers hope the six-storey Titanic Belfast, which also features a banqueting space containing a replica of the ship's grand staircase, will attract 425,000 visitors in its first year, including many from Asia.

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Keeping Cartier contemporary: the jewelry house discusses modern art, mass market collaborations and the revival of classics

Ahead of the launch of Cartier, Jeweler of the Arts, the latest expo from Cartier's art museum the Fondation Cartier, which begins April 3 in Paris, Relaxnews met up with Cartier Europe's managing director Cyrille Vigneron to discuss how a prestigious maison stays ahead in an ever evolving luxury market. Relaxnews: Cartier, Jeweler of the Arts brings together four artworks commissioned by Cartier and made by four very different artists (David Lynch, Takeshi Kitano, Alessandro Mendini, Beatriz Milhazes) using precious and semi-precious stones no longer deemed suitable for the brand's jewelry. What makes a luxury house decide to team up with contemporary artists? Cyrille Vigneron: The artists can see what others don't see in terms of trends, arts, design, all forms of expression. They see a different way to represent the world and the foundation doesn't think about what Cartier is doing -- it just thinks about the art world. The Fondation won't become a design studio for Cartier products. Some other brands are doing that, calling artists or designers and saying 'sign our products' or making something that is co-branded. I won't say who but you can easily see. It becomes a hybrid which has some value but it changes the orientation and perception. A brand should be true to its own creative past, its own patrimony, and the designer should serve that as a purpose. When it comes to a designer working for himself it's something different. RN: The Fondation Cartier is known for championing emerging contemporary artists from across the globe, but where does Cartier stand on rising US jewelry designers such as Alexis Bittar and Pamela Love? Do you feel a challenge to compete or consider them separate? CV: For jewelry I say the more players the better. Having more famous designers gets people interested and creates stimulation and diversity. But each has to find its own style. For example, Hermès is moving into it and exploring its own way with the famous Hermès handbags being transformed into jewelry for the luxury market. This is something exploratory, something no one has done before. As long as we have many designers doing something genuine it's fine, when a designer starts to copy another one that's not fine. RN: Cartier was one of the main luxury jewelers in the limelight following last year's Elizabeth Taylor jewelry auction, and some of the opulent designs inspired by the star's collection have been reinterpreted on a mass scale. What is your take on this? CV: When you are copied it means that you're interesting, but if some brands just come and copy others without making any innovation or developments then it's counterfeit. You should respect others. If you just say, "We'll copy this and make it cheaper and it will be fine," it's just disgusting. But if you really go further and try something new and I'll find clients for that then it's great, then it stimulates everyone's creativity and inspires us to do things better. RN: So would Cartier ever collaborate with a more affordable brand? CV: No, never. There can be room for premium jewelry or costume jewelry; it can all be something interesting as far it is what it is. Then there is fine jewelry, then there is high jewelry and it's a different world. We can have simple designs; for example the trinity ring is very simple, a wedding band is a wedding band -- simple, straight, symbolic -- we're happy to do it. But a lower end collaboration to diffuse via a mass production -- never. Projects such as the recent Cartier Odyssey movie make Cartier universal. Whether you intend to buy or not doesn't matter. RN: How does Cartier maintain a balance between keeping traditional clients happy and attracting new ones? CV: The maison has a stature and has been endorsed by really famous people from past and present: Liz Taylor, the Duchess of Windsor, Grace Kelly. But this can only continue if our contemporary creations are rejuvenated. Now the most demanded pieces come from the Tutti Frutti collection, each of them is new but has been inspired by the 1920s. We can make new ones out of the same inspired style and then have something really daring and new in terms of shape and style and ways to wear. Classics are the kind of designer pieces or products which can talk to anyone at anytime -- a design that has been outstanding whether made in the 1930s or 1970s or this generation. That's why collections go through generations; whether it's a trinity ring or a love bracelet. At some point they were daring and then they become classic because someone wears them. Our creations are constantly kept alive, adding new variants to the same model but also keeping the initial model alive itself and that's why we have many variants on the Tank watch collection or the trinity collection. RN: What advice would you give someone considering investing in an expensive item of jewelry? CV: The best way is to see what suits you; your style, lifestyle, what you want to express, who you want to look good for. Talk and let the magic work. You buy it for life. We have a lot of respect for people like mothers who will give their daughter their trinity ring when she turns 18. Our creations keep their value over time and there is currently a lot of demand for vintage pieces.

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Is a Rural Retirement Right for You?

Would you be willing to exchange Thai restaurants and unwavering wireless Internet for homegrown produce and birdsong? If so, a rural retirement may suit you well. The bonus: Rural acreage is a rare segment of the real estate market that weathered the Great Recession. [See 10 New Retirement Hotspots.] According to a report from the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, residential land values in the United States are down nearly 70 percent since peaking in the second quarter of 2006. During that same period, the value of cropland in the contiguous United States rose some 20 percent, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. That's also the downside; higher values mean higher points of entry for would-be buyers looking to get into the rural market. But the category looks poised to grow even more (individual markets may vary, of course.) Higher overall commodities prices lift land values. And while commodities prices can be volatile, a rising global middle class population that's sure to eat better and drive more could keep a floor under the market. That helps land prices. "Idyllic lifestyle-seekers" want a fresh start and a tangible investment, says Dan Duffy, CEO at the rural and coastal real-estate search network United Country, based in Kansas City, Mo. "You can't create more land--it's a finite investment. And during the downturn, agricultural land produced a dividend-like yield in the 5 percent to 8 percent range, plus capital appreciation. This, while some bond yields hovered at zero or worse," Duffy says. Land is also broadly characterized as a "real" asset. It's tangible, and that makes it an inflation-fighter. Land investment can be two-pronged: The land itself is worth something, and what it might produce has a separate value. There are other money-making possibilities: rental income, such as for livestock grazing, cash crops from corn to timber, lodging fees for cabins or a bed-and-breakfast, organic-vegetable selling, fishing and hunting rights, wind power or natural gas rights, and profiting from eco-tourism. Crickets can be louder than traffic. A trend of retirees leaving the suburbs for small town and country life--a move that demographers call "out-migration"--was underway before the economic downturn. It held up relatively well during that period, although was slowed somewhat by weak home-selling markets that kept retirees and soon-to-be retirees in their existing homes. But with the number of baby boomers exiting the workforce, it's a trend that looks to continue. [See the 10 Sunniest Places to Retire.] USDA data show a "deconcentration" of population near metro centers. Urban areas will see a net loss of people age 55 to 75, while in non-metro areas, that age group will increase by 1.6 million nationally during the next 10 years. Remember the Alpaca farm craze a few years back? Turning into a rancher overnight isn't for everyone. Luckily, there are dozens of ways to extend your "career" in the country. If remote life isn't quite your aim, small-town retirement hubs may allow for a service-focused second career--think restaurant or real estate office proprietor, or perhaps hanging out a tax-preparation shingle after a long accounting career at a Fortune 500 company. Many retirees want land they can develop or recreate, at least partially, for their own residential or hobby use. A land purchase can be a wise "mini step" toward retirement: Buy the land while still working in a populous setting, rent it out, move there eventually, says Duffy. Prime school districts may no longer top the list of real estate must-haves, but retirees want a certain level of service and cultural amenities, whether they're in population centers or not. This need may help drive their decision-making. Plus, there are potentially heavy maintenance costs and overall land management responsibilities that may turn off some buyers. An acreage is a big purchase, one that requires a considerable amount of due diligence. (Real estate firms are increasingly getting into the land-management business, so property owners can pay for help.) Curtis Seltzer, a rural land investor and author of How to Be a Dirt-Smart Buyer of Country Property, says rural buying should start at the ground up, literally, with a focus on dirt. "Most buyers from the city and suburbs, including me, focus first and almost exclusively on the country house, whether existing or planned," writes Seltzer. "This comes at the expense of paying attention to the dirt on which the house stands and which surrounds it. We do this, I think, because all of us have a passing familiarity with houses. So we evaluate country property in terms of what we know rather than what we don't." [See 10 Places to Buy a Retirement Home for Under $100,000.] Seltzer offers these tips: -- Look first at how the land lays--its topography. Which direction do its slopes face? How steep are they? If the land is flat, will it drain quickly or hold water because the subsurface contains a lot of clay? The surface vegetation and the feel of the dirt in your hands will give you an initial reading. Topographically interesting land is usually more interesting to spend time on, but it's also more expensive to work with and much harder to work against. -- Second, look at your soils. Different soils have different characteristics and capabilities which will determine what you can do with your property at a reasonable cost. Your first stop in scoping property is to pick up a copy of the county's Soil Survey at the local U.S. Department of Agriculture office. County-level aerial maps and soil-survey information are available for some states and counties, and can be found at soils.usda.gov/survey. -- Third, look at the location of your dirt. Will it be hard to get to in bad weather? Is it subject to flooding, earthquakes, mudslides, windstorms, fires, and prevailing weather? If you have shoreline, is the land low (bad) or high (good)? Is the shoreline eroding? Is the land facing in the right compass direction for your plans? -- Finally, look at your dirt in terms of proximity to local goods and bads--hospital, fire station, public water and sewerage, rescue squad, floodplain, job opportunities, and distance from your current residence, post office, bank, supermarket, and objectionable facilities--however you care to define them. Trending now. United Country's Duffy says rural destinations in the Mid-Atlantic are drawing rising interest for their temperate climate, mix of mountains and shoreline, and reasonable distance to centers such as Washington, D.C. This way, retirees may maintain consulting positions and ease into their retirement. One micro-trend is what he terms the "half-backers." It's a population that spent their working years in the Northeast, then retired to Florida, but are now finding unattractive pricing (or lack of housing or elbow room there) and are moving halfway back to the Northeast. Duffy says "small" ranches of a few hundred acres in Texas are popular searches on his firm's website. He also notes increasing migration from California to the "unspoiled" and less-expensive mountain retreats of Colorado, Montana, and Idaho.

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