Would you go on a mission to mars? What about if it was a one-way mission? And you were by yourself? Yeah, that changes things a bit. Well, that’s exactly what former NASA engineer Jim McClane suggests, saying that it’s worth considering and removes many of the hurdles keeping us from the red planet now.

Dubbed “Spirit of the Lone Eagle,” his plan would eliminate the hardest aspect of any potential Mars mission: the need to launch off of Mars to return to Earth.

“When we eliminate the need to launch off Mars, we remove the mission’s most daunting obstacle,” stated McLane. And because of a small crew size, the spacecraft could be smaller and the need for consumables and supplies would be decreased, making the mission cheaper and less complicated.

While some might classify this as a suicide mission, McLane feels the concept is absolutely logical.

“There would be tremendous risk, yes,” stated McLane, “but I don’t think that’s guaranteed any more than you would state climbing a mountain alone is a suicide mission. People do dangerous things all the time, and this would be something really one-of-a-kind, to go to Mars. I don’t think there would be any shortage of people willing to volunteer for the mission. Lindbergh was someone who was willing to risk everything because it was worth it. I don’t think it will be hard to find another Lindbergh to go to Mars. That will be the easiest part of this whole program.”

So, what do you say, wanna be space travelers? Would you ride in a tiny spaceship to Mars by yourself to be known as the first human ever to travel to, and then die on, Mars? [Universe This day via Danger Room]

Via [Gizmodo]

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Digital billboards are nothing new, but Clear Channel Outdoor will be testing ‘breaking news’ billboards in the Los Angeles area, starting today. The headlines will be controlled by the Los Angeles Times via a custom-built interface controlled from the newspaper’s offices. Ten billboards in all will run a ten-week test campaign consisting of eight-second […]

Digital billboards are nothing new, but Clear Channel Outdoor will be testing ‘breaking news’ billboards in the Los Angeles area, starting today. The headlines will be controlled by the Los Angeles Times via a custom-built interface controlled from the newspaper’s offices. Ten billboards in all will run a ten-week test campaign consisting of eight-second rotational headlines and advertisements.

The technology was briefly tested during the recent Academy Awards broadcast, allowing the newspaper to quickly update news pertaining to the event. Dynamic billboards in Chicago, too, have been in use by police to help catch criminals.

High-tech signs to feature breaking news [Hollywood Reporter]

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Via [crunchgear]

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A month after he personally seized the reigns at Motorola’s beleaguered handset division, CEO Greg Brown is already looking to hand off the responsibility—and maybe the flack?—to someone from outside. Maybe a new perspective is what it needs, all those RAZRs start to look the same after a while. Oh wait. [Into Mobile]

Via [Gizmodo]

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Behold, a video of the Newton Virus. Back in 2005, Troika, the British-based art collective that was behind the Heathrow Terminal 5 sculpture that some of you recently described as a “disco turd,” created a virus for Macs, called Newton. It came on a little USB key that looked like a cross between a malevolent Apple and Pac Man and was aimed at, well, people like you or I, who spend far too much time fiddling around on their computers. The video, made this year, is part of the Design and the Elastic Mind show currently running at MoMA in NY. [Troika and Dezeen]

Via [Gizmodo]

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