Robot Designs Inch Closer to Terminator, Humans Terrified
Robotics company Boston Dynamics recently unveiled its latest design: a two-legged upright robot that walks and runs remarkably like a real person. Although the machine represents only the lower-half of a human body, its resemblance to certain science fiction automata is already inducing panic-sweat.

According to Boston Dynamics, the robot, known as PETMAN, is intended for military applications and "will balance itself and move freely; walking, crawling and doing a variety of suit-stressing calisthenics during exposure to chemical warfare agents." More frighteningly, "[t]he robot will have the shape and size of a standard human, making it the first anthropomorphic robot that moves dynamically like a real person."

But this isn't the first time that Boston Dynamics, which originated at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), has scared observers with impressive mimicry of biological movements. One of the company's earlier designs, BigDog, is probably its most famous to-date, according to Fast Company, and is able to function as a semi-autonomous "robotic packhorse" for the military.

Here are clips of PETMAN and BigDog in action (watch for the kicks):

NASA Launches World's Tallest Rocket
This Wednesday, NASA successfully launched the new Ares I-X, a 327-foot (100-meter) spacecraft and the tallest rocket in the world, in a test flight to develop potential replacements for the aging fleet of space shuttles, Agence France-Presse reports.

The $445-million launch was the first time in 30 years that anything other than a shuttle took off from the Kennedy Space Center. After climbing to an altitude of 130,000 feet, the launch vehicle detached from its boosters, while the 700 sensors attached to the rocket should help engineers determine how its design characteristics perform under flight conditions, according to AFP.

"The flight test is expected to provide NASA with an enormous amount of data that will be used to improve the design and safety of the next generation of American spaceflight vehicles, which could again take humans beyond low Earth orbit," NASA said in a mission announcement.

Although the rocket is an unmanned prototype, future versions will have astronauts riding in a crew capsule attached to the top. The Ares I-X is part of an initiative to bring back manned flights to the moon and farther into space, perhaps eventually to Mars, InformationWeek reports.

"Whatever" Voted Most Annoying Word
Everyone has a type of word or phrase they find particularly irritating, whether buzzwords or business jargon, but some linguistic quirks are so pervasive they become disliked on a national scale.

According to an October poll from the Marist Institute for Public Opinion, "whatever" has become the most annoying word in the United States, with 47 percent of Americans claiming it is the most irritating word they encounter when communicating with others.

By comparison, 25 percent of respondents said they consider "you know" the most annoying term, 11 percent voted for "it is what it is," 7 percent claimed "anyway" was the most irritating and 2 percent said "at the end of the day" is their most disliked phrase.

Interestingly, the survey also found that linguistic pet peeves vary on a regional basis, with 55 percent of Midwesterners disliking "whatever" versus 35 percent of people in the Northeast. On the other hand, "you know" was considered more irritating in the Northeast (32 percent) than in the Midwest (19 percent).

Halloween is Big Business
Each year, Halloween provides an October boost in consumer spending, as millions of Americans purchase decorations, candy, party supplies and costumes. Although the economic downturn has affected Halloween spending this year, the holiday remains a major revenue opportunity for many businesses.

According to a report released last month by the National Retail Federation, consumers are expected to spend an average of $56.31 on Halloween shopping this year, down from $66.54 last year but still amounting to a projected total of $4.75 billion.

"The economy has caught up to Halloween this year," Tracy Mullin, the president and CEO of the National Retail Federation, said in an announcement of the findings. "Since retailers know that Americans will be looking to celebrate on a budget, there's no doubt we will see creative costume and decorating ideas in every price point imaginable."

The survey found that consumers plan to spend an average of $20.75 on costumes, $17.99 on candy, $14.54 on decorations and $3.02 on greeting cards. Haunted houses have also become big business, with the haunted attractions industry valued at $1 billion and taking in $500 million each year in ticket sales alone, Inc.com reports.

The Nanotechnology Musical
Not many people associate nanotechnology with children's musicals, but one group of students from UC Berkeley has made a catchy and entertaining video involving nanotube puppets, monsters and some great singing, Wired.com's Wired Science blog reports.

The musical is intended to raise interest in nanotechnology outside of the academic community, and was recently entered into a contest sponsored by the American Chemical Society.

Here's the charming little musical, puppets included:

Have a Happy Halloween, folks!