Take a look inside the first commercial-scale solar energy plant to use nothing more than the sun, molten salt, and a whole lot of mirrors to send power to the people. If the Crescent Dunes Solar Energy facility works as promised, it could be a model for the future of renewable energy.

To create the world of Asgard in Thor: The Dark World, filmmaker Alan Taylor enlisted the help of digital effects company The Third Floor. Using a process called previsualization, The Third Floor created fully rendered low-res CG sets and characters, allowing the director to see, plan out, and experiment with scenes before shooting them.

It’s the time of the year for counting blessings and giving thanks. And the Angry Nerd is most thankful for the cancellation of Futurama—because it let the show go out on a high note (and avoid a slow decline, like so many other one-time favorites).

Outside Tonopah, Nev., a construction team of 600 is working to get the Crescent Dunes Solar Energy project up and running by 2014. WIRED has an exclusive look inside the construction of this first-of-its-kind renewable-energy power plant.

Has everyone finished panicking about Ben Affleck being cast as the Dark Knight in Batman vs. Superman? Because the Angry Nerd thinks you should chill—Affleck could totally pull this off. (Just think of Daredevil as a…starter superhero movie.)

The Angry Nerd has read your comments about his loathing of Kick-Ass 2 and the trend of real-life people who become cosplay vigilantes. You have failed to convince him to change his position on the subject.

For years, it’s been a fantasy cinema rule that real actors and CG dragons just don’t mix—ever. With the new release of The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, will Peter Jackson be able to avoid the pitfalls of the disastrous dragons featured in flicks like Dragonheart, Reign of Fire, and Eragon?

Soon, the sharpest-dressed people will be wearing computers. Wearable technology will surpass fitness trackers and Google Glass to become as important as the smartphone, the primary interface through which we experience the world. For the January issue, industrial design firm Branch envisioned the classy wearable of the future for our cover, and senior editor Bill Wasik's feature laid out a roadmap for how we'll get there.

Belkin’s Conserve Insight energy monitor tells you how much juice—and dough—your appliances are using so you can decide what’s worth plugging in.

It’s an outdoor version of the claw game, but with fast, low flying helicopters as the claw and Christmas trees as the prize. At the Hunter Family Farm in Olympia, Wash., helicopter pilots fly across nearly 400 acres, picking up bundles of trees and transporting them, so they can be processed and loaded for your holiday pleasure.

The Hozuki lantern from Snow Peak goes for versatility around the campsite—both inside and outside the tent.

Udacity CEO and co-founder Sebastian Thrun explains why self-driving cars are the future and Holy Grail for road safety. In this World Economic Forum discussion, the engineer and innovator describes how the auto-cruising vehicles will transform society and save lives.

Find out how animation company Animal Logic used complex feather and muscle simulation systems to depict the prehistoric animals in Walking With Dinosaurs.

Google, Facebook, Microsoft, and other tech titans have had to fight for their lives—against their own government. This month, we take a look inside their year from hell, and why the web will never be the same. Also, see what happens when gene-modifying masters Monsanto try to take nature's path, how one man hacked OKCupid to find the girl of his dreams, and the city-within-a-city Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh is building in Las Vegas. Plus: the Data Miner's Guide to Romance, Rick Rubin, and more!

Consider it electronic Lego. littleBits consists of tiny modules that snap together to form circuits, creating simple devices and teaching basic electronics.

You'd think the Angry Nerd would be square in the targeting sights of The Big Bang Theory. You'd think he'd love the show. And yet…and yet….

This steel toolbox from Japanese brand Trusco adds a double-hinged lid and some slick design to the classic form.

With its heavy anodized aluminum mold, Cocktail Kingdom’s Ice Ball Maker transforms cubes into spheres for ice that lasts longer than your typical bricks from a tray.

A kick-ass lady protagonist? Check. Greek mythology? Check. Comic book source material? Check. Wonder Woman has all the ingredients for a hit TV series. So…where is it?

Logitech’s UE Boom combines Bluetooth streaming with a circular design that offers 360-degree sound.

They’ve resurrected RoboCop and we can’t figure out why. Actor Joel Kinnaman has a big helmet to fill, and considering all of the outrageous changes that have been made to the reboot, Angry Nerd is doubtful that the new cyborg will live up to the task.

Digital Edition on sale 2.18.14 On Newsstands 2.25.14

Check out WIRED's music issue featuring Ahmir 'Questlove' Thompson at: http://www.wired.com/listen Music: "Days Passed Me By" Performed by Kooley High Written Napoleon Wright II, Charlie Smarts, Tab-One

Check out WIRED's music issue featuring Ahmir 'Questlove' Thompson at: http://www.wired.com/listen Music: THEESatisfaction "Existinct"

In this World Economic Forum discussion, Carnegie Mellon roboticist Howard Choset shows how snake-like robots can perform minimally invasive surgeries, decreasing cost and patient recovery time.

David Eisenberg, co-founder and CEO of Floored, explains how his company transforms real estate floor plans into 3D experiences using Intel's agile technology, allowing consumers to skip the walkthrough and take a virtual 3D tour instead. Brought to you by Intel.

The Philips Hue Connected Light Bulbs lets you set the mood—or not—with a digital app to control the color and brightness of the bulbs with just a few swipes.

It’s small in size, but packs the strong, flavorful punch that comes from a French press, with the clean and simple design of a drip coffee.

It’s excruciatingly dull and doesn’t even feature the most important awards on the telecast—highlighting best actor over best scientific and technical achievement? The nerve! Angry Nerd offers advice on how to improve this year’s Oscar awards ceremony.

Director Peter Jackson and FXguide’s Mike Seymour reveal how a pivotal seven-minute action sequence in The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug was created with a combined 98 hours of footage from aerial shots, green-screen sets, live-action shoots, and complex CG environments.

For the latest reboot of sci-fi classic RoboCop, filmmakers opted for a mix of visual effects to achieve a realistic look. Fxguide’s Mike Seymour dives into the combination of creating a special effects suit for star Joel Kinnaman to wear, and the post CGI work that helped bring the half-man/half-robot to life.

Aimed at helping multisport athletes improve their training, the GPS-enabled timepiece stores running, swimming, and cycling stats all on your wrist, while also tracking heart rate.

Veronica Mars fans pledged more than $5 million on Kickstarter to get a film adaptation of the show off the ground. And while Angry Nerd is all for crowdfunding for a good cause, when it comes to fans calling the shots in return for financial backing, the money-making model might end up causing more harm than good.

Oxygen is your friend. Unless you’re wine. The Coravin 1000 forces the frenemies to play nice by penetrating the cork with a long needle and pushing argon in, allowing the wine to flow out without opening the entire bottle.

Solar, wind, and nuclear don’t make climate change worse, but they don’t meet the world’s energy needs. What can? Coal, and in the April issue Charles C. Mann writes about cleaning up the dirty, cheap fuel. Also this month: keeping your garden green, how mobile messaging captured our kids (and $19 billion from Facebook), and Mike Judge takes on Silicon Valley.

Elevate bike gear with functional front and taillights in a sleek, smart design that snaps together easily with magnets.

There’s a massive publishing gap in the books that Game of Thrones is based off of, and Angry Nerd is concerned that the show could catch up to the plot before the next book is out. But, one simple solution could solve everything.

Industrial Light & Magic was tasked with updating the helicarriers in the new film Captain America: The Winter Soldier. FXguide’s Mike Seymour talks to the visual effects company to find out what new details were added to the S.H.I.E.L.D. aircrafts, and how the effects team created a digital modeling environment for the epic helicarrier crash scene.

Sorry Apple, sometimes your standard iPhone weather app just doesn’t cut it. Aside from the expected temperature and humidity metrics, Netatmo’s Weather Station app also offers data on sound pollution and CO2 concentration.

First Transformers, then G.I. Joe, now Magic: The Gathering? When will Hasbro learn that a successful game or toy does not equal a successful movie franchise?

In 1983 after the critical and commercial failure of Atari’s E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial video game, the company allegedly dumped millions of cartridges into a landfill in Alamogordo, N.M. Now, more than 30 years later, the site is being excavated and filmed for an upcoming docu-series by The Incredible Hulk screenwriter Zak Penn. The day before the big dig we headed south to talk with Penn about the urban legend. Plus, check out our exclusive first look at the excavation site.

It’s been dubbed The Great Video Game Burial of 1983, but did Atari really toss millions of cartridges of its biggest flop: E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial? Chris Kohler is onsite to witness an excavation of the landfill to see if the joke’s really on us, and to talk with those involved with the project, including original game designer Howard Scott Warshaw.

When a TV show goes off the air, it's supposed to stay dead. Unless it gets syndicated. But networks don't seem aware of this rule anymore, with resurrections of "24" and "Heroes" on the way. Angry Nerd does not approve of this turn of events.

In The Amazing Spider-Man 2, Jamie Foxx stars as Electro, the glowing antagonist to Andrew Garfield’s Spidey. In this video, learn how Sony Pictures Imageworks used a combination of makeup and CGI to turn the Academy Award winner into a blue, electrically-charged villain--with inspiration from lightning, neurological networks, and nebulas.

Character crossovers and storyline mash-ups are nothing new. But if the premise has been done before, are the character overlaps and reincarnations worth a watch? Angry Nerd makes the case for metaphysical mash-ups, including Showtime’s new “Penny Dreadful.”

The 195-horsepower engine isn’t exactly meant for a daily commute. But Ducati’s 1199 Panigale S has a slew of features and the aerodynamics, torque, and weight reduction to make it one of the fastest production motorcycles in the world. Transportation editor Damon Lavrinc tests out the bike and talks to Ducati designers to see how they engineered one of the lightest street motorcycles on the market.

20 winners. $100,000 each. The chance to bring an idea to life. We follow 40 student finalists as they compete for a coveted and controversial Thiel Fellowship. Their projects range from cancer research to new app technology, but there's just one catch if they win—they'll have to drop out of school. Meet the 2014 Thiel Fellowship finalists.

In this episode of Teen Technorati, the 40 finalists are split up into teams and tasked with building a bridge made out of LEGO. Only one team emerges as the winner, but during the challenge the finalists’ leadership and problem-solving skills begin to surface. Plus, fellowship hopefuls Ishaan Gulrajani, Lucy Guo, Darby Schumacher, and Catherine Ray explain the concepts behind their individual Thiel projects.

Creating a memorial from the ruins of 2,983 lives: that's the difficult task faced by the creators of the 9/11 Museum. On the eve of its opening, we speak with director Alice Greenwald and designer Jake Barton about how to commemorate a tragic experience without recreating it. Music: "Sun Will Set" written performed by Zoe Keating From the album - One Cello x 16: Natoma (c) 2005 020202 Music (ASCAP). All rights reserved

The makers of the new Godzilla movie are taking great pains to telegraph their deep reverence for kaiju cinema. In other words, they want us to know they won’t screw it up like Roland Emmerich did in 1998. Angry Nerd makes the case for why we should believe them.