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On this episode of Radio Active, StarGirl takes up soccer, NeutronLad becomes a preschooler, and I stop by The Tome podcast to geek out about the Eberron Campaign Guide. Back at Nuketown, I talk about my new Nintendo DS Lite and some of the games I've picked up for it, learn how to make my own Star Wars crawl and surf through thousands of government regulations at OpenRegs.com !--break--> Getting the Show There are several ways to get the podcast: Download the MP3 directly Subscribe to the podcast rss feed using an aggregator (you only need to do this once; subsequent shows should download automatically) Subscribe via iTunes (you need iTunes installed on your computer for this to work) Show Notes Nuketown News She shoots, she scores! StarGirl's started soccer, which is slowly growing on her. She doesn't like it as much as softball; she says there's to much running, and I don't think she gets the charge the ball aspect of soccer. But she's trying. NeutronLad in preschool Our little boy's going to preschool three days a week. He's excited; there are a lot more trucks in preschool. :) We're also meeting a whole new bunch of parents, which is interesting. Only a matter of time until he starts asking to hang out with his new friends. My Gaming Life Halo ODST 6-7 hour campaign, new firefight mode, and a bunch of maps (including 3 new ones). Worth it for me, and I think worth it for my gaming group. It was nice to actually finish a game for once. Buy it from Amazon.com. Borderlands A Diablo-like first-person shooter with an awesome multiplayer mode. Great for people who love Left4Dead, but want to pick from an infinity of weapons. Buy it from Amazon.com. Dragon Age: Origins Bioware's new dark fantasy. Picture The Lord of the Rings drenched in blood, but what really makes this game isn't the gore - it's the story. Buy it from Amazon.com. Eberron Campaign Guide reviews WotC successfully adapted 4E to Eberron, with none of the radical upheavals we saw with the Forgotten Realms Campaign Guide last year. If I was running 4E, this is what I'd use. It gives me hope for the Dark Sun guide. My GameCryer.com review Round-table review at The Tome (including me) Buy it from Amazon.com. No more Sci Fi Wire game reviews They've moved game reviews to Fidgit; not sure if/when I'll start writing again. Looking forward to a break. Promo: Accidental Survivors http://accidentalsurvivors.libsyn.com/ Netheads Create your own Star Wars crawl http://alienryderflex.com/crawl/ OpenRegs Web site dedicated to tracking federal regulations. Find out about what regulations are looking for comments, recently published final regs, and much more. http://openregs.com/ Fake AP Style Guide on Twitter http://twitter.com/FakeAPStylebook Promo: Yog Radio http://www.yog-sothoth.com/radio Review: Nintendo DS Revisited I've got a spiffy new red you create the tools to achieve it. Write about an object -- any object -- and it gets inserted into the game. Use candles to light fires (or flamethrowers), summon Great Cthulhu to smite your enemies, freeze enemies into icecubes with freeze rays, etc. Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars: A top down, faux 3D game that's a throw back to GTA 2. Extensive drug trading minigame (hey, it's GTA right?) is thrawted by police who chase you after minor fender benders. Picross: A picture-based crossword -- you have a grid, and numbers in each column and row tell you how many squares in that grid are filled in. New Super Mario Brothers: Classic side-scrolling action harkening back to Super Mario Brothers 3, with a surprisingly fun battle mode. One of StarGirl's and NeutronLad's favorites. In fact, their nuts about all things Mario. Outro Contact us: Email: nuketown@gmail.com Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/nukehavoc Skype: nuketown AttachmentSize NuRA-2009-11-19.mp327.31 MB

Worried that your Thanksgiving grocery bill is getting fatter while the meal is getting leaner? Last year, the cost for the foods to prepare the typical Thanksgiving dinner went up nearly 6 percent, and prices are steadily rising. But even if you re watching every penny, you don t have to cut corners on the big holiday dinner with help from Walmart!

MONROE, Mich. (Nov. 17, 2009) - Eat the right foods. Exercise regularly. Wear sunscreen. Most of us know these basic components to a healthy lifestyle, but now, doctors have some welcome advice for those who are stressed out about being healthy: take a deep breath, head to your recliner and relax! More on La-Z-Boy and the Health Benefits of Reclining

With more Americans cooking at home, rather than dining out or ordering in, we are always looking for quick tips, new recipes and simple techniques to create healthful meals for the family on the go. Whatever the amount of time you have, there s a delicious recipe that will fit your schedule. In his latest cookbook, Emeril: 20-40-60: FRESH FOOD FAST, Lagasse divides his recipes into three sections based on the amount of time they will take you to prepare. More on Emeril: 20-40-60 Fresh Food Fast

Its all about the games today – games such as: Ring-O Flamingo Warmachine Atlantis Shenandoah Secrets of Morocco GURPS: Magic GURPS: Thaumatology Mile High Dragon, for CyberGeneration Kingsburg Chrononauts

Brutal Deluxe Football Podcast Season 6 Show 13: 2009 Week 10. Scott and I talk about Week 10 of the BDFL NFL seasons, the upcoming Week 11 matchups, and take a look at league news. Like the show? Post this site's link to Twitter, Facebook, Identi.ca, etc.: http://brutaldeluxe.us. Submit content for us to look at by tagging it with #bdfl on Twitter or Identi.ca. Are you on Google Wave? Let us know! Email us text or audio comments!: BrutalDeluxe at gmail.com. Alex's new mic: Blue Microphones Snowball Mixed, recorded, edited and mastered by me. REAPER was used to edit, master, and render the audio. Music: One Big Holiday by My Morning Jacket from the Wired CD.

Some might suggest it s the one holiday that s all about food. No gifts, no religious services, just family and a really big meal. Thanksgiving is the Super Bowl of family entertaining. And because you ll have a crowd of people to feed all weekend long, you may feel captive in the kitchen. But, Sandra Lee has tips to help keep it simple and make the holiday weekend more enjoyable - even for the cook in your family.More on Sandra Lee s Round 2 Recipes and tips for your holiday weekend

Washington DC, November 12, 2009 - The public was invited to join United States Mint Director Ed Moy at a special ceremony to launch the final coin in the 2009 Lincoln Bicentennial One Cent Coin Program, honoring Abraham Lincoln s presidency in Washington, D.C. The ceremony took place on Thursday, November 12, at the Ulysses S. Grant Memorial Statue located below the west front of the U.S. Capitol Building.

VALHALLA, N.Y., November 10, 2009 - FUJIFILM U.S.A., Inc. announced a new venture with Homes For Our Troops (www.HomesForOurTroops.org), a national non-profit organization based in Taunton, MA. Homes For Our Troops builds barrier free specially adapted homes for severely injured veterans that have returned home from Iraq and Afghanistan at no cost to the veterans, giving them back their independence and helping them and their families. More on FujiFilm and Homes For Our Troops

CLEVELAND and MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. - Nov. 11, 2009 - Almost 70 percent of Ohioans are concerned about their ability to manage medical bills for themselves and their families. Medical Mutual of Ohio is addressing this statistic head on by becoming the nation s first health plan to offer Quicken Health Expense Trackersm with bill pay, making medical bills more understandable and now easier to pay than ever before.More on the Quicken Health Expense Tracker

MakerBot is featured in this Wall Street Journal article that just went live. Check it! Make sure to check out the video too! Tinkering Makes Comeback Amid Crisis By JUSTIN LAHART The American tradition of tinkering -- the spark for inventions from the telephone to the Apple computer -- is making a comeback, boosted by renewed interest in hands-on work amid the economic crisis and falling prices of high-tech tools and materials. The modern milling machine, able to shape metal with hairbreadth precision, revolutionized industry. Blake Sessions has one in his dorm room, tucked under the shelf with the peanut butter on it. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology junior has been using the mill to make prototypes for a bicycle-sprocket business he's planning. He bolts down a piece of aluminum plate, steps to his desk and, from his computer, sets the machine in motion. Tinkering With Technology Jason Euren, an anthropology student at the New School University in Manhattan, worked with a soldering kit at the Brooklyn hackerspace Resistor recently. "It's kind of a ridiculous thing to have," says Mr. Sessions, 20 years old. But "in today's marketplace you can't only offer a technical aptitude. You have to be able to provide something more." Occupying a space somewhere between shop class and the computer lab, the new tinkerers are making everything from devices that Twitter how much beer is left in a keg to robots that assist doctors. The experimentation is even creating companies. With innovation a prime factor in driving economic growth, and corporate research and development spending tepid, the marriage of brains and brawn offers one hopeful glimmer. Engineering schools across the country report students are showing an enthusiasm for hands-on work that hasn't been seen in years. Workshops for people to share tools and ideas -- called "hackerspaces" -- are popping up all over the country; there are 124 hackerspaces in the U.S., according to a member-run group that keeps track, up from a handful at the start of last year. SparkFun Electronics Inc., which sells electronic parts to tinkerers, expects sales of about $10 million this year, up from $6 million in 2008. "Make" magazine, with articles on building items such as solar hot tubs and autopilots for robots, has grown from 22,000 subscribers in 2005 to more than 100,000 now. Its annual "Maker Faire" in San Mateo, Calif., attracted 75,000 people this year. "We've had this merging of DIY [do it yourself] with technology," says Bre Pettis, co-founder of NYC Resistor, one of the first hackerspaces, in Brooklyn. "I'm calling it Industrial Revolution 2." The financial crisis played a role in taking a nascent trend and giving it increased urgency, says Michael Cima, an MIT engineering professor. "I've been here 23 years and I definitely see this trend back to hands-on," he says. "A lot of people are pretty disappointed with an image of a career in finance and they're looking for a career that's real." Access to the tools to tinker is getting easier. "Computer numerical controlled," or CNC, tools -- which cut metal and other materials into whatever design is plugged into the computer attached to them -- now cost as little as a tenth of what they did a decade ago. Mr. Sessions, the MIT student, says he first looked at such mills on a lark, assuming the price would be well out of his reach. But his mill cost about $7,000 to buy and set up. He sees the bike-sprocket business as a springboard for developing more complex products, such as a device to increase mobility for arthritis sufferers or an energy-efficient car transmission. He thinks his interest in tinkering will give him an advantage in a global marketplace. "If it doesn't have that creative aspect to it, it may not be worth doing, because your job can be outsourced," he says. Innovation in the U.S. is peppered with examples of tinkerers who started out small, but came up with big ideas, says Naomi Lamoreaux, an economic historian at the University of California, Los Angeles. "The really dynamic times in our history are times when you have lots of ordinary people who think they have a chance to make a difference." Through much of the past century, however, developing new products required increasingly complex and expensive tools that were out of reach of most individuals -- the Wright brothers built an airplane in their bicycle shop, but the first jet-powered aircraft were built at well-funded corporate and government labs. As a result, large firms came to dominate innovation. That trend was disrupted in the 1990s when low-cost computers allowed Internet and software start-ups to compete with giants. But when it came to developing innovative physical products, high prices kept high-tech machine tools and materials out of most tinkerers' reach. "There have always been hobbyists, but it was really hard to go from being a hobbyist who built hot rods to becoming a car company," says Erik Kauppi, a member of at A2 Mech Shop, an Ann Arbor, Mich., workshop where tinkerers pool tools they own. "But now, all of a sudden a guy or a couple of guys have a lot more leverage." The electric scooter that Mr. Kauppi, who is 49, developed at the workshop is now in production. His business, Current Motor Co. in Scio Township, Mich., plans to begin shipping its scooter, with a starting price of $5,500, this month. At engineering schools, the drop in costs is putting tools once accessible only to senior researchers into the hands of undergraduates. The Hobby Shop at MIT, once mainly a wood shop, has been accumulating advanced equipment, some castoffs from MIT laboratories, some bought. "Now you can build sophisticated robots and things like that with all these new pieces of equipment they have," says Greg Schroll, 23, a 2008 MIT engineering graduate. He hopes to eventually start a company around a spherical robot he built at the MIT shop, which he sees being used to gather information in places too hazardous for humans. Projects made by MIT students in the Hobby Shop now in commercial production include a LED system to create lighting effects for film and a machine to salt the rim of a margarita glass. Hands-on is catching on at other schools. There were 27% more undergraduates who earned mechanical-engineering degrees in 2008 than in 2003, according to the American Association of Engineering Societies. Over the same period, the number of computer-engineering graduates slipped by 31%. Students at Carnegie Mellon University asked to stay at school for a week after exams last spring so they could hang out and build things. Ed Schlesinger, a professor there, says that after a long period where theoretical work dominated at engineering schools, "when students talk to each other now, it's 'So, what cool project are you working on?' It's not enough to say I took these classes and got an A." Stanford University's Product Realization Laboratory, where students learn machining, welding and other hands-on skills, has seen membership jump to 750 from 450 over the past five years. As a junior at Stanford in 2004, Carly Geehr thought she was headed for medical school. Then she took a course on manufacturing and design at the Stanford workshop. "I'd never held a drill in my life, but working with the milling machine -- I was just blown away," says Ms. Geehr, who is 24. She changed her major to engineering and, as a doctoral candidate in engineering, is now a teaching assistant for the course that gave her the bug to build. On a recent day, she cheered students on as they prepared molds for sand-casting bronze, occasionally donning a protective fire suit to skim red-hot dross from the crucible before pouring molten metal into the molds. Giulio Gratta, a senior in Stanford's engineering school, has been using the workshop to build a panoramic camera. Even though Stanford is in the heart of Silicon Valley, he says software and Internet development don't hold as much interest as before. "It's no longer the thing to do," says Mr. Gratta, who is 21. "People have to figure out something else. Maybe...physical things." From hacker spaces to profitable businesses, tinkering is experiencing a renaissance. WSJ's Andy Jordan explores some of the "stuff" people are making with new devices that encourage hacking and creativity. Until the 1950s, economists thought how fast the economy grew was mostly a matter of how much money was spent and how much work was getting done. But in a 1957 paper that helped him later earn a Nobel Prize, MIT economist Robert Solow showed capital and labor only accounted for about half of growth. The remaining half he attributed to innovation -- an area where the U.S. has long had an advantage. In recent years, however, U.S. spending on research and development has led some economists to worry that innovation will no longer provide the boost it once did. Corporate R&D spending grew an average of 2.6% annually from 2000 to 2007, down from an average of 6% in the 1980s and 1990s, according to the most recent figures from the National Science Foundation. Chief financial officers surveyed in September by Duke University's Fuqua School of Business and CFO Magazine said they expected their companies' R&D spending to grow by just 0.4% over the next year. Tinkering represents innovation outside such figures. TechShop in Menlo Park, Calif., for example, is a for-profit workshop and operates like a gym, except that the members who pay $100 a month are milling iron rather than pumping it. Founder Jim Newton tallied a list of all the tools he could imagine needing. Now TechShop, opened in 2006, has $500,000 worth of lathes, laser cutters and other equipment. There are 600 members at TechShop's original location, up from 300 a year ago, and it has opened workshops in Durham, N.C., and Beaverton, Ore. Projects under way include a liquid-cooling device for computer servers and an electric two-wheeled car. NYC Resistor, the hackerspace in Brooklyn, is funded by members and fees from classes it offers. It opens to visitors every Thursday. Recently, a group gathered around Ben Combee, who demonstrated the laser cutter. He put a piece of Plexiglas into place, started the air compressor, pushed a button and shouted, "Fire the laser!" At a table strewn with laptops, wires and circuit boards, Eric Skiff showed off a robotic arm that twitches when a hand is passed near it. In a corner is the Barbot, a robot that, when it works, pours and stirs an absinthe cocktail called a Sazerac. Such projects -- not to mention a giant Lite-Brite and a toy piano that plays Philip Glass's "Modern Love Waltz" -- may seem frivolous. But Zach Hoeken Smith, a NYC Resistor cofounder, thinks something important is going on. The computer kits sold by companies such as Apple in the 1970s were demeaned as toys, he says, but ended up launching the personal computer revolution. Mr. Smith, 25, studied computer science at the University of Iowa, and worked as a Web developer. But a few years ago, he started playing with an "Arduino" -- an open-source microcontroller. These are used as the "electric brains" for everything from wall-avoiding robots to a hat that pokes the wearer's heads if the person stops smiling. "I was hooked," he recalls. Intrigued by the idea of making a machine than can build its own parts, Mr. Smith got interested in "rapid prototyping machines" -- 3D printers that lay down layers of materials like plastic to form objects. The technology is used by manufacturers to make prototypes, with industrial machines typically costing tens of thousands of dollars. Mr. Smith's NYC Resistor friends Mr. Pettis and Adam Mayer joined the project. Using off-the-shelf electronics and parts, along with a laser cutter, they came up with a machine. Now they're selling kits to make 3D printers. Their company, MakerBot Industries, has shipped 350 of the $750 kits so far. They hired two employees, started paying themselves, and are building another 150 kits for their next shipment. Adam Elkins and members of a hackerspace in Philadelphia, called Hive 76, bought one kit and built the machine. Mr. Elkins, a 28-year-old system administrator for a software company, says he doesn't have access to a lot of space, so he goes to the hackerspace to build. "There's no man-cave I can go to and do things." The first thing he made on the 3D printer was a black plastic ring topped off with white plastic jewel. Last month, he presented it to his girlfriend, along with a marriage proposal. She said yes.

Brutal Deluxe Football Podcast Season 6 Show 12: 2009 Week 9. Scott and I talk about Week 9 of the BDFL NFL seasons, the upcoming Week 10 matchups, and take a look at league news. Like the show? Post this site's link to Twitter, Facebook, Identi.ca, etc.: http://brutaldeluxe.us. Submit content for us to look at by tagging it with #bdfl on Twitter or Identi.ca. Are you on Google Wave? Let us know! Email us text or audio comments!: BrutalDeluxe at gmail.com. Alex's new mic: Blue Microphones Snowball Mixed, recorded, edited and mastered by me. REAPER was used to edit, master, and render the audio. Music: One Big Holiday by My Morning Jacket from the Wired CD.

Today we tease you with some upcoming plans for the pulp gamer network and throw out an opportunity for writers. We have some great discussion today, all spurred by your feedback from the show. Some plugs today include The RPG Haven Podcast, Emerald City Game Fest, and of course, Uncle Bear. Our famous TomG also has a blog, where he posts a lot of his feedback to this and other shows.

Derek takes us back to the court of Justinian. In this Byzantine themed and decorated board and card game, everyone is working hard to influence the members of the court. You only have so much influence and you want to be sure your counselors are positioned well to serve your cause. You will do well if you spend your influence wisely and can read through your opponents motives. Justinian Publisher: Mayfair Games Style: Board Game Designed by: lessandro Saragosa and Leo Colovini Players: 2-4 Play Time: 45 minutes Ages: 10+ MSRP: $45.00

Breathe new life into your old corks by recycling them into all-natural coasters. Author: CoryButler

We had a blast at RinCon (be sure to see One Cool Thing) and are now looking forward to TusCon, MACE, and sailing around Mexico and the Caribbean with Gamer Adventures. We were able to enjoy the cooperative game, Witch of Salem several times over RinCon. We also shamelessly plug one of our co-hosts game stores, Hat's Games.

Brutal Deluxe Football Podcast Season 6 Show 11: 2009 Week 8. Scott and I talk about Week 8 of the BDFL NFL seasons, the upcoming Week 9 matchups, and take a look at league news. Scott's back! Like the show? Post this site's link to Twitter, Facebook, Identi.ca, etc.: http://brutaldeluxe.us. Submit content for us to look at by tagging it with #bdfl on Twitter or Identi.ca. Are you on Google Wave? Let us know! Email us text or audio comments!: BrutalDeluxe at gmail.com. Alex's new mic: Blue Microphones Snowball Mixed, recorded, edited and mastered by me. REAPER was used to edit, master, and render the audio. Music: One Big Holiday by My Morning Jacket from the Wired CD.

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Agency for Toxic Substance and Disease Registry (ATSDR), and numerous state departments of health have been working together to investigate and analyze how Chinese made drywall entered into the country, where it was used, what is in it, and what impact it may have on human health and corrosion of electrical and metal components.More on the CPSC s investigation of Chinese drywall

Last year I made a video every day of November. This year, it's time to do it again. Every weekday, I'll post a new video. I'm doing this with some other video superstars! It's New In November!

Our main topic today is about value and what happens when a game changes edition or goes out of print. The game that started this discussion was Tales of the Arabian Nights. Many more are also referenced. Jess Hartley talks about her appearances on The Gearheart and The Game's the Thing. Don recently appeared in The Tome Show and The Game's the Thing.