Rubik's Cube Gets a Makeover

(NEWSER) - A mathematician has devised a foolproof method for solving Sudoku puzzles, USA Today reports. The stimulating mental challenge of the game has attracted millions of fans all over the world, but, from a mathematical perspective, “the interesting fact about Sudoku is that it is a trivial puzzle to solve," says JF Crook of Winthrop University, whose Suduko-busting formula appears in Notices of the American Mathematical Society. More»

Like Barbie, Homer's on the outs in Tehran

(NEWSER) - Maybe the Supreme Leader doesn't giggle at lines like "Homer no function beer well without" and "I felt a surge of power … like God must feel when he’s holding a gun." But whatever the reason, Iranian officials have placed the Homer Simpson doll alongside Barbie on the nation's no-buy list, the AP reports. "We do not want to promote this cartoon by importing the toys," says an official at the Institute for the Intellectual Development of Children and Young Adults. More»

Rubber animals, South Park figures take up cause in Russia

(NEWSER) - Don't toy with us, furious Russian officials are warning activists. But that's just what they're doing. Government critics have staged a miniature protest in the Siberian town of Barnaul using tiny Lego men, South Park figurines, and rubber animals holding little placards emblazoned with messages like "I'm for Clean Elections," and "A Thief Should Sit in Jail, not in the Kremlin," the Guardian reports. "Political opposition forces are using new technologies to carry out public events—using toys with placards at mini-protests," said the town's deputy police chief. "In our opinion, this is still an unsanctioned public event." More»

But luckily, a replica of the downed US stealth drone will be on sale soon!

(NEWSER) - As the US tries to crack down on Iran , Iran is doing some cracking down of its own—on that oh-so-American symbol, the Barbie doll. The country's morality police have begun enforcing a Barbie ban issued in 1996. (Authorities blasted the doll's "destructive cultural and social consequences" at the time.) Reuters reports that the doll had been stocked on Tehran shops' shelves all the same, until about three weeks ago, when the morality police "came to our shop, asking us to remove all the Barbies," says one shop owner. More»

There was more to electronics show than TVs

(NEWSER) - This year's Consumer Electronics Show had the predictable high-tech TVs and other conventional items—but the 3,100 exhibitors also showed off some rather bizarre devices. A few highlights:

• Solowheel. An electric unicycle with no seat and footboards that allow riders to stand and lean in the direction they want to go. The 26-pound, $1,800 machine goes 10mph on its battery-powered motor, and has a 15- to 20-mile range.