Are 3D Printers the Play-Doh of the Future?

You’ve taken time out of your busy week to agree with us that middle school is anything but funny and that it’s almost impossible to enter a grocery store without racking up the impulse buys.

Before you settle in for the rest of the weekend and hit us up with excuses while prepping for another grueling (or will it be “grool”-ing?) week, check out all the WTF you might have missed with “The Week In WHAT?!

3D Printers = Play-Doh for Adults?

3D printers are all the rage, and now it’s easier than ever to get your hands on one thanks to the team at Staples. Of course, nothing that will make you the envy of all your techie friends comes cheap. If you haven’t splurged your tax refund away and your Macbook pro isn’t puttin’ on the fritz, then good luck holding out until June. That’s when you’ll be able to purchase your very own Cube 3D printer for $1,299. Although restrictions may prevent you from creating everything under the sun, you can try quenching that uber-God complex you’ve developed courtesy of “The Sims” by making action figures of you and all your friends. Sorry, Puzz-3D, you can’t sit with us!

It’s Time to Go to Rehab, Charlie Brown!

Remember all those times Charlie Brown got all “good grief” on everyone and everything that troubled him? Well, his real-life alter ego Peter Robbins apparently missed the memo — and now faces troubles of his own. Robbins, the original voice of CB in the 1960s, was sentenced to 365 days in jail after pleading guilty to stalking and criminally threatening his girlfriend. As if his life were a “Peanuts” reality competition show, the judge immediately banished him to a drug rehab facility, uttering the words “don’t be a blockhead.” Let’s just hope the doctor is in. Unfortunately, it’s already cost him more than five cents.

A Changing Perspective on Climate Change?

Imagine the Arctic looking entirely different than it does now: instead of water, ice, glaciers and frozen tundra, picture the area densely populated by trees and other greenery. Could that actually happen? According to a group of scientific researchers, it not only could but actually did. Their findings suggest that almost 3.5 millions years ago, summers in the Arctic averaged a balmy temp of 59 degrees Fahrenheit. Guess we know what Travel + Leisure’s popular resort destination will be in a few million years, you know, if the world still exists.

What If Small Wonder Made a Movie?

Documentaries are going where they’ve never gone before — to the robots. A group of tiny, mobile robots known as the “blabdroid” are capturing footage to create their very own documentary. At the helm of the project is their creator, Alex Reben, who believes that his “stupid” yet artificially intelligent babies will capture a raw and unique perspective of the human condition. “Part of it is because when people interact with the robots, the robots are kind of non-judgmental.” says Reben. Catch a sneak peek of the blabdroid in action:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5VdcT94K2Bo?feature=oembed

And there you have this week in “WHAT?!” Can’t wait to see what’s in store for humanity next!

Want to participate in next week’s edition? Tweet the news stories that make you go “WTF?!” throughout the week to @misterjzip. If a story you shared makes the cut, you’ll get a shout-out!

Images via SolidSmack and Slipups.