Diamonds Will Safeguard the Next Generation of U.S. Soldiers

Designing military body armor is like racing without a finish line: Weaponry will always advance, so armor must constantly evolve. But races without ends still require leaders and trailers, and those who build armor are about to come out ahead, according to some experts.

As body armor advances, it provides improved protection and a more lightweight, better fit. Armor that weighs less makes soldiers more mobile, and it helps designers redistribute that weight to other parts of the armor so it can provide increased security. But there's only so far that a product can advance using the same materials. Every so often, engineers experiment with a new way to protect soldiers — and this time, it's with diamonds. Read more...

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8 Glittering Facts About the New Year's Eve Ball

At 11:59 pm EST on Dec. 31, the Waterford Crystal Times Square New Year's Eve Ball will begin its descent from the pole atop One Times Square in New York City. Each year, more than one billion people worldwide watch with bated breath, collectively counting down the seconds to a new year.

Among a night of musical performances and celebrity appearances, the glimmering New Year's Eve Ball remains the true star of the show and the reason an estimated one million people head to Times Square for the festivities

See also: 7 New Year's Resolutions That Take 5 Seconds Each

Ring in 2014 with eight fun facts about the famous New Year's Eve Ball. Read more...

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Archos Beats CES Rush and Unveils Step-Counting Fitness Tracker

Wearable fitness trackers are sure to be a big trend at the 2014 International CES next week, and Archos is beating the rush by unveiling its candidate a few days early. The Archos Activity Tracker is a wristband that can measure your steps, view your history and let you compete with friends.

Similar to the Fitbit Force, the Archos band has a small display that can relay basic data, like the number of steps taken in a day or the amount of calories burned. A full charge of the battery is said to last an entire week, and it charges via USB, just like the Nike+ Fuelband.

See also: 5 Health Tech Trends to Watch in 2014 Read more...

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Stop With Your Coding Delusions

Coding is, without a doubt, the must-have job skill of the 21st century — but it's not really something you can use the "fake it till you make it" strategy on

In this comic, Krishna Sadasivam of PC Weenies proves that just because you can type and reboot your computer, you're not automatically some sort of software engineer

See also: Coding Is the Must-Have Job Skill of the Future

Perhaps your 2014 resolution list should include taking some HTML classes.

BONUS: Learn to Code for Free With These 10 Online Resources

Homepage image: iStockphoto, domin_domin. Comic illustration by Krishna Sadasivam, PC Weenies. Published with permission; all rights reserved. Read more...

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Dude, You're Getting Another Shot: Dell Debuts First Ad as Private Company

Dell will release its first ad campaign as a private company Tuesday night, and it's a far cry from the "Dude, you're getting a Dell!" days.

The campaign, themed "Beginnings," plays up Dell's role as a purveyor of tech solutions that help new companies. The initial 60-second spot, which will air during Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve With Ryan Seacrest on ABC, cites Skype, Shazam and Dropbox, among others, as startups that used Dell products

See also: Dell's Bringing Sexy Back With Latitude 7000 Ultrabook

"At Dell, we're honored to be part of some of the world's great stories," a narrator says amid visuals of spartan offices of presumed startups. "Stories that began much in the same way ours did, in a little dorm room, number 2713." That room, of course, is where Michael Dell started his company at the University of Texas in 1984 Read more...

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10 Reasons to Stay Home on New Year's Eve

At the risk of sounding like a grumpy old Grinch, we'll admit it: New Year's Eve is the worst.

Dec. 31 is the one night of the year when expectations are preposterously high, and realities are inevitably disappointing. With all that pressure, it's a miracle anyone manages to have a good time.

See also: These Are the Worst Case Scenarios for New Year's Eve

This year, trade the party dress for sweats and grab the Snuggie. Here are 10 reasons to kiss 2013 goodbye from the couch.

Have something to add to this story? Share it in the comments.

Image: Mashable, Nina Frazier Read more...

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Report: 2013 Had the Most Internet IPOs Since 2000

By sheer numbers, 2013 was the biggest year for Internet IPOs since the height of the dot-com era in 2000, though the amount raised was far less, according to one researcher.

Birinyi Associates reports that 26 Internet and social media companies went public in 2013, raising a total of $5.39 billion. If you invested in all 26, you would have enjoyed a 77.84% return on your investment. That compares to about a 40% ROI for Nasdaq

See also: 8 Tech Companies That May Go Public in 2014

Largely thanks to Facebook, the aggregate figure for Internet IPOs in 2012 was higher: $18.3 billion. However, just 17 such offerings existed that year. While you would have to trace back 13 years to find a comparable year for number of Internet IPOs this year, the dot-com era produced a much larger crop. In 2000, 89 companies went public, raising $9.58 billion. In 1999, that number was more than twice as high — 188 — which only raised $15.86 billion, still less than what was raised last year Read more...

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