NEWS

The Office Opens New Branch In Russia

Three years after the British comedy phenomenon The Office jumped across the pond to the States, it looks like your favorite collection of sad-sacks is jumping back. Early this morning, it was announced that BBC Worldwide has licensed the format to Russia’s Channel One for 24 episodes of Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant’s brainchild.

Scoff if you want—we were initially cynical about the American version too, but Greg Daniels and NBC won us over with his spot-on casting and hilarious writers. Will the Russian version continue the streak? Watch all 3 incarnations—British, American, and “Japanese”—and think about what hilarity might ensue when Sergei cooks Ivan’s stapler into a borscht-flavored gelatin mold. And let us know how it is on the other side of the Iron Curtain (that’s what she said!).

Turn Your Computer Into A Motorcycle

If the sight of an ugly, gray PC is messing up your Feng Shui, you might want to call Russian designer Dennis Ilyin a.k.a. Xooler. He recently entered this crazy computer-ternt-motorcycle into a computer case mod contest. The soothing green, water-filled glowing cylinders in the back are actually there to keep your processors cool. The buzzkill is that, of course, you can’t actually drive this hog. After the jump, check out some detail shots.

Virtual Reality Has Arrived

If you’re like us, you’ve been waiting for the future—you know, robot maids, hoverboards—for what seems like forever now. Well, thankfully the Russians have taken a step in the right direction with the development of the Virtusphere, a 400 pound steel sphere that allows you to “run, jump, roll, or crawl over virtually unlimited distances without encountering real-world obstacles.” And for about $30,000, you can take this virtual reality hamster ball home with you. Now we just need to figure out how to link it up to multiplayer Halo. See more pictures and an instructional video after the jump…