Sports

One dog barking isn't enough for this year's Volkswagen Super Bowl spot.  Deutsch, LA, which produced the winning commercial for the 2011 Super Bowl, The Dark Side, featuring a mini Darth Vader and his dog, decided to make this year's stars a dozen barking dogs, moving its energy from The Dark Side to The Bark Side.

With prosthetic devices, function comes first while form too often places a poor second. Not anymore! Perhaps inspired by the footwear flaunted by footless South African runner Oscar Pistorius, a Japanese industrial designer has unveiled a very esthetic prosthetic.

Tiger Woods, American professional golfer and reluctant celebrity, is taking his talents to Japan! The former World No. 1 and Japan's top 3 female pro golfers are set to tee off this November 1st in “Challenge! Tiger Woods”, a 9-hole charity event to benefit Japanese earthquake and tsunami relief.

These faux Chuck Taylor High-Tops have nothing to do with Converse or basketball, though their extraordinarily thick soles might trim a few inches off your layup.

Adidas China has installed giant punching bags on a Shanghai subway platform as part of their interactive “Don't Waste Your Wait” ad campaign. Commuters are encouraged to take out their frustrations on the huge, three-striped bags while waiting for their train.

Talk about prematurely dropping the puck: the NHL's Winnipeg Jets haven't unveiled their new hockey jerseys to the public but that hasn't stopped Chinese counterfeiters from knocking off new Jets jerseys by the dozen.

'The Chosen One' has chosen China – at least, for a few days. The 2011 LeBron James Basketball Tour was a promotional tour de force both for the NBA and for Nike, manufacturer of King James' new shoes.

Want to play 'Angry Birds' live? Then get your apps to China! A carnival booth in the Chinese city of Guangzhou is offering fair-goers a shot at some really pretty plush pigs... with a really big real slingshot.

International trophy hunters have formally applied to stalk Tibetan Gazelles and Himalayan Blue Sheep native to China's mountainous Qinghai province. If approved, it would be the first time in 5 years that sportsmen would be allowed to lock, load, and let the lead fly on Chinese soil.

The opening scene of George Jetson commuting to work in his aerocar, complete with glass dome and airbrakes, seems like a logical solution to the modern problems of traffic jams, potholes and road maintenance. Imagine getting to your destination as the crow flies instead of where the road lies. The Hoverbike promises to fulfill those animated sci-fi images of how we should travel in the modern era.

Some like fast cars, fast horses, fast women...  Cell biologists get a kick out of fast cells - that is, cells that migrate very quickly.  Researchers even modify cells, usually for professional reasons, to make them migrate faster.  In recognition of the achievements, as well as the fun these biologists are having, the American and French societies for cell biology have decided to challenge members of the international cell-building community to a Cell Race - launching now!

Converse and Nintendo have teamed up to create the ultimate gamer's shoe: the Super Mario Bros Chuck Taylor Hi. Available in black or white, these super Super Mario shoes are due to be released this July, only in Japan.

The harder you breathe, the harder the Broncomatic bucks!

A safer, more intuitive way of bouncing and boarding.

Between the awkward name and poor marketing, the Sbyke probably won't be seen in many neighborhoods.

Scary looking, scary functional. After a life-altering accident more than a decade ago, one British climber is back thanks to an innovative prosthetic device.

Easton-Bell pulls the helmet out from behind the plate and onto the mound.

Never get stranded in the snow again. The Airlite inflatable snowshoes are easy to carry and let you hike out of deep snow in an emergency.