Deals have been finalized, hancocks have been penned, and maybe even blood sacrifices have been made too. Heh. I kid. But seriously though: Tecmo and Koei have announced yesterday of their upcoming merger. They're setting up shop on April 1 (and no, there's no Apil Fool's joke about it!), 2009, under the banner of Koei Tecmo Holdings. Will there be any room for ex-Team Ninja rockstar Tomonobu Itagaki though? Not if current Koei CEO has any say on it.

Codemasters has announced that it is currently developing a localized, Japanese version of Race Driver: GRID (Xbox 360, PlayStation 3). To find out more about this, head on over to the full article by clicking on the "read more" link below.

Much to the delight of motorheads here at QJ.NET, demos for Codemaster's Race Driver: GRID (Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PC) is now available for download. In case you want to find out more about the demos, head on over to the full article by clicking on the "read more" link below.

When it comes to technology nowadays, a few of the essential features consumers are constantly looking for include portability and style. The trend now is not making new equipments at all but is more leaned towards improving the current ones we have.

It's because of this that we often hear gadget news boasting about the latest innovations. Sharp Corporation would now like to be a part of that list as it has just successfully engineered the world's thinnest LCD for mobile devices. Their "world's thinnest" LCD is named Mobile Advanced Super View LCD.

Sharp's Mobile Advanced Super View LCD is scheduled to be displayed at the event FPD International 2007 at Pacifico Yokohama from today until October 26. Sharp also added that the resolution power of Mobile Advanced Super View LCD is comparable to today's LCD TV. Here are other specifications provided by the company:

• Screen size: 2.2 inches
• Pixel count: 240x320 (QVGA)
• Module thickness: 0.68 mm
• Contrast: 2000:1
• Viewing angle: vertical, horizontal, and diagonal: 176 degrees
• Response speed: 8ms (black - white display)
• Applications: mobile phones, digital cameras, and other mobile devices

Here's something to use for your ultimate gaming rig: Samsung has just manufactured an impressive 40-inch full high definition LCD television panel. And the best part? it's only 1 centimeter thick. Or make that thin.

The more conventional 30mm bezel is thinned out into only 14.6mm, making for a sleek and slim display. This display also uses an LED backlight. Those who don't want to use power-hogging displays may want to take a look at this new LCD monitor, since this panel has a low power consumption of 90 watts or less.

Not yet released for public consumption, Samsung will first launch this impressive LCD monitor in the FPD International 2007 event in Yokohama, Japan, on October 24 to 26. We do hope that the launch price for this nifty display won't be too pricey for any of us to have to trade-in any of our gaming gadgets.

A new, thinner LCD TV panel is being prepped for launch by LG.Philips LCD. This new 42-inch panel will reportedly be 40 percent thinner at only 19.8 mm and 10 percent lighter than conventional 42-inch panels.

Despite the slim frame, LG.Philips LCD still managed to cram a few impressive features into the panel. It uses 120Hz technology to eliminate motion blur and full HD resolution. Costs were also kept low with the use of a cold cathode fluorescent lamp (CCFL) backlight.

LG.Philips LCD will launch its ultra-slim 42-inch TFT-LCD TV panel in the first quarter of 2008. The panel will be on display at FPD International 2007 in Yokohama, Japan, from October 24 to October 26.

For women who have a "slight problem" in the bust department, some scientists may have a more natural looking solution up their sleeves. Scientists in Japan claim to be able to increase the size of a woman's breast using fat and stem cells. According to them, the technique would be using fat from the stomach or thigh, this will then be enriched with stem cells, then would finally be injected.

Kotaru Yoshimura, a surgeon at the Tokyo University medical school said that more than 40 patients had been treated and that this technique aims to give the women with a more natural looking alternative compared to breast implants.

The doctor also said that this method can increase cupsize by two sizes and that there have been no serious complications in the patients. Yoshimura also added that breast enlargement using fat and stem cells did not create a lumpy effect.

For now, the Cellport Clinic Yokohama in Japan is the only medical institution offering this kind of treatment. Consultants and other experts, however, have expressed their doubts about this procedure. Some are saying that this is more of an optimistic view of a theoretical approach, but there are others who are open to exploring this procedure.

With all the excitement that has been brewing up as the Tokyo Game Show draws ever nearer, the organizers have decided to release a map which shows the general floor layout of the event. Fans who will be lucky enough to go there will know exactly where to look for that Square Enix booth (and hopefully find that Aeris cosplayer).

As the map shows, there will be eight entrances to the event area. Restrooms, the food court, the information counter as well as the medical emergency corner (for those who are bound to swoon over the new games) as well as the lost and found corner are indicated. Also, as the map shows, the main hall will be dominated by Sony, Square Enix, Capcom, Namco Bandai, Konami, KDDI Corporation, Sega and mobile service provider NTT DoCoMo.

Another thing to note is that sections have been set aside for game schools such as the Digital Entertainment Academy Corporation, the International Art and Design College, Yokohama Digital Arts and The Institute of Yoyogi Animation, so people who are thinking of studying in order to get into the game industry would probably find it a good idea to drop by that area. A section for development tools and middleware has also been allocated, where workshop space has even been provided.

A separate area has also been designated for shopping, and there will also be an area for children, as well as a video games museum.

For the lucky ones who will be flying to Japan by the end of the week, go forth and take these maps with you. Don't forget to bring your digicam and several extra memory cards.

View the Hall Map and additional Section Maps after the jump!

Over two years ago, Apple Computer stunned the world with the introduction of its XServe G5 with 30 GigaFLOP Processor.

Researchers at Japan's Institute of Physical and Chemical Research are developing a machine that will leave it in the dust.

The MDGRAPE-3, aka. the "Protein Explorer," will be able to perform calculations at the rate of one "petafFLOP," or over one quadrillion FLOating Point operations per second.  This number is equivalent to 2⁵⁰, or 1,125,899,906,842,624.  This computer will be used to perform simulations of molecular dynamics and non-bonding interactions between atoms. The entire system consist of 24 of the Institute's LSI chips, connected to a total of 101 parallel servers - 64 of which are equipped with 256 Intel 5000 cores, and the remaining servers with 74 Xeon 3.2 GHz cores.

While this computer cannot presently be compared directly with other top supercomputers around the world, it's theoretical top processing speed is at least three times that of the current #1, IBM's "BlueGene."

The system was presented to the public last Saturday at the Institute's lab in Yokohama.