On a spring afternoon in 2014, Brisha Borden was running late to pick up her god-sister from school when she spotted an unlocked kid's blue Huffy bicycle and a silver Razor scooter. Borden and a friend grabbed the bike and scooter and tried to ride them down the street in the Fort Lauderdale suburb of Coral Springs. Just as the 18-year-old girls were realizing they were too big for the tiny conveyances -- which belonged to a 6-year-old boy -- a woman came running after them saying, "That's my kid's stuff." Borden and her friend immediately dropped the bike and scooter and walked away. But it was too late -- a neighbor who witnessed the heist had already called the police. Borden and her friend were arrested and charged with burglary and petty theft for the items, which were valued at a total of 80. Compare their crime with a similar one: The previous summer, 41-year-old Vernon Prater was picked up for shoplifting 86.35 worth of tools from a nearby Home Depot store. Prater was the more seasoned criminal. He had already been convicted of armed robbery and attempted armed robbery, for which he served five years in prison, in addition to another armed robbery charge. Borden had a record, too, but it was for misdemeanors committed when she was a juvenile.

Finally, everything that I've ever wanted out of DIY engineering culture, virtual reality, and the internet have been delivered with the VR Robot Tank, which makes fart noises and quotes the classic Arnold Schwarzenegger vehicle Kindergarten Cop. Freddy Kilo breaks down how he built his VR Robot Tank in a recent YouTube post. It's assembled on top of a gold chassis with tank treads, powered by two Raspberry Pi 2s, and controlled with an Xbox 360 controller. Two cameras are mounted onto a dual servo rig that can move up and down and left and right. Video from those cameras is streamed to an Android phone, where the feeds are played side-by-side in browser windows.

Three weeks ago, New Scientist revealed that Google's artificial intelligence company DeepMind has access to the identifiable personal medical information of millions of UK patients through a data-sharing agreement with the Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust. Now, a New Scientist investigation has found that Google DeepMind deployed a medical app called Streams for monitoring kidney conditions without first contacting the relevant regulatory authority. Our investigation also asks whether an ethical approval process that covers this kind of data transfer should have been obtained, and raises questions about the basis under which Royal Free is sharing data with Google DeepMind. DeepMind's partnership with the Royal Free provides it with fully identifiable information – including names, addresses and details of medical conditions – for the 1.6 million patients treated at Barnet, Chase Farm and the Royal Free each year. It also includes complete data on all patients treated by the trust in the past five years.

Nasa has announced that it has found evidence of flowing water on Mars. Scientists have long speculated that Recurring Slope Lineae -- or dark patches -- on Mars were made up of briny water but the new findings prove that those patches are caused by liquid water, which it has established by finding hydrated salts. Several hundred camped outside the London store in Covent Garden. The 6s will have new features like a vastly improved camera and a pressure-sensitive "3D Touch" display

The first Maker Faire of the year took place last weekend in San Mateo, California, and among the many thrillingly geeky sights and sounds on display was an indoor drone racing course set up by the Aerial Sports League, which bills itself the "only Major Drone Combat and FPV Drone Racing League." The Department of Energy was also attendance, and was so captivated by the Aerial Sports League's setup, that the agency recently posted a 360-degree video of the drone racing area to its Facebook page while lamenting the fact that "the U.S. Department of Energy doesn't race drones for fun like these enthusiasts." However, the DOE points out it is also intensely interested in drones a.k.a. "For example, drones can be used to detect methane leaks or help scientists select the fastest-growing strains of sorghum, an important bioenergy crop." That's the verbal equivalent of wearing socks and sandals, but just because the Department of Energy is more focused on scientific concerns like sorghum and methane leaks, doesn't mean they can't show off a gorgeous drone race track in 3D.

Birthed into the sky with all the fanfare of a soda bottle pop, the drone swarm took flight from its metallic silos. One drone every second, until the whole swarm is airborne. Pop, pop, pop, this is the future of war, according to the Office of Naval Research. "LOw-Cost Unmanned aerial vehicle Swarming Technology", or LOCUST, as the program is known, is an evocative acronym, immediately bringing to mind biblical retribution against Pharaoh and countless other famines wrecked by the flying, grain-hungry insects. The military program is modestly less sinister.

KABUL – The Afghan Taliban confirmed on Wednesday that leader Mullah Akhtar Mansour was killed in a U.S. drone strike last week and said they had appointed a successor. In a statement sent to media, the insurgent group said its new leader is Mullah Haibatullah Akhundzada, one of two of Mansour's deputies. It said he was chosen at a meeting of Taliban leaders, which was believed to have been held in Pakistan. Mansour was killed in Pakistan on Saturday when his vehicle was struck by a U.S. drone, an attack that is believed to be the first time a Taliban leader was killed in such a way inside Pakistani territory. Pakistani authorities are believed to have given shelter and support to some Taliban leaders over the Afghan border.

The Afghan Taliban confirmed on Wednesday that their leader Mullah Akhtar Mansour was killed in a U.S. drone strike last week and that they have appointed a successor -- a scholar known for extremist views who is unlikely to back a peace process with Kabul. The announcement came as a suicide bomber struck a minibus carrying court employees in the Afghan capital, killing at least 11 people, an official said. The Taliban promptly claimed responsibility for the attack. In a statement sent to the media, the Taliban said their new leader is Mullah Haibatullah Akhundzada, one of Mansour's two deputies. The insurgent group said he was chosen at a meeting of Taliban leaders, which is believed to have taken place in Pakistan, but offered no other details.

Despite the altogether likely Robot Apocalypse that's looming, it's fun to pretend that we -- the humans -- are in control of the machines. As robotics bleed further into the mainstream with autonomous cars and low-cost Arduino kits, we're seeing an influx of laboratories designed to incubate ever more astonishing things. Though most sit on the campuses of universities, many technology firms are investing in labs of their own. Below, we've rounded up five that are changing the world in the here and now. Enjoy, and keep your head on a swivel.

The Afghan Taliban confirmed on Wednesday that their leader Mullah Akhtar Mansour was killed in a U.S. drone strike last week and that they have appointed a successor -- a scholar known for extremist views who is unlikely to back a peace process with Kabul. The announcement came as a suicide bomber struck a minibus carrying court employees in the Afghan capital, killing at least 10 people, an official said. The Taliban promptly claimed responsibility for the attack. In a statement sent to the media, the Taliban said their new leader is Mullah Haibatullah Akhundzada, one of Mansour's two deputies. The insurgent group said he was chosen at a meeting of Taliban leaders, which is believed to have taken place in Pakistan, but offered no other details.