I Robot

Robot Land, a $600-million theme park celebrating famous science fiction cyborgs and motion picture androids, is expected to open in South Korea in 2013. > Photos: Robot Land theme park rides and attractions Located about an hour west of Seoul in the coastal city of Incheon, Robot Land would feature 11 rides, seven attractions and eight shows on 190 acres. Dubbed the world's first robot theme park, the oft-delayed Robot Land would compete for visitors with the world's 10th busiest theme park ( Everland )

Robot Land, a $600-million theme park celebrating famous science fiction cyborgs and motion picture androids, is expected to open in South Korea in 2013. > Photos: Robot Land theme park rides and attractions Located about an hour west of Seoul in the coastal city of Incheon, Robot Land would feature 11 rides, seven attractions and eight shows on 190 acres. Dubbed the world's first robot theme park, the oft-delayed Robot Land would compete for visitors with the world's 10th busiest theme park ( Everland )

I, Robot Will Smith, James Cromwell Fox, $30 Will Smith is the go-to guy for science-fiction flicks. Each of his sci-fi projects -- "Independence Day," the two "Men in Black" comedies and "I, Robot" -- has cleaned up at the box office. Based on the book of short stories by Isaac Asimov, "I, Robot" is a decent enough thriller that allows Smith to offer up his trademark wisecracks as well as flex his dramatic muscles.

The little robot rumbled across an otherworldly landscape, its camera lens clouding up in a hostile atmosphere too toxic for human habitation. Its motor whirring, it dispatched a constant stream of images to nervous operators grouped a safe distance away. But the setting wasn't Mars and the scientists aren't from NASA: The robot's handlers were Japanese engineers guiding the remote-controlled machine through one of the battered reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.

What's in a date? When it comes to opening movies, money. And when Hollywood does the math -- and it always does the math -- July usually is about as rich as it gets. Chart the grosses by month for all movies going back to 1999 and July is the biggest, with box office that averages about $908 million, according to the tracking firm Nielsen EDI. And just as baseball had its Mr. October, summer movies have their Mr. July -- Will Smith.

The commander of the German U-boat couldn't believe his luck. Just when he thought the massive steamer was going to escape along the south coast of Ireland, it turned sharply toward him. The British liner RMS Lusitania, on her way from New York to Liverpool, England, with 1,959 passengers aboard, couldn't have run a better course if it voluntarily intended to come into torpedo range, Walther Schwieger told a friend. From 750 yards, he fired a single torpedo. It was 2:10 p.m. on May 7, 1915.

The little robot rumbled across an otherworldly landscape, its camera lens clouding up in a hostile atmosphere too toxic for human habitation. Its motor whirring, it dispatched a constant stream of images to nervous operators grouped a safe distance away. But the setting wasn't Mars and the scientists aren't from NASA: The robot's handlers were Japanese engineers guiding the remote-controlled machine through one of the battered reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.

Preliminary results based on studio projections. *--* Movie 3-day gross Total (millions) *--* *--* The Bourne Supremacy $53.5 $53.5 I, Robot $22.1 $95.4 Catwoman $17.2 $17.2 Spider-Man 2 $15 $328.5 A Cinderella Story $8 $29.8 Anchorman $7.1 $71.2 Fahrenheit 9/11 $5 $103.4 The Notebook $4.5 $62.5 King Arthur $3.1 $45.2 Shrek 2 $2.4 $429.5 *--* Source: Nielsen EDI Inc. Los Angeles Times

Forget the incessant commercials, Bryant Gumbel or even the Olympics themselves ("Selling and the Olympics--Spots Before Our Eyes," by Howard Rosenberg, Sept. 21). We're watching NBC during these two weeks for their eye-popping, almost indulgent computer animated graphics. With rippling flags, whirling fluorescent globes, flying torches, undulating dragons and an athlete straight out of Asimov's "I-Robot," who needs taekwondo? CHRISTOPHER PAULSEN and ROBERT HOLLIDAY Tarzana

A Los Angeles-based start-up called YBUY has received $1 million in funding for its try-before-you-buy service for gadgets. For $24.95 a month, YBUY lets you try out devices before you choose to purchase them or not. After a month, you can either send the gizmo back for another to try or you can keep it and buy it with the $24.95 knocked off the price of the device. "Wouldn't it be great if consumers could test drive a new high-end electronic device before purchasing, just as they would a car?"

I, Robot Will Smith, James Cromwell Fox, $30 Will Smith is the go-to guy for science-fiction flicks. Each of his sci-fi projects -- "Independence Day," the two "Men in Black" comedies and "I, Robot" -- has cleaned up at the box office. Based on the book of short stories by Isaac Asimov, "I, Robot" is a decent enough thriller that allows Smith to offer up his trademark wisecracks as well as flex his dramatic muscles.

What's in a date? When it comes to opening movies, money. And when Hollywood does the math -- and it always does the math -- July usually is about as rich as it gets. Chart the grosses by month for all movies going back to 1999 and July is the biggest, with box office that averages about $908 million, according to the tracking firm Nielsen EDI. And just as baseball had its Mr. October, summer movies have their Mr. July -- Will Smith.

The commander of the German U-boat couldn't believe his luck. Just when he thought the massive steamer was going to escape along the south coast of Ireland, it turned sharply toward him. The British liner RMS Lusitania, on her way from New York to Liverpool, England, with 1,959 passengers aboard, couldn't have run a better course if it voluntarily intended to come into torpedo range, Walther Schwieger told a friend. From 750 yards, he fired a single torpedo. It was 2:10 p.m. on May 7, 1915.