Could 3-D movie The Smurfs actually be protecting us from a fate worse than death?

By John and Matt Yuan

LOS ANGELES — A recent sneak peek into the making of The Smurfs broadened our horizons with regards to those little blue dudes (and one dudette). Yes, the Smurfs in the new live-action-plus-CGI movie are those Smurfs, the characters that became a worldwide sensation after their introduction in 1958, generating comic books, miniatures and eventually a cartoon series.

And yes, they have 300 different words for snow — all of which are pronounced “smurf.” But if you look beneath that Saturday mor...

Toyota’s answered a question no one ever thought to ask: What if the Prius were a bike?

The answer suggests it wouldn’t be as boring to ride as it is to drive. For one thing, the bike uses neurotransmitters to change gears. It looks a whole lot cooler than the car, too.

Now, the first question is “Toyota? Bikes? What?” The Japanese automaker is encouraging inventors and dreamers to tinker with its tech through the Prius Projects campaign. It did something similar with the Toyota For Good campaign that generated ideas for everything from better bike helmets to self-guiding ladders.

Toyota doesn’t ...