Sep 14 2007 Non-Stick Gum Keeps Sidewalks Clean
British chemist Terence Cosgrove of Bristol University has developed a new chewing gum that is easy to remove and water soluble. Revolymer, Terence's horribly named company, plans to have the gum available in the next year. The breakthrough technology is a hydrophilic polymer that allows the gum to quickly dissolve in water. The gum, horribly named Rev 7, was easily removed from sidewalks and hair, and scored well in blind taste tests. This is swell, and I'm all about gum not crapping up sidewalks and the bottom of my desk, but how about taking this to the next level. I'm thinking bubble gum that can blown into a functional condom should the need arise. Not that snack size Doritos bags have ever done me wrong, but I'm looking for something with just a hint more class.
Non-Stick Gum Keeps Sidewalks Cleaner [gizmodo]
Sep 14 2007 Darth Vader Lamp Scares Children
Collectors Gallery is selling these Darth Vader nightlights for $40. It looks pretty damn sweet except for that stupid material they made the top of his head out of. It looks like his freaking brain is exposed. I mean this is Darth f'ing Vader we're talking about here, let's do him some justice. Just a heads up though, be careful putting this by the bed if you're easily frightened. I had a storm trooper one awhile ago and in the middle of the night I woke up, saw it, pissed myself, and then left my girlfriend to sleep in it while I crashed on the couch. And that was only a paltry storm trooper. Imagine what Vader would have done to me. I'm not ruling out the possibility of a moderate to serious #2 accident.
Darth Vader Lamp Scares Children [gizmodo]
Sep 14 2007 Fire Extinguisher Simulator Not Thrilling
Seeing how today is, uh, National Fire and Firehose and Fireman Day, I've decided to post more about fire. Safety training company BullEx Digital Safety has developed a fire extinguishing training system, that is scheduled to drop next month. Basically you watch a crappy looking fire on a crappy looking monitor and point a crappy ass fire extinguisher with green lasers at it to put it out. Whatever happened to starting real fires in the parking lot and letting your employees go at it with whatever they wanted? For the same price of this training system I will personally come to your place of business and burn that mother down. Screw a simulation, you need real world experience.
Fire Extinguisher Simulator Not Thrilling [therawfeed]
Sep 14 2007 USB Spypen Is Huge, Won't Trick Anyone
The Thanko Spydisk packs an SD card reader/writer along with 512 MB of its own flash memory into a pen the size of one of those jumbo pencils you used in kindergarten because you had no hand coordination. The USB connector is hidden under the pen cap, and the car reader is behind the pen's clip. It costs $50 plus shipping, and I question its spy-worthiness. Of course, I'm not a very good spy. The last time I tried to steal a company's trade secrets I didn't download anything, and accidentally uploaded my personal banking information, along with some private pictures my girlfriend and I took on vacation.
USB Spypen is Huge, Won't Trick Anyone [uberreview]
Sep 14 2007 Toaster Teapot Is Toaster And Teapot!
The Toaster Teapot is both a toaster and a teapot. Oh sweet mother, what will they think of next? I have been using both a toaster AND a teapot until now, and quite frankly, I've always felt like a douche. I'm not totally sure if it has anything to do with my breakfast preparation, but you never know. Better safe than sorry. It costs $56, and a neat idea, I guess. I just thought that you weren't supposed to mix toasters and liquids. Because my (now ex) wife tossed one in when I was taking a bubblebath one morning and, well, I still can't grow hair on my man purse.
Toaster Teapot Combines Toaster And Teapot! [uberreview]
Sep 14 2007 Zeno The Robot Boy Will Kill You
Zeno, a robot boy created by David Hanson, is scary as hell. David named the damn thing after his real 18-month-old son, Zeno (poor kid), and it is supposed to be available for commercial sale in the next three years (for $200 - $300). It stands 17 inches tall and weighs 6 pounds, and took 5 years to create. He comes equipped with facial recognition software, and will greet you by name when he recognizes you. He is controlled wirelessly via PC, and can talk, walk, and make eye contact. His face is made of "frubber", enabling a variety of facial expressions, which he uses himself because he has "his own moods" and makes "his own decisions". He is one scary little bastard. Is it just me, or does anybody else get the feeling that one of those decisions may be stabbing your f'ing eyes out one night?
A couple more frightening pics after the jump.
UPDATE: A scary as hell video added!
Sep 14 2007 Firemen Waste Water, Lift Car
As video proof that firemen are not just incredibly handsome, burly men that pose yearly in provocative calendars, comes this sweet firehose action. See, firemen are just regular people like you and I, that like having some good ol' fashioned fun when not risking their lives to save kittens and the elderly. I love how they just let my piece of crap car slam into the ground at the end. It hasn't started up for me since. But who cares, they agreed to take topless photos with me afterwards! God I'm gay.
[thanks to Fredz, the man with the hose ladies love, for the tip]
Sep 14 2007 USB Pedometer Not What I Thought It Was
When I first saw this thing, I thought it would be great to put on children, so that they'd know whenever a creepy man was in the vicinity and notify the authorities. Well, it turns out pedometer is a misnomer, and this thing actually tracks how many steps you take. You rock it on your pants, and then upload the data to your computer and it'll show you calories burned, etc. They cost $17 via usbfever and ship in early November if you're interested. This thing might actually be a pretty nifty workout device, because with that sweet bullseye design you're gonna be doing plenty of running to your car as rooftop snipers take aim.
Product Site [thanks to Thomas for the tip]
Sep 13 2007 Master Chief Suit For Sale On Ebay
Some guy had a Spartan Master Chief suit made and is now selling it on ebay. Allegedly it's the most accurate suit to date, and has been featured on several tv shows and in commercials. When I checked it this morning it was at $2,000 -- now it's at $4,025. Proving that someone out there that plays Halo also has some serious money in the bank. It's cool, and I want it. But come on man, how about some pictures not taken in front of the gazebo at the neighborhood park. You should be resting your foot on a skull, and maybe have a few dead enemies strewn around. You're making Master Chief seem like a ding-dong, and not the trained killing machine he is. Someone buy it for me anyways so I can wear it when I'm, well, all the time.
Several more after the jump.
Sep 13 2007 Laptop Mount For Your Dorm Bunkbed
This is kind of a neat idea, and I'm a huge fan of anything that lets me be lazier, but it leaves me still wanting something more. I mean you go to college to 1. drink beer 2. get laid, and 3. try to do both at the same time. Despite the Jim Beam poster in the back, I imagine this kid is still eyeing first from the dugout. Now I'm not saying this guy has never touched a boobie or anything, because we all know that will never happen, I'm just saying he may be the world's biggest masturbator.
A few more and a painful video after the jump.
Sep 13 2007 Hidden Beer Fridge Perfect For Work
Some brilliantly brilliant genius has come up with an idea that may actually save humanity (or at least the lives of my coworkers). It's a mini-fridge disguised as photocopy paper boxes! I won't have to hide bourbon in the bottom of my desk drawer anymore -- I can stock cold beers! Oh happy day, Mr. Crafty Fridge Hider. I'm gonna grab some paper for the copier. If this guy could just disguise the secretary to look like someone I'm not cheating on my wife with, he'd be my all time hero.
Hidden Beer Fridge Perfect For Work [gizmodo]
Sep 13 2007 America's Army Coming To Arcades
America's Army, a game initially released on PCs as a U.S. Army recruiting tool, is making its way to your local arcade/bar.
The game is going to feature eight training mini-games that intend to bring highly authentic Army training exercises to players, along with a drill sergeant to ‘bring out the best in each player’. The game will also use leaderboards to encourage competition and reward players for teamwork and following the Rules of Engagement.
I can hardly wait. The shooting game at the local bar now sucks, and this thing is supposed to be bad ass. It's allegedly going to be using the latest version of the Unreal Engine, so the graphics should be straight. I've already got a moderately stiff boner just thinking about all the beer I'm going to swig and the terrorists I'm going to kill.
America's Army Coming To Arcades [thanks to Lee, Lord of Audio, for the tip]
Sep 13 2007 Bees Sniff Bombs, Make Explosive Honey
A company called Inscentinel Ltd. has developed Vapor Detection Instrumentation, which is scientific speak for a couple bees taped to a piece of foam. The bees stick out their tongues when they smell an odor they have been trained to detect. They have been tested on explosives, drugs, counterfeit goods, food quality, and even cancer. I guess it is pretty neat stuff they're doing there, but I can't help but feel sorry for those little bastards taped up in there looking all cute and cuddly. It does say though that "Bees are happy undertaking their sniffing tasks and are comfortable throughout." I'm just curious what metrics were used to determine the level of bee happiness while working. "Hey little guys you happy in there?" "Bzzzzzzzz" "See, totally happy."
UPDATE: For anyone concerned about the poor bees, according to the company "After their working shift the bees are returned to their hive where they happily live out the rest of their lives and are integrated back into the hive." See, sometimes life does have a happy ending, just not in my case.
A couple more pictures after the jump.
Sep 13 2007 Hug Shirt Spreads The Love
The Hug Shirt, from CuteCircuit, is a Bluetooth accessory for cell phones. It has been in the works for awhile (so you may have seen it), but is allegedly hitting streets soon. Basically the shirt has a bunch of Bluetooth sensors and actuators in it. When you hug yourself the information is sent via cell phone to your friend or lover, where their shirt will duplicate the hug you gave yourself. If you're like me, this is great, because I only wear one shirt all week long. Now if they could just duplicate the feeling of a sender's breasts, I would buy one yesterday.
Product Page [thanks to hug loving Sara for the tip]
Sep 12 2007 Ice Cream Machine Cures Sadness
Dr. Whippy is an ice cream machine with a twist. It uses voice stress analysis to determine a user's degree of unhappiness based on a list of predetermined questions, and then gives the sad bastard an appropriate amount of ice cream. More yummy goodness the sadder you are. I can see it now, my girlfriend tearing the damn thing open and faceplanting right in the ice cream bucket. Not because she's depressed, but because she loves ice cream and is fat. As hell.
Dr. Whippy Ice Cream Machine Cures Sadness [uberreview]
Sep 12 2007 Transformer Pillows A Hit With Children
Thinkgeek is selling these Transformer pillows for $20 a pop. You can choose between the traditional Autobot or Decepticon designs, and they're pretty sweet. Depending on your typical catch at the bar though, you may want to throw these under the bed before a lady sees them. Or if you bag a good one you could get her to make out with the Autobot while you film. Or the Decepticon one if she's dirty. Regardless though, send me the video afterwards.
Transformer Pillows A Hit With Children [uberreview]
Sep 12 2007 Toy Radar Gun Mod
A guy has turned one of those cheap Hot Wheels radar guns into something that, uh, stays on all the time and has more batteries. I've played with one of these things before and they're not bad. If you wanted you could point this at me in a bar and see how fast I pick up chicks, the only thing is it would read "the speed of light" and then the damn thing would explode in your face. I'm just saying, I'm quick.
Video instructions after the jump.
Sep 12 2007 Beat Dress Lights Up To Music
The Beat Dress was part of a project for a Fashion and Technology course at Malmö University in Sweden. The dress has 10 detachable patches, each with 10 LEDs that are controlled by a microphone and equalizer. When sound or music is detected, the LEDs light up to the beat. It's kind of a neat idea, but I think it needs some work. That, and to not be constructed out of a potato sack. And it doesn't really need that top portion there, the part that covers the melons. Or the bottom part. Hell, it should just be a naked woman with a flashlight.
Beat Dress Lights Up To Music [ubergizmo]
Sep 12 2007 Dishmaker Prototype, Um, Makes Dishes
MIT Media Lab's Counter Intelligence Group (which is appropriate because this thing is definitely counter intelligent) came up with this Dishmaker prototype. Sure it looks like a big metal piece of crap with lots of exposed wires and a power strip, but it makes dishes. It holds 150 acrylic wafers at a time, and can make a dish in about 90 seconds, including bowls and cups. After use, the dish can be recycled by reheating to 300 degree Fahrenheit and re-flattening. Each wafer can be recycled approximately 100 times, making them, uh, fairly reusable. I'm still having a hard time understanding why this was made though. It's not like my dish space is a pressing concern. And you're not saving water because I'm sure the plates have to be cleaned between recyclings. Because if you didn't, you'd have less of a plate next time, and more of leftovers held together with plastic. Which is grody.
Dishmaker Prototype, Um, Makes Dishes [ubergizmo]
Sep 12 2007 Hanging Balls Of Outdoor Survival
Industrial designer John Moriarty has developed The Cocoon, which is an outdoor survival tent-like thing that you can hang from a tree. "Bright warm colors and fabrics on the inside help you stay warm by keeping your body heat in and any wind and wetness out." It does look nice and cozy doesn't it (except for the schematic where the guy is smashed up in there)? It's sort of like a womb, but a lot more like a man's change purse. This thing just makes sense. Dangling from a tree in a giant blue testicle is practically the definition of outdoor survival.
Hanging Balls Of Outdoor Survival [ohgizmo]
Sep 11 2007 Exercise Bike Lets You Race At Home
Made by German manufacturer Daum Electronics, the web enabled Ergo Bike Premium 8i (really rolls off the tongue doesn't it?) lets you race other bikers from around the world. It has a bunch of different virtual courses available, each based on a real place. You can chat with the other racers via VOIP, monitor their heart rates, and it even has a web cam in case anyone is biking topless. The unit costs $3,500. I would just challenge all the ladies online to a round of strip biking, then take the pedals off and attach a cordless drill and socket. It may sound like cheating, but there's no such thing as cheating when you haven't seen any boobies (except your own) in almost three years.
Exercise Bike Lets You Race At Home [uberreview]
Sep 11 2007 Rechargable Batteries Run On What?
Urine! That's right folks, the NoPoPo (!!!) batteries from Japan can be recharged using your own bodily fluid (or any other that's primarily water). When the charge dies in these things you use that little baster that it comes with to charge them back up. Allegedly the magnesium and carbon react in a magical way to produce more energy. No word on price or how you're supposed to get urine into the little squeeze tube, but I imagine not easily. Just don't get lazy and try to cut out that step by peeing directly in your electronics. You'll end up not charging anything but your personals. ZAP!
Rechargable Batteries Run On What? [therawfeed]
Sep 11 2007 GPS Trip Tracker Gets You In Trouble
Telespial Systems has developed the Super Trackstick, which is a GPS based trip tracker. It has magnets on the bottom, so you just slap it on your vehicle and take off. Two AAA batteries power the thing for a month, so when you get back to your home base you just jam that thing into a USB port and it will upload your trip to Google Earth so you can live it all over again. I'd get one ($275), but I'm too afraid of my girlfriend sticking it to the bottom of my Tempo to find out where I really go when I'm "working late". You know, because when I say that I'm not really at work, I'm out being promiscuous.
GPS Trip Tracker Gets You In Trouble [therawfeed]
Sep 11 2007 Makeover Toy For Girls Is Questionable
The GirlTech Digi Makeover is a device you plug into your tv and is the "fun way to change hairstyles, makeup, and accessories." It takes your picture via the onboard digital camera, and you can then put lipstick on and try different hair colors. It costs $94 and is made for children 6 and up. Because nothing quite says "daddy's little girl is going to grow up to be the best stripper ever" like buying this for your six year old daughter.
Makeover Toy For Girls Is Questionable [uberreview]
Sep 11 2007 Executive Batman Clock For Dorky Boss
If your boss is a dork and likes everyone to know it, then you should probably get him this bad boy, the Batman Collapsible Desk Clock. It looks like it's made of gold, but it isn't, because it costs $45. It's available through Skymall, a purveyor of the finest crap. When closed it looks like the traditional Batman logo. When open, it looks like the traditional Batman logo with a stupid clock in the middle. At only 4 inches when closed, it's tiny, almost as tiny as your boss's dangle-down. Isn't that right? Yeah buddy, we got him good on that one (high five).
Executive Batman Clock For Dorky Boss [popgadget]
Sep 11 2007 Cell Phone For Man's Best Friend
Petscell is a cell phone that attaches to your dog's collar so you can stay in contact during those long days at the cubicle. Of course, if you want something a little cooler you could go with this. The damn thing costs $499, which is freaking ridiculous for the most basic cell phone ever (minus being waterproof), and doesn't include activation or service. It automatically answers calls from a list you set, so your pet won't kill itself listening to telemarketers. And now if you'll excuse me, I've got to call my bitch.
Cell Phone For Man's Best Friend [popgadget]
Sep 10 2007 Tetris Furniture Probably Uncomfortable
If you live in your uncle's attic like I do, then you can appreciate making the most out of limited space. To help is the 2 + 1 chair and table combo thingy from sdesignunit that packs three pieces of furniture into one. It can be a dining table and two chairs, a couch, or a bed. The only problem is that, um, it's made of cardboard. Now I'm no stranger to passing out at the bar, and it's plenty comfy at the time, but when I do make it home I like something a little softer. Well, that, and my girlfriend pees the bed, which would ruin this thing. HAHA! Now everyone knows! Maybe next time you'll think before making my eggs so runny.
Tetris Furniture Probably Uncomfortable [ohgizmo]
Sep 10 2007 Supercomputer Does 26 Gigaflops, Is Cheap
Tim Brom of Calvin College built the Microwulf Supercomputer, that flips 26 gigaflops (26 billion double-precision floating point instructions per second) and cost $2,500 to build last year (and would only cost $1,256 to build today).
It consists of four microATX motherboards, each with a dual core CPU and 2 gigs of ram, all connected with an 8-port Gigabit Ethernet switch. The whole shebang also includes a CD/DVD drive and a 250 gb HD, and runs Ubuntu Linux.
I want one. Maybe in a slightly cooler case (like this), and with some, uh, dust protection (like this), and I'd be good to go. Ten points to Tim for the sweet computer, but minus two for having his Matrix poster rolled up in the corner.
One more design picture after the jump.
Continue Reading " Supercomputer Does 26 Gigaflops, Is Cheap "
Sep 10 2007 Flying Boat A Hit With Drug Smugglers
The Brio flying boat is just that -- a boat that flies! It goes up to 44 mph and can fly over 100 miles with a full load. Making it perfect for offshore drug smuggling. The kit costs $10,000 and comes with everything except the engine (so basically an inflatable boat and hang glider). You get to choose your own motor, which is fine with me, because I'm thinking jet engine. No word on altitude tests, but based on that first picture, I'd say it gets almost high enough to kill you if you fall.
A picture and a long video after the jump, but you'll get the idea after a minute.
Sep 10 2007 Shopping Cart Bike A Hit With The Homeless
Ryan McFarland, soon to be known as Lord of the Homeless, took the front tire off his bike and replaced the damn thing with a shopping cart. Apparently its steering is limited, which is no surprise, but who cares. It looks sweet and you can haul at least eight or twelve cases of beer on that thing. There is an instructables guide if you're interested, although I think you get the gist of how it was done. Just make sure not to steal one of those crappy buggies with wonky wheels. If you don't the only hauling you'll be doing is your ass to the hospital because you slammed into a parked car.
Shopping Cart Bike A Hit With The Homeless [instructables via ohgizmo]
Sep 10 2007 Make Your Own Lightbulb Lamps
If you're tired of lamps made of things like metal and wood that are relatively safe and unbreakable, then check out the offerings from Bulbsunlimited. They offer kits ($18 to $100) that provide the hardware (socket and plastic snaps) and a bulb marking guide to make very dangerous and fragile lamps out of lightbulbs. Of course if you're cheap you could just glue a bunch of bulbs together randomly for a similar effect. And if you're clumsy you can sit on it and be picking shards of out of your ass for months.
product site [via techeblog]
Sep 10 2007 Homemade Flame Thrower
Some idiots made a flamethrower out of what looks to be PVC pipe and tape. Then they filmed themselves shooting fireballs out of it and burning a defenseless tree. They also do some stupid stunt driving in their mom's station wagon, and throw a big screen down a flight of stairs. I love fire and explosions as much as the next guy, but these dorks are total unprofessionals. They're pretty much the world's biggest losers, and I think I want to be their friend. If being their friend means locking them all in the back of a U-Haul and driving it into the nearest lake.
The video after the jump.
