Neatorama

Scientists Set to Ignite a Tiny Man-Made Star Posted: 30 Dec 2008 11:44 PM PST Photo: Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Scientist at the National Ignition Facility in Livermore, California, are getting ready to do something spectacular: ignite a tiny man-made star inside a lab and trigger a thermonuclear reaction! Scientists at the National Ignition Facility (NIF) in Livermore, nestled among the wine-producing vineyards of central California, will use a laser that concentrates 1,000 times the electric generating power of the United States into a billionth of a second. The result should be an explosion in the 32ft-wide reaction chamber which will produce at least 10 times the amount of energy used to create it. "We are creating the conditions that exist inside the sun," said Ed Moses, director of the facility. "It is like tapping into the real solar energy as fusion is the source of all energy in the world. It is really exciting physics, but beyond that there are huge social, economic and global problems that it can help to solve." Inside a structure covering an area the size of three football pitches, a single infrared laser will be sent through almost a mile of lenses, mirrors and amplifiers to create a beam more than 10 billion times more powerful than a household light bulb. Igniting a tiny man-made star, what could go wrong? Seriously though, this is pretty nifty: Link | National Ignition Facility website | video clip at Wired Science Is it time for an I Survived the Tiny Man-Made Star T-shirt yet? (Much in the line of our I Survived the Large Hadron Collider T-shirt)

Aviation Humor Posted: 30 Dec 2008 11:21 PM PST After hitting pay dirt with his Military Truisms forum post, Neatorama reader SparkS did it again with this gem: Aviation Humor. This one made me ROFL: The German air controllers at Frankfurt Airport are renowned as a short-tempered lot. They not only expect one to know one’s gate parking location, but how to get there without any assistance from them. So it was with some amusement that we (a Pan Am 747) listened to the following exchange between Frankfurt ground control and a British Airways 747, call sign Speedbird 206": Speedbird 206: "Frankfurt, Speedbird 206 clear of active runway." Ground: "Speedbird 206. Taxi to gate Alpha One-Seven." The BA 747 pulled onto the main taxiway and slowed to a stop. Ground: "Speedbird, do you not know where you are going?" Speedbird 206: "Stand by, Ground, I’m looking up our gate location now." Ground (with quite arrogant impatience): "Speedbird 206, have you not been to Frankfurt before?" Speedbird 206 (coolly): "Yes, twice in 1944 — but I didn’t land." Link

Wall-E Wood Sculpture Posted: 30 Dec 2008 11:10 PM PST We’ve featured incredibly cute Wall-E LEGO creations on Neatorama before (twice, actually), but this one takes the cake: an incredibly detailed Wall-E wooden sculpture by Morpheus Prototypes, commissioned by Disney as a gift for Pixar/Disney Chief Creative Officer John Lasseter Link - via Make

Andreas Aronsson’s Impossible Figures Optical Illusion Posted: 30 Dec 2008 11:09 PM PST Andreas Aronsson is a professional IT technician by day and an awesome optical illusion artist at night: he made a series of cleverly drawn "impossible figures" that at a glance look perfectly fine, but upon closer inspection will give your mind some sort of a Twilight Zone moment. These are awesome, trust me: Link

Jen Stark’s Paper Art Posted: 30 Dec 2008 11:09 PM PST We posted about Jen Stark’s amazing construction paper art a while ago on Neatorama, but we’ve just run across her interview by ArtStreet on WLRN South Florida. It’s definitely worth another look: Hit play or go to Link [YouTube] | Jen Stark’s website

Electroman Surge Protector Posted: 30 Dec 2008 11:08 PM PST Behold the Electroman Surge Protector, that not only quadruples your electrical outlet, but also has an indicator light where his heart is located that shows your electrical applicances are protected against evil electricity surges. It takes a certain kind of mad genius to make a surge protector cool. Electroman doesn’t come cheap though, it’s $24.95, but what is the price of coolness? (Plus, you can customize ‘im with a sharpie!) Link - via CraziestGadgets

The Great Chess Doping Scandal Posted: 30 Dec 2008 11:06 PM PST Sad as it is, doping is so prevalent in sports that it comes to no surprise when an athlete is busted … but chess? CHESS? Yes, folks, here’s the Great Chess Doping Scandal of grandmaster Vassily Ivanchuk, ranked third of the world: Who knows what was going through Ivanchuk’s head when, on Nov. 25 in Dresden, the last day of the Chess Olympiad, he lost to Gata Kamsky? What we do know, however, is that when the game against the American ended, a judge asked Ivanchuk to submit to a drug test. Instead, he stormed out of the room in the conference center, kicked a concrete pillar in the lobby, pounded a countertop in the cafeteria with his fists and then vanished into the coatroom. Throughout this performance, he was followed by a handful of officials. No one could convince Ivanchuk to provide a small amount of urine for the test. And because refusal is treated as a positive test result, he is now considered guilty of doping and could be barred from professional chess for two years. Link - via Znaniye Photo: erral [Flickr]

Cuddly Toys of Death Posted: 30 Dec 2008 07:21 PM PST If you’re sick of all the cute, sweet plushies out there, then these great toys are for you. They’re by artist Patricia Waller who has a ton of other awesome designs as well. These specific toys belong to her “Accident” series and the “How to kill your first love” series. I love the teddy bear myself. Link Via Craftzine

Super Mario Mushroom Burgers - Delicious! Posted: 30 Dec 2008 07:15 PM PST Yummy burgers made out of mushrooms that look like Mario mushrooms! 1 Up to nom town. For instructions to make your own, don’t miss this Instructables post. If you like that, don’t miss their Mario holiday guide here.

Stitch Your Way Across the U.S.A. Posted: 30 Dec 2008 03:42 PM PST …or Europe, or the whole world, actually. But those didn’t rhyme, so I went with “U.S.A.” Next time you go on vacation, take a few of these little beauties along, and with a tiny amount of sewing, you can show your besties back at home exactly what routes you have taken. Yeah, you could do the same thing with a Sharpie, but that’s not nearly as cute. Link via Mighty Goods

In a Public Space Posted: 30 Dec 2008 03:39 PM PST In a Public Space is a website/collaborative art project where people are invited to leave strange objects in random public spaces (this bullhorn to the left was deposited in a library). Then people write in with a picture of their object and the location they left it. I think it’s pretty interesting - you know you’ve found things before and wondered, “How did that get there?” Next time that happens, I’ll wonder not only how it got there, but if it was part of a collaborative art project. Link via Dark Roasted Blend

Vintage Candy Posted: 30 Dec 2008 03:35 PM PST Do you ever get a craving for a candy you know isn’t sold in stores these days? Mine is York Peppermint Patty Bites. They came in bags like the Reese’s Bites and Hershey’s Bites and other candy bars rolled up into a bite-sized ball form. They were soooo good in the freezer. Alas, they discontinued them, I think in favor of the York Mints. I enjoy those too, but they aren’t the same. Anyway, thanks to our own Neatoramanaut SparkS, we now have a link to CandyDirect, a place where you can possibly relive your childhood by purchasing that discontinued candy you haven’t seen in years. They have everything from bubble gum cigars and candy cigarettes (which have long been discontinued in that format since it pretty much encourages kids to smoke) to Violet mints, you’ll find almost anything you want. Except for York Peppermint Patty Bites. Link via Neatorama Forum Photo from Cardhouse.com

Nastiest Kwanzaa Cake Ever Posted: 30 Dec 2008 01:11 PM PST I love Cakewrecks. I’m totally addicted. This week, they’ve highlighted a totally hideous Kwanzaa cake by Sandra Lee made with pre-made angel food cake, store-bought icing, and, obviously, corn nuts. Well, Sandra calls them “acorns” but the recipe calls for corn nuts. It also calls for popcorn and pumpkin seeds. It would appear the hate mail about this cake was so numerous that Food Network pulled the recipe, but with a little digging you can still find it floating around. In case you have always dreamed of a corn nut-cake hybrid, the recipe is at the bottom of the post. The hate sites are pretty numerous, too. Here are a couple: The Kwanzaa Cake and Other Edible Hate Crimes Nobody Does it Like Sandra Lee Random Access Babble And, the infamous recipe: 1 (10 to 12-ounce) purchased angel food cake 1 container (16 ounce) vanilla frosting 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1 (21-ounce) container apple filling or topping 1 (1.7-ounce) package corn nuts 1/2 cup pumpkin seeds, toasted 1/2 cup popped popcorn Special Equipment: Kwanzaa candles Using a serrated knife, cut cake horizontally into 2 layers. Place bottom cake layer, cut side up, on a serving platter. Mix frosting, cocoa powder, vanilla, and cinnamon in large bowl until combined. Spread about 1/4 of the frosting over top of cake layer on platter. Top with second cake layer, cut side down. Spread remaining frosting evenly over top and sides of cake to coat completely. Spoon apple pie filling into hole in center of cake. Place candles atop cake. Sprinkle top of cake with some corn nuts, pumpkin seeds, and popcorn. Sprinkle remaining corn nuts and pumpkin seeds around base of cake. Link

Adjustable Glasses Posted: 30 Dec 2008 08:04 AM PST British inventor Josh Silver began working on eyeglasses that can be tuned by the wearer in 1985. His goal is to bring better vision to a billion people worldwide who cannot afford, or don’t have access to, an optometrist. Silver has devised a pair of glasses which rely on the principle that the fatter a lens the more powerful it becomes. Inside the device’s tough plastic lenses are two clear circular sacs filled with fluid, each of which is connected to a small syringe attached to either arm of the spectacles. The wearer adjusts a dial on the syringe to add or reduce amount of fluid in the membrane, thus changing the power of the lens. When the wearer is happy with the strength of each lens the membrane is sealed by twisting a small screw, and the syringes removed. The principle is so simple, the team has discovered, that with very little guidance people are perfectly capable of creating glasses to their own prescription. Silver’s goal is to distribute a billion pairs of his adaptive glasses to poor people by 2020 (the pun in the year is intended, I’m sure). Already, 30,000 pairs have been given out in 15 countries. “The reaction is universal,” says Major Kevin White, formerly of the US military’s humanitarian programme, who organised the distribution of thousands of pairs around the world after discovering Silver’s glasses on Google. “People put them on, and smile. They all say, ‘Look, I can read those tiny little letters.’” Silver hopes to get the cost of manufacturing each pair down to a dollar each. Link -Thanks, Cuimhne! (image credit: Michael Lewis)

20 Amazing Places to Bungee Jump Posted: 30 Dec 2008 07:59 AM PST Imagine bungee jumping off the Bloukrans Bridge in South Africa -it’s 710 feet high! Fantastic view, but um, I think I’ll pass. But you can watch others do it, because 20 Amazing Places to Bungee Jump has videos to go with each venue. Link -Thanks, Grzegorz Paslawski!

300 Calorie Food Picture Gallery Posted: 30 Dec 2008 07:56 AM PST Karen at HealthAssist measured and photographed amounts of food that have 300 calories. Each is pictured with a $10 bill for scale, and the cost of the amount is also noted. If you are counting calories, this is good news in that 300 calories of the most nutritious foods will fill you up. The sad news is that the cost of 300 calories in breads, pasta, and sweets is so much cheaper than fresh fruits and vegetables. Link -Thanks, Karen!

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