Neatorama

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• Zuckerberg-Eisenberg-Samberg: SNL Goes Meta
• Scale
• When Hobbies Collide: Video Game Cross Stitch
• Whole Foods' Loss is Paul Maybury's Gain
• Robot Tunes For Two
• Dog Has a Map of the World on Nose
• Klingon iPhone Stand
• Butterfly Curves
• Bermuda Triangle of Productivity
• Ghostbusters Ghost Trap in LEGO
• NBA Stuntman Dunks Ball, Self
• Brush Your Teeth with This Stick
• Climber Survives 1,000-Foot Fall
• Woman Sues Diddy for Child Support, Causing 9/11
• Blind Man to Drive at Daytona Speedway
• Beowulf Socks Are Written in Anglo-Saxon
• Talking TP
• Balloon Muppets
• CSUN Math Professor Charged With Peeing on Colleague's Door
• Fire Chief Ticketed While Aiding Injured Woman
• 40 Train Robbers vs. 1 Gurkha
• Revolver Fires 28 Gauge Shotgun Shells
• Live Action Axe Cop
• This Week at Neatorama

Zuckerberg-Eisenberg-Samberg: SNL Goes Meta Posted: 30 Jan 2011 05:05 AM PST We don’t often post about “what happened on TV last night,” but this is pretty neat. The host on Saturday Night Live was the actor who played Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg in the movie The Social Network. His name is Jesse Eisenberg, and he’s up for an Oscar for the role. He is in the middle of this picture. Eisenberg was joined by SNL cast member Andy Samberg, who looks like Eisenberg, but is doing his Zuckerberg impression on the right in this picture. Then, Mark Zuckerberg himself crashed the monologue on the left. There had been speculation that if the three were ever in the same room, the universe would collapse. See the video clip at the Saturday Night Live website. Link -via The Daily What

Scale Posted: 30 Jan 2011 04:58 AM PST (vimeo link) Brad Goodspeed watched the recent lunar eclipse and wondered how an exact copy of the earth would look if it were as close to us as the moon. Then he thought about the other planets. In this animation, he has several planets revolving around the earth at the same distance as our moon. Beware: Jupiter can be scary, especially if you watch this in full-screen mode. Link -via Metafilter

When Hobbies Collide: Video Game Cross Stitch Posted: 29 Jan 2011 10:29 PM PST Well, they both require a steady hand. Actually, its not much of  a stretch at all – aside from games being one of the most innovative art forms in the world despite huffy protestations from fogies like Roger Ebert, game art and cross stitching have more in common than one might think. Cross stitching, the art of of, err, stitching crosses, is a boon to gamers with a creative touch. Thanks to its rigid grid layout, this traditional craft lends itself perfectly to recreating pixelated scenes from awesome retro games. Link

Whole Foods' Loss is Paul Maybury's Gain Posted: 29 Jan 2011 09:17 PM PST Award-winning artist Paul Maybury’s work has graced comics from nearly every publisher,  as well as the covers and interiors of numerous video games and DVDs. Yet his humble beginnings at Whole Foods grew even humbler when they fired him for, shall we say, not quite connecting with his audience, i.e. shoppers. This is the sign that more or less got me pushed out of Wholefoods. I apparently offended a lot of people with it. One older white lady didn't like the angry black man yelling at her. And a Vegan didn't like that Mr. T. pitied her because she wouldn't eat meat. Link -via Super Punch

Robot Tunes For Two Posted: 29 Jan 2011 08:57 PM PST This Valentine’s Day, listen to your favorite music alongside the one you love. Share your music with this cute Robot Tunes for Two from the NeatoShop. It’s a robot-shaped headphones splitter that lets two people listen to the same music player. It’s compatible with any device with a standard 3.5 mm headphones socket and doubles as a convenient keychain (not to mention looking extra cute … at least until you detach its head and jam your headphones jack violently into its eyes). Link | More Headphones & Speaker gadgets | Valentine’s Day Gifts

Dog Has a Map of the World on Nose Posted: 29 Jan 2011 08:44 PM PST If believers see faces of Jesus on toasts, what do pareidolia-prone cartographers see? Maps and maps everywhere, even on a dog’s nose! Here’s a neat post by Frank Jacobs of Strange Map about "accidental" cartography, based on his readers’ submissions: “My dog has a map of the world on her nose. Sort of,” writes Mililani Smythe. But of course: there’s the American continent, right in the middle! Link

Klingon iPhone Stand Posted: 29 Jan 2011 08:43 PM PST Attention, puny humans! Do you need a mobile phone stand that can stand the heat of battle? Qapla’ – look no further than this iPhone stand by David Roy of Voodoo Vintage Fabrication. It looks good sitting next to your chair on the Bird of Prey, and it can probably double as a handy weapon in case you can’t find your Bat’leth: Link – via Make

Butterfly Curves Posted: 29 Jan 2011 08:42 PM PST Tom Beddard of subblue created this nifty little Flash application where you can draw your own mathematical butterfly: Taken from Clifford Pickover’s book, Computers and the Imagination, is this experiment that creates butterfly like curves. The formula is expressed in polar coordinates as: By changing the A, B, a, b and c parameters you can get some nice results. It’s fun to change the parameters to see what you get: Link – via Cliff Pickover’s Reality Carnival

Bermuda Triangle of Productivity Posted: 29 Jan 2011 08:41 PM PST Where did the time go? If you’ve been sitting in front of your computer and hours went by like minutes but you’ve gotten nothing done, perhaps you’ve been sucked into the Bermuda Triangle of Productivity. Drawn by Fuchsia Macaree: I drew this one day after two unrelated friends complained about how they get sucked into certain websites instead of doing work, which is exactly what I do. I think….this maybe, possibly, maybe happens to some other people as well. Link – via swiss-miss and about:blank

Ghostbusters Ghost Trap in LEGO Posted: 29 Jan 2011 08:40 PM PST Image: Profound Whatever Alex Eylar, who re-created Oscar Best Picture Nominees in LEGO, featured on Neatorama yesterday, also made this awesome Ghostbusters’s ghost trap in LEGO. Walyou has the details: Since 1984, the Ghostbusters have gone from movie icons, to cartoon classics, to modern-day geek collectibles. And what Ghostbusters fan wouldn’t want to have this brilliant marriage of Lego and ectoplasmic coolness? This Ghost Trap replica is made entirely out of Legos, and is the brainchild of GB fan and Lego fanatic Alex Eylar. Link

NBA Stuntman Dunks Ball, Self Posted: 29 Jan 2011 08:04 PM PST (YouTube link) There is no amount of training that could enable even the greatest of athletes to slam dunk a basketball, followed by himself, through a hoop.  It can, however, be done by total random accident. This member of the Phoenix Suns’ Sol Patrol pulls off the miraculous self-dunk maneuver with remarkable poise and grace, belying the horror that must accompany the feeling of one’s face sliding through that webbed mesh, and he even sticks the landing! OK, so he doesn’t really stick the landing. Nonetheless, the bar has been seriously raised for halftime entertainment. That mascot has his work cut out for him. Link

Brush Your Teeth with This Stick Posted: 29 Jan 2011 07:26 PM PST A miswak is a tooth cleaning stick made from the Salvadora persica tree. It’s traditionally used in Pakistan, India, and the Middle East in place of a modern plastic toothbrush. The bristles inside the plant, once exposed by cutting across the stem, are effective as a cleaning instrument. Leen Sadder, a design student, decided to make a modern version: THIS aims to repackage and promote the miswak as an organic, biodegradable, portable, more beneficial substitute for toothpaste and a toothbrush. The biggest challenge was figuring out how to package and market the twig to a contemporary American audience, who would not be entertained with the idea of biting off the top of the stick in order to use it. The solution for this is a cigar-cutter-like cap that peels off the outer layer to reveal the natural bristles, and slices them off after use. It also protects the stick from germs and microbes. Link via Gizmodo

Climber Survives 1,000-Foot Fall Posted: 29 Jan 2011 07:12 PM PST A mountain climber in Scotland fell a thousand feet down a nearly vertical slope on a mountain called Sgurr Choinnich Mor. When a Royal Navy rescue helicopter arrived on the scene, its crew found him alive and well: Lieutenant Tim Barker, the crew’s observer, said: ”We began to hover-taxi down the slope and spotted a man at the bottom, standing up. ”We honestly thought it couldn’t have been him, as he was on his feet, reading a map. Above him was a series of three high craggy outcrops. ”It seemed impossible. So we retraced our path back up the mountain and, sure enough, there were bits of his kit in a vertical line all the way up where he had obviously lost them during the fall. ”It was quite incredible. He must have literally glanced off the outcrops as he fell, almost flying.” Link | Photo: Wikimedia Commons

Woman Sues Diddy for Child Support, Causing 9/11 Posted: 29 Jan 2011 03:57 PM PST Next time you wonder why the court system moves so slowly, look no further than crazypants lawsuits like this one clogging up the system. Sean “Diddy” Combs is being sued by an ex-lover for child support, loss of income, and causing the worst atrocity committed on American soil in modern history. And don’t even get me started on the casino chip… ! Valerie Joyce Wilson Turks is seeking $900 billion in child support, and $100 billion for “loss of income.” But here’s where the story goes from funny to sad. Turks is seeking a restraining order against Combs, saying he, his ex-girlfriend Kim Porter and LAPD brutality victim Rodney King are responsible for the collapse of the World Trade Center, RadarOnline reports. She alleges that she was abused from 2001 to 2010, and that: “[Diddy] went through Kim Porter and Rodney King and knocked down the WTC and then they all came and knocked my children down. Set me up to be on disability and disabled my baby. he put my baby in a wheelchair.” The allegations get even crazier from there, with Turks accusing Diddy of date rape and saying that he, Porter and others raped her children. She also believes that Diddy has a casino chip of hers that’s worth “100 zillions of dollars.” Link -via Radar Online

Blind Man to Drive at Daytona Speedway Posted: 29 Jan 2011 03:28 PM PST Mark Riccobono, who has been blind since the age of five, was scheduled to drive a specially-equipped car before today’s NASCAR race at Daytona International Speedway: Riccobono’s Ford Escape Hybrid is outfitted with laser range-finding sensors which passed information to his hands and seat. He made the trip around the mile-and-a-half road course with the support of hundreds of vision-impaired fans sitting in the bleachers. “You can’t imagine how, what a step forward this is for the blind and innovation and really gaining independence and new vision from the rest of the sighted community,” said Sabrina Deaton with the National Federation of the Blind in Daytona Beach. Link via DVICE | Photo: Gear Log Previously: Students Build Car the Blind Can Drive

Beowulf Socks Are Written in Anglo-Saxon Posted: 29 Jan 2011 03:20 PM PST These socks by The Sanguin Gryphon contain untranslated passages of the 8th Century poem Beowulf: Thus begins the immortal tale of the hero Beowulf, the bard summoning the attention of his audience. And so begin these socks, which give the text of the first page of the surviving manuscript, a copy dating to around 1000 CE. The writing flows from one sock to the other, so that you may read it uninterrupted. Link via Geekosystem

Talking TP Posted: 29 Jan 2011 12:21 PM PST Talking TP – $11.95 Are you looking for a way to remind your husband to change the toilet paper roll in the bathroom when it is all used up? Well, have we got the product for you! The Talking TP toilet paper holder from the NeatoShop allows you to record your own message.  So now you can say, “Hey, don’t forget to change the toilet paper roll!” Or what ever else you want.  That best part is that message will be played over and over again when he pulls on the toilet paper. Be sure to check out the NeatoShop for more bathroom insanity.

Balloon Muppets Posted: 29 Jan 2011 12:04 PM PST Well Statler and Waldorf might not be impressed, but I certainly am.  As a veteran of birthday parties, street fairs and countless other events where I watch hapless clowns and balloon artists twist and turn until they present the same old kinda-sorta dog-looking thing I’ve been seeing since 1974, I’ve got to give huge respect to anyone who can take balloons and turn them into Muppets! And the Black Cat Balloon Company does just that.  I’m talking Animal, Beaker, Rowlf, Gonzo, the works.  Now that right there is a balloon artist. Link -via Holy Kaw!

CSUN Math Professor Charged With Peeing on Colleague's Door Posted: 29 Jan 2011 11:55 AM PST Math Professor Tihomir Petrov has been charged with urinating on the office door of another math professor.  University officials claim to have caught the act on a hidden camera.  Sadly, they have not released the video to the public. Well, we all know that nothing says I am pissed at you like peeing on a colleague’s door. KTLA News has more: Link

Fire Chief Ticketed While Aiding Injured Woman Posted: 29 Jan 2011 11:17 AM PST Fire Chief James Allen is used to saving lives.  What he isn’t used to is being ticketed by state police while trying to be of aid in an emergency. James  received a  ticket on Wednesday for blocking the right lane of traffic.  He was in his department vehicle and was responding to a serious accident. “He stopped me from going to take care of the patient and asked me for license and registration,” Allen told PIX 11 News. ” I immediately gave him my license out of my pocket went and took care of the patient.” The woman in this car was seriously injured. Her vehicle was in the center lane of the parkway, the same lane the trooper stopped in. Link

40 Train Robbers vs. 1 Gurkha Posted: 29 Jan 2011 09:45 AM PST Gurkhas, the Nepalese elite soldiers in the service of Britain and some of its former colonies, sometimes fight with their traditional kukri knives (pictured). One retired Gurkha was carrying his knife when a train in India that he was riding was robbed by forty men. The robbers unwisely chose to not immediately surrender. The ex-soldier then killed three, wounded eight, and drove off the rest: The band of about 40 robbers, some of whom were travelling as passengers, stopped the train in the Chittaranjan jungles in West Bengal around midnight. Shrestha– who had boarded the train at Ranchi in Jharkhand, the place of his posting–was in seat no. 47 in coach AC3. "They started snatching jewelry, cell phones, cash, laptops and other belongings from the passengers," Shrestha recalled. The soldier had somehow remained a silent spectator amidst the melee, but not for long. He had had enough when the robbers stripped an 18-year-old girl sitting next to him and tried to rape her right in front of her parents. He then took out his khukuri and took on the robbers. "The girl cried for help, saying ´You are a soldier, please save a sister´," Shrestha recalled. "I prevented her from being raped, thinking of her as my own sister," he added. He took one of the robbers under control and then started to attack the others. He said the rest of the robbers fled after he killed three of them with his khukuri and injured eight others. Link via MArooned | Photo: Canadian Content

Revolver Fires 28 Gauge Shotgun Shells Posted: 29 Jan 2011 09:04 AM PST Brazilian armsmaker Taurus caused a stir when it released “The Judge” — a revolver that fires shotguns shells in addition to handgun cartridges. The Judge shoots .410 gauge shells as well as .45 Long Colt cartridges. “The Raging Judge”, pictured above, goes even further in this approach, firing the much larger 28 gauge shell. Link | Photo: Firearms Blog

Live Action Axe Cop Posted: 29 Jan 2011 08:10 AM PST (Video Link) Axe Cop is a webcomic written by a 5-year old and drawn by a 29-year old professional cartoonist. This deliciously loopy premise has been turned into a short, high-quality live action movie by Peter Muehlenberg. via io9 | Axe Cop

This Week at Neatorama Posted: 29 Jan 2011 06:02 AM PST This week, we welcome three, count ‘em, three new authors to Neatorama! Phil Haney is currently a writer for Maker Studios’ The Station and previously served as Senior Producer for the National Lampoon Creative Department. See his work at YouTube. Matt Sager is a freelance writer as well as a science fiction and comics fan. Visit his website Comics Cavern. J.P. Cole is an editor of a journal on culture and religion. That’s all I could get out of him, so he remains a mystery man. These new additions are bound to enhance your Neatorama experience. Meanwhile, let’s recap our exclusive articles of the past week. Sunday, the fitness guru we all know died at age 96. Alex put together a tribute, Jack LaLanne RIP: 10 Facts About Jack LaLanne You Didn’t Know. New author Phil Haney took a look at five of The Best Cults. Jill Harness found so much going on underground that she wrote a two-part article. Don’t miss Underground Animals: Cool Cave Critters, Part One and Part Two. John Farrier looked up 10 Facts You Might Not Know about Xena: Warrior Princess. The Fight for Safe Milk: Pasteurization followed up last week’s Swill Milk article, courtesy of Uncle John’s Bathroom Reader. The Annals of Improbable Research brought us a tribute to a master comedian in Four Cheers Five Victor Borge. From mental_floss magazine, we found out Why Chicago Should be Called Phoenix. Conceptis Puzzles, our partner site that brings you Neato-Puzzles, invites you to enter their Bottle Magic Sweepstakes any time up until February 10th. In the Name That Weird Invention! contest, ladybuggs wins a t-shirt for coming up with the name "the Toothsayer"! Also tripleX had the second place winning name with "ayePad", but didn't specify a shirt. Honorable mentions to Andrew X for "Den-Tell" and to Trevor for "DenTell Plaque." This week’s What Is It? game was a little different because we didn’t have a definitive answer: no one knows what the item was used for! The folks at the What Is It Blog have a sneaking suspicion it’s a case for a Tesla coil, but we decided to select the funniest and most imaginative guesses this week. The most imaginative was from arvana, who wrote a somewhat involved story insinuating that this case could hold the Prometheus Drive which would save the world’s energy problems if it hadn’t gone into the river (you really should read the whole thing). The funniest was when jjent567 declared the case was “fer me rat stompin’ peg leg…”. The winners of the Tokyo Flash Treasure Hunt are Pecca, who won a Tokyo Flash watch, and fabio, JSJ, and ingsoc won prizes from the NeatoShop! The answers are in the address of the hidden answer post, which 150 people found. Happy Groundhog Day for Wednesday and Happy Chinese New Year for this Thursday. Valentines Day is only a couple of weeks away, so order your unique and clever Valentine gifts from the NeatoShop today!

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