Neatorama

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• How to Make a Staircase Using Most of a Sheet of Plywood
• Busts Made of Roads and Rivers
• Sitting Down All Day = Really Bad For You
• Hummingbirds
• Puppy Robotic Vacuum is So Cute it Sucks
• Dead Space 2 Plasma Cutter with Real Lasers
• POLYRO Robot is Open Source Geekery at its Finest
• Mexican Stormtrooper
• Cat Hairball Jewelry
• This Plane Needs Only 10 Feet of Runway to Takeoff
• Stormtrooper Talking Dashboard Driver
• Chainsaw Katana
• Pop Culture Silhouettes
• App for Detecting Land Mines
• Bees Solve Complex Problems Faster Than Supercomputers
• Workstations That Will Make You Jealous
• The Reverse Dictionary
• Physical Storage Vs Digital Storage
• Dance of the Dumbo Octopus
• The Smoking Orangutan
• Judgment Day: May 21, 2011?
• E-Ink on Cloth Could Make Video Screen T-Shirts
• BBQ Tools
• Pirate's Eggs and Bacon Breakfast
• Are You Smarter Than a 1930s 8th Grader?
• The Six Stages of Movie Geek Evolution
• New York Times Sports Page Apologizes for LOTR Error
• The Mascot Quiz
• Beatles Cake Pops
• Matchbox Masterpieces

How to Make a Staircase Using Most of a Sheet of Plywood Posted: 10 May 2011 04:23 AM PDT Consider this puzzle: how can you make a staircase out of a single sheet of plywood and have as little wood left over as possible? That was the task of Instructables user Pilgrim55. It looks like he has only four pieces of scrap. Link via Make

Busts Made of Roads and Rivers Posted: 09 May 2011 08:08 PM PDT Photo link Artist Nikki Rosato creates amazing sculptures of human figures by using old street maps people have tossed. She started out by cutting flat silhouettes out of maps, then progressed to this stunning 3D work that she creates by eliminating all of the landmasses from the maps. She then uses wire to guide the remaining roads and waterways into the shape she wants. The result is “ambiguous and hauntingly ghost-like,” as she says in her artist’s statement. Link via Flavorwire

Sitting Down All Day = Really Bad For You Posted: 09 May 2011 07:55 PM PDT No doubt you knew that already, but since so many of us do sit for eight+ hours a day (I do, and I have no excuse… I have a stand-up desk at work), I thought these cool infographics were a good reminder. A few more of the stats you’ll find on the full graphic: Obese people sit for 2.5 hours a day more than thin people, walking burns 3-5 times the calories sitting does and people with sitting jobs have twice the rate of cardiovascular disease as people with standing jobs. I think it’s awesome that these retro-cool graphics were created by Medical Billing and Coding – it’s nice to see people being innovative with design and typeface even in industries that don’t necessarily require it. Now quit reading this and go do a lap around your office building. Link

Hummingbirds Posted: 09 May 2011 06:30 PM PDT Doctor and naturalist René Primevère Lesson collected zoological specimens while he served in the French Navy in the 1820s. He is particularly remembered for his books on hummingbirds, featuring beautiful engraved illustrations that you can see at BibliOdyssey. Link

Puppy Robotic Vacuum is So Cute it Sucks Posted: 09 May 2011 03:30 PM PDT This robotic vacuum concept is so much cuter than the Roomba. This concept is a mother dog that lies around while the pups scurry around the house sucking up dirt and other stuff from your floors. When the puppies are full up on dust and debris, they come back to the mommy dog and nuzzle up to their own power nipples for a charge and to offload the dirt the collected to mom. The quartet of little vacuums has smiling faces, will follow a remote around, and will occasionally sing. This really needs to be picked up and made into a real product. link

Dead Space 2 Plasma Cutter with Real Lasers Posted: 09 May 2011 03:28 PM PDT One of the best shooter-style video games I have played in a long time is Dead Space 2. The game was lots of fun, and it has one of the more interesting weapons to be in a video game called the plasma cutter. If you purchased the collector’s edition of Dead Space 2, you would have received a little plastic replica of that plasma cutter to play with. One gamer took that plastic toy and grafted blue laser pointers onto it that are powerful enough to light matches and pop balloons. link

POLYRO Robot is Open Source Geekery at its Finest Posted: 09 May 2011 03:27 PM PDT Robots are cool and all around the country and world lots of students, engineers and researchers are hard at work perfecting the human machine interface, and robots are the focus of much of that study. A new bot has been unveiled called POLYRO – short for oPen sOurce friendLY RObot. The designer of the bot is Tim Payne and POLYRO is surprisingly inexpensive to build. The bot has webcam eyes, appears to ride on a Roomba base, and its brain is a Linux netbook. It uses 11 Robotis Dynamixel servos and has a total price of under $2,000. link

Mexican Stormtrooper Posted: 09 May 2011 03:21 PM PDT A spaghetti Western version of Star Wars would be awesome. All that would be necessary is a few modifications to the script of A Fistful of Dollars. via Look at This Frakking Geekster | Photo: Bonnie Burton

Cat Hairball Jewelry Posted: 09 May 2011 03:09 PM PDT Jewelry designer Heidi Abrahamson has turned her kitties' hair into earrings, a necklace, and a cocktail ring to celebrate National Hairball Awareness Day. Who knew there was such a thing? If you like she’ll spin your cat’s hair into jewels as well. Link

This Plane Needs Only 10 Feet of Runway to Takeoff Posted: 09 May 2011 03:08 PM PDT (Video Link) Bush pilots in Alaska need to be able to land and take off in short distances. Many of them recently attended a competition focusing on this skill in the town of Knik River. Bobby Breeden, a student pilot, can do it in ten feet using a modified Piper Super Cub. Here’s how: The massive 35-inch tires are inflated to less than 3 psi to absorb the impact of landing on rocks and other debris. They also give the wing a high angle of attack to aid in decreasing the takeoff and landing distances. The engine has been stroked out an additional 15 cubic inches (375 total) and puts out around 210 horsepower. To help balance the heavier engine, the composite propeller weighs just 14 pounds. The result is helicopter-like performance. "It's just full power with the brakes locked and you get the tail up," Breeden says, "you just rotate immediately as you release the brakes and it just lifts off the ground." Link | Photo: Jason Paur/Wired.com Previously: Fighter Lands, Turns Around, and Takes Off in Under a Minute

Stormtrooper Talking Dashboard Driver Posted: 09 May 2011 02:36 PM PDT Stormtrooper Talking Dashboard Driver – $9.95 Don’t let bad drivers get you down. Get the Stormtrooper Talking Dashboard Driver from the NeatoShop.  He will tell all those people to, “Move along.” The Stormtrooper Talking Dashboard Driver also makes a perfect desk accessory. Be sure to check out the NeatoShop for more Star Wars fun!

Chainsaw Katana Posted: 09 May 2011 01:28 PM PDT redditor chr15to is a man (woman?) of true vision. His mind has given birth to this idea: the chainsaw katana. If we can put a man on the moon — or built a chainsaw bayonet — then surely this ambitious goal lies within humanity’s grasp. Link via Boing Boing

Pop Culture Silhouettes Posted: 09 May 2011 01:20 PM PDT Artist Olly Moss, whose awesome work we’ve previously featured on Neatorama, showed an exhibition of silhouette images from pop culture. If you live in Los Angeles, you can view them at Gallery 1988 through May 20. How many at the link can you identify without consulting outside sources? Link via NotCot | Photo: Bobby Solomon | Gallery Website

App for Detecting Land Mines Posted: 09 May 2011 01:08 PM PDT Engineering students at Harvard University have developed a cell phone app that, when paired with an ordinary metal detector, can be used effectively to detect land mines. Instead of just beeping when it passes over a metal object, these enhanced metal detectors present the shape of the object found below ground: Land mines, with their circular construction and trigger pin, have an ovoid signature. The system designed by Jayatilaka and Gajos shows one red dot for every beep of the metal detector. With passes over a buried object, the picture shows an increasingly complete outline of the object's shape, giving the de-miner an evermore detailed picture of what may be buried there. "Using only audio signals is a huge source of inefficiency. The operator has to figure out whether it is harmful or not harmful. If they are not completely sure, they have to go down on their hands and knees and excavate every piece of metal as if it were a land mine," explained Jayatilaka. The students hope that their invention can be used by cash-strapped de-mining operations around the world. Link via Popular Science | Photo: Justin Ide/Harvard University

Bees Solve Complex Problems Faster Than Supercomputers Posted: 09 May 2011 12:26 PM PDT Those damn dirty bees! A new study shows that bees have move advanced learning capabilities than other animals. In a new study, researchers report that bumblebees were able to figure out the most efficient routes among several computer-controlled “flowers,” quickly solving a complex problem that even stumps supercomputers. Link

Workstations That Will Make You Jealous Posted: 09 May 2011 12:24 PM PDT A couple of these home computer setups look like the set up for the evil mastermind in every high tech action movie. However, for all of us who slave away all day at a discount laptop PC, you will understand the jealousy felt toward these personal computing behemoths. Link

The Reverse Dictionary Posted: 09 May 2011 12:24 PM PDT If you're like me you constantly have trouble coming up with words for things like… I'd give you an example but I can't think of the word. Luckily there is now a Reverse Dictionary. You type in the definition of what you are thinking of and it gives you a word. Link

Physical Storage Vs Digital Storage Posted: 09 May 2011 12:23 PM PDT It's amazing how the storage of music and movies and increased exponentially over the years. This diagram illustrates how far we have come from vinyl records which could hold 44 minutes of music to today's iPods which can hold over 83 days of music.  Link

Dance of the Dumbo Octopus Posted: 09 May 2011 11:22 AM PDT We’ve posted about the Dumbo Octopus a few times before on Neatorama, but we’ve never seen it swim (or in this case, "dance") before: This white octopus was filmed with a high-definition underwater video camera at 6600 feet depth 200 miles off the coast of Oregon in September 2005 as part of the VISIONS ‘05 expedition led by Professors John Delaney and Deborah Kelley of the University of Washington. Little is known about the deep-sea octopuses that live in proximity to the hydrothermal vent fields associated with the underwater volcanoes of the Juan de Fuca Ridge in the Northeast Pacific Ocean. This video features the Grimpoteuthis bathynectes species. Sometimes nicknamed the Dumbo octopus, its ears are really fins that help it move through the water. Hit play or go to Link [YouTube] – via LiveScience

The Smoking Orangutan Posted: 09 May 2011 11:21 AM PDT You’d think that being in a cage would make it hard to feed a smoking habit, but that’s not the case in Malaysia. Here’s the shocking story of how visitors to the Johor Baru zoo fed Shirley, a 25-year-old orangutan cigarettes, just to watch her smoke: The government-run zoo in in Johor Baru has erected a ‘no smoking’ sign but that will do precious little to stop the sad practice while attendants turn their backs on it. Shirley spends much of her sad existence tearing apart drinks cans and chewing on food wrappers thrown at her by visitors. She regularly reaches through the bars of her cage to beg for cigarettes. The Daily Mail is there: Link

Judgment Day: May 21, 2011? Posted: 09 May 2011 11:20 AM PDT Photo: Mito Habe-Evans/NPR The End of the World has been foretold time and time again, but this time it’s for real. Well, according to Brian Haubert and a small group of true believers, anyway. They claimed that hidden in the Bible are some clues that the world will end May 21, 2011. NPR’s Weekend Edition takes a peek inside the Judgment Day movement (and the radio show behind the latest J-date): "I’ve crunched the numbers, and it’s going to happen," he says. Haubert says the Bible contains coded "proofs" that reveal the timing. For example, he says, from the time of Noah’s flood to May 21, 2011, is exactly 7,000 years. Revelations like this have changed his life. "I no longer think about 401(k)s and retirement," he says. "I’m not stressed about losing my job, which a lot of other people are in this economy. I’m just a lot less stressed, and in a way I’m more carefree." He’s tried to warn his friends and family. They think he’s crazy. And that saddens him. "Oh, it’s very hard," he says. "I worry about friends and family and loved ones. But I guess more recently, I’m just really looking forward to it." Haubert is 33 and single. Brown is married with several young children, and none of them shares his beliefs. It’s caused a rift with his wife — but he says that, too, was predicted in the Bible. "God says, ‘Do you love husband or wife over me? Do you love son or daughter over me?’ There is a test. There is a trial here that the believers are going through. It’s a fiery trial." As May 21 nears, Brown says he feels as if he’s on a "roller coaster." What if he is raptured but his family is left behind? "I’m crying over my loved ones one minute; I’m elated the next minute," he says. "It’s all over the place." Link

E-Ink on Cloth Could Make Video Screen T-Shirts Posted: 09 May 2011 11:18 AM PDT Just when you thought advertisements couldn't be any more invasive of our daily lives, E-Ink (the same company that makes the display screens for the Kindle) has created cloth video screens. There are many applications this could be used for from screens on T-shirts to packaging to magazines. At the link check out some of the video examples. Link

BBQ Tools Posted: 09 May 2011 10:56 AM PDT BBQ Tools – $35.95 Mother’s Day is so yesterday.  Are you ready for Father’s Day? This year show Dad how much you care by getting him the BBQ Tools from the NeatoShop.  This is the perfect gift for your favorite grill master / handyman / awesome Dad. Be sure to check out all the fantastic Cooking Gadgets available at the NeatoShop!

Pirate's Eggs and Bacon Breakfast Posted: 09 May 2011 10:15 AM PDT What did you have for breakfast, Neatoramanauts? Eggs and bacon? Were they as awesome as these Pirate Eggs and Bacon? I didn’t think so. Found at The Whatever – via Laughing Squid Links See more: Pirate and bacon stuff from the NeatoShop

Are You Smarter Than a 1930s 8th Grader? Posted: 09 May 2011 10:14 AM PDT Think you’re smarter than an 8th grader? Well, see if you can pass this test, given in 1931 by the West Virginia Department of Education, as sent in by a reader of Valerie Strauss’ education blog The AnswerSheet over at Washington Post: The exam was sent to me by John N. Beall of Wilmington, N.C., who received it from his father, the teacher who administered the test in a one-room school in Gilmer County, W.Va. [...] "The scope and depth of the exam speaks for itself. What is important to understand is that the students came from families that were very challenged financially, especially during the depression years. They lived on small family farms, and, just to make ends meet, every member of the family had to work on the farm. Each child had chores to do before and after school, and, as there were very few automobiles in that area, they walked to and from school each day, some of them walking several miles each way. At night after chores there was homework and then to bed. These young people were part of the ‘Great Generation’ that fought and died for freedom. Those who survived the war went on to build this great nation. "You might want to take the exam yourself. I found it to be challenging." Link

The Six Stages of Movie Geek Evolution Posted: 09 May 2011 09:59 AM PDT Are you a movie geek? More importantly, are you an evolved movie geek? It’s a long journey from watching cartoons as a kid to honestly enjoying films for what they are -and some stages in between can be difficult. Read about all six stages at The Droids You’re Looking For. Link -via Blame It On The Voices

New York Times Sports Page Apologizes for LOTR Error Posted: 09 May 2011 09:12 AM PDT One would think that a basic understanding of The Lord of the Rings would be taught in journalism school — especially for future sports writers — but such is apparently not the case. The New York Times corrected their statement that a bat was named after the sword used by Bilbo Baggins. Well, good for them owning up to such an embarrassingly obvious mistake. Link via blastr

The Mascot Quiz Posted: 09 May 2011 09:09 AM PDT You don’t have to be a sports fan to know the crazy mascots of the various teams -but it helps! Today’s Lunchtime Quiz at mental_floss will uncover how well you know the animals that represent your favorite and not-so-favorite sports teams. I scored 40% just by wild guessing. You will do better! Link

Beatles Cake Pops Posted: 09 May 2011 09:01 AM PDT Stacy Conradt made cake pops and decorated them to resemble the Beatles! She worked from just a photograph and made up the steps as she went along. The process is archived in pictures at her blog, i met a possum. Link

Matchbox Masterpieces Posted: 09 May 2011 08:02 AM PDT Way back in the 1890s match-manufacturers, Messrs. S. I. Moreland and Sons, of Gloucester and Birmingham, issued a challenge to their customers to construct a model made with no fewer than 1000 of their matchboxes. Many marvelous creations were submitted and judged by a panel mostly composed of architects. Mr. G. W. Roberts, of 2 Wenman Street, Birmingham made the full size piano above using 3,200  matchboxes, 576 boxes that had contained small wax-vestas and 51b. of glue. His effort won first prize in the third competition. In 1898 The Strand magazine of London published an article on the contest complete with photographs of  submissions. Link – Via Futility Closet

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