Neatorama

---

• Starry Night is Everywhere!
• Miniature Tire Swing
• Bite Me Vampire Fangs Bottle Opener
• Feynman Series
• 5:46 am: CGI Recreates Paris Flood
• Watermelon Brain
• India Builds $35 Tablet Computers
• Dutch Mandates Alcolocks
• Prairie Dogs Riding a Roomba
• Photos from Inside the Mouth
• Star Wars Disco Dancing
• Animals Hidden in Bowls
• Vespa in a Skate Park
• Sugru
• Transformers Pistol
• That's One Small Hop For Fish
• Labyrinth Champion
• Guess Who'll Be Fired Next?
• Ridiculed Work Led to Nobel Prize in Chemistry
• Norway's Famous Albino Moose Shot Dead
• Puppet with a Face Belly
• Steampunk Robot 3D Magnets Set of 4
• Eternal Flame
• The Most Surreal Insect on Earth
• Doctors Today
• What Is It? game 196

Starry Night is Everywhere! Posted: 07 Oct 2011 05:22 AM PDT Starry Night is a painting by Vincent Van Gogh that has proved to be an enduring iconic image. Painted in 1888, the scene shows a night sky filled with stars swirling over the French countryside, which includes a view of the village of Saint-Rémy. Since 1941, the painting has been at the Museum of Modern Art in New York. But everyone wants their own copy, or some version of Starry Night. We’ve seen a lot of them. Suzy Myers used quilled paper to recreate Starry Night. You can see the process and closeup views at her site. Back in April, Mattel unveiled a set of “fine art Barbies.” The collection includes a Da Vinci Mona Lisa model, another honoring Gustav Klimt, and this Barbie honoring Vincent Van Gogh with a Starry Night dress. See them all at If It’s Hip, It’s Here. Tabitha Ballard made an award-winning cake that reproduces the Van Gogh painting. Flickr user and pastry chef Megpi made what she called an “Impressionist Cake” in 2008. Only the top layer uses the image of Starry Night, but it’s all impressive! You’ll find quite a few Starry Night tattoos if you look for them. This full-arm tat goes all the way! Did you ever have the burning need to make a Van Gogh masterpiece out of bacon? It’s been done, but you can make your own with step-by-step directions from Instructables. Doyle Geddes, a teacher at Sky View High School in Smithfield, Utah, led 150 students through the construction of the world’s largest recreation of Van Gogh’s masterpiece Starry Night. The finished product was 72 feet by 90 feet on the gym floor, and an inch deep in breakfast cereal! A Malt-O-Meal factory donated two tons of Tootie Fruities, Cocoa Dyno-Bites and Frosted Mini Spooners for the project. Watch them put it together in a time-lapse video. Imagine a 1.5 Gigapixel image made of over 200,000 other images. This version of Starry Night is a photomosaic. At this link, you can zoom in over and over to see the other images that make up this image. You can have your own Starry Night from the NeatoShop! Our Inflatable Van Gogh in a Can gives you a 19×15 version of the painting packed in a convenient can. Anytime you need some art, just pull it out and blow it up! If something is nice, someone will eventually make a LEGO version of it. Ed Hall did it in 2001, with awesome results. Ross Thomas and Elizabeth Farrell of the University of Virginia collected 8,000 bottle caps and used them to make a Starry Night mosaic. Their finished product is shown here, but it’s far from the only bottle cap mosaic of Starry Night. See the others at Oddity Central. It’s not only artists that recreate the Van Gogh work. A photograph of a storm on Jupiter struck Ransom Riggs (and plenty of other people) as very reminiscent of Starry Night. And then there are the mashups, in which an artist takes a pop culture icon and places it into Van Gogh’s world. James Hance thought Starry Night would be a great backdrop for The Dark Knight. He was right! Hance’s mashup was later enshrined in a tattoo. Someone did the same for The Lord of the Rings, putting the Eye of Sauron into the scene. Unfortunately, the artist’s name has been lost along the way. The stars are replaced by spaceships and an ominous Death Star in this Star Wars/Starry Night mashup by Newbpainter. DeviantART member Terry Lightfoot inserted a TARDIS from the Doctor Who series into Van Gogh’s masterpiece. (YouTube link) And now for some music! Don McLean paid tribute to Van Gogh’s painting in the lyrics of his 1971 song “Vincent.” This video uses many of Van Gogh’s paintings to illustrate the song.

Miniature Tire Swing Posted: 07 Oct 2011 04:47 AM PDT Phil Jones got playful when he saw this little tree. It needed a tire swing for outdoor fun, so he took one off of a toy car. Link -via Boing Boing | Photo: Alexis Jones

Bite Me Vampire Fangs Bottle Opener Posted: 06 Oct 2011 08:55 PM PDT Bite Me Vampire Fangs Bottle Opener – $9.95 Halloween is just around the corner. Are you looking for a spooktacular way to open your favorite beverage? You need the Bite Me Vampire Fangs Bottle Opener from the NeatoShop. This fangstatic metal bottle opener is shaped like a vampire’s fangs. Your friends will be dying to know where you got such a cool bottle opener. Be sure to check out the NeatoShop for more frighteningly fabulous Cocktail & Barware items! Link

Feynman Series Posted: 06 Oct 2011 08:18 PM PDT (YouTube link) As a companion to the Sagan Series, this video starts off a tribute to quantum physicist Richard Feynman. Beautiful footage from BBC and NASA give added poetry to some of Feynman’s most memorable discourse. I don’t have to know an answer. I don’t feel frightened by not knowing, by being lost in a mysterious universe without having any purpose which is the way it really is. It doesn’t frighten me. -via Open Culture

5:46 am: CGI Recreates Paris Flood Posted: 06 Oct 2011 07:42 PM PDT (Vimeo link) This video by Olivier Campagne and Vivien Balzi emulates the 1910 Great Flood of Paris with CGI. It’s incredible to imagine the entire city submerged in water, and even more impressive to see how realistic the animated waters are. -via Fast Company

Watermelon Brain Posted: 06 Oct 2011 07:19 PM PDT redditor TheHerferd made this excellent watermelon carving. Using a potato peeler and a bird’s beaked paring knife, he completed the project in under an hour. Link -via Blame It on the Voices

India Builds $35 Tablet Computers Posted: 06 Oct 2011 06:53 PM PDT India lags behind many other countries in computer technology. Only half of the colleges in that nation have access to the Internet. To broaden computer and especially Internet access, the Indian government is now selling a simple tablet computer called the Aakash at a subsidized rate of $35 each: The 13-ounce touch-screen device can handle basic computing, including email, social networking, surfing, online banking, instant messaging and multimedia. The stripped-down system uses Google’s Android 2.2 operating system and comes with headphones, Wi-Fi access, two USB slots, 256 megabytes of internal memory and a 7-inch screen. It is not considered on the same level of the more advanced tablets available to consumers. “This will allow basic computing beyond the mobile phone,” said Vishal Tripathi, an analyst with Gartner, a high-tech research firm. Although the tablets were designed in the UK, they’re being assembled in India in the hope of spurring domestic production of computer hardware. Link -via Geekologie | Photo: Gurinder Osan/AP

Dutch Mandates Alcolocks Posted: 06 Oct 2011 06:44 PM PDT Starting December 1st, the Netherlands will be giving their drunk drivers a holiday gift. Drivers who have been pulled over with high blood alcohol content will be given “alcolocks” to install into their cars. The device acts as a breathalyzer that can keep an engine turned off. The way the alcolock works is that the driver must first breathe into it to unlock the engine, and will have to repeat the same process at regular intervals during the journey. If the mini-breathalyzer, which is fitted to the dashboard, indicates a blood alcohol level above the legal limit, the engine will not turn on. The alcolocks will be installed for two years with a possible six-year extension if the driver continues to drink and drive. In the worst cases, the driver’s license will be revoked, and the driver will have to wait five years before he or she can take a new test. About 200 people die every year because of drink-driving, Dutch media reported. Link | Image Credit Felix Triller

Prairie Dogs Riding a Roomba Posted: 06 Oct 2011 06:28 PM PDT (Video Link) Wheeee! These domesticated prairie dogs have got it all figured out. The buzzing machine is a vehicle of some sort. -via I Heart Chaos

Photos from Inside the Mouth Posted: 06 Oct 2011 06:12 PM PDT One of Justin Quinell’s recent projects was to photograph the world with a camera in his mouth. His new book, Mouthpiece, shows the results. You can see a slideshow of examples from that book at the link. My idea: shoot a short horror film from this perspective. Link -via Flavorwire | Amazon Link

Star Wars Disco Dancing Posted: 06 Oct 2011 06:00 PM PDT (Video Link) This video, which shows multiple C-3POs dancing with multiple Darth Vaders to disco versions of Star Wars theme music, is allegedly from an 80s French TV show. I’m not sure if it’s fortunate or tragic that the original trilogy didn’t take advantage of disco music’s popularity. -via Comics Alliance

Animals Hidden in Bowls Posted: 06 Oct 2011 05:48 PM PDT Geraldine De Beco, a French designer, made three bowls that look fairly ordinary when empty. But when filled with liquid, they reveal animal shapes! She’s made them to show either a bird, a wolf, or a cat. Link | Photo: Bernardaud

Vespa in a Skate Park Posted: 06 Oct 2011 05:40 PM PDT (Video Link) I once considering buying a classic 150cc Vespa and trying to ride it from Barrow, Alaska to Tierra del Fuego. It seemed like a fine challenge for that Italian icon. Thankfully, common sense (and a lack of money) intervened before I made any serious plans. This video shows a riding challenge that is shorter, but still demanding. A man named Boulon treats his modern-style Vespa like a stunt bike and maneuvers it through a skate park in Marseilles, France. -via Doobybrain

Sugru Posted: 06 Oct 2011 05:20 PM PDT (YouTube link) Watch the video to see Sugru display its potential to hack everyday items (and make fine art sculptures using toasters too.) The company website has some interesting suggestions for using the claylike substance, such as attaching an umbrella to the side of a lawn chair. Link -via Design Sponge | See it used to make a “You Killed Kenny!” doorstop

Transformers Pistol Posted: 06 Oct 2011 04:55 PM PDT Competitive shooting champion Rico Gonzalez Papa owns this magnificent modified handgun. He calls it the “Modified Megatron.” I doubt that it transforms into something more awesome than its current form, for such a thing is not possible. Link -via Sharp as a Marble | Photo: Rico Gonzalez Papa Special thanks to Paul Erhardt for helping me find information about this photo.

That's One Small Hop For Fish Posted: 06 Oct 2011 04:44 PM PDT One giant leap for evolution. Alice Gibb from Northern Arizona University and colleagues discovered 6 unrelated species of fish that have evolved the strange ability to jump: Researchers discovered that at least six different types of fish are able to launch themselves into the air from a solid surface. The team said this was an evolutionary snapshot of the transition from living in water to inhabiting land. [...] It suggests that, rather than a rare adaptation that evolved in a select few species, the ability to leap on land is common among bony fishes. So many more of their ancient aquatic relatives might have invaded the land than had previously been thought. Link

Labyrinth Champion Posted: 06 Oct 2011 04:16 PM PDT (YouTube link) The game Labyrinth looks really difficult, but Alon Moss of New York completed it -with two balls- in world record time, just 2 minutes, 37.8 seconds. Link -Thanks, David!

Guess Who'll Be Fired Next? Posted: 06 Oct 2011 02:42 PM PDT Relax, Neatorama authors and NeatoShop workers, you're safe ... for now. The "contest" to guess who will be fired next was the brainchild of William Ernst, the owner of Iowa-based chain of QC Marts. He has been called "the Boss from Hell" by one of his former workers: The memo explained the rules of a game in which employees were told to write the name of the next cashier they thought would be fired, along with the date and their own name on a piece of paper. Those who guessed correctly would win a $10 prize. "And no fair picking Mike Miller from Rockingham," the memo added in boldfaced capital letters. "He was fired at around 11:30 a.m. today for wearing a had [sic] and talking on his cell phone. Good luck!!!!" ABC News has the (bizarre) story of the memo: Link

Ridiculed Work Led to Nobel Prize in Chemistry Posted: 06 Oct 2011 12:48 PM PDT Mahatma Gandhi said "First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win." My old professor said that something similar happens all the time in science (which you wouldn't expect to happen because scientists are supposed to objectively evaluate data, right?). He said that first they say your data is not right. Then they say your data is right, but it is not significant. Then after you spend years working on it, they say that of course you're right, it's been known for years and so it's not novel ;) This year's Nobel Prize in Chemistry goes to Daniel Schechtman, who discovered the seemingly impossible crystal structure in metals, has a similar experience: On the morning of 8 April 1982, Shechtman saw something quite different while gazing at electron microscope images of a rapidly cooled metal alloy. The atoms were packed in a pattern that could not be repeated. Shechtman said to himself in Hebrew, "Eyn chaya kazo," which means "There can be no such creature." The bizarre structures are now known as "quasicrystals" and have been seen in a wide variety of materials. Their uneven structure means they do not have obvious cleavage planes, making them particularly hard. "His discovery was extremely controversial. In the course of defending his findings, he was asked to leave his research group," the Nobel committee at the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences said in a statement. "However, his battle eventually forced scientists to reconsider their conception of the very nature of matter … Scientists are currently experimenting with using quasicrystals in different products such as frying pans and diesel engines." In an interview this year with the Israeli newspaper, Haaretz, Shechtman said: "People just laughed at me." He recalled how Linus Pauling, a colossus of science and a double Nobel laureate, mounted a frightening "crusade" against him. After telling Shechtman to go back and read a crystallography textbook, the head of his research group asked him to leave for "bringing disgrace" on the team. "I felt rejected," Shachtman said. Link (Photo: Technion - Israel Institute of Technology)

Norway's Famous Albino Moose Shot Dead Posted: 06 Oct 2011 12:42 PM PDT Remember the albino moose that wandered the forest of Østfold, Norway? You know, the one whom the Norwegian hunters debate whether to shoot? Well, that debate is moot thanks to a Danish hunter, who had few regrets about shooting him: Frost, who had arrived for hunting in Norway on Monday, told Danish website bt.dk that he’d heard about a protected moose a few years ago but nothing recently. “So when I get it in my corner, I have just a few seconds to think about what I should do,” he told bt.dk. “But I decided to shoot the moose and it’s a decision I stand by.” He quickly realized he hadn’t shot “just any moose, and when we gathered around it, someone said there would probably be press coverage.” He repeated that he “stands by” his decision to kill the moose, “although I would gladly be without all the noise that’s come afterwards.” He said he was “a bit amazed” that the shooting sparked so much reaction. Link (Photo: NRK)

Puppet with a Face Belly Posted: 06 Oct 2011 10:57 AM PDT Our pal Juergen of Random Good Stuff and For 91 Days is in Palermo, Italy when he visited a fantastic little museum of puppets called the Museo delle Marionette. He wrote: The glory days of puppet theater are long since gone, obsoleted by more modern entertainment options like TV and movies. But Palermo is one of the few places that you can still catch a show, with a few family-run theaters continuing the tradition. We’re definitely going to at least one. But first, in order to learn a bit more about the art form, we visited the Museo delle Marionette. In 2001, UNESCO added Sicilian Puppet Theater to its list of Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity. Sicilian performances are usually centered around knights and princesses, dragons and Christianity. Epic Norman ballads like The Song of Roland provide much of the material for the island’s puppeteers, who inject a fair amount of humor in their performances and also invent dialogue on the fly. ... but all I kept on thinking was: What's up with the puppet with the belly face? Link - Thanks Juergen!

Steampunk Robot 3D Magnets Set of 4 Posted: 06 Oct 2011 08:44 AM PDT Steampunk Robot 3D Magnets Set of 4 – $49.95 First it was Zombies and now it is Steampunk Robots! Will the invasion of fantastic Neatorama exclusive products ever end? We certainly hope not! Behold the awesome Steampunk Robot 3D Magnet Set of 4 from the NeatoShop. This amazing set comes with: Bludger Class Robot Drone Class Robot FOP Class Robot and Expansion Pack Mix them up to create your own 3D steampunk robot fridge magnets! The 3D Zombie Magnets is compatible with this set.  You can combine them to create your own frightening Zombie / Steampunk Robot creature. Be sure to check out the NeatoShop for more Magnetic fun! Link

Eternal Flame Posted: 06 Oct 2011 08:39 AM PDT Ranker listed the most immediate internet reactions to Steve Jobs’ death, including the good, the bad, and the tasteless. Laughing Squid also posted a roundup of tributes. Randall Munroe, who normally posts a new comic at xkcd on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, posted this extra in memory of Jobs. Link

The Most Surreal Insect on Earth Posted: 06 Oct 2011 08:03 AM PDT This photo shows a replica of Bocydium globulare, the Brazilian Treehopper. It’s a real insect -scout’s honor! See more pictures of this treehopper and other bizarre bugs at Dark Roasted Blend. Link (Image credit: Alfred Keller for Berlin’s Naturkundemuseum)

Doctors Today Posted: 06 Oct 2011 08:01 AM PDT (YouTube link) Being a medical doctor is prestigious, but it’s not easy. Dr. Diego, Dr. Harry, and ZDoggMD sing about their work in this parody of “Tonight Tonight” by Hot Chelle Rae. Read the stories that inspired the song at ZDoggMD. Link

What Is It? game 196 Posted: 06 Oct 2011 06:30 AM PDT Once again, it’s time for our collaboration with the always amusing What Is It? Blog. Can you tell us what this thing is? Or make a wild guess? Place your guess in the comment section below. One guess per comment, please, though you can enter as many as you’d like. Post no URLs or weblinks, as doing so will forfeit your entry. Two winners: the first correct guess and the funniest (albeit ultimately wrong) guess will win T-shirt from the NeatoShop. Please write your T-shirt selection alongside your guess. If you don’t include a selection, you forfeit the prize, okay? May we suggest the Science T-Shirt, Funny T-Shirt and Artist-Designed T-Shirts? For more clues, check out the What Is It? Blog.

You are subscribed to email updates from Neatorama To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.	Email delivery powered by Google
Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610