Neatorama

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• Delightfully Retro Star Wars Posters
• Olympic Structure Which Can Be Played Like A Musical Instrument
• A Super Super Mario Tattoo
• Animated Short – D.A.D. Digital Amusement Device
• Make Your Own Lightsaber Pool Toys
• A Guide To Recognizing Your Bread Cats
• Colin Mochrie Loves His Star Wars Toys
• Andrew W.K.’s Cheesy Custom Guitar
• Indiana Jones Theme Song A Capella by Nick McKaig
• Facehugger Corset
• How Long Does It Take To Sort 65,000 LEGO Bricks?
• Jim Denevan’s Frozen Art on Lake Baikal, Siberia
• Face of Paris Optical Illusion
• Huge Sudeley Bench by Pablo Reinoso
• Fanny/Fingerpainting by Chuck Close
• Lenovo CEO Distributed His $3 Million Bonus to Employees
• Banana Chair
• Fifty Farts Playing Cards
• Lava Kiss
• Screaming
• Vibrating Glove Teaches People How to Play the Piano
• The Horrifying Physiological and Psychological Consequences of Being Aquaman
• Bygone Olympic Event: Distance Plunging
• The Electric Vocabulary
• Goulding Sidecars
• Marble Machine Chronicle
• Take Care in What You Wear to the Games
• Abraham Lincoln Bandages
• Adorable Animated Short – OZO
• Mind Blowing Optical Illusion Art Installation
• This Week at Neatorama
• A Truly Awesome Nude Shower Scene

Delightfully Retro Star Wars Posters Posted: 22 Jul 2012 05:03 AM PDT Remember, Star Wars did take place a long, long time ago, so really it only makes sense that their recruitment posters would look vintage to us. Cat Staggs aka Gattadonna on DeviantArt, made this series as part of a Star Wars Celebration art show in Orlando schedule to start next month. Link Via BoingBoing

Olympic Structure Which Can Be Played Like A Musical Instrument Posted: 22 Jul 2012 04:00 AM PDT This awesomely abstract piece of structural art is called the Coca-Cola Beatbox, and it can be played like a musical instrument by visitors who come into contact with its crystalline walls. Here’s how it works: The Coca-Cola Beatbox, as its called, was designed by Asif Khan and Pernilla Ohrstedt and is made up of over 200 “interlocked translucent air cushions, each the size of a billboard.” Those air cushions contain different sounds—which include athletes’ heartbeats, shoes squeaking and arrows hitting a target—and will be triggered by people walking in and out of the Beatbox through gestures and movement. Advertising gimmick or not, this is a pretty cool idea that’s guaranteed to add a bit of color to the 2012 Olympic Games in London. Link  –via Gizmodo

A Super Super Mario Tattoo Posted: 22 Jul 2012 03:02 AM PDT Stars, landscape, mushrooms, bombs and more all tightly compacted into a perfectly-sized artwork. This might just be the best Mario tattoo I’ve ever seen. Link Via Geeks Are Sexy

Animated Short – D.A.D. Digital Amusement Device Posted: 22 Jul 2012 02:30 AM PDT (YouTube Link) Here’s an adorable animated short about D.A.D., a digital amusement device who has a lot in common with human fathers, aside from the telescoping arms and antenna on top of his head. I really liked this cutie pie of a short, and I think animator Mark Osberg should consider making it into an ongoing web series! –via Drawn

Make Your Own Lightsaber Pool Toys Posted: 22 Jul 2012 02:01 AM PDT Pool toys may be fun to use, but they certainly could use some help when it comes to looking cool. Fortunately, with only a bit of tape, you can turn boring pool floaties into awesome Star Wars ones. Link Via Laughing Squid Image Via loafandjug [Twitter]

A Guide To Recognizing Your Bread Cats Posted: 22 Jul 2012 01:30 AM PDT This handy, and adorable, illustrated chart will help you identify those pesky bread cats that have been hanging around your back door meowing their yeasty little heads off. I don’t know why but I find the idea of a cream horn cat to be quite disgusting, and I have a feeling that the rising dough cat isn’t going to make it out of the oven in one piece! Link  –via TDW

Colin Mochrie Loves His Star Wars Toys Posted: 22 Jul 2012 12:29 AM PDT (YouTube Link) Colin Mochrie is a comedian, Whose Line Is It Anyway alumnus, and an avid Star Wars toy enthusiast, at least according to this video which shows him re-enacting scenes from Star Wars with a bunch of toys. Watch this video and you’ll see that a grown man can become a silly little kid again at the drop of a hat when he gets his hands on his favorite toys. –via Topless Robot

Andrew W.K.’s Cheesy Custom Guitar Posted: 21 Jul 2012 11:30 PM PDT What could possibly make Andrew W.K.’s already cheesy persona even cheesier? A custom made guitar that looks like a big ol’ sloppy slice of NYC pizza pie, that’s what! Andrew built and painted the guitar as an homage to one of his fav foods, and he made sure to include his favorite topping on the pizza- jalapenos. That’s one spicy slice of rock n roll memorabilia! Link   –via Obvious Winner

Indiana Jones Theme Song A Capella by Nick McKaig Posted: 21 Jul 2012 11:00 PM PDT Nick McKaig, who did the Vocal Version of the Star Wars Theme, is back. This time, with the a capella version of Indiana Jones (which he reproduced in its entirety using only his own voice, in 62 tracks). Fortune and glory, Nick's version has definitely got them: Hit play or go to Link [YouTube]

Facehugger Corset Posted: 21 Jul 2012 10:00 PM PDT There's nothing like a little Alien parasitoid to grab all the attention of the geeks around you. Behold, the Facehugger Corset by Rage Custom Creations: Link - via Fashionably Geek

How Long Does It Take To Sort 65,000 LEGO Bricks? Posted: 21 Jul 2012 09:00 PM PDT 71 hours. We know the answer because someone had actually done it: Daniel Larsson and Tomas Redigh (of the Swedish band Rymdreglage) are creating the sequel to their insanely famous stop motion LEGO music video 8-Bit Trip. We can't hardly wait! PetaPixel has the details: Link

Jim Denevan’s Frozen Art on Lake Baikal, Siberia Posted: 21 Jul 2012 08:00 PM PDT We've featured giant sand artwork by Jim Denevan before on Neatorama, but the artist is back. This time, Jim and his team traveled all the way to Lake Baikal, Siberia, in order to create the world's largest work of art. Denevan, a sort of Andy Goldsworthy of the American West, and a team of plucky helpers proceeded to mark 9 square miles of ice with giant circles based on the Fibonacci sequence. The result, captured in the photographs above, is in a way less impressive than the process itself: Crew members had to brave sub-zero temperatures and hurricane-force winds to realize Denevan’s vision. Some of the gusts were so strong, they actually blew away the art work. Suzanne Labarre of Co.Design has the photos and story: Link

Face of Paris Optical Illusion Posted: 21 Jul 2012 07:00 PM PDT I found this delightful "Face of Paris" optical illusion over at Mighty Optical Illusion. Does anyone know its origin?

Huge Sudeley Bench by Pablo Reinoso Posted: 21 Jul 2012 06:00 PM PDT Oh, what tangled bench Pablo Reinoso weaves. Paris-based artist created this Huge Sudeley Bench, made out of twisted steel, back in 2010: Link

Fanny/Fingerpainting by Chuck Close Posted: 21 Jul 2012 05:00 PM PDT This ain't fingerpainting you did in kindergarten! That's artist Chuck Close "painting" a portrait of his grandmother-in-law with his fingertips. From The National Gallery of Art: Fanny/Fingerpainting, a portrait of Close's grandmother-in-law, represents one of the largest and most masterly executions of a technique the artist developed in the mid-l980s. That technique involved the direct application of pigment to a surface with the artist's fingertips. By adjusting the amount of pigment and the pressure of his finger on the canvas, Close could achieve a wide range of tonal effects. Typically, he worked from a black and white photograph which he would divide into many smaller units by means of a grid. He then transposed the grid onto a much larger canvas and meticulously reproduced each section of it. The result is a monumental, close-up view that forces an uncomfortable intimacy upon the viewer. Seen from a distance, the painting looks like a giant, silver-toned photograph that unrelentingly reveals every crack and crevice of the sitter's face. Closer up, the paint surface dissolves into a sea of fingerprints that have an abstract beauty, even as they metaphorically suggest the withering of the sitter's skin with age. The fingerpaintings provide a far more literal record of the artist's touch than most abstract expressionist brushwork -- but are at the same time dictated by an abstract, distinctly impersonal system. Bored Panda has more pics: Link | Chuck Close's website Previously on Neatorama: This Is a Fingerpainting

Lenovo CEO Distributed His $3 Million Bonus to Employees Posted: 21 Jul 2012 04:00 PM PDT CEOs earning millions of dollars in bonuses is not unusual, but what is remarkable is what China-based technology company Lenovo's CEO Yang Yuanqing did with his: Yang Yuanqing distributed $3 million from his bonus among 10,000 junior-level employees, the China-based technology company confirmed Thursday. The employees, such as receptionists, production-line workers and assistants, each received an average bonus of 2,000 yuan, which is $314, in the name of their CEO. Link - via The Verge

Banana Chair Posted: 21 Jul 2012 03:00 PM PDT I, for one, find the Banana Chair by Polish design studio WamHouse very a-peel-ing. Hah! Technabob has more pics: Link

Fifty Farts Playing Cards Posted: 21 Jul 2012 02:28 PM PDT   Fifty Farts Playing Cards – $7.95 Are you looking for a fun way to pass the time?  You need the Fifty Farts Playing Cards set from the NeatoShop. Now you can learn all about the taxonomy of the rectal expulsion of gas products all while playing a fantastic game of solitaire. The best part? Increasing your vocabulary just became a breeze! Note: Playing cards can also be used for other card games. Please be advised, however, that your friends might not appreciate you providing a demonstration of the various fart techniques listed on the cards. Fifty Barfs Playing Cards also available. Be sure to check out the NeatoShop for more great Games & Puzzles! Link

Lava Kiss Posted: 21 Jul 2012 02:00 PM PDT Photo: Dallas Nagata White Photographer Dallas Nagata White submitted this photo of her husband surprising her with a dip and a kiss in front of a Kilauea lava flow in Hawaii: My husband and I, along with a tour guide and a group of friends, hiked up to what was formerly the Royal Gardens subdivision above Kalapana, Hawaii, where the last standing house was just recently taken over by the active lava flow. While waiting for the rain to pass, we started taking back-lit portraits of each other in front of the lava flow after I set up my camera on the tripod. For the last photo, my husband spontaneously dipped me in a kiss. It was a truly once-in-a-lifetime moment! The photo was submitted to the 24th Annual National Geographic Traveler Photo Contest, and was picked as the front pic on Alan Taylor's In Focus blog post over at The Atlantic. Link

Screaming Posted: 21 Jul 2012 01:00 PM PDT Swedish artist Sebastian Eriksson is only 18 years old, but he’s already cutting out a place for himself in the art world. His surreal images are often horrifying, such as this pencil and charcoal drawing entitled Mind Devour. What’s happening to the subject? Eriksson writes, “His endless screaming makes his own mind eat him up.” Link -via My Modern Met

Vibrating Glove Teaches People How to Play the Piano Posted: 21 Jul 2012 12:00 PM PDT As soon as you feel your finger vibrate, press the piano key. The Mobile Music Touch system devised by researchers at Georgia Institute of Technology will teach you how to play the piano. The glove, which looks like a workout glove with a small box on the back, is used with a piano keyboard and vibrates a person's fingers to indicate which keys to play. While learning to play the instrument, several people with SCI experienced improved sensation in their fingers. [...] The MMT system works with a computer, MP3 player or smart phone. A song, such as Ode to Joy, is programmed into a device, which is wirelessly linked to the glove. As the musical notes are illuminated on the correct keys on the piano keyboard, the gadget sends vibrations to "tap" the corresponding fingers. The participants play along, gradually memorizing the keys and learning additional songs. But the research team has ambitions far higher than building a musical education device. They envision it as a tool for helping people with spinal injuries recover sensation: "Some people were able to pick up objects more easily," said Markow. "Another said he could immediately feel the heat from a cup of coffee, rather than after a delay." Markow believes the increased motor abilities could be caused by renewed brain activity that sometimes becomes dormant in persons with SCI. The vibration might be triggering activity in the hand's sensory cortex, which leads to firing in the brain's motor cortex. Markow would like to expand the study to include functional MRI results. Link -via Walyou | Photo: Georgia Tech

The Horrifying Physiological and Psychological Consequences of Being Aquaman Posted: 21 Jul 2012 11:00 AM PDT Aquaman doesn’t get the respect in the world of comic book super heroes that Superman, Captan America, and others get. On top of that, he inhabits an undersea world that contains few, if any, other heroes. But those are the least of his problems! Southern Fried Science takes a realistic look at what Aquaman would have to contend with -if he were real. Aquaman is, for all intents and purposes, a marine mammal. And, with the exception of a healthy mane in later incarnations, he is effectively hairless. As a human, we would expect his internal body temperature to hover around 99°F, or about 37°C. Even at its warmest points, the surface temperature of the ocean around the equator is only about 80°F/27°C. At the poles ocean temperature can actually drop a few degrees below freezing. In the deep sea, ambient temperature levels out around 2 – 4°C. The ocean is cold, and water is a much better thermal conductor than air. Warm blooded species have evolved many different systems to manage these gradients, including countercurrent heat exchangers, insulating fur, and heavy layers of blubber. That’s one thing, but there are plenty of other reasons ocean living isn’t all that pleasant. Link -via Not Exactly Rocket Science

Bygone Olympic Event: Distance Plunging Posted: 21 Jul 2012 10:00 AM PDT At the 1904 Olympics in St. Louis, competitors took part in a water event called the distance plunge. That was the only year it was part of the games. The event required athletes to dive into the pool and coast underwater without moving their limbs. After 60 seconds had passed – or competitors had floated to the surface, whichever came first – referees measured the distance the athletes had drifted. Yes, it certainly sounds more like a pool game for kids than a real sport. Distance plunging is just one of a gallery of 9 Really Strange Sports That Are No Longer in the Olympics. Link -via Nag on the Lake

The Electric Vocabulary Posted: 21 Jul 2012 09:30 AM PDT (YouTube link) James Sheils marries science and history (which should be done more often) and explains the timeline of research on electricity in this animated TEDEducation talk. Along the way, etymology is introduced as well; hence the word “vocabulary.” -via The Daily What Geek

Goulding Sidecars Posted: 21 Jul 2012 09:00 AM PDT Motorcycle enthusiasts and history buffs alike will love the story of James Goulding and his sidecars. One hundred years ago in 1910, my grandfather, James Goulding built his first sidecar in Melbourne, Australia. In 1956 He built his last sidecar in Saginaw, Michigan. A lot of Motorcycle History happened between these two events and James and his famous family were a part of 80 years of Bike History. Mr. Goulding was born in Carlisle, England in 1885. His family emigrated to Australia when he was four years old. James grew to be an energetic and ambitious worker and had his own home building business (and his first Harley-Davidson) by 1908. James designed his first sidecar to haul his building tools, and from the beginning he used his chassis idea with the floating axle system that made them so durable. In 1915, he had his sidecar manufacturing business well underway.  In 1911, he married Mary Olive Ratford.  In 1912 Olive, as James called her, gave birth to motorcycling’s most famous lady, Dot (Goulding) Robinson.  She wasn’t born in a sidecar as legend has it, but her mother was rushed to the doctor in a 1911 Harley belt-drive motorcycle with a Goulding sidecar.  In 1915, Claude Goulding was born and in 1917 my mother Edna Goulding was added to the clan.  By 1917,  Goulding Sidecars were the primary brand in Australia and New Zealand.  In 1920, James decided to introduce his product in America.  He did this with a 12,000 mile tour of the U.S. using a 1917 Harley “J’ Model 1000cc with his sidecar.  One part of this tour was a transcontinental run from New York to San Francisco.  Photos attest to how nasty the dirt and sand roads were a good deal of the way.  The trip ended at Dudley Perkin’s Harley-Davidson dealership in San Francisco. James started a motorcycle dynasty in which his sidecars became famous and his children became famous for endurance racing. And the website on Goulding Sidecars has tons of interesting material: stories, photographs, videos, technical information, and updates. Link -via Everlasting Blort

Marble Machine Chronicle Posted: 21 Jul 2012 08:30 AM PDT (YouTube link) This marble machine is pretty cool on its own, and then he starts switching out components on it! But wait, there’s more… he’s got other machines with different lift mechanisms, which are interchangeable with the same components! -via mental_floss

Take Care in What You Wear to the Games Posted: 21 Jul 2012 08:00 AM PDT Olympic sponsors are so adamant about protecting their rights that spectators wearing certain kinds of clothing may be turned away from the games. Games boss Sebation Coe warned anyone wearing a Pepsi T-shirt is likely to be booted out because it would upset sponsors Coca-Cola. And he only said spectators in Nike trainers "could probably" be allowed in although Adidas are also backing the event. Coe defended the draconian move and said it was to protect corporate sponsors who have paid a fortune to be involved. The story at the Daily Record details other measures already taken, like food vendors being told to sell their wares in clear plastic bags so there is no confusion about breaking the branding rules. Link -via reddit (Image credit: Flickr user Andrew Tseng)

Abraham Lincoln Bandages Posted: 21 Jul 2012 07:36 AM PDT Abraham Lincoln Bandages – $4.95 The probability that you would fall in the struggle did not deter you from supporting a cause you believed was just. Now it is time to heal thy wounds with the Abraham Lincoln Bandages from the NeatoShop. This great bandage will tend to your gash just as Honest Abe restored a nation. Be sure to check out the NeatoShop for more inspiring Health & Wellness items. Link

Adorable Animated Short – OZO Posted: 21 Jul 2012 07:30 AM PDT (Vimeo Link) This neat animated short is called OZO, and it was created by a group of talented animation students from France. It blends traditional and 3d animation into a delightful story that seems like it would make a great TV series, and it’s so cute it’ll give you dimples! –via Drawn

Mind Blowing Optical Illusion Art Installation Posted: 21 Jul 2012 07:00 AM PDT These art installations were created by Regina Silveira as a surefire way to blow the minds of all in attendance. This Brazilian born artist has a way of making the senses reel, with simple linework and perspective tricks that really suck the viewer into the piece. I hope she doesn’t crack very many bottles of wine at her shows, or someone might get sick on one of her works! Link  –via Juxtapoz

This Week at Neatorama Posted: 21 Jul 2012 06:29 AM PDT Our hearts go out to the survivors and the families of the deceased in Aurora, Colorado after the horrific shooting at the movie theater early Friday morning. While we cannot ignore it, coverage of such a big, constantly updated national news story is honestly beyond the scope of what we do here at Neatorama. That’s not to say we won’t post anything about the shooting, but we encourage you to stay updated by following news sites. Things that are more “right up our alley,” as submitters say, are last weekend’s Comic Con in San Diego and next weekend’s Opening Ceremonies for the London Olympics. Those are the kinds of lighthearted subjects we really like to bring you, to intrigue and entertain you, maybe lift your spirits, or even make you laugh. And we had a bit of that sort of thing this past week. Jill Harness wrote about her and Zeon’s weekend at Comic Con and brought us back 50 Wonderful Comic Con Costumes From 2012. Eddie Deezen wrote about The Legend and Legacy of American Pie. From Uncle John’s Bathroom Reader, we learned the history of The Mad Bomber. 10 Sports Heroes You Won't Find On Wheaties Boxes came from mental_floss magazine. The Annals of Improbable Research gave us Hiawatha's Valence Bonding, a long, funny parody poem about science. In the What Is It? game this week, the pictured item is a Civil War Tourniquet. The first correct answer came from Anker, who wins a t-shirt! The funniest answer came from amanderpanderer, who explained that this is, "A epithelial and parietal flange ratchet for a ophthalmic socket tightener necessitated by autonomous sternutation (It goes on your head and holds yer eyeballs in when you sneeze.)" So she wins a t-shirt, too! Find out what all the other mystery items are at the What Is It? blog. The post with the most comments this past week was The Average Canadian Now Richer Than the Average American,  followed by 50 Wonderful Comic Con Costumes From 2012. Want more? You can always find a ton of reading material at The Best of Neatorama. Be sure to check our Facebook page every day for extra content, contests, discussions, videos, and links you won’t find here. Also, our Twitter feed will keep you updated on what’s going around the web in real time. Thanks for spending time with us at Neatorama!

A Truly Awesome Nude Shower Scene Posted: 21 Jul 2012 05:30 AM PDT (Videos Link) Sorry to get your hopes up kids, but this isn’t a hot shower video, it’s just an adorable one featuring a simply precious furless little rat getting a good scrub on. Via I Can Has Cheeseburger

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