When Only The Best Will Do

Thanks to Shiny Shiny for pointing me to Wrong Cards, the place to go when Hallmark just doesn't cut it.

Most of them are clever, but this is my favourite so far.

In case you're still looking for that perfect mother's day card, they have quite a decent selection ... assuming you're happy being cut out of the will :-).

Radical

Hopefully, this isn't what happens when you get a question right in my mate Gavin's classroom :-) ...

Slow Mo Mango Munchers

Somehow, even the silliest things look interesting in slow motion.

It doesn't hurt that the backing track is one of my favourite pieces of music ... the "Flower Duet" from Lakme by Delibes.

Of course, I'm no opera fan ... I first heard that duet as the accompaniment to a hot lesbian scene between Catherine Deneuve and Susan Sarandon in "The Hunger" :-).


Thanks to Neatorama.

Sensual Coffee

I have to say, this has to be the most bizarre coffee grinder that's ever been created.

The huge device is made from mahogany. You snuggle up to it and a sensor measures your heartbeat and grinds the beans in time with it, to "induce an experience of intimacy with the process of making coffee".

That makes me really thirsty for ... a beer!


Thanks to Gizmodo for the link.

Elaborate Wedding Reception Toast

Thanks to Neatorama for the link to this impressive video of a huge production number the family and friends of a bride named "Amy" worked up for her reception. Pretty much everyone was involved.

It's quite long, so you may not make it to the end before nausea sets in. I just think it shows how much this woman is loved ... aw shucks :-).

Disappearing Ink

I don't know about you, but these days I tend to print out very little content. I consume the vast majority of it on computer screens.

However, that's not because I prefer to read from a screen; it's related more to the ephemeral value of such printouts. It just seems so damned wasteful to print something, only to throw it into the recycling bin within a short period.

So, I was interested to read this article over at the Times Online.

It talks about new printer technology being developed by Xerox PARC (the research establishment that brought us many innovations, like the mouse and windowed environments).

As opposed to using plain paper to which toner particles are attracted, or onto which ink is sprayed, it utilises paper that is coated with photo-sensitive particles.

Basically, the way it works is that the printer causes these particles to change colour, hence producing a readable printout. The particles, when exposed to light, revert to their clear state over the course of a couple of days.

At that point, the paper can be directly reused, rather than going through a complex industrial process to effect the recycling. Further, if the content becomes redundant prior to the normal regeneration interval, the paper can be cleared on demand as part of the printing process.

All up, this sounds like something I would find very useful, indeed!

It's A Fair Cop

Personally, I don't feel constrained by my gorgeous MacBook Air, but I think we'd all agree this video does make its point nicely ...