Archive for the ‘Random’ Category
This Bathroom May Literally Scare The Crap Out of You
via boredpanda. This bathroom is inside a penthouse in a home built in Guadalajara, Mexico. The bathroom itself was built over an old elevator shaft and topped with a transparent floor. Extreme bathrooming anyone? More photos below.
Austria: F**king Villagers Angry About Fugging Name Change
via ukmirror. I thought this was funny. More photos below. (Slightly NSFW)
(UK Mirror) – Austrians considering renaming their village from F*cking to Fugging have been told to think again – because the name is already taken. Villagers at F*cking in Upper Austria voted yesterday to change the name to Fugging. But then came the news that there used to be a second village with the name F*cking in Austria – and residents there had already bagged the name Fugging more than 100 years ago.
Fugging mayor Andreas Dockner – 200 miles away in Lower Austria – said: “Nobody alive now remembers why it was changed from F*cking to Fugging, but it was and that is now our name. We think one Fugging in Austria is enough.
Now, F*cking mayor Franz Meindl said that apart from the name their tiny village with just over 100 residents would be a rural paradise. He said: “It is beautiful countryside here, it’s otherwise peaceful and we have a good community. It’s only ever the name that causes us troubles.”
F*cking residents said the final straw was a growing number of calls by pranksters from abroad who ring up locals and ask in English “Is That F*cking” – before bursting into laughter and hanging up.
“The phone calls are really the final straw”, said F*cking Mayor Meindl, who confirmed that the villages street signs were regularly stolen – even though they had been welded on steel posts set in concrete in the ground.
Drivers heading into the village often disturbed naked couples romping in front of the signs, and local entrepreneurs made the situation worse by flogging off F*cking postcards – F*cking Christmas cards and even more recently a F*cking beer.
Fugging mayor Dockner added: “If our village was called F*cking, I don’t think it would be a problem – we are proud of it and I’m sure we wouldn’t change the name – I’d advise F*cking not to change anything.”
Also available on the online Austrian telephone book are the villages of “Oberf*cking” “Windpassing”, “Wankham” and “Rottenegg”.
Tetris Theme Played With Laser Harp On ‘Britain’s Got Talent’
Software developer Greig Stewart p/k/a Theramin Hero performed a laser harp rendition of the Tetris theme for his audition on Britain’s Got Talent. What is a laser harp you may ask? It is an electronic musical instrument consisting of several laser beams, in analogy with the plucking of the strings of a harp, in order to produce sounds. It was invented by Bernard Szajner, and later popularized by Jean Michel Jarre. When I first watched the video, I wondered how it really works. Check out Greig Stewart’s performance (must be watched on YouTube), and a demo by Stephen Hobley after the break. Amazing.
The laser harp below is driven by Arduino (Boarduino variation) and connected to the impOSCar VSTi software synthesizer. The TAOS sensor array sits on its own stand.
NYC to LA in 45 minutes?? NYC to Beijing in 2 hours?!
The ET3 Consortium is pushing for the development of Evacuated Tube Transport (ETT) technology. The technology involves sending car-sized capsules (containing people and/or cargo) through a 5-foot diameter vacuum tube on frictionless maglev tracks.
ET3 says speed in initial ET3 systems is 600km/h (370 mph) for in state trips, but they say it could be developed to 6,500 km/h (4,000 mph) for international travel. This would allow passenger or cargo to travel from New York City to Beijing in 2 hours or New York City to L.A. in 45 minutes. The ET3 consortium also says the technology is very cheap compared to other means of transportation. ET3.com has reportedly sold 60 licenses for the technology in five countries so far. Is this the future? Video below.
Breaking Fragile Things In Slow Motion With A Slingshot
Yes… things like this fascinate me. Anyways… video after the break.
Breaking things is seemlingly fun, but then you don’t get to watch teh details of all the boom and bang. It was when faced with this problem, that humanity invented slow motion videos, or high speed cameras, whatever term you prefer. The premise of this video is simple, a man launches a projectile from a slingshot at fragile things, records video.
Holi in Slow Motion
Holi, also known as the Festival of Colors, is a religious spring festival celebrated by Hindus.
The main day, Holi, also known as Dhuli in Sanskrit, or Dhulheti, Dhulandi or Dhulendi, is celebrated by people throwing scented powder and perfume at each other. Bonfires are lit on the eve of the festival, also known as Holika Dahan (burning of Holika) or Chhoti Holi (little Holi), after which holika dahan prayers are said and praise is offered. The bonfires are lit in memory of the miraculous escape that young Prahlad accomplished when Demoness Holika, sister ofHiranyakashipu, carried him into the fire. Holika was burnt but Prahlad, a staunch devotee of god Vishnu, escaped without any injuries due to his devotion.
Check it out (below) in slow-motion in the short film entitled “Holi” which was directed and produced by Jonathan Bregel and Khalid Mohtaseb from Variable.
Photo of 8 Lightning Bolts Striking the San Francisco Bridge
via dailymail. Very cool photo. If you know me, and we happen to be bored one day… ask me to tell the story of when lightning struck my car. Haha.
An incredible eight [lightning] bolts struck the Bay Bridge in San Francisco last night which was captured in this incredible shot by photographer Phil McGrew, who took the photo through the rain-soaked window of his apartment.
Mr McGrew, 49, was shocked at the striking image which shows the split-second moment of electric forks hitting the span of the bridge.
Peel A Potato in 10 Seconds… Like A Boss
Would You Push This Button?
To help with the launch of TNT in Belgium, a big red button was placed ‘on an average Flemish square of an average Flemish town’. A sign with the text ‘Push To Add Drama’ invited people to use the button. Would you press it? Watch the video below to see what happens…
2Pac Hologram Performance? Japan did it first.
By now, many of you have seen clips of 2Pac’s return (as a hologram) during Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg’s performance at this year’s Coachella Festival… You may not know, however, that they’ve already done this in Japan… with an anime cartoon character named Hatsune Miku! Haha. Amazing… Check out the videos below. Hat Tip: Joe Turman (of Spoken Thought)