Author Archive

Now YOU Can Buy Time Travel Theory for the Low, Low Price of $10,000,000

Monday, December 31st, 2007

And you can get it on eBay.

In case you are worried about imminent rifts in the space-time continuum, listen to the seller’s reassurances:

Please do not be alarmed, and we hope not to alarm anyone… But the Possibility of Time Travel Truly Exists…This is a True, Real, and Viable Time Travel Theory & Project. Logistics, Mapping and Methodology.Complete with Illustrations.

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Do you think it’s a joke, or is this guy serious?
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Most Memorable Quote of ‘07: “Don’t tase me, bro!”

Thursday, December 20th, 2007

If you’re not already familiar with the infamous scene involving one bro, one John Kerry, and a gang of taser-wielding campus police, check out the video — and listen closely for the quote of the year. (Note: if you’re squeamish, skip it.)

I’m not sure how the Quote Patrol decides which quote is “most memorable,” but no doubt it has something to do with being one of the top quote queries on Google and one of the most popular videos on the web. And now it’s official: “Don’t tase me, bro!” has become the most memorable quote of the year according to the editor of the Yale Book of Quotations.

What makes the video and quote so popular? It’s that special somethin’ — the word “bro.”

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About that email: Keep it simple, stupid

Friday, December 14th, 2007

Are you guilty of writing florid, lengthy emails in your work life? It might be time to meditate on the five-sentences-or-less philosophy espoused in the signatures of some people’s emails. I’m not sure I can totally jump on this bandwagon, but maybe that’s just my love of my own words getting in the way.

The website appropriately details the philosophy in five sentences (not including the footer).

If you’re a believer, add it to your sig: http://five.sentenc.es/

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Stuck for Gift Ideas? Just Plain Lazy? Try Some Gift Generators

Tuesday, November 27th, 2007

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Holiday consumerism is once again in full swing. How’s your gift list looking? Even if you’re not the thoughtful type, you might be able to pull off a decent gift with a little help from the gift generators.

All I Want Christmas Gift Finder. My favorite. You select your favorite visuals in order to refine your gift selection. The gifts seem pretty random to me, but I like the odd collection. You can also use this to send your wish list to someone else.

Gifts.com Gift Finder. Another search that prompts you visually. More of quirky, off-beat gift ideas.

Overstock Gift Finder. Eh, not so impressive. The same items kept coming up when I chose different options. But they’re cheap!

Find Gift. Decent. I liked the “Make Your Own Hot Sauce” kit that came up.

Present Picker. This one has more variables than most of the other generators. Changing the variables changes the gift ideas significantly, which suggests to me that the gift database is pretty big.

I see another use for Wonderfile. Imagine searching the ultimate gift library and watching your customized results filter up as you carefully choose your tags….

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All I Want for Christmas Is Ion-Clean Teeth

Wednesday, November 21st, 2007

toothbrush-guy.jpgTwo or three holiday seasons ago, everybody was buying battery-operated toothbrushes for their loved ones. I didn’t get one (I guess no one cares about my oral hygiene) and I still use a manual brush.

Now gift-givers have another opportunity to give the gift of clean teeth. The latest toothbrush technology has evolved to the point where toothpaste may no longer be necessary. The Soladey Titanium Toothbrush runs on saliva, light, and a titanium core.

Here’s a description of how it works from Soladey.com:

Soladey looks like an ordinary toothbrush, but closer examination reveals a titanium (metal) ionic conducting rod, which runs through the replaceable bristle head and into the handle. This rod is the secret to Soladey. It’s made of a patented solar conducting material that allows light, by photoelectric activity, to be converted into a natural energy source which kills the harmful bacteria in your mouth.

The downside? You have to shove a light bulb in your mouth in order to activate the cleaning process. And make sure you have plenty of spit.

If you’re into marketing, compare the Australian Soladey site with the US version. In America, nothing encourages good hygiene like a bodacious babe weilding titanium toothbrushes.

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Point and Click Your Way to Astronomical Knowledge

Friday, November 16th, 2007

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Whenever hawk migration season comes around, my Dad says, “I want a pair of binoculars that tells you what bird you’re looking at.” Not a bad idea. I’ve heard even the most avid birders bemoan the difficulties of identifying “little brown jobs” (LBJs), a catch-all name for any of the thousands of small brown birds which are indistinguishable to the vast majority of us.

Star identification is undoubtedly astronomically more difficult than decoding the minute variations of LBJs. There are billions upon billions of stars, and unless you have access to the Giant Magellan Telescope, they’re going to look pretty darn similar to one another.

There is no longer a need to be intimidated by the million twinkling lights in the sky. The new Meade MySKY Sky Navigator is a silvery-gray gun-like apparatus with Nintendo-esque red buttons that you can point and shoot at the sky to learn about the cosmos.

It’s not a telescope; it’s a GPS system and database. You can hook it up to Meade’s computerized telescopes to have your telescope automatically align to where you point your star gun.

I would have loved this gift when I was a young’un. If you really loved your star-loving kid, you’d buy it — just don’t look at the price tag.

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Paid Search Takes On New Meaning

Wednesday, November 14th, 2007

Poor Microsoft. They’re so desperate to get a better grip on the search market that they’re paying people to use their engine. It’s called the Live Search Trial Program. Yup – Microsoft’s new big bad search strategy isn’t a new algorithm or a better user interface. Instead, Microsoft is bribing you with prizes.

Nice try, Microsoft. I might have given your engine a little love just to win a prize, but I can’t even figure out how to participate in the program. Do I have to be a Hotmail user?

I’d rather try Blingo, powered by Google’s search engine (although Google’s universal search features are somewhat depreciated in Blingo’s interface). For 25 searches a day, you are automatically entered to win a prize on Blingo. When you refer your friends, any prize they win, you win as well.

BlingoFeel free to be one of my friends…. :)

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Does Your Shirt Detect Wi-Fi?

Tuesday, November 13th, 2007

Wi-Fi Detector ShirtBecause it could.

Geek chic is taken to a whole new level with this classy t-shirt, which will let you zone in on the hottest spots for wi-fi without cracking open your laptop — all courtesy of the people at ThinkGeek.

Accessorize with TokyoFlash’s Scope Watch, which tells time in an x-y axis format, some thick tortoise-shell eyeglasses, and you’ll be the envy of your geek posse.

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This Holiday Season, Give the Gift of Technology (And Get Some Too)

Tuesday, November 13th, 2007

Through November 26, the One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) will be handing out two XO laptops per donation – one to a child in a developing country, and one to a child of your choice. The program is called Give 1, Get 1.

Who can resist when Masi Oka is the spokesman?

Additionally, T-Mobile is rewarding donors with one year of HotSpot access, available in about 8,500 locations in the U.S., such as Starbucks, Borders, airports, and Amtrak stations.

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The Real Estate Market Is Alive and Well – At Least Virtually

Tuesday, November 13th, 2007

Sick of the current real estate trends? It might be time to turn your eye to the virtual real estate market of Second Life.

For those of you unfamiliar with Second Life, it isn’t a game, per se. It’s an online virtual universe where you can live out an alternate fantasy life — a virtual online universe with millions of registered users.

Meet one of Second Life’s richest land barons, Anshe Chung:

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