Illuminated USB cables

Yup, you can pass current through USB. So… you can light them up!

This goes for $ 22.99 per 6 feet

These Cable to Go ones go for between $ 2.38 – $ 9.59 depending on colour and length (look around a bit for different lengths than 2m

These green, blue and red gold plated connectors aren’t too expensive either.
These go for around $12.99

This pack of 7 port aluminium hub and 5 cables goes for $51.99

There are more possibilities with flashing heads when data is transmitted through them, with different colours at either ends, etc etc…

But you may have realised: the cable itself isn’t illuminated! AFAIK there is only one manufacturer for cables like that:

The Soundtech Lightsnakes

They can be found for around $20,- – $30,-

Harry in Afghanistan leaked by Drudge

This is simply incredible to me: The Drudge Report knowingly goes and endanges British troops and a member of the royal family by reporting where he is in Afghanistan. Obviously the UK now has to pull him out before attacks increase in such scale that there is no defending anyone in that area. So not only have the morons at Drudge endangered lives, but also thwarted what little possibilities Harry had at living a normal life, at doing his job the way he is trained and supposed to do.
Every other media outlet, including Reuters, allready knew Harry was there, but had made an agreement to not disclose it untill after his deployment. Given lives are at stake here, that seems reasonable.
Now in the linked article, you have so called reporters calling this disgraceful. Trying to keep a high value target safe is called backroom politics. I have this idea they are confusing their ‘right to know’ with a blatant disregard for humanity. These are the type of reporters who think it’s perfectly acceptable for them to push and stand in front of you and take pictures or notes. Reporters have a right to report what they see – as one of the public. They are not some kind of elite who have a right to be where ever they stick their grimly noses. They get to go where we get to go or where they’re invited. And because they do spread their experiences, with the right to write about what they see comes also the obligation of being responsible with what they write.
This was irresponsible and disgusting.

Bio-mechanic skull sculpture is creepy to say the least

Looking for a fine piece of art to class up your apartment or home? Are you also looking for a way to let all of your guests know that you’re a pretty morbid person and quite proud of that fact? Have I got the sculpture for you.

This insane Bio-Mechanical Skull sculpture lets everybody know that you like both skulls and robots with a healthy dose of apocalyptic sci-fi movies thrown in for good measure. Sure, it’s off putting and creepy, but you’ve never been one to follow trends or happily do what people expect. Fight the system, etc.

Link

A real, working underwater convertible

When it comes to vehicles from famous movies, they don’t get too much cooler than James Bond’s Lotus convertible that can also function as a submarine. Unfortunately, the very idea of a convertible submarine is nonsensical, so we’ll probably never see it in real life. Or will we?

We will! Check out this Rinspee sQuba! It’s a convertible that’s also a submarine! You need to wear scuba masks attached to the built-in air tanks to drive it underwater, but how badass is this? In addition, it’s a zero-emissions vehicle, running on a rechargeable Lithium-Ion battery, so you can pretend to be a secret agent without wrecking the environment. That’s it, I’m sold. Where do I sign?

Link

Humanscale Paramount monitor wall — you know you want eight screens

The Paramount Parabolic Multi-Monitor Display by Humanscale gives you an easy way to attach anywhere from two to eight screens onto its unfolding monitor arm, no tools required. Everything snaps into place, including the displays. The screens are curved toward you for your comfort, and the rack is adjustable to accommodate a wide range of monitor sizes.

Why in the world would you want eight monitors? I don’t know — buy an army of house-watching robots and see all that they see at the same time, or play so many puzzle games at once that your brain explodes. The power is yours!

The Humanscale Paramount is due out early this year. No idea what pricing looks like, though, like most of Humanscale’s products, it’s meant for offices to buy and not the individual.

A half-million dollar watch for the rich and foolish

What makes a watch worth $500,000? In some cases, it’s just because its loaded up with diamonds or other valuable materials. But if there’s no bling on the watch, what can possibly make it worth half a million dollars? Anything? I say no, there is absolutely nothing that can make a watch worth that much.

Those behind the Zenith El Primero Zero-G Multi-Dimensional Tourbilon would probably disagree, however, as that’s exactly how much it costs. Looking like the kind of watch your outdoorsy gym teacher would wear, it certainly looks like it’s got a lot going on. It’s gravity resistant! And water resistant! Also, it tells the time, one assumes! OK, I stand corrected; totally worth it.

Link

Gas mask suit sends a pretty strong message

If you’re looking to make a good impression at your upcoming job interview or business meeting, you should find a suit that fits you well and stands out. You could just go to Macy’s and get a plain dark suit and have it tailored, or you could go a little more extreme.

Might I suggest this gas mask suit, designed by Aitor Throup? Much of it looks like a standard-issue grey business suit, but when you get to the jacket you see that a number of gas masks have been stitched in, giving a rather apocalyptic air to the ensemble. It’s definitely creepy, but also totally awesome in a really strange way. I’m not sure you’ll get the job if you wear it to an interview, but you certainly won’t be an applicant who’s forgotten easily.

SLIders

Just like some people can fix computers just by being near them, there are also people – SLIders – who can destroy them just by being near them. SLI stands for Street Light Interference, as they tend to turn off street lights as they pass by.

I first found out in the followin article, an anecdote that caught my imagination:

Meet Mavis, the super-charged grandmother whose touch BLOWS UP kettles | the Daily Mail

Allthough people are sceptical, there is enough anecdotal evidence around. NB All the pages warn people that it’s perfectly possible they’re imagining it!

loads of write in anecdotes

some guy with his story Loads of these pages around.

Unfortunately there’s little in the way of scientific experiments confirming it, as wiki notes

About.com does have some links to ongoing research in this area, with some interesting results coming from Princeton.

A wiperless windshield powered by nanotechnology

Now here’s an awesome idea: a windshield that doesn’t need wipers due to a thin nanotech coating that gets rid of water for you. It’s a major element of a new car dubbed the Hidra, designed by Italian designer Leonardo Fioravanti. How will it work? With four layers of treatments on the windshield.

The first treatment filters the sun and repels water. The second is made of nano-dust which is able to push dirt to the edges of the glass. This dust is activated by the third layer, which senses dirt and activates the second layer as necessary. Finally, it’s all topped off by the fourth layer which is a conductor of electricity to power the whole mechanism.

He claims this could go into production cars in less than five years, with a prototype already working on the Hidra concept. If it works as promised it could signal a huge change in cars in the near future.

Link

Han Solo desk makes a statement about your skills as a boss


Choosing a desk for your office is important; it sends a message about what kind of person you are to everybody who enters. If you want that message to say “I’m a gigantic nerd!” then you really can’t do much better than a desk made to look like Han Solo frozen in carbonite.

I guess one could spin buying this for their office if they wanted to come across as a real hardass of a boss. You know, like “you mess with me, you end up like my former assistant, Han Solo here, and I’ll make you into a coffee table.” But really, you’re the only one who will ever find a replica of a sci-fi movie prop threatening in any way, but if that helps you justify something that you really want, more power to you.

Link

Wikileaks

Wikileaks is currently in the news because and idiot US judge ordered the domainname wikileaks.org down, following the publication of leaked documents on there. Of course this hasn’t stopped wikileaks, as it’s also available on their IP adress, as well as under .be (which is what this is linked to).

Anyway, leaked documents can be published on this site with pretty much bulletproof anonymity. The documents are then analysed, so you can read both the analysis and the documents on it. There are some pretty interesting things on this site dishing out the dirt on many countries and their political and commercial dealings.

New technology turns your body into a swipe card

NTT is launching a card which when you’re wearing it makes you communicate data by touching stuff.

It uses technology to turn the surface of the human body itself into a means of data transmission.

As data travels through the user’s clothing, handbag or shoes, anyone carrying a special card can unlock the door simply by touching the knob or standing on a particular spot without taking the card out.

“In everyday life, you’re always touching things. Even if you are standing, you are stepping on something,” research engineer Mitsuru Shinagawa told AFP.

“These simple touches can result in communication,” said Shinagawa, senior research engineer at the company’s NTT Microsystem Integration Laboratories.

He said future applications could include a walk-through ticket gate, a cabinet that opens only to authorised people and a television control that automatically chooses favourite programs.

The system also improves security. It ensures that only drivers can open their cars by touching the doors if the keys are in their pockets, not people around them.

NTT has already developed technology that allows swapping data as heavy as motion pictures through a handshake, although it has not been put into commercial use.

Now I have an idea that this might be RedTacton technology – That’s been hanging around since 2005 without me having seen any practical application of it…

More Brain Controllers II

Back in May 2007 I had a look at brain controllers, one of which was promising to launch in October 2007. They are now accepting developers to use and program for their unit, but still not on the commercial market.

This is about the Epoc from Emotiv Systems though. The picture of the brain controller has changed quite a bit, but they are taking pre-orders (if you live in the US) and say they will be out towards the end of this year. Their software can recognise emotions, expressions and thoughts and intents.

OpenID – might actually happen

OpenID is the open source single sign on system for websites: ie. sites using OpenID will all allow you to log in using one username / password combination. It’s something the Porn industry has been chasing for years, but is very very difficult indeed to achieve due to payment / trust issues – who gets to keep the userdata?

Microsoft, Google, Verisign and IBM have just jumped onto this bandwagon making it a winning contender.

‘unhealthy’ habits cost less

This is the second time I’ve seen one of these calculations, and they’ve always made sense to me:

according to the Netherlands’ National Institute for Public Health and Environment, which found that while “a person of normal weight costs on average £210,000 over their lifetime”, a smoker clocks up just £165,000 and the obese run up an average £187,000 bill.

Note, this is all about costs to the state, nothing is mentioned about revenues to the state: of which a smoker will donate a healthy chunk every time they buy a packet.

So, instead of this anti-smoking witch hunt, we should encourage it!

FBI Prepares Vast Database Of Biometrics

Not just fingerprint data from the guilty, not just DNA from anyone entering the USA (I guess they’re guilty of that), but now more biometrics for more people! Irises, face shapes, scars, whatever the FB can think up they’ll be storing. And everybody will be in it. And everyone (well, OK, not everyone, but huge amounts of people – which means for a determined looker everyone) will have access to it. The land of the free huh?