Saturday, 28 June 2008
Friday, 27 June 2008
Thursday, 26 June 2008
Wednesday, 25 June 2008
A Life 4 Sale: Man Sells Life On eBay
When Ian Usher realized he needed a fresh start, he put his entire life up for sale on eBay, from his toys to his toilet paper.
At first glance, the 44-year-old Australian who sky-dives, snowboards and rides motorbikes in his free time might seem to have a great life. But in fact he says he no longer wants it.
"The initial trigger for it was, unfortunately, the breakup of my marriage," he said.
After his five-year marriage ended two years ago, Usher decided the best way to patch up his broken heart was to pitch all his stuff and start over. In June, he's auctioning everything off on eBay.
He's currently planning to list his house, his hot tub, his clothes, his big-screen TV and his beat-up car. Usher says you can even get his friends and their dogs -- apparently, they'll be nice to you if you win.
People have bought all sorts of interesting items on eBay before: Toast with the image of the Virgin Mary burned on it went for $28,000; a sock worn by a paparazzo when he was run over by Britney Spears went for $600.
Usher thinks his life could go for up to $500,000. His ex-wife thinks he has gone mad.
"One of the phrases she used was it sounds 'a bit mental,'" he said.
Usher says he's not looking back though and is just thinking about his next big adventure.
"I plan to go to the airport, show up and see what plane has a seat available on it," he said.
At first glance, the 44-year-old Australian who sky-dives, snowboards and rides motorbikes in his free time might seem to have a great life. But in fact he says he no longer wants it.
"The initial trigger for it was, unfortunately, the breakup of my marriage," he said.
After his five-year marriage ended two years ago, Usher decided the best way to patch up his broken heart was to pitch all his stuff and start over. In June, he's auctioning everything off on eBay.
He's currently planning to list his house, his hot tub, his clothes, his big-screen TV and his beat-up car. Usher says you can even get his friends and their dogs -- apparently, they'll be nice to you if you win.
People have bought all sorts of interesting items on eBay before: Toast with the image of the Virgin Mary burned on it went for $28,000; a sock worn by a paparazzo when he was run over by Britney Spears went for $600.
Usher thinks his life could go for up to $500,000. His ex-wife thinks he has gone mad.
"One of the phrases she used was it sounds 'a bit mental,'" he said.
Usher says he's not looking back though and is just thinking about his next big adventure.
"I plan to go to the airport, show up and see what plane has a seat available on it," he said.
Sunday, 22 June 2008
Saturday, 21 June 2008
Friday, 20 June 2008
There's No German For Blowjob
Michael O’Leary, Ryanair’s fearless leader and king of publicity, has announced his plans for a transatlantic airline. And yes, it will apparently include blowjobs.
Source
Source
Tuesday, 17 June 2008
New 'Super-Paper' Is Stronger Than Cast Iron
Punching your way out of a paper bag could become a lot harder, thanks to the development of a new kind of paper that is stronger than cast iron.
The new paper could be used to reinforce conventional paper, produce extra-strong sticky tape or help create tough synthetic replacements for biological tissues, says Lars Berglund from the Swedish Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, Sweden.
Despite its great strength, Berglund's "nanopaper" is produced from a biological material found in conventional paper: cellulose. This long sugar molecule is a principal component of plant cell walls and is the most common organic compound on Earth.
Wood is typically about half cellulose, mixed with other structural compounds.
Support network
In plant cell walls individual cellulose molecules bind together to produce fibres around 20 nanometres in diameter, 5000 times thinner than a human hair. These fibres form tough networks that provide the cell walls with structural support.
"Cellulose nanofibres are the main reinforcement in all plant structures and are characterised by nanoscale dimensions, high strength and toughness," Berglund told New Scientist.
Cellulose is extracted from wood to make paper, is the basis of cellophane, and has also recently been used by materials scientists developing novel plastic materials. But they have used it only as a cheap filler material, ignoring its mechanical properties.
However, the mechanical processes used to pulp wood and process it into paper damage the individual cellulose fibres, greatly reducing their strength. So Berglund and colleagues have developed a gentler process that preserves the fibres' strength.
Tough as iron
The new method involves breaking down wood pulp with enzymes and then fragmenting it using a mechanical beater. The shear forces produced cause the cellulose to gently disintegrate into its component fibres.
The end result is undamaged cellulose fibres suspended in water. When the water is drained away Berglund found that the fibres join together into networks held by hydrogen bonds, forming flat sheets of "nanopaper".
Mechanical testing shows it has a tensile strength of 214 megapascals, making it stronger than cast iron (130 MPa) and almost as strong as structural steel (250 MPa).
Normal paper has a tensile strength less than 1 MPa. The tests used strips 40 millimetres long by 5mm wide and about 50 micrometres thick.
Dissipating stress
The secret to the nanopaper's performance is not only the strength of the undamaged cellulose fibres, but also they way they are arranged into networks. Although strongly bound together, they are still able to slip and slide over each other to dissipate strains and stresses.
The individual cellulose fibres are also much smaller than in conventional paper. "A regular paper network has fibres 30 micrometres in diameter, here we are at a scale three orders of magnitude smaller," says Berglund. "The material [has] very small defects compared with a conventional paper network."
"This [work] shows quite clearly the potential for cellulose nanofibres to provide a basis for reinforcement," says Stephen Eichhorn, a polymer scientist at the University of Manchester, UK.
Journal Reference: Biomacromolecules (DOI: 10.1021/bm800038n)
Source
The new paper could be used to reinforce conventional paper, produce extra-strong sticky tape or help create tough synthetic replacements for biological tissues, says Lars Berglund from the Swedish Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, Sweden.
Despite its great strength, Berglund's "nanopaper" is produced from a biological material found in conventional paper: cellulose. This long sugar molecule is a principal component of plant cell walls and is the most common organic compound on Earth.
Wood is typically about half cellulose, mixed with other structural compounds.
Support network
In plant cell walls individual cellulose molecules bind together to produce fibres around 20 nanometres in diameter, 5000 times thinner than a human hair. These fibres form tough networks that provide the cell walls with structural support.
"Cellulose nanofibres are the main reinforcement in all plant structures and are characterised by nanoscale dimensions, high strength and toughness," Berglund told New Scientist.
Cellulose is extracted from wood to make paper, is the basis of cellophane, and has also recently been used by materials scientists developing novel plastic materials. But they have used it only as a cheap filler material, ignoring its mechanical properties.
However, the mechanical processes used to pulp wood and process it into paper damage the individual cellulose fibres, greatly reducing their strength. So Berglund and colleagues have developed a gentler process that preserves the fibres' strength.
Tough as iron
The new method involves breaking down wood pulp with enzymes and then fragmenting it using a mechanical beater. The shear forces produced cause the cellulose to gently disintegrate into its component fibres.
The end result is undamaged cellulose fibres suspended in water. When the water is drained away Berglund found that the fibres join together into networks held by hydrogen bonds, forming flat sheets of "nanopaper".
Mechanical testing shows it has a tensile strength of 214 megapascals, making it stronger than cast iron (130 MPa) and almost as strong as structural steel (250 MPa).
Normal paper has a tensile strength less than 1 MPa. The tests used strips 40 millimetres long by 5mm wide and about 50 micrometres thick.
Dissipating stress
The secret to the nanopaper's performance is not only the strength of the undamaged cellulose fibres, but also they way they are arranged into networks. Although strongly bound together, they are still able to slip and slide over each other to dissipate strains and stresses.
The individual cellulose fibres are also much smaller than in conventional paper. "A regular paper network has fibres 30 micrometres in diameter, here we are at a scale three orders of magnitude smaller," says Berglund. "The material [has] very small defects compared with a conventional paper network."
"This [work] shows quite clearly the potential for cellulose nanofibres to provide a basis for reinforcement," says Stephen Eichhorn, a polymer scientist at the University of Manchester, UK.
Journal Reference: Biomacromolecules (DOI: 10.1021/bm800038n)
Source
Astronomers Find 'Super-Earths'
RESEARCHERS today said they discovered a batch of three "super-Earths" orbiting a nearby star, and two other solar systems with small planets as well.
They said their findings, presented at a conference in France, suggest that Earth-like planets may be very common.
"Does every single star harbour planets and, if yes, how many?" asked Michel Mayor of Switzerland's Geneva Observatory.
"We may not yet know the answer but we are making huge progress towards it," Mr Mayor said in a tatement.
The trio of planets orbit a star slightly less massive than our Sun, 42 light-years away towards the southern Doradus and Pictor constellations.
A light-year is the distance light can travel in one year at a speed of 300,000km per second - or about 9.5 trillion kilometres.
The planets are bigger than Earth - one is 4.2 times the mass, one is 6.7 times and the third is 9.4 times.
They orbit their star at extremely rapid speeds - one whizzing around in just four days, compared with Earth's 365 days, one taking 10 days and the slowest taking 20 days.
Mayor and colleagues used the High Accuracy Radial velocity Planet Searcher or HARPS, a telescope at La Silla observatory in Chile, to find the planets.
More than 270 so-called exoplanets have been found. Most are giants, resembling Jupiter or Saturn. Smaller planets closer to the size of Earth are far more difficult to spot.
None can be imaged directly at such distances but can be spotted indirectly using radio waves or, in the case of HARPS, spectrographic measurements. As a planet orbits, it makes the star wobble very slightly and this can be measured.
"With the advent of much more precise instruments such as the HARPS spectrograph ... we can now discover smaller planets, with masses between 2 and 10 times the Earth's mass," said Stephane Udry, who also worked on the study.
The team also said they found a planet 7.5 times the mass of Earth orbiting the star HD 181433 in 9.5 days. This star also has a Jupiter-like planet that orbits every three years.
Another solar system has a planet 22 times the mass of Earth, orbiting every four days, and a Saturn-like planet with a three-year period.
"Clearly these planets are only the tip of the iceberg," said Mr Mayor.
"The analysis of all the stars studied with HARPS shows that about one third of all solar-like stars have either super-Earth or Neptune-like planets with orbital periods shorter than 50 days."
Source
They said their findings, presented at a conference in France, suggest that Earth-like planets may be very common.
"Does every single star harbour planets and, if yes, how many?" asked Michel Mayor of Switzerland's Geneva Observatory.
"We may not yet know the answer but we are making huge progress towards it," Mr Mayor said in a tatement.
The trio of planets orbit a star slightly less massive than our Sun, 42 light-years away towards the southern Doradus and Pictor constellations.
A light-year is the distance light can travel in one year at a speed of 300,000km per second - or about 9.5 trillion kilometres.
The planets are bigger than Earth - one is 4.2 times the mass, one is 6.7 times and the third is 9.4 times.
They orbit their star at extremely rapid speeds - one whizzing around in just four days, compared with Earth's 365 days, one taking 10 days and the slowest taking 20 days.
Mayor and colleagues used the High Accuracy Radial velocity Planet Searcher or HARPS, a telescope at La Silla observatory in Chile, to find the planets.
More than 270 so-called exoplanets have been found. Most are giants, resembling Jupiter or Saturn. Smaller planets closer to the size of Earth are far more difficult to spot.
None can be imaged directly at such distances but can be spotted indirectly using radio waves or, in the case of HARPS, spectrographic measurements. As a planet orbits, it makes the star wobble very slightly and this can be measured.
"With the advent of much more precise instruments such as the HARPS spectrograph ... we can now discover smaller planets, with masses between 2 and 10 times the Earth's mass," said Stephane Udry, who also worked on the study.
The team also said they found a planet 7.5 times the mass of Earth orbiting the star HD 181433 in 9.5 days. This star also has a Jupiter-like planet that orbits every three years.
Another solar system has a planet 22 times the mass of Earth, orbiting every four days, and a Saturn-like planet with a three-year period.
"Clearly these planets are only the tip of the iceberg," said Mr Mayor.
"The analysis of all the stars studied with HARPS shows that about one third of all solar-like stars have either super-Earth or Neptune-like planets with orbital periods shorter than 50 days."
Source
Sunday, 15 June 2008
Scientists Find Bugs That Eat Waste And Excrete Petrol
“Ten years ago I could never have imagined I’d be doing this,” says Greg Pal, 33, a former software executive, as he squints into the late afternoon Californian sun. “I mean, this is essentially agriculture, right? But the people I talk to – especially the ones coming out of business school – this is the one hot area everyone wants to get into.”
He means bugs. To be more precise: the genetic alteration of bugs – very, very small ones – so that when they feed on agricultural waste such as woodchips or wheat straw, they do something extraordinary. They excrete crude oil.
Unbelievably, this is not science fiction. Mr Pal holds up a small beaker of bug excretion that could, theoretically, be poured into the tank of the giant Lexus SUV next to us. Not that Mr Pal is willing to risk it just yet. He gives it a month before the first vehicle is filled up on what he calls “renewable petroleum”. After that, he grins, “it’s a brave new world”.
Read the rest here
Saturday, 14 June 2008
Friday, 13 June 2008
Thursday, 12 June 2008
New Washing Machine Uses Plastic Chips Instead Of Water
A washing machine that cleans clothes by pounding them with plastic chips could save billions of gallons of water a year, its inventors claim. The Xeros uses less than 2 per cent of the water – and energy – of a conventional model and leaves clothes almost dry, doing away with the need for a dryer. The machine uses thousands of reusable plastic chips to remove and absorb dirt. Tests have shown the machine can shift virtually all types of everyday stains, according to a team at Leeds University.
Professor Stephen Burkinshaw, who invented the machine – which uses one cup of water each cycle – said: “The performance of the Xeros process in cleaning clothes has been quite astonishing.
“We’ve shown that it can remove all sorts of everyday stains including coffee and lipstick while using a tiny fraction of the water used by conventional machines.”
About 20kg of the chips are added, along with a cup of water and detergent. The chips can be used up to 100 times, the equivalent of six months’ washing.
Xeros Ltd, the company developing and marketing the machine, believes it could be on the UK market as early as 2009 and expects it to be used in the washing and dry-cleaning industries.
Source
Professor Stephen Burkinshaw, who invented the machine – which uses one cup of water each cycle – said: “The performance of the Xeros process in cleaning clothes has been quite astonishing.
“We’ve shown that it can remove all sorts of everyday stains including coffee and lipstick while using a tiny fraction of the water used by conventional machines.”
About 20kg of the chips are added, along with a cup of water and detergent. The chips can be used up to 100 times, the equivalent of six months’ washing.
Xeros Ltd, the company developing and marketing the machine, believes it could be on the UK market as early as 2009 and expects it to be used in the washing and dry-cleaning industries.
Source
Wednesday, 11 June 2008
Operation Credible Sport
Operation Credible Sport was a United States military operation plan in late 1980 to rescue the hostages held in Iran using C-130 cargo planes modified with rocket engines. The Credible Sport operation was a new plan to rescue the hostages after the dramatic failure of Operation Eagle Claw. Eagle Claw failed when a C-130 Hercules and a Sea Stallion helicopter collided in the Iranian desert, killing 8 servicemen. Credible Sport was abandoned after the election of Ronald Reagan as President in November, 1980.
The Credible Sport plan called for highly modified C-130 Hercules cargo planes to land in a soccer stadium not far from the American Embassy in Tehran and airlift the hostages out. Three aircraft were modified under a top secret project at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida to YMC-130H configuration with rocket packages blistered onto the forward and aft fuselage, which theoretically enabled the planes to land and take off within the confines of the sports arena.
During a demonstration at Wagner Field Not Duke Field, Eglin Auxiliary Field 3, on October 29, 1980, one of the modified Hercules landed very heavily. Some reports are that the (forward facing) braking rockets fired a few seconds early; it has also been reported that the problem was with the failure of the (downward facing) descent arresting rockets. As a result, the aircraft suffered an extremely heavy landing, tearing off the starboard wing, setting off a fire, and resulting in the airframe, serial 74-1683, being written off. Despite this, the entire crew survived.
This failure, coupled with the defeat of Jimmy Carter by Ronald Reagan in the presidential election on November 4, 1980, led to the cancellation of this rescue mission plan. The hostages were subsequently released concurrent with Reagan's inauguration in January 1981.
The other two airframes, serials 74-1686 and 74-2065, were stripped of their rocket modifications and returned to regular airlift duties. In 1988 74-1686 was placed on display at the Robins Air Force Base museum, Georgia, still retaining its JATO hard-points and surrounding thermo-insulating paint. As of February 2008, 74-2065 is assigned to the 317th Airlift Group, 15th Expeditionary Mobility Task Force, at Dyess Air Force Base, Texas, in grey scheme with blue tailband.
Source
The Credible Sport plan called for highly modified C-130 Hercules cargo planes to land in a soccer stadium not far from the American Embassy in Tehran and airlift the hostages out. Three aircraft were modified under a top secret project at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida to YMC-130H configuration with rocket packages blistered onto the forward and aft fuselage, which theoretically enabled the planes to land and take off within the confines of the sports arena.
During a demonstration at Wagner Field Not Duke Field, Eglin Auxiliary Field 3, on October 29, 1980, one of the modified Hercules landed very heavily. Some reports are that the (forward facing) braking rockets fired a few seconds early; it has also been reported that the problem was with the failure of the (downward facing) descent arresting rockets. As a result, the aircraft suffered an extremely heavy landing, tearing off the starboard wing, setting off a fire, and resulting in the airframe, serial 74-1683, being written off. Despite this, the entire crew survived.
This failure, coupled with the defeat of Jimmy Carter by Ronald Reagan in the presidential election on November 4, 1980, led to the cancellation of this rescue mission plan. The hostages were subsequently released concurrent with Reagan's inauguration in January 1981.
The other two airframes, serials 74-1686 and 74-2065, were stripped of their rocket modifications and returned to regular airlift duties. In 1988 74-1686 was placed on display at the Robins Air Force Base museum, Georgia, still retaining its JATO hard-points and surrounding thermo-insulating paint. As of February 2008, 74-2065 is assigned to the 317th Airlift Group, 15th Expeditionary Mobility Task Force, at Dyess Air Force Base, Texas, in grey scheme with blue tailband.
Source
Tuesday, 10 June 2008
Big Ideas (Don't Get Any)
Video by James Houston
I'm a student graduating from the Glasgow School of Art's visual communication course in a few days. This is my final project.
Radiohead held an online contest to remix "Nude" from their album - "In Rainbows" This was quite a difficult task for everybody that entered, as Nude is in 6/8 timing, and 63bpm. Most music that's played in clubs is around 120bpm and usually 4/4 timing. It's pretty difficult to seamlessly mix a waltz beat into a DJ set.
This resulted in lots of generic entries consisting of a typical 4/4 beat, but with arbitrary clips from "Nude" thrown in so that they qualified for the contest.
Thom Yorke joked at the ridiculousness of it in an interview for NPR radio, hinting that they set the competition to find out how people would approach such a challenging task.
I decided to take the piss a bit, as the contest seemed to be in that spirit.
Based on the lyric (and alternate title) "Big Ideas: Don't get any" I grouped together a collection of old redundant hardware, and placed them in a situation where they're trying their best to do something that they're not exactly designed to do, and not quite getting there.
It doesn't sound great, as it's not supposed to.
I missed the contest deadline, so I'm offering it here for you to enjoy.
Sinclair ZX Spectrum - Guitars (rhythm & lead)
Epson LX-81 Dot Matrix Printer - Drums
HP Scanjet 3c - Bass Guitar
Hard Drive array - Act as a collection of bad speakers - Vocals & FX
Source
Monday, 9 June 2008
Sunday, 8 June 2008
Paul Hunt - Comedy Gymnastics On The Balance Beam
Paul Hunt is a former competitive gymnast who became a women's gymnastics coach, but on the side performed at various tournaments in women's events. This is from the 1988 USA-USSR display in Los Angeles.
Istanbul Super Tunnel
An inside look into the engineering challenges and archaeological findings from the tunnel that connects Asia and Europe.
Subway Stripper Who Pole Dances For Cash
BUCHAREST, Romania - Authorities want to catch a woman who rides the subway in Romania's capital city -- and strips down to her underwear to dance for passengers.
Passengers have reported seeing the woman's routine on the underground railway, with one person describing the act as "not proper."
The culprit is described as an attractive, student-looking woman who gets up during the subway ride and turns on music from a portable CD player. Witnesses say she typically dances to the Tom Jones tune "You Can Leave Your Hat On" -- and strips down to lingerie.
After the performance, the woman passes around a gratuity container for passengers to show their appreciation.
Authorities have had a difficult time catching the woman because she always performs the strip tease on trains that do not have guards, or closed-circuit television systems. However, at least one passenger has captured the act on a cell phone camera.
Officials said the woman can face charges of indecent exposure and public begging if she was caught in the act.
Passengers have reported seeing the woman's routine on the underground railway, with one person describing the act as "not proper."
The culprit is described as an attractive, student-looking woman who gets up during the subway ride and turns on music from a portable CD player. Witnesses say she typically dances to the Tom Jones tune "You Can Leave Your Hat On" -- and strips down to lingerie.
After the performance, the woman passes around a gratuity container for passengers to show their appreciation.
Authorities have had a difficult time catching the woman because she always performs the strip tease on trains that do not have guards, or closed-circuit television systems. However, at least one passenger has captured the act on a cell phone camera.
Officials said the woman can face charges of indecent exposure and public begging if she was caught in the act.
Poo Attack During A Marathon Run
Would you find a toilet to relieve yourself or continue the run? This hero chose the latter.
Saturday, 7 June 2008
Heavy Rains Unleash Floods In Hong Kong
Heavy rains unleashed flooding and landslides early today in Hong Kong, shutting down roads and air traffic throughout the territory, officials said.
Rescuers were searching for two people believed trapped after a roadside store collapsed in torrential rains in the New Territories suburb, authorities said.
“The heavy rainfall has loosened the mud. There’s a chance of further landslides. It makes the operation more difficult,” fire commander Tam Yiu-kei said.
Flooding disrupted traffic at Hong Kong International Airport, with a road to the airport covered in muddy water. Several cars were trapped on the road, Hong Kong Cable TV footage showed.
More than 150 flights were delayed, and one inbound flight was cancelled, authorities said.
The storm, fuelled by a trough of low pressure over the South China Sea, caused almost 40 landslides and 125 floods across the territory, government spokeswoman Suzanne Lee said.
Nearly 12 inches of rain fell Saturday morning, according to the Hong Kong Observatory, which issued rainstorm and landslide warnings.
Hong Kong’s rainy season usually takes place between April and September.
Rescuers were searching for two people believed trapped after a roadside store collapsed in torrential rains in the New Territories suburb, authorities said.
“The heavy rainfall has loosened the mud. There’s a chance of further landslides. It makes the operation more difficult,” fire commander Tam Yiu-kei said.
Flooding disrupted traffic at Hong Kong International Airport, with a road to the airport covered in muddy water. Several cars were trapped on the road, Hong Kong Cable TV footage showed.
More than 150 flights were delayed, and one inbound flight was cancelled, authorities said.
The storm, fuelled by a trough of low pressure over the South China Sea, caused almost 40 landslides and 125 floods across the territory, government spokeswoman Suzanne Lee said.
Nearly 12 inches of rain fell Saturday morning, according to the Hong Kong Observatory, which issued rainstorm and landslide warnings.
Hong Kong’s rainy season usually takes place between April and September.
Man Takes A Dump In Wal-Mart's Water Fountain
Taken from security cam. Rerecorded with cell phone cam. Happened about 2:30 in the morning. Back bathrooms were closed and he was too lazy to go to front. He was later thrown out.
Luminescent Water-Bottle Lightbulbs
BRAZIL - A man invented a lightbulb that uses no electricity or batteries which is made from empty plastic bottles filled with water and clorox. The Sun charges the particles creating a chemical reaction, making the bottle illuminate as strongly as a 60-watt electrical lightbulb. The light is bright white.
Source
Friday, 6 June 2008
Revolving In Real-Time Star Watch
The Astrodea Celestial Watch (Northern Hemisphere) is the ultimate gift of time and space. The amazing Astrodea covers 90 percent of the whole stars actually visible at 35 North latitude. This timepiece displays 1,109 stars (brighter than magnitude +4.8) and 169 galaxies. Revolving in real-time, the dial displays an always accurate display of the stars and the sun. This powerful timepiece measures: Equinox Indications, Sunrise & Sunset. Daily Duration of Sunshine, Meridian, Ecliptic, Celestial Equator, Boundaries of Constellations, and much more – it is an “Astronomical Diagram from the Earth”.
A beautifully detailed representation of space, The Astrodea Celestial Watch is packaged in a beautiful presentation box that includes a convenient 10x magnifier for close-up viewing. Limited edition and made in Japan of a stainless steel case, back and bracelet with a 42.5mm case diameter. The crystal is made of anti-reflective Sapphire.
HandPresso Wild - Portable Espresso Maker
he HandPresso Wild is a hand-held, portable espresso maker. It makes real espresso using 16 bar of pressure to force hot water through the ground coffee in about 30 seconds. This is no gimmick, but a viable device for making espresso almost anywhere. HandPresso is made for use in the outdoors -- hiking, backpacking, camping, and for use anywhere you want espresso -- the office, outdoor concerts, the ball game, auto racing, your lunch break at the park, etc. Real, quality espresso can now be had almost anywhere. HandPresso has a built-in pump, operated just like a bicycle pump. You stroke it until the gauge's pointer is in the green zone -- 16 bars of pressure. The portafilter cap is then removed and hot water poured into the reservoir (please be careful not to burn yourself). You then lay an espresso pod in place (the HandPresso uses only E.S.E.-style espresso pods). The portafilter cap is then attached and secured. Now the fun begins. Simply turn the unit over and gravity places the hot water in contact with the pod. Push the Espresso Start button and the stored air pressure forces the water through the espresso pod, out the spout, and into your cup. It's that simple. For more shots -- simply repeat. The Handpresso Wild is constructed superbly. Many of the parts are constructed of velvet-finish plastic to give a good grip and be cooler to the touch. The unit arrives in an elegant black box.
Available from Amazon
Google Android OS Demo
Here are a few interesting innovations of Google's upcoming smartphone platform. It seems that Symbian and Windows Mobile will have some fairly stiff competition when Android finally goes live. For example, you probably know about the "slide to unlock" function found on the Apple iPhone. For that, you provide a single swipe across an appropriate section of the screen and then you get access to the main menu. For Google Android, there is a 3x3 grid of dots that you can connect in a specified manner. In the video, the Google rep draws a G. By allowing a custom swipe, Android adds an extra level of security too.
Another interesting feature is the ability to pull down the status bar at the top of the screen. Normal stuff like battery life remaining and signal strength are displayed, but when you see a little envelope at the top, that could mean a text message, an MMS, or an email. Pulling that bar down tells you exactly what the envelope means and who the message is from.
Another interesting feature is the ability to pull down the status bar at the top of the screen. Normal stuff like battery life remaining and signal strength are displayed, but when you see a little envelope at the top, that could mean a text message, an MMS, or an email. Pulling that bar down tells you exactly what the envelope means and who the message is from.
Texas Man Kills Cyclist, Injures Others In Drunk Driving Nightmare In Mexico
Just 15 minutes in, the third annual Matamoros-Bagdad Cycling Tour in Mexico plunged into chaos when a drunk driver from Texas smashed head-on into the group of riders.
Brownsville resident Juan "Jesse" Campos, who had spent the prior evening partying with booze and cocaine, fell asleep while driving between the towns of Playa Bagdad and Matamoros near the US-Mexico border.
The cyclists had just started making their way along the opposite side of the highway on the 34km race when, tragically, Campos' 1989 Grand Marquis veered off onto the wrong side of the road and slammed into the center of the peloton.
A photographer documenting the race managed to record the moment immediately after the collision: it's a scene of utter carnage, with bodies and equipment thrown into the air.
Campos claims to have no recollection of the crash, and insists that he woke up only afterwards. He's now being held in a Mexican jail while authorities attempt to sort out the case.
30-year-old Brownsville cyclist Alejandro Alvarez was killed in the accident, while ten other riders were seriously injured.
Source
Monday, 2 June 2008
Sunday, 1 June 2008
Jamie Oliver Shows How Chickens Are Slaughtered
In front of 4 million television viewers and a studio audience, chef Jamie Oliver killed a chicken. Having recently obtained a United Kingdom slaughterman's license, Mr. Oliver staged a "gala dinner," in fact a kind of avian snuff film, to awaken British consumers to the high costs of cheap chicken.
Jamie Oliver Suffocates Chicks On TV
Chef Jamie Oliver showed a crowd at the dinner how the industry handles male chicks that will not lay eggs. They are suffocated to death and fed to the animals in the zoo.
Water Fountain Rips Woman’s Vagina
Water fountain shows have always been a big draw for people. Whether you are taking a moment to enjoy the world famous Bellagio fountain show or the smaller, but still amazing, Tianyi Sqaure show in Ningbo, China, you are likely to enjoy the overall experience.
Yang, a 19 year-old college student, had a very different experience.
In August of 2007, Yang was at a local center square in the Henan Province of China. She went with some friends to enjoy the day and see the musical water fountain show.
Yang and her friends were playing in the water fountain area and enjoying the light burst of water that would spray them. All of a sudden, while Yang was struck by a powerful burst of water that threw her into the air.
After the fall, Yang experienced extreme stomach pains and was bleeding badly. She was immediately taken to the hospital to undergo medical care.
The doctor said that the fountains water pressure had torn her vagina and damaged her intestines.
During the following 7 months, Yang received 3 surgeries to repair the damage, which left her some pretty bad scars.
Yang is suing the owners of the fountain for around $24,500 in damages.
Source
Yang, a 19 year-old college student, had a very different experience.
In August of 2007, Yang was at a local center square in the Henan Province of China. She went with some friends to enjoy the day and see the musical water fountain show.
Yang and her friends were playing in the water fountain area and enjoying the light burst of water that would spray them. All of a sudden, while Yang was struck by a powerful burst of water that threw her into the air.
After the fall, Yang experienced extreme stomach pains and was bleeding badly. She was immediately taken to the hospital to undergo medical care.
The doctor said that the fountains water pressure had torn her vagina and damaged her intestines.
During the following 7 months, Yang received 3 surgeries to repair the damage, which left her some pretty bad scars.
Yang is suing the owners of the fountain for around $24,500 in damages.
Source
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)