Super Slo-mo Slap in the Face

Another quirky video from Metacafe. Using high speed video recording, the effects of being slapped in the face are revealed. Ouch! Is that Tom Baker narrating? 

An Environmentally Sensitive Prefab House

Scott Specht has designed what he calls ZeroHouse. Easily erected and completely self-sustainable, this could herald a new future for housing. It creates its' own power, collects its' own water, and processes its' own waste. Not to mention it's lovely. I could easily live in one of these. Where do I park the truck?

The Color of Money

Here's a wonderful compilation of various bills from around the world, I found on Colourlovers. With the release of the new US five dollar bill, this blogger scoured Wikipedia to find examples of other nation's use of color in their money. Some of it is just beautiful. Makes US currency seem a bit drab.

Plan to Extend the Observation Deck of the Eiffel Tower

This proposal, has been circulating the blogosphere for a few weeks now. I figured everybody knew about it already, so didn't add it to my blog. My mistake. It's actually, a lovely design; Sort of Art Nouveau. It's airy quality lends itself well to the open framework of Gustave's design. Thanks for the great link Isabelle, and thanks to Lance for being such a good sport.

UPDATE: Monday, March 31 - Stories are beginning to circulate that this is a hoax. Hard to tell. Obviously the designers put a lot of effort into their renderings, but according to the organization that operates the Eiffel Tower, there is no such plan, nor any plan, to change one of the worlds most iconic structures.

Transforming House by Rem Koolhaas

Here, again from Gizmodo, is a wonderful video of a house designed by architect Rem Koolhaas. I've never seen this place before. The detailing and variety of the mechanisms, makes the use of elevating platforms, disappearing walls, etc. seem less gratuitous.

Spoof of Big Dog Quadruped Robot

Here is a silly video I found on Gizmodo.com. If you've seen my earlier post, regarding the Big Dog Quadruped Robot, and maybe thought it was faked, you'll find this video very funny. I especially like the realistic sound effects.

Emerging Air Bag Technologies

Some of you may recall my visions of a future where air bags envelope a driver rather than just functioning as bumpers. The benefit of this would be the ability to build cars from plastic, making them cheaper and lighter. This company is on the way to developing the necessary technology.

ABC3D is a Beautiful Alphabet Pop-up Book

Here's a quick video of someone leafing through the ABC3D pop-up book. The design is very nice and heavily weighted towards art deco sensibilities. I like the accompanying music too.

Design for Civil Courthouse in Madrid

Inhabitat has some model images of Zaha Hadid's design for a new civil courthouse in Madrid. Many of you know I don't really like her work, however, in this case I appreciate the form and the variations in the "skin".

Agent Ribbons - The World is a Cigarette

Is she fooling around, or going in a new direction? Doesn't matter. I love everything my niece does. Doting uncles can't help but be biased.

Yet Another Inspiring TED Talk

Jill Bolte Taylor, a neuroanatomist, tells the incredible story of the day she had a stroke. "How many brain scientists get to study their own brain from the inside?" It was clearly a spiritual experience for her as she drifts between science and metaphysics.

This Is Your Brain on Jazz

Here is a wonderful article on the brain and creativity. Scientists at Johns Hopkins used MRIs to study the brains of jazz musicians, to discover that they selectively turn on and off areas of their brains when improvising.

"Big Dog" Quadrupedal Robot

This is a stunning example of advance robotics. What's most amazing is the processors that sense it's surroundings and position and then can compensate for: slipping on ice, getting pushed over, etc.; Much faster than any human can, and most animals, I'm sure. Unfortunately, this is being developed for the Pentagon.

San Francisco in the 22nd Century?

Here's an interesting, albeit weird, vision of a sustainable future for the city of San Francisco. I especially like the unique idea of capturing the city's fog to water fuel creating algae. 

Giant Marionette of Little Girl

I found this video on Metacafe.com. I don't know why it strikes me so much. Perhaps is the occasional "lifelike" movements the puppeteers are able to achieve. The re-mixed Blossom Dearie song adds to the slow motion feel of the video.

The Earth's Air and Water

Dan Phiffer found this image on a message board, and invited people to check the accuracy of the image's claim. This image depict all the Earth's water or air, in spherical form, compared to the size of the Earth. Turns out, it's accurate.

Simon's Cat in "Let Me In"

Simon's Cat in "Cat-Man-Do"

I just love this short animation. Simon Tofield captures the personality of his cat in a way that all cat owners will appreciate. I'll post his newest clip next.

Stunning High Speed Photography

These water balloon scenes were filmed at 10,000 frames per second. Especially beautiful are the moments when the balloon bursts and pulls away, leaving the still balloon shaped water suspended in mid air.

Gas is Going Up to $4.00 a Gallon!

Jon Stewart puts the rise of gas prices in perspective, and knows who's to blame.

Cat of 1000 Faces

Someone with too much time on their hands, has made a silly little video staring their cat Hugo. The low tech effects make this funny clip all the more charming.

360 Degree Image of Airbus A380 Cockpit

Gilles Vidal has posted a high resolution 360 degree image of a cockpit in a new Airbus A380. You can pan around and zoom in and out; ceiling, floor, everything. My friends, who are transportation nuts, will appreciate this the most.

Condiment Package Gallery

Chris Harne has a large collection of condiment packets that he's scanned and put on the web. You can click on each one for a close up, or search by type of condiment or by country of origin. Unfortunately, there are no images of the contents.

Very Nice Photos of Toronto Power Company Ruins

Toronto Power Company had built one of the earliest hydro-electric power plants at Niagra Falls. Vanishingpoint.ca, which is a wonderful site, has some great photos of the tunnels as they exist today.

More Great Satire from The Onion

Diebold Accidentally Leaks Results Of 2008 Election Early
A very humorous video with high production values. As usual, the line between reality and satire is blurred. You may have to watch this twice so you can read the funny items on the ticker.

Fascinating Video of Ferrofluid Manipulation

Sachiko Kodama and Yasushi Miyajima are artists that use a metalic liquid (microscopic iron bits suspended in goo), and a magnet to create morphing spiral towers. What's really interesting is to see the shapes naturally created by the force of the magnet related to the viscosity limits of the liquid.