Archive for the ‘Geek Stuff’ Category

International Space Station visible in Solar Eclipse

Wednesday, January 5th, 2011

You might not be able to tell from the dinky picture we’ve got on the left there, but if you click on this link you can see an amazing photo taken during yesterday’s lunar eclipse. You can quite clearly make out the shape of the International Space Station as the moon blocks out a fair chunk of the sun, a rare glimpse of what’s going on just outside our atmosphere. Also, it looks rather a lot like Pac-Man, so we’re down with that too.

Apparently the International Space Station itself is a mere 100 metres in length, so it’s truly incredible that we’re able to even see it. Thanks to the snapping skills of one Thierry Legault, we can. What a clever chap. You can find out more about the photo here. Here’s a picture of him taking the picture:

Via Bad Astronomy which looks, on first inspection, to be rather excellent.

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Posted in Brainy Stuff, Cool Stuff, Found on the Interwebs Stuff, Geek Stuff | 1 Comment »

No More Loud Typing

Tuesday, November 23rd, 2010

As I type this, I can hear people across the office wincing at the volume of my clickety-clacking. Even though it’s a highly rhythmic affair, and the means whereby works of written genius are regularly produced. Chances are there’s a heavy-fingered person in your office too, the one who can smack the space bar with enough force to disable a small rodent. Well, if it’s really getting to you, we suggest you look into getting one of these:

Basically, it’s a cover for your keyboard that allows you to still see what you’re typing, and crucially keeping your clomping fingers comparatively quiet. Ingenious, you’ll agree, if a little silly. It also acts as a nifty way to keep crumbs out of the gaps between the keys, but people who eat at their desk is a whole other issue entirely…

Via Geek Stuff 4 U.

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Posted in Cool Stuff, Design Stuff, Found on the Interwebs Stuff, Funny Stuff, Geek Stuff | 4 Comments »

Lego Zombie Apocalypse

Wednesday, November 17th, 2010

As if our zombie obsession wasn’t dangerous enough, a clever person has managed to make a zombie apocalypse set out of our favourite toy, Lego. Unsurprisingly, this leaves not knowing which way to turn – surely a union of such aceness hasn’t been seen since that bit in Alien Vs. Predator when Predator swings Alien around by the tail?! We digress. Here are some pictures of the impending blockular bloodbath:

As you can see, should all our Lego men suddenly be killed and reborn as plastic-eating ghouls with limited speech capabilities, all we need to do is whip some of these sets up and we’ll deal with the threat before you can say “remove the head or destroy the brain”.

Via Geekologie, and ApocaLEGO. Who is, frankly, a genius.

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Posted in Cool Stuff, Found on the Interwebs Stuff, Funny Stuff, Geek Stuff | 2 Comments »

Google Street View Catches Criminals! Sort-of!

Monday, November 8th, 2010

Now, the whole Orwellian argument against Google Street View might be a worn debate by now, but those pesky crims really need to watch out for the Google van when it drives past, yeah?

This silly chap (identity unknown for now, surely only a matter of time before the feds find him?) has been photographed in the driveway of someone whose caravan was stolen soon after the photo was taken. We’re not detectives here at IWOOT (though one of us is considering buying a Sherlock Holmes hat), but that’s got to be a bit of a clue. Flippin’ Google won’t give details of the number plate to the police though, so they’ve resorted to asking the public instead. Whether they find the culprit or not, the omnipresence of Google Street View could go some way to fighting crime or, conversely, to ’1984′ becoming a non-fiction work.

Via the Beeb.

Posted in Cool Stuff, Found on the Interwebs Stuff, Funny Stuff, Geek Stuff | 2 Comments »

Star Wars Augmented Reality on iPhone

Thursday, November 4th, 2010

It was only a matter of time before some addled nerd managed to wrangle TIE fighters into the New York skyline, and boy howdy have they done a good job of it:

Basically, this is from a forthcoming game entitled ‘Star Wars Arcade: Falcon Gunner’ that will be playable on iPhone, using its camera lens to form the backdrop for your intergalactic dogfight. Clever, that. If the New York skyline in the video isn’t cool enough for you, then imagine how it’d look if you aimed your lens at the night sky, or in a forest. Or, y’know, in the bath or something. I don’t know, use your imagination.

Via The Wall. Which is nice, obviously.

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Posted in Cool Stuff, Film Stuff, Found on the Interwebs Stuff, Game Stuff, Geek Stuff | 1 Comment »

Amazing R2D2 Pumpkin Sculpture

Tuesday, October 19th, 2010

That’s right, we’ve been bowled over by another Star Wars novelty. This time, it’s an exceptionally impressive pumpkin carving, fashioned into the shape of R2D2 by a clever and improbably-named person called Noel Dickover. Pictures are on your left and below…

Now, we don’t want to get you too excited, but you might call this an inspiration for a forthcoming competition at IWOOT. So best keep your eyes peeled (that’s a good Halloween-y sort of phrase, isn’t it? Surprised no-one’s made a decent pun out of it yet… here’s hoping…).

Via the ever-excellent NPR.

Posted in Cool Stuff, Design Stuff, Food Stuff, Found on the Interwebs Stuff, Geek Stuff | 2 Comments »

Win a 32" TV to celebrate 'Brooklyn's Finest' on DVD!

Friday, October 15th, 2010

To celebrate the release of the rather excellent ‘Brooklyn’s Finest’, we’re giving a 32″ TV away – and we’ve also got 10 DVDs of the film as well for some lucky runners up. And if you don’t like the idea of either a huge TV or Richard Gere in serious-mode, then heck, we don’t know what to do with you. Enough rambling, simply read the following po-faced plot synopsis (no spoilers, don’t worry) and answer the question below.

“From the director of Training Day comes Brooklyn’s Finest, a slick urban drama set in the morally ambiguous world of the New York police force. Burned out cop, Eddie (Richard Gere) is just one week away from retirement, whilst drugs officer Sal (Ethan Hawke) is realizing there’s no line he won’t cross to provide a better life for his family.

Meanwhile, Clarence “Tango” Butler (Don Cheadle) has been undercover so long that he feels a closer allegiance to infamous drug dealer Caz (Wesley Snipes) than he does to the force.

All three cops find themselves hurtling towards the same crime scene on one fatal night in this tense, edge of your seat thriller.”

And the question…

Who plays Eddie?

1. Don Cheadle
2. Ethan Hawk
3. Richard Gere

Of course, the real question should be ‘why on earth is Wesley Snipes playing someone called ‘Caz’?', but that’s by-the-by. Hang on, Ethan Hawke plays someone called ‘Sal’ as well – what’s going on in this film?! Send your answers to marketing@iwantoneofthose.com to be in with a chance by November 14th and good luck!

Posted in Competition Stuff, Cool Stuff, Film Stuff, Geek Stuff | 25 Comments »

Star Destroyer Umbrella

Tuesday, September 21st, 2010

Star Wars-related paraphernalia is by no means new (much to the delight of George Lucas’ bank balance), but this incredible design has, shockingly, yet to join the galaxy of merchandise. It is, as you can see, an umbrella fashioned to look like an Imperial Star Destroyer.

The potential manufacturers/designers behind the idea maintain that this will work as well as a normal umbrella, but of course has the distinct advantage of being unbelievably cool. Certainly a lot cooler than George Lucas, anyhow. Honestly, anyone who thinks it’s OK to have his haircut beamed in from 1938 and then extol the virtues of futuristic design and digital technology needs to have a serious think about style.

Rain, may you fall upon the forest moon of Endor, the ice planet Hoth and the dual-sunned wastelands of Tatooine until the funding for this product becomes available.

Via some brainiacs at One More Gadget.

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Posted in Cool Stuff, Design Stuff, Film Stuff, Found on the Interwebs Stuff, Geek Stuff | 1 Comment »

iPhone to replace the Stethoscope?!

Wednesday, September 1st, 2010

Seriously, is there anything iPhones can’t do nowadays? Alright, it was a novelty when you could split the bill, work out where the nearest loo was and crack out Sonic The Hedgehog, but the world of apps has become an awful lot bigger and more impacting on our daily live than was initially thought. Medical professionals all over the place are downloading the iStethoscope to their pocket-bound potential lifesavers, invented by brainiac chappy Peter Bentley.

That’s not the only development, either. According to The Guardian, there are several other apps that could be taking the medical world by storm very soon. Coughing into your phone can determine your ailments with one app, x-rays from remote locations… it’s a revolution in the making.

So if you’re a budding doctor, get head start and download as many medical apps as you possibly can and start practising on the cat. Similarly, if you’re a designer or developer, it looks like the smart money is in new apps that check your blood pressure or wirelessly perform a tracheotomy, so get cracking!

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Posted in Cool Stuff, Design Stuff, Geek Stuff | No Comments »

Mario Kart Street Graffiti

Friday, August 27th, 2010

Mario Kart is officially the funnest thing ever (except working at IWOOT, obviously), so we’re always on the lookout for developments in the world of banana skins, green shells and reckless driving. A recent news bulletin shows perhaps the most mysterious incident of Mario Kart invading real life – a cycle path in Portland, Oregon has had some interesting graffiti drawn on it:

Thankfully, the banana skins don’t cause you to spin out and fall off Rainbow Road. While we’re on the subject, there are some seriously dangerous Mario Kart enthusiasts out there too:

Don’t try this at home, obviously.

Via Cnet.

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Posted in Cool Stuff, Found on the Interwebs Stuff, Game Stuff, Geek Stuff, Random Stuff | No Comments »