For generations, parents have been struggling to come up with innovative ways to get their kids to eat their vegetables. They'll cut them into fun shapes, bake them in cheese, batter, and deep-fry them.
Although I love a good kitchen gadget just as much as the next food writer, the truth is that my drawers are bursting with unused tools. I usually like to take the simpler approach to cooking and prepping, and for everyday cooking, I find that the best gadgets are usually the ones that do more than one thing.
You have warm toast, but your butter is chilled to a rock-solid state. Sure, you could warm a bit of that butter up in a microwave before spreading, but chances are you're just as impatient as the rest of us, so you slap that frigid butter on and hope for the best. It always ends up the same, though.
I don't know many meat eaters who don't appreciate a good burger, but unless you eat it plain, it usually gets pretty messy. Toppings falling off and sauce running down your arms seems like it's all just part of the process.
Apple's just released a new beta of iOS 7.1 for developers, Beta 5, which fixes some small bugs and adds some minor feature enhancements. With previous reports stating that the final version of 7.1 was slated for a public release in March, these early leaks are indications that the final will be released in the following weeks, shortly after the Golden Master version hits developers.
There are thousands of uses for tape, and plenty of different types of it, too. Masking tape is perfect for labeling, double-sided tape is great for crafts, and duct tape is good for...well, just about everything.
We've all heard of the power that red wine holds. It can help lower risks of heart disease, boost your brain power, and can even recharge your car battery. But last year, a group of Japanese physicists made headlines when they announced that they could induce superconductivity by soaking metals in red wine. But why red wine?
For some, the end of the year is an opportunity to turn over a new leaf and create a new beginning. For this week's Phone Snap Challenge, take plenty of photos on your cell phone this New Year's because we want to see how you're going to ring in 2012. Or show us what the start of the new year means for you. Post your image to the corkboard by Monday, January 2nd at 11:59 pm PST for a chance to win a Fotodiox Thermo Lens Mug.
Congratulations to Katie Howell for her colorful triptych, Christmas Colors, the winning shot of our Phone Snap Holiday Challenge!
Smartphones have already hit the shelves with glasses-free 3D displays, but now you can enjoy the luxury of a 3D display on your 2D devices, thanks to Japanese company Global Wave. They've developed a special film that allows you to enjoy three-dimensional content on existing two-dimensional products, from laptops to computer monitors, along with iPads and iPhones.
Fujitsu Limited has developed what they call the world's smallest Windows 7 PC, which will become available shortly on NTT DoCoMo, Japan's predominant mobile phone operator. The dual-boot device acts as both a smartphone and a portable personal computer that runs the Windows 7 operating system.
The challenge of creating garments with unconventional materials has become an all too familiar gimmick for most first year students at fashion schools. The end result is more often than not a catwalk of garbage bags, zip ties, plastic bottles and cans, assembled into a menagerie of mediocrity. Enter Jum Nakao. But while the Japanese-Brasilian artist/fashion designer does use an unconventional and impractical material (paper) for his collection "A Costura do Invisivel"(translation: "Sewing th...
What would it be like to have a super-realistic humanoid modeled after you...and then come face-to-face with the moving, life-like version of yourself... Creepy? To say the least.
Holy… Lord, help us all—this isn't CG, it's for real. Meet Geminoid DK, the latest spawn from Osaka University Professor Hiroshi Ishiguro's legion of ultra-realistic Androids.
Famed artist and photographer Laurie Simmons boasts an impressive career spanning over three decades. She's shown at some of the world's top art institutions and galleries, and appeared on art world popular PBS television series Art 21. She also happens to be the the proud mother of promising young filmmaker Lena Dunham, the 24-year-old director of last year's indie hit Tiny Furniture.
A recent Japanese study proposes a simpler, softer, more natural-feeling alternative to silicone breast implants: fat-derived stem cells. The cells are extracted from liposuctioned fat, and then injected into the patient to increase breast circumference. San Diego-based biotech company Cytori Therapeutics is currently waiting on FDA approval to start clinical trials.
Shiny, pretty touchscreen vending machines have finally gone mainstream in Japan. My only question is... what's taken so long? The vending machine business can be quite lucrative (location, location, location), so all the more reason to make the interface as aesthetically appealing and user friendly as the iPhone AND as smart as a robot (read below). Features (translation via YouTube):
Androgynous. Stumpy. Creepy. The horror movie robot, created by the notorious Japanese roboticist Hiroshi Ishiguro, is projected to be available for around $8,000 later this year.
The unwither ring is back!!! Previously this only could be sent to you around Valentine's Day. How wonderful!
Ni no Kuni is a gorgeous hand drawn and animated game coming to the PS3 and Nintendo DS. The story is about Oliver, a 13 year old who has lost his mother. Wishing for her to come back, a magical toy tells him that this might be possible and they set off on a journey in a parallel magical world. In the trailer above, the PS3 is able to almost match the visual quality of the cartoon animations originally made for cut scenes in the DS game.
This Japanese expression has two basic meanings. The literal meaning is to break one’s bone(s), as when falling from a height. The figurative meaning is “to try harder.” That is, to try so hard that one’s bones break.
Not enough bible in your games? Damn right! Until we get Grand Theft Moses this is the next best thing. Think of this game as the Old Testament + Acid Trip + Jpop Male Idols. From the Producers of Devil May Cry, Viewtiful Joe, and Okami. El Shaddai is a very unique looking game, very much looking forward to it.
Researchers Hiroto Tanaka and Isao Shimoyama (of Harvard University and University of Tokyo) have constructed a tiny replica of the swallowtail butterfly. The crudely made model uses just balsa wood, rubber bands, and a steel wire crank. The goal is to better understand the biomechanics of butterfly flight. Via Wired,
Japanese designer Tokujin Yoshioka (creator of the crystal chair) is back with a new "shape-shifting" chair, set to debut at Milan Design Fair this upcoming week.
What else is there to say about Search & Destroy other than it is the greatest punk fanzine to have ever lived?
Hiroshi Ishiguro is at it again, but this time "it" has a winning smile. Japanese researchers have developed a humanoid robot that can laugh and smile, mimicking a real person's facial expressions. The android, called Geminoid F, is modeled after a woman in her twenties, with long black hair, silicone skin and lifelike teeth.
Food blog me HUNGRY! posts a fun tutorial for spelling with sushi:
If you've essentially got no shame, and you're pretty strapped for cash, Brokelyn may have just the solution for you. HowTo sell your underwear online - a quick and dirty way to make a buck.
OK, first thing's first: need to get this insane picture out of the way. I think this might classify as horror movie creepy.
This holiday season, two lucky consumers will have the opportunity to purchase a robot twin, specially made by Japanese robotics firm Kokoro.
From Japan hails this magical man and his homemade ocarina. First, this loveable vegetable musician plays "Song of Time", from the video game Zelda: Ocarina in Time, with perfect pitch and clarity. The catch, of course, is rather than a gourd pan flute or even a Nintendo, Mr. Heita uses a carrot. From Japan hails this magical man and his homemade ocarina. First, this loveable vegetable musician plays "Song of Time", from the video game Zelda: Ocarina in Time, with perfect pitch and clarity. T...
Just like any meal choice you can make more or less healthy options when eating sushi. Some ingredients are particularly calorie packed. If you’re watching your weight know where the hidden calories are and if your really conscientious you can try sashimi.
So the basic idea is that you have someone who's in a whale costume and they could be handing out flyers, walking around or just whatever it is someone in a whale costume could do. And while there doing that some guys who look like Japanese fishermen, with fake spears and all that fisherman stuff, run up to him and try to catch him.
Expert Prem Bhatia will show you in this video series how to combine yoga and dhyana meditation. You will learn traditions of yogic meditation from an authentic Indian teacher. These videos cover hand and foot movements, stretching, kriyas, yogic postures fit for meditative purposes, making warmth from friction, and more.
In this video series, expert Bo Feng shows you the proper stroke order for writing Chinese characters properly. The long tradition of calligraphy has developed techniques for writing that will make your characters seem more authentic. Bo teaches you the seven rules of writing Chinese characters: top to bottom, left to right, upper left to bottom right, outside to inside, horizontal before vertical, left slant before right slant, and center before wings.
Many people find Steampunk problematic for a whole host of reasons, not least of which is the glorification of an era of Western history that featured institutionalized slavery, racism, sexism, elitism, and many more -isms.
Quarters don't get you very far at the mall, but they are very impressive when used in magic. Grab a fake trick quarter and follow these steps and you will be on your way to impressing your friends in no time!
It doesn’t matter how long ago your last geometry class was, you can still impress your friends by finding a geometric mean. The geometric mean can be used to find the average of numbers with out unusually high or low results effecting the result.
In this how-to, you'll learn how to rough turn a natural edge bowl from a piece of wood. (The wood used in the video is a Japanese wood called "Mukunoki.") The bowl is only about 8 cm in diameter and thus can be roughed out fairly quickly. Take a look!