HowTo: Use Science to Decode a Credit Card's Secret Data
Tetherd Cow Ahead posts an interesting science experiment. All you really need is a little bit of iron powder and a magnet, and you can unveil the info behind the magstripe on a credit card.
Conscious Idea Search Results
News: Our front yard garden on New Year's Day
These are pictures of our garden, as of New Year's Day. Everything looks different now. The grapevines are coming back, and the oranges have finished their season. Our artichoke, sadly, got trampled and didn't really survive the pollution of the large Station fire.
News: Block-N-Roll Lego Marble Run Construction
I happen to love Marble Runs as much as I do my Legos. Here are a series of Block-N-Roll Marble Runs I have made. What is so cool about Block-N-Roll is that they attach to any Duplo Lego pieces so they are perfect for building marble runs around your lego world. The pieces not only attach to Duplos but they attach to each other so you can have long runs in between your support beams.
News: Ew. Vajayjay Cupcakes With a Whole Lotta "Sprinkles"
Via Cakes! Cakes! Cakes!: Wisely-chosen makes her husband squirm with her batch of rainbow vagina cupcakes:
HowTo: Take Photos in the Wild Without Getting Mauled
Robots are great for performing tasks that are otherwise too dangerous for man (e.g. dead body extraction bot). BeetleCam is a cute little bot that takes all the danger out of wild life photography. Controlled remotely from a Range Rover about 50 yards away, BeetleCam ventures where no sane photographer dares to go (at the feet of a charging elephant, say). "We thought that Elephants would be an easy subject for BeetleCam’s first outing. We were wrong… we quickly learned that Elephants are wa...
News: Ping Fashion Allows Real Life Facebook Stalking- Off Screen
Arduino fashion (essentially, electronic textiles that can perform a variety of functions) is certainly not a new idea, but the Ping social networking garment brings a fresh and exciting perspective to the concept.
News: The Many Ways to Play SCRABBLE
If you're like me, you want to play Scrabble all the time. But you can't drag your Scrabble board everywhere, without drawing attention. Not to mention bringing it to work's probably a bad idea.
News: Human Flesh Search Engines- The Web Goes Vigilante
The New York Times magazine posts a fascinating feature on a Chinese cultural phenomenon known as human flesh search engines. Out of China has borne cyberposses, internet vigilantes, who target everybody from twisted individuals violating social norms to government corruption.
HowTo: Unzip a Dress With a Paperclip (MacGyver Style)
In honor of our recent post on the man behind MacGyver, here's a little advice from the master: "A paperclip can be a wonderous thing. More times than I can remember one of these had gotten me out of a tight spot..."
News: Kick Ass at Pinball (Telekinetically)
At Germany's 2010 ceBIT Technology Fair, a company called Berlin Brain-Computer Interface demoed technology for mind controlled pinball. The game is controlled solely with brain impulses.
News: Make the World a More Peaceful Place: Play the Ukulele
Another TED speaker featured today: Ukulele guru Jake Shimabukuro shares his thoughts and incredible skill in the videos below.
News: Play Rock Paper Scissors... Against Your T-Shirt
Leave it to the Swedes to come up with this incredibly novel idea (a country that seems to constantly produce culture that sits at the pinnacle of hipness- in terms of design, fashion, and music).
How To: Install new Brembo brake pads in an Infiniti G35 Coupe
Infiniti is like no other car, it has emotion, it has soul, it inspires. There's a difference between being physically transported and emotionally moved, and you can tell them apart when you sit inside this magnificent automobile. Although the Infiniti is like a dream car, it has its problems just like any other brand of vehicle. There's maintenance, minor repairs, major repairs, needed replacement parts, oil changes, headlight adjustment, low tires, transmission and everything else you can t...
How To: Make crepe paper designs
Martha Stewart and kids editorial director Jodi Levine shares ideas for decorating Easter eggs with crepe paper. Crepe paper is one of my favorite materials. It's actually tissue paper that has been reinforced with sizing and "creped," a crinkling method that yields a medium that is incredibly pliable yet sturdy enough to iron and sew. Beautiful and durable, it lends itself to countless applications. In fact, I walked down the aisle with a bouquet of crepe paper blooms! I recently realized ho...
How To: Change Chat Thread Colors in Facebook Messenger Lite
You can now customize your chat experience in Facebook Messenger Lite for Android. You can change your chat bubble colors from steamy red to cool green depending on your mood or who you're chatting with. It's a great way to spice up your standard-issue Facebook blue chat theme.
News: Android N Is Officially Named Nougat—Are You on Board?
Android names each major OS version according to the alphabet, but N presented a dilemma. Sticking with their sweet-strategy, the folks at Google weren't left with many options for the 14th letter of the alphabet. In fact, they even opened up suggestions for the name, asking fans to pitch in their ideas.
News: Do the Absolute Bare Minimum This Mother's Day with These Hangouts Easter Eggs
Google adds Easter eggs to Hangouts from time to time, and they're marking Mother's Day this weekend with the addition of three pop-up animations.
How To: You Can Now Create & Share GIFs Directly from YouTube Videos
When I stumble upon something interesting on YouTube, sometimes I just want to share a few seconds of it with friends. That's where GIFs come in handy: they're small in size, easy to share, and they can be viewed directly in most messaging apps.
News: Apple Created a Switcher Guide for Android Users, but Don't Bother Reading It
Apple used to be a great, innovative company. But lately, it's filling its coffers with money raked in from selling folks on "new" and "unique" features that have been blatantly ripped off from Android.
Small Talk 101: How to Have Less Awkward Conversations with Strangers
If you are like most people, going to a party or mixer full of complete strangers probably does not sound like your idea of a fun night.
News: Facebook Messenger Gets "Big" Likes & Instant Video Sharing
In a time when messaging platforms may outnumber the people you'd ever want to message, one of the more popular options—Facebook Messenger—received a big update for both Android (must be part of the free beta program) and iOS, going from version 5.0 to 6.0.
How To: Double the Size of Your Closet Using Soda Tab Hangers
While walk-in closets are nice, not many of us actually have one. Instead, we're stuck with tiny wall closets or those oddly-shaped spears. Add a roommate or girlfriend and you have yourself a classic dilemma—"Where in the French toast do I put all my damn clothes?"
How To: Trade in Your Bulky Set of Keys for This Simple DIY Swiss Army-Style Keychain
Keys always seem to multiply. You start out with your house keys and car keys, and the next thing you know, your keychain is full and you have no idea what half of them even unlock.
How To: Repair & Waterproof Leaky Winter Boots Using Sugru
For those who live in climates where winter actually feels like winter, a good pair of boots is a must. When you're trudging through the snow to chisel the ice off your windshield, the last thing you want is for your feet to be unprepared. Wet socks are bad enough when the weather's warm.
How To: Your Guide to Last-Minute Gifts You Can Put Together on Christmas Eve (Part 2)
If getting Christmas presents ready ahead of time has never been your forte, be assured that it has never than easier than before to assemble together a last-minute Christmas gift for all your loved ones and favorite people (and maybe not-so-favorite people you are obligated to buy gifts for) on Christmas eve.
How To: 13 More Delicious Ways to Reuse Your Thanksgiving Leftovers
Since leftovers are such a coveted thing following a big cooking holiday, I decided to follow up my previous post on reusing Thanksgiving leftovers with 13 more ideas for doing more with your holiday scraps.
How To: 6 Easy DIY Ways to Clean & Polish Tarnished Silverware & Jewelry
Is your beloved silver bracelet looking a little worn? Stick it in a bowl of tomato ketchup to remove the tarnish. The acid in the tomatoes oxidizes with tarnished silver, which helps make your silver items look newer than ever before.
How To: 12 Life Hacks to Incorporate More Exercise into Your Life
Would you exercise more if you were constantly running from zombies in a post-apocalyptic world where hundreds of people are depending on you to not get eaten? If your answer is yes, then you really need to snap out of your sedentary lifestyle ASAP and install the Zombies, Run! app on your smartphone.
How To: 9 Tips for Power Napping Your Way to a More Energized Day
If you like the idea of napping but have difficulty waking up after 20 minutes, drink a cup of coffee right before you lay down. As caffeine takes about 15 to 20 minutes to take physical effect, you can wake up from your nap ready to conquer the world just as the caffeine high starts kicking in.
How To: 8 More Weird Ways to Cool Down This Summer
Eating chili peppers may not be your first idea for cooling down during a hot summer day, but there's a reason why many of the spiciest foods in the world come from places notorious for extremely hot weather. Spicy food makes you sweat without raising your body temperature, and sweating is your body's efficient cooling-down system.
How To: 11 Non-Dental Uses for Your Old Toothbrush
We all know to should swap out our toothbrushes one every three to four months, but did you know your used Toothbrush still has a number of handy uses once its time in your bathroom is done? You can use an old toothbrush indefinitely to remove silk from corn, exfoliate your lips, tame your unruly eyebrows or clean your cheese grater before sticking it in the dishwasher.
How To: 5 Cool DIY Calendar Ideas for 2013
If the annual tradition of buying a new wall calendar at a heavily discounted price at some mall kiosk by the end of January is not exactly your scene, then how about making your own nifty DIY wall calendar for 2013?
How To: Turn Your Head into Narcissistic Cardboard Speakers
Do you know anyone that's infatuated with themselves and is currently in need for some good speakers? No? Well, just in case you do, here's a neat Christmas present idea for your narcissistic speaker-less friend. But, let's be realistic—why would you make these for anybody but yourself?
How To: Build a Simple Outdoor Fire Pit for Less Than 100 Bucks
There's nothing better than sitting around a fire in your own backyard, but store-bought fire pits can get pretty expensive, and unfortunately (but understandably), most states have pretty strict regulations on outdoor fires.
How To: 7 Halloween Makeup Tricks Using Common Household Items
Need to look like a rotting, decaying zombie corpse for Halloween? Rather than bribing your special effects makeup artist friend to treat you one for the night, you can definitely DIY a couple of good Halloween makeup effects using common household items in your pantry or medicine cabinet.
How To: Next Time You Fly, Hack Your Barf Bag into a Smartphone Holder and Watch Your Own Movies
There are so many unpleasant things about flying. You have to wait in line after line, take off your shoes, belt, and jewelry, and somehow make sure your luggage stays intact. And then, once you've made it onto the plane, there are the awful movies that most airlines play—if you even get a movie.
How To: 11 Ways to Reuse Used Computer Paper
If you are like most people, you probably have a lot of used computer paper lying around at your home or in your office. Before you toss them directly into the recycling bin (which you should at least be doing if you're going to be getting rid of them), what are some crafty and practical things you can do with used computer paper?
DIY Portable Power Pack: Turn Your Backpack into a Solar-Powered Gadget Charger
A smartphone is pretty much useless with a dead battery. When you're out and about, it can be hard to find a place to plug in (if you remembered your charger, that is). But this DIY solar panel backpack made by electrical engineer Theodore Protasiewicz will help you use the scorching sun to your advantage and make sure that your gadgets are always ready to go. Theodore started with just a normal backpack, some solar panels, 18 gauge wire, and a USB port and hacked it into a traveling solar ch...
How To: 11 Cool Ways to Reuse Old Jeans
Do you have a bunch of old jeans that no longer fit you or are too outdated to wear in public? If you are handy with a sewing machine, the possibilities for upcycling your jeans into something crafty are endless. You can update your old denims into a jean tote bag, yoga mat bag, quilt, or a super-handy utility belt (or mini-apron).
How To: Protect Your Wall from Stray Darts with This DIY Dartboard Cabinet Made of Wine Corks
The worst part about playing darts is that when you miss—it can damage not only your ego, but also the wall behind the dartboard if it's not protected. Redditor mavantix found a solution to this problem in wine corks. Over a year, he collected over 1,000 corks from family and friends to make this DIY Cork Dartboard Cabinet—that's a lot of wine!