Gizmodo: bellagio

World's Biggest Chocolate Fountain Is a Willy Wonka Wet Dream

Sean Fallon — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 14:40:00 EDT

If you have ever had the privilege of dining in the Bellagio in Las Vegas, you might have got a glimpse of Jean-Philippe Maury's breathtaking 27-foot chocolate fountain.

This taste bud tempting, 2100-pound behemoth circulates around 120 quarts of chocolate per minute. Just take a look at the videos and see if you can resist visiting the nearest vending machine for something sweet. [Bellagio and TechEBlog]

Taste Test is our weeklong tribute to the leaps that occur when technology meets cuisine, spanning everything from the historic breakthroughs that made food tastier and safer to the Earl-Grey-friendly replicators we impatiently await in the future.

Vortex Fountain Scares the Piss Out of Traditional Fountains

Mark Wilson — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 11:00:00 EDT

The Vortex Fountain eschews gentle, soothing streams for a powerful water funnel. The illusion of a standing block of water is created by an acrylic case hidden by transparency and water cascading down the sides, and the vortex itself is formed through the combination of strong, alternate currents of water that collide in the tank. Depending on the angle from which you view the fountain, it alternates between a majestic restraint of nature and an oversized science experiment involving expensive two-liters. Here's a clip of the Vortex Fountain in full vortexness:

[WilliamPye via OhGizmo]

Massive Dubai Fountain Will Be the Largest, Most Technologically Advanced Water Works of its Kind

Jack Loftus — Sun, 06 Jul 2008 22:00:00 EDT

In Dubai, they're doing things big these days. Big hotels, big palm tree islands, big wallets, and very soon, big $281 million fountains. The biggest one in the world, in fact, and it will be large enough to give the famed fountains at the Bellagio in Las Vegas an inferiority complex.

At 825 feet long, the unnamed fountain will be 25% larger than the Bellagio fountain. Powering the fountain will be pumps capable of shooting columns of water approximately 450 or so feet into the dry Middle Eastern air. A light and sound show produced by a network of 6,600 lights and 50 projectors will illuminate the burgeoning Dubai skyline at night. About 22,000 gallons of water are expected to cycle through the fountain at any given time when it is completed in 2009. Now, if you'll excuse me, nature calls. [Luxury Launches]