Well, for starters there's the a fiber-optic starscape ceiling that shows comets appearing every minute or so. Then there's the two Sony megachangers that accommodate 800 DVDs, THX speakers, a ten foot diagonal circuit screen, and oh, before I forget, a motion sensor that opens the custom air pocket doors. All that, and an interior that looks like it was imported directly from the set.

Congratulations, Jacob Yarmuth. I'm just glad you're not this into Fear Factor.

[Electronichouse via Newlaunches]

We upgrade, update, and customize nearly everything, so why not our vision too? Reach for the stars and all that jazz. And even the tech fits the theme: some more common optical surgical procedures are actually based on NASA technology:

Wavefront technology, originally developed by NASA to aid the focus of the Hubble Space Telescope on distant stars, measures up to 250 spots in the pupil to provide a precise map of the cornea and iris. This offers the potential to correct problems not addressed by glasses, such as halos around lights at night or glare.

Fighter pilots, snipers, long-distance drivers, politicians, supermodels, and your average Sally or Joe Smith are getting eye surgery. Why? Some are doing it for vanity, to no longer have to wear glasses they may consider unsightly, or contacts that may be a hassle. Others are doing it to advance in their careers: some pilots wouldn't be allowed to fly without meeting certain vision requirements, and others just wantbetter than normal vision.

Gradually it's becoming more and more common for patients to request procedures which will over-correct or modify their corneas with goals other than simple 20/20 vision in mind. Those pilots might want better night vision and the speech givers want to avoid wearing reading glasses and request monovision. That's great, but what about that Yankees catcher who gets surgery to see the balls flying at him better? While no one will care much about other cases, there could eventually be argument that his vision surgery is some form of unfair enhancement.

Potential arguments and debates aside, it's not all just about boosting career aspirations and vanity though. Dr. Julian Stevens of Moorfields Eye Hospital, an expert on laser refractive surgery, gives an example of how "customized" vision helped a patient's quality of life:

"One of my patients led an active life and had high-quality distance vision. When he became paralyzed from the neck down, his world became smaller - reading and television. Spectacles on your nose become painful if you can't shift them." The solution? Mr Stevens made him slightly short-sighted.

I must admit that this particular example made me cringe a little bit. What are the ethics of downgrading someone's vision at his or her request even if it's for an improvement in lifestyle. No matter. There's some great potential for both good and evil in it, so I'll be paying attention to advances in this whole custom-tailored vision trend, because my death glare definitely needs some upgrading. [Times Online]

Photo by bogenfreund

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The image associated with this post is best viewed using a browser.
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[Thriller Headphones via Josh Spear]

Not only can you use the Konami code to get the phone into dev mode, you can hold the volume-up button while it's booting in order to set it to restore mode. Once in that mode, you can use Palm's firmware flasher app to place on your own custom firmwares (doing whatever the hell you want to the phone) even if it hasn't been authenticated by Palm. Expect lots of low-level hacks that can do some really, really cool things. [Stephen Troughton-Smith via Daring Fireball]

For those wondering why you would play £59 ($86) for a pair of these earphones when you could customize the equalizer on your own for free, the point to these earbuds are to give you an internally-built equalizer for its specific genre, without having to mess around with the equalizer—essentially, a plug and play:

So for Rock you get a big, warm but tightly controlled bass, with all the high end detail still present, with Jazz you get rhythm and pace, with a perfectly defined soundstage, our classical earphones faithfully reproduce every nuance of the performance, and with the pop earphones you'll get a more dynamic, sharp listening experience with strong vocals and a great beat.

So if classical earphones "faithfully reproduce every nuance of the performance," why don't they just make all earphones like that? Also, I'm not exactly sure I want a pair of earphones that could control the rhythm, pace and beats of a song—it's a little too magical for my liking.

Although these buds are custom tuned to only one genre, Radiopaq claims the earphones are simply optimized for that sound but also work with any other genres of music, just like how although an SUV was built for off-roading, you could still drive it around town. However, because the earbuds come with its genre written on its exterior, my ego's going with the Rock pair no matter how much I secretly love Britney Spears. [Radiopaq via Engadget]

Listening Test: It's music tech week at Gizmodo.

In addition to the hefty $15,000 price tag, this door boasts a biometric sensor that serves as the lock. Oh, and lots of carbon fiber. Did we mention it's made of carbon fiber? There was, sadly, no word on what this door was protecting. An underground secret lair, perhaps?

Anyway, we sincerely hope the wealthy Brazilian businessman who commissioned this piece gets his money's worth, because this sucker would do nicely as the door to the next Gizmodo Gallery, don't you think? [Carbon Fiber Gear]

That pic is of the guts of the beast—it's all glistening plexiglass and copper plumbing. And in my mind that sets off a "steampunk-meets Buck Rogers-style retro sci-fi" feeling, complete with flashing lights and lurid plastic colors, but without Tweaky. But that name isn't catchy enough. Over to you guys...

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Gizmodo:How did you come up with the name Sillof?
Sillof:I am a high school history teacher and Sillof was a fake name a few students and I came up with years ago. I used it as a running gag for giving generic examples; such as in the ancient kingdom Sillof, the loyal Sillofites, the might god Sillof, etc. When I began to look for an online alias I chose it.

I primarily use it to keep my personal and professional lives separated.

Gizmodo:When did you start customizing figures?
Sillof: Well, I did it a little when I was a kid, by cutting off Luke's hand or 3PO's arm, or putting Luke's head on the x-wing pilot's body. I later got more into it in the early 90's and then really started to make it a long term hobby. I met guys like Alex Newborn who inspired me and then the internet was just taking off and it really opened my imagination to the possibilities.

Gizmodo:What made you decide to take on this hobby?
Sillof: Initially I just wanted figures that they never made. The driving force was I had always loved The Cantina scene and Jabba's Palace scene in the Star Wars films and I wanted to recreate those scenes. I had built these miniature sets called dioramas, which are on my site, and wanted to fill them with all the movie aliens.

Gizmodo:Where do you get your ideas for themes and figures?
Sillof: Initially I just made the figures that I wanted but had not been made. I eventually got tired of just recreating existing designs and wanted to do something more creative. I am currently planning a line that is all original designs of my own original characters right now.

As for my process I just visualize a general idea in my head. I am always going for a figure that is very unique, yet recognizable as the intended character. Then I concentrate on the key elements that make the character recognizable - these are the elements I will try to represent in the new figure. I do a few sketches, one just straight ideas, and others that are a little more practical with regard to parts I could find and things I could make.

I then go about collecting pieces to use as parts and begin to combine them all. There is a fair amount of sanding, and dremeling, and cutting. Then use the parts like a skeleton sculpting my own designs using apoxie sculpting compound and then gluing any number of odds and ends to the figure. Then I paint the figure and give it a wash of diluted dark paint to antique it.

Gizmodo: Where do you source your materials - do you buy action figures as is or get them second hand?
Sillof: I have a large collection of toy "parts" and other miscellaneous found items that are not toy related. I buy some figures new and cut them up, I buy figures on eBay in large lots of played with toys, and there are some toy dealers in my area that pull things aside for me as they buy them.

Gizmodo:Has any company ever contacted you to work for them, doing this full time?
Sillof:I was approached to build replica props for a major company, but the idea of machining metal for a living, which was my father's job, did not seem that appealing to me. I was also approached for my diorama building by a new company in England, but moving was not an option as my wife was 7 months pregnant at the time.

Gizmodo:Would you want to do this full time if you could?
Sillof:I would love to try to make figures for a toy company full time. My dream job would be designing original props, costumes, or sets for movies. I do this on the side as another hobby for local films. My career actually gives me a sabbatical where they hold my job for a year and would allow me to explore the career. So I am always open to the idea to attempt this on a full time basis.

Gizmodo:If there was one piece of advice for aspiring custom action figure hobbyists that you wish someone had told you when you first started out, what would it be?

For a new customizer, I would just tell them to just keep making figures, practicing, and trying new techniques until they find what works for them, and never stop on a figure until you are 100% happy with it.

Personally, I would like go back and tell myself not to waste my time making figures of existing designs and just start doing my own original works.

[Sillof's Workshop]