Oh what's this awesome thing strapped to my head? I dunno, it's just some thing Speedo sent over to me. Underwater music? Yeah. Yeah it's kind of sweet, isn't it? iRiver makes it, 2GB, costs around $130, and not coming out anywhere but Japan any time soon. Man I love Japan. Hahahahaha. Hahahahahahahaha. I'm just a regular guy, at heart. Just a regular guy.

Hey do you want to see me breathe underwater? I can do it. [iRiver Japan]

The Lunocet weighs about 2.5lbs out of the water, but in the water it's positively buoyant. Constructed from silicon wrapped in carbon fiber with a titanium footplate, the system gives you the same power on a downstroke as an upstroke. Coupled with a pair of strong legs the monofin could theoretically generate enough power to drive a human completely out of the water—yes, real life dolphin acrobatics at last.

So is the Lunocet worth its $1250 to $1800 pricetag? We don't know, but it sure sounds a whole lot better than actually training. And we doubt that we'll be getting access to DARPA's swimming tech anytime soon. [Lunocet]

For serious swimmers, here's some serious info about this next gen suit. It was designed with input from NASA, and the fabric is touted as the "world's lightest swim fabric." The seams are ultrasonically welded together and the Hyrdo Form Compression system holds the swimmer's abdomen and other bits at an optimal position for streamlining. The suit is made up off three pieces, which were cut from a three-dimensional pattern to hug the body more closely. Word on the street is it takes about 15 minutes or so to squeeze into this marvel of modern swimming pool engineering.

The suit is available for pre-order now at Speedo, and ships in October. [Speedo via Uncrate]

The best way, usually, would be through the NBC Olympics site, which has decent quality for streamed video, even though it suffers its share of quirks. But they've decided to be jerkfaces and only show swimming on the tube:
To see other events live without a faux tape delay, the first time you go to the site, you've gotta give it an East Code zip code and cable provider, like 10003 (NYC) and Time Warner Cable. Then it'll think you're on the East Coast and give you the goods live. If you punch in a West Coast zip, you'll get hit with the three-hour delay. If you've already messed up, clear out your browser's private data, then try again. And our guide to the byzantine site will probably help you navigate it.

The best option for Phelps is to use a proxy server to make the BBC or CBC think you're in the UK and Canada, and watch their live streams, which offer pretty good coverage generally. Silicon Alley Insider recommends Xroxy for its list of open proxies broken down by countries. Then you've gotta configure your browser, detailed here. If you find one that works (which might take a couple tries), verify you've actually teleported here. Remember kids, someone else owns the server you're running through, so don't put in passwords or credit card info while you're connected to the proxy. And be persistent!

Another option, also from Alley Insider, though the video isn't that good, is Alriyadiah saudi Sport TV, which shows video on about a 10-minute delay. But you don't get to choose your event, so cross your fingers.

If you've got other ideas or tricks, let 'em loose in the comments. Maybe next year NBC will have its shit together. Oh, and go Team USA! [Silicon Alley Insider]

Originally, his team wanted it to have porous walls, like a sponge, that would really absorb waves—way more than the pool's two extra lanes and gutters, which are actually pretty standard. The spongey walls would have been so effective in neutralizing speed-killing waves, it might have profoundly changed the sport. But the Chinese didn't want to pay for them.

The other change, rejected by swimming's governing body, were new starting podiums with a flap, giving swimmers something to push off from, which testing showed cut a tenth of a second off times. They'll debut at next year's world championships. Guess you can't fight progress. [Radar]