Apparently, Drugloos are already in use at prisons, secure hospitals, police stations and airports around the world. There are several different variations on the Drugloo theme, but get a load of the classic version pictured here. I don't know about you, but I would have trouble "performing" on this cold steel beast—but at least you are in control. Sooner or later, they are going to develop a toilet that sucks the evidence right out of you. Then you'll be sorry. [Drugloo via ChronicleHerald via Fark]

Actually, the sound emitted by Ecohime is supposed to be running water, but as our leader Jason Chen pointed out "it sounds like a standing ovation." Hopefully, version 2.0 will embrace this theme with raucous applause and words of encouragement and praise. "I knew you had it in you!", "Way to be #2!" and so on. [Strapya via Technabob]

A lot of designers these days are looking at ways we can harness wasted energy in the home to supplement our energy needs, but the tp roll might be going a little too far. The idea is to harness the spinning motion of the toilet paper roll to generate electricity that powers the unit's secondary function as a portable lamp. Needless to say, the practicality of such a device is questionable. I mean, keeping this thing powered up would require more chili and cheese than I am willing to eat. [Miguel Melgarejo via The Design Blog]

More anxious and claustrophobic than the Death Star trash compactor. [Bouncing Red Ball]

Being on death row is lonely, so having a TV is important to your sanity. Godwin's was on the fritz, so he decided to multitask by trying to fix it while using the commode.

The last stupid decision of his life was to bite down on an exposed wire in the plugged-in TV while sitting on the metal toilet. He was electrocuted instantly, making his own kind of electric chair and saving the state the trouble.

Machines Behaving Deadly: A week exploring the sometimes difficult relationship between man and technology.

The pillows come in two options, a split-mode one and a larger, single unit variety. It's pretty gross when you think about getting your junk THAT close to the toilet, but even grosser if you're so short that your goods actually touch the rim of the bowl. An easier solution would be just to pee sitting down. [House Doctor via Inventor Spot via Crunch Gear]

In the early days, there were no restroom facilities onboard spacecraft. The first flights were only supposed to last minutes, so it was thought that there was no need. The story of Allen Shepard having to relieve himself in his suit became common knowledge, after the event was dramatized in the movie, "The Right Stuff." Later spacecraft, including the Apollo spacecraft, also had no toilet facilities. The crews of these vehicles used modified piddle packs (used by the military), which utilized a condom, attached to a hose and bag, for collecting urine. What about women? Back in those days, there weren't any in the space programs (except for Valentina Tereshkova, who probably used a diaper), so it wasn't an issue.

For collection of number two, modified sealable bags were used. There was no privacy aboard the Gemini and Apollo capsules, so imagine doing all of this in close quarters with your buddies! To make matters worse, these bags were (are) clear. They are still carried aboard US spacecraft, for use in the event of irreparable toilet failure.

Fortunately, things got a lot more civilized in the Shuttle program. As I mentioned before, the Shuttle is a business class affair. It contains a relatively large toilet area, which features a privacy screen.

The Soyuz capsule also has a toilet in the upper living module. When someone has to use it for number two, the other two crewmembers can retreat to the descent module, to give the third guy a little privacy. Usually, that toilet is not used for that purpose, though. Crews go through a preflight enema, which usually is enough to clean you out for the two days of flight it takes for the Soyuz to phase, rendezvous and dock with a space station.

The toilet aboard the International Space Station (ISS) is the same as the one that flew on the MIR station. This is also a civilized affair, in a relatively large area, with a privacy screen.

So, how do these toilets work? They all basically work the same way. In the absence of gravity to help you, airflow is used to try to collect everything and point it in the proper direction. To urinate, it is pretty simple. Use the long hose, which has a funnel attached to the end. Turn on the system, and make sure there is good airflow before relieving yourself. Make sure not to actually contact the funnel with your valuable parts; it's a disgusting thought first of all, and second of all, you wouldn't be able to shut the system down before you really regretted getting the life sucked out of you, so to speak! By the way, this system works for women too. The suction is adequate to make sure that the liquids go to the right place.

For number two, the seat lifts up, revealing a small hole. You've really got to get to know yourself, and get good at lining things up for this operation! The system again uses airflow to collect and hold things down where they're supposed to go. After you're finished, the bag is tied off and pushed down into the replaceable silver can.

Accidents do happen, and by international agreement, you clean up your own mess!

Is it worth it? One of my crewmates on Space Shuttle once told me that he wished that we could land every morning, so that he could take care of business there, before launching back into orbit. Yeah, it's not pleasant, but you get used to the hassle of doing these hygiene tasks. It's not so bad.

Follow astronaut Leroy Chiao in his guest column, as we celebrate human life in space with our "Get Me Off This Rock" week.

Did you just participate in a chili dog eating contest? Worry not, because the Neorest now whips up a tornado flush that can tackle anything that might stick to the inside of the bowl. It also has a special CeFiONtect glazing to prevent stains in the first place. I, for one, can't wait until Toto-esque toilet tech is more widely used in the US. [Neorest LE and Neorest SE via Trendir via DVICE]

[Ryanair's CEO] Michael [O'Leary] makes a lot of this stuff up as he goes along and, while this has been discussed internally, there are no immediate plans to introduce it. However, this highlights Ryanair's continuing obsession with lowering costs and passing these savings on in the form of lower fares. Ancillary revenues, all of which are avoidable, help to reduce the cost of flying Ryanair and passengers using train and bus stations are already accustomed to paying to use the toilet so why not on airplanes? Not everyone uses the toilet on board one of our flights but those that do could help to reduce airfares for all passengers.

For those who don't know the Irish airline, Ryanair charges for almost everything and even runs bingos while flying. Knowing how crappy Ryanair's bathrooms can get—coupled with the fact that they don't fly to Göteborg anymore—I won't miss them. [Daily Telegraph]

From the looks of it, this toilet-seat mod is meant to potty-train and encourage kids by promising them a reward after they've done their business. The prize? The happy song, a high five, and some toilet paper! Frankly, this toilet would terrify me even at this age. I also have to wonder, won't this potty produce some sort of Pavlov's Dogs-esque side-effect? Hopefully when he's older, the kid won't poop his pants whenever he hears, "If you're happy and you know it clap your hands!" [Engadget]

The idea behind having flushing options is that the two major bodily ejections differ in quantity, so they should be flushed down the toilet using different amounts of water: Half flush for liquids, full flush for #2. At $149 a piece, the Brondell Perfect Flush kit can be installed onto more than 90% of existing toilets, and can also cut down up to 50% on your toilet water usage. Or you can just do what I do: Don't flush the loo unless it's poo! [Brondell via Luxury Housing via Oh Gizmo]

The kids, from Skjern Technical College, managed to win the Young Enterprise entrepreneurial award for “best product.” Great. You know what this encourages, guys? Next year, you'll see people submitting plans for gadgets that mute your mother-in-law. Or help women become better drivers.

And every blog, news source andDanish Economy Minister will get to rehash the same stupid “According to Jim”-esque jokes we've been making since the dawn of the television. [Crunchgear]

The best thing about it? It builds confidence:

"Whew, that was a fierce battle. I feel five pounds lighter. Saaay...I am five pounds lighter!"

Too bad it is only a concept, because the only way to get this kind of functionality is by dropping thousands on one of those fancy Japanese tech toilets. [Yanko]

According to a recent survey conducted by Nokia, 53 percent of Americans have taken a work-related call or email in the bathroom. Although the data has been lost, we conducted a survey in the past that found the percentage could be even higher. So what does this all mean? I think the answer is clear...we want to work in the bathroom. Yeah, it sounds gross but consider this: many of us do our best thinking in the bathroom. Our productivity could skyrocket (in more ways than one). So, I say why fight it. Here are some gadgets to help you get started on your own bathroom-based home office.

Boom Arm Starbase Workstation: Okay let's start with the basics. You are going to need a way to mount your laptop so that it is easily accessible from the toilet. This swing arm should do the job nicely—plus it is height adjustable and comes with a built-in cupholder. Yeah, that's right—a cupholder. You're already working in the bathroom, eating and drinking are not far behind. [easychairworkstation via Link]

The Loo Read: Having a full-on desk in there is going to take up too much space, but you still need a flat surface to spread out paperwork now and then. In that case, the Loo Read has you covered. It may even be sturdy enough to support light or ultraportable laptops. [Link]

Fish n' Flush Toilet: As for the throne itself, you are going to need something a little better than your standard toilet. This particular version uses half its reservoir to create a fish tank—which is perfect for reducing stress at work. Although, I would go easy on the coffee and beef for a while. Reducing the amount of available water in the tank means less capacity for flushing. [Fish n' Flush via Link]

Moody Aquarium Sink: If you would prefer, the aquarium concept is also available in a sink version. [Home Click via Link]

Dell Latitude XFR D630: I suppose it goes without saying, but if you are going to work in the bathroom you will need a laptop that can handle the occasional splash of water. The Dell Latitude XFR D630 can do that and much more. In fact, it meets Department of Defense MIL-STD 810F standards for operation in extreme temps, moisture and altitude. Plus, the specs are decent with a Core 2 Duo processor, 14.1-inch / 500nit screen, 802.11n, and high-end thermal management for the processor and RAM running on XP. [Dell via Link]

MarineAV 70-inch LCD TV: If you are going to get a waterproof display, you might as well go all out with Marine AV's 70-inch TV. It features full 1080p resolution, a 1,500:1 contrast ratio, 600cd/m2 brightness, 8ms response time, 178 degree viewing angle, and AV, S-Video, Component, HDMI, PC (VGA) inputs. [MarineAV via Link]

Wall Mirror TV/PC: There are plenty of mirror TVs out there, but manufacturers are also starting to throw PCs in to the mix as well. The "ARCO" falls into this category with an all-in-one PC, TV and LCD embedded behind mirrored glass. [AVING via Link]

Sonim XP1 Cellphone: A waterproof cellphone in another must-have. The Sonim is rugged enough to handle a beer dunking / car mauling quite easily and even being smashed for weeks on end. The XP1 is a Europe-only release, but an American version is already on its way. [Sonim]

Potty Putter: Indoor putting surfaces are a staple of any office, and so it shall be with your bathroom version. The Potty Putter allows you to sink putts and deuces at the same time. [Baron Bob via Link]

Toilet Vacuum: It's always a good idea to have a desk vac around to handle small cleaning jobs around the office, and none would be appropriate than this toilet-shaped version. [Link]

Bonus: If you are looking for a little inspiration on what a home office bathroom should look like, consider the following examples:

Bathroom Office: Here is an example of a basic setup. The equiptment is old school, but the comfy looking executive toilet is a nice touch.

Roto-Rooter's Pimped Out John: Last year Roto-Rooter ran a contest that rewarded the winner with the ultimate bathroom gadget setup. It came complete with an Xbox 360, 20-inch LCD TV, laptop, TiVo, refrigerator with beer tap, bike pedal exerciser and more. [Kotaku]

Unfortunately, this urinal is one of a kind, but it will be on display at his one-man show entitled "Down The Drain - The Legacy of George W. Bush." at Ruby's Clay Studio and Gallery in San Francisco. The show runs from January 17 to February 16, 2009. Hopefully, visitors will be allowed to relieve themselves in it. Let's be honest—it would be satisfying on multiple levels. [Clark Sorensen via InventorSpot]