Tech News

Behold! The ‘Pacific Rim’ theme performed by dueling Tesla coils

If you’re like me, you’ve probably been asking yourself, what could make the Pacific Rim main theme more badass? Well, it’s finally happened. I present to you, dueling Tesla coils performing the Jaeger battle hymn…conducted by a robot with a frickin’ plasma ball brain. [Geekologie] SPLOID is a new blog about awesome stuff. Join us…

Here’s how to guarantee a white Christmas filled with snow tomorrow

Sorry, you can’t control the weather and make it snow tomorrow. And sorry, you can’t move your whole family to a place where it’ll snow for a day. But if you really want to see a white Christmas (and that should be every non-Grinch) you can use a magical combination of diaper lining, light beer…

America Might Be About To Get Its First Indoor Throwing Star Range

If this website is to be believed, come 2014, Lexington, Kentucky could easily replace Orlando, Florida as the most popular vacation spot in the country. Because next spring the city will be host to the nation’s first indoor throwing star range and sake bar. Because nothing goes better with rice wine than a throwable metal…

Adidas and Run-D.M.C. Made a Pair of Christmas in Hollis Sneakers

Forget the ugly sweaters, the Santa hat, the light-up tie, even that pair of green pants you only wear once a year. Adidas and Run-D.M.C. have created the only garment you’ll need for holiday parties and family dinners with their new Christmas in Hollis-themed Superstar 80s sneakers. Considered to be one of the rare modern…

Wirelessly Light Your Tree With LEDs, Pennies, and Lemon Juice

Wireless power is taking its sweet time becoming a reality, but did you know that with a few household items you can light your Christmas tree without having to deal with a tangled mess of cords? It not only makes decorating and undecorating a tree much easier, this tutorial can even help drain that giant…

Genius machine sorts Skittles and M&M’s by color so you don’t have to

Here’s a question I’m not sure I want to know the answer for: if Skittles and M&M’s came in individual packets for each flavor, would I combine them and eat them like how I do now (in a pile shoved into my mouth) or would I keep the flavors separate and enjoy them on their…

The 3D Printer Who Saved Christmas

What we have here is a warm and fuzzy tale of a man and his gadget. Presents forgotten! Christmas Ruined! Not so fast. Armed with a 3D printer, he manages to stave off being shunned by his family for at least one more year. You may remember Doc North as the guy behind the ReAllocate…

This Flying Ambulance May Save Wounded Soldiers from Certain Death

Removing wounded soldiers from the battlefield has always been a dangerous proposition, not just for the wounded but for the Medevac team as well. So instead of sending more soldiers into harm’s way, one Israeli aeronautic company wants to whisk the wounded away aboard a UAV. The AirMule, as its called by its creator, Dr.…

The 12 Explosions of Christmas

What do you get when you rig up flame launchers, giant snowmen, water pistols filled with conic acid, a firework tree, and more? The 12 Explosions of Christmas. The above comes from Greg Foot, a ‘Science Daredevil’ who hosts TV and online shows—including a popular explainer series for Head Squeeze—and his friend Mike Sansom, who…

What do other countries call Santa Claus?

Christmas Man. Daddy Christmas. Grandfather Frost. Yule Man. Yule Elder. Yule Gnome. Yule Goat. Father Christmas. Old Man Christmas. Biblical Magi. Christ Child. Christmas Log. All those names are names for Santa Claus in other countries around the world. Calling him just Santa Claus just seems so boring in comparison, doesn’t it? This map, popularized…

The Extremely Last Minute Gift Guide for Lazy Shoppers

It’ll never happen again, you said; this year will be different, you said. And yet, here we are—mere hours to Christmas day and you have yet to finish your holiday shopping. For shame. Fortunately for you and everyone on your gift list—and just like with everything else in life—the internet has the answer to your…

British doctor branded his initials on patient’s liver

A surgeon at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham, England, has been suspended after it was discovered that he signed his initials on a patient’s liver. He used an argon plasma coagulation tool to sear his brand in a patient’s liver. The tool, used to stop bleeding by burning tiny blood vessels shut with a…

Forget Frosty: Here’s How To Make Your Very Own Urban Igloo

Snowmen are great. Everyone loves a good snowman! But if you’re expecting piles and piles of the white stuff this year, have a ton of free time on your hands, and want to make something truly cool, why not go all-out and construct an urban igloo? Modern Farmer got the inside info on how to…

Father Christmas giving out presents at a children’s party given by journalists at the Press Club in 1924. [Getty Images] Happy Christmas!

Iceland Stops Work on a New Highway That Would Destroy Elf Habitats

A lawsuit that halted a new highway in Iceland was filed on behalf of elves. The road construction project is now being delayed until Iceland’s Supreme Court rules on a case from Friends of Lava, a group concerned about destruction to elf and wildlife habitats. Their ideas may not be as bizarre as it first…

Astronauts made a rare six hour spacewalk on Christmas Eve to fix ISS

For only the second time in NASA history, two astronauts made a spacewalk on Christmas Eve. Astronauts Rick Mastracchio and Michael Hopkins installed a new ammonia pump to fix the cooling loop on the ISS. You can’t beat that Christmas Eve, even if you’re Santa Claus. NASA has their livestream going of the spacewalk and…

Build a Perfect Fire on Christmas Eve Without Burning Down the House

There’s nothing quite like a Hallmark-style Christmas eve (or morning), replete with logs roaring in the hearth. And the hearth is where it belongs; nobody wants a house fire for Christmas. Here’s how to properly and responsibly start up a yule log without resorting to Duraflames (because really, that’s just cheating.) Get Ready First, if…

One of these twins is going to space—will he come back different?

NASA is sending astronaut Scott Kelly to the ISS for a year. Then they will compare him to his twin Mark Kelly, who will remain on Earth for the entire time. It’s a fascinating experiment that may reveal some effects on how space affects the human organism. Former Navy test pilots, the Kelly brothers joined…

I Hope the Ghost of Christmas Paleofuture Finally Brings My Hoverboard

When I was a kid there was nothing I wanted more than a hoverboard for Christmas. Or a personal robot. Or a videophone. You get the idea. Back in the 20th century, we all had different ideas about what futuristic toys should look like. Below we have a small sample of Christmas presents and traditions…

Pop-up Ports Keep this Backup Battery Slim and Svelte

What’s the point of carrying around a backup battery that’s larger than the smartphone it’s designed to boost? It defeats the purpose of carrying a pocketable device in the first place. When it comes to backup batteries, slim is the only way to go, and with a set of pop-ports that keep its USB ports…