Firestarter...

If you have difficulty getting your outdoor barbeque started, the Boeing Corporation has a few tools that might help you. Last week was the first ground test fire of a large scale laser weapon. Using a specially outfitted C130H, the chemical laser equipped plane was able to hit and destroy a ground target - this paves the way for future inflight air to ground laser strikes.




Read more about it via Defense Update:

www.defense-update.com

Over ice....

If your travel plans include going somewhere a little frosty, you might be interested in this: the Lotus Ice Vehicle. Conceived for the Moon Regan Transantarctic Expedition, this rather serious piece of hardware is meant to traverse some very rugged terrain. It can be fitted with ice penetrating radar for detecting cracks in the ice. Another design feature is the large spiked foot for those emergency stops.



More pictures, videos, and specs via Zercustoms:

www.zercustoms.com

Sun Deck...

One of the first of the new season yachts has been announced, the Lazzara LSX 92. The new yacht has all kinds of new design features including a private sun terrace off the stateroom, a retractable aft sun deck shade, and a large teak swim deck with a garage for water toys. Cost: between 8 and 9 million USD.



Details from Yachtforums.com:

www.yachtforums.com

Floor mats included...

There's a new winner in the category of 'the world's most expensive car' - the just announced 'Aston Martin One77'. The limited edition super car will be sold to 77 lucky buyers next year, for a cool 1 million GBP. Other general stats include a 7.0 liter, V12 engine housed in an aluminum and carbon body. This will be the first new car produced since the sell off of the company last year.




See a few more picture and read a bit more from Autoworld.com:
www.autoworld.com

The Civilian Osprey...

Those tilt rotor military planes are very cool, but what if you need one for zipping around for non-military purposes? The good news: there's now a version you can buy. The bad news: it's a little spendy. between 18m and 23m. But not having to deal with traffic might be worth it. It's the Bell 609.

Watch the Spielberg-esque commercial:




Read a bit more about it via the Register:
www.theregister.co.uk

Swat...

So, how tiny do you think those flying cameras can get? Take a look at the Delfly Micro . Weighing only 3 grams and measuring 10 cm from wing tip to wing tip, this flying camera is at serious risk of becoming bird food.


The Delfly Micro Ornithopter test flight video (with inset camera view)




More info via the Delfly page:
www.delfly.nl

Smooth talker...

Sometimes communicating and getting along with others can be a little tricky. Skills like 'ending a conversation' without using words, detecting lies, and talking a cranky person back to 'normal' are very handy. Here are 10 Conversation Hacks from LifeHacker to help you get through an average day.




10 Conversation Hacks from LifeHacker (tip: follow the embedded links for extra info)
www.lifehacker.com

Props...

The newly opened 'Aviator Hotel' in Farnborough, England is calling itself 'the sexiest airport hotel in the UK'. (really,who decides these things?) Located at TAG Farnborough, it's an excellent location for those conducting business or traveling by private jet. The sleek modern hotel has 150 rooms and 19 elegant suites without having to venture into central London. Cost: about 195 GBP.




The stylish website of the Aviator Hotel:
www.aviatorfarnborough.co.uk

Getting up there...

There are times when a little extra oxygen would come in handy. The 'Ymup Oxygen Generating Backpack' might be just the thing to have. The backpack runs on batteries and can provide 2 hours of O2 at a 30 percent concentration. Comes with a remote control and in a couple of fashion colors. Cost: between 880 to 1150 USD.




News release info via CrunchGear:
www.crunchgear.com


Actual release information ( Japanese only):
www.ymup.co.jp

It's a frickin' moonbase...

The next logical step in going back to the moon will be hanging out there for a while. One of the current plans for accommodations is 'Moon Base 2' - an inflatable temporary structure. The plan is for a dome that will hold 4 astronauts during a 6 month stay. Concept by 'Architecture and Vision'.




Additional Images and text via the 'Architecture and Vision' site:
www.architectureandvision.com

The basics...

When wrenching around on equipment there are some absolute basics needed to get the job done. Those basics would have to be music and cold beverages. The Kobalt 53-inch Tool Chest has in integrated Pioneer sound system, iPod jack, mini-refrigerator, and LED lighting system. Perfect. Cost: about 1,600 USD.





The somewhat dramatic opening page of the Kobalt site:
www.kobalttools.com

Merry Kriss-mas...

There's plenty of time to get one of these on your Christmas list: the Kriss Super V. Out of prototype and now for sale. The Kriss is considered a big leap forward in automatic weapon design with 60 percent less recoil and a huge reduction in muzzle climb, resulting in improved accuracy. A civilian model is being offered for sale as well.





Read all the details via the Kriss TDI site:
www.kriss-tdi.com

Driving Miss Eleanor...

If you saw the movie 'Gone in 60 Seconds', you might recall the star of the movie - the classic Mustang called Eleanor that Nicholas Cage needed to steal. Now, it's possible to get a recreation of Eleanor for your very own. Classic Recreations from Oklahoma makes a fuel injected 535hp version for 139,000 or a supercharged 770hp version for 189,000. Shipping is free.




All the details from Classic Recreations:
www.classic-recreations.com

Fan-ie-Pack...

The Martin JetPack company demo'ed their prototype they intend to put into production for next year. Arguably, it's a fan pack rather than a JetPack, since the main propulsion is a set of dual fans. It's also a little larger than you might expect. On the other hand, it's a lot less dangerous than some of it's competitors. Of course, if you're flying around in a JetPack, you're probably not that worried about the safety aspects. We'll let the marketing people sort that out. Cost: about 100,000 USD.



The Martin JetPack via the Martin website:
www.martinjetpack.com

No one in particular...

There are times when you might need photos of random people. Literally. A paper from Columbia University discusses automated 'Face Swapping' to create composite faces for photographs when individual identities need to be masked. Freaky.





Quick overview from Conceptual Trends:
kk.org



The detail paper in PDF form from Columbia University (at least look at the samples):
www1.cs.columbia.edu