In the market for a vintage ray gun?

"The Unnatural Selector", a Ray-Blunderbuss from Dr. Grordbort's will set you back around US$5K. Created by the folks at Weta and built from metal, glass and rare Venusian Worm Oak, this bizarre device comes with a "Raygun Operator's License" designed by Greg Broadmore with your name and photo.

Weta is a film and television effects workshop in Wellington, New Zealand. Best known for their work on 'The Lord of the Rings' trilogy, Weta Workshop is a five time Academy Award winning company that offers services to all aspects of the creative industry including design, special make-up effects and prosthetics, creatures, armour, weapons, miniatures, prop building, large scale sculpture, display work and costuming.

I tell ya, if they had these things in The Lord of the Rings it wouldn't have taken 3 films to get the job done- it would have been "Keep your finger out of my ring, old man!" ZZZZZzzzzzap!! The End.

Give Herpes to your Friends and Family!

Thats's right- microbes 1,000,000 times their normal size realised in plush form! There's all the classics like: Ebola, Chicken Pox, Mad Cow, The Common Cold and many, many more. Each 5-7 inch plush microbe comes with an instructional card that includes a picture of the real microbe along with information about it in its natural environment. Get E. Coli at ThinkGeek.

Where there's smoke there's.... nevermind.

Electric cigarettes! Of course. These things glow at the end when you inhale and atomise the air turning it into water vapour, dispensing the nicotine. Supposedly a good way to quit and/or get around smoking bans - try explaining it to the bouncer punching you in the head when he thinks you've sparked up in a bar. You'll both have a laugh about it later. Personally, I'm waiting for the doobie version. Brilliant.
You can pick up one of these Milano Cigarettes for around £40 here.

Got an old NES and a toaster lying about?

Introducing the Nintoaster- the single greatest invention since the Nintendo Entertainment System, or indeed the toaster itself! A bold claim I know, but LOOK AT IT! Wacky. I once attempted, as a lad many years ago- full of hope and THC, to make a shoe-phone a la Get Smart but only succeeded in destroying one of my shoes and a very large mobile phone.
Check out Stupidfingers for more pictures, progress shots and a short demonstration video.

Sit Bigdog, sit

Boston Dynamics, funded by the Defense Advanced Research Project Agency (DARPA), have created this funny little fellow capable of running at 4 mph and climbing slopes up to 35 degrees carrying a 340lb load.

BigDog is the alpha male of the Boston Dynamics family of robots. It is a quadruped robot that walks, runs, and climbs on rough terrain and carries heavy loads. BigDog is powered by a gasoline engine that drives a hydraulic actuation system. BigDog's legs are articulated like an animal’s, and have compliant elements that absorb shock and recycle energy from one step to the next. BigDog is the size of a large dog or small mule, measuring 1 meter long, 0.7 meters tall and 75 kg weight.

There's a bunch of videos of Bigdog on YouTube where you can watch him climbing over rubble, jumping and regaining his footing after slipping on ice and being kicked. I would feel sorry for the thing if it wasn't for that eerie buzzing noise. Enjoy.

Some Assembly Required

1977 Godzilla Toy commercial

Giant Spider Terrorises Liverpool

La Princess, the 50ft mechanical spider sits suspended atop an office building near Lime Street Station. The machine remains dormant until tomorrow at which point it will descend and stalk about the city at speeds of up to 2mph before escaping down the Mersey Tunnel on Sunday. The 37-ton artwork has been billed as the largest and most spectacular piece of street theatre ever staged in the UK and sounds like a hell of a show. Still, if you do venture out from your homes to take a peek, make sure to bring your kids to use as a human shield just in case things turn ugly.
source: dailymail.co.uk

Keeping your Soylent Green fresh

Hitachi Japan have released a range of refrigerators that automatically spray your food with antioxidants and vitamins to keep them fresh and clean by sensing what types of foods are stored in each compartment, then spritzing them with the appropriate amount of nutrients required to keep things from spoiling too soon... To those not concerned about their robot fridges poisoning their food, taking over their lives and mating with their women- you have been warned.

Your pet, your way — Genpets™ Series 01

Check out these adorable genetic monsters pets that come shrinkwrapped from Bio.Genica.

Genpets are living, breathing mammals. Bio-Genica is a Bioengineering Company that has combined, and modified existing DNA to create the Genpets lineup. Genpets are flesh and blood just like any other animal... Genpets are designed to be sold on retail store shelves, not traditional pet stores. This is why they are packaged in plastic.

The Genpets site is the creation of artist Adam Brandejs. Apparently he's actually been hanging these things in store windows. And the real-life versions of them look like they're alive, thanks to some robotics and circuitry.

Prozac for Rabbits

You made us all throw up a little. Rummaging through the usual shops, I happened to come across a little gem. Happy Bunny made me squirt chocolate milk through my nose for the first time THAT day. With such aloof mannerisms and such satirical banter, I want to take him home. (Except I'd kill him for lack of water along with my cactus). So long cactus! Happy bunny says "Since you're gross, shouldn't you be smart?"

Sony Death Machines Cruise Our Skies

Play Station gamers, come on down! Now is your time to shine. The British ministry of defence have created "UFO's" (although they are technically identified) that will come in and bug your house. Well, not yours, but the Iraqi's; however, it never hurts to have some spray or fly-swatters handy in case they come in and crap on your valuables.
And by "crap" I mean bomb.

Introducing the Dunk Mug

The Amazing Biscuits Pocket Cup! Tired of having biscuits in one hand and tea in the other? Worry no more- Some clever bastard has solved this problem that has plagued the British for centuries. Enjoy.

Corpse-Eating Robots

I've tried to warn you people about our impending robot apocalypse, but nobody listens. Robokiyu the Rescue Robot was originally designed to help remove rubble and trapped people from disaster zones. Until, that is, it was realized that the thing might be better suited to removing, and devouring, those who have already died. Now, if you find yourself in an earthquake in Japan, pray that you're already dead when this thing finds you!

Wakin' Bacon

Continuing with the bacon theme, this WAKINn' BACON clock wakes you up with the mouthwatering aroma of bacon, genius- unless you're Jewish.

Bacon on a stick

Alright, so not actually a gadget- but damn cool nonetheless! These maple and bacon lollipops are $10 for 4, $24 for 12, and $52 for 36. Apparently they're the "perfect gift for the sweet-toothed pork aficionado in your life." Mmmmm... Meat candy!?

Dick Cheney "YOU DON'T KNOW DICK" Action figure from herobuilders.com

Comes with jeans and Urban Camo pants, Shotgun, T-shirt and Retractable kick spike shoes. Also available: Barack Obama and Hillary Dream Team set, Crotch shot Britney, "Baby Drop" Michael Jackson, and a McCain Plush.
I've got to say this site is cool as hell- you can actually send in a photo of yourself and have them make a custom action figure or pez dispenser of you!

Ideal Robot Commando Is Here To HelpYou!

Hot under the collar? Thankyou Thanko!

There seems to be a great deal of air conditioning going on in peoples clothing in Japan... This USB Necktie from Thanko has an internal cooling fan that is activated by tugging the tie downwards- as long as you're plugged into a USB port.

It's a Swing Wing, it's a fun thing- it's a lawsuit.

Possibly the greatest toy ever made! I really can't imagine anything cooler than this- a plunger with a ribbon on top... Wow. What more can I say? You can find it on eBay here.

Shouting Vase Holds Your Anger!

Turn your loudest, most urgent frustrations into mere whispers with the Shouting Vase. The plastic jug is designed to fit over the contours of your mouth and absorb your screams and shouts, “storing” them in the vase and emitting a softer version of your angry cries through the tiny hole at the base.

Channel Changer Ray Gun

What could be better than a ray gun? A ray gun that changes the TV Channel.
It's out of this world! ZZzzap!

Sudoku Loo Roll

It's all very well being hooked on Sudoku, but when do we have time to do these addictive puzzles in our busy lives? Sudoku Loo Roll - genius.