The iconic Star Wars droid R2-D2 has been made into a number of household (and architectural) items such as a German Observatory, a coffee press, a teapot, a desk lamp, beer steins and even a desktop vacuum cleaner, so it’s perfectly natural to see the beloved droid making popcorn with an adorable Star Wars R2-D2…
The Legendary Pete Townshend of The Who Gives a Tour of ‘Grand Cru’, His Recording Studio on a Barge
In January 2019, the legendary Pete Townshend of The Who began recording a vlog in order keep everyone in the loop about what’s happening with the band, what’s being recorded and where it’s being recorded. In one such entry, a surprisingly gregarious Townshend offered a personal tour of Grand Cru Studios, a fantastic recording studio…
Fafa the Groundhog of ‘Glove and Boots’ Interviews an Ewok Who Feels He’s Being Shunned by Hollywood
In an unusual interview episode of Glove and Boots (previously), a very elegantly dressed Fafa the Groundhog visited with a somewhat indignant Ewok who stated that he and his kind are being shunned by Hollywood because there haven’t been any parts for them since Return of the Jedi in 1983. The Ewok explained, through a…
A Little Boy Adorably Toddles Outside Just to Give His Beloved Black Dog a Great Big Hug
A little boy named Jules toddled himself out the back door, across the patio and onto the grass just to give his beloved black dog Luna a great big hug. Luna welcomed the hug and even turned back for some more of Jules’ hugging. Once Jules was done, he headed back inside, hoping that Luna…
Clever Minibikes Built Out of Welded Fenders From Vintage Volkswagen Beetles
Brent Walter, a self-described “maker and builder of a variety of things”, has created a really clever “Volkspod” minibikes that are built out of fenders from vintage Volkswagen Beetles. Walter came up with this idea in March 2019 while working his home workshop in Huntington, Indiana. The project appears have been borne out a complete…
An Oceanographer’s Amazing Algorithm That Removes Blue-Green Visual Distortion From Underwater Photos
Award-winning engineering oceanographer Derya Akkaynak has created an amazing algorithm that removes the typical blue-green visual distortion from photos that were taken underwater. The algorithm, called Sea-Thru, helps photographers easily reconstruct the actual colors of the underwater object by correcting the color distortion pixel by pixel, making it look like the photo was taken on…
How Prosthetic Contact Lenses That Change Eye Color, Shape and Size Are Made For Film and Television
In an eye-opening video essay, video producer Ju Shardlow of Insider takes a look at the history of specialized prosthetic contact lenses that change eye color, shape and size for films and television. Sharlow also paid a visit to optometrist Sinead Sweeney to learn how these incredibly transformative, hand-painted lenses are made and even had…
Timeline of the Most Popular Music Genres (1910-2019)
As part of their ongoing series of visualizations, PhD student and self-described data geek Data Is Beautiful has created an animated timeline of the most popular genres of music from 1910 through 2019. In the early 1900s, opera was the most popular music category. A little more than a century later, Hip Hop/Rap dominated the…