I was bald until I was two. These are the Cabbage Patch inspired yarn wigs for babies made by Etsy seller TheLillyPad. She'll custom make you one for $33.50 or you can just buy the pattern for $6.69. I'll admit it -- I had a Cabbage Patch Doll growing up. Plus on my fifth birthday my parents got me the Cabbage Patch Club House and set it up in the back yard. Man, I had the best time playing in there. Until the hornets built a nest, then it sucked. Thanks to carrie, who took the time to list every Cabbage Patch Doll she has. It was a great read.

With air pollution nearly 26-times as dense as the World Health Organization considers safe, residents of Beijing watch the sunrise on a giant video monitor because you can't see the real thing. Pfft, who wants to see the sunrise anyways? I want to wake up at noon. Then go back to bed for an hour.

The futuristic screens installed in the Chinese capital usually advertize tourist destinations, but as the season's first wave of extremely dangerous smog hit - residents donned air masks and left their homes to watch the only place where the sun would hail over the horizon that morning. Commuters across Beijing found themselves cloaked in a thick, gray haze on Thursday as air pollution monitors issued a severe air warning and ordered the elderly and school children to stay indoors until the quality improved.

Could you imagine getting smog days off from school? I remember growing up in Alabama sometimes we would get days off because of tornado warnings. Or "Cower in the closet crying and praying not to die" days I used to call them. Thanks to Kevin A, who agrees sunsets are where it's at anyways. Hopefully they can see those.

French performance art group Compagnie Non Nova put together this ballet performed by plastic bags. You know the kid from American Beauty totally has the weirdest boner right now! It’s super mesmerizing even if you’re not stoned. But don’t take my word for it (because I’m high as a kite!). Take my gramma’s instead! She [...]
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When you’re creative sometimes you gotta take a break from your professional work to do make something fun. I get it—it’s kinda like when you take a break from marathoning TV shows like it’s your job to watch some funny videos on YouTube. Photographer Romain Laurent takes a break each week to create a weird [...]
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This is a small series (there's three) of emoji faces imagined in real life. They were created as part of a campaign to raise awareness that your kids might not really know who they're chatting with online. I dunno, apparently some parents haven't talked to their kids about online creepers? That is some piss-poor parenting. Dammit, just teach your kids to internet safely. Ooh -- then make Geekologie their homepage and F5 the shit out of it. Keep going for the other two.

That's not what a Nintendo controller's plug looks like! This is the Nintendo controller promise ring designed by Paul Michael Design (of Wonder Woman, Pokeball and Triforce ring fame). Why a Nintendo controller for a promise ring? Because, "I Intendo marry you." Not a very good pun. Besides, that thing looks like it has jewels in it, why would you buy an expensive promise ring? I thought promise rings were supposed to be cheap. You know what makes a good promise ring? A twist-tie. You know what makes an even better promise ring? No promise ring at all. Fun fact: one time I let a girlfriend wear my class ring and she lost it. Just kidding, I never had a class ring. Or a girlfriend. Thanks to lebeeps, who agrees the best promise ring is an actual wedding ring.

Some writers practice their storytelling abilities by writing a story that only contains 6 words. Well if this 6 second vine video were a 6 word story it would read something like, “What a cute little caterpillar! NOPE!” You’ll have to watch to see what happens after Vine user Paglo pokes this strange little fuzzball [...]
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The new Hassalo on Eighth residential complex in Portland, Oregon will have no less than 1,200 bike parking spots for its tenants – the largest number in North America! GBD Architects designed four buildings – two will have street-accessible lots on the first floor, one will have its parking lots in the basement, and the fourth will have parking on residential floors.

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Japanese beverage giant Suntory is acquiring Beam, which makes Jim Beam and Maker’s Mark bourbons, among other spirits, for $16 billion. The two companies control nearly 10% of the global whiskey market, according to International Wine and Spirit Research. Combined, they will obviously be going after a larger share.

A quick gander at global whiskey consumption helps show where the promise lies. India is far and away the world’s biggest guzzler, owing in part to its large population. Roughly half of the world’s whiskey is drunk by the sub-continent, according to Euromonitor. Most of it is made by UB India, the world’s largest whiskey company by volume.

But when those numbers are broken down per capita, India falls well outside of the picture. France, Uruguay, and the United States soar to the top.

Beam, based in Deerfield, Illinois, is responsible for over 40% of US  bourbon sales by volume, and bourbon accounts for roughly half of the overall US whiskey market. Outside the country, Germany, Australia, and the UK are big consumers of US whiskey.

American Apparel is known first for their vast selection of neon spandex garments and second for their racy ads. Seriously, I almost rear ended someone because there was a naked lady on a billboard wearing hipster glasses and I thought I spotted a nip. Thank goodness my eyeballs told my brain “No, just a little [...]
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In heartbreaking news for anybody who's ever dreamed of covering themselves in bananas and skydiving onto the monkey island at the zoo, a recent study conducted by the Paignton Zoo in southwest England has discovered bananas farmed for human consumption are actually bad for the monkeys. Hey, I'm as devastated as you are. Possibly even more so because I already got a Groupon for skydiving lessons. Plan B: crash the Super Bowl.

Bananas grown for human consumption are full of sugar and calories, and bear no relation to fruit grown organically," said zoo spokesman Philip Knowling. "Life in the wild is hard work and in a zoo you can sometimes look after the animals too well and it isn't good for their health." According to the zoo's head of conservation, Amy Plowman, the bananas' high sugar content could cause the monkeys to develop diabetes or similar conditions.

That's right, diabetic monkeys. Just when I thought the world couldn't get any sadder now I'm gonna wind up crying myself to sleep tonight thinking about diabetic monkeys. *sniffle* Those poor little bastards -- they don't know any better. They just ate whatever we put in their food bowl. *sobbing into pint of Ben & Jerry's I also poured a who pack of peanut butter M&Ms into* It just isn't fair. "Jesus, GW, you're like a woman." WHOA THERE, SEXIST. Thanks to E V I L A R E S, who, as evil as he is, still doesn't want to see a monkey with diabetes.

Average fuel economy for U.S. vehicles set a record 24.8 miles per gallon in calender year 2013. This is up one gallon over 2012 and an increase of 4.7 mpg since October 2007, the month and year the University of Michigan Transportation Institute began monitoring fuel economy. The increase in fuel economy can be partly attributed to the growing number of electric vehicles and hybrids on the road. Sales climbed to 578,000 units in 2013, up more than 10,000 units from 2012, which represents around 3.7 percent of all new car sales last year.


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The many problems associated with urban traffic congestion have multiplied in the past few decades, and there’s few feasible solutions in sight. Can the failed single-occupancy Motoplan designed in the late 1950′s by German engineer Carl Jurisch offer a solution? Compact and stylish, the Motoplan could be the next trendy vehicle for environmentally-conscious drivers.

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Post tags: 1957 Motoplan, Carl Jurisch, German engineered cars, green transportation, micro cars, single occupancy cars, single seat car, tiny cars, traffic congestion, urban sprawl, urban traffic

Tesla Motors just announced a recall of 29,000 NEMA 14-50 charging adapters for its Model S car, citing concerns that the adapters could overheat while plugged in – affected chargers could melt or even burst into flames. Luckily, only about 3% of the chargers on the market are affected by this problem.

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Just a few weeks ago we shared Sarah Schoenfeld’s visual interpretation of recreational drugs, and today we have a cinematic interpretation of taste courtesy of filmmaker Chris Cairns titled the Sound of Taste. Created as a commercial for Schwartz Flavour Shots, the slow-motion video pairs musician MJ Cole and pyrotechnician Paul Mann in a carefully orchestrated firework show of exploding spices, what they describe as a “sonic flavorscape.” You can learn more about how it came together and watch a behind-the-scenes clip over on PetaPixel.

[theonion]

Last week, when the polar vortex, something that ought to be a frozen rum cocktail with an umbrella on top, but is sadly anything but, had begun to descend its icy grasp on all parts of the U.S., I made the best pot of soup of my life.

I realize I said the same — well, I technically called it “the best thing I ate in December” — about last Monday’s soup and that you think I’m being a bit melodramatic and that I need to go to some sort of calm-down-it’s-just-soup rehab for superlative abuse, but you’re only thinking that because you haven’t made this yet. Because while Monday may have been all about the parmesan brodo, by Tuesday night, we were all, “brodo who?” as we dug into bowls of intensely flavored broth with huge tears of succulent chicken and a tangle of rice noodles, topped with everything from scallions to mung bean sprouts, slivers of jalapeno and crispy-fried shallots, basil and cilantro and heady splashes of lime juice, hoisin and garlic-chili sauce that nothing will ever be right without again.

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This PSA warning to other beings in the universe from the Interstellar Safety Council has us well pegged.

TAKE ANOTHER BREAK

It seems like every time Jennifer Lawrence does a thing the whole internet explodes with glee. On Sunday she photobombed Taylor Swift during an interview with Ryan Seacrest with a scary “I’m gonna eat your hair and poop it out and then make you wear your digested hair as a wig” face. It was of [...]
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Well, we knew this was coming. In October 2013, Inhabitat reported on the Dallas Safari Club’s nefarious plan to auction off a rare permit to hunt and kill a black rhino in the African nation of Namibia. Despite sustained outcry from the conservation and environmental communities, the Club proceeded with it’s unsavory plan and last night, the hunting permit was sold for $350,000 at a closed-door auction in Dallas. Perhaps most shocking wasn’t the price, but the fact that Club members claim that the funds will be donated to rhino conservation efforts.

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Over 100,000 bats fell out of the sky this week in Queensland, Australia due to a major heat wave. While America is suffering a Polar Vortex, Australia has been slammed with temperatures as high as 135 degrees Fahrenheit. Many northern Australians were startled to discover dead bats strewn across their properties.

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Are you looking for some inspiration to get your home looking its best in the new year? Inhabitat editor Diane Pham recently had a chance to explore three of Brooklyn’s most gorgeous townhomes, and you can take your own tour right here via her photo gallery. From beautifully-landscaped green roofs to spacious, remodeled kitchens to open-concept living rooms, the amenities in these coveted private residences are sure to spark some ideas on how to take your own place to the next level in 2014.

TAKE THE TOUR >

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Last year Japan set to work testing the world’s fastest “floating” maglev train, which can hit top speeds of over 310 mph. Now, keen to share (or show off) their feat to the rest of the world, the Japanese government has offered to loan the US half of the $8 billion required to create a Super-Maglev route between Washington DC and Baltimore. If the plans go ahead, the high-speed train would cut times for the 37-mile commute from one hour to just 15 minutes!

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Over a quarter million people in West Virginia found themselves without access to clean water in their own homes today because of a chemical spill that contaminated local water sources. The spill was discovered in the Elk River after people noticed a strange smell in the air around the river and an environmental agency investigated, discovering a leak in a chemical storage tank belonging to Freedom Industries. The state issued a warning this morning, telling residents of nine counties to avoid tap water except to flush toilets and fight fires; as a result, schools and businesses have been closed and hospitals have been forced to turn away everyone but emergency patients.

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Fitness trackers abound these days, but can yours sync music with your workout? Intel has just unveiled a set of smart earbuds at CES 2014 that track your heartbeat and then selects music that can get you moving according to your workout goals. Many people already wear earbuds to listen to music while they work out, so it’s a natural place to hide biometric sensors. The accompanying app will also track your distance and calories burned. And if you really want to get going and max out your beats per minute, Intel’s earbuds will select a song that will help you achieve your target.

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Post tags: ces, CES 3014, Design for Health, earbuds, earphones, eco design, fitness monitor, fitness tracker, green design, heartbeat, intel, intel smart earbuds, smart earbuds, smart earphones, smartphone app, wearable technology