Flickering electric light you turn on with a "match"

By Cory Doctorow at 10:33 pm Sunday, Nov 4 • Comments • Share

Metaphys's "Hono light" flickers like a candle, and is "lit" by a special magnetic "match." You turn it off by blowing on it. Trevor sez, "Lovely, simple, wish I'd thought of it, not so complex that a person couldn't make something like it with some effort." Link (Thanks, Trevor!)

Datamancer's steampunk laptop

By Cory Doctorow at 9:50 pm Sunday, Nov 4 • Comments • Share

I've written before about Datamancer, a master steampunk maker whose creations are some of the finest-wrought examples of the form. Now he's posted his latest creation, an elaborate steampunk fancy of a laptop, along with build-notes. It's really something.

This may look like a Victorian music box, but inside this intricately hand-crafted wooden case lives a Hewlett-Packard ZT1000 laptop that runs both Windows XP and Ubuntu Linux. It features an elaborate display of clockworks under glass, engraved brass accents, claw feet, an antiqued copper keyboard and mouse, leather wrist pads, and customized wireless network card. The machine turns on with an antique clock-winding key by way of a custom-built ratcheting switch made from old clock parts.

Link (Thanks, Datamancer!)

The steampunk, as it has been noted in this compendium

Update: Jake von Slatt sez, "Doc (Datamancer) exceeded his bandwidth but he sent me the files for the laptop page and I set up a mirror for him here."

Internally decapitated woman gets eye surgery

By David Pescovitz at 8:51 pm Sunday, Nov 4 • Comments • Share

Earlier this year, I posted about Shannon Malloy, a car crash victim who survived internal decapitation. In this rare injury, the skull and spinal column are dislocated but soft tissue and skin keeps the head on the body. Amazingly far along in her recovery, Malloy's biggest trouble is that her eyes are still screwy. The accident left her cross-eyed. One recent surgery temporarily fixed the problem, but after just three days her eyes ended up turning completely outward. She's hoping another surgery will fix the problem for good. From KGTV San Diego:

When her eyes are corrected she has one simple thing on her "to do" list.

"You know what the first thing I want do when I get my eyes fixed? Read the new Harry Potter book," said Malloy. "I've tried reading it, but it's just too hard." Link

For several months, Malloy blogged about her recovery, but this summer she wrote that her lawyer advised her to "stop doing blogs." Her previous posts are still online. Link

Previously on BB:
• Woman survives internal decapitation Link

Soviet propaganda cartoon DVDs

By Cory Doctorow at 1:00 pm Sunday, Nov 4 • Comments • Share

This two-disc set of Soviet propaganda cartoons (subtitled "American Imperialists and Fascist Barbarians," and "Capitalist Sharks and Communism's Shining Future") looks like a hell of a lot of fun. Just ordered mine!

From the early days of the Russian Revolution to the final days of the Cold War, the Communist party were experts in propaganda art. Using sophisticated animation techniques the Communists won the hearts and minds of the Russian people in their battle against capitalism and their desire to portray Communism as the shining vision for the future. The undermining of capitalist sharks and the evangelical praise of the communist regime were masterpieces of animated art and propaganda. This collection of animated propaganda was recently recovered from Russia's television vaults. For the first time in ninety years the West can now see how the Soviets portrayed them. This unique documentary collection brings together the original animators and propaganda films such as Mister Twister, What Hitler Wants, Fascist Boots on Our Homeland and many others. Included in the box is a 24 page collectors booklet featuring background information on every propoganda film.

Link (Thanks, A.Simmons!)

Restart the clocks of Britain!

By Cory Doctorow at 12:51 pm Sunday, Nov 4 • Comments • Share

The Stopped Clocks campaign aims to get Britain's public clocks running and on time again. Many handsome old public clocks are visible from the streets of London, but it often seems that these grand old timepieces are dead and rusted, ground to a halt years in the past. This site sports a map of stopped clocks, along with vigorous discussion of the best way to get the time running again. Link

(Image credit: Urmston, from Moblog.co.uk)