Today on Boing Boing Gadgets we saw these good-lookin' helmets from Jérôme Coste (which sadly do not include a face mask); an austere camper made from a Unimog; tape that makes perfect garden rows more simple; a Bioshock Big Daddy from scrap metal; the clever hacks of German prisoners; a single drawer which no one else thought was handy but me, apparently; a pocket watch with a gun inside; and a robot that was not a robot.

We got a little preoccupied with videogaming, as is our wont: EA harshing on the iPhone's accelerometer hardware (they're wrong, in my opinion); Sony claiming the PSP is dying because of piracy (here comes the PSPhone!); and a Wired blogger got a little too presumptuous in his Fallout 3 preview for some, although I think he's getting hung out to dry a bit.

John took umbrage with the claim that the mouse is dying and noticed that quad-core laptop chips are coming. Rob noted that a judge isn't having ATI and Nvidia's nonsense about trade secrets and that French women like to use their phones in the bath.

The Japanese did something weird/awesome. (Surprise!) That ripped cord flash drive is now for sale. The saga of an iPhone clone maker continues to be full of pathos. Nerds attacked. Someone put a USB hub in a VHS tape. And I — oh I — I dealed everything that you want me to. Ooh ooh.

Over at BB Gadgets, John posts about this antique pocket watch with a secret gun inside. Amazing. Pocket watch gun (BB Gadgets)

Previously on BB:
• Pistol ring and other unusual guns

Researchers have developed a microneedle inspired by the the blood-sucking action of a female mosquito. Described as "painless," the microneedle has applications for blood drawing, injections, and biomonitoring. Designed by engineers at the Indian Institute of Technology and Tokai University, the device uses shape-memory alloy to push the needle into the body. Then, a microelectromechnical pump sucks out the blood or delivers the drugs. From New Scientist:

Contrary to popular belief, a mosquito bite does not hurt. It is the anticoagulant saliva that the creature injects to stop your blood clotting that causes inflammation and pain.

The new needle has an inner diameter of around 25 microns and an external diameter of 60 microns, which is about the same size as a mosquito's mouthpart. Its size and the fact that it works by suction, makes it painless. To compare, a conventional syringe needle has an outer diameter of around 900 microns.

Mosquito-inspired microneedle (New Scientist)

In the new issue of Bizarre, BB pal Shannon Larratt, formerly of BMEzine.com, interviewed a professional body piercer named William who gave his goldfish a lip ring. From the article:

“Goldfish have a 30-second memory. And how many live fish are there out there with hooks stuck in them? At least this one had jewellery!” says William. “The fish seemed unaffected. He ate normally, and the piercing didn’t weigh him down or affect his ballast.”

William used a 5mm labret with a light acrylic end and did the piercing freehand while his apprentice held the fish, which was taken out of the water, then put back straight after. Although the fish is now dead (not because of the piercing – he died when William moved and the tank’s temperature increased), customers loved it. “A few hippies gave me flack,” says William, “but once the lure argument was brought up, they agreed it wasn’t any worse.”

Pierced fish (Bizarre)

Michael Mararian has a new show of his macabre, mischievous, and darkly comedic Inky Dreadfuls opening this Saturday, July 19, at the Corey Helford Gallery in Culver City, CA. The exhibition, titled "Phobia, Foibles & Fiends," runs until August 9. (Also showing are Tiffany Liu and Krista Huot.) Mararian doesn't just use magic markers. He is one. From the show description:

Featuring over thirty macabre ink renderings, his new body of work is a dark comedy of psychological fears, character flaws and complexes of the human id. Using black India ink, archival brush pens and rapidographs, Mararian continues to create narratives that transform traditionally cheerful images and concepts into frightening yet humorous tableaus.

M. Mararian's Inky Dreadfuls, Corey Helford Gallery,

I previously posted that the good folks at Daily Grail republished the classic 1979 fortean book, "Messengers of Deception: UFO Contacts and Cults," by my friend Jacques Vallée. (Jacques is a computer scientist, astrophysicist, UFO researcher, and the basis for the Lacombe character in Close Encounters of the Third Kind. He is also a past president former research director at Institute for the Future, where I am a researcher.) Today, the Daily Grail posted an interview with Jacques where he talks about the work that has made him a "heretic among heretics." From the interview:

TDG: When we look at ufology in the 1960s, versus today, I'm not sure a lot of progress has been made (perhaps even the opposite). Is ufology a sisyphean endeavour, unworthy of our prolonged attention? You've personally devoted almost 50 years of research and writing to exploring the phenomenon - can you give a simple opinion to the question: what is behind the UFO phenomenon?

Jacques Vallée: You’re asking me two different questions here. I have convinced myself that there was a real UFO phenomenon once the errors, hoaxes and occasional manipulations were screened out. We do know a great deal more today than we did just 10 years ago, thanks to dedicated researchers who have invested their time and resources to documenting the data. That is not as good as a serious scientific research effort, but one should never underestimate what can be achieved by motivated amateurs. This being said, it would be unrealistic to expect quick solutions, in this field as in any other scientific endeavor.

I have also been interested in the nature of consciousness, and that field has not gotten closer to a solution in fifty years either. Similarly, look at some of the lingering enigmas in archaeology, or in medicine: all we can do is document our data and hope someone will make sense of it at a later time.

Jacques Vallée interview (Daily Grail), Buy Messengers of Deception (Amazon)

Previously on BB:
• Jacques Vallée's Messengers of Deception

The incredible Shawn Wolfe, who illustrated for bOING bOING and The Happy Mutant Handbook, has an exhibition at Wall of Sound in Seattle that opens this Friday.

Recent works by artist and designer Shawn Wolfe (that's me). Nauseously Optimistic features painted, photographic and sculptural works that sometimes evoke the artist's pre-millennial pre-catastrophe "Panic Now" campaign. Graphic creations take the form of rough-hewn signage drawing on the imagery and the daft/deft language of a mass-produced culture of crisis.

Show runs through August 30th.

Opening Reception
Friday, July 18 2008 (tomorrow)
7PM - 9PM

Wall of Sound
315 East Pine Street
Seattle, WA
tel. (206) 441-9880
wosound@questoffice.net

Mondoreb says: "Sharpened steel spikes, hidden in pits and water, have begun turning up in parks and lakes on two continents."

A man wading in the water at the Green Lake Boating Center in Seattle felt a “sharp jab in his foot” Sunday while wading with his family. Pat Boltz reached down and found a metal rod. The rod was sharpened by a machine on the end and it hadn’t gotten there by accident. Nor were the other 38 “spikes”, 2-3 ft. long, found by Seattle police divers.

Much to the park police’s horror, someone had planted 39 metal rods in the bottom of the lake near the center and southern docks of the boating center.

This reminds me of something that happened to me about 10 years ago on a train from Greenwich, CT to NYC. When I sat down in my seat, I felt a sharp sting in my butt. I inspected the plastic upholstery and discovered several small slits had been cut into it. Each slit was hiding an X-Acto knife blade pointing upward.
Spate of Hidden Sharpened Spikes Found in Lake, Parks (Death By 1000 Paper Cuts)

Reason's Hit & Run blog has a couple of scans of a funny comic book from a homophobic politician who's under fire for abusing his office.

Oklahoma County Commissioner Brent Rinehart is facing a tough reelection campaign. He's been accused of abusing his office for personal gain, and will go on trial in the fall on felony campaign finance charges. But apparently, this is all a conspiracy of homosexuals, liberal do gooders, and good ol' boys to force Rinehart out of office. Rinehart lays out his case in a comic book he's sending out to voters, which—you may be surprised to learn—he wrote himself.

You can download the highly entertaining comic book in its entirety here: Brent Rinehart for Oklahoma County Commissioner comic book PDF

David Markland, the Captain/Author of LA Metblogs (formerly Metroblogging LA) says:

This dude, Andrew Goldenberg, has a bunch of music videos he's made putting lyrics to every note of some of the best known film themes of our times. Absolutely brilliant. Take note of Batman and Back to the Future especially!

Odd L.A. Spotlight: Andrew Goldenberg [LA Metblogs]

Today on Boing Boing tv, a music video for the Pinker Tones song "S.E.X.Y. R.O.B.O.T." produced by Bill Barminski's "Walter Robot" studio. The whole album ("Wild Animals") is great: Amazon link, iTunes.

Link to Boing Boing tv post with discussion, downloadable video, and instructions on how to subscribe to the BBtv video podcast.

Previous BBtv episodes featuring Walter Robot Studios and Bill Barminski:

Bill Barminski animation: "Drive-In"

Mark makes a mini amp / Funky cowboy (BBtv's 50th!)

Roachbot / Walter Robot