NeverWet

This new spray from Rustoleum  promises to make any surface impervious to water and other liquids. It is called a super hydrophobic coating, developed by Ross Nanotechnology and marketed by Rustoleum.

Check this LINK for a demo and you will be impressed. I saw another demo that included a smart phone which was sprayed, placed in a bowl of water, and came out unharmed. A disclaimer says it is not intended for electronic devices or clothing, but ads show its use on these items.

This is not late night infomercial, but a real product you can get at Home Depot or Amazon (more stores coming soon). Oh, $19.95 for the two step spray on process, which covers about 15 square feet. Not a panacea as the ads portray and a coating does not last forever, but a very good product. Am thinking back yard seat cushions are a perfect application. Cool Stuff.

Happy Friday

“With most men, unbelief in one thing springs from blind belief in another.”

I believe all days are great, and still enjoy a Happy Friday!

Change Your Eye Color

Dr. Gregg Homer of Stroma Medical is developing the technology for a laser procedure that will turn brown eyes blue. He says a 20-second procedure that removes melanin, the pigment that gives brown eyes their color, will permanently make them blue without affecting a patient’s eyesight. The change occurs gradually over two weeks. The procedure can not change blue eyes to brown.

The majority of the world’s population has brown eyes, and the number of blue-eyed people is decreasing in America.

The doctor says he expects to do another year of testing before the technique becomes available outside of the United States in less than two years, and within the United States in three. It is estimated the procedure will cost $5,000. 

Redefining Round

A company called Shark Wheel is reinventing the wheel. Instead of the conventional circular shape, this new skateboard wheel is based around a cube shape. The company claims its new wheels ride smoother, faster, and offer better grip than traditional skateboard wheels.

The wheels are based around a shape that fits inside a cube. They aren't quite a square, and aren't quite circular, but are made up of three strips, each of which create a helical shape when they roll. This forms a sine wave pattern where the wheels make contact with the ground. 

The new wheels should start hitting the streets in September, 2013.

Four Unusual Cemeteries

The largest man made reef in the world three miles off the coast of Key Biscayne, the Neptune Memorial Reef, is also an underwater mausoleum. The graveyard is 40 feet below the surface of the water, allowing divers swim among statues and sea life to visit deceased family members. Divers go down with ashes mixed with cement and place the mixture in a selected location. The cost for placement is $2,600 to $4,000, and there are 1,200 spots in the initial development.

In the lagoons of Venice Italy, San Michele island has been occupied only by the dead since the early 1800s. Two other structures on the island are the Church of San Michele, built in 1469, and the Cappella Emiliana, built in 1543. Because space is limited on the island, Venetians who are interred on San Michele have ten years of peace before their remains are exhumed and moved to an ossuary. Igor Stravinsky and Ezra pound are interred there.

The Hallstatt, Austria Ossuary, or Beinhaus (Bone House), is filled with about 700 painted skulls and 500 undecorated skulls. The ossuary dates back to the 17th century and is notable for the decorations painted on many of the skulls.

The Calico, California Ghost Town Cemetery is the town's original burial site with headstones dating back to 1882. Today, only those who have a long relationship with Calico are given the honor of being buried alongside the 19th-century miners, but space is limited.

Taking Naps

Here is an interesting web site. It is dedicated to helping you to take naps. The theory is that you can take a better nap if you have background sounds to help. The site provides free MP3 files to play when you are ready to catch a few winks.   LINK 

On another day I will go into the background and philosophy of taking power naps to refresh yourself during the day, but now I feel a bit tired.

New Cast Design

With this new 3D-printed exoskeletal cast idea, the incredibly fun and funky looking design provides a bit of leeway when it comes to scratching that itch halfway down your arm or balancing one leg outside of the shower so as not to get the cast wet. Victoria University of Wellington Architecture and Design school graduate Jake Evill recently developed this concept, called Cortex.

The exoskeletal cast provides a strong fractured-bone support system featuring lightweight protection that is ventilated, recyclable, and shower friendly.

To produce the cast, the patient receives an X-Ray scan during which the break is identified. That specific area is then 3D scanned and the data is fed into the computer to generate a 3D-printed cast. The final product has one open side that is eventually snapped closed with strong fasteners.

Moon Amtrak Day

34th Annual Mooning of Amtrak, 8th Annual Mooning of Metrolink - All Day Saturday, July 13, 2013, Laguna Niguel, California, U.S.A.

In 1979, K.T. Smith offered to buy a drink for anyone willing to moon the next train that passed the Mugs Away Saloon in Laguna Niguel, California

Since then, the second Saturday in July has become “Moon Amtrak Day,” when hundreds of drinkers bare their bottoms at the many trains that pass through town. No one organizes, controls, directs, or is responsible for this annual event.

Dalai Lama, Winter Home

In case you were wondering where the Buddhist holy Dalai Lama, whose name is Tenzin Gyatso, spent his winters until he went into exile in 1959, this is it. Since then, he has been living in India and has referred to himself as a Marxist. He has received a Nobel Peace Prize.

The Potala Palace in Tibet was built in the 7th century. 

Tibetans address the Dalai Lama as Gyalwa Rinpoche ("Precious Victor"), Kundun ("Presence"), Yishin Norbu ("Wish fulfilling Gem") among others, and His Holiness by Westerners. The 14th Dalai Lama (since 1950) retired March 14, 2011.

All Dalai Lamas are a reincarnation of the previous one. High Lamas have a vision by a dream or if the Dalai Lama was cremated, they will often monitor the direction of the smoke as an indication of the direction of the rebirth. Once the High Lamas have found the home and the boy they believe to be the reincarnation, the boy undergoes a series of tests to affirm the rebirth. They present a number of artifacts, only some of which belonged to the previous Dalai Lama, and if the boy chooses the items which belonged to the previous Dalai Lama. This is seen as a sign, in conjunction with all of the other indications, that the boy is the reincarnation.

Tenzin Gyatso, who was born born Lhamo Dondrub on July 6, 1935 has stated that he will not be reborn in the People's Republic of China and has also suggested he may not be reborn at all, suggesting the function of the Dalai Lama may be outdated. He said, "Naturally my next life is entirely up to me. No one else, and also this is not a political matter."