Uncle John’s Bathroom Reader Weird Inventions by Bathroom Readers’ Institute Page B
Book: Uncle John’s Bathroom Reader Weird Inventions by Bathroom Readers’ Institute
Read Free Book Online
Authors: Bathroom Readers’ Institute
Ads: Link
financially sound to bypass buying the product altogether and just, you know, jump.
WINE-BOT
S cientists at NEC System Technologies in Japan have invented a robot that can taste and identify dozens of wines, and even some foods. The green-and-white tabletop robot has a swiveling head, eyes, and a mouth that speaks in a child’s voice. To identify a wine, the unopened bottle is placed in front of the robot’s arm. An infrared beam scans the wine—through the bottle—and determines its chemical composition. The robot then names the wine, describes its taste, and recommends foods to pair it with.
Scientists are still working out the kinks: At a 2006 press conference, a reporter and a cameraman put their hands in front of the robot’s infrared beam. According to the robot, the reporter tasted like bacon, and the cameraman tasted like ham.
COLLAPSIBLE RIDING COMPANION
T here are a lot of reasons for not wanting to drive alone, or rather, for not wanting it to look like you’re driving alone. Perhaps you have to drive home late, or through a sketchy neighborhood. Maybe you like to talk to yourself, or sing along to the radio, or argue with the pundits on talk radio, and you don’t want to feel weird about it when you pass by other motorists. Whatever your reason, this 1991 patent filed by Rayma Rich of Las Vegas is the answer to your bizarrely specific needs: the Collapsible Riding Companion.
The CRC is essentially a mannequin head and torso outfitted with a full head of hair, a T-shirt, and a jacket (in case you like to run the A/C really high). Simply place it in the front seat next to you while you drive, and you’ve got a quiet but agreeable road-trip buddy.
In the event that you have a real person riding in the car with you, the Collapsible Riding Companion folds down and can be stored in its very own rectangular, suitcase-like carrying case.
BUBBLE HAT
E laborate ladies’ hats have mostly fallen out of daily use, but in the early part of the 20th century, it was the height of fashion for a woman to wear a large, fancy hat. But if everybody was wearing one, how could a lady differentiate herself and draw attention to herself and her chapeau? With bubbles, that’s how.
In 1912 Alden McMurtry invented the Bubble Hat. On first glance, it resembled any other piece of fine headwear outfitted with a large brim and false flowers. But hidden inside was a small chamber filled with soapy water. A tube ran from the chamber to a tiny tank filled with pressurized hydrogen that the woman would hold in her pocket or pocketbook. When the lady released a valve on the tank, it triggered the hydrogen to run into the soapy water, thus unleashing a torrent of delightful bubbles.
McMurtry thought the bubble-spewing device would be a great visual aid for choirs.
SPINNING WALL
H ere’s a radical solution to the problem of cramped apartment living: making use of the “dead” vertical space of a room. It’s not a new idea (Murphy beds, room-splitting screens, e.g.), but the TurnOn Multi-Functional Spinning Wall takes it to extremes.
“Wall” is something of a misnomer. It’s actually more of a wheel—an open-ended plastic cylinder with built-in furnishings extruded from its inner surface. The entire cylinder rotates to allow access to any of three functional areas of the module. After dining in the two-seat breakfast nook, residents can use their body weight to flip the unit over like a hamster wheel, rotating the dining table away to make room for a molded-plastic lounging couch. At day’s end, another turn brings a flat sleeping platform into play.
A couple of these units, placed end-to-end, can theoretically create a usable living area within a tiny footprint. There are proposals for a food-prep module—with refrigerator, sink, and working stove—and a “Wet Cell,” with toilet, shower, and vanity set at 120-degree radial angles; no mention of how the electrical and plumbing connections would work. Or of who,
WINE-BOT
S cientists at NEC System Technologies in Japan have invented a robot that can taste and identify dozens of wines, and even some foods. The green-and-white tabletop robot has a swiveling head, eyes, and a mouth that speaks in a child’s voice. To identify a wine, the unopened bottle is placed in front of the robot’s arm. An infrared beam scans the wine—through the bottle—and determines its chemical composition. The robot then names the wine, describes its taste, and recommends foods to pair it with.
Scientists are still working out the kinks: At a 2006 press conference, a reporter and a cameraman put their hands in front of the robot’s infrared beam. According to the robot, the reporter tasted like bacon, and the cameraman tasted like ham.
COLLAPSIBLE RIDING COMPANION
T here are a lot of reasons for not wanting to drive alone, or rather, for not wanting it to look like you’re driving alone. Perhaps you have to drive home late, or through a sketchy neighborhood. Maybe you like to talk to yourself, or sing along to the radio, or argue with the pundits on talk radio, and you don’t want to feel weird about it when you pass by other motorists. Whatever your reason, this 1991 patent filed by Rayma Rich of Las Vegas is the answer to your bizarrely specific needs: the Collapsible Riding Companion.
The CRC is essentially a mannequin head and torso outfitted with a full head of hair, a T-shirt, and a jacket (in case you like to run the A/C really high). Simply place it in the front seat next to you while you drive, and you’ve got a quiet but agreeable road-trip buddy.
In the event that you have a real person riding in the car with you, the Collapsible Riding Companion folds down and can be stored in its very own rectangular, suitcase-like carrying case.
BUBBLE HAT
E laborate ladies’ hats have mostly fallen out of daily use, but in the early part of the 20th century, it was the height of fashion for a woman to wear a large, fancy hat. But if everybody was wearing one, how could a lady differentiate herself and draw attention to herself and her chapeau? With bubbles, that’s how.
In 1912 Alden McMurtry invented the Bubble Hat. On first glance, it resembled any other piece of fine headwear outfitted with a large brim and false flowers. But hidden inside was a small chamber filled with soapy water. A tube ran from the chamber to a tiny tank filled with pressurized hydrogen that the woman would hold in her pocket or pocketbook. When the lady released a valve on the tank, it triggered the hydrogen to run into the soapy water, thus unleashing a torrent of delightful bubbles.
McMurtry thought the bubble-spewing device would be a great visual aid for choirs.
SPINNING WALL
H ere’s a radical solution to the problem of cramped apartment living: making use of the “dead” vertical space of a room. It’s not a new idea (Murphy beds, room-splitting screens, e.g.), but the TurnOn Multi-Functional Spinning Wall takes it to extremes.
“Wall” is something of a misnomer. It’s actually more of a wheel—an open-ended plastic cylinder with built-in furnishings extruded from its inner surface. The entire cylinder rotates to allow access to any of three functional areas of the module. After dining in the two-seat breakfast nook, residents can use their body weight to flip the unit over like a hamster wheel, rotating the dining table away to make room for a molded-plastic lounging couch. At day’s end, another turn brings a flat sleeping platform into play.
A couple of these units, placed end-to-end, can theoretically create a usable living area within a tiny footprint. There are proposals for a food-prep module—with refrigerator, sink, and working stove—and a “Wet Cell,” with toilet, shower, and vanity set at 120-degree radial angles; no mention of how the electrical and plumbing connections would work. Or of who,
Similar Books
