Neatorama

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• My Little Pony Handgun
• Icecapade
• Santa's Snooze
• Science Fiction Vessels Made from Old Computer Parts
• Animatronic Dinosaur Costume Prank
• Adventure Time Seatbelt Belt
• It Is Now Time to Stroke My Beard While Adopting a Contemplative Expression
• Zoo Baby
• Text Messages Displayed on Your Contact Lenses
• Fluorescent Coral Reefs
• Old Jetliner Turned into a Kindergarten Classroom
• Under the Mistlestoe
• Today Is Pretend to Be a Time Traveler Day
• Penguin Falls Down
• How to Make Doritos Consommé
• The Teenager Who Flew into Red Square
• The Crown of Elrond
• Caterpillar Automaton, c. 1820
• Horrible Headlines
• A Successful Corgi Fishing Trip
• Scholars: English Is a Scandinavian Language
• Yellow Scream
• A Doorbell for Dogs
• Wild Moscow Twist
• You Can't Take The Sky From These Dolls
• This Week at Neatorama

My Little Pony Handgun Posted: 09 Dec 2012 05:00 AM PST We've seen two MLPrifles, a shotgun, a handgun and a holster. But that's not enough. Alex was saying to me the other day, "Dammit, John, we need more ponies on Neatorama! Go out and find me more ponies!" So I went to work and found this mysterious photo of a semi-automatic handgun from Springfield Armory featuring custom Rarity grips. Well, presumably custom grips. To my knowledge, Springfield Armory does not sell a handgun with Rarity grips as factory standard. I can't wait to show this to my four-year old. Rarity is her favorite pony. -via My Little Pony Fanatics

Icecapade Posted: 09 Dec 2012 04:00 AM PST (YouTube link) In Simon Tofield's latest cartoon, Simon's Cat visits the fish pond, but finds it covered in ice! -via Viral Viral Videos

Santa's Snooze Posted: 09 Dec 2012 03:00 AM PST This is how to get the perfect picture of baby's first Christmas when baby can't stay awake for the portrait! Link

Science Fiction Vessels Made from Old Computer Parts Posted: 09 Dec 2012 02:00 AM PST USS Enterprise It's amazing what Daniel Shankalonian can make from computer parts. His model of the Enterprise makes use of an old hard drive and a laptop keyboard. His X-Wing fighter is made out of a DVD-ROM drive. Shankalonian also makes adorable bugs and a B-52 Stratofortress with its own hangar, which you can find at the link. Link -via Technabob

Animatronic Dinosaur Costume Prank Posted: 09 Dec 2012 01:00 AM PST (YouTube Link) Roman Atwood and Dennis Roady from Sketch Empire rented a dinosaur costume and took to the streets of Cleveland, Ohio to scare people out of their skins, and people were so terrified by the animatronic suit it's like they never got the memo about dinosaurs going extinct!  --via Gamma Squad

Adventure Time Seatbelt Belt Posted: 09 Dec 2012 12:00 AM PST Adventure Time Seatbelt Belt - $23.95 Attention Adventure Time fans! Are you planning another high flying adventure. Make sure you pants are securely fastened for the trip with the Adventure Time Seatbelt Belt from the NeatoShop. This fantastic accessory is made from tough nylon webbing and has an authentic seatlbelt clasp as a belt buckle. Be sure to check out the NeatoShop for more great Apparel & Accessories.  Link

It Is Now Time to Stroke My Beard While Adopting a Contemplative Expression Posted: 09 Dec 2012 12:00 AM PST I remember when I first saw the episode in which Wesley Crusher flunked the Starfleet Academy entrance exam. I thought, "How the heck did Riker get in?" Well, the character improved later in the series, even though my first impression was that he wasn't the sharpest phaser torch in the shed. Here's Melanie Schultz's depiction of Will Riker for Spitballin' Comics. Link -via Ian Brooks

Zoo Baby Posted: 08 Dec 2012 11:00 PM PST Call Zooborns! A new baby was born at the Rosamond Gifford Zoo! However, they might not get the furry baby pictures they are used to, because this specimen is human. An unnamed 21-year-old woman went into labor as she was visiting the zoo in Syracuse, New York, Friday morning. Zoo Education Coordinator Liz Schmidt was called to help. “I honestly didn’t expect her to deliver at the zoo,” Schmidt said this afternoon. “I thought we’d pop her in a wheelchair and she’d be good to go to the hospital.” It was obvious to Schmidt when she arrived that the baby had other ideas. The woman had been touring the zoo with a group of five to seven adults and children when she went into labor, Schmidt said. An adult lead the children away to go look at the lions, as the woman was giving birth, she said. As a first responder, Schmidt has taken courses in all aspects of first aid, including delivering babies. But she doesn’t carry medical equipment or blankets with her on her daily job, she said. When she arrived, Schmidt immediately radioed out for back up and blankets. The birth moved quickly from there, she said. Zookeeper Sarah Kohler assisted, while elephant keeper John Moakler took over crowd control. An ambulance was called and took mother and the newborn baby girl to a hospital. Link -via Fark (Image credit: Gary Walts/The Post-Standard)

Text Messages Displayed on Your Contact Lenses Posted: 08 Dec 2012 10:00 PM PST If there's one problem with modern life, it's that it's just too hard to keep in touch with people. For example, if you want to read text messages from someone, you have to look at your phone.  But what if that problem went away? What if text messages sent to you popped directly in front of you through your contact lenses? That's the near future imagined by researchers at Ghent University. They've devised a curved LCD screen that can receive data wirelessly: "This is not science fiction," said Jelle De Smet, the chief researcher on the project, who believes commercial applications for the lenses will be available within five years. "This will never replace the cinema screen for films. But for specific applications it may be interesting to show images such as road directions or projecting text messages from our smart phones straight to our eye." The innovation is the first step towards "fully pixelated contact lens displays" with the same detail as a television screen. You can watch a video of their prototype at the link. Link -via DVICE | Photo: nikozz

Fluorescent Coral Reefs Posted: 08 Dec 2012 09:00 PM PST (YouTube link) This footage was shot by scuba diving at night with a backlight in the Red Sea, off the coast of Egypt. After you marvel at the lovely bioluminescence of the coral reef, stop and marvel at what an adventure that had to have been. Then you can read more about the bioluminescence of the coral reef at Deep Sea News. Link -via Not Exactly Rocket Science

Old Jetliner Turned into a Kindergarten Classroom Posted: 08 Dec 2012 08:00 PM PST The headmaster says, "I wondered for a long time how to make a kindergarten where children would not want to go home." I think that Mr. Chapidze has found a way. This school in the nation of Georgia has converted an old Yakovlev 42 into a kindergarten classroom: The refurbishment took several months and Mr Chapidze says he was concerned at first that people would not take to the idea, but the unique playpen has become a hit with the parents too. Staff hope that in addition to being a fun place full of knobs to turn and buttons to push, playing on the aircraft will help children develop technically. Link (warning: auto-sound) -via Inhabitat | Photo: AP

Under the Mistlestoe Posted: 08 Dec 2012 07:00 PM PST Uh oh, indeed! In some cases, a kiss can be deadly. This comic is by Liz Climo of Hi, I'm Liz. Link -via Awesomphilia

Today Is Pretend to Be a Time Traveler Day Posted: 08 Dec 2012 06:00 PM PST The only rule is that you can't participate if you're a real time traveler. This is just a game for us normals. Some suggestions on what to do: - Greet people by referring to things that don’t yet exist or haven’t existed for a long time. Example: "Have you penetrated the atmosphere lately?" "What spectrum will today’s broadcast be in?" and "Your king must be a kindly soul!" [...] - Walk up to random people and say "WHAT YEAR IS THIS?" and when they tell you, get quiet and then say "Then there’s still time!" and run off. - Stand in front of a statue (any statue, really), fall to your knees, and yell "NOOOOOOOOO" [...] - Airplanes are terrifying.  Also, carry on conversations with televisions for a while. Link -via Glenn Reynolds | Image: NBC

Penguin Falls Down Posted: 08 Dec 2012 05:00 PM PST (YouTube link) Today, you can tell everyone you saw a penguin fall on the ice. The headline at reddit said, "Penguin falls down resulting in best sound ever." Yes, but we're not sure of its exact meaning. -via reddit

How to Make Doritos Consommé Posted: 08 Dec 2012 04:00 PM PST It's Saturday night, so it's time to sit alone at home while eating two entire bags of Doritos and watching all three Beastmaster films. But let's change up that routine. Lauren Shockley can turn Doritos into a consommé, which is a kind of soup. You can find her recipe at the link. Link -via Foodiggity

The Teenager Who Flew into Red Square Posted: 08 Dec 2012 03:00 PM PST Do you remember Mathias Rust? Hard to believe, but it's been 25 years since the 19-year-old pilot flew from his home in West Germany and landed in the center of Moscow, breaking through every Soviet defense. Once the police had recovered from the shock of finding an unauthorised aircraft parked at the gates of the Kremlin, Rust was arrested. He spent hours trying to persuade the authorities that he had acted alone and was not part of some sinister plot hatched by foreign governments. In the Kremlin there was shock and plenty of red faces as the full extent of the humiliating incident became apparent. Rust was arrested by Soviet police and was sentenced to four years in a Soviet labor camp. While that never happened, he did spend over a year in the Lefortovo prison in Moscow. Today says he has no regrets. If you aren't familiar with the story, you can read all about it at the BBC. Link -via the Presurfer

The Crown of Elrond Posted: 08 Dec 2012 02:00 PM PST The Crown of Elrond - $35.00 Attention The Hobbit fans! Get in touch with your wise inner half-elven lord with The Crown of Elrond from the NeatoShop. This handsome metal headpiece is all the rage of Middle-earth. It is the perfect accessory to take on your next quest.  Be sure to check out the NeatoShop for more great Headgear and fantastic The Hobbit items.  Link

Caterpillar Automaton, c. 1820 Posted: 08 Dec 2012 02:00 PM PST (Video Link) Henri Maillardet (b. 1745) was a master maker of automata. This caterpillar, which is less than three inches long and is covered with diamonds, pearls, emeralds and enamel, remains fully functional. Watch it inch across the surface of the glass just like a real caterpillar. It's an amazing piece of miniature mechanical craftsmanship. Link -via Richard Kadrey

Horrible Headlines Posted: 08 Dec 2012 01:00 PM PST We love to see headlines that don't turn out quite right, whether it's because of typos, poor editing, or a writer with a wicked sense of humor. Freakonomics has a collection of 36 classics that are so funny they circulate years, sometimes decades after they were first preserved. You've probably seen some of them, but there will no doubt be some that are new to you. Link -via Digg

A Successful Corgi Fishing Trip Posted: 08 Dec 2012 12:00 PM PST (Video Link) I hope this was a catch and release trip, because that little guppy was just too tiny to make a good meal. Via I Can Has Cheezburger

Scholars: English Is a Scandinavian Language Posted: 08 Dec 2012 11:00 AM PST Two linguists argue that modern English isn't really a West Germanic language, most similar to modern German, Dutch and Frisian, but a North Germanic language, such as Norwegian, Swedish and Danish: Their research and conclusions are brand new and break with those of earlier linguistic professors who believe English is rooted in “Old English,” also known as the Anglo-Saxon language believed brought to the British Isles by settlers from northwestern and central Europe. Faarlund claims Scandinavians settled in the area long before French-speaking Normans conquered the British Isles in 1066. Faarlund and Edmonds also contend that Old English and modern English are two very different languages. “We think Old English simply died out,” Faarlund told Apollon. “Instead, the Nordic language survived, strongly influenced by Old English.” [...] Scandinavian settlers, Faarlund notes, gained control towards the end of the 9th century of an area known as Danelagen, which forms parts of Scotland and England today. Faarlund stressed that “an extremely important geographic point in our research” is that the East Midlands in England, where he says the modern English language developed, was part of the relatively densely populated southern portion of Danelagen. Edmonds and Faarlund also contend that sentence structure in what developed into modern English is Scandinavian, not western Germanic as previously believed. Both today’s Scandinavian languages place the object after the verb, for example, unlike German and Dutch which place the verb at the end of a sentence. Possessive forms can also be the same in both the Scandinavian languages and English, which also can end sentences with a preposition and split infinitives. While that’s sometimes frowned upon in other variations of modern English such as American English, Faarlund argues it’s not possible in German, Dutch or Old English. Link -via TYWKIWDBI | Image: Dik Browne

Yellow Scream Posted: 08 Dec 2012 10:00 AM PST (YouTube link) Yellow Scream is a half-hour documentary about painting screams with yellow paint, by Korean artist/comic Kim Beom. Here is what information we get from the YouTube page: "The technique to this painting is to incorporate the sound of screams into the brush strokes," states the narrator in Kim Beom's video Yellow Scream (2012). "A brush stroke done with screaming is very different from a normal one. ... The effect of the screams is recorded with the brush strokes." He then dips his brush in a dab of lemon yellow paint, leans into the canvas, and lets out an anguished wail as he makes his first stroke: "Aaaaaaaaagh!" Inspired by Bob Ross--style instructional television programs, the Seoul-based artist says "the theme of this video is the existential nature of contemporary art (and culture) as well as of artists." Characteristic of Beom's deadpan humor, the narrator's demonstration shows how to apply paint while engaged in "a long scream that sounds like when you're hurt"; "a scream induced by psychological pain"; and "a more pained, wronged, and regretful scream." Nearing the painting's completion, he advises, "Let's mix a bit of permanent green and add some refreshing hope and pleasure to the screams of joy." The final work, the instructor states, achieves a symphonic melding of color and emotion--a "clear, resonating chorus" of yellow. I saw this yesterday and laughed, but was reluctant to post a half-hour video. Still, so you might find time to watch the whole thing some day. Thanks to Scott Lamb for this shorter edit. Continue reading for the full-length version. -via Buzzfeed (YouTube link) Read more about Yellow Scream at the Walker Art Center blog. Link

A Doorbell for Dogs Posted: 08 Dec 2012 09:00 AM PST Keith Jin didn't like how much damage his dog Pebble scratched into the doors of his house whenever he wanted out. So he invented a portable, mountable doorbell that his dog can use. Now Pebble has Mr. Jin trained to open the door whenever he rings the bell: "There is a holder that's attached to the wall with mounting tape and the doorbell button goes inside," said Jin. "The design of it has training in mind. You can put a treat inside the space behind that initiates the dog to be interested in this." He said the dog eventually learns to push the bell every time they want to be let out, or come back into the house. "I tried probably for a year or so just to refine it and now got to this point where it's easy to train, easy to install." he said. Link -via Dave Barry | Photo: KVAL

Wild Moscow Twist Posted: 08 Dec 2012 08:00 AM PST   (YouTube link) Russia wasn't completely cut off from decadent Western pop culture during the Cold War! From the description at Dark Roasted Blend: Not sure how this passed the communist censorship, but the world-famous Moiseyev Ballet in Moscow performed this dance not only during their trips to America in the 1960s but also at Tchaikovsky Concert Hall in Moscow in 1962. They did call it a "parody dance" in the official program - but they still have too much fun dancing it! Link

You Can't Take The Sky From These Dolls Posted: 08 Dec 2012 07:00 AM PST Instructables user SiraRaven started out making a crochet Mal and soon found herself with the entire Serenity crew. As usual, Kaylee is the cutest one of them all. Link

This Week at Neatorama Posted: 08 Dec 2012 06:00 AM PST Hanukkah begins at sundown tonight, and will continue through Sunday, December 16th. If you are observing, we wish you a happy holiday with solemn rituals, joyous celebration, and plenty of good food (as David Israel said, "We suffered, we suffered, we suffered, now let's eat!"). This past week, we had three articles from our pop culture historian (and bona fide Hollywood actor) Eddie Deezen, starting last weekend with A Sincere Homage to Larry Fine. Eddie also gave us "Imagine": John Lennon's Signature Song, andWhy Do People Tell Actors to "Break a Leg"? Jill Harness took a look at Artworks Made From Seriously Weird Materials. Assessing Gluteal Hardness in Uniformed Security Guards came from the Annals of Improbable Research. Uncle John's Bathroom Reader brought us some examples of unbecoming behavior by children's authors in Don't Tell the Kids! First Class Mail: 5 Letters That Changed History was reprinted from mental_floss magazine. Congratulations to the Tokyoflash Treasure Hunt #22: Winners, liisam, Jon Bryan 1, and jbensch, who won prizes from the NeatoShop, and bug, who won a Tokyoflash watch! In the What Is It? game this week, the unknown item turned out to be the housing for a four-face Verdin street clock. Anker was the first with the correct answer, which is good for a T-shirt from the NeatoShop! We also have a t-shirt for amanderpanderer, who said, "It is a connecting piece from the construction of Hamtopia, the pleasure palace for our Hamster overlords who will be arriving on December 21st. All Hail Squeeky, Lord of all Hamsters." That wins the award for the funniest answer of the week! You'll find the answers to all this week's mystery items at the What Is It? blog. We're racking up more things to see outside of the main page, and you don't want to miss any of it! At Lifestyles of the Cute and Cuddly we saw an adorable baby hippo, a cat in a claw machine, and a hamster climbing stairs. At Neatolicious, the new food blog, we saw creative Doctor Who cupcakes, Christmas cocktails, and Jello Jigglers. The Halloween blog gave us new pranks, monsters, and cosplayers this week. Also check out Mad Skills and NeatoBambino! Oh, and don't forget the extra content you'll find at Neatorama's social networking sites: Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest! The most popular post of the week was Brody's The Hobbit Box Stacking. The posts that drew the most comments this week were A Sincere Homage to Larry Fine followed by Why is The Hobbit making some moviegoers sick? and Practically Speaking, How Does a Predator Eat Food? We didn't have any rollicking long comment threads because Alex, who normally posts the most provocative items, is busy at the NeatoShop, shipping out Christmas gifts for lucky recipients. Speaking of the NeatoShop… We'd like to throw a spotlight on the fine folks at Odd Art Fabrications, who lovingly designed and hand-made an entire series of zombie Christmas ornaments for the NeatoShop! Yes, you can order and receive these in plenty of time before Christmas. You might even want to start a tradition of ordering one or two every year until you have enough to cover your entire zombie Christmas tree!

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