Music Tuesdays - Her Morning Elegance by Oren Lavie

Really fun video for this song.  One of the best we've seen on the site?  At least since Gangnam Style, right?

Music Tuesdays - Royals by Lorde

This song by a New Zealand teenager is currently tearing up the radio.  I enjoy the song, and I'm a MASSIVE fan of this video.  I'm guessing it's set in New Zealand (Auckland, where Lorde is from?), but it could be any suburb full of monotonous teenage life.

The shot at 2:00, of the kid just staring up at a dilapidated basketball net, slays me.  Really every image of non-glamour is gorgeously framed.  Captures the spirit of the song perfectly.

By the way - between Lorde, the Naked and Famous, and Kimbra, are we seeing something of a New Zealand music invasion?  That seems like a solid number of hit bands for a relatively small country.  NZ is punching above their weight in the music world at the moment.

Tech Thursday: Scorpion Armor and Exploding Bullets

The title of this week's Tech Thursday sounds like science fiction - the topics are unrelated, by the way - but actually they are just two really cool examples of applied science which come to us via The Economist. The first story is that by studying the exoskeleton of scorpions, researchers in China have discovered that a slightly irregular surface partially deflects particles blown at high speed. This helps keep scorpions alive in desert sandstorms, and could potentially reduce the wear on plane engines and helicopter blades. Also, the term 'biomimetics' is really cool.



The second article is about an advancement in military technology which utilizes exploding shrapnel rounds fired from a rifle - given the catchy name XM25 - to explode behind enemy cover. It sounds like a miniature grenade launcher, but actually the shells function more like tiny artillery. First the rifleman uses a laser sight to gauge the distance to an object behind the target's cover, then subtracts a small distance to get to the target's actual range. This programs the exploding shell with a digital 'fuse' basically. When the shell is fired just over (or next to) the target's cover, it flies just past and then the shell's internal computer tells it to explode, blasting the target with shrapnel. Apparently it "is lethal within a radius of several meters", which means it isn't exactly a tiny explosion.



The implications of this are pretty interesting - it seems like it would push opposing ground troops away from engaging in rifle exchanges within the 500m effective range of this gun, as there would be no way to hide unless the opposing gunmen had fully enclosed cover. That range "is nearly double the range of the AK-47", a cheap rifle used by many groups around the world, giving a distinct tactical advantage to technologically advanced ground troops carrying the XM25. Pretty interesting shift in ground combat that this could bring about.

Music Tuesdays - Little House by Goldenspell

Watch the video and tell me that's not a cool idea. That is a COOL idea. And very well done too... it reminds me vaguely of the HTC "You" commercial in its shorthand approach and its tone.

Music Tuesdays via Grace Boyle - Rio by Hey Marseilles

Another fun song and even more fun video this week.

We're going with a back to back Grace selection. Why? Cause she rocks. And this is the 2nd anniversary of her blog Small Hands, Big Ideas, so this is like our anniversary gift to her.

Quick Tech Thursday: Disappearing Car Door

This has a dubious connection to tech, but I thought it was pretty cool

Car Design: The Whale Shark Mouth

I call this look the Whale Shark Mouth. I believe the photos tell the story. Starting several years ago, I've noticed that this design feature has been appearing in more cars every year.

Creative Blogs that Impress Me

I just want to share a series of cool blogs I read regularly that really impress me with their creativity. Generally speaking, I am most impressed by people who do things well that I can't do well myself (I call this the Dwight K. Schrute Tipping Rule, in honor of a great line from The Office). The following three blogs are creative in ways I am not.

A Life in Translation, run by Jamie Varon, has a joyous layout and style. It covers Jamie's life in Italy and her writing style is creative and fun; the blog is also full of great photos.

Une Femme Curieuse is, as far as I can tell, a lifestyle blog simply run by a creative person. The layout is very cool and the subject matter generally touches on interesting subjects, similar to Smile Like You Mean It.

I consider Your Ill-Fitting Overcoat the poet of the bunch. I am regularly blown away by the writing on the site, and the photos, language, and subject matter stoke my imagination on a regular basis. Plus you get recipes thrown in the mix, which is nice.

You have any suggested blogs to add to my favorites?

Buzz Beast: Sweet Hollywood Crib

In the spirit of Hot Properties, cool places and the cool things posted daily on Buzz Beast, here is an absolutely sick (in a good way) house near Lake Hollywood taken directly from Buzz. I love everything about this house and recommend visiting the link for a large selection of photos.

Car Design: McLaren MP4-12C

In the spirit of our design blog friends Buzz Beast and Smile Like You Mean It, here is a quick look at the newly announced McLaren MP4-12C supercar.