DARPA has laid the groundwork for thought-powered prosthetics

New research from the government's mad science wing, DARPA, could make life an awful lot easier for people who use prosthetic limbs. You see, DAPRA has devised what it calls the "Atomic Magnetometer for Biological Imaging in Earth's Native Terrain."...

Deal: Save 60% on Scientific Magnetic Thinking Putty

When I was a kid, we only had Silly Putty. Now kids get to play with this stuff that’s so much cooler. This stretchy compound not only offers the same tactile sensation of my childhood plaything, but is embedded with magnetic particles.

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That means you can manipulate it with magnets. While it won’t pick up ink from newspapers (who reads newspapers anymore anyhow?), the stuff does double as a refrigerator magnet. You can grab a can for just $9.99(USD) or two for $14.99 over at the Technabob Shop.

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Star Wars Fridge Magnets: Use the (Magnetic) Force, Luke!

If you have a fridge, you probably have stuff you need to stick on it. Be it report cards, reminders about your court date, or coupons for pizza, you need to stick stuff to the door or on the sides. You don’t have to do it with boring magnets though, you can do it with these sweet Star Wars deluxe fridge magnets from ThinkGeek.

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There are four of them in the set, including the Death Star, Boba Fett’s helmet, a stormtrooper helmet, or Vader’s helmet. Each magnet is about 2.25″ x 2.5″,

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You can get the entire set for $19.99(USD). I always liked Luke the best out of the franchise and he never seems to get magnets or stuff like this with his likeness.

Levitating Drinkware

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You can drink alcohol to get drunk, or you can try to class it up and turn it into a whole experience instead. In your quest to do so, you might opt for high end liquors, fancy glasses and now, levitating drinkware. Levitating CUP uses a magnetic base and special glasses that float above it trough Electromagnetic Suspension, to awe your guests and give the evening that little extra flair that many people look for. There’s a permanently wired base, and a battery-powered one that allows you to carry the glass-base duo around your home. The drinking vessels are solidly anchored in place, so it’s relatively easy to transport without worrying about spillage. They come in different shapes accommodating all kinds of liquids, even mundane drinks like coffee. That’s right, you can get your cup of Joe to float, if that will somehow spice up your day. Prices start at $139 with Very Early Bird pricing.

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[ Project Page ]

Get Some Levitating Plants For Your Office

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You’re looking at LYFE, a zero-gravity growing system that allows you to cultivate your favorite plants in mid-air. A set of magnets in the base and in the geodesic pot makes it literally float in mid air, gently rotating and exposing the plant to sunlight from all sides; you do have to plug it in by the way, since things don’t just rotate on their own. If you live in the US and the EU, purchasing one of these even comes with its own Air Plant, which is a type of plant that only requires sunlight and water to grow, as it absorbs its nutrients from the air, rather than from their roots. The silicone-based planter pot features a reservoir to mitigate against over-watering. It’s a $199 pledge to get your own.

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[ Project Page ]

NOZIPP Sleeping Bag Ditches the Zipper for Magnets

As handy as zippers are 99% of the time, those occasional times when the zipper gets stuck are a real pain in the butt. Well, you won’t have to worry about getting stuck in your sleeping bag with the NOZIPP. It’s a $400+ sleeping bag that uses a strip of magnets for closure instead of a zipper. It’s probably faster to get out of it too, thanks to those magnets.

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It’s not natural to be zipped up in a sleeping bag. If a bear attacks you, it would take you forever to find the zipper pull and get out. That bear would be eating you already. Now you can just open that bag with brute force and run for your life.

Plus zippers get caught in your hair and have also been known to hurt man parts in pants. Magnets are the wave of the future as far as preventing this. Totally worth the money if you ask me.

[via Geekologie]