Weird Universe Archive

April 2013

April 30, 2013

McGyver Emergency Power plus two bonus hacks!!

When you need power and can't get it -- remember this hack.



Some other cool stuff at the website:

Fire-starting


pee

There are even instructions (in two parts) on how to build your own AC stick-welder from an old microwave.



Let's Weld!! (Horseshoe puzzle at the end)



I love what you can learn on the internet!!

Posted By: gdanea - Tue Apr 30, 2013 - Comments (4)
Category: Education

Singing Eskimos

On his 1925 Arctic expedition, Admiral Donald B. MacMillan used singing eskimos to test the effectiveness of short wave radio as a communication tool for the world's navies. His experiments are credited with helping to open up previously "useless" radio frequencies.

In the picture, MacMillan is second from right. The guy standing behind him is Eugene McDonald, founder of Zenith Radio Corporation. His company built the special short wave radio gear used on the expedition. All others in the picture are the singing eskimos.

Posted By: Alex - Tue Apr 30, 2013 - Comments (3)
Category: Music, Radio, Experiments, 1920s

Group Baptism by Firehose



Conducted under the auspices of the famous and fabulous United House of Prayer for All People, whose founder was "Sweet Daddy Grace," as depicted below.

I heartily endorse any institution whose leaders inherit the title of "Sweet Daddy."

image

Posted By: Paul - Tue Apr 30, 2013 - Comments (2)
Category: Crowds, Groups, Mobs and Other Mass Movements, Cult Figures and Artifacts, Eccentrics, Religion, 1910s

April 29, 2013

Raspberry Pi—The $25 Computer

Last week I described the Universal translator, which used two of these computers. Powered by a USB port, it has other ports for video display, storage and other great stuff.

The really amazing part is that this working computer is only $25 plus shipping. There is a huge back-order for them, but some people are inventing creative ways to use this computer.

image

Some people are using them to feed their animals, create demonstrations or music boxes. Here's the link:

http://www.raspberrypi.org/

Others are busy creating containers for these tiny computers

Here's my favorite so far.

image

What new use for this mini-computer will you discover?

Posted By: gdanea - Mon Apr 29, 2013 - Comments (12)
Category: Futurism

Doga (Doggy Yoga)

So apparently this is a real thing. That is, there really are people willing to take your money so that you can bring your dog to your yoga class. The Metro provides some history:

Doga originated in Florida in 2001 when yoga instructor Suzi Teitelman found her new puppy, a black cocker spaniel named Coali, would climb on to the mat with her when she was practising.
‘Any time there was a yoga mat around he was there,’ she says. ‘I realised he loved yoga and being around the class so I started adding him into the postures. I would inhale my arms up and he would inhale his arms up – with some help from me. Over the years we have perfected the postures and found moves that suit both our bodies.’ Teitelman started incorporating dogs into her yoga classes and held her first Doga class in New York in 2002.

Posted By: Alex - Mon Apr 29, 2013 - Comments (2)
Category: Exercise and Fitness, Dogs

Follies of the Madmen #204



"I would sure like to see more fun commercials like that on television."

Seconded, Gary!

Posted By: Paul - Mon Apr 29, 2013 - Comments (5)
Category: Business, Advertising, Products, Domestic, Television, 1950s

April 28, 2013

Roadways and The Thought





Not all poems benefit by being set to music.

Posted By: Paul - Sun Apr 28, 2013 - Comments (3)
Category: Bombast, Bloviation and Pretentiousness, Music, Twentieth Century

You Are Discharged!


1896 ad for Battle Ax Plug Tobacco (from the Oakland Tribune). The context here is that Battle Ax Plug Tobacco was produced by the American Tobacco Company, which was selling it at well below cost in order to drive its competitors out of business. So the ad's claim that it was the preferred brand of cheapskates was actually correct!

Thanks to such aggressive marketing techniques, the American Tobacco Company soon did dominate the market. But in 1907 it was indicted as being in violation of the Sherman Antitrust Act and was carved up by the government into four separate firms: American Tobacco Company, R. J. Reynolds, Liggett & Myers, and Lorillard. For more info, see The Dukes of Durham and wikipedia.

Posted By: Alex - Sun Apr 28, 2013 - Comments (4)
Category: Advertising, Nineteenth Century

April 27, 2013

International Moves the Browns to Sterling Street



This film makes the Sterling Silver industry looks like the Freemasons, the Bilderberg Group and the Illuminati all rolled up into one. A plan for world domination unfolds!

Posted By: Paul - Sat Apr 27, 2013 - Comments (1)
Category: Business, Advertising, Products, Domestic, 1940s

The Jokes of King George VI

Thanks to the recent movie The King's Speech, King George VI is now best known as the king who stuttered. But apparently he also occasionally told jokes. Several of them are reproduced below. They're not bad, for a royal. [Milwaukee Journal — Apr 25, 1937]
  • [In response to a speaker who was praising him in extravagant terms]. "I am reminded," he said, "of the woman who went to her husband's funeral service. The couple had never got on well together, but the minister devoted his long sermon to a panegyric of the husband's virtues. So glowing a picture did he paint that the widow completely failed to recognize her late husband. 'Milly,' she nudged her friend and whispered loudly, 'is there another corpse about?'"
  • There was a petrol dump where men sent a canary down into the empty tank to see if the atmosphere was safe for them to go down and clean it out. One day the foreman saw a man walking about in the bottom of the tank before the canary had been let down. "Hey, what are you doing there?" he yelled. In all seriousness the man below shouted back: "I'm just seeing if it's all right for me blinkin' canary."

Posted By: Alex - Sat Apr 27, 2013 - Comments (0)
Category: Humor, Jokes, Royalty, 1930s

Page 1 of 7 pages  1 2 3 >  Last ›




Get WU Posts by Email

Enter your email address:

Delivered by FeedBurner


weird universe thumbnail
Who We Are
Alex Boese
Alex is the creator and curator of the Museum of Hoaxes. He's also the author of various weird, non-fiction books such as Elephants on Acid.

Paul Di Filippo
Paul has been paid to put weird ideas into fictional form for over thirty years, in his career as a noted science fiction writer. He has recently begun blogging on many curious topics with three fellow writers at The Inferior 4+1.

Chuck Shepherd
Chuck is the purveyor of News of the Weird, the syndicated column which for decades has set the gold-standard for reporting on oddities and the bizarre.

Our banner was drawn by the legendary underground cartoonist Rick Altergott.

Contact Us
Monthly Archives
March 2024 •  February 2024 •  January 2024

December 2023 •  November 2023 •  October 2023 •  September 2023 •  August 2023 •  July 2023 •  June 2023 •  May 2023 •  April 2023 •  March 2023 •  February 2023 •  January 2023

December 2022 •  November 2022 •  October 2022 •  September 2022 •  August 2022 •  July 2022 •  June 2022 •  May 2022 •  April 2022 •  March 2022 •  February 2022 •  January 2022

December 2021 •  November 2021 •  October 2021 •  September 2021 •  August 2021 •  July 2021 •  June 2021 •  May 2021 •  April 2021 •  March 2021 •  February 2021 •  January 2021

December 2020 •  November 2020 •  October 2020 •  September 2020 •  August 2020 •  July 2020 •  June 2020 •  May 2020 •  April 2020 •  March 2020 •  February 2020 •  January 2020

December 2019 •  November 2019 •  October 2019 •  September 2019 •  August 2019 •  July 2019 •  June 2019 •  May 2019 •  April 2019 •  March 2019 •  February 2019 •  January 2019

December 2018 •  November 2018 •  October 2018 •  September 2018 •  August 2018 •  July 2018 •  June 2018 •  May 2018 •  April 2018 •  March 2018 •  February 2018 •  January 2018

December 2017 •  November 2017 •  October 2017 •  September 2017 •  August 2017 •  July 2017 •  June 2017 •  May 2017 •  April 2017 •  March 2017 •  February 2017 •  January 2017

December 2016 •  November 2016 •  October 2016 •  September 2016 •  August 2016 •  July 2016 •  June 2016 •  May 2016 •  April 2016 •  March 2016 •  February 2016 •  January 2016

December 2015 •  November 2015 •  October 2015 •  September 2015 •  August 2015 •  July 2015 •  June 2015 •  May 2015 •  April 2015 •  March 2015 •  February 2015 •  January 2015

December 2014 •  November 2014 •  October 2014 •  September 2014 •  August 2014 •  July 2014 •  June 2014 •  May 2014 •  April 2014 •  March 2014 •  February 2014 •  January 2014

December 2013 •  November 2013 •  October 2013 •  September 2013 •  August 2013 •  July 2013 •  June 2013 •  May 2013 •  April 2013 •  March 2013 •  February 2013 •  January 2013

December 2012 •  November 2012 •  October 2012 •  September 2012 •  August 2012 •  July 2012 •  June 2012 •  May 2012 •  April 2012 •  March 2012 •  February 2012 •  January 2012

December 2011 •  November 2011 •  October 2011 •  September 2011 •  August 2011 •  July 2011 •  June 2011 •  May 2011 •  April 2011 •  March 2011 •  February 2011 •  January 2011

December 2010 •  November 2010 •  October 2010 •  September 2010 •  August 2010 •  July 2010 •  June 2010 •  May 2010 •  April 2010 •  March 2010 •  February 2010 •  January 2010

December 2009 •  November 2009 •  October 2009 •  September 2009 •  August 2009 •  July 2009 •  June 2009 •  May 2009 •  April 2009 •  March 2009 •  February 2009 •  January 2009

December 2008 •  November 2008 •  October 2008 •  September 2008 •  August 2008 •  July 2008 •