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Boats
Boats
Informative Swimwear
In 2005, Robert Dickey and Ruth Stephens filed a patent application for "swimwear as information device." Their idea was to make a line of swimwear that displayed maritime signal flags. This would allow people to communicate messages to those around them via their swimwear. They explained:By using the appropriate international Signal flag or combination of international signal flags, different meanings can be communicated depending on the intentions of the wearer. For example, and individual could be wearing a covering garment (e.g. a jacket or Sweatshirt or the like) that prominently displays the international Signal flag "X-Ray', communicating the message "Stop carrying out your intentions and watch for my signals'. When the wearer sees someone with whom he or she would like to communicate with, the covering garment could be removed, revealing another article of apparel (e.g. a Swimsuit) displaying a Second international Signal flag "Kilo', communicating the message "I wish to communicate with you'.
The possible messages one could send seemed limitless, but they were never granted a patent. Perhaps the idea of messages on clothing was deemed too obvious.
There's also the limitation that only people conversant with maritime signal flags could decode the messages, which would make the various 'stay away' messages somewhat pointless.
Posted By: Alex - Sun Apr 26, 2020 -
Comments (3)
Category: Boats, Fashion, Inventions, Languages, Double Entendres and Nudge-Nudge, Wink-Wink
The rookie rower who failed to cross the Atlantic
Even though he had only been on the ocean once, while taking the Newfoundland ferry, Arthur Russell figured he could row across the Atlantic. He practiced for two years on his rowing machine and then set off from Halifax harbor. Six hours later, he had to signal for help and was rescued.
Edmonton Journal - May 31, 1990
Posted By: Alex - Fri Jan 11, 2019 -
Comments (4)
Category: Boats, Oceans and Maritime Pursuits, Sports, 1990s
Life preserver suitcase
Just imagine if everyone on the Titanic had had one of these! (I'm guessing it must have been inspired by that disaster).
The Kiowa Journal - Oct 7, 1915
Posted By: Alex - Wed Aug 22, 2018 -
Comments (3)
Category: Boats, Inventions, Travel, 1910s
Hot Tub Boat
It's a floating hot tub. The invention of Adam Karpenske of Seattle. Top speed: three-and-a-half knots. Available for rental or purchase.
From the company's FAQ:
Q: How is it possible to fill a boat with water and have it not sink?
A: The sleek design of a Hot Tub Boat allows for a high load capacity. The Hot Tub Boat has been carefully engineered, and the hot tub is positioned on the boat’s center of buoyancy, allowing for remarkable stability, even with 2100 pounds of water.
A: The sleek design of a Hot Tub Boat allows for a high load capacity. The Hot Tub Boat has been carefully engineered, and the hot tub is positioned on the boat’s center of buoyancy, allowing for remarkable stability, even with 2100 pounds of water.
Also from the FAQ:
Please refrain from nudity while renting a Hot Tub Boat and insure all the “important bits” are covered.
More info: King5.com
Posted By: Alex - Tue Jul 18, 2017 -
Comments (3)
Category: Boats
Destination Atlantis
Auto mechanic Frank Russell of Biggleswade, England spent two years building a submarine in his backyard. He did it, he said, so that he could find the "lost city" of Atlantis. He described the construction of the sub in an article distributed by International News Service (Dec 1949):My job is that of a motor mechanic and these craft that I build are purely a spare time hobby. Thus I have to get on with their construction as I can afford it; a few shillings or a pound or so at a time. Believe me, this method is exasperating and heartbreaking.
Practically all the parts have been cut, filed and even some of the holes drilled with ordinary hand tools, though I did manage on several occasions to borrow an oxy-acetylene cutter and an electric drill.
I have built this craft entirely by myself except for some of the more tricky points of welding on the hull. This was done by a friend, who is a highly skilled factory welder.
This submarine has been built entirely out of second-hand steel plates and scrap from local yards. Oxygen cylinders, motors, batteries, and the like are all from government surplus sales. The only new items are the glass observation ports and some rivets and bolts.
Practically all the parts have been cut, filed and even some of the holes drilled with ordinary hand tools, though I did manage on several occasions to borrow an oxy-acetylene cutter and an electric drill.
I have built this craft entirely by myself except for some of the more tricky points of welding on the hull. This was done by a friend, who is a highly skilled factory welder.
This submarine has been built entirely out of second-hand steel plates and scrap from local yards. Oxygen cylinders, motors, batteries, and the like are all from government surplus sales. The only new items are the glass observation ports and some rivets and bolts.
The launch date for his sub was November 4, 1950. Unfortunately, I can't find any reports about the launch, but I'm assuming he didn't find Atlantis.
And I'm guessing he may have been pulling everyone's leg about wanting to search for Atlantis, because eight years later he was back in the news as the perpetrator of an elaborate UFO hoax involving a "do-it-yourself space ship made of wire, silver paper, clockwork and a couple of flashlights." So it seems that he was a bit of a practical joker.
The Eagle (Bryan, Texas) - Nov 8, 1950
New Castle News - Oct 7, 1949
The Decatur Herald - May 28, 1958
Posted By: Alex - Tue Oct 11, 2016 -
Comments (2)
Category: Boats, Hobbies and DIY, 1950s
Think before you build
Back in the 1930s, Benjamin Klinger spent 4 years building a boat in his basement. Then discovered he couldn't get the boat out of his basement.Unfortunately, I can't find any report that tells what ended up happening. Did he tear down a wall to get the boat out? Or is the boat still sitting there to this day?
Sources: Milwaukee Sentinel - Jun 22, 1935; and San Bernardino County Sun - Jun 22, 1935.
Posted By: Alex - Fri May 15, 2015 -
Comments (13)
Category: Boats, 1930s
Towing The Boat
A mobility scooter pulling a boat. You don't see that every day.
Posted By: patty - Sat Mar 28, 2015 -
Comments (8)
Category: Boats, Disabilities, Eccentrics
Happy Hunter
If you were willing to pay $745.00 for a toy boat, would you risk it by giving your drunken buddy a ride in his inflatable?
Posted By: Paul - Thu Dec 09, 2010 -
Comments (2)
Category: Boats, Hobbies and DIY, Toys
A Little Light Weirdness – 7
Mind you, Mr. Brown is not the only statesman trying to avert a bleak future this week, an unnamed Arab ambassador got the shock of his life when he finally lifted his new bride’s niqab, only to find she had cross-eyes and a beard. The groom immediately went to court to have the marriage annulled, claiming he had been tricked into the marriage and that the bride’s parents had used pictures of her attractive older sister to deceive him. The court found for the groom and dissolved the marriage, but turned down his demand for $150000 compensation (Daily Mail).
But perhaps he’s been a bit quick to judge by appearances. Two Chinese men certainly were when the found a hoard of 20 clay artefacts in an old tomb they discovered in a field near their home, only to later sell the whole lot to a collector for less than $2000. Unfortunately for the pair, theirs were rare finds from the Sui-Tang Dynasty, making the collection over 1000 years old. One item alone, a pottery figurine, recently reached $150,000 at auction (Daily Times).
More fortunate was Wendy Jones of Aberglasney in Wales, who took the old plate she’d had perched on her sideboard for years – except on those odd occasions it had fallen off it - to a TV antiques show, in a plastic carrier bag, only to be told it was part of a rare, Prussian royal service worth over £100000 (Telegraph).
More in extended >>
Posted By: Dumbfounded - Wed Feb 10, 2010 -
Comments (3)
Category: Boats, Cops, Crime, Stupid Criminals, Food, Government, Officials, History, Obscenity, Pirates, Politics, Retail Establishments, Theater and Stage, Facial Hair, Goofs and Screw-ups
Irony
While a 53-year-old man was competing successfully in the swimming section of the National Senior Games in Palo Alto, California, his 61-year-old brother was back home in Madison, Indiana, at the Yacht Club. When the brother called home to his mother to tell her he had just won a 500-yard freestyle, she told him his older brother had just been swept away in the rain-swollen Ohio River and could not be located. The Madison Courier. His body was later found.
Posted By: qualityleashdog - Mon Aug 10, 2009 -
Comments (4)
Category: Accidents, Boats, Contests, Races and Other Competitions, Death, Exercise and Fitness, Oceans and Maritime Pursuits, Synchronicity and Coincidence
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| Alex Boese Alex is the creator and curator of the Museum of Hoaxes. He's also the author of various weird, non-fiction, science-themed books such as Elephants on Acid and Psychedelic Apes. 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. Contact Us |