All Internet Resources

Powered by an included USB cable, this desktop Plasma Ball is about stands about 6 inches high and includes an on/off switch. While it emits a very low current, it does so at a relatively high-voltage and so it does produce some EMF. Respect your plasma ball and will respect you. All this made possible by the evil genius of Nikola Tesla and some science.

This is combination of interesting and fun gasses (like Argon) are first trapped inside a plastic sphere at relatively low pressures. An sporadic current, at relatively high voltages are pumped into the sphere via an electrode in the center. This energy causes atoms to be stripped from the gasses,leaving in its wake some positively charged ions and a gorgeous gaseous and electrically conductive environment (aka Plasma). That high voltage served up through the electrode will now arc up through the plasma to the lower voltage edge of the plastic sphere (starting at the top where the temperature is greater). The arcs glow because they are hotter than the surrounding plasma. You can touch the plastic and the arcs will strongly congregate to your touch because you will be creating an even lower voltage jump from the electrode.

Snap this two-piece cordless light onto your umbrella pole and enjoy radiant lighting at the flip of a switch! With 24 energy-wise LEDs, it creates a circle of light bright enough for dining or playing cards. No cords, no messy candles!

This umbrella light fits securely on umbrella poles up to 1-1/2″ dia. On/off switch. Operates for up to 45 hours with four AA batteries, not included. Includes a hook so you can hang from a tree or under an eave.

After pay out $150,000 on a car, you don’t be expecting the lightweight carbon-fiber trim to turn yellow and peel in the sun. But that’s the downside for carbon fiber with clear-coat (instead of colored) paint, as GM found when testing materials for the 2004 Corvette Z06 Commemorative Edition. So the company redesigned the clear coat and the epoxy resin binding the carbon fibers in the roof and trim of the 2009 Corvette ZR1.

With Standard clear-coat paint lets ultraviolet light reach the epoxy, causing it to discolor. GM engineers put in a benzene-based powder to the paint to block the lower-frequency part of the UV range, and they created an epoxy that won’t degrade under the higher frequencies. Unluckily, the new clear coat has its own yellow tinge, but GM developed what it calls an “offset additive” to shift it back to a neutral hue.

While the technology isn’t cheap—the half-gallon of paint on the ZR1 costs nearly $1,000—GM is patenting it for other uses. So even if you can’t drop 100 grand on a car, you may see the benefits in somewhat less expensive products such as golf equipments.

Do you need to get a pretty good digital camera but unexpensive price ? The Canon PowerShot A470 is one of the best examples. With a price tag less than $150, it produces surprisingly good pictures. It isn’t the prettiest camera available and it doesn’t have any flashy features, but for the price, it’s hard to beat.

Canon tries to serve the A470 a much-needed injection of style by offering four color choices: gray, blue, red, and orange. Sadly, colorful accents can’t hide the camera’s chunky, unattractive design. It feels like a king-size candy bar, measuring almost 4 inches long, 2 inches thick, and more than an inch and a half wide. At 7.6 ounces with an SD card and two AA batteries, it also weighs in as one of the heftiest budget cameras available. The lens and LCD screen both jut out uselessly from the body, giving it a bumpy, uneven feel. Compared with the huge selection of budget point-and-shoots on the market measuring just an inch thick or less, the A470 is downright huge. On the bright side, the camera’s large body makes it easy to grip and hold, and its wide design leaves room for large, simple controls that even bigger thumbs can comfortably manipulate.

Noise mars the A470’s otherwise very nice pictures. Grain starts to appear at ISO 200, and becomes quite noticeable at ISO 400. From ISO 800 to the camera’s maximum sensitivity of ISO 1,600, fuzz saturates the picture, giving everything a felt-like texture. Besides the noise, however, the camera’s pictures look good. Fine details appear crisp and clear, especially for a sub-$150 camera. Minor barrel distortion appears on the edges of pictures at the widest lens position, but it doesn’t seriously hurt picture quality. Colors look generally neutral, though they sometimes appear slightly cooler than usual. If you keep sensitivity low, the A470 will produce good-looking prints. Even at higher ISO settings, pictures look clear enough to e-mail or post to the Web.

The Canon PowerShot A470 is a great digital camera. The chunky, sub-$150 shooter doesn’t have many bells or whistles, but it shoots quickly in brighter light and produces very nice-looking pictures. It doesn’t work very well in low light, but that’s a flaw shared by most snapshot cameras in general. If you want to spend as little cash as possible for a decent camera, the PowerShot A470 is one of the best choices currently available.

This umbrella is not like usually, when the shaft looks like a light saber. In the pre-apocalyptic future, the air will be so thick; it will be dark in the middle of the day. Coupled with the almost constant rain, you’ll need to find a way to stay dry, and light your way to the noodle shop down the street.

Although if you don’t live in a quasi-futuristic Los Angeles, and aren’t a Blade Runner, you can still have the coolest umbrella on the street. With a push of a button, the shaft lights up, illuminating you and your path. Nowadays, even in the darkest of nights, you’re a lot more visible to the cars on the street, making your long walk home through the rain a lot safer.