Ecocapsule Homes: Better Than Rent Or Tents

Living off the grid is an attractive idea for many in this hyper-commercial, uber-urban world.  Now, a new self-contained pod could bring you one step closer to scaled-down solace...

You bring me closer to pod.
(Image courtesy modernreaders.com.)

Hack In Black: Turn Your Smartphone Into A Portable Blacklight

Since your smartphone already can seem like something out of the future, why not give it an extra superpower?  You can now act like a criminal investigator (handcuffs optional) and scan for clues using your smartphone as a blacklight...

And then, adorning everything in blacklight ink becomes your new graffitti...
(Image courtesy pinterest.com.)

Walk This Way? Meet Sony's New $1,200 Walkman

Remember the allure of owning your first Walkman?  It's your music, in headphones, wherever you want!  Nearly magic!  Now, years down the road, with the colloquial term having segued over time from "Walkman" to "iPod" to "my phone", Sony has reintroduced their flagship travelling-tunes device...but is it worth it for the price?

Real buttons, though.  Those pressable buttons are nice.
(Image courtesy trustedreviews.com.)

Real-Life "TRON" Lightcycle Hits The Grid After Sotheby's Auction

This year has been a good one for futuristic vehicles.  We have a prototype hoverboard, a new crew-bearing spacecraft, and now, a "lightcycle" that looks just like the one featured in the "TRON" films...

Kickass cycling suit not included.
(Image courtesy theredlist.com.)

Clock 'N Roll: It's Almost Time For The Apple Watch!

Heads up...the next shiny chunk of future is about to fall of the tech tree and land on your wrist.  The much-heralded Apple Watch will go on sale next Friday, April 10th...

Anything with "space" in the color title has got to be interesting.
(Image courtesy macrumors.com.)

True Story: New "StoryCorps" App Aims To Preserve Diverse Histories

Since the dawn of mankind, humans have passed down traditions, songs, legends, folklore, family history, and more via the medium of storytelling.  In modern day, transcribed oral histories have lent insight into some of the most important events of recorded time.  Now, a method to preserve these tales for the ages has been made easy in app form.

"That's how much of my intestinal tract the German bomb eviscerated,
but I still bayoneted five of 'em before I passed out."
-"Uh...Dad, weren't you born in Ecuador?  In 1950?"
(Image courtesy lifehacker.com.)

Time Travel By Telephone: New App Shows Classic Pics At Scenic "Pivot Points"

Who doesn't enjoy the notion of time travelling to a different era in the past?  Speculating on the places, people, and events that have preceded your life is one of humanity's great fascinations, even as we stretch further into the future.  Now, although we can't physically poke around the past, a new app allows for a different type of this temporal trip...

It's like an inter-era Instagram.
(Image courtesy laughingsquid.com.)

Power On The Fly: Pioneering With A Pocket-Sized Charger

Sure, you love your devices, but feeding them can become problematic at times.  Stop bothering the bartender and bust out your own portable power, thanks to a new invention: Kraftwerk.  Created by the German company eZelleron, the gadget runs on regular everyday lighter fuel to unobtrusively juice your phone, camera, tablets, e-readers, and whatever other bit of technology is near-permanently in your orbit.

According to the Daily Mail, the device never requires a plug-in of its own, and each refill of lighter fluid or camping gas is enough to fuel 11 iPhones.  The eZelleron company maintains that Kraftwerk is a "quantum leap in terms of performance and availability compared to conventional battery chargers...Kraftwerk really is a small portable power station."

This is your first step to escaping the Grid.
(Image courtesy www.dailymail.co.uk.)

Slated for release in November/December of this year, Kraftwerk already exists in fully functioning prototypes. The remainder of the project is being funded by Kickstarter. The device appeals to a sense of freedom and adventure, with their Kickstarter campaign noting that Kraftwerk is "an invaluable advantage both in everyday life and even when traveling to the ends of the earth."

The durability and portability are major advantages for our hyper-connected world. Lighter than carrying batteries, adept with connection (a simple USB port handles all), approved for air travel, and capable of enduring all sorts of weather conditions, this energy-efficient device will discreetly help fuel the future, 5 volts at a time.

Never miss a gnarly shot again...keep your camera juiced-up anywhere with Kraftwerk.
(Image courtesy GoPro.com.)

The folks behind Kraftwerk are pushing forth what is a small but important part of a larger picture. According to wikipedia, Germany has been hailed as "the world's first major renewable energy economy" and had a third of their electricity generated from sustainable resources in 2014.  With Germany poised to have nearly half of their electricity generated by sustainable resources by 2025, items like the Kraftwerk reflect how such an innovative mentality benefits people in many scenarios, not just on the macro scale.

Their kickstarter pitch isn't being hyperbolic when they say, "So let's revolutionize mobile energy supply together!  Be a pioneer on the fascinating road to freedom of power!"  And nothing says "pioneering" like posting a selfie from someplace definitely sans sockets.  Kraftwerk, keep it going!

Perhaps the band Kraftwerk can use the device Kraftwerk to power their Man Machine?  The possibilities are endless...
(Image courtesy drownedinsound.com.)

Forget Chess Or Jeopardy, This Poker-Playing Computer Is Near-Unbeatable

Sure, you might have survived dysentery playing Oregon Trail back in the day, or perhaps you currently enjoying slaying beasts or conquering lands in modern computer games.  But now, a new computer program can compete against even the most savvy players when it comes to a time-honored game of wits and skill:  poker.

Know when to hold 'em, know when to fold 'em, know when to walk away, and when to POWER OFF.
(Image courtesy pcmag.com.)

According to vocativ.com, a new poker-playing computer has emerged as a champion among gaming machines.  While there is a long history of computers being able to understand and perform exceptionally well in "perfect information" games (which are games where both players are aware of all decisions that have been made during the progress of the match, such as checkers or chess), a new system of "learning" allowed for the unexpected.

"Solving" the game of Texas Hold 'Em via a series of bets and bluffs, the Cepheus poker-playing computer fascinatingly was taught to learn from its own mistakes.  The scientists behind the project first instructed Cepheus in the basic rules of Texas Hold 'Em and had the machine play numerous games against itself to determine a variety of outcomes.  As this occurred, Cepheus compiled a list of "regrets", where it could have bet differently, bluffed, or folded for a more auspicious outcome.

All poker players know what that kind of regret feels like.  Cepheus actually learned from it.
(image courtesy empireonline.com.)

Cepheus was then programmed to act on its most major regrets while ignoring the lesser ones.  Eventually, a methodology emerged for Cepheus to navigate bets and bluffs in the most effective ways possible, and the "regret" list scaled down to near zero.  This mathematical take on the game allowed Cepheus to achieve near-perfect play.

Computer scientist Michael Bowling, the lead author of the study, explained that Cepheus's techniques could be extrapolated to a much wider set of purposes.  He explained, "...the techniques that we used to solve the game apply even more broadly than entertainment activities. I’m talking about any decision-making scenario. Politics becomes a game. Auctions become a game. Security becomes a game.”

"A game for me to WIN, mwahaha..."  -Cepheus, probably.
(Image courtesy theguardian.com.)

Feeling lucky?  You and Cepheus can duke it out here.  Just remember that while Cepheus's skills aren't quite perfect yet, the computer is operating well above the odds of chance thanks to its knowledge, and will likely beat you in the long run.  Having played over a billion billion hands (more poker than the entire human race has ever played) definitely gives it an edge, so don't lose your shirt!  The computer won't need it, anyway.

Cepheus is out there...don't get stung!
(Image courtesy bamfstyle.files.wordpress.com.)

Homebrew With No Hassle: Meet The All-Automated "Brewie" Machine

Beer.  If you're an enthusiast, you know the sky is the limit for the variety of flavors that can be brewed up in your favorite cold barley soup.  But what about trying to create a brew that's entirely yours?  Now, you can get crafty in the comfort of your own home, thanks to Brewie.

Brewie, according to Shortlist.com, is the world's first automated homebrewing setup.  Just pop in some hops, malt, yeast, water, and whatever else you feel your drinkable masterpiece will taste good containing.  Swipe your specialized ID card (because you don't want random people fiddling with your brew), tweak the settings to your desired attempt at alcohol greatness, and some time later, a smartphone alarm tells you it's time to tap.

Brew it yourself with Brewie!
(Image courtesy cnet.com.)

Recipes are included but can be modified, and 23 different flavor characteristic parameters serve as options for the alcoholically adventurous inventors.

If this sounds like your cup of tea (well, glass of beer), Brewie is still collecting on Indiegogo to reach a $100,000 goal.  Brewie will sell for $999 but when you really break it down, that's only like ten craft beer benders at a bar, right?  Brewie might be the home-base wingman you've always wanted.  Cheers to self-empowerment!

Maybe, just maybe, the art of homebrewing will get you to consume beer in a respectable manner.
(Image courtesy omega-level.net.)

Next Glass: This Scientifically-Accurate Alcohol-Selection App Knows You Like Your Bartender

Sure, you have a spectacular and discerning palate for craft beers and wine, but how can you tell if a beverage is good BEFORE you've even tried it?  Now, thanks to a new app that uses science to decide, you can get reviews of your booze before you even crack the bottle.

Next Glass is good news; use to choose your booze.
(Image courtesy businessinsider.com.)

According to the NY Daily News, the Next Glass app operates like a Pandora of libations, guessing which drinks you'd like after you upload photos of your preferences (both for and against.)  Using a "Genome Cellar" that has been developed by running tens of thousands of beverages through a mass spectrometer to determine their exact chemical composition, the app is able to project its findings by cross-referencing your prefs with their flavor profiles.

Trace Smith, Next Glass's COO, told the Huffington Post, "Each bottle that we run through the mass-spec, we get over 20,000 individual chemical attributes. We're looking at each of these bottles at a molecular level...We see the data of what they do and don't like, and based on that info, we see what other bottles they'll like."

One simply has to upload an image of a pondered-on drink's label, and a scored "review" from Next Glass will pop up, determining your compatibility.  You can also check out what your friends have been sipping on (and cheer or make fun of them for it appropriately) as well as post your own whiskey-steeped thoughts, or read reviews from other revelers.

Next Glass is free on iOS and Android platforms.  Cheers!

They put 30,000 bottles of booze through this, just so you can tell if it tastes good.  Give Next Glass a shot.
(Image courtesy science.howstuffworks.com.)

No Posting While Toasting: New "Drunk Locker" App Blocks Your Social Media During Drinking Time

Anyone with social media, a smartphone, and a proclivity for partying knows this story.  You're out with friends, sipping a few libations, and suddenly the next morning there's love notes to tequila and photos of you attempting to twerk all over your facebook feed.  If you're the sort who'd rather outsource self-control to a technological bouncer, you need the new Drunk Locker app.

"I just told Facebook that the next three people who come party with us can do shots out of my cleavage...HAHAHA AWESOME IDEA, RIGHT?"
(Image courtesy gettyimages.com.)

Drunk Locker, according to its creators, acts as a "binary conscience" during your benders.  Simply put, it prevents you from accessing six major social media interfaces while you're 'faced.  Facebook, Messenger, Snapchat, Twitter, Instagram, and Tumblr are all strictly prohibited for use while juiced. A predetermined time selection (from one to ten hours) allows for your sober judgement to keep you out of social harm's way, and nothing (even uninstalling the app) will stop Drunk Locker from that mission.

Drunk Locker is free, so you'll still have plenty of beer money.  And then you might need Drunk Locker more than ever.

SHUT UP WINE, YOU'RE WRONG.
I'm sorry I yelled at you.
I love you.
Let's just send a smiley face...
(Image courtesy theluxuryspot.com.)

Foils, Not Oil: Emission-Free "Quadrofoil" Boat To Debut In 2015

If you're already over the wintry weather and just want summer to get here again, here is some post-Halloween brain candy for you.  Check out what techplus24.com calls the "21st century's answer to the speedboat":  the Quadrofoil.

Chicks dig ecologically-conscious mariners.
(Image courtesy gizmag.com.)

Using C-shaped foils beneath the hull to create lift, the Quadrofoil appears to hover above the water.   The foils deflect the water downward, creating lift and exerting force that enables the craft to travel at 25 m.p.h.  The Quadrofoil can transport two passengers and is made of 220 pounds of lightweight composite materials.  It is nearly theft-proof, thanks to a detachable wheel that acts as its key.

Best of all, the Quadrofoil operates on an electric motor, which creates no unpleasant emissions and makes considerably less noise than conventional motorboats.  The cleanliness of the craft allows it to operate on lakes, rivers, and ecologically-protected areas that might not be happy to harbor other messier boats.  Seeking out these spots is easy, with a single charge of the battery enabling the Quadrofoil to travel for 62 miles (at a cost of about $1.30 an hour to run.)  Don't just watch the meniscus-meandering water bugs from the dock...now, you can act like one too!

Make jetskiiers jealous.
(Image courtesy diseno-art.com.)

The Quadrofoil ships in March of 2015 at a cost of $28,144.  Next summer may seem like a long time away, but this little floating fragment of future is something fun to look forward to.

We can't all have spaceships.  But lakeships?  There you go.
(Image courtesy theawesomer.com.)

E-asy Rider: Check Out Harley's "LiveWire" Electric Motorcycle

Motorcycles have traditionally been associated with freedom and rebellion.  But not all rebellions are created the same.  Is it possible for Harley Davidson to convince their tough biker demographic that a new bike can buck the notion of conventional fossil fuel (for a power source similar your cellphone) and still stay cool?  They intend to find out, with their new "LiveWire Project" all-electric motorcycle.

Sharp AND sustainable!
(Image courtesy thedetroitbureau.com.)

According to arstechnica.com, developer Ben Lund explained that Harley wanted to present the LiveWire simply as a newer model that "happens to be electric."  The look, sound, and feel of the past Harleys all had to be taken into account, but so did a new technical element of composition.  Using CAD computer models to design the initial bike before production, other computer software such as Pro Engineer Wildfire and CAM (computer-aided machining) aided the process.

Harley's in-house 3D printers churned out 1:1 scale parts for testing, so that an authentic look and feel for every component could be assessed and duly approved.  While also used for the fabrication of model elements for Harley's internal combustion engine bikes, the 3D prototypes were important tools in deciding what fit best for the new LiveWire venture.

One of Harley's  3D-printed prototype parts.  It is unknown if the computer made motorcycle noises while printing it.
(Image courtesy javelin-tech.com.)

The LiveWire runs thanks to a longitudinally-mounted 74hp AC induction motor, which Lund and his team found superior for its availability, affordability, and high power-to-weight ratio. It's fueled by a 300V lithium-ion battery pack that can allow the bike to achieve speeds of nearly 100 m.p.h.  A "power" or "economy" mode switch lets you regulate your ride.

The pseudo-futuristic design may irk the aesthetic sensibilities of "classic" Harley enthusiasts, who would perhaps appreciate some more chrome or pipes.  As for a Harley's distinctive growl, the classic Harley revving-rumble isn't possible with an electric vehicle.  However, the sound was fine-tuned by the engineering team so that the gearbox emits a turbine-like noise as it roars down the road.  Yes, it's very different, but it's a rebellion you could grow to like.  The LiveWire is currently still a prototype, but it could spark a whole new revolution in riding.

You can care about the environment and still be a badass.
(Image courtesy autoblog.com.)

Back To "Back To The Future": Functional Hoverboard Under Kickstarter Development

Maybe you watch the "X-Games" or gnarly GoPro videos and secretly lust for the idea of zipping around a danger-fraught area on a skateboard, but you can't quite dodge that whole "obstacles everywhere" thing.  Maybe you just have a serious jones for future technology.  If either or both of these apply to you, check out the real-life hoverboard currently in development.

As reported by the Independent UK, the hoverboard is similar in premise to its counterpart from the film "Back To The Future", although it is not yet capable of hovering over water (or really, anything that's not a non-ferromagnetic conductor...a.k.a. a flat metal surface is required.)  The hoverboard's creator, Hendo Hover, explained that the floating fun is powered by magnetism in "four disc-shaped engines...these create a special magnetic field which literally pushes against itself, generating the lift which levitates our board off the ground."

DIY UFO enthusiasts approve of the design.
(Image courtesy disclose.tv.)

The boards are self-propelled, although future versions could use the magnetism to implement forward momentum.  Currently, they hover at around one inch off of the ground.

While very cool looking (even...or perhaps especially...because you can only ride it over huge sheets of metal), the hoverboard has its drawbacks.  According to the Telegraph UK, the board's battery only lasts 7 minutes, and this little slice of tomorrow-tech will cost $10,000.  Only ten hoverboards are currently available, but the development team is now on its 18th version of the prototype, and they plan to improve on it further.

Up to a good start.
(Image courtest silverfishlongboarding.com.)

Hendo Hover is currently seeking $250,000 on kickstarter to complete the hoverboards, with some of the money going to areas where it can be safely enjoyed (but be sure to bring your helmets for those all-metal half pipes.)  Hendo's ultimate ideal would be to implement the hover technology for houses and buildings, making them more resistant to the impact of earthquakes.

Could this idea eventually work, or will it just float away like so many other tantalizing visions of the future (we're looking at you, groovy orbiting space-station cities)?  For now, maybe the best recreational floating will be done in a pool.  But it's nice to think that someone is thinking of something fun and functional for the future, not just the usual murderous robots.

Just for fun, here's how the U.S. Air Force tried to pull it off.
(Image courtesy extremetech.com.)

Robo-Written: New Computer Programs Tell Tales To You

Telling stories has been a way of preserving our history since before the first written word was ever scrawled onto some bark or chiseled into stone.  Now, like many other modern developments, we've figured out a way to make machines do it for us.

As reported by New Scientist, there are several computer programs that are currently capable of spitting out a story.  Or at least, the idea for one.  The program that does "write", called Scheherazade, will give you a tale that's not near Shakespeare, but might entertain a young reader learning to string sentences together.  Set in any world that the program can learn about via the internet, Scheherazade uses crowdsourcing to gain knowledge of actions and scenarios.  It then strings the actions together to form a story.  

While this requires a great deal of human interaction on the input and refinement level, the program can nonetheless create accurate historical timelines from information presented, as well as fairly detailed short stories.  According to Technovelgy, once the plot points are entered, Scheherazade then "clusters them based on semantic similarity to create plot events that unfold sequentially until a decision point is reached, at which point a new line of plot events and decision points is triggered."

Scheherazade is currently being developed at the Georgia Institute of Technology under a grant from DARPA, which wants to use the program as a means to develop instructional materials for the "online cultural training" of American troops.

"Online cultural training."  Sure, DARPA. You're surely not teaching your murderous robot army how to dream up evil plots.
(Image courtesy techradar.com.)  

If you're not in the mood to be regaled and would rather write, a program can offer you a plausible (if possibly strange) character arc to work with.  The Flux Capacitor, a program being developed at University College in Dublin, uses a metaphor generator to create conflict via "role transitions."  These then become the inklings of a story, which are paired with the program's basic knowledge of the world, juxtaposed with characters that undergo a personal change.  

For example, the Flux Capacitor could take the concepts of "cool" and "angry", adhere them to the roles of "musicians" and "politicians", and generate the idea of, "What causes cool musicians to change their style of rock and roll, start a campaign, and become angry politicians?"  The "what causes" question prefaces each of the scenarios, which include two transitory notions before reaching the conclusion of the character arc. The Flux Capacitor uses @MetaphorMagnet twitter handle to assess its progress.

Then there's your simple "What If?" scenarios.  There's a program now for that, the What-If Machine, being developed at the University of London.  More of a computerized Mad Lib than anything you'd write a novel from, it nonetheless generates notions if you need them.  In addition to human, animal, and object scenarios, one can also make Kafkaesque or Surrealist what-ifs.  A Kafkaesque what-if (based off of the premise of "The Metamorphosis", whose lead character wakes up as a giant bug) might read, "What if there were a man who woke up as a manta ray, but he could still sing opera?"  A Surrealist scenario might read, "What if there were a computer who fell in love, but his only object of attraction was a malfunctioning toaster?"

That actually might not be too much of a Surrealist leap, anymore, considering computer programs are becoming advanced enough to write.  And what's writing if you're not doing it for love?  Just another string of code stringing together words.  Could computers learn enough about situational experiences enough to want to replicate them or experience them?  If they don't, in their stories, at what point do humans put in that ineffable touch of literary love?  Will there be a literary computer singularity, where a machine writes a book so good it fools humans?  

What if we just kept using our brainframes to imagine all these what-ifs on our own?  Can't we preserve a piece of art we still do as well, or better, than a computer?

Even if you do dream up and write the whole story on your own, you'll still want an editor.  That's where you can hire Hemingway, an editing app that pares down your excessive verbiage into the taut, tough style of the classic American author.  Robo-Hemingway highlights run-on sentences that you need to break up, adverbs that can be replaced with action verbs, polysyllabic words that you don't need to use to show off, and passive voicing to eliminate.  That last part, for those who may want to work on it manually, means it's more effective to say, "The artist lost money because the computer wrote the book", rather than "The money was lost by the artist because the book was written by the computer."

Although hopefully, neither you or the computer will ever have to write that.

The preceding article was 100% non-computer-generated.  Except for the research part.  They're pretty good at that.

Bring The Undead (And Your Halloween Party) To Life With These App-Animated Creepy-Cool Costumes

Do you need a Halloween costume that's crazy-creepy, but you can't spend a lot of money?  Do you need an outfit to set you apart amidst the hoards of zombies, ghouls, and sexy this-and-thats?  Or do you just need a last-minute costume that doesn't require too much makeup, but also isn't simply a sheet thrown over your head?  This Halloween, Digital Dudz may be able to help you out.

As reported by gizmodo.com, the premise is simple: download an app onto your smartphone and insert the phone into one of Digital Dudz's masks.  Instantly, you're outfitted as a cyclops with an eerie giant eyeball that stares around, a clown whose mouth bursts with maggots, a cyborg assassin scoping targets out with a laser eyeball, a diver drowning in his own deep-sea suit, or a variety of other options.  The vivid imagery imparted by the apps make the masks seem startlingly realistic and solidly unsettling.

The e-eyeball scares with a stare.  It twitches, too.
(Image courtesy morphsuits.com.)

For those who are more of the casual type, Digital Dudz also makes t-shirts that turn your phone into part of the fun.  You could sport an exposed beating heart, power up your chest's arc reactor as Ironman, or set the aforementioned eerie eyeball to twitch in the sockets of a devilish doll or Frankenstein's face.

Digital Dudz's masks are priced from $45-$60 and include their free imagery apps.  Both the masks and t-shirts are capable of carrying a wide array of digital devices, which can be easily extracted in case you need to quickly call the police after causing a few heart attacks with your awesome costume.  Check out all their creepy coolness (as well as some truly hilarious morphsuits) in their seasonal video below.  Then get out there and treat folks to some terrific tricks!

PS - Don't forget to check back during Christmas, for Digital Dudz's flaming yule log or snowglobe-enabled shirts!

'Bots And Bottles: Robo-Bartender "Monsieur" Could Be Worth A Shot

You step into your favorite local watering hole, nodding at the regulars.  You sit down on your usual stool and are greeted by a nondescript black box with a screen interface and a small compartment on the bottom that holds a cup.  The screen depicts a cozy candle-lit pub in rural Ireland.  You're actually in New York, but that doesn't matter.  You swipe the screen and suddenly you're in Costa Rica at a beach bar.  Another swipe, you're in Finland in an ice cave, where vodka bottles are frozen into the bar.  Another swipe and you're in a Kentucky honky-tonk.

You tap the screen, selecting from scrolling menus with options of shots, cocktails, martinis, drinks neat or on the rocks.  Various flavor profiles like "bitter", "sour", "tropical" and "refreshing" are also there to choose from.  Touching the button for "bourbon" then another for "highball", the machine starts to buzz and fizz, and in an instant, your beverage sits before you.  You take a sip, smiling as the day's worries slough off like a file deleted and a recycling bin emptied.  You raise your glass in toast to the robot bartender, offering thanks.  You haven't had to talk to anyone until this point, when you chose to.

"Excellent as always, Monsieur."

If this seems weird to you, congratulations, you're another citizen who isn't ready for robots to take over commonplace human jobs.  However, the mixological option has now been made manifest by Monsieur, a new startup robotic project that replaces your friendly neighborhood shot-slinger with an impartial and boringly accurate robot.

According to techcrunch.com, Monsieur is the boozy brainchild of two Georgia scientist/engineers who were fed up with long waits for drinks at popular bars, and decided that manufacturing a saucy service wench (or, if you prefer, seasoned sommelier) was a viable alternative.  The Monsieur is capable of serving a variety of mixed or straight drinks, tracking your intake, cutting you off, and basically doing everything short of throwing you out of the bar when you've started slapping it trying to break into its Jagermeister stash.  

Another feature of the Monsieur is remote ordering (via your phone), so you can have that next round of Kamikaze shots ready and waiting for you at the bar while you divebomb your way across the dancefloor.  Or if you're sitting pretty someplace super fancy, your own private Monsieur could be your bottle service valet for the evening.  Perhaps if you find yourself overseas in a foreign land, you can scroll through the hotel bar's Monsieur in your desired language and be sure you haven't ordered the local camel-milk White Russian-Province.

"We swear it's not made with too much antifreeze, comrade...drink up!"
(Image courtesy gct.com.)

With 1,000 units on track to ship, Monsieur is no longer a garage project (even though it literally was created in co-inventor Barry Givens' parents' garage.)  You could be spotting these 'bots in all sorts of locations soon (pro tip: there is a setting that adjusts the pour on your drink from regular to "boss.")   No word on whether they have a "wildly inappropriate dirty jokes" or "wingman to help me meet that hottie down the bar" feature available yet.  

Sometimes you wanna go where everybody knows your name...and of course Monsieur will.  It's in his programming.  He'll listen to everything you have to cry about, although he won't really have any wise life advice to offer you in return.  But for those who just want booze at the touch of a button, Monsieur will be honored to serve you.

Remember, you cannot hit on it, literally or figuratively, to try to score a heavier pour.
(Image courtesy kickstarter.com.)

Not Your Grandpa's Pipe: "Firefly" Portable Vape Is A Hot New Hit

Maybe you've seen them glowing and vapor-blowing in a bar, concert, or smoking section near you.  Vaporizers and e-cigarettes are firing up the former tobacco-buying market with what by many accounts is a safer, smoother smoke than conventional cigs.  Between the gear and the flavored "juice" options, there is technology for every type of inhalation experience.

Yet, the "juice" or chemical concentrates have raised concerns from some who want to know precisely what they are puffing.  Does the future still have room for smokers who scorch plant matter?  Enter the Firefly:  a stylish, compact, efficient means of torching tobacco (or other leaves of your choice.)

According to gizmodo.com, the Firefly vaporizer is a portable convection piece with an easily-loaded bowl chamber beneath a magnetic face.  A high-tech heating unit warms your leaves just enough to release their precious chemicals (but not enough to make them combust, allowing you to bypass the inhalation of any burned byproducts.)

The Firefly is powered by a lithium-ion battery that is good for fifty hits on a 45-minute charge.  Pressing the power button immediately heats the material in the chamber, which has a glass viewing port on top to allow for visibility of all that sweet vape.  The heat maxes out at 400 degrees Fahrenheit, so you never need to worry you're actually burning the bowl (there's boring, old-school pipes for that.)

For $270, you too can hit it up.  We've come a long way from the corncob configurations.  There are some habits even the future can't kill...technology just makes them safer and more satisfying.

Add some convection to your smoking selection.
(Image courtesy businessinsider.com.)