Thing #79: Build an Igloo

You find yourself stuck on a mountain in the middle of winter. Soon it will be dark. It's time you put your survival skills to work. You decide to build and igloo. You could follow the easy instructions shown in the video below (instructions are always easy until you apply them) but this seems like hard work. What if there was another way?





And indeed there is! The only catch when you want to build an igloo is that you need to have... snow. And today it did snow, for 30 minutes. I knew it was not going to be enough. It was not going to be hard enough to pack in blocks either. So, I decided to innovate and build an igloo mini-prototype.

The idea is simple, albeit it can take some time for it to work and if you are in a hurry this is not Place a strong enough tent-like shape in preferred position and... wait. Do something else for a few hours and when you come back you have your igloo ready. Simple!





In our case the transparent walls provide 360 degree views making this igloo not just a revolution in prefabricated igloos, but also a special place to protect you and your loved ones when stuck in the mountains.

Thing #15: Fart and Burp

Check out this image at PostSecret.com.






PS: and in case you are wondering no it wasn't me who posted this. Still as completing this Thing by finding something so relevant is far more difficult than actually farting and burping, I think I deserve to claim this Thing!

Thing #42: April Fool Someone

Happy... April Fool's Day! (You know who you are!)

Thing #42 completed - no no for real!

100th Post

"In 2008, 24 global cities will participate in Earth Hour at 8pm on March 29. Earth Hour is the highlight of a major campaign to encourage businesses, communities and individuals to take the simple steps needed to cut their emissions on an ongoing basis. It is about simple changes that will collectively make a difference – from businesses turning off their lights when their offices are empty, to households turning off appliances rather than leaving them on standby."

To celebrate the 100th post of this fine blog I invite you to join Earth Hour or just switch off the lights for one hour completing Thing #26 for your own 101 Things.

For more information visit: http://www.earthhour.org/

PS: This is the 101th post!

Happy Birthday to me!

Boring: I will never be that, but I admit.. I am getting older. In fact, on Tuesday I will be.. 25! It's a nice round number; 1/4 of a century. Sounds impressive eh?

I thought you would have liked to wish me Happy Birthday with many healthy blogging years to come. So, I am posting this, in order for you to leave a message (please make me feel better for getting on the wrong side of 25)! You know what you have to do!

PS: If you are a member of the secret society don't forget to organise a surprise party for me. I promise to look surprised. Thank you.

Thing #94: See your name in print

I have seen my name in print many times (and yes I am modest for those who don't know me!). I have published a number of articles and book chapters, wrote a thesis many pages long, even saw articles about me in local newspapers. Getting something though in a national paper was a first and by achieving it I can happily claim Thing #94 done and put to bed. Next step will be to get in Wired (if the editor reads this please leave a comment and I will get back to you - Thank you).

Time capsule revisited

It just occurred to me that my Wired collection is a time capsule in its own right. OK, it's not 25 years old, but still it provides a window to the past (...12 months - I am still struggling to keep up with the last issues). Anyway, I am now in February 2007 so some progress has been achieved.

I thought to share a few of my favourite stories of the past few issues:

Do I Know You?Some people can see your eyes, your nose, your mouth – and still not recognize your face. Now these prosopagnosia sufferers may help scientists unlock the mysteries of the brain. By Joshua Davis

The Perfect Man Dean Karnazes ran 50 marathons in 50 days. He does 200 miles just for fun. 12 secrets to his success. By Joshua Davis

The Secret World of Lonelygirl15 How a 19-year-old actress and a team of struggling Web filmmakers took on TV. A Wired exclusive. By Joshua Davis

Edifice, Complex Billowing glass, rippling titanium, swooping stainless steel. Onsite with the engineers who turn the most ambitious architectural plans into reality. By Karrie Jacobs

Raging Boll Uwe Boll, the worst movie director ever, challenged his Web critics to a boxing match. Four idiots actually met him in the ring. By Chris Baker

Thing #26: Help save the planet

Every little helps! So I am going to recycle a sealed lead-acid battery.



Lead-acid batteries, invented in 1859 by French physicist Gaston Planté, are the oldest type of rechargeable battery. Despite having the second lowest energy-to-weight ratio (next to the nickel-iron battery) and a correspondingly low energy-to-volume ratio, their ability to supply high surge currents means that the cells maintain a relatively large power-to-weight ratio. These features, along with their low cost, makes them attractive for use in cars, as they can provide the high current required by automobile starter motors. They are also used in vehicles such as forklifts, in which the low energy-to-weight ratio may in fact be considered a benefit since the battery can be used as a counterweight. Large arrays of lead-acid cells are used as standby power sources for telecommunications facilities, generating stations, and computer data centers. They are also used to power the electric motors in diesel-electric (conventional) submarines.

And they are used in my portable hand held vacuum cleaner. So, by sending for recycling this battery (increases recycling hassle/convenience rate) I claim this Thing as done!

Thing #40: Take care of an animal

I used to have a goldfish many years ago. A clever one! It may have left this world, but it did leave many good memories behind!

No animal testing took place while writing this post.

Thing #38: Make a time capsule

I received an email a few minutes ago that made me think (not that I was not thinking before or that I will not think later on) of how many time capsules we make for other people.

A friend had kept all the letters I had sent 15 years ago. Yes, for those of you who are not yet old and boring, that was before email. It's rather scary to be able to narrate stories that took place 15 or 20 years ago, but what can you do about it (other than invent time travel)?

Looking back, it is "strange to notice how we were obviously less experienced in life, yet how little our characters and ideas have changed since then. 15 years ago, imagine... We're getting old", but not boring!

As this blog is not just about me, but those close to me too and as it seems that it has made a really good job of turning 'insignificant random events' to things worth sharing, I would like to put forward my friend's time capsule and declare Thing #38 done.

Thing #75: Watch a tadpole grow into a frog

February to March is the best time to find frogspawn (apparently), so this is ideal time for me to watch a tadpole grow into a frog. So I could go to a lake and wait for a few weeks/months until I get to see the product of the final transformation: the frog. Now that's interesting, I am sure, but, there are other more extreme transformations that can be observed.. not at the lake, but on YouTube. Try watching the video below and see for yourself! This is as close I will get to watching animal transformations!

Thing #37: Write Lyrics for a Song

No, I am not going for a Grammy, but I had to have a go at writing a few lyrics for a song. The good news is that I don't have to write the music too. If you can, then feel free to have a go at it and send me the MP3 to post here. Oh, the lyrics are released under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 UK: England & Wales licence.

Keep up

Moments like this you feel alone,
you think of the past,
and those things...
that are yet to come,
uncertainty all around,
deep breaths come out.

You know there is a start,
there is even an end.
You are somewhere in between,
in a journey, straight ahead.

Time passes by,
without you on my side,
and I have, I have to wonder why...
why, are you not on my side?

Emotions are tangled,
thoughts and actions too.
I am not tired of keeping up,
I am just tired of being away from you.

Thing #96: Glue coins to the floor

I went to a house the other day and outside, on the steps, there were two coins. I could not be bothered to pick them up. So, said to a friend who was near by: "It's your lucky day, 15p!" She tried to pick them up, only to find out they were glued! Now for this thing I was supposed to glue the coins myself, but still by indirectly tricking someone, I accidentaly managed to complete this Thing!

Thing #4: Learn how to tell if someone fancies you

Internet, such a wonderful thing! It can actually provide a much-sought solution to an ever-lasting problem: find if someone fancies you. Well, since I marked this as done, I came across a nice way of figuring this out.

Just try: http://www.loveanalyst.com, but use it at your own risk ;)