Shake Well Before Use

Artificial mouth could be robotic taste-tester

Tue, 06 May 2008 17:44:40 -0800

An artificial mouth was recently developed that has the ability to chew food similar to a human, making it a good robotic taste-tester to better understand flavor. When food is chewed, it releases compounds which affect taste. Using speed motors, mechanical teeth, and a pipe pumping "enzyme-containing artificial saliva", the mouth-bot is an almost-living, breathing (via helium, anyway) mastication machine.

Solar bags also biodegradable

Mon, 05 May 2008 22:45:33 -0800

The latest in solar satchels is Noon Solar. Designed with one-sided solar paneling, these purses can help charge your various gadgets on the go. The designs are definitely lacking but will prominently show off your love for the environment due to their biodegradable materials. Check their site for more in-depth specifications about going solar with your accessories.

Clone-tool war on nipples continues

Mon, 05 May 2008 21:31:40 -0800

Last month we pointed out the potential conspiracy to cover-up nipples in advertising. Yet another example perked up this month on an ad for Swedish lingerie brand Kroppsnara. Considering it's a full-frontal photo featuring a 1/4th cup bra, there's really no getting around this awkward lack of areola.

Test

Tue, 29 Apr 2008 12:30:40 -0800

Shake Well Before Use is going through some Movable Type changes. Apologies for filling up your RSS reader!

Shake Well Before Use gears up for ad:tech San Francisco

Sun, 13 Apr 2008 02:58:54 -0800

I'll be joining the forces with the fabulous team at Adrants and the ad:tech blog to provide coverage of the upcoming ad:tech conference in San Francisco, April 15-17.

General housekeeping of where else to find me:

• arielwaldman.com - My new blog that has more about myself and social media consulting.
• Engadget (Movie Gadget Friday columns!)
• Twitter, Pownce, and Upcoming

Oh, and I'll most likely be lobbycon-ing the Web 2.0 Expo in SF from April 22-25 with a few out-of-towners.

Sex offender satellite suffers serious flaws

Mon, 07 Apr 2008 03:00:00 -0800

A satellite system devoted to tracking sex offenders recently released from prison suffered from too many bugs to be realistically implemented. The original idea was to use four satellites as a GPS to keep more accurate tabs on known sex offenders by way of an attached radio-transmitting ankle tag.

"...a pilot found that the signal emitted from the tracking devices could be blocked by clouds, buildings or leaves. It was also lost underground and on some trains. The Ministry of Justice has decided to focus instead on lie detectors as a means of controlling paedophiles released on parole. The U-turn will leave ministers facing accusations that they have failed to address the threat that communities face from 30,000 registered sex offenders."

Conspiracy to cover up (nipples)

Sun, 06 Apr 2008 00:00:00 -0800

American advertising often makes a war on sex and clarifies the blurry lines of what may or may not be acceptable. One such recent battle is the almost conspiracy-like cover up of nipples. In their attempt to un-sexualize the male body, they've created some "solutions" that are just plain awkward. Photoshop Disasters points to a recent cloning-tool accident, while the long-running Old Spice ad above choses to oddly attempt to knock-out the nipple (watch for the hair-growing segment).

Geeks splooge over LED labia

Wed, 02 Apr 2008 20:33:23 -0800

Surfing for more pr0n than peripherals (who can blame them?), Gizmodo pointed to what is being held up as the best use of LEDs ever: the LED labia. Yes, stuck in a stripping woman's crotch is a panty-full of blinking, shiny lights in case you needed extra incentive to stare. Though this usage is difficult to top, Clitter most certainly out does the LED labia any day.

Nudar helps locate tits for road trips

Mon, 31 Mar 2008 02:00:00 -0800

We are in shock over the fact that a tipster pointed out we didn't cover a shoe-in story from January yet. Called Nudar, this beta radar is a location-based service for strip clubs and nudity. With helpful maps and even a GPS plugin, Nudar aims to give you a handful of attractions. Nudar 1.0 was announced to be in the works earlier this month with the assurance that the service would still be free. No road trip should be without a plentiful amount of tits, so this is definitely a must-have gadget for your jalopy.

Skipped over Sunday

Sun, 30 Mar 2008 16:26:15 -0800

[A weekly link post of skipped over (and slightly stale) sights and stories]

• German Playboy billboard uses rain to promote wet t-shirts

• Space Invader + QR code scarf gives you that warm and geeky feeling

• Sensor-embedded bra records "vertical breast displacement"

• 20% of IMs are never sent

• Rabbit Travel Vibe is 12 volts of vroom vroom vibration

Plastic bags become street art

Sat, 29 Mar 2008 17:02:08 -0800

Otherwise overlooked as trash, this street artist utilizes leftover plastic bags to create inflatable animals. By using ventilation grates, the plastic bag animals are tied down and remain deflated until air begins to flow through. The result is an incredibly creative approach to an inflatable street sculpture. Joshua Allen Harris (the artist) sent the Wooster Collective video of the installation that can be viewed here and here.

Tits promote toadstools

Tue, 25 Mar 2008 13:52:16 -0800

Following AdRants lead, we are left with little other comment than 'WTF?' on this recent find in advertising. With an overload of push-up, Nila Sliced Mushrooms is promoting their product by pinning up models on the side of semi's.

"[The ad is] one part come hither and stick your throbbing member between my huge breasts until you fill this can with your uncontrollable lust look. And you've got the perfect "WTF was that but it sure felt good" ad."

We're not so sure that feeling 'Fungtastic!' gets us past flaccid on this one, as we typically stray away from women associated with fungus growth.

Sight for the week's end

Fri, 21 Mar 2008 17:30:00 -0800

Peeps + microwave = happy easter!

Shake Well Before Use gears up for SXSW 2008!

Sat, 08 Mar 2008 02:39:31 -0800

Broadcasting from Austin and ready to achieve geekgasm, this year is sure to be as overwhelming as the past. Shake Well Before Use has admittedly been slacking on blogging in the last few weeks due to all the excitement and anticipation. Regardless, come join in the nerdfesticle that is SXSW at these two events:

How to Rawk SXSW: Achieving Geekgasm

16bit Pownce Party

i-Buddy attempts IRL emoticons

Thu, 28 Feb 2008 06:00:00 -0800

Created for compatibility with MSN Messenger, the i-Buddy appears to be a watered-down wannabe version of a Nabaztag. The device connects via USB and reflects emoticons received from your friends. If a happy emoticon is received, the gadget will flap its wings and light up, however if a angry emoticon is received, it will turn red. If only the device wasn't output only, we'd love to try it out as a tethered voodoo doll against our friends who are too stubborn to switch to Gtalk.