There aren’t any clear instructions detailing just how to build your own gun, but you’re way too lazy to ever actually build a recreation. Luckily, if you’re sitting on a small mountain of cash, you can go to the creator’s site for any business inquiries. Apparently, Portal’s developer Valve has ordered a model. And if you’re willing to stand in line long enough, maybe you could score one, too.

See all of the build photos here: [GameDaily]

On top of the “Nobody has ever loved you” message, the pranksters (you know who you are) also programmed in “All your signs are belong to us” and the fan favourite: “Warning Zombies ahead.”

So, as I’m sure the roads ministers around the country will agree with me, I hope that nobody else comes up with some witty comment that will cause inadvertent hilarity when hacked into a road sign…

[Goldcoast.com.au - Thanks Andrew!]
[Photo source: Michael Ross, Goldcoast.com.au]

It’s about $US20 from Japan, and comes with one Construction worker, one yellow sign or one white sign, combined with three traffic ones. We would set this up around our mouse and keyboard every night before we went to bed. [Rinkya via Crunchgear]

Packing centimetre and angle measurements along with a few cute grids that we’re fairly certain are just for grids’ sake, the only flaw with the measurement gloves is that they’re fabricated from stretchy knit that will skew your data. Then again, the blood, boogers, hamburger grease aren’t doing anything to help readings, either. Seriously, throw your gloves in the wash already. And stop picking at your scabs, nose and that dumpster behind Wendy’s already. [Up To You Toronto via Nerd Approved]

Apparently, while most road sign control pads are placed in a lock box, that box is rarely actually locked. And while most road signs are under password protection, that password is most generally just the default code “DOTS”—or you can easily reset the password by holding “shift” and “control” while typing “DIPY” (so that it just defaults to “DOTS” again).

Of course, it makes sense that road signs aren’t all that protected. Most of us would hope that you wouldn’t be such a jackass as to take swap useful information for some joke about ninjas and/or pirates. [iHacked via Geekologie]

Absolutely nuts. Although other structures around the world can rival these, the concentration in Japanese cities is simple astounding. Head to DRB for the entire series. And in case you are interested, here’s how it looks from inside a car.

[Dark Roasted Blend]

SmartBolts, designed for industrial and medical applications, feature a simple colour-coded indicator on their tops: If they’re red, the bolt is loose. If they’re green, nice job, everything’s locked down. And if they’re black, you may over-tightened things a bit, Mr. Look How Strong I Am.

Each bolt also promise 20 years of durability (which actually seems a bit low for many applications) as SmartBolts use simple fluid compression to measure and produce the chromatic indication in real time. That means there are no moving parts, and we fucking hate moving parts. [SmartBolts via medgadget]

The use of monocoque extended into the realm of automobiles starting in 1923 with the Lancia Lambda, but it didn’t really take off until Nash Motors released their 600 in 1941. Because the body was constructed as a single unit, Nash produced a vehicle that was not only stronger, but about 230 kilos lighter than a traditional body-on-frame automobile. Today, monocoque or unibody construction is so sophisticated in automobile manufacturing that the windshields often make a significant contribution to the structural strength of the vehicle.

Naturally, the benefits of a stronger, lighter single shell construction have far more applications than just aircraft and automobiles. The technique has also made a significant impact on architecture by allowing designers to eliminate load bearing walls and open up floor plans. Only time will tell if the adoption of the process by Apple will inspire other companies in the computer industry to follow their lead. [Wikipedia]

Fisher was inspired to design the Dynamic Tower during a visit to a friend’s top-floor Midtown Manhattan apartment. “I had a view of the Hudson River and East River at the same time, it was beautiful and I wanted to make that feeling accessible to more people.” He loves the idea of seeing the sun rise and set in the same room, and considers the building to be four-dimensional. “Time is always changing the shape of the building,” he told me.

The rotation takes up to 3 hours (so you’re not always spilling your coffee), and gets power from photovoltaic solar cells and 79 wind turbines, one located between each floor. The system is meant to create enough energy to power to the entire tower and still have juice to spare for some surrounding buildings. According to Fisher, two of these US$700 million futuristic scrapers are planned so far, one each in Dubai and Moscow. They will be built using a truly radical technique.

Construction on the Dynamic Tower will be unlike anything that preceded it. The only part of the tower built on site will be the skinny centre core. It is strong enough to hold the floors in place, and will contain the building’s elevators, which transport people and cars right to their door. Each floor will be made piece by piece in a factory in Italy—a throwback to Fisher’s previous life in prefabricated bathroom design—and placed onto the core using a lift system. With this method, each story is completed in about six days. By comparison, traditional ground-up methods can take six weeks per floor.

Groundbreaking for Dynamic Towers in Dubai and Moscow is expected to happen in the fall, with construction reaching completion by the end of 2010. If you’re game—and very, very loaded—you can sign up now for a villa or office space. The going rate is US$3000/sq foot. [Dynamic Architecture]