Golf ball-sized hail. Intense, gusting wind smashing the ground and spreading out, pushing everything in its way. Torrential downpour making it impossible to see anything farther than an inch away. My god, microbursts are previews for the apocalypse.
Fake rainfall is therapeutic. The pit pat pitty patty pat pat pit sound reminds me of childhood days peering out the window in wonderment. So peaceful! An art installation by Zimoun in collaboration with Architect Hannes Zweifel re-creates the sound of falling rain with 2,000 cardboard boxes and 200 DC motors. The motors, attached to the boxes, gently whip the cardboard to make the soundtrack. I’m going to fall asleep listening to this tonight. [Vimeo]
I can’t imagine a normal person having a use for this crazy raincoat but if you’re a wizard and/or KKK member, you’d probably like to protect your headgear from getting wet too. This limited edition raincoat does just that for you.
Why would you want to see real-time snow and rain on Google Earth, you ask, when weather sites or even your smartphone will tell you just as quickly? Don’t give me that – you know how often they’re incorrect.
Glasgow’s Dutch-built “amfibus” resumed testing today after being grounded for an unnecessarily deployed airbag. From the video on BBC‘s website, it looks just like a big yellow schoolbus, but runs in liquid and allows writers to make water puns.
Whip out your samurai sword umbrella and do battle with Mother Nature. Should you be defeated, the only honourable way out is seppuku—although that would be especially nasty with an umbrella. [ThinkGeek via Uberreview]