Seriously, how is it possible that the wearable chair isn't the hottest accessory around today when it was patented 30 whole years ago? Look at it! You strap it to the backs of your legs and you can just sit back and rest easy whenever you want! I wouldn't have to submit to the cruel tyranny of standing under my own volition any longer! It'd be perfect for concerts, the subway or the unemployment line, where you'd presumably run into the inventor of these things, Darcy Robert Bonner. Now that this thing has been rediscovered after being lost for so long, it's time to make the dream a reality. [Patent via Book of Joe]

Read More »

Wearable computers may be a reality in today's army, but use is restricted to safe environs like a bunker or an armoured vehicle—out in the open, soldiers' priority is keeping hold of their guns. The RallyPoint Handwear Computer Input Device is unique in that it is designed specifically to be used even while the soldier is gripping a gun or a steering wheel. It's full of sensors—maybe too many:

Read More »

Remember those Olinari Silver USB Dog Tags we showed you back in August? The ones that looked extremely nice but costed about $200 too much? They're shipping now for the price of $US349 (with 2GB USB) and $US319 without. We really want one of these, but for $US349 we'll stick with going bare chested. [Olinari]

The $40 Chewbacca backpack is what would happen if your MyBuddy grew a pair, took some steroids and helped you conquer the galaxy instead of your backyard. This backpack is a smaller version of your favourite Wookie, stuffable with your favourite books and lightsabers. And seriously, we prefer him to the real thing.

Chewbacca seems like a nice (guy?) and all, but the real prospect of living in close quarters with a flee-covered, boisterous and surely odoriferous animal for extended periods of time is about as close to our personal hell as an iconic sci-fi movie has come. And seriously, he has hair everywhere. Not only would a strand end up in a least one bite of every meal, but the possibility that the strand would be fouled with excrement is enough for us to program HAL to just go ahead and lock the pod bay doors during our next space walk. [thinkgeek via scifitech]

The "Constraint City" vest is a weird project by Austrian artist Gordan Savicic that's a sadistic type of WiFi detector. It's a vest, and as you get closer to WiFi hotspots, it gets tighter and tighter, causing discomfort and pain. The idea, according to Savicic, is to create "schizo-geographic pain map" of the wireless signals around us. OK. Perhaps it'd be better used to wean people off their Internet addictions, although I suppose you could just plug in and avoid the squeeze. Or, you know, just not put on the stupid vest in the first place. [Project Page via Make]

Here's a video report from Reuters on the transforming dress that disguises a scared, vulnerable stalking target into a vending machine you'd find in any Tokyo side street. This is the first time I've seen this dress on video. And I like how the reporter calls it a modern day Ninja tactic, while other Japanese men in the segment say it's probably a better idea to run from rapists and muggers than to lift up your dress and try to disguise yourself as a Soda machine. [Reuters, thanks Chad]

Since we showed you the My Chopsticks Bra earlier this week, a video has surfaced, giving us a closer look at exactly how the "concept undergarment" works. The fact of the matter is, it doesn't work; the bowls are just a decorative flourish instead of containers for real food. Indeed, there are chopsticks that are stowed away in a small pouch attached to the side, and when it's time to eat, you assemble them like collapsed pool cues. It's just that rice and miso soup won't be on that menu. Yeah, this garment makes us hungry in a strange sort of way. [Pink Tentacle]

Two 8-year old geniuses have invented wedgie proof underwear—more than a decade too late for us. Simplicity is the key to all great design, as the inventors showed when they presented the Rip Away 1000 on the Ellen DeGeneres Show, which is the most unlikely platform for the display of the 8-year olds prodigious talents.

Read More »

This crazy fin thing was developed by DARPA for scuba divers to swim 150% faster and with less effort than regular fins, helping to get places quicker and preserve oxygen along the way. Modeled after observing swimming habits of penguins and dolphins, it takes the strain away from smaller leg muscles, instead working the glutes and quads. It was intended for Navy SEALs (duh), but maybe one day we'll all get a crack at it. The shot above is newly released on CNet. After the jump is a schematic rendering from the original Popular Mechanics story.

Read More »

This patent for an "energy weapon protection device" is the perfect accessory for your next anti-war march. It also might be a good idea to just have one handy for other occasions, too, as you never know when the 5-0 might get a little TASER-happy on you for failing to fully stop at a stop sign or something. These are strange days we live in, my friends. [Patent via Danger Room]