STUFF: News, Technology, the cool and the plain weird

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La Bandita Speedster

California-based digital manufacturing company Hackrod plans to offer car templates to customers, or accept their own ideas, to design and print their own dream car with the support of tried technology. Cloud-based solutions will handle everything from component sourcing to hardware integration. Customers will be kept up to date with the manufacturing process, watching how their dream cars get born in virtual reality. Before production starts, they can even test the car in a video game simulator. At the very end, parts are ordered, and the car is built before their very eyes. Hackrod is working hard at achieving this goal, and is currently producing this first prototype, the spectacular La Bandita Speedster. This is the world’s first virtual reality-designed, 3D-printed automobile, and you can preorder your´s on the Hackrod website. 

 

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Lum-Tec Bull42 A22

Lum-Tec are a family run Ohio-USA based company devoted to bringing you the best quality watches on the market. They take watch manufacturing and design to a personal level and are capable of producing watches made with only the best available materials and components. The watches are all hand crafted by a team of professional watchmakers. The good-looking model featured here is their Bull 42 A22 a 42mm stealthy timepiece with a 316L Surgical grade Stainless Steel case and Titanium Carbide black PVD hard coating. The solid and exceptionally well-made watch is powered by a reliable SII VK67 Mecha-Quartz movement, has a 100 meters water resistance, anti-static rubber strap, and MDV luminous technology on dial and hands.  $525

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GSI Boulder Flask

The GSI Boulder Flask is a new way to carry your favorite beverage with you on your adventures, this new ruggedized hip flask has some cool features that turn it into a real must have to prevent damage bumps or scrapes out on the trail. The slim and lightweight flask enhances portability and ease of use, it is made from a strong co-polymer material, translucid and shatterproof, and features a silicone all-round bumper and lid to enhance its toughness but also adding grip. Its wide mouth also makes filling or drinking a breeze, and the easy open hinged top ensures you´ll never lose it. All these features translate in a very simple, easy way to carry your favorite drink on your outdoor adventures and ensure youll always be in good company.  $15

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ROLLS-ROYCE WRAITH LUMINARY COLLECTION

Limited to just 55 examples, the Rolls-Royce Wraith Luminary Collection is inspired by the stars. Its unique Sunburst Grey paint changes from gray to copper when hit by the sun, and the pinstripes are hand-painted in a contrasting tan. Inside, the veneer is made of Tudor Oak and has perforations that let a constellation of 176 LED lights through. The headliner has more than triple that, with 1340 fiber optic lights recreating both the night sky and eight shooting stars that cross overhead as you drive.

 

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LIGHTER CUFFLINKS  /  $70

Equipped with a flint igniter, these stainless steel cufflinks can either light your black tie cigar or get you out of a precarious situation. Whatever your needs, the refillable reservoir can hold up to 50 lights, and a spring-loaded button ensures the flame goes out upon release. When they're not firing up, they also secure your cuffs with a classic bullet-backed design. Detach from your shirt prior to lighting. Review manufacturer's instructions carefully before operating.

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URWERK AMC CLOCK & WATCH

Inspired by the Sympathique built by Swiss watchmaker Abraham-Louis Breguet in 1793, the Urwerk AMC Clock & Watch pairs an atomic tabletop clock with a wrist-bound timepiece. The 55-pound clock is made from a solid hunk of aluminum and has a special cradle for the watch that allows the clock to wind the timepiece, set the time, and adjust the balance rate. And while the watch looks like a traditional, if chunky, timepiece, the clock could easily sub in as an elaborate movie prop.

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SF MOTORS BRINGS THE LATEST ELECTRIC SUV TO CHALLENGE TESLA

For those trying to navigate a changing auto industry, there are few sure things. Automation will play some kind of role, but no one knows how to gauge the nature and size of the technology’s impact. Same goes for sharing: People—especially those rascally youths—seem to be buying fewer cars, but it’s unclear whether the drop off will last, and whether it’s the result of economics, culture, or a swirling mix of the two.

But every sailor in these plying the turbulent, murky waters can look to at least two steady, guiding stars. One, consumers all over the world, and especially in the United States, are absolutely gaga for SUVs. Two, regulators all over the world, and especially in China—already the world’s biggest car market, and growing fast—are demanding automakers ramp up their electric offerings.

That’s enough to justify the voyage of SF Motors, the latest entrant into a growing armada of automakers whose founders or backers either hail from or are based in China. Tonight, at its Silicon Valley headquarters, SF Motors unveiled its first vehicles, each an all-electric SUV: the SF5 and SF7.

The first to reach production, the SF5, checks the most important boxes, with roughly 300 miles of range between charges and a 0 to 60 mph time under 3 seconds (a once-gobsmacking number that now applies to many torque-happy electric vehicles). And it’s a sharp-looking vehicle, with a light bar across the front bumper that gives the impression of a battle-ready grin. As required for any car trying to break into the premium segment, the interior (designed in Germany) is filled with fancy leathers, though CEO John Zhang promises a competitive price point.

The SF5 won’t come with full autonomous capability, but will use advanced tech to monitor the state of the driver and take proactive steps to avoid crashing, an approach that mimics Toyota’s. “Our focus is on the safety of the driver,” says Zhang.

SF Motors was founded in 2016 as an arm of Sokon, a Chinese automaker. Zhang has set up R&D facilities in Santa Clara, Michigan, and China, and plans to build cars in Indiana and China. But even with global reach and the right product, success in this industry doesn’t come easy. Mere survival means not just convincing people to ditch whatever brand they’ve been buying to try something new, but operating within tight profit margins and maintaining a firm grip on global supply chains. Tesla managed that first bit no problem—it’s the second two that have kept it from profitability for years.

Making things even tougher, SF Motors is far from the only newcomer squeezing into the EV space. It will have to fight for market share with other young guns like BYD, Byton, Faraday Future, and Lucid. Even Dyson—the vacuum cleaning people—are making an electric car.

But going on looks alone, the SF5 is a good start for SF Motors. Good enough to get it out of the harbor and on its way, anyway. Finding its way across the ocean, however, is no easy journey.

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An Out-of-Control Chinese Space Station Is Crashing into Earth This Weekend

Over a year ago, Chinese officials announced they had lost control of their very first space laboratory Tiangong 1, and that it would come crashing through the atmosphere in the next couple of years. In May, they specified their time window: sometime between October 2017 and April 2018. And now, we've got a four-day window for Tiangong 1's fiery plummet to Earth: between the early mornings of March 30 and April 2—and most likely on April 1, which is Easter and also April Fool's Day.

You might want to look up.

Tiangong 1, which was launched into space in 2011, is a 9.4-ton, 34-foot-long hunk of metal. As its orbit rapidly decayed, no one could steer it, making its trajectory a guessing game.

“Even a couple of days before it re-enters we probably won’t know better than six or seven hours, plus or minus, when it’s going to come down," Harvard University astrophysicist Jonathan McDowell told The Guardian in October. "Not knowing when it’s going to come down translates as not knowing where it’s going to come down.”

Lucky for us, we've got the non-profit Aerospace Corporation tracking Tiangong 1. It agrees that determining the lab's exact reentry point is impossible, but it is "confident" it will be between the 43° North and 43° South latitudes. Here's a handy map of that. Montana, looks like you're in the clear.

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No one knows where #Tiangong1 will reenter, but we do know odds of it harming someone are vanishingly small. Our scientists calculate odds of you being hit by Tiangong-1 debris are ~1mil times smaller than odds of winning Powerball jackpot – even if you live in ‘high risk’ areas.

For anyone wanting to catch the live show, Space.com has a guide to watching Tiangong 1 fall through the atmosphere. 

McDowell said most of the space station will burn up on reentry, but predicted some parts weighing up to 220 pounds will make it to the surface. And even the smallest atmospheric change could bump the station to a different continent. (Controlled spacecraft are directed to a specific spot in the ocean, the Oceanic Pole of Inaccessibility, when they descend.)

The chances any parts will endanger humans are incredibly slim. China told the United Nations it would closely monitor Tiangong 1's progress. This isn't the first man-made object to fall from the sky, and none have ever hurt people before. Plus, 71 percent of the Earth's surface is water. But wouldn't it be just our luck?

Tiangong 1 translates to "Heavenly Palace." I'll let you draw the metaphor.

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Apple Space Gray Accessories

Apple are now selling their infinitely sexy space grey Accessories for Mac. Previously exclusive to the iMac Pro, the space gray peripherals that came with it are now available for individual purchase. So if you’re looking to color match your accessories with your space gray MacBook, you can now grab the space gray Magic Keyboard ($149), Magic Trackpad ($149), and Magic Mouse ($99). 

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BAMFORD DOMINO SET

Made in the UK by the custom watch label, the Bamford Domino Set turns the classic game into a sophisticated showpiece. Each tile is formed out of wood and hand-painted in a glossy black lacquer. Embedded magnets planted in the ends hold your lines during play while also keeping them neatly stacked when displayed in their acrylic case.

 

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Here's The New 'Solo: A Star Wars Story' Trailer

Announced for the first time way back in 2015, Solo initially featured Phil Lord and Christopher Miller as directors, though they departed the production during filming, where they were replaced by Ron Howard.

The film, which also stars Woody Harrelson as Beckett, an older criminal and mentor to Han, and Emilia Clarke as Qi'ra, a childhood friend of Han's, is set for wide release on May 25, 2018. It will premiere ten days earlier at the Cannes Film Festival.

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Drone Survey Identifies New Nazca Lines In Peru

Sometimes it feels as though there is shockingly little we know about our own planet. Like, we literally missed some of the Nazca lines, perhaps one of the most recognisable and mysterious ancient landmarks around. Thankfully, archaeologists have now found "new" Nazca lines, with the help of drones.

National Geographic reports:

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Now, Peruvian archaeologists armed with drones have discovered more than 50 new examples of these mysterious desert monuments in adjacent Palpa province, traced onto the earth's surface in lines almost too fine to see with the human eye. In addition, archaeologists surveyed locally known geoglyphs with drones for the first time - mapping them in never-before-seen detail.

Some of the newfound lines belong to the Nasca culture, which held sway in the area from 200 to 700 AD. However, archaeologists suspect that the earlier Paracas and Topará cultures carved many of the newfound images between 500 BC and 200 AD.

 

Drone Survey Identifies New Nazca Lines In Peru
Ryan F. Mandelbaum
Apr 7, 2018, 5:00pm ⋅ Filed to: 
archaeology 
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Sometimes it feels as though there is shockingly little we know about our own planet. Like, we literally missed some of the Nazca lines, perhaps one of the most recognisable and mysterious ancient landmarks around. Thankfully, archaeologists have now found "new" Nazca lines, with the help of drones.

An image of the new lines. Photo: Courtesy of Luis Jaime Castillo, Palpa Nasca Project (Nat Geo)

National Geographic reports:

Now, Peruvian archaeologists armed with drones have discovered more than 50 new examples of these mysterious desert monuments in adjacent Palpa province, traced onto the earth's surface in lines almost too fine to see with the human eye. In addition, archaeologists surveyed locally known geoglyphs with drones for the first time - mapping them in never-before-seen detail.

Some of the newfound lines belong to the Nasca culture, which held sway in the area from 200 to 700 AD. However, archaeologists suspect that the earlier Paracas and Topará cultures carved many of the newfound images between 500 BC and 200 AD.

Nat Geo reports that the discovery's origins began back when Greenpeace vandalised and damaged the lines to get attention in 2014. Peru received money from the United States in order to help fix up the historic site. Archaeologists led by former vice minister of cultural heritage Luis Jaime Castillo spotted the new ones with the help of data from Nat Geo explorer Sarah Parcak's GlobalXplorer citizen science initiative.

Drones spotted what satellites could not, since the dozens of new geoglyphs were too thin to be resolved from a satellite's distance and too faint to see with the human eye. There could even be more lines found as the GlobalXplorer survey continues.

The discovery will hopefully help researchers better understand the purpose of these lines, Kristin Romey, Nat Geo archaeology writer and editor told Gizmodo. It also demonstrates how technological advances are helping us explore our Earth and spot amazing things that have been here all along.

Romey said: "This is really a new age of exploration."

Now let's hope no one drives a truck over these new lines.

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The First 3D-Printed Steel Bridge Looks Like It Broke Off An Alien Mothership

The plan to 3D-print a bridge in mid-air was always bonkers. How could a technology best known for creating flimsy prototypes and personalised action figures be used for permanent construction projects? Well, the team at MX3D in Amsterdam just answered all of the hard questions and revealed it: the world's first 3D-printed bridge. It's made of a completely new type of steel, spans 12.19m, and will be installed early next year in De Wallen, the largest and best-known red-light district in Amsterdam. It also looks utterly otherworldly.

The newly printed bridge just arrived back in MX3D's workshop in north Amsterdam from a larger facility outside the city. There, the team of designers and engineers that has been working on the project for years will test the bridge's integrity and add some finishing touches, including a clear coat to protect the ruddy steel exterior from the elements and a steel deck - which is basically just a huge plate of traditional steel - that will serve as a walkway. The final phase will include the installation of a series of smart sensors that will monitor the bridge's health and take a slew of measurements in real-time, including air quality and weight dispersion so the bridge will actually know how many people are walking on it and how quickly they're moving. The sensor data will also be fed to a "digital twin" bridge model that will help engineers understand how the bridge is performing over time and make tweaks to future designs accordingly.

Safety is a key part of all of these tests and the sensor network that will follow. Given the fact that a 3D-printed bridge like this has never existed, MX3D worked with the city to establish a unique, new safety standard as well as a testing plan to ensure the bridge's lasting integrity. The sensor network will also enable engineers to monitor and address safety issues with such accuracy that the 3D-printed might well be the safest bridge in the city.

"Last Thursday we tested out the bridge with 30 people, and it was fine. It behaves like a bridge like it should," MX3D co-founder Gijs van der Velden told Gizmodo in an interview. "With the bridge deck on top, it will be even stronger."

But obviously, the bridge's 3D-printed construction will turn heads. It has since 2015, when MX3D shocked the world by announcing plans to 3D-print the bridge in mid-air over one of Amsterdam's canals. That concept explored the possibility of using a new custom-designed type 3D-printing robots that could create weight-bearing structures below them and then slide forward as the hot building material set. These so-called MX3D bots could build things of any size by moving around the object in open air rather than inside of a machine. Theoretically, such technology would let them print massive structures safely on location.

"When we launched the idea, we just printed one art piece," van der Velden said. "So [the bridge] was also a real moonshot project for us, because we didn't know what this technology would make possible for us."

The genesis of the 3D-printed bridge was unconventional to say the least. In 2004, Joris Laarman founded a design lab in Amsterdam and began experimenting with various materials and applications for various technologies. Much of Laarman's work looked to natural designs for inspiration, but a growing interest in technology led to the development of a six-axis robot that could do large-scale, free-form 3D printing and the founding of MX3D. Whereas traditional 3D-printing takes place inside of a machine, this new type of technology could print in mid-air without conventional limitations.

Laarman and his co-founders first used the new MX3D printers for several experiments before creating a sculpture called The Dragon Bench. This art piece used a combination of metals to create a self-supporting structure that looks a big rusty wave. Dragon Bench sculptures are now in museum collections around the world, but the piece also served as a proof of concept for the much larger, more practical, and more ambitious bridge project.

MX3D didn't quite make it to the proverbial moon on this first attempt. In 2015, Laarman and the team partnered various companies and organisations, namely the American software company Autodesk, and demonstrated their machines' capacity to create a weight-bearing structure on a small scale. They also announced plans to print the full-sized bridge in open air over an Amsterdam canal. The City of Amsterdam hired MX3D to provide a bridge that would replace an existing structure on its canals. According to van der Velden, the project's budget was comparable to what the city would have paid for a traditional bridge with additional funding to come from several sponsors.

"[Amsterdam city officials] have collaborated with us, Arup, and Imperial College London to define a method for evaluating the safety of the bridge as, of course for a novel production like this, there is no standard code," van der Velden explained. "Their open attitude towards such a new and unconventional project was essential to make this project a success."

However, the plan to print the bridge in mid-air later changed. After more deliberation and testing, the team decided to move the 3D-printing process into a large studio space where they had control over the environment and where pedestrians couldn't interfere. The bridge designers also changed the blueprints pretty significantly. Instead of pursuing a form that looked more like a bone structure, they settled on something that looks like two billowing sheets of fabric connected by organic curves of 3D-printed steel. The whole thing looks somehow informed by H.R. Giger and would be right at home in an Alien movie.

What's especially unique about this design is how MX3D decided to leave the surface rather rough. The 3D-printing process involves a robot applying layer-after-layer of steel onto the bridge. This creates a ribbed surface that can be buffed out which makes it look more like traditional steel, but the finished bridge will keep this raw appearance. It actually makes the bridge almost appear to be alive.

"If you look at the bridge right now in our workshop it's very strange," Laarman told Gizmodo. "It's a little bit like being in a science fiction story because it looks so different than everything else around. We work in a highly industrial shipyard where everything is geometric in shape, but this bridge doesn't have a single straight line."

The strangeness of the bridge offers a clue into the remarkable possibilities of the technology that helped to create it. While MX3D does have plans to build more bridges - it has several projects already in the pipeline, though none of the plans are concrete - the company also wants to leverage this new process of 3D-printing steel for commercial purposes. In the maritime, aviation, and commercial construction industries, there's often a need to create a single unique piece that requires a cast to be constructed and used only once. The nature of 3D-printing means that pieces like this can be built and customised on the fly at a much lower cost. They can be designed to weigh less, as well, thanks to 3D-modelling software.

One can only imagine what would be possible if MX3D does manage to let loose its team of mobile 3D-printing robots completely. In the engineers' minds, these robots could scale buildings, creating custom facades on the construction site and organic shapes that wouldn't be possible using conventional methods. Lighter components would also make for all kinds of new forms in buildings, designs that we haven't even thought of yet.

But first, the bridge. Commissioned by the city of Amsterdam, the new 3D-printed bridge will be span the Oudezijds Achterburgwal canal where it crosses Stoofsteeg, an alleyway in the red-light district. There's currently a temporary bridge in place, and it's not hard to see how the MX3D-built structure will be a huge improvement.

The future location of the MX3D bridge over the Oudezijds Achterburgwal canal in Amsterdam

All things told, it took MX3D a year to get the bridge into its current condition. The company's engineers will be completing a couple final spirals for either end of the bridge in the north Amsterdam studio over the next six months, as it conducts a series of tests in partnership with Arup and Imperial College London. In the meantime, the city of Amsterdam will be renovating the walls of the 15th-century canals around the Oudezijds Achterburgwal canal. The bridge's final installation will take place once those improvements are completed. And as far as MX3D is concerned, this is only the beginning.

"When the bridge came in, even I started believe myself and my stories about how great this technology is - instantly," said van der Velden. "It's such a massive structure that immediately, even if you're not a technician or someone who's been playing around with this tech for years, you can see that steel objects are going to change drastically in the coming years."

Amsterdam is the place to watch for these big changes, too. There's already a partially 3D-printed bridge near Amsterdam in the village of Gemert, though the concrete block design is rudimentary compared to the MX3D bridge. Meanwhile, not far from MX3D's studio, a consortium of architects are working on 3D-printing an entire canal house. As is the case with many large-scale 3D-printing projects, it's unclear how far along they are.

So many of these ambitious and futuristic 3D-printing projects fail to make it further than the headline-grabbing concept stage. We've seen the world's largest free-form 3D printer create beams for home construction in Tennessee. We've seen a Chinese company 3D print ten houses in a single day. There are countless large-scale 3D-printing experiments out in the world but still so few real things that real people use.

But so far, it looks like MX3D is the exception. These designers and engineers actually 3D-printed a bridge. They stood on it, walked across it, took pictures with it. The 3D-printed bridge is a real thing.

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THE ART OF KATHRIN LONGHURST

Kathrin Longhurst is an artist born behind the Iron Curtain in East Berlin in 1971, she started art classes at 14, but they were interrupted when she escaped with her family to Sweden at the age of 15.

After traveling widely throughout Europe, Asia and America, Kathrin settled in Sydney and pursued her passion for painting – frequently using the muse of the Soviet propaganda posters that were a common sight during her early years.

“Propaganda is all around us. It’s not specific to a period of time, a country or a regime… it’s everywhere” – Kathrin Longhurst

Since settling in Australia Kathrin has become a respected member of the Australian arts community, she served as vice president for Portrait Artists Australia and is currently founder and director of the innovative Project 504, an art space that fosters collaboration between emerging and established Australian artists.

She’s been a finalist in numerous awards including the prestigious 2012 Sulman Prize, the Mosman Art Prize, the Portia Geach Award, the Shirley Hannan National Portrait Prize, the Korea Australia Arts Foundation Prize and the WA Black Swan Prize. Her work is now collected widely in Australia and internationally.

See more of her work via her website here: 

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WHITE DESERT ANTARCTIC ADVENTURES

Measuring up at 5.4 million square miles, Antartica is the only continent completely devoid of human civilization (but for a smattering of small outposts). It’s also one of the most untouched and remote landscapes in the world. But don’t take our word for it – see it for yourself with White Desert’s Antarctic Adventures.

Out of Cape Town, South Africa, White Desert might be the most luxurious way to experience that frozen expanse of land around the South Pole. It starts with a private plane flight to the company’s outpost – a series of domed structures that betray the ostentatious accommodations within. From the base, you can choose from a series of adventures that include glacier walks, ice cave exploration, ice climbing, a visit to the south pole, and you can even get up close and personal with a colony of emperor penguins. Get in touch with White Desert for information on the pricing and availability of this once in a lifetime experience.

 

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BUFFALO TRACE WELLER C.Y.P.B. BOURBON

In congruence with a “customer is always right” philosophy, Buffalo Trace Distillery requested a bit of help from their loyal fanbase in the form of crafting an ideal bourbon. In doing so, they reworked the website accordingly and fielded opinions from more than 100,000 whiskey-drinkers. What resulted from those efforts is the Weller wheat bourbon you now see before you.

Aptly dubbed, Weller CYPB (shorthand for Craft Your Perfect Bourbon) the 95-proof wheat bourbon is now slated for production as part of a yearly special one-off release. However, just because this is a yearly release doesn’t mean CYPB will be readily available for the distillery plans on producing only a very limited quantity. Needless to say, it’s forecasted MSRP of $40 will certainly be much higher once the rare release hits the market this summer. Best stay up to date on this one to ensure a bottle of your very own.

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AURORA STATION SPACE HOTEL

There are lots of companies trying to get people into space in the near future. Very few are offering somewhere to go when you get there. The Aurora Station Space Hotel aims to fix that. This low-orbit space station is shooting for a 2021 launch to orbit and a 2022 opening. It will welcome up to four guests at a time for 12-day stays, with two crew members available to handle requests. Interested guests can expect to undergo a three-month training program before launch, with both that and transportation to and from the "hotel" included in the price. Book from 9.5 MIL

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GRAN HOTEL MANZANA KEMPINSKI LA HABANA

Now that relations are starting to improve with Cuba, so are the accommodations. Gran Hotel Manzana Kempinski La Habana has beaten everyone to the punch by becoming the island nation's first 5-star hotel. Located in Old Havana, the resort is housed in a 100-year old European-style shopping arcade. The 246 guestrooms overlook the historic city while some even offer balconies. The rooftop is a hub for activities offering a pool and a restaurant with expansive views of the Capitol and the Great Theater of Havana. But the main attraction is their tobacco lounge which pairs the country's two specialties — cigars and rum.

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LOST ABBEY RED POPPY BEER

Inspired by the state flower of California, Red Poppy has been a staple in the Lost Abbey line for years. The Flander's Red Ale style is made using sour cherries and then aged in oak barrels for more than a year. It's tart, full of fruit flavor, and a little bit funky. One of the best sour beers brewed each year; Red Poppy is finished at 6.5% in these 375ml corked and caged bottles.

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Bud Light Now Comes in Orange Just in Time for Summer

One of these days, it'll stop snowing, the sun will come out, and you'll want to drink a shitty light beer that tastes like summer in a bottle. Good news for you, Bud Light just released a new citrus-flavored beer: Bud Light Orange, available now through September.

Bud Light Orange is brewed with real orange peels for a "clean and crisp taste that highlights natural citrus flavors," according to a press release. It has 142 calories—more than Bud Light and Bud Light Lime, for those keeping score at home.

Orange flavoring is one of the blossoming new beer flavors. It started with Blue Moon's orange-tinted (and garnished) Belgian wheat ale, which remains one of the most popular brews in the country. There has also been a mini-explosion of blood orange-flavored craft beers, especially IPAs, in the past few years. Now, the biggest beer guys in the game are throwing their hat into the ring.

So on those sweaty summer days when regular Bud Light tastes too regular and Bud Light Lime tastes too sour, go for orange. Sometimes, that sorta flavored fruit lager just hits the spot.

As for me... I prefer real beer  

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An Adventurer is Donating His Amputated Toes to a Canadian Bar’s "Sourtoe Cocktail"

Britain’s Nick Griffiths lost three toes to frostbite he developed while participating in the Yukon Arctic Ultra, an ultra marathon that finds racers making their way across hundreds of miles of snow in temperatures that go as low as -40 degrees Fahrenheit. But Griffiths has decided to accentuate the positive, and is donating his toes to help keep a Canadian tradition alive: Dawson City Downtown Hotel’s Sourtoe Cocktail.

The Yukon hotel’s bar has been serving up shots of whiskey garnished with a human toe since the ‘70s. The original toe came from a frostbitten 1920s rumrunner, but as the cocktail became famous the bar has received donations like Griffiths'. According to the CBC, there’s one rule to drinking the concotion: "You can drink it fast. You can drink it slow. But your lips must touch that gnarly toe.”

In 2013, one drinker purposely swallowed a toe, and last year a brief manhunt was launched after a thief absconded with another. (He called the hotel to apologize, and mailed the toe back.) Griffiths’ generosity means that the bar will have toes to spare, should future mischief-makers strike.

Despite the fact that this is possibly the grossest thing that ever happens on the planet, the combination of the whiskey and the salt that the toes are preserved in apparently makes cocktail safe enough to drink.

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First ‘The Meg’ Trailer Pits Jason Statham vs a Giant Shark

Warner Bros. has revealed the first trailer for the new action thriller The Meg, and it’s an absolute blast. The new action thriller stars Jason Statham as a navy captain and rescue diver hired to face down a prehistoric shark and save a team of scientist trapped at the bottom of the sea, and from the looks of this trailer this movie might just deliver on every delightful element of that premise.

Comes out in August 2018

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NINTENDO SUPER FAMICOM LIGHT GUN CONCEPT

One of the best things Nintendo did with their first home console was release the NES Zapper – the gun used to play the fascinatingly frustrating game, Duck Hunt. Unfortunately, when the Super NES came out years later, its light gun peripheral (the Super Scope) was a hulkingly ugly ill-performing bazooka by comparison. If only it had been more like this Famigun concept by digital artist and designer, Alan Williams.

For those not in the know, Super Famicom is the Japan-only version of the SNES console and was, arguably, better styled than the American release. And the Famigun concept takes its cues right from the Japanese release – albeit with a much more aggressive industrial edge. We know what you’re thinking: isn’t it a little too late to come out with a peripheral for a long-dead console? Well, with all the retro hype and official Nintendo rereleases, we say it’s never too late to give the fans what they want – and what we want is this.

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Welsh Mountain Rolltop

Handcrafting leather goods for the equestrian industry for three generations, the Smucker family have now applied their love and knowledge of leather to craft products anyone could use. Welsh Mtn Co. was born with an almost fanatical obsession with quality, as you can see on their backpack, a bag designed and built to last for generations. The Welsh Mountain Rolltop is crafted from a 5-ounce double tanned Latino leather (a material that ages beautifully) and features interior and exterior pockets for convenient access to your gear. 

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Victorinox Inox Carbon

Victorinox Swiss Army first announced the INOX line three years ago, they have now added some more models to the rugged sports watch family. This limited edition has all the familiar INOX watch features everyone loves, such as the faceted face and case, a sandblasted finish, a reliable Swiss quartz movement, and water resistance to 200 meters, however, this limited edition has been upgraded with a space-tested carbon case that´s highly resistant to scratches, and comes with an exclusive bumper with a removable and USB rechargeable torch, plus an innovative handwoven survival paracord strap dyed in international safety orange. Every rugged timepiece is individually numbered (limited to 1,200 pieces) and comes in a shockproof box with an additional orange rubber strap, a special edition spartan camouflage knife and the flashlight bumper.