Posts Written by Paul Strauss

A Möbius strip is a twisted object that loops back onto itself, so it has only a single side. Brandon from Inheritance Machining shows us how he made a similarly perplexing object out of a single block of steel. Like the strip, his Möbius cube has one continuous side, but it was far more complicated to engineer and craft than its source of inspiration.

In 1987, Disney Imagineering teamed up with George Lucas to create Star Tours. The Star Wars-inspired thrill ride took passengers on a misdirected flight to Endor. While it’s not the same without the motion simulator, it’s still fun to see this digital remaster of the 70mm film that was created for the ride. A new version of the ride has more than 250 story variations.

These handsome and substantial dopp kits from Capra are made from full-grain leather. They have a water-resistant lining premium YKK zippers and are assembled with Italian waxed thread. The compact and large sizes have a top divided section and interior zippers. They come in dark brown (shown), black, green, navy, and tan.

It’s easy to find an original Apple Macintosh on eBay, but it’ll look used. Kevin Noki built a new replica of Apple’s 1984 computer from scratch. He started by measuring the case from a Macintosh Plus, modeling its parts, then outputting them on a 3D printer. Inside, it runs a Linux thin client running a modified version of the Mini vMac emulator.

We don’t know much about this new Netflix series from the writer of The End of the F*cking World, but we now know it stars Jeff Goldblum as a modern-day Zeus, king of the gods. Goldblum’s version of the mythological god wears a tracksuit and gold-rimmed sunglasses and is about to face the biggest threat to his power.

Give your beard the good treatment it deserves with Whisker Sauce from Grooming Lounge. This beard conditioner helps keep facial hair smooth and soft and moisturizes skin to stop itchiness and flaking. Ingredients include avocado oil for soft skin, lime oil for its shine and fragrance, and panthenol to soften hair and prevent split ends.

This adjustable keychain organizer from Rossm keeps two to six keys neatly stacked and stops them from jingling in your pocket. Its body is made from metal, covered with forged carbon plates. It can also carry a car key fob on its bottom ring and comes with a removable pocket clip. It also comes in forged emerald, forged ruby, and forged sapphire.

Kia’s three-row EV9 GT-Line AWD is the best overall vehicle we’ve driven in the past 12 months. It looks spectacular, has a spacious and comfortable cabin, packs the latest technology – oh, and it accelerates as quickly as a sports car. With concept car styling, luxury appointments, solid driving range, and fast charging, it’s as good as electric vehicles get.

Director George Miller returns to the wasteland with a prequel to Mad Max: Fury Road. The captivating Anya Taylor-Joy plays a young Furiosa, and Chris Hemsworth portrays her captor, the evil Warlord Dementus. As he battles Immortan Joe for supremacy, Furiosa turns up the jets to fight her way home. In theaters 5.24.24.

Jonny Builds shows off another impressive piece of furniture – a record cabinet with a segmented wood door. He started by assembling grain-matched panels for the top, bottom, and dividers. To make the door, he took an 8-foot-long black walnut slab, cut it into boards, sliced it into 109 strips, glued them to canvas, and CNC milled the awesomely wavy shapes.

TUMI offers a modern spin on classic aluminum luggage. Each of these 19 Degree bags has an aircraft-grade aluminum shell stamped with a dynamic pattern at a 19º angle. Models include continental, international, and compact carry-ons, an extended trip case, a backpack, a rolling trunk, and a briefcase. The bags come in silver, black, blue, green, and rose.

This mini flashlight from Lumintop is a great addition to any keychain. It outputs up to 570 lumens with a visible beam distance of 135 meters (~442 feet). It comes with a rechargeable 10180 battery and either a neutral white or cold white light source. An optional bundle includes an aluminum extension tube and a more powerful 10440 battery.

Steve Martin has been making people laugh since the 1970s. This two-part documentary from Academy Award winner Morgan Neville starts looking at Steve’s early struggles and rise to fame as a standup comedian and movie star, then shifts focus to his rich and satisfying later years as an actor, artist, musician, and writer. Coming to Apple TV+ 3.29.2024.

Mixing Diet Coke and Mentos can have explosive results. JLaservideo wanted to see if he could harness that fizzy energy on a larger scale to lift himself off the ground. After watching others fail miserably or cheat with other ingredients, he did some experimentation and engineered a homebrew jet pack that runs on the stuff.

Writer G. T. Karber is the mastermind behind Murdle, a series of logic puzzles that challenge amateur sleuths to solve murder mysteries. You’ll need to suss out the suspects, identify what weapon they used, and where they committed their evil deeds.  Volume 1 and Volume 2 are out now, with Volume 3 pre-orders shipping in April 2024.

From A to Z, every letter in the English language has a story behind its shape. Language expert Olly Richards digs into the origins of all 26 letters we use today, including how “E” started as a little dude with his hands in the air and how “H” was a fence flipped on its side.

Got a wry sense of humor? Get a Whiff makes delightfully fragrant candles with names like Sage Against the Machine, A Mustache, a Pipe, and Pretentious Behavior, and Let’s Snort Some Lavender. Each glass is filled with a hand-poured coconut wax blend with a mix of heady aromas to match its name. They also come in smaller tins and amber jars.

LOL, ROFL, LMFAO, I’M DEAD. These are the kinds of silly shorthand we text each other all the time. LAMAR + NIK’s short comedy film looks at the real-world consequences of texting things we don’t literally mean. This is as close as you’re gonna get to a behind-the-scenes video.

MecArmy’s miniature compass is small enough to wear as a pendant, on your keychain, or attached to a bag. It features a high-sensitivity movement with an anti-magnetic bearing and glow-in-the-dark markings and comes in copper, brass, or TC4 titanium for $10 extra. Measures 1.48″ L x 0.925″ W x 0.51″ H.

As part of the SKYGLOW project, filmmaker Gavin Heffernan captured this time-lapse footage in and around California’s Joshua Tree National Park. As the sun set over the desert, clouds rolled in, and the stars peeped out, creating an awe-inspiring light show during the recent Wolf Moon.

This fast-paced arcade game asks players to control a flower and a wasp to fight off various enemies in their otherworldly ecosystem. Caleb Wood, one of the concept artists behind the exceptional sci-fi series Scavenger’s Reign, created the game. It’s out now on Steam for Windows and supports single-player and local co-op modes.

A gravity well is a cone-shaped device that pulls marbles or other small balls into its center like a vortex. JBV Creative built a version of a gravity well connected to an elevator, so as spheres drop through its middle, they head back up to the top and start their journey all over again. It’s incredibly satisfying once he drops thousands of steel balls into it.

This impressive drinking vessel is like the Mjolnir of mugs. Weighing 22 pounds (or 10 kg for metric folks), it’s machined from stainless steel with thick walls and a welded-on knurled handle that won’t let you down. Despite its heft, it only has a 13.5 oz. capacity. Each is handcrafted, so there’s about a two-month lead time for orders.