Awesome Etc

This Child’s Play ’08 tee is simple, yet powerful: proceeds go to the Child’s Play charity, which buys toys, video games and books for children’s hospitals around the world. Thanks, Matt!

It’s stuff like this machine gun-equipped Ripsaw MS1 UGV that makes us fear the inevitable robot rebellion, but for now it’s fun to watch it tear through terrain like tissue paper.

Colombian Mario Langer has a thing for robots; his junkbots seem to be made from all manner of salvaged components, including mouses, webcams, suction cups and alligator clips.

Last night’s The Daily Show has John Oliver taking on the Mumbai terrorists; while we don’t want to make light of the tragedy, he really sums up how we feel about those motherf***ers.

Never egg on a man with a gun: The Last Eggtion Hero is a sticky, yolk-stained mix of Aeon Flux, Mirror’s Edge and The Matrix; roosters everywhere are understandably mortified.

Al Seckel’s Levitating Water Machine appears to float water droplets in midair, but actually uses a timed strobe light; we expect to see this in hotel lobbies and trendy restaurants soon.

The Simpsons’ penchant for cultural relevance shines as bright as an Apple store in yesterday’s Mypods and Boomsticks episode; it’s brimming with “Mapple” and “Steve Mobs” in-jokes.

Binary Bonsai’s Michael Heilemann has uploaded a tibanna mine of 500 behind the scenes Star Wars photos; they include on-set shots, matte paintings, starship models and costumes.

It’s no secret the folks at the International Space Station have the best scenic views on (and off) the planet; check out this spectacular aurora borealis footage shot by Donald R. Pettit.

With oversized monster trucks, garishly painted cars and wanton destruction, the video above definitively shows that demolition derbies + tilt-shift = a match made in heaven.

Shane Acker’s critically acclaimed short film, 9, has signed up Elijah Wood for the lead animated role; it’s also being produced by Tim Burton. If you missed the original short, check it out above.

We thought HAL 9000 was pretty cool, but this papercraft model of Hellboy’s Good Samaritan is ridiculously detailed, down to the hammer, cylinder and bullets. Thanks, Matthew!

With faint echoes of The Beatles’ Yellow Submarine, we’re really liking The Boxing Lesson’s Dark Side of the Moog; trippy psychedelic visuals and interstellar trekkin’ = tasty eyecandy.

No matter your politics, it’s tough not to appreciate the overall message and style of Iran: Nation of Bloggers; it’s clearly influenced by Persepolis, albeit with strong cyberpunk overtones.

Professional dancers Del Mak and Tommy Franzen lay the breakdancing smack down on each other with this goofy stop motion video, which mixes slapstick comedy with scary jumpsuits.

Coded in C++ by a 21 y/o Irish Ph.D. student, Skyrails is a social network visualization system; using scripts, it’s heavily customizable and will even take live data. Download it here.

Gijs Gieskes’ Strobo VJ is a funky handmade animation sequencer; it uses a Game Boy camera to record animations, and then syncs them to music using LSDJ (also a GB app).

Plasmic Bricks is a jaw-dropping collection of sculptures by Bryce McGlone, whose biomechanical creations push the limits LEGO art; his most recent piece is based on Giger’s Li II.

We never would have thought the stoplight needed a makeover, but Art Lebedev’s Luxofor concept makes sense: square lights use space more efficiently and are more noticeable.

Easily the most important invention since the light bulb: avoid sky-high stadium prices by smuggling in brewskies with Beer Belly, which when hidden under your shirt looks like its namesake.

BASE jumpers may be clinically insane, but we have to give props to this duo who jumped off the Burj Dubai (the world’s tallest building); the actual jump at 4:30 is breathtaking.

Guy dancing alone = goofy. People around the world dancing with him, from Chicago to Paris to the West Bank = awesome. The human spirit wins out huge on this gloriously sharp HD video.

Dave, let me sing dance for you: papercraft isn’t usually our thing, but Shunichi Makin’s HAL 9000 templates not only look good but feature fairly complex legs that can swivel and kick.