Awesome Awesome

Daniel McKee spent six months digging through every crack and crevice of Instagram in search of images that mimic the look, subject matter, and/or expression of emoji. In the end, he dug up 817 of them. We think he did a smashing job, don’t you?

Roboticist Dr. Guero has created an AI-driven humanoid which can not only dance solo, it can waltz with a partner. He’s previously taught it to ride a bicycle, walk on a rocky beach, drag heavy objects, and walk just like us.

A group of whale watchers were off the coast of Monterey, California when they spotted just what they were looking for – a humpback whale breaching the water. They also got some bonus footage of the kayak that the beast capsized.

If you thought that scratching tracks on turntables was old school, check out this 1991 footage of Latvian DJ Modris “Mr. Tape” Skaistkalns mixing tracks using a pair of tape decks as his medium. So when is reel-to-reel going to become a hipster trend?

We’re short of breath just watching as Jimmy Chin and Conrad Anker as they provide a guided tour of their 24-square-foot tent camp, a stop along their journey about 20,000 feet up on India’s Mount Meru. From the thrilling documentary MERU.

Chicago arcade cabinet builder Jason Camberis created this gargantuan 14 foot-tall machine to bring back memories of how it felt to reach up to the controls on arcade machines when he was growing up. The record-breaking machine plays games from a variety of consoles too.

Downhill longboarder Zak Maytum takes to a steep stretch of highway in Colorado. We’re not sure if we’re more impressed with his facemelting near-70mph speeds, or the fact that he managed to stay on the board for the entire run.

Dan Siskind of Brickmania has spent countless hours (and dollars) building a 25.5 foot long, historically-accurate model of U.S. Navy vessel the USS Missouri from over 1,000,000 LEGO pieces. More on Flickr. (Thanks Orion!)

This over-the-top custom 4×4 has an incredibly articulate suspension, which allows it to crawl and drive over just about any terrain, including wildly irregular surfaces. Under the hood is a 5.0 V8 from a 1993 Ford Mustang.

These surfboards pack electric engines that push out a jet of water, allowing surfers to negotiate rivers, channels, lakes and other still bodies of water without the need for waves. The Carver is for fast action, while the Manta is for cruising.

Hero Design has created what could best be described as the world’s largest (and best) Lite-Brite. The wall-mounted grid is loaded with RGB LED dots which can be set to any color by simply turning them. Shut up and take our money.

Modder Matt Gruskin took one of those 1980’s Fisher Price cassette players and transformed it into a Bluetooth speaker for his iPhone. With the help of his mechanical and electronic knowhow, the buttons and volume know even work.

Cool footage of a Polish Air Force MiG-29 fighter jet as it lifts off from a runway, then proceeds to go straight up into the air. We can only imagine what it must be like to be in the cockpit of this impromptu rocket ship.

The King of Random shows off another cool DIY project in which he creates a styrofoam model of an object, and transforms it into a wonderful solid aluminum sculpture using sand-casting to replace the foam with molten metal.

Video of Marines from the 3rd Marine Logistics Group, 9th Engineer Support Battalion showing how they breach a concrete wall, standing their ground against the explosive charge, protected only by a ballistic blanket and each other.

Singapore’s The Saber Authority teaches attendees of its workshops how to properly wield (or dual-wield) and use a lightsaber against an opponent. Rental sabers are provided for classes, but you can buy your own fancy blade too.