LegendaryLife.com Blog

For 10$US, this special fork, that extends up to 20 inches might just be something to bring to your next camp fire to hold the hot dogs and marshmallows.

Why would you want a telescoping fork?

Well, portability is the main reason why a telescoping cooking utensil would be required but also for safety considerations. There is nothing more frustrating then arriving at a camp site (legal or otherwise) in the middle of the night and trying to find a stick in the forest that is perfect to cooking a quick snack. Having an extensible fork will also save your fingers from burning up when they get too close to the fire flares that come up every so often.

The Bottom Line

Anything that telescopes over a hot fire can’t be bad.

Buzzvia
Telescoping Barbecue Fork

Having used electric, fire and gas in the past to cook a tasty meal… gas is by far the most efficient and cheapest cooking method but Thermador is offering what seems to be a good, though pricey alternative.

Stove tops pluses and negatives

You rarely see a good cook in a kitchen use fire (except for pizza) or electric to prepare a meal, they are simply to slow and not very good at really getting things hot. Maintenance is also an issue, there is nothing simpler then a gas stove top, pipe goes in, distributes the gas and ignite. No moving parts, nothing to break and incredibly flexible. Fire on the other hand is tough to beat when out in the woods but not very practical in modern kitchens, the smoke produced adds flavor but it takes forever to get something going and not being able to control the intensity nor location of the heat source makes cooking anything beyond hot dogs on a stick a very tricky experience. In the middle you have electric, electricity prices are going up (as always) and these traditionally took forever to get to a good temperature and as the flame doesn’t envelope the pans like gas, heat distribution on anything but a flat surface is much to be desired.

The Thermador Experience

Without sounding too much like a commercial, induction heating means the counter top stays relatively cool as only the pan itself gets warm, greatly increasing safety, especially during spills (they happen) and kids running around. As the elements are flat with the surface, cleaning is a breeze and instant temperature changes are possible due to the induction technology. Additionally, these Thermador counter top elements heat-up 50% faster then gas and as the heat is within the pan itself, a far higher efficiency in heat distribution is achieved verses traditional electric or gas.

The Bottom Line

Induction really seems cool but the two thousand dollar price tag is rather steep.

Buzzvia
http://www.thermador.com/product743.html

Sadly, some people just don’t get it and resort to less then honorable means to get some. The spiked drug detector hopes to even the playing field between the predator and his/her prey.

Why is spiking?

Spiking a drink in the traditional sense involves adding a little liquor to an non-alcoholic drink but in the modern sense, spiking refers to adding a date rape drug such as GHB (Gamma Hydroxybutyric Acid) to a drink in order to instantly have your way with a person. Date rape drugs have no smell nor color with little taste.

How would the detector work?

Simply put, the detector would compare the electrical signal produced by different drugs within a drink and give a “present or absent” for the drug in question. Although still in the patent stage, this does hold promise for other applications in the medical and environmental field.

Buzzvia
http://www.medlaunches.com/gadgets/device_to_detect_spike_drinkin.php

Buzzedvia
http://www.newscientist.com/blog/invention/2007/08/spiked-drink-detector.html

As vehicles continue to evolve in the marketplace with airbags and other passive technology to keep everybody safe during a journey, Nissan has decided to launch yet another revolutionary technology aimed squarely at the driver. Using various active and passive sensors around the driver, their new cars will gage whether a person is fit to drive at all! Yes, one day in the very near future, the car you bought might refuse to allow you to drive it because it thinks your sick!

Why is this a good thing?

Well, if somebody is sick or just plain drunk, they shouldn’t be allowed to join the road with the equivalent of a thousand pound missile. Accidents are part of life but this technology (and others like it) will make the road safer for all of us. We have regulators in cars to prevent them from going at excess speeds, we have collision avoidance systems and anti-lock breaks which all make an impact on road deaths… I think the more of these things we have the better.

Who will not like these safety systems?

Well, I can already see the discrimination lawsuits getting ready to take flight. You see, for a 20 year old male, these systems are no problem but for a 90 year old female driver, no matter how much in good shape she is, these systems will certainly lead to the end of their driving career. When a car can decide on it’s own if you are physically and mentally ready to join the road, then those with disabilities or other problems will be relegated to taking the bus or rides with friends. This is not a bad thing, I think the greater good is safe drivers and a machine is about as unbiased a mechanism to decide this… but I am sure the senior and disabilities associations will have problems with the growing control we give to technology to decide our ability to handle them.

The Bottom Line

Safety is as much a communal responsibility as an individual one.

Buzzvia
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/6929931.stm