Tuesday, November 30, 2010

picture of the day

cigarette cards, animal studies. 1932-1934. more here.
cigarette cards were little collectible/trade-able cards packaged with packs of cigarettes. they featured a plethora of different subjects ranging from celebrities, war heroes, world monuments, general factoids and simple "how to" or "did you know" tips. there is an incredible archive featuring thousands of these entertaining images through the NYPL Digital Gallery.

Monday, November 29, 2010

Wednesday, November 17, 2010

picture of they day

the baby cage, 1937.

Built in 1937 and distributed in London to members of the Chelsea Baby Club, the baby cage was meant for women with children but without a backyard, garden or terrace for them to play in or on.

Suspended from the side of the building, the baby would have access to fresh air and sunlight through the cage's wire frame, and still have sufficient room to play with toys, according to a patentfiled in 1922 by an Emma Read of Spokane, WA. The patent also notes that the cage could double as a place to sleep, with removable curtains working to prevent a draft.

more here.

Friday, November 12, 2010

picture of the day

The Radio Robot Mk 2, AKA Radio Man was the brain child of Swiss engineer August Huber. It not only had microphone ears, leg-mounted batteries, and shortwave control, but it is indisputably the first robot in history to be able to yodel. Radio Man was featured in the April 1939 issue of Popular Science. He’s 7 feet tall and took 10 years to complete. It supposedly could walk, talk, sing, or yodel at his master’s command.

Tuesday, November 9, 2010

picture of the day

image found via national wild turkey federation.

last night in my dream i was wandering around downtown cleveland looking for my car (eventually found it in the middle of a restaurant with people seated and eating all around it. had no idea how it got in there.) there will little man-made ponds along the sidewalk that had giant turkeys swimming around in them.

click to see this image bigger. they are insane looking.

this was found here.

Thursday, November 4, 2010