toys

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Time-waster of the day: Carve a cyber-pumpkin!

For anyone who needs help slicing and dicing their orange gourds this Halloween season, you can get all the jack-o-lantern practice you need at the game garage. Just use your mouse to plan out your perfect pumpkin, slashing through the mock-up in freehand or straight lines. And don't be scared to experiment! The game also comes with an "undo" button which, after witnessing some of my previous Halloween carvings, would be pretty helpful in real life. Since I didn't actually log-in, I'm not sure if you can... READ ON

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A Coloring Book That Means Business!

I just saw some stills from the Executive Coloring Book, a confusingly out-of-print title from 1961, and figured I simply had to share. If you like the gems below, make sure to view the book in its total hilariousness here. Link thanks to the ever-fantastic... READ ON

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Too Cool

I saw this on Neatorama, and figured it simply had to be posted about"¦ Finally, you can make ice cubes that look like Legos! Unfortunately, I'm guessing it won't really be useful for ice sculpting since the molds can't create corresponding holes on the bottoms of the bricks, but it's still a fine idea. Click here for a better... READ ON

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ENDORSEMENT OF THE DAY: Get some PES!

I stumbled across "The Twisted Films of PES" yesterday, and I was completely mesmerized. PES, or Adam Pesapane as no one calls him, is a stop-motion animator and director who seems to be taking the world by storm. His lovely pieces, which now appear as commercials, are the very definition of viral—things you instantly want to tell your friends about (hence this post!). I first read about his work in this great Print Magazine article, and it's definitely worth reading. In any case,... READ ON

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Use the Force "¦ (and also, the soap and washcloth)

I'm not sure which demographic this appeals to, but iwantoneofthose.com has the perfect gift for people who a) love Star Wars knock-offs, b) love taking baths, and c) love thinking about their Star Wars knock-offs while in the bath. That's right—it's a Darth Vader rubber ducky cleverly titled Duck Fader to avoid any chance of lawsuits. And while I have no real reason to post this, other than the fact that pics of evil/glowing bath toys kind of make me smile, I would like to take... READ ON

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Because I actually am this lazy"¦

I'm the sort of person who would appreciate a butler. Or at least a staff of servants to do everything for me. And since I can't exactly afford that, I tend to buy a lot of electric gadgets to make my life somewhat simpler. I use an electric toothbrush so that I don't have to wiggle my arm during the whole tooth brushing process. I use an electric kettle specifically for tea, because there's no need to bring a microwave into the operation. I even use an electric razor so that I... READ ON

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For the infant who has everything (but hair)

Here at mental_floss, we know a lot of people (our president included) who have recently had babies. May we present the perfect shower gift, from Baby... READ ON

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Not Your Grandma's Ant Farm!

In my mind, ant farms are sort of pegged to the same era of science toys as chemistry sets and DNA snap-tite models (the kind endorsed by Watson and Crick!). They're all mythical kids' toys I've heard of, but never really got to enjoy. I guess that's why I'm happy to see that the ant farm is making a comeback (this time without Uncle Milton). The modern version from AntWorks uses a gorgeous blue gel created by NASA that glows when you plug in the frame. The substance acts as both habitat and food for your... READ ON

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M. C. Escher Block Party!

I'm still kind of stunned by this, but check out Andrew Lipson and Daniel Shui's recreation of the famous M. C. Escher drawing, Relativity. They've got some pretty fantastic photos of how they constructed the thing here. Oh, and because I can't resist dropping facts, I read this on Wikipedia about the LegoÂ® company: "The Lego group is the largest tire manufacturer in the world, producing over 300 million minature tires each... READ ON

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Rubber Bandits

According to Backyard Artillery, this insane, hand-crafted rubber band gun is the only "fully automatic machine gun that's legal in all 50 states!" And while it probably won't be very useful in say, robbing a bank or invading a small country, it'll definitely wow all the 10-year olds in your neighborhood. Designed to work like an old Gatling Gun, the shooter comes equipped with 12 rotating barrels and a live action trigger, and it can shoot off 144 rubber bands in a row.... READ ON