cats

They tell us not to drive Hummers.

They tell us to disconnect our cell phone chargers, once our cell phones are juiced. They tell us to switch off our laptops, burn candles rather than electric light, and sail boats rather than fly planes.

But do they ever tell us to wean ourselves off the animals that we cynically use as substitutes for our failed relationships with other humans?

I only ask because an article from the New Scientist has wafted in front of my breakfast bowl and slapped me about my flappy jowls.

Quoting such luminous organizations as the Stockholm Environment Institute at York, UK, … Read more

If you can't determine the emotional states expressed by this virtual robot, chances are you might be an older adult, according to a study by Georgia Tech.

You might also have trouble serving our future robot overlords. But I digress.

In a rather strange study, researchers in the school's Human Factors and Aging Laboratory tested people's ability to gauge the emotional state of a robot by presenting them with a virtual feline displaying seven emotional states at various levels of intensity: happiness, sadness, anger, fear, surprise, disgust, and neutrality.

The groups consisted of adults between the ages … Read more

If you're the kind of person who melts at the sight of kittens, puppies, and other furry friends, check out iPhoneCalendars.com. The site is home to two dozen animal-themed calendars for iPhone and iPod Touch.

Specifically, these are like small-screen replacements for those month-at-a-glance calendars people traditionally hang on the wall.

Consequently, they're best suited to people who dock their devices at their desks, where the calendar can stay visible throughout the day.

The selections include cats, kittens, puppies, and over a dozen individual dog breeds (from Beagle to Yorkshire Terrier). Coming soon: nonanimal calendars like flowers, … Read more

This is really quite sad.

Citing copyright concerns, YouTube has deleted the audio from a hosted video that depicts the Internet meme "Keyboard Cat" showing up in a vintage TV after-school special and then embedded in the foreground of the '80s-era music video for the song "You Make My Dreams" by pop duo Daryl Hall and John Oates. It was an extremely awesome match, because the musical feline fit into the minimalist Hall & Oates video a little too well.

The audio appears to have been deleted on behalf of music label Warner Music Group. "… Read more

Bing's June bump won't be enough to take significant share from Google according to JP Morgan analysts. Of course, analysts will say anything anyway. And apparently so will we. It's kind of a complaining podcast today, but we do find a shining example of good at the end.

Netflix rises on speculation of Amazon.com buyout

Verizon to start it's own app store http://gigaom.com/2009/07/13/verizon-to-mobile-developers-can-you-hear-me-now/ http://www.engadget.com/2009/07/13/verizon-to-its-smartphones-thou-shalt-have-no-other-app-store-b/

RIM Launching A BlackBerry social network … Read more

We take a walk on the virtual side in today's Gadgettes. Virtual reality museums, robotic kittens, and fusion in your pocket!

Household gadgets we’d like to see

A propos (of) nothing Vroom: Surf the Web with a Ford GT

It's About Time Eris Planetary Sphere watch goes anywhere but the wrist

Pink Watch Juicy Couture goes geeky

Tool Time Ript Fusion body-shaping undershirt (thanks, Sam!)

Reverse Gender Gap Ostrich three in one chair for sunbathing bookworms

BlingRX Russel Hobbs RHG2TSW crystal encrusted bling toaster (thanks, Colleen!)

Kill Me Fantasy coach bed for the budding superiority complex… Read more

Keyboard cat is a full-fledged phenomenon. Even my mom knows about it, and I wasn't the one to tell her (Stephen Colbert was).

The meme stems from a lovable costumed feline whose owner gets it to play a keyboard. By cutting it into any video, it provides a humorous effect, a cross between the "wrap up your acceptance speech" music at the Academy Awards, and the large hooks they used to use to drag off actors in vaudeville shows.

If you've been itching to create your own Keyboard Cat video, but don't have the software … Read more

Miami-Dade police believe that a dog-loving class clown who joined the "Catch the Cat Killer!" Facebook group may be the alleged cat killer himself, according to a report in the Miami Herald.

The Miami-Dade cat killer had been terrorizing neighborhoods, especially the towns of Palmetto Bay and Cutler Bay, since May 10, when the first two carcasses were found, mutilated in a such a way as to cause maximum horror for whoever discovered them.

The man police arrested on suspicion of the crimes, 18-year-old Tyler Hayes Weinman, is known as a "dog-loving class clown and a swim … Read more

While some of you might think of the "Blender Defender" as mean, I don't. Animals kept as pets need to learn the rules. Cats and dogs, though, are notorious for deciding the rules don't apply when we, the owners, are away.

That is why one clever soul rigged up a blender filled with water to a motion-activated wireless Webcam aimed at the house plants his cat liked to nibble. When the cat would enter the frame, a networked upstairs computer would activate the water-filled blender--and a strobe light next to it--via an X10 wireless home automation module. … Read more