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Quickly Preserve Fresh Herbs in the Microwave

Dan — Thu, 15 Jan 2015 13:00:18 +0000

I buy and even grow many of our fresh herbs. This technique is great for saving them! From Food and Wine we see

How to Dry Herbs in the Microwave

If you like having fresh herbs around, but can’t use them up before they wilt, use your microwave to quickly dry them.

Lay the fresh herbs on a dry paper towel, then microwave them at 20 second intervals—flip them at every interval until they’re dried. This method is especially useful if you want to dry your herbs quickly so you can store them for future use rather than have them hanging around.

Set up Your Medical ID on your iPhone

Dan — Tue, 13 Jan 2015 13:00:48 +0000

I just did this and it is VERY easy! You should too! AppleInsider gives us simple steps on

How to set up your emergency Medical ID with iOS 8’s new Health app

One of the lesser known — but potentially most important — features of Apple’s newly released iOS 8 mobile operating system is a digital “Medical ID,” which can provide important personal health related information in the event of an emergency.

The Medical ID feature is built in to the new Health application found in iOS 8 for iPhone. Users can configure it by launching Health, tapping the Medical ID menu in the bottom right, and then choosing “Create Medical ID.”

iPhone users with a passcode-locked handset can consider enabling the “Show When Locked” function, providing first responders or anyone else with emergency access to their Medical ID. Enabling this feature allows the Medical ID to be viewed by swiping the lock screen, tapping “Emergency,” and then viewing the digital information.

A user’s Medical ID can be configured with a custom picture and name, date of birth, list of medical conditions, notes, allergies, reactions and medications. It also allows users to display an emergency contact with name, telephone number, and relationship.

The Medical ID also allows users to enter their blood type, height and weight, and whether they are an organ donor. And if someone changes their mind about having such information available from their lock screen, all of the Medical ID information can be deleted via one button at the bottom of the editing page.

After the Medical ID has been created, users can always go back and make changes at any time through the Health app.

Medical ID is just one function of the new Health application in iOS 8, which aims to become a centralized repository for all of a user’s health information, whether input manually or automatically collected through iPhone accessories.

The more advanced Health functions with connected applications and accessories have not yet gone live, as Apple apparently encountered last-minute bugs with its new HealthKit application programming interface tools for developers. Apple abruptly began pulling HealthKit-enabled applications from the App Store last week, alongside the launch of iOS 8, indicating that a formal launch for Health-compatible apps would come at a later date.

For more features and functions in iOS 8, see AppleInsider’s ongoing iOS Tips series.

Supercharge Your Microwave

Dan — Thu, 08 Jan 2015 13:00:34 +0000

Microwave’s are great things. Now here are some interesting ideas to get even more out of that little science box in your kitchen – from MakeUseOf:

You Won’t Believe The Things You Can Do With A Microwave

A microwave is great for certain kinds of foods. For example, when you want to make some frozen pizza rolls, a microwave will do the job very well.But what if you want to make scrambled eggs? A microwave couldn’t possibly do that. You can’t use a microwave to make garlic easy to peel. right? Wrong, your microwave can do all that and more!

Your ZIP Code Tells A Lot

Dan — Tue, 06 Jan 2015 13:00:40 +0000

Wow – so much information just from your ZIP code! Details from Gizmodo to

Find Out What Your ZIP Code Predicts You’ll Buy

Where you live says a lot about you—and nobody knows that better than marketeers. Now, though, you can take a glimpse at what they know, using this searchable map built by software company Esri.

Its Tapestry Segmentation project rolls together demographic data from the Census and marketing data from GfK Mediamark Research & Intelligence to… well, to terrifying effect. The results are sliced and diced into 67 profiles of American market segments, which are shown in percentage terms when you search by ZIP code. You can search for your own in the interactive map below (or on their full site).

Are your surrounded by “Prairie Living,” “Dorms to Diplomas,” “Laptops and Lattes,” “Las Casas,” or some other demographic entirely? Silly names aside, the descriptions will probably cut close to the bone. Go on, give it a try. [Esri via WSJ]

We ARE Living in the Future

Dan — Tue, 30 Dec 2014 13:00:19 +0000

Wow – take a look at this list! BuzzFeed proves with these

22 Pictures That 2014 Is The Future

You know, at least with regard to technology.

1. There’s an app that translates in real time:

Word Lens

2. And a spoon meant to help those with Parkinson’s eat:

Via sadmoment.com

3. There are holograms…on ICE CREAM apps:

Via skunkandburningtires.com

4. And Harry Potter-esque ads in subways:

5. There are digital libraries where one scans a QR code to get the book they want:

Via pinterest.com

6. Astronauts are taking dang selfies in SPACE:

Via howto.funcloud.com

7. All this being done with a green screen:

Via buzzhand.com

…for better or worse.

8. Bathrooms with smart glass that obscures the bathroom when you lock it exist:

Via 9gag.com

9. You know, this happened:

Via yantragyan.com

10. There are doors straight out of any science fiction movie:

Via youtube.com

11. Scientists are making videos out of human memories:

tumblr.com

gallantlab.org

12. Robots are getting more realistic (and creepy) each year:

Via sixpenceee.com

13. We get together like this now:

instagram.com

14. Transparent cars are in development:

Via landrover.com

15. These are all the planets we discovered this year, compared to the previous two decades:

Via universetoday.com

16. I mean, check out this man’s bionic arm at work:

Via spectrum.ieee.org

17. And this bionic hand at work:

Via gizmodo.co.uk

18. There’s a trash can that knows where your trash is headed:

Via wirefresh.com

19. And cities are growing at an alarming rate. Check out Shanghai between 1987 and now:

Via theatlantic.com

20. An Oculus Rift is being used for 3D imaging:

Via bleachlifeandyoutube.tumblr.com

21. Chemicals like this exist to reject liquid:

Via youtube.com

22. And, just a reminder, all this fits in your pocket now:

Via avdawn.com

Folding a gift bag

Dan — Tue, 23 Dec 2014 13:00:46 +0000

Very clever and easy way to wrap that odd sized gift!

Gift Wrapping Hack

Dan — Thu, 18 Dec 2014 13:00:52 +0000

Very cool and just in time for all those gifts! Just a couple of folds and only two pieces of tape!

Tastes of Wine

Dan — Tue, 16 Dec 2014 13:00:40 +0000

These are some cool and easy tools for helping you learn more about wine – from Quora we get this question and answer:

Is there a simple way to explore and learn about the tastes of wine?

Madeline Puckette, Certified Sommelier

Heya!

I’m very interested in this topic and have produced a variety of different visuals to try to help people understand how wine tastes. There are many different ways to visualize wine. Here are a few:

Where a wine lies compared to other wines. The design above I created was derived from a tasting graph seen at Vino Volo

An example of it in action in How to Order Wine Like a Sommelier | Wine Folly

Another visualization is for the standard flavors of each wine variety or blend. Such as:

used in Discover White Bordeaux | Wine Folly

Here is a recent image created for Chardonnay ripeness

used in Chardonnay Wine Guide | Wine Folly

Here is a comparative way to regard a single variety

used in Guide to Merlot Wine Taste, Regions and Food Pairing

Here is a way to visualize location

Used in The Best Pinot Noir Regions in the World | Wine Folly

‘Cloud Island’

Dan — Thu, 11 Dec 2014 13:00:17 +0000

So gorgeous in black and white!

Skíð : ‘Cloud Island’

from Fourth Dimension

Short film shot at the Isle of Skye, Scotland, in June 2014.

In colabaration with Pathgate Institute we produced a series of images to be used in an upcoming remake of the Buddhist film ‘The Life of Guru Rinpoche.’ The film is still in production but this short film showcases a selection of the time lapse photography shots as well as video footage shot from a quadcopter.

For the film, the sequences are being processed in a 3D space so that mountain ranges and sky replacement can be added in order to emulate Tibet and the Himalyan region. This is an ongoing project with more shooting locations being planned.

All shot in Isle of Skye over 5 days in June 2014 except one shot at Red Tarn, Lake District.

Time lapse photography – Jonny Maxfield
Aerial Cinematography – Loday Gonpo
Editor – Jonny Maxfield
Music – Luke Richards – It’s Happening

Beer to Wine Converts

Dan — Tue, 09 Dec 2014 13:00:46 +0000

This is a pretty clever infographic from VinePair for those that are converting!

IF YOU LOVE THIS BEER THEN YOU’LL LOVE THIS WINE

Wines For Beer Drinkers by VinePair