Cool Hunting
Popular Science's annual "Best of What's New," currently on display in New York's Grand Central Station through this Thursday, 9 November 2006, and will be bringing you the highlights over the next several days.
To kick things off, the winner of the magazine's first-ever top honor, "Innovation of the Year," the Hurriquake, is a tricked-out nail designed to protect homes against damage caused by hurricanes and earthquakes. Engineered to target the common problems of other fasteners that tear apart in high winds and pull through plywood during seismic stresses, the device reportedly provides up to twice the resistance to these natural disasters. Featuring a larger head (with easily identifiable markings for inspectors, homeowners and contractors), angled barbed rings at the bottom, a screw shank that fills voids created the rings, and "shear shank technology" that increases strength at primary stress point and an improved coating that allows nails to be more flush with wood, the increased cost in building an average-size house is a mere $15.
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This week CH highlights our favorite innovations from Popular Science's Best of What's New 2006. Today's pick is the X-Beam Combination Ratcheting Wrench from Gear Wrench. With little more than a twist in the handle, this wrench significantly reduces hand fatigue and increases productivity—the X-Beam's clever design even earned it an Ease-of-Use Commendation from the Arthritis Foundation. Starting at about $12 the X-Beam Gear...
New York-based Esopus hits newsstands only twice a year, but take a peek inside and you'll understand why. With a CD of new music in each issue, specialty papers and a hand-crafted feel, this ad-free magazine of writing and artwork strives to create a place for "unfiltered" and "un-mediated creativity." Yes, please! There's a part of us that wants to give each new issue...
Beautiful/Decay is showcasing the latest in creative media later this month with a symposium that will include Cool Hunting's own as well as Brand New School, a film and animation studio based on both coasts, that will be curating a series of films. This segment will include some of their own work as well as an interesting music unofficial promo video recently released for...
Founded by photographer Zach Gold and stylist Julie Ragolia, Playground is a new bi-annual magazine in the form of limited-edition loose leaf prints. The above images (exclusive to CH, click for detail) are from the first issue, which features handmade works by artists Terence Koh and Stuart Semple, alongside spreads that include designs by the likes of Thom Browne, Lanvin, Surface to Air and...
In our final installment of picks from Popular Science's Best of What's New 2006, we're featuring Stanley's FatMax Xtreme Fubar Demolition Tool, a new four-function tool inspired the way contractors often use hammers for more than just nails. Made from tempered steel, the mega-tool's design includes tiered jaws for bending boards and grabbing lumber, a tempered chisel that can cut and split, and a...
Each day this week CH's bringing you one of our favorite innovations from Popular Science's Best of What's New 2006. Today, we take a look at the Plug and Play Ultrasound Probe System from Direct Medical Systems, an inexpensive ultrasound that plugs directly into a computer via the USB port with motors that can run on five volts of electricity. Priced at around $5,000,...
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