Nobody: Running For Keene, NH Mayor
Did anybody vote for Nobody?
The Mayor Can’t Be Here, But Would You Like A Selfie With His Cardboard Cutout? (Cool Weird Awesome 147)
When the residents of Pichuclaco, Chiapas, Mexico took part in a public health event, they didn't get to meet Mayor Moisés Aguilar Torres - at least not the real him. But they did get to see, and take pictures with, a cardboard cutout of the mayor. Plus: remember that time the people of New England went bonkers and stole hundreds of cardboard David Hasselhoffs?
This High-Tech Sleeve Could Save A Pitcher’s Arm (Cool Weird Awesome 146)
Sports tech company Motus Global has developed a high-tech compression sleeve for pitchers. It senses the movement of each pitch and determines how much strain the throws put on the arm, to help avoid injuries. Plus: the story of old-timey pitcher "Phenomenal" Smith, who, it's said, could have used a different kind of smarts in dealing with his teammates.
How The Tree That Owns Itself Came To Own Itself (Cool Weird Awesome 145)
Today we pay a visit to Athens, Georgia, where you’ll find something unusual: The Tree That Owns Itself. Plus: a Japanese design company has created a 3D-printed bonsai, which you can prune once and looks the way you want forever... as long as you don't mind that it's not an actual tree.
What It Sounds Like When Bats Bicker (Cool Weird Awesome 144)
Egyptian fruit bats are known to make a lot of noise while they’re roosting. Scientists at Tel Aviv University have determined that a lot of that noise is bats getting annoyed at other bats.
Here’s A Shirt That Can Feel Sound (Cool Weird Awesome 143)
The Soundshirt, from high-tech fashion company Cute Circuit, has embedded sensors that can sense sound and turn it into vibrations. In other words, it helps deaf people feel music. And since we're talking about sounds, have you heard the Tiptree Sneeze, where a trombonist let loose in the middle of a concert?
Kiss Is Playing A Concert For Sharks, One Of The Few Things They Haven’t Already Done (Cool Weird Awesome 142)
For decades fans of the band KISS have called themselves the KISS Army. But now that they're set to play a concert off the coast of Australia for human and sharks fans, maybe there’s also a KISS Navy? Plus: in Oklahoma, the annual Honobia Bigfoot Festival is getting underway.
The Trash Can Isn’t Going To Take Itself Out. Oh, Actually Now It Is (Cool Weird Awesome 141)
The Smart Can is a motorized, automated trash bin that will drive itself to the curb every week. Which means it's already more motivated about garbage day than I've ever been. Plus: the pinball festival known as PinBaltimore is getting underway in Maryland.
The 7-10 Split Meets Big Data (Cool Weird Awesome 140)
The 7-10 split is the hardest show in bowling, right? Well, an analysis from 2015 put that to the test - and the results were pretty surprising. Plus: an exhibit at New York's Hall of Science includes more than 100 classic works of art recreated with Legos.
You Can’t Beat Furniture Grown On The Farm (Cool Weird Awesome 139)
Gavin and Alice Munro run a furniture farm in England. That's right, rather than turning trees into lumber and using that to make chairs, tables and sofas, they shape living trees into furniture, to be more sustainable. Plus: today marks 15 years since the city of Melbourne dedicated a street in honor of the band AC/DC.