Laughing Squid

• 'Rewind the Future', A Powerful Anti-Obesity Video Tracing a Man's Life From a Heart Attack to His Unhealthy Youth
• Alternative Covers for 'Harry Potter' Books Imagining the Iconic Wizard's Middle-Aged Life
• 'Foodie', A Hilarious Music Video about New York City Foodies Featuring Jelly D, Ashkon, and Daveed Diggs
• Researchers Develop Algorithm to Turn Erratic First-Person Footage Into Smooth Hyperlapse Videos
• Some of the Best Stan Lee Cameos in Marvel Films
• First 'Better Call Saul' Short Teaser Reveals That the Series Will Premiere in February 2015
• SwivelCard, A Paper Business Card With a USB Drive That Folds Out for Additional Information
• First-Person Video of a Paraglider Sailing Through a Gap Between Two Tall Buildings
• World Yo-Yo Contest Champion Gentry Stein Performs Amazing On-Stage Maneuvers
• 'No One Goes Quietly', The First Official Trailer for the Fifth and Final Season of 'Boardwalk Empire'
• Actress Maisie Williams and Other Teens React to the Television Series 'Saved by the Bell'
• Inventor Demonstrates How to Fill Up Metal Sheets Like a Balloon With a Modified Pressure Washer
• Transforming Origami-Inspired Robot Folds Its Own Legs Into Shape
• Musicless Version of the Video for the Village People's 1978 Song 'Y.M.C.A.' Dubbed Over With Odd Sounds & Vocals
• Cacophonous Video of People Trying Out Instruments at the Times Square Guitar Center

'Rewind the Future', A Powerful Anti-Obesity Video Tracing a Man's Life From a Heart Attack to His Unhealthy Youth

“Rewind the Future” is a powerful anti-obesity video that traces a man’s life in reverse, from his heart attack at age 32 to his childhood where his unhealthy habits began. The video is part of Strong4Life, a childhood wellness campaign by Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta.

via reddit

Alternative Covers for 'Harry Potter' Books Imagining the Iconic Wizard's Middle-Aged Life

The creative folks at Someecards have illustrated an alternative series of covers for Harry Potter books that imagine the iconic wizard’s middle-aged life. There are just some things in the real world that Harry Potter’s powerful magic can’t fix.

images via Happy Place – Someecards

'Foodie', A Hilarious Music Video about New York City Foodies Featuring Jelly D, Ashkon, and Daveed Diggs

“Foodie” is a hilarious music video about the foodie scene in New York City featuring Jelly D, Ashkon, and Daveed Diggs.

Where's my amuse bouche I'm getting' moody, Hold the gluten or I'm shootin' my uzi!

submitted via Laughing Squid Tips

Researchers Develop Algorithm to Turn Erratic First-Person Footage Into Smooth Hyperlapse Videos

Three researchers at Microsoft Research (Johannes Kopf, Michael Cohen, and Richard Szeliski) have developed an algorithm that turns erratic first-person footage into smooth hyperlapse videos. The problem, as they put it, is that first-person footage is generally so long that the best way to actually view it is through a time-lapse video, but a time-lapse video further exacerbates the general shakiness and erratic nature of first-person footage. Kopf, Cohen, and Szeliski solve this problem through a complex algorithm that ultimately stitches and blends certain frames into a cohesive whole.

Our algorithm first reconstructs the 3D input camera path as well as dense, per-frame proxy geometries. We then optimize a novel camera path for the output video (shown in red) that is smooth and passes near the input cameras while ensuring that the virtual camera looks in directions that can be rendered well from the input.

More on the algorithm, including a more technical breakdown, is available at Microsoft Research.

via Nuzzel

Some of the Best Stan Lee Cameos in Marvel Films

WatchMojo.com has created a great compilation video that features some of the best Stan Lee cameos in Marvel films. Mr. Lee has been everything from a “mental patient” in Thor: The Dark World to Hugh Hefner in Iron Man.

This legend has captured the imaginations of comic book readers everywhere, and he has a habit of popping up on big screens when least expected.

via Dailymotion, Geeks Are Sexy

First 'Better Call Saul' Short Teaser Reveals That the Series Will Premiere in February 2015

At some point during the weekend of August 9, 2014, the AMC network aired the first teaser for the highly anticipated Breaking Bad spinoff Better Call Saul starring a lushly-maned Bob Odenkirk as the inelegant, slightly seedy attorney Saul Goodman, along with a cast of other familiar faces. The teaser happily revealed that the series will premiere in February 2015.

"Lawyers, we're like health insurance. You hope you never need it, but man oh man, not having it? No.

image via Better Call Saul

video via Samz Rico

via The Guardian

SwivelCard, A Paper Business Card With a USB Drive That Folds Out for Additional Information

SwivelCard is a paper business card by Spokane, Washington-based engineer Andrew DePaula that has a built-in USB drive that folds out, bringing the recipient to a specified website when it’s plugged into a computer. The cards have a limited amount of storage built-in (less than 1MB), but they contain unique IDs that allow the owner to remotely program their destination page. The cards also offer up analytics to help track how effectively they're working. The card’s creators are currently seeking funding on Kickstarter.

images via swivelCard

via Gizmodo

First-Person Video of a Paraglider Sailing Through a Gap Between Two Tall Buildings

Paraglider Derek Dutton captured some jaw-dropping first-person video of him jumping off a hill, maneuvering his paraglider incredibly close to the ground, sailing between a pair of tall buildings, and ultimately landing safely on a freshly manicured lawn.

via reddit

World Yo-Yo Contest Champion Gentry Stein Performs Amazing On-Stage Maneuvers

Hong Kong company C3yoyodesign captured video of California yo-yo expert Gentry Stein performing some truly impressive maneuvers on stage at the World Yo-Yo Contest in Prague, which would help him go on to secure top prize in the competition.

via YoYoNews, Gizmodo

'No One Goes Quietly', The First Official Trailer for the Fifth and Final Season of 'Boardwalk Empire'

HBO has released the first official trailer for the fifth and final season of Boardwalk Empire, a series that focuses on the travails of Atlantic City bootlegger Enoch “Nucky” Thompson during the dry years of Prohibition in early 20th century.

HBO also provided a look behind-the-scenes of Season 5.

Actress Maisie Williams and Other Teens React to the Television Series 'Saved by the Bell'

In the latest episode of their Teens React series, Benny and Rafi Fine of The Fine Brothers show Game of Thrones actress Maisie Williams and other teenagers the television series Saved by the Bell that aired from 1989 to 1993. The lighthearted comedic sitcom is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year.

submitted via Laughing Squid Tips

Inventor Demonstrates How to Fill Up Metal Sheets Like a Balloon With a Modified Pressure Washer

British inventor Colin Furze demonstrates how to transform sheets of metal through hydroforming by using a pressure washer to fill them up like a water balloon. Furze makes all sorts of interesting shapes, including a cone used to amplify the engine sounds of a riding mower and a square resembling a small metal pillow.

We've kind of made…a metal pillow… Check that out, ladies. It's quite cool. I don't know what you'd use it for, but…

We’ve previously written about Furze and his projects, including a pair of automatically extending Wolverine claws.

Transforming Origami-Inspired Robot Folds Its Own Legs Into Shape

A team of engineering students at Harvard University's Wyss Institute, in collaboration with MIT, have created a robot that is capable of folding its own printed polystyrene legs. The goal of the origami-inspired machine is to create future robots that can put themselves together, without the need for additional experts.

One of the elements of this bigger picture vision that we're pushing together with our collaborators at MIT is to have a complex robot do something useful, yet not have it be assembled by experts. It just assembles itself.

The Wyss Institute has a sped-up video of the robot getting itself together. The full process takes about four-and-a-half minutes from the start of the folding to a completed, walking robot.

image via MIT

via Science, MIT, IEEE Spectrum

Musicless Version of the Video for the Village People's 1978 Song 'Y.M.C.A.' Dubbed Over With Odd Sounds & Vocals

Mario Wienerroither recently stripped all of the upbeat music out of the video for the Village People‘s classic 1978 song “Y.M.C.A.” and dubbed over the remnants with all sorts of odd sounds and vocals. We’ve previously written about Wienerroither and his ongoing series of musicless music videos.

The original music video for comparison:

Cacophonous Video of People Trying Out Instruments at the Times Square Guitar Center

A roomful of guitar players noodle around with instruments at the newly opened Times Square Guitar Center location in Manhattan in an extremely noisy video uploaded by YouTube user Chodorovski, who describes the clip as "36 seconds of hell on Earth."

via reddit

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