GeekNUZ

Rare White Koala Found In Rural Australia

CUTE. What else can I say?  Apparently the koala, Mick, was found by a police officer in rural Australia.  Mick had a chlamydial eye infection, which has since cleared up with antibiotics, and is now doing well.  Although he may appear to be an albino, he is not.  He is just a rare white koala.  However, like albino koalas, he is more prone to skin cancers due to his lack of pigmentation.  And, yes, human albinos have an increased risk of skin caners as well. Via Guardian Unlimited.

Forbidden City Starbucks Closes Its Doors

Update: A traditional Chinese cafe has now replaced the former Starbucks in the Forbidden City.  It will served traditional Chinese tea, in addition to coffee.  Via BBC.

Did you know that Starbucks has over 200 stores in China?  One of which, opened seven years ago, is located right inside the Forbidden City in Beijing.  Due to protests arguing that the Starbucks brand was trampling on Chinese culture by virtue of its location, Starbucks signage was removed from the store two years ago.  A recent online campaign, which gathered over 500,000 signatures, supported the idea that if Starbucks wanted to stay inside the Forbidden City, it would have to sell other brands as well.  I don't quite understand how this would ameliorate the issue of Chinese culture-trampling, but, oh well.  Per Starbucks's vice-president for Greater China Eden Woon: "We decided at the end that it is not our custom worldwide to have stores that have any other name, so therefore we decided the choice would be to leave."  Via BBC World.

Ride The S.L.U.T. In Seattle

Those darn city planners have done it again.  A new street car line in Seattle has been lovingly dubbed the "S.L.U.T." by locals after a branding snafu by city officials.  Previously called the South Lake Union Trolley, it has since been renamed the South Lake Union Streetcar.  But, not before Kapow! Coffee, a neighborhood coffee shop, mass-produced appropriate t-shirts to commemorate the new line.  Apparently they sell out of them as quickly as they put out ;)  I just placed an order for my very own S.L.U.T. shirt at their website: Ridetheslut.com.  Update: Just got my S.L.U.T. shirt in the mail!  Loving it and enjoying the ride.

Martin Klimas Give New Meaning to 'Action Figures'

German photographer Martin Klimas is showing off a fantastic series of photographs born out of the idea of using sound to trigger his camera.  The photos depict figurines that are dropped to the ground in a dark room.  The instant that the figuring shatters, and thereby producing sound, a microphone rigged to a camera picks up the sound and activates the camera to flash and take the pictures.  Beautiful!  Via 37signals.  See all the photos at Martin-Klimas.de.

Crazy Menu Dot.Com

Judging from the list of top ten restaurants on Crazy Menu's front page, it would seem that this is another start-up in my hometown of Mountain View, California!  I have yet to try the service, but I will certainly be showing it to the office manager.  Crazy Menu allows groups small and large to individually customize their food orders and offers friends a fun way to decide on which restaurant to go for dinner.  I will have more to say once I've used it.  Official site at Crazymenu.com.

Bevege Chair Looks At Home In Modern Art Museum Or Dilapidated Loft Space

Brandon Norsted’s Bevege Felt Chair is a combination of recycled industrial felt, fibreglass and resin. The felt is impregnated with epoxy and sandwiches several layers of fiberglass in order to keep its form, thereby avoiding the need for any armatures or framework underneath. Official site of Brandon Norsted HERE.

The (Very) Politically Incorrect Alphabet

Mark Jones was inspired by his wife's classroom to create the ultimate politically incorrect alphabet - fit for any modern school room.  Jones states, "Lacking any tact or decency, I therefore determined to create an alphabet using only subjects that, while they might have been unremarked a few decades ago, are now outside acceptable usage."  After seeing it, I happen to think that it's more politically aware than incorrect.  Click here to see it in its entirety. [Thanks to Philip Foeckler]

Japanese Coolness: Canned Udon

Man, the Japanese get the coolest things - even vending machines.  Though I'm not sure how good they taste, having warm udon come out of a vending machine is beyond anything I can imagine here in the US.  The products are made by UMAI, who already have canned ramen in Japanese vending machines.  All the cans come ready to eat with a tiny plastic fork.  Full story via Pink Tentacle.

Chris Bangle Teases With BMW X6 Concept

The new X6 crossover vehicle is ready for debut at the Frankfurt IAA (International Auto Show) this month.  For now, all we have are spy shots and this video in which the BMW chief designer talks fluff while keeping the car under wraps.  Via Left Lane News.

Free Music In France

This past week two French companies announced new music download offerings.  Neuf Cegetel, a broadband service provider said it will initially have about 150,000 songs and 3,000 videos from Universal Music Group (owned by Vivendi - a French company no less) available for unlimited download for about five euros per month.  Not to be outdone France Telecom announced it will also offer unlimited music downloads - for FREE.  No date has been announced for the service.  Full story via GigaOM. [Thanks to Philip Foeckler]