You'd think that making a product simpler would be a good thing, but sometimes minimalism goes too far. Cool Material has a list of beautiful minimalist products that are so simple they may be hard for a normal person to use! Pictured is the Nimbus Ultimate Wheel, which does away with the bicycle's second wheel, gears, seat, and almost everything else! Link -Thanks, Tim!

From Prague, Czech Republic: If you want to promote the slogan "Europe Without Barriers", what better place to put it than on some police barriers? Link -Thanks, Jeff!

In today’s Lunchtime Quiz from mental_floss, try to match up the titles of nine 007 films with the nine men who held the office of U.S. president when those movies were initially released. This is not easy! Since I didn't know the answers, I tried to line them up by how old they seemed, and scored only 22%. The average score so far is 49%. Good luck! http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/21488

Last year's earthquake in Sichuan province, China killed 69,000 people and flattened thousands of buildings, including schools. A team led by Japanese architect Shigeru Ban is constructing new temporary but strong school buildings using plywood and cardboard tubes.

Recycled paper tubes aren't just useful for holding architectural blueprints. They can be molded into load-bearing columns, bent into trusses and rapidly assembled, and can be made waterproof and fire resistant. Because paper tubes are available in various thickness and diameters, they can be added to a structure to support more weight as necessary. Ban has said he hopes to build structures a few stories high.

The work is being done by Japanese and Chinese students working together. See pictures of the process, and a completed school at Treehugger. Link -Thanks, Chris Tackett!

(YouTube link)
A lovely story about an elephant and a dog who found each other at the Elephant Sanctuary in Hohenwald, Tennessee. -via Arbroath

A ski lift mishap at Blue Sky Basin resort in Vail, Colorado left a 48-year-old man hanging upside down without his pants on New Years Day.

It appears that the chairlift's fold-down seat was somehow not in the lowered position, which caused the man to partially fall through the resulting gap. His right ski got jammed in the ascending chairlift, and that kept him upended since his boot never dislodged from its binding. As seen in the photos on the following pages (which were snapped by fellow skiers), the Skyline Express lift was stopped shortly after the pair's botched boarding resulted in the man dangling from the lift. The exposed skier was stuck for about 15 minutes before Vail personnel backed the lift up and successfully dislodged the unidentified man from the four-seat chair.

Link -via YesButNoButYes

Topless Robot lists The 10 Best Repainted Action Figures of All Time.

They're the bane of many an action figure collector's existence--repaints. That's when a manufacturer takes an existing action figure, paints it in all-new colors and tries to pass it off as a new figure, such as "Arctic Batman." This allows the company to squeeze a little more profit out of the expensive mold they created for the original figure. Collectors hate them, kids are indifferent to them and the figures warm the pegs. But once in a while, a figure is repainted (along with a few minor tweaks) and is passed off not as just a new figure, but a brand-new character. The results are often laughable but, once in a while, kinda cool.

Pictured is TC14, who resembles another robot we all know and love, but couldn't be the same, because he is silver! Link -Thanks, Keith!

Can you think logically? Take the armchair logic test! There are only 15 questions, and it doesn't take very long -if you are logical! I scored only 87%, which disappoints me. Link -via the Presurfer

(image credit: Flickr user loquenoves)

BaR2D2 is a radio-controlled, mobile bar that features a motorized beer elevator, motorized ice/mixer drawer, six-bottle shot dispenser, and sound activated neon lighting. The robot is driveable so you can take the party on the road! It was created in my garage using standard hand/power tools and readily available parts and materials.

Jamie Price built this, and you can, too, by following his Instructable! Link -Thanks, Jamie!

(image credit: Kristie Stephens)

Barry Bernard loves gas. He has a series of videos in which he blows things up with a secret mixture of gasses. This picture is from the video in which he blows up a friend's bed. You'll find more of them at YouTube. Link -via the Presurfer

People aren't the only ones who build things. In fact, some animals are better at it than we are! Beavers, moles, birds, many insects, and spiders are natural builders with amazing structures you'll see at WebEcoist. The homes pictured were all built by termites, who erect the largest structures relative to their size of any animal. Link -via Unique Daily

Some people sabotage themselves by setting up an excuse for failure before even trying something.

Psychologists have studied this sort of behavior since at least 1978, when Steven Berglas and Edward E. Jones used the phrase “self-handicapping” to describe students in a study who chose to take a drug that they were told would inhibit their performance on an exam (the drug was actually inert).

The urge goes well beyond a mere lowering of expectations, and it has more to do with protecting self-image than with psychological conflicts rooted in early development, in the Freudian sense. Recent research has helped clarify not just who is prone to self-handicapping but also its consequences — and its possible benefits.

Link -via Lifehacker

Have you ever wondered what television news anchors do during commercial breaks?

Which local TV news anchors make the best team? Well, judging from a behind-the-scenes video clip that has popped up, it’s WGN’s Robert Jordan and Jackie Bange, hands down. The two are shown going through an elaborate routine—complete with coordinated paper-shuffling, precision gestures and various grunts and giggles—that they perform during the first commercial break of their weekend newscasts. They are awesome.

Head Candy has the video, and an interview with Robert Jordan about how the routine came about. Link -via I Am Bored

Every year since 1927, the editors of Time have named a Person (or Machine or Planet) of the Year. The honor is bestowed upon “the person or persons who most affected the news and our lives, for good or ill.”

Today's Lunchtime Quiz at mental_floss will find out how familiar you are with Time's person of the year over the years. I scored 7 out of 12, or 58%. I'm surprised I did that well. http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/21403

Those born in the New World may not realize how many monarchies still exist. This list has 28 kings, queens, sultans, and princes across Europe, Africa, Asia, and the Middle East and their official residences. Pictured is Tashichoedzong Palace, the residence of Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuk, the king of Bhutan, who is the youngest monarch in the world at age 28 (and he's single). http://www.hottnez.com/kings-of-the-world-rich-living-monarchs-and-their-royal-residences/ -Thanks, Grzegorz Paslawski!