Amazing World

Now that you have the opportunity to own your own Victorian-era steampunk laptop, you can finally compute like it's 1899.

Richard "Doc" Nagy, who describes himself as a "steampunk contraptor, technical artist, and jackass-of-all-trades" first built a steampunk Windows XP laptop for fun nearly five years ago. Lately he's been busy shopping around his Victorian-era keyboards at CES and elsewhere, but now he says he's ready to make that sweet steampunk silicon action available to the public.

This week Nagy announced that he is ready to start taking preorders on a batch of steampunk laptops that will be updated and redesigned to reflect numerous technological advancements, both in laptop systems and in Nagy's own workshop.

Nagy says he says he'll start with PCs for the new batch (for now, he's only speculating about their weight), but will consider giving Macs the steampunk treatment as well.

He's setting a preorder price of $5,500 per laptop, but says he expects "the anticipated retail price for future batches will probably be $7,500 or more." He says several customizations will be available, including recessed gold foil maps, and different wood stains and key fonts. But what about matching accessories, you ask? Don't worry, Doc's got you covered:

"I also plan to include a key-shaped USB flash drive with every laptop that will also open a brass lock on each machine. "

While Nagy is knocking two grand off the preorder price for the first batch, he is looking for a 50 percent deposit. All in all a small price to pay for the ability to host the coolest "City of Lost Children" watch party ever. Here are a couple more shots of Nagy's original protoype:

Looks like we are on our way to human powered helicopters and students from the University of Maryland are leading the charge. They have successfully hovered their first human-powered helicopter. The Gamera is a pedal-powered helicopter. They hope to win the AHS Sikorsky Prize, named for helicopter pioneer Igor Sikorsky. It looks like they just may do it.

The AHS Sikorsky Prize awards $250,000 to teams who can build and fly a helicopter that is completely powered by a human. The project began last summer when the Gamera I was able to hover for 11 seconds. Now with improvements in the design, they hope to finally reach the required 60 seconds.

The Gamera II is a lighter and stronger version of the Gamera I, that will handle longer flights. Earlier this week the Gamera II hovered for 35 seconds. Then yesterday, they reached 40 seconds. They are almost there.

The chances of finding the perfect home, readymade and just waiting for you to move in, are quite slim. It would be especially rare in a dense metropolis like Seoul, where efficiency, rather than beauty, often dictates construction plans. You could spend a lifetime hunting for that ideal house, or—like this resourceful homeowner—you could just make it yourself. With a bit of imagination and whole lot of guts, he remodeled an ordinary flat into the loft of his dreams, complete with a bonus attic.

For this media personality, signing on the dotted line was a no-brainer. In any normal circumstance, just because an apartment occupies the top floor doesn’t mean that you get any extra ceiling height. Even if there are striking architectural elements above, you wouldn’t know it because they would be obstructed by a flat ceiling. However, this homeowner was lucky enough to see his top floor digs before the ceiling was put in place, so he knew the potential that lay above the builders’ plans. He was immediately sold.

Finding the right designer came by happenstance when he inquired about a handful of unique recording studios he had visited. It turned out that they had all been worked on by the same person from a design firm called Inis Orm (이니스 오름). Even though the company doesn’t usually take residential clients, they agreed to take him after he reassured them that he would be willing to make some bold moves.

And bold they were—going so far as to completely transform the apartment’s structure, something few homeowners in Seoul are willing to do. The process ended up being far more arduous than he had bargained for, but the result is a knockout. After several months of deconstructing and rebuilding (then deconstructing and rebuilding again) and scouring the market for the proper furniture and accessories, they ended up with a place that is equal parts sleek and cozy. There are still a few details here and there that need to be perfected, but for the most part, it’s a finished project. And thanks to an outstanding amount of creativity and ingenuity, it’s even better than he dreamed it would be.

Don’t be afraid to mix different shades of wood. It shows panache and feels more organic. The ladder and the globe pendants draw the eye up and show off the geometric ceiling.

This display wall is the first thing you see when you walk into the apartment, so it serves as a welcome sign and sets the tone with personal knick knacks.

The attic turned out to be the perfect spot for friends to hang out, drink wine, play some board games, and even crash if need be at the end of the night. It’s a favorite among visitors.

Punches of bright colors like the orange bolster pillows on the sofa lend personality and a focal point to the mostly masculine feel of the office.

A risky purchase that turned out to be the star of the living room. Modern felt rectangles add a tactile quality, making it the perfect statement piece (not to mention, it feels oddly pleasing to step on it).