Odd inventions

New York Daily News has a photo essay of such classic inventions as the Potty Putter, the Cigarette Pack Holder (yikes!), and the Peter Petrie Egg Separator, which carries the caption:

OK, maybe it separates eggs well, but we're a little grossed out by the fact the egg whites come running out of its nose. "Peter Petrie makes separating eggs easy. Crack the egg gently into the top. His big nose blocks the yolk, but allows the whites to flow easily into your bowl. You get the job done - with a giggle, CatalogFavorites.com reports.

Some people just have too much time on their hands...

Think & Grow Rich!

Would you like a nearly-free* copy of the book that changed Bob Proctor's life?

Bob Proctor, you may recall, is one of the teachers featured in "The Secret" DVD. I've had the privilege of hearing him in person -- and getting a hug from him too!

Bob's been carrying around the same copy of "Think and Grow Rich" by Napoleon Hill since 1963. He quotes from it frequently in his personal achievement seminars. It helped him go from being a fire-fighter making $4000/year (and $6000 in debt) to making more than $1,000,000 two years later as an entrepreneur!

My friends Vic and Lisa Johnson are doing this crazy marketing test where they're giving away a hard copy of Napoleon Hill's "Think & Grow Rich."

I'm helping them with their big giveaway and wanted to make sure you got your copy before they take this offer down.

Get the details here: www.FreeTGRbook.com/Tesseract or follow the link in the ad on the right.

Feel free to pass this on to friends. They can get one too if they act right away.

This is one of my favorite books. I know you'll love it!


*Well, the book is free, you just pay a nominal shipping & handling charge.

The Perils of Complexity

The LA Times follows-up on the "runaway-car" crash in San Diego on Aug. 28th and subsequent recall by Toyota:

One remedy being considered by Toyota implicitly acknowledges what critics have been saying for almost 10 years: that the company's highly computerized engine control system lacks a fail-safe mechanism that can quickly extinguish sudden acceleration events, whether they are caused by floor mats, driver errors or even unknown defects in the electronic control system, as alleged in some lawsuits.

Reports of sudden acceleration in Toyota vehicles has resulted in nine federal inquiries and investigations since 2000, two of which determined that there were improperly positioned floor mats. Another found a loose part in Sienna minivans, and yet another probe remains open. The rest were dismissed with no findings of equipment problems.

This appears to be a case where many factors could have contributed to the loss of control by the veteran California Highway Patrol Officer, "who was trained in emergency and high-speed driving as a 19-year CHP veteran". Per the article:

1. The Lexus ES 350 was a loaner, and a perhaps different model than the driver was used to
2. The car has a keyless ignition, requiring holding the Start button for >3 seconds to turn it off in an emergency (not easy if you're holding the steering wheel for dear life!)
   
3. That model has a rather complex gear-shift, so finding Neutral is hard
4. At full throttle, the power-assist on the brakes disappears, so up to 225# of pressure on the pedal would be required to stop the vehicle

So Toyota's dealing with poor human-factors engineering for emergency situations coupled with undesirable system behavior under certain circumstances. Not good.

It almost makes me want to find and restore a 60's vintage car designed before the advent of microprocessors in car engines!

(h/t Lucianne.com)