Hasta La Gadget!

I’ve seen a lot of chairs in my lifetime, and none of them are as dizzying or puzzling as the Chair Ssstoell. Even its name is complicated right from the get-go.

It looks unstable and confusing. And from another angle, it looks like it’s comprised of three chairs that have been stacked one on top of the other, but from another, you can see that it’s actually just one chair.

Here’s a fun fact: ‘stoel’ is actually Dutch for ‘chair.’ Seeing as this one is sort of like three chairs in one, the triple ‘S’ they used for the ‘ssstoel’ part of the name is actually quite fitting.

The Chair Ssstoel was designed by Voortman and Girod. It’s also for sale, too, although it’s crazy expensive at $1,320 (USD – plus $157 for international shipping.) For that price, you could certainly buy three of your own chairs, stack them on top of each other, and put the other $1,000 back in your pocket.

[via Chair Blog]

Some people love being the center of attention. I am not one of those people. So you can just imagine how I feel about the Scopophilia chair–which is the only chair in the world that’s got a few hundred eyeballs attached all over.

My first reaction was: ‘Gah! That is so creepy.’ My second reaction was: ‘Hmm, it’s not really that bad…’ My third reaction: ‘It’s starting to grow on me.’

Then my sister walks in, sees the chair on my screen, and goes: ‘Gah!’ It’s my first reaction all over again.

Anyway, the chair is called Scopophilia for obvious reasons. Of course, I had to look it up as well, but it actually means ‘the love of looking.’ Pretty fitting, isn’t it? While it might look nice/creepy/attractive/scary (based on how you feel about eyes, in general), the fact that the chair is fitted with plastic eyeballs doesn’t make it sounds like a very comfortable one.

Scopophilia was designed by Australian artist Fiona Roberts, who explains that “the excessive ‘gaze’ haunts the flesh, generating the uncomfortable feeling of being exposed.” Well, I certainly agree.

[via designboom via LikeCool]

Hiding in the back of the SIGGRAPH Emerging Technologies demo area — exactly where such a project might belong — is a dark wood chair that looks anything but innocent. Created by a team at the University of Electro-Communications in Toyko, Chilly Chair, as it’s called, may be a reference to the chilling feeling the device is tasked with invoking. After signing a liability waiver, attendees are welcomed to pop a squat before resting their arms atop a cool, flat metal platform hidden beneath a curved sheath that looks like something you may expect to see in Dr. Frankenstein’s lab, not a crowded corridor of the Los Angeles Convention Center. Once powered up, the ominous-looking contraption serves to “enrich” the experience as you consume different forms of media, be it watching a movie or listening to some tunes. It works by using a power source to pump 10 kV of juice to an electrode, which then polarizes a dielectric plate, causing it to attract your body hair.

After signing our life away with the requisite waiver, we sat down and strapped in for the ride. Despite several minutes of build-up, the entire experience concluded in what seemed like only a few seconds. A projection screen in front of the chair lit up to present a warning just as we felt the hairs jet directly towards the sheath above. By the time we rose, there was no visual evidence of the previous state, though we have no doubt that the Chilly Chair succeeded in raising hair (note: the experience didn’t come close to justifying the exaggerated reaction you may have noticed above). It’s difficult to see how this could be implemented in future home theater setups, especially considering all the extra hardware currently required, but it could potentially add another layer of immersion to those novelty 4D attractions we can’t seem to avoid during visits to the amusement park. You can witness our Chilly Chair experience in the hands-on video after the break.

Continue reading Chilly Chair uses static electricity to raise your arm hair, force an ’emotional reaction’ (hands-on video)

Filed under: Household, Science

Chilly Chair uses static electricity to raise your arm hair, force an ’emotional reaction’ (hands-on video) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 09 Aug 2012 16:29:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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You know how sometimes, there’s only one space left on the bench, and you really don’t want to find yourself sandwiched between a kid throwing a tantrum and a guy eating a Sloppy Joe sloppily? Unfortunately, your choices are only to take that last seat – or remain standing until one of them leaves. And you know that could take a while.

Cue the Flip Bench by Daniel Pearlman, an outdoor bench that’s the only one of its kind since it comes with flippable seats.

If you prefer not to be seated with someone on either side, just flip the seat and take your seat on the other side.

In addition to the plastic, outdoor variant, Pearlmann envisions a stylish indoor, laminated wood and aluminum version for common seating areas as well.

Of course, some people might take offense that you actually flipped the seat on them, but that’s a totally different story.

[via Chair Blog]

A rocking chair is a rocking chair, is it not? Apparently not, as your grandfather’s rocking chair is far obsolete compared to the OMGIGHO convertible rocking chair that you see above. Granted, this is still in the conceptual stage since it needs your help to be realized as part of the Kickstarter community, but at least it is a start, and you know that with enough funds, it would also be possible to get cracking on such a piece of home furniture. This multi-function rocking chair is also known as the GO-GO Multi-Function Rocking Chair, or if you find that to be too long for your liking, then just a plain and simple “GO-GO” will do.

This chair is said to be the first of its kind, where it is tipped to be on the receiving end of significant attention from representatives of both the video game and furniture industries. In fact, OMGIGHO managed to successfully secure a provisional patent on the GO-GO sometime earlier this year, going to show just how serious the folks over there are about realizing this dream of theirs.

When you take a first look at the OMGIGHO GO-GO, it does somewhat resemble a sleek, modern rocking chair that comes complete with a birchwood base and black rubber trim. However, those who are sharper eyed will be able to take note of its more unique aspects right there and then, that is, the GO-GO being a chair which is actually a real autoseat. This would give the game away to the more hot blooded among you – this particular rocker will be able to transform into a simulated racing cockpit for video games or a laptop workstation, now how about that? Surely it will not have the same kind of experience as the Tumbler from Batman when it is in weapons mode, but still…

Colin James, OMGIGHO co-founder and creator of the GO-GO, said, “The use of a real auto seat allows for a full range of adjustment. It’s unlike any other rocking chair on the market,” the avid gamer affirms. There is still some way to go in achieving its goal of $10,000, as at press time, the OMGIGHO GO-GO chair has just achieved $1,746 in funding from 16 backers.

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[ OMGIGHO convertible rocking chair copyright by Coolest Gadgets ]