Hasta La Gadget!

How much would you pay for a ready-to-eat dinner? Most people wouldn’t pay more than five or ten bucks, but this luxurious food platter by Chef Charlie Bigham might just convince a couple of folks to change their minds – and their perceptions – of what TV dinners are.

Most of the ones you’ve already tried are probably of the frozen, microwaveable variety. They’re not all that bad, but they aren’t particularly good either. London chef Chef Bigham’s dinner tray, called “Swish Pie,” on the other hand, should be more than just delicious because a description of what it contains is already enough to make most people’s mouths water.

The finest British lobster, wild turbot, fresh diver-caught scallops, Balik smoked salmon and oysters, all poached in our exquisite Dom Perignon champagne sauce and nestled beneath fresh white Alba truffle, creamy mashed Yukon Gold heritage potatoes and a crunchy 24-carat gold leaf crumb. Served in a 24-carat gold leaf tray with an amuse-bouche of Beluga caviar.

To guarantee the safe arrival of the Swish Pie, each dish will be delivered in a bespoke aluminium case by a professional security guard – who will be handcuffed to the ready meal until it’s been delivered to its buyer.

The entire meal costs £314.16 or about $516(USD), and can be purchased from Charlie Bingham’s.

[via Yahoo! Lifestyle via Incredible Things]

I’ve found out about the untimely demise of several people not through friends or family, but through Facebook. It’s odd and a bit depressing to see messages of condolences sandwiched in between selfies and links to The Oatmeal’s latest comic, but it’s happening a lot more frequently these days as more people get into social media.

Grieving in person is one thing. Mourning on Facebook is another. With this in mind, Jono Milner founded Sanctri, a Facebook app where bereaved Facebook users can mourn and remember their loved one. It’s still on Facebook, but it offers tools and resources to go through the entire mourning process.

Milner explains: “Facebook is today’s public forum. People used to pay tribute in the classifieds section of the newspapers – now it’s on Facebook. Many people want to come together to remember someone online – especially given that we’re such a mobile population these days.”

He has a point. On Sanctri, users can create social memorials, a Lifebook, and make donations to charities. But is there a need for the app? Milner adds: “You’re still in Facebook, but a step away from the everyday chatter. Grief just doesn’t mix with photos from last night’s party. You don’t follow someone – you ‘remember’ them. You don’t ‘like’ something; you’re moved by it.”

You can find out more about Sanctri here.

[via C|NET]

As a lover of art, I’m beyond impressed at these sculptures Maya Sum has carved from lipstick. As a lover of makeup, I am appalled at the thought of brand new tubes of lipstick being hacked at to create these sculptures.

Then again, there’s a price that must be paid for every great piece of art, right?

For her women in power series, Maya has sculpted lipsticks and stick blushes in the images and likeness of Lady Gaga, Madonna, Victoria Beckham, and Coco Chanel. She has received extensive media attention for her lipstick sculptures and is now accepting custom orders on Etsy.

Each piece is priced starting at $450(USD) for objects and $620 for portraits. It’s pretty steep and is probably enough to buy you 22 brand new tubes of high-end lipstick – but then again, none of them will have your face on it.

[via if it’s hip, it’s here via Incredible Things]

Marketers (and Redditors) use “click bait” titles like the one above because they work to drive traffic and interest in seeing what lays beyond. Of course, there’s a fine line between an exciting headline and an outright exaggeration of the truth, and most click bait pieces belong in the latter.

CollegeHumor took it upon themselves to show people what certain popular book covers would be like if their original titles were replaced with click bait ones. Starting with Charlotte’s Web…

From young adult fiction series like Harry Potter and The Hunger Games to classic works like F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, CollegeHumor leaves few titles untouched. Most of the click bait versions are pretty spot on.

You can check out more covers in the gallery below.

[via Laughing Squid]

No, you’re not dreaming. The pavement is actually twinkling like the stars in the sky, and it’s all thanks to Starpath. It’s a spray-on paint that transforms regular pathways into glow-in-the-dark ones.

Aside from the novel aspect of it, Starpath might also some day serve as a low-cost alternate means for outdoor lighting.  Starpath can be sprayed onto a variety of surfaces, like concrete, tarmac, and wood. It absorbs UV energy during the day and releases this energy by “lighting up” at night.

The technology behind it was developed by UK-based company Pro-Teq Surfacing. Hamish Scott, owner of Pro-Teq, explains: “This product adjusts to the natural light, so if it is pitch black outside the luminous natural earth enhances, and if the sky is lighter, it won’t release as much luminosity. It adjusts accordingly, its almost like it has a mind of its own. Further, the surface is environmentally-friendly and aesthetically pleasing.”

Starpath is currently being tested on the footpath in Christ’s Pieces, which is a well-known park in Cambridge, England.

[via C|NET]