The Hot List: Volume 24

Every week we sift through a truly amazing amount of “stuff” in the dozen or so hours we spend online—you know, the time spent not driving sweet cars. A lot of the cool stuff we find has to do specifically with new cars, naturally, but there’s also a huge amount of awesomeness that doesn’t completely fit in the normal Winding Road world. Once, we were in the habit of simply reading, watching, or talking amongst ourselves about this web detritus, but recently we thought it might be a good idea to start sharing it with you all. Thus, The Hot List.

 

We aim to bring you a list of the most interesting bits of information we run across. Ten worth-knowing-about things that may or may not be related directly to the world of cars, but all of which we think our typical enthusiast readers will be able to really dig into. We don’t know, from week to week, what will show up on this list, which is part of the fun for us and for you.

Read, enjoy, and comment. If you happen to know of something that you think would make for a good inclusion on next week’s list, drop us a line at [email protected].

 

 

 

 

Cool bracers, dweeb. These bad boys not only protect your nerd-arms from getting stung by your bowstring, but they also act as digital dice for when you’re playing Dungeons & Dragons with your friends. What friends? Here’s how to build the bracers.

 

 

 

 

You already look like Homer Simpson. Might as well start drinking like him, too. Duff is real, now, and it’s a 4.7-percent-ABV German beer. Get it here.

 

 

 

 

It looks a little odd, but this electric scooter can travel up to 80 miles on a single charge, at speeds of up to 35 miles per hour. Plus, it’s only $4000, which seems like a totally reasonable price for reliable transportation that doesn’t run on dinosaur juice.

 

 

 

 

As long as you’re riding a scooter that looks like a camera, why not make your phone look like a camera, too? This retro-cool iPhone case comes in black, white, or brown, and even has available snap-on fisheye and macro lenses. The downside? You’ll look like an idiot when you’re talking on the phone. It’s $65.

 

 

 

We love dogs. That’s why we love these videos of super happy dogs. They’re just so loveable. Nice boy!

 

 

 

 

Enter your destination into this smartphone app, and it’ll give you the route that will require the least amount of fuel to get there. It will even keep track of your speed while driving, and tell you how fast you should drive for the best fuel economy. Fuel misers can download the app beginning next month.

 

 

 

 

The best thing since the USB toaster, uPixie plugs into your computer, and delivers electronic stimulation to your muscles while you work. It has four programs, and you can create your own, too. Thanks again to reader Bill Bennett for sending this one along.

 

 

 

 

Now you can combine your love of Star Wars with the excitement and fun of slot car racing with this playset. Race an X-Wing against a Tie Fighter on this glow-in-the-dark track. There’s also a version that uses the speeder bikes from Return Of The Jedi.

 

 

 

 

Arriving in May, this book is a collection of hundreds of excellent whiskey suggestions from booze connoisseurs. It even discusses production, storage, history, cocktails, and food pairings. Just don’t try to taste them all in one session.

 

 

 

 

Science, man! Science is beautiful, as evinced by these stunning works of art. These are the 2011 winners of the National Science Foundation’s International Science & Engineering Visualization Challenge. The picture above: a close-up of a cucumber.