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Science Technology

The Year in Ideas 157

Posted by ScuttleMonkey from the good-idea-bad-idea dept.
Some Anonymous Dude writes "The NYTimes magazine reviews this year's great ideas including the anti-paparazzi flash, forehead billboards, scientific free-throw distraction, and why popcorn doesn't pop." From the intro: "Once we have thrown back all the innovations that don't meet our exacting standards, we find ourselves with the following alphabetical catch: 78 notions, big and small, grand and petty, serious and silly, ingenious and. . . well, whatever you call it when you tattoo an advertisement on your forehead for money."
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The Year in Ideas More

The Year in Ideas

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  • adverts on foreheads? (Score:4, Funny)

    by joe 155 ( 937621 ) on Sunday December 11, 2005 @05:56PM (#14234952) Journal
    "whatever you call it when you tattoo an advertisement on your forehead for money."

    ...I think its called being really, really drunk... like all truely stupid ideas, they seemed like a good one at the time

  • The greatest innovation ever... (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Anonymous Coward on Sunday December 11, 2005 @05:57PM (#14234953)
    BugMeNot.

  • Here's A Shot (Score:5, Insightful)

    by MrNonchalant ( 767683 ) on Sunday December 11, 2005 @05:57PM (#14234955)
    well, whatever you call it when you tattoo an advertisement on your forehead for money.

    Materialistic and depraved?
  • How the heck is tattooing GoldenPalace.com on your forehead for $25,000 a great idea??????? I'd need atleast $50K lol...
    • It's a great idea if you're from a developing country. $25K US can often make you the equivalent of a multimillionaire in a Western nation.

      Sure, your forehead gets scribbled on, but at least you're social and economic status has been elevated many times over.

    • Have you ever missed meals or been hungry? (Score:5, Insightful)

      by ATeamMrT ( 935933 ) on Sunday December 11, 2005 @07:00PM (#14235196)
      How the heck is tattooing GoldenPalace.com on your forehead for $25,000 a great idea???????

      $25,000 is a LOT of money for someone who's never had more than the $121.45 which food stamps pays per month. To someone in IT, $25,000 might be a 2 month contract, and not very much money. Buy a top notch digital camera to play with, maybe a new plasma TV, eat at a fancy restaurant all month, and your $25K is gone. But for someone who is poor, that $25K might last 2 or 3 years. It is enough to buy a 7 year old Honda Civic with 110,000 miles for $1700. That should be solid transportation for another 5 years. That 25K will buy lots of chicken at the grocery store at $0.79 cents a pound. Add the 10 pound bag of potatoes that is $1.99, and that will last a month. For someone who has been poor, you would be surprised how easy it is to stretch $25 into a weeks worth of good eats. There isn't any steaks, but there is plenty of roasted chicken, rice, oven baked potatoe wedges, and hearty soups made from the left over bones of the chicken with some veggies. I sometimes get a kick out of fancy resturants that use peasant recipes to make meals they charge $40 per plate. The original purpose of these recipes was to conserve and be frugal. For example, there is an Italian resturant near my home that has a $7 soup which is made from olive oil, garlic, basil, water, and lots of day old crusty bread cut in cubes. It is a creamy soup, very tastey, and something that $1 could make a big pot with 20 servings. The bread breaks apart and thickens the flavorfull water.

      For someone who is poor, that $25,000 extra cash might be reason enough to buy a case of two buck chuck and stock the wine cabinet.

      I know we all live in the USA, but there is a gap growing between the rich and the poor. $25,000 is a lot of money no matter who you are! Those guys who box are often poor, and come from homes where the needs were far greater than the wants.

      Having said all that, I hate the blatant advertising. People should not use their body or uniform to advertise. It is a shame, because that $25,000 might be more money than the boxer could make any other way. It is one guaranteed payout.


      • You haven't known many people without money, have you?

        Ideally, yes, they would live within their means, and use the $25k to help with their standard of living.

        In the real world, that $25k would be gone in a week, but probably less. It may go to pay back bills, but more than likely it will put the biggest TV they can fit in their house (usually not well), some new furnature, a couple nice dinners, and maybe the down payment on a new car. Unfortunately, they'll s
        • You haven't known many people without money, have you?

          And apparantly you haven't, either. While I agree that there are a number of people who would in fact just buy a plasma TV and some 20" wheels for their rusty '82 Mercury, there are just as many good, sensible people who are just trapped in a bad situation that would act in the way the grandparent post described. It sounds right: Smart, decent, hardworking people should always be successful in the US. But it dosen't always turn out that way. One b

  • Celebs (Score:5, Interesting)

    by Beuno ( 740018 ) <argentina&gmail,com> on Sunday December 11, 2005 @05:58PM (#14234958) Homepage
    You can anti-paparazzi flash be a GREAT idea.
    It only applies to 0.00001% of the worlds population...

    • Re:Celebs (Score:2, Interesting)

      by simdan ( 207210 )
      Sure it may apply to a small percentage of the population, but that small percentage would probably be willing to spend big bucks for something like this. Of course that doesn't take into account those without big bank accounts that could make good use of them, like people who are dragged into the lime light by some high-profile court case.

    • Re:Celebs (Score:3, Insightful)

      by CyricZ ( 887944 )
      But it's a very, very rich segment of the world's population, even if they are few in numbers.

    • i thought "Anti-Paparazzi Flash, The" ;-) was a totally cool idea. if it could be fine tuned massively, even as just a detector, it would help the paranoid. find out when the [ 3-letter-org ] is tailing u. ofcourse, it wouldn't work...but if u're truly paranoid, nothing will.

      • Re:Celebs (Score:2, Funny)

        by Anonymous Coward
        "u're"
        Aren't you going to be late for recess? [Keep all 11 year olds off Slashdot.]

    • Re:Celebs (Score:2, Funny)

      by xoip ( 920266 )
      Toss in one of those Cameera Balls [slashdot.org] and still get the shots.
    • Yeah. Only applies to celebrities. And movie theaters. And government installations. And conventions/art shows. And any place you want to keep secure, or where photography is prohibited.

      Look, useful things don't pop fully formed into existence, serving their main purpose and their main purpose only. You know what the Internet was for? The military. Stuff expands, okay? You invent something for one reason, and suddenly it's useful for a whole host of things.

    • There are plenty of other uses that were listed in the article if you had RTFA. One possible use is to prevent piracy of movies by blocking digital cameras in theaters.

  • Here's my idea. (Score:5, Funny)

    by Sheetrock ( 152993 ) on Sunday December 11, 2005 @05:59PM (#14234965) Homepage Journal
    I like peanut butter cups.

    But... why not go one step further and make peanut butter and jelly cups? Strawberry goes well with peanut butter and chocolate, and if you want to go crazy with the concept so does raspberry and orange marmalade.

    Additionally, those apple-cinammon creme-filled cupcakes were pretty good back in the day, but were inexplicably pulled from the market at the same time they replaced the chocolate on the chocolate cupcakes with black wax. They need to bring those back (preferably avoiding the waxy "improvement" to the frosting.)

  • Why read slashdot (Score:4, Interesting)

    by kermitthefrog917 ( 903403 ) on Sunday December 11, 2005 @05:59PM (#14234967)
    I could just wait for this article to come out each year instead. Anybody else see that the majority of those have been on slashdot before?
  • The New York Times Online Registrations will surely be Slashdotted! Perry White would be proud.

  • Oddly Enough (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Cherita Chen ( 936355 ) on Sunday December 11, 2005 @06:06PM (#14234999) Homepage
    Surprise, Surprise, the "$100 Laptop" is on the list

    http://apple.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=05/11/14/ 2119209&from=rss [slashdot.org]

    • But the NYT says it's the 'laptop that will save the world'. Because computers are apparently more important than FOOD and MEDICINE now.

      • Re:Oddly Enough (Score:3, Insightful)

        by ozmanjusri ( 601766 )
        Because computers are apparently more important than FOOD and MEDICINE now.

        My computer lets me do things that earn money. With money, I buy FOOD and MEDICINE, not just now, but whenever I need them. Maybe other people can do the same, then they will not be hungry and sick. If those people are not hungry and sick, we will stop having to send aid money to their countries. If we don't have to keep ending donations to their countries, we will be able to spend the money on large clue-by-fours to sort out peop

        • Re:Oddly Enough (Score:3, Insightful)

          by Brendor ( 208073 )
          "My computer lets me do things that earn money"

          How can a person [cia.gov] without access to reliable drinking water earn money with a computer?

          How can a person who lives on barren land use a computer to get food?

        • Re:Oddly Enough (Score:3, Informative)

          by narcc ( 412956 )

          My computer lets me do things that earn money.

          115 ways to earn money with your computer. [derebote.com]

          Does not include: Gold Farming [wikipedia.org] or Fishing [wikipedia.org]

          Remember that old saying -- [Give a man a fish: he eats for a day. Teach a man to phish: he eats for a lifetime.]

  • Article? (Score:5, Insightful)

    by LadyLucky ( 546115 ) on Sunday December 11, 2005 @06:17PM (#14235046) Homepage
    There is an introduction, which points to the article, which isn't the article but points back to the introduction.

    Am I the only one that can't find any article? What gives?

    • Re:Article? (Score:1, Funny)

      by Anonymous Coward
      NYT idea:
      Make people pay for content

    • Re:Article? (Score:3, Informative)

      by BushCheney08 ( 917605 )
      Did you try following the half dozen links on the linked page? Or the 'Go to the Issue' link? On that page there are some 50 or 60 links under the 'Year in Ideas' heading. Honestly, I can't believe you can miss a huge list like that...

  • In Vitro Meat (Score:4, Interesting)

    by Errandboy of Doom ( 917941 ) on Sunday December 11, 2005 @06:40PM (#14235124) Homepage
    I like how they talk wistfully about that great, stomach churning invention from 2005: "In Vitro Meat."

    Ah, yeah, remember In Vitro Meat?

    No? Neither did I.

    It's because that article was published the same day (Dec. 11th, 2005).

    I'm not sure a contemporaneous story could have "helped make 2005 what it was," at best it could be "helping to make 2005 what it is."

    IV Meat is still worth a read though, it's a cyberpunk fantasy come true.

    In Vitro Meat [nytimes.com] (free BugMeNot required).
    • my favorite food product was the chef who figured out how to print flavors on edible paper. it reminded me of countless cartoons and the fine dining scene from "Brazil".
    • Possibly even more stomach churning than that is what I thought IV meat was going to be from the title: some kind of meat that you can grow inside of you, then digest later.

      I think I may be on to something here. All that time I waste chewing and tasting could be spent on the real fun of eating: digesting.

    • Re:In Vitro Meat (Score:3, Informative)

      by natrius ( 642724 )
      Ah, yeah, remember In Vitro Meat? No? Neither did I. It's because that article was published the same day (Dec. 11th, 2005).

      From the article: In July, scientists at the University of Maryland announced the development of bioengineering techniques that could be used to mass-produce a new food for public consumption: meat that is grown in incubators.

      All of the "Year in Ideas" articles are dated today.
    • . . . or it also could be from July [umd.edu], but you are just in a grouchy mood.
    • it's a cyberpunk fantasy come true.

      you misspelled "gourmand's nightmare."

      What I do love, though, is anything that prompts the New York Times to publish a joke about "tube steak."

    • IV Meat is still worth a read though, it's a cyberpunk fantasy come true.

      In vitro meat is cool but it is much older than cyberpunk. C.M. Kornbluth and Frederick Pohl wrote a book in 1953 called "The Space Merchants" where corporations run the world and people are manipulated by constant advertising (Lucky we dodged that possible future, huh?). Anyway, one of the products that plays a role in the story is "Chicken Little" a chicken substitute made from a slab of tissue grown in a vat.

      Here is a website with

  • Adding malware to music CDs.

  • If there are only 78 innovative ideas (Score:3, Insightful)

    by Flyboy Connor ( 741764 ) on Sunday December 11, 2005 @07:36PM (#14235342)
    If there are only 78 innovative ideas, why is it that tens of thousands of patents were awarded?

    Furthermore: tattooing a slogan on your forehead -- why does that fall under the category "Science"?

  • Is it.. (Score:3, Funny)

    by StikyPad ( 445176 ) on Sunday December 11, 2005 @11:17PM (#14236253) Homepage
    whatever you call it when you tattoo an advertisement on your forehead for money.

    Slashdot?

  • Conspiracy theorists, pay attention! (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Stickerboy ( 61554 ) on Monday December 12, 2005 @12:43AM (#14236545) Homepage
    I found this tidbit interesting:

    Under "Making Global Warming Work For You", there was "Millions of acres of ice may soon become suitable for nautical traffic and oil exploration. An estimated quarter of the world's undiscovered oil and gas resources are in the Arctic."

    And people wonder why the energy industry/US government is doing all it can to drag their heels on climate control...
    • "An estimated quarter of the world's undiscovered oil and gas resources are in the Arctic."

      And people wonder why the energy industry/US government is doing all it can to drag their heels on climate control.

      Besides being dishonest to lump the government and energy industry's ideals together, many moderate right wingers simply put a higher priority on other world problems. To imply that they wish to reverse climate controls is a plain lie. They want an ideal climate like everyone else.

      Secondly, energy compa

  • The Real Big Ideas for 2005 (Score:3, Insightful)

    by dexter riley ( 556126 ) on Monday December 12, 2005 @02:35AM (#14236884)
    I read the list of innovative ideas...they mostly seemed like Sharper Image catalog entries. An infrared pet dryer? Robot jockeys? Singing toothbrushes? How grand.

    So, I say we start a list of what the REAL big ideas of 2005 were. I'll start. This is the first year I recall where it was widely expressed in the media that there are major global cities, even some in the United States (ye gads!), that are unmaintainable over the next hundred years, and can be expected to be abandoned to the elements. Whether it's New Orleans being returned to swamp, or the cities of the Southwest that could dwindle as energy and water costs rise, the notion of the likely failure of many of our great cities seems significant. At least, it seems more important than the "Snap-On Celebrity Smiles" that made the list.

    Anyone else have any other real ideas that came from 2005 that are worth commenting on?

    Rock on with your bad selves,
    dex
  • does not rate the "best ideas of 2005" category implied by TFA. This is a stunt to prop up circulation. [Time mag. did a similar cover storey two weeks ago. Today they layed off a few hundred people.] Not a good sign of the "Times" if you ask me.

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