Accident Alerts

So Blaurb and I are driving from Wellington to Napier, New Zealand, and we drive this curvy road behind this lumber truck, and I visualize this scenario, where the straps on the lumber give, and logs start falling onto the road, and I'm forced to swerve and dodge these huge logs coming at me. Then I thought about accidents, and how it could lead to a pile-up of cars since I had cars following closely behind me.

It would increase safety if cars came with accident alerts that created some huge display to indicate an accident has occurred. The system would activate upon a serious collision (such as one that triggers the airbag). Cars following behind would be able to see that an accident has occurred, and slow down well before they reach the site of the accident (and the ensuing pile-up of cars). This could be pop-up emergency signs, flares (thanks Blaurb), or anything else that could be universally recognized as an accident sign. I think such a system, made standard on cars, would lead to increased road safety.

Wireless Digital Cameras Part II

While in New Zealand, I thought of another use for wireless on a digital camera. Blaurb and I were at Huka Falls, and I saw a couple that looked really cute, and I was in a position to take a great picture of them. What a great opportunity to do something nice! Had I had the ability to give him the photograph (without the awkward email-swapping followed by "I'll email you!") I would have gladly taken the picture.

I then thought, with wireless connectivity, this would be a wonderful opportunity to interact with other people and play photographer one moment at a time. I could snap the picture, introduce myself, and say, "Hey, I got a great picture of you, would you like it?"

I guess it could also allow individuals or amateur photographers to make a business out of taking nice pictures of other people. I'd still advocate free picture taking, but you can't stop the free markets...

Preventing Splashback

I don't know how often this happens to other people, but occasionally, when I poo, the toilet water splashes back and wets my ass a little. This bothers me, especially since I'm a mild germophobe.

So I was watching Olympic diving last year, and noticed that there was water being sprayed onto the diving surface, presumably to disrupt the surface tension of the water to minimize a diver's splash. Why can't this surface tension disrupter be added to my toilet? I don't think it adds much cost, and I think people would appreciate keeping their bums a bit drier.