Engadget

Engadget: "Talking urinals invade privacy

Posted Jul 27th 2006 4:05PM by Darren Murph
Filed under: Misc. Gadgets
Apparently these talking urinals have been circulating in select areas for some time, but rather than the idea just going down the drain, it seems to have gained attention. The Wizmark Urinal Communicator sits at the bottom of men's urinals and sports a miniature LCD screen and a speaker to broadcast all kinds of messages, alerts, and advertisements to the, um, current user. The waterproof drain cover also acts as a deodorizer, and presumably continues to play even when purposely blasted by those who feel their privacy has been breached. Similar to automatic flushers, the device senses an approaching patron from about 30cm away and queues up a programmed message to play upon his (or her) arrival. The most common uses thus far are to warn patrons not to drive while intoxicated, but we assume this will eventually become another bizarre advertising medium. The mastermind of the Wizmark, Dr. Richard Deutsch, asserts that the uses are limitless, as everything from public service announcements to beer commercials could find their way in your stall. So on your next visit to the gentleman's room, we'd strongly recommend keeping your eyes aimed directly ahead, no matter what interesting things your neighbor's Wizmark might be saying."

Doctors remove lightbulb from man's ass

Boing Boing: "
On Wednesday, Fateh Mohammad of Multan, Pakistan underwent surgery to have a lightbulb removed from his rectum. The prison inmate says he has no idea how it ended up there. From Reuters:

Mohammad, who is serving a four-year sentence for making liquor, prohibited for Muslims, said he was shocked when he was first told the cause of his discomfort. He swears he didn't know the bulb was there.

'When I woke up I felt a pain in my lower abdomen, but later in hospital, they told me this,' Mohammad said.

'I don't know who did this to me. Police or other prisoners.'"