Now, if you’re fanatical about familiar with Cup Noodles and their consumption, chances are you’ve come to anticipate, perhaps even fondly, that burst of MSG-laden steam that greets you as you remove your Cupmen and open the lid, having waited for what seems like forever the requisite three minutes for your noodles to cook. And maybe you’ve thought to yourself, “This is nice. Scratch that, this is GREAT!” Maybe you wish that first muggy moment would never end—and if you do, who’s to judge? Not the guy that came up with the idea for Cup Shitsuki (カップ湿器 or Cup Humidifier), that’s for sure.

The Cup Shitsuki is much like any other Cup Noodle variety, minus the noodles.

And the toppings. And the soup.

To use the Cup Shitsuki, all you need to do is fill it with water and turn it on. After a few moments, the cup will, using microvibrations rather than heat—eliminating the risk of you accidentally scalding yourself trying to to take a sip of what looks like a very inviting cup of instant ramen sitting on your desk—begin to emit a steady stream of fine mist, making the air in workspace/bedroom/basement instantly more comfortable.

The Cup Shitsuki comes complete with a UV Germicidal Light (紫外線殺菌灯 or I’m-not-even-going-to-pretend-to-be-able-to-pronounce-that-kanji) to prevent bacteria from growing in the humidifier, since every Cup Noodle enthusiast’s top priority is health, right?

All kidding aside, this is a pretty nifty idea, you have to admit. Plus, it’s (optionally) USB-powered! I love crazy USB gadgets. At 5,980 円 (approximately $72 USD), though, all that niftiness doesn’t come cheap. Would any of you be willing to shell out the cash?

[yframe url='http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LJ8ts_21cIE']

P.S. If you thought “WANT” You should follow Tofugu on Twitter, here.

This post was written by Erin, surprisingly enough.

Source: JTT Online Shop and Gigazine

He’s turning 23, so he doesn’t get any cool new rights, but I’m sure he’ll have lots of fun, anyway.

☆⌒（＾ｗ＾　*）　お誕生日おめでとう、コウイチくん　（*　＾ｗ＾）⌒☆

P.S. This is a really old picture, from 2 years ago.

Have you heard about the crazy gaijin-related incident that happened today? I wouldn’t be surprised if you have; it’s getting a ton of media coverage at the moment. Rightly so, too, as this level of crazy deserves talking about. If you haven’t, here’s a quick run-down of the events that took place:

Apparently, a British man was visinging the Japanese Imperial Palace (皇居 or kouyo) with a Spanish tour group this morning when he decided to take a brisk swim in the palace’s moat, possibly to retrieve someone’s bag that had fallen in. When workers tried to approach the man (via rowboat) to tell him to knock it off, instead of complying, he threw largish rocks at them and swam off. Eventually he became such a nuisance that 50 law enforcers were called in to apprehend him with a motley collection of ballistic shields, safety barriers, and whatever other stick-like things were handy. And, if that’s not ridiculous enough for you, palace officials felt it necessary to report that “the Emperor was in the palace, but it was unlikely he saw the nude swimmer”.

So my question to you guys is: Why do you think he did it? Is he just crazy, confused, and foreign, or is there another possible explanation for his behavior? Share your theories with us!

Yep, that inocuous-looking teddy bear actually functions as a stand-alone mobile phone. I labeled each part as best I could according to a schematic I found online; it contains a SIM card, four speed-dial buttons, a speaker and microphone, and on/off switches. Because there’s no keyboard, the numbers programed into the paws and vibrate/customizable ringtone settings are input online.

“Low electromagnetic waves make ‘Bear Model’ SIMSTYLE safe.”

While the sheer impracticality (who has room for a bear in their back pocket?) and silliness (“Hang on a second, my bear doesn’t get reception in here…”) of this product would ensure it’s function as a children’s phone in most countries, like a bearified version of the Migo, I have a feeling that a fair amount of old-enough-to-know-better Japanese women (like Becky, Queen of the Cute and Unworkable) will be purchasing these as well–if the thing ever makes it to the shelves, that is.

Mommy, this bear is talking to me!

Source: +D Mobile and ケータイ Watch

Japan is the home of quite a few Guinness World Records (the world’s longest concert being the most recent one I can remember), but now it’s got another under it’s belt: world’s longest eyebrow. Toshie Kawakami, the 57 year old president of a Tokyo food company, has an eyebrow hair which measured 17.2cm as of June 9th. She says that she normally keeps the hair tucked behind her ear, but let’s it down for special occasions*. She discovered the hair when it was a mere 7cm long (the world record at that time was 11.5cm) and decided to grow it out. Aside from an accident involving an overzealous hairdresser (who set her back 3cm), her path to the top was pretty clear, as the hair grew nearly a centimeter each month until she got Guinness authorization in January. Apparently, she’s trying for 20cm, next.

Source: Asahi
* I’m joking, of course