WikiTok/Phone endoscope/Historical Tech Tree
Recomendo - issue #475
Wikipedia, TikTok style
I'm not here to shame anyone for scrolling through TikTok. I suggest you give WikiTok a try one night instead. It presents random Wikipedia articles in that familiar endless-scroll format we're addicted to, but replaces dance trends with images of extinct megafauna, weird inventions, and artists I’d never heard of. A recent favorite: Indonesia once issued a postage stamp featuring a fragment of a fossilized Homo erectus skull — the kind of random delight that makes this site worth visiting. — MF
Phone endoscope
Sometimes a single use tool is the only tool that will work. An endoscope is a long coil of stiff, but not too stiff, wire with a tineeweenie camera and LED light at the end. You snake the wire/camera into crevices, down pipes, behind cabinets, inside engines to find out stuff. There’s usually no other way to see deep inside. Not too long ago endoscopes were extremely expensive, but I bought mine for $21. The business end is about 8mm or a 1/4” thick and the other end of the 5 meter (16ft) wire connects to my phone, which serves as the screen, camera and power source. It comes with a clip-on hook or magnet for retrieving tiny objects. I downloaded its app and this Ennovor Endoscope worked instantly. (Lots of generic versions available.) I used mine to troubleshoot a blocked dishwasher-garbage disposal line. For $21 it was worth stashing it in a drawer for another just-in-case use. — KK
Historical tech tree
This historical tech tree is now my favorite way to explore history—a searchable timeline of discoveries, inventions, and tools spanning the ages. You can search by field, year, person, or by the name of the “tech”—which, by this website’s definition, is “a piece of knowledge (an idea) that is created intentionally by humans for a practical purpose (not for its own sake) and is implemented in some kind of physical substrate.” Each tech links to a Wiki page, or branches to other techs that it either built upon or led to. You never know where you'll end up—I just learned all about water clocks. I love this navigable visualization of human innovation, and it's inspiring to imagine what lies ahead of us. — CD
Coffee counter mat
I make espressos at least three times a day. The machine, grinder, and knock box are on a wood kitchen counter, and it's getting stained from drips and spills. This Amoami 12"x19" rubber mat keeps my coffee corner clean and tidy. The absorbent material quickly soaks up any spills without letting moisture seep through to the counter. It's low-maintenance — a quick wipe cleans it up. — MF
Cooking oil sprayer
We switched from a pouring spout for our cooking oil to this dark glass bottle dispenser, which provides more accurate portions and helps preserve the oil’s freshness. The dispenser delivers a precise 1/4 teaspoon, or you can switch to spray mode to lightly coat your pans. I like to use the sprayer when cooking tortillas, because the fine mist of oil makes them crispy. — CD
Trader Joe’s desserts
If you are lucky enough to live near a Trader Joe’s grocery store, my three favorite desserts from there are their Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups, their Almond Ring Danish, and their French Apple Tart (seasonal). All three are addictively delicious, and I would rank them better than their equivalents anywhere in the world at any price. — KK
THIS ISSUE IS SPONSORED BY GOTHAM SILICON
What would you put on a 5”x5” quartz plate with 25,878,012,676 pixels? Full text of your 5,000 favorite novels? Archive of your top 10,000 photos? Ultra-res map of your city with every shrub on every street? We are Gotham Silicon, a new chip fab in NYC. We can make this for you.
Recomendo is an authentic, hand-crafted, human-written weekly newsletter that is free, but not cheap. Please consider supporting our work with a paid option, now at the low price of $45 per year. Paid subs enable us to keep making it free for others.
Recomendo Unclassified Ads work! Reach over 120,000 subscribers for just $200.
UNCLASSIFIEDS
The Proxy We Wish We Found Sooner. Need US residential proxies that actually work? NinjaProxy is fast, stable, and keeps you off the radar. Great for research, travel, or bypassing site blocks. We're big fans. Use code REC50 for 50% off your first month.
Imagine if Pocket and Spotify Wrapped had a baby. I made an app for myself that takes my bookmarks + notes and sends me a deeply personal recap every Sunday morning, available for 24hrs. Is this interesting? Would you like to try it out?
"Anyone not following Bill Adler is missing a dip into the wonders of short prose." "Great storytelling." Enjoy a short story every other week, emailed to you. Always free, always enthralling, always a treat for the heart and mind. Find out more or subscribe here.
Recomendo is published by Cool Tools Lab, a small company of three people. We also run the Cool Tools website, a YouTube channel and podcast, and other newsletters, including Gar’s Tips & Tools, Nomadico, What’s in my NOW?, Tools for Possibilities, Books That Belong On Paper and Book Freak.