A Fork Fit for Noodles

It might look like one of those Japanese "unuseless" inventions, but the Calamete noodle fork is for real. Engineered specifically to enhance the journal of noodles from bowl to mouth, the design takes a standard fork and adds an extra short, stubby tine -- intended to simulate the thumb -- to help grab a forkful of noodles (or pasta).

$44 for a pair at Japan Trend Shop.

In the Future, We'll Be Drinking Remote Controlled Rainwater

A finalist in the 2009 Electrolux Design Lab competition, the "Water Catcher" (by Penghao Shan of China's Zhejiang Sci-tech University) sends out flying tennis ball-size robots into your neighborhood to collect rainfall. Once full, the roving balls automatically return to a homing tray for filtration, whereupon they may then be summoned to you to fill your glass with water.

A video, below, demonstrates how the concept might work.

It Chops, It Zests, It Peels, It Scoops!

A concept for multi-use knives that combine the ability to slice, zest, peel, and scoop, looks intriguing and dangerous.

Thai Street Vendors Heralded for Design Innovations

A new exhibition in Bangkok celebrates the "adaptive" design innovations of Thai street food vendors.

Spoons, Knives, and Forks That Float

Shelterrific points to these innovative concepts for floating utensils: The ceramic forks, knives, and spoons are shaped with an empty ball in the center so that they will bob up and down rather than sinking to the bottom of your sink (and ending up in the garbage disposal).

The gastronomic buoys might also make for an interesting way to serve food: I could imagine them floating in a container of just about anything brined or, perhaps, in a bowl of bocconcini chilled in water. The utensils' creator, Seongyong Lee, has also designed a plastic ladle that, like the forks and knives, floats upright. Both designs only appear to be concepts at this point, though a hypnotic video of the ladle in action is available on YouTube.

Images: Seongyong Lee.