Technabob » death

“If I Die” Facebook App Lets You Post One Last Message From Your Grave

Hazel Chua — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 15:00:33 +0000

Some families contact Facebook to have the accounts of their loved ones closed when they pass away. Others just leave them be so contacts can leave comments remembering the life they led and the impact they made on the lives of others.

But when your time comes, would you want to leave a last word of some sort?

Sometimes, circumstances make it impossible for you to leave your last word, like if you’ve got some illness where you’ll be too weak to speak or if you go by way of an accident. It would’ve been too late – if you didn’t have the “If I Die” app, that is.

It’s an app for Facebook that will make sure you’ll be able to have your last word.

Just activate the “If I Die” app, prepare a video or text message, and you’re all set. When you die, three trustees who you’ve appointed when you set the app up will confirm if you have indeed passed. Your message will then be automatically posted to your wall from beyond the grave.

[via Daily Mail]

Last Minute: Death As an Art Form

Hazel Chua — Sun, 27 Nov 2011 15:00:13 +0000

The fact is that we’re all going to die someday. Some pass on sooner, while others live to a ripe old age (sometimes wishing they were dead instead what with all the complications of old age.) But the point is, people die.

Different cultures follow different practices when it comes to death. Some send of those who have passed in elaborate rituals, while some arrange for a simple burial instead. Using these rituals as her inspiration, Patrycja Domanska created Last Minute.

Last Minute is a modern representation of death, where “ritual and tradition meet.” The piece is comprised of the Sea Urn, the Figure Urn, the Tear Jug, and the Coins.

Sea Urn takes on the concept of the “death ship,” which is where the bodies of the departed are placed on and sent off for their final journeys. The Figure Urn, shown directly above, is basically an urn with a decorated lid, where one of the figures (presumably the black one) can be removed and kept as a remembrance of the departed.

The Tear Jug is a piece that was inspired by tear jugs used before in Rome, where professional grievers cried into. Lastly, the Coins in the series serves as a reminder to remember a loved one.

[via Yanko Design]

Mr. Jones Accurate Watch Constantly Reminds You of Your Fate

Range — Mon, 03 Oct 2011 13:30:34 +0000

This watch is definitely for those who like things a bit darker than the norm. The Accurate Watch reminds you of your mortality every time you look at your wrist to check the time.

The hour hand reads “remember” and the minute hand reads “you will die”. The dial and rim of the glass are mirrored, so that the wearer’s face is reflected in the watch face. It’s supposed to be a memento mori, an object designed to remind us that life is brief and that we should seize the moment. But for some reason, the whole setup reminds me of Dexter, which just started again on Showtime last night.

The watch comes in a MJW presentation box with an illustration commissioned by Nadine Faye-James. The Accurate Watch will cost you £115 (~$157 USD), and you can purchase it at the Mr. Jones Watches website. There’s also a version for the ladies.

[via MoCo Loco]

Computer Geek Gets Fitting Tombstone

Lambert Varias — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 07:28:21 +0000

It might not be as polished as these Star Trek burial containers, but Hu Chuang’s tombstone is equally geeky:

Hu Chuang’s parents also kept his email address open so his loved ones can keep sending him messages, “because, who knows, maybe he can read them on the other side.” Indeed. Rest in peace my fellow geek.

[via Austrian Times via Neatorama via Buzzfeed]

Vinyly Turns Your Ashes to Vinyl, Gives You One Last Chance to be a Hit at Parties

Lambert Varias — Sun, 29 Aug 2010 11:41:24 +0000

I find this beyond creepy but hey, there are billions of people in the world, so I guess there must be people out there who would just love for their remains to be turned into vinyl records. And Vinyly exists to fill that demand (there is a demand for this right?). For an equally ridiculous fee, the company will press your ashes into a playable vinyl record. They can add songs into it, or perhaps a message from you, or if you want to take the morbidity factor to 11, leave it blank, so any tasteless idiot brave soul who plays your remains will hear nothing but the occasional pops and crackles.

The basic package – including generic album art and up to 24 minutes of audio recorded into your ashes – costs £2000 (approx. $3,100 USD). You can pay additional fees for better art and custom music, but the ultimate embarrassment is the £10,000 “FUNeral”, where people will gather round to hear your record be played. Check out And Vinyly’s website for more info. Personally, I’ve heard enough.

[via Engadget]

Loud Bass Music May have Killed Teenager

Lambert Varias — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 13:34:15 +0000

Tom Reid, a 19-year old university student, was at a club in Camden in north London. When Reid and his friend, Alisha Riseley, were pushed towards the speakers, Reid said to Riseley that his heart felt “funny”, and that he thought that the bass was causing his heart to beat very fast. The two went to see the club’s medic, but Reid suddenly collapsed. The Metro says that “paramedics tried to restart his heart but within two hours he was declared dead in [the] hospital.” There were no traces of drugs or alcohol in Reid’s body; the coroner declared that Reid passed away due to a genetic condition called sudden arrythmic death syndrome (SADS).

SADS is an abnormality with the electrical system of the heart. Various triggers could cause the arrhythmia, which in turn deprives the brain of blood, causing loss of consciousness and sometimes death. Ellen Mason, senior cardiac nurse at the British Heart Foundation, says that the loud music may have triggered an arrhythmia in Reid’s otherwise healthy heart. Visit the SADS Foundation’s website for more information on the condition.

[via Boing Boing]

Journey to the Final Final Frontier With the Star Trek Casket and Star Trek Urn

Lambert Varias — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 11:40:12 +0000

How much of a Trekkie (or -er) are you? How far would you go? Roleplaying? Dressing up in costumes? Being fired into space in a photon torpedo casket?

I’m not a Star Trek fan, but I must admit that the casket’s really decent; the logo is fairly small and the Photon Torpedo-inspired design is sleek. Still, it would be a bit weird to be buried in a theme casket. Nothing wrong with it though. But what if you want to be cremated, so that your spirit will immediately be released from it’s fleshy and bony and in my case skinny cage? Then the Trek urn might be for you:

Mmm shiny. This one’s way geekier than the casket, that’s for sure, but still tasteful. I bet some Trekkie out there would be willing to buy this one just for decoration.

Both the casket and the urn will be available this year via Eternal Image. Price TBA.

[via The Presurfer]