Silicone Storage Bags Will Make You Wish Every Meal Was Leftovers

Storage containers for leftovers and other foods are usually designed to be cheap and disposable. But it turns out there's a better way. Silicone once again makes our lives easier with thesereusable, sealable storage bags that are safe to microwave, boil, or steam.

So instead of having to transfer last night's meatloaf into a microwave-safe container before reheating, you can simply store it in one of these silicone bags and then jam the entire thing in your magical hotbox for a piping hot lunch. They're also great for cooking, since the self-standing bags ensure liquids don't spill, but are still easy to pour once they're hot. At $20 per bag they're definitely more expensive than a box of Ziplocs, but with proper care they should easily last for thousands of meals. More here.

New YouTube App Code Shows Pay-To-View Is on the Way

According to Android Police, code in the recently updated YouTube app shows that Pay-To-View is in the works. It's just a matter of when.

The code pretty much speaks for itself:

< string name="paid_channel_subscribe_message">You can only subscribe to this paid channel on your computer.< /string>
< string name="paid_channel_unsubscribe_message">You can only unsubscribe from this paid channel on your computer.< /string>

According to previous rumors, the subscriptions should be relatively cheap, $1 to $5 a month. Still, paying anything for something that was previously free can sting, but maybe the pay channels will really bring some high-quality content. We'll have to wait and see, and the wait may not be long. More here.

Mugtails Are an Adorably Anthropomorphic Way To Enjoy Your Coffee

Awww, now isn't this precious? You can throw out all those mugs your kids had made with their pictures on the side because these Mugtails take adorable to a whole new level. Available with a variety of different animals on the side with their tales forming the handle, these mugs are so sweet you'll never need sugar in your coffee again.

Available in a four pack for around $60, or individually for $16 each, the mugs seem pretty clever until you discover the deer, hedgehog, moose, and other animals whose tails are too small to actually be useful for holding a hot mug. Then you realize the dream is over, and it's back to your trusty "pobody's nerfect" mug. More here.

A Bottle Cap Pencil Sharpener Is Pure Genius

If you prefer the feel of writing or sketching with a freshly sharpened pencil and are fastidious about keeping hydrated, this clever piece of synergy is going to blow your mind. Designed for use on standard plastic water bottles, this pencil sharpening bottle cap is a brilliantly obvious way to deal with pencil shavings.

It all but guarantees the shavings are not going to spill as long as the sharpener is screwed on tight, and you probably don't have to empty the bottle for months on end—depending on your pencil usage. It just might be the best $3 you ever spend, unless you just opt for a cheap mechanical pencil that never needs sharpening. But where's the fun in that? More here.

Robot Bat Wings Give Us a Glimpse Of the Future Of Vampires

By all logic bats shouldn't be able to fly. They're basically rats with wings, yet somehow they manage to soar through the air, and researchers at Brown University have finally figured out how. But since they're not the easiest animals to work with, Kenneth Breuer and Sharon Swartzcreated this biologically accurate robotic bat wing that perfectly mimics the creature's motions.

As the robo-bat was being developed and refined, the researchers were able to learn how all of the muscles and ligaments in the wing work together to not only enable flight, but also keep the animal intact while it was vigorously flapping.

The practical benefits of this research include developing more energy-efficient light aircraft, and even general improvements for the aerodynamics of existing planes. And of course better equipment and more authentic costumes for masked vigilantes. More here.

Lay Waste To Wireless Networks With This Hacktastic Nexus 7

Tablets are great for slouching on the sofa and checking your Facebook, but they can also be super sleek hack-machines. Take the new Pwnie Express Pwn Pad as an example; it's a fully-loaded hacker suite designed to puncture any network.

Built from a Nexus 7, the Pwn Pad obviously makes use of Google Android OS, but also has Ubuntu 12.04 tucked away inside to handle some of the more complex software built in. And that's not the only addition to the tablet's arsenal either; it also comes with a TP-Link wireless adapter to support packet injection at a far higher range than the Nexus 7's meager little wireless chip could do on its own.

Positioned as a tool for a serious security professional—a tool that could go so far as to replace a laptop in the field—the Pwn Pad doesn't come cheap. You can expect to pay a cool $795 for one when they ship in early April. And, even with that price tag, Pwn Pads don't really offer any additional functionality or software than a standard penetration-testing laptop doesn't have, but damned if it isn't slick as hell. More here.

iOS 6.1.3 Beta Fixes iPhone Lock Screen Security Hole

Apple's been keeping busy rolling out small patches of iOS 6. The latest, iOS 6.1.3 beta 2 just hit developers. Importantly, 9To5Mac reports that the update fixes the gaping lock screen bug that allows access even with out a passcode. No word on whether it patches up the recent Evasi0n jailbreak. Unfortunately, it's only a developer beta, so you won't get the fix yet. More here

This Is Officially the Best Copyright-Free Way to Sing Happy Birthday

You might not know it, but the melody from Happy Birthday To You is actually copyrighted, owned by Time Warner, and won't enter the public domain until 2030 at the earliest. That's why the Free Music Archive set out to find an alternative—and this is officially the best choice.

Along with WFMU, the Free Music Archive launched a competition back in January to find a new copyright-free and free-to-use celebratory birthday song. The winner, It's your Birthday!by Monk Turner and Fascinoma, features in this video. It was chosen by a panel of judges including Harvard Law Professor Lawrence Lessig and Yo La Tengo's Ira Kaplan.

Why bother? Well, the fact it's copyrighted strictly means that Time Warner can cream royalty fees off anyone who chooses to use it. Allegedly, the company makes a cool $2 million from licensing the tune out for use in films, TV shows and advertisements. If you don't like that fact, start using this song instead!

Magnet Boxes Are Puzzles You Can Actually Use

Jigsaw puzzles are fun, though they're a tedious undertaking. You can never figure out where that one corner piece goes. Plastica's MagContainers are an assortment of magnetic, puzzle-like wooden boxes, and there's no wrong way to put them together.

The geometric shapes have magnets embedded on all sides, so you can configure them any way you want. They come in square and triangle, with a small ($52) and a large ($69) version for each shape. You can store whatever you like in these neat, stackable boxes. More here.

A Magnetic Case Keeps Your Knives Safe and Sharp

Knifes: they will cut you. Not out of hostility or resentment, but because they're knives, dummy. Magmate's Magnetic Blade Guards will protect your precious fingers and keep your knives sharp at the same time.

The PVC sheaths won't save you from cuts you might sustain during some clumsy chopping, but you sure won't reach into the drawer and get a hand full of blade. The guards come in two sizes, a smaller one for $20 and a larger for $25. They're brightly colored and happy, and when you're done with your mincing, you snap them securely over your knives. More here.

Animal Snout Cups Let You Pick Your Nose

These animal shnaz cups are a great idea for your next party. They're also the only acceptable way to pick your nose.

They come from Fred & Friends, makers of all-around fun things. Eight, nine-ounce cups come in each $8 pack. You get a toucan, a zebra, a shark, and an iguana for your one creepy friend, among other exotic beasts. Surprise your guests who were probably expecting boring Solo cups. More here.

Does Anyone Actually Want a Transparent Phone?

There are a couple of rumored features that "phones of the future!" always seem to have, and up there with flexibility is transparency. See-through phones have been a futuristic what-if for ages now, but now a company called Polytron is promising that the future is here! Or at least close. Within the year, perhaps.

Sure, it'd be impressive, but it just raises the question: why? Is there any really good application for a transparent phone? Even if there is, would it ever be useful for the average Joe, expect maybe if he wants to keep tabs on the palm of his dominant hand?

This Is Where Apple Sources All Its Components

This map, put together by China File, plots all of the publicly available suppliers who fuel Apple's production lines. While the majority are found in Asia, it's interesting to see that the rest of world represents, too.

Each point on the interactive map represents an individual supplier, provided with complete context—from Analog Devices in Limerick, Ireland, to Arvato Digital in Smithfield, Australia. Explore the zoomable, clickable version of the map here.

There are, as you can see, plenty of suppliers based in the US, the most important—or at least, prolific—of which produce glass and processors for iOS devices. More here.

Google Will Open Retail Stores

Google is expanding out of its Mountain View haven and into the hangouts of America. According to an “extremely reliable source,” the search giant will roll out a retail initiative by opening up multiple flagship Google Stores in time for the holidays. Instead of relying on Google Play to get your Nexus 4, all you’ll need to do is drive on down to your favorite Google hangout.

“The mission of the stores is to get new Google Nexus, Chrome and especially upcoming products into the hands of prospective constumers,” 9to5Google said. The source added that Google has plenty of potential customers on the market, but they don’t have the opportunity to try the company’s stuff out—a try-before-you-buy situation. Stores will be Google’s solution, and potentially lead to increased sales.

Google currently offers smaller store-within-a-store options inside Best Buy locations in the U.S., but those only focus on Chromebooks. The source claims an actual Google retail store would have a much broader approach since the company pretty much offers an entire lineup of products now. We have to agree.

“The decision to open stores, I’m told, came when drawing up plans to take the google Glass to the public,” 9to5Google said. The only way consumers would be comfortable with purchasing such a (potentially) futuristic tech is if they could try it out first. The store idea was born around that, and it only makes sense to sell everything Google offers.

Apple has absolutely perfected the retail experience, and it’s a huge part of the company’s success. Apple CEO Tim Cook recently admitted that Apple Stores are much more than just a place to hock gadgets, but a wonderful advantage in community mind share.

Google wants a piece of that. More here.

The Multitasking Toss-And-Chop Is Your Salad Making Secret Weapon

This little scissor cyborg tool is a multitasker. Throw all the ingredients from your leafy green mix in the bowl—lettuce, tomatoes, carrots—go nuts. Everything will get sliced and mixed together without having to make a stop at a cutting board first. Sure, it's basically just a knife and scissors and tongs all in one, for $25. More here.

What’s the Difference Between an Asteroid and a Meteor?

The 2012 DA14 asteroid zipped passed Earth today and a meteor exploded over Russia. What the heck is the difference between an asteroid and a meteor? And a meteorite? And a meteoroid? Not too much, apparently!

An asteroid is a rocky object in space that's not as big as a planet and isn't a moon. There are millions of them, think the asteroid belt in space. A meteor is an asteroid that burns up as it enters the Earth's atmosphere, think shooting stars. A meteorite is a meteor that actually lands on the surface of Earth, think about Russia today.

As for a meteoroid? No one really knows. They're just kind of like smaller asteroids. More here.

Video of Asteroid as It Approaches Earth at Five Miles Per Second

Here it is: video of asteroid 2012 DA14 as seen at 12:59UTC from Samford Valley Observatory, Brisbane, Australia. It is moving towards us at "a closing speed of five miles per second."

You can watch live video here.

Lego iPhone Cases Re-Define Brick Phone

The best part is they're buildable. That definitely gives a new meaning to the concept of a brick phone. Lego iPhones are way cooler than a Zack Morris monstrosity. You'll start to see these awesome cases this spring. Belkin and Lego have a multi-year deal, which will give us more Lego gadgets in the future. More here.

Get Pregnant Today, Get a Free Ikea Crib in 9 Months

Cheap people of Australia: run! Don't walk! To the nearest location where you can get pregnant. Ikea is doling out free cribs to babies born nine months from today.

The baby must come into the world on November 14, 2013. If that's your due date or if you get knocked up today or sometime in the next month, hold onto this coupon! Or convince your doctor to induce you on the 14th of November. Or eat a lot of spicy food that day. Whatever it takes. Unfortunately for Americans who are planning on a baby, this deal is only good in Australia. And unfortunately for any parent, Ikea cribs are only as secure as your assembling skills allow, which is to say they could be pretty hazardous. But hey, free crib! More here.

This Mug Would Let Tea Drinkers Say Goodbye to Spoons For Good

Spoons? You don't need no spoons. Or at least, you wouldn't if the SlingsHOT mug became a reality, because the shape of its handle is designed especially to let you deal with teabags using just your bare hands.

There's a groove running up and around the handle of the SlingsHOT mug, which both keeps the bag from falling into the cup, and also allows the user to pull the string back, slingshot-style, to squeeze water from the bag. That means no more squeezing with spoons or scalded fingers. Simple, but terribly effective.

Sadly, the cup is currently just a design concept by Samir Sufi—but it may yet make it into production. More here.