Watches, Stories, & Gear: Lotus, Fibonacci, and What If…

“Watches, Stories, and Gear” is a roundup of our favorite content, watch or otherwise, from around the internet. Here, we support other creators, explore interesting content that inspires us, and put a spotlight on causes we believe in. Oh, and any gear we happen to be digging on this week. We love gear.

Share your story ideas or interesting finds with us by emailing our Managing Editor at [email protected]

This installment of “Watches, Stories, and Gear” is brought to you by the Windup Watch Shop.

The Seinfeld Theme, Remixed

Sometimes the internet gives you something that you couldn’t have possibly known that you needed until you click the “Play” button on the YouTube video. So it is with this strange, but compulsively watchable mashup of the Seinfeld theme with hit songs from every year the show was in production. Trust us: you haven’t really heard “Jump Around” by House of Pain until you’ve heard it overlaid with iconic theme music from the hit 90s sitcom. Why does this exist? Ostensibly, it’s to celebrate 32 years since the debut of the show. But we don’t really need a reason, do we? Just hit play.

A Digital Cat Towers Over The Streets of Tokyo

When you think of enormous creatures that loom over the Tokyo cityscape, you probably think of Godzilla and his many foes throughout dozens of classic (and not so classic) films. But in recent weeks, a far more benign oversized visitor has graced a giant screen in the middle of the city: a calico cat, doing the mundane things a calico cat does, on a 26 x 62 foot LCD screen. The cat appears irregularly, interspersed with advertisements more common to these large digital billboards, but this cat isn’t here to sell you anything. It’s just meant to make passersby smile, which is more than welcome coming out of a tumultuous period of lockdowns thanks to the ongoing Covid-19 threat. So far, the display is doing its job, becoming something of a social media sensation. Maybe every city needs a giant, virtual cat to calm people down? Read more here, via the New York Times.

Marvel’s “What If…” Gets A Trailer

This week we got the first trailer for one of the most hotly anticipated new Marvel properties, a new animated series premiering on Disney+ in August called “What If…”. Comic book fans will likely already be familiar with the premise of “What If…”, which explores alternative realities in the mindbending world of the Marvel multiverse (the first volume of the comic debuted in the late 70s, with another run following a decade later). The medium of animation makes a lot of sense for this series, which sees iconic Marvel characters pairing up in unexpected ways. Even Howard the Duck is getting in on the act, and we’re here for it. 

Lotus Reveals The Emira, Their Final Petrol Powered Car

British sports car maker, Lotus, revealed what will be their final gas powered car this week in the all new Emira. The car is quite a looker, no surprises there, and borrows its design language from their upcoming Evija hypercar. Best of all, there will be plenty of options available to buyers, including two engine choices from a 3.5L supercharged V6 or an AMG tuned 4 banger, mated to either a 6 speed manual gearbox or a 6 speed automatic. Pricing will start well under $100k and we should see this on the roads by late 2022. There’s a lot to love here and should be a fitting sendoff to the petrol era. Build your own or register your interest with Lotus right here.

Fractals, Fibonacci, and Cauliflower

If you’ve ever pondered the maths of your cauliflower you’re not alone. Turns out, as the florets grow into what are called meristems, and as they grow make up a logarithmic spiral, and the number of spirals on the head of Romanesco cauliflower is a Fibonacci number. This is related to the ‘golden ratio’ and explains the odd beauty we find in places we least expect it. Just how this happens is the subject of a new paper by a team of French scientists from the CNRS that was published this week in Science. It’s oddly satisfying and might even make you hungry in the process. Hat tip to Ars Technica.

eBay Finds: Waltham Dive Watch

Here’s a great vintage Waltham manual wind diver circa 1960’s. I used to have one of these several years ago, and I remember being impressed with the quality for the price. If memory serves, the stainless steel case is about 36mm, and this example looks unpolished with nice sharp bevels on the cool lugs. The black dial has an interesting horizontal textured strip, and highly detailed minute (and sub minute!) hash marks. The simple bi-directional aluminum diver’s bezel is in good shape. The 17j manual wind movement looks clean and has a nice gold tone finish. And, the seller states the watch currently runs well, but of course the service history is unknown. Nice, well made vintage diver that shouldn’t break the bank.

View auction here.