Scrabble’s letter values are broken

Scrabble’s letter values are broken, says researcher - Can’t figure out how to use that pesky (and awesome) ‘Z’ tile in a game of Scrabble?

It’s actually easier than ever, claims one Scrabble expert, and that’s a big, big problem.

Researcher Joshua Lewis believes recent changes to Scrabble’s official dictionary have thrown off the balance in the game’s letter values, effectively ruining the scoring system altogether.

"The dictionary of legal words in Scrabble has changed," he explained to the BBC. "Among the notable additions are all of these short words which make it easier to play Z, Q and X, so even though Q and Z are the highest value letters in Scrabble, they are now much easier to play."

Lewis is the creator of a program called Vallet, which calculates proper Scrabble letter values based on letter frequency and how easy it is to play with other letters. Changes made to the official Scrabble dictionary have had a huge impact on his program’s calculations.

For instance, the letter ‘X’, currently worth eight points, should be dropped to five points. The letter ‘M’ should be demoted from three points to two, while that letter ‘Z’ you’ve been dying to get rid of should be worth only six points, not ten. As for ‘Q’, well, that’s still enough of a pain that Lewis’ program actually wants to raise it to 12 (he'll settle for leaving it at ten).

Pretty daring change for a scoring system that dates back to the game’s inception some 75 years ago -- and a change unlikely to take effect anytime soon. A Mattel spokesperson told the BBC that they’ve “no plans to change Scrabble tiles.”

”It is not a game where fairness is paramount, it is a game of luck and changing the tile values wouldn't achieve anything," said Scrabble’s UK rep, Philip Nelkon.

Scrabble’s top man in the U.S. think it’s a bad idea, too. John Chew, the co-president of the North American Scrabble Players Association, believes any change would bring about "catastrophic outrage."

"Some people would just continue playing with the old tile distributions because people who've played the game often enough tend to remember that the Q is worth 10 points, the Z is worth 10 points and so on,” Chew said.

The initial Scrabble tile valuation was conceived in 1938 by the game’s creator, Alfred Butts, based on how frequently letters appeared on the front page of the New York Times. ( Plugged In )

Blog : The Challenge

Post : Scrabble’s letter values are broken, says researcher

READ MORE - Scrabble’s letter values are broken

Spotify’s 'Play Button' will transform music blogging

Spotify’s 'Play Button' will transform music blogging - Spotify’s new Play Button will put an end to broken and poor quality audio links, and crucially gain it a whole new following, writes Emma Barnett.

Spotify’s latest move, the launch of the Play Button, which will allow every writer, from the unknown music blogger to the well known critics at music bibles, such as Rolling Stone magazine, to embed any song or album within their articles online, is a clever and aggressive move by the Swedish streaming service.

Spotify's new Play Button

All too often music blogs and articles contain links which do not work because either the rights holder has pulled them down, or audio-sharing platforms fail to support the content adequately. Or, if the link does work, the sound quality is often poor.

Now, with a simple embed code, Spotify has opened up its 16-million-song catalogue to the world.

In the same move it pulled with Facebook, Spotify has pushed its client into another popular place for music fans – editorial.

People will need to have a Spotify account to access the music (adding a layer of effort to the listening process) – but that’s the main point of Spotify doing this - to gain new users.

Despite large growth, the service still only has 10 million active users (three million of which are paying subscribers). When you compare that to Facebook’s 850 million members or even Instagram’s 30 million userbase, it’s relatively small.

Spotify’s aim is to become ‘the operating system for music’ on all digital platforms. First it tackled the mobile, then stereo systems, followed by Facebook. Now it’s trying to push its music client all over the web – wherever music is written about.

This feisty move will directly impact audio-sharing platform SoundCloud. But the fellow Swedish music start-up still has its business-to-business model in place – where people pay to store, share and edit larger files through the platform and SoundCloud simply doesn’t have the deals in place with the record labels to offer this type of legal music service.

Other music and technology fans have pointed out to me on Twitter that the Play Button experience could be quite clunky as it isn’t strictly an embed – music will not play in the browser but through the Spotify application.

However, it will still beat broken links and the poor audio experience currently offered by most music sharing platforms.

Spotify will have to really up its game of getting new music into its catalogue as quickly as possible if bloggers who focus on the latest releases are to really feel the benefit of the clever Play Button. ( telegraph.co.uk )

READ MORE - Spotify’s 'Play Button' will transform music blogging

The tattoo that tingles when your phone rings

The tattoo that tingles when your phone rings - Nokia is trying to better incorporate its phones with your life — literally

If the patent submission is any indication, Nokia will soon be creating a magnetic tattoo that will notify you with magnetic pulses when someone calls you. Photo: unwiredview.com

Nokia is giving the phrase 'spine-tingling' a whole new meaning. The Finnish cellphone manufacturer has submitted a patent application for a magnetic tattoo (see below) that will tingle when your phone rings. It's the latest attempt to capitalize on haptic feedback technology, or technology that communicates through touch (a more familiar example is the rumbling of a Nintendo Wii controller). Here, a guide to Nokia's magnetic touch:

How does a magnetic tattoo work?

The tattoo ink is enriched with metallic compounds that will be demagnetized before the ink is embedded in the skin. Once the tattoo has healed, the ink will be re-magnetized with permanent magnets. Your tattoo will then be sensitive to magnetic pulses, which theoretically can be emitted by a cellular phone.

What will a ringing phone feel like?

The tattoo will crackle with a tingling sensation, and you'll have to scratch it to dismiss the call. Your phone should be able to send you a variety of pulses, so different degrees of tingling will indicate whether your phone battery is dying, or alert you to text and voice messages. You should even be able to use your tattoo as an alarm clock in the morning.

Is Nokia serious about this?

Yes. It might sound "like science fiction," says Peter Suciu at TechNewsWorld, but it's likely that this technology will become "commonplace" in the future. Even if Nokia never sells a cellphone-tattoo, the patent application is evidence that companies believe technology will eventually be merged with our bodies in some form or another. Nokia's patent could even be seen as a preemptive move to profit off an inventor who creates a similar innovation in the future.

Do people really want to be physically linked to their phones?

Maybe. It would "mean an end to the days when a silenced cellphone means missing calls and text messages during a movie or music concert," says InnovationNewsDaily. And "at least you can never lose a tattoo," says Jamie Condoiffe at Gizmodo. The main problem is whether your "tattoo would need to be modified when you upgraded to a different device," says Leslie Horn at PCMag.

READ MORE - The tattoo that tingles when your phone rings

Toymakers look to 80s, apps and Facebook for hits

Toymakers look to 80s, apps and Facebook for hits - Coming off a year in which U.S. toy sales fell 2 percent, toymakers and buyers at the 109th American Toy Fair in New York are looking for the elusive runaway hit that failed to materialize in 2011.

The industry has reached back to the past hoping Ninja turtles and caring stuffed bears from the 1980s, accessories that play with the hottest gadgets of today and a cuddly dog that has scored fame on Facebook, will turn around flagging sales this year.

"Although the down economy still presents many challenges, at the end of the day, kids will always want the latest and greatest toys. Technology and value will continue to be key factors in purchasing decisions," Jeremy Padawer, EVP of Marketing for Jakks Pacific Inc.

In 2011, gadgets like iPads and smartphones were top consumer sellers, and toy companies big and small are betting on "AppCessories," playthings that come to life when hooked up to popular devices such as Apple Inc's iPad, iPhone and iPod, to woo tech-savvy kids who have grown up playing on their parents' smartphones or their own gaming consoles.

"It's a nice way to bridge the generation gap because a lot of these games are games that adults are going to have fun playing too," said Adrienne Appell, toy trends specialist with the Toy Industry Association, which runs the four-day toy fair and expects more than 33,000 people. That is up almost 4 percent from last year.

For example, Mattel Inc showed off its "Apptivity" line. It included many items such as the Hot Wheels Apptivity Car that allows kids to use iPads as race tracks. Mattel said a special anti-scratch technology on the vehicle ensures iPad screen surfaces go unscathed.

"In keeping with today's tech-savvy families, this new category merges physical toy play with tablets," said Chuck Scothon, senior vice president of marketing at Mattel's North America unit.

Hasbro Inc has its "zAPPed" gaming platform. Privately held rivals such as Spin Master, Crayola, WowWee and Discovery Bay also had offerings in the appCessories arena.

But hits from the past, as well as toys made from basic fabric and stuffing, also vied for attention.

Nickelodeon and Playmates Toys revealed a new line of action figures, vehicles, ninja gear and other toys inspired by Nickelodeon's new CG-animated "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles," which is set to premiere in the Fall. The turtles first hit the small screen in 1987, according to their official website.

American Greetings Corp is relaunching another 80's hit, Care Bear plush dolls, which are celebrating their 30th anniversary.

Other plush toys were on display as well.

Gund, one of the oldest plush toy makers in the United States, unveiled what could potentially be a runaway hit with dog lovers.

It launched the first plush version of the "Boo," a Pomeranian that has over 3 million Facebook fans. Priced at $20, the plush toy won't be available in stores until spring, but thousands have already preordered it on the company's website.

"We saw Boo on Facebook. We thought it will translate really well," Vince Smart, vice president of marketing at Gund, a division of Enesco LLC. Gund contacted Boo's owner, who has chosen to be anonymous, on Facebook.

Cuddle Barn launched Beaver Plush, a collection of plush characters that come to life by singing popular songs. The 12-inch plush beaver features Justin Bieber's hit song "Baby," and a baseball cap tilted to the side.

Then there is Lego, the Danish toy maker whose colorful building blocks do well even during weak economic times.

Lego unveiled three new DUPLO concepts that were designed specifically for the U.S. market. It includes items such as "Read & Build", a series of preschool board books and a collection of DUPLO bricks that, together, hope to make 'read to me' time more fun. Lego also displayed a new line for girls and a host of toys themed on movies such as "Lord of the Rings," "The Hobbit," and Marvel and DC Universe super heroes.

Shopper dynamics are still impacted by the economy, but we haven't seen any alarming trends in consumers trading down," said Soren Torp Laursen, president of Lego Americas.

There was also no dearth of toys supporting good causes.

MGA Entertainment is supporting the fight against cancer by launching new hairless versions of their hit doll brands, Bratz and Moxie Girlz, while Growums gardening kits from Preferred Commerce Inc encourage children to grow their own vegetables and eat healthy.

There was also a huge selection of toys based on movies, especially the two films from Marvel that are coming out this year: "The Avengers" and "The Amazing Spider-Man." ( Reuters )

READ MORE - Toymakers look to 80s, apps and Facebook for hits

50 new tech tools you should know about

50 new tech tools you should know about -- You may have dozens of apps on your phone and scores of websites bookmarked on your laptop, but that doesn't mean you have all the latest tech tools at your fingertips.

New mobile apps, services, social networks and other digital tools pop up so frequently that keeping up with them is a nearly impossible task. Just when you think you're up to date, something newer and hipper comes along.

But before you wave the white flag, let us help. Once again we have sorted through hundreds of new and emerging tech tools to bring you 50 of the most buzzworthy ones.

These apps and services can help you do everything from shooting better smartphone photos to cataloging your bottle-cap collection to finding the best pad Thai in your city. Not all of them are brand new, but we've probably listed some you haven't heard of. We hope you find them useful.

Which of your favorite new tech tools did we leave out? Let us know in the comments.

360 Panorama (99 cents): Want to enhance your smartphone landscape photos? Android users interested in capturing and sharing 360-degree panoramic photos should check out this app, the first true panoramic-photo app for the Android Market.

Alfred (free): It's a discovery tool for your palate! Alfred starts off with your location and asks you a few simple questions about restaurants you like to frequent. Then the magic happens and the eatery recommendations start flowing. Judging by my early experiences, this iOS app is uncanny at gauging your tastes.

App.bg (free): This Web tool allows users to easily pull up nearby Instagrams, Foursquare tips and tweets using a Google Map. It offers a somewhat crude yet effective layout, available on desktop and mobile platforms. (No mobile app yet, unfortunately.)

Autostitcher ($1.99): Another interesting piece of software for producing panoramic images on your iPhone. Does a very nice job with its stitching feature for a near seamless quality image and easy sharing with friends.

Can I Park Here ($1.99): Fewer things in life are more confusing that trying to decipher the parking signs around New York City. This new iPhone app allows users to photograph the parking sign for the area in question, then find out if they can park there and for how long. The app even has a timer that starts when the user parks and lets them know how much time they have left in that spot.

CardMunch (free): This mobile app for iOS from LinkedIn converts paper business cards into digital contacts. A new 3.0 update also offers LinkedIn integration for connecting with just one click. A must-have for conference-goers and business trippers.

Catch (freemium; basic version is free but you'll pay for advanced features): The productivity-app space is fast becoming crowded. Catch is one of the newer kids on the block and it too promises to help users manage the information overload. Freebie accounts let users upload 70MB of new content (text, Web clips, photos, voice memos) per month to a cloud service. Everything else will cost you. Available for iOS and Android, along with plug-ins for the more popular Web browsers.

Clingle (free): This location-based social net comes with a twist: It doesn't focus the user experience on the public stream. Instead, users share multimedia messages for a specific user or group of users when they check in at a certain location. Those messages can grow into full-length conversations. Think text messaging, but with video and audio, and triggered through GPS. Don't know if it will catch on, but it's a very creative application.

Cuttings.me (free): This is a great tool for storing and showcasing your online portfolio. Cuttings.me allows you to upload PDF files or add links of your work in an easy format that also proves quite simple to share.

Evernote Food helps you preserve and share eating experiences.

Evernote Food (free): From the company that brought us the popular productivity tool comes a mini-version of Evernote aimed at storing, preserving and sharing our memorable food adventures. Available for iOS; just be careful not to spill sauce on your iPhone.

Facebook Timeline Apps (free): Facebook recently announced more than 60 partners who provide apps for its new Timeline feature, in such themes as entertainment, fitness, food, giving, music, news, shopping and travel. Timeline's integration, in a nutshell, posts your activity from these other websites and services on your Facebook page. Whether it provides added value or just more clutter to your feeds is up to you.

Find My Friends (free): Think the Find My iPhone app, but for people. Find My Friends allows iPhone or iPad users to easily locate others via via their Apple IDs and iCloud -- totally contingent, of course, upon a close family member or friend agreeing to be tracked. Don't accept requests from anyone you don't want to know your whereabouts 24/7.

Fondu (free): Described as Foursquare for foodies, Fondu is a community for sharing bite-sized reviews about places to eat and drink. Users log in/sign up with Facebook before having a palatable digital space to opine about their meals.

Flipboard (free): The world's first social magazine app has been turning heads (and thumbs) for a few years now. What is new is that this popular e-zine reader for iPad is now available on the iPhone as well. The same great look and feel of Flipboard isn't sacrificed one bit on the smaller screen.

Flud News(free): One of the newer players in the ever-growing social news reader space is Flud. The app is designed to be your own collection of articles and news, all in a perfect magazine-like interface. Open the app, create your custom profile and start "Fluding." This iOS app places heavy emphasis on the social influence of the fellow Fluders in your inner circle.

Frametastic (free): There are many mobile apps for framing multiple camera-phone pics, but Frametastic is one of the few free and extensive ones. It features lots of fun options to fool around with, plus easy exporting to Instagram or your other social networks.

Friend or Follow (freemium): Another nifty tool for displaying who's following you on social media that you aren't following in turn (and vice versa). It also gives you the option of doing something about it.

Google Currents (free): A 'zine-like reader for mobile devices, Google's new application for Android, iPads and iPhones lets you explore online magazines and other content with the swipe of a finger.

GramFeed (free): Instagram has put all of its eggs in the mobile basket. But some Instragram fanatics want to see images on something larger than a smartphone screen. GramFeed is the closest thing I've seen to a Google search experience for those gorgeous filtered Instagram pics.

Hipmunk aims to make searching for travel deals fun.

Hipmunk (free): In a sea of travel apps, Hipmunk stands out for its fun, interactive and deal-scoring features. Available for iOS and Android devices, it lets users overlay heat maps on destinations to determine neighborhoods with food, nightlife and shopping that best fit their criteria. Brand new to the app is a hotel search feature.

Instagram (free): Heralded by iTunes as 2011 App of the Year, Instagram (IG) looks to expand its horizons in 2012 beyond the iPhone platform to Windows 7 and Android systems. With 16 million users in a little over a year, and only a handful of employees, IG is proving to be the little social-photo engine that could.

Kyoo (free): This Web service aggregates all the buzz around a specific topic from some of the most popular social mediums. Kyoo collects data from Twitter, Facebook, Flickr, YouTube, Google News, Google Blog Search and social bookmarking sites such a Delicious, Digg and Reddit. The interface and video channels are particularly impressive.

LogMeIn (freemium): his service provides anytime, anywhere remote access to your PC or Mac via your iPhone or iPad. A pay version ($39.99 annual subscription) offers HD video access, file manager, cloud integration and 24/7 support.

Mlkshk (freemium): This nifty Web-curation tool allows users to easily sort through the tsunami of images and videos online via shakes. Users can also share and follow the shakes of others. It boasts lots of browser plug-in options, and even the ability to host photos that users post to Twitter.

Muuter (free): Imagine being able to remove certain friends, topics or hashtags (#winning, anyone?) temporarily from your Twitter feed. Well now you can, with Muuter. A timer feature is awesome for eliminating "noise" from your feed just when you think you've reached your breaking point.

My Secret Folder (99 cents): The majority of my digital life is like an open book. But all of us have something to hide: For example, my Jonas Brothers uploads are off-limits to the world. My Secret Folder acts as a private, passcode-enabled app that stores pics, movies, notes, contacts and other things you don't want people to stumble upon. Best part is, if someone opens the iPhone or iPad app and enters the wrong passcode, the app will snap a picture of the culprit, tag a location to the incident and keep it on file for when you return.

Oink (free): This mobile app offers an easy way to rate the things around you. But instead of just rating restaurants, for example, you can rate specific dishes. Oink lets you weigh in on who has the best thin-crust pizza or chicken tikka masala in your city.

Path (free): Is this exclusive, smartphone-centric service the next great social network? Only time will tell. Path 2.0 is elegant and intimate in both design and usability. Many have referred to Path as the "anti-Facebook" for its attempts to make social networking more personal by limiting users' friend lists and ability to share Web links (self-promote). Since its relaunch last year, Path has experienced a thirtyfold increase in the number of daily users, according to its creators. Although the app is free, users must pay for some features. But the company said it will not include ads on the site. Path is available for iOS and Android devices and integrates with Twitter, Facebook, Foursquare and Tumblr to allow cross-posting.

Photosynth (free): There are about 20 panoramic-photo mobile apps for iOS on the market, and one of my favorites is Photosynth from Microsoft. Its simple, clean interface provides killer results with 360-degree interactive imagery. The app integrates to Twitter, Facebook and other social nets.

Picscatter ($1.50): Generate beautiful collage Timeline covers for Facebook of your friends, images you've liked or your specific photo albums. The app can be finicky in certain browsers, so I recommend downloading it to your computer, then uploading to Facebook directly.

Pinterest helps you catalog your passions.

Pinterest (free): Described as a virtual pinboard. Pinterest lets you organize and share your passions in a visual way like no other. It's currently still in an invite-only stage, so you'll need a friend to help get you in -- or you can sign up for the waiting list, which usually takes just a few days. It's highly addictive, so be warned.

Road Ninja (free): Never travel the interstate alone again. Road Ninja has your back. This mobile app does a solid job of alerting you to food, gas, lodging and other essential roadway necessities by way of upcoming highway off-ramps. Users also have the ability to set up preferences of your favorite chain restaurants so you'll never miss the comfort food you love even when away from home. For now only available on iOS.

Room 77 (free): Tired of playing hotel room-roulette, and having to guess what kind of view, if any, awaits you upstairs? Room 77 shows you the best and worst room views via Google maps, blueprints and user content to make the most of your next hotel stay.

Slice (free): Attention online shoppers! This digital tool may be your new BFF. Similar to what Mint offers for your personal finances and TripIt for your travel plans, Slice is a simple way to organize your purchases and simultaneously track orders from multiple vendors.

SlowShutter (99 cents): This camera app for iOS lets you fool around with light, blurring images on purpose. It comes with a Live Preview feature, which is helpful because a lot of figuring out what works well using this app is trial and error. I especially enjoy using SlowShutter to experiment with light trails on my phone.

Snapseed ($4.99): This pro-level photo editing software will set you back a few bucks but if you're serious about your images and don't want to settle for the many freebies out there, this is definitely the way to go. It performs particularly well on the iPad.

Springpad (free): Another useful productivity tool for curating your personal notes and tasks. One part virtual notebook, one part personal assistant, Springpad helps you remember stuff today so you can make better decisions tomorrow.

Spool (free): This app allows users to save articles and videos for later. No biggie, right? Here's where it impresses: Spool will access this content later, even if you're offline. Now you can catch up on kooky cat videos when you're out of network.

Swackett (free): Sweater, jacket or coat? (Get it?) This neat little weather app for iOS gives you simplified outerwear recommendations so you can hurry up and be on the go. For those interested in more than wardrobe advice, it also provides detailed weather updates via AccuWeather service.

Thumb (free): There's nothing scientific about this mobile app, but that doesn't prevent it from proving highly addictive. It's crowdsourcing made supersimple: Vote thumbs up or down. Thumb offers a good balance of news-ish questions along with some fun escapes.

Total Recall ($7.99): his powerful call recorder app for Android allows users to automatically or manually record phone calls. It also works nicely for recording short voice notes, reminders, lectures, meetings, etc.

TourWrist (free): This is an interesting host for your panoramic images. Upload your 360s to this tool for a highly effective rendering treatment that allows your panos to pop and sizzle in a truly remarkable way.

Tweepi (freemium): Ever feel like your Twitter account could use a tune-up? Tweepi may be just what the doctor ordered. It promises to help make sense of your Twitter account through easy-to-use features for cleaning up followers, lists and activity streams.

Tweetbot ($2.99): This is my newest favorite full-featured iPhone Twitter client: a Twitter mobile app with an attitude. There are plenty of decent Twitter apps for iPhone, including the official version, but none seem to bundle the best of the best features (multiple timelines, smart gestures, native push notifications, customizable navigation) with Tweetbot's polished feel. Worth a few bucks if you take your mobile tweetin' seriously.

Tweetsheet (free): This very cool Web tool from Vizify pulls together an instant infographic of your personal Twitter universe: retweet info, geographic impact, best followers, a word cloud of your tweets and more.

TwitWipe (free): Ever wish there was a reset button on life? Now there is for Twitter. TwitWipe deletes all your tweets in one fell swoop. Why would anyone want to do this? Well, maybe you need to clean out an account before handing it over to someone else. Or maybe you've just realized how crappy your tweets are.

Unroll.me (free): This service allows users to unsubscribe from unwanted e-mails in bulk. Unroll.me, which is currently in private beta, promises to not store your e-mail address and password. It's compatible with the major e-mail services in the United States.

Voxer (freemium): Created by a former communications specialist with the U.S Army, Voxer is a walkie-talkie app for smartphones. It allows users to send instant audio, text and photo messages to friends (individual or groups). Messages stream live as you talk, and your friends can join live or access later. Available for iOS and Android.

Zite customizes news sites to create a personalized digital magazine.

Zite (free): Similar to the aforementioned Flipboard, Zite has been around for a while but only recently made its debut on the small screen (iPhone). This news reader goes beyond manual customization and leverages smart technology to intuitively fill up your feeds with content reliably relevant to your interests. (Full disclosure: CNN purchased Zite.com in 2011.)

ZocDoc (free): Think Open Table for physicians. Discover and research medical professionals in your area, then book your in-patient visit online. It even offers synching for your Google or Microsoft Outlook calendars, with text reminder options. ZocDoc is currently only available in 12 markets but should expand as it catches on further.

ZoomSphere (free): Imagine a Billboard Top 100 for social nets instead of songs. ZoomSphere provides especially detailed stats for major social networks like Facebook, Twitter, Google Plus and LinkedIn -- great for keeping up with surging brands and social-media megastars. (CNN)

READ MORE - 50 new tech tools you should know about

The weird stuff you could have given your kids this holiday season

The weird stuff you could have given your kids this holiday season — A plush chunk of talking bacon may not be exactly what your kids hope to find under the Christmas tree. But consider this: Instead of jousting to snag the latest video game or Barbie—and furnishing your children with the same stuff as their friends—you can give them a huggable doll shaped like breakfast meat.

Sure, it may seem counterintuitive, but as anyone who grew up playing with a Slinky, a Squirmle, or Silly Putty can attest, it’s often the strangest toys, the ones that freak us out or make us squeal, that become our childhood favorites. They also allow kids to explore a culture through its toys, bringing the sense of discovery that comes with traveling right into your living room.

Advertisement

Erwin the Little Patient: Germany
Budding surgeons-to-be will appreciate Erwin, a plush doll with Ziggy Stardust hair and a secret under his hospital gown. Lift Erwin’s hem, unzip his apparently genderless torso, and voilà—out pops a series of interconnected, sort-of-anatomically-correct innards. A set of bright blue lungs, a tangle of green intestines (both small and large), a pair of kidneys, a spleen and liver, and a red valentine-shaped heart are all attached to one another with color-coded Velcro strips. wildandwoolly.co.uk

Indeed, there are toy manufacturers and home-crafters across the globe that cater to kids’ taste for the bizarre. A few of the odder toys out there seem geared to kids from certain cultures. An American child, for instance, might not feel particularly inspired to play with a platter of crocheted sushi rolls, while a Japanese or Muslim child might be baffled or even horrified by that talking slab of bacon.

More often than not, though, strange toys have universal appeal. What child, for instance, wouldn’t enjoy turning an ordinary bathtub into a cauldron of neon-bright, popcorn-scented goo? Or morphing a boring old toothbrush into a whirring bristled robot beastie? (Parents, start planning your oral-hygiene play dates now.)

The truth is, it’s not just kids who get a kick out of weird playthings; some toys have just as many fans among adults. The Hexbugs series of robotic insects, for instance—which includes a freakily authentic spider that scuttles and swivels its head—are collected by parents as well as children. Other toys are so grossly humorous that almost anyone with a base sense of humor can appreciate them.

“I’ve played it with over a thousand kids and adults,” says David Norman, whose U.K.-based company Goliath Games makes a hugely popular poop-and-scoop game called Doggy Doo (more than 1 million have been sold this year alone). “The inherent funniness of hearing a dog pass gas and poop is a riot for all ages.” ( slate.com )

READ MORE - The weird stuff you could have given your kids this holiday season

The Top 11 Toys of All Time

Barbie to Boba Fett: The Top 11 Toys of All Time - 'Tis the season for buying toys, so Life’s Little Mysteries counts down the best-selling (and best-loved) toys from the ages. We have assembled them according to sales data, which is a bit skewed as people tend to have bought more things in recent years than in decades past.

So in no particular order, we present the greatest-selling toys of all time, from Pet Rock to Mr. Potato Head.

Barbie to Boba Fett: The Top 11 Toys of All Time

Hula Hoop

In 1957, two American entrepreneurs decided to give a traditional Australian bamboo exercise a plastic makeover and a new moniker – the hula hoop. The meter-diameter hoops produced by the Wham-O toy company immediately took off: 25 million plastic hoops were sold in less than four months in 1958, and in two years, sales reached more than 100 million units. In 1999, the humble hoop joined the Toy Hall of Fame.

View-Master

Reaching far back to the 1930s, the View-Master was the brainchild of piano tuner William Gruber. During World War II, viewers were used in training for the U.S. military, with slides designed to help troops become familiar with gun range values, possible landing sites and enemy aircraft. More than 1 billion View-Master units have been sold thus far. What’s the most popular View-Master reel? The scenic reel of Mecca.

Slinky

The Slinky came to life on a battleship during World War II in Philadelphia’s Cramp Shipyard. A torsion spring used in a testing meter fell off a marine engineer’s desk and tumbled end over end across the floor, creating a fad that continues sixty years later. With more than 300 million Slinkys sold, the walking spring is still marching strong.

Pet Rock

By his own admission, ad executive Larry Dahl created the idea for a pet rock while having drinks with some buddies. The fad peaked during the 1975 Christmas season and it is estimated that Dahl earned more than $15 million during the six months that Pet Rocks were popular, with more than 5 million sold in just a few months.

Zhu Zhu pets

Inspired by YouTube videos of singing and dancing hamsters, Russell Hornsby came up with an idea for robotic furballs. During the Christmas 2009 season alone, more than 10 million units of Zhu Zhu pets were sold. Evidence of the craze? By the end of November, Zhu Zhu pets were selling for $250 on eBay and several Target employees were fired for purchasing Zhu Zhu pets earlier than the company policy allowed.

Mr. Potato Head

The birth of Mr. Potato Head came in a Brooklyn garden, where an inventor used to take potatoes and add grapes for eyes, and carrots for noses to a potato. When Mr. Potato Head debuted in stores in 1952, it was the very first toy to have a commercial on television – and was the first to be directly aimed at children. The toy made $4 million in the first year, and has gone on to be a best-seller for all time.

Cabbage Patch Dolls

Two million adoptions in just a few months? That’s a lot of dolls being pushed around. Cabbage Patch Dolls were created in 1983 by the toy company Coleco, and instead of simply being sold, each was “adopted,” complete with birth certificate. They became a hot item for Christmas that year, and more than 5 million sold in the first year they existed. The questionably cute dolls even spawned a dance called The Cabbage Patch, made famous when it became San Francisco 49er Jerry Rice’s touchdown dance.

Gameboy

Debuting in 1991, Nintendo’s Game Boy was a paradigm shift for the video-gaming industry. The portable video game system offered 35 hours of uninterrupted play, and it came preloaded with Tetris to boot. Game Boy and Game Boy Color’s combined lifetime sales reached 118.7 million worldwide by the time the technology was retired.

Barbie

No list of top toys would be complete without mentioning the grand dame of dolls, Barbie. Launched in 1959, the doll has gained worldwide fame in her 50-plus years. Two Barbies are sold every two seconds, making the Barbie-industrial complex a 1.5-billion per year operation.

Star Wars action figures

In 1978, Star Wars action figures hit the shelves. Within a decade, various manufacturers had sold more than 300 million units to boys and girls desperate to reenact scenes from their favorite trilogy of films. There were more than 90 options to choose from, adding to the fun.

Nerf balls

Some sources claim that “NERF” is an acronym for “Non-Expanding Recreational Foam,” but that story seems too good to be true. Parker Brothers says they named the squishy balls after the foam that off-road drivers use to wrap their roll-bars, and in 1969 they proclaimed the polyurethane foam as “the world’s first indoor ball.” Since then, more than 300 million balls have been sold. ( LiveScience.com )

READ MORE - The Top 11 Toys of All Time