Ben Preiss and His Top 20 Trends Edit

Ben Preiss is an American-born Technical Writer working in Israel’s Silicon Wadi.  He has always been an early adopter, growing up in Clifton, New Jersey and Miami Beach (before it was cool) and purchasing his first “portable” computer in 1981.  Over the past month, he’s quickly risen to Trend Hunter’s top 10 with a couple hundred posts spanning technology, design and pop culture.

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The following is a list of Ben Preiss’s 20 most popular trends.  If you would like to join Ben Preiss with your own Trend Hunter portfolio, Sign-Up FREE.

Ben Preiss’s 20 Most Popular Trends

1. Environmental Nudity - ‘World Naked Bike Ride’ in Support of the Environment (GALLERY)

That’s right the World Naked Bike Ride (WNBR), is a series international events bringing together environmentally conscious nudists from the world over to protest oil dependency, in major cities, by biking in the buff as a mortified public gapes on.

Bike riding would have to be pretty high up the… [More]

2. Cybersex Leads To Real Life Lawsuit - Second Life Hack Causes Controversy (VIDEO)

Let’s start at the beginning: It seems Second Life avatars begin life with no ‘nads, and if you want your online-self to be packing heat, you have to pay real dollars to some cartoon plastic surgeon to draw yourself some man-meat or a lovely landing strip and labia for the ladies. So, Kevin Alderm… [More]

3. Zorses - When Zebras and Horses Have Unprotected Sex (VIDEO)

A zorse is what happened in a German safari park when a zebra named Ulysses got hot to trot for a horse named Eclipse. To the park keepers’ surprise Eclyse the zorse was born and she is rare even among zorses. Zorses tend to have stripes on their entire bodies (see Gallery) not in patches like her… [More]

4. OpenMoko NEO 1973 Mobile Phone - The iPhone Killer? (VIDEO)

OpenMoko’s NEO 1973 mobile phone has a $300 price tag, it’s not locked to any provider and a Linux open-source operating system that will enable a relatively large number software developers to write inexpensive and maybe even free applications. It may not be quite as sexy looking as the iPhone bu… [More]

5. Gearless Bicycle - ‘The Ride’ Uses NuVinci CVP Drive (GALLERY)

That’s right, it’s a bicycle called “The Ride” by Ellsworth with the self proclaimed “revolutionary” gearless NuVinci™ Continuously Variable Planetary (CVP) drive. If their claims are accurate, this transmission system does sound revolutionary and not just a gimmick to justify the almo… [More]

6. Micro Air Vehicles - Remote Control UFOs in Service in Iraq (VIDEO)

If the Iraqis spot a little UFO in the sky it’s just the American army’s latest surveillance tool, the MAV (Micro Air Vehicle) developed by Honeywell. They don’t have to worry about little men landing, just the soldiers watching using the onboard cameras. [More]

7. Matchbook Sized Nano Projector - For Your Cell Phone, Laptop or iPod (VIDEO)

Ya gotta love this. Just plug this little gizmo into your iPod or other mobile device and project a video image up to 35 inches on any flat surface. You can carry a video projector in your pants pocket, that is just too cool. [More]

8. Lightning GT– New Electric Super Car, 700 Bhp, Sub 4 Sec 0-60 (GALLERY)

The Brits have come up with a Jaguar look-a-like with motor-in-the-wheel (4 wheel) drive, breakthrough NanoSafe™ battery that can go 250 miles (400 km) between charges and takes just 10 minutes to recharge. The sub 4 second 0 to 60, 700 brake horse power super car that will cost less to run than a… [More]

9. Orbo - Perpetual Motion Machine or Pie in the Sky? (VIDEO)

A small Irish company, Steorn,  is competing for world class chutzpah by having taken out a full page ad in The Economist challenging scientists to test their claims to have invented a perpetual motion machine. Which is to scientists, pretty much crazy talk. Like prove that I don’t have a goose th… [More]

10. Swingers on the Rise (VIDEO)

They’re middle class couples, they have money to spend, they like to have fun, and for them, fun means trading partners. There are clubs, resorts, travel agents and lifestyle swinger services worldwide that cater to them. America’s largest swinger services company, Lifestyles Organization, has a… [More]

11. African Dental Sticks – Folk Medicine for your Smile (GALLERY)

Across sub-Saharan Africa you will find people chewing on sticks and twigs, this is nature’s toothbrush. Users say that the sticks are more natural, cheaper, effective and medicinal than their plastic store bought counterparts and science is beginning to back them up. They come in a variety of typ… [More]

12. Wii Workouts – Nintendacising Health Clubs and Retirement Homes (VIDEO)

The Nintendo Wii really is breaking the mold of gaming systems, and is now moving from the realm of couch potatoes to the arena of jocks, the gym. A Vancouver club has installed a station where clients can punch and jump while using the Wii’s movement-sensitive controller. People are beginning Wii… [More]

13. Ice Cooling to Help Large Buildings Chill Out During Peak Hours

A new system saves electricity and lowers electric demand at peak hours by freezing water in large tanks at night when power is cheaper and demand is low. During the day air is piped through the ice in the tanks, cooling the air then circulated through the building. [More]

14. The Alé – 0 to 60 in 5 Seconds on Three Wheels While Running on Vapor (GALLERY)

Two wheels in the front one in the back, this car is nothing if not unusual. Its vapor fuel system is ultra efficient and produces 30% less CO2. FuelVapor Technologies plan to enter the Alé in the Automotive X-Prize for the most fuel efficient production car. [More]

15. Oregon Man Flies 200 miles in Lawn Chair Powered by 100 Helium Balloons (VIDEO)

After making the trip in nine hours athveraging an attitude of 11,000 ft., Kent Couch the owner of the Stop and Go Mini-Mart in Bend, Oregon, was in good spirits and uninjured. He did however loose his lawn chair and the gear that was attached to it (including a video camera) because the four helium… [More]

16. Stiletto Sprinting - Professional High Heel Racing (VIDEO)

You need strong ankles and a smart fashion sense in this sometimes violent and ruthless sport. This week’s 100 meter event was contested in Moscow’s Hermitage garden with talented young athletes competing for a shopping voucher worth 100,000 rubles ($5,119). Similar races have been held in St. Pet… [More]

17. UFO Theories Are Back – Dead Roswell PR Officer Leaves Behind Sworn Affidavit Admitting to Aliens

After 60 years of sticking with the weather balloon story Lieutenant Walter Haut, who was the public relations officer at the Roswell base, issues a postmortem sworn affidavit testifying that the that balloon story he issued was a cover up on the orders of the base commander, Col. William Blanchard.… [More]

18. Experimental Scramjet Reaches Mach 10 (GALLERY)

Imagine traveling halfway around the world in under two hours. That is the promise of scramjet technology that is being tested in Australia. The scramjet is simple in principle with few or no moving parts. Scientists, jointly testing the scramjet, from Australia’s defense Science and Technology Orga… [More]

19. Exposed Underwear Ban - Atlanta Cracks Down (VIDEO)

Delcambre and Opelousas, Louisiana have already outlawed it; Atlanta, Georgia and Shreveport, Louisiana are discussing the perils of plunging pants. Obviously a decent society has to draw the line somewhere and underwear is that line. It’s called underwear for a reason, goes the logic and nobody s… [More]

20. Eco Crotch Rocket - The Enertia, a Finely Designed Electric Motorcycle (VIDEO)

Slick design, 0-30 mph in 3.8 seconds and so quiet that you can sneak up on cyclists. The Enertia could have used a more inspired name but thankfully does have inspired engineering. It is about as cool as you can look while being very environmentally friendly. Virtually silent, it doesn’t heat up … [More]