Yale student who secretly lived in ventilation shaft

David Pescovitz 12:41 pm Tue Feb 20, 2018

In college and grad school, I knew several students who couldn't afford housing and "lived" in the student lounges (showering in the rec center) and one guy who pitched a tent in the hills near campus. But this story of Allan Kornfeld who lived in a Yale ventilation shaft from 1963 to 1964 is the closest I've seen to Lazlo Hollyfeld's secret lair in the classic 1985 film Real Genius.

Kornfeld had hidden the entrance to the ventilation shift by covering the entrance with brick-patterned wallpaper. He left his DIY dorm room after graduation and shared his story with the press.

"It was a little cold," he said.

More at Weird Universe: "Unauthorized dwelling at Yale"

Bathroom with bed inside listed as "micro studio" apartment for rent in Vancouver

A "micro studio" apartment in Vancouver's desirable West End neighborhood was listed on Craigslist for $680/month. It's a perfect spot for someone "who does not need much space" and the bed is conveniently located in the same room as the toilet, sink, and shower. Unfortunately, the zero bedroom/one bathroom unit has since been removed from… READ THE REST
Can Artificial Intelligence solve America's housing crisis? Zillow seems to think so

From Wired: As the US housing market began to overheat, in February Zillow began making initial cash offers to buy homes based on its price estimate. Now Zillow has updated its algorithm behind those estimates in a way the company says will make them more accurate—and allow Zillow to offer to buy more homes. […] Zillow previously… READ THE REST
Watch: pedestrian nonchalantly continues through rubble after wall collapses in street right by him

In this doorbell footage from Christchurch in England, a brick gable wall collapses into the street below, missing a pedestrian by mere feet. The man simply walks on, barely adjusting his pace to pick through the rubble now strewn across Hyde Mews. Dorset and Wiltshire Fire and Rescue said one crew worked with a structural… READ THE REST
Fight nasty card skimmers with this super-slim, ultra-compact Zenlet wallet

It feels like not many of us use cash anymore, but that hasn't eliminated the need for that staple of American manhood — the wallet — anytime soon. Of course, the idea of what a wallet is has certainly been changing in recent years. Where leather billfolds used to be stacked thick with cash, cards, photos,… READ THE REST
Power your devices in a crisis with up to $249 off these EcoFlow Power Stations

If mobile devices had been around when the Boy Scouts were organized over 110 years ago, it feels likely that telling scouts to have a stable supply of standby power around in case of emergency would have been high on the essentials list. The Boy Scouts are all about being prepared — and that's pretty… READ THE REST
Are you a hot sleeper? Stay frosty this summer with a chilled water sleep cooling system.

Trying to sleep during the height of the summer heat isn't always easy. If you live in a warm climate and if you have upstairs bedrooms, you know the heat rises — and while the air conditioning keeps things feeling comfortable downstairs, that isn't always the case upstairs. Once you throw some sheets and blankets… READ THE REST