Vapors

Tools for Possibilities: issue no. 132

Pax Vaporizer

Pax Vaporizer

This is a portable vaporizer that works, is simple to operate, easy to clean, and looks beautiful. Vaporizers heat leaf material such as tobacco or pot so that they release their active ingredients without burning them. It’s a cleaner, healthier alternative to burning something you intend to inhale. You use your lungs to draw air over a heating element that vaporizes the material. Pax’s biggest draw to me is its electric heating element. I find electric works better than the butane-powered vaporizers, such as the Iolite (their new Wispr is electric, but the original model is butane) because they are a lot smaller and more discreet. I found the Pax fairly easy to figure out and very easy to use. My only criticism is that it needs cleaning frequently. Stickier stuff like weed buds are harder to clean than tobacco. The Pax is very sensitive and prone to malfunction if not cleaned regularly. But is very easy to clean if you use white vinegar.

I have had my Pax for about two weeks now and it’s amazing. The Pax is a portable, battery operated (rechargeable Lithium-ion) vaporizer used for enjoying tobacco or any other loose leaf herb by vaporizing instead of smoking it. A vaporizer works by heating up the plant matter to between 370F and 410F to the vaporization temperature of the active chemicals in the plant without combusting it. The actives come off the plant material as vapor which can be inhaled, leaving behind the cellulose and less volatile chemicals. As a result you get the effect of smoking without the harmful by products such as carbon monoxide, tar and ash particulates that come from burning. It is actually hard to go back to smoking once you are used to using a vaporizer because the vapor is so clean compared to inhaling smoke. I would say that the vaporizer is the cool tool and the Pax is (in my opinion) the best vaporizer on the market. — Jason Weisberger

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The Eterra Tulip Vaporizer

I am a long-time (40 years) cannabis user. Since discovering vaporizers I seldom “smoke.” My lungs feel a lot better. The taste of the herb is like the essence of the flower and resin. Once the cannabinoids are vaporized, you throw out the herb. This means you’re not pulling all that foliage through your lungs. It’s a revolution and especially beneficial for those using herbs for medical purposes. A vaporizer that is simple and that I recommend is the Eterra Tulip. It takes a bit of getting used to, but once mastered it’s rather elegant, as well as less expensive and complicated than other vaporizers: — Dan K. Holly

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Harm-Reduction Device for People Hooked on Cigarettes

Kanger evod Electronic Cigarette

I began smoking in the 6th grade. In the 25 years since I’ve quit more times than I can count — sometimes for a couple of years at a time — always to eventually return to the habit. I’ve tried nicotine gum (tastes terrible), nicotine patches (itched and gave me bizarre dreams), and quitting ‘cold turkey’ (generally unpleasant — especially for those around you!). While all of these approaches deal with the underlying nicotine addiction, none of them address the loss of the social, psychological and habitual aspects of smoking.

Several months ago I tried my first electronic cigarette, and I haven’t smoked a real one since. In fact, I no longer have any desire to, and don’t anticipate ever really smoking again. Electronic cigarettes satisfy both the nicotine cravings as well as the smoking habit — I actually don’t feel like I’ve given up anything, but rather gained something new.

The technology behind electronic cigarettes is surprisingly simple. A wire coil heats up when it is connected to a battery (much like the filament in a light bulb). A wick runs through the coil and draws fluid to it; the heat from the coil turns the liquid into a vapor which you inhale — it’s essentially the same technology used in fog machines, but on a much smaller scale. Because the output is water vapor, users call this “vaping” and themselves “vapers” to distinguish from “smoking” and “smokers.”

The liquid starts with a base of either propylene glycol, vegetable glycerine, or a blend of the two (this is what produces the visible vapor). Nicotine is added to this in a variety of concentrations ranging from 2.4% to 0.6%, roughly corresponding to the range available from filterles down to ultra-light cigarettes. Finally, flavoring is added — the variety of available flavors is mind-boggling, with everything from traditional tobacco and menthol flavors to fruits, coffees, and dessert flavors.

The advantages of electronic cigarettes over traditional ones are numerous. There is no combustion, hence no smoke, no carbon monoxide, no tar or other carcinogens, and no risk of fire. There is no second-hand smoke, and no unpleasant smell. They can also be significantly less expensive on an ongoing basis than cigarettes — I’m currently spending about 1/3 of what I did on cigarettes.

The primary health concern of e-cigarettes would be the continued use of nicotine. Nicotine’s health effects are paradoxical and are similar to caffeine in that respect — regular consumption can have both positive and negative effects depending on the individual.

One of the key benefits of electronic cigarettes though is the ability to easily regulate the amount of nicotine consumed. The various concentrations offered in liquids provide an easy way to gradually step down one’s dosage if one desires. Additionally, most liquids are available in 0% nicotine concentrations, so that it is possible to entirely wean oneself from the nicotine without having to give up usage of e-cig devices.

While the underlying technology is simple, there is an incredibly wide range of hardware and types of electronic cigarettes, and it can be confusing to the first-timer trying to figure out where to start.

Like many people I started with a small “cig-alike” device which is similar in size and appearance to a traditional cigarette. The most popular brand of these is Blu, likely due to their mainstream celebrity advertising. While these work, they have several practical drawbacks. The batteries are small and need to be recharged frequently. The disposable cartridges don’t last very long, can have inconsistent flavor, are relatively expensive, and limit the choice of liquids and flavors. While they are a great starting point, most users who stick with electronic cigarettes will outgrow them relatively quickly.

The next step up tends to be the Joyetech “Ego” system. These are the size of a small cigar and consist of a battery plus a refillable tank. Due to their popularity these have essentially become an industry standard, with a variety of manufacturers making compatible hardware. After trying several combinations of products from different manufacturers I’ve settled on the Kanger EVOD system as the best for everyday use, and it’s the system I recommend to most new users.

The EVOD is relatively new and addresses several problems with earlier systems. The heating coil in the tank is at the bottom rather than the top, so that the short wicks are always immersed in fluid. This prevents the wicks from going dry and prematurely burning out the heating coil — this also makes them more compatible with thicker brands/flavors of liquids. All coils will eventually burn out though, so the EVOD has an easily replaceable and inexpensive coil unit (older systems generally require you to replace the entire tank). The EVODs are also very well made and use several o-rings to ensure that the tank won’t leak.

EVOD tanks are compatible with all Ego-style batteries, so you can certainly buy the tanks ($6-10) and batteries (~$20) separately, but Kanger has just released a starter kit which includes 2 batteries, 2 tanks, 5 replacement coils and a charger for about $50 – this is a great deal if you’re just starting out, and the easiest way to get into a vaping system that you’re not likely to outgrow right away.

A big part of the attraction of vaping is the ability to try many flavors to find the ones that are perfect for you. In that respect it’s more akin to the world of cigars or pipes than cigarettes, where it can become a bit of a hobby rather than just a habit. There are a lot of small liquid producers and importers, but it’s a largely unregulated field and it can be difficult to determine the quality and source of their liquids — many of them come from China and there have been questions raised about the quality control and safety of the ingredients used.

Personally I feel it’s best to stay with domestic brands who provide information on their ingredients and are committed to a high-quality product made with pharmaceutical-grade ingredients under laboratory conditions. The largest of these is Johnson Creek, and their “smoke juice” is highly regarded as one of the highest quality on the market. I’ve tried several of their flavors and have been very happy with them.

One of the best resources I’ve found for reviews of hardware, liquids and general information is Spinfuel Magazine. Unfortunately their site is a little busy and can be difficult to navigate, but their content is unbeatable; they’re dedicated to being a beginner-friendly resource as well as providing useful information to more experienced vapors. They also have fairly strict guidelines about the liquid suppliers they’ll review which makes it much easier to identify quality manufacturers and stay away from liquids from questionable sources.

The e-cigarette world is young and has largely been the domain of early adopters, but has grown rapidly in the past few years and looks poised to explode into mainstream awareness soon. The manufacturers and retailers have been careful not to market their products as smoking cessation devices in order to avoid being regulated as medical devices (although the FDA is due to report findings in April of this year and will likely begin to regulate the market). Nonetheless, based on my experience and the anecdotal experience of many other users online, I feel they provide the first truly effective alternative to smoking — whether you just want a healthier alternative or are looking to quit nicotine all together. Even given concerns over continued use of nicotine they provide a significant level of harm-reduction to smokers, and I think anyone who smokes owes it to themselves and their loved ones to give them a try. — Evan Donn

Once a week we’ll send out a page from Cool Tools: A Catalog of Possibilities. The tools might be outdated or obsolete, and the links to them may or may not work. We present these vintage recommendations as is because the possibilities they inspire are new. Sign up here to get Tools for Possibilities a week early in your inbox.

04/7/25

Allo Mechanisms/tv.garden/Best condiment

Recomendo - issue #456

Alternative funding designs

Kickstarter uses a clever financing model where every backer’s money is returned if the full funding goal is not met. But this innovation is only one of many dozens of possible funding models, and dozen more ways of collaborating, or governing projects. Allo Mechanisms is a handy gallery of 60 different possible “capital allotment” mechanisms, already invented, that might work for your particular needs. Some of them already have implementations. — KK

Live TV streams from around the world

Tv.garden lets you spin a globe and watch live TV streams from around the world — no subscription needed. While channel surfing, I got caught up in watching Christian music videos in Senegal, Algerian news, and TV psychic readings in Bulgaria. It’s utterly captivating and transportive. — CD

Best condiment

I finally tried Fly By Jing’s Sichuan Chili Crisp and now I understand the hype. This umami-rich oil is packed with crunchy bits of crushed chili pepper, garlic, shallots and preserved black beans that add intense flavor and mild heat to everything from eggs to ice cream. The tingly numbing Sichuan peppercorn is what makes it addictive. While some may balk at the price for 6 ounces, a little goes a long way. — MF

Best coffee ice cream

Now that there are over 600 Trader Joe’s stores in the US, I feel okay to recommend a favorite item from there. I think their Coffee Bean Blast Ice Cream is the best grocery store ice cream you can buy, or at the very least, as Trader Joe’s claims, “it’s the very best coffee ice cream available anywhere on planet Earth.” I’m going to fight for that. — KK

Discover your attachment style

This NPR LIFE KIT interview features Dr. Amir Levine, a psychiatrist and neuroscientist, discussing attachment theory in relationships and includes a short quiz adapted from his book to help listeners discover their own attachment style. Dr. Levine emphasizes that attachment is a biological need and that the four attachment styles — secure, anxious, avoidant, and anxious-avoidant — are normal variations in human behavior rather than pathologies. I had heard of attachment theory before and even worked on my own attachment issues before getting married, but what I learned from this interview that I didn’t fully understand before is that addressing attachment issues is a two-person process, not just an individual responsibility, and that becoming more secure often involves surrounding oneself with secure individuals. I took the quiz, and it reported that in relationships, I’m 100% secure, 25% avoidant, and 13% anxious. — CD

Guide to understanding why things work (or don’t)

This collection of Hacker Laws is aimed at software developers, but it provides insights for anyone trying to build or change things. Here are three:

Gall’s Law says grand reinventions usually fail — working complex systems can only evolve from working simple systems, never from scratch.

Chesterton’s Fence warns against eliminating an old policy or process that seems pointless, before first learning why it exists.

The Principle of Least Astonishment says that systems and processes should match users’ expectations and mental models — the path of least surprise is usually the path to success. — MF

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04/6/25

Book Freak 176: Understanding Potentially Sentient Non-Human Beings

Insights from Jonathan Birch's "The Edge of Sentience"

Get The Edge of Sentience

Imagine a patient in a vegetative state who can actually feel everything happening to them but can’t communicate it. Picture an octopus being boiled alive, experiencing every second of agony. Consider an AI system that might be developing genuine feelings while we treat it as just another tool. These are the ethical questions that keep Jonathan Birch up at night.

As a philosopher and ethicist at the London School of Economics, Birch has spent years grappling with one of science’s most perplexing questions: how do we know if another being is conscious and capable of suffering? His book, The Edge of Sentience, argues that we’ve been asking the wrong question all along. Instead of demanding absolute proof of consciousness — which may be impossible to obtain — we should focus on identifying “sentience candidates” and taking practical steps to protect them from harm.

This isn’t just academic theory. Birch’s work has already influenced real-world policy — he led the team whose research convinced the UK government to legally recognize lobsters and octopuses as sentient beings. Now he’s turning his attention to an even broader range of cases, from human patients with brain injuries to the possibility of conscious AI.

Here are four key insights from the book:

“Assume Sentient” When Lives Are at Stake

“A patient [with a prolonged disorder of consciousness] should not be assumed incapable of experience when an important clinical decision is made. All clinical decisions should consider the patient’s best interests as comprehensively as possible, working on the precautionary assumption that there is a realistic possibility of valenced experience and a continuing interest in avoiding suffering and in achieving a state of well-­being, but without taking this assumption to have implications regarding prognosis.”

Look Beyond Brain Size and Intelligence

“Sentience is neither intelligence nor brain size. We should be aware of the possibility of decouplings between intelligence, brain size, and sentience in the animal kingdom. Precautions to safeguard animal welfare should be driven by markers of sentience, not by markers of intelligence or by brain size.”

On the Hidden Nature of Experience

“At least in principle, there can be phenomenal consciousness without valence: experiences that feel like something but feel neither bad nor good. It is not clear that humans can have such experiences (our overall conscious state arguably always contains an element of mood). But we can conceive of a being that has a subjective point of view on the world in which non-­valenced states feature (it consciously experiences shapes, colours, sounds, odours, etc.) but in which everything is evaluatively neutral. Such a being would be technically non-­sentient according to the definition we have been using, though it would be sentient in a broader sense. Would such a being have the same moral standing as a being with valenced experiences?”

On Future AI Risk

“As these models get larger and larger, we have no sense of the upper limit on the sophistication of the algorithms they could implicitly learn… The point at which this judgement shifts from correct to dangerously incorrect will be very hard for us to see. There is a real risk that we will continue to regard these systems as our tools and playthings long after they become sentient.”

04/4/25

Happiest Countries/Free Checked Bag/Cheap Electronic Basics

Nomadico issue #149

Who is Feeling Happiest These Days?

The latest worldwide survey on happiness is out and if you thought the mood wasn’t so hot in the USA or UK, you were right. The countries with high taxes, strong social services, and low inequality are still the places making people smile. “When it comes to happiness, the Nordic countries are clearly doing a lot of things right. For the eighth year in a row, Finland is the world’s happiest country, with its neighbors clustered close behind.” The USA dropped again, to #24. Two countries Americans are flocking to—Mexico and Costa Rica—scored #6 and #10.

Frontier Will Take Your Free Luggage Instead

In a canny marketing move from an airline that has been a lot more attuned to customer sentiment than most, Frontier is taking advantage of Southwest’s backing off its long-running “Bags Fly Free” tagline by offering a free checked bag promotion. It won’t last, but they announced “a free checked bag for flights departing May 28 through August 18 when travelers use promo code FREEBAG.” See more about this and their other opportunistic changes here.

A Downgrade for United Credit Cards

Speaking of airlines, United just raised the annual fee of its most popular Chase credit card by more than half, from $99 to $150, and you’ll have to jump through an almost comical number of hoops to make up the difference with the new perks they’re touting. I still think it’s worth keeping if you fly with them more than three times a year because you get a free checked bag on all flights (not just domestic ones) and two lounge passes each year when you renew. Plus if you don’t have it already, $150 up front for 80,000 miles after meeting the spending requirement is a sweet intro offer. Otherwise, you might want to put this on your “replace list.”

Discount Stores for Electronics Basics

I spend most of my time in Mexico or abroad, so when I’m back in the USA I’m like a Soviet defector walking around gaping at the rampant consumerism all around me. The plus side of all that obsessive shopping is the staggering amount of choice and competition, which certainly keeps prices low for commodity items. I’m reminded of that when I need anything basic and electronic, like a charger, an adapter plug, or a pair of earbuds for the plane ride when I’ve lost one or both. If you lose something while traveling in the USA, just head to 5 Below or a dollar store and you’ll be out the door just a few bucks lighter. This also applies to reading glasses, cheap sunglasses, water bottles, travel mugs, soft coolers, and other items cranked out by the millions.

A weekly newsletter with four quick bites, edited by Tim Leffel, author of A Better Life for Half the Price and The World’s Cheapest Destinations. See past editions here, where your like-minded friends can subscribe and join you.

04/3/25

What’s in my NOW? — Dave Crumbine

issue #207

I try to live in the now. Control is mostly an illusion—what we really have is influence.

Who am I? Still unfolding. Not my past, not my future. Just someone who values presence, connection, and contrast—e-bike rides and quiet writing, clean meals and surprise desserts.

I love dogs. My last one reminded me to be who they think I am—loyal, present, kind.

I chase balance, but stay anchored in what matters: family, wellbeing, curiosity, and rest.

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PHYSICAL

• Phase 10: This card game is my favorite for casual gatherings. It blends strategy and simplicity, working well with any group size. The sequential phase challenges keep everyone engaged without the complexity of other games, making it perfect for game nights or spur-of-the-moment play.
• Under-desk Footrest: After discovering the comfort of pull-down footrests on a luxury bus, I realized our workspaces were missing a key ergonomic feature. This small addition makes sitting at your desk that much more comfortable.
• Remarkable Tablet: My Remarkable has replaced stacks of notebooks while keeping the feel of real paper with the convenience of digital. I use it daily for morning journaling, built my Bullet Journal system in it, and grab it as scratch paper or to take notes I can actually find later.

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DIGITAL

• Things 3: The task app Things 3 is beautifully designed—it’s no surprise it’s won multiple awards. And the Bullet Journal method by Ryder Carroll has a cult following for a reason. I’m grateful I combined the two: the app and the system.That’s how I built my digital Bullet Journal. And it transformed how I manage my time, my tasks, and my sanity.
• Hey Email: This email service redefined my relationship with email and my inbox, treating it like a closed door instead of an open invitation for clutter. Every new sender needs approval before reaching my Imbox (yes “Imbox,” the “important” inbox), cutting out the usual email chaos and putting me back in control. I no longer despise email.

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INVISIBLE

“You are not in the present moment. You are the present moment”

Ray from the Dualistic Unity podcast. This reframing perfectly explains why Dualistic Unity resonates with me. Ray’s elegant way of dissolving the observer/observed divide has become a daily touchstone, changing how I experience life.

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04/2/25

Make: Props / Cabinet of Natural Curiosities

Issue No. 60

MASTER PROP FANATIC SHAWN THORSSON SHARES HIS SHOP SECRETS

Make: Props and Costume Armor
Shawn Thorsson
Maker Media
2016, 296 pages, 8 x 9.7 x o.5 inches (softcover)

Buy on Amazon

While at Make: for many years, I had the pleasure of working with and getting to know Shawn Thorsson, author of Make: Props and Costume Armor. Shawn was one of the first serious amateur prop builders that we featured. He and one of his Space Marine costumes even made it onto the cover of the magazine. When Shawn launches a project, he’s like a torpedo in the water. You either get out of the way or you prepare for impact. You can feel this passion for what he does (and how he does it), in person, on his project blog, and thankfully, in the pages of this wonderful new book from Make:.

I love the way Make: Props and Costume Armor is organized. There is an amazing set of sci-fi costume armor and a prop gun (from a comic book called The Final Hunt) on the front cover and a Wolf Warrior costume on the back. The bulk of the book is taken up with each chapter detailing one of the elements of each costume. If you make all of the projects from the book, you will end up with these two very different types of weapons and armor, one sci-fi, one fantasy.

Each chapter examines a different prop-making technique, from vaccumforming to 3D modeling using Pepakura software, to working with EVA foam, and finally, finishing, painting, and weathering. While the book is an amazing introduction and beginner’s guide to prop construction, the text is peppered throughout with enough expert tips and tricks to make this relevant to prop makers and cosplayers of any level of expertise. And Shawn’s trademark snarky and quick-witted sense of humor perfectly leavens the writing, making this book as fun to read as it is educational. – Gareth Branwyn

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CABINET OF NATURAL CURIOSITIES – A TREASURE TROVE OF EXQUISITE BOTANICAL IMAGES, COPYRIGHT FREE

Cabinet of Natural Curiosities
by Albertus Seba
Taschen
2011, 416 pages, 9.7 x 13.3 x 1.5 inches (hardcover)

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Albertus Seba was a Dutch pharmacist working in the early 1700s who collected exotic plants and animals samples that may or may not have medicinal purposes. He crammed his Amsterdam shop with 700 jars of unusual specimens. He then commissioned a dozen artists to make engravings based on his collection, which were published in hand-colored volumes. This huge oversized reproduction by Taschen is the meta-collection of those volumes. It’s a treasure trove of many thousands of exquisite botanical images, in large format, drawn with obsessive detail, in great diversity, copyright free. Perfect if you need a logo based on a squid, or a blue snake. – Kevin Kelly

Books That Belong On Paper first appeared on the web as Wink Books and was edited by Carla Sinclair. Sign up here to get the issues a week early in your inbox.

04/1/25

What’s in my NOW? — Dave Crumbine