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For heavy sleepers, a heavy pummelling

Posted by Christopher Shea  July 9, 2009 04:21 PM
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crazyalarm.jpg

You've heard of those alarm clocks that roll off your side table, forcing you to chase them down? An alarm described (and videotaped) by reader "Kevin" at TechEBlog takes a more direct approach to solving the ever-vexing problem of the snooze button.

Kevin installed a "large air cylinder" and some sort of valve at the head of his bed. There's lots of visible tubing and wiring, and the whole thing is controlled via a computer. (He's a little stinting with the technical details.) But the result is unambiguous: at the appointed hour, the head of the bed begins pounding like a jackhammer. After a few jolts, the snoozer's mind surely shifts from sleep to survival. (The video is a must-see.)

The device's creator claims he's been waking up this way for years. Take that with a grain of salt. But if you're not like Teach for America founder Wendy Kopp, who claimed in a recent interview that she pops out of bed at 3 a.m. or so daily, then here's one option.

I could use one.

(Via Boing Boing)

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Joshua Rothman is a graduate student and Teaching Fellow in the Harvard English department, and an Instructor in Public Policy at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government. He teaches novels and political writing.
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