Latest news with #WhatIsThisThing
Daily Mail
6 days ago
- Science
- Daily Mail
I found brass caps cleaning out an elderly person's home and ChatGPT can't solve what they are... can you?
A collection of miniature brass caps found by someone while cleaning out an elderly person's home left them and even ChatGPT stumped. The baffled person shared their unknown find to Reddit 's hit 'What is This Thing' forum where users post a series of peculiar discoveries asking for answers from others. The user shared several images of their findings, including a picture of the caps neatly placed on a bright yellow mat with cut outs for each one. There were also open spaces on the foam board that appeared to at one point hold another object. What perplexed the user even more were the 'colored plastic rings' on the inside of the mystery caps. 'I found a case of these small little brass caps that seem to screw onto something that had been taken out of the case,' they wrote. 'Each of the little caps has a colored plastic ring retaining some sort of transparent window at the tip of the brass cap. 'They also are not recognized by either Google lens nor ChatGPT or Copilot. 'There are no marks anywhere on the brass caps or the case. Do any of you know what these could be / could be attached too?' Other users quickly cracked the code and revealed what the caps are for - laser pointers. 'Laser pointer caps, shoots different shapes,' one replied to the post. Another wrote: 'Laser Pointer set, missing the pointer.' 'Laser point caps, each one shoots a different shaped laser pattern, dollar sign, hearts, etc,' said someone else. 'Laser pointer images indeed,' a user commented. While many simply solved the mystery, others got nostalgic from the post after linking the discovery to their childhoods. 'Every 90s kid rushing to leave a comment,' one said. 'Ugh bringing me back to childhood, where's the smiley face,' wrote another. Someone else wrote: 'I feel old now… we had those lasers in jr high.' To this day, the debate remains on who created the very first laser pointer, with many crediting Albert Einstein for the original concept. Laser pointers were first released to the public in the 1980s starting with just a simple, red-colored illumination. They really took off in the 90s, often used for overhead projector presentations in school settings.
Newsweek
21-07-2025
- Newsweek
Woman Intrigued by Mystery 1990s Gadget—Online Sleuths Know What To Do
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. A woman was helping her stepbrother clear out his room when they found an old digital device, and the pair had no clue what it could be. Reddit user u/Walter_uses_agi took to the r/WhatIsThisThing sub on July 21, where, as the name implies, posters ask fellow internet users to identify something they have found. Submissions can range from items discovered while metal-detecting, unusual tools, strange weather phenomena—or, in this particular case, retro technology. "Found this weird seemingly digital object in my stepbrother's room while helping him move out—he doesn't know what it is," the Reddit poster wrote. "It's a little bigger than a credit card. It doesn't seem to turn on. I'm incredibly curious on what it might be so thought I'd ask here." She shared a photo of the small, gray and blue device with what appeared to be just two buttons on its face—mode and power. And to those not in the know, it could appear to be anything from a calculator to a tablet or game. But Reddit users acted quickly, and, within an hour, she had an answer: an ASI Hand Pilot, a type of personal digital assistant with an alarm and calendar, which converts currency and gives the current time in different places around the world. One helpful commenter even shared links to the product on sale on resale sites like eBay and Amazon. Hand Pilots were a Chinese brand following the success of the PalmPilot personal digital assistants, first released in 1996, before the rise of smartphones. As the mystery was solved, the original poster thanked commenters and said they were aware of Hand Pilots and PalmPilots, but had forgotten about them—and "thought it was some sort of Leap Pad." Stock image: A person works at a retro desktop computer. Stock image: A person works at a retro desktop computer. gorodenkoff/Getty Images Other commenters also basked in nostalgia, with one saying they "kept better track of my life on those things … than I ever did with a smartphone or tablet." Another posted: "Think of it like an old mobile phone, without phone or WiFi." A third shared: "I still have my old Palm Pilot. I transferred the data out a long time ago, but still love the device and will never get rid of it." And as one comment put it: "Wow this brings back memories! I had one of these as a kid. Don't know where I got it or why but I sure did feel grown up tapping [on the] stylus." Newsweek has contacted u/Walter_uses_agi via Reddit for comment on this story. Do you have funny and adorable videos or pictures you want to share? Send them to life@ with some extra details, and they could appear on our website.
