Stevie Wonder? Aretha Franklyn? Pink Floyd? Metallica? In Thursday’s episode of the WNYC radio show Soundcheck, host John Schaefer and Tina Cassidy author of Birth: The Surprising History of How We Are Born, respond to rumors that Beyonce gave birth to baby Blue while soothed and stimulated by a meticulously curated R&B soundtrack. The two explore the role music plays in the modern delivery room as experts chime in insisting that the advent of the iPod facilitating a more personalized musical experience helps (both in natural and facilitated birthing scenarios), while moms write/call in to testify that labor gradually generates a kind of piercing white noise in the head that drowns out the melodies in the background, making them irrelevant. And the lone male caller gives credence to the stereotype that men just don’t have a clue what women need during birthing. Forget birthing dulas. How about a birthing dj? Suggests Cassidy half-joking as she offers a Spotify playlist for expecting moms containing over 4 hours of music selection intended to speed along delivery. But, she notes, after it’s all said and done, silence is what is most important, helping mom and baby bond postpartum without distractions. What was on your birthing playlist?

+ Listen to the Show

Though the Mindstorms sub-brand of the LEGOLAND empire is specifically intended to catalyze complex thoughts in the minds of young builders, adults love getting in on the game. And this Time Twsiter clock, with its self-solving Rubix algorithm designed by Hans Andersson, is a prime example of grown-up trigonometrical tinkering at work. Click through to see a video of the masterpiece working.

Somebody (and I will point fingers) had way too much time on her hands during the weeks leading up to Halloween. This super-detailed, super-funny (and hopefully super-light) AT-AT pet costume was created by Katie Mello for her dog Bones — that is, an All Terrain Armored Transport as seen in The Empire Strikes Back. Mello is one of the Star Wars-loving artists over at LAIKA/house, a Portland animation studio. Let this inspire you to get your creative DIY juices flowing, and avoid slapping Fido between two oversized hot dog buns this Halloween.

+ LAIKA/house

At this stage in eco-design there’s nothing particularly new about cardboard furniture. Yet the cardboard ‘Build Up’ child’s chair and table designed by Philippe Nigro appears to be a new exercise in what can be sculpted from the paper-based medium. Sturdy, yet simple to put together, the pieces are shipped flat and are then folded, contorted and wedged together to create the final furniture form.

+ Build Up Chair £65

+ Build Up Table £75

+ Skitsch

If I had a carbon credit for every time I tell my kid to shut the refrigerator door, I’d be able to travel around the world without leaving a theoretical footprint. Gadget-loving parents need not have that worry thanks to an electronic icebox pet called the Fridgeezoo. Designed to lessen the time spent standing idly in front of an open refrigerator deciding what to retrieve, Fridgeezoo friends audibly remind you that each second that passes equals energy lost.

Cute in a way that only those who love modular design will appreciate, the Frii tri-color recycled plastic bike is an injection molded, snap-together marvel that is light weight yet durable. Dror Peleg, the mastermind behind the bike’s concept design, intends it to be used for “quick trips through the city streets” and hopes that interested governments will see it as a way to usefully recycle landfill-destined plastics. All of the cumbersome design details can be found at knstrct after enjoying these pretty pictures.