We've all heard the diehards claiming that the whales are the ones we should save, and thanks to an autonomous glider crafted by Webb Research, they're finally getting their wish. Recently, a trial was pursued in which a radio / satellite phone-equipped Slocum Glider was sent up to 200-meters beneath the depths in order to survey, pinpoint, and record location data for various whale pods swimming about. The device then surfaces and "phones home" the recently gathered information, which can then be disseminated out to ensure nearby vessels don't enter whale-packed territories. Jim Theriault of Defense Research and Development Canada, Dartmouth ran the experiment, and noted that this iteration of whale sensing and reporting improved on previous attempts by being uber-stealthy, featuring a remote data reporting system, and boasting a signal processor capable of tracking even the baleen whale's "lower-frequency call." Currently, the torpedo runs on batteries which last a month or so without needing a recharge, but future renditions are planned to scour the waters for "between five months and a year" by utilizing a special recharging gel. Look for these to hit your nearest ocean later this summer, and try not to be too alarmed when it surfaces beside your craft.

[Via The Raw Feed]

Just in case you're too manly to rock the oh-so-toasty G-Gloves, and the hand-warming mouse wasn't functional enough, Thanko's busting out yet another zany offering to get your fingers (and hand, and wrist) nice and warm during the sub-zero winters some of us must endure. The USB / AC-powered, um, blue whale sports an insulated compartment to stuff your plain ole mouse as well as your mousing hand. There's also a "high / low" switch to control the fiery depths within, and just in case you'd rather not use your insulating mammal while on the PC, you can optionally connect it to any AC power source and attempt to shove both hands in simultaneously. The warm whale mousepad is available now to heat up those long, freezing evenings spent perusing through Engadget archives for just ¥2,480 ($21).

[Via Akihabara News]

We know oddly shaped DAPs are hard to come by, so we thought we'd run this whale seal-influenced unit by you, just in case you've been scouring the market for a marine mammal that can pump the tunes. The Toshiba Dynabook IPCZ100A sports 512MB of storage, stores a USB 2.0 connection in its tail, and has a small LCD display in its belly. There's no WMA DRM support or really much of anything, but, well, it's a seal, so let's cut it some slack.