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The Rubik’s Cube is 40 years old yeasterday, and to celebrate, Google has created a Google Doodle that presents an interactive virtual version of the much-loved puzzle toy. Erno Rubik invented the 3×3×3 cube in the spring of 1974, although it wasn't released globally until 1980. The Hungarian architect hand-crafted the prototype and set about trying to find the solution, which he surmised could take a lifetime if each element was just rotated randomly. It took him a month, and he realized that this could be a clever puzzle for the mass market. By January 2009, more than 350 million Rubik’s Cubes had been sold worldwide. More recent figures are not available, but considering that was more than five years ago, you can bet that figure has risen significantly. The cube itself has become an iconic object, appearing in many forms and on many designs. UK gadget retailer Firebox sells, for example, a Rubik’s Cube bedside lamp that can actually be played like the original toy.

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Apps that print your smartphone photos into the physical world are by no means novel. Some will print your images for free with ads on their backsides. Others, like Shutterfly, charge just 15 cents per high-quality 4 × 6-inch print. And though I wouldn’t recommend it, you can even print your photos in postcard form from an app backed by pop star Selena Gomez. The launch of Madesquare, a crafty new iOS app and picture-printing service, introduces a whole new set of surfaces for you to print your iPhone photos on — and at a reasonable price, too. Created by a group of four flea-market obsessed friends, Madesquare allows you to load and preview your images onto a variety of different materials and order them from within an app. The possibilities are vast and generally adorable: postcards, calendars, magnets, wood slabs, canvas, photo strips, recipe cards, photo clings, and pre-framed prints. It’s a quick and convenient service, whether you’re looking to make a customized gift for your mom or aiming to spice up a dreary wall in your home.

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Touchless toilets were the domain of airports, fancy steak restaurants, and Japan. Now, Americans, your very own throne can flush itself, thanks to a new gadget from a Kohler. Via Gizmodo, last week the plumbing giant announced the Touchless toilet flush kit, a do-it-yourself product that can be added to almost any toilet to make it flush without your touch. The battery-powered kit is centered around a sensor that activates the flush. Wave your hand over the sensor, and the toilet flushes. 

The kit eliminates the need to touch that germ-y tank lever while also making you feel like a toilet-controlling wizard. Here’s what you get in the kit. (Four AA batteries included; the bulk of the system sits inside your tank.)

Voki

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Surprise! Every smartphone emits trace amounts of electromagnetic energy, in levels that are measurable but not harmful to humans. Every smartphone does it; the technology site CNET even ranks smartphones, based on the radiation they emit.