'audioThing' is an audio-recorder (and text-logger) with a potentially days-long pre-buffer (depending on available memory).

When an event occurs that's worthy of recording; one needn't even think about pressing a record-button until it's convenient; quite possibly several hours later. And, unlike a constantly-running voice-recorder, one needn't sift through hours of recordings to play-back the memorable events; the events are saved, and uneventful moments are recorded-over when necessary.

Use it to create music from samples of sporadic and unpredictable environmental sounds (singers in the streets, weird taxi-whistles, animal noises, whathaveyou). Or catch your sleep-talking friends in the act from start-to-finish...

'audioThing' is based on an Atmel AVR (ATmega328p "Trinket Pro" or ATtiny861) and records to an SD-Card.

'audioThing-desktop' (See: https://github.com/ericwazhung/audiothing-desktop) handles playback, searching, and extraction.

See more info, and follow the progression of the "Build Instructions" at Hackaday: http://hackaday.io/project/3602-audiothing-ephemeraleventrecorder

This device is only to be used by the morally-competent. I don't know of the legalities of such a device, but I do know that I would hate to be "had" by someone's morally-questionable use of such. Do unto others...