Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Links for Fun

25 Signs You Spend Too Much Time on the Internet. If more than one of these items confuses you, congratulations and keep on surfing!

Improv Everywhere is in the Christmas spirit already. Their musical flashmob is a tribute to the mall Santa Claus.

How to potty-train a sloth. Hey, you never know when this information might come in handy!

What are these performers doing: shufflin’, breakin’, tumbling, kicking? I’d call it showing off.

Some men’s restrooms in British pubs will soon offer video games, in the urinals, that you control with your urine stream. Wait a minute, is this a ploy to sell more beer?

Breaking Dawn: Part One made a bazillion dollars in its opening weekend. The movie also induced seizures in at least of couple of guys who one suspects may have been trying to get out of watching the rest of the movie.

Teddy Bear the porcupine doesn’t want to share his corn. He’ll tell you in no uncertain terms in the most adorable voice ever.

The Mario Opera is much better than you’d expect. It gives a touch of class to a classic video game, it’s funny, and there could be lots and lots of levels.

This is What the Inside of Deadmau5’s Helmet Looks Like. That has to be hot, sweaty, and hard to see out of.

How many ways are there to fall off a pogo stick? Probably more than will fit onto a one-minute video clip, but the most spectacular ones are included.

An AT-AT is about the coolest thing you could possibly make out of gingerbread. You could eat it, too, if it weren’t a museum exhibit.

The 2004 film Karate Dog deserves a second look, if only for the talking dog that no one questions. Get a scene-by-scene breakdown and a video that will make you want to see the whole silly movie.



Tuesday, November 29, 2011

12 Deliciously Different Plush Toys

Look around the world wide web if you want to get a gift that no one else will think of, with a little help from your friendly mental_floss internet scouring service. Some of these plush toys are suitable for children, but not all of them! Take a look at all of them in this list I posted at mental_floss.

Interesting Links

The Curse of the Demon Core. The nuclear ball killed two scientists but spared a swimming pig.

This post has an awful lot of links and information about America's economy and the resentment it causes. Just skip the Thanksgiving intro and delve into the reference material.

Target employees had to report for work Thanksgiving night for Black Friday sales. After that crazy shift, one worker was so exhausted she drove her car into a 20-foot deep canal.

There have been a dozen Republican presidential debates, and it’s not even election year yet. Here are some consequences of too much, too soon.

The Odd, Odd Octopus. They may seem otherworldly but they have a lot going for them.

The Quest to Solve the Hardest Math Problem in History (and the Minds that were Lost Along the Way).

The Arab League is sanctioning Syria for violence against its protesting citizens. This may be a sign that progress is starting to matter more than solidarity in the Middle East.

A zombie walk in Mexico City over the weekend attracted 10,000 of the undead. If confirmed, this will be a new world record for simultaneous zombie-ism.

The Truth About Shark Attacks. You’re more likely to be killed by a cow than by a shark, but either way, you’re dead.

The Federal Reserve’s $7.7 trillion bank bailout. The TARP funds we knew about pale in comparison to the “undisclosed” loans given to banks in 2008.

Who’s Next? A Look at Presidential Succession. And why some cabinet members tend to be dis-invited from Washington parties.







Monday, November 28, 2011

Fun Links

This Indian Talent Show is the Awesomest Thing Ever.

Dee said she’d made her “legendary chocolate biscuit cake so many times now that the ingredients could make it by themselves.” Watch them do just that in this cute stop-motion animation.

The Christmas season has begun, but Christmas Day is still a month away! This little boy is finding it awful hard to wait.

Are Your Greetings Seasoned? One way to sell Christmas cards is to create a fabulous and funny story about their origin.

5 Fun Facts About Mitt Romney’s Hair. This is an example of the burning issues that will shape the 2012 presidential election.

Who could possibly give the Grinch a run for his money in the department of evilness? Darth Vader steps into the Dr. Seuss role as if he were born for it.

Grumpy Old Men in Real Life. Two former CFL football players from way back go at it with punches and a cane. NSFW language.

7 gifts not to get your girlfriend this Christmas. They each send an obvious message to her that you didn’t even think about.

Creating a Wildfire Out of Crayons. The art that is meant to melt has a burning message while it lasts.

Running Staying upright on a treadmill is hard enough. One woman not only keeps the pace but adds smooth dance moves!







Soviet Aeroflot Ad


Don't know the date on this, but I'd guess late 1960s.

Sunday, November 27, 2011

Saturday, November 26, 2011

While My Guitar Gently Weeps


An all-star tribute to George Harrison from 2004. (via Breakfast Links)

Friday, November 25, 2011

Interesting Links

Designer Yeon Su Kim made a camera that’s so small it’s actually a ring you wear on your finger. What’s more, it activates by finger gestures, one for a shot, another for video recording.

Women make up less than a third of all speaking roles in movies. A new study by USC’s Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism found Hollywood is as sexist as we already know it is.

How dangerous is pepper spray? For one thing, it has way too many Scoville units to be classified as a vegetable.

When Did the GOP Lose Touch With Reality? A longtime Republican wonders what happened to his party.

Anne Rice Talks about Sparkly Vampires. She likes True Blood and doesn’t really hate Twilight.

Watch ten quirky science stunts in one video. Use them to entertain the kids and make yourself the coolest uncle in the family.

Billions of Chinese women endured the crippling tradition of foot binding, although many died trying to achieve the goal of “lotus feet.” The process of deforming a girl’s feet was started when she was between two and five years old.

How the Destruction of Rainforests is Contributing to the Rise of Malaria. Messing with Mother Nature tends to have a domino effect.

The miracle of miniaturization gives us a wireless pacemaker as small as a grain of rice. This means less invasive surgery and less chance of infection.

The Most Frightening Dance You’ll Ever See (unless you’ve seen Al Gore do the macarena). But the haka was designed to be that way.





Thursday, November 24, 2011

Links for Fun

A Device to Deter a Bear. A ridiculous device. Let me show you it.

An award-winning hack puts YouTube videos on the front of your microwave. They’re not only for entertainment; the videos are selected to be the exact length you must wait for your hot ramen.

The man who made things fly. Like washing machines and lawnmowers and …suddenly I feel my life has been wasted.

The people in charge of getting the stadium ready should remember how big football players are. Terrell Brown is 377 pounds, which is no match for this flimsy chair.

If The Lord of the Rings had been made in 1944, I might have starred Humphrey Bogart, and might have looked something like this. Peter Lorre makes a pretty good Gollum.

Every week, we wonder which is the principle characters in The Walking Dead will end up as zombies. Here’s a look at their possible fates.

When you mashup Spongebob Squarepants with “Party Rock Anthem,” you make a 33-second video seem like three minutes. And then the tune gets stuck in your head! In most DVD commentary tracks, you get some insight into how the film was made, or at least extra trivia.

Arnold Schwarzenegger’s commentary on Total Recall is a literal description of what you can see with your eyes, which makes it funnier than the movie alone.

Oscar the kitten may have been born blind, but things are looking up for him. Watch him in his new home, discovering what toys are for.

Ride down a mountain on an Alpine coaster. You might want to have some Dramamine before watching this video.

Doctor Who wants his hat back. This delightful story puts the Doctor in a children’s book role.

How many of pop culture faces can you identify from these minimalist icons? Sure, they look easy, but see how many there are!

A study shows drinking beer is good for you. But only one beer a day for maximum health benefits.

15 Songs You Always Knew, But Never Knew The Names Of. I am almost ashamed to admit that I knew almost all of them by name.










Wednesday, November 23, 2011

Thanksgiving Links

Why Thanksgiving is the Best Holiday of the Year. (via Bits and Pieces)

Top 10 Reasons Why Thanksgiving Eve Is the Best Bar Night of the Year. This is especially true for college students coming home. NSFW text.

5 Thanksgiving Disasters You're Probably Not Prepared For. And if you're not, this will scare you away from ever hosting the big dinner at your place. NSFW text.

The Food Lab's Complete Guide to a Stress-Free Thanksgiving. Of course, the most stress-free Thanksgiving is one where you don't cook! (via Metafilter)

14 Great Examples of Thanksgiving Food Art.

Eat Like the Pilgrims. That means preparing Thanksgiving dinner with no microwave, no can openers, and no sugar!

The classic WKRP Turkey Drop.

Posters for rejected Thanksgiving films.

Five Other Thanksgiving Holidays. Gratitude is the theme, not the turkey and football.

Thanksgiving dinner will cost a bit more this year than in years past. Here are the numbers.

Let's Talk Turkey!

Manly Ways to Prepare Turkey. And here are another 5 Odd Holiday Dishes to go with that adventurous bird.

Great Food Ideas For A Fantasy and Sci-Fi Themed Thanksgiving. Just in case you'd rather have fun with friends than eat turkey and watch football.

7 people who will ruin your Thanksgiving dinner. And guess what? The table only holds eight!

Charleston


Al Minns & Leon James from the Savoy Ballroom in Harlem.

Tuesday, November 22, 2011

10 Celebrity Refreshments

Advertisers know that the taste of a better lifestyle will sell products. Celebrities learn this as well, and can make a killing putting their name on something that can impart even a little of their charm on a fan. These beverages just might be the perfect gift for a fan that you know. Here are ten you might not be familiar with, in a list I posted at mental_floss.

Good Reads and Info

The Occupy Wall Street movement was losing steam after two months, until the police crackdown Tuesday night. It may have been just what the protesters needed.

Sour candy? That stuff will rot your teeth -kinda like soaking them in battery acid.

6 Attempts at Damage Control That Caused Way Bigger Problems. It's called the Streisand Effect after a real-life example.

The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department is taking a new look into the case of actress Natalie Wood’s death. A new book has some information that should have been disclosed 30 years ago -if it’s true.

Staggeringly Tall and Mind-Blowingly Old. I used to date a guy like that, but we’re supposed to be talking about magnificent trees.

Magnetism, electricity, traffic, cell phones, pesticides, and other features of modern living may have serious effects on babies in the womb. If that’s not depressing enough, antidepressants can also cause problems.

Retirement may become a thing of the past as people work into their elderly years. Some like to work, but others just can’t afford to quit.

An undercover FBI agent spent twenty years infiltrating white supremacist groups. Now 59 and sick, John Matthews wants to tell his story before its too late.e.

The ‘mysterious’ whale graveyard discovered in a desert. The twenty or so whales of various species date two to seven million years back.

A portable shelter inspired by a an armadillo’s shell won the Bustler’s annual Zombie Safe House Design Competition. It has many of the comforts of home, folds up into backpack size, and should protect you from the undead.

How Merrill, Goldman and the Brothers Lehman made their Money. Even those who are too big to fail had to start somewhere.

Neighbors aren’t always neighborly, especially when they’ve both decided to spruce up their yard at the other’s expense.



Monday, November 21, 2011

Fun and Funny Links

The Sand Box. How embarrassing to finally get a home and then find out your new family is just stupid.

Congress declares pepper spray a vegetable.

Meanwhile, on Toddlers and Tiaras...

A two-man dubstep robot dance is only interesting if the dancers are very good at it. Fortunately, the Robotboys are very good at it.

The Seven Deadly Websites. If you don’t recognize them from their logo color schemes, then you are not a proper sinner.

The World Longboarding Championships in Teutonia, Brazil is caught on video. Imagine skateboarding at 70 miles per hour down a mountain -then watch it!

One of these days, I’m going to get a cute bunny rabbit just to open my mail for me. Since all I get is junk mail, he can eat it,too.

10 Bizarre English Pub Names. (via Breakfast Links)

The movie Expendables 2 is scaring off all of Bulgaria’s endangered bats. This is important, because the Bulgarian EPA is scarier than Sylvester Stallone any day.

10 of TV’s most beloved characters with disabilities. Each is a small step toward making televisionland somewhat like real life.






Primitive


Blaze Starr getting all sexy without getting naked. This was filmed sometime in the 1950s. Music by the Cramps.

Sunday, November 20, 2011

The Lindy Hop


"Jumpin' at the Woodside," the most famous dance number from the 1941 film Hellzapoppin'.

Friday, November 18, 2011

Interesting Links

10 Most Incredible Volcanic Eruptions Seen from Space. The earth has always been awesome, and photography is getting more awesome all the time.

A Golden Mean in Your Mouth.

LIFE's 20 Worst Covers. (via Fark)

Rich Juzwiak judged a child beauty pageant. No extra snark is necessary to make this both interesting and disturbing. The extended version is here.

Spend some time on the internet and you should became an expert at both detecting and delivering sarcasm. According to research into the subject, that could benefit your brain. Yeah, right.

A new book sheds light on the sorry conditions in U.S. women’s prisons. Rape, mistreatment, and threats are a daily part of life for prisoners.

Przewalski’s Horse: A Story of Survival. The last true wild horse on earth was down to only 12 individuals, but is making a slow steady comeback.

The movie version of Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children (by my erstwhile mental_floss colleague Ransom Riggs) will be probably be handled by Tim Burton. Although Burton is pretty sure he must have written the story, too.

The War on Sanity.

Neil Gaiman has a cameo role playing himself on The Simpsons this Sunday. Get a video sneak peek at Gaiman trying out his American accent.

For most of the world, the Twilight saga is burning itself out, but the most diehard fans are excited about the new movie opening today. Here’s a gallery of Twihard nuttiness at the Los Angeles premier.


Caldonia



Frank "Sugarchile" Robinson was only six years old when he performed in the movie "No Leave No Love" in 1946. Read more about this child prodigy at YouTube. (via deputy dog)

Thursday, November 17, 2011

Extreme Slip’n’Slide



You may have seen Bruiser’s Slip’n’Slide at Something Awful. You may have seen the House Slip’n’Slide. But motocross professional Travis Pastrana has the ultimate Slip’n’Slide right here. Do not try this at home. (via YesButNoButYes)

11 Impressive Thanksgiving Cupcakes

Thanksgiving is a time for traditional foods, but there’s no reason you can’t celebrate with cupcakes! These cupcakes are already traditional in two ways: they either taste like traditional Thanksgiving foods or they are decorated with traditional holiday imagery. We’ve got both kinds for you, in a list I posted at mental_floss.

Links for Fun

Children show us how creativity takes time. So do you want it done by the deadline, or do you want something different and memorable?

Bruce Wayne's Medical Report from Gotham City Hospital. (via Neatorama)

2016 is a feature film from Ghana with Predator- and Alien-like creatures. The trailer is crazier than any viral video made by bored teenagers.

Paul made a sweet storybook gift for Emma. He put it on video and called it Vines.

Bert and Ernie record their voices for Tom Tom GPS. Maybe now they can tell you how to get to Sesame Street!

8 things your tattoo (and where it is) says about you. Anyone with these tattoos is welcome to speak up and refute any points.

Michael J. Fox appeared at a Parkinson’s disease fundraiser last weekend and took to the stage to play “Johnny B. Goode.” The event took place exactly 56 years to the day after the scene in Marty McFly played it at his parent’s high school dance in the movie Back to the Future.

It sounds like a SyFy story, but there’s no movie effects here. A giant robot snake has been developed, shown in a video with a real robot spider.

A group called 2CELLOS does a cover of Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit.” Try to guess what instruments they play.

Marcel the Shell with Shoes On is the adorable seashell that charmed the internet a year ago. Now he’s back with a new video.

The easiest way to have your very own TARDIS is to convert your refrigerator. I always wanted a fridge that’s roomier on the inside!

Warning: Arctic Fox Pups Are Obscenely Cute. One of them has heterochromia, which is cute in itself.



Wednesday, November 16, 2011

Informative Links

Ancient Astronomers. How come they knew so much?

Google Earth has some strange-looking pictures of the Gobi desert. Out in the middle of nowhere, China, there are massive grids and circle that can be seen only from space.

How the GOP Became the Party of the Rich.

Football is almost a religion at Penn State, and the faithful have been shaken by the Sandusky scandal. This week, the fans are doing some serious soul-searching.

E. Coli scares us when we find it on food, but we could learn to love its fuel-producing abilities. With a little genetic modification, we could put the bugs to work eating sugar and cranking out biodiesel.

Mexican officials are investigating the case of the 10-year-old girl who gave birth, to see if she might have been raped. She’s ten years old, isn’t that enough evidence that she was raped?

Stuntman/gymnast/free runner Damien Walters shows what he’s been doing this past year. Get ready to let your jaw drop, as if that’s an acrobatic move.

An Unofficial Guide to Life as a Ref. In case you ever considered going in to the “field.”

The U.S. government has a few job openings in Houston, Texas, with some travel required. Applications will be taken now through January.

On Friday, a hearing will decide whether the military can be held responsible for rape within the ranks. A suit by 28 plaintiffs alleges that the brass swept their sexual assault cases under the rug.

Cardiac stem cells can help damaged heart muscles repair and heal themselves after a heart attack. The new technique contradicts the long-held view that hearts cannot regenerate.






UltraSlo



Z compilation of some super slow-motion footage. Neat!

Tuesday, November 15, 2011

14 Creative and Clever Soaps

If you want to get a gift for someone who seems to have everything they need or want, here’s a bit of advice. You should get them something they can use up! Or else get them something that’s so different and creative that they’ll treasure it anyway. The soaps on the list that I posted at mental_floss could fill both suggestions.


Fun and Funny Links

A Vicious Circle.

We Are The 99 Purrcent.

The Difference Between American and British Humour. I think it's because all the optimists in Britain moved to America 300-400 years ago. (via Breakfast Links)

Soldiers welcomed home by happy dogs. A new set of emotional videos, with a link to the previous list as well.

To save you from watching the Adam Sandler movie Jack and Jill, the terrible film reviews have been strung together to tell the story. I’m quite sure it’s more entertaining this way.

An ad needed a chair flown to the edge of space to be filmed. They could have used CGI or other special effects, but they really launched the chair and camera to the stratosphere.

Pretty colored pencils dance to music by Hudson. “Against the Grain” features a pleasing stop-motion video.

10 toys that will permanently screw up your kid. Well, maybe not, but they are pretty disturbing to parents.

If you thought a McRib sandwich was the ultimate in tasty tasty junk food heaven, hold on to your hats. Behold the McRib a couple of simple improvements.

12 Things You Can Do On A Segway. Or rather, 12 strange things that someone somewhere has actually done.

Europe, according to everyone looking through their own culture and experiences. The further you go, the funnier it gets. (via mental_floss)

Monday, November 14, 2011

Good Reads, News, and Information

These days, it's not so easy to find a case of chicken pox to catch, so some vaccine-wary parents are going online to have it delivered ...by mail!

10 Massive Screw-Ups in Paleontology. Forgivable of course, but sometimes funny.

Yes, The Big Banks DO Care If We Move Our Money. (via Breakfast Links)

Author Sam Harris writes about the possibility of violence and how one should respond to it. The article lines out three principles of self-defense, with the overreaching goal being to avoid violence if at all possible. (via Metafilter)

Economic downturn and the politics of public service budgets will disproportionally affect those too weak to do anything about it -children who need foster parents. (via Casaubon's Book)

The Great Rubber Robbery: How Julius Fromm’s Condom Empire Fell to the Nazis.

See what happens inside when the International Space Station fires its rockets!

The durable Mike Malloy. He survived six murder attempts, placing him above Rasputin in the “hard to kill” category. (via Metafilter)

Spray NeverWet on fabric and it turns hydrophobic, meaning it rejects water. http://geeks.thedailywh.at/2011/11/12/neverwet-of-the-day/ Great for raincoats, but how are you going to clean the dust and pollen off your tennis shoes?

The new book Eva Braun: Life with Hitler is said to be the best biography of the Fuhrer’s wife yet. Just an excerpt tells us more about the mysterious woman than we ever knew before.

A simple sailboat trip led to more adventure than they ever wanted. Paul and Rachel Chandler spent more than a year in Somali pirate custody, and expected death to come any day.

Fargo, Yeah!


This movie has quite an agreeable cast. (via YesButNoButYes)

Saturday, November 12, 2011

Friday, November 11, 2011

11 Women Warriors of World War II

There are more stories of heroism out of World War II than can ever fit in a school textbook, but hundreds of those stories are written down somewhere for those who want to find them. Over 100 million military personnel participated in the war, including many women. Here are the stories of eleven of these brave women in an article I posted at mental_floss.


It's part of mental_floss' 11-11-11 celebration, in which a new list of eleven things are posted every hour, at eleven minutes past the hour. You can see them all ( or at least the ones posted so far) here.


Friday Fun Links

Today is 11-11-11, the kind of math holiday Ron Gordon loves to celebrate with a contest (I won one once)! Check out your chance to win at Ones Upon A Day.

Le Internet Medley. A song by three guys called the GAG Quartet containing 40 or so internet memes.

A Few Facts You May Not Know About Some Like It Hot.

25 ways to wear a scarf. Even if you never wear a scarf, the video is downright hypnotic.

There are plenty of pop culture recordings that you might not ever get a chance to experience -or by luck, you just might. (via Dark Roasted Blend)

The Birth of Kermit. And a look at the Smithsonian's Muppet collection.

A new toy from Japan called the Utamin is like a Theramin encased in a little round doll. This is the perfect gift for grandchildren or nieces and nephews, but not for children who actually live with you.

Serious and Not-so-serious Recycling in Antarctica.

Thursday, November 10, 2011

Informative Links

Your Own Worst Enemy: Getting Over Impostor Syndrome. (via Metafilter)

The U.S. Senate is Putting Millionaires Before Jobs.

Doolittle's Raid. America's first response to Pearl Harbor.

The Kathputli Colony is a community of performers: magicians, puppeteers, acrobats, and others that settled into an area in West Delhi about 50 years ago. But now the land has been sold to a developer who plans to bulldoze the slums and set up a shopping mall.

The Woman Who Bested the Men at Math.

The "Freshman 15" is mainly a myth -or a big fat lie. (via mental_floss)

Bill Gates Changes The World Again. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has gone through 25 billion dollars to not only get vaccines to children who need them, but to change the way that vaccines are developed, manufactured, and distributed globally. (via Not Exactly Rocket Science)

There are several reasons the value of diamonds may start to decline: African nations demanding a share of the wealth, new diamond sources opening around the world, the quality of modern man-made diamonds, and the reputation of the diamond trade. Now the Oppenheimer family is divesting themselves of the DeBeers company after 84 years, which could be the definitive omen that the diamond business is changing forever.

Ballet Shoes and Ballerinas as Technology: A History En Pointe. (via Boing Boing)

6 Most Badass Self-Inflicted Medical Experiments.

It's possible that the story of Snow White is based on historical people. Here are two possible inspirations.

What caused the financial crisis? The Big Lie goes viral. (via Metafilter)

Wednesday, November 09, 2011

Fun and Funny Links

Neatorama now has a Google+ page, and they are giving away t-shirts to start things off! Look for regular giveaways starting soon.

A Penny’s Not Going to Kill You. Or will it?

Pole Riders, another maddening game from Oxford philosophy professor Dr. Bennet Foddy, who gave us QWOP. (via Metafilter)

15 Patron Saints for Modern Situations.

Don't Swim After Lunch. A tabletop animation.

The American Pride Eagle Meme. (via Rue the Day)

6 Reasons Writing for the Internet is the Best Job Ever. Not that I need any more competition, but this article nails it.

Duck, Duck, ...

The story of the Hotel Bill.

The Tea Party Ted Meme.

Ducklings on a Water Slide


It must be fun; they keeping climbing up for more! These ducks were recorded at the Cabarrus County Fair in North Carolina. (via Arbroath)

Tuesday, November 08, 2011

Good Reads, Etc.

Caffeinated Beef Jerky is the Army’s newest food on the go. And why not? It’s lightweight, lasts forever, and guys love jerky already.

5 Feisty Presidential Daughters. They’re not only part of history, but a lot more fun than actual politicians!

The Waffle Game That Changed Their Lives. After you read the story, you’ll want the recipe. (via Metafilter)

The Guy Who Died on a TV Talk Show.

Kal Penn talks about going from Hollywood to Obama’s inner circle and back again. He’s not ruling out a return trip, or incorporating politics in a movie plot.

Six Russian astronauts volunteered for a simulated mission to Mars in which they stayed in an isolated capsule with each other for months at a time. The mission was declared a success when they didn’t kill each other.

A doctor has developed a technique for permanently turning your brown eyes blue with laser treatment. Then you and your blue-eyed spouse will have to do some explaining to your brown-eyed children.

Coming Tuesday, an asteroid will zip by the earth more closely than any other in decades. It won’t hit us (knock wood), but it will come closer to us than the moon.

Serial Killer vs. Mass Murderer: What’s the Difference? With a few examples of each you might not already know.

How To Explain Gay Rights To An Idiot.

The Twisted History of the game Twister.


Monday, November 07, 2011

Links for Fun and Entertainment

Imagine Amanda Palmer, Moby, and Stephin Merritt all together performing “Science Fiction Double Feature.” Even Neil Gaiman makes a contribution of a sort.

Night of the Little Dead. Adam Savage and Penn Jillette battle zombies in a fisherman’s bar in this made-for-the-web short film.

JubJub the Amazing Balancing Dog. He must be amazingly level-headed to balance a laptop (and all that other stuff) on his nose.

Google search will do a barrel roll if you tell it to, but that’s far from the only neat tricks Google has embedded in their sites for those who have the time to find them. For those who don’t, here’s a list of Ten Google Easter Eggs you might have fun checking out.

And now for something really soothing for your eyes: waterfalls! Long-exposure photographs of falling water look like magic.

Videos in which someone “unboxes” a new product are usually both lame and boring. But wait until you see what this girl Pandora is opening!

Best Before. "My wife's 90-year-old grandmother - having lived through World War II - doesn't believe in 'best before' dates. It made eating at her house rather exciting." (via Everlasting Blort)

Neil Illusions are the best illusions ever!

Everyone Has to Be a Child.

Welcome to Kitty City, the new animation from Cyriak.

Christine Jorgenson


George Jorgenson wasn't the first to undergo gender reassignment surgery, but was the first public case to use a combination of surgery and hormone therapy in the 1950s.

Sunday, November 06, 2011

Saturday, November 05, 2011

Junior Rodeo Daredevils


Smothered in gravy, Texas style, with MST3K.

Friday, November 04, 2011

Informative Links

The world now has seven billion people. A video from NPR helps us to visualize how that happened so quickly.

It wasn't always this way. In earlier decades, prosperity the economy affected rich and poor alike.

How covered wagons traversed the Rockies. It was harder and more ingenious than you ever imagined.

Nina Sandlin takes pictures of spider genitalia in her spare time. Her spider porn collection is becoming a priceless tool for identifying arachnid species. (via Metafilter)

What did someone say about the sanctity of marriage? Staying in it for the long haul is what says the most.

Living a prosperous modern life won’t make you happy. In fact, there are facets of the modern world that make up a recipe for depression.

A study says happy people live longer, but you know that correlation is not causation. It could be that older people are just happy that they aren’t dead yet.

Surprise! Your status updates or the comments you leave on Facebook might show up in a Google search. I hope you’ve written nothing that a future employer might find objectionable.

A Beautiful Letter From An American Lieutenant To His 3-Year Old Son On V-E Day. Bonus: it was jotted down on Hitler’s personal stationery.

Every artist has his muse: Michael Bay has his explosions. They have now been graphed and charted so we can see how they grew over time.

11 of the most disappointing teams in sports history. That’ll teach you not to get your hopes up… oh, who are we kidding?

More people in the U.S. die of prescription pain pill overdoses than by heroin or cocaine combined. It’s a painkiller epidemic.



Britain's Most Gorgeous Man


The Mr. Apollo competition in 1950.

Thursday, November 03, 2011

Links for Fun

Wreck the Halls: Cake Wrecks Gets "Festive."

What’s the worst possible situation to be caught texting in? Driving, yes, but texting during your own wedding ceremony is pretty close.

An adorably goofy dog was spotted on a seesaw with his boy. He also bears a resemblance to a certain Pixar pup.

The 25 Best Pictures From The 2011 European Rabbit Hopping Championships. Hop, bunny, hop!

Did you hear about the testicle tumor with a human face? The good news for the owner is that the tumor is benign, and the bad news is that the whole world has seen his testicle.

9 types of drivers that piss everyone off. Put them together and make up everyone on the road: idiots, maniacs, and you.

Petman: A ‘Terminator-esque’ humanoid robot. Developed to test military protective gear, it moves in a more human manner than any robot seen before.

The Secret Life of the Banjo. With a bonus number by Kermit the Frog.

A Lip-Reading Puzzle.

Troll Cat Commits The Purr-fect Crime. And he already had a scapegoat, er, cat, ready to take the blame.

The reality show Jersey Shore is staged, according to a completely unnecessary video that proves it. Even more amazing is that there are still people who believe that “reality TV” is unscripted.







Wednesday, November 02, 2011

Good Reads and Interesting Links

Adventures in Depression. Allie Brosh delivers a serious and descriptive but welcome explanation of her six-month absence from Hyperbole and a Half.

Which Bank Is the Worst? Some shameful acts are easier to understand than others, but the biggest grievances are lined out bank-by-bank.

Occupy Wall Street: A protest timeline. The planning started months ago, but not even the founders predicted how the protests would spread around the world.

Now This Is How You Land A Plane With No Front Landing Gear. That had to take a sensitive touch, nerves of steel, and years of experience (but no pickup truck).

The CDC is now recommending that boys as well as girls get the vaccine against HPV. Brace yourselves for another round of vaccine controversy.

Android Dreams. A lovely time-lapse video of Shinjuku, Tokyo, set to the Blade Runner soundtrack.

YouTube is ready to get into the TV business. They will gradually roll out 100 new channels of original programming, so you never have to leave the computer.

The NCAA has unveiled a reform package for college athletes in which they get some spending money and security. Some say the changes are too little to do any good.

The Wolfman at the Movies. How Lon Chaney, Jr. gave us a new iconic movie monster in 1941.

What Occupy Wall Street is about. "There are two justice systems in this country: One for 99 percent and another for the privileged 1 percent."

The New Science Behind Your Spending Addiction. The preference for instant gratification may be hard wired into the human brain.

How to break the speed of light by pointing a laser at the moon. I don’t quite understand how this relates to Einstein, but I may have to try it.

How Cell Phones Shape the Lives of College Students. Mainly, they love and depend on them.


Tuesday, November 01, 2011

10 Cool Underground Hotels

My husband and I were watching some apocalyptic group building an underground shelter on TV, and I remarked that living underground is quite cozy and pleasant -as long as you have ready access to the outside (of course, being trapped is a nightmare). My father was a geologist, and I grew up in cave country, so I find that being underground is like having Mother Earth wrap her arms around you. There are plenty of places where you can stay temporarily to find out if you feel the same way. Take a peek at ten of them in this list I posted at mental_floss.

Funny Links

The Effect of Television on Sexual Behavior.

How to Write Romance Novels. The formula is spot-on, but the example left me in stitches.

Eddie Murphy says he’s through with family movies and wants to get edgy again. Eventually, he may get around to finding a new project.

We Are The 1%. College Humor’s sketch on the Occupy Wall Street movement.

Lindsay Lohan did a photo shoot for Playboy magazine. Here’s what her data sheet might look like.

Parkour fits into video game worlds perfectly, if only you can find someone who’s good at it. These three videos show how a talented person can fight his way out of a maze.

Blowing Stuff Up with Science! See how different chemical combinations and safety goggles can make a great compilation video.

A gecko saves another gecko from a snake attack. Not only is this a gripping adventure, but it appears to have happened inside someone’s home.

Cosmic Plaything.

The 1986 film Big Trouble in Little China didn't make much sense. Even star Kurt Russell was completely confused, and he allegedly read the script!

A bear in a zoo leads a group of children in a group dance. Or maybe he was just asking for their picnic basket.

A vanity plate to aid the color-blind.