They are always there, they are never explained, and they are (almost) always red. They are blinking tubes that don't do anything. The prop has been used in just about every science fiction movie you've ever seen, even if you don't recall them. Don't believe me? Then watch this compilation of clips that show the same tubes in science fiction stories through the spectrum of the genre.
A bit of digging revealed that this the most common of these gadgets was owned by a company called Modern Props. At one time, you could rent it for $775 a week. Modern Props went out of business last year, and most of its inventory was sold at auction. The science fiction stuff, however, may eventually be donated to a museum.
(via Geeks Are Sexy)
Monday, September 20, 2021
The Most Important Device in the Universe: Blinking Tubes Without Function
A Cockatiel Plays Peekaboo with Baby Birds
A parrot breeder in Bursa, Turkey, caught this interaction between a trained cockatiel and three wide-eyed nestlings. Be sure you have the sound up! Is this the chicks' mother teaching them a game? No, according to the machine translation from Turkish.
Let's remember the legend 😇 Brother sultan parrot who makes his brothers play games so they don't get scared 😍🙋 ♂️If you ask me, that makes it even cuter, as this cockatiel is doing exactly what an aunt or uncle would to make a human baby smile. (via Nag on the Lake)
Beans
Click to the right to advance the comic. Beans is now retired, like he always was, really. This comic is from Roby Poche at StrangeTrek.
Bending LEGO
The first part of this video is a LEGO build, so it may seem a bit boring, but stick with it, because it becomes mesmerizing. The payoff is definitely worth it. It might even make you want to go back and see the first part again! (via Neatorama)
Miss Cellania's Links
How the Bizarre Wolf Cat Came To Be. (via Real Clear Science)
Nope, not my kid.
Astronomy Photographer of the Year award winners 2021.
Typhoid Mary: The Most Infamous Typhoid Carrier Who Ever Lived. She's where we got the term "asymptomatic carrier."
The Lost Generation of Ancient Trees. While we can't plant ancient trees, conservationists have developed techniques for artificially aging trees for the purpose of supporting other species. (via TYWKIWDBI)
I gave birth in Germany and in the US. Here are the stark differences. (via Digg)
Bone Discovery Suggests Humans Were Already Manufacturing Clothes 120,000 Years Ago. (via Strange Company)
Minnesota police are promoting a gadget so drivers of color can avoid being shot by nervous police. Wouldn't it be better for police to just stop shooting people at traffic stops? (via Metafilter)
A blast from the past (2014): 6 Ways to Celebrate the Autumnal Equinox. That's Wednesday!
Seven Horn Pileup
When I post marching band performances, it's usually because they have a clever show. Not this time. This short clip of an unnamed school has a section of eight Sousaphone players. While marching backwards, number two goes down followed by six others. No one was injured, but two instruments were damaged. This kind of thing happened all the time when I was in marching band (not always my fault), although we never had more than one Sousaphone player. (via Tastefully Offensive)
Tweet of the Day
(via Boing Boing)Geese gather around man playing the harmonica at the Daan Forest Park in Taipei.
— GoodNewsCorrespondent (@GoodNewsCorres1) September 16, 2021
The geese are named Qiqi and Fanfan in case you were wondering.(🎥:Luby Liao)🎶🎵
pic.twitter.com/4rgoNjCV2z
Sunday, September 19, 2021
Italy's Spectacular Abandoned 1960s Mountain-Top Party Resort
On the side of a mountain in the north of Italy stood a small village named Consonno. It didn't even have a road leading to it, which is eventually important to the story. Wealthy entrepreneur Mario Bagno had a dream of building the ultimate resort, akin to Las Vegas, in Italy, so he set his sights on Consonno. Bagno built accommodations and entertainment facilities and opened the resort in 1967. Today, all that's left is a marvelous collection of abandoned buildings, which we will take a video tour of while we learn the story of Consonno. (via Digg)
The Funniest Moments in the History of Star Trek
If this were a list, you could argue about it. Well, some people will argue about it anyway, even though it's a compilation and should just be enjoyed as such. Looper takes a look at the more ridiculous scenes over the different series of the Star Trek Universe. You may think that the setup for each scene is a little long, but if they didn't explain what was happening, we'd either be confused or else the video would be more than an hour long. (via Laughing Squid)
Placard
Let us encourage mild rebellion, for it is much easier to abide than rebellions that parents know will cause eventual grief. Like dropping out of school. This comic is from Nathan Pyle's Strange Planet.
Patrick Speaks
We take communication for granted, but it's not that easy for everyone. Patrick Otema of Uganda was born deaf and didn't learn sign language until he was 15. A teacher made all the difference, to Patrick and all his classmates. Take note of Patrick's face when he realizes what these lessons are all about. (via reddit)
How to Pipe Like a Pirate with Jack Sparrow
The Unipiper is at it again! Excuse me, make that the Unipirate! I don't know if Brian Kidd talks like a pirate, but he's celebrating Talk Like a Pirate Day by playing the pipes on his unicycle dressed as Captain Jack Sparrow. (Thanks, Brian!)
Tweet of the Day
(via Fark)Enjoying the view together..
— Buitengebieden (@buitengebieden_) September 14, 2021
Sound on 😊 pic.twitter.com/9F4rDffSaj
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