Bars and Stripes Forever

A Leon Schlesinger production from 1942.

Informative Links

The Top Ten Daily Consequences of Having Evolved. Hiccups and goosebumps are a small price to pay for being at the top of the food chain. (via Neatorama)

A business finds that customer complaints push them higher on Google’s search results. After you read this, you’ll do your research before you buy anything off the web.

5 Things You Didn’t Know About the NYC Subway (not relating to that mysterious smell). Next time you’re there you can entertain your fellow riders with your new knowledge -they’ll appreciate that.

A laser burns up a piece of paper inside a balloon! Science can be so cool, particularly when someone else does the math.

An author discovers that his grandfather was an anonymous benefactor who gave money to 150 families for Christmas in 1933. He tracks down the descendants of those who received $5 to see what difference the money made for them.

What Food Says About Class in America.

Phrases that announce that someone is about to dis you or lie to you. I've told my kids this over and over and they believe me when I have backup from the Boston Globe.

8 Odd Acts of the Vaudeville Era

Before movies could talk, there were endless opportunities for those who had talent to make a living performing in front of live audiences. Singers, dancers, actors, and comedians were the backbone of the traveling show. There were also side show exhibits with human oddities and specialty acts such as the circus, the wild west show, and the medicine show. But in those days, just like today, audiences wanted something new and different. And there were many who stepped onto the stage to provide something different. See some of them in this article I wrote for mental_floss.

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Coney Island Wild Animal Show

Not sure when this was recorded, but I believe it was the late 1940s.

Links for Your Edification

The Case of the Vanishing Blonde. A story worthy of Sherlock Holmes, but which happens to be true. (via Metafilter)

How well do you use apostrophes? Test yourself with this simple 10 sentence quiz. (via b3ta)

There are ten countries that have four-letter names. Can you name them all in four minutes?

5 Famous Scientists Dismissed as Morons in Their Time. Sadly, it’s hard to say “I told you so” when you’re dead.

The “Router” in Your Head. Understanding a weakness in the human brain by comparing it to computer technology only makes it appear more impressive.

You Fix the Budget. Select your plans for spending cuts and/or tax increases to balance the 2015 and 2030 US government budgets. Then see how others did it. (via TYWKIWDBI)

A roundup of science articles that try to draw readers by using Harry Potter analogies. Next month: the science of Cowboys and Aliens.

Diagrams that Changed the World. Who knew Florence Nightingale invented the pie chart? (via Boing Boing)

Isabella Rossellini makes videos that explain the sex lives of animals. She’s covered many species and their odd mating habits, but none as weird as the duck.

Thanksgiving Links

Thanksgiving is here! Do you have the proper hat to wear?

10 Great Thanksgiving Quotes.

Why ‘Thank You’ Is More Than Just Good Manners.

Kitty Pilgrims. Because every cat calendar must have a photograph for November.

As American as the Pilgrims’ feast was, the rest of the world also has times set aside to count blessings and express gratitude. Read about Five Other Thanksgiving Holidays.

What’s on TV for Thanksgiving: all the holidays episodes, specials, and movies. Hey, it’s a way to spend time with family without having to actually talk to them!

10 Most Memorable TV Thanksgivings.

Thanksgiving Myths.

Let’s Talk Turkey! Let’s especially talk about the people who don’t know what to do with a turkey.

How to host a throwback Thanksgiving.

Why We Eat What We Eat On Thanksgiving. Personally, I’m thankful that we eventually settled on such a delicious menu.

The editors of Slate asked their readers how Thanksgiving cooking traditions get passed from one generation to the next. It seems that in many families, the one who cook every year has a hard time giving that position up to anyone else.

How to eat more of Thanksgiving dinner. (via Breakfast Links)

Alexander Zass

Polish strongman Alexander Zass shows off his stuff around 1930.

Funny Links

The Taxonomy of Barney.

If I had a marble run like this installed in my bedroom as a child, I’d have never grown up. Luckily, the builder posted instructions so you can make one yourself.

In Soviet Russia… you know how it goes. Like when one rat goes up against five cats, you don’t bet on the cats.

How long can you last on a raft with a chicken? The music helped me last a few seconds longer than otherwise. (via b3ta)

Total silliness: Russian Dancing Men. (via Everlasting Blort)

David Balboa put together a supercut of movie introductions, 250 in all, with a complete list of the clips used. (via The Litter Box)

Disney goes to great lengths to translate their movies into other languages while keeping the music, the meaning, and the tone consistent. Hear what “The Circle of Life” sounds like around the world.

Have you ever seen a kitten hunt a duck? Modern hi-tech kittehs do it by computer.

Tiger Stone

Now THIS is the way to lay bricks without killing your back! And a most efficient way to lay down a road, too.

Links for Good Reads

Was the Kingdom of David and Solomon a glorious empire—or just a little cow town? It depends on which archaeologist you ask. Glory is in the eye of the beholder.

The geeks at CERN have managed to trap a bit of antimatter, specifically antihydrogen. I read this to see what kind of bottle they store it in, and the answer blew my mind.

The 7 Deadliest Bacteria on Earth. Excuse me, I feel the need to go wash my hands now.

Read about the lobbying behind the TSA airport backscanners. (via a comment at Cynical-C)

Is legal marriage obsolete in the modern world? TIME looks at statistics on our changing opinions and behavior with regard to marriage and its benefits. (via Metafilter)

Attack of the Vintage Toy Robots! Japan embraced robots early, which both frightened and fascinated us back then -but now they’re just awesome.

I well remember when the Taliban demolished the two 1,500-year-old giant stone Buddhas of Bamiyan. Now archaeologists are looking for a rumored third Buddha, and finding other ancient treasures along the way.

Astronomers have found an exoplanet that belongs to a different galaxy. How it came to be close enough for us to find is a really cool story.

How Chuck Berry Became a Beach Boy (and other copyright infringement cases). Like the horror of the singing Girl Scouts.

Fun and Funny Links

36 Pictures Of Cats Watching Cats On TV. That is all.

Dogs Don’t Understand Basic Concepts Like Moving. But Allie’s dogs think throwing up is magical, being yelled at is a bonding experience, and wearing shoes is a sign of the apocalypse.

Zoom in for a look at this amazing picture of London made from 8,000 photographs stitched together over six month’s time. At 80 gigapixels, it is the largest 360-degree panorama ever.

Jimmy Fallon does his Neil Young impression and sings Willow Smith’s “Whip My Hair.” If that’s not silly enough, he gets Bruce Springsteen to sing along with him.

6 Obscure Facts About the Noid. If you don’t recall the 1980s advertising mascot, you probably won’t understand why he was so popular. I don’t either, and I was there!

Pointing out how Disney Princesses are poor role models is like shooting fish in a barrel. That’s not to say it can’t be entertaining.

Red and Jonny are married Star Wars geeks who chronicle their life and love in photographs. The fact that they always wear Storm Trooper helmets in the pictures makes them much more interesting.

Helpful Figures has plenty of those infographics you see all around the web, but these are entertaining! All have interesting “facts”, possibly related artwork, and unclickable sources printed at the bottom, just like all those not-so-entertaining infographics.

Polar Bear Cubs

Polar bears at the Munich Zoo get their first bath in 1958. (via Arbroath)

Informative Links

Quarks and Leptons and Bosons, Oh My! The short course in subatomic particles.

This guy makes a good living writing custom papers for college students, from admissions essays to graduate theses. Is this cheating or just another way to get ahead? (via Metafilter)

Christiaan Snouck Hurgronje took photographs of Mecca in 1885, until he was thrown out just before the Hajj. Now they are on exhibit as the annual pilgrimage begins. (via Neatorama)

You’ve probably seen the move The Bridge On the River Kwai, but you might not know how much of the film was true and how much was fictionalized. The real history of how the railway between Burma and China was built, including the bridge, is a horrific story.

Popcorn popping in super-slow motion. This really should have “The Blue Danube” playing behind it, don’t you think?

5 Average Joes That Became Famous. When lightning strikes, it’s good to be ready for your turn at stardom.

5 Ways Stores Use Science to Trick You Into Buying Crap. Everything about your shopping experience is designed not to serve your needs, but to manipulate you. NSFW text.

The Landsat 5 and Landsat 7 satellites are sending back images of Earth in false color. Not only are they useful to scientists, but they can be called works of art.

Love Potions: 6 Surprising Aphrodisiacs. Traditional medicines were developed for more important things than just healing!

Mad Men Theme

Adam Ben Ezra performs the theme to the TV show Mad Men on bass guitar and bass fiddle.

The Not-so-ancient History of 10 Thanksgiving Dishes

On Thanksgiving, more than any other day of the year, Americans sit down and eat the same meal as their neighbors and countrymen. It’s tradition, after all! But we know our history: most of the Thanksgiving dishes we enjoy today weren’t at the original Pilgrims’ feast in 1621, or at least not in the way we enjoy them. How did we come up with the modern menu on so many tables? Find out in this article I wrote for mental_floss.

Digg this article!

Funny Links

The Kurt Vonnegut Dictionary of His Imagination. Seeing the world through his eyes is a process that opened many minds. (via The Daily What)

Fun with Pie Charts. Crusty, sweet, delicious pie charts.

A house cat with massive cajones tells an alligator who’s the boss. When the alligator returns with a friend, the cat gets serious.

A helpful customer review of Dave's Ghost Pepper Naga Jolokia Hot Sauce.

Harry Potter and the Porny Recut Trailer. It's all innuendo, but it's a hoot!

Andrew Shears created a US Map with a TV show to go with each state (and explained his choice). It’s good to see that TV sometimes happens outside of New York and California. (via The Daily What)

The history of TV is captured in a less-than-two-minute video. Only the catchphrases are included, but that’s enough to ignite our shared memories of these 71 shows. (via Gorilla Mask)

36 Pictures Of Cats Watching Cats On TV. That is all.

Ten Centuries in Five Minutes

How Europe has changed over history. (via Dark Roasted Blend)

Good Reads and Information

High-Speed Video Reveals Cats’ Secret Tongue Skills. Your kitty harnesses the principles of fluid mechanics every time they take a drink.

The backlash against more invasive airport security measures now includes pilots, flight attendants, unions, and the general public. It’s your choice between a nude body scan and a thorough frisk, so many will stay home instead.

Do you think there might still be ghosts wandering around from the sunken Titanic? A group of ghost hunters want to go to the spot where the boat sank in order to find out -if they can raise enough money.

Well, it looks like the Poor Man’s Polygraph has some shortcuts for detecting lies you hear. Of course, once you’ve raised a few kids, you get really good at this.

Triclosan and triclocarban are chemicals used to kill germs in surgical patients. Now they are in everyday products where they do little good, and worse, are building up in our environment.

Courts Helping Banks Screw Over Homeowners.

A Look at the Kind Heart of One of the Most Influential Communities on the Internet. Keep this story when you need to remind yourself the web is more than just trolls and grammar Nazis.

World’s greatest dad makes his son a DeadMau5 head (with lights!) for Halloween. Even the performer himself thought this was awesome.

Who Will Stand Up to the Superrich?

Boxing Cats

By Thomas Edison, 1894.

When Pigs Fly

“When pigs fly” is a term we all know that brings up a ridiculous picture. The phrase is akin to “when hell freezes over”, meaning that something is not liable to happen -ever. But “swine flew” jokes aside, pigs do fly, mainly because we like to see it happen! You'll see it happen a lot in this article I wrote for mental_floss.