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Friday, September 19, 2014

Friday links

Happy Talk Like a Pirate Day, me hearties! Instructions, translators, and Dave Barry's 2002 column.



Hey, Firefly fans - tomorrow (Sept 20) is Unification Day. Related: the biggest comparison of sci-fi spaceships ever is complete at last.

14 Extremely Detailed Close-Ups of Animal Eyes.

95% of children in the '50's were out of diapers by age 18 months - now it's 10%: The Evolution of Potty Training.

ICYMI, Thursday's links are here, including Samuel Johnson's Scotland-bashing, Pony Express history, how Richard III died, and weird ways to stop lava.

Thursday, September 18, 2014

Thursday links

Dr Samuel Johnson was born on this date in 1709: here's a selection of his Scotland-bashing quotes.

King Richard III's Final Moments Were Quick & Brutal.

Ancient Warriors Drew Power From The Crying Infants On Their Backs.

Video: Men Get Bikini Waxes for the First Time (OK for work).

The Surprisingly Short History of the Pony Express.

Weird Ways People Have Tried To Stop Lava.

ICYMI, Wednesday's links are here, including the narcoleptic squirrel song, a drive-thru funeral home, fictional poisons vs real ones, and how beans become farts.

Tuesday, September 16, 2014

Wednesday links

Video: The Narcoleptic Squirrel Song, with lots of bonus squirrel links.


Funeral home offers drive-thru visitation.

One minute science video lesson of the day: How A Bean Becomes A Fart.

How Do Fictional Poisons Stack Up To Real-Life Ones?

The story behind the rarely seen 9/11 Budweiser commercial that only aired once.

ICYMI, Monday's links are here, and include a time lapse video of an Amish barn raising, a Rube Goldberg machine that runs on light, and If Superheroes Did Commercials.

One minute science video lesson of the day: How A Bean Becomes A Fart

I've always wondered how this worked. This stuff claims to supply the necessary enzyme, and it's got pretty good reviews...

NFL Announces New Zero-Tolerance Policy On Videotaped Domestic Violence


Following public outcry over his mishandling of Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice’s aggravated assault of his then-fiancĂ©e, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell announced Tuesday that the league has adopted a new zero-tolerance policy toward all videotaped domestic abuse. “We hold our players to the highest standards both as professional athletes and as people, so any violence toward women that is recorded, authenticated, and then publicly distributed will be met with an automatic suspension and fine,” said Goodell, adding that the new, stricter guidelines reflect the league’s hard-line stance against any spousal abuse that is clearly and irrefutably captured on film. “I can assure you that any member of this league who strikes a woman in front of a live camera will face swift and heavy consequences. I also want to stress that this utterly reprehensible behavior is something we will in no way tolerate as long as the footage is completely uninterrupted and the entirety of the assault takes place within frame.” Goodell went on to clarify that in such cases, the NFL will cooperate fully with local authorities as soon as the league can no longer prevent incriminating evidence from being leaked to the media.

Today is National Play-Doh Day

Mental Floss has 10 Fun Facts for National Play-Doh Day.


When my kids were little, and then when my grandkids were little, I used to make playdough for them from flour, salt, oil, water cream of tartar and food coloring.  You can make a really large amount cheaply. You still have to buy the toys to mold stuff; my personal favorite is the dentist set - Dr. Drill N' Fill:

Watch this heron stalk a gopher, snatch it out of the ground and swallow it whole

Dude. I had no idea that a heron could do something like this.

Video: The Narcoleptic Squirrel Song, bonus squirrel links

The squirrel's funny on it's own, but the song really adds a certain je ne sais quoi.



And just because, here's a gif of a raccoon turning somersaults

Related posts/links:

I'm pretty sure this flesh-eating-squirrels-because-fracking movie never got made, but if it ever happens, I'm in: Squirrels - Pre-production Sales Trailer.

Killer Squirrel has World's Bushiest Tail.

January 21 is Squirrel Appreciation Day - more squirrel-launching videos here.

Riverside County squirrel tests positive for exposure to Bubonic plague.

Time to think of squirrel pie.

Monday, September 15, 2014

Video: Coke, Nutella, Mentos and a condom

I can't tell what this guy's saying, but someone in the youtube comments left a translation which appears to fit - it's pasted below the video:

New, incredible experiment with Coke and Mentos! But we’re gonna try something new today: the energy and vitality of Nutella! And as always, we’re gonna use a condom, but this time it’s gonna be mango-flavored. Let’s start. First thing: let’s take some Nutella and put it on the top of the bottle, creating some kind of Nutella cap that will be fundamental for the Nutella-Coke-Mentos reaction. Good, now we open our condom and we put Mentos in it. Not just one, two or three, but five Mentos, since we found out during previous experiments that 5 is the best quantity of Mentos in terms of maximum reaction. Now we’re going to seal everything with some tape. Perfect: Nutella, Mentos… now we’re gonna let the Mentos drop on top of the Nutella, and that’s enough for… and here’s the reaction! Incredible, guys! Coke and Mentos are reacting… it’s a world record! Look at it! It’s a world record! Look at it! IT’S A MIRACLE!!! WOOOOORLD REEEECOOOOOORD!!! COKE, MENTOS AND NUTELLA WORLD RECOOOORD!!! GOOOOO ITALYYYYYY!!!!!! NUTELLA, GUYS, IT’S THE PERFECT INGREDIENT!! YEEEEEESSSS!!!! 

Monday links

Ohio Amish Barn Raising: 10 hours in real life, 3.5 minute time-lapse video.

William Howard Taft was born 157 years ago today - here are 9 tips for planning a birthday party for him.

This Rube Goldberg Machine Runs On Light.

Scientists name newly discovered extinct swamp-dwelling creature after Mick Jagger because big lips.

12 Brilliant Kitchen Hacks Made Possible with Aluminum Foil.

If Superheroes Did Commercials.

ICYMI, Friday's links are here, including scientific diagrams circa 1850, really awkward album covers, battle of Baltimore (inspiration for the Star-Spangled Banner) 200th anniversary, and naked mole rats.

Sunday, September 14, 2014

They should sell a T-shirt with this image


Ohio Amish Barn Raising: 10 hours in real life, 3.5 minute time-lapse video

Impressive. Here's the youtube information:
My husband, Scott Miller, shot this video with a Canon 60d Camera using a Pixel TW-282/E3 Wireless remote timer set at 20 second intervals. He shot 1600 pictures from 7:00am until 5:00pm (on May 13, 2014) and compressed the 10 hours into 3 minutes and 30 seconds. He even took the day off work to help :). The music in this video was found on the free youtube music library. It is a song called Cruisin', by Scott Vestal, off of the compilation album, Bluegrass '95.


via David Thompson.