Archive for January, 2008
Mouse Party: What Drugs Are Doing To Your Brain
What happens to your brain when you take drugs? University of Utah’s Genetic Science Learning Center invites you to find out, by using some party lovin’ mice!
The university’s interactive Flash feature, called Mouse Party, gives you a glimpse into the chemical interactions at the synaptic level that cause drug users to feel "high."
Link [Flash] – Thanks Jon Jason!
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Wine for Dogs
We’ve posted about a beer specifically made for dogs before, but if that’s too low class for your discerning pooch, try this: Bark Vineyard’s wine for dog!
Though it comes in a wine bottle with cute names like Sauvignon Bark and Pinot Leasheo, the stuff is actually non-alcoholic au jus poured over kibble.
Link – via PetSugar, thanks Angelica!
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Memoirs of a MADtv Geisha, by Bobby Lee
Yes, this MADtv clip is old … but it’s still knee-slapping funny! Here’s MADtv’s famous parody of Memoirs of a Geisha, starring Bobby Lee as Sayuri.
Hit play or go to Link [YouTube] – warning: crude humor – Thanks G!
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Man Hid Castle Behind Giant Bales of Hay
Problem: Robert Fidler wanted to build himself a castle, but didn’t want to deal with all those pesky permits or anything like that.
Solution: Camouflage! (Hey, it worked in World War II!)
Over the course of two years, he managed to secretly – and unlawfully – build the imposing mock Tudor structure in one of his fields, shielded behind a 40ft stack of hay bales covered by a huge tarpaulins. [...]
Mr Fidler, a farmer, erected the disguise in 2000 out of hundreds of 8ftx4ft bales of straw and covered the top with blue tarpaulin.
After building the castle on the site of two grain silos at a cost of £50,000, he and his wife Linda went to extraordinary lengths to keep it secret. That included keeping their son Harry, now seven, away from playschool the day he was supposed to do a painting of his home in class.
"We couldn’t have him drawing a big blue haystack – people might asked questions," said 39-year-old Mrs Fidler.
Mr Fidler, who has five children from a previous marriage, said: "We moved into the house on Harry’s first birthday, so he grew up looking at straw out of the windows.
"We thought it would be a boring view but birds nested there and feasted on the worms. We had several families of robins and even a duck made a nest and hatched 13 ducklings on top of the bales."
Link – Thanks Brian and Kieran!
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Spy Satellite Falling Out of the Sky
First there was that 2007 TU 24 asteroid that’s aiming for Earth. And if that’s not bad enough, there’s now another danger: a spy satellite that’s falling out of orbit and could hit North America in late February or early March!
That’s Air Force Gen. Victor "Gene" Renuart Jr., who, all kidding aside, is acknowledging the danger:
Air Force Gen. Gene Renuart, who heads of U.S. Northern Command, told The Associated Press on Tuesday that the size of the satellite suggests that some number of pieces will not burn up as the orbiting vehicle re-enters the Earth’s atmosphere and will hit the ground.
"We’re aware that this satellite is out there," Renuart said. "We’re aware it is a fairly substantial size. And we know there is at least some percentage that it could land on ground as opposed to in the water."
A U.S. official confirmed that the spy satellite is designated by the military as US 193. It was launched in December 2006 but almost immediately lost power and cannot be controlled. It carried a sophisticated and secret imaging sensor but the satellite’s central computer failed shortly after launch. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because the information is classified as secret.
Renuart added that, "As it looks like it might re-enter into the North American area," then the U.S. military along with the Homeland Security Department and the Federal Emergency Management Agency will either have to deal with the impact or assist Canadian or Mexican authorities.
Link – Thanks Mr. Lonka!
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Clinton and Cruise: On the Campaign Trail
Hugh Atkin, the creator of the Candidates/Bowie Changes video we featured before on Neatorama, sent us another of his satirical video clip: this time, a mash up of Hillary Clinton and … the infamous Tom Cruise Scientology video!
Here it is: Clinton and Cruise: On the Campaign Trail [YouTube] – Thanks Hugh!
Previously parodied on Neatorama: Mr. 9/11 – The Giuliani Political Anthem
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The Digital Mona Lisa
In 1964, H. Philip Peterson of Control Data Corporation used a CDC 3200 computer and a scanner to create a digital version of the Mona Lisa.
The production process took 14 hours to complete the image which contained 100,000 pixels that were plotted using numerals, sometimes overprinted, to approximate the required density.
Link – Thanks Andy Patros!
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Tokyoflash Contest Winners
Tokyoflash has just picked the four winners of the Top 10 Most Difficult to Read Tokyoflash Watches contest.
Two winners were picked from the entire pool, and two additional winners were picked from the Neatorama registered users pool. These winners were picked using random number generator at www.random.org.
Congratulations to:
Mike (Neatorama user: kam00n)
Joecoollv (Neatorama user: joecoollv)
Aaron West (Neatorama user: Arx)
Andrew Johnson (not a registered user)
As it turns out, 3 of the 4 winners are registered users of this blog. Tokyoflash has contacted the winners by email.
Thank you for playing – we’ll do something like this again soon, I’m sure. For those of you who entered but didn’t win, you still can get a supercool Tokyoflash watch, but you just have to pay for it 
Update 2/1/08: Here’s a coupon code for 1500 yen ($14 or 7GBP) discount off your Tokyoflash purchase until February 15, 2008: NEAT8
Also, I’ve just gotten my Tibida watch: it is AWESOME! (Though don’t ask me what time it is yet – right now, it’s blinkety blink past more blinkin’ lights) Thank you, Tokyoflash!
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Blues Brothers Bath Ducks
Bath ducks comes in all different shapes in these days. The latest example of this are these cool Blues Brothers rubber ducks, shaped like Elwood and Jake Blues.
You can get them from Baron Bob for $17.95.
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Newborn Sumatran Rhino
(YouTube link)
A rare Sumatran rhino {wiki} was born at the Cincinnati Zoo on April 29, 2007. The Sumatran Rhinoceros is a critically endangered species: estimates are that only 300 exist in the wild. The mother is named Emi and the baby is named Harapan. They call him Harry. Wait til you hear his first sound! Link -via Arbroath
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America's Most Miserable Cities
Forbes has published their first list of America’s Most Miserable Cities. This survey is based on each city’s crime rate, inflation, unemployment, commute times, toxic waste, weather, and taxes. The top ten are:
1. Detroit, MI
2. Stockton, CA
3. Flint, MI
4. New York City
5. Philadelphia, PA
6. Chicago, IL
7. Los Angeles, CA
8. Modesto, CA
9. Charlotte, NC
10. Providence, RI
Link -via J-Walk Blog
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Inflatable Mouse
The device itself is fairly simple: a small flexible circuit board inside a body that is composed of plastic and can be blown up manually. When not in use, it can be de-flated and folded into a compact size or slid between the screen and keyboard of your laptop when it’s closed.
Source: Gizmodo
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Frozen Smiles
It’s more like Frozen Dentures.
This novelty ice cube tray is made from soft food-safe synthetic rubber that will allow you to freeze up a batch of Frozen Smiles and drop them into any glass as a gag.
Source: Worldwidefred
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Pancakes II: Pancakes for your face
(YouTube link)
Another delicious stop-motion breakfast video from James Provan, who brought you Pancakes in 2006. -via Viral Video Chart
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Woman Calls 911 To Turn Herself In For Drunken Driving
A woman from Wisconsin was given a citation after she called 911 as she was driving home from a bar to report that she may be too drunk to drive.
The woman, Pat Dykstra, said she wasn’t sure what would happen when she made the call.“I don’t really think I was thinking that much at the time,” she said.
She gave such a good description that police found her at her home and gave her a Breathalyzer test that registered a blood alcohol level of .14, which is over the state’s legal driving limit of .08 percent.
County Sheriff Todd Nehls said “Dykstra did the right thing. I think a judge will look at her and say, ‘You know what? You stepped up to the plate. You did the right thing. I think it’s commendable.”
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What Is It? Game 52
This week’s collaboration with What Is It? Blog brings us this strange object – can you guess what it is?
Place your guess in the comment – no prize this week, you’re playing for bragging rights and fun. For more clues, check out What Is It? Blog. Have fun!
Update 2/1/08 – It’s either a sponge’s diver spear (which is cool) or a weed puller (which is more mundane). Congratulations to Bill #21 who got it right. Funniest but wrong guess by Jason Phelan #15 “It’s a rectal annoyer.”, though I also like Chauss513’s “tool for separating truth from fiction” and Tinito Winner’s “Neanderthal tuning fork.”
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Neatorama Post No. 12345!
This is the post I’ve been waiting for: the 12,345th post on Neatorama! Yup – that’s twelve thousand three hundred and forty five. It took about 2 and a half years to reach this point and what a great time I’ve had since starting this blog back in August 2005 (Big thanks to Neatorama’s authors and readers!)
Thers is something I’ve been wanting to do, but out of fear that no one will participate, I’ve postponed it again and again, until today (feeling giddy and brave with #12345!)
I’d really like to know more about you, dear Neatoramanauts! Whether you’re a regular commenter or just a "lurker" – please introduce yourself. You don’t have to tell your real name, or offer salacious tidbits about your personal life … just tell us a little bit about yourself. It’ll be fun!
I’ll go first (in the comment).
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Don't Just Swat Flies, DELETE Them!
This is the END for the nasty bugs. There’s no ESC for flies with this DEL fly swatter. Long but flexible handle ensures proper CTRL. Accept no ALTernative – this is the one for your HOME. Found at Fred & Friends – via The Daily Dairy
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Jae Ko's Folded Paper Art
Korean artist Jae Ko works exclusively with paper. With this untitled piece above, she showed us that you don’t have to use complex things to create stunning works of art. Sometimes, all you need is rolled paper!
Links: David Winton Bell Gallery | Marsha Mateyka Gallery – via JoeGoodness
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Meet Fritz, the Feline Photographer
Meet Fritz, the cat photographer. Every day, Ramona Markstein lets her cat Fritz wonder the neighborhood while wearing a camera that takes photos every fifteen seconds.
Ramona then posts Fritz’ photos on the Web. Some of them are better than the ones I took!
Link (with video) – via Steatopygous Mathophile (by the way, do you know what steatopygous means?)
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FAIL Blog
Here are two great blogs documenting the multitude of FAIL photos that have been circulating round teh Interweb: Shipment of Fail and The Fail Blog – via Laughing Squid
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With Chinese Saving Rate at 50% and American at 0%, US Government Tried to ... Convince China to Spend More and Save Less!
In his blog, John Mugarian had an epiphany on why the Chinese have a saving rate of 50% whereas America has an essentially zero – ZERO! – saving rate:
I get very frustrated when I watch TV because of all the advertisements. I know, I should get Tivo or a DVR, but thus far I haven’t.
A few weeks ago I decided to do something odd. I actually counted the minutes of ads while watching ABC’s "Boston Legal". After I tallied the numbers I was shocked that 25 minutes of the hour long program were advertisements. This really frustrated me since I pay a fee to a cable company to watch my own TV, and then they waste 25 minutes of my time trying to sell me something during the show. Television is nothing more than a sales tool that has molded and shaped the minds and spending habits of consumers.
Then it hit me. Now I know why America has a zero savings rate, while the Chinese have a savings rate of 50%. Hence, my 4th quarter score above stands, Chinese 50%, the US 0%.
So, what is the American government doing about our dismal national saving rate? Well, for one, they went to China and tell them to save less! Mungarian wrote:
In Barron’s (December 11, 2006, page 30), Al Hubbard, the assistant secretary to the president for economic policy told China’s deputy finance minister, ““the Chinese need to move to a lower savings rate. It would both raise the standard of living and increase the quality of imports into China."
I would have loved to see the face of China’s deputy finance minister after Hubbard made those comments. This is like taking financial advice from a person who (Lending Tree commercial) is "up to their eyeballs in debt".
Link – via Memetician (photo: s2photo [Flickr], edited)
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Poor People in Haiti Forced to Eat Dirt
Unable to afford food, poor people in Haiti resorted to eating mud cookies made from dried yellow dirt:
Merchants truck the dirt from the central town of Hinche to the La Saline market, a maze of tables of vegetables and meat swarming with flies. Women buy the dirt, then process it into mud cookies in places such as Fort Dimanche, a nearby shanty town.
Carrying buckets of dirt and water up ladders to the roof of the former prison for which the slum is named, they strain out rocks and
clumps on a sheet, and stir in shortening and salt. Then they pat the mixture into mud cookies and leave them to dry under the scorching sun.The finished cookies are carried in buckets to markets or sold on the streets.
Link (Photo: Ariana Cubillos/AP)
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Turning Children's Drawings Into Real Life
Miss Sparkle Sprinkles Magic
In this photo series called Wonderland (2005), Korean photographer Yeon Doo Jung brings children’s drawings into life – literally – by staging the scene with real people and props.
The whole idea and execution are wonderful: Link [Flash, use the green arrow to navigate]- via metafilter
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A Playground for Grandma
Britain’s first playground for people over age 60 has opened in Manchester. The specially-designed equipment provides not only fun, but movement and exercise to benefit the elderly.
Residents’ association chairman Joan FitzGerald said: “When we tested it all the people we took in were over 70 and I have never heard so much laughing. I believe you are never too old to play and this also helps keep you fit.”
The playground is next to a children’s playground, so children can watch their grandparents having fun. Link -via Unique Daily
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The Panopticons
The Panopticons are a set of four futuristic sculptures set in the rural settings of Blackburn, Burnley, Pendle and Rossendale districts of East Lancashire, England. The powers-that-be commissioned the sculptures as gateway pieces and a symbol of the renaissance of the area.
Whatever the reason, the results are some fantastic works of art:
The Atom
Photo: Tony-H [Flickr]
Photo: chillghetti [Flickr]
The Atom, a giant egg-shaped, bronze-coated sculpture designed by Peter Meacock with Katarina Novomestka and Architects WCW. It is located in the Wycoller Country Park in Pendle.
Colourfields
Photo: Ian Lawson
The Panopticon for Blackburn is Colourfields, a collaboration between Jo Rippon Architecture and artist Sophie Smallhorn. The piece, which apparently is some sort of a striped walkway (correct me if I’m wrong, guys), is built on a former cannon battery.
Haslingden Halo
Photo: bitrot [Flickr]
Photo: petehud [Flickr]
The Halo, designed by John Kennedy of LandLab, is a steel lattice structure on a tripod. After dark, it’s lit with LEDs to give the sculpture the effect of hovering above the town of Haslingden in Rossendale.
Singing Ringing Tree
Photo: StewieD [Flickr]
Last (and my favorite!) in the series is the Singing Ringing Tree, a musical sculpture overlooking Burnley. The sculpture was designed by MIke Tonkin and Anna Liu, and was made from galvanized steel pipes. When the wind blows, the "tree" sings an eerie tune:
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My Fat Cat, Photo by Annie Imboden
"My Fat Cat" photo by Annie Imboden [The Everyman]
Every year since 2001, The Everyman holds an amateur photography contest with the belief that anyone who’s ever taken a picture in their life has taken at least one good picture.
I had a lot of fun browsing their categories and award photos, and was particularly attracted to this one by Annie Imboden, a nurse practitioner, (and presuming that the baby’s her son, a mother) and a (fat) cat owner.
Link: The Everyman 2007 Winners
Previously on Neatorama (one of my favorite posts): Top 15 Amazingly Fat Cats
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The Explorers, Photo by Jennifer Zwick
We’ve featured one of Jennifer Zwick’s photographs before (The Reader), but this one is too good to pass: The Explorers (2005), which celebrates the innate curiosity of every child to explore the world around, and in this case, beneath them.
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Shoe Pants or Pants Shoes?
Photo: Radek Leski, Studiozupa
Daryl van Wouw’s Converse Extension 1 leaves me in a conundrum: are they shoes that are pants or are they pants that are also shoes? Link
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Zooplankton in a Drop of Water
Photo: Peter Parks / Nikon Small World 2007 Competition
We don’t know how many angels can dance on a pinhead, but thanks to this fantastic photomicrograph by Peter Parks, we know that a drop of water the size of a pinhead can contain about a dozen of zooplankton!
This photo won 5th place in the Nikon Small World 2007 Competition and is included in their 2008 calendar: Link
Previously on Neatorama:
- Small World Photomicrography Contest Winner: Double Transgenic Mouse
- Nikon Small World Microscopy Contest: Mouse Colon Wins
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