We are often warned not to take health advice from just anyone on the internet, because there a lot of folks out there trying to make money from telling you how you are doing something wrong. That goes for sleep positions as much as anything else, and there is no shortage of "experts" who will tell you how to do it, whether they are really experts or not. So which is really the optimal position to sleep in? And can you train yourself to do it the "right" way?

First off, remember that humanity has managed to survive for hundreds of thousands of years without worrying about sleep positions. But according to science, the most optimal sleep position depends on who you are and the state of your current health. Even then, it's most likely only going to make a small difference. Dr. Rachel Salas, a neurologist who specializes in sleep medicine, explains the differences in sleep positions.    

I ran into this "fun fact," and found it so absurd I just had to look it up. Far from debunking a funny meme, I found that the story of the 1901 book Makt myrkranna, or Powers of Darkness, was even stranger and more complicated than this. The Wikipedia entry on the book details how it differs from Bram Stoker's 1897 novel Dracula, despite its reputation as the direct translation. It was only in 2014 that a Dutch scholar noticed how different the two novels were. 

But after Makt myrkranna was translated into English just a few years ago, it came to light that the source of the story wasn't Bram Stoker, or at least not directly. It was a Swedish story titled Mörkrets makter (Powers of Darkness) that was first published as a magazine serial in 1899-1900. The Swedish Powers of Darkness was somewhat closer to Dracula, and had been assumed to be based on Stoker's unpublished notes and early drafts. The story had been changed considerably from that of Dracula, and had a political slant. Still, the Icelandic "translation" by Valdimar Ásmundsson was much shorter, stylistically different, and had more emphasis on action and sex. 

Scholars are still translating and studying each version to determine what the sources were, how Dracula changed so much, and why it took a hundred years for anyone to realize that the books told a different story.  

Eight of the best mechanical minds in Japan collaborated to assemble the Great Ball Contraption at the 2025 Japan Brickfest. The goal is to design the most elegant and mesmerizing methods of moving tiny basketballs and soccer balls a few inches further down the line. The result is 49 LEGO modules that, when strung together, created a circle of the room more than 31 meters long!

The elements of this contraption include elevators using genius handoffs; robots that resemble birds, dinosaurs, and, uh, robots; and gear assemblies that look like some kind of voodoo is going on. There's even one sequence in which a ball must be thrown through a basketball basket to proceed. Don't miss the colorful valley, designed to be pretty and move impressively. You might also notice a domino machine that doesn't seem to have anything to do with moving the balls, but it's pretty clever anyway.  -via The Awesomer 

The Independent reports that 17 parachutists were preparing for a coordinated jump out of a Cessna Caravan flying out of the airport of Tully, Queensland, Australia.

One unlucky skydiver experienced a premature deployment of his reserve parachute, causing him to impact against a stabilizer with his legs and then get caught on that stabilizer by the parachute.

He then used a knife to cut the 11 ropes that connected him to the reserve chute and deploy his main parachute to successfully land on the ground.

The pilot, unaware of the problem, experienced difficulty controlling the plane as a result of the accident. He considered bailing out but was able to regain control of the craft and land it safely.

-via Colin Rugg

Neal Agarwal has given us plenty of games and web toys at Neal.Fun (previously at Neatorama), but this one takes a left turn into just plain fascinating. Size of Life is a slideshow that compares the size of living things on a scale from strands of DNA to to largest living thing on earth (you might already know what that is). Of course, not every living thing can be included, but there are some surprises along the way, like a jellyfish with tentacles that can grow 100 feet long, an extinct armadillo that was bigger than a bear, and an entire animal that's smaller than our white blood cells. Although I would argue if that orangutan stood up, it wouldn't fit between a crab and a penguin. 

At the bottom right, there is a button that lets you compare the size of any two creatures in the show. However, if the difference is really big, you'll have to use an arrow button to see them both, and you may have to look really hard to see the smaller organism. -via kottke 

Rosemary Marco is an artist and writer who communicates information about the natural world and the importance of preserving it. She's especially passionate about birds and would like to have their powers.

A gular pouch could be especially helpful during harsh winter months when food becomes scarce or during workplace meetings that drag on into my lunchbreak. Perhaps I could create an artificial one and wear it around my neck.

Mateo Zielonka is a world-renowned pasta chef who recently published a cookbook teaching his craft.

He's made astonishingly realistic pasta versions of household objects, such as cookpots, and logos, such as the shield of the Arsenal soccer team.

"Is it cake?" is the old question. "Is it pasta?" is an update by Zielonka.

In the case of the above video, our master chef used molds to create LEGO minifigs and blocks out of flour. Then he carefully cooked the delicate objects to buttery perfection.

Instagram user @nao2748 is a food artist who crafts amazing treats that delight all of the senses. Her projects include focaccia loaves with crab-shaped tomatoes, cake sandwiches with Santa Claus, and cheesecakes shaped like foxes.

She's also made pizzas shaped like frogs. The frogs are ready for the winter, as they have their mittens on and wear beanie caps to shield themselves from the cold weather.

They bake well and still look like cozy frogs warmed by the heat of a fireplace (or oven). Hop over to her kitchen and try one.

 

In this story, trooper TK‑42Greg has been assigned to Hoth to make sure the holiday is festive. It's a losing battle. While there, he is sent on a mission to deliver socks to an outpost while a blizzard rages. Not fun at all. This is the way to spend Life Day on a bitterly cold planet, with Kevin the tauntaun and cynical troopers, under orders to be festive (or else!) while you lose your way, face a wampa, and pull a sledge full of socks and regret. 

It appears that Disney has taken down the original video, possibly because of the references to a holiday they'd just as soon forget. So instead, we will share a video in which Commander Dave and trooper TK42Greg first arrive on the ice planet Hoth for their rotation. 

The Franco-Prussian War lasted less than a year, but it was a particularly hard time for Paris. The Germans surrounded the city and began a siege. No one could get out, nor could supplies be brought in, for five months. As winter approached, food was running out. Restaurants stayed open, although they had no agricultural products. One waiter snapped at a woman who wanted a salad, “Madame, this is a restaurant, not a meadow!” So what was on the menu? Meat. First they ate the horses, then the cats and dogs, and then rats. And the animals of the city zoo. 

The restaurant Christmas menus from 1870 reflect what was available, and how eateries did their best to make it sound palatable. At the restaurant Voisin, you might have elephant soup, fried camel nuggets, kangaroo stew, or bear chops, among other ghastly offerings. But the most common food was from cats, dogs, and rats. Butchers began to specialize in slaughtering household pets. We don't know how long Parisians would have held out eating such food, because Otto von Bismarck lost patience and shelled the city into submission. Read about the dreadful Parisian diet of 1870-1871 at Messy Nessy Chic. 

You probably travel with just carry-on luggage if you have to fly (I do), because not only does checked baggage cost extra, there's a chance you may never see that suitcase again in one piece. What do airlines do to cause all that damage? One commenter told of the time he received his clothing in a garbage bag at baggage claim. The explanation was that an airplane had run over his suitcase. Your mileage may vary, one would hope. 

To show us what happens in the airport baggage conveyor system, Joseph Herscher of Joseph's Machines (previously at Neatorama) recreated the path that your suitcase takes through an airport. It's a bit scary in places, but somehow, his suitcase beats the odds and makes it out okay. What inspired this madness? It looks like he has a luggage company for a sponsor, but they make that nicely subtle. -via Geeks Are Sexy 

British-American actor Roddy McDowall appeared in all three of the original Planet of the Apes films in the role of Dr. Cornelius. In the third film, Escape from the Planet of the Apes, he finds himself in contemporary human-ruled Earth.

Enter Jameson Montgomery, a fashion writer for the New York Times. Reader Nina says that she loves a robe that Cornelius wore during the film. She would like to own and wear one like it. Can Montgomery help her? Montgomery then goes on a quest to locate this robe or a copy of it. The hero's journey takes him to fashion history experts and vintage clothing collectors in search of the lost totem.

-via Marginal Revolution

YouTuber Builda Dad Garage builds extraordinary vehicles in his workshop, mostly extreme vehicles designed to tackle the roughest environments. These include tracked wheelchairs, dually go-karts, minibikes with mower attachments, a bike that rolls on barrels, and amphibious trikes.

One of his recent inventions is a mechanized ladder that can push through snow and over obstacles thanks to rear-mounted tracks. It's an ideal machine for, say, clearing gutters. This way, you don't have to climb down and reposition the ladder every few feet. Just stay at the top and drive.

He also made a wheeled variant for, presumably, transportation over roads.

-via David Thompson

The reason we have two eyes is so that we can judge distance by stereo vision. The reason we have two ears is that the difference between the sound they pick up tells us what direction that sound is coming from. You can argue that these aren't really reasons, but advantages that ensure that we kept those dual systems. So why do we have two nostrils? Is it a side effect of a symmetrically-split face? Not really- since we have one nose at the center of our faces, it could easily have evolved to have one big hole. 

You might be surprised to learn that two nostrils do give us a slight stereo effect in smelling things, so that we can detect which direction a smell comes from. But the real reason two nostrils are an advantage to us is that they don't work together. One nostril carries a bigger load in breathing while the other rests- and then they switch. Read how this happens and why its an advantage for animals that have two nostrils at Popular Science. -via kottke 

(Image credit: Karabinkrok) 

Radiohead's famous single "Creep" is spoken from the point of view of a man who's a bit creepy because the object of his love does not return it. He's watching his subject very carefully. He's making a list and he's checking it twice.

Or is that Santa Claus from the 1934 Christmas classic "Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town"? It's easy to get the two songs confused because they tell a similar story, especially after Dustin Ballard of There I Ruined It gets to work mashing them together.

This song is from Ballard's Christmas album, which includes the previously shared "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" sung by Creed.