Gary Larson’s The Far Side comic finally has an official website #TheFarSide #GaryLarson https://t.co/HKtwfaEJwO pic.twitter.com/QRBSSsWcgH

— GEEKSPIN (@geekspinco) December 18, 2019

Gary Larson's comic The Far Side was syndicated in newspapers from 1980 to 1995, when Larson suddenly retired at age 44. Larson is famously protective of his cartoons, and objects to people sharing them online. He has maintained a website, but it hadn't been updated since 2000  ...until now. As of Tuesday, the website The Far Side is live once again, and is the official home of Larson's comics, both new and classic. He explained his reasoning in a letter detailing his relationship with the internet from its beginning.    

So fast-forward to today, and hey, look! I’m writing another letter! This time, though, I’m writing to say something I never thought I would: Welcome to The Far Side website! Guess I’ve got some ’splainin’ to do.

Truthfully, I still have some ambivalence about officially entering the online world — I previously equated it to a rabbit hole, although “black hole” sometimes seems more apropos — but my change of heart on this has been due not only to some evolution in my own thinking, but also in two areas I’ve always cared about when it comes to this computer/Internet “stuff”: security and graphics.

Personally, I am looking forward to more absurdity from the man who brought us Thagomizers, Anatidaephobia, and that Jane Goodall tramp. And cows, of course.

-via Metafilter

Imgur member KneeAppallingTanIceCream was just passing by a veterinary clinic and noticed this series of signs. Who wouldn't be curious after seeing that? Unfortunately, the clinic was closed at the time. However, Fred was there, behind the glass and KneeAppallingTanIceCream managed to get a picture through the window. The post went viral and everyone wants to see more of Fred. You can see Fred and read the story at Bored Panda. Let's hope we learn more about Fred in the future.

Canine cognition is a relatively new field of study otherwise known as psychology for dogs. Leading ‘dog psychologists’ suggested that what makes dogs so inordinately popular among people is their “human-like social cognition.” But not everyone agreed with them, including behavioral scientist and dog enthusiast, Clive Wynne.

Wynne determined to find a scientific explanation as to what makes dogs ideal living companions. In Dog is Love: The Science of Why and How Your Dog Loves You, he explains how the secret superpower of dogs is not super intelligence, but really their uncanny capacity for love and loyalty.

Further making his point, he cites other studies on the intricacies of the brain’s reward system involved in human-dog interactions. Find out more from the original article by Science Focus.

Photo: Eric Ward / Unsplash

We are nearing the end of another decade marked by a flux of mobile technology breakthroughs and mishaps, having come so far from the very incipient stages of the smartphone. Innovation is the name of the game in this ever-growing and now increasingly diversified smartphone market, with Chinese companies like Huawei, OnePlus, and Xiaomi making waves in the western market and competing alongside household names like Google, Apple and Samsung. How have the past 10 years shown changes in smartphone design and function? 

As we look back at the 2010s, we remember moments when front-facing cameras were a novelty, exploding phones were a thing, and bigger (screens) meant better. 

New Atlas covers all this and more on their smartphone history review.  

Photo: Free Creative Stuff / Pexels

In a highly competitive environment where technology is constantly developing, how will the automated industry impact job prospects for young people preparing to enter the job market? As we immerse ourselves more fully in the information age, it’s important to understand how we can cope with the diverse challenges that it brings. 

Born after 1996 on the heels of the millennials, Gen Z is just entering the workforce. Its members are the first true digital natives, and their ability to adapt to an automating workplace will likely determine their success.

In particular, the “human touch” remains an essential and invaluable element in the tech industry. Being able to relate on a deeper level to your target audience and knowing how to creatively and effectively get your ideas across are just some key traits that can help you compete with automatons who lack such complex capabilities. Combining these with “hard skills” involving technical know-how, such a diverse skill set can be one solid way to impress employers.  

Find out what other soft skills Gen Z members need to succeed on Reuters. 

Photo: Andy Kelly / Unsplash

The magnetic North Pole is shifting at an ever-increasing rate compared to when records of its course were first kept in the 16th century, according to experts in geomagnetism. It is moving at a rate of 50 kilometers a year across the Arctic region, to be exact. Meanwhile the magnetic South Pole “has stayed almost stationary for decades.”

The magnetic North Pole is the peripatetic point on the Earth’s surface where its magnetic field, created by molten iron churning deep within the planet’s core, points directly downward.

But why is this so important? 

Together with satellite positioning data, the model underpins modern navigation, and frequent revisions are essential so operators can reconcile magnetic sensors and compass readings with geographic reality.

Learn more about how geomagnetism impacts our world in this day and age from Ozy.  

Photo: Artem Beliaikin / Pexels

You've probably never heard of the malady called milk sickness. It was the scourge of Kentucky, Tennessee, North Carolina, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and Michigan in the early 19th century. The story of the condition is disturbing, not only from the number of people who died, but also by the lack of proper scientific investigation, at least by scientists and public health officials.

William Tompkins and Barnet Fowler, farmers in Kenton County, KY, were the first to be officially identified as having died of the mysterious ailment, in 1795. Nearly one fourth of the early settlers in Madison County, OH, fell victim to the pestilence, but the worst recorded incidence was the ‘epidemic’ of 1818 in which nearly all of the residents of Pigeon Creek, IN, were exterminated. The disease’s most famous victim was probably Nancy Hanks, mother of Abraham Lincoln, who died of it that same year, in Spencer County, IN.

Dr. Thomas Barbee of Bourbon County, KY, the first to diagnose the disorder, in 1809, understood that his patients became sick as a result of drinking milk or eating butter from cows who trembled, though it wasn’t at all clear to him what was causing the cattle themselves to become ill.

What to do? After decades of milk sickness ravaging the countryside, the research was crowdsourced. Really. The government of Kentucky offered a reward to anyone who could identify the source of the illness. While no one collected the reward, the source was identified. However, it took almost another hundred years for official recognition of the cause of milk disease. Read about the fight against milk disease in a two part post at Appalachian History.  -via Digg

The unripe fruit of the jenipapo berry (Genipa americana) contains a substance that turns other things blue. Since 2017, chefs in Brazil have been using the tropical fruit to create startlingly blue foods.  

Jenipapo berries, which can grow anywhere from the size of a kiwi to a melon, are used by Brazilians to make compotes, syrups, and a famous liquor. But it’s the unripe and bitter fruit that has piqued the interest of cooks and chefs all around the country. When it’s unripe, jenipapo contains high amounts of genipin, a substance which reacts with proteins and amino acids in the presence of oxygen or heat, resulting in an edible blue pigment.

Brazilians have long used jenipapo for various purposes. During the colonization of South America, European conquerors reported curiosity about the use of the fruit’s juices as temporary tattoo ink by communities such as the Tupinambás and the Pataxós.

New techniques have been developed to take the bitterness from the unripened fruit, and the results are astonishing. These dishes aren't just faintly blue, they are vividly colored in a hue that will remind you of Pantone's Color of the Year for 2020. See more such creations, and read about the rise of Brazilian blue food at Atlas Obscura.

Well, I might go hungry for a little while. I'd certainly miss a meal rather than mess up these garlic mashed potatoes with chili sauce that take the form of the Joker under the expertise of De Meal Prepper, a Dutch food artist. She's a master at turning foods into edible works of art worthy of being served in a museum restaurant.

Physicists from the Perimeter Institute in Canada have come up with a solution to our ever constant question: ‘can we time travel and avoid causing paradoxes?’ The solution involves a very large and finite number of parallel universes. According to Barak Shoshany and Jacob Hauser, a person can theoretically travel from one timeline to another by stepping through a hole in space-time. The physicists claimed that this method is “mathematically possible,” as Futurism detailed: 

“The parallel universes approach that we suggest says there are different parallel universes where things are roughly the same, and each one is mathematically on a separate space-time manifold,” Shoshany told New Scientist. “You can go between those manifolds when you travel back in time.”

Multiple timelines would allow you to travel to a different timeline and kill your grandparents without causing a paradox. But the number of timelines doesn’t have to be infinite for this to work, the researchers calculated.

image credit: wikimedia commons

Warning: the linked article is not for the squeamish. In 2019, as in every other year, some strange medical stories made national and international headlines. Did you hear about the man who injected himself with his own semen? An erection that lasted nine days before treatment? If those make you cringe, you'll really tense up when you read about certain parasites that caused extreme suffering one way or another. Read the synopses of five odd medical cases from the last year at Gizmodo, with links to the original reporting if you want to know more.

Vibrant colors and shapes are brought to a formerly untended area in Fort Smith, Arkansas, through Spanish street artist Okuda San Miguel. San Miguel revitalized dilapidated areas with his recent project, The Rainbow Embassy. Through a series of immersive arts initiatives, the project aimed to bring life back to the unattended areas in Arkansas. Colossal has the details: 

For the installation, Okuda painted a neglected house that occupied a lot adjacent to Darby Junior High School with a series of multi-colored geometric shapes and lines. The structure even has two faces resembling animals painted on its sides.

“This project gave me the possibility to expand on my previous work, adding in more architectonic dimension and completing my vision of mythical animals,” Okuda says. He wants his work to bring “a touch of imagination and play into the daily lives of the neighboring community and students and Darby Junior High, as they will get to enjoy the installation and watch as it evolves through the seasons.”

image credit: via Colossal

The actors of Saturday Night Live have a knack for creating satirical celebrity impressions, sometimes coming up with monologues that’ll leave you in stitches. Though not always accurate, these impressions are pretty hilarious and their hair and make-up department really does deliver. Here are 21 side-by-side photos of SNL actors and the famous people they’re playing, most of which are political figures. 

Gotta love Tina Fey’s spot-on impression of Sarah Palin. 

Head over to the full post here. 

(Image credit: NBC / Mark Hirsch / Getty Images via BuzzFeed)

Looking for your next travel destination? Here are some top suggestions from Lonely Planet, a travel guide website with content from “experts who visit every destination.” Making it to number one on their list is the Central Asian Silk Road, known for its historical background as an ancient center of trade and commerce as well as a hub for cultural, political and religious life. Today you can enjoy its “ancient cities, bustling bazaars, wild landscapes, and the storied Silk Road route snaking through the region.” Or you can take the scenic route across the landscapes of Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.

Whichever region you may end up choosing to visit, it is sure to be an adventure. 

Watch the video from Lonely Planet here. 

Photo: Jamie Street / Unsplash

When he was 19 years old, Robert W. VanSumeren stood before the bench of Judge Michael Smith in Hillsdale County, Michigan. His life had gone out of control and he had committed a series of robberies, including a bank. Judge Smith sentenced him to six years in prison.

It took him a long time, even after he got out of prison. But VanSumeren took the help that people in his life offered him and began climbing upward. He went to community college, then university, then graduate school, then law school. He married a good woman and fathered two sons. The Washington Post shares his story:

“The feeling of being on the wrong side of the law makes such a powerful stamp on a person,” he said. “I felt strongly that the judicial system needed people like me at the table.”

After passing the bar exam in July 2018, VanSumeren underwent a lengthy investigation by the Michigan bar’s character and fitness committee. Last month, he got approval to be sworn in.

VanSumeren then asked Judge Smith to administer the attorney's oath. The judge agreed:

“I didn’t know if the judge would go for it, but I thought it was worth asking,” said VanSumeren, who lives in Jackson, Mich., and passed the Michigan state bar exam on the first try.

Smith said he was astonished by the request. But he was also delighted.

“I have to take my hat off to him — he has changed his life,” Smith said. “It’s really quite remarkable and rare. Very seldom do you see such a successful turnaround.”

-via Instapundit | Photo: Dana M. VanSumeren