Everyone has an anthroponym, but that's okay. It's just a big word for your name. The problem is how they come and go out of style. I recall hearing about someone naming their baby Layla around 1971 and even then I felt for the child, because she'd never be able to hide her age. The same for Shania and Daenerys. Silly me, although my name is not that common, even I have a name that came and went and only belongs to women my age (people just don't name their daughters "Miss" anymore). Dr. Erica Brozovsky (previously at Neatorama) explains why names become fashionable and then not. Both my daughters unintentionally ended up with very common names for their age group, even though I decided on a name for my youngest 30 years earlier. But hey, in 100 years or so, your anthroponym may come back into style! I personally know a family with a newborn named Mabel, and it seems perfect for her.

Remember back in the 1970s and '80s when you played Asteroids, Galaga, Missile Command, and Space Fury for hours? Here's a browser game from Pixeljam that will put you back into those days when graphics were simple and you didn't have to learn any fantasy history or consult maps or create a character to get started. Utopia Must Fall is an old-fashioned shoot-em-up in which you must protect your city from invading aliens, falling boulders, and bombs. There are nukes, too. After the first round, you can upgrade the physics of the game a little to improve your kill rate, or else launch a new strategy. The vector graphics are simple, but still attractive in all their neon glory. When was the last time you played a game on a black background?

In the first run through, I only managed to protect the population of London for three days, but I had a lot of fun doing it, and that's the whole purpose of a game, isn't it? Sorry, London. The browser game is just a demo for a full version that will be released in the next couple of months.  -via Metafilter

PS: If the game asks for a password, it is CEASEFIRE.

Earth gets heat from the sun, but also from its hot, molten core. The heat underneath keeps our surface active, with masses of land and sea moving against each other and reshuffling, a process called plate tectonic. The plates of land that move about on the planet's surface shift over time, giving us mountains, oceans, volcanoes, and earthquakes with their gradual but sometimes violent movement. This system as a whole creates living ecosystems and keeps certain gasses and minerals moving up and down through the atmosphere, surface, water, and deep underground. The effect as a whole is that of a thermostat, in a delicate balance that keeps the surface temperature in a range that supports all life.

But what if our world were static, with no plate tectonics? Then it would be more like Venus. A theory about that planet says that perpetual volcanic activity threw so much carbon dioxide into the atmosphere that the higher temperatures caused the oceans to boil away, leaving the planet too hot and dry to sustain any kind of life. Once a planet's water is gone, there's no getting it back. But earth is a geologically active planet, otherwise we couldn't live here. Read up on how that works at Atlas Obscura. 

(Image credit: USGS)

We've spent more than 100 years illuminating the darkness with electricity. Over time, those electrical systems got bigger and more automatic. Randall Munroe's What If series (previously at Neatorama) received the question, "If all humans died, when would the last light go out?" To answer the question, Munroe completely ignored the theoretical scenario of our demise and got straight to the lights. It comes down to the power source, since some are more automatic than others. Those relying on fuel delivery will go out first, but some kind of artificial lights will last for way longer than you might think. And then we must consider what we mean by "artificial lights." Enriched nuclear fuel gives off a light even though we don't use that light for everyday (or every night) activities. Commenters brought up even more lights, like the Voyager space probes, which have manmade lights, although they are not on earth. There's also the burning coal seams like in Centralia, Pennsylvania, which are natural, but were ignited by human activity. They can burn for thousands of years, but whether you term them as manmade or artificial lights is a matter of semantics.

There are some references in this video you might want to look up, like the Radium Girls, the future of nuclear danger, and Tom Scott. The Rhode Island sign is reference a previous What If video.

Submarine technology is older than you probably think. Cornelius Drebbel built one for the King of England in 1620! Early submarines were successful until they weren't, and the bottom of the ocean is not a good place for the preservation of a wooden submarine. American school children learn about the H. L. Hunley, an ironclad Confederate submarine that sank a Union ship, but was ultimately a failure because all the crew members on each of its three missions died. The sunken Hunley was found in 1970 and raised in 2000. But it is still not the oldest existing submarine.

That would be the Brandtaucher, shown above. This iron submarine was Germany's first, built by Wilhelm Bauer in 1850. It was 28 feet long and weighed 70,000 pounds. Believe it or not, it was powered by two men on a tread wheel! The Brandtaucher wasn't any more successful than earlier submarines, and sank during its first demonstration. However, Bauer learned from his mistakes and went on to design better submarines for the German military. Read about the Brandtaucher, the oldest existing submarine, at Amusing Planet.

(Image credit: Jan Rehschuh)

Leonard Solomon has made a career out of building and performing on his own musical instruments. We've featured videos of his bottle organ and his oomphalapompatronium in previous video. In this video, he demonstrates that 21st century music, too, can easily be played on his weird instruments. Listen as he recreates Skrillex's 2010 song "Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites" on his instrument called a squijeeblion. It produces sounds that range from a nice melody to a foghorn fart to a crying beagle, and you better believe the bass drop is there, too. EDM will never be the same, although you can't really call it that, since this song was played with no MIDI involved. Also, the squijeeblion is powered by air, with both breath and bellows. Too bad you can't go down to the music shop and pick up your own squijeeblion. -via Metafilter, you'll find lots more of Solomon's music linked.  

The Knights Templar was an order of wealthy and pious warriors who fought in the crusades. The order existed for 200 years, and their legend lives on in documentation and in imagery. One of the most mysterious examples of that imagery is the Templar seal, used to stamp and identify correspondence sealed with wax. The stamp, pictured above, shows two knights sharing one horse. What is the significance of this symbol?

The symbol has been interpreted in many ways. It could signify the Templar's vow of poverty, portraying knights having to share a steed. Or it could mean brotherhood, as in carrying each other. Or it could be a symbolic representation Christ being with them. Or it could be a subtle indication of homosexuality. Or possibly a combination of any of these, or something that no one has considered before. To really know, you'd have to ask a Knight of the Templar order, and they've been gone for more than 800 years. Read about the seal of the Knights Templar and how it has been interpreted at the Conversation.

(Image credit: Hinterkappelen)

Luna Lee is a Korean musician who specializes in traditional Korean instruments. She's a world-acclaimed master of the gayageum, a stringed instrument somewhat similar to a large European zither. In the past, we've featured her version of Chicago's "25 or 6 to 4" and AC/DC's "Thunderstruck."

Yesterday's Memorial Day commemorations may put my fellow Americans in a patriotic mood, so it is appropriate that Lee recorded a performance of our majestic national anthem.

In this video, Big Think invited Alan Alda to speak about some concepts related to good communication, particularly the use of jargon and hifalutin' words, which are highly technical or specialized terms that people in certain professions use, but which ordinary people like us may not regularly encounter in our daily lives.

Alda argues that jargon is useful because it is able to transmit meaning and information in an efficient manner especially between people who understand what those terms mean. However, its usefulness becomes moot once one incorporates the words into a context outside of their technical background or when they are being used to communicate with people who do not often encounter them.

Take, for example, the situation given by Alda in the video. Two doctors are presenting their diagnosis of a patient's conditon, an incurable cancer, and as the lead doctor continues to expound on their findings, the woman just sat listening to these long-winded explanations with a blank expression on her face.

After the lead doctor had finished, the medical student with him asked to stay behind and proceeded to communicate in simple, relatable, and comprehensible terms what the previous doctor had just said. And it was during that moment when the woman finally understood what her condition was, and she responded with tears running down her face.

Words are useful insofar as they are able to convey the message intended by a sender to the recipient, or by the speaker to the audience. If we simply use smart-sounding words to appear smart ourselves without thinking about whether the listener will understand what we mean by what we said, then that's not good communication.

Alda asserts that when we make a connection with the person to whom we are speaking, and they understood what we meant, that's when we are able to communicate properly. The mirroring exercise that the medical student and the woman did, i.e. as the woman cried because she understood what her reality was at that point, so the medical student also cried because there was a profound sense of connection that happened through their conversation.

We often experience a temptation to sound smarter by using hifalutin' words in our speech, but it would be pointless. I have heard this concept at least twice which says that truly smart people are those who can make complex ideas simple to understand by those with whom they are shared.

To demonstrate one's understanding of complex ideas and concepts, it is a matter of practicality that one should be able to explain those complex things to even a five-year-old, and help them understand what it means. Because then, you know for certain that you have a good grasp of the essence of those ideas and concepts.

So yes, just as Alda mentions in the video, it's fun to use jargon but only when the other person is able to catch the meaning as well. Otherwise, there is no point in having a conversation using those words. It would be much better to stick with simpler words and terms, so that you can focus on progressing the conversation with your counterpart and come at a more productive or fruitful outcome.

And in that sense, there's really a great need for empathy in order for us to have good communication with the goal of making our partner or counterpart understand what we're saying, whether it be a point of view, a factual summary, or an explanation of a concept, event, or something else. In so doing, we can arrive at conclusions, paradigm shifts, and possible solutions for whatever it is we're talking about without much misunderstanding in between.

(Video credit: Big Think)

A 15-year-old boy is now slated to become the Roman Catholic Church's first millennial saint. His name was Carlo Acutis, and he died in 2006 from leukemia. Sixteen years later, Pope Francis has approved a second posthumous miracle which the Medical Council of the Congregation for Saints' Causes had investigated and confirmed the validity of said miracles.

Acutis was born in London, and according to accounts from his mother, he would regularly engage in charitable acts toward the marginalized and disadvantaged in society, such as donating his pocket money to poor people, standing up for his disabled peers being bullied, and giving vagrants in Milan sleeping bags and meals.

At a young age, he taught himself how to code and he created a website that documents miracles around the world in an effort to help Catholic organizations.

The path to becoming a canonized saint for the Roman Catholic Church requires that the deceased person be involved in at least two verifiable miraculous accounts. According to the Vatican, once these two miracles attributed to the person in question has been verified, then they become candidates for sainthood.

The first of the two miracles attributed to Acutis was the recovery of a Brazilian boy from a rare pancreatic disorder after having been in contact with one of Acutis' t-shirts, at the same time, a priest had prayed to Acutis for the healing of the child.

And recently, in 2022, a Costa Rican woman claimed that she had been healed after a bicycle accident when her mother went to Acutis' tomb to pray for her. Valeria Valverde had undergone brain surgery but was still in critical condition. At that point, her mother went to Acutis' tomb to pray for her daughter, and immediately afterward, it is said that Valeria began to breathe without a ventilator and slowly recovered.

According to reports, Valeria was discharged 10 days after the miracle, with scans showing that the contusions on her brain had disappeared. - via The Daily Grail

(Image credit: Dobroš/Wikimedia Commons)

I don't know about you, but whenever I went out to eat at this ramen restaurant with a friend before, I always found it soothing to have some blues-y music or a chill playlist in the background while I chow on some spicy seafood noodles, and it actually helps me enjoy the food more, along with some casual conversation with my friend. Whenever it was some type of upbeat, pop music, I get fired up and focus more on eating the food.

There is something about the way music affects us and our behavior especially while we're eating. Ever wondered why high-end restaurants sometimes have classical or jazz music playing in the background? Apart from setting the atmosphere of the restaurant and giving off an elegant mood, it enhances our gastronomic experience.

Some research even suggests that the louder a restaurant's music plays, the more motivated patrons are to order unhealthy foods, likely due to the increased stimulation and stress brought about by the sounds.

There was also an experimental culinary experience conducted by the Italian Futurist movement in the 1930s, in which they would let their customers play musical instruments while eating their food. It sounds disconcerting, but the idea is that the combination of music and cuisine heightens the experience people have of both.

Whether or not customers find it pleasurable depends on who you're asking, but this is to say that there is precedent for the intermingling of auditory and gustatory senses.

In more recent times, the concept of "sonic seasoning" has floated about, suggesting that there may be a direct link between sound and taste. This link may be associated with synesthesia, or the perceptual phenomenon wherein our brains allow us to experience multiple unrelated senses, or said in another way, we're able to experience one sense through the lens of another.

Such is the field of sonic seasoning, in which the sounds that we hear can be described through taste. Some synesthetes say that listening to the piano is akin to eating caramel or chocolate, meanwhile, synthesizer sounds feel like eating black licorice.

The pasta company Barilla created "Pasta Playlists" on Spotify with which they recommend people eat their pasta, and in 2024, they commissioned the Al Bronzo Soundtrack Experience from White Lotus' composer Cristobal Tapia de Veer. For example, you may listen to the sounds of twinkling bells and vocal accents while taking a bite out of their rigatoni. Or, that rolling bassline as you savor their bucatini.

Whether it be a nice meal or a cup of coffee, I think most of us would not mind having some music playing in the background. Depending on the mood and context, it may impact our culinary experience in more ways than one.

Perhaps, the more intriguing part of this concept is the fact that you can hone in on particular sounds with which our brains would associate to further enhance the way we enjoy our food. But then again, who's to say that bells can make tomatoes taste sweeter, or rock music can make us crave for stuff like fries and burgers?

At the end of the day, some argue that music and food are highly subjective, so it would be difficult to concretize these connections and say that they produce the kind of effect they are purported to do. It's an interesting idea to explore, and see if there's any way to induce certain culinary experiences through music. But for now, we'll just have to wait and see.

(Image credit: Valentin Kremer/Unsplash)

Let me preface this by saying that, no, this has no political connotation, it has no relation to Brexit or anything of the sort, and it isn't remotely suggesting that Ireland finally wants to secede from the United Kingdom. It's far less serious than that, depending on which perspective you're going to take.

Have you ever been at a party and as the night wiles away, you find yourself getting the urge to leave but cannot find the right moment to say goodbye to the host or to other guests? So, you end up simply slipping away without anyone noticing? Well, it's not exactly "ghosting" per se, but this act has become known as "the Irish exit".

Conventional social etiquette and perhaps, at times, even our own consciences would dictate that, at the very least, we should let the host know that we'll be taking our leave, but some would argue that depending on the situation, it might be even more polite to simply leave without saying goodbye.

For instance, if you were in a large informal gathering of people, without an RSVP, then it might be excusable. Or, if the host is entertaining several guests and it would be considered even rude to interrupt them as you take your leave, then it would be acceptable to simply skedaddle without a hoot. However, such would probably not be the case when it's a more intimate gathering, or when the host themselves personally invites you to the party, and they welcome and see their guests out as they come and go.

The Irish exit seems to be peculiar however, as we generally have this image of Irish people being very jovial, warm, and hospitable, so to think that such a cold or rude act may be associated with them appears to be a misnomer or misleading. In fact, the term never originated from Ireland, but according to Irish author Judith McLoughlin, it's purely an American term.

There are a few theories as to the origin of the phrase, and some associate it with the 19th century Irish Potato Famine, which forced a lot of Irish people to depart from Ireland, perhaps never being able to see their loved ones again. And the sadness that came from that time in history may explain the use of the term, as for any host to simply not notice one of their guests leaving without saying goodbye, could be quite saddening indeed.

Another theory is that it was taken from the idea of hard-partying Irish Americans who needed to avoid the embarrassment at a party after they have consumed too much alcohol and become completely inebriated to the point that they have lost a grip on themselves. It can be seen as a face-saving gesture in this sense.

Whatever the origin of the term really is, it is used to describe that act of slipping away from a party or social gathering without saying goodbye. It's not a universal term, but several countries have a similar concept, which they call differently. For example, in Great Britain, they use the phrase "the French exit" or "the French leave" to mean the same thing. In turn, when you're in France, Russia, or Poland, they would say "leaving the English way". While in Germany, they would use "the Polish exit".

(Image credit: MAIRA ALI/Pixabay)

One of the funnier lines in the 1974 movie Young Frankenstein was when Igor (Marty Feldman) told Dr. Frankenstein (Gene Wilder) to "Walk this way." He didn't mean the direction, he meant the style. "No, walk THIS way!" A few months later, the song "Walk This Way" by Aerosmith was a hit. My friends and I would dance to it, and walk like Igor during the chorus. Yeah, it was funny. It turns out the song was actually named after that line in that movie! The music came first, then guitarist Brad Whitford saw Young Frankenstein and found the line so funny he insisted on using it for the song. Steven Tyler wrote the rest of the lyrics around the phrase. If that's not wild enough, wait until you find out exactly who inspired the song "Dude Looks Like a Lady."

Mental Floss takes a deep dive into the origins and meanings of 25 hit songs that you never really thought about, many of which changed considerably between the inspiration and the finished product. You can also listen to the list in the form of a video at the same link.  

Theodore Roosevelt was America's 26th president, after raising cattle in North Dakota, fighting in the Spanish-American War, and serving as governor of New York, among other adventures. Many legendary but true tales are told about Teddy, including the one in which the Teddy bear was named for him. But there are always more. I have written about Roosevelt several times, and one even I hadn't heard of happened sometime around 1884.

Roosevelt entered a bar in Montana and saw that one guy was so drunk he had already shot the clock on the wall three times. Holding two guns, he mocked Roosevelt for wearing glasses and ordered him to fix drinks. Roosevelt managed to convince the drunk fellow that he was no danger, then punched him good, knocking the guy unconscious to the cheers of everyone in the saloon. The drunk left town and never came back. When Roosevelt told the story in his autobiography, he included a lot more details. You can read that one and five other true stories that show just how fearless Roosevelt was, at Cracked.

Drug lord Gustavo Fring (played by Giancarlo Esposito) made quite an impression as the toughest of tough guys on Breaking Bad. He managed to bluff his way through and survive many attempts on his life during the series with style and menace, so (spoiler coming) when he was eventually assassinated by a nonverbal colleague in a wheelchair, we were doubly shocked. What kept him alive through so much mayhem? Plot armor, produced by the character's popularity. By the time Fring actually died, we were all convinced he would be around forever. YouTuber Alternative Cuts (previously at Neatorama) spent two months editing together a video illustration of how bulletproof Fring really was. He confidently steps into danger, brought by all the badasses from Breaking Bad, then by other movie characters who shoot to kill. The walk gets longer and longer as every cinematic killer, no matter how ridiculous, is thrown at him. That's one tough character. -via Geeks Are Sexy