Some days you hate your computer, and some days your computer hates you. They are fragile little creatures, and if you don't treat them just right, they will turn on you and exact revenge- by forcing an update! -via Geeks Are Sexy

The Panspermia Hypothesis is the idea that life on earth was originally transported here from somewhere else by microbes riding through space on asteroids. To survive such a journey, any life form would have to be pretty tough. The toughest critters we know of are tardigrades, or water bears, which have proven they can survive being frozen and the vacuum of space. But could they survive the impact of colliding with a planet? A team led by Alejandra Traspas at Queen Mary University in London tested how impact-resistant tardigrades are by shooting them from a gun.    

For the experiment, Traspas, along with co-author Mark Burchell, took 20 tardigrades of the species Hypsibius dujardini and fed them a (potentially) last meal of mineral water and moss. The well-fed microbes were then put into hibernation—a frozen state in which their metabolism dropped to a mere 0.1% of normal. Groups of two to three individuals were put inside water-filled shafts that were in turn placed inside a nylon cylinder. A two-stage light gas gun was used to fire these cylinders, along with their hibernating passengers, at sand targets inside a vacuum chamber. Six shots were fired at speeds from 1,244 to 2,237 miles per hour (556 to 1,000 m/s), which the scientists measured with laser light stations.

While the experience of tardigrades shot from a gun doesn't prove anything about billion-year-old single-cell organisms in space, it may be a step in that direction. Read how that experiment turned out at Gizmodo.

(Image credit: Schokraie E, Warnken U, Hotz-Wagenblatt A, Grohme MA, Hengherr S, et al. (2012))

The townsfolk are not so pleased about the change. The local council of Walsall in the British Midlands decided to bring a spice of life to the area by bringing a number of familiar-looking, oversized, bright-green plant pots. The resemblance of the pots to Super Mario’s warp pipes had the residents complaining that the new additions make their town look like it was part of the game: 

Birmingham Live reports that Walsall Council's decision to install the pots has put them under fire from locals. Fifteen of the planters are currently in place, but residents have called them an eyesore, and complained that they represent a waste of public money.

Local florist Andrea Loveridge is quoted as considering them "garish monstrosities", adding: "It beggars belief. It makes the place look more like something from Super Mario Brothers. They look like those warp pipes Mario jumps down." And yes, they do, a bit.

You can see the plant pots in, um, action I guess, in the video below (or watch on YouTube).

Another local interviewed by Birmingham Live calls the pots "a garish eyesore and a complete waste of taxpayer's money". But surely not everyone in Walsall is down on these green newcomers to the town's centre? If you're a local, why not let us know if you approve of these quite-pipe-like additions.

Image via the Gaming Bible

A new report reveals how aware people are when it comes to the state of our planet’s biodiversity. The report was created by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) and commissioned by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF). The report, titled ‘An Eco-wakening: Measuring global awareness, engagement and action for nature,’ attempted to measure how much people were aware of the planet’s issues or current state. According to the report, there is a huge amount of concern, as the number of nature-loss conversations online increased by 65% on Twitter: 

Those online conversations reflect people’s shifting attitudes. And the change doesn’t stop there. Policymakers and officials are reflecting those attitudes in the decisions they make, the report found.

[...]

There has also been action taken by major finance organizations. In June 2020, seven European funds threatened to withdraw $2 trillion-worth of investments from Brazil if steps weren’t taken to protect the Amazon rainforest.

India has seen concern about the loss of animal and plant species increase from 82% to 90%, and a whopping 190% jump in the number of Google searches relating to nature and biodiversity.

In October 2020, the report says, the “tireless advocacy work by activists, communities, students and Mumbai residents, as well as celebrity influencers who participated in a highly publicized social media campaign” paid off. A 329 hectare area of forest within Mumbai was granted reserved status by the Maharashtra State Government.

The US has also seen a rise in concern and awareness of biodiversity and sustainability. Between 2016 and 2018, there was a 450% increase in Google searches for sustainable products, reflecting the potential for consumer power to shape the decisions taken by private businesses. And on his first day in office, President Biden signed an order that saw the US rejoin the Paris Climate Agreement.

Image via Unsplash

Viruses are incredibly weird, as they exist on the edge of our definition of life. The problem is most likely our definition of life. If we expand the definition to include viruses, then we have to include other obviously non-living things like artificial intelligence and living things that aren't organisms, like prions. But viruses are currently the edge case in the argument, as SciShow explains. -via Geeks Are Sexy

This Shiba Inu (which I think is named Mickey, based on her Instagram account) sure knows how to act like she’s in pain. The pillow that, at first glance, looks like a real hollow block, makes the act even more convincing.

I think Mickey-chan is a cosplayer, as you can see her cute cosplays over at her Instagram account.

Image via 9GAG on Facebook

The main function of the anus is to expel the waste that remains after food digestion, but in the case of rodents and pigs, the anus can have another function; through this part of the body, vital oxygen could be delivered to their bodies. This study, which was published on May 14 in the journal Med, could be useful in creating a new way to support critically ill patients with respiratory failure, according to the senior study author Takanori Takebe.

In the new study, Takebe and his collaborators provide evidence for intestinal breathing in rats, mice, and pigs. First, they designed an intestinal gas ventilation system to administer pure oxygen through the rectum of mice. They showed that without the system, no mice survived 11 minutes of extremely low-oxygen conditions. With intestinal gas ventilation, more oxygen reached the heart, and 75% of mice survived 50 minutes of normally lethal low-oxygen conditions.

Because the intestinal gas ventilation system requires abrasion of the intestinal muscosa, it is unlikely to be clinically feasible, especially in severely ill patients—so the researchers also developed a liquid-based alternative using oxygenated perfluorochemicals. These chemicals have already been shown clinically to be biocompatible and safe in humans.

Now this is weird but fascinating.

Learn more details about the study over at PHYS.org.

(Image Credit: PHYS.org)

We’ve often heard people describe good music as “lit”. But when it comes to being lit, Bach’s music would be the first one to achieve that... literally speaking, at least.

Someone has built an organ that shoots out actual flames – and this guy has played some Bach on it.

This incredible instrument was found at the Transworld Halloween and Attractions Show, which took place a few weeks ago in St. Louis, Missouri.

It’s played by Tom BetGeorge, a Californian music teacher and YouTuber who goes viral every Christmas with his house light displays to Beethoven, John Williams and more. So he knows a thing or two about syncing music and blazing visuals.

Flame-throwing organs aren’t new, however. People have been trying to make this type of instrument as far back as 1777. So I guess Bach’s music isn’t the first one to achieve “lit” status.

(Image Credit: Tom BetGeorge/ YouTube)

Elegant. Useful. And unique. Those are the words that perfectly describe this Wisdom Tree Bookshelf by Bookniture. Now, people can have a designated place for the books that they are currently reading, so they won’t misplace said books ever again. Now if that’s not useful, then I don’t know what is.

This bookshelf is available for pre-order for only $69, while the item’s shipping will be made available in August of this year.

Cool!

(Image Credit: Bookniture/ Technabob)

This single sheet of paper contains common questions regarding pregnancy, like whether it is okay to have children after 35. However, the answers written on this paper are not what you might expect, but they still are informative.

Image via The Language Nerds on Facebook

Marc Pettersen’s Here’s Another Story lets spectators view street murals from a different perspective. Specifically, in the world of virtual reality (VR). The project uses a VR phone app to allow viewers to see the public art bloom into animation. Pettersen’s mix of outdoor and virtual events is part of the  International Festival of Arts and Ideas, as New Haven Independent details: 

“I’m always looking at new types of art and technology and seeing how it can work it together,” said Pettersen, a digital artist who works with virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR). He went to school for traditional, hand-drawn animation and has moved steadily into computer and VR animation ever since. He’s now a youth mentor at YOUmedia, a maker space at the Hartford Public Library, where he teaches students how to use VR, AR and 3D printing.

As his starting point, Pettersen used the existing public art in Ninth Square — much of it created just this year during the pandemic. Pettersen created his pieces using a VR headset and hand controllers, which allowed him to create, manipulate, and augment the images in the murals in front of him. Virtual reality and the creative tools used to work in it, he said, are inching ever closer to being fully immersive. “If I made a virtual sculpture, I could walk all the way around it.”

Image via New Haven Independent 

Ken Fritz spent 30 long years building the best stereo system in the world. The efforts Fritz made included adding a cavernous, veritable concert hall to his house to accommodate custom-made speaker towers.The new addition to his home was designed for the optimal dispersion of sound. Open Culture has more details:  

Much of Fritz’s system is custom-made, most elaborately notably its three-armed, 1,500-pound “Frankenstein turntable.” How much did it cost asks his son Scott? “I’ve seen turntables that sell for $100,00, $120,000, and they’re nowhere near as complicated and as involved as this,” he says. But to the true audiophile, every investment is worth it, whether of money, time, or effort. For “once it’s built, if you don’t like it, if doesn’t work, you’re stuck with it. You just lie to yourself: ‘It sounds good.'” Fritz’s music room stands as a testament to his determination not to lie to himself — as well as to his love of music and will to give that love a concrete form.

There is also a documentary on Fritz’ audiophilia journey, which you can watch here. 

image via Unsplash

Don’t mistake them for artworks! Since I can’t really go outside to travel and relax, I find myself scrolling through endless Pinterest and Unsplash tags of different landscapes. If you’re in the mood to gawk at beautiful aerial photos, this Bored Panda compilation of Gábor Nagy’s pictures is not only pleasing to look at, but it also shows us a surreal perspective of nature. Check the full compilation here. 

Image via Bored Panda 

Star Trek introduced us to three-dimensional chess, which is actually playable in some variants. There are other ways to play chess, often increasing the complexity of the game. But game designer Doctor Popular went in the other direction by placing all of the pieces on a single strip of sixteen spaces.

Nonetheless, it's not simplistic like a game of tic-tac-toe. You can download the rules and a gameboard for free here.

The latest from filmmaker Fabrice Mathieu (previously at Neatorama), The End is a tribute to the lost year of 2020, an experimental montage made using looping gifs from classic films. It's set to the tune "My Fault" by Ennio Morricone, which you might recall from the spaghetti Western My Name is Nobody. At first it seems like a simple mashup of similar images, but it takes us from waiting to coping methods to confusion to panic to despair as it goes along. Watch it once for the mood, then again to see how many movies you can identify.  -via Laughing Squid