I can't say anything about the movie as I haven't watched it (the only thing I know about it is that @HardSciFiMovies debunked it as such, "While repairing the Hubble Telescope a small group of astronauts encounter high-velocity cloud of debris. They die.")
So, Neatoramanauts, is Gravity worth watching? (and if Gravity let you down, did you, ahem, deserve what you got?)
The story (popularized by Voltaire, no less!) said that Newton was inspired when he saw a falling apple while walking around his family's garden at Woolsthorpe Manor, to formulate his theory of universal gravitation (some version even claimed the apple fell on his head!).
Newton himself actually said that he was staring out the window in his house when he saw an apple fall from a tree.
Whatever happened to the tree? The King's School in Grantham, Linconshire, England, where Newton went to school, claimed to have purchased the tree and moved it to its garden. Naturally, this is a bone of contention with the Woolsthorpe Manor people who are currently in charge of the upkeep of Newton's home (now a historic site). (Source: Newton's Apple [wiki])
What's underneath this massive, overgrown, pile of leaves? Believe it or not, it's a car. A zombie car, actually.
The abandoned old blue van was found parked on a street in Huayang village, China. Residents of the neighborhood called it the "zombie car" or "jiangshiche" a term that has been used to call abandoned vehicles in China. Photo of this particular zombie car went viral on China's Weibo social network.
When police officials tracked down the owner, he told them that he sold the car three years ago but didn't remember anything about the buyer. Police tried to remove the vines but soon gave up. Instead, they opted to tow the whole thing as is:
A supercomputer that is fueled with blood? It's coming! IBM scientists have created a new supercomputer inspired by the human brain and is powered by what they call "electronic blood."
Patrick Ruch and Bruno Michel of IBM Research lab in Zurich, Switzerland, wanted to "fit a supercomputer inside a sugarcube." But in order to do that, they'd have to model it after the human brain, which is 10,000 times more dense and efficient than any computer today. "The brain uses 40% of its volume for functional performance - and only 10% for energy and cooling," said Michel to the BBC. Compare that to the world's fastest current supercomputer, which uses 99% of its volume devoted to cooling and powering, and only 1% for processing information. The human brain is made possible, Michel added, "because it uses only one - extremely efficient - network of capillaries and blood vessels to transport heat and energy - all at the same time."
So, the pair have created a "bionic" computing architecture, which uses "electronic blood" of charged electrolytes to provide fuel and cooling to computer chips.
Read more over at this intriguing article by James Morgan over at the BBC.
According to Oxford University genetics professor Bryan Sykes, hair samples discovered in the Himalaya mountains attributed to the cryptozoological beast actually belong to a real biological ho-hum animal: a polar bear/brown bear hybrid.
... using DNA analysis from two different hair samples — one from a strange animal shot by a hunter about 40 years ago in northern India's Ladakh region, and a second sample found in a Bhutan bamboo forest 10 years ago — geneticist Bryan Sykes of the University of Oxford claims to have linked those samples to the jawbone of an ancient polar bear found in Norway.
Sykes speculated that there could be a subspecies of the brown bear in the High Himalayas that is the descendant of the ancestor of the polar bear, or a recent hybridization between the brown bear and the descendant of the ancient polar bear.
Well, there is a silver lining in this discovery. For one, it suggests that the Yeti is quite real. Sykes told The Telegraph, "This is a species that hasn’t been recorded for 40,000 years. Now, we know one of these was walking around ten years ago. And what’s interesting is that we have found this type of animal at both ends of the Himalayas. If one were to go back, there would be others still there."
The largest state in the 48 contiguous United States and the second most populous is often the bottom of jokes (what's the four seasons in Texas? Drought, flood, blizzard and twister). Sure, it's got terribly hot and humid weather, relatively high crime rates, not-so-great schools, and cowboys.
But the Lone Star state has a lot of things going for it (besides having our very own John Farrier as a resident), like plenty of land, oil, low taxes and of course, cowboys.
And what's more, Texas is going to be the future. More exactly, the future of the United States of America will look more like Texas than any other place in the nation. Tyler Cowen, economist and author of the book Average is Over, explains in this week's cover story of TIME Magazine:
Texas is America's fastest-growing large state, with three of the top five fastest-growing cities in the country ...
As an economist and a libertarian, I have become convinced that whether they know it or not, these migrants are being pushed (and pulled) by the major economic forces that are reshaping the American economy as a whole: the hollowing out of the middle class, the increased costs of living in the U.S.'s established population centers and the resulting search by many Americans for a radically cheaper way to live and do business.
To a lot of Americans, Texas feels like the future. And I would argue that more than any other state, Texas looks like the future as well — offering us a glimpse of what's to come for the country at large in the decades ahead.
So where can people go when their incomes aren’t keeping pace with the rising cost of living? We know they’re headed to Texas. And they’re headed there because land is cheap, and thus housing is cheap.
A typical home in Brooklyn costs more than half a million dollars (and rising rapidly), and 85% of these dwellings are apartments and condos rather than stand-alone homes. They don’t usually have impressive sinks and seamlessly operating air-conditioning fixtures. In Houston, the typical home costs $130,100 — and it is likely a stand-alone and newer than the structure in Brooklyn.
Housing is bigger — and cheaper — in Texas.
6. Cheap living generally
"The lower house prices, along with a generally low cost of living — helped along by cheap labor, cheap produce and cheap gas (currently about $3 a gallon) — really matter when it comes to quality of life … Texas has a higher per capita income than California, adjusted for cost of living, and nearly catches up with New York by the same measure. Once you factor in state and local taxes, Texas pulls ahead of New York — by a wide margin. The website MoneyRates ranks states on the basis of average income, adjusting for tax rates and cost of living; once those factors are accounted for, Texas has the third highest average income (after Virginia and Washington State), while New York ranks 36th."
7. Jobs
"In the past 12 months, Texas has added 274,700 new jobs — that’s 12% of all jobs added nationwide and 51,000 more than California added … In fact, from 2002 to 2011, with 8% of the U.S. population, Texas created nearly one-third of the country’s highest-paying jobs."
8. Low taxes
Texas has no income tax. Per resident, it collects roughly $3,500 in taxes overall (including all state and local taxes) every year. By way of contrast, California collects $4,900 per resident — New York collects a whopping $7,400 per resident. Both states, of course, have income taxes.
People are going to Texas because it’s a low-cost, low-tax state. But they’re also migrating to other Sun Belt states, like Colorado, Arizona and South Carolina, which have similar policy profiles.
But the red hot nickel ball has finally found its match: a blob of Aerogel, the lightest man-made solid composed of 99.98% air is such an excellent insulator that the nickel ball did nothing to it!
Do you consider your hometown dish to be the best food in the United States of America? We'll see about that.
Albert Burneko wrote an article over at Deadspin where he ranked the best and the worst of signature food from all 50 states of the USA. Did your favorite food make the list? Did Burneko fail to rank your state's food appropriately? Why did he rank Ohio's Cincinnati Chili lower than "being hit by a car"? I mean, worse than Alaska's whipped seal oil and berries delicacy known as akutaq? And what happened to Nevada's state food, anyway?
But first, the 10 best regional food in America:
1. Chicago-style deep-dish pizza (Illinois)
2. Shirmp and grits (South Carolina)
3. Mission-style burrito (California)
4. Crab cake (Maryland)
5. Peach pie/cobbler (Georgia)
6. Gumbo (Louisiana)
7. Key lime pie (Florida)
8. Fried green tomatoes (Alabama)
9. Stacked enchilada with green chile (New Mexico)
10. Marionberry pie (Oregon)
... then we'll skip down to the bottom 10:
41. Michigan pasty (Michigan)
42. Chislic (South Dakota)
43. Green Jell-O with carrots
44. Lutefisk (North Dakota)
45. Salt water taffy
45. Handheld meat pies (Nebraska)
46. Akutaq (Alaska)
47. Boiled dinner (New Hampshire)
48. Nothing (Nevada)
49. Steamed cheeseburger (Connecticut)
50. Cincinnati chili (Ohio)
What's your state food and did it rank correctly in the list? Read the full list over at Deadspin
How many horsepower is in that car again? Dann Matthews mashed up the magical power of ponies with America's favorite muscle car. Perfect for your favorite Brony!
Visit Dann at his official website and Facebook page, then check out his NeatoShop page for more neat shirts. Your purchase helps support indie artists as well as this blog, so thank you in advance for your support!
French toast, that bit of gastronomical yumminess that is fried egg/bread combo, is an old dish. In fact, it predates the founding of France.
According to the Apicius, a collection of recipes from the early 5th century AD, the dish we now know as the French toast existed as early as the age of the Roman Empire. In their style of French toast, called Pan Dulcis, Romans would soak bread in milk (and sometimes also egg) mixture, then fry it in oil or butter.
In the 15th century English court of Henry V, a version of the French toast called "pain perdu" or "lost bread" was the culinary rage. Then, it was called "lost" bread because the recipe called for soaking hard or stale bread in a mixture of milk and egg, then frying it. Pain perdu is what the French call French toast today.
So, if the French did not invent the modern French toast, who did? According to legend, it was an Albany, New York, innkeeper named Joseph French. He created the dish in 1724, and advertised it as "French Toast" because he was grammatically inept and forgot the apostrophe.
Danny Groner told us how the French toast and 8 other site-specific foods got their names in this neat article over at Bigstock - Thanks Danny!
Davion, wearing his only suit gets a little help with his tie from his caseworker.
Photo: Melissa Lyttle/Tampa Bay Times
Teenager Davion Navar Henry Only once heard that God helps those who help themselves, so he decided to do something about what he wanted most: a family.
Davion was born while his mother was in jail. He has spent his entire childhood in countless foster homes. A few months ago, Davion found out that his birth mother had just died, and decided that he needed to let go of his anger, improve his grades, and turn his life around. That, and find a family - fast - because he's already 15 years old and will "age out" out of the foster care system in just three years.
So, Davion came up with a plan: he'd present himself as available for adoption to the congregation of St. Mark Missionary Baptist Church in Tampa, Florida. "I'll take anyone," Davion said to Tampa Bay Times, "Old or young, dad or mom, black, white, purple. I don't care. And I would be really appreciative. The best I could be."
Earlier this month, Davion and his caseworker came to Sunday's sermon. The young man fidgeted in his suit while the preacher spoke about orphans and how Jesus lifted them up, saying that an alarming number of African-American children need help finding families. Then, it was Davion's turn:
Then he introduced Davion, who shuffled to the pulpit. Without looking up, Davion wiped his palms on his pants, cleared his throat, and said:
"My name is Davion and I've been in foster care since I was born. . . . I know God hasn't given up on me. So I'm not giving up either."
Thirty-two-year-old mother of three little boys and fitness enthusiast Maria Kang posted that photo above, featuring herself (and her washboard abs) with the caption "What's Your Excuse?"
Since she posted it on Facebook, Kang's photo has gone viral. It has garnered more than 16 million views and over 30,000 comments - most of which are positive "You go, girl" type. But some people took offense and called Kang a bully for "fat-shaming" women. Some even called her a "bad mother," accusing her of spending more time exercising rather than caring for her children.
I'm sorry you took an image and resonated with it in such a negative way. I won't go into details that I struggled with my genetics, had an eating disorder, work full time owning two business', have no nanny, am not naturally skinny and do not work as a personal trainer. I won't even mention how I didn't give into cravings for ice cream, french fries or chocolate while pregnant or use my growing belly as an excuse to be inactive.
What I WILL say is this. What you interpret is not MY fault. It's Yours. The first step in owning your life, your body and your destiny is to OWN the thoughts that come out of your own head. I didn't create them. You created them. So if you want to continue 'hating' this image, get used to hating many other things for the rest of your life. You can either blame, complain or obtain a new level of thought by challenging the negative words that come out of your own brain.
With that said, obesity and those who struggle with health-related diseases is literally a 'bigger' issue than this photo. Maybe it's time we stop tip-toeing around people's feelings and get to the point. So What's Your Excuse? - Maria Kang
As a recovering bulimic, Kang said that she understood why people are so defensive when it comes to their weight. She told Yahoo! Shine, "I think people struggle with their weight. When you add on being a mother - and the pressures we face to have it all and be everything, including fit - the expectations are so high. I think some moms saw the picture and just said, 'This is ridiculous.'"
But body image IS a big deal (exhibit A: the hullabaloo over Barbie's shape), so is Kang's "What's Your Excuse" photo is a case of fat-shaming? Or did she do the right thing by challenging people to exercise and take better care of themselves?
Food designer David Marx of independent food lab The Science Kitchen in Berlin, Germany, has re-engineered the popsicle to make it fit for the future. Behold the Kyl21, the world's first "sci-fi" popsicle.
"Popsicles know no age, no gender, no borders: They're beloved all over the world," Marx told John Brownlee of Fast Co., "but after 100 years of popsicle history, it hasn't changed much. We thought it was the right time to bring the popsicle to the next level, making it healthier, prettier, and more functional."
Kyl21 - which is the combination of molekyl, the Norwegian word for molecule, and 21, the age of Marx's intended "grown up" popsicle - comes in geometric fantastic shapes and have flavors ranging from organic to vegan to alcoholic cocktails. Yum!
These are the sharp teeth of the feared piranha, a freshwater predator which, according to urban (or technically jungle) legend, can devour human or cattle that falls into the water in mere seconds. Go ahead take a closer look, then ask yourself, how could anything protect itself against those razor sharp teeth?
Believe it or not, there is actually a species of fish that has figured it out. Meet the freshwater fish Arapaima gigas, which lives in the Amazon River in Brazil. The arapaima is a large fish - it can reach lengths more than 7 feet (2 m) and weigh more than 200 lb (100 kg) - so how does it survive in a river infested with the carnivorous piranhas?
Image: Jacobs School of Engineering/UCSD
A couple of years ago, mechanical engineer Marc Meyers was sport fishing in Brazil and caught an arapaima. To catch one, fishermen waited until the fish comes up for air (arapaimas have lungs and need to breathe fresh air - another peculiarity about the species, but that's another story), then tossed a large hunk of meat as bait. If the arapaima missed the meat, the bait would only survive five minutes in the water before the piranhas get to it.
That got Meyers thinking how the arapaima, which should've been a swimming buffet for the hungry piranhas, survived. The answer is in in its scales.
It's music to shoot first by! T-shirt artist ZombieDollars designed the cover for a galaxy far far away's best-selling jazz album. Visit ZombieDollars at his Facebook page, then visit his NeatoShop page for more neat T-shirt designs!
Your purchase helps support indie artists as well as this blog, so buy something, mmkay?
