How long has it been since you ran an anti-virus scan? You'd better do it now because a recent study found that areas of Britain that show a heavy use of Facebook also show a great increase in the incidence of syphilis infection:

The virus has increased fourfold in Sunderland, Durham and Teesside, the areas of Britain where Facebook is most popular, because it has given people a new way to meet multiple partners for casual sexual encounters.

Professor Peter Kelly, director of public health in Teesside, said staff had found a link between social networking sites and the rise in cases, especially among young women.

Just to be careful, we did bloodwork on the Neatorama Facebook page, and it's completely clean and safe.

Link via Geekologie | Photo: CDC

Organizing pop culture data into something resembling a periodic table or making crafts that resemble the actual periodic table of elements is a popular web meme that we've covered in some breadth here at Neatorama. Bill Keaggy took the meme one step further by organizing these periodic tables into a periodic table.  Pictured above is a part of that table.

Link via Nerdcore

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Theo Watson developed a program called Auto Smiley. Whenever your computer's webcam determines that you're smiling, the program will insert a smiley emoticon into whatever computer application you're using, such as email or chat. Watson writes "Auto Smiley has many uses from just straight up convenience to enforcing honesty in your online communication [...]"

Link via Make

Intelligent Systems Informatics Lab at Tokyo University has developed a robot that performs basic journalistic functions:

The robot detects changes in its surroundings, decides if they are relevant, and then takes pictures with its on board camera. It can query nearby people for information, and it uses internet searches to further round out its understanding. If something appears newsworthy, the robot will even write a short article and publish it to the web.

Link via Gizmodo | Photo: Charlie Catlett

(YouTube Link)

This video shows what happens inside a four-stroke engine. That's:
1. the intake stroke of the piston, reducing pressure in the cylinder and forcing gas and air inside
2. intake and exhaust valves close and the piston compresses the fuel-air mix
3. the compression and a spark result in combustion, and therefore a power stroke
4. the piston compresses, pushing out the expended fuel-air mix

Link

Colin Fruze was tired of drivers following his scooter too closely, so he developed a flamethrower to ward them off:

'The flames are pretty big and up to 15ft long so you could definitely set fire to someone's car if you wanted to.'

'The only problem is it can get rather hot if you are riding the moped and blast the flames when the wind is in the wrong direction.'[...]

'It was quite tricky to make and the first version wouldn't fire the flames when the moped was moving,' he said.

'My second attempt kept setting fire to itself, but my third version works really well and I'm very pleased with it.'

But sadly Colin, who built the moped in his spare time in his back garden, will not legally be allowed to use it on the road.

Link via DVICE | Photo: Goeff Robinson Photography

India's bhut jolokia is acknowledged by the Guinness Book of World Records as the world's spiciest chili. That nation's military has responded by developing a grenade that carries small quantities of it:

It has more than 1,000,000 Scoville units, the scientific measurement of a chili's spiciness. Classic Tabasco sauce ranges from 2,500 to 5,000 Scoville units, while jalapeno peppers measure anywhere from 2,500 to 8,000.

"The chili grenade has been found fit for use after trials in Indian defense laboratories, a fact confirmed by scientists at the Defense Research and Development Organization," Col. R. Kalia, a defense spokesman in the northeastern state of Assam, told The Associated Press.

"This is definitely going to be an effective nontoxic weapon because its pungent smell can choke terrorists and force them out of their hide-outs," R. B. Srivastava, the director of the Life Sciences Department at the New Delhi headquarters of the DRDO said.

Link via Say Uncle | Photo: (unrelated) US Department of Homeland Security

We've previously featured Phil Elkins' homemade travel trailer that was light enough be hauled by a bicycle. Now he's turned his attention to creating a portable shelter for the homeless. The result weighs 225 pounds and has a tiny bed, kitchen, and bathroom:

elkins wanted his design construction to be a simple, light weight, water tight insulated box on wheels, built with an area for displaying and selling handmade wares.[...]

the roof acts as a rain catcher. when it starts raining, a valve is turned to stop the flow of water to the collection tank to allow debris to be flushed from the roof. after a minute of this cleaning process, the valve can be turned back on and collect free water. when the tank is full, it has an overflow feature which allows excess water to drain to the ground.

You can view more pictures at the link.

Link via Fast Company | Photo: Design Boom

Matthew and Nora Eaton had a clever scheme: shoplifting popular toys and resell them on online. It was such a smart idea that they decided to go on the Dr. Phil show and brag about it. This decision brought them to the attention of prosecutors:

District Judge Irma Gonzalez sentenced Matthew Eaton, 34, to 27 months in prison — one year more than prosecutors with the U.S. Attorney’s Office thought was sufficient punishment.

Nora Eaton, 27, was sentenced to one year and one day in custody.

Gonzalez had little sympathy for Matthew Eaton, calling his conduct in running the scheme over two years “despicable.”[...]

Matthew Eaton’s lawyer said the couple went on the show seeking help for their chronic shoplifting problem. On the program, however, they came across as bragging about their exploits and not appearing particularly troubled.

Instead of helping them, producers egged them on to exaggerate their cases, said defense lawyer Leila Morgan. And the only help they got was free copies of McGraw’s books, she said.

The judge also had harsh words for Dr. Phil.

Link via Ace of Spades HQ | Photo: Consumerist

Here at Neatorama, we've previously covered the eerie world of abandoned amusement parks. Joel W. Styer is assembling a comprehensive list of defunct US amusement parks, sorted by state, including pictures and video where available. Pictured above is a roller coaster from Chippewa Lake Park, Ohio, which closed in 1978. Photographer Dave Sandborg writes of his exploration of the park in 1997:

As for the condition of the coaster, it actually didn't look that bad from a distance. Most of the structure seems intact, except for a few missing handrails. The wood seemed in surprisingly good condition, given how long it's been neglected. I'm not a good person to judge how easy it would be to move or reconstruct this coaster, but I could clearly see several major problems. First, the ground near the back end of the coaster is pretty waterlogged. Second, there is one spot where a tree has completely fallen over the track and wrecked it. Third, the undergrowth around the coaster would be a major problem. There were trees growing straight through the brake run tracks. Finally, the cars themselves were in terrible shape.

Link via Hell in a Handbasket | Photo: Dave Sandborg

(YouTube Link)

YouTube user TheJediCharles made a time-lapse video of a young girl losing her baby teeth and growing in her adult teeth over a seven month period. It consists of seventy frames with a photo taken about every three days.

via Urlesque

The South Korean company Primpo has developed an improved cane for the visually impaired. It vibrates with increasing intensity as its sensor approaches an object. It can also detect colors:

Unlike conventional white canes, with which a user can not detect obstacles above waist height, the "Isonic" model can detect obstacles within a range of 25 degrees horizontally and 50 degrees vertically with an integrated supersonic sensor.

The product can also detect obstacles within a distance of 2 meters, as well as very slim objects, narrower than 3cm. With decreasing distance to an object, the cane's vibrating indicator sends a stronger signal to the user, pinpointing the location of the obstacle.

A feature to inform a visually impaired user of an object's color draws special attention. With a color sensor attached, the user is informed by voice messages of 10 detectable colors and their brightness, including red, orange and blue.

Link via OhGizmo! | Photo: Aving.net

Sylvester Jiles violated his probation by trying to break into the Brevard County, Florida jail and has been sentenced to fifteen years in prison:

At the time, he begged jail officials to take him back into custody, saying he feared retaliation from the victim's family. But officials refused his request, advising him to file a police report instead.

Link | Image: FBI

Obesity experts at Cornell University say that depictions of the Last Supper, such as that of Leonardo da Vinci (above), have shown increasingly larger meal portions for the past thousand years:

They found the main courses, bread and plates put before Jesus and his disciples have progressively grown by up to two-thirds.

This, they say, is art imitating life.

Professor Brian Wansink, who, with his brother Craig, led the research, published in the International Journal of Obesity, said: "The last thousand years have witnessed dramatic increases in the production, availability, safety, abundance and affordability of food.

Link | Image: Art Renewal Center

Researchers at Britain's Defence Science and Technology Laboratory are developing machines that can generate electrical fields that could repel projectile attacks:

When a threat from incoming fire is detected by the vehicle, the energy stored in the supercapacitor can be rapidly dumped onto the metal plating on the outside of the vehicle, producing a strong electromagnetic field.

Scientists behind the project claim this would produce a momentary "force field" capable of repelling the incoming rounds and projectiles.

Although it would last for only a fraction of a second, if timed correctly it could prevent rocket propelled grenades, which detonate on impact, from reaching their target. The supercapacitor could then be rapidly recharged ready for another attack.

Link via io9 | Image: Paramount