Miss Cellania's Blog Posts
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Dan Bull remixed video of the movie The King's Speech with his own song about how rap is good therapy for stammering -and a few samples you'll recognize. -via mental_floss
You'll be forgiven if you first read that as "The Eye of Sauron." Astronauts were the first to notice this 50-kilometer wide geological formation in Mauritania, in the middle of the Sahara Desert. Read about it and other wonders of nature in the post 13 Most Incredible Geological Wonders on Earth at Environmental Graffiti. Link
After mayor Dave Bing nixed the idea of a Robocop statue in Detroit, interest in the potential project grew immediately. A website was launched. A Facebook group sprang up, and a Kickstarter project welcomed donations. The Imagination Station in Detroit offered a place on its property at Roosevelt Park to put the statue. And now, the project has exceeded its goal of $50,000!
Jeff Paffendorf is one of the leaders of the statue project. Link
Bing's office is still not convinced, but a spokeswoman said the city is studying how it could accept and display a gift RoboCop statue.
"We know there are a lot of people that care deeply about the issue, and we respect that," said Karen Dumas of Bing's office. "But I'm still not sure that RoboCop is the best message for the city of Detroit."
Paffendorf said the RoboCop statue could go somewhere downtown if the city approves, perhaps near the landmark fist statue honoring legendary boxer Joe Louis.
Jeff Paffendorf is one of the leaders of the statue project. Link
The Westminster Dog Show was held this week at Madison Square Garden. The event drew over 2,500 dogs representing 179 breeds. The judges were impressed with outstanding breeding and grooming, while I am impressed with these dogs' patience and behavior! The Big Picture blog has lots more photographs for your enjoyment. Link -via The Daily What
(Image credit: Mike Segar/Reuters)
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I knew I had seen this in The Museum of Possibilities. It's a combination jacket, sleeping bag, and tent. All in one. Yes, you can buy this. http://jakpak.com/home.aspx -via the Presurfer
A computer from the mid-20th century would fill an entire room -a big room, at that! IBM introduced the 305 RAMAC system in 1956, the first computer to use a hard drive. What you see here is that hard drive, which weighed a ton and held a whopping 5 megabytes of memory storage. It was named the 350 Disk Storage Unit. At the time, you could lease the entire computer setup for a mere $3,200 a month! Link -via Bits and Pieces
Like most trust-fund party boys, astronomer Tycho Brahe came fully outfitted with a less-than-endearing arrogant side. Of course, that's not to say his hubris was totally misplaced. As a child, it didn't take Tycho very long to realize that he possessed not only a lot more mental power than most of his peers, but also a lot more money. His genius came naturally, of course, but his privileged upbringing was a bit more contrived ... to say the least.
While the Danish astronomer may be remembered as one of science's biggest celebrities, Tycho's parents were a few stars short of a Big Dipper. In a grand act of misplaced kindness, Mom and Pop Brahe, Beate and Otte, took pity on Otte's childless brother, Jorgen, by promising him their first-born son. And though they changed their minds when baby Tycho came along on December 14, 1546, Jorgen kept his end of the bargain. He bided his time until Beate gave birth to a second son, then kidnapped young Tycho. Naturally, the youngster's parents were outraged -that is, until they remembered that Jorgen was filthy rich and their erstwhile son would inherit his fortune. So, in yet another display of questionable decision-making, Tycho's parents let Jorgen keep the boy.
This strange transaction gave Tycho an enormous edge. Not only did he grow up in a setting of great wealth, but he also had access to fantastic educational opportunities. At the urging of his uncle (er, father), Tycho studied law at the University of Copenhagen beginning at the age of 13, but his interest quickly waned. Instead of pursuing a legal career, Brahe became convinced he could predict planetary motions better than anyone had during the previous two millennia. He was, of course, correct.
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While the Danish astronomer may be remembered as one of science's biggest celebrities, Tycho's parents were a few stars short of a Big Dipper. In a grand act of misplaced kindness, Mom and Pop Brahe, Beate and Otte, took pity on Otte's childless brother, Jorgen, by promising him their first-born son. And though they changed their minds when baby Tycho came along on December 14, 1546, Jorgen kept his end of the bargain. He bided his time until Beate gave birth to a second son, then kidnapped young Tycho. Naturally, the youngster's parents were outraged -that is, until they remembered that Jorgen was filthy rich and their erstwhile son would inherit his fortune. So, in yet another display of questionable decision-making, Tycho's parents let Jorgen keep the boy.
This strange transaction gave Tycho an enormous edge. Not only did he grow up in a setting of great wealth, but he also had access to fantastic educational opportunities. At the urging of his uncle (er, father), Tycho studied law at the University of Copenhagen beginning at the age of 13, but his interest quickly waned. Instead of pursuing a legal career, Brahe became convinced he could predict planetary motions better than anyone had during the previous two millennia. He was, of course, correct.
You've probably seen kits that will carbonate your drinks at home. Did you know you can do the same thing with fruit? Fizzy fruit? Rich Faulhaber made a machine to do it, and says the kids love fizzy grapes, oranges, and blueberries. He shows you how you can do it yourself at Evil Mad Scientist Laboratories. Link
If someone handed you a camera that would record at 2,564 frames a second, you'd probably stay up all night and play with it, like videographer Tom Guilmette did.
He was in Las Vegas to shoot a ping pong tournament, in which a high-speed camera is necessary. See the video and read all about the experience at Guilmette's site. Link -via Cynical-C
Violating the laws of nature. Playing God. Capturing stuff we are not suppose to see. Potentially opening up a wormhole in the fabric of time.
These are a few of the things I think about while shooting with a Phantom High Speed Digital Cinema camera. The above video is a bunch of test footage I shot to get familiar with the new “Flex” version. I shot inside my Las Vegas Palms Casino hotel room between the hours of 2am and 6am.
He was in Las Vegas to shoot a ping pong tournament, in which a high-speed camera is necessary. See the video and read all about the experience at Guilmette's site. Link -via Cynical-C
Lucas Jatobá spent three years living in Barcelona and had the time of his life. Now the Brazilian is moving to Sydney, Australia, and he wanted to do something nice to say goodbye to Barcelona. A Spanish travel website helped him with 250 theater tickets, which he attached to balloons and released over the city. The song is "Change the World" by Canadian singer Jessica Allossery. -Thanks, Lucas!
Since so many people now carry phones, the public phone booth is going the way of the dinosaurs. What to do with all those old, outdated booths? Check out these ten ideas for new uses, including the phone booth shown that was turned into a handy public shower for use after swimming in the waters off the Virgin Islands. Link -Thanks, Ritu!
(Image credit: Flicker user anoldent)
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A Dutch art duo by the name of Mr. Beam created a white room to project colors, patterns, and textures upon. Two projectors produce the changes in the walls, carpet, and furniture. Link -via reddit
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