The National Hockey League has a secret weapon they rely on more than anyone realizes: woman figure skaters. A surprising number of former champion figure skaters go on to coach not only other figure skaters, but professional hockey players. It may shock an NHL player to be sent for lessons from a figure skater, but read what happened when ’80s pairs champion Barbara Underhill was asked to help 6’ 7” then-New York Rangers forward Brian Boyle.  

Coming off a disappointing season in New York, Boyle had been sent to Underhill to improve his skating. Skeptical at first, the towering Boyle could barely walk by the time they were done.

"I knew by the end of one session that I got him. He felt something different. He felt like, 'This feels easier,'" Underhill said of Boyle. "I think that was the kicker. He realized, 'Maybe she can teach me something.'"

Shortly after their final session, Boyle called her from Rangers training camp in panic. He was speeding by opponents with far less effort. It felt strange and unnatural.

"That means you're doing it right," Underhill reminded him.

It makes sense, since hockey players normally learn to ice skate as children specifically so they can play hockey, while figure skaters learn technique from professionals. Hockey players grow up concentrating on the game. Coaches know that better skating skills will allow more of their cognitive effort to go to the game. Even the toughest hockey players change their opinions of figure skaters when they see the results, as you can read about at ESPN.

A hundred years ago, few people thought about their bodies and bodily functions with the horror we do today. There was no real concept of germs, body odor, or bad breath. But the world was changing. More people had indoor plumbing and a little free time for anxiety every year. And manufacturers were developing products to sell. However, in order to sell those products, they had to create a need. That’s where advertising came in. First, you have to convince people that they need your product, even if you have to insult them to do so. Take Listerine: it was originally sold to doctors as a surgical disinfectant. Lambert Pharmacal wanted to broaden Listerine’s sales base, but why would regular folks need to buy a surgical disinfectant? Company owner Gerard Lambert tells about a 1914 brainstorming session: 

    I asked him if Listerine was good for bad breath. He excused himself for a moment and came back with a big book of newspaper clippings. He sat in a chair and I stood looking over his shoulder. He thumbed through the immense book.

    "Here it is, Gerard. It says in this clipping from the British Lancet that in cases of halitosis . . ." I interrupted, "What is halitosis?" "Oh," he said, "that is the medical term for bad breath."

    [The chemist] never knew what had hit him. I bustled the poor old fellow out of the room. "There," I said," is something to hang our hat on."

Halitosis was a malady the American public had never heard of, but it was terrifying enough to make mouthwash a thing. The same happened for other personal hygiene products, which you can read about at Gizmodo. -via Digg

NASA Expedition 45 will begin in September, although two of the crew members will be aboard the ISS in March to begin a year-long stay at the space station. Like most other missions, this one has a poster featuring all crew members, with a definite Star Wars theme. A pretty good effort, but it’s hard to beat last year’s Expedition 42 poster. See more NASA mission posters here.

Expedition 45 is led by Commander Scott Kelly, who is a twin. His brother Mark Kelly is a retired astronaut participating in a study of how space affects the body by comparing the twins’ physical changes over Scott Kelly’s year at the ISS. -via Gizmodo

The following is an article from Uncle John’s All-Purpose Extra Strength Bathroom Reader.

Today is Friday the 13th.  In the course of researching the fear of the number 13, the BRI crew stumbled across this story that is widely regarded as the origin of that superstition- this Norse tale of the death of the god Baldur, who symbolized beauty and good in the world. What’s the connection? The murderer, Loki, was the 13th guest at a dinner honoring Baldur’s memory. The idea that #13 symbolized evil took hold in the Norse culture, and spread to the rest of Europe. Here’s the tale, from Myths & Legends of the Ages.

Baldur was the son of Frigga, the Queen of the Norse gods. Baldur was the most beautiful of the gods, and he was also gentle, fair, and wise. Wherever he went, people were happy at just the sight of him.He was not only the favorite of his mother, but the favorite of all the other gods.

One night, Baldur dreamed three dreams. Each dream was more terrible than the one before it. In the third dream, he found himself in a dark, lonely place. He heard a sad voice cry, “The sun is gone! The spring is gone! Joy is gone! For Baldur, the beautiful, is dead!”

The young god was very much upset. He told his lovely young wife, Nanna, about these sad and terrifying dreams. Nanna ran weeping to Queen Frigga, saying, “Oh mother, this must not come true!”

Queen Frigga was deeply frightened. But she spoke soothingly and said, “Do not fear, Nanna. Baldur is so dear to all the world, how could anything in the world want to hurt him?”

But Queen Frigga was frightened. She thought of a plan. “I will travel all over the heavens and all over the world,” she said. “I will make all things promise not to hurt my boy.”

First, she went to the gods themselves. She told them of Baldur’s dreams. She implored them to promise that none of them would ever hurt Baldur. They all promised gladly.

Then Frigga traveled all over the world step by step. From all things, she got the same promise. From the trees and the plants; from the stones and the metals; from earth, air, fire, and water; from sun, snow, wind, and rain; and from all the diseases that men know -every creature and every thing promised not to harm Baldur.

At last, the weary but joyful Queen returned to Asgard, home of the gods. Frigga brought the happy news: there was nothing in the world that would hurt Baldur. And there was great rejoicing in Asgard. All the gods felt relieved. When someone suggested they play a game which would prove how wrong the dream was, everyone agreed.

We’ve seen the fun to be had with the movie 50 Shades of Grey in the parody trailer Fifty Shades Of Steve Buscemi. The book that the movie is based on is renowned for its atrocious prose. The graphic designers at Beutler Ink took such delight in E.L. James’ descriptive phrases that they enshrined them in art.

As you’ll see, the pen is often a blunt instrument in the hands of E.L. James. But the pain of a terrible metaphor only amplifies the pleasure we take from her naughty prose. Feel free to share these with your special someone this Valentine’s Day. (But only if they use a safe word.)

These lines really appear in the book? You have to wonder how they designated one person to read the novel for the sake of art. Did they draw straws?

Who’s your favorite “space cowboy”? Buzz Aldrin? Well, maybe, but this list deals with fictional characters from movies and TV. Before you try to envision your favorite, here’s the definition used:

It basically means any character from sci-fi (in this case, TV and movies) who flew around in space, but was also pretty much a cowboy. Same ideals and similar aesthetic (albeit a bit sci fi’d out). He is calm, cool, collected, and is generally not one to be trifled with. Often they are usually bounty hunters, but can come in any many shapes and sizes. The fact is, the space cowboy is everywhere, but there are no lists about them (until now, that is). Though there have been many in science fiction, here are five space cowboys are are pretty much the coolest dudes in all the cosmos.

Geeks Are Sexy justifies their picks for the top five space cowboys in pop culture. You may agree or diagree, and there may be a couple you haven’t seen, so there’s a new movie or two in your “must see” list.

Brian wanted a very special gift for his girlfriend Manini for Valentines Day. They are both Disney movie fans, so he commissioned artist Dylan Bonner to put both he and Manini into Disney movie scenes. The first reaction at reddit was that the artist must have over-Disneyfied them, but Brian included pictures in the imgur gallery that showed they are already indeed very attractive people. Now, if we can only keep these pictures secret until Brian can present Manini with the prints tonight…  

See more of Bonner’s work at his DevantART page.

(YouTube link)

Love is in the air, as Simon’s Cat has discovered a pretty girl cat in the window. Now he’s got a case of the butterflies! What can he offer to impress her? This cartoon is the latest from animator Simon Tofield, who has a whole clowder of cats for inspiration. Tofield also offers a Valentines Day greeting to go along with the cartoon. -via Tastefully Offensive

(YouTube link)

This heron appears to be surfing the lake, or maybe doing a type of glide dance step that only wading birds understand. His secret is revealed as you watch the video from Kruger National Park in South Africa, but you’ll need to turn off the ad as soon as it pops up in order to see it. -via Daily Picks and Flicks 

The title of this post refers to the Johnny Cash song, but it’s what Boris Karavkin actually did. Karavkin is a retired artist in Minsk, Belarus, which was part of the USSR. The wait to buy a new car in the Soviet Union was ten years or so back in the ‘60s, and he couldn’t have afforded one anyway, so Karavkin took matters into his own hands and built his automobile- which he still drives!

When assembling the car, Karavkin used sliding doors, a swivel chair for the driver’s seat and anti-theft nuts for hubcaps (the latter have always been popular with car thieves, the world over).

In 40 years, parts of the car have been replaced several times: the engine has been changed three times, the suspension and the air intake system were improved. But the ‘Fantasy’ has now travelled 300,000 km, and Karakvin says it has a maximum speed of 140 km/h.

Karavkin traded sign and poster work for car parts to assemble the vehicle, which took five years and was completed in 1973. Read the story of the homemade car at The Guardian. -via Metafilter

(Screenshot from TUTBYtv at YouTube)

Once again, the guys at Doghouse Diaries nail it. Ask anyone who’s experienced anything else on this spectrum and has watched modern children’s TV shows. In my real world experience, they’re talking about Teletubbies. There’s also Boohbah, Spongebob Squarepants, Barney, and Yo Gabba Gabba. But it’s been that way for decades. You may have grown up with Gumby and Pokey, H.R. Pufnstuf, or Pee-Wee’s Playhouse, which no doubt were just as incomprehensible to your parents.  

(YouTube link)

If you haven’t seen the new Andriod Ad called “Friends Furever” on TV, you’ve seen it here at Netaorama. A new parody turns the sweet friendships between different animal species on its ear, showing critters being awful to each other. You’ve seen some of these clips before, but each and every one is worth another look. -via Tastefully Offensive

Learning a lesson from the venereal disease epidemic among military personnel in Word War I, the U.S. government wanted to take no chances in World War II. They enlisted artists, designers, and advertising professionals to create a variety of public health posters about VD. Ryan Mungia published a collection of those posters in the book Protect Yourself: Venereal Disease Posters of World War II. He talked to Collectors Weekly about the campaign against VD. You’ll also find a gallery of the posters, which are quite artful in spite of their depressing subject matter.

(Image credit: courtesy Ryan Mungia from Protect Yourself)

Radioactive junkyards remain dangerous for millennia. So how do you keep future generations of urban explorers and dumpster divers away from all that toxic trash? With a sign, of course!

Ray Cats, Artificial Moons and the Atomic Priesthood: How the Government Plans to Protect… http://t.co/yxbT2UjwRa pic.twitter.com/vSthpGFD4F

— neatorama (@neatorama) February 12, 2015

New Mexico’s Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) may be the trashiest place on Earth. Buried deep in the Chihuahuan Desert, the plant contains nearly 2 million cubic feet of radioactive sludge and debris leftover from various nuclear weapons and defense projects. But don’t mistake the WIPP for a simple pit in the ground. Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy spent nearly 20 years carefully planning the safest way to throw out the country’s nuclear trash before committing to the site.

Today, the plant resides inside a 250 million-year-old salt deposit that’s positioned half a mile underground. And there’s good reason for that. Scientists chose the location because of its ability to prevent radiation from contaminating groundwater and seeping out to the surface. Because salt deposits tend to slowly collapse on themselves over time, scientists are banking on the idea that the structure will naturally seal in the nuclear waste, safely entombing the site deep underground.

Under the WIPP’s current charter, the site will continue to receive radioactive garbage from the country’s nuclear weapons and energy programs until about 2070—at which point it will be sealed up and never opened again. At least, that’s the plan. The WIPP still has one major problem, though. Radioactive waste remains dangerous to humans for at least 10,000 years. So, how do we tell people living in the far distant future to stay out of our trash? The government’s solution: some good, old-fashioned warning signs.

What’s worse than a polar bear with a toothache? I don’t know, since it’s not a joke. It’s the story of Boris, a polar bear at the Point Defiance Zoo and Aquarium in Tacoma, Washington. Boris is 29 years old, twice the average lifespan of a polar bear in the wild. He came to the zoo after he was rescued from a traveling circus. But his dental problems caught up with him, and a team of courageous veterinarians and assistants performed surgery on Boris to remove three rotten teeth. Sure, the bear was anesthetized, you’d still have to wonder every second how well that was working. -via Fark   

(Image credit: Point Defiance Zoo and Aquarium)