To celebrate the 30th anniversary of the movie Ghostbusters (and the Blu-ray release), Krispy Kreme will feature two new Ghostbusters doughnuts from September 29 through Halloween. The Ghostbuster and the Stay Puft are both marshmallow-filled doughnuts with Ghostbusters icing decoration.
You can pre-order if you need five dozen or more of them. I hope that’s for sharing at work or at a party. If you really need five dozen marshmallow-filled doughnuts for yourself, shame on you. -via Daily of the Day
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Pop Tarts were introduced to the public 50 years ago. Really. I have a slightly embarrassing confession: I remember that. There was a rivalry between Kellogg’s Pop Tarts and Toast'em Pop Ups, but I found out from Uproxx that neither of these were the first fruit-filled toaster pastry introduced in 1964. Back then, they had no frosting, and no one considered eating them cold. Pop Tarts have an interesting history on their way to being the snack food that everyone makes fun of, but eats anyway. There’s not much fruit in them, and no one considers them health food, but we eat them anyway. We argue about whether to toast them or not, and we argue about which flavors are the best, but we eat them anyway.
The post at Uproxx is titled as a ranking of the best Pop Tart flavors, which no one will totally agree with. Blueberry is best (I’m eating a blueberry store brand toaster pastry as I type this), then cherry, then the rest are awful. But there’s a lot more to learn about Pop Tarts along with the ranking. What’s your favorite Pop Tart flavor?
(Image credit: Allegrorondo)
Yep, that’s about it. Up to a certain point, your biggest job as a parent is to feed your child and keep him or her safe from the worst consequences of their poor decisions. That point is when they leave home as an adult, and even afterward occasionally. And believe me, the most important job you have for your children’s entire lives is teaching them how to make good decisions on their own, since they come pre-wired to make bad ones. This is the latest comic from Doghouse Diaries.
Elliott Morgan hosts this week’s mental_floss video, in which we hear about jobs that no longer exist. Most of them are jobs that you wouldn’t want to do, anyway, done away with by the miracles of electricity, plumbing, and mechanization. There are more occupations joining these every day. I had to explain to my kids why anyone would ever need a “typist.” They also discovered a new occupation when we visited Idaho, because they’d never seen a “cobbler” before. Still, they know of some obsolete jobs, as their grandma spent decades as a "local telephone operator." Her stories of those days never made much sense to the kids, but they are aware of them.
Floridians will vote in November on whether to adopt Amendment 2, which would legalize the use of medical marijuana in the state.
Medical marijuana proponent Steve Berke produced this video promoting the referendum, starring himself and Briley Hale as Danny and Sandy from Grease in a parody of “You’re The One That I Want.” It was recorded at the original fun house used in the movie, which is in Decatur, Texas. You can also watch a side-by-side comparison of the parody with the original. It's practically indistinguishable. -via Buzzfeed
Diatoms are at the bottom of the food chain, and provide sustenance for many sea creatures. If you can see the tiny things, you'll find they come in a amazing variety. At one time, they were used as an art media! Filmmaker Matthew Killip made a documentary about the last remaining master of the art of arranging diatoms.
Diatoms are single cell algae that create jewel-like glass shells around themselves. Microscopists of the Victorian era would arrange them into complex patterns, invisible to the naked eye but spectacular when viewed under magnification.The best of these arrangements are stunning technical feats that reveal the hidden grandeur of some of the smallest organisms on Earth. Klaus Kemp has devoted his entire life to understanding and perfecting diatom arrangement and he is now acknowledged as the last great practitioner of this beautiful combination of art and science.
It’s extremely difficult work, but the complex kaleidoscopic results are stunning. Continue reading to see more of Kemp’s diatom art and the video about him.
Thursday, the citizens of Scotland will vote on whether to leave the United Kingdom and stand on their own as a sovereign nation. There are a lot of issues to consider, and, as of now, the vote is too close to call. One of the less important questions surrounding the referendum is what will happen to the British flag if Scotland secedes. The Union Jack has been a familiar sight all over the world for a couple of hundred years now.
The Union Jack is a combination of some other very historical flags. It started off as St. George's red cross flag in 1270. In 1606, it was combined with the cross saltire of St. Andrew, the Patron Saint of Scotland. That's the white cross on the blue background Lord West is not fond of right now. After that, St. Patrick, the Patron Saint of Ireland, had his cross saltire incorporated into the flag. That's the red diagonal. On the first day of 1801, the Union Jack flag as we know it today was created.
While that is when the flag came to be, it was never actually formally adopted. Chief executive of the Flag Institute Charles Ashburner told The Guardian that the Union Jack "fell into use" and therefore "nobody controls the union flag." He also notes that removing the blue would allow for Wales to be represented in the Union Jack. Wales could also be represented using the flag of their Patron Saint David, a black and yellow cross.
Honestly, Wales has an awesome flag, but incorporating it into the mix may be problematic. The Wire has some possibilities to show you, none of which will please everyone. -via Digg
(Image credit: Flickr user Fr Lawrence Lew, O.P.)
Henry the peacock is displaying his glorious plumage. Putting his fabulous feathers on parade is serious business for a peacock. The last thing he needs is interference from a curious 5-week-old kitten!
Henry: “Scram, kid! Can’t you see I’m trying to impress the ladies? You’re crampin’ my style! Why don’t you go play in the road?”
Kitten: “Oooh, shiny feathers!”
Henry, you're just lucky the entire litter isn't playing with your feathers! -via Daily Picks and Flicks
Neatorama presents a guest post from actor, comedian, and voiceover artist Eddie Deezen. Visit Eddie at his website or at Facebook.
(Image credit: Maegan Tintari)
High heels have been worn by practically every woman in western civilization. Almost every woman stores and stocks several pairs in her closet. They may not be the most comfortable fashion statement, but women love them anyway.
Why? After all, they are clumsy and terribly uncomfortable, they're hard and unhealthy on the ankles, and they often cause the wearer to shake, stumble, wobble, and sometimes fall, often with accompanying injuries.
So, why?
Well, probably the same reason women have worn corsets, bound their feet, yanked off glued-on false eyelashes, and put on and worn a few scores of other painful fashion statements. In other words, to please and attract men! High heels may be terribly uncomfortable and bad for the ankles, but guys love them!!!! (Image credit: Martin Banak)
And women, on behalf of us countless millions of very grateful guys, I thank you- and I assure you, this thanks is very sincere. Nothing, but nothing, in all of a woman's vast and various wardrobe makes a woman look as sexy as when she puts on high heels.
(I realize we live in a politically correct world and the last thing I want to do is offend anyone, hurt anyone's feelings or offer up any sexual "stereotypes.” I think we all are aware and realize that for every man that is magnetically drawn to a woman in high heels, there are just as many women drawn in the same fashion to a guy with a nice car, a flashy suit or a high-status job. I do not think either the men or the women in these two examples are "stereotypes" or are "shallow" as people. Just facts of life, like it or not.)
Okay, thanks from very happy men aside, where did high heels come from? To answer succinctly... men. Ironic, isn't it?
This video of traffic during rush hour will probably make you nervous -if you’re an American. Those who have driven in other countries may see it as an everyday occurrence. Relax, it’s not a documentary. This art video was directed by Fernando Livschitz of Black Sheep Films, but I still don’t know for sure if it’s all editing and CGI, or if he used stunt drivers. Considering the other films by Fernando Livschitz we’ve posted, I’d go with “masterful editing.” -via Buzzfeed
Bryan Cranston talks about his one-man show in which he dramatizes the entire MLB season by himself. How’s he going to do that? You get to see in this video that’s actually an ad for the TBS postseason shows. You’ll have to admit, it’s a dumb idea. It’s so ridiculous, you have to watch it! -via Uproxx
Comics creator and historian Trina Robbins recently published Pretty in Ink: North American Women Cartoonists, 1896-2013, and an art exhibit from Robbins’ collection, inspired by the book, is on display at the Cartoon Art Museum in San Francisco. Robbins tells us about the history of the women who write and illustrate comics, including her own experiences in the 1970s.
The underground comix scene was taking root in San Francisco, in part, because the Print Mint, a publisher in San Francisco and Berkeley, California, that started out making psychedelic rock posters, regularly published these comix, such as their anthology called “Yellow Dog,” which Robbins contributed to, and Robert Crumb’s “Zap Comix.”
“The underground comix movement grew as more and more people said, ‘Oh, yeah, we can do our own comics. They don’t have to be superhero comics. We can do comics about the life we relate to as hippies in the counterculture,’” Robbins says. “And it seemed like the exciting stuff was coming out of San Francisco. Underground cartoonists on the Lower East Side moved to San Francisco, and so did I. But then, when I got to San Francisco in 1970, that was when I discovered that maybe it was the mecca of underground comix for the guys, but not for the girls. To start with, there was only me and one other woman there, Willy Mendes, drawing comics, and we were left out of the scene.
“The guys would call each other up and say, ‘Hi, I’m going to put together a comic. Would you like to contribute?’” she continues. “But nobody ever called me. However, both Willy and I were good enough. Both of us eventually did our own comics with the Print Mint because the male cartoonists wouldn’t put us in their comics.”
The entire post at Collectors Weekly is a fascinating look at the history of comics, and how women have always been a part of it.
The kitten on the right is an example of a new breed called Lykoi. Veterinarian Johnny Gobble breeds Lykois, a name that is derived from “lycanthrope,” or werewolf. The cat is result of a mutant gene that inhibits hair growth, leaving a cat with sparse hair, especially on its face. Although the gene is naturally-occurring, these cats do not last long in the wild. Due to lack of fur, they are suseptible to hypothermia.
According to Gobble, the cats’ infirm appearance is only skin deep. Aside from the patchy hair that makes them notable, the first few generations of Lykoi cats seem rather healthy thus far. Tests conducted by Leslie Lyons, an aptly named expert in cat genetics at the University of Missouri (home of The Tigers), found no recognized genetic disorders in the cats; a battery of tests done by Gobble at his clinic, from blood screenings to thyroid function exams, turned up nothing out of the ordinary. Gobble cautions, though, that giving the breed an entirely clean bill of health right now would be premature. “It’s way too early,” he emphasized. “A lot of health problems won’t show up until a cat is 6 or 7 years old, and we don’t have any Lykois that old yet.”
Cats with the sparse hair gene are bred with black cats to highlight their unusual fur pattern. A cat must carry two copies of the gene to be a true Lykoi, which is why the littermates in the above picture look so different. The black cat on the left carries only one copy of the pertinent gene. Read more about this new cat breed at Nautilus. See more pictures of Lykoi cats at Gobble’s website.
(Image credit: Brittney Gobble)
A woman on a motorcycle rides around in Russia dispensing karma to those who litter the streets. She may not be the superhero Russia deserves, but she is the one it needs. Really, how hard is it to put your garbage in a drive-through bin?
Many folks are calling this staged. So what if it is? It makes a great public service announcement, although Russian commenters have not seen it on TV …yet. I actually hope that it is staged, because this kind of behavior would eventually lead to someone shooting her. And that's a video we don't want to see. -via reddit
THe following is an article from The Annals of Improbable Research.
(Image credit: Flickr user Dave)
by Stephen Hardy, Improbable Research staff
The supposedly staid, unglamorous field of accounting is in fact packed, to some degree, with exciting adventures. Accountants rarely divulge this fact to persons outside the profession, but three monographs, all produced in Australia, document some of the adventure and even some of the excitement.
Great Adventures in Accounting (1967)
In 1967, a paper by Professor R.J. Chambers of the University of Sydney essayed to describe the essentially adventurous nature of the accounting field.
“Prospective Adventures in Accounting Ideas,” R.J. Chambers, Accounting Review, vol. 42, no. 2, April 1967, pp. 241–53. Looking both backwards and forwards, Professor Chambers enthuses ruefully:
These fifty years have seen quite a few potentially fruitful ideas, with wide implications, brought to notice, noticed scarcely at all and almost abandoned.... Some 43 years ago, Hatfield said “Let us boldly raise the question whether accounting, the late claimant for recognition as a profession, is not entitled to some respect, or must it consort with crystal-gazing... and palmreading?” I wonder what Hatfield would think today, to see how far some would have us go in the direction of crystal-gazing. I leave you to think about what I am referring to.
Great Adventures in Accounting (1999)
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