These photographs of rocks that look like faces are pretty weird, but the last one is just amazing! Link -via Dump Trumpet
Miss Cellania's Blog Posts
Matt Bailey uses Star Trek to teach analytics. In this example, he tackles the “red shirt†phenomenon. Part of his data:
* Yellow-shirt crewperson deaths: 6 (10%)
* Blue-Shirt crewperson deaths: 5 (8 %)
* Engineering smock crewperson deaths: 4
* Red-Shirt crewperson deaths: 43 (73%)
So, the basic segmentation of factors allows us to confirm that red-shirted crewmembers died more than any other crewmembers on the original Star Trek series.
He then goes into an in-depth analysis, with the conclusion that red shirts are more likely to survive when Captain Kirk finds a love interest. Link -via Metafilter
The results of San Jose State University's 2007 Bulwer-Lytton Fiction Contest are in. Jim Gleason of Wisconsin beat out thousands of entrants for the honor of having written the worst opening sentence for a novel. Here’s his entry:
The runners-up and the winners in various subcategories are also amazingly convoluted. The contest has been held every year since 1982, and was named in honor of notoriously bad writer Edward George Bulwer-Lytton. Link
Gerald began--but was interrupted by a piercing whistle which cost him ten percent of his hearing permanently, as it did everyone else in a ten-mile radius of the eruption, not that it mattered much because for them "permanently" meant the next ten minutes or so until buried by searing lava or suffocated by choking ash--to pee.
The runners-up and the winners in various subcategories are also amazingly convoluted. The contest has been held every year since 1982, and was named in honor of notoriously bad writer Edward George Bulwer-Lytton. Link
Rapunzel’s Delight has resources and advice for those with or trying to achieve long hair. But the image galleries are the real treasure! Link -via Ursi’s Blog
37-year-old Jamie Andrew will attempt a one-man triathlon this weekend to benefit his new charity 500 Miles, which seeks to provide services for amputees worldwide. Based on the Iron Man Triathlon, he calls it the Titanium Man Triathlon, after the material in his prosthetic legs. Andrew is a quadruple amputee. He will swim 2.4 miles (without artificial limbs), cycle 112 miles, and run 26.2 miles. Push play or go to Live Leak.
Link to story. -via Arbroath
Krystyna Zbyszynska became the oldest skydiver in Poland over the weekend when she made her first jump. Reuters reports she is 84 years old; Polish news reports identify her as being 82. Either way, it’s an impressive feat. But Zbyszynska is no ordinary octagenarian.
Zbyszynska says she will jump again when she turns 100. Link -via Fark
"I survived World War Two and wasn't afraid, so what's there to be afraid of now?" she said after clambering out of her jumpsuit this weekend.
Zbyszynska says she will jump again when she turns 100. Link -via Fark
Guest blogger Joshua Hill has posted an article about bridges at Dark Roasted Blend. It’s not a list of world records or new designs, but several bridges that have interesting stories, such as the Gateshead Millennium Bridge in England. Link
From Wikipedia:
Laminar flow, sometimes known as streamline flow, occurs when a fluid flows in parallel layers, with no disruption between the layers. In fluid dynamics, laminar flow is a flow regime characterized by high momentum diffusion, low momentum convection, pressure and velocity independent from time. It is the opposite of turbulent flow. In nonscientific terms laminar flow is "smooth," while turbulent flow is "rough."
This is a fluid motion demonstration by the Physics Department at the University of New Mexico. Comments at both YouTube and Videosift noted that the physicist had trouble counting five turns, but the brightest scientists I know have trouble matching their socks. Push play or go to You Tube. -via Videosift
An artificial toe found on an Egyptian mummy may be the oldest working prosthesis in existence. The leather and wood toe dates from between 1069 and 664 BC, and shows wear, meaning it was used during the person’s lifetime. Researchers will test a reproduction of the toe on volunteers who are missing their right big toe to see if it helps them walk. An earlier toe is believed to be merely cosmetic, since it doesn’t bend. Link -via Arbroath
The Daily Mail had a feature story with nice photos of lions and their cubs. This one seemed awfully familiar. Link
John Feigenbaum traveled across country to deliver one coin to an investor.
That’s because the coin was a rare 1894-S dime. Only 24 were minted, and only nine are known to still exist. The investor in New York paid $1.9 million for the coin. Rare coin dealer Feigenbaum had to guard the coin on the trip, without looking suspicious to either Homeland Security or anyone who might want to pilfer the treasure. And he had to make sure not to spend it. http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/07/27/DIME.TMP -via Reddit
"All the way across the country I didn't sleep,'' Feigenbaum said. "I didn't eat and I didn't sleep. You wouldn't, either.''
That’s because the coin was a rare 1894-S dime. Only 24 were minted, and only nine are known to still exist. The investor in New York paid $1.9 million for the coin. Rare coin dealer Feigenbaum had to guard the coin on the trip, without looking suspicious to either Homeland Security or anyone who might want to pilfer the treasure. And he had to make sure not to spend it. http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/07/27/DIME.TMP -via Reddit
Jumping spiders use their legs to communicate courtship interests to potential mates. The miniscule impacts of spider legs tapping against the ground surface are detected by nearby spiders. This "drumming" cadence signals the spider's reproductive interests. The female detects the low frequency vibrations through her legs. She responds by allowing the male to mount her.
He’s got the moves, alright. Push play or go to Videosift. More jumping spider courtship dance videos here. -via Cynical-C
The SkyScout is a revolutionary handheld device that uses advanced GPS technology with point and click convenience to identify thousands of stars, planets, constellations and more.
Simply point the SkyScout at any star in the sky and click the target button. The SkyScout will tell you what object you are looking at.
This would have made passing that astronomy final a whole lot simpler. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000CNPAAA/104-9631934-7737552?ie=UTF8&tag=geeka07-20&linkCode=xm2&camp=1789&creativeASIN=B000CNPAAA -via Geek Alerts
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