(YouTube link)
This eagle owl is coming in for a landing. The film was shot at 1000 frames per second, so you don't miss a muscle movement. What you do think would be the proper musical accompaniment for this? -via Buzzfeed
Miss Cellania's Blog Posts
Business Cat is an image meme in which a cat holds a desk job. Most of what you see around the 'net are pithy statements mixing business and cat culture. But here's a post that takes you through the entire day of a house cat that holds down a nine-to-five job, although he often works late. After all, he is the Executive Vice Purrsident in Charge of Sales and Quality Control for New Yarn-Based Products. Link
Oops! It's a first -an accident caused by a Google driverless Prius. It apparently drove into another Prius near Google's headquarters in Mountain View, California. Updates say that the wreck involved three Priuses and two Honda Accords! The question is: who gets the ticket? Link -via The Daily What
Journalism students at Florida Atlantic University recently constructed their final summer issue of the student newspaper. It was a very special and different issue, as they avoided all their digital equipment and did it the old-fashioned way: with typewriters, paste-up editing, and cameras with film- which they had to develop themselves.
The typing turned out to be easier than editing and designing each page. But the issue was finished! Link to part one. Link to part two. -via Laughing Squid
Managing editor Mariam Aldhahi was stymied after typing her first line. “What do I do now?” she asked. “There’s no RETURN key.”
I pointed to the lever that would propel the carriage back to the left, while the gears inside would simultaneously ratchet the paper to the next line.
She tapped it lightly.
“No, this is a manual typewriter,” I told her. “You actually have to expend some calories.”
I slammed the lever to the right, and the carriage flew back to the left margin, stopping with a thud. A look of understanding, laced with horror, crossed her face.
“It’s going to be like this the entire time, isn’t it?”
“Not at all,” I said. “It gets worse.”
The typing turned out to be easier than editing and designing each page. But the issue was finished! Link to part one. Link to part two. -via Laughing Squid
The following is an article from Uncle John's Giant 10th Anniversary Bathroom Reader.
The media's power to "create" news has become a hot topic in recent years. But it's nothing new. This true story, from a book called The Fabulous Rogues, by Alexander Klein, is an example of what's been going on for at least a century. It was sent to us by BRI reader Jim Morton.
Most journalistic hoaxes, no matter how ingenious, create only temporary excitement. But in 1899 four reporters in Denver, Colorado, concocted a fake story that, within a relatively short time, made news history -violent history at that. Here's how it happened.
THE DENVER FOUR
One Saturday night the four reporters -from Denver's four newspaper, the Times, Post, Republican, and Rocky Mountain News- met by chance in the railroad station where they had each come hoping to spot an arriving celebrity around whom they could write a feature. Disgustedly, they confessed to one another that they hadn't picked up a newsworthy item all evening.
"I hate to go back to the city desk without something," one of the reporters, Jack Toumay, said.
"Me, too," agreed Al Stevens. "I don't know what you guys are going to do, but I'm going to fake. It won't hurt anybody, so what the devil."
They other three fell in with the idea and they all walked up Seventeenth Street to the Oxford Hotel, where, over beers, they began to cast about for four possible fabrications. John Lewis, who was known as "King" because of his tall, dignified bearing, interrupted one of the preliminary gambits for a point of strategy. Why dream up four lukewarm fakes, he asked. Why not concoct a sizzler which they would all use, and make it stick better by their solidarity.
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The media's power to "create" news has become a hot topic in recent years. But it's nothing new. This true story, from a book called The Fabulous Rogues, by Alexander Klein, is an example of what's been going on for at least a century. It was sent to us by BRI reader Jim Morton.
Most journalistic hoaxes, no matter how ingenious, create only temporary excitement. But in 1899 four reporters in Denver, Colorado, concocted a fake story that, within a relatively short time, made news history -violent history at that. Here's how it happened.
THE DENVER FOUR
One Saturday night the four reporters -from Denver's four newspaper, the Times, Post, Republican, and Rocky Mountain News- met by chance in the railroad station where they had each come hoping to spot an arriving celebrity around whom they could write a feature. Disgustedly, they confessed to one another that they hadn't picked up a newsworthy item all evening.
"I hate to go back to the city desk without something," one of the reporters, Jack Toumay, said.
"Me, too," agreed Al Stevens. "I don't know what you guys are going to do, but I'm going to fake. It won't hurt anybody, so what the devil."
They other three fell in with the idea and they all walked up Seventeenth Street to the Oxford Hotel, where, over beers, they began to cast about for four possible fabrications. John Lewis, who was known as "King" because of his tall, dignified bearing, interrupted one of the preliminary gambits for a point of strategy. Why dream up four lukewarm fakes, he asked. Why not concoct a sizzler which they would all use, and make it stick better by their solidarity.
Why see the film when you can read the article?
by Robert E. Pyatt Ph.D.
Assistant Laboratory Director
Nationwide Children’s Hospital
Columbus, Ohio
This is a comparison of classic films and science articles that share the same name.
The movie facts come from the Internet Movie Database. Information about the science articles comes from the U.S. National Library of Medicine’s PubMed database.
The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly (1966)
Starring Clint Eastwood, Eli Wallach, and Lee Van Cleef. Directed by Sergio Leone.
Spaghetti Western set against the backdrop of the Civil War where 3 men, the good (Eastwood), the bad (Van Cleef), and the ugly (Wallach), race to uncover a hidden stash of Confederate gold.
“The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly (with Apologies to Sergio Leone)”
M.V. Connelly, Facial Plastic Surgery Clinics of North America, vol. 16, no. 2, May 2008 pp. 179–82.
Tales of a plastic surgery practice set in a small city including the good (well informed patients who follow all pre and post-op instructions and are “thoroughly pleased with the postoperative results”), the bad (patients who “bring you grief and perhaps damage your reputation”), and the ugly (“disparaging remarks from another surgeon in your area”).
A Night at the Opera (1935)
Starring the Marx Brothers and Kitty Carlisle. Directed by Sam Wood.
The Marx Brothers take on high society as the boys help two opera singers find fame and true love.
“A Night at the Opera”
[no author listed] Mental Health Today,October 2005, pp. 10-1. Touching and comedic tale of “Streetwise Opera,” a company which designs, stages, and performs operas with a combination of professional performers and homeless people.
Saturday Night Fever (1977)
Starring John Travolta and Karen Lynn Gorney. Directed by John Badham.
“The tribal rites of the new Saturday night.” Two New Yorkers, Tony (Travolta) and Stephanie (Gorney), discover passion, maturity, and themselves as they disco dance across Manhattan.
“Saturday Night Fever: A Common Source Outbreak of Rubella Among Adults in Hawaii”
J.S. Marks, M.K. Serdula, N.A. Halsey, M.V. Gunaratne, R.B. Craven, K.A. Murphy, G.Y. Kobayashi and N.H. Wiebenga, American Journal of Epidemiology, vol. 114,
no. 4, October 1981, pp. 574–83.
It’s a whole other kind of fever on this Saturday night as a rubella outbreak infects young adults, with the common place of exposure being a discotheque. Evidence suggests that the virus source was a piano player/singer at the club and that transmission was airborne, rather than person to person, and occurred during his singing.
Visit their website for more research that makes people LAUGH and then THINK.
by Robert E. Pyatt Ph.D.
Assistant Laboratory Director
Nationwide Children’s Hospital
Columbus, Ohio
This is a comparison of classic films and science articles that share the same name.
The movie facts come from the Internet Movie Database. Information about the science articles comes from the U.S. National Library of Medicine’s PubMed database.
The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly (1966)
Starring Clint Eastwood, Eli Wallach, and Lee Van Cleef. Directed by Sergio Leone.
Spaghetti Western set against the backdrop of the Civil War where 3 men, the good (Eastwood), the bad (Van Cleef), and the ugly (Wallach), race to uncover a hidden stash of Confederate gold.
“The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly (with Apologies to Sergio Leone)”
M.V. Connelly, Facial Plastic Surgery Clinics of North America, vol. 16, no. 2, May 2008 pp. 179–82.
Tales of a plastic surgery practice set in a small city including the good (well informed patients who follow all pre and post-op instructions and are “thoroughly pleased with the postoperative results”), the bad (patients who “bring you grief and perhaps damage your reputation”), and the ugly (“disparaging remarks from another surgeon in your area”).
A Night at the Opera
A Night at the Opera (1935)
Starring the Marx Brothers and Kitty Carlisle. Directed by Sam Wood.
The Marx Brothers take on high society as the boys help two opera singers find fame and true love.
“A Night at the Opera”
[no author listed] Mental Health Today,October 2005, pp. 10-1. Touching and comedic tale of “Streetwise Opera,” a company which designs, stages, and performs operas with a combination of professional performers and homeless people.
Bambi Meets Godzilla
(YouTube link)
Bambi Meets Godzilla (1969)
Written and directed by Marv Newland.
Animated short featuring the first silver screen pairing of two of Hollywood’s most memorable creatures with the expected tragic consequences.
“Psychotherapy Research Evidence and Reimbursement Decisions: Bambi Meets Godzilla”
M.B. Parloff, American Journal of Psychiatry, vol. 139, no. 6, June 1986, pp.718–27.
Like a tender doe standing in a sunny forest glen, “policy guiding reimbursement issues for mental health care” faces off against the gargantuan “research evidence of psychotherapy outcome”. Eerily similar ending to its big screen counterpart.
Saturday Night Fever
Saturday Night Fever (1977)
Starring John Travolta and Karen Lynn Gorney. Directed by John Badham.
“The tribal rites of the new Saturday night.” Two New Yorkers, Tony (Travolta) and Stephanie (Gorney), discover passion, maturity, and themselves as they disco dance across Manhattan.
“Saturday Night Fever: A Common Source Outbreak of Rubella Among Adults in Hawaii”
J.S. Marks, M.K. Serdula, N.A. Halsey, M.V. Gunaratne, R.B. Craven, K.A. Murphy, G.Y. Kobayashi and N.H. Wiebenga, American Journal of Epidemiology, vol. 114,
no. 4, October 1981, pp. 574–83.
It’s a whole other kind of fever on this Saturday night as a rubella outbreak infects young adults, with the common place of exposure being a discotheque. Evidence suggests that the virus source was a piano player/singer at the club and that transmission was airborne, rather than person to person, and occurred during his singing.
_____________________
The article above is from the September-October 2008 issue of the Annals of Improbable Research. You can download or purchase back issues of the magazine, or subscribe to receive future issues. Or get a subscription for someone as a gift!Visit their website for more research that makes people LAUGH and then THINK.
Today is the 100th anniversary of the birth of Lucille Ball. Although Lucy died in 1989, she remains on TV 60 years after the debut of her series I Love Lucy. Why, Lucy pretty much invented the concept of syndicated reruns! Jill Harness explains how in the fascinating article What Do I Love Lucy & Star Trek Have In Common?
We featured a couple of projects from our readers this week. Vlogger Lindsay Boo Barrasse sent us pictures of her Princess Leia Costume Made of Duct Tape, and Nick McBride sent picture of his team's Mac Box Furniture.
Eddie Deezen contributed some historical speculation in Who Was the Real "Georgie Porgie"?
We learned The Poop on Dog Breeding from Uncle John's Bathroom Reader.
“What, Not How”: The Case of Specifications of the New York Bagel came to us from the Annals of Improbable Research.
Mental_floss magazine gave us 5 Foods People Die For.
At NeatoBambino, we had posts about back-to-school items, children's fashions, Comic-Con, the Tooth Fairy, and how to write a secret message on your child's lunch.
We launched another movie giveaway this week: The Transformers Treasure Hunt in collaboration with The Daily What Geek. Congratulations to the winners: terrrtle who got the Canned Unicorn Meat, weelau who got the Wolf Hat, sharbott who got the Sharp Act Knife Sharpener, and Izzalily7 who got the grand prize of the Ultimate Optimus Prime!
In this week's What Is It? game, the item in question is a tool that was used to make cavities in bullet molds during the Civil War, sometimes called a bullet mold cherry. Electronix and Winslow both knew the answer. One was a little earlier; the other was more specific, so we are giving t-shirts to both of them! The funniest answer came from rob, who said,"It happens to be part of an ancient game. Originally called Paleolithic Roulette, it's played much like today's version of Russian Roulette. It is spinned (like a dreidel) and whoever it lands on gets the pointed side rammed into their temporal lobe." For that, he also wins a t-shirt!
Want more? Be sure to check our Facebook page every day for extra content, contests, discussions, videos, and links you won't find here. Also, our Twitter feed will keep you updated on what's going around the web in real time.
We featured a couple of projects from our readers this week. Vlogger Lindsay Boo Barrasse sent us pictures of her Princess Leia Costume Made of Duct Tape, and Nick McBride sent picture of his team's Mac Box Furniture.
Eddie Deezen contributed some historical speculation in Who Was the Real "Georgie Porgie"?
We learned The Poop on Dog Breeding from Uncle John's Bathroom Reader.
“What, Not How”: The Case of Specifications of the New York Bagel came to us from the Annals of Improbable Research.
Mental_floss magazine gave us 5 Foods People Die For.
At NeatoBambino, we had posts about back-to-school items, children's fashions, Comic-Con, the Tooth Fairy, and how to write a secret message on your child's lunch.
We launched another movie giveaway this week: The Transformers Treasure Hunt in collaboration with The Daily What Geek. Congratulations to the winners: terrrtle who got the Canned Unicorn Meat, weelau who got the Wolf Hat, sharbott who got the Sharp Act Knife Sharpener, and Izzalily7 who got the grand prize of the Ultimate Optimus Prime!
In this week's What Is It? game, the item in question is a tool that was used to make cavities in bullet molds during the Civil War, sometimes called a bullet mold cherry. Electronix and Winslow both knew the answer. One was a little earlier; the other was more specific, so we are giving t-shirts to both of them! The funniest answer came from rob, who said,"It happens to be part of an ancient game. Originally called Paleolithic Roulette, it's played much like today's version of Russian Roulette. It is spinned (like a dreidel) and whoever it lands on gets the pointed side rammed into their temporal lobe." For that, he also wins a t-shirt!
Want more? Be sure to check our Facebook page every day for extra content, contests, discussions, videos, and links you won't find here. Also, our Twitter feed will keep you updated on what's going around the web in real time.
(YouTube link)
Josh Mullins asked Ashlee Baldwin to marry him as soon as she picked him up at the airport. Meanwhile, a local TV news crew was broadcasting just down the sidewalk. The crew spotted Josh and Ashlee in the background of the shot and knew what he was doing. The reporter then just had to talk to them. Link -via The Daily What
In honor of Shark Week, I Can Has Cheezburger posted a collection of funny image macros featuring (what else) sharks! You could call them LOLsharks. This one is my personal favorite. You can see all seven at the site. Link
For today's Lunchtime Quiz, the folks at mental_floss took a dozen restaurant names from a list of the top 100 US chains. The question is: does the name have an apostrophe or not? It's harder than you think! I only got half of them right -apparently I haven't paid enough attention. And I don't eat out. Link
You've heard the saying, "Freedom isn't free"? Apparently neither is a Purple Heart. Retired Sergeant Major Rob Dickerson was wounded by a rocket blast in Iraq in 2007. It took years of paperwork for the army to decide that Dickerson had, indeed, been wounded in war. His Purple Heart was delivered with a C.O.D. bill for $21. Dickerson was not pleased.
Traditionally, the Purple Heart is awarded in a ceremony. Link -via Fark
Dickerson says this is not about him, but other soldiers who may have the same thing happen to them. He says they should get better treatment from the United States Military, especially after laying their lives on the line while serving their country.
"I don't want you to think I'm whining and complaining, because I'm not, I really don't want this to happen to another soldier or any service member of the United States, it's degrading," Dickerson said.
Dickerson did get an apology and a money order for his out of pocket costs, but he says he couldn't cash it, because it was made out to Roy Dirksen, not Rob Dickerson.
Traditionally, the Purple Heart is awarded in a ceremony. Link -via Fark
The words "swamp" and "beautiful" do not often appear in the same sentence. However, wetlands are a valuable part of the environment, and if you look past the mosquitoes, they can be quite fetching. See a collection of gorgeous photographs of swamps around the world at Environmental Graffiti. Pictured is the Pantanal, which spans the borders of Brazil, Paraguay, and Bolivia. Link
(Image credit: Flickr user miquitos)
There are 16 states that help with back-to-school shopping by declaring "tax-free weekends," meaning no state sales tax on certain items during certain days. States running the program this weekend include Alabama, Missouri, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, Iowa, Louisiana, and Arkansas, although exact dates vary.
To help out, BargainJack has assembled a handy chart detailing the dates and limitations for each state, with links to government information. Link
Before you get too excited though, I should make note of the fact that most states place a dollar limit on what is tax-exempt. For example, Alabama’s tax holiday offers a tax break on any articles of clothing $100 or less. This means that a pair of jeans costing $125 would be taxed but a jacket for $99 would be tax-free, so be aware of any specific rules your state may have during tax holidays.
To help out, BargainJack has assembled a handy chart detailing the dates and limitations for each state, with links to government information. Link
(YouTube link)
Jonti Picking recently found footage of a scientist demonstrating head stability in an owl in 1962 and wrote a little song about it. -via Arbroath
An inflated sculpture named "Is Land" was deployed at the Secret Garden Party music festival in Cambridgeshire, England. The £9,000 helium-filled sculpture is seven meters wide and looks like a chunk of land with grass and trees on top. The island drifted off after someone cut the ropes tethering the balloon on July 24th and is now nowhere to be found. Anyone who sees the island is asked to report it to the project's website. Donations to the site will go toward getting a second sculpture ready for Burning Man. Link to story. http://www.is-land.co.uk/wordpress2/ to website. -via Fortean Times
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