Journalist and anchorman Brian Williams signed off for the final time last night after 28 years with NBC. You can see his farewell from last night's episode of The 11th Hour on MSNBC. We wish him the best in his retirement.

Over the years, Jimmy Fallon's crew at The Tonight Show has had at lot of fun with Williams' news footage, editing him word by word into popular rap songs (you might remember a few of these from years ago). Williams' particular delivery lends itself well to these projects. In honor of Williams' retirement, here's a compilation of seven of these edits. In my opinion, the best is "Bust a Move" by Young MC, which occurs about halfway through this video. Alex's favorite rap song, "Baby Got Back" by Sir Mix-a-Lot is in there, too. But the others are glorious as well. This is technically SFW because the naughty words are bleeped. -via Digg

There are so many traditions surrounding the Christmas holiday that it's sometimes hard to keep up. My kids would regularly bemoan that I "forgot" some tradition that turned out to be just something I did last year on a whim. To them, anything done at Christmas was tradition. When you factor in the many countries that celebrate Christmas over a thousand years or so, you'll find that not all Christmas traditions were fun, festive, or philanthropic. Some that we've managed to drop were malicious, dangerous, or downright disgusting. For example, in the Middle Ages, wealthy folks would show off by serving a peacock for Christmas dinner.

“The colorful, plumed bird was often baked into a pie, or roasted with its head and tail still intact. Adding to the flamboyant display, the peacock’s feathers were reattached (or the skinned bird was placed back inside its intact skin), and its tail feathers were fully fanned out. Peacocks likely looked impressive on a banquet table, but the meat reportedly tasted terrible.”

Conspicuous consumption wasn't always pleasant. Read more about the peacocks and five other Christmas customs that we'd just as soon stay away from at Mental Floss.  -via Strange Company

Is there anything sadder than a T-rex in a Christmas sweater? Look at those tiny little arms; he can't take it off! But he doesn't seem to mind. The Natural History Museum in London dressed their animatronic T-rex in a jumbo size Christmas sweater, custom made of all recycled materials, meaning previously-used yarn and plastic bottles. Because you know the dinosaur species cared about the environment as much as they cared about Christmas. It's even got a turtleneck to keep him extra warm. Let's take a look at how the museum staff managed to dress this thing.   



The unique sweater design features four dinosaurs in festive green: T-rex, triceratops, stegosaurus, and diplodocus, walking among Christmas trees and snowflakes. You can buy the sweater from the museum's gift shop. Proceeds go to support the museum. They only have human sizes, however, so you'll have to knit one yourself to keep your own T-rex warm this winter.

Airlines fly over the North Pole all the time. I once flew to Hong Kong by going over the Arctic Circle, which looks really weird on a mercator map. But there are no commercial airline flights that go over the South Pole. Half as Interesting explains why.  

Note: this is about commercial airlines flying over the South Pole. Yes, Antarctica has airports, but you can't expect them to have mechanics and parts for your Airbus, much less accommodations for passengers. If you are a scientist at McMurdo and need to go to the South Pole, you will probably be taking a military plane. If you ask me, that's beats a dogsled any day. This video is only five minutes long; the rest is an ad. -via Digg

The kings of Europe's past owned suits of armor whether they ever participated in battle or not. England's king Henry VIII had several over his reign, what with the weight gain and all. The rest of the suit of armor that went with the helmet shown above is no longer, but you have to wonder if it was as strange as the surviving helmet. This whole-head helmet, or armet, would not have been any good in battle. The horns and spectacles would have caught on anything, especially an enemy's lance. And the intricate eye design would have obstructed his vision. It actually more resembles a court jester than a warrior. So why did Henry want such a mask?

It wasn't Henry's choice. This was a diplomatic gift bestowed upon the king by Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I in 1514. The meaning behind the gift has been the subject of much debate in the 500 years since, but you can read more about what we do know at Amusing Planet.

If you were in New Zealand and wanted to get home to the United States, you would normally fly across the Pacific Ocean. But what if a war broke out that also crossed the Pacific? That happened to the crew of a Pan Am flight in December of 1941 when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. The Boeing 314 Clipper flying boat was a marvel of modern technology, and the US government didn't want it to fall into enemy hands. The crew was instructed to change to Plan A, which involved flying west to reach New York City as best as they could, with no identification and no radio communication.

And so they did. This involved borrowing money and landing wherever they could to refuel without clearance. Once they had to use automobile gasoline because their stop had no aviation fuel. Another time they spotted an enemy submarine. And they were shot at in Saudi Arabia. Then there was that leg from Congo to Brazil that took 20 hours non-stop, which no Pan Am flight had ever attempted. Read the story of the flight crew that took the long way home at Jalopnik. -via Fark

I you found that story intriguing, you might want to also read this longer article about it. There really should be a movie about it.

(Image credit: Tudor Washington Collins/Auckland Museum)

Felix Klieser was born without arms. He uses his feet for everything, including his chosen profession -playing the French horn. Klieser fell in love with the sound of the horn when he was just a toddler and has practiced diligently ever since. He turned professional after attending music school. Klieser is now Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra’s artist in residence. He will perform with the British orchestra for the next two years at least. Klieser holds his horn on a tripod and does the keys with his left foot. He says he can't imagine how others do it with hands. -via Laughing Squid

Reindeer’s eyes are golden in the summer, but turn a deep blue in the winter to capture more light making them the only mammal that does this. pic.twitter.com/IlPAPqD7ob

— Lars-Johan Larsson (@LarsJohanL) December 6, 2021

Is it true? I had to look it up. Yes, reindeer have developed a system for changing their eye color in order to see better during the dark winter months in the Arctic and cold northern regions. But it has nothing to do with the animal's irises, except for pupil dilation. A reindeer's irises are always brown, but you see much less of the iris in winter when the eyes are always dilated.

The part that changes color is actually on the back of the eyeball, a layer called the tapetum lucidum that lies underneath the retina. This layer reflects light back out of the eye. In summer, it is golden colored. In winter it turns blue, which reduces the amount of light reflected back out of the eye and enables the reindeer to see in low light. However, some vision sharpness may be sacrificed.

What causes the change is the light itself. When the sun goes away, the pupils dilate, which causes a pressure change in the eye. The collagen fibers that make up the tapetum lucidum become rearranged and the tissue turns blue. Now isn't that a neat adaptation for winter? Read more about reindeer eyes at LiveScience.  -via Nag on the Lake

What people search for on the internet tells us a lot about the state of humankind. The year 2021 was crammed with topics people wanted more information about, as if we all started paying attention after a year of dealing with the pandemic. Much of it points to people trying to determine what's important in life. However, there's some fun stuff in there. "Bernie Sander's mittens" was the top-searched meme in the US. There are some surprises, too. I'm glad to see I'm not the only one who depends on Google to spell something right, but "How to pronounce Michael Jackson" is a little shocking.  

Google has calculated the most searched-for terms for 2021 and has compiled the results. US results are here. You can also see a timeline of search trends over the course of 2021, which you can change to dig deeper into categories listed at the top. Click on the images to read more about a topic.  

The drug sildenafil was first prescribed to treat high blood pressure. Then a side effect emerged in that it caused erections in the men who were taking it to treat their high blood pressure. Under the brand name Viagra, it became a sensation for treating erectile dysfunction. And now it may be our newest weapon in the battle against Alzheimer's disease.

In a study involving over seven million people, the use of sildenafil was associated with a 69% reduced incidence of Alzheimer's. Feixiong Cheng of the Cleveland clinic is the lead author of the study published in the journal Nature Aging. His team combed data on 1600 drugs already in use to see what correlation these drugs had with Alzheimer's, and sildenafil showed the most promise of them all. Of course, correlation is not causation, so further study is needed. A new trial is already in the works to see if sildenafil has any effect in the early stages of Alzheimer's. Also, since most people who take Viagra now are men, gender studies will need to be done. Read more about this research at The Daily Beast. -via Damn Interesting

(Image credit: Flickr user Tim Reckmann)

(Image source: Francis__99)

Look at this picture. The cat looks concerned that two people are pointing at his junk. Then you realize he is probably more concerned that the woman's hand is passing through his chest! The best I can figure out here is that the cat has turned to liquid. It's possible that the woman's shirt has fur cuffs. The only thing that's for sure is that the "hole" in the cat's chest is her sleeve cuff. This confusing picture was drawn from the subreddit Confusing Perspectives, where you'll find a never-ending supply of accidental illusions.  

(Image source: Tooleater)

What kind of ugly monkey is this? It's not a monkey at all; it's a capybara. Those are its nostrils, not eyes, because it's leaning its head back, showing off those long incisors. See a collection of 50 of the most confusing images at Bored Panda. If you can't figure them out, check the comments under each picture.  

Supply chains issues have affected manufactured items both domestic and imported, due to pandemic shutdowns, labor shortages, unforeseen demands, and global logistics. The results are empty shelves and higher prices for a lot of items. But why would that affect Christmas trees? They grow in America, and in most places, you can even select and cut your own at local nurseries.

But here we are. Your local Christmas tree farm or neighborhood kiosk is liable to run out at any time, and the trees you can get will cost an arm and a leg. Curiously, the reason behind the shortage has nothing to do with the pandemic or with supply chain issues. See, an evergreen tree takes eight years to grow to the stabdard six feet, so producers must look into their crystal balls and predict the market for cut trees eight years into the future to decide how many to plant. Tree growers were burned in the 1990s when fewer people wanted to buy cut trees. It happened again during the 2008 recession. Read about the market's ups and down that contribute to Christmas trees costing 50% more this year at Popular Mechanics. If you're not a member, here's an alternate link.

People who use artificial trees aren't quite as impacted. The supply may be thin for a new tree, but you can always pull out that tree you've been using for years. -via Metafilter

(Image credit: Beyond My Ken) 

The Charles Bridge in Prague, Czech Republic, was built between 1357 and 1402. In the middle of the bridge stands a bronze statue of Saint John of Nepomuk, who was a priest in Prague during the time the bridge was being built. John heard the confessions of the king's wife, and the king wanted to know all about it. John would not divulge the contents of a confession, so the king had him thrown off the bridge to his death in the Vltava River. The statue was installed in 1683.

At the base of the statue are two bronze plaques. One depicts the priest being thrown to his death in 1393. The other depicts a knight petting a dog, although no one really knows why. It has long been said that touching these plaques will bring good luck, but in the 20th century, visitors to the statue began focusing on touching the dog, as if to pet it. That's why this good boy shines brightly compared to the other imagery in both the plaques. Read more about this often-touched plaque at My Modern Met.  -via reddit

The doll we know as Stretch Armstrong is a man who could stretch his limbs and torso to ridiculous lengths. He's made of soft vinyl stuffed with corn syrup. This stretching ability made him the most sought after toy for boys from his debut in 1976 until around 1980. But as his popularity waxes and wanes, he's brought back every 10-15 years or so to impress a new generation of children. They just love to see how far they can stretch Stretch until he breaks.

Forty-five years later, Stretch Armstrong has fans that range from little kids to men in their late middle age. And he has an interesting story. I once thought that he was some comic book superhero that was made into a toy. No, the doll came first. Jesse D. Horowitz, who invented the toy, explains how the idea came about and was developed into a Christmas juggernaut. Various media producers tell how Stretch tried to make it in TV and movies, but it was an uphill struggle. Now Stretch is a star on YouTube, thanks to the generations of kids who fondly recall how much fun they had destroying their toy.

It's all part of an oral history of Stretch Armstrong at Mel magazine. The article is NSFW due to an image of a rare Stretch Armstrong doll that some might call "anatomically correct," although most would call that a stretch. Pun intended.

It doesn't take long for Tom Scott to unveil the most expensive object by weight, if that's what you are watching this for. And he tells us its history and the reasoning behind why it's so expensive. However, you might wonder how this thing was selected for that very specific title. It all goes into how you define each term. "Object" must be a non-fungible discrete unit. "Expensive" doesn't exactly mean value. You get the idea. I understand why defining every term one uses is so important, because any time I label something superlative in a simple manner, I hear from commenters about exceptions and stretches until, well, until I'm just wrong. An example is the post just before this one on the last public execution by guillotine. The word "public" is necessary since the French government continued to behead people long afterward. Tom is a lot better at explaining that than I am.