September 2010
28 posts
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Naturally Occurring Nuclear Reactors →
When we think of nuclear reactors, we think of massively complex technological beasts, the products of human ingenuity.
Scientists have discovered a naturally occurring nuclear reactor in an ancient riverbed. If that doesn’t make you go, HOLY CRAP, I can’t imagine what would.
From the article: How long did the natural reactor operate? Going back to the U-238 that made up 97% of the...
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The Place No One Else Knows About
How do we find new places to visit? Be they restaurants, clubs, bars, or shops, we rely on our friends to point us in the right direction.
And sometimes, you’re that friend. You’ve stumbled across someplace that none of your friends know about. Now it’s your turns to play the tour guide, to show off your find.
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"Diet" Foods
One of the most amazingly alien things to me are low-calorie, diet foods. Think about this: not only are we removing the nutritional content of food, but we’re turning it into a selling point. Most of the world, most of the time, is barely getting enough calories to subsist. But in industrial nations, we make fake versions of real foods with a big chunk of the nutrients stripped out.
So,...
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Cybernetic Systems
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Refrigeration
Nothing quite changed what it means to eat than refrigeration. It is one of the most critical technological advancements we’ve come up with.
This isn’t to say people suffered without a way to keep food cold and preserved. Prior to the mid-19th century, however, the only way to do it was to use caves and (or) ice saved from the winter. Some variation of the ice-house was in use well...
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Hosting a Dinner Party
Friends or family come over, and you have one goal: feed them, with style. You pick a tasty dish, pair it with a nice wine, and pass the plates around until everyone is stuffed.
If you’re lucky, like me, your wife makes “crack biscuits” (addictive cheesy drop biscuits) and a cheesecake.
Regardless of what you have, you have good food and good company, and that makes for a...
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Middle Earth Hockey League Logos →
It made me chuckle. The double-bladed hockey stick for the Dwarves just killed me.
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One More Page…
You’re hip-deep in a good book, and things are starting to pick up and move towards the climax. You hit a section break, but you say, “Hey, I can read another page or two.” A page turns into a chapter, and another.
I love it when that happens.
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WatchCool Tricks
This guy has a number of talents, all of which require some degree of practice. Where he finds the time, I’ll never know. I’ve got the yo-yoing and the juggling going on. Maybe after dice stacking, I’ll try and tackle his acrobatics.
No, not really.
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People →
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Red Pandas
Red Pandas aren’t pandas at all, but they are ridiculously cute. While they aren’t pets, they’re clever little tree-climbers that adapt well to captivity.
They also lent one of their nicknames to a popular web-browser.
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Cool Tech Demos →
This demo may not be your tastes in music, but if you’re using Google’s Chrome browser (or likely anything HTML5 friendly), it’s a pretty impressively structured, browser-based music video. It’s one of those interesting occasions where you look at a piece of technology you thought you knew (the web browser) and say, “Hey, I didn’t realize it could do...
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The First Game of the Season
Officially, football season started on Thursday. For most of us, though, it starts today. You may or may not give a good goddamn, but I find American Football endlessly entertaining. It’s like miniatures wargaming played with human sized figures (I’m a nerd, and I extract nerdy pleasure from watching football).
I’m excited. I’m optimistic about my home-team’s...
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The Caboodle Ranch →
There are a lot of fantastic animal rescue organizations. I can’t say for sure that this one actually is, but the owner’s tale is compelling and shows a great passion for the animals in his care. And the gallery has some ridiculously cute photos.
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Lost Languages
Recently, archaeologists in Peru discovered the last relic of a forgotten language- some translations scribbled on the back of an old letter. By “old”, I mean, “400 years old”.
It’s fascinating that ancient languages can be reconstructed. Egyptian hieroglyphs are one of the most well known decipherments. Until the Rosetta Stone was uncovered, no one was even...
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Designer Materials →
This new manufacturing technique allows for materials to be designed from first principles; this is basically CAD brought to materials science in a new way, with broad applications.
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At the Tomb of Tutankhamen →
This article was published in the May 1923 National Geographic, recounting the opening of Tutankhamen’s tomb. This event marked the start of an era of the dashing archaeological adventurer (in popular culture, anyway), and created a fascinating mystique about Egyptian history.
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Courage in the Face of Death →
Last year Mike was diagnosed with T-cell lymphoma. As a dyed-in-the-wool journalist, his first instinct was: Report on it. Thus he is sharing this cancer journal with TODAYshow.com and msnbc.com readers as he turns his reporting skills to his most difficult subject: his own mortality.
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WatchA Fire Tornado
As in: a tornado made of fire. Really.
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Raw Cookie Dough
Cookies are great. Everybody loves cookies.
But raw cookie dough is a special treat. You’re not supposed to steal a dab of the dough, but you just can’t resist. All that sugar and egg just calls out to a primitive part of your brain. Someplace in there, a little voice says, “raw eggs are bad for you”, but you ignore that voice and do it anyway.
And you never regret...
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Ray Bradbury watches "F--- Me Ray Bradbury" →
I, personally, wasn’t that entertained by the original video. It was okay, and vaguely amusing, but could not, in itself, be an “Awesome Thing of the Day”. It’s been all over the Internet, but if you haven’t seen it, follow the link.
What actually is awesome is 90-year-old Ray Bradbury’s face when he sees the video for the first time.
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