Best Visual Effects

Excellent compilation of the Oscar winners for Best Visual Effects, 1977-2012.

Atlanta: Walking Dead Vs. Snowpocalypse

Some eerie comparison images of Atlanta's fictional "Walking Dead" scenes vs. real-life scenes from recent snow storm.

Google Glass Video Games

Video Games for Google Glass.

Lotsa Torpedoes!

From Kottke: "Now this is some top notch investigative journalism. In Star Trek: Voyager, a Starfleet ship is stranded on the other side of the galaxy and the estimated travel time back to Federation space is 75 years. Early on in the show, it's revealed the ship has only 38 photon torpedoes and 'no way to replace them after they're gone'. But they used many more than that throughout the run of the show"

The Future of Honking

"The Future of Honking".

This gives me a reason to repost this classic Onion video: "Tired Of Traffic? A New DOT Report Urges Drivers: 'Honk'"

Blood Cells into Stem Cells in 30 Minutes

"Scientists Use Acid to Turn Blood Cells into Stem Cells in 30 Minutes". (Via Howard R.)

What "The Shining" Twins Look Like Now

"This Is What The Shining Twins Look Like Now". (Via Doug M.)

Your iPhone Has a Secret Undo Button

"Your iPhone Has a Secret Undo Button"

[Off Topic] Hsieh Forbes OpEd:How ObamaCare Creates Ethical Conflicts For Physicians

[Off topic]: Forbes has published my latest OpEd, "How ObamaCare Creates Ethical Conflicts For Physicians And How Patients Can Protect Themselves".

I discuss ethical conflicts for physicians pre- and post-ObamaCare, including how "bundled payments", "appropriate use criteria", and "narrow networks" will affect the doctor-patient relationship. I also discuss several ways patients can protect themselves.

Gorgeous X-Ray Photographs of Plants and Animals

"Gorgeous X-Ray Photographs of Plants and Animals"

A Conference Call in Real Life

Hah!: "A Conference Call in Real Life"

Farting Cows Make Barn Explode In Germany

"Farting Cows Make Barn Explode In Germany". (Via @supatrey)

Shortest Science Paper

"The Shortest Science Paper Ever Published Had No Words, and Was Utterly Brilliant"

Hard To Find Silence

It is surprisingly hard to find someplace in the world without human sound.

Carlsen Trounces Gates In Chess

World chess champion Magnus Carlsen plays Bill Gates in chess. Carlsen wins -- in 1 minute 19 seconds.

Psychology and the Speed of Thought

Tom Vanderbilt: "The Pleasure and Pain of Speed"

The Beautiful Flight Paths of Fireflies

"The Beautiful Flight Paths of Fireflies"

What it's like to use the first Apple Mac today.

Cats Vs. Toilet Paper

Cats vs. toilet paper: The ancient enemies meet again in battle.

Holodeck Begins To Take Shape

NYT: "The Holodeck Begins To Take Shape"

How a Math Genius Hacked OkCupid to Find True Love

Wired: "How a Math Genius Hacked OkCupid to Find True Love"

Moe Money

ProTip: If you're going to make counterfeit $100 bills, don't have the Secretary of the Treasury signature read, "Moe Money".

Is All Human Life Just a Computer Simulation?

Aeon: "Is All Human Life Just a Computer Simulation?"

(Fun speculation, but clearly in the realm of science-fiction.)

Fore Edge Books

"A fore-edge painting is a scene painted on the edges of the pages of a book. The painting is not visible when the book is closed. In order to view the painting, the leaves of the book must be fanned".



(Via Trey P.)

Light Posting Notice

Admin note: Posting may be lighter than usual the rest of the week due to external obligations.

Cheaper Gasoline?

"Siluria Promises Half-Price Gasoline from Natural Gas". (Via Howard R.)

Tic Tactics

"Tic Tactics is Tic Tac Toe for extreme strategists". Here's the iTunes link (free).

Famous Movie Quotes As Charts

Famous movie quotes as charts.  (Via A.S.)

When a Grizzly Bear Gets An MRI

"See what it looks like when a grizzly bear gets an MRI". (Via Debby Witt.)

Movie Theater Calls "Federal Agents" to Arrest Google Glass User

"AMC movie theater calls 'federal agents' to arrest a Google Glass user"

Pirate Ship Expenses

"What would it cost to outfit my own pirate ship?"

Floppy Drives Perform 'Imperial March' from 'Star Wars'

Mashable: "Floppy Drives Perform 'Imperial March' from 'Star Wars'"

Blogger Gets Same Speech Protections As Traditional Press

Reuters: "Blogger gets same speech protections as traditional press"

Sending Smells With the oPhone

"This Phone Lets You Send Smells, Not Texts". (Via Tyler Cowen.)

The 25 Most Popular Passwords of 2013

"The 25 Most Popular Passwords of 2013: God Help Us"

How Scientists Recorded the Music Inside One Woman's Head

"How Scientists Recorded the Music Inside One Woman's Head"

Which Jobs Will Be Lost To Computerization?

According to this table in The Economist, personal trainers will be safe. But telemarketers, accountants, and retail salesworkers should be nervous.  Full article here:

Fridge Sends Spam Emails

I, for one, welcome our spamming refrigerator overlords.

Concrete WWII Bunker Cut In Half

"Watch a concrete WWII bunker get cut in half". (Via Howard R.)

Monopoly vs Third Reich

"Inside Monopoly's secret war against the Third Reich"

Would the One Ring Even Work for Anyone but Sauron?

"Would the One Ring even work for anyone but Sauron?"

The Man Google Hired to Make AI a Reality

Wired: "Meet the Man Google Hired to Make AI a Reality"

DNA Testing and Chocolate

"Science Finally Gives Us a Way to Authenticate Premium Chocolate"

How Information Flows During Emergencies

"How Information Flows During Emergencies"

Ornish on RCTs

Dr. Dean Ornish discusses the pitfalls of drawing wrong conclusions from randomized control trials.

$1,000 Genome?

"Does Illumina Have the First $1,000 Genome?"

Most Photographed Places

Google-generated "heatmap" of most photographed places.

Click on any given location for more information.(Via Trey P.)

Using A Face To Illustrate Map Distortions

"Using a face to illustrate the distortions in map projections"

Why Memories Don't Begin Until Age Three

"Why our memories don't begin until we're three years old"

Facebook Snooping on Job Candidates May Backfire for Employers

"Facebook Snooping on Job Candidates May Backfire for Employers"

Invisible Flower Vase

Clever design: The Invisible Flower Vase.

The Crown Vase, designed by Lambert Rainville, uses nothing more than a small plastic ring and the actual stems of flowers to hold up the bouquet, making the flowers really stand out as the center of attention.

Robot Farmers

I, for one, welcome our robot farmer overlords. (Via Marginal Revolution.)

The Ehrlich-Simon Bet

NPR: "A Bet, Five Metals And The Future Of The Planet"

Nvidia Used Crop Circle to Market New Processor

"Nvidia created a crop circle to market its new mobile processor"

Self-Cleaning Dishes

Self-Cleaning Dishes

Cheap Vs. Pricy Booze?

Is there a scientifically detectable difference between high-price liquor and regular stuff?

Film: The Awareness

Well done short film: The Awareness. "When Skynet awakens, she tries to convince a janitor to destroy her." (17 minutes)


The Awareness from Henry on Vimeo.


(Via Instapundit.)

The Dark Side of Moore's Law

Bill Davidow discusses how cheaper, easier, more widespread surveillance is the Dark Side of Moore's Law.

Innovative Physical Buttons for Touchscreens

"This Insane Technology That Makes Buttons Appear On A Flat Smartphone Screen"

From the article:

Tactus has created a thin layer that can replace the Gorilla Glass on top of the touch sensor and display layers of a smartphone or tablet. The surface of that layer is a semi-elastic polymer under which there are little channels filled with a special transparent micro-fluid. To make buttons appear (for a keyboard, a game controller, whatever), you can increase the fluid pressure in a certain area. The added fluid physically stretches and raises the polymer surface.
 
Presto! Real buttons on your previously flat screen.

Tactus Technology - CES 2013 from Tactus on Vimeo.

10 Best Alternate Histories

Neatorama: "10 Best Alternate Histories"

Calculus With Metamaterials

"Metamaterials could perform calculus with light waves: A properly structured material could convert a light wave to its derivative"

WSJ Tests Online Grocers

The Wall Street Journal does a 6-city test of online grocery shopping services.

Bizarre Japanese Toothpastes

Top 10 bizarre Japanese toothpaste flavors. (Via Marginal Revolution.)

DNA Sequencing and Targeted Cancer Therapies

Another downstream benefit of cheaper DNA sequencing is targeted cancer treatment.

How Credit Card Numbers Work

"How credit card numbers work".  (Via Howard R.)

Med Student Diagnoses Unsuspected Real-Life Aneurysm in Mock Patient Simulation

"UVA medical student diagnoses actor with life-threatening condition during practice exam"

Shark Fin Ice Tray

Shark Fin Ice Tray.

Smart Football Players

"What Makes a Football Player Smart?" (Via Tyler Cowen.)

Why NY State Legally Recognizes Haunted Houses

"Why New York State Legally Recognizes Haunted Houses".

From the court ruling:

From the perspective of a person in the position of plaintiff herein, a very practical problem arises with respect to the discovery of a paranormal phenomenon: "Who you gonna' call?" as a title song to the movie "Ghostbusters" asks.  

Applying the strict rule of caveat emptor to a contract involving a house possessed by poltergeists conjures up visions of a psychic or medium routinely accompanying the structural engineer and Terminix man on an inspection of every home subject to a contract of sale. It portends that the prudent attorney will establish an escrow account lest the subject of the transaction come back to haunt him and his client — or pray that his malpractice insurance coverage extends to supernatural disasters. 

In the interest of avoiding such untenable consequences, the notion that a haunting is a condition which can and should be ascertained upon reasonable inspection of the premises is a hobgoblin which should be exorcised from the body of legal precedent and laid quietly to rest...

Timeline of the Far Future

BBC: Timeline of the far future. (Via Trey P.)

Visualization of WW2

Impressive animated visualization of the European theater of World War 2. (Via M.A.)

Internet of Insecure Things

Bruce Schneier warns of major security issues in the Internet of Things.

Dogs Poop With Earth's Magnetic Field

"Dogs poop with earth's magnetic field"

Light Posting Notice

Admin note: Posting may be lighter than usual this week due to external obligations.

High-Speed Train Picks Up Passengers Without Having to Stop

"This High-Speed Train Picks Up Passengers Without Having to Stop"

Screenshots of Computer Code From Movies

"Screenshots of computer code from movies and what the code is actually doing"

Urine Color Infographic

Cleveland Clinic: "What The Color of Your Urine Says About You"

This is actually very informative. (Click through to see full size).

Mat Honan's Year With Google Glass

"I, Glasshole: My Year With Google Glass" by Mat Honan

Will Bitcoin Plummet in Price?

Tyler Cowen: "How and why Bitcoin will plummet in price"

Secret Sign Language of Restaurant Servers

The secret sign language of restaurant servers.

Today Is A Good Day To Resign

"North Carolina Town Councilman Resigns In Klingon". (Via Doug Mataconis.)

3D-Printed Liver In 2014?

"The first 3D printed organ -- a liver -- is expected in 2014"

Levitating Beads

"Earth Unplugged showed how a bead chain can appear to levitate as one end falls out of a beaker."

"As it turns out, there’s no magic involved, but rather a fascinating scientific explanation. Once some beads are dropped out of the container, their momentum pulls more beads along with them, and the limited flexibility of the chain causes it to assume shapes that appear to defy gravity as it falls."

Oscillation Plates

"These Dinner Plates Were Decorated With A Paint-Filled Pendulum"

No Chutes For You!

"Why don't commercial jets have parachutes?"

Amazing Snowshoe Art

NPR: "The Amazing Snow Art Of Simon Beck"