Random Links for Jan 31, 2006

   The Great Banana Revolution
      < http://www.slate.com/id/2067407/ >
   Should you peel bananas from the bottom up?


   Toogle
      < http://c6.org/toogle/ >
   Takes the first match for a phrase in Google Images, and creates a text
   version of that image.
   Examples:
      < http://c6.org/toogle/index.php?phrase=ipod >
      < http://c6.org/toogle/index.php?phrase=u2 >
      < http://c6.org/toogle/index.php?phrase=ferrari >
      < http://c6.org/toogle/index.php?phrase=george+w+bush >
      < http://c6.org/toogle/index.php?phrase=toogle >


   NASA's Water Balloon Experiments
      < http://exploration.grc.nasa.gov/balloon/blob.htm >


   Which sports car are you?
      < http://www.tomorrowland.us/sportscar/ >
   Apparently I'm a Porsche 911: "You have a classic style, but you're up-to-
   date with the latest technology. You're ambitious, competitive, and you
   love to win. Performance, precision, and prestige - you're one of the
   elite, and you know it."


   The A to Z of Programmer Predilictions
      < http://www.hacknot.info/hacknot/action/showEntry?eid=81 >
   This last one is about computer programmers, but there may be similar
   personality types in other occupations.

Uncyclopedia

      < http://uncyclopedia.org/ >
   "Welcome to Uncyclopedia, the content-free encyclopedia that anyone can edit"

   You may know about Wikipedia, "the free encyclopedia that anyone can edit".
   Uncyclopedia is its evil, sarcastic and sometimes very funny twin.
      < http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uncyclopedia >

   Be warned: some articles on Uncyclopedia can get a bit rude and/or crude.

   A selection of articles:
      < http://uncyclopedia.org/wiki/Worst_100_Movies_of_All_Time >
      < http://uncyclopedia.org/wiki/Worst_100_Nonexistent_Words_of_All_Time >
      < http://uncyclopedia.org/wiki/Ipod >
      < http://uncyclopedia.org/wiki/Programmer >
      < http://uncyclopedia.org/wiki/Accountants >
      < http://uncyclopedia.org/wiki/Evil >
      < http://uncyclopedia.org/wiki/Freemasons >
      < http://uncyclopedia.org/wiki/Quaid_Disaster_Theorem >
      < http://uncyclopedia.org/wiki/Infinite_Paradox_Theory >
      < http://uncyclopedia.org/wiki/United_States_Of_America >
      < http://uncyclopedia.org/wiki/Simpsons >
      < http://uncyclopedia.org/wiki/Morse_code >

   I like one of the jokes on the Microsoft page:
     "The day Microsoft makes something that doesn't suck is the day they make a
      vacuum cleaner."
   An oldie but a goodie.

   If you're game, jump to a random page:
      < http://uncyclopedia.org/wiki/Special:Randompage >

   Then if you want facts more closely resembling reality, visit Wikipedia:
      < http://en.wikipedia.org/ >

Interesting Research, Best and Worst Gadgets

   1. "Surprises make soccer the best sport"
      < http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=dn8531 >
   "Baseball has home runs, American football has touchdowns and basketball has
    slam dunks. But when it comes to which is the most exciting sport to follow,
    soccer takes the gold medal"

   2. "Do you get less wet if you run in the rain?"
      < http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/4562132.stm >
   "The power of mathematics has finally given us the reassurance that, when we
    run for that bus shelter, store canopy or random shop (and start pretending
    to browse), we are getting it exactly right!"
   [But it depends on the circumstances.  There are conflicting views out there.
    The Mythbusters have tackled the question, and I've got my own thoughts.
    I might write a B-List Extra post on this all-important question]

   3. "Scientists explain the 'Cheerio Effect'"
      < http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9425907 >
   "You may or may not have pondered why your breakfast cereal tends to clump
    together or cling to the sides of a bowl of milk. Now there is an easy
    explanation"

   4. "Secret of Mona Lisa's smile revealed"
      < http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200512/s1531291.htm >
   "It is official: Mona Lisa was 83 per cent happy, 9 per cent disgusted,
    6 per cent fearful and 2 per cent angry"

   5. "Beauty enough to help win an election"
      < http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200510/s1492551.htm >
   "Beauty may only be skin deep but it is apparently enough to carry an
    election, a new study says"

   6. "Red is the colour if winning is your game"
      < http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=mg18625005.300 >
   "Evolutionary psychologist Robin Dunbar from the University of Liverpool
    speculates that primate eyes may be particularly sensitive to red. 'The
    significance is then a matter of context,' he says. Red fruit is good;
    red competitors are bad"

   7. "NewScientist.com's top 10 news stories of 2005"
      < http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=dn8499 >

   8. "Best (and Worst) Gadgets of 2005"
      < http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,69912-0.html?tw=rss.index >

   9. "The 50 Greatest Gadgets of the Past 50 Years"
      < http://www.pcworld.com/reviews/article/0,aid,123950,pg,7,00.asp >

Random Links for Jan 8, 2006

   1. Despair, Inc: Demotivators Calendars
      < http://www.despair.com/ >
   Three 2006 calendars:
      < http://www.despair.com/2006collection.html >
   The Wishes Calendar, Business As Usual 2006 Calendar, 2006 Best of Demotivators
   Example (from The Wishes):
     "Compromise: Let's agree to respect each other's views, no matter how wrong
      yours may be"


   2. Billboard - "Time-lapse Phonography"
      < http://lukedubois.com/billboard >
   Someone has taken the "spectral average" of each of 857 songs that have
   topped the Billboard chart since 1958.  Then he merged these together to
   create a single chronological sequence of sound.  He's dubbed the technique
   "time-lapse phonography".


   3. The Forbes Fictional 15
      < http://www.forbes.com/home/lists/2005/11/29/forbes-fictional-rich
          _cx_mn_de_05fict15land.html >
   "To qualify for the Fictional 15, we insisted that members be both fictional
    (in the sense that we excluded mythological and folkloric figures) and
    characters (meaning they are part of a narrative story or series of stories).
    Great wealth was required to be one of the primary attributes of the
    characters on this list--in other words, we looked for characters that were
    known, within their universes, for being rich."


   4. Lost Civil Liberties Mug
      < http://www.philosophersguild.com/index.lasso?page_mode=Product_Detail
          &item=0236 >
   "Pour in a hot beverage and watch your civil liberties disappear! Mug features
    the complete text of the Bill of Rights, but pour in a hot beverage and see
    what remains thanks to the Patriot Act!"


   5. Y Can't Park
      < http://flickr.com/photos/ycantpark/ >
   Flickr photo album of examples of bad parking.