Drug clears the fog of a sleepless night

Drug clears the fog of a sleepless night : Nature News: "A sleepless night can leave your memory in tatters, but research in mice raises the possibility that a drug could counteract the problem.

Although anyone who has ever been deprived of sleep knows all too well how tiredness can affect the brain, the molecular mechanism behind it has eluded researchers. 'One of the main problems is that sleep deprivation does a lot of things to the brain, and it's easy to get caught in a mish-mash of different effects,' says Christopher Vecsey of Brandeis University in Massachusetts."

How to Win an Argument About Vaccines | Magazine

How to Win an Argument About Vaccines | Magazine: "The anti-immunization crowd clings to well-worn myths. Arm yourself with facts."

Kids dope up to get 'high'

Kids dope up to get 'high': "Jeffrey is just one of at least six sophomores at the private Dalton School taking Humatrope, a designer drug for preteens that some experts call 'Miracle-Gro for kids.'

The growth hormones -- which are shockingly easy to get -- are being used increasingly by wealthy parents looking to give their children a leg up, literally, experts say."

YouTube - Gyrowheel by Gyrobike interbike 2009

YouTube - Gyrowheel by Gyrobike interbike 2009

Dear Leornard

YouTube - The Monty Hall Problem Explained

YouTube - The Monty Hall Problem Explained

Two-Stroke Motion

Two-Stroke Motion: "This new illusion won second place at the recent international 'Illusion of the Year' competition at the annual European Conference on Visual Perception, A Coruna, Spain.

What is it?

The illusion contains two pattern frames depicting a moving image (hence two-stroke) which are displayed using a technique that creates an impression of continuous forward movement. Any two frames from a motion sequence can be used. The two images below show two views of a motorcycle as it advances along the road."

The Cereal Project - Mr Breakfast.com

The Cereal Project - Mr Breakfast.com

Fanged frogs among 40 new species in PNG crater

Fanged frogs among 40 new species in PNG crater: "A LOST world populated by fanged frogs, grunting fish and tiny bear-like creatures has been discovered in a remote volcanic crater on Papua New Guinea.

A team of scientists from Britain, the US, Hawaii and Papua New Guinea found more than 40 previously unidentified species when they climbed into the kilometre-deep crater of Mount Bosavi and explored a pristine jungle habitat teeming with life that has evolved in isolation since the volcano last erupted 200,000 years ago."

Random Thoughts: Cymothoa exigua: Alien!

Random Thoughts: Cymothoa exigua: Alien!: "Cymothoa exigua is a parasitic crustacean of the family Cymothoidae. This parasite attaches itself at the base of the tongue of the Spotted rose snapper, Lutjanus guttatus, with the claws on its front three pairs of legs, and extracts blood. As the parasite grows, less and less blood is able to reach the tongue, and eventually the organ atrophies from lack of blood. The parasite then replaces the fish's tongue with its own body, by attaching to the muscles of the tongue stub."

Men lose their minds speaking to pretty women

Men lose their minds speaking to pretty women - Telegraph: "The research shows men who spend even a few minutes in the company of an attractive woman perform less well in tests designed to measure brain function than those who chat to someone they do not find attractive.
Researchers who carried out the study, published in the Journal of Experimental and Social Psychology, think the reason may be that men use up so much of their brain function or 'cognitive resources' trying to impress beautiful women, they have little left for other tasks.

The findings have implications for the performance of men who flirt with women in the workplace, or even exam results in mixed-sex schools.

Women, however, were not affected by chatting to a handsome man." more -->

A One-Way Ticket to Mars

A One-Way Ticket to Mars - NYTimes.com: "The most challenging impediment to human travel to Mars does not seem to involve the complicated launching, propulsion, guidance or landing technologies but something far more mundane: the radiation emanating from the Sun%u2019s cosmic rays. The shielding necessary to ensure the astronauts do not get a lethal dose of solar radiation on a round trip to Mars may very well make the spacecraft so heavy that the amount of fuel needed becomes prohibitive.

There is, however, a way to surmount this problem while reducing the cost and technical requirements, but it demands that we ask this vexing question: Why are we so interested in bringing the Mars astronauts home again?"

Human Size Consistency Baffles Scientists

Human Size Consistency Baffles Scientists | Wired Science | Wired.com: "Crunch the numbers on the animal kingdom%u2019s sizes and shapes, and humans differ from each other far less than most species. The reason why is a mystery.



%u201CWe don%u2019t have an answer. We have this interesting observation, but the explanation is an open hypothesis,%u201D said evolutionary biologist Andrew Hendry of McGill University.

Hendry and Queens University biologist Ann McKellar combed through the scientific literature on body size and length in more than 200 species, from insects to fish to birds and, of course, humans."

Norm MacDonald on Conan

New Theory for Why We Cry

New Theory for Why We Cry | LiveScience: "We shed tears when in pain, but what purpose does crying have?

A scientist now proposes a new theory for why crying evolved — tears can act as handicaps to show you have lowered your defenses.

'Crying is a highly evolved behavior,' said researcher Oren Hasson, an evolutionary biologist at Tel Aviv University in Israel. 'My analysis suggests that by blurring vision, tears lower defenses and reliably function as signals of submission, a cry for help, and even in a mutual display of attachment and as a group display of cohesion.'"

Bizarre newt uses ribs as weapons

Bizarre newt uses ribs as weapons: "One amphibian has evolved a bizarre and gruesome defence mechanism to protect itself against predators.
When attacked, the Spanish ribbed newt pushes out its ribs until they pierce through its body, exposing a row of bones that act like poisonous barbs.
The newt has to force its bones through its skin every time it is attacked, say scientists who have described the form and function of the barbs in detail.
Yet this bizarre behaviour appears not to cause the newt any ill effects."

13 Things a Burglar Won't Tell You

13 Things a Burglar Won't Tell You : "Should you spend your money on a home security system? A look inside a burglar's mind might help you decide."

The 75 Albums Every Man Should Own

The 75 Albums Every Man Should Own - Esquire: "Kick off Esquire.com's Music Week with our unranked, incomplete, yet highly tasteful and informative list of the records your music collection requires. How many have you listened to?"

8 Classic Board Games That Destroy Friendships

8 Classic Board Games That Destroy Friendships: "Even in this era of electronics, people still play board games. Yes, with a physical board and physical pieces, which allow players spend an enjoyable evening in the physical company of friends (as opposed to interacting through the usual Facebook quiz written by a 15-year old). Of course, this is the ideal to which board games often fall short -- all too many board game experiences end with wrench, a candlestick and a body, and none of you have been playing Clue. Don't blame yourself, though -- many of these games engender this conflict themselves, and have been insidiously waiting for an unaware group of friends to open them up and have their relationships torn apart."

Eye Floaters

Floater - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia: "Floaters are suspended in the vitreous humour, the thick fluid or gel that fills the eye.[4] Thus, they generally follow the rapid motions of the eye, while drifting slowly within the fluid. When they are first noticed, the natural reaction is to attempt to look directly at them. However, attempting to shift one's gaze toward them can be difficult since floaters follow the motion of the eye, remaining to the side of the direction of gaze. Floaters are, in fact, visible only because they do not remain perfectly fixed within the eye."

How the brain hard-wires us to love Google, Twitter, and texting

How the brain hard-wires us to love Google, Twitter, and texting. - Slate Magazine: "Seeking. You can't stop doing it. Sometimes it feels as if the basic drives for food, sex, and sleep have been overridden by a new need for endless nuggets of electronic information. We are so insatiably curious that we gather data even if it gets us in trouble."

Why flamingoes stand on one leg

Why flamingoes stand on one leg: "It is one of the simplest, but most enigmatic mysteries of nature: just why do flamingoes like to stand on one leg?

The question is asked by zoo visitors and biologists alike, but while numerous theories abound, no-one has yet provided a definitive explanation.

Now after conducting an exhaustive study of captive Caribbean flamingoes, two scientists believe they finally have the answer."

25 Things We Miss In Baseball

25 Things We Miss In Baseball:

The Hubble Ultra Deep Field in 3D

A Visualized Look At The Estimated Revenues Of The Top Cell Phone Manufacturers

A Visualized Look At The Estimated Revenues Of The Top Cell Phone Manufacturers: "With the recent announcements of 2nd quarter earnings, some incredible data has been released. The cell phone handset industry has sold over $65B in the last 6 months. Of that, 9.7% was pocketed by the companies. It was recently announced that Apple received 32% of the total handset market's profits, equivalent to a whopping $2,038,000,000, all from selling the iPhone. Prior to paying expenses, the net revenue Apple earned from the iPhone is over 5 billion dollars. These figures astounded us, so we did a little more research. The graphic below visualizes what these numbers actually mean by comparing operating profits, operating margins, and net revenues."

Giant 'meat-eating' plant found

Giant 'meat-eating' plant found: "A new species of giant carnivorous plant has been discovered in the highlands of the central Philippines.

The pitcher plant is among the largest of all pitchers and is so big that it can catch rats as well as insects in its leafy trap.

During the same expedition, botanists also came across strange pink ferns and blue mushrooms they could not identify.



The botanists have named the pitcher plant after British natural history broadcaster David Attenborough."

Sea Pig - One of the Ugliest Sea Creatures

Damn Cool Pics: Sea Pig - One of the Ugliest Sea Creatures: "Sea pigs are also known as scotoplanes, a genus of deep-sea holothurians (sea cucumbers). This sea creature is like a cross between a pig and a slug. I still think it's cute, despite the fact that it looks like it has human fingers growing out of its mouth."

Top 10 Funniest Google Suggest Results

Top 10 Funniest Google Suggest Results: "After we discovered what Google thinks of Twitter we were inspired to spelunk a bit deeper into the strange and wonderful territory of Google Suggest.

A feature from Google Labs, Suggest offers you real-time suggestions to complete your search query as you type. One of the factors in the algorithm that determines the results is the overall popularity of searches by other users.

Part illuminating, part entertaining and part terrifying, Suggest is a window into the collective search psyche of our fellow humans. And based on the contents of this list — be afraid. Be very afraid."

Pee-Wee Herman Returns To Hollywood

Pee-Wee Herman Returns To Hollywood | /Film: "Paul Reubens has been going around for the past couple years saying that he was developing two new Pee-Wee Herman feature films, one for adults, one for children. Neither of which seem to have advanced past the “is there anyone crazy enough to fund either of these films?” phase, but that doesn’t mean that we haven’t heard the last of Pee-Wee. Reubens has announced that he will be reprising the character live onstage in Hollywood, will have a limited engagement beginning November 8th, 2009, at The Music Box @ Fonda."

Shoot It! turns iPhone pics into mailed postcards

Shoot It! turns iPhone pics into mailed postcards | DVICE: "There's a new way to mail printed postcards directly from your iPhone, with a little app called Shoot It! This $0.99 iPhone application lets you take a picture with your iPhone's camera, or select a picture from your picture library, and for less than a buck you can mail a glossy postcard. We downloaded Shoot It! from the App Store and gave it a try on our iPhone 3GS."

The 10 mysteries of human behaviour that science can't explain

The 10 mysteries of human behaviour that science can't explain - Telegraph: "The New Scientist magazine compiled a list of the everyday aspects of life which continue to confound the world's greatest brains, including the reasons behind kissing, blushing and even picking your nose.




An editorial in the publication said: 'There is nothing more fascinating to most of us than ourselves."

People 'get happier as they age'

BBC NEWS | Health | People 'get happier as they age': "Most people get happier as they grow older, studies on people aged up to their mid-90s suggest.

Despite worries about ill health, income, changes in social status and bereavements, later life tends to be a golden age, according to psychologists.


They found older adults generally make the best of the time they have left and have learned to avoid situations that make them feel sad or stressed."

What's in a new logo?

What's in a new logo?
It can invigorate a company's image or squander its brand equity. To see which gambles paid off, Fortune turned to a few experts to judge some of the

Top Fast Food Reviews by Chefs

Top Fast Food Reviews by Chefs - Great Fast Food - Esquire: "The country's top chefs tell us about twenty-one take-out joints they're not ashamed to love, from a California burger chain to the taco shack down the street."

Meet Koda the miniature horse

Meet Koda the miniature horse: "He is so tiny, visitors often assume he's a stuffed toy.

Standing at 59cm tall, if Koda the horse wants an equal he has to turn to the vetinary cat for company.

The 'American miniature' horse - who suffers the double-whammy of being born a dwarf - has had a bout of health problems caused by his size, but he is now recovering and enjoying the life of a pampered pet."

Your Brain Thinks Money Is A Drug

Study: Your Brain Thinks Money Is A Drug : NPR: "If you've ever thought of money as a drug, you may be more right than you know. New research shows that counting money — just handling the bills — can make things less painful.

'It is surprising,' says Kathleen Vohs, a professor of marketing at the University of Minnesota's Carlson School of Management who participated in the research. 'It still surprises me.'"

Men Who Do The Housework Are More Likely To Get The Girl

Men Who Do The Housework Are More Likely To Get The Girl: "According to an Oxford economist, marriage and cohabiting rates in developed countries can be linked to attitudes towards the roles of men and women, and views on who is responsible for doing the housework and looking after the children. Both men and women have shown they are more likely to want a live-in relationship with the opposite sex if they think their partner will do a share of the housework and childcare duties."

Army of Sea Urchins

Poll: Brits prefer 'real men' to 'metros'

Poll: Brits prefer 'real men' to 'metros' - UPI.com: "A British survey suggests women prefer 'real men' with beer bellies and hairy chests to 'metrosexuals' with tight shorts and manicures.

The survey of 5,192 women, conducted by Lion Bar Ice Cream, found 80 percent of respondents now consider metrosexual traits including hair straightening and frequent sunbathing to be turn-offs, The Sun reported Tuesday.

The poll also found one in 10 women questioned in the survey like the smell of beer on a man while a fifth of those polled said they are attracted to men with 'a bit of body odor.'"

The 100 Greatest Sci-Fi Movies

The 100 Greatest Sci-Fi Movies Feature - Total Sci-Fi: "The movies on this list are a good indicator of just how diverse the science fiction genre is. From the epic philosophical ideas of 2001: A Space Odyssey and Solaris to the joyful space opera of Star Wars and Flash Gordon, the films here are linked by their ability to explore time and space with imagination, flair and audacity."

Reset Your Sleep Cycle In One Night

How to Naturally Reset Your Sleep Cycle In One Night | Wise Bread: "Not eating for 12-16 hours can help people quickly reset their sleep-wake cycle, according to a study from the Harvard Medical School. This discovery can drastically improve a person's ability to cope with jet lag or adjust to working late shifts.

Scientists have long known that our circadian rhythm is regulated by our exposure to light. Now they have found a second 'food clock' that takes over when we are hungry. This mechanism probably evolved to make sure starving mammals don't go to sleep when they should be foraging for food."

Giant Bat-Eating Centipede

The Top 100 Web Sites of 2009

The Top 100 Web Sites of 2009 - PC Magazine

Our picks for the hottest Web sites and Web trends of the year, plus some old favorites to enjoy.

Human Migration

World Science Festival 2009: Bobby McFerrin Demonstrates the Power of the Pentatonic Scale on Vimeo

World Science Festival 2009: Bobby McFerrin Demonstrates the Power of the Pentatonic Scale on Vimeo: "Bobby McFerrin demonstrates the power of the pentatonic scale, using audience participation, at the event 'Notes & Neurons: In Search of the Common Chorus', from the 2009 World Science Festival, June 12, 2009."

World Science Festival 2009: Bobby McFerrin Demonstrates the Power of the Pentatonic Scale from World Science Festival on Vimeo.

Why everything sucks

Incredible watercolour paintings by boy aged just SIX

Incredible watercolour paintings by boy aged just SIX | Mail Online: "A street scene from the paintbrush of a child usually involves triangle-topped boxes for houses. And often an unnaturally large dog.

But Kieron Williamson's attempts are so beautifully rendered that artists ten times his age will be filled with envy.

Experts have said that the six-year-old's atmospheric paintings, which began with harbour scenes and expanded to include rural vistas, animal portraits and landmarks, have perspective, shadow and reflections that demonstrate an ability well beyond his years."

How big is the internet?

How big is the internet? | Latest news | News.com.au: "THE internet has permeated everything from buying to banking to bonking.

But just how big is it?"

How 9 Cuts of Meat Got Their Names

How 9 Cuts of Meat Got Their Names: "Ever find yourself standing in front of a butcher’s counter and wonder where in the world certain cuts and preparations of meat got their names? Here are the stories behind a few popular meals."

How Fat Is Your State?

Get state obesity rate statistics at WomansDay.com: "Plenty of factors contribute to your life expectancy, including your family medical history, habits (ahem—smokers), and even your race. But no matter how you stack up in other categories, if you don’t keep your weight in check, you’re setting yourself up for a host of life-threatening ailments. Want proof? The numbers below tell a scary story: The states with highest percentages of obese adults—including Alabama (31.2%), Louisiana (28.9%) and Mississippi (32.5%)—have some of the lowest life expectancies in the country—74.6, 74.4, and 73.7 years, respectively. Compare those states to Colorado—where only 18.9 percent of adults are obese and the life expectancy is 78.4 years. Where your state falls on the fit-to-fat spectrum shouldn’t be your only health concern, but it’s certainly worth keeping tabs on."

Rain Sound By Clapping

Pug Head Tilt X 4

Sporting News' 50 greatest coaches of all time

Sporting News' 50 greatest coaches of all time - Jeff D'Alessio - College Basketball - Sporting News: "Headlining the new issue of Sporting News Magazine: our list of sports' 50 greatest coaches of all time, as selected by a panel of 118 Hall of Famers, championship coaches and other experts.

John Wooden, who at UCLA won a record 10 Division I men's basketball championships in 12 years, was a runaway winner. SN's 1970 Sportsman of the Year picked up 57 first-place votes from the panel, which includes seven World Series-winning managers, four Super Bowl champion coaches and the winningest coaches in the NBA, NHL and college basketball."

If a Mosquito Bites Me after I’ve Had a Beer, Can It Get Drunk?

If a Mosquito Bites Me after I’ve Had a Beer, Can It Get Drunk? | Popular Science: "Shockingly, no major studies have been conducted on this topic. “The implications are, however, profound,” says Michael Raupp, an entomologist at the University of Maryland. “Reckless flying, passing out in frosty beer mugs, hitting on crane flies instead of mosquito babes. Frightening!” Fortunately, enough related research exists to make an educated guess.

First, does alcohol affect a mosquito’s simple nervous system the way it does creatures with complex brains, such as dogs or Mickey Rourke? In labs, honeybees fly upside-down after alcohol exposure, and inebriated fruit flies have trouble staying upright and fare poorly on learning tests. This suggests that mosquitoes can get tipsy." More -->

Homeless Man Leaves Behind Surprise: $4 Million : NPR

Homeless Man Leaves Behind Surprise: $4 Million : NPR: "Every day on NPR, listeners hear funding credits — or, in other words, very short, simple commercials.

A few weeks ago, a new one made it to air: 'Support for NPR comes from the estate of Richard Leroy Walters, whose life was enriched by NPR, and whose bequest seeks to encourage others to discover public radio.'

NPR's Robert Siegel wondered who Walters was. So Siegel Googled him."

I Draw on Cups

Coffee Cups - a set on Flickr

How to cook like your grandmother

Leif Olson Amazing Hole In One

Women are getting more beautiful

Women are getting more beautiful - Times Online: "FOR the female half of the population, it may bring a satisfied smile. Scientists have found that evolution is driving women to become ever more beautiful, while men remain as aesthetically unappealing as their caveman ancestors."

Grocery Shopping Tips From The 1950s

Consumerist - Grocery Shopping Tips From The 1950s - Groceries: "Society may have come a long way since the 50s, but the grocery shopping tips remain the same. Inside, the wisdom that helped a generation of college-aged mothers conquer the scary supermarket."

WD-40 Can Do All That! Who Knew?

WD-40 Can Do All That! Who Knew? - Trudge164 - Open Salon: "According to WD-40 folklore, a guy who had just bought a new pickup got up one Sunday morning and saw that someone had spray painted red all around the sides of this beige truck (for some unknown reason). Needless to say, he was very upset and was trying to figure out what to do. His neighbor came out and told him to get some WD-40 and clean it off. It removed the unwanted paint beautifully and did not harm his paint job that was on the truck."

More -->

the incredible 10ft 'photographs' drawn with a ballpoint pen

Simply birolliant - the incredible 10ft 'photographs' drawn with a ballpoint pen | Mail Online: "They may look like pin-sharp photographs - but these amazing pictures are actually drawings created with the humble ballpoint pen.

The stunning pictures, measuring up to 10ft high, were drawn by a rising star of the art world, Juan Francisco Casas.

Casas, 31, can use up to four 14p ballpoint pens for a canvas and his works are already a sell-out at exhibitions.

Formerly a traditional painter, Juan began the drawings three years ago based on photographs of nights out with his friends."

25 Businessmen Who Broke The Rules (And Some Laws)

25 Businessmen Who Broke The Rules (And Some Laws): "Fortunes are rarely won by playing it safe. On the contrary, the biggest fortunes have been won by those willing to step outside the box and change the way the game is played. Following are twenty-five business innovators of the past, present, and future whose stories are different in many respects, but all point to the same truth: Ingenuity, improvisation, and daring are more important than following the rules (even though you might find yourself on the wrong side of the law once in a while)."

Guy Tries to Be Sauve Sound Bite

Guy Tries to Be Sauve Sound Bite
Hey Olga, it's Dimitri...

Giant 'soap bubble' found floating in space

Giant 'soap bubble' found floating in space - space - 23 July 2009 - New Scientist: "IT LOOKS like a soap bubble or perhaps even a camera fault, but the image at right is a newly discovered planetary nebula.

Planetary nebulae, which got their name after being misidentified by early astronomers, are formed when an ageing star weighing up to eight times the mass of the sun ejects its outer layers as clouds of luminous gas (see Why stars go out in a blaze of glory). Most are elliptical, double-lobed or cigar-shaped, evolving after stars eject gas from each pole (see a gallery of the nebulae)."

30 Creative and Unique Wine Label Designs

Amazing Wine Labels: 30 Creative and Unique Wine Label Designs: "Amazing Wine Labels - The design of a wine label can make or break the success of a new wine introduced to the market. Even beyond the quality of the wine itself, the label plays a primary role in the purchasing decisions of customers. It is on this fact that many graphic designers have focused their attention to making creative, compelling labels that connect a bottle of wine with its buyer. To celebrate the work of these designers, TheCoolist has selected 30 of the most impressive wine label designs in recent history. To read it right, we suggest you enjoy this list over a freshly popped glass of wine…"