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Entries from December 2009

six drummers drumming

December 21st, 2009 · 1 Comment

This has been one of my favourite YouTube videos for ages now — six drummers wait until an elderly couple leaves their apartment to walk the dog, then breaks in and proceeds to turn each of their rooms into a distinct and remarkable musical instrument. Truly odd and wonderful, and I never did figure […]

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Tags: curio · music · neato

i for one welcome our new hyperintelligent octopus overlords

December 17th, 2009 · 1 Comment

Before I read this, I didn’t know that octopuses could navigate mazes, solve problems, and even work the lid off a screw-top jar in search of food.
Wikipedia says:

An octopus has a highly complex nervous system, only part of which is localized in its brain. Two-thirds of an octopus’s neurons are found in the nerve cords […]

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Tags: curio · fauna · fun and games · funny · nature · neato · uk

iran’s protestors still demanding “death to the dictator”

December 16th, 2009 · 1 Comment

Why does it always have to be “Death to so-and-so”? Is there no middle ground between “Long live Imam Khomeini” and “Death to the dictator”? Why not something a little more constructive, like “Stop beating and killing unarmed protestors for no damn reason”?
With temperatures dipping to a nippy 3°C on National Students’ Day, […]

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Tags: darn tootin' · election · government · iran · middle east · news · opinion

u.k. crematorium plans to convert corpses into electricity

December 11th, 2009 · 2 Comments

Burning corpses generates a lot of heat, and a crematorium in East Sussex plans to convert that energy into usable electricity to reduce its own power costs — essentially turning dead bodies into a renewable energy source.
“A crematorium uses vast amounts of energy,” says Hastings Borough Council amenities manager Peter Mead. “We buy about £25,000 […]

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Tags: curio · energy · environment · invention · neato · sustainability · tech

birth control for men

December 2nd, 2009 · 4 Comments

Just a little one today.
A Scottish study is shedding light on ways to safely manipulate hormone levels in men to decrease — or increase — sperm production. The result could finally lead to a long-elusive birth control pill for men, as well as new fertility-enhancing techniques for men with low sperm counts.
From the Times […]

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Tags: drugs · invention · medicine · neato · news · science · uk