Neatorama

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• Azhdarchids: The Largest Flying Creatures That Have Ever Existed on Earth
• Human Body Myth: We Use Just 10% of Our Brains
• The Wrath of Star Trek Fans
• Mal and Chad's Fill in the Bubble Frenzy 11
• Classic Cartoon Theme Song Medley
• Farting on School Bus Sent Kid to Detention
• The Bundt Cake of Barad-Dûr
• Nomskulls Skull Cupcake Mold
• Tiny Robot Eye Imitates Human Eye, But Is Even Faster
• Mice Prefer Treats They Worked Harder to Get
• Bandages That Change Color when a Wound Is Infected
• Gurning Champion Declared Ugliest Woman by Guinness World Records
• Replacing the Kilogram
• The Ultimate Robot Costume
• Jury Doodles
• Bombad Bounty
• Toddler Falls Six Floors Unhurt
• Es Musica. Literal

Azhdarchids: The Largest Flying Creatures That Have Ever Existed on Earth Posted: 04 Nov 2010 01:22 AM PDT Image: Mark Witton/Darren Naish What do you get when you combine a bird with a giraffe? The largest flying creatures that have ever existed on Earth: With wingspans of 40 to 50 ft, the Azhdarchids were pterosaurs as big as some modern aircraft, with incredibly lop-sided bodies. Hugely long legs, beaks and necks adorned unusually small torsos with wings that were, surprisingly, proportionately short. It is thought that they were not able to hunt in flight, but needed to land and scrabble awkwardly for anything that they could swallow whole. Since one of these terrifying monsters stood as much as 20ft tall, it is easy to imagine that man might well have been a prey animal for them, had they lived alongside each other. Environmental Graffiti has a feature of more less well known, but equally savage prehistoric predators: Link

Human Body Myth: We Use Just 10% of Our Brains Posted: 03 Nov 2010 06:22 PM PDT Surely you’ve heard someone say that humans only use 10% of our brains (and some people even less), but that turns out to be a just myth: William James, a psychologist in the 1800s, once metaphorically used the idea of 10% of the brain being all that was used at one time. This grew into the rumor that it was all the brain was overall and most of the rest was not understood or used as far as we know. Actually, the inactive neurons are just as important at any given moment as the ones actively firing at a point in time, and the 10% comes from varying areas at different times. Read more human body myths at Environmental Graffiti: Link

The Wrath of Star Trek Fans Posted: 03 Nov 2010 06:01 PM PDT News.com.au got schooled in the ways of Star Trek fandom when they posted an article containing errors about the Trek universe. Today they printed an apology with corrections. News.com.au apologises unreservedly for the error. There was no intention whatsoever to suggest Captain Kirk may have commanded the Galaxy Class Starships Enterprise-D and Enterprise-E. Any damage to the Star Trek brand incurred by the use of the term “hyperspace” is regretful. No malice was intended and a correction to the original article will be made. We also agree that Patrick Stewart is a handsome man, a sentiment expressed by several readers. The kicker is that, intentionally or not, there are at least nine errors in the apology. Link -via Metafilter

Mal and Chad's Fill in the Bubble Frenzy 11 Posted: 03 Nov 2010 05:28 PM PDT Every week, y’all get mighty creative on us for the Fill in the Bubble Frenzy with boy genius Mal and his talking dog Chad! Fill in the empty speech bubble and win any T-shirt available in the NeatoShop -take a look around, pick one out and tell us what shirt you'd like with your submission in the comments. If you don’t specify a t-shirt with your entry, you forfeit the prize. Enter as many times as you like (text only, please), but leave only one entry per comment. Even if you have no idea what he’s saying, check out the other entries! Also check out Mal and Chad's comic strip adventures by Stephen McCranie at malandchad.com.

Classic Cartoon Theme Song Medley Posted: 03 Nov 2010 05:04 PM PDT Fredrik Larsson (YouTube user FreddeGredde) sings a medley of 28 classic 80s cartoon theme songs that will surely transport y’all back to happier times. Geektoplasm has the clip: The only way I can explain how it feels to watch this is: you know that feeling you get when you come home from college and have your first dinner back home? That feeling you get in your mouth as you eat your favorite homemade meal after months of cafeteria fare? It’s like that, but in your brain and heart. If you don’t smile, then you’re definitely cold-hearted Link Previously on Neatorama: Cartoon Theme Medley on Piano

Farting on School Bus Sent Kid to Detention Posted: 03 Nov 2010 01:38 PM PDT [YouTube Clip] 11-year-old Christian Summers, like many kids (and adults, for that matter), think that passing gas is funny. But not the school bus driver lady, no siree! According to his school bus driver, he also thinks passing gas is fun. She didn’t find his flatulence so funny. "She’s like, ‘I’m gonna sign you up. I’m gonna sign you up’. I’m like, ‘It was an accident," said Summers. For letting it rip on the ride home, Christian was slapped withn an hour of detention at Thoreau Park Elementary. "I thought it was pretty dumb," said Summers. It seems breaking wind is now breaking the rules. The detention slip reads, quote "Thinks it’s funny to pass gas while on the van. I’ve told him it’s not funny, nor polite to the others in the van. While others scream, he laughs." But what does a kid do when he’s got to fart? Christian now fears his flatulence. If he’s caught passing gas on the bus again, he could get four or five days of detention. "Depends on how much more gas he has," said his father. Now he’s secretive when letting one slip on his small school bus. "When I have to pass gas, I have to cover myself because it won’t stink up the bus," said Christian. Emily Valdez of Fox News has the story: Link – via Arbroath More baby and kids stories over at NeatoBambino

The Bundt Cake of Barad-Dûr Posted: 03 Nov 2010 01:07 PM PDT Instructables user RavingMadStudios made a cake shaped like the Dark Tower from The Lord of the Rings. The Eye of Sauron is a cupcake. The structure is supported by cardboard tubes resting on a bundt pan. Link via Geektoplasm

Nomskulls Skull Cupcake Mold Posted: 03 Nov 2010 12:17 PM PDT Nomskulls Skull Cupcake Mold – $11.95 Om nom nom nom … who doesn’t like yummy brain cupcake? Make your own ghoulish cupcakes with the Nomskulls Skull Cupcake Mold from the NeatoShop. Nomskulls are ready to fill with your favorite grey batter (get it?) and bake into perfect cupcake craniums. One bite and you’ll be head over heels, because there’s no doubt about it – this skull bone’s connected to the YUM bone! Link | More Cupcake Items | More Fun Party Supplies

Tiny Robot Eye Imitates Human Eye, But Is Even Faster Posted: 03 Nov 2010 11:28 AM PDT (Video Link) The human eye can rotate 500 degrees per second. Now a new robot eye is able to meet and exceed that ability by moving 2,500 degrees per second. German researchers led by Heinz Ulbrich at the Technical University of Munich developed this new head-mounted optical wonder: The system, propped on a person’s head, uses a custom made eye-tracker to monitor the person’s eye movements. It then precisely reproduces those movements using a superfast actuator-driven mechanism with yaw, pitch, and roll rotation, like a human eyeball. When the real eye move, the robot eye follows suit. Link via Nerdcore

Mice Prefer Treats They Worked Harder to Get Posted: 03 Nov 2010 11:16 AM PDT In an article in The Proceedings of the Royal Society, two researchers described how mice in an experiment tended to get greater enjoyment out of rewards that were more labor-intensive: Mice were trained to push levers to get either of two rewards. Press one lever, out comes a drop of sugar water. Press the other and they get a drop of different tasting sugar water. Then things got interesting. For one of the treats, scientists gradually increased the amount of effort required for the payoff—from one lever-press to five, then 10, then 15. So by the end of the session, one type of sugar water cost 15 times more effort than the other. The mice then retired to their home cage where both treats were freely available. And they showed a strong preference for whichever reward they'd worked harder to obtain. Based on how fast the mice sipped, they appeared to find the costlier sugar water more tasty. Link | Photo by Flickr user Steve Berger Photography used under Creative Commons license

Bandages That Change Color when a Wound Is Infected Posted: 03 Nov 2010 10:50 AM PDT Scientists at the Fraunhofer Research Institution in Munich, Germany, have placed pH sensitive dyes in bandages. These change color when they come into contact with fluids that indicate that a wound is infected: In creating the color control strip, the researchers had to ensure the dye remained chemically stable when bonded to the fibers of the dressing material or the plaster to ensure it doesn't get into the wound. They also had to ensure the indicator showed a clear change in color and reacted sensitively in the right pH range. The researchers have already produced a prototype of the dressing and they say initial tests have proved successful. They are now looking to take the idea further with plans to integrate optical sensor modules into the dressing to measure the pH value and indicate the results on a reader unit. This would allow the pH value to be read off precisely, providing information about how the wound is healing. Link via Geekosystem | Photo: Fraunhofer EMFT

Gurning Champion Declared Ugliest Woman by Guinness World Records Posted: 03 Nov 2010 10:34 AM PDT “Gurning” is apparently a competitive sport in Britain that consists of contorting one’s face in ugly poses. Anne Woods, who’s been a local champion for 27 years, will now get a special mention in the Guinness Book of World Records: Gurning involves contorting the facial features into ugly positions while draped in a horse collar and it is thought that the competition at Egremont dates back to the middle ages. Mrs Woods said: “It feels absolutely wonderful to have been accepted. But this is not before time; I’ve won the competition 27 times now. “I am considering retiring, but I know what I’m like. Come next year’s competition I’ll be itching to get on stage again. “Whatever happens, I doubt my record will be broken.” Anne started gurning when she was 30 after her brothers entered her into the competition without her permission. She won and 33 years later Anne is still pulling her famous face. Link | Photo: North News

Replacing the Kilogram Posted: 03 Nov 2010 10:24 AM PDT The official standard for the kilogram is a cylinder of platinum and iridium made in 1879 and kept in a vault in France. Scientists have made official copies and distributed them since that time, but many of those copies don’t equal each other in mass, and the original is undergoing decay. So now researchers are trying to come up with a new definition of the kilogram: It's a conundrum scientists need to solve because the kilogram is one of a few base units (like the second and the meter) that are used in the definitions of other, more complex units, such as those used to measure temperature, electricity or density. If the kilogram is off, even a little, critical measurements in science, engineering and commerce get messed up.[...] The U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology is backing a definition based on the Planck Constant, a number from quantum mechanics. It's a more complex definition than a simple cylinder, but it's unlikely to change over the next century. Link | Image: Clipart

The Ultimate Robot Costume Posted: 03 Nov 2010 09:41 AM PDT (YouTube link) This guy made a Mecha {wiki} costume for Halloween and spared no expense. Sheet metal, aircraft aluminum, and other parts: $600. Rivets, bolts, hardware: $250. Tool purchases/rentals: $200. Spraypaint: $90. Truck rental to carry costume: $210. Hours: 250+. Looking like you could take down a tank: priceless. It’s a good thing he rented a truck. That’s a lot of weight to walk home in, considering he couldn’t fit through a bus door. -via reddit

Jury Doodles Posted: 03 Nov 2010 07:35 AM PDT Chris Roth served on a jury for a civil case that lasted for seven days. The case was interesting (involving a stripper), but seven days in a jury box is still a long time. Jurors were given notebooks to jot down important things, so Roth drew pictures. Lots of them, which you can see at his blog. Link

Bombad Bounty Posted: 03 Nov 2010 07:32 AM PDT (YouTube link) This Lego Star Wars animation tells a version of the original trilogy in which Jar-Jar Binks messes everything up. -via Boing Boing

Toddler Falls Six Floors Unhurt Posted: 03 Nov 2010 07:29 AM PDT An 18-month-old girl in Paris fell out of a sixth-story apartment window Monday afternoon. She bounced off a canopy over a ground-floor cafe and into the arms of a doctor who was passing by! The man who caught the girl was walking by with his wife and son when the boy spotted the girl falling. Another witness told Le Figaro that the doctor positioned himself by the awning and caught the girl in his arms after she bounced off it. The witness, Francois, said the girl cried a bit at first but quickly calmed down. The doctor, identified as Philippe Benseniot by France Info, said it was pure luck. “I was there at the right time,” he told France Info. “I’m happy for the little girl.” The child was taken to a hospital but was found to be uninjured. Link -via Fortean Times

Es Musica. Literal Posted: 03 Nov 2010 07:23 AM PDT This illustration contains the names of 48 musical groups rendered as icons. Can you figure out the names of the bands? Click on the image at El Espíritu de los Cínicos to see the answers. Link -via Gorilla Mask

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