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A wise person knows when to make the exception to every rule.
~ Barry Schwartz
What Really Happens in the Women's Restroom
I'm awfully glad I can pee standing up.
Subject: Visit to the Ladies Room
When you have to visit a public bathroom, you usually find a line of women, so you smile politely and take your place. Once it's your turn, you check for feet under the stall doors. Every stall is occupied. Finally, a door opens and you dash in, nearly knocking down the woman leaving the stall. You get in to find the door won't latch. It doesn't matter, the wait has been so long you are about to wet your pants!
How to Avoid Jet Lag - A New Rule-of-Tum
Avoid jet lag - According to a Harvard animal study, the sleep-wake cycle can be reset by fasting for 12-16 hours. So to avoid jet lag, the researchers offered this rule-of-tum...
- Figure out when breakfast is served in the new timezone
- Don't eat for 12-16 hours before that time
Avoid eating for 12-16 hours - The Harvard study suggests that delayed eating helps reset the sleep-wake cycle, which could help reduce jet lag or adjusting to working a swing shift.
Which Bush Sucks More?
Ward Sutton 'Which Bush Sucks More?' Cartoon
Absence of Evidence? - Or Evidence of Absence?
There's a difference between an absence of evidence, vs. evidence of absence.
A medical test is performed on a person and comes out positive for cancer. The doctor presents this diagnosis and prescribes medical treatment. After the treatment is completed, the test is run again. This time the test comes out negative, the test offers an absence of evidence for cancer.
However, after the test results the doctor will sometimes say: "You are cancer free!" That declaration suggests the test is evidence for an absence of cancer. It is not. The tests are an absence of evidence for cancer. What?
Cactus Pacifier
I call this a Cactus Pacifier. God help the sick S.O.B. who came up with this idea...
Cactus Pacifier
John Cleese Interview - by Michael Parkinson
Absolutely delightful interview with John Cleese by Michael Parkinson. Six parts on Youtube. Enjoy...
Videos were removed...bummer... Perhaps there's another source.
Across The Universe - Beatles Musical with Evan Rachel Wood
Jude and Lucy
Across the Universe
Across the Universe - Directed by Julie Taymor, Across the Universe is a classic "boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy finds girl" story--all presented as a musical containing 33 class Beatles songs. I'm not usually drawn to musicals, but the familiar and catchy Beatles tunes quickly got my attention. From there, the ensemble cast of young actors/singers (including Evan Rachel Wood from King of California) brought something genuine and earnest to the often psychedelic storyline that knitted together lyrics from Dear Prudence to Why don't we do it in the road.
If I a Gun and Two Bullets...
This line from The Office (U.S. version) cracks me up every time.
Match Stick Airplane Instructions Using Flies (the insect)
Building a matchstick airplane is one thing. Building a matchstick airplane powered by flies is another.
Totally hilarious. I wish I had the patience to actually attempt these instructions; however, they are worth a look, if only for their entertainment value. Funny stuff.
Here are some highlights...
Truth About Shampoo and Conditioner
What makes your hair look bad after using shampoo without conditioner?
It's the water, not the shampoo.
To understand why, you need to know that hair has scales, like a snake. The scales lay flat in an acidic environment, making hair look shiny and healthy--which is why some recommend applying lemon juice to the hair. And the hair scales stand up in an alkali or base environment, making the hair look dry and dull.
What determines the acid/base environment is the water, not the shampoo. Public tap water has become "harder," more base, over the years. That causes your hair to be frizzy after washing your hair.
However, shampoo removes the natural oils from the hair, and this removal is what damages the hair by making it less supple and much more brittle. So you replace the natural oils with the oils in conditioners. It helps.
If GM Built Cars Like Microsoft Builds Software
Yet another fantastically funny email. I wonder if the story behind this has any truth.
For all of us who feel only the deepest love and affection for the way computers have enhanced our lives, read on. At a recent computer expo (COMDEX), Bill Gates reportedly compared the computer industry with the auto industry and stated:
In response to Bill's comments, General Motors issued this press release...
Dove Ad Campaign for Real Beauty
Real Women Have Curves
Update: The campaign has gone into second gear. I saw a commercial featuring young girls (pre-teens, early teens) who didn't like something about themselves, their freckles, their hair, etc. Dove calls the campaign Uniquely Me, and the goal is to eliminate low self-esteem (due to appearance?) in girls and, utlimately, women. From their website:
Good start. Will the idea catch on? As long as it sells soap, I doubt that they care. How cynical is that?
The Wieners Circle - This American Life - Ira Glass
"Welcome to the Wieners Circle--Can I take your order, BIT@%!"
What would happen if you felt free to say whatever foul thing you wanted? At The Wieners Circle in Chicago, you can almost get that experience.
The Wieners Circle is a hot dog stand in Chicago that caters to an inebriated, late-night clientele. This special population can turn quite verbally aggressive, and some 15 years ago, owner Larry Gold got fed up. He told his employees:
"Whatever they dish out, we have to dish out back to them."
And so they did.
Value of a Library - In Its Read or Unread Books?
In his book The Black Swan, Nassim Nicholas Taleb discusses the following question with Umberto Eco, who happens to possess a rather significant, personal library.
- Is the value of a library in the books you've read or in the books you have not read?
Most people are disappointed to learn that Eco hasn't read most of the books it contains. Eco feels precisely the opposite. To him, the value of the library lies in the unread books--the books yet to be discovered.
Which is why he continues adding to his collection. So to Eco (and Taleb), the library's value lies in its undiscovered volumes, which echo's Shakespeare's line about the "undiscovered country."
But others answer the question differently...
Beer Turns Men into Women - Study Finds
"Yesterday, scientists for Health Canada suggested that men should take a look at their beer consumption, considering the results of a recent analysis that revealed the presence of female hormones in beer. The theory is that drinking beer makes men turn into women. To test the finding 100 men were fed 6 pints of beer each. It was then observed that 100% of the men gained weight, talked excessively without making sense, became overly emotional, couldn't drive, failed to think rationally, argued over nothing, and refused to apologize when wrong. No further testing is planned."
Ocarina: Sweet Potato Hand Flute to Legend of Zelda
Anyone interested in the ocarina must visit the Songbird Ocarina website. The fellow that put the website together sells his handmade ocarinas (and other hand flutes), but he also provides history, videos and audio files on him playing, tips, sheet music, etc. I quickly got the sense that this guy loves what he does, which made paying the price for one of his ocarinas much easier to accept.
Scrubs Cast Helps Ted Propose to Anna
(:youtube jFwL6iFDk9Q:)
Ted and Anna Get Engaged on Scrubs
Evolution of Bush to Obama - Morphing Photos
Do look at the full-sized original. Really cool effect. Everyone I've showed this to says the same thing...
The middle photo freaks me out!
MRSA - Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus - Research
MRSA - Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus - Saw a 60 Minutes piece on MRSA, the antibiotic-resistant strain of staph. It's spread by person-to-person contact, and vulnerable to only one antibiotic--the antibiotic of last resort--vincomycin. And doctors expect this "superbug" to soon develop a resistance to that sole, remaining weapon. What do we do? More research. They hope for a vaccine, and other antibiotic treatments are expected on the horizon. Will this happen fast enough?
Bad Faith Economics - by Paul Krugman
Bad Faith Economics - by Paul Krugman - Nobel Prize Laureate for Economics Paul Krugman rebutts conservative Republican arguments against President Obama's economic stimulus plan. In his New York Times editorial, Krugman's declares that Republicans are arguing in "bad faith." Below is a summary with some added commentary...
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