February 2012
29 posts
Climbing Everest in shorts: 'It Was Easy' - ABC... →
Scientists can’t really explain it, but the 48-year-old Dutchman is able to withstand, and even thrive, in temperatures that could be fatal to the average person.
[…]
In January of 1999 he traveled 100 miles north of the Arctic Circle to run a half-marathon in his bare feet. Three years later, dressed only in a swimsuit, he dove under the ice at the North Pole and earned a Guinness...
"There is enough alcohol in this cloud to make 400... →
Watchfuckyeahtedtalks:
TED Talk - David Brooks: The social animal
Animated cross-section of the human body →
Paris syndrome →
Paris syndrome (French: Syndrome de Paris) is a transient psychological disorder encountered by some people, in most cases from Japan, visiting or vacationing in Paris, France.
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Japanese media, magazines in particular, often depict Paris as a place where most people on the street look like stick-thin models and most women dress in high-fashion brands such as Louis Vuitton, while in...
Steven Pinker on the myth of violence →
How Quantum Suicide Works →
A man sits down before a gun, which is pointed at his head. This is no ordinary gun; it’s rigged to a machine that measures the spin of a quantum particle. Each time the trigger is pulled, the spin of the quantum particle is measured. If the quantum particle is measured as spinning in a clockwise motion, the gun will fire. If the quark is spinning counterclockwise, the gun won’t go...
“Whether pleasant, unpleasant, or neutral, gross or subtle, every sensation...”
"Given a quantum computer with a sufficient number... →
Great Leap Forward →
The Great Leap Forward of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) was an economic and social campaign of the Communist Party of China (CPC), reflected in planning decisions from 1958 to 1961, which aimed to use China’s vast population to rapidly transform the country from an agrarian economy into a modern communist society through the process of rapid industrialization,...
How much fuel does it take to power a lightbulb? →
“No great artist ever sees things as they really are. If he did he would cease to...”
– Oscar Wilde
Alice in Wonderland Syndrome (AIWS) →
Alice-in-Wonderland syndrome (AIWS) is a disorienting neurological condition that affects human perception. Sufferers may experience micropsia, macropsia, or size distortion of other sensory modalities. A temporary condition, it is often associated with migraines, brain tumors, and the use of psychoactive drugs. It can also present as the initial sign of the Epstein-Barr...
Casu marzu →
Casu marzu (in Italian formaggio marcio, “rotten cheese”) is a traditional Sardinian sheep milk cheese, notable for containing live insect larvae. It is found mainly in Sardinia, Italy.
Derived from Pecorino, casu marzu goes beyond typical fermentation to a stage most would consider decomposition, brought about by the digestive action of the larvae of the cheese fly. These larvae are...
If your house was burning, what would you take... →
Language affects how you see →
"He's in a coma," the doctor, Emery Brown,... →