First and foremost; here's an article reporting that while the US thinks highly of American science achievements, they don't think much of STEM education, and prefer that we not actually use science (in the form of GMO food, etc). This is distressing.
Beer miles are a thing. They're usually 4 laps on a standard track, during which a beer is consumed at the start of every mile, and while they've always been an unofficial runner thing (though in undergrad, my brother and i used to do shots, not beer, and race around the block) there is actually an official beer mile time tracker (a guy finished one in under 5 minutes last year, drinking Budwieser). Outside Magazine covered the World Beer Mile races held in Austin in December last year. Anyway, here are some trail versions, given that, " the track-style beer mile favors fast little road runners and track guys, and that we should organize our own beer mile out on the trails for trail runners,” says John Burton, 41, of San Jose, California. “Then of course we started thinking, ‘what's the toughest, steepest, most gnarly trail around here?’” ". Fair enough. i'd totally be up for a shots-n-steeplechase.
i recently read a very well done article on the insanity that is the Barkley Marathons (5x20+ mile loops outside of the Brushy Mountain State Penitentiary in Tennessee, unofficially the most difficult race). (Official wiki article here, and a NYTimes article here, for more info.)
i was hanging out with Kate and Jeremy on Wednesday. They've just adopted a cat, Janie, and were talking about discipline when Jeremy showed us the Engineer's Guide To Cats (corporal cuddling was the reference, around 4:35). There is also a version 2, as well as other highly creative videos featuring the same cast at the guy's youtube page.
Jeremy also referenced "Sad Etsy Boyfriends", a tumblr featuring pictures from Etsy where guys are clearly not thrilled to be modelling their girlfriends' wares. Thanks for the pop culture, Jeremy!!
The Superbowl is this upcoming weekend, and Seahawks' running back Marshawn "Beast Mode" Lynch is notorious for detesting media related events. He has been previously fined for skipping press conferences, so at a recent one, he apparently set a 5 minute timer on his cell phone, answered 29 questions with the same consecutive answer ("i'm just here so i don't get fined"), and when his time was up, announced "Finished!" and left. i can only be jealous that i can't apply this in daily life. SB Nation did a hilarious Lynch 'encyclopedia', link here.
Relatedly, Captain America (Chris Evans) and the Starlord (Chris Pratt) are engaging in sweet a Superbowl bet of epic proportions.
Here's an article with linked video about Danish archer Lars Andersen, who taught himself to hold his arrows in the same hand in which he holds his bow; this enables him fire arrows at a very rapid rate (3 arrows in 0.6 seconds, AND he hits what he's aiming at).
In brief, a taxidermist has recreated the face of Princess Ukok, a Siberian woman who died in 2500 years ago (either of breast cancer or a fall combined with breast cancer) on the Ukok plateau. She's also famous for her remarkable arm tattoos that resemble mythical deer.
The song "I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles)" played on the radio in lab today; it was released in 1988 by the Proclaimers. i did not realize that the group is fronted by twins (Charlie and Craig Reid). Wikipedia lists 53 entries for musician twins, though, but i didn't look up family bands (i'm sure that list is just ridiculously extensive).
Anhedonia is a condition which is " defined as the inability to experience pleasure from activities usually found enjoyable, e.g. exercise, hobbies, music, sexual activities or social interactions. "
Finally, this muti-tool bracelet just released by Leatherman is pretty nifty. i think i'd wear one as an anklet for sure (okay, once the prices come down).
Friday, January 30, 2015
Friday, January 23, 2015
Michelle Pfeiffer references, PSB, gelatin etc, manspreading, chai and espresso
We tend to play the radio in lab, and i noticed that in two currently popular songs, Vance Joy's Riptide and Mark Ronson + Bruno Mars' severely swaggering Uptown Funk, the actress Michelle Pfeiffer is mentioned. Curious if there was some sort of common thread, i googled it and happily, someone had already put together an article. Vance Joy cited Ms. Pfeiffer's depiction of Catwoman as a inspiration, and Ronson + Mars drew inspiration from her Elvira Hancock of the movie Scarface. Alright, then.
Speaking of popular music, i've been a little stuck on Public Service Broadcasting, a group out of London who takes audio clips from public announcements and makes songs around them. Reference this pretty great music video about the cosmonaut Yuri Gargarin.
As linked by Kelly AT today, here's an incredibly amusing and sadly accurate satirical (Onion) article concerning why some moms won't vaccinate their kids.
Two weird bits of synchronity regard aspics. i was skpying with Jack and Leslie last week when the topic of weird savory jellos came up; having blogged about this before, i was able to cringe in unison with them. Aspics also were mentioned in conversing with Rup and Bryan, in the theme of 'loaves' apparently popular in some parts of Europe (which we somehow reached when i referred to pimento cheese). While revisiting the jello wikipedia page, i noticed that Areoplane Jelly is a brand of gelatin based in Australia, so named as it's origin start coincided with that of aviation. They used to have some interesting native flavors like " Lilly Pilly, Quandong and Midjinberry ".
Leslie, i mentioned that automatic cake decorating videos are strangely fascinating (and hat tip to Kate B for that).
Leslie brought up issues with the current early 20-something male crowd and their apparent inability to sit up straight and not spread their legs over more than two seats. (And i can vouch for this; the few times i have lately taken the bus, a guy next to me is taking up as much space as possible while i'm trying to avoid being imposed upon. Ugh.) Apparently 'manspreading' is an issue on NY Subways to the point of there being an actual ad campaign telling dudes to stop taking up so much space when they sit.
Side tangent, there was a viral video last year called 'Shrinking Woman' by Lily Myers, which describes women 'having been taught accommodation', and that goes alongside Amy Cuddy's study of 'power poses', and how poses might influence our thinking about ourselves as well as others' impressions of us. Anyway.
In other news, the not-American unit of measurement 'stone' is equal to just over 14 lbs. Apparently, when i say i want to eat my weight in a particular food (as i sometimes claim regarding desserts or bbq), i need to eat 9 stones-worth.
It came up in conversation the other day that there are 25 known taste receptors for bitter flavors. <3
In honor of the fast-approaching Indian Republic Day, i'm linking this aptly named 'best chai ever' recipe . It's seriously really good; i've been looking for decent chai for a while, and finally decided that the appropriate spice level is probably not going to be found in a commercial blend. For reference, i made this with PG Tips tea (the blogger is right, you need a strong, inexpensive tea to stand up to the spices), and have successfully made both cows' milk and almond milk versions.
While we're on the topic of hot beverages, my brother and sister-in-law very kindly gifted me with a moka pot/stove top espresso maker for Christmas. i'd linked an easily-found aluminum version to my brother. However, he's an engineer, and his thought process was that when aluminum explodes it creates shrapnel. He didn't want to be responsible for that, so he tracked down a nicer steel version (steel just gives way when under too much pressure, so there would only be burn damage). Thanks, Nate!
He requested pictures, and since i think this is a really cool process anyway, here are some pictures of my new coffee toy.
Also, weirdly, apparently the world's first webcam was designed to show if the coffee pot outside of the Trojan Room, a computer room at the University of Cambridge, had coffee, so folks could avoid getting up to see. Efficient. Also, kinda amazing.
Speaking of popular music, i've been a little stuck on Public Service Broadcasting, a group out of London who takes audio clips from public announcements and makes songs around them. Reference this pretty great music video about the cosmonaut Yuri Gargarin.
As linked by Kelly AT today, here's an incredibly amusing and sadly accurate satirical (Onion) article concerning why some moms won't vaccinate their kids.
Two weird bits of synchronity regard aspics. i was skpying with Jack and Leslie last week when the topic of weird savory jellos came up; having blogged about this before, i was able to cringe in unison with them. Aspics also were mentioned in conversing with Rup and Bryan, in the theme of 'loaves' apparently popular in some parts of Europe (which we somehow reached when i referred to pimento cheese). While revisiting the jello wikipedia page, i noticed that Areoplane Jelly is a brand of gelatin based in Australia, so named as it's origin start coincided with that of aviation. They used to have some interesting native flavors like " Lilly Pilly, Quandong and Midjinberry ".
Leslie, i mentioned that automatic cake decorating videos are strangely fascinating (and hat tip to Kate B for that).
Leslie brought up issues with the current early 20-something male crowd and their apparent inability to sit up straight and not spread their legs over more than two seats. (And i can vouch for this; the few times i have lately taken the bus, a guy next to me is taking up as much space as possible while i'm trying to avoid being imposed upon. Ugh.) Apparently 'manspreading' is an issue on NY Subways to the point of there being an actual ad campaign telling dudes to stop taking up so much space when they sit.
Side tangent, there was a viral video last year called 'Shrinking Woman' by Lily Myers, which describes women 'having been taught accommodation', and that goes alongside Amy Cuddy's study of 'power poses', and how poses might influence our thinking about ourselves as well as others' impressions of us. Anyway.
In other news, the not-American unit of measurement 'stone' is equal to just over 14 lbs. Apparently, when i say i want to eat my weight in a particular food (as i sometimes claim regarding desserts or bbq), i need to eat 9 stones-worth.
It came up in conversation the other day that there are 25 known taste receptors for bitter flavors. <3
In honor of the fast-approaching Indian Republic Day, i'm linking this aptly named 'best chai ever' recipe . It's seriously really good; i've been looking for decent chai for a while, and finally decided that the appropriate spice level is probably not going to be found in a commercial blend. For reference, i made this with PG Tips tea (the blogger is right, you need a strong, inexpensive tea to stand up to the spices), and have successfully made both cows' milk and almond milk versions.
While we're on the topic of hot beverages, my brother and sister-in-law very kindly gifted me with a moka pot/stove top espresso maker for Christmas. i'd linked an easily-found aluminum version to my brother. However, he's an engineer, and his thought process was that when aluminum explodes it creates shrapnel. He didn't want to be responsible for that, so he tracked down a nicer steel version (steel just gives way when under too much pressure, so there would only be burn damage). Thanks, Nate!
He requested pictures, and since i think this is a really cool process anyway, here are some pictures of my new coffee toy.
Also, weirdly, apparently the world's first webcam was designed to show if the coffee pot outside of the Trojan Room, a computer room at the University of Cambridge, had coffee, so folks could avoid getting up to see. Efficient. Also, kinda amazing.
Friday, January 16, 2015
Darkwing Duck, Spicy foods, Wausau, the Buckeyes, stranger love, Jeepster
Because i broke into the Darkwing Duck theme song today in lab, wearing a lab coat and doing the running man, here's a link to the theme song of that classic show from my childhood. My favorite part of those episodes was hearing DW come up with new endings to the phrase, "i am the terror that flaps in the night. i am the... (bubblegum that clings to your shoe, etc)", and it looks like the IMDB quotes page has collected many of those glorious tidbits.
Here's a graph about becoming/being 30, since i clearly have dated myself with that previous reference.
This NPR article is about learning to like spicy and other foods was honest, if not super insightful (other than to admit that people can learn to appreciate foods they don't as children). Notable quote, " I call it "benign masochism," which is to say that we learn to like things that our body rejects. And it's benign because it doesn't hurt us". Which i think is an interesting concept in itself.
i very happily went crosscountry skiing with some friends up in Wausau, WI this past week. Two of us had noted that there are two places called 'Wausau' in the United States; one in Wisconsin, and the other in Florida. Turns out, the Florida town was settled in the late 1890s by one John B. Glen, who grew up in the Wisconsin Wausau. Interestingly, the Florida Wausau has declared itself the 'Possum (sic) Capital of the World', headquartered at the Possum Palace, and on the first Saturday of August every year, a Possum Festival is celebrated. Side note, "wausau" means 'faraway place' or 'place that can be seen from a distance' in the native Ojibwa.
While there's a lot of very fine cross country skiing in WI, there's not a ton of downhill skiing. Nearby Wausau, we saw Rib Mountain, which offers downhill skiing. Apparently, local lore has it that the mountain is so-called because it's the burial place of fabled lumberjack Paul Bunyan, with Babe the Blue Ox buried near by at Mosinee Hill.
During the Ohio State/Oregon football game last night, we had a conversation about the Buckeyes' mascot, Brutus Buckeye. In brief, his (it's?) head is shaped like the nut of a buckeye tree, the Ohio state tree. (Curiously, buckeyes, like acorns, contain tannic acid, which makes them toxic to other flora and fauna, at least until you leach out the tannic acid.) Apparently, carrying a buckeye nut is supposed to bring good luck. In that same article, they also clarify that the suspicious-looking leaf on the Buckeyes' helmets are stickers with Buckeye leaves on them, "for big plays and consistency on the field", and general observation was made that upon gaining these stickers, players seem to fill one side of their helmets first, then the other. And for completions sake, 'buckeyes' also refers to a sort of chocolate-dipped peanut butter candy.
Speaking of football, apparently the Green Bay Packers are Settlers of Catan fans. My nerd-self is overjoyed, but my hipster self is like, "Pshh, now everyone's going to like it". Ha.
Here is an article documenting a link between Ebola-stricken areas and chocolate prices increasing. Hmm.
A recently popular article in the NYTimes documented one woman's (successful) experience with a questionnaire meant to engender love between two strangers, and this apparently documented so much interest that they published a corollary with the questions. The questions do seem to be things a person would like to know about a potential partner, so there's that.
During the recently very cold temperatures outside last week, it was snowing at -3 degrees F. This was surprising to me, and i had to google to determine if there was a temperature at which it's 'too cold to snow'. In brief, that depends more upon the temperature and humidity of upper layers of air, and not surface temperatures. Generally, though, it looks like -10 degrees F is usually too cold, though absolute zero (-273 degrees F) is the only incontestable temp. i was amused to see this post (from the friend with whom i skied at 0 degrees on Saturday), regarding temperatures at which it might be too cold to be active (run, ski, etc) outdoors without lung damage.
So, this is a weird rabbit hole to have gone down, but i was reading NPR when i found a link for the T.Rex album Electric Warrior, which contains the song Jeepster, which features the really odd quote, "i'm just a Jeepster for your love". What? i know. Looking further into this, Urban Dictionary offers a semi-reasonable explanation, " Jeepster is a term utilized to refer an individual (primarily an adolescent or young adult male) of average or insignificant stature, who pursues the object of their affections with almost unwavering tenacity. ". Hmm. That's... sweet, i guess?
Finally, here is a site called ShipYourEnemiesGlitter. The website's pretty hilarious. Also, no, you may not have my address, plus i think they're backlogged anyway.
Here's a graph about becoming/being 30, since i clearly have dated myself with that previous reference.
This NPR article is about learning to like spicy and other foods was honest, if not super insightful (other than to admit that people can learn to appreciate foods they don't as children). Notable quote, " I call it "benign masochism," which is to say that we learn to like things that our body rejects. And it's benign because it doesn't hurt us". Which i think is an interesting concept in itself.
i very happily went crosscountry skiing with some friends up in Wausau, WI this past week. Two of us had noted that there are two places called 'Wausau' in the United States; one in Wisconsin, and the other in Florida. Turns out, the Florida town was settled in the late 1890s by one John B. Glen, who grew up in the Wisconsin Wausau. Interestingly, the Florida Wausau has declared itself the 'Possum (sic) Capital of the World', headquartered at the Possum Palace, and on the first Saturday of August every year, a Possum Festival is celebrated. Side note, "wausau" means 'faraway place' or 'place that can be seen from a distance' in the native Ojibwa.
While there's a lot of very fine cross country skiing in WI, there's not a ton of downhill skiing. Nearby Wausau, we saw Rib Mountain, which offers downhill skiing. Apparently, local lore has it that the mountain is so-called because it's the burial place of fabled lumberjack Paul Bunyan, with Babe the Blue Ox buried near by at Mosinee Hill.
During the Ohio State/Oregon football game last night, we had a conversation about the Buckeyes' mascot, Brutus Buckeye. In brief, his (it's?) head is shaped like the nut of a buckeye tree, the Ohio state tree. (Curiously, buckeyes, like acorns, contain tannic acid, which makes them toxic to other flora and fauna, at least until you leach out the tannic acid.) Apparently, carrying a buckeye nut is supposed to bring good luck. In that same article, they also clarify that the suspicious-looking leaf on the Buckeyes' helmets are stickers with Buckeye leaves on them, "for big plays and consistency on the field", and general observation was made that upon gaining these stickers, players seem to fill one side of their helmets first, then the other. And for completions sake, 'buckeyes' also refers to a sort of chocolate-dipped peanut butter candy.
Speaking of football, apparently the Green Bay Packers are Settlers of Catan fans. My nerd-self is overjoyed, but my hipster self is like, "Pshh, now everyone's going to like it". Ha.
Here is an article documenting a link between Ebola-stricken areas and chocolate prices increasing. Hmm.
A recently popular article in the NYTimes documented one woman's (successful) experience with a questionnaire meant to engender love between two strangers, and this apparently documented so much interest that they published a corollary with the questions. The questions do seem to be things a person would like to know about a potential partner, so there's that.
During the recently very cold temperatures outside last week, it was snowing at -3 degrees F. This was surprising to me, and i had to google to determine if there was a temperature at which it's 'too cold to snow'. In brief, that depends more upon the temperature and humidity of upper layers of air, and not surface temperatures. Generally, though, it looks like -10 degrees F is usually too cold, though absolute zero (-273 degrees F) is the only incontestable temp. i was amused to see this post (from the friend with whom i skied at 0 degrees on Saturday), regarding temperatures at which it might be too cold to be active (run, ski, etc) outdoors without lung damage.
So, this is a weird rabbit hole to have gone down, but i was reading NPR when i found a link for the T.Rex album Electric Warrior, which contains the song Jeepster, which features the really odd quote, "i'm just a Jeepster for your love". What? i know. Looking further into this, Urban Dictionary offers a semi-reasonable explanation, " Jeepster is a term utilized to refer an individual (primarily an adolescent or young adult male) of average or insignificant stature, who pursues the object of their affections with almost unwavering tenacity. ". Hmm. That's... sweet, i guess?
Finally, here is a site called ShipYourEnemiesGlitter. The website's pretty hilarious. Also, no, you may not have my address, plus i think they're backlogged anyway.
Wednesday, January 7, 2015
Flat White, scratch-offs, carmex warehouse organ, flu, mot juste
Wishing a happy and healthy 2015 to everyone.
i was fortunate to spend quite a lot of time hanging out with my Dad this holiday season, and i hope everyone had as good a time on their own holiday. i was walking through the O'Hare airport yesterday (my connection included a completely-across-the-airport walk, which would've been great had i'd known that my 30 minute layover would be a 2 hour delay instead), and noted that Starbucks was marketing a 'Flat White'. Turns out, it wasn't just an airport-centric nod to Australia (and/or New Zealand, given the minor controversy over where that beverage originated), but this marketing is a nationwide thing. A flat white, btw, is a shot of espresso to which microfoam milk has been added (not frothed to the extent of a latte).
My parents and i passed around a scratch-off lottery ticket after dinner the other night (none of us wanted to scratch off the entire thing, due to typical lack-of-luck), and i was curious what makes up the scratchable silvery stuff. Looking into it, the best documented answer comes from this site; " The production of scratch-off tickets is a two-step process - a substrate is covered by a thick, smooth layer of UV ink coating, and then printed with a special 'scratch-off' black/silver UV ink (scratch-off inks can sometimes be solvent-based). An optional third step could involve printing text or images over the scratch-off area, with yet another type of UV ink. " i like how everyone is quick to reassure folks that it's nontoxic.
While kicking around the internet a few days ago, i came across this really neat article entitled "Carmex president pulls out all the stops with theater organ'. (How can you resist a title like that?!) Turns out, Carmex is manufactured in Milwaukee, and the president and his dad are organ fans. They noticed that their warehouse has awesome acoustics, and decided to install an organ for folks to come in and play. i also recommend watching the video associated with that article.
i spent a lot of time over the break addressing the recent flu outbreak (in 43 states!) - it's an interesting time to be a virologist. In brief, No, the vaccine strain is not a perfect match but it'll still provide some protection (everyone one i know who got vaccinated had one really bad day, versus the 3-ish bad days that unvaccinated folks had), you're contagious from 5-7 days (though some will be contagious longer), including the day before you display symptoms, and if you know you have it (in you have minor symptoms or you're caring for an ill loved one), Oseltamivir (Tamiflu) and Zanamivir (Relenza) are what will be prescribed to you. They're neuraminidase inhibitors, which means that it prevents progeny viruses from getting out of an infected cell and spreading to other cells. (This is not intended as medical advice; please consult your medical practitioner if you have the flu.)
i came across the phrase 'mot juste' the other day (having used 'bon mot' the day before, it caught my eye). Mot juste can be defined as the 'exact, perfect word' used in application, for instance, a speech, paper, or argument. i rarely have any verbal mots juste.
From my labmate today, here's an article about a chocolate 3D printer called the 'CocoJet'. (i appreciate that they acknowledge that white chocolate is not really chocolate.)
i was fortunate to spend quite a lot of time hanging out with my Dad this holiday season, and i hope everyone had as good a time on their own holiday. i was walking through the O'Hare airport yesterday (my connection included a completely-across-the-airport walk, which would've been great had i'd known that my 30 minute layover would be a 2 hour delay instead), and noted that Starbucks was marketing a 'Flat White'. Turns out, it wasn't just an airport-centric nod to Australia (and/or New Zealand, given the minor controversy over where that beverage originated), but this marketing is a nationwide thing. A flat white, btw, is a shot of espresso to which microfoam milk has been added (not frothed to the extent of a latte).
My parents and i passed around a scratch-off lottery ticket after dinner the other night (none of us wanted to scratch off the entire thing, due to typical lack-of-luck), and i was curious what makes up the scratchable silvery stuff. Looking into it, the best documented answer comes from this site; " The production of scratch-off tickets is a two-step process - a substrate is covered by a thick, smooth layer of UV ink coating, and then printed with a special 'scratch-off' black/silver UV ink (scratch-off inks can sometimes be solvent-based). An optional third step could involve printing text or images over the scratch-off area, with yet another type of UV ink. " i like how everyone is quick to reassure folks that it's nontoxic.
While kicking around the internet a few days ago, i came across this really neat article entitled "Carmex president pulls out all the stops with theater organ'. (How can you resist a title like that?!) Turns out, Carmex is manufactured in Milwaukee, and the president and his dad are organ fans. They noticed that their warehouse has awesome acoustics, and decided to install an organ for folks to come in and play. i also recommend watching the video associated with that article.
i spent a lot of time over the break addressing the recent flu outbreak (in 43 states!) - it's an interesting time to be a virologist. In brief, No, the vaccine strain is not a perfect match but it'll still provide some protection (everyone one i know who got vaccinated had one really bad day, versus the 3-ish bad days that unvaccinated folks had), you're contagious from 5-7 days (though some will be contagious longer), including the day before you display symptoms, and if you know you have it (in you have minor symptoms or you're caring for an ill loved one), Oseltamivir (Tamiflu) and Zanamivir (Relenza) are what will be prescribed to you. They're neuraminidase inhibitors, which means that it prevents progeny viruses from getting out of an infected cell and spreading to other cells. (This is not intended as medical advice; please consult your medical practitioner if you have the flu.)
i came across the phrase 'mot juste' the other day (having used 'bon mot' the day before, it caught my eye). Mot juste can be defined as the 'exact, perfect word' used in application, for instance, a speech, paper, or argument. i rarely have any verbal mots juste.
From my labmate today, here's an article about a chocolate 3D printer called the 'CocoJet'. (i appreciate that they acknowledge that white chocolate is not really chocolate.)
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