86 Words

Tags: Multimedia, Reference, Make, Weird, Virtual, Art / Visual, Just Cool, General by Jai
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A small island in the South Pacific that has been “on the maps” for over 115 years apparently doesn’t even exist!

Some scientists chose this island while seeking a remote work area, but when they reached the location, it wasn’t there; they sailed right through it.

There are other theories as to it’s “nonexistence”, of course, but the official word was that it was never there in the first place.

This is the map picture included with the article to show the island’s location near New Caledonia.

I decided to check it out on Google Maps myself, and here’s what I found. The island IS strangely empty looking…

 
“So let’s take a look at the satellite view,” I thought. It was wholly unhopeful, if somewhat scary. Is it me, or does it look like something was (hastily) removed here?

Tags: Reference, Real World, Geek, Scary, Weird, Virtual, Current Events, Geek Stuff by Jai
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I’m sensationalizing, it’s closer to 239!

Harvard scientists have used DNA molecules to store binary data using cytosine and adenine as zeroes, and thymine and guanine as ones (DNA CATG sequences).

While the numbers in the article don’t seem completely correct (they seem to allow only 6 megabytes of address space), the scientists have used the system to successfully store enormous amounts of data! 

(Note: Google Books estimates 130,000,000 books have ever been written).

19-Bit Address Storage = 524,288 total addresses of 96 data bits (12 bytes) each. Total = 6,291,456 bytes (6 MegaBytes) exactly.
There are some unusual properties of that number involving primes, so perhaps there’s more to it? 

- Original Article on ExtremeTech -

Tags: Current Events, Weird, Reference, Science, HowTo, Geek Stuff, Software, General by Jai
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The picture below may not look like much, but you have to realize, it’s been really, really enlarged!

The original image is only 50 microns across. This means that you could fit over 250,000 copies in the space of one square inch!

It was printed using a new technique that allows the absolute highest possible color resolution; if you try to make the dots any smaller, they’re below the wavelength of the colors of the reflected light!

You could fit about 100 copies of this thing in a square the size of an average amoeba (the “well known” variety of amoeba; amoeba proteus)!

- Original Article on Nature.com -

Tags: Current Events, Weird, Reference, Just Cool, Science, Geek Stuff, Art / Visual, General by Jai
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These posters have the double cool effect of 1) having an awesome, classic book (in it’s entirety!) printed on them, and 2) shaping the words into a scene that represents the book itself!

There are four to choose from with pictures of all four below.

Share and Enjoy!

- PosterText on ThinkGeek -

Tags: Weird, Collections, Reference, Virtual, Just Cool, Geek Stuff, Art / Visual, General by Jai
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[Link originally posted by Felicia Day on Facebook]

I’m not sure there’s really anything "Geek" or "Tech" themed that I can claim here, but this was just too… Um… Out there not to show you guys!

Apparently, the entire point to this website is to show people that have been photoshopped to have one of their hands really small.

WHISKEY TANGO FOXTROT?!?!?

I had to include this one - it’s Zooey! Even her (regular) hand is cute!

Kim Jong is looking a little… Ill! (Sorry, I couldn’t help it - I’ve wanted to use that joke for over a year!)

Ugh. Just… Ugh.
And no, that is not a political comment.

- OneTinyHand.com -
(again, WTF?!?)

Tags: Collections, Scary, Reference, Weird, Virtual, Art / Visual, Net Life, General by Jai
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Interestingly, those warm feelings are the insects’!

This (harmless) Walking Stick insect has been believed extinct since the 1920’s (declared officially in 1960).

However, a few (24 in total) were found alive in a single, remote spot.

 Interesting points about these guys include the fact that the male sleeps with his legs wrapped protectively around his (sole) female companion.

It’s a really good read.

Go read!

The (very few) survivors were found under a single plant on this remote, jagged rock, at an altitude of 225 ft. above sea level!

Here’s an overhead view of the "island". It really is pretty much just a rock cliff sticking out of the water (and pretty damned far away from any real land too)!

 
And here’s the picture you’ve probably been waiting for - a view of the actual bug. DON’T JUDGE, you probably look pretty hideous to them too, and it’s likely that you’re less docile!

- Original Article on NPR -
( GO READ IT ALREADY!!! )

Originally posted by Felicia Day on Facebook (Thanks Felicia!)

- Interactive Focus Gallery -

Tags: Weird, Scary, Reference, Current Events, Just Cool, Geek Stuff, Science, General by Jai
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Built to show off the company’s GameMaker:HTML5 product capabilities, the game, called GraveMaker (cute, huh?) is a Plants vs Zombies style game (kindasorta).

You need friends, so you make undead ones.

This annoys the villagers who’s compatriots they happen to be, and the fight is on.

As you advance, you can grow better monsters, and face stronger villagers.

Good atmosphere, great sound, and interesting play!

Your monsters and the villagers are facing off. You now have to choose the order in which your monsters will fight (the villagers are lined up in their order).

Based on the number of unlocks, power-ups, secrets, etc in the game, it could take quite a while to complete it! Fortunately, the first time you play, you enter a user name and password and your game is saved under that (no other signup is necessary).

When the game starts, you have only the lowly, pathetic skeleton that you can grow, but that changes quickly enough! (well, you do get some plants & animals, but I cant figure out what they’re for).

- GraveMaker Game done w/ GameMaker:HTML5 -

Tags: Virtual, Just Cool, Weird, Scary, Reference, Net Life, Video Gaming, Geek Stuff, Software, HowTo, Gaming, General by Jai
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In September, a huge physics discovery made headlines; scientists had timed neutrinos traveling faster than light speed.

They arrived at their destination only 60 nanoseconds early, but that doesn’t matter, it still means that a lot of our understanding of physics is outright wrong!

It was a startling discovery.

So startling, that I told several people about it, but I wasn’t ready to post it here without some collaboration.

Turns out it was bad cables.

Just jiggle that third one from the left - I think it’s mangling the timestamps…

- Original Article on Wired.com -

Tags: Humor, Reference, Weird, Current Events, Geek Stuff, Science, General by Jai
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Every once in a while, you run across something… Unusual for sale on Ebay. This is one of the more interesting.

It’s an auction for a complete, hand-typed copy of the entirety of Moby Dick that the author typed himself… On toilet paper.

Apparently there was a bet involved, and the seller won.

It’s probably unique, I’ll give it that!

This is how many rolls of toilet tissue it takes to hold the entirety of Herman Melville’s Moby Dick - now you know.

So I have to wonder, what did the guy do when he had typos and such?.

In case you were wondering, here was the final results of the auction. The bidding started at $200 with a reserve, but it was never met.

- Original Post on Geekologie -

Tags: Weird, Retro, Reference, Current Events, Net Life, Geek Stuff, Art / Visual, General by Jai
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