Category: Useless knowledge

Information you have no need for. Ever. Usually about me, but possibly about other trivial crap in the world.

Linerider awesomeness

Did you play Linerider back when I told you to?  Did you diddle with it a bit, try to do something cool, and then find you didn’t have patience to really pull off anything spectacular?  I know I did.  It was cool, but I couldn’t do anything nearly as well as I could imagine it.
Someone, however, did a bit of work and came up with a really nice linerider ride. Trust me, the screen shot doesn’t do this one justice – you must watch this to see how pitiful your meager attempts were.

linerider-awesomeness.gif

[tags]Linerider, Amazing linerider drawing, The must see Linerider hit of the year[/tags]

Turn your urine blue

blue_urine.jpgI don’t know why you would want to do this, but it seemed funny enough to me that I thought I’d point you towards a guide on how to turn your urine blue.

We’ve all dreamed of it – who wouldn’t want to have bright blue urine? Alright, I admit some people might be appalled at this strange activity, but many will find it interesting.

. . .

My interest in this subject began from hearing a rumor that there was a chemical you could add to food that would make someone’s urine turn blue, as a prank. The person I heard it from had no idea what chemical it was but insisted that it existed.

I, of course, being of the Google generation, searched immediately for turn urine blue and lo and behold, the second result was a Wikipedia entry for a chemical called Methylene Blue. I knew I had to have it.

Now you can make your toilet look like you’ve got Tidy Bowl at work after you use it rather than before. Why? I don’t know. But I’m sure someone wants this information. Also, in the comments to the article is this warning:

WARNING: TAKE METHYLENE BLUE AT YOUR OWN RISK. The prank is fairly harmless if small amounts of methylene blue are used, although allergies are possible and it is advisable to use pharmaceutical-grade stain which has been carefully protected from contamination. The presence of other medical problems may affect the use of methylene blue. Be aware if you have any other medical problems, especially:

Followed by the problems which should lead you to not trying this. (via boingboing)

[tags]Turn your urine blue[/tags]

Pam on the market again

I’m sure someone, somewhere, will care and try to do something about the fact that Pamela Anderson and Kid Rock are getting a divorce after just 4 months. For that one lonely, hopeful stalkerperson, I felt I had to get this news out.

If these Hollywood types can’t make it, do any of us really stand a chance???

[tags]Kid Rock to have correct number of wives soon, Pamela Anderson to divorce Kid Rock, Who would guess Hollywood marriages aren’t forever?[/tags]

For when you kinda wanna show respect, but not really

In the ever-shrinking world in which we live, more things can be done online every day it seems. For things like quick messages between people or groups, or video conferencing to reduce travel expenses, this is great. For other things, you sometimes have to wonder just what we’ve become. For instance, thanks to a crematorium in England, “mourners” will be able to watch funerals via the internet.

To me, that sends the load and clear message that “We want to see your dead body, and maybe the burial, but we really just never cared enough for you to get our lazy asses out of the house and come to your funeral.” The exception to this being people who are unable to attend, such as those too sick to travel or too far away and unable to secure time off. Otherwise, this seems like a great way to pretend to pay respect to someone without missing that game that’s going to be on the television at the same time as the funeral.

A crematorium has installed a camera so mourners can watch funerals on the internet.

Families will pay £45 to allow friends and relatives to view services at the council-run crematorium in Peterborough, Cambs.

Crematorium bosses are offering a DVD or video for an extra £25.

On the plus side, if you can’t be bothered to go, AND you don’t want to miss a moment of the game, you can just purchase the DVD afterwards and pay your respects post-posthumously. Or am I just being a bit too cynical?

[tags]Funeral via web-cam, When you really don’t care but want to pretend you do, Am I being too cynical here?[/tags]

Ig nobels – 2006 winners

I missed this when it happened, but was reminded about these recently so decided I needed to point everyone to the latest winners of the Ig Nobel awards. This year’s awards ceremony took place on October 5th at Harvard University, with the follow-up lectures on the 7th.

Since I’m sure some of my guests might wonder if this is the kind of story they would want to read through, I guess I’d better put up a few winners to give you a sample of who wins these awards.

Honestly, I’d love to get a subscription to Annals of Improbable Research, the publication from Improbable Research – the folks responsible for the Ig Nobels. They publish some of the most interesting stuff.

[tags]Ig Nobel awards, Since that makes you laugh and then think[/tags]

Simpson book, TV deal cancelled

In a move that is surely a surprise to dozens of people around the country, Fox has cancelled OJ’s book and TV special due to public outcry against it. If you aren’t aware of this garbage (and shame on you, as I’ve covered it recently here), Simpson gives an interview on his book “If I Did It” which recounts how, hypothetically, he would have killed his ex-wife and her friend, if he’d been the killer.

Now apparently, the media whores at Fox Television (I’m thinking formost of Rupert Murdoch) discovered that even the dirty-laundry loving Americans have limits:

“I and senior management agree with the American public that this was an ill-considered project,” said Rupert Murdoch, News Corp. chairman. “We are sorry for any pain that this has caused the families of Ron Goldman and Nicole Brown Simpson.”

A number of Fox affiliates had already decided not to air the special when it was broadcast, but now this is not an issue. Hell – even an industry publisher could see it was a bad idea.

The industry trade publication Broadcasting & Cable editorialized against the show Monday, saying “Fox should cancel this evil sweeps stunt.”

Wow! A group inside the industry thinks this is evil? You really know you’re low when your own kind calls you out. It’s like sharks telling lawyers they’re too aggressive and blood-thirsty.

[tags]OJ Simpson book/TV interview cancelled[/tags]

Disposable flashlights of years gone by

I’m sure this throw-away flashlight advertised in the July, 1947 issue of Popular Science would be a big hit with environmentalists today.

MM-lrg_disposable_flashlight2.jpg

Sealed inside transparent plastic, a tiny flashlight made by the Falge Engineering Service, Bethesda, Md., is intended to be discarded after its one cell is dead. Pressure on the plastic cover operates a switch. Produced primarily to carry an advertising message, like a packet of book matches, the lights are offered only to advertisers, in quantity lots, at a cost of approximately 26 cents each.

For a mere 26 cents per item, you too can contribute to the toxification of the soil in the area where you live.

[tags]Modern Mechanix, Disposable flashlight from 1947, 60 years of destroying the planet[/tags]