June 30, 2007

carrots & a missing ear, any common points?

this is a real story a friend of mine told me ... well he said it was real ...

it's a guy who wanted to get married, then he had to go to his future wife's father & ask officially for his agreement to the marriage, he chose his best friends to go with him, but one of them was a crazy man who never missed an occasion to make remarks & tease people, knowing this naughty habit in him, the fiance & his other friends make him promise never to open his mouth while they are visiting the girl's daddy.

that done, they finally went all 4 or 5, the daddy received them, installed them in a comfortable place, they had some coffee & started discussing various topics.

but, there was a problem with our crazy friend, although he was keeping silent as he promised, he couldn't concentrate on anything else but a detail concerning their host: the old man had an ear missing, he had only the hole from which he can hear, but no external ear, & our friend was looking at it attentively ... all time ...

all was going probably to end without any incident, if the host, seeing our friend silent while all others were having an exciting conversation, didn't start trying to make him participate, he started inquiring him about himself & what he was doing in life ...

our friend was silent for a reason, but his eagerness to speak was huuuuuge, & since he was chased to talk, he wasn't going to pronounce words to answer stupid questions, but to express what was going to cause him a heart attack, he said:

  • sir, do you know carrots are good for sight?
  • yes?
  • then eat carrots, a lot of carrots, raw, cooked, boiled, fried ... just eat carrots & say "I didn't eat enough" ...
  • yes, but why you're telling me this?!
  • because you know, if you loose your sight, you won't be able to wear glasses!!

June 25, 2007

why you shouldn't reveal your secrets even to your great friend?

you may find safe revealing your secrets to your best friends, of course, you know them almost as you know yourself & are sure they'll never betray you, there are good chances they are as loyal as you think, but still it's a bad idea to reveal your secrets to them, guess why?

because your great friend has other great friends but you, & those have others, each of them rely blindly on their close friends ...

in the end your secret will be known only from great friends, hundreds of them, & that's before it looses the "secret status", at that point, it doesn't matter a person is a best friend or a worst enemy, he or she will know it anyways ...

June 24, 2007

give half a proverb to a child, watch the result ...

humanity made decades to come up with some wise sayings to be used as guides in the art of living, but sometimes, some little beings, with very limited knowledge & innocent look to the world, may disclose a version of reality that could surprise the most experienced of us, thanks to its simplicity & accuracy.

what did a first grade school teacher in virginia, was presenting each of the 6 years old children in her classroom the first half of a well-known proverb and asked them to come up with the remainder of the proverb. here are their answers:
  1. as you shall make your bed so shall you ... mess it up.
  2. better to be safe than ... punch a 5th grader.
  3. don't change horses ... until they stop running.
  4. strike while the ... bug is close.
  5. it's always darkest before ... daylight saving time.
    it is always darkest before ... I open my eyes.
  6. never underestimate the power of ... termites.
  7. a rolling stone ... plays the guitar.
  8. a bird in the hand is ... a real mess.
  9. it is better to light one candle than to ... waste electricity.
    it is better to light one candle than to ... light an explosive.
  10. you have nothing to fear but ... your principal.
    you have nothing to fear but ... homework.
  11. if you can't stand the heat ... don't start the fireplace.
    if you can't stand the heat ... go swimming.
  12. the squeaking wheel gets ... annoying.
  13. to err is human ... to eat a muskrat is not.
  14. I think, therefore I ... get a headache.
  15. early to bed and early to rise ... is first in the bathroom.
  16. a journey of a thousand miles begins with a ... blister.
  17. there is nothing new under the ... bed.
  18. the grass is always greener ... when you leave the sprinkler on.
    the grass is always greener ... when you put manure on it.
  19. don't count your chickens ... it takes too long.
  20. you can lead a horse to water but ... how?
  21. don't bite the hand that ... looks dirty.
  22. no news is ... impossible.
  23. a miss is as good as a ... mr.
  24. you can't teach an old dog new ... math.
  25. if you lie down with dogs, you'll ... stink in the morning.
  26. love all, trust ... me.
  27. the pen is mightier than the ... pigs.
  28. an idle mind is ... the best way to relax.
  29. where there's smoke there's ... pollution.
  30. happy is the bride who ... gets all the presents.
  31. a penny saved is ... not much.
  32. two's company, three's ... the musketeers.
  33. don't put off till tomorrow what ... you put on to go to bed.
    never put off 'til tomorrow what you ... should have done yesterday.
  34. laugh and the whole world laughs with you, cry and ... you have to blow your nose.
    laugh and the world laughs with you, cry and ... someone yells, "shut up!"
  35. there are none so blind as ... stevie wonder.
  36. children should be seen and not ... spanked or grounded.
  37. if at first you don't succeed ... get new batteries.
  38. you get out of something only what you ... see in the picture on the box.
  39. when the blind lead the blind ... get out of the way.
  40. better late than ... pregnant.

for those who don't know some of the proverbs, I mean the real 1st & 2nd parts of them, & are curious about them, here they are:

  1. as you shall make your bed so shall you lie there.
  2. better to be safe than sorry!
  3. don't change horses in the middle of the stream.
  4. strike while the irony is hot.
  5. it's always darkest before the dawn.
  6. never underestimate the power of a kind word or deed.
    never underestimate the power of a woman.
  7. a rolling stone gathers no moss.
  8. a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.
  9. it is better to light one candle than to curse the darkness.
  10. you have nothing to fear but fear itself.
  11. if you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen.
  12. the squeaking wheel gets the grease.
  13. to err is human, to forgive, divine.
  14. I think, therefore I am.
  15. early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise.
  16. a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.
  17. there is nothing new under the sun.
  18. the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence.
  19. don't count your chickens before they are hatched.
  20. you can lead a horse to water but you can't make him drink.
  21. don't bite the hand that feeds you.
  22. no news is good news.
  23. a miss is as good as a mile.
  24. you can't teach an old dog new tricks.
  25. if you lie down with dogs, you'll rise with fleas.
  26. love all, trust few, do wrong to none. (shakespeare)
  27. the pen is mightier than the sword.
  28. an idle mind is the devil's workshop.
  29. where there's smoke there's fire.
  30. happy is the bride who the sun shines on.
  31. a penny saved is a penny earned.
  32. two's company, three's a crowd.
  33. don't put off till tomorrow what you can do today.
  34. laugh and the whole world laughs with you, cry and you cry alone.
  35. there are none so blind as those who won't see.
  36. children should be seen and not heard.
  37. if at first you don't succeed, try, try again.
  38. you get out of something only what you put into it.
  39. when the blind lead the blind both shall fall into the ditch.
  40. better late than never.
ps: unlike with the one-second taser burst story, this time I don't care if this story is real or just another urban legend, the most important is to have fun ;)

June 22, 2007

13 strange body & mind afflictions

after the article about the 18 strange tricks to do with your body, here's an article on 13 tricks your body & mind could do to you!

all are weird, some are just funny, others annoying but some are mortal (n° 4 & 8 especially).

I got this article from smh.com.au, but enriched it with links to wikipedia, imdb & other sources of information, added some notes too, it's great to have fun, but if we manage to learn some useful things by the way, it's even greater ... place to the article ...

ps: all links below open in new windows (or tabs).


Ever felt the urge to eat dirt or attack the alien impersonating your brother? Megan Gressor can explain why.

From excess digits to errant hands, extreme hairiness to disappearing penises, there is no end of strange ailments afflicting humanity. Some are serious, others are downright bizarre. Here are some fascinating, odd and mercifully rare conditions that can affect our bodies and brains:

1. ALICE IN WONDERLAND SYNDROME

Also called micropsia, this condition distorts visual perception so that objects that are close appear disproportionately tiny, as though viewed through the wrong end of a telescope. It owes its name to Lewis Carroll's fictional protagonist, Alice, who perceived things as too small or too big after taking magical medicines. Usually temporary in nature, the syndrome is associated with migraines. Carroll suffered migraines, so perhaps he was describing his own experiences.
micropsia on wikipedia

2. PICA

This is a compulsive appetite for non-edible items, including clay, stones, cigarette ash, paint, glue, laundry starch, ice and even hair. Found among pregnant women and young children, particularly in poorer areas, it's thought to relate to nutritional deficiencies and may be treated with mineral supplements. However, that's just one of many theories about pica, whose precise causes are unknown. It's also found among brain damaged or mentally ill people, among whom it can take particularly dangerous turns including swallowing sharp objects (known as acuphagia). Undigested items can also form bezoars - calcified "stones" - in the stomach.
pica on wikipedia

3. FOREIGN ACCENT SYNDROME

Imagine suddenly putting on a convincing French accent. Or Scottish. Or Italian. It sounds like fun, but it's no joke for the victims of Foreign Accent Syndrome, which can set in after strokes or other brain trauma. Without warning, they'll start speaking their native tongue with a different accent, which could sound anything from Swedish to South African. Victims need never have heard the accent in question, according to Oxford University researchers Dr. Jennifer Gurd and Dr. John Coleman, who believe it arises from damage to areas of the brain responsible for language production, altering pitch, pronunciation and speech patterns. So people with the syndrome aren't putting on a foreign accent, it just sounds that way.
foreign accent syndrome on oxford blueprint | wikipedia

4. ONDINE'S CURSE

A wonderful name for a nasty problem, this is a sleep disorder resulting from a malfunctioning autonomic nervous system. Its victims are unable to breathe spontaneously but must consciously will each breath, so will suffocate if they fall asleep. Respirators may help. Also known as congenital central alveolar hypoventilation syndrome, Ondine's Curse derives its name from the legend of a water nymph, Ondine, who fell in love with a human, thereby forfeiting her immortality. Though he had pledged his undying love, Ondine discovered him snoring in the arms of another woman. She cursed him, declaring that as he had pledged his love with every waking breath, he would die the moment he fell asleep.
ondine's curse on wikipedia

5. ALIEN HAND SYNDROME

Another condition arising from brain trauma, this bizarre syndrome involves losing control of one hand, which can do anything from gesticulating to unbuttoning clothes its owner is trying to put on with his or her other hand. The condition is also called Dr. Strangelove Syndrome, thanks to Peter Sellers' inspired performance as Dr. Strangelove in Stanley Kubrick's 1964 film (Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb). Sellers's mechanical hand alternated between throttling himself and throwing Nazi salutes. While victims can still experience sensation in the affected hand, they say it seems to have a mind of its own. The only solution is to keep it busy, for example by holding onto something - just not, hopefully, your own throat.
alien hand syndrome on wikipedia

6. POLYDACTYLISM

Still on the subject of hands, polydactylism is a congenital abnormality involving being born with too many digits, ranging from rudimentary nubbins to fully formed fingers or toes. While rare, polydactylism is prevalent among communities given to intermarriage, such as Philadelphia's Old Order Amish. Notables with the condition have included Henry VIII's ill-fated second wife Anne Boleyn (whose extra pinky sparked rumours of her being a witch), war photographer Robert Capa and cricketer Garry Sobers. According to The Guinness Book of Records, the record for extra digits goes to Indian brothers Tribhuwan and Triloki Yadav, who boast 20 fingers, four thumbs and 24 toes between them.(*)

* mumu's note: if you add up 20, 4 & 24, you'll get 48, so an average of 24 digits to each (Tribhuwan & Triloki), in fact the current guinness record is hold by another indian: devendra harne , a kid with 25 digits: 12 fingers & 13 toes!
polydactylism on wikipedia

7. CAPGRAS SYNDROME

A loved one has been stolen by a doppelganger; sounds like a movie about alien abduction. But for sufferers of Capgras Syndrome, the action occurs only in their brains, not outer space. This syndrome involves the delusion that a significant other, such as a parent, spouse or other relative, is being impersonated by an imposter. Sufferers sometimes attack the supposed double. The delusion can also extend even to oneself, with the person convinced that the reflection in the mirror is that of an imposter. While extremely rare, it is linked with brain damage, psychotic disorders and various neurological problems that somehow interfere with normal face recognition abilities. The syndrome owes its name to the French psychiatrist (Joseph Capgras) who first described it.
capgras syndrome on wikipedia

8. RILEY-DAY SYNDROME

Feeling no pain; it doesn't sound like a problem, but it can be lethal for the victims of a syndrome involving, among other symptoms, insensitivity to pain. Caused by a chromosomal abnormality found among Ashkenazi Jews - people of Eastern European Jewish descent - the syndrome makes its victims exceptionally accident-prone because they simply don't register warning signs of tissue damage such as wounds, bruising and burns. They are even oblivious to oxygen deprivation, which means that when they hold their breath, as infants often do, they do so until they black out. Riley-Day patients tend to die young - around half before the age of 30 - from their injuries.
riley-day syndrome or the familial dysautonomia on wikipedia

9. JERUSALEM SYNDROME

This one sounds like the title of a Robert Ludlum thriller, but it's actually a religious psychosis triggered by a visit to Jerusalem. Observed since medieval times, its victims may believe that they are prophets and parade around the city proclaiming the Holy Writ or exhorting sinners to repent. Affecting around 100 tourists per year, it generally clears up once they leave town. However, it can have serious repercussions, as with the widespread rioting that ensued when Australian man Michael Rohan set fire to the al-Aqsa Mosque on the Temple Mount in 1969, convinced he was the "Lord's emissary".
jerusalem syndrome on wikipedia

10. HYPERTRICHOSIS

People with hypertrichosis, a congenital condition involving hair growing all over the body - including eyelids and even ears, which can sprout long curls - have always attracted enormous interest, especially as sideshow stars. Probably the most famous was JoJo the Dog-Faced Boy (aka Fedor Jeftichew, a Russian recruited by showman P.T. Barnum), who toured widely during the latter half of the 19th century. There are different forms of hypertrichosis, distinguished by varying hair type, quantity and distribution. Some cases also have a little hairy appendage called a faun tail.
hypertrichosis on wikipedia

11. PENIS PANIC

Koro is one of a number of names for a hysterical condition known medically as Genital Retraction Syndrome, whose victims become convinced that their genitals are disappearing into their bodies. It can be contagious, sparking off "penis panics", such as the one that overtook Singapore in 1967 in which thousands of men became convinced that their penises were being stolen; it was contained by a complete media blackout on the condition. Often blamed on witchcraft, Koro typically strikes in less developed parts of the world, including Africa and Asia, where belief in sorcery remains strong. It's thought to be an extreme overreaction to normal genital shrinking from cold or other causes. Koro can be treated with medical reassurance and anti-anxiety medications.

12. PROTEUS SYNDROME

Named after Proteus, the Greek god famous for changing his shape, this is a progressive disorder causing disfiguring tumours and abnormal bone development. It's extremely rare, with just over 100 cases confirmed since it was first identified in 1979. Its most celebrated victim was Joseph Merrick, aka "The Elephant Man", a grotesquely deformed man befriended by Dr. Frederick Treves, a physician at London Hospital. At first, Merrick was believed to have suffered from the nerve disorder neurofibromatosis, but in 2003 DNA testing on his remains showed that he in fact had Proteus Syndrome. His story inspired the 1980 film The Elephant Man, starring John Hurt as Merrick.
proteus syndrome on wikipedia

13. EMOTIONAL BLINDNESS

This one is included simply for light relief, as it isn't a rare illness so much as a universal phenomenon.

Emotional blindness occurs when people exposed to confronting images - violent or erotic - fail to register other stimuli for a short (about one-fifth of a second) but critical period thereafter - a hiatus that doesn't occur after looking at more innocuous images.

This phenomenon, dubbed "attentional rubbernecking"(*) by US researchers who reported it in The Psychonomic Bulletin and Review(**) ... could have evolutionary value.

From a survival point of view, it pays to focus more on things that signal physical danger or reproductive possibilities, while filtering out less emotionally charged input. attentional rubbernecking undoubtedly worked for cavemen, who never knew when the next sabre-tooth tiger (or sexual partner) might turn up. Nowadays, given the capacity of sexy billboards to distract drivers from road conditions, for example, it's more likely to be a health hazard.

* mumu's note: "emotional rubbernecking" in original article.
** link to a pdf file.

June 21, 2007

confusing mario bros scenes using legos

two videos, the 1st representing a scene from donkey kong ness & the second recreates a scene from super mario bros. 3, both were filmed using stop motion animation & made using lego blocks to emulate screen pixels.

the result is just incredible! checkout the videos & see by your self (animation looks so damn perfect that there's a big chance you think it's fake).


for skeptics, here's what the guys from bitflicks (who made the animations) say about their work:
Since lots of people have asked how the videos on BitFlicks are made we thought this week we would give you a little insight by posting our first video which kicked off the whole idea for the site. What you can see is a very basic quasi-stop motion animation. Quasi because there was actually only one LEGO block involved, which was photographed in multiple positions and then composited in a photo editing program as a multi-layer image. Producing the animation was then a simple matter of masking the LEGO blocks and then hiding or displaying certain layers. The end result was a simple stop motion animation that didn’t suffer from the usual random variations in lighting and position.

Of course we’ve since moved on to bigger and better approaches that yield much better results, it’s just that we’re not quite ready to reveal the secret sauce yet ;) .
post & video here
btw, googling I came across these photos of (in my opinion) disgusting mario & yoshi made using lego blocks

June 17, 2007

damn! sand storms are really huge!

it's a sand storm that occurred in al asad amarican air base in iraq on april 26th 2005, I'm sure it will remind many of you of the movie the mummy, except this one is for real, a giant moving wall of sand.

amazing & intimidating series of pictures, then a video of nature showing men they really are ... nothing!
just a remark to those who would think that would be mortal, in fact it's not, everybody was safe after it passed & people in sahara are used to sand storms. if you're not convinced, I think you will after watching the video, you'll see no one was screaming as if it was a volcano or a tsunami lol ... though, if you drive your car during such a phenomenon, it's easy to imagine you can't go far ...
below, is a picture of a similar storm that happened in khartoum capital of sudan on may 2007
the phenomenon is called "haboob", checkout what wikipedia is saying about it:
A haboob is a type of intense sand storm commonly observed the Sahara desert (typically Sudan), as well as across the Arabian Peninsula, throughout Kuwait, and in the most arid regions of Iraq. African haboobs result from the northward summer shift of the intertropical front into North Africa, bringing moisture from the Gulf of Guinea. Haboob winds in the Arabian Peninsula, Iraq, and Kuwait are frequently created by the collapse of a thunderstorm. During thunderstorm formation, winds will move opposite the direction of the storm's travel, and they will move from all directions into the thunderstorm. When the storm collapses and begins to release precipitation, wind directions will reverse, gusting outward from the storm and generally gusting the strongest in the direction of the storm's travel.

When this downdraft, or "downburst", reaches the ground, dry, loose sand from the desert settings is essentially blown up creating a wall of sediment preceding the storm cloud. This wall of sand can be up to 100 km (62 miles) wide and several Kilometers in elevation. At their strongest, haboob winds can travel at 35-50 km/h, and they may approach with little to no warning. Often rain is not seen at the ground level as it evaporates in the hot, dry air (phenomenon known as virga), though on occasion when the rain does persist the precipitation can contain a considerable quantity of dust (severe cases called "mud storms"). Eye and respiratory system protection are advisable for anyone who must be outside during a haboob - moving to a place of shelter is highly desirable during a strong event.

Across north Africa and the near East, there are many regional names for this unique sand storm. The word haboob comes from the Arabic word هبوب "strong wind or 'phenomenon'." Occasionally, you will heard the word "haboob" used to describe a dust storm in the desert Southwest of the United States. That is an incorrect use of the term.


and to finish, below is an experiment I did with one of the pictures, I hope you like :p

June 16, 2007

strange health advices

a friend of mine told me about two strange enough doctors, one of them advised her to drink coffee to take care of hypotension, the other one said: "there's no method to stop smoking, it's simply impossible, believe me I've tried!".

the body tricks below though would be really helpful health advices if they work, & I think they are, & in the same time they're "weird" enough to be posted here, or just exposed in a weird manner, enjoy & do good things to your body! :)


Here are eighteen interesting "tricks of the body" to learn.


1. If your throat tickles, scratch your ear.

When you were 9, playing your armpit was a cool trick. Now, as an adult, you can still appreciate a good body-based feat, but you're more discriminating. Take that tickle in your throat; it's not worth gagging over. Here's a better way to scratch your itch: "When the nerves in the ear are stimulated, it creates a reflex in the throat that can cause a muscle spasm," says Scott Schaffer, M.D., president of an ear, nose and throat specialty center in Gibbsboro, New Jersey. "This spasm relieves the tickle."

2. Experience supersonic hearing!

If you're stuck chatting up a mumbler at a cocktail party, lean in with your right ear. It's better than your left at following the rapid rhythms of speech, according to researchers at the UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine. If, on the other hand, you're trying to identify that song playing softly in the elevator, turn your left ear toward the sound. The left ear is better at picking up music tones.

3. Overcome your most primal urge!

Need to pee? No bathroom nearby? Fantasize about Jessica Simpson. Thinking about sex preoccupies your brain, so you won't feel as much discomfort, says Larry Lipshultz, M.D., chief of male reproductive medicine at the Baylor College of Medicine. For best results, try Simpson's "These Boots Are Made for Walking" video.

4. Feel no pain!

German researchers have discovered that coughing during an injection can lessen the pain of the needle stick. According to Taras Usichenko, author of a study on the phenomenon, the trick causes a sudden, temporary rise in pressure in the chest and spinal canal, inhibiting the pain-conducting structures of the spinal cord.

5. Clear your stuffed nose!

Forget Sudafed. An easier, quicker, and cheaper way to relieve sinus pressure is by alternately thrusting your tongue against the roof of your mouth, then pressing between your eyebrows with one finger. This causes the vomer bone, which runs through the nasal passages to the mouth, to rock back and forth, says Lisa DeStefano, D.O., an assistant professor at the Michigan State University college of osteopathic medicine. The motion loosens congestion; after 20 seconds, you'll feel your sinuses start to drain.

6. Fight fire without water!

Worried those wings will repeat on you tonight? "Sleep on your left side," says Anthony A. Star-poli, M.D., a New York City gastroenterologist and assistant professor of medicine at New York Medical College. Studies have shown that patients who sleep on their left sides are less likely to suffer from acid reflux. The esophagus and stomach connect at an angle. When you sleep on your right, the stomach is higher than the esophagus, allowing food and stomach acid to slide up your throat. When you're on your left, the stomach is lower than the esophagus, so gravity's in your favor.


7. Cure your toothache without opening your mouth!

Just rub ice on the back of your hand, on the V-shaped webbed area between your thumb and index finger. A Canadian study found that this technique reduces toothache pain by as much as 50 percent compared with using no ice. The nerve pathways at the base of that V stimulate an area of the brain that blocks pain signals from the face and hands.

8. Make burns disappear!

When you accidentally singe your finger on the stove, clean the skin and apply light pressure with the finger pads of your unmarred hand. Ice will relieve your pain more quickly, Dr. DeStefano says, but since the natural method brings the burned skin back to a normal temperature, the skin is less likely to blister.

9. Stop the world from spinning!

One too many drinks left you dizzy? Put your hand on something stable. The part of your ear responsible for balance—the cupula—floats in a fluid of the same density as blood. "As alcohol dilutes blood in the cupula, the cupula becomes less dense and rises," says Dr. Schaffer. This confuses your brain. The tactile input from a stable object gives the brain a second opinion, and you feel more in balance. Because the nerves in the hand are so sensitive, this works better than the conventional foot-on-the-floor wisdom.

10. Unstitch your side!

If you're like most people, when you run, you exhale as your right foot hits the ground. This puts downward pressure on your liver (which lives on your right side), which then tugs at the diaphragm and creates a side stitch, according to The Doctors Book of Home Remedies for Men. The fix: Exhale as your left foot strikes the ground.

11. Stanch blood with a single finger!

Pinching your nose and leaning back is a great way to stop a nosebleed—if you don't mind choking on your own O positive. A more civil approach: Put some cotton on your upper gums—just behind that small dent below your nose—and press against it, hard. "Most bleeds come from the front of the septum, the cartilage wall that divides the nose," says Peter Desmarais, M.D., an ear, nose, and throat specialist at Entabeni Hospital, in Durban, South Africa. "Pressing here helps stop them."

12. Make your heart stand still!

Trying to quell first-date jitters? Blow on your thumb. The vagus nerve, which governs heart rate, can be controlled through breathing, says Ben Abo, an emergency medical-services specialist at the University of Pittsburgh. It'll get your heart rate back to normal.

13. Thaw your brain!

Too much Chipwich too fast will freeze the brains of lesser men. As for you, press your tongue flat against the roof of your mouth, covering as much as you can. "Since the nerves in the roof of your mouth get extremely cold, your body thinks your brain is freezing, too," says Abo. "In compensating, it overheats, causing an ice-cream headache." The more pressure you apply to the roof of your mouth, the faster your headache will subside.

14. Prevent near-sightedness!

Poor distance vision is rarely caused by genetics, says Anne Barber, O.D., an optometrist in Tacoma, Washington. "It's usually caused by near-point stress." In other words, staring at your computer screen for too long. So flex your way to 20/20 vision. Every few hours during the day, close your eyes, tense your body, take a deep breath, and, after a few seconds, release your breath and muscles at the same time. Tightening and releasing muscles such as the biceps and glutes can trick involuntary muscles—like the eyes—into relaxing as well.

15. Wake the dead!

If your hand falls asleep while you're driving or sitting in an odd position, rock your head from side to side. It'll painlessly banish your pins and needles in less than a minute, says Dr. DeStefano. A tingly hand or arm is often the result of compression in the bundle of nerves in your neck; loosening your neck muscles releases the pressure. Compressed nerves lower in the body govern the feet, so don't let your sleeping dogs lie. Stand up and walk around.

16. Impress your friends!

Next time you're at a party, try this trick: Have a person hold one arm straight out to the side, palm down, and instruct him to maintain this position. Then place two fingers on his wrist and push down. He'll resist. Now have him put one foot on a surface that's a half inch higher (a few magazines) and repeat. This time his arm will fold like a house of cards. By misaligning his hips, you've offset his spine, says Rachel Cosgrove, C.S.C.S., co-owner of Results Fitness, in Santa Clarita, California. Your brain senses that the spine is vulnerable, so it shuts down the body's ability to resist.

17. Breathe underwater!

If you're dying to retrieve that quarter from the bottom of the pool, take several short breaths first—essentially, hyperventilate. When you're underwater, it's not a lack of oxygen that makes you desperate for a breath; it's the buildup of carbon dioxide, which makes your blood acidic, which signals your brain that somethin' ain't right. "When you hyperventilate, the influx of oxygen lowers blood acidity," says Jonathan Armbruster, Ph.D., an associate professor of biology at Auburn University. "This tricks your brain into thinking it has more oxygen." It'll buy you up to 10 seconds.

18. Read minds!

Your own! "If you're giving a speech the next day, review it before falling asleep," says Candi Heimgartner, an instructor of biological sciences at the University of Idaho. Since most memory consolidation happens during sleep, anything you read right before bed is more likely to be encoded as long-term memory.

source: impact lab

June 13, 2007

murphy's law applications on airports & planes

if you're wondering what's murphy's law and/or want to see some of its strange & funny designations, checkout this: some of murphy's law strange designations

today I'm going to list some of murphy's law effects when applied on planes & airports:
  1. no flight goes in time, except flights for which you come late to the airport.
  2. if you are late for a flight, the departure will certainly occur from the furthest gate from the registration.
  3. if you are in advance for a flight, it will be delayed.
  4. no flight takes off from gate number 1 in any airport of the world.
  5. if you decided to work a bit during a flight, you will have to undergo turbulences as soon as your pencil touches your sheet of paper.
  6. if your seat is in the middle row, it's easy to know who will be your neighbors: look over there, the two fattest persons seeking their places …
  7. only the people having a place close to portholes have to rise to go to the toilet during the flight.
  8. if there is a baby who cries during all the travel, it is always placed on the seat beside you.

June 12, 2007

the world map according to america

lol! I couldn't resist to post this one, it's so funny, dugg over 5000 times on digg withing few hours.

you know you're american when you look at the world map & see this:

funny world map as seen by americaclick to enlarge

edit: I was 1st linking to the image from doheth.co.uk, I don't know for what reason they deleted it, thanks god I managed to save it from browser cache

the bratisla boys: band from slovakistan

the bratisla boys were "officially" a band of 3 guys from the slovakistanese marine, named piotr, olaff & dvorjak, they met first in 1975 in gdańsk , poland, & decided to jump into music. from 1978 to 1983, they sold over 600 million albums in byelorussia, moldavia & uzbekistan!

unfortunately the success didn't last, so they decided to travel to western europe, they had to struggle till year 2002 to finally meet the success again, thanks to their single "stach stach", the song (& I'm not kidding here) kept n° 1 most sold single for 10 weeks in france during summer 2002!

I'll let you watch its video then continue with the bio, the song is in slovakistanese, rare people still speak it nowadays.

the album "anthologigi" including the single stach stach, is the only one known in france & western europe, sadly it is also the last one, because shortly after that, & while "stach stach" was knowing its amazing success, the bratisla boys disappeared tragically trying to make a new apnea record, they managed to set it to 19 hours! organizers were very happy, but 8 minutes later everybody started thinking there was something wrong. they were searched desperately with no result.

most of people say they're dead, but no one can affirm, the bratisla boys were known as great champions in apnea.

many french artists were staggered because of this sudden disappearance & decided to make an album as an homage to them, it was called "best-of Anthologigi", also entirely sung in slovakistanese. its most famous song was the single performed by gad almaleh: "its kyz my life".

the best thing to do to finsh, is to watch this highly touching song & video ...

June 10, 2007

my boredom center

today I was bored & didn't find better to do than to create a blog for boredom, it's name is boredom center, initially I intended to call it bored & lazy but the name "borednlazy" was taken, then tried "boredandlazy", "boredrightnow", "boredom" & "boringboring", all taken! (such crazy names taken, gives you an idea about the number of existing blogger blogs).

out of curiosity, I checked those blogs, & found, well, let's say some interesting stuff ... check out my 1st post on my new boring blog: bored & lazy

June 09, 2007

crazy things done for love

click to enlarge

it seems the largest marriage proposal was made using crop circles, it was brian's proposal to tammy, on the reality tv show perfect proposal on tlc channel (episode broadcasted on july 12, 2004), tammy was shown the words from a plane, & two years later the whole world can via google earth & google maps (google satellite images are 3 years old as an average).
see google map images here

I agree it's impressive, but I prefer to it the one you can see below, this one wasn't obviously made with the assistance of huge tv channels resources, & that makes it much more romantic & valuable in my opinion ...
google map images here

but who cares about my preferences? I'm not a girl!

June 08, 2007

lord of the rings characters with strange voices

you may have seen this one, over a year since it was uploaded to youtube & 1,002,341 views & growing, the time I'm typing this, but still it's so damn hilllarious! & I'm sure even those who say it 10s of times will watch it again with pleasure.

I'm trying in this blog to say the folowing phrase only when really it must be said: this one is not to be missed! enjoy!

June 07, 2007

fortune cookie led to a lottery win ...

there's a folklore about how fortune cookies have led to people winning lotteries and other fortunes, but has this actually happened?


the answer is ... yes!


according to snopes, this occurred during the march 30, 2005 powerball drawing (usa).

although only one player won the $13.8 million jackpot, there were 110 people who claimed the second prize for matching the first five of the six numbers drawn! this second prize was either $100,000 or $500,000, depending on if the entrant paid the extra dollar for multiple wins (power play option).

powerball officials suspected fraud, since usually only four or five second prize winners are recorded, not 110!

however, there was no fraud in this situation. the winning numbers were recommended by a fortune cookie manufactured in queens, ny, a combination including the 1st five correct digits: the 22, 28, 32, 33, and 39. the last number recommended was 40, rather than the winning number of 42 (the red powerball number).

powerball officials repeatedly heard that the second prize winners had gotten the combination from a fortune cookie, & an additional confirmation of the claim came from the lottery tickets themselves: nearly all of them listed "40" (the final of the six numbers given on the fortune cookie slips) as the powerball number, .



that wasn't the first time fortune cookies led to correct lottery combinations! also according to snopes, a decade earlier, exactly on march 25, 1995, two of the three winners who split a $4 million lotto texas jackpot had used numbers suggested by a slip of paper from a fortune cookie, & to make that even weirder, the "fortune" made arrangements so that the two lucky persons were wife & husband!

scotty turnbull purchased his ticket in mission, texas, at united drive in, later that day, wife barbara turnbull bought a batch of tickets at that same shop, with one of the tickets purchased also bearing, as hes husband, the cookie's recommended digits that were 10, 24, 27, 29, 40, and 46.

the story doesn't tell though if there were two different cookies or if scotty & barbara got he numbers from the same slip of paper ...

ok I'm ready! shoot dammit!!!

this story is one of the reactions one-second taser burst ... got, taserman story was related thousands of times & might be a bogus (not my opiniong though), but I think this one is real and original, and it's funny too (& crazy of course), it's related by manfred sideous on outbreak [toxin] forum, now, place to it ...


Some years ago me and all my buddies bought paintball guns. We were wanting to try somthing new we could all do together. So we buy them and cart them back to my buddies house and greedily rip open the packages and assemble everything. None of us ever shooting a paintball gun or be hit by one knew if they actually hurt to get hit by.

So we start prodding each other to see who will take the role as guinea pig. Finnally my pal Bob steps up (as he thinks they wont hurt much). So he goes and stands over at the wall removing his shirt so it wouldnt get paint on it. He faces the wall and puts his hands over his ears. Well by now we are all pretty eager to shoot or guns and we never really worked it out on who was going to take the test shots against him. So anyway were all fooling with our guns when he yells " OK IM READY SHOOT DAMMIT" OMG that was the wrong thing to say. All of us 4 (not including Bob on the wall) Opened fire with a hail of paintballs a mere 10 foot from him. Before I realised everyone else has also fired I must have squeezed the trigger 3-4 times. Im thinking to myself " O poor Bob O poor Bob hes gonna be pissed".

I swear the first paintball hits him dead center in the back on the spine. All you can see is paint splattering on his back Bob cussing and yelling and him dropping like a rock to the ground. After the first F * U * * * was yelled out everyone stopped firing. Bob is cussing and yelling and cussing more I think he used every cussword in the book and told us he would kill us all. At this point were all laughing so hard some of us are on the ground laughing and my buddy larry is laughing so hard he pees his pants ( yeah larry did that from time to time).

So after we all get control of ourselves we get Bob up and take him in the house so he can shower us and get the paint off him. When he came out of the shower thats when it hit us we felt so bad. Bob had about 15 2inch round welps on his back and they were starting to bruise and blister badly. LOL poor guy.

checkout discussion here

June 06, 2007

welcome to cursed club member n° three

if you didn't read the post about cursed club member 02, check it out here: welcome to cursed club member n° two

now what happened next?

what I didn't say is that the so called wizard was banned from the forum I'm moderating for 14 days, as they passed, now he's unbanned, at least in theory, because what happened is, just few hours before or after that, or maybe few minutes, seconds & maybe in the same moment (why not?), what happened is he suffered from the same curse I & member 02 got!! scary huh? & weired coincidence if you don't believe in those things

here's a quote of a post of him in his own forum:
all members read please very important

hello Dear Freinds...
Iam So sorry iam sorry again
iam very very ill i cant open the internet but i open and make this theard coz i know many ppl will say ***** is scammer ,, please wait for me only 2 days i'll back :( and make all paymnets and akll bounss
so please wait for me i have a good suprises for my members please wait
i hope i come better soon:(
please dont say ***** scammer only 2 days maybe less but no more thanks.
*****
& that post is from 06/03/2007, & there are no changes till now ...

some theories

don't know, what came to my mind was maybe his spells suffered from a bug because the reason for cursing me had vanished, so they returned against him ...

if we leave sorcery, curse & wizards theories, & say the strange timing for his unbanishment from my moderated forum & his banishment from the whole internet, was a coincidence, then a second theory would be maybe he hired some online racketeers to ban me & member n°2 (don't know how they're able to) then he didn't pay so they did the same to him ... I like this theory! :D

about me, things are a bit better but I'm still having troubles, and for most of them I only found temporary ways to work around using proxies & other tricks, but I'm pretty sure cursed club member n°3 will have much more trouble to find similar ways & I don't feel sorry for him at all!

... to be continued