Entertainment stuff from the week 21-27/10/13

Hi mammers,


This week's puzzle, to mull over:

Spot the four-leaf clover
http://richardwiseman.wordpress.com/2013/10/25/its-the-friday-puzzle-231/

BTW, i'm not going to leave the answer at the end, because if you cheated, the fun would be ruined. Anyway, this one's quite easy :)


There's something that i forgot to mention, last week... Nobel Prizes!

If you want a rundown of who was awarded what, and how awesome that is, i recommend the Grauniad's Science Weekly podcast:

'Science Weekly podcast: 2013 Nobel science prizes special' (51 minutes)
http://www.theguardian.com/science/audio/2013/oct/14/science-weekly-podcast-2013-nobel-science-prizes


While listening to the last episode of Skeptics with a K (73 minutes) (a podcast from the Merseyside Skeptics Society) i heard that in the USA, there are drive-thru liquor stores...

Surely not? Not even there!? But it's true!

'One for the road?'
http://www.theguardian.com/travel/2009/feb/23/drink-drive-through-bars-usa

'Concern over drive-up alcohol sales spurs efforts at ban'
http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/nation/story/2012-07-09/drive-through-liquor/56119194/1

And in Texas, there are even drive-thru liquor and guns stores! So you can get tipsy, run some people down, and shoot your partner in the ass, back home, while trying to get the cap off a beer.... USA: land of the wise??

'Only in Texas can you have Drive-thru Liquor and Gun Store'
http://www.collegehumor.com/picture/4072811/only-in-texas-can-you-have-drive-thru-liquor-and-gun-store

But although alcohol is served at drive-throughs, it is not permitted, even in Texas, to drink and drive, so the drink has to be served inside a cup, with a cap and a straw, and all of that inside a sealed bag. Ha!


All of this was discovered while on holiday, there. They also discovered the phenomenon of eat-in cinemas. I kid you not!

So while you're sitting down, gently dozing through a tedious Hollywood blockbuster, a waiter comes up to you and takes your order for drinks, then food, and later, dessert.

As if noisy adolescents, munching on horrendously salty and stinky popcorn, weren't enough of a distraction. Oh no - you can opt for this, instead :-D

This seems to be an attempt to quietly undermine both the citizens' health, and the country's movie industry, simultaneously... well done, USA :-P


British people would never be so dumb. Umm....


The UK's Royalists (people with the specific delusion that some are innately more deserving of wealth and happiness than others, on the basis of their blood bearing a shorter wavelength than the rest of us - blue) are currently celebrating the Exojudaicalmessiahbasedcult-ening of a baby that recently plopped out of one of their 'special' people.

The more jelly-brained of the British Press have described its 'godparents' as 'normal' (as opposed to being frightfully frightfully posh 'Royals').

Amongst those 'godparents' are Emilia Jardine-Paterson, William van Cutsem, Jamie Lowther-Pinkerton and Earl Grosvenor.

As Steve Punt put it: "A line-up so posh it could be the cast of a British drama!"

You can hear slightly more, here, within this excerpt of The Now Show
http://tapejarascience.tumblr.com/private/65158629961/tumblr_mvaiyw4AFf1rdco3z

Also in that excerpt is the Daily Fail's second story (in conjunction with the Torygraph) on Tapejara in a few weeks. I hope this doesn't become a habit!

Members of their egregious ranks have demonstrated that they are capable of extending their xenophobia beyond the human species!

A Radio 4 programme - Tweet Of The Day - has received complaints because some of the birdcalls come from species that don't spend long in the British Isles.

...but surely that's the fun of hearing them!? Who wants to hear a Mallard Duck quacking away, over and over again?!?

The thing about birds is that they tend to... fly about.

And the ones that have flown the furthest are the most fun to witness.

For example, the videos in two posts from the first half of this month, of fascinating New Guinean species. [Post 1] [Post 2]


Meme Of The Week:

You've seen planking, you've seen owling, you've seen dogging... is that a meme? ...and here comes mamming:

'Women Taking B00BS To A Whole New Level - Internet Craze'
http://youtu.be/hYu_gSCf09U

This is yet another attempt to exacerbate the disproportionate amount of money breast cancer research gets, in comparison to other forms of cancer.

All you have to do is rest your breasts on something, and have your picture taken.

If they're covered, thisismamming.com will take your picture. If they're not... there's a whole variety of websites out there that will take 'em ;-)

{Mamming.com and thisismamming.com are different sites. One has boobs, the other does not. Please don't mix them up :D }

...oh, and btw, don't forget to remind the world that men have boobs too, so ~0.8% of breast cancer cases are in men.

Me, however - i'm a flying reptile - not a mammal - so i will not be able to join in :-P


------------------------------------------------------ contemporary stuff

'Little Doll - Short Film' by Anaïs Vachez
Creepy yet entertaining stuff
http://youtu.be/kLyD6ees6cA

'This Building Is Like The World's Largest Pillow Fort'
An architecture firm in Shanghai has gained a commission to veil a building in white, nylon sheets. The intent seems aesthetic alone, but they claim insulation would be a benefit. It won't help or hinder ventilation, though - it's in Shanghai - they won't open their windows anyway!
http://www.popsci.com/article/technology/building-worlds-largest-pillow-fort

'The Mindblower' via Cibertimanios
http://youtu.be/3OK-khpuXoo

'Oarfish carcass discovered near Catalina Island'
Even Ripley's reported this as the "Loch Ness Monster" (which is a famous hoax) even though it looks nothing like a zoomed-in sock!?
http://doubtfulnews.com/2013/10/oarfish-carcass-discovered-near-catalina-island/
For starters, whoever had a 56 foot long sock?!?
http://doubtfulnews.com/2013/10/another-oarfish-washes-up-in-california/

'The Darkness - live (funny moment)'
Justin's improvisation never fails to makes me laugh :D For more of him, see my playlist on YT
http://youtu.be/ceguXcVa8-I

------------------------------------------------------ of the weeks

Word Of The Week: hellion -- a mischievious, unruly person; or a rough, aggressive person

Expression Of The Week: "keeping up with the Joneses" -- striving to match one's neighbours in wealth and lifestyle

Meme Of The Week: Mamming (see comment section at the top of the page)

Quote Of The Week: "Kill one man, and you are a murderer. Kill millions of men, and you are a conqueror. Kill them all, and you are a god." - Jean Rostand

Fact Of The Week: Everyone in the world is within 30th-cousins of everyone else. Most people within a country are within 23rd cousins of each other

Acronym of The Week: Tony Hawks -- wanky tosh This guy's been around Ireland with a fridge, you know. Doesn't look the type, does he :-P

------------------------------------------------------ non-contemporary stuff

‘Corrie White at Eliza The Gallery’
More amazing photography from Corrie White:
Awesome picture 1
Awesome picture 2
Awesome picture 3

'Real-life toy town!' via Richard Wiseman
Apparently, Danny MacAskill spent weeks getting these moves right. Then why does so much of it seem like CGI? Hmm...
http://richardwiseman.wordpress.com/2013/10/24/real-life-toy-town/

'Stop-motion clay chess'
http://micro.cibermitanios.com.ar/post/65066631032

This is one of those careers that you wish people wouldn't pursue :-/
'Hey, I Think You Have Something In Your Eye!'
http://www.ripleys.com/weird/daily-dose-of-weird-wtf-blog/body-oddity/hey-i-think-you-have-something-in-your-eye/

'Girls don’t poop' - PooPourri
I didn't believe they were being serious until i went to their web-site - but it appears their claims are deluded rather than comic:
"Based on aromatherapy principles..." LOL - Aromatherapy is a relatively well-known pseudoscience - there's nothing to it - it doesn't work!
But like most quacks, they do toe the 'natural' line effusively:
   "NO Harsh Chemicals
    NO Parabens
    NO Phthalates
    NO Aerosol
    NO Formaldehyde
    NO Petroleum Distillates
    NO Ethanol
    NO Benzene"
Ah, well - it is a funny ad. I suppose they get credit for that :D
http://www.illegaladvertising.com/post/64669419844/girls-dont-poop

If you are the kind of person who rejects reality, and opts for Aromatherapy over real chemistry, then this product might also be of interest to you:

'DentiDrill'
Yup - do all your kids' dentistry yourself, at home, with zero expertise, and total liability if you hurt them and get prosecuted for brutality, medical negligence, or both! Happy days :-D
http://www.illegaladvertising.com/post/64669575463/dentidrill

It seems healthcare costs have got so high, that the only alternative is to not do healthcare at all!

Thanks, capitalism, for providing us with, and shoving us towards, these monstrous alternatives to real products that actually work and are safe :-P


I can't tell you how many times i'd had kiwi eggs before i realised what they were :-P
http://goldspandexleggings.tumblr.com/post/64196909308

Don't doublethink this comic strip as you read it :D
http://goldspandexleggings.tumblr.com/post/64408676030

My compliments to the chef...
http://goldspandexleggings.tumblr.com/post/64503220078

The world made better through googly eyes :D
http://goldspandexleggings.tumblr.com/post/64566220442

'Goth, Visigoth, Hi-Visigoth'
Via a friend, on Facebook :D
http://tapejarascience.tumblr.com/post/65224390095/goth-visigoth-hi-visigoth-via-a-friend-on

'Megahardcore indian chase'
This is everything i love about Indian movies - gritty realism - none of that Tinker, Taylor, Soldier, Intelligence Officer rubbish ;-)
Also via a friend, on Facebook.
http://youtu.be/UVRVr4ycuew

''Cause fuck gravity' via Physicist Tv
Yet another joke that reminds me of Red Dwarf. Sigh...
http://imgur.com/gallery/EsWteVS

{Incidentally, Bobby Llew recently let rip with a rumour that series 11 had been commissioned. It has not - but it probably will, pretty soon, anyway :D }


'The Chemistry of Light 25 - Phosphorescence'
http://youtu.be/pjphYTBOYcM

And the full lecture:
http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLLnAFJxOjzZsj3KJg-6EqTunw6yxRRcd7

'It's a Gas 27 - Explosive Nitrogen Triiodide'
http://youtu.be/TO9hE5ke424

And the full lecture:
http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLLnAFJxOjzZshafwDtGCetqT0CbUbdZzK


'Roger Federer - Top 10 Jaw dropping dropshots (HD)'
I can think only of Fabrice Santoro or Marcelo Rios who can play better cut dropshots than Federer. But then, Fabrice does play double-handed, which permits greater torque... and i don't know many ancient tennis players...
http://youtu.be/VZ0yfvIy6Kk

'Tennis - Ball bouncing back towards the net'
http://youtu.be/-QNcly47JDQ

'Tennis - Ball bouncing back towards the net Vol.2'
http://youtu.be/7Ou6rwJt2UQ

'Basel 2013 Thursday Hot Shot Llodra'
Look at this - he's match point down, and trying to play through an injury to his forearm, and yet he shows such skill to win the point. Michael Llodra, i'm going to miss you when you retire, at the end of the year :)
http://www.atpworldtour.com/Media/Video-Landing/*/Tennis/Media/Videos/Uploaded/2013/10/24/Basel-2013-Thursday-Hot-Shot-Llodra.aspx

'Valencia 2013 Saturday Hot Shot Almagro'
And yet he went on to lose the match!
http://www.atpworldtour.com/Media/Video-Landing/*/Tennis/Media/Videos/Uploaded/2013/10/26/Valencia-2013-Saturday-Hot-Shot-Almagro.aspx


These guys are in a show called 'Ambassadors', on the Beeb, at the moment. It's dark and comic, like 'The Wrong Mans' (Matt Baynton and James Corden) so i'm liking it :-)

'That Mitchell And Webb Look - Scooby Doo'
http://youtu.be/eWXMJP1J-3Y

'"Now we know" From that Mitchell and Webb look'
Probably one of the best lines for in-jokes, ever :-D
http://youtu.be/w4CQin03MDQ

'That Mitchell And Webb Look - Sherlock Holmes'
http://youtu.be/MOXnQLiMTpw

'Mitchell and Webb - Pet Hospital'
http://youtu.be/4qP8LHurwHw
{Ugh... i'm really, hungry, now!}

'Explorers - That Mitchell & Webb Look'
Very clever, this. Most people just get used to names and don't notice how misnomeric they can be. On the subject of mixing up 'east' and 'west', DYK the film 'Krakatoa, East of Java'?
Well, if you actually look on an actual map, you can quite clearly see, plainly before your eyes, that Krakatoa is west of Java, separated by more than 20 miles of water - not to the east, at all! But i suppose "East of Java" sounds better, so let's make the title of the film wrong :-D
http://youtu.be/13RhSc-DaOI

'The Insulting Librarian - Mitchell & Webb'
One of my favourites, actually. I'm so tempted to actually try this technique on someone, even though the result would probably be disastrous :-D
http://youtu.be/rqTE-ig7NhY

'that mitchell and webb look - pedants unite'
http://youtu.be/1WBBO5h14xc

'That Mitchell and Webb Look - Drawn out not a quiz show sketch'
http://youtu.be/R4zANH21ck4


...I told you i wouldn't say where the four-leaf clover is, and i'm not going to :-P
.