D G

Thanks Mike (from Spain)

 

Take care of your business in complete privacy with these Eco Otome Toilet Sound Blockers. Coming from Japan, where they love those bathroom gadgets just as much as we do here on the big blog, this little device creates a flushing water sound when you press the button masking any embarrassing bathroom noises you might be creating. The sound runs for 25 seconds per push which should give you enough time to do your dirty work (obviously you can press it multiple times in a row if need be).

Bathroom shyness ends here. Great for public restrooms and especially your office bathroom. There’s nothing worse than sitting down for a nice paid break on the throne when one of your co-workers saunters in and plops down in the stall next to you. With the newspaper. Total alpha move. Fear not, just push the button and do your thing and get back to work. Break time is over my friends.

Toilet Sound Blocker
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submitted by NinjaPirateCyborg [link] [1383 comments]

There have been many different illustrators applying their own signature style to artwork based on the stories of J. R. R. Tolkien, from my fav Ian Miller to Pauline Baynes and even Tolkien himself, but few have applied a style as appropriately antiquated as Russian artist Sergei Iukhimov.

Sergei's watercolor works capture iconic scenes from the books in a style reminiscent of medieval Russian Orthodox iconography, and his works have been used in Russian language publications of Lord Of The Rings, adding a touch of the strange and surreal which brings these scenes to a whole new level of epic fantasy awesomeness.

You can see more of Sergei's works at Live Memory and egelantier's Tumblr.

-Via io9

“Channel 4 News meets the people living underground in tunnels beneath Romania’s capital Bucharest, abandoned by society to a life of drug addiction and shocking conditions.”

“Sampling isn’t about ‘hijacking nostalgia wholesale,’ says Mark Ronson. It’s about inserting yourself into the narrative of a song while also pushing that story forward. Watch the DJ scramble 15 TED Talks into an audio-visual omelette, and trace the evolution of ‘La Di Da Di,’ Doug E. Fresh and Slick Rick’s 1984 hit that has been reimagined for every generation since.” — TED

The post Haha! appeared first on ActingLikeAnimals.com.

Gun Store Sign: 'Will Trade Obama To Mexico' For Jailed Marine...


(Third column, 9th story, link)

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Related stories:

SHOCK POLL: Obama less competent than Bush...
Law Professor: President Has Assumed King-Like Powers...

Print Shop | Coral Springs, FL, USA

(An elderly customer comes in with a manila folder filled with paper.)

Me: “Hello! Can I help you?”

Customer: “Yes, I need copy of… How do you say?”

(It’s clear English isn’t his first language, so I get closer to listen.)

Me: “What was that?”

Customer: “Do you say…’piece of paper?’ or ‘sheet of paper?’”

Me: “You can use either of them. Both are okay.”

(The customer seems to understand, and hands me a sheet from the folder.)

Customer: “This. I need five pieces of sheet.”

submitted by chain83 [link] [140 comments]

submitted by k0mbaticus [link] [944 comments]

History is full of examples of human ingenuity run amok. Weapons design is no exception.

A group of Quora users sought to answer the question "What are some historical weapons that most people have never heard of?" The answers provide an amazing insight into the history of war, and offer examples of some of the most ingenious — yet impractical — weaponry ever created. 

We've highlighted some of the most interesting below. 

1. The Bat Bomb

Developed by the U.S. for use against Japan during World War II, the bat bomb was literally that. Each bomb would contain 40 hibernating bats, each of which would be strapped with a small napalm bomb and a timer.

The bombs could deploy their own parachutes, giving the bats time to fly out and look for places to roost. They would then explode, potentially burning down whatever structure they had chosen as their new home.

2. Anti-Tank Dogs 

The Nazi betrayal of the Soviets during World War II caught the Russians completely off guard. In a desperate attempt at staving off the Nazi advance into their territory, the Soviets strapped dogs with explosives and trained them to run under German tanks.

Soviet propoganda claims that around 300 German tanks were destroyed in this manner. The anti-tank dog program continued until 1996. 

3. Submarine Aircraft Carriers

At the height of World War II, the Imperial Japanese Navy commissioned a series of Sen Toku I-400 class submarines. These subs were large enough to carry three Aichi M6A Seiran aircraft underwater, surface, launch the planes, and then dive again. The submarines were also equipped with torpedoes.

A total of three of them were completed.

4. Nuclear Artillery 

Conventional nuclear weapons are capable of destroying entire cities, but during the Cold War, the idea of 'tactical' nuclear weapons emerged. These smaller nukes were limited-yield weapons that would be launched from the ground at targets on the battlefield. Nuclear artillery was delivered with shells and short-range rockets. 

5. The Soviet Ekranoplane

The 300-foot-long Lun-class Ekranoplane flew a mere four meters above the ground or water through an effect generated by its wings. It was intended to be a revolutionary transport vessel, bigger than any plane and faster than any ship. It was also capable of carrying nuclear warheads.

But it never entered into wide production and was never used in action. 

6. Kaiten Torpedoes

Kaiten torpedoes were built by the Imperial Japanese Navy and were in service between 1944 and 1945. These torpedoes were manned and were a variant of the suicide weapons that Japan resorted to towards the end of the war. The torpedoes were launched from submarines and the pilots of the torpedoes could steer the weapons as necessary to inflict maximum damage against an enemy. 

7. Pigeon-Guided Missiles

Pigeon-guided missiles were developed by noted behaviorist B.F. Skinner during Project Pigeon. Although the project was ultimately cancelled because of the impracticality of the weapons, the idea of pigeon-guided missiles showed promise.

The missile had an array of lenses at the front that projected an image of the target to an interior screen. The pigeons were conditioned to peck at the target on the screen. The pigeon's pecks corrected the missile's flight-path. 

SEE ALSO: The 11 most powerful militaries in the world

Join the conversation about this story »

submitted by nomanoid [link] [108 comments]

Yesterday we noted how Netflix had fired another shot over the bow in the ongoing peering war by changing their familiar buffering warning message to specifically single out ISPs when consumers see poor performance. Needless to say, Verizon wasn't amused, insisting that Netflix was engaged in a "misleading PR stunt" and that any performance issues faced by users were the fault of Netflix and their choice of transit partners.

At the time it was unclear whether or not the message was showing up on all ISPs. Now Netflix has provided a little more detail and methodology to analyst Dan Rayburn as to what precisely triggers this warning:

quote:

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Netflix says their methodology is if you are streaming from an ISP/Designated Market Area pair where (1) the average bitrate is poor (SD), (2) there is high congestion (the ratio between peak and trough traffic is abnormally compressed), and (3) they see a high percentage of sessions with a rebuffer, then the player displays the warning during the initial buffering at play start. If those criteria are met AND the user is actually streaming at a low bitrate (SD or below) then Netflix also displays an indicator if the play control bar is activated during the playback. That s how it works now, but Netflix may modify/tune as they continue to roll out and learn more.

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Netflix pretty clearly wants to highlight how the Netflix streaming problems customers on the largest ISPs have seen over the last six months are intentional. Level 3 recently claimed ISPs were letting peering links saturate quite intentionally, to drive content companies toward more direct (and ever costlier) interconnection deals.

Still, transit companies, content companies and last mile ISPs alike are going to need to reveal more hard peering an interconnection data if they hope to get more sympathy for their claims. This Netflix blog post from April was a good start and a must read for those trying to understand these issues, or understand how this is different from traditional transit battles.
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Liquid cooling-obsessed boutique builder thinks inside the small box

Setting up a liquid cooled rig is challenging enough on its own. But liquid cooling a small factor PC? That's taking things to whole new level. In fact, Maingear says its Epic Torq gaming system is the first small form factor PC in the world to feature liquid cooling for both the CPU and GPU. We'll take Maingear's word for it, but either way, the Torq is an intriguing system that can outfitted with some seriously powerful hardware.

The Torq supports up to an Intel Core i7 4790K processor overclocked up to 5GHz, up to an Nvidia GeForce Titan Z or AMD Radeon R9 295X2 graphics card (both are dual-GPU parts), up to 16GB of Corsair Dominator Platinum DDR3-2133 RAM, and up to three drives (up to 1TB SSDs and/or up to 4TB HDDs). It also ships with onboard GbE, onboard 802.11ac Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, 860W Corsair Professional Digital Series AX860 PSU, 240mm radiator for the CPU, 120mm side fans, 180mm front intake fan, four USB 3.0 ports, four USB 2.0 ports, eSATA, S/PDIF, HDMI, DisplayPort, an various Windows options.

"Upgrading will also be simple with its standard sized components and easy to remove side panels. The Torq has plenty of storage with up to three hard drives with SSD and Mechanical drives available, and the front panel offers easy access to USB 3.0 ports and audio connectors," Maingear says.

Not all configurations have to be as extravagant as the one outlined above. Pricing starts at $1,599 with immediate availability.

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An outstanding short sci-fi film by Patrick Kalyn about a drug that threatens the humanity of its users.

After a serious accident, a man is introduced to a designer street drug promising to restore his ravaged body. Desperate to mend himself, he becomes consumed by the drug – only to discover it is threatening his humanity.

[Patrick Kalyn | Via IO9]

According to multiple reports, Sprint has agreed to buy T-Mobile for $40 per share, or about $32 billion.

The deal isn't official yet, but the companies will likely make a formal announcement in July or August.

It's not the first time T-Mobile has gone through this dance. In 2011, the Justice Department blocked AT&T from buying T-Mobile in a $39 billion deal, saying it would reduce competition in the wireless market. After that, T-Mobile nearly collapsed, bleeding subscribers to competitors AT&T, Verizon, and Sprint.

But since T-Mobile's CEO John Legere took over in late 2012, the company has seen a remarkable turnaround. As we wrote in our profile of Legere, T-Mobile is now the fastest growing wireless carrier in the U.S. in terms of revenue and subscribers. A lot of that turnaround is due to T-Mobile rejiggering its plans and special offers to eliminate common annoyances with carriers such as service contracts, phone upgrades, and international data rates.

Still, regulators are expected to make a merger between Sprint and T-Mobile very tough. Industry analyst Moffett Nathanson thinks there is less than a 10% chance the deal is approved. With Comcast trying to buy Time Warner, and AT&T trying to buy DirecTV, Nathanson doesn't think the government will approve three mega mergers.

A T-Mobile-Sprint deal would reduce the number of major wireless carriers from four to three, giving consumers fewer choices and potentially making it possible for those carriers to raise prices. 

In an interview with Business Insider a few weeks ago, Legere explained how today's T-Mobile merging with Sprint would be much more appealing to regulators than the failed AT&T deal from 2011. Legere's philosophy seems to be that AT&T's attempt at buying T-Mobile was a greedy move aimed at snapping up precious spectrum to give it an unfair advantage over competitors. 

In his view, today's T-Mobile is a radically different company than the one AT&T tried to buy. Regulators should like the proposed Sprint/T-Mobile deal because Verizon and AT&T are so huge that it's tough for smaller carriers to compete. Sprint might be able to pitch its acquisition to regulators as a branding and marketing story, a scrappy company that can compete with the two giants dominating the wireless industry right now.

"The conversations that are taking place now are about T-Mobile's brand, T-Mobile's offer set, the uncarrier movement, and the management team at T-Mobile," Legere said of the press coverage on T-Mobile. "There's nobody talking about buying T-Mobile and shutting it down for spectrum. It means that you've got a company and a board and a team looking at its options."

While consumer advocates and regulators may wrinkle their noses at any sort of consolidation in the wireless industry, Legere thinks it's a good thing in T-Mobile's case.

"I would consider a consolidation opportunity with another player that allows me to use the spectrum that they have and the size and the customer base that I have to grow the business," Legere said. "I have no desire to turn T-Mobile into the son of something else."

Legere stands to gain a lot from a merger. Aaron Boyd, an analyst at Equilar, which specializes in executive compensation, says Legere could make over $41 million if T-Mobile joins Sprint. And there is talk that Legere will become the CEO of the new company. 

Sprint buying T-Mobile would make the combined carrier pretty huge. It'd have 85.4 million subscribers, versus AT&T's 102 million subscribers and Verizon's 103 million subscribers. It's going to be a tough pitch to regulators that such consolidation would be a good move for consumers.

Revenue for a combined Sprint and T-Mobile would be pretty close to what AT&T and Verizon are bringing in too. 

Three massive companies controlling most of the wireless business would give them leeway to charge more down the road. That's in contrast to today's landscape where T-Mobile and Sprint can punch the big guys in the gut by offering cheaper plans and innovative offers that cause people to switch over. And the fact that Verizon and AT&T have reacted to T-Mobile's moves over the last year or so with similar offers is a good sign that even smaller carriers can be competitive.

By the way, that seems to be fine with Legere. Even if Sprint doesn't end up buying T-Mobile, Legere thinks the company is positioned to be successful on its own.

"We'll be bigger than Sprint in three quarters. Do the math. Do the lines," he said. "We're doing very well. We've got a lot of cash. We have tremendous growth. We're on track to generate a lot more. We have the ability to raise money."

SEE ALSO: How John Legere brought T-Mobile back from the dead

Join the conversation about this story »

If you'd told me a while back that the best part of Mario Kart 8 would be Luigi's cold, unyielding stare , I wouldn't have believed you. But here we are, and there's Luigi's icy death gaze, and the truth is it is actually my favorite part of the game.

Read more...

Amazon released a teasing video along with the announcement that it will be releasing a new product, most likely its long-rumored 3-D smartphone, on June 18th.

Here's what we know about the phone based on various reports.

It will be able to track your movement.

This is one of the major things that Amazon teased in its new video, with users exclaiming things like "It moved with me!" while tilting their heads' from side-to-side.

Amazon's new phone will have several front facing cameras (the picture leaked to BGR below shows five), which will be able to track your movements. It seem like Amazon plans to use a unique combination of cameras, sensors and software to essentially redefine the smartphone experience. Zach Epstein at BGR reported that if you tilt the phone in different directions while using it, the interface will display additional info without you ever having to touch the screen.

You can see the front-facing cameras in this leak, obtained by Epstein:

It will also be able to display images that look 3-D.

This also goes along with the whole multiple front-facing cameras thing. This 3-D perspective will be incorporated into wallpapers and apps, which will be able to shift their perspective when you move your head. 

In general, the software will allow for a slew of new use cases.

In one of its many reports on the new Amazon phone, BGR reported that you'll be able to use many of the phone's functions without ever touching the screen, because of its motion tracking capabilities. 

BGR's sources also said that if you take pictures of printed text, the phone will be able to recognize it and convert it into a note using something called optical character recognition technology. This could be great if you wanted to save business card info or translate foreign text into English.

Amazon will offer some form of data plan. 

This could be the secret sauce of Amazon's new smartphone.

BGR reported in April that the company is planning to offer a unique wireless data plan, called Prime Data. Although BGR's sources couldn't confirm exact details, it's speculated that Prime Data could take advantage of AT&T's "sponsored data plan" to let phone owners use various Prime-branded services — like TV and movies from Prime Instant Video and music from its soon-to-be-released streaming service — without using up any of their data. For example, listening to music from Amazon's Prime streaming service wouldn't count towards the user's monthly data cap. 

Because data plans are still pretty expensive, Amazon would be giving potential users a huge incentive if it could make them cheaper. 

The phone will run a heavily-modified version of Android. 

Just like Amazon's line of Kindle Fire tablets, the new phone will likely run a forked version of Android. That means that you'll have to download all the apps and services that you want from Amazon's own app store. 

It will look something like this:

BGR obtained that rendering and also reported that the phone will have a 4.7-inch display (slightly smaller than the new Samsung S5) with 720p HD resolution (that's compared to 1080p HD resolution on other flagship phones). One of the benefits of the smartphone's motion-sensing technology could be that it would be easy for people to use it with only one hand, because they wouldn't have to be touching the screen as frequently.  

It will have its headphone jack on the top.

This might not seem like the most major spoiler, but it was revealed in Amazon's teaser video (maybe on accident?):

Why would Amazon want to release a smartphone?

We haven't heard anything concrete, but would speculate that Amazon's long-term goal with the new hardware will be to help drive its content sales as well as Amazon Prime membership. Because Amazon's smartphone users will have to purchase apps and content through Amazon's own app store, the company could increase its revenue stream on digital. Plus, if the phone comes with a data plan that lets users access Prime streaming content without wasting their data, it's another incentive to actually sign up for Prime. Amazon recently raised the cost of Prime membership to $99 a year, up from $79. 

Amazon wants to convince as many people as possible to fork over that $99 not only for the up-front fee, but because people with Prime spend almost double the amount on Amazon as non-members. 

The Information even reported that Amazon might give the smartphone to Prime members for free. Only $99 a year for free two-day shipping, lots of streaming movies, shows, and music, and a phone? Sounds like a pretty sweet deal.   

SEE ALSO: Here's What People Are Really Buying On Amazon

Join the conversation about this story »

[Photograph: Robyn Lee]

There was always a fresh sleeve of Saltines, and crumbs would spill onto the counter when it was torn open. That's when my dad would peel back the lid on a can of anchovies.

As a kid, the sight and smell left me squirming at his hip. But I couldn't turn away. I had to watch as he'd lift a single, fuzzy fillet from the tin with surgical precision. He'd hold it in front of me longer than necessary before gently dropping it onto one of those salty crackers, where it would curl under its own weight and bleed oil onto the porous canvas.

The notion of good things coming in small packages rings loud with anchovies. Hiding in the fish's tiny silver glory are vitamins A, B-6, B-12, C, E, and K, omega-3 fatty acids, calcium, potassium, magnesium, phosphorus, iron, and niacin, to name a few. They're one of the most sustainable fish out there, resilient to fishing pressures with a quick reproductive cycle.

And of course they're wonderful to eat: savory and succulent, full of salt and brine, a reminder that some foods are perfect as-is.

What exactly are anchovies and how do they get from sea to tin? Read on to find out.

Anchovy 101

[Photograph: Nick Kindelsperger]

Why do anchovies tastes so meaty? As we noted in our taste test of anchovy filets, "[Anchovies] are a concentrated source of glutamic and inosinic acid—two molecules responsible for triggering our sensation of savoriness." The very first anchovies were used much how they're cooked today: as a way to add intense savoriness to food that mere salt can't provide.

There are nearly 150 species of anchovies found in cooler waters across the globe. The fish prefer temperatures in the low 60s (in Fahrenheit), which is why the North Atlantic, Mediterranean, Black, and Azov Seas are where many live, and most are fished. Anchovies can live up to four years (reproducing at two) and reach lengths of eight inches, but the market's high demand and commercial fishing mean it's rare that the fish actually live that long.

According to Food and Agriculture Organization, the production of salted anchovies jumped from 49,600 tonnes (1 tonne = 1,000 kilograms) to 72,500 between 2000 and 2008. But curing anchovies is a centuries-old practice, and the process and product haven't changed much in the past few hundred years.

The earliest form of salting anchovies dates back to late Roman and Medieval times, when fish scraps were placed in large vessels with salt, which would draw moisture from the fish and create a sort of pickling liquid known as liquamen. The liquamen was then strained and left to ferment in the sun, and the resulting briny brew—garum—was the world's first fish sauce.

Fast forward to Southwestern France in the 1700s. Though modern anchovy fishing technology is several centuries away, waters around the region are a hotbed of the industry. In the commune of Collioure, just north of the Spanish border, fishermen in small, brightly painted boats known as catalans fished for what many considered (and still do) to be the best anchovies in the world. In his New York Times bestseller Salt: A World History, Mark Kurlansky describes Collioure anchovies as "smaller, leaner, and more flavorful than their Atlantic cousins."

Collioure fishermen fished from May to October and kept to shallow waters, where schools of anchovies retreated after feeding on plankton further from shore. Anchovies are attracted to moonlight, so fishing took place at night when the moon's glow could be used as bait. Near the tail end of the 19th century, Collioure fishermen invented lamparos: lights they mounted to their boats to lure fish.

The technique worked—so much so that it eventually depleted the shallow water anchovy supply. To keep up with demand, anchovy fishermen sent out newer, bigger boats to deeper waters, marking the start of a new fishing industry.

The Modern Market

Left to right: a salt-packed anchovy, an oil-packed anchovy fillet, and a squiggle of anchovy paste. [Photograph: J. Kenji Lopez-Alt]

The Atlantic "cousin" anchovies that Kurlansky mentioned offhand are likely the ones you have in your pantry. Engraulis encrasicolus—European anchovies—are the most common commercial anchovy, both for their clean flavor and dense, sturdy flesh that can withstand the demand of today's fishing and curing methods. Once cured, they're also a succulent morsel of food with a perfect balance between savory and salty.

The Engraulis encrasicolus my dad eats come from Wegman's, and likely by way of Morocco, which is the world's leading producer of commercial anchovies. Peru boasts significant output as well, but many of the anchovies caught there (Engraulis ringens) are used for fishbait, and recurring currents of warm water caused by El Niño make the South Pacific a less reliable source.

You can buy fresh,* frozen, and dried varieties of anchovies, but most of what you'll find comes one of three ways: salt-packed, oil-packed, or puréed into paste with salt and oil. No matter how they're packed, the anchovies are cured with similar methods to the Collioure fishermen and Romans before them: just salt.

* If you can find them, fresh anchovies are an unmatched culinary delight. Very few foods have such a wonderfully natural salinity and, because of the fish's single-bite size, are so rewarding to eat. But they're a perishable product that rarely make it to markets.

The Cure

[Photograph: Robyn Lee]

Curing anchovies begins within hours of catching the fish—the faster the cure begins, the more it locks in the fish's natural flavor. Once the fish are hauled in they're kept on ice, then cleaned once the boat docks.

Cleaning involves removing the head and rinsing the fish, at which point they are layered in large bins with salt, covered and weighted down, and left to cure for six to eight months (bigger fish take longer to cure). The long cure tenderizes the flesh and brings a pink hue to the meat—an early tell of doneness. As Niki described in her taste test, salt is "what's responsible for breaking down the myosin in the fish, one of the muscle proteins that hold its flesh together, making it exceedingly easy to mash up and dissolve."

Now the big question: salt-packed or oil-packed? Oil-packed anchovies are just the filets; salt-packed anchovies are everything but the heads and tails—scales, fins, and bones are left intact and softened during the process. Salt-packed anchovies are prized by anchovy lovers for their blast of pristine fishy flavor, while oil-packed versions are slightly more subtle, though easier to eat.

When we put the two varieties to the test, we found salt- and oil-packed anchovies performed similarly in most uses, though the salt-packed version had a nice extra punch when eaten raw. As for anchovy paste, we recommend you skip it altogether.

Anchovies Around the World

[Photograph: J. Kenji Lopez-Alt]

You don't need anything besides salt to preserve an anchovy, so the result after curing is a nutritious, if salty, natural product—boldly flavored and virtually limitless in applications.

They show up in Caesar salad, where the fish are mashed into a creamy dressing with garlic and egg yolk.* In Spain you'll find them pickled, fried, tangled with roasted peppers, wrapped around olives, laid over fresh butter on rounds of crunchy bread, and rolled about with hard boiled eggs. In Italy, anchovies are worked into puttanesca, a tomato sauce fortified with chilies, onion, olives, and capers. Bagna cauda, an emulsion of anchovy, cream, and garlic, also Italian, is a celebration of the fish's bright, pungent flavor. France honors the fish alongside tomato, olives, haricot verts, and tuna in its salade Nicoise.

* Though many claim the original Caesar salad was made with Worchestershire sauce, not anchovies.

But anchovies are cooked in kitchens well beyond Europe. In Kerala, a coastal region in southwest India, the small fish are steamed in banana leaves with ginger, turmeric, garlic, green chilies, and onions to make netholi vazhayilayil pollichathu. In Korea, dried versions of the fish are sautéed with soy sauce, rice wine, and sugar for a dish called myeolchi-bokkeum. In the Philippines, anchovies are fermented to create bagoong, a popular condiment that accompanies an array of dishes, though perhaps most commonly found alongside steamed vegetables in pinakbet.

Anchovies thrive in salty waters the world over, and wherever they appear they're loved by cooks with the same vigor as fine ham and cheese. You may not need to crack open a tin to give your dinner a boost, but if you do you'll be preserving a timeless—and delicious—tradition of using small fish for great purposes.

More Fishy Business

• Anchovy Taste Test: Salt-Packed vs. Oil-Packed vs. Paste »
• Taste Test: The Best Anchovy Fillets »
• The Food Lab: The Best Caesar Salad »
• Sauced: Puttanesca »

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