NASA administrator Charles Bolden has dismissed the idea that the space agency will attempt another manned Moon mission. Speaking with contemporaries, Bolden said "NASA will not take the lead on a human lunar mission.. probably in my lifetime." Bolden also warned that if future administrations reverse NASA's decision, "it means we are probably, in our lifetime, in the lifetime of everybody sitting in this room, we are probably never again going to see Americans on the Moon, on Mars, near an asteroid, or anywhere. We cannot continue to change the course of human exploration."

The agency will instead focus on a manned research mission to a nearby Asteroid, as it announced three weeks ago. That's not to say that we won't see another human on the Moon — there are multiple companies planning commercial space flights, and Golden Spike last December committed to take people to the Moon by 2020.

Bolden's statements echo the words of President Obama who, while making a speech at the John F. Kennedy Space Center, acknowledged there was a desire among some to return to the Moon before exploring the further reaches of space. "I just have to say pretty bluntly here: we've been there before," said Obama back in 2010, "There's a lot more of space to explore, and a lot more to learn when we do."

• Via The Examiner
• Source Space Politics
• Image Credit NASA
• Related Items nasa space space exploration moon mission manned space flight asteroid charles bolden president obama barack obama

thoughtpeach:

For some reason, Floyd County remade the Archer pilot with a velociraptor (dialogue replaced with screeching) instead of Sterling Archer.

arpeggia:

National Library Of The Girolamini Oratory, Naples, Italy

Photo by Massimo Listri

1874

First time accepted submitter Hamburg writes "Frank Mittelbach, member of the LaTeX Project and LaTeX3 developer, reviews significant issues of TeX raised already 20 years ago. Today he evaluates which issues are solved, and which still remain open and why. Examples of issues are managing consecutive hyphens, rivers of vertical spaces and identical words across lines, grid-based design, weighed hyphenation points, and overcoming the the mouth/stomach separation. Modern engines such as pdfTeX, XeTeX and LuaTeX are considered with regard to solutions of important problems in typesetting." Note: When TeX was first released, Jimmy Carter was president.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

We’ve heard quite a number of radio ads lately trying to sell an automatic lawn mowing robot (like a Roomba for your grass). But wouldn’t it be a lot more fun to hack your own from an existing lawnmower? That’s what [Daniel Epperson] did. In fact, the project has been ongoing for years. But he wrote in to share the latest development which adds solar charging capabilities to the robot mower.

First off let’s discuss the fact that this is not an electric lawnmower. This is the Prius of lawnmowers, bringing together hybrid technology to cut the grass with the gasoline powered motor, and to propel the rig with electricity. [Danny's] worked hard to shoe-horn just about every feature imaginable (other than autonomy) into the thing, and that’s why the batteries can be charged from mains, an alternator powered by the gas motor, and now from the PV panel mounted on top of it. Get the entire project overview in his roundup post.

This a wireless video feed and the mower is driven by remote-controlled. So you can give your yard a trim without getting sweaty. After the jump we’ve embedded a clip of an earlier revision demonstrating that remote control. If you’re not interest in having all the features you could simply build an analog version.

Filed under: home hacks, robots hacks

The debate over distracted driving laws has mostly focused on texting, but a California court ruling has confirmed that any cellphone use that takes a driver's hands off the wheel is fair game. Law professor Orin Kerr has uncovered a court case from late March in which the judge determined using a phone's map while driving was a violation of state law. "The primary evil sought to be avoided is the distraction the driver faces when using his or her hands to operate the phone," writes Judge Kent Hamlin in his opinion. The driver had argued that since the phone wasn't being used for conversations, the usual anti-texting and anti-talking laws didn't apply.

"That distraction would be present whether the wireless telephone was being used as a telephone, a GPS navigator, a clock or a device for sending and receiving text messages and emails," continued Hamlin. That means if someone is taking their hands off the wheel frequently to navigate, it can be just as much of a distraction. Judge Hamlin acknowledged that the law could unfairly single out electronic devices, when using plenty of other objects "poses just as great a risk to the safety of other motorists." But that, he says, is a matter for legislators to consider; the interpretation of the law itself is clear.

• Via TechdirtTechCrunchOrin Kerr (Twitter)
• Source Court Document (PDF)
• Related Items california distracted driving texting while driving texting law Cellphones

Mad Men showrunner Matthew Weiner’s obsession with researching every last period detail has inspired much journalistic awe — and some collegial snark: Breaking Bad creator Vince Gilligan once quipped, "Now I always weigh the meth on the show to the 100th of a gram."

“

I know I’ve told this story before, but my abusive ex refused to let me take birth control. I was on the pill until he found them in my purse.

I went to the Student Health Center—they were completely unhelpful, choosing to lecture me about the importance of safe sex (recommending condoms) instead of actually listening to my problem.

Then I went to Planned Parenthood. The Nurse Practitioner took one look at my fading bruises and stopped the exam. She called in the doctor. The doctor came in and simply asked me: “Are you ready to leave him?” When I denied that I was being abused, she didn’t argue with me. She just asked me what I needed. I said I need a birth control method that my boyfriend couldn’t detect. She recommended a few options and we decided on Depo.

When I told her that my boyfriend read my emails and listened to my phone messages and was known to follow me, she suggested to do the Depo injections at off hours when the clinic was normally closed. She made a note in my chart and instructed the front desk never to leave messages for me—instead, she programmed her personal cell phone number into my phone under the name “Nora”. She told me she would call me to schedule my appointments; she wouldn’t leave a message, but I should call her back when I was able to.

And that was it. No judgment. No lecture. She walked me to the door and told me to call her day or night if I needed anything. That she lived 5 blocks from campus and would come get me. That I wasn’t alone. That she just wanted me to be safe.

I never called her to come to my rescue. But I have no doubt that she would have come if I had called. She kept me on Depo for a year, giving me those monthly injections in secret, helping me prevent a desperately unwanted pregnancy.

I cannot thank Planned Parenthood enough for the work they do.

”

-

Curious Georgiana (via ifonechitiri-g)

“

It’s become easier for him to navigate his smartphone than to figure out how to use a TV set-top box and the button-laden remote control.

“I’m pretty tech savvy, but the TV industry with the cable and the television and the boxes, you don’t know how to use their equipment,” he says. “I try to go over to my grandma’s place and teach her how to do it. I can’t even figure it out myself.”

”

- Broadcasters worry about ‘Zero TV’ homes - Yahoo! News

PETMAN, the creepily lifelike robot from Boston Dynamics, has made some remarkable strides in the last few years. Once nothing more than a headless walker with a penchant for push-ups, PETMAN has now morphed into a veritable Terminator, capable of squatting, swiveling, and celebrating, as evidenced by the company's latest video.

But PETMAN's newest, and perhaps scariest feature is its camouflaged wardrobe, replete with gasmask. According to Boston Dynamics, the robot's temperature-regulated hazmat suit is embedded with sensors capable of detecting chemical leaks. Developed as part of the Defense Department's Chemical and Biological Defense (CBD) program, PETMAN will be used to test similarly protective clothing in the future.

---

• Via Geekologie
• Source BostonDynamics (YouTube)
• Related Items military war cyborg terminator us army army robot boston dynamics robotics petman department of defense warfare chemical warfare chemical and biological defense

chameleon actors: Gary Oldman

A Political Action Committee (PAC) launched this week to support bearded candidates, according to paperwork filed Wednesday with the Federal Election Commission.

First magic mushroom depression trial hits stumbling block Reuters By Kate Kelland. LONDON | Sat Apr 6, 2013 7:18pm EDT. LONDON (Reuters) - The world's first clinical trial designed to explore using a hallucinogen from magic mushrooms to treat people with depression has stalled because of British and European rules ... and more »

Waagner’s map of St Louis County, MO (1857)

Waagner's map of St Louis County, MO (1857) Waagner's map of St Louis County, Missouri (1857) Date: 1857 Author: Gustavus Waagner. Dwnld: Full Size 18.1mb Source: Library of Congress Print Availability: See our Prints Page for more details pff This map isn't part of any series, but we have other St Louis maps that you might want to check out. Gustavus Waagner's map of St Louis and St Louis County,...

the BIG Map Blog - Interesting maps, historical maps, BIG maps.

Birdseye view of The Dalles, Oregon (1884)

H. Wellge's birdseye map of The Dalles, Oregon in 1884. Birdseye view of The Dalles, Oregon Date: 1884 Author: H. Wellge Dwnld: Full Size (7.1mb) Print Availability: See our Prints Page for more details pff This map isn't part of any series, but we have other Oregon maps that you might want to check out. Wellge's birdseye map of The Dalles, Oregon [gmap] in 1884. For more maps and images from...

the BIG Map Blog - Interesting maps, historical maps, BIG maps.

French Map of the U.S. Gulf Coast (1747)

Carte general de toute la côte de la Louisianne jusqu'a la Baye St. Bernard, coste de la Floride, Baye de la Mobille, Be. de Pansacole French Map of the U.S. Gulf Coast (1747) Date: 1747 Author: Alexandre de Batz Dwnld: Full Size (5.48mb) Source: Library of Congress Print Availability: See our Prints Page for more details pff This map isn't part of any series, but we have other maps of...

the BIG Map Blog - Interesting maps, historical maps, BIG maps.

Kan. Senate approves sweeping anti-abortion bill - KFDA - NewsChannel 10 ... KFDA TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) - The Kansas Senate has approved a sweeping anti-abortion bill that blocks tax breaks for providers and outlaws abortions solely because of the baby's sex. The vote was 28-10 Friday on a compromise version of the bill reconciling ... and more »

Wireframe Tee: Hierarchy, flow, function, space.

kurtbusiek:

“Ho, Tanngrisnir! Onward! Onward!”

It took me years and years of cooking and canning with inadequate measuring utensils and obsolete recipes to memorize how many teaspoons are in an ounce (which is 1/8 of a cup). All that would have been easier with this handy conversion chart from S.B. Lattin Design. Print yours out and hang it on the inside of the cabinet door where you keep your baking supplies. Link -via mental floss

Every since its launch, we’ve seen Facebook change. And change. Again, and again, and again. While many changes are actually for the best, there’s one thing these updates never fails to add to our news feed: more clutter. There’s also something our ever-growing list of friends never fails to bring to our news feed: even more clutter. Between Facebook’s ads, sponsored posts, and upcoming “personalized” news feed, and your friends’ posts about politics, religion, babies, cats, and weddings, it’s getting harder and harder to see the things that really matter.

Are you ready to change that? Don’t get too excited, I haven’t found a magic way to re-design your Facebook feed according to your wildest dreams, but there are ways and tools that can help you focus on what you’re really interested in, while doing away with noise, boring posts, uninteresting people you’re not sure why you ever friended, and unnecessary announcements. Whether you’re only interested in links, in photos, or in a specific group of people, there’s a way to focus your updates on what you want to see.

Facebook’s Built-In Options

There are several ways to use Facebook’s built-in options to de-clutter your news feed. These include changing the way your feed is sorted, manually hiding posts you don’t like seeing as you stumble upon them, customizing which friends appear on your news feed and what kinds of updates you’re seeing from them, and creating Facebook lists that can help you curate your news feed according to how much you care.

None of these things is complicated, but it does take some patience to go through your settings and fix things up. If you’re up for it, head over to Tina’s post about managing your Facebook news feed, and learn exactly who you can perform each of these actions.

Unwhatever.me [Chrome]

Unwhatever.me is only one of nine different extensions that can help you clean up your news feed easily. The extensions are available for Chrome only, which is a shame, but do a swift job of purging certain keywords out of your Facebook life.

After installing the extension, specify the keywords you want to filter out in the extension’s options, and watch the magic at work. You can also set up a photo feed to replace the posts that get filtered out. The extension comes with an Instagram feed already built it (grumpy cat), but you can easily change the tag to show pictures you’d like. If you change your mind and what to see a hidden post, click “undo” to view it.

If you’re too lazy to specify your own keywords, sibling extensions such as Unbaby.me, Unpolitic.me, Unfoodpic.me, and Unwedding.me can you help you get rid of common annoying subjects you may not care about. All extensions are available for Chrome, and can be downloaded from the Unwhatever.me page.

Social Fixer

Social Fixer is a Facebook-cleaning old timer, and can be used for much more than simple news feed filtering. The extension is available for any browser you can think of, besides Internet Explorer, and adds various tweaks and features to Facebook.

One of the features Social Fixer offers is filtering. This isn’t as simple as Unwhatever.me, but if you’re willing to spend a few minutes on tweaking it, you can set up your news feed to really show only the things you’re interested in. You can filter our certain people, apps, keywords, etc., and set up different actions for your filters.

You can use Social Fixer to create different tabs for your news feed, and filter your content into those tabs. You can then ignore certain tabs for as long as you want, and explore them only when you feel like it.

Learn more about setting up Social Fixer and creating filters.

The New New New News Feed

Facebook’s news feed keeps changing, and the latest iteration will offer another built-in way to filter your news feed. Want to see only photos? No problem. Only music-related updates? There’s a feed for that. As it looks right now, there’s not going to be a way to create actual personalized news feeds, except for the already-existing lists.

Will the new news feed help silence the news feed noise, or increase it? That remains to be seen, but you can go a long way to getting a de-cluttered and focuses feed even without it.

Know of other ways to see only what you care about on Facebook? Share in the comments!

Image Credit: Funnel image via Shutterstock

The post Cut The Crap, Facebook – Give Me What I Want To Read appeared first on MakeUseOf.

"Why are crackers so 'spensive?" (read that with attitude)

That's what runs through my head every time I wander down the cracker aisle. I rarely buy crackers, but when you're entertaining and you've got four or five different dips, they're kind of required. Sure, you can have pita wedges, vegetables, or pretzels, but nothing beats a cracker.

I'm really excited about this recipe. Not because they're the best cracker that I've ever had (admittedly, they're not), but because it's a really fun project and there are so many ways to alter and expand the recipe. I seriously can't wait to try more!

These crackers did turn out pretty tasty (I polished them off in just a couple days, thanks in part to a yummy batch of hummus). They had just the right amount of crunch without being too hard. I didn't taste the rosemary or cracked pepper as much as I'd like, though, and next time I'll also add a sprinkle of salt to the top of the crackers before baking. That being said, I definitely think you should try making your own crackers. It was surprisingly easy and definitely fun! ...I'm going to try a whole wheat olive oil version next!

Rosemary Crackers

Total Recipe cost: $1.20 (Makes about 6 cups)
Prep time: 15 min. Cook time: 25 min. Total: 40 min.

INGREDIENTS		COST
2 cups	all-purpose flour	$0.45
1 tsp	baking powder	$0.10
1/2 tsp	salt (plus more for sprinkling)	$0.05
1 Tbsp	rosemary	$0.15
to taste	freshly cracked pepper	$0.05
4 Tbsp	cold butter	$0.40
1/2 to 3/4 cup	cold water	$0.00
TOTAL		$1.20

STEP 1: Chop the rosemary well so that there are no large, sharp pieces. Add the rosemary, flour, baking powder, salt, and some freshly cracked pepper to a food processor and pulse until the mixture is evenly mixed (or just stir them together in a bowl).

STEP 2: Cut the butter into pieces and add it to the food processor. Pulse the mixture until the butter is completely incorporated and no chunks remain. Or, cut the butter into the flour mixture with pastry cutter, two knives, or just with your hands until the butter is completely worked into the flour mixture.

STEP 3: Slowly add cold water to the food processor while pulsing, just until it forms a dough (or stir it in by hand until a dough forms). Depending on the humidity and moisture level in your flour, it will take between 1/2 and 3/4 cup water. I used approximately 2/3 cup.

STEP 4: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and roll it out until it is approximately 1/16th inch thick. Use a pizza cutter or knife to cut the dough into small rectangles, squares, or triangles. Prick each "cracker" with a fork. Carefully transfer the cut crackers to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

STEP 5: Sprinkle the crackers lightly with salt, if desired. Bake the crackers for 20-25 minutes, or until they are golden brown. The total amount of baking time needed will depend greatly on the thickness and size of the crackers, so watch them closely. Allow the crackers to cool and then store in an air-tight container at room temperature.

Step By Step Photos

Making crackers is a lot like making pie dough or biscuits. You mix the dry ingredients together first, then work in the butter, and then add liquid until a dough forms. I used a food processor just to make it quick and easy. You can do it by hand, but it will take a bit of elbow grease to work the butter in. Anyway, first combine the flour, rosemary, baking powder, salt, and pepper. You'll want to chop the rosemary up a bit first to prevent large pieces that can poke.


Cut the butter into a few pieces and add it to the food processor. Pulse the mixture until the butter is completely worked in and no chunks remain. In a pie or biscuit dough you'd want some chunks because that's what makes it flakey, but I didn't want a flakey cracker, so I worked it in completely.


See? The butter is completely worked in.


Slowly start to add cold water while pulsing (or just stir in a little bit at a time) until it forms a dough. I know this doesn't look like dough, but that's because the blade cuts it when it pulses. I took a chunk and squeezed it together with my hand and it definitely held together like a dough, so I knew it was done. I used about 2/3 cup water, but you may need slightly more or less depending on humidity and other factors.


Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface.


Roll the dough out really, really thin. I probably could have rolled mine even thinner. It does puff up slightly when baked. You may also want to re-dust the work surface as you roll it out to make the crackers easier to lift once cut.


I used a pizza cutter to cut the dough into small rectangles (don't use a lot of pressure to prevent damage to your counter top and pizza cutter).


I really didn't know exactly how these would turn out, so I decided to only prick about half of them with my fork. I ended up liking the pricked crackers better than the non-pricked, but that's just personal preference.


Carefully transfer the crackers to a baking sheet covered in parchment paper. Bake the crackers in a preheated 400 degree oven for 20-25 minutes, or until they're golden brown. You'll want to watch them closely because the size and thickness of your crackers will greatly influence the amount of time needed to achieve golden-brownness.


And then they're done and absolutely adorable... and pretty tasty, too!


And SO good with hummus!

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Spring must be around the corner because my seasonal Earthbound nostalgia is kicking in.

Now It Is WTF Pictures Time!

Submitted by: Unknown (via The Perfect Cell)

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