(This might interest) Maybe Just Me…

a study of vernacular or lexicon as you will

this is a totally unscientific study, if you can call it that, about what people call “soft drinks” or “sodas” etc. i grew up in TX, but in a military town. I grew up saying coke, now I say soda. according to this site soda is said in the county i grew up by about 26% of the people. the change for me happened when i went to college in the midatlantic.

genetic testing to determing ethnic heritage

this is an nytimes.com article (reg required) about how ppl are using genetic testing to find out their ethnic background. the story part of the article is about 2 guys who took the test and found they are 9% native american and 11% northern african. but they have always thought of themselves as white. their parents are white. and i know that white american males are the “easiest group to discriminate” against, but don’t they have enough of an advantage within the social order that they shouldn’t be allowed to do this sort of thing to get things like financial aid to colleges and such?

book binding

this is just weird. or i guess to be in line with the post title, creepy.

CNN.com - Wait a sec for leap into 2006 - Dec 25, 2005

feel like you need just a little more of 2005, well you got it. the leap second being added to the clocks this year.

CNN.com - ‘Literary’ texts no more? - Nov 17, 2005

putting literary texts in “txt” languages for study aids? no. ridiculous, like we should really cater to the continuing idiocy of the youth. though i say that as i type with no capitalization. (=

The Observer | International | Armed and dangerous - Flipper the firing dolphin let loose by Katrina

this is just absolutely insane.

These men want their foreskins back - Men’s Sexual Health Guide - MSNBC.com

umm, i mean, i don’t know. it’s very much interesting to me what little things (well not little to them) bother people about themselves to such a large degree when they are kids.

Doubt a man’s masculinity and he’ll get macho - Men’s Health - MSNBC.com

umm, hello, we really need studies on things like this? call any man a girl. tell him to bring out and put on his skirt. go watch any football practice for more than 5 minutes. emasculating a guy is the EASIEST way to make him instantly more masculine.

CNN.com - Russia: Solar sail launch fails - Jun 22, 2005

actually i have nothing against russia. but it’s just funny to think of this in communist, cold war russia terms. sure the solar sail “failed” and is “lost.” meanwhile their super secret spy agency is currently using it to do something nefarious. hahaha.

CNN.com - Solar spacecraft set to blast off - Jun 21, 2005

suppose this idea does work. suppose photons beaming out of the sun hit the sails and propels this thing. they are talking about it reaching super far places. granted once it’s going it’s going. but at some point don’t photons from other stars start to hit it and move it in different or even opposite directions? i mean just as a matter of common sense? or is our sun the ONLY star that emits protons?

btw, what is the proper name for the star that is the sun? other stars have actual names, with capitalized first letters and everything. but the most important star to us, the sun, is just the sun. not the Sun.

Is 40 really the new 30? - Aging - MSNBC.com

too bad there’s no way to calculate quality life years. i mean great the average american is like 35 and can expect to live like 40 more years, how many of those are quality years? do we REALLY need that many old people? haha, i blame all the old people (and those without insurance like myself) for the rise in the cost of healthcare. i’m almost entirely wrong in that, but that’s where i place the blame. (=

FeralChildren.com - Feral Children - isolated, confined wild and wolf children

feral kids. it’s crazy. the snippets are about what feral characteristics they had, what level of socialization they gained, etc. these cases make for evidence in debates on socialization, language acquisition, etc.

HoustonChronicle.com - Scientists find love can make you a little crazy

and yet love is the same as being crazy, kind of, well at least according to this research… and my own personal experience! ha. i kid. well not really. ha.

New Scientist 11 steps to a better brain - Features

too bad i lack the focus/desire to read the article.. (=

Gothamist: Need to Go Basis

george didn’t need a list. he knew, at any given location (and i can only assume manhattan only, though NEVER underestimate george costanza. he is the one who came up with the master plan for the girlfriend/roommate switch), the best bathroom in the area. for the rest of us mere mortals, fill out the form, and bam you get the list. i haven’t bothered to fill it out yet, but perhaps i will at some point today if i’m bored and not busy. hmm, bored and not busy, if i need to fulfill both of those to fill it out, no chance i’m doing that anytime soon, though i suppose i could fill it out in lieu of blogging about it.