Best Of StumbleUpon

Stumbling on the go! How fantastic is THAT! Now you can whip out your smart phone and check your shares, reply to friends and click the stumble button for the all around boredom cure!

This free app allows you to thumb up sites you like and share them with your friends, even while on a long road trip with that friend that never shuts up! I whip out my droid and stumble in parking lots waiting for habitually late people and am no longer irritated about having to wait an extra 15min from the time I was instructed to be there. Doctor office waiting rooms are no longer hell on earth… Thank you Stumble app… thank you so much!

“Stay tuned for future updates to this app coming soon, like the ability to see the number of shares you have waiting right beside your text message and email notifications, the ability to find new Stumblers to follow, and more! (And for those of you using a web-enabled mobile device other than an iPhone or an Android phone, we’re investigating StumbleUpon app possibilities for other mobile operating systems. We’ll update our blog with any developments on that front!)”

Oh I’ll be staying tuned all right, from my phone!!!

There is also an app for ipad users.

For those of you that think “it isn’t that bad” or “the media is making more of this than it is” maybe this live feed will help you put it into perspective. Millions upon millions of gallons of oil are spilling into the ocean at a incomprehensible rate and it is going to affect the whole world.

It is actually a proven fact that smart girls have messy rooms. They are just too busy doing way cooler things to clean their rooms. Another closely guarded secret is that most geek girls are totally hawt, they just don’t want all the pervy guys to know that because they already snort all over them just because they are female. I am not talking about those “pretend” geek girls who are actually models dressed up as your favorite World of Warcraft toons at the conventions. I am talking about the girl sitting at her desk that could teach you a thing or two about CS4 or how to hack Firefox in her sleep.

Celebrate Geek Pride Day, buy the nearest geek some Starbucks and don’t tell them they are too pale because without them, well… the internet would pretty much suck.

Your rights on Geek Day (Via Wiki):

1. The right to be even geekier.
2. The right to not leave your house.
3. The right to not have a significant other and to be a virgin.
4. The right to not like football or any other sport.
5. The right to associate with other nerds.
6. The right to have few friends (or none at all).
7. The right to have all the geeky friends that you want.
8. The right to not be “in-style.”
9. The right to be overweight and have poor eyesight.
10. The right to show off your geekiness.
11. The right to take over the world.

Responsibilities:

1. Be a geek, no matter what.
2. Try to be nerdier than anyone else.
3. If there is a discussion about something geeky, you must give your opinion.
4. Save any and all geeky things you have.
5. Do everything you can to show off your geeky stuff as though it were a “museum of geekiness.”
6. Don’t be a generalized geek. You must specialize in something.
7. Attend every nerdy movie on opening night and buy every geeky book before anyone else.
8. Wait in line on every opening night. If you can go in costume or at least with a related T-shirt, all the better.
9. Don’t waste your time on anything not related to geekdom.
10. Befriend any person or persons bearing any physical similarities to comic book or sci-fi figures.
11. Try to take over the world!

Scenes are being removed from the new season of ‘Doctor Who’ at every turn. The season premiere where Matt Smith removes his shirt near the end of the episode caused a lot of controversy when it first aired, mostly because his new companion refused to turn away and watched him undress with great intent, fair enough. So they removed it but what I want to know is how they managed to remove all mention of it from the internet as well?

There were blogs all over the place talking about that scene and now you can google your heart away and find nothing. How did you do that BBC? More to the point, WHY? Will this scene be included in the box set when the season is released on DVD or is it just gone forever?

Was this scene really so bad? See the clip below:

Tell me what you think and *please* leave any blogs you have found on this subject in the comments section.

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In the quest for alternative, small-scale energy producing technology, one company has invented a device that can power electronics with something you’ve been just flushing down the toilet all this time–your pee. The portable, pee-powered battery, called MetalCell, can create enough of a charge to power a laptop for over four hours. The technology, while seeming to be modern, is actually reminiscent of an electricity producing method used close to 2 thousand years ago.

According to Popular Science, the battery was designed by a South Korean company for military situations where it may be hard to find power for electronic gadgets. It’s small enough to be transported easily and can produce energy to run equipment when no other sources are available.

Aside from urine, the MetalCell can produce electricity with just saltwater. Inside the battery are magnesium plates which react with sodium to generate a small amount of electricity. A report on the MetalCell’s capabilities says the chemical reaction may be a more convenient power generating method other methods are unavailable:

The device, known as MetalCell, is a backup power source that runs on sodium and can keep a laptop charged for more than four hours, its maker says. The design is relatively simple: a small, ruggedized box with magnesium plates inside. If an electrical gadget — anything from a computer to a flashlight — runs out of energy, a soldier on the battlefield could pour saltwater into the MetalCell and use the device as an emergency power source.

This method of producing a small amount of electricity resembles technology that dates back to nearly 2 thousand years. An artifact was discovered bearing similar qualities that may have been used to generate low-level voltage. Known as Baghdad Batteries, terracotta jars were found containing a copper cylinder and an iron rod that some believe could produce electricity when an acidic substance, like lemon juice, was added.

Just how much electricity the MetalCell can produce, and how readily available the materials needed to make are, could determine its viability in non-military applications. While it may not be superior to renewable sources like wind or solar generated power for long term energy needs, this pee-powered device could be an alternative in the future–or for when nature calls.

This tech has been around for a while (2000 years apparently) but we are just learning how to utilize it again. So now we have wind power, solar power and PEE POWER! Explain THAT to Captain Planet. In all seriousness this is some pretty cool sh**, there is a similar pee power story by National Geographic below.

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United States

Group: Lupus Foundation of America — National Office
Event: World Lupus Day is just one of the featured events in a month-long observance of Lupus Awareness Month in the United States. As part of the observance, the LFA is engaging constituents through its social networking sites, including Facebook, MySpace, Twitter and the LFA Blog to secure commitments by individuals and organizations to do one thing to raise awareness of lupus. The LFA has developed two eCards and is urging people with lupus to Send an ecard to 10 friends on May 10. We’re also are asking people worldwide to make a commitment to Band Together for Lupus by signing an online petition that already has exceeed its original goal of 5,000 signatures, which now has been doubled to 10,000. Likely that goal will be increased again as momentum continues to build to engage people from all walks of life to help raise awareness of lupus. The LFA will conduct The Butterfly Gala, Seventh Annual National Awards Dinner on May 12. Musicians Julian Lennon and James Scott Cook will perform, “LUCY,” in memory of Lucy Vodden, Julian’s childhood friend who passed away from lupus last year. Julian’s drawing of Lucy, made when he was only five years old, inspired Julian’s father John to co-write one of The Beatle’s most memorable songs, “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds.” Proceeds from the sale of “LUCY” are being donated to the LFA and St. Thomas’s Lupus Trust to support lupus research. Date: May 10th, 2010
Website: www.lupus.org
Contact: webmaster@lupus.org

When I was a kid my grandmother would always talk about how she wished she had married a pilot because a pilot would be “the perfect husband” he would be gone all the time so she would be able to live her life and do whatever she wanted, he would make good money so they could have whatever they wanted in life and vacations to everywhere would be a free flight. What happened?

The simple fact is pilots become pilots because they love to fly, who wouldn’t? Unless that sort of thing scares you, either way you should be able to empathize with LOVING to fly. The catch is, once the men upstairs figured out they were flying for the love of flying they started paying them in love instead of money. Pilots for major airlines have been forced to take second and third jobs just to be able to afford to keep flying. Ever seen a tired pilot? Yea, thanks for that. I really want the person with my entire families life in his hands to be on his 3rd day without sleep, good game guys. They aren’t just tired either, they are hungry according to Michael Moore.

Think about that next time you are planning a cross country trip and opt for Amtrak. Sure, it will take longer to get where you are going but you will spend time with your family along the way. Life doesn’t need to be about getting where you need to go as fast as you can, sometimes the ride there is where the true prize is.

Habitat loss is threatening the survival of wildlife worldwide. Natural environments are being destroyed and fragmented by human activity, wiping out species’ food sources, dispersing populations and leaving animals around the world literally homeless or displaced.

Born Free believes wild animals need their wild habitats; their home, nothing can compare. Habitat loss is caused by deforestation, war, expansion of human populations and agriculture, climate change and much more. Where habitat loss occurs, species (whether large carnivore or amphibian) are forced into ever-decreasing, fragmented areas which in turn decreases prey numbers, water availability and species’ range. Additionally, human-wildlife conflict increases as encroachment occurs resulting in major problems for wildlife and local communities. Ultimately, habitat loss leads to wildlife population decline and extinction.

Using the spectacular photography of George Logan and the skills of Steve Hawthorne and Katy Hopkins at advertising company WCRS Limited, these images of wild animals placed within an urban setting aim to provide a shocking reminder that wildlife is losing its habitat at an alarming rate. All services involved in this campaign, including advertising space and printing, have been kindly donated and together we are working to raise awareness of the issue and the work which Born Free is doing to “keep wildlife in the wild” – without strong, well-connected areas of habitat, this will be impossible.

Brilliant ad campaign. Feel like doing your part? You can start by boycotting all products containing palm oil, since palm oil is harvested by destroying Orangutan habitat, which in case you haven’t been paying attention is also our rain forests… we kinda need those.

Often “vegetable oil” is written on a product’s ingredient list, the consumer then does not know if they are eating sunflower seed oil, rape oil or palm oil. Palm oil it is often a hidden ingredient, spreading awareness is our best defense.

Remember, saving the animals also saves us. The animals may be the first to go but we’re next.

Here is this same digital photography set by George Logan without the “born free” signs added.

If you haven’t already heard the big drug companies have screwed up once again, big surprise eh? Well this time it is your children that are in potential danger. Please take the time to review this list and check to make sure you aren’t using any of these products. Take the time to tell any friends you have with children. Click “read the rest of this story” in order to view the full list.

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“We take a closer look at the science behind the Haiti earthquake of 12th January 2009 – as well as other earthquakes. For the first time here on GSGE we interview leading experts;

Prof. Timothy Dixon from Geodesy Lab at University of Miami: published an article already back in 1998 revealing the risks of earthquakes in Haiti. He works with both Paul Mann from University of Texas who in 2008 confirmed that the risks were eminent, and Eric Calais, Purdue University who manages the GPS network that monitor tectonic plate movements in Haiti. These three groups have sent geodesists with GPS equipment, to Haiti where they gather data that will reveal the crustal movements caused by the quake. You can follow this National Science Foundation funded team via their blog.

Ass. Prof. William Hammond from University of Nevada in Reno: Explains how they use GPS to monitor plate movements – and earthquake swarms. Bill Hammond also appears in National Geographic’s Naked Science: Earthquake Swarms.

Dr. Amir Kaynia from the International Centre for Geohazards in Oslo, Norway: Talks about the difference between predictions and early warning and discuss other geohazards connected to earthquakes.” More on this

This month’s Star Stumbler Pick is Stellare an Earth science expert and astrophysicist interested in Earth observation, geodesy, climate change, geohazards, water cycle and other science related topics.

Check out her Flickr photostream, its worth it, she has  some really cool pictures of the moon and skies. She resides in Åsa, Norway so there are some pretty neat pictures of areas near where she lives and works as well as shots from her travels such as her most recent trip to San Francisco but don’t stop there, make sure to thoroughly comb her SU blog so you don’t miss out on all the wonderful links to incredibly cool science and astronomy websites and  links to her other blogs!

Oh and by the way, hers is the voice you hear in the video at the top of this post!