Δαφνη Ευτυχια Αρθουρος

If I've left off a source credit for a link I got from you, please forgive me. I've been even less organized than usual lately, and am gathering these from notes scattered across a half dozen different machines.

• First, a seasonal one: the Car Menorah, for a mobile holiday display. (thanks to misia for pointing it out)
  


• On the Effectiveness of Aluminium Foil Helmets: An Empirical Study -- "We investigate the efficacy of three aluminum helmet designs on a sample group of four individuals. Using a $250,000 network analyser, we find that although on average all helmets attenuate invasive radio frequencies in either directions (either emanating from an outside source, or emanating from the cranium of the subject), certain frequencies are in fact greatly amplified. These amplified frequencies coincide with radio bands reserved for government use [...]" (link via Elbows)
  


• The Psychiatric Asylum for Abused Stuffed Animals is a Flash game in which you play a psych resident treating traumatized plushie toys. I found it surprisingly engrossing ... and was even more surprised at me emotional response to it. (link from siderea; there's some discussion about it here and here)
  


• A vignette from malada that provides a little perspective on our government's approach to 'detainees'.
  


• Musical Lego: a full-size, playable harpsichord built of Lego pieces, only having to resort to glue for the lid and modifying pieces for the jacks. The only non-Lego parts are the strings. Plenty of pictures, design/construction notes. Even an MP3 so you can hear how it sounds (the mechanism is a little noisy, but sure enough, it plays). "Originally, upon thinking about the potentials of making a LEGO musical instrument, I had hoped to reproduce a piano, but ditched the idea due to the enormous tension involved (40,000 lbs.)--there's a reason why pianos have steel frames. Its ancestor, the harpsichord, seemed more practically possible--the key/jack workings are simple levers, the strings are plucked, it's smaller, and it maintains less tension. Coincidentally, I was in my Bach phase anyways." (Link via Elbows, IIRC)
  


• The explosion-absorbing material that the trash cans in the Washington DC Metro system are lined with. (Also, a short Popular Science page about it.) [Hmm. It prabably reveals something a little disturbing about me that while I was reading the section of the FAQ dealing with how much coverage in needed to protect confined spaces, I started wondering how this stuff would interact with a third-level fireball spell ... even though I haven't played AD&D in many years.]
  


• A Sense Of Scale is a lot like "Powers of Ten", but pretty cool in its own right. For each range, it lists the sizes of various things then shows a visual comparison (a bar graph) illustrating the relationships between the objects, then uses the largest of them as the starting point for the next range. It goes from the Planck length to the distance between us and the farthest known quasar.
  


• God, Allah Acquitted In [December 2004] Tsunami Disaster: Norse God of Thunder Responsible for Devastation [ignoring for the moment the rather peculiar theology that separates the Christian God who gave the law to Moses from the Muslim God who gave the law to Moses -- that's like writing about "both John Cougar and John Mellencamp", isn't it? Anhyow, it amused me despite that] "Key witnesses [...] place Thor in the Indian Ocean on December 26, where he was allegedly assaulting Jormungand, the Midgard Serpent, shortly before the tidal wave struck land. The autopsy report on the sea serpent, which has been entered into evidence by the prosecution, indicates that the creature's length was sufficient to encircle the Earth. [...] Outside the courtroom, Nordic prophets carried signs reading 'Ragnarok' and 'The End Is Near,' only to be ridiculed by passers-by."
  


• One I haven't read yet, but which looks interesting and I really do want to remember to get around to later: Brain Changes In Mood Disorders: "This is the story of how researchers are working to understand depression, starting from social stresses like poverty and loss of loved ones, then working all the way through the brain systems involved to the level of cells and molecules and even some genes which appear to be related. [...] Although you can find some of this story elsewhere in more detailed terms, here you'll find the new findings 'translated' into what I hope is pretty plain English, with a focus on their practical implications."
  


• And finally, something just beautiful: stunning underwater photography by Alberich Mathews, nudes and semi-nudes, some mermaid imagery, some really cool hair and lighting effects, dramatic and abstract reflections, and some fantastic poses that don't work on land. Worth the time to view the gallery even on a dialup connection. If you only glance at a few images, I suggest starting with Earth Mother, The Cruelty of Self Regard, and No Cause to Fear the Glory. (url by way of ... Elbows, I think?)