Laughing Squid

In the latest of their wonderful whiteboard videos, linguist Arika Okrent and illustrator Sean O’Neill verbally and visually offer up a quick but fairly comprehensive history of the umlaut and its colorful misuse, particularly in the English language. But when we say umlaut we generally aren’t talking about the historical sound change process, but about […]

[Einstein’s] biggest blunder is thinking he made a blunder. That’s how smart he was. That’s badass smart. Neil deGrasse Tyson explains the significance of gravitational waves and how they were detected during an appearance on the Anthony Cumia Show just hours after the discovery was announced on February 11, 2016.

A video posted by Christoph Niemann (@abstractsunday) on Jan 27, 2016 at 9:35am PST CHOMP is an interactive iOS app by illustrator and author Christoph Niemann that combines his “playful, humorous, and lovingly hand-drawn animations with live video.” Christoph’s fun new app is available to purchase at the iTunes Store. Repost from @billyboystergiou : great […]

Digg presents: The Most Satisfying Video In The World Have you ever seen something that makes your skin tingle and for some unknown reason provides you with a sense of unbridled peace and happiness? Gears working in perfect synchronization, a cake frosted with absolute precision, marbles rolling so smoothly it hurts. Something that is just…satisfying? […]

The Etsy shop Que Interesante has created a clever collection of chemical element labels to stick on crayons to help kids learn the periodic table while they draw. A fun and creative way to learn. Clear and colored crayon labels are available to purchase on Etsy. images via QueInteresante via Best of Etsy, My Modern […]

Over the course of a year a prankster son randomly threw eggs to his unsuspecting mother, who would almost always impressively catch them while shouting “Noooooooooo!” via reddit

Venture capitalist, company advisor, entrepreneur and Shark Tank investor Chris Sacca is known for wearing distinctly decorated cowboy shirts wherever he goes. Now some of these bespoke shirts are available for purchase through the aptly named Sacca Shirts. Comedienne Amy Schumer even sported a Sacca Shirt in the 2016 Bud Light Super Bowl ad. Hell […]

Owenergy Studios created a supercut showing how brothers Owen Wilson and Luke Wilson frequently say the same lines in their movies.

Tom Fisher has created a modern style trailer for Star Wars: Attack of The Clones. Previously he created modern style trailers for the original Star Wars trilogy and Star Wars: The Phantom Menace.

Smithsonian Channel shows how a bumble bee dislodges pollen from a flower in a slow motion video. Buzz pollination is a special technique for dislodging pollen from certain types of plants – and bumble bees are among the few species of bee capable of doing it.

Vox explores how the human heart became a popluar symbol representing love.

In the second episode of the wonderfully informative series “Simon’s Cat Logic“, illustrator Simon Toland reminisces about his childhood cat while behaviorist Nicky Trevorrow explains how felines perceive and express themselves when it comes to the question of falling in love. Unfortunately cats aren’t really that romantic so it’s quite a contrast to the Simon’s […]

Unofficial Map: “Barcelona Tourist Guide” Metro Map Designer Cameron Booth has put together The Transit Map Hall of Shame, an online collection of some of the worst public transit system maps in the world. Booth rates transit map quality on his transit map focused Tumblr and takes submissions of maps from readers. Official Map: Buffalo, New […]

Researchers at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne have developed soft robotic grippers gentle enough to lift an egg without cracking it. The silicone grippers use electroadhesion and can be scaled up for much larger objects. Soft electronics are changing the way robots can touch. EPFL Scientists have developed a new soft robotic gripper — […]

During a recent appearance on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, Bob Odenkirk provided a somewhat imprecise one minute recap of Better Call Saul season one. Season two begins February 15th on AMC.

NASA has released a map of a large section of the Sputnik Planum region of Pluto using a colorful key to show the dwarf planet’s diverse geology. The map section covers 1,290 miles from top to bottom and highlights more than two dozen distinct terrains, defined by their texture and morphology. Data for the map […]

A photo posted by Andrea De La Ossa (@radicandrea) on Jan 3, 2016 at 2:56pm PST Talented artist Andrea De La Ossa transforms herself into all sorts of different pop culture characters and unique monsters with her overabundance of skill and Mehron makeup. Andrea’s entire collection of cosplay body paint photos are available to view […]

Barcelona-based illustrator and architect Federico Babina has created Interheroes, an illustrated look at the stylish interiors found in popular superhero homes. Prints of Federico‘s wonderful artwork is currently available to purchase from Society6. images via Federico Babina

A Tesla electric car saves drivers from a desolate future in the independent short film “Not a Dream” by the Freise Brothers. The car rolls into a landscape full of the remnants of fossil fuel use over the sounds of Nikola Tesla praising the potential of electric energy. Although Tesla Motors was not involved in the […]

In “Controlled Chaos: Puppy Baby Monkey” by Make:, host Caleb Kraft demonstrates how to make a puppy monkey baby costume for his pug. The costume is based on a bizarre looking creature from weird Mountain Dew Kickstart commercial that aired during Super Bowl 50. images via Make:

Bad Lip Reading is back once again and this time they released “Not the Future,” a hilarious extended Star Wars lyric video for a short song featured in their Empire Strikes Back parody. The song is available to purchase on iTunes and Amazon. We previously wrote about their awesome Star Wars music video parody titled, […]

Cooked is a new Netflix documentary series that features food guru Michael Pollan, who examines the origins of the home-cooked meal and learns how the process of cooking itself forged traditions, expressed feelings and created long-lasting memories. The series premieres on February 19, 2016. Explored through the lenses of the four natural elements – fire, […]

Staff and students at Hong Kong Polytechnic University’s Institute of Textiles and Clothing created the iDummy, a smart mannequin that quickly changes to a large range of different clothing sizes and shapes with a “user-friendly GUI” computer program. The project was led by Dr Allan Chan Chee-kooi, who gathered worldwide measurement data using a 3D […]

“Off Grid“, the new track by Israeli musician Kutiman (previously), is an instrumental music video created using short samples of unrelated psychedelic jazz performances found on YouTube. The song builds from short loops that get longer as the song progresses. This a video album composed entirely of videos which I found on YouTube. No additional […]

In the teaser for season three of the highly-acclaimed series Silicon Valley, the normally introverted Richard Hendricks (Thomas Middleditch) attempts to portray himself as Pied Piper CEO by putting on a suit and a hopeful air of confidence. Unfortunately, Richard literally falls flat on his face. Silicon Valley premieres April 24, 2016. image via Silicon […]

Designer Arthur Sacek built an elaborate LEGO machine that folds and launches beautiful paper airplanes for the new Arrow Electronics campaign Five Years Out. Here’s a behind-the-scenes video showing how it was created. The workings of the bicycle made way for the first flying machine. A spaceship was built on the ground piece by piece before […]

“Fingerprints“, a new ad for the Android campaign “Be Together. Not the Same.” created by imaginative filmmaker PES (previously), features a wonderfully tiny world in which tiny fingertip people live their lives in such diverse environments as a subway, a beauty parlor, a locker room, a wrestling match and even on an airplane where the […]

A chameleon robot developed by a team at Wuhan University in China led by Guoping Wang quickly changes color to blend in with different backgrounds. The robot uses plasmonic panels that react to light differently when an electric field is applied. The panels respond to data from light sensors on the robot that detect the […]

Right Shears are a very cleverly designed unique pair scissors that offer greater stability and easier reach with right angled blades that run parallel to the surface that’s being cut. The idea came to the founder when he was cutting mesh for a project with his father-in-law. 2014 September – Idea conception – My father-in-law […]

Magician and cyber illusionist Marco Tempest performed an illusion with 24 autonomous quadcopter drones designed by Rhizomatiks Research in Tokyo. Tempest works with Magic Lab in New York City to integrate new technology into magic. via Digg

Bad Girl Scout Cookies by Gemma Correll via Gemma Correll

image via LIGO Laboraties Gravitational waves as predicted by Albert Einstein in 1916 have been detected by the LIGO observatories in Livingston, Louisiana and Hanaford, Washington for the first time. The detected waves were caused by two black holes merging into one larger black hole, as explained by LIGO Executive Director David Reitze during a press conference […]

Compound Interest breaks down the chemistry of Camembert cheese in their latest explainer graphic. The creaminess of camembert is bested by few other cheeses – but it also has a strong smell to rival blue cheeses that reminds you of its presence in your fridge! Additionally, unlike many other cheeses, as it’s left for longer […]

Sled Legs are a unique pair of snow sleds that attach to the front each leg to slide down hills. They are currently raising money to produce Sled Legs through an Indiegogo campaign. We took the simple snow sled and made it wearable! Don’t carry your sled, wear it! With Sled Legs, you simply run […]

Evil Mad Scientist Laboratories has released their 2016 edition of their annual nerdy math & science based valentines that can be downloaded and printed. The full set features 24 cards including six new cards for 2016 and the 18 cards from previous years. The new additions include references to Pluto, geometry, and electronics. images via Evil Mad […]

Bernie Mitchell is a Canadian drywall contractor who uses the tools of his trade to sculpt beautiful landscapes onto walls, fireplaces and other prominent surfaces. The landscapes feature birds and animals and all made from intricately carved drywall mud, which is very pliable before it hardens, something Mitchell noticed early in his career. Bernie started […]

Ryan Reynolds and Katie Holmes join Jimmy Fallon and The Roots for an intense game of “musical beers” (an adult version of the game “musical chairs”) on The Tonight Show.

A very affectionate domestic toucan named Ripley made herself comfortable in her human’s lap, snuggling closely as if she were a small dog or a cat. Ripley was also very happy to snuggle with her human when he was without a lap or when he was driving a car. From all appearances, Ripley just likes […]

Derek Muller of Veritasium explains why time appears to speed up as you get older and how to try to slow it down.

La Fabrique shows how to make a really cool frisbee launcher using a variable speed drill and wood. via Gadgetify, technabob

In keeping with the fascinating “beatboxing with Siri” trend, the ever-creative Steve Onotera aka Samurai Guitarist decided to try his hand at doing the same. While Siri performed a sweet back beat (“cats n boots”), she also “sang” the lead vocals on a cover of the great Chuck Berry classic “Johnny B. Goode“. Onotera admitted […]

Homer has a sad dream about The Simpsons’ couch in the new couch gag from the opening sequence of the episode “Love Is in the N2-O2-Ar-CO2-Ne-He-CH4”.

The remarkably talented Argentinian actor Luciano Rosso showed off his incredible emotive skills with a highly theatrical lip sync performance of the classic song “Mambo” as sung by the great Yma Súmac. This performance is the 30th in his “Playback” series. Rosso previously lip synched such songs as “Me and Mr. Jones” by Amy Winehouse, […]

Vox explains why pennies still exist in the United States, even though they are basically worthless. Pennies may hold sentimental value to Americans, but they are basically useless. It is not uncommon for people to leave them in a loose-change container when receiving money after a transaction. Americans for Common Cents, a pro penny group […]

On the latest episode of “Furze’s Invention Show”, British inventor Colin Furze shows how to build a thermite kettle to boil water even faster so you can enjoy your tea sooner. Here’s the making/testing video. Boiling water with Thermite???? Sounds mad but it boils water quicker than anything else…..even the JETTLE.

In the new trailer for the fourth season of the excellent political drama House of Cards, President Frank Underwood (Kevin Spacey) fights doggedly to keep his seat against a whole host of adversaries, the most powerful being his dear wife Claire (Robin Wright). Frank and Claire continue their pursuit for power, battling everyone in their […]

“Upside Down & Inside Out” is a new music video by OK Go that was shot in zero gravity on board an S7 Airlines flight in one single take as the band flies around the cabin making a real mess of things.

Harry, Ron, and Hagrid go hard in “Straight Outta Hogwarts” by The Frost Bros, a hilarious Harry Potter parody of the classic N.W.A. gangsta rap song “Straight Outta Compton”. via reddit

MinutePhysics explains how concrete sets and why it does not simply “dry out.” The water in wet concrete does not evaporate out. Instead, it causes chemical processes that change the compounds in the concrete itself, causing it to strengthen for months or even years after it is poured.

cgmzz takes a look at the many film tributes that have appeared in The Simpsons over their 27 seasons. via reddit