Magic Eye! Can You See the 3D Image?

Back in the early 90's I remember being introduced to the Magic Eye.  It is a patterned design which you must relax your eyes and stare at in order to see the picture lurking within.  So when I heard about this as I child, I begged my mother to buy me a book through Scholastic (don't know if they are still around).  Our family was always strapped for cash but luckily my mom agreed to buy me this book which cost around $30, which back then, was pretty pricey for a children's book.  And so I waited patiently and at the end of the month my book arrived.  I was ecstatic!  But sooner could you say Magic Eye and I had gone through the entire book already.  Recently I stumbled upon this topic with a friend and decided to scour the Internet for some Magic Eye images (which still work even though its on a computer screen).  But first a bit of history....

The publisher of Magic Eye was N.E. Thing Enterprises which later renamed itself to Magic Eye Inc.  Magic eye came out in the early 90's but had been produced far earlier in time by Christopher Tyler.  Tyler produced the first black and white autostereogram in 1979 through the assistance of computer programmers.  What is Magic Eye?  It is a 2 dimensional pattern with random dot autostereograms that allow people to see 3 dimension objects by staring at a 2 dimension pattern.  Ready for a few?

Here are a few tips:  Relax your eyes as if you were staring at something for a length of time.  Diverge or almost unintentionally cross your eyes.  This will happen naturally when your eyes are relaxed and you are staring/gazing.  Focus on the center of the pattern.  Time to try it out!

***Note:  I am very good at these, it almost comes naturally so I posted all of the answers at the end of all of the images.***

 

I hope you all could see the images or at least had fun trying.  Please share with others as images such as these always makes a persons day.  Below are the answers in order of the pictures:

1.  The Planet Saturn
2.  Pirate Ship
3.  A Pot
4.  Shark
5.  Bunny
6.  Horse
7.  Balls of Candy
8.  A Heart
9.  A Duck
10.  Dinosaur
11.  A Rose

Weird, Strange and Just Plain Stupid Traffic and Other Odd Signs - Bound for a Good Chuckle!

So I know a few of you have already seen some of these signs before in the past but hopefully I found a few that you haven't seen and will give you a good chuckle!  These road signs are ridiculous but I have yet to come across on myself.  I hope these pictures give you a good chuckle!

I hope you all could find some humour in these crazy signs!  Have a happy day and drive safe!

The Most Spectacular and Rarest Caves in the World - A Video Documentary by Planet Earth

One of my favorite dvd box sets includes Planet Earth (Full Documentary Video at Bottom of this Blog).  I decided to rip it to my computer so I could share its beauty with nature lovers and bloggers alike.  Having a science degree with a specialisation in geology, my favorite episode is likely the "Caves" episode.  The pristine nature, extreme environment and the animals that thrive in this inhospitable environment is truly amazing.  David Attenborough hosts this documentary and is my favorite documentary host!  His ability to capture moments and visit places that no one else has ever seen is truly amazing and admirable.

One of the caves mentioned in this documentary in call Lechuguilla which is located in New Mexico.  Although the cave access is limited to scientific researchers, I hope to one day explore this cave - it's on my bucket list!  Lechuguilla is the 7th longest cave to be explored in the world at 216 km and is also the deepest cave in the United States at 489 m.  In this cave one will find huge deposits of sulfur and gypsum.  Some of the rare sights in this cave include speleothems, stalactites, stalagmites and, of course, the 'chandelier room'.

The chandelier room contains, rare, pristine and high-quality crystals. It took BBC over two years to get permission to enter this room and film it for the documentary Planet Earth.  Speculation says that it is highly unlikely another film crew will ever be allowed back into the Chandelier room ever again.

***I apologize for having to splice the videos into 4 segments as the file was to large for Blogger to accept.  This video is for educational purposes and not for profit.*** 

NOTE:  There is also a watermark in the center of each video and I deeply am sorry for that.  I used a trial version and cannot get rid of the watermark.  This video took hours to burn, rip, splice and upload so I hope you can still enjoy the beauty of this video and learn something as there are very few Planet Earth videos online (in fact none that I could find).

So I Decided to Splurge....

Most people wouldn't guess that I love gaming just by looking at me.  But I am a huge fan of all nintendo products and happen to own the original Nintendo system, Game Cube, Nintendo DS and Nintendo 3D DS.  Unfortunately I had given my Nintendo 64 to an ex years ago (which I regret to this day).  However, that being said, my all time favorite game has always been Paper Mario where my love affair began when I had the game for the N64.  I do have paper mario on game cube which I have logged more hours than one can imagine.

I've had my 3D DS for over a year now and have barely had time to play it.  I recently conquered Zelda and Super Mario Brothers I a while back.  Those were the only two games I had, but superb nonetheless.  But when I recently discovered that both Paper Mario and Super Mario Brothers II were coming out, I knew I had to have them.  So, during my browsing in Walmart I did a turn around in the electronics sections and impulsively bought both games.  As I type this, the games have not been even opened yet...but after this I plan on doing some hard core gaming!

Paper Mario is the ultimate in Nintendo Games just for the sheer adventure the game presents its users.  I love strategy and collecting items so I am thrilled to have this game in my hands.  And I know come Christmas, these games will likely be out of stock.  I hope these two games are as good as any other Mario game I have played and I think I have to stop writing so I can start playing!

I know I haven't posted in quite some time but I have a great post coming up this evening (if I can put the video games down!).  The post includes a Planet Earth documentary so I am just waiting for it to rip to my computer.  I promise more great posts to come!

Movember Moustaches: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

November is a month where men raise vital funds and awareness for men's health, specifically prostate cancer and male mental health initiatives.  I applaud those who participate in this each year as men often don't seek medical help or attend annual check-ups.  Here is a look at some of the great and most ridiculous moustaches over the years:

And kudos all those men who are growing one this month.  Men's health is important so grow your stache and show your support!

One of the Greatest: A Tribute to Tom Petty (with tons of songs and videos)

I haven't posted anything in awhile but I've been meaning to write about this; Tom Petty.  In this current age of music everything is digitized and altered, making music all sound the same.  The singers are fake, their voices are fake and the current music scene just plain stinks.  What happened to the days of true talent?  Hell, even I could sing like an angel given I had a crap-load of technology to make my voice sound good (I really can't sing to save my life).

That being said, I've always been a huge fan of 70's and 80's music.  The singers HAD to have talent because the technology wasn't there to make the singers sound sny better.  One of the items on my bucket list was to see Tom Petty in concert before I die (or more realisticaly, before he died or retired).  So in 2007 my sister and I flew across the country to Toronto to see Tom Petty and Steve Winwood live.  To this day, it is one of my fondest memories.  Of all of Tom Petty's songs, there is not a single one I dislike and there is no other artist I can say that about either.

Tom Petty had a complex start to his career, having to choose his original band over fame.  In the mid 70's Petty started a band known as the Epics which later gave way to the formation of Mudcrutch. The band featured future Heartbreakers Mike Campbell and Benmont Tench.  Through little success with Mudcrutch the band split up and Petty sought out a solo career.  While struggling with a solo career Petty and Campbell collaborated with Tench and fellow members Ron Blair and Stan Lynch which became the catalyst for the beginning of the Heartbreakers.

In 1988, Petty became a founding member of the Travelling Wilburys along with Bob Dylan, George Harrison, Roy Orbison and Jeff Lynne.  Two of their major hits included "Handle With Care" and "End of the Line".  It was only in the late 80's when Tom Petty became mainstream and his hits topped the charts.

One of my favorite current songs is "The Last DJ" which was written to attack the music industry for its greed and releasing digitized pop music by scantily clad you girls.  Tom Petty continues to pump out hit after hit, even today.  He recently re-joined his original band Mudcrutch which has become a huge success and was bitter sweet for the original band members who lost their claim to fame when Petty joined the heartbreakers.

Although this is a brief and vague biography, the best, in-depth biography can be found by watching the dvd "Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers: Running Down a Dream".  This multi-disc package includes over 12 hours of Tom Petty's life in depth and portrays the lengths he had to go to reach fame.  Most of the material on the dvd is original footage from the 70's and 80's which includes interviews, band practises and his rise to stardom.  I highly recommend watching it if you're a Petty fan.  His rise to fame is far more complex than any biography describes online.

And without further ado, here are my favorite Petty songs in no particular order (it was hard not to put them all on here!).

1.  The Last DJ

2.  Zombie Zoo (I don't think this is his original video, in fact I don't think he had one, so this will do)



3.  You Don't Know How It Feels

4.  You're So Bad

5.  Even Walls Fall Down

6.  Refugee

7.  Don't Come Around Here No More

8.  End of the Line (Travelling Wilburys)

9.  Saving Grace



10.  American Girl (sorry, no video)

11.  Even the Losers



Oh I could post videos forever on Tom Petty, but loading times can be ridiculous so here is a small list of some of the other songs I love:

- Here Comes My Girl

- Into The Great Wide Open

- I Won't Back Down

- A Face in the Crowd

- Last Dance With Mary Jane

- Free Fallin

- Learning to Fly

Ok, I think you get the point...I love every one of his songs!  I hope you enjoyed at least some of the videos I posted!



Wildchild - The Horrific Effects of Isolation from Human Contact

Although I have a science degree in earth sciences, I have always been fascinated with psychology and some of its concepts.  I am sure many people have endured isolation from other people for a few days at some point in their life.  Even I've gone days without talking to or seeing anyone and the effects from just a few days of isolation can be felt almost immediately.

Here is a documentary on 'Genie Wiley' who was kept in isolation from the time she was born until her teenage years.  She never was spoken to and locked in a room for over 13 years.  The effects were profound.  And when Genie was found, she barely even knew how to walk and had never even seen the sky, the sun or moon.  Her discovery prompted psychologists and psychiatrists from around the world to drop what they were doing to fight for the chance to study her.  It is a sad story but it shows how isolation and environment can ultimately shape who we are today.

During Genie's recovery, she found joy in the simplest things, something today's society takes for granted.  Love those close to you and be appreciative for what you have.

The Intricate and Beautiful World of Fractals

Okay, enough lovey dovey posts for awhile.  Currently Regina is getting dumped on my mother nature's wonderful snow and it appears that there is no end in sight.  I just finished shovelling my walk only to come inside seeing that the walkway is covered already.  So instead of shovelling again, its time to explore the complex world of fractals!

What are fractals?  They're complex objects or a quantity that displays somewhat of a self similarity on all scales.  In the mathematical world fractals represent an infinite dimension.  Today fractals are used in many applications such as computer graphics and even in sewing., in a somewhat technical sense, on all scales.  Because the definition and explanation of fractals is quite complex, I have added a Nova documentary on it as Nova explains this phenomena with clarity and ease.  The examples shown in the documentary shows just how complex our world really is.  Things are not as they seem.  I hope you enjoy this video as it is interesting and somewhat mind boggling!

You learn something new everyday!

To My Ex....My Friend

I'm sure many of us have experienced a difficult break-up at some point in their lives, me included.  The past year has been a bit difficult but slowly I'm seeing life in a new light.  I'm somewhat of a perfectionist, I see things as black and white with no shades of grey in between.  Generally this isn't a great quality I possess but I am working on being more open minded.  This is very difficult to write because I keep my personal life quite private.

That being said, I had cut my ex out of my life forever a few months back even though he wanted to remain friends.  I couldn't do it.  He is a wonderful person with lots of love to share, not to mention he would do anything for almost anyone.  He moved 8 hours away a few months back and last week unexpectedly stopped by my house.  Big surprise!  I was completely caught off guard...I'm not one for surprises especially of that nature.  He left wanting to know if we could remain friends and skype every now and then.  I am confused as to why he would want to remain friends with me as I'm sure I drove him to insanity.  At the time I told him I couldn't give him an answer and told him to email me in a week so I could have time to think about the pros and cons of remaining friends with an ex.  After much consideration and advice from others, I thought I'd give the friendship thing a shot.  After all we do have much in common.  I know he reads my blog so now I am ready for an email from him.

What I've learned through all of this is sometimes we just have to let life run its course.  And it is so important for we as people to keep those we care dearly about close to us, whether they are a friend, family, partner or, in my case, an ex.  Yes, I will work on a friendship, just send an email like you said you would.

No matter what happens in life, the most valuable entities are those you love and give you the same amount of love back.  So if you've read this and think its a really odd post; it is.  But give your loved one and extra hug today and let them know how much you appreciate them.  Happy loving!

Delicious Fruit Pizza Recipe!

Lately I've been doing a lot of baking in the little time that I have.  I recently made pumpkin soup, pumpkin chocolate chip cookies and now I finally found the time to make fruit pizza.  I also had a friend and her daughter over to had fruit and chocolate fondu.  With the last month being busy I've been meaning to make this fruit pizza for a week now.  While I detest cooking, I happen to enjoy baking especially if I have someone to share it with.  This recipe is simple and requires a little over an hour to make and a bit of multitasking.

So there are 4 components to this recipe:

1.  The Crust Ingredients:
- 1 1/4 cup of flour
- 1/3 cup of brown sugar
- 3 Tbsp of icing sugar
- 2/3 cup of soft unsalted butter
- 2 Tbsp of water (only if dough is not sticking together well)

2.  The Cream Cheese Layer that Goes on top of the Crust:
- 1 package of cream cheese
- 1/2 cup of sugar
- 1 tsp of vanilla

3.  The Fruit that is Layered onto of the Crust and Cream Cheese:
- 1 apple
- 1/4 cup of pineapple
- 6-8 Strawberries
- A handful of raspberries
***Note: You can use any fruit of your choice.  I also like banana and kiwi on it but ran out of room!

4.  The Sauce that is Drizzled on top of the Fruit:
- 1 cup of orange juice
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- 1/2 cup of sugar
- 3 Tbsp of corn starch

Directions:

1.  Pre-heat oven to 350 and line a pan with wax or parchment paper.

2.  Mix all of the ingredients listed to make the crust.  Add the 2 Tbsp of water if the dough is not sticking well.  Form dough into a ball and press out into a circle on the pan.  Cook for approximately 12 minutes until the edges are slightly browned.

3.  While the dough is cooking, whip together with a beater all of the ingredients for the cream cheese layer then set aside.

4.  Now to make the sauce that goes on top of the fruit.  Place all of the ingredients in a small pot and cook on low using a whisk to stir every few minutes.  The sauce should be thick but not so thick that it doesn't pour off a spoon easily.  Once it is done, fill sink with cold water and place pot in sink to help cool the sauce more quickly.

5.  By now the crust should be cooked.  Slide the crust onto a plate with the wax/parchment paper and allow to cool in the fridge while you cut up fruit.

6.  Cut up all of the fruit in thin slices.  By now everything should be cool enough to put it all together.

7.  Take crust out of fridge and spread the cream cheese mixture on top of the crust.  I like it a little thick!  Now arrange your fruit on top of the cream cheese any way you like.  Once the fruit is on you can drizzle the sauce on top of the fruit as long as the sauce is cooled.

And you're finished!!  Besides angle food cake, this desert is likely my second favorite.  Now if only I had someone to share it with!

Why Do People Come Into Our Lives? Reason, Season or Lifetime.

I recently went through a bad breakup and saw no light at the end of the tunnel until a friend shared this poem with me.  It was an eye opener and made complete sense.  This poem made me see things in a different light and life started to make sense again.  And yes, men would benefit from this writing too!  So here it is:

Reason, Season or Lifetime

People come into your life for a reason, a season or a lifetime.  When you know which on it is, you will know what to do for that person.

When someone is in your life for a REASON it is usually to meet a need you have expressed.  They have come to assist you through a difficulty, to provide you with guidance and support, to aid you physically, emotionally or spiritually.  They may seem like a godsend and they are.  They are there for the reason you need them to be.  Then without any wrongdoing on your part or at an inconvenient time, this person will say something or do something to bring the relationship to an end.  Sometimes they die.  Sometimes they walk away.  Sometimes they act up and force you to take a stand.  What we must realise is that our need has been met, our desire fulfilled, their work is done.  The prayer you sent up has been answered and now it is time to move on.

Some people come into our life for a SEASON, because your turn has come to share, grow or learn.  They bring you an experience of peace or make you laugh.  They may teach you something you have never done.  They usually give you an unbelievable amount of joy.  Believe it, it is real.  But only for a season.

LIFETIME relationships teach you lifetime lessons, things you must build upon in order to have a solid emotional foundation.  Your job is to accept the lesson, love the person and put what you have learned to use in all other relationships and areas of you life.  It is said that love is blind but friendship is clairvoyant.

Thank you for being a part of my life, whether you were a reason, season or a lifetime.

Please share this with others as it gives one a sense of hope in a time of despair!

Ahhh....The Simple Gesture of an Email

Emails have changed our world and they way we communicate everyday .  It brings a sense of closeness but lacks simple emotion.  Emails are also forever.  Once you press that send button, you can never stop it from arriving to that sender (yes, even that nasty email you sent your ex that you regret).  I much prefer to Skype as it is more interpersonal and somewhat exciting.  Face to face contact had always been my favorite form of communication.  Speaking of which, I'm in a Skyping kind of mood today...hint hint.  Whatever your prefered means of communication is, nothing is quite as rewarding as hearing that persons voice on the phone or seeing them in person.  Happy computing!

GeoEngineering: Changing the Climate in Parts of the United States

Geoengineering is a quite recent discovery and became quite well known across the world by scientists by 2009.  Geoengineering is the process by which particulates such as aluminium, barium and other metals are dispersed into the atmosphere at a high altitude (think commercial airliners cruising height).  This procces is quite complex but the results are easily understood.  Geoengineering is used to ultimately change the earths climate system in hopes that mankind can delay or stop the onset of global warming.  The process occurs like this: 

       In a troposphere-based approach, aircrafts are sent skyward to release aerosols which include barium and aluminium.  The effects of the aerosols causes a reflective property which favors the formation of clouds and reflects many of the suns rays back to outterspace.  While this is a simplified explanation (excluding the cohesion of vapour droplets to the particulates), this effect will likely produce large scale climate changes to the earth and its entirety.

This lead to the term 'chemtrails'.  Under normal circumstances aircrafts leave behind a trail of water vapour and ice crystals which we can see in the sky when we look up.  Almost immediately as we spot these vapour trails, they are soon to disappear.  Chemtrails on the other hand, are produced the same way, via aircraft.  However, the aircraft is intentionally releasing particulates in huge quantities into the air.  And unlike normal vapour trails, these chemtrails can linger in the air for hours and days visible from horizon to horizon.

Although the US government has a difficult time discussing its use of chemtrail to alter the global climate, many scientists have proof this process is occurring today and have overwhelming evidence through testing that illustrates the damage that an accumulation of barium and aluminium is causing on earth.

This video highlights the effects of chemtrails and goes into detail on testing being done on Mt. Shasta, over Arizona and even in Hawaii.  I am an open minded person when it comes to science and one must evaluate the evidence critically.  Otherwise the video is interesting to say the least and, hey, you might learn something!

And yes, I could use an email...you know who.

Mr. Burns Endorses Mitt Romney (video)

Being from Canada and having civic elections shoved in my face for the past few months, coupled with the tiresome and slanderous US campaigns all over the tv...it makes me cringe.  I am so tired of hearing the same old promises, slander and watching money being burnt away to senseless commercials.  Today, however, I found this wonderful video on the US elections.  Mr. Burns, from television show The Simpsons, has declared his endorsement for Mitt Romney (and maybe his binders of women too) which proves to be insightful yet beyond hilarious.  Obama broccoli or the delicious steak from Mitt Romney?  I think the answer is pretty obvious.

Deciding who to vote for has never been more clear after watching this video.

Welcome to Hell...Winter in Saskatchewan, That Is.

If you're anything like me, you dread winter and all of the joys of winter driving.  Last night and through much of today, mother nature decided to unleash her fury in the form of sleet here in southern Saskatchewan.  While most places north of Regina received snow, we were fortunate to wake up this morning to skating rink roads and sidewalks.  Please note the sarcasm.  Below are a few pictures from Saskatoon.

While Regina didn't receive much snow, ice covered cars roads and sidewalks.  There is nothing worse than trying to open your car door when its frozen shut.  Or how about driving on ice with those bald summer tires you've been meaning to replace?  I had a friend who unexpectedly stopped by yesterday and he decided to drive back home to Alberta today.  I think my friend is nuts-o for attempting the 8 hour journey on the #1 highway.  Hope you made it home safe.

Although I'm not a fan of winter, it was utterly delightful to watch people trying to walk along the sidewalks downtown.  During a 30 minute lunch sitting in front of a window with a view of the busy downtown at noon, I counted 12 people take a nasty spill.  Some people formed interlocking arms in hopes of gaining balance while outside.  What made my day is that when one falls, they all do.  Sigh.  Winter.

Happy Halloween! Simple, Creamy Pumpkin Soup Recipe

I am not a big fan of Halloween, the novelty wore off a few years ago.  Plus, I can buy candy at the store any time of year and if I want to see dressed up freaks all I have to do is visit the local bar any time of the year.  But Halloween does bring some joy...in the form of pumpkins!  Every year I look forward to buying fresh pumpkin and adding it to a variety of recipes as canned pumpkin just isn't as good.

About 10 years ago I made a trip to Sylvan Lake, AB and stopped in at a restaurant and ordered the pumpkin soup around Halloween.  It was likely the best soup I have ever tasted (and I'm not much for soup in the first place).  I knew I had to replicate it!  So for the last 10 years I've been buying a pumpkin just so I can make this delicious soup.  Because I made it from scratch and came up with my own recipe, I've never had any formal directions.  Today I decided to measure everything and come up with a formal recipe.  The recipe serves ~8 people.

Preparations:

This recipe requires 1/2 of a medium sized pumpkin hollowed, skinned and cut up into cubes.  The remaining half of the pumpkin can be frozen to make another batch of soup at a later time or can be used in other recipes such as pancakes and cookies. 

Ingredients:

- 1/2 a pumpkin cubed, skinned and hollowed
- 1/4 of a large white onion
- 2 1/2 cups of vegetable broth
- 3 Tbsp of vegetable broth (for onion puree)
- 1/2 cup of mayonnaise
- 1/2 tsp garlic salt

Directions:

Start by boiling water in a pot large enough for all of the cubed pumpkin pieces.  Once water is boiling, add the pumpkin and reduce heat to medium.  Cook pumpkin until extremely tender, around 20-25 minutes.

While the pumpkin is cooking, dice up 1/4 of a large white onion and place it in a food processor with 3 Tbsp of the vegetable broth.  Blend until the mixture is a puree with no chunks.  This should yield around 3/4 cup of onion puree.

After pumpkin is done cooking, pour through a strainer and place in a large bowl to cool for 5 minutes.  Because my food processor is not large enough to puree everything at once, I split the pumpkin into 2 batches to puree.  Add half of the cooked pumpkin in a food processor along with half of the broth and half of the onion puree.  Once mixture is smooth, pour into a large pot and puree the remaining half of the pumpkin, broth and onion puree and add to pot.

Turn the oven on low and slowly whisk in the 1/2 cup of mayonnaise and garlic salt.  It may take a few minutes to fully whisk in the mayonnaise.  Cook soup over low for 10 minutes stirring often.  Best served fresh but can be refrigerated and reheated on the stove.  If the soup is too creamy for your taste, more broth can be added.

Happy Halloween!!

I can't help but to smile when I see pets dressed up for Halloween.  The best one I have seen this year is the greyhound dressed up as a Greyhound bus.  Enjoy!

Hot S**t of the Day: The Sloth! (with video)

I have a strong love for nature documentaries and David Attenborough.  Attenborough is likely the best narrator/host for nature documentaries and his patience and knowledge have helped him to capture some of natures rarest and most exquisite moments.

I saw this clip a few years back and stumbled upon it again recently.  In the video Attenborough introduces the viewer to a sloth.  I really had no idea what a sloth was until I watched the video.  An inhabitant of Central and South America, the sloth moves incredibly slow mainly due to the fact that their nutrition is primarily leaves which produces very little reserve energy.  The sloth is hideous yet elegant being partially deaf and partially blind.

You learn something new everyday!

Greatest Scientific Discoveries - Documentaries hosted by Bill Nye (full documentaries)

In one of my earlier posts, I wrote about how influential Bill Nye was in my early childhood.  His show "Bill Nye the Science Guy" brought a love for science into my life.  Eventually I went on and pursued a science degree and I attribute much of my passion for science to Bill Nye. 

A few years ago on the Discovery Channel, there was a short series in which Bill Nye hosted a show called 100 Greatest Discoveries.  Each show that aired was about the greatest scientific discoveries and theories found in physics, astronomy, chemistry, medicine, evolution and genetics.  I recently stumbled upon these videos on youtube and watched them again.  The shows are fantastic and educational, plus, you don't need to have a science degree to understand and appreciate just how far humans have come.  Bill Nye has a brilliant way of explaining complex topics in somewhat laymen terms for the everyday person.  Here are the videos in all of their glory:

1.  Greatest Discoveries in Physics

2.  Greatest Discoveries in Chemistry

3.  Greatest Discoveries in Medicine

4.  Greatest Discoveries in Astronomy

5.  Greatest Discoveries in Genetics

6.  Greatest Discoveries in Evolution

Hope you enjoyed them as much as I did!

Hot S**t of the Day: POGS!

Last night I decided I was in much need of a few drinks....its been awhile.  As the social night turned into a full blown drink fest, one person in our group started recalling moments of his childhood days and the conversation quickly turned into a reminiscence of childhood toys and candy of the 80's and 90's.

I soon remembered my long forgotten love of POGS!  My first experience with POGS was in grade 5.  I went outside for recess one afternoon and noticed a few of the kids playing with this stack of chips.  I quickly learned that one must possess a number of POGS in order to play the game.  I knew my family would never buy me a set so the next day I went to one a geeky classmate and asked him if I could borrow a POG.  Knowing nothing about the game, he managed to separate from one of his most worn out, ugliest POGS.  He noted to me that I would need a slammer in order to play.  With one POG and slammer in hand, I made my way outside at recess to find someone who wanted to play.  By the end of the day I managed to earn more POGS than I could count and I returned the slammer and original POG to my classmate.  A new love soon developed!

Only two items were required to participate in a game of POGS; a POG and a Slammer (shown below).  The POGS were simple heavy cardboard playing chips with cartoonish designs on the front which were often laminated.  The Slammer was used to toss at the stack of POGS and were often comprised of heavy plastic or metal sometimes (metal slammers were the best for flipping the most POGS and winning!).

The rules of POGS were extremely simple.  2 players were required to contribute an equal number of POGS to a pile that were stacked vertically face down.  Usually a best of three rock, paper, scissors determined who would go first.  Each player then took took a turn throwing or "slamming" the stack of face down POGS.  Any POGS that you managed to flip over face up were yours to keep and the person who collected the most POGS after they had all been flipped up won the game.

This became almost a sport in my school, with almost everyone gambling for POGS at recess.  I remember one day I missed the bus because I was determined to be the POG champion at our school.  Eventually I collected so many POGS that my mom questioned where I had gotten all of them.  Soon after the teachers at our school banned POGS because it promoted gambling.  My love for POGS all began with one borrowed POG and Slammer.  Soon I had hundreds of them and eventually sold them all in a garage sale because POGS were banned in most schools in various countries and parents weren't too thrilled with the idea of their children gambling to add to their collection.

Nonetheless POGS taught children the importance of gambling at an early age and this makes it Hot S**t of the Day!

Beer Mishaps, Symptoms and Solutions: What to do in Beer Situations

Cheers!

Hot S**t of the Day: The Many faces of Gary Bettman

For those of you who look forward to winter only for the love of hockey, it's going to be a long one.  With owners, players and, of course, Gary Bettman trying to hash out a deal before the winter classics is cancelled, I thought it would be appropriate to take a look at the many faces of Bettman!





Even though most of the November games have been cancelled, I am hopeful that half of the season shall be saved...as long as the weasel gets what he wants.