What is actually in Obama’s $800B stimulus package? Here is a nice summary:

Stimulus 101: What’s in the bills

[See previous question]

Goto Part 1

If you like bloody battle games, the Dawn of War II beta is available for free:

Dawn of War II beta now available to all

Just a quick reminder that the Dawn of War II beta is now available to all people for the low, low price of nothing.

Here is a trailer showing gameplay:

[See previus game]

Create Your Own Original Star Trek Story

[See previous Funny]

How do you recycle precious metals from computers? Here’s the answer:

[See previous question]

Yes, the pilot (and other episodes) of MacGyver are now available with minor commercial interruptions on YouTube for your viewing pleasure:

MacGyver – Pilot

[See previous BFTP]

An interesting concept: A free “desktop computer”, complete with applications and hard disk space, that exists entirely in the cloud. You can access it from any browser, including an iPhone:

A Free Web-based Virtual Computer

Here is a nice introduction to the service:

The “appeal” of UFC, for the millions who love it, is the blood and the damage. Pretty much anything goes, including kicking people in the head. You can get the flavor from this video:

The problem is that this kind of fighting can be deadly:

Call to ban ‘no-holds’ fighting

Dr Vivienne Nathanson, head of science and ethics at the BMA, said: “Ultimate fighting can be extremely brutal and has been described as ‘human cockfighting’. It can cause traumatic brain injury, joint injuries and fractures.

“This kind of competition hardly constitutes a sport – the days of gladiator fights are over and we should not be looking to resurrect them.

“As doctors we cannot stand by while violent fighting tournaments are allowed to take place.

“Large amounts of money can be earned by participants, promoters and others linked to ultimate fighting, but no amount of money can compensate for permanent brain damage and premature death.

“As a civilised society we should be campaigning to outlaw these activities.”

The NY Times puts it this way:

The Disturbing Rise of Ultimate Fighting

If there is a “wardrobe malfunction,” and a usually covered body part is briefly shown, the government reacts swiftly and punitively. If a young man bashes another young man’s face into a bloody pulp, well, that’s entertainment.

[See previous Doesn't Work]

Debunking 5 Cold-Weather Car Myths – “Cold out, eh? Feeling a little overwhelmed by the frigid weather? Tired of not being able to see out of the windshield, of sliding all over the road? PM’s winter guru Mike Allen, born and raised in Michigan’s snowy Thumb, answers cold-weather queries and debunks winter car myths…”

The myth of width: When wide screens don’t work – “The displays of the world are getting wider. For those of us who work, this is not progress. Sure, wide-screen computer screens look cool, but in the real world of working on laptops, a wide-screen display is an ergonomic step backwards…”

Intel releases Linux-based Moblin 2 Alpha for Netbooks – “The first alpha release of Intel’s Linux-based Moblin 2 platform is now available for download. It’s designed to work on Atom-based netbook devices and it offers fast boot times and a unique Internet connection manager…”

Fighting hunger with flood-tolerant rice – “If every scientist hopes to make at least one important discovery in her career, then University of California-Davis professor Pamela Ronald and her colleagues may have hit the jackpot…”

The Pursuit of Happiness – ” Has the happiness frenzy of the past few years left you sad and anxious? Herein we report the surest ways to find well-being…”

Teensy USB Development Board – “The Teensy is a complete USB-based microcontoller development system, featuring a 16 MHz AVR (AT90USB162) processor, in a very small footprint! All programming is done via the USB port. No special programmer is needed, only a standard “Mini-B” USB cable and a PC or Macintosh with a USB port…”

New $3 LED Light Bulb 12 Times More Efficient, Lasts 60 Years – “A new way of making LEDs could see household lighting bills reduced by up to 75% in five years time, thanks to research at Cambridge University…”

How the Itanium Killed the Computer Industry – “It’s no coincidence that the computer industry peaked around the year 2000, went into a serious decline, stabilized at the low point a couple of years ago, and has since collapsed again. This all happens and continues to this day; it’s been a decade-long down cycle…”

Palm’s sneaky use of holes in Apple’s patent…I love it! – “My guess is, that Palm has spend a lot of time on finding the holes in Apple’s patent (proposal) and has spend even more time on playing with the holes in it. And from the looks of it, Palm did a great job…and these iPhone-people know it, and that’s what they are most afraid of…”

Tiny Clip-On TV – “
You too can look like a cyborg, with this tiny tv that clips onto a pair of glasses…”

[See previous IR]

How hard is it to land on an aircraft carrier? This video gives a sense of how small the target is:

Aircraft Carrier Landing Pilots View – Watch more free videos

Here’s how people learn to do it:

Here’s a great description of the process:

My First Carrier Landing/Trap

It was intense. I just concentrated on “flying the ball” just like I’ve always done on the field.

Before I knew what hit me, I had come to a complete stop in 1.2 seconds.

It felt like hitting a brick wall at 125 miles per hour. It was 1000 times more violent than I ever expected. You hear a bang as you hit the deck followed by a howling screech as the tail-hook grabs the arresting wire and the wire spools out. Inside the cockpit, every part of your body is thrown against the straps. Your legs and arms feel like they’re just going to separate from your body.

When you hit the deck you always jam the throttle to full power so if you miss the wires, you can fly off again. Well, I jammed the throttle forward and held it there while I tried to recage my head. Needless to say, I was a little bewildered. The air boss in the ship’s tower came over the radio and said, “OK son, we got ya’. You can throttle back now, you’re not going to make the ship go any faster.”

See also:

For more info see: How Aircraft Carriers Work