“Brainjacking” Software, Borrowed Grey Matter And Chip Implants Create A New Generation Of Animal Cyborgs – “When we hear the word “cyborg,” most of us probably imagine a part-human, part-machine character from movies like “Robocop”, or the electronic-biological androids from “Blade Runner” or the “Terminator” films. In the real world, researchers are pushing further ahead with creating cyborgs, using biological tissue from a variety of non-human creatures…”

Extraterrestrial life will soon be visible, says astronaut – “British-born astronaut Piers Sellers believes it is only ‘a matter of time’ before extraterrestrial life is found in the universe…” See also: Has NASA discovered extraterrestrial life?

Ten questions science must answer – “For 350 years, the Royal Society has called on the world’s biggest brains to unravel the mysteries of science. Its president, Martin Rees, considers today’s big issues, while leading thinkers describe the puzzles they would love to see solved…”

Acura ZDX tops list of most expensive cars to insure – “While sports cars and off road-oriented SUVs might seem like they should be the most expensive new cars to insure, a recent report by an insurance comparison website suggests otherwise….”

Discounts: 15 ways to get gift cards for less – “smart shoppers can often find just as many markdowns on gift cards as they would on castoffs in the bargain bin at a local store. From social networking sites to social buying offers and grocery stores to warehouse clubs, there are more than a dozen spots to find almost any card you can imagine — for a discount, often paying much less than retail price. Here’s how…”

Gray Matter: Trapping Burning Gasses With a Thin Wire Screen – “A fine-mesh kitchen sieve with a candle inside simulates a Davy miner’s safety lamp. An explosive mixture of propane gas and air is blown in from the outside. If the mesh is fine enough, the fire will stop at the screen even as the explosive gas flows through it…”

Introducing Google Earth 6—the next generation of realism – “Today we’re introducing the latest version of Google Earth, our interactive digital atlas. Now you can explore your childhood home, visit distant lands or scope out your next vacation spot with even more realistic tools…”

Noam Chomsky: WikiLeaks Cables Reveal “Profound Hatred for Democracy on the Part of Our Political Leadership” – “We should understand- and the Pentagon Papers is another case in point- that one of the major reasons for government secrecy is to protect the government from its own population…”

Radiation ripples show the Big Bang may not have been the first, and there could be more to come – “THE Big Bang might not have been the beginning of the universe, but just the start of a new chapter….”

Barnes & Noble NOOKcolor Rooted – Turns E-Reader Into Android Tablet – “The Samsung Galaxy Tab is considered by many to be the only Android-based tablet worth considering, but is it really? That question is now up in the air since Barnes and Noble’s $250 NOOKcolor, an Android-based e-reader has recently been rooted. While before the deed it was just an e-reader – it has now taken on a new life of its own. Check out the picture proof below…”

Sea Shepherd unveils new weapon – “The Australian director of the anti-whaling group Sea Shepherd says its new vessel has the potential to stop Japanese whaling…”

Opening up climate science can cut off the skeptics – “Equipping the public with the tools and knowledge to understand complex issues like global warming can help them avoid the rhetorical tricks of climate ‘skeptics’…”

How to Lower Your Heating Bills This Winter – “he chilly season is upon us. If you live in North America, you’ve probably had at least a few cold nights by now. Up in my neck of the woods — in the Boston area — we’ve had our central heat running for a few weeks. Which means we’re in full swing winterizing, with an eye to keeping the heating bills low…”

Report: A bit more vitamin D is good, not too much – “Got milk? You may need a couple cups more than today’s food labels say to get enough vitamin D for strong bones. But don’t go overboard: Long-awaited new dietary guidelines say there’s no proof that megadoses prevent cancer or other ailments — sure to frustrate backers of the so-called sunshine vitamin….”

Suck it and see – “SAY “laboratory animal” and most people will think of mice. A few sophisticates might nominate the fruit fly. But rare will be the person who suggests the roundworm. Roundworms—or rather one species of them called C. elegans—are important animals to science. C. elegans have a fixed number of cells in their bodies, including exactly 302 nerve cells, and they were the first animals to have their genomes unravelled, which means they are among the best understood. They are, however, a mere millimetre long, which makes them hard to handle. If that handling could be automated, the ability to grow worms in bulk might revolutionise the study of many aspects of biology—not least, drug discovery….”

140 Google Interview Questions – “Here’s a list of 140 Google interview questions. Many of our clients have interviewed and received Google job offers. Contact us for a free 15 minute interview analysis before your Google interview…”

Surely You Can’t Be Serious: Leslie Nielsen Dies at 84, 15 of His Greatest Moments – “Yesterday, the master of nonsense, Leslie Nielsen, passed away from complications from pneumonia brought on while battling a staph infection. He was 84. What you might not have known is that this comedic icon began his career as a young, serious actor. It was only after such huge hits like Airplane! and The Naked Gun that Nielsen became the bumbling older gentleman that we all remember him as. So, as a tribute to the idiot with the silkiest silver hair I’ve ever seen, here are some of Leslie Nielsen’s most memorable moments….”

Tiny house movement thrives amid real estate bust – “As Americans downsize in the aftermath of a colossal real estate bust, at least one tiny corner of the housing market appears to be thriving. To save money or simplify their lives, a small but growing number of Americans are buying or building homes that could fit inside many people’s living rooms, according to entrepreneurs in the small house industry…”

More than 8 million drop out of credit card use – “About 62 million people now have an active card, compared with 70 million a year ago. The Chicago company found that consumers in the subprime category, or those with low credit ratings, were believed to be without cards mostly because they were shut down by banks after payments fell behind or balances were written off….”

Would an Hourglass Traffic Light Work Better? – “LED lights trickle down like sand in a virtual hourglass, letting you know when the light will change…”

Sesame Street: Cookie Monster Auditions for Saturday Night Live

Who Would Use The Google Chrome Operating System? – “Google is set to release the Chrome Operating System (OS) that replaces the typical OS on a personal computer. Instead of booting up the computer and running various applications to get your work done, the system instead would boot up to a browser. The browser would then connect to various applications in the cloud, and you would use the remote app for getting things done. Please note the Chrome OS is a different product than the currently available Chrome browser, even though the Chrome OS will no doubt incorporate the browser product….”

Is the Spider-Man Musical Swinging Toward Disaster? – “With a budget of $65 million, the oft-delayed Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark is already the most expensive musical in Broadway history. That figure hasn’t stopped the Julie Taymor-directed opus (with a score by U2′s Bono and The Edge) from attracting heaps of bad pre-opening night buzz, culminating earlier this month in a visit from the New York Department of Labor after two performers were injured while rehearsing the show’s aerial stunts. A day after its gaffe-filled first preview, is there still time to save the behemoth before opening night in January? A sampling of opinions from around the Web…”

Football Injuries: – “the stories they told were frightening; quite aside from the well-publicized brain injuries and concussions that have been widely discussed over the last year or so, the physical beating that these players take in the course of a season (let alone a career) in football is gruesome in the extreme — as one panelist put it, if the average NFL player walked into a doctor’s office at random for a checkup, he’d be rushed immediately to a hospital for treatment. It’s getting to the point, for me, where it’s becoming hard to watch the games themselves, knowing what the players are going through and the risks they’re taking….”

Your paycheck is about to shrink – “The credit was enacted last year as part of the Recovery Act to put more cash in people’s pockets. For the past two years, it has boosted paychecks by up to $400 for single filers and $800 for joint filers by reducing the tax withheld and giving a credit for that amount. That’s $33 or $67 a month….”

WikiLeaks’ Julian Assange Wants To Spill Your Corporate Secrets – “In a rare interview, Assange tells Forbes that the release of Pentagon and State Department documents are just the beginning. His next target: big business….”

Livedrive for iPhone and iPad review – “Livedrive, the online backup service, now has an app for iPhone and iPad that lets you stream your music and movies direct from the web…”

[[[Interesting reading #631 – Tactile Touchscreens, 39% efficient solar cells, San Diego Pot Tunnel, Losing $10 million and much more!]]]

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