Go to the beach! (B2M Productions/Getty Images)

Well, you might say it’s the folks who live in these six countries: United States, Canada, Mexico, Singapore, Japan, South Korea, which are colored an alarming red on Expedia.com’s map of vacation deprivation.

According to Expedia’s study, in 2011, workplaces in the United States, South Korea and Japan gave out the fewest vacation days per year to employees. In Japan, workers only received about 11 days total per year, and then they only used about five of those days on average. Plus, out of everyone surveyed, the Japanese were the most likely to check their work e-mail and voicemail while on vacation. In the U.S., employees got a few more days on average per year than the Japanese — about 14 — but wound up taking just 12. In the U.S., not using vacation time was more about money than anything else. Thirty-four percent said they just couldn’t afford a vacation.

Meanwhile, folks in countries like France, Spain, Denmark and Brazil are living the life — soaking up a whole month of work-free days each year. And they’re not afraid to use every last drop of that time off. Literally, they use every last drop. Where are these lucky folks going on vacation? The stats show that a bulk of them head to the beach. Sounds like a plan.

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The exciting news is Kathryn and I have been working hard over the past few months to make some changes to the Coolest Stuff on the Planet and we think you guys will be really excited about the improvements.

The biggest difference you’ll notice is we’ll be focusing most of the podcasts on what you might consider “micro-travel” — meaning we’re targeting very specific events and locations (rather than big cities) and giving you travel pointers, insider info and fun facts. We had a blast visiting the World of Coca-Cola right here in Atlanta where HowStuffWorks is headquartered for our first podcast, and trust me, we learned more than we could have imagined about the pop (no pun intended) culture icon.

What surprised me the most about the World of Coca-Cola — well, despite the fact that we went on a weekday right at opening and it was still swarming with hoards of elementary school children! — is that it’s not just a shrine to a soda company, it’s also a fascinating look at the 125-year development of one of the world’s best-known brands. So whether you’re a history buff, a geek that likes technology and manufacturing, an avid art lover or just someone who really loves Coca-Cola, you’ll find it pretty cool, too.

Practical Info

How to Get There:  The World of Coca-Cola is located in downtown Atlanta at Pemberton Place. 121 Baker St. NW Atlanta, GA 30313

When to Go:  It’s open every day of the year except Christmas and Thanksgiving.

Entry Fees:  Ticket prices range from $12 to $16.

You can find the Coolest Stuff on the Planet podcast on iTunes and the RSS feed. To keep up with us daily, follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

Behold, "The Search Engine." (Ninja Tune Records)

Few artists embody “space music” quite as well as DJ Food AKA Strictly Kev.

I spoke to the man back in 2010 about cosmic DJ mixes and he had quite a bit to share about sci-fi samples and his own psychedelic space music (you can read that here). But now it’s 2012 and Kev is back with his first full-length album in 11 years. So I checked in with him for the scoop on “The Search Engine.”

DJ FOOD: “I’m very pleased with the album, a lot of the themes that kept coming up again and again whilst making it (completely unintentionally, it’s not a concept album) where sci-fi and space related but in a very 60s and 70s time frame. A lot of the imagery I was into looked back to a pre “Star Wars” idea of what the future and space travel would be like as well as a lot of the sounds I was using, coming from the analogue era rather than today’s digital one.”

Given his perfectionist flair for both sonic and visual art, it should come as no surprise that “The Search Engine” delivers solidly on both counts. Artist Henry Flint of “2000 AD” fame provides the killer album art and photographer Will Cooper-Mitchell contributed images of Kev in full-astronaut garb exploring an urban wasteland — all featured in a limited comic-sized 48-page booklet.

Ah, but what of the music, right? Let’s listen to a sample:

The album features production collaborations with 2econd Class Citizen, DK (Solid Steel) and Dr. Rubberfunk — along with vocal contributions by Natural Self (Tru Thoughts), Matt Johnson (The The) and JG Thirlwell (Foetus, Steroid Maximus, Manoerxia).

DJ Food suits up. (Photo by Will Cooper-Mitchell)

All this comes together in 12 tracks — just under an hour of music — and the download version presents “The Search Album” as a continuous mix.

Head over to the Ninja Tune website for full details on the different album versions available, and be sure to check out the excellent DJ Food blog. Whether you’re into electronic dance music, graphic design, retro sci-fi or merely giant robots, then Kev probably has something to wow you.

So there you have it! You can find the Stuff to Blow Your Mind podcast on iTunes, Zune and the RSS feed. And don’t forget the free HowStuffWorks App!

Skull still intact? Follow Stuff to Blow Your Mind on Twitter and Facebook.

• The RunPee.com and its app
• “The Last Airbender” and “Clash of the Titans” and their 3-D conversion backlash
• “The Nightmare Before Christmas” and its much better 3-D conversion
• “The Lion King” in 3-D, and the “Beauty and the Beast” re-release in 3-D that Holly and I have mixed feelings about
• The DLP TV rainbow effect and whether it’s related to the weird 3-D artifacts I also see
• “Meet the Robinsons,” which had maybe one 3-D trailer before the feature — compared to how many 3-D movie trailers there are now
• That whale movie with the trailer that made me and Holly cry buckets
• My surprise at realizing that I will go watch “Titanic” in 3-D
• My absolute forgetting that “Phantom  Menace” had a 3-D trailer before “Hugo”
• The Guardian’s film blog’s shot-by-shot review of “Titanic” in 3-D
• I said “obscure technology” instead of “obsolete technology”
• The ways of making 3-D images, which you can read about in “How 3-D Glasses Work,” and “How is digital 3-D different from old 3-D movies?” and “How the Nintendo 3DS Works“
• Whether “Jaws 3-D” is appropriate for children
• Toy Story Mania!
• Holly’s crush on Sacha Baron Cohen and “Sweeney Todd“
• The use of black and white and color in “Hugo” and “The Wizard of Oz”
• Film preservation and lost episodes of “Doctor Who”
• The other 3-D dilemma:  too many movies, not enough screens to play them
• The really exceptional performances of the children in “Hugo”
• Jon Favreau’s decision not to put “Cowboys and Aliens” in 3-D to preserve some of the foreboding aspects of not knowing how far away things are
• How “Hugo” reminds me of “A Very Long Engagement“
• The difference between “Hugo” and “Avatar” in their use of 3-D
• Roger Ebert’s “Why 3-D Doesn’t Work and Never Will, Case Closed“
• “Captain EO” which I have seen since then
• 3-D TV
• The same director did “Raging Bull” and “Hugo.” Can you believe it?
• Two pieces of listener mail! They are both corrections. One, the Studio Ghibli tour is really the Ghibli Museum tour. And two, the counterpart to Spacele Sprockets was Cogswell Cogs. Thanks, Purrdence in Perth and Nancy in Florida!

My research:

• “Titanic” in 3D: 9 Things Learned While Watching Early Footage with James Cameron
• Titanic 3D: Could it be an even bigger hit for James Cameron?
• Clash of the Titans: 3d Conversion Comes In for Heavy Criticism
• Roger Ebert’s “Why I hate 3D Movies and You Should Too”
• “The Lion King 3D”: What the Critics are Saying

Holly’s research:

• Here’s How 3-D is Ruining Movies
• Sony 3D digital projector lenses are ruining 2D movies
• Why 3D doesn’t work and never will. Case closed.
• Cinema’s real killer is 3D, not video on demand

Episode link: Now Available in 3-D

Pitch your tent here? (Ian Murray/Photographer's Choice/Getty Images)

Yes, you can do this! A newish Web site called Campinmygarden.com enables you to connect with folks who’ll let you pitch a tent in their yards for a small fee.

It’s the same online community concept established by sites like Airbnb.com and Couchsurfing.org — only you’ll sleep outside the house, rather than inside. Accommodations vary based on the property, of course; some members offer showers, running water, WiFi, secure gates, power sockets. As with most campsites, the prices are generally super cheap — like 5 to 20 pounds; they’re set by the member.

The Web site was started up in England in April 2011, so a bulk of the “gardens” are found in the UK — which is just fine, given that the countryside is so peaceful there it’ll likely lure you into a taking a nap in somebody else’s tall grass anyway. For example, consider this wide open field in South Downs.

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Artur Taymazov of Uzbekistan picks up his coach after winning the gold medal in the men's 120 kg wrestling gold medal match at the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games. (Harry How/Getty Images)

Just what sort of hugger are you anyhow? Do you go squeeze random strangers in deep? Do you grapple your pals in a manly bear bug or go for the dreaded side-hug?

Our affectionate embraces come in a variety of forms and, in this episode of Stuff to Blow Your Mind, Julie and I discuss the psychology, sociology and evolutionary science of hugging it out.

We’ll even get into the topic of man-hugs — and I think you may agree that the one in the accompanying photo may be the manliest hug of all time.

Plus, you’ll learn about the most awkward and disastrous hugs that I’ve personally been a part of.  So listen in. The hug plane is cleared for a landing.

So there you have it! You can find the Stuff to Blow Your Mind podcast on iTunes, Zune and the RSS feed. And don’t forget the free HowStuffWorks App!

Skull still intact? Follow Stuff to Blow Your Mind on Twitter and Facebook.

Here’s what we savored:

• Mardi Gras brunch at Rosebud, an Atlanta restaurant
• Poutine
• “The Simpsons” episode “Life in the Fast Lane“
• Hipsters
• The association between alcohol and brunch
• The Web series “My Drunk Kitchen” (be mindful of the swears if they bother you)
• Chefs’ love-hate relationship with brunch
• Pajama brunch and princess brunch
• The invention of brunch: earlier than we thought!
• The popularity of brunch: also earlier than we thought, thanks to movie stars in the ’30s!
• Limerick stacks, Scotch eggs and all manner of potatoes
• Dim sum and chicken feet
• A Simply Orange survey reporting that New York City is the brunch capital of the United States
• Early Girl Eatery and Sunny Point Café in Asheville, N.C.
• Hobbit Day
• “The Casserole Queen’s Cookbook“(and, earlier, Disney cookbooks, of which Holly has many)
• Monte Cristo sandwiches, croque-monsieur and croque-madame
• College humor: Brunchables
• Listener mail! From Robert, who wrote to us about How to Build a Southerner for Your TV Show or Movie
• How Hangovers Work

My research:

• The Brunch Culture: Others may argue, but New York City trumps in the art of this  meal
• Smithsonian.com. The Birth of Brunch: Where did this meal come from anyway?
• America Votes New York City “Brunch Capital of the United States”
• New York Times. “At Brunch, the More Bizarre the Better”
• New York Times. To Quash Lupper, Start with Brunch

Episode link: Let’s do brunch!

You can follow PopStuff on Twitter at @PopStuffHSW, and you can keep up with us on the PopStuff Facebook page.

Practical Info

How to Get There:  Take a flight from Bucharest to the town of Suceava via Tarom (the Romanian airline), about an hour’s flight. (Train service is possible too but will take much longer.) From there, rent a car to drive between the monasteries, which are about half an hour from each other.  You could also join an organized tour, but many people feel these are too rushed as they try to cover the main monasteries all in one day.

Visa Requirements: Visas to Romania are not required for citizens of the USA, EU, Canada or certain other countries who stay less than 90 days.  For more information, check this link to the various Romanian embassies worldwide.

When to go:  Summer is best.

Entry Fees:  Very reasonable, the equivalent of about $1 US.  Some monasteries charge a few extra dollars for picture-taking on the grounds (no photography inside the churches).

You can find the Coolest Stuff on the Planet podcast on iTunes and at the RSS feed.  Follow Coolest Stuff on Twitter  and on Facebook.

The seven people are linked to MegaUpload, a file locker site that lets users store and share large files online. The Department of Justice and the FBI charge that MegaUpload is a haven for piracy and illegal file sharing. And it would be silly to deny that illegal file sharing isn’t taking place at MegaUpload. But there are also plenty of legitimate, legal ways people can use MegaUpload.

The reaction to the indictment has been anything but measured. An attack called “Operation MegaUpload,” mainly coordinated by the amorphous hacker group called Anonymous, launched against sites like the Department of Justice, the Motion Picture Association of America and the FBI. The sites have been up and down throughout the evening as they’ve endured attacks.

I imagine we’ll see many more of these types of attacks in the next few years. The barrier to joining in on attacks isn’t terribly high — even someone with very little knowledge about network traffic can become a part of it. Then there are the zombie computer armies out there, legions of compromised computers that launch attacks without their owners even knowing about it. I don’t want to spread FUD around (that’s fear, uncertainty and doubt) but I do think government and law enforcement agencies have a pretty tough task of reining in anarchy online.

Gillette Castle (Barry Winiker/Getty Images)

Last week, while editing “10 Eccentric Homes with Hidden Passageways,” I became acquainted with Gillette Castle in East Haddam, Conn., a home constructed in 1919 by successful stage actor William Gillette, whose greatest role was that of Sherlock Holmes.

As you’ll learn from the article, Gillette set up his home to play tricks on people. He installed a mirror system, so he could spy on guests from his bedroom — that way he could burst onto his living room “stage” at the most magnificent moment. At dinner, he and his guests were seated on a cushioned bench along the wall; the dining table was on a track, and he pulled it toward the group and locked it into place. “HA HA HA” Gillette probably laughed inwardly. “I own the most clever table-on-a-track in the universe.” At his feet was a floorboard he pushed to send an electronic signal to the butler’s pantry for dinner service.

Gillette’s castle has been called distasteful — it’s quirky, but not an adorable, conventional sort of quirky. It’s made of a rather bulky set of fieldstone blocks; on purpose (“or was it?” you think) it looks like ruins. Its features are strange: In his study, Gillette put his desk chair on a track, so he could glide toward his work, and behind that chair was a trick door through which he could disappear. The house has 47 custom doors with hand-carved puzzles that serve as locks, as well as feline-sized openings throughout for his cats. On the roof were water tanks full of gallons and gallons water; if the house had ever caught on fire, Gillette would’ve pulled a wooden lever shaped like a dragon’s tail, and all of that water would’ve come wooshing down, according to writer Henry Zecher. Outside, on the 125-acre grounds, Gillette built a 3-mile railroad track with a train that Albert Einstein and Charlie Chaplin eventually boarded, wrote Charles Monogan.

After Gillette died, the state of Connecticut purchased the property, and now it serves as a Connecticut state park, where you can have a picnic and take a tour of the home. Tell us what you think about it.