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|  | July 19th, 2012 | | | | Posted about 20 hours ago by  Amazing Pics to Amazing Pics | | via In Focus: "While working as a fishing guide in Tofino, British Columbia I had this humpback calf jump no more than 10 feet away from the boat. On our way in from fishing for halibut we noticed a few humpback whales playing in the distance and we stopped part way in to watch. It was quite an experience to see something completely airborne so close to the boat. The lucky thing was I got the photo I submitted. A fellow boat also got a picture of the whale close to mid air and it was also all caught on video. Was an amazing day." (© Matthew Thornton/National Geographic Traveler Photo Contest) # | | | Posted about 17 hours ago by  Garry Tan to Y Combinator Posterous | | Virool, which is part of the current Y Combinator Summer 2012 class, has launched a self-serve platform that will let any YouTube user increase their video views through placement in Facebook and mobile apps. Its platform works like this: On the publisher side, Virool provides an API that developers can use to hook into the platform and deliver relevant videos to their users. Video producers who want to use the system can link to their YouTube videos in Virool, providing keywords they’d like to target and relevant geographical markets they’d like to see videos appear in. They can pay as little as $10 to promote their content, which is then pushed out to Virool’s network, to appear in any number of mobile or Facebook applications. | | | Posted about 17 hours ago by Garry Tan to Y Combinator Posterous | | Listia, a startup that allows users to exchange free goods, is expanding its model today by taking its new Rewards Store out of beta testing. On the Listia site, people can give away things that they don’t want or need anymore. When you give something away, you earn points on the site, which you can then redeem for the goods that offered by other users. Until now, however, what those points actually got you depended on what other users were posting, and all the goods were used (unless, for some reason, you decided to give away something brand new). Read the full article on Techcrunch | | | Posted about 18 hours ago by  Carlos Valerio to Conozca Más |  1 | | ¿Sospechas que tu estómago tiene vida propia? ¿Siempre acabas comiendo en exceso? Para muchos glotones la respuesta a estos misterios podría encontrarse en el proceso digestivo. Recientemente, un conejillo de indias llamado Michael Mosley se tragó una pequeña cámara (del tamaño de una píldora) para analizar los misterios estomacales y mostrar los resultados en el Museo de Ciencias de Londres. Los presentes observaron que el complejo proceso está bajo el control de un pequeño 'cerebro', formado de un conjunto de redes neuronales que recubren el estómago y el sistema digestivo. Aunque esta parte no piensa en una forma tan compleja, es fundamental para el proceso de trituración de alimentos, y en la mezcla y absorción que ayudan a la correcta extracción de los nutrientes y vitaminas. Todas estas neuronas permiten establecer un contacto más cercano con nuestro cerebro, a través del nervio vago, que a menudo regula nuestro estado emocional –las famosas 'mariposas en el estómago' se producen porque la sangre de nuestro estómago se desvía hacia los músculos. Hormonas hambrientasPara recibir todas las garnachas que consumimos, el estómago tiene que dilatarse, partiendo del tamaño de un puño hasta convertirse en un recipiente con una capacidad de dos litros. Los científicos pensaban que los músculos receptores del estómago le indicaban al cerebro cuando estaba lleno, pero realmente la comida tarda 20 minutos en ir del estómago al íleon (sección final del intestino delgado), causando la liberación de una hormona que le da la indicación de saciedad al cerebro. Por eso es mejor comer pausadamente, para darle espacio al cerebro y evitar la sensación de pesadez. FUENTE bbc.co.uk | | | Posted about 16 hours ago by  Kate Rinsema to Holy Kaw! | | 1 | | For those soccer fans who aren’t lucky enough to be able to watch the matches on TV, we’ll save you the eighty-five minutes of non-stop, but non-scoring action per game and give you a glimpse of all the big excitement over the last week in the MLS. You won’t hear yelling like this at your typical baseball game, but then again, you can run use the bathroom during those. Embedded media -- click here to see it. Full story at YouTube via Breakfast Links. GOAL! | | | Posted about 15 hours ago by Kate Rinsema to Holy Kaw! | | 1 | | “If you build it, [they] will come.” So goes the saying from Field of Dreams, but that’s exactly what appears to be happening in Copenhagen, Denmark where the city and its surrounding municipalities are pulling together to create twenty-six commuter superhighways tailored for bicycles. The first opened in April to good reviews and, if you think about it, who hasn’t sat in traffic wishing there was a better way of getting to work, and one that might actually be good for you? The Capital Region of Denmark, a political body responsible for public hospitals as well as regional development, has provided $1.6 million for the superhighway project. “When we look at public hospitals, we look very much at how to reduce cost,” said a regional councilor, Lars Gaardhoj, who had just picked up his three small children in a cargo bike decorated with elephants. “It’s a common saying among doctors that the best patient is the patient you never see. Anything we can do to get less pollution and less traffic is going to mean healthier, maybe happier, people.” Parts of the project that have been completed include solar-powered lights, air pumps at every mile marker, and traffic lights tuned to rush hour traffic, but there are plenty more amenities being planned. As the Minister of Transport, Henrik Dam Kristensen noted: “When you have been biking for 30 minutes, you have a really good feeling about yourself… You really enjoy a glass of wine because you’ve earned it.” Sounds like as good a reason as any to go green. Full story at NY Times. The convenience of cycling. Photo credit: Fotolia | | | Posted about 10 hours ago by Kate Rinsema to Holy Kaw! | | Guitars have seen some rough usage in the history of rock ‘n roll, but none so much as the world’s largest electric guitar currently on display at Pittsburgh’s Carnegie Science Center as part of the touring exhibition designed by the National Guitar Museum. Built by Houston’s Academy of Science and Technology using aircraft cable for strings, the 43.5-foot Gibson Flying V is a fun way for kids to learn about the science of sound and acoustics, or simply bang away at the huge instrument as kids are apt to do. Dennis Bateman, the Exhibit Experience Director, embraced the idea of bringing the behemoth to the museum as soon as he heard about it: "Line it up," he said. "The idea that it was something that was actually playable, and there were acoustic demonstrations and properties that people could try out, was great," he said. Though kids aren’t usually encouraged to climb on or bang instruments, considering its usage in the history of rock, it might be the perfect experience for a budding young guitarist. Embedded media -- click here to see it. Full story at Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Video via WTAE @ YouTube. The biggest instrument in rock (sorry drummers!). | | | Posted about 9 hours ago by  mental_floss to Holy Kaw! | | 1 | | The races are strange, but the title refers to the boats. With a little ingenuity, you can build a boat, loosely defined as a “flotation device,” out of anything! 1. Beer Can Regatta The Beer Can Regatta is an annual event at Mindil Beach organized by the Lions Club of Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia. The participating boats are all made of beer or soda cans! The highlight of this year’s regatta, held Sunday, was the appearance of Extravacans, an enormous motor-powered boat constructed of 30,000 cans! A new category was created for the much bigger “superboat,” which it won as the only entry. In the main race, called The Battle of Mindil, the winner was The Flying Posties. There were other races and competitions in various categories. As you can see here, it is customary to slow down one’s competition by any means available. Photograph by Brad Fleet. 2. Homemade Watercraft Race The New Paltz Regatta is for homemade boats of all kinds. This year’s race took place on April 29th in New Paltz, New York. The annual event began in 1955 when it was launched by the the Delta Kappa Fraternity of SUNY (State University of New York). Now the race is open to anyone, and accompanies a downtown festival. The only rules are that the boats must be human-powered and homemade. 3. Minimal Regatta Embedded media -- click here to see it. The 21st Annual Schooner Wharf Bar Minimal Regatta was held in Key West over Memorial Day weekend. These boats are made of a sheet of plywood, a couple of 2x4s, and duct tape. A few other insignificant materials are allowed, but the results are always good for a laugh. Prizes were given for boats that won the race, boats that sank, creative designs, best costumes, and other categories. See pictures of the event. See the rest at mental_floss. All the top stories from mental_floss. | | | | |
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