Very cool Honda Accord ad

Studies Suggest Men Handle Pain Better

“So 81 folks agreed to stick their hand in a bucket of swirling ice water to see how long they could stand the pain. Some were offered $1 to keep it in the near-freezing water for five minutes, others $20, so the researchers could determine if a higher reward made any difference than the lesser, which amounted to just a nickel for every 15 seconds.”

They found that the extra $19 made a big difference in whether or not men were willing to leave their hands in the water, whereas it didn’t make a difference to the women. From this, they concluded that men really did have a higher tolerance to pain, and weren’t just being macho about it. I think their conclusions are absurd. I’ve seen men do incredibly stupid stuff for money. Eat an entire glob of wasabi. Drink hot sauce (in Texas, not California). Stick 8 quarters up each nostril (seriously). Drop their pants in front of complete strangers. Drop their pants in front of people that weren’t complete strangers. I don’t see why ice water should be any different. Men are just weird.

The Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) in Australia shows unbelievable species discrimination in bestowing an award on this little girl who “rescued” her kitten from a python. Why aren’t they looking out for the python? Isn’t he an animal? This little girl lures him in with a fluffy little snack and then attacks him without warning. Sounds like cruelty to me.

Hiring design firm: $15k
Buying ad space: $25k
Promoting your city as a travel destination: Priceless

I love reading Dave Barry’s columns. I always start by trying to guess the subject matter from the Cassatt & Brookins graphic at the top. I am always wrong. But I am always amused.

This time they really outdid themselves.

And to think, my parents wouldn’t let me have a skateboard because they thought it was too dangerous.

This is what happens when you let them take cookies into the cockpit: Got milk?
Seriously, though, hope nobody was hurt too badly…

I am now officially afraid of calamari. “This is a very aggressive animal and moves quickly. If you fell in the water next to it you would be in big trouble.”

In this article about the “science” of The Core, the authors mention that Marvin Herndon, who consulted on the movie, is “considered a maverick geophysicist”. (I assume the maverick status explains how the sun’s rays manage to vaporize the Golden Gate Bridge but leave cars intact. But I digress.)

I think that Maverick Geophysicist would make an AWESOME business card title. Right up there with Rogue Demon Hunter.

Or maybe it should become a new NBC drama: “Marvin Herndon: Maverick Geophysicist”.