Video
drorzel | July 27, 2010Via Inside Higher Ed this YouTube video is pretty much a distillation of faculty reaction nationwide to higher education's response to the world economic crisis:
The IHE link gives a little more context to the video, and some of the reaction to it. The arguments here are not all well-founded-- science and engineering will necessarily receive more funding than the liberal arts because teaching and research in science and engineering are vastly more expensive than in the humanities, and many of those central administrative salaries are going to support multicultural and mental health programs…
drorzel | July 26, 2010The subject of the "spin" of the electron comes up again and again, so as pointed out in a comment, I really ought to do a post explaining what it is and how it works. As a bonus, this gives me the opportunity to do the dorkiest thing anyone has ever done with a cute-toddler video, namely this one:
(That's an early version of SteelyKid's new favorite game. I'll put a clip of the final version of the game at the end of this post.)
So, electron spin. Electrons, and all other fundamental particles, have a property known as "spin." This is an intrinsic angular momentum associated with the…
cagapakis | July 20, 2010Everyone's favorite Slovenian philsopher, Slavoj Žižek, discussing his provocative perspective on nature, ecology, biotechnology, and climate change while dumpster diving:
via Immanent Discursivity (thanks Nick!)
grrlscientist | July 20, 2010tags: The Secret Powers of Time, time, hedonism, future orientation, education, personality type, popular psychology, society, culture, lucifer effect, teenage pregnancy, Philip Zimbardo, Royal Society of Art, RSA, streaming video
In this video animation, Professor Philip Zimbardo conveys how our individual perspectives of time affect our work, health and well-being. Time influences who we are as a person, how we view relationships and how we act in the world.
Learn more about RSA Animate.
grrlscientist | July 19, 2010tags: A Rocket of His Own, TIME magazine, astronomy, AMNH, American Museum of Natural History, space travel, Saturn V rocket, The Seven Wonders of America, Marshall Space Flight Center, Neil deGrasse Tyson, streaming video
TIME magazine recently went to interview astronomer Neil deGrasse Tyson and noticed a huge crate had been delivered to his office at the American Museum of Natural History. He was kind enough to open it on-camera. The back story of this gift is that Neil was adamant that ABC News include the Saturn V Rocket on its list of The 7 Wonders of America. The folks at the Marshall…
grrlscientist | July 19, 2010tags: Zircons: Time Capsules from the Early Earth, science bulletins, geology, AMNH, American Museum of Natural History, hadean eon, zircon, rocks, age of the earth, history of planet earth, streaming video
Zircons are tiny crystals with a big story to tell. Some of these minerals are the oldest Earth materials ever discovered, and therefore yield clues about what the planet was like after it formed 4.5 billion years ago. In this new Science Bulletins video, travel to a remote island off Greenland's coast and a zircon-making lab in New York State to learn how geologists are using these time…
grrlscientist | July 18, 2010tags: Late For Work, jobs, employment, humor, funny, comedy, fucking hilarious, social observation, streaming video
It's hot, you were up late drinking with your friends and now it's Monday morning -- again! Unlike some videos that I share with you, this one gets straight to the point -- a point that we've all achieved at some time during our lives.
drorzel | July 18, 2010SteelyKid has clearly inherited her father's fondness for basketball. Unfortunately, she doesn't quite understand how to play, yet. She does know that involves throwing a ball up in the air and jumping, though:
She'll get the rest of it eventually.
grrlscientist | July 18, 2010tags: Mormonism, religion, cults, mind control, Magic Mormon Underwear, moron, offbeat, humor, funny, comedy, silly, beliefs, insanity, education, streaming video
I've lived among mormons for more years than I care to think about, and yes, the magic underwear was one of those mysteries that us kids speculated on when the adults weren't around. As if they were flies upon the walls of my childhood, the Thinking Atheist has made this video that discusses the the Mormon church's most famous "secret."
grrlscientist | July 17, 2010tags: Brother Sam Singleton Atheist Evangelist, Atheists at Prayer, prayer, atheism, agnosticism, humor, funny, comedy, fucking hilarious, satire, streaming video
This video features the colorful language and thoughts of my new boyfriend, Sam Singleton Atheist Evangelist as he discusses prayer-time etiquette for atheists.
grrlscientist | July 16, 2010tags: Candid Camera, Hidden Camera, Bloody Arm, prank, humor, funny, silly, streaming video
This cute video captures people's reactions when they are pranked by twins.
grrlscientist | July 16, 2010tags: The surprising truth about what motivates us, tasks, simple tasks, complex tasks, commissions, innovation, mastery, economics, financial rewards, purpose motive, blog writing, making the world a better place, RSA, streaming video
This video is really interesting for two reasons: first, it's a hand-drawn animation that evolves in front of your eyes, and second, I think it explains why scientists like to write blogs for the public about science -- for free! Adapted from Dan Pink's talk at the RSA, this fascinating video illustrates the hidden truths behind what really motivates us at home…
grrlscientist | July 15, 2010tags: BP Executives Deeply Affected by OilSpill Parody, oilspill, petroleum, Gulf of Mexico, television, Ray Suarez, NewsHour, Bob Dudley, parody, streaming video
As part of an hour-long live online interview with the NewsHour's Ray Suarez, BP executive Bob Dudley responds to questions from the public, including a video parodying the BP response effort.
I do feel sympathetic towards the BP peons -- you know, those people whom the executives depend upon but who are constantly trying not to be screwed out of pay raises, or their health insurance or retirement benefits as the result of the…
grrlscientist | July 15, 2010tags: When Ideas Have Sex, imagination, innovation, group intelligence, exchange of ideas, cumulative ideas, evolution, sexual reproduction, technological specialization, free trade, Matt Ridley, TEDTalks, TED Talks, streaming video
At TEDGlobal 2010, author Matt Ridley shows how, throughout history, the engine of human progress has been the meeting and mating of ideas to make new ideas. It's not important how clever individuals are, he says; what really matters is how smart the collective brain is.
TEDTalks is a daily video podcast of the best talks and performances from the TED Conference…
grrlscientist | July 14, 2010tags: Yummy Old Spice Man Delivers Marriage Proposal, television, celebrity gossip, humor, funny, comedy, Old Spice Man, Man on a Horse, Isaiah Mustafa, streaming video
This video is totally cheesy, except for a couple things: first, the impetus for it was a tweet from a guy asking the Old Spice Man to deliver a marriage proposal to his girlfriend and second, well, it features another look at the very yummy Old Spice Man, Isaiah Mustafa. This sweet video is a perfect blend of romantic cheese, humor and good old-fashioned lust. I wish I had a marriage proposal delivered by him .. squeeeeee!!
grrlscientist | July 14, 2010tags: The Oil Spill's Unseen Culprits, Victims, health, environment, ecology, pollution, oilspill, BP, acidification, Gulf of Mexico, dispersants, Carl Safina, TEDTalks, TED Talks, streaming video
The Gulf oil spill dwarfs comprehension, but we know this much: it's bad. Carl Safina scrapes out the facts in this blood-boiling cross-examination, arguing that the consequences will stretch far beyond the Gulf -- and many so-called solutions are making the situation worse.
TEDTalks is a daily video podcast of the best talks and performances from the TED Conference, where the world's leading…
grrlscientist | July 13, 2010tags: What Do You get a Heroin Addict for Christmas?, television, humor, funny, comedy, christmas, satire, Mitchell and Webb, BBC, streaming video
For those of you who are starting to think about (GAG!!) Christmas shopping already, I thought you might find this funny. I am still trying to figure out what the "message" here is ...
More at BBC's That Mitchell and Webb Look site.
rallain | July 13, 2010Here is a commercial for some Mercedes car. The first part is quite boring, but check out the stunt at around 2:00 minutes into the video.
I haven't bothered to check if this is officially fake or not. Instead, I will do what I do - see if this is even feasible.
The common question people ask when they see something like this is: "how does the car defy gravity?" Well, it doesn't. Why doesn't it fall? In a sense it does. This is essentially the same as spinning a bucket of water over your head. Maybe a diagram of the car at the top of the tunnel will help.
I tried to make the car stand…
grrlscientist | July 13, 2010tags: The 2009 Ig Nobel Prize for Public Health, humor, funny, comedy, fucking hilarious, sports, science, technology, invention, public health, gas mask, brassiere, streaming video
I know this is a little late, but the 2009 Ig Nobel Prize for Public Health Prize was awarded to Dr. Elena Bodnar for her invention of a brassiere that, in an emergency, can be quickly converted into a pair of protective face masks, one for the brassiere wearer and one to be given to a needy bystander of her choice. Her acceptance speech is absolutely hilarious (which is the reason I am sharing this with you today…
grrlscientist | July 12, 2010tags: Happiest DJ On Earth, jobs, employment, humor, funny, comedy, disc jockey, David Guetta, streaming video
Some people have jobs they love, and then there's this guy ... he's burning off more calories doing his job than most people burn at the gym!