The Off Topic Topic

[Liep]

There's also momondo.com

[Syt]

Best band name ever?

[The Brain]

I have one of those since 40 years.

[Josquius]

A cat just came in my apartment through the window. It scratched me. Git.

[Malthus]

A cat just came in my apartment through the window. It scratched me. Git.

Attacked by a ninja cat?  I wonder who paid for the "hit". 

[DGuller]

A cat just came in my apartment through the window. It scratched me. Git.

Attacked by a ninja cat?  I wonder who paid for the "hit". 

Probably all the cats disposed of by Tyr pooled together their life savings... 

[Savonarola]

Punch Magazine from 1938 (after the Munich Agreement):

[celedhring]

I don't want to go full Tim, so I'll post this here:

http://www.engadget.com/2015/07/29/japanese-scientists-fire-the-worlds-most-powerful-laser/?ncid=rss_truncated

Japanese scientists fire the world's most powerful laser

A team of researchers from Osaka University recently fired the most powerful laser on the planet: a 2 petawatt pulse, that's 2 quadrillion watts, albeit for just one trillionth of a second. It's called the LFEX (Laser for Fast Ignition Experiments) and it measures more than 300 feet in length. Interestingly, while the LFEX boasts immense power, it doesn't actually require that much energy to operate.

If you remember your high school physics class, power (aka watts) is energy over time. And since the Osaka team is dealing with a picosecond time span, the device doesn't need much energy to generate a massive amount of wattage. In fact, for this experiment, the LFEX only consumed a couple hundred joules, about as much energy as your microwave does over the course of two seconds. It's able to generate so much power so quickly thanks to a series of glass "lamps" that amplified the laser as it passed through them.



"With heated competition in the world to improve the performance of lasers, our goal now is to increase our output to 10 petawatts," Junji Kawanaka, an associate professor of electrical engineering at Osaka University, said in a statement. Sure this is an impressive feat of scientific engineering but what good is the LFEX if it can't shoot down a missile like the US Navy's does?

Apologies for the juvenile source, but it was either that or the Daily Mail comparing it to the Death Star.

[celedhring]

Punch Magazine from 1938 (after the Munich Agreement):

Looks like they loved that ditty.




And a few others if you google for it.

[Norgy]

In the series "People Who Care About Cats".

https://video-ams2-1.xx.fbcdn.net/hvideo-xtp1/v/t42.1790-2/11062293_573248349483678_812395369_n.mp4?efg=eyJybHIiOjQ2MCwicmxhIjo3MjZ9&rl=460&vabr=256&oh=1edd7f662c0b08956f7576aade6cc417&oe=55B96D92

[celedhring]

Amazing story of two green activist ships chasing an illegal poacher throughout the southern hemisphere. It's quite the tale.

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/28/world/a-renegade-trawler-hunted-for-10000-miles-by-vigilantes.html?mabReward=A5&moduleDetail=recommendations-0&action=click&contentCollection=Politics&region=Footer&module=WhatsNext&version=WhatsNext&contentID=WhatsNext&src=recg&pgtype=article

[Monoriu]

Amazing story of two green activist ships chasing an illegal poacher throughout the southern hemisphere. It's quite the tale.

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/28/world/a-renegade-trawler-hunted-for-10000-miles-by-vigilantes.html?mabReward=A5&moduleDetail=recommendations-0&action=click&contentCollection=Politics&region=Footer&module=WhatsNext&version=WhatsNext&contentID=WhatsNext&src=recg&pgtype=article

I have no idea that Chilean sea bass is supposed to be that good.  I'll check it out next time I see it on the menu. 

[Syt]

Well, this is a fun start into the day. First not one but two neighbors - one in the hallway, one in the courtyard - completely blanked me when I wished them good morning. I don't want to chat, but saying hi to the neighbors is IMHO common courtesy.

Then I read an article that according to the World Wildlife Fund, and based on tracked populations of animals throughout the world, wildlife has been decimated by ca. 50% since the 70s.

And then another story about how Calais is turned into a crisis zone by refugees trying to hitch a ride on trucks crossing over to England (18,000 attempts have been thwarted in the first half of 2015).

[Liep]

How rude.

[derspiess]

I have no idea that Chilean sea bass is supposed to be that good.  I'll check it out next time I see it on the menu. 

It's pretty awesome, actually.