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Friday Physics

It’s Friday, which means FlowerGirlPhysicist is running an open session for physics questions on the Observation Deck. ‘Tis the time for estimates, order-of-magnitudes, and general fun with numbers! Just make sure to bring adorable kitten-gifs as a Thank You.

Jacques Cousteau’s Grandson To Spend One Month Underwater

Fabien Cousteau, grandson of famed marine explorer and conservationist Jacques Cousteau, is four days into a 31-day stint in an underwater NOAA research base in the Florida Keys that would top his grandfather’s underwater record by one day. The expedition goes by the name of “Mission 31,” in reference to Cousteau’s target stay-duration. Via the…

Nobody thought it was possible to mass produce this World War II bomber

This is the Consolidated B-24 Liberator. At D-Day—70 years ago today—it was already the most mass-produced airplane of any kind ever. Here’s the fascinating story on how America built it when nobody thought it was possible. Together with the other Allied airplanes, it was pivotal to crush the Nazis.

Alfred Hitchcock Collection, Xbox LIVE Credit, The Witcher III

If that deal we recently posted on 5 Hitchcock movies didn’t cut it, how about 15? [Hitchcock Masterpiece Collection, $107] We’re feeling pretty good about The Witcher III: Wild Hunt being amazing, and even more certain about this edition selling out because well, look at it. The Witcher III: Wild Hunt Collector’s Edition PS4 |…

Jurassic Park 4 is being shot in this gorgeous abandoned amusement park

I don’t really care about Jurassic World—Jurassic Park 4, if you prefer—but abandoned amusement parks are awesome. When I heard that the movie is being shot in this amazing abandoned Six Flag in New Orleans, beautiful images of huge dinosaurs running around this gorgeous place started to pop into my mind. The video claims that…

Nerf’s Summer 2014 Super Soakers: A Shootout in One Act

Nerf’s latest round of Super Soakers blast water further and more accurately than ever when it’s throwdown time, as you might expect. But we put them through their paces just in case. Jalopnik honcho Matt Hardigree and I took these new Nerfs to a park in Brooklyn earlier this week to put them through the…

Crowdfund A Kid’s Book By Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal‘s Creator

Zach Weiner, creator of the smart and hilarious webcomic Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal, has written a children’s book, and you can help bring it into the world. You can also fund a movie adaptation of one of the web’s smartest comics, a fan film about Harry Potter’s Mauraders, and more! Top image from Augie &…

Rare Color Film And Photos Cast D-Day In A Completely New Light

Today marks the 70th anniversary of the largest amphibious landing in all of military history. Most of the photos and film captured on that pivotal day were in black and white — but a precious few were shot in color. Here’s D-Day as you’ve never seen it before. Above: Allied ships, boats and barrage balloons…

UberFacts Is Still UberWrong

A few months ago we did a little fact-checking and found out that UberFacts is full of shit . So we wanted to give them another shot. The results? UberFacts is still spreading way too much misinformation. Below, we’ve looked at every UberFacts tweet from yesterday—midnight to midnight, Pacific Time. Of the 67 tweets that…

Chart Reveals the Events in An Average American’s Life, Week by Week

This chart takes the milestones of the average American life — everything from becoming eligible for a driver’s license to getting (and leaving) a first job — and plots them all out into weeks. The chart was put together by WaitButWhy, using data from, among other places, Gallup, Pew, and the census. Looked at in…

Amusing Vacuum Billboard Sucks Its Own Ad Back Into View

Here’s further proof that you don’t need celebrities, scantily clad models, or even a developer’s conference to advertise a product. Playing up those billboards that rotate through multiple advertisements during the day, Samsung stuck one of its vacuums on top of this sign, and it roars to life with suction whenever another ad attempts to…

Decoding The Hidden Meaning Of The Signal, The New Indie Film Sensation

The Signal has been getting crazy buzz ever since it rocked Sundance. And now that this movie about computer geeks in a terrifying situation is coming out next Friday, we’re finally getting inside the mysterious bunker of doom. We talked to director William Eubank about the meaning behind his strange film. Spoilers ahead… Seriously, there…

This device, created at Michigan State University, can turn cow manure into clean water. That’s right, the poop-recycling technology of Waterworld now exists in the present. Thanks to agricultural engineering, we’re ready to face the apocalypse.

Why the Panthéon Is Covered In Black-and-White Faces

For the past two years, the Panthéon in Paris has been undergoing a renovation, its signature dome wrapped in a cute little plastic hat. This week, the 1790 structure revealed an art installation to tide tourists and residents over until the work is complete: thousands of black-and-white faces covering its marble surfaces. The faces are…

Three Uses For Your Webcam That Don’t Involve Video Chat

If you own a laptop, you probably own a webcam too. But what you may not realize is that it has plenty of potential outside of Skype, FaceTime, and the other chat apps you’ve been using it for. Here are three alternative uses to consider, all made possible with free software your webcam’s built-in tools.…

Scientists Invent a Laser That Fires Electrical Charge, Not Light

Researchers at the University of Michigan have just stumbled upon the most important development in laser research since the invention of the semiconductor diode in the 1950s. It promises to create a new class of lasers that use 250 times less energy than today’s, and that’s not even the craziest part. Semiconductor diodes convert electricity…

Failed Nuclear Weapons Recycling Program Could Put Us All in Danger

Some government screw-ups are so epic that they require decades of effort. Such was the case for the recently cancelled plan to convert surplus weapons-grade plutonium into nuclear fuel. Not only did the U.S. waste $4 billion dollars, it increased the likelihood that terrorists could obtain bomb-making materials. It sounded like a good idea at…

Watch Peter Jackson’s Favorite Horror Short From A 48-Hour Film Contest

When a young woman discovers that she can see the previous inhabitants of her home whenever the lights flicker, at first she’s entertained by these home movies from the past. But it quickly becomes clear that something sinister is lurking between light and darkness. Peter Haynes directed Flicker as part of the Rialto Channel 48…

Should We Really Just Call Everything a “Drone” By Default?

There’s a revolution in the skies. Things are flying around up there. Some of them are remote controlled, some of them are autonomous. Some of them shoot at people, some of them don’t. Some of them are in stores, some are military. But should we just call them all “drones”? It might seem like a…

British government uses Lego for Scottish referendum and Lego is pissed

So, the British Government is supposedly outsourcing its referendums to…Lego and Buzzfeed? According to a financial analysis from HM Treasury, if Scotland chooses to remain as a part of the UK (rather than vote for independence), each person in Scotland would be “£1400 better off every year.” A Buzzfeed post in the “You Decide” section…