God Hates the Hadron Collider

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By Barry Ritholtz - November 6th, 2009, 5:30PM

Apparently, forces of nature and supernature do not like the collider:

“The Large Hadron Collider, the world’s most powerful particle accelerator, just cannot catch a break. First, a coolant leak destroyed some of the magnets that guide the energy beam. Then LHC officials postponed the restart of the machine to add additional safety features. Now, a bird dropping a piece of bread on a section of the accelerator has, according to the Register, shut down the whole operation.

The bird dropped some bread on a section of outdoor machinery, eventually leading to significant over heating in parts of the accelerator. The LHC was not operational at the time of the incident, but the spike produced so much heat that had the beam been on, automatic failsafes would have shut down the machine.”

Really.

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See also:
The Collider, the Particle and a Theory About Fate

Source:
Baguette Dropped From Bird’s Beak Shuts Down The Large Hadron Collider (Really)
Stuart Fox
PopSci 11.05.2009
http://www.popsci.com/science/article/2009-11/bread-loving-bird-shuts-down-lhc

Science: It Works, Bitches!

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By Barry Ritholtz - November 4th, 2009, 12:30AM

science

I don’t recall where I found this (if anyone knows please let me know).

Nutters

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By Barry Ritholtz - November 1st, 2009, 2:30PM

Nuts with nukes

Tom Toles via WaPo

Dessert Wines

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By Barry Ritholtz - November 1st, 2009, 12:00PM

LFA: $400,000 Japanese Supercar

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By Barry Ritholtz - October 30th, 2009, 12:01PM

Why anyone would pay that type of wood for a V10 powered Lexus is beyond me — but it does look cool:

LFA

Lexus LFA
Price: Estimated $400,000
On sale: 2010
Engine: 4.8-litre V10
Power: 412kW/8700 revs
Torque: 480Nm/6800 revs
Transmission: Six-speed automated manual, rear-wheel drive
Performance: 0-100km/h, 3.7s; top speed, 317km/h

Video

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See also:
2011 Lexus LFA: First Drive
Wes Siler
Jalopnik Oct 23, 2009 12:00 PM
http://jalopnik.com/5388538/2011-lexus-lfa-first-drive

Haunted House Prop: Electric Chair!

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By Barry Ritholtz - October 30th, 2009, 6:00AM

Enjoy~!

Missions to Mars

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By Barry Ritholtz - October 29th, 2009, 12:00PM

Cool infographic by Bryan Christie showing all Earth missions to Mars:

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mars missions

Laughing Squid via boingboing

U2 on YouTube – Live from the Rose Bowl

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By Barry Ritholtz - October 26th, 2009, 2:19PM

U2 and YouTube broadcast the Irish rock band’s Pasadena concert live last night, for free. And, its now on YouTube.

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u2 YouTube

From: U2official | October 26, 2009 | 310 views
The world’s greatest band on the world’s largest stage – U2 on YouTube. Watch the rebroadcast of the full live streaming performance from the Rose Bowl. Recorded on Sunday, October 25th.

Hat tip GMSV

Yöjuna Rovaniemelle

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By Barry Ritholtz - October 24th, 2009, 5:30PM

Ella ja Aleksi is a Finnish musical group featuring two four-year-old rappers .

This video for the song “Yöjuna Rovaniemelle” is adorable:


hat tip boingboing

Animating XKCD

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By Barry Ritholtz - October 23rd, 2009, 12:30PM

I Love xkcd from NoamR on Vimeo.

via boingboing