Secretary of Defense, What On Earth is a Harajuko Girl and How Do We Eradicate It???

Hi there, beautiful. Thanks for answering my nagging calls for traffic to my little blog. I think you have a great taste for informative and fun websites (hohoho I compliments meself!!).

picture unrelated. but you know you like it.

This article is another compilation of non-personal, interesting trivia. Originally, this blog was made to publish self-written poems and other small pieces, but I'm whoring it out to attract visitors. Cyber pimp? Sounds stupid. Okay, enough rambling, here's your article...which will be updated throughout the day and tomorrow before it's complete. So keep checking back for more!

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1. The Invincible Men -- people with CIPA do not feel physical pain

CIPA stands for Congenital Insensitivity to Pain with Anhidrosis, which is an EXTREMELY rare genetic disorder in the nervous system -- rendering the affected individual unable to feel physical pain, heat, and cold...as well as unable to sweat. The disorder is due to a genetic mutation that interfere with the small nerve fibers' ability to transmit information to the brain.

Only 1 out of 125 million are born with CIPA. Compare that with getting struck by lightning, which is 1 out of 600,000. So being born with CIPA is almost equivalent in probability of getting struck by lighting 208 times.

Although the inability to feel pain sounds like a trump card for many people, it is actually a HIGHLY dangerous and debilitating disorder with high mortality rates. Afflicted infants normally do not live past the age of 3. But if they do survive, they do not survive past the age of 25.

Why is the disorder so dangerous?

Pain has a very useful survival function of WARNING the individual that something is very dangerous. For example, when you touch a hot stove because you're bored and stupid, you immediately retract your hand (involuntarily) because of the painful sensation of burning. In another instance, if you accidentally step on an up-right nail, you immediately step back, which prevents further penetration. People with CIPA cannot protect themselves in time from such dangers, because they are often UNAWARE that their skin is burning, bleeding, ripping, etc. They experience MULTIPLE injuries, a large percentage of which consists of bone fractures and infections, which also lead to amputation.

2. On a Lighter Note.... SUSHI SOAP!

You can buy this cute to-go box of sushi-resembling soap here:

http://www.neatoshop.com/product/Sushi-Soap

3. Really Great Article from Cracked Today!! Check it out, very interesting and worthwhile stuff!

Did you know that real ninjas never wore black? Yep, another common misconception distorted by something else (such as exaggerated views). Read more:

http://www.cracked.com/article_18627_6-things-from-history-everyone-pictures-incorrectly.html

4. This picture explains itself.

5. Waterproof Laptop

Hmm that's useful. How many laptops and computers were ruined by a simple, careless spill of coffee on the keyboard?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ouvQaNq3ARs

Toshiba introduced the waterproof laptop in 2009 (yeah late news). It's a breakthrough from which I'm sure many better waterproof laptops will come through. A waterproof macbook would be nice (I'm thinking of switching from faulty HP to a Mac)

Speak Softly and Carry a Big Titanium Bat

I'm being a lot more appreciative of the people and circumstances in my life, however bothersome they may be. I don't know my future; I don't know how long I have to achieve and experience the things I want. It could end ridiculously short, or go on until I'm a decrepit, crusty old lady with missing teeth (pleasant description, isn't it?). Anyhow, the curtains can close any time, any moment in any person's life, so it's our priority to live our days like vivacious men with nothing to lose. Sounds funny coming from The Pessimist herself, right? ;)


Alright, here's your damn article. _____________________________________________________________________


1. "The Chemical in the Pool Turns Pee Blue!!!!!!" -from the movie Grown Ups


You saw the previews, and maybe the movie itself. Yeah it doesn't really have a plot or an unique underlying message, but it's funny. Like grab-your-sides-while-farting-and-kicking-a-hobo kind of funny. Aw c'mon, all(most) the top comedians are in this movie!! Still not convincing? eh.

Okay, back to my point. You were intrigued (and grossed out) as you watched wisps of blue liquid swirling around our favorite actors in that kiddy pool. Hallelujah, there's finally a solution to mass-pool-urination!
BZZZZZZZZZZZ (no it's not a fucking vuvuvvuvuzezella or whatever the fuck it's called, it's the sound of a buzzer) THINK AGAIN!

You know why those chemicals are never used in real pools? It's not because they want to preserve the novelty and fun-ness of pools by hiding the fact that their customers pee in them.

It's BECAUSE...

There's NO SUCH THING as a chemical that turns urine blue in the pool. To my disappointment, no such chemical was ever invented or manufactured. It was all part of a myth that they usefully used in the film for comedic and disgusting purposes.
However, with research I found that there IS a chemical that can turn urine blue... but not in the pool. It's called methylene blue (C16H18N3SCl) and is mostly used as an indicator of oxidation/reduction in chem labs. When exposed to an oxidizing environment, the substance turns from a colorless to blue hue. It is also used in medication, mainly antipsychotics as well as antidotes for cyanide poisoning.

The whole point is that INGESTING the substance will turn your urine blue. So maybe if people were required to drink a bit of methylene blue before jumping into the pool, mass-urination will be prevented from sheer embarassment.

but that's illegal or just wrong.. so yeah.

picture not related to anything on this post

In conclusion, people will continue to desecrate our pools.

Try not to think too much about the water swishing in and out of your mouth as you're swimming laps (or hitting your friend with a pool noodle).

cheers.

2. The Bird That Lost His Love

Aw this is a touching photojournal of two swallows that were apparently mates. I don't want to steal from the original online source, so go here for the full story:

http://www.vision02.com/birds-have-feelings/

This goes to show that love transcends us all.

3. That FALLING Sensation You Get When You're Sleeping

So here's the scenario. After a long, exhausting day, you collapse into bed and bury your face in the pillow. You drift into a long-awaited sleep and suddenly your heart lurches, your legs twitch, and you have a split second experience of FALLING DOWN.

Now what on earth was that?

Hypnagogia. The word implies "visions of half-sleep", dreamlets, "borderland of sleep", and most importantly, the onset of sleep. Transitioning from sleep to non-sleep causes various sensory experiences, which include that brief, detailed experience of falling down. There are subcategories that fall under hypnagogia, such as the "Tetris-effect", which pretty much explains why you feel like you're surrounded by water (before you fall asleep) after being in the pool/beach all day.

It also explains why you feel like you're "bobbing" or floating, or even have out-of-body experiences, in which you dissociate from your physical self for moment.

The term that actually explains the whole "falling down" phenomenon is Hypnic Jerk, which occurs DURING hypnagogia.

no not that sort of jerk.

Hypnic Jerk, also called "sleep start" or "night start" is an involuntary twitch which is just like that "jump" people do when they're startled. There are two speculations as to WHY people experience this jerk.

1. As you fall asleep, your heart beat and breathing slow down, which triggers those jerks as a form of muscular transition.

2. As you fall asleep, your muscles relax and stop working, which tricks the brain into believing that you're falling through air. You then twitch in response, to try to catch your fall before you hit the floor. Like what you do involuntarily when you fall down on the pavement.

Hypnic Jerks occurs often when the subject doesn't get enough sleep, which is why most over-worked students and employees experience it often at night. I experience it at least twice a month, and its very unpleasant because I keep getting an image of falling into a dark ditch just before I twitch. So let's try to get some more sleep, everyone! Sleep is essential in countless ways...in fact it is the key maintenance routine that our body undergoes.

4. Facebook.... THE MOVIE

Yeah I know... total WTF moment. Sadly, it's true and it's coming to theatres near you on October 1, 2010. They gave us an ample amount of time to go burn down the theaters before then.

It's going to be one swashbuckling, ass-kicking, suspenseful thriller about the evils lying underneath our favorite social network.....

....I LIED.

It's about the creators and how they did stupid shit in Harvard and got drunk and famous.

Oh and it's starring Justin Timberlake... woopeee.

A travesty upon us all.

A Little Bit of Shangri-La in Your Pockets

I find a more lasting sense of identity and peace through writing. I have erratic mood fluctuations because I ruminate too often, but it seems that creative expression of angst is really helpful in many ways.

Alright, today's blog is also hodgepodge of grab-bag items; I'm writing on matter that really do not relate to current events or of upmost importance, but nevertheless valuable in my view. Scroll to the bottom of the article, for more recent and interesting updates! :)

Hodgepodge. Not Hedgehog.

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1. Let's Talk about the King. King Da Ka, that is.

My favorite ride (actually I have two favorites, with the other being El Toro). It was officially opened at the NJ branch of Six Flags on May 21, 2005. It was renowned as the tallest (456 ft) and fastest (128mph from 0 to 3.5 seconds) roller coaster on earth, kicking the former record-holder, Top Thrill Dragster in Ohio, off the charts. Both coasters were actually manufactured by the same company, Itamin AG, the same company that brought the fucking amazing El Toro to Six Flags: Great Adventure. It is unsurprisingly the most popular ride at the amusement park, with wait times reaching up to 4 hours, although the ride's duration is less than a minute.

I usually go to Six Flags when there are minimum lines, so I end up going on the beast more than 5 times in one trip. It is undoubtably a fantastic ride that gets your heart pumping from the start; actually you experience the most adrenaline rush at the beginning, when the coaster accelerates from 0mph to 128mph faster than it takes you to say, "Oh shi---"

Also, the whole stereotypical ethnic theme (I think it's supposed to be South Asian or something) built around the coaster is pleasurable and entertaining as you anticipate the ride.

Overall, I give Kingda Ka a 9.5 out of 10. It's missing the remaining .5 because of the incredibly short duration of the ride. I think El Toro satisfies a perfect 10.

2. Speak ENGRISH?

um?? i'm guessing that's the same way that recently erupted volcano was named.

It's probably in their soup

LOL

Hey no dirtbags allowed.

3. Mania and its Correlation to Creativity

I just wrote a long research paper on this topic, although it was poorly written due to fatigue and limited time.

Okay, so you're familiar with the whole "mad scientist" and "suicidal poet" stereotypes, and maybe you even heard the phrase, "if you can draw a perfect circle, you're crazy" Overall, perfection in a craft that requires high creativity and imagination is highly associated with insanity. Now let's look at the psychological reasoning behind this stereotype, because a large part of it is truer than Steven Colbert's haircut.

What is insanity? Many people define it to be different things, but I define it to be a simplified term for MANIA. Mania is a definite break from reality which results in abnormal behaviors and functioning such as:

1. need for less or no sleep. the person can stay up for WEEKS without feeling tired.
2. flight of ideas (your thoughts jump from one to the next with no connection)
3. pressured speech (the person talks incredibly fast and cannot stop)
4. loss of appetite
5. extreme euphoria and elation
6. inflated sense of self
7. delusions of grandeur (for example, thinking that you're the messenger for Xerxes or some shit like that)
8. hallucinations
9. Note: although you can identify with one or more of these symptoms, these symptoms are in their EXTREME form and are heavily impairing. So, chances are you DON'T actually have mania.

Okay, so we got the symptoms down. My point is, mania makes up for an even bigger and worse picture: Bipolar Disorder, or Manic-Depressive Disorder.

Bipolar Disorder isn't what people commonly think it is. It's not having opposing personalities or fast alterations in mood. The disorder itself is heavily impairing due to long durations of mania and depression at varying states. There are subtypes depending on the intensity of mania or depression, but I don't want to write a drawn-out essay here.

Going back to the original topic, many famous artists, writers, and nobel-prize winners (as well as musicians and others) have been diagnosed with bipolar disorder, many of whom are my personal favorites:

Virgina Woolf, Kurt Vonnegut, Edvard Munch, Van Gogh, Sylvia Plath, Schumann, Kurt Cobain, Mel Gibson, Ernest Hemingway, Edgar Allan Poe, etc.

Sylvia Plath is my number one favorite writer and poet. I identify with her in many ways.

Their works have been highly appraised for being incredibly unique and creative in ways that people couldn't fathom. What does that have to do with mania? Research and biographical analysis showed that their creative works (ie. Munch's "The Scream" painting) were most often produced during their hypomanic stages. Hypomania is a less severe form of mania that is still impairing, regardless. Their productions dropped off significantly during their depressed episodes, which shows that symptoms of mania (need for less sleep, flight of ideas, hallucinations) contribute or even foster heightened sense of CREATIVITY.

Also, the dissociative thoughts of mania lead to formations of thoughts that people have NEVER even considered before, which is probably why these artists, writers, and scientists are completely original with their works.

this painting used to scare me when I was younger. now I know that this is a product of a hallucination brought by the onset of mania, which makes it slightly scarier..

However, let's not brush off their talents as just a product of their psychological states. If that statement was true, that means ANY bipolar proband would be able to produce fantastic pieces, which is quite not true. These people already had the innate ability and creativity, which was bolstered by the mania.

4. Carrots used to be PURPLE

According to historical documents, today's commonplace orange carrots are actually cultivated forms of the original carrots. Before the 17th century, carrots actually had a deep purple hue, which sounds least-carroty and unappetizing in my opinion. Other colors such as yellow and white carrots were available as well, albeit quite uncommon.

Today's carrots were genetically cultivated by cross-fertilizing white and yellow carrots(as well as wild carrots), to derive the more common orange hue.

The orange carrots were then produced more due to its sweeter taste and "fleshier" texture.

if you want to read more on the topic, go to this link: http://www.todayifoundout.com/index.php/2010/04/carrots-used-to-be-purple-before-the-17th-century/

5. Youngest university professor (18 year old) in history... and in affiliation with STONY BROOK!!!!

On February 19, 2008, Alia Sabur became the youngest professor in history, right behind Isaac Newton. She started reading at the very young age of 2, and entered STONY BROOK UNIVERSITY when she was 10. She graduated summa cum laude when she was 14 and entered Drexel University for her M.S. She's currently teaching in the Department of Advanced Technology Fusion at Konkuk Unversity, in Seoul, Korea.

Saturday Goodies, Flaccid Booties

I'm pissed about Korea being eliminated from the World Cup, but it was a tough match so it's okay.. we always have next year!

Today's article is also a hodgepodge of random trivia.

{edit}

Big Bang's new single is out!! "Tell Me Goodbye"!! Go Listen to it here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bvX8QpvzQzQ

{edit}

I can't get enough of Taeyang either <3

1. Water Bears

No they're not bears that like to reside by water. They're not bears at all, although they do resemble bears on a microscopic level:

I'm mad that they actually look like cute fuzzy bears. Anyway "waterbears" are called Tardigrades and are microscopic, water-dwelling animals with eight legs. They can grow up to 1.5mm and there are more than 1000 species of tardigrades. The most notable thing about these midget bears is that they have evolved to withstand impossible conditions, therefore making them one of the top hardest animals to kill.

Tardigrades can:
1.Withstand being heated up to 151 Celsius and being chilled at -200C. They can even survive being frozen at 272 Celsius, which only one degree away from absolute zero.

2. Withstand very low pressures like vacuums (they were taken to outerspace and they survived the "vacuum of outerspace and solar radiation" without problems) and HIGH pressures up to 6,000 atm, which is about six TIMES the pressure of the deepest and most-pressurized part of the ocean trench.

3. They can survive up to 120 days without water.

4. They can survive up to 6200 lethal doses of Gamma Rays, which can kill a human in only 5-10 doses.

2. IMMORTAL jellyfish

The concept of immortality has existed for centuries from different corners of the globe, usually in the form of mythology and religion. However, immortality was deemed scientifically and logically impossible, because no organism on earth can sustain itself while withstanding extreme temperature/pressure/habitual fluctuations for an infinite amount of time. Well here's nature to kick you in the face with a contradiction.

Immortality never looked so mystifying pretty....and terrifying.

The Turritopsis nutricula revert back to polyp phase after it reaches its mature phase. In other words, this incredible jellyfish can do what most middle-aged couples fervently wish for: to magically revert back to their rockin' and rebellin' teenage years. Amazingly, this reverse-aging process can be repeated infinitely, which means that a single jellyfish can live...forever, if it can evade predators and its habitual conditions don't undergo extreme changes.

Because of their ability to evade the grim reaper's grasp, the turritopsis nutricula populations have skyrocketed across the globe, starting from their original territory in the Carribean.

3. Johnny Depp is a beautiful, beautiful man whose superb acting reaches our hearts across the world.

That is all. lol.





More sections to be added later. I ran out of ideas. cheers.

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On the issue of Islam vs. 9/11 Memorial Site

There have been ferocious protests against the building of the Islamic mosque near the 9/11 memorial site. The destructive terrorist attack was launched by Al-Qaeda, a small fundamentalist group that branched off the extremist sect of Islam. Now, let's define fundamentalism, which translates to the literal and verbatim belief of the sacred text, which obviously can lead to disasters, as many sacred scriptures use metaphorical anecdotes to illustrate bigger and deeper pictures. So the terrorists are like a much amplified version of the errant schoolyard bullies who use their distorted beliefs as a basis for everything in the schoolyard. They have nothing to do with the rest of the students, except that they terrorize everyone and give the school a horrible reputation.

So, the whole fervent "YOU BETTER NOT BUILD A TERRORIST ESTABLISHMENT NEAR THE MEMORIAL SITE BECAUSE IT'S DISRESPECTFUL" is an issue based of complete ignorance and racism fostered by negative affectivity generated by the tragic event back in 2001. People tend to blame and stigmatize people of the Islamic religion because of 9/11, even though it is CLEARLY known that the terrorists are a small group that really have nothing to do with the overall religion. Only a small percentage, less than 2% (my guess, don't quote me), of the people of Islamic faith are actual terrorists that support those crazy ideations. But people generally extend their views of ONE SMALL GROUP to summarize the rest of the entire population, which is racist, ignorant, intolerant, and incredibly hare-brained. (sorry, hares, i did not intend to insult the brains beneath your furry adorable heads)

Now, this same stupidity and stigma extends to whole nations, as well. For example, people (especially Americans) are always insulting North Korea because of it's lunatic leader. You've got to understand that a communist government doesn't govern over a communist population. A communist government FORCIBLY governs a population. Get that fact hammered into your brains. A leader who hurts and suppresses his own people does NOT represent his country nor his people. Please be well-read and understanding of people of other ethnic groups.

That is all

~Laura

Psychology and Man's Folly: Anchoring and Adjustment

I was supposed to go to Six Flags today but I didn't plan it too well so it fell apart. I'm a little pissed but not as much as I should be, because somehow I KNEW something like this would come up. Being a pessimist pays off, because it protects me from falling too hard. It keeps me in check, and keeps me from expecting things that I won't get.

Let me tell you, every birthday goes wrong for me. Don't ask me why, it just does. And this one won't be any different. But it's alright since I don't plan extravagant things for my birthday.

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Anyway, this post is about ANCHORING and ADJUSTMENT. As a Psychology major, I'm always applying what I learn in class to my behaviors and cognitions, as well as to what I observe in other people. Doing so allows me to comprehend a little bit more about this recklessly unpredictable world, giving me a wall of stability to hold onto. When in difficult times, step back and observe things through cold logic.

Anchoring is a cognitive bias that people adamantly hold onto although the bias can be the furthest thing from the truth. Anchoring is when people "anchor", or overly rely on a single bit of information for decision making. For example, I anchored on the fact that I was going to 6 Flags, and continued to anchor on that information and caused myself distress when I found out that I'm not going. Another example is that, when you ask someone for information that is not readily available in the memory (i.e. asking how old the current CEO of Baskin Robbins is), the person will anchor on available info (i.e. a random number on the billboard) and adjust his value from that number. In a research experiment, participants were asked "what age did Gandhi live up to?", and they were given a very high number (million) or a very small number. It turned out, the ones who anchored on the MILLION stated a much older age than those who anchored on the smaller number. Even though living for a million years is impossible, people still anchored on that bit of ludicrous information. People are very strange animals.

More on this later.
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THIS JUST IN
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Tiny-turtle-causes-taxiing-apf-1122992999.html?x=0

" Kate Brumback, Associated Press Writer, On Friday June 25, 2010, 7:45 am EDT

ATLANTA (AP) -- A caged, 2-inch turtle traveling with a 10-year-old girl caused a crew to turn around a taxiing plane, take the girl and her sisters off the flight and tell them they couldn't bring their pet along."



Throw a turtle in the trash? That's against the law as it is filed as "cruel and unusual" treatment of animals. In addition, one turtle INSIDE it's cage will not hurt anyone on the plane, nor spread any disease. The airline crew made a stupid decision by turning around the entire plane and wasting valuable fuel and TIME just to drop off a little girl and her 2-inch turtle.

Hulabalooo and Timbuktoo, Randomness and Fun Facts Too!

I'm sitting here at the Psych lab waiting for the pigeons to finish up their experiments. I have class in one minute but it looks like the birds aren't willing to cooperate...sigh.
So today's article is a cornucopia of random goodness, which I will update throughout the day until I (and YOU!) had my(YOUR!!) fill of information. Enjoy.

1. Liar, Liar, Pants on Fire, I see your Eyes through the... Fire?
http://www.blifaloo.com/info/lies_eyes.php
According to research, you can generally detect whether someone is lying or not by observing the eyes of the person who is lying/not lying. However, the hypothesis is not definite, since human behavior varies from each individual.

But it is noted that the right hemisphere of the brain specializes in holistic, visual, and intuitive/inborn processing and knowledge. Therefore, when people lie, their eyes often roll to their right, showing that they are "accessing" the right hemisphere to quickly draw up a fictional situation/item/person.

2. Giant Pandas: Nature's First Determined Vegetarian
You see a fat panda munching on a bamboo stick at the zoo and go "awwwwww look at you. Look at you eating your little veggie food. DAWWWWW". Not only pandas are highly adorable with their fat bellies and contrasting color scheme (don't forget the black fur around the eyes!!! dawwwwwww), they have the incredible selling point of being a big ol' cuddly vegetarian.

It is commonly believed that pandas are herbivores and that their diets mainly consist of bamboo. Note what I said, "it is commonly believed". Yes, pandas, in fact, are giant carnivores at heart. They are actually taxonomically categorized as CARNIVORA, although their diets consist 99% of bamboo. They also have powerful jaw muscles, which are primarily for crushing bones and tearing flesh of prey. Giant Pandas have digestive systems built for carnivores, which means that they cannot efficiently digest and fuel themselves with bamboo. The reason why pandas are generally lethargic and sedentary in nature is due to the lack of sufficient energy.

The question is, WHY? When and WHY did pandas turn away from meat and turn to vegetarianism? Behavior mimicry of other animals? "Survival of the fittest" when prey sources ran out?

3. Autism

First off, let me establish that Autism is linked to ingenuity by CORRELATION, not CAUSATION. Not all Autistic children become geniuses, as it is widely viewd. Autism is a serious developmental problem that inhibits the proband's social interactions and language abilities. In addition, effected individuals tend to be introverted and exhibit behaviors that are not within the norm. Autism is generally viewed in correspondence with high intelligence, which is actually not the full picture. A small percentage of autistic probands exhibit exceptional intelligence, due to the disorder's inhibiting factors. However, those few that are gifted with higher intellect tend to develop exceptionally in specific areas such as art, mathematics, science, engineering, music, etc. Those children are called "savants"(="person of profound or extensive learning") and have memory processes that are incredibly deep but narrow, which signifies extended attention of the individual on one topic. For example, the savant child interested in music will sit for hours teaching himself musical theories and various compositions, achieving mastery in a much shorter length of time than non-savant children.

4. Itsa Me, MARIO! :Fun Facts about Super Mario
source: www.Neatorama.com


Mario was first seen in the video game Donkey Kong, but he was called "Jumpman." He was also a carpenter then, not a plumber.


•Mario was named after Mario Segale, the landlord of Nintendo of America’s office, who barged in on a company meeting demanding an overdue rent.


•Shigeru Miyamoto drew Mario as wearing a cap because he found drawing hair difficult. He also drew in the moustache, because it was easier to see than a mouth in the crude video game screen resolution back then.

•Mario has appeared in over 200 video games so far, has sold over 193 million units of games (all of the Mario series) and even has his own TV cartoon show. Super Mario Bros. 3 alone grossed over $500 million in USA.



•Mario is the most famous character in the history of video games, and perhaps is the most famous character ever. In a 1990 poll by Marketing Evaluations, Mario was found to be more popular (and recognizable) among children than Mickey Mouse.
<-(well this one is blatantly obvious)


•Mario and his younger brother Luigi are known as the "Mario Brothers." This means that Mario’s last name is also Mario, so his full name is Mario Mario.


•Mario is voice-acted by Charles Martinet, who crashed the audition for "an Italian plumber from Brooklyn" character.





5. Some facts about our beloved Facebook:

• Facebook was founded by Harvard students, Mark Zuckerberg, Chris Hughes, Eduardo Saverin, and Dustin Moskovitz. They were orginally roommates when they got the idea to launch a small networking site that branched out into a multibillion corporation. Mark Zuckerberg is largely in charge of Facebook, becoming the world's youngest billionaire at the young age of 24.


• 85% of college students are registered on Facebook.


• Facebook became so popular and addictive that now"Facebook Addiction Disorder" is officially recognized as a real debilitating disorder.


• The average user has about 130 friends. (that sounds about right to me; I have 150.)


• Facebook is the 4th most trafficked website with a user population that nearly equals the population of the U.S.


• Facebook has 350 employees with extensive benefits:


• •Medical, dental and vision health plans with no premiums
  • 401(k) plan
  •Four weeks vacation and eight company holidays
  •Free catered breakfast, lunch and dinner every day
  •Dry cleaning and laundry services
  •An IBM Thinkpad or Apple MacBook Pro -- employee's choice

6. Ugg Boots: Travesty on the Teenage Population

I love (sarcasm) how people ruin perfectly good outfits with a pair of ugly Uggs. If it's in the winter and it's frigid outside, I understand...but if it's during any other season, wearing Uggs is an atrocious mistake. Ugges are made of sheepskin and are efficient in keeping your toes toasty during those bitter cold days. They were originally made for conserving heat for individuals who need to keep warm for specific reasons: WWI pilots wore them for warmth in unpressurized planes, competitive swimmers and surfers wore them out of the water. The land of origin is not clear; New Zealand and Australia both claim to have invented Uggs. Only in America did they become fashion items, in year 2000.

Gadgets, Buckles, Device, and Everything Nice

So today I'm mentioning notable creations that are aesthetically pleasing and practical...or maybe not so practical. That's the art of design, folks! Practicality balanced with Aesthetics.

1. Mp3 PEN

This James Bond- like pen functions as a real writing utensil as well as mp3, holding about 1000 mp3 or wma songs, coupled with recording ability of 8 hours. Perfect for those long sessions at school (even though your earplugs will clearly be visible), blackmailing corporate heads after intensive interviews, and what not. Oh and did I say they're rechargeable?

2. LEGO USB Flash Drives

Cute, eh? I bought the yellow one at Target for... I forgot how much. You can actually attach them together like real Lego blocks. They function perfectly well as USBs too, and be less likely to be stolen since they don't look like USBs.

3. Denis Guidone Watches

Now these are gorgeous. The design is elegant and minimalist, as well as simple and avant-garde. The watches aren't as practical though; it's really difficult to tell the time, especially if you're in a rush.

4. Egg Clock

Now, I fell in love with these the moment I graced my eyes on them at the BrookStone store by Seaport. They wobble, they function as alarm clocks, radio, and temperature checker (depends on the model). Best of all, they look like little painted eggs from your crayon-chewing days in Kindergarten, when you used to paint boiled eggs for Easter. Here's the link to buy these adorable fuckers:
http://www.amazon.com/Bob-5-in-1-Wobble-Clock/dp/B002DZFCYE

5. Electronic Smoke-less Cigarettes for the Chain Smokers

Chain smoking stems from many psychological and habitual factors, the main factor being the conditioned release from anxiety triggered by the gratifying feel of a cold cigarette stick resting between your lips. This invention was launched from that fact and brings smokers a healthier way to have their hourly nicotine dosage without the harmful effects of carcinogens. According to the company that sells them, "It looks, feels and tastes like a cigarette or cigar, and delivers all the pleasures of smoking, but it does not contain tobacco, tar or known carcinogens."

6. ORB Bracelet Watch


Another watch makes the list. These are absolutely gorgeous and so trendy. They can be accessorized with colorful Nike hoodies and skinny jeans, and some tribal bangles and some spunky shoes. (If you're a girl or a flamboyant and fierce gay boy) The only drawback?? The designs didn't even leave the blueprints yet. But look for similar styles in the distant future!

7. Delicious USB drives

These are unbelievably cute and mouth-watering. They function as well as any other USB drive, except they are extremely cute and conversation-worthy. They're really pricey though; I tried to order a strawberry-shortcake usb on Amazon and it was in the whopping $30-$50 range for only 2gb.

Yes, this mouth-watering slice of black forest cake is actually made of plastic and computer stuff.

8. Smash Alarm Clock

Yesterday was a long day that dragged until the moment you stepped through your door and collapsed in an exhausted heap on your bed. In what seems like minutes, your atrocious alarm clock blares loudly in your ear, rudely wrenching you from your blissful sleep. Well now you have the option to beat your alarm clock without breaking it. Smash this little clock as much as you want, to turn it off or to press snooze.

9. Frozen Choppers in Your Martini?

Spice up your drinks with gross-looking ice teeth that look like the horrific things your Grandpappy Alfred pulls out every night.

10. Chocolate Sneakers

They are not sold anywhere, unless you are wealthy enough to pay for a chocolatier to fashion NIKE shoes from chocolate for you. These are absolutely flawless in terms of mimicry; they look like real sneakers. I applaud the amazing chocolatier who made these beauties from raw chocolate. Mmmmm I crave chocolate..

11.Rotund Candy-Colored Computer Mice

I just love designs that are ROUND. The design is simple, adorable, smooth, and egg-shaped. I would buy these in a heartbeat, but they set me back $49 per egg. Which color would I pick? Pink... Orange.. or Simple white!! argh they're so damn cute!!

12. Flaming Fire Extinguisher


Irony?