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History of Applause: What compels us to clap in appreciation? Theories abound. The earliest clapping is found in percussive instruments of ancient Egypt (jpg), while the Bible has us clap in joy, as well as derision. Emperor Nero so craved it he would pay freelancers to applaud his atrocious singing. Applause has even influenced classical compositions.

But, in the age of the pre-planned encore, do we still mean it?
posted by apostasy at 10:37 PM PST - 17 comments

Letters - Friday Flash fun. Test your typing skills against a continuous torrent of random letters. Very well made. Globe Terrestre - for those moments when you just can't decide what world map projection is the best.
posted by lazy-ville at 8:57 PM PST - 9 comments

The Geometry Center: Center for the Computation and Visualization of Geometric Structures [more]
posted by hama7 at 7:57 PM PST - 2 comments

My Creepy Valentine - ok, so some people find Valentine's Day somewhat creepy - not everyone likes a holiday that has a weapon wielding angel as a mascot. Not everyone warms to the cloyingly cute commercialism. Some people prefer that their romance has a bit more edge (not work safe!). And even for true romantics, the best of intentions can run amuck (flash). But if you do plan to celebrate, you'll have to act soon.
posted by madamjujujive at 6:51 PM PST - 29 comments

Is this the most non-PC TV show ever? As we become more and more desensitised to humour that makes fun of those less fortunate than ourselves, where do we draw the line?
posted by dg at 6:37 PM PST - 18 comments

5...4...3...2...1...Goodbye, Columbia "There is something noteworthy a rocket can do that the shuttle cannot. A rocket can be permitted to fail." Gregg Easterbrook's 1980 Washington Monthly cover story looks into the Columbia's beginnings, the hazards he saw in the shuttle, and its weaknesses compared to rockets.

Once you get into space, you check to see if any tiles are damaged. If enough are, you have a choice between Plan A and Plan B. Plan A is hope they can get a rescue shuttle up in time. Plan B is burn up coming back.

[via Slate]
posted by kirkaracha at 6:02 PM PST - 32 comments

After Hours Backstage at the Puppet Theater, A Japanese Abominable Snowman, The Famous Samurai: Miyamoto Musashi, Incomparable Woman Warrior and Gingerly Avoiding A Fishy Mess--images from from The Library of Congress's The Floating World of Ukiyo-e: Shadows, Dreams, and Substance . Also, may I present UKIYO-E - The Pictures of the Floating World.

Floating World, you ask?
posted by y2karl at 4:37 PM PST - 19 comments

Beating the Nostradamus followers to the punch!
Century I - 55 :
Soubz l'opposite climat Babylonique
Grande sera de sang effusion
Que terre & mer, air, Ciel sera inique
Sectes, faim, regnes, pestes, confusion


In a climate opposed to the Babylonians,
Blood will flow in a large flood,
From ground, sea, and air, injustice shall reign
Sects, famine, kings, plagues, confusion.

posted by insomnia_lj at 3:52 PM PST - 23 comments

It seems that there is some disconnection between the foreign policies of the American administration and the beliefs of a significant part of the population. In many countries, direct action is seen as a normal response. Will that happen here? Or here?
posted by Nicolae Carpathia at 3:23 PM PST - 18 comments

So, why hasn't the Shuttle been replaced? Because it hasn't been easy. In the late 80's and early '90s, the cold-war-fantasy-cum-shuttle-replacement was the X-30 National Aerospace Plane (NASP) that was supposed to take off and land like a plane flying on super-fast Scramjet engines that, alas, were never really successful... In the late '90s, the New Economy, space-exploration-on-VC-money shuttle replacement was the X-33 VentureStar program which was eventually cancelled, after a long and turbulent history. The X-33/VentureStar was one of the most technologically daring machines ever built --albeit too daring. I cannot mention the X-33 without mentioning the ingenious-but-untested linear aerospike engine that was going to take it to orbit. If the US is now (again) considering a Shuttle replacement, maybe the Delta Clipper is worth a second look. The DC-X was a competitor for the X-33 program that was eventually scrapped, for technological and other reasons. At least the Russians and Europeans liked it so much better than the other New Shuttle options that they copied it.
posted by costas at 9:30 AM PST - 35 comments

History of Iraq from the Denver Post. "President Bush speaks of the need to 'defend civilization'.. Then I point out the irony of defending civilization against the cradle of civilization".
posted by stbalbach at 8:55 AM PST - 31 comments

Delta 2003 Yesterday the 1953 floods were commemorated in the Netherlands and a day earlier in the UK. What happened in 1953?
posted by ginz at 4:29 AM PST - 5 comments