Ruining science fiction: Not only are the science fiction cliches humorously skewered in the Tough Guide to the Known Galaxy, but the science itself is wrong. For example, despite the best efforts of SF writers, interstellar trade will never work, unless wine costs $11 billion a bottle. Slower-than-light travel is much harder than you think, and warp drives are far away. Space battles, if they happen, won't have fighters and dramatic dogfights, but instead involve vast distances and maneuvers lasting years. And you can ruin a whole lot more science fiction with real science (and wonderful examples) at Atomic Rocket. Don't follow the links if you want to read Heinlein or watch Battlestar Galactica with a light heart.
posted to MetaFilter by blahblahblah at 11:51 AM on May 8, 2007 (185 comments)

Chase scene. Chase scene. Chase scene. Chase scene. Chase scene. Chase scene. [more inside]
posted to MetaFilter by flapjax at midnite at 7:28 AM on April 24, 2007 (96 comments)

Threads (Google Video, 1hr 50min). Classic Reagan/Thatcher era nuclear war film that scared the bejeezus out of everyone in 1984 (including my 14-year-old self). [good background previously]
posted to MetaFilter by schoolgirl report at 6:59 PM on December 21, 2006 (93 comments)

Now that Lik-Sang is dead, where do I turn if I want to import games, or even better, electronic gadgets, computers and such. There was one big site I remember seeing (but, of course, can't remember the URL) that seemed to have quite a few laptops and cameras. Where do you import your gadgetry and games (to the US)?
posted to Ask Metafilter by Merdryn at 9:33 AM on December 23, 2006 (5 comments)

"[C]omputer design is being dictated not by electronic design rules, physical layout requirements, and thermal issues, but by the wishes of the content industry." By deliberately breaking audio and video functionality, opening up new avenues for debilitating malware, and reversing performance gains in desktop PCs and third-party components, Peter Gutmann argues "the Vista Content Protection specification could very well constitute the longest suicide note in history."
posted to MetaFilter by Blazecock Pileon at 10:03 PM on December 23, 2006 (132 comments)

Is there another book like "The Princess Bride"?
posted to Ask Metafilter by eurasian at 1:19 PM on December 20, 2006 (44 comments)

"Please stop the asshattery, love jessamyn" Now there's a song that should be on MeFi Music.
posted to MeFi Music by cortex at 5:52 PM on August 18, 2006 (33 comments)

I would like to buy a suit. But I don't know what kind of suit I want. I'd love some help with deciding.
posted to Ask Metafilter by blindcarboncopy at 11:04 PM on December 17, 2006 (47 comments)

We recently had a MetaTalk thread regarding a three-letter word for a male cat and a five-letter word for a sea-faring vacation. I won't protest the thread's deletion; the entire site exists at the administration's discretion. What concerns me, however, are the Orwellian implications of deletion with no residual record in a community-based site.
posted to MetaTalk by The Confessor at 8:57 AM on December 19, 2006 (2 comments)

MusicFilter: Help me make a mix CD of hip indie bands for my baby-boomer mom.
posted to Ask Metafilter by cholstro at 10:16 AM on December 18, 2006 (48 comments)

xRez: Extreme Resolution Photography. Gigapixel photos with a Google Maps-style interface. The photo of Boston is 95,000 by 40,000 pixels. [via]
posted to MetaFilter by kirkaracha at 7:25 AM on December 18, 2006 (34 comments)

Turntabelism / Spinning -- how do I start?
posted to Ask Metafilter by Squid Voltaire at 1:33 PM on August 16, 2006 (8 comments)

Amazing collection of several galleries full of Japanese "urban ruins" photos, including abandoned amusement parks, refineries, apartment blocks, hospitals, schools, bowling alleys, & much more, including Battleship Island, the (previously posted) abandoned coal mining island off the coast of Nagasaki. Via.
posted to MetaFilter by jonson at 11:04 PM on December 5, 2006 (34 comments)

T-SHIRTS T-SHIRTS T-SHIRTS! Funny T-shirts, user-designed-and-voted T-shirts, artistic T-shirts, geek T-shirts, just cool T-shirts, hacker T-shirts, more artistic T-shirts and even offensive T-shirts (NSFW). Like comics? web comic T-shirts. Still not right? make your own T-shirts. Or maybe you'd just like to read about t-shirts.
posted to MetaFilter by patr1ck at 9:49 AM on September 22, 2006 (47 comments)

Help my girlfriend deal with stress so she (and I) can sleep.
posted to Ask Metafilter by SanctiCrucis05 at 2:19 PM on December 7, 2006 (47 comments)

Making an emergency car kit for road trips, especially in winter conditions.

How to travel safely in winter.

What to do if you're lost.

How to survive in the wilderness, according to the US Army. How to build an igloo. How to make emergency snowshoes.

equipped.org reviews personal survival kits, provides the story of five people stranded within sight of one of the US's largest cities, and blogs on the topic of emergency survival. And, last but not least, the equipped.org forums weigh in on the Kim emergency.

Requiescat in pace, James Kim.
posted to MetaFilter by scrump at 7:49 AM on December 7, 2006 (57 comments)

Connoisseurs of Cunnilingus: What does it taste like to you?
posted to Ask Metafilter by Ambrosia Voyeur at 7:54 PM on December 1, 2006 (93 comments)

What the heck is "the purification dot org" all about? (I'm not linking to it directly because I have a hunch it's just a particularly enigmatic viral marketing ploy.)
posted to Ask Metafilter by sportbucket at 6:20 PM on October 2, 2006 (752 comments)