Ice falling from tall buildings filter. Help me lay to rest a question that has plagued my wife. We live in Chicago, with lots of tall buildings. Ice falls off of the buildings from time to time and about once a year, some poor bastard gets mushed. Where in terms of physics and I suppose statistics would be the safest place to walk down the sidewalk: as close to the building as possible? The middle of the sidewalk? The far edge? Does it depend on building height?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by Ponderance at 7:20 PM on January 7, 2009 (16 comments)

how do I become smarter in making the best decision when facing a new situation for the first time?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by thomasck at 3:56 AM on January 4, 2009 (17 comments)

A small collection of special programs for system administration, written at a level suitable for senior admins.
posted to MetaFilter by 31d1 at 2:18 AM on January 3, 2009 (36 comments)

In a must-see interview for tabletop gamers everywhere, Colonel Louis Zocchi talks about modern mass produced plastic dice and why they utterly fail at being random: Part 1 - Part 2
posted to MetaFilter by loquacious at 6:00 PM on November 26, 2008 (84 comments)

Wanted: Bug Finding Program
posted to MetaFilter by orthogonality at 12:09 AM on November 26, 2008 (82 comments)

When asked for dessert recommendations, my friend’s 8-year-old son suggested “chocolate chip cookies with chunks of chocolate chip cookie dough in them.” How on earth can I pull off this fantastic treat?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by Metroid Baby at 7:59 AM on November 24, 2008 (40 comments)

Where do the air hostesses/stewards go when they go downstairs on long haul flights?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by meech at 4:14 AM on November 20, 2008 (10 comments)

How did you deal with pet loss grief? I want to collect people's experiences with waiting to get another pet or getting one right away and the relative merits of each.
posted to Ask MetaFilter by zennoshinjou at 12:06 PM on November 19, 2008 (24 comments)

Bunny show jumping, or kaninhoppning, started in Sweden and has spread to Finland, Denmark, Norway and other countries. The rabbit who completes the course with the fewest mistakes or fastest time wins. (previously, mostly YT)
posted to MetaFilter by joannemerriam at 1:03 PM on November 18, 2008 (33 comments)

What are the least wasteful and/or most productive (preferably legal) things that can be done with my body after I'm dead?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by Arasithil at 3:56 AM on November 12, 2008 (15 comments)

"Mirage in time—image of long-vanish’d pre-human city." - "Ancient and unknown ruins—strange and immortal bird who SPEAKS in a language horrifying and revelatory to the explorers." - "A very ancient colossus in a very ancient desert. Face gone—no man hath seen it." - Images based on the commonplace book of HP Lovecraft.
posted to MetaFilter by Artw at 11:10 PM on October 29, 2008 (61 comments)

My wife went out of town, and she took our son with her. It was the middle of the night, and I was playing ukulele, hoping that I wouldn't wake my daughter up.
posted to MeFi Music by davejay at 11:43 PM on October 12, 2008 (8 comments)

More "americana" from that woodshed in Sweden. Recorded on a battered radio/cassette player in 1984(?) so its low fi. We called ourselves The Early Puritans on the occasions we actually got paid for a gig.
posted to MeFi Music by jan murray at 4:30 PM on October 9, 2008 (8 comments)

Obvious or creative--shameless or shady, even!--ways to cut costs and live cheap?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by HotPatatta at 12:38 PM on August 19, 2008 (68 comments)

Livejournal user absinthetic's girlfriend is having a birthday, so he made her a Wonderland Expedition Kit.
posted to MetaFilter by Pope Guilty at 7:02 PM on August 2, 2008 (60 comments)

Who are some great comedians I've probably never heard of that I can watch on youtube?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by Christ, what an asshole at 3:50 PM on July 14, 2008 (50 comments)

What was the one thing - gadget, gizmo, piece of clothing, etc. - that made your travels that much more enjoyable?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by Planet F at 5:30 PM on July 10, 2008 (65 comments)

My new crosscutting paper shredder manual suggests using shredder lubricant sheets twice a month, or every 30 minutes of active shredding. Naturally, they also sell these lubricant sheets.
posted to Ask MetaFilter by R. Mutt at 12:27 PM on June 20, 2008 (14 comments)

Help me find real-world magic items.
posted to Ask MetaFilter by MrVisible at 12:34 PM on June 17, 2008 (46 comments)

As a first-time renter, what should I do to avoid problems down the road, what will I forget to buy that I need, and how can I make it my home?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by cgomez at 2:02 PM on June 17, 2008 (35 comments)

How would I drill a hole through an extracted human tooth without shattering it?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by mediocre at 2:40 PM on June 16, 2008 (10 comments)

Two of my favorite books for summer are "Winter's Tale" by Mark Helprin and "Smilla's Sense of Snow" by Peter Hoeg; I'd like suggestions for other (preferably hefty) novels with complex/absorbing story lines and wintry settings or themes to help me stay sane 'til September. Got an ice book to recommend?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by taz at 7:44 AM on June 10, 2008 (46 comments)

Why are there so many dead deer bodies on the side of the highway on the Merritt Parkway in CT? Do they die on the side of the road right before they prance onto the highway? They look too perfectly placed and appear to lack much bleeding to have been run over then moved aside.
posted to Ask MetaFilter by Jimmie at 1:48 PM on June 9, 2008 (21 comments)

"Skin painted bright red, heads partially shaved, arrows drawn back in the longbows and aimed square at the aircraft buzzing overhead. The gesture is unmistakable: Stay Away. The apparent aggression shown by these people is quite understandable, for they are members of one of Earth's last uncontacted tribes."
posted to MetaFilter by Rhaomi at 5:18 PM on May 29, 2008 (86 comments)

Why is the only .arpa website about unicycles?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by East Manitoba Regional Junior Kabaddi Champion '94 at 8:42 AM on May 27, 2008 (8 comments)

What is the difference between a purse and a bag?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by TheOnlyCoolTim at 8:06 PM on May 24, 2008 (29 comments)

The music video for Pork and Beans by Weezer is an homage to every web video meme. Ever. [via]
posted to MetaFilter by Plutor at 10:21 AM on May 23, 2008 (129 comments)

Some readers will appreciate their typographic form, while others will see further strategies at work — informational, strategic, philosophical, literary. There are odd, even anachronistic cultural references, gestures that date these books in a manner oddly soothing.
The Next Page: Thirty Tables of Contents
posted to MetaFilter by carsonb at 12:09 PM on May 16, 2008 (16 comments)

I'm looking for something really freaky to put on the tv at the bar I work at; video imagery to really make some hipster indie rocker kids say wtf when they notice it playing in the background-"holy mountain" and svenmahers"alice" are my usual standbys, but I know you Mefites know just the thing to make a standard night watching post rock bands just a little stranger.what visuals would you use, remembering that the sound of the movie won't be heard--
posted to Ask MetaFilter by donabean at 11:46 PM on May 16, 2008 (76 comments)

For Jessamyn, who's been listening to many versions of this song. Here's another.
posted to MeFi Music by not_on_display at 3:20 PM on May 3, 2008 (10 comments)

What is the first question people ask when you tell them what you do? Are there common misconceptions or generalizations that people make? How do you tactfully and/or humorously correct them?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by iamkimiam at 9:02 AM on April 28, 2008 (155 comments)

This bouncy little number is from my band's new, self-released record. It opens with bassoon, bass clarinet and contra alto. There are more like it here and there.
posted to MeFi Music by foole at 8:03 PM on April 17, 2008 (12 comments)

Unscrew America!! Flash 9 Activism designed to promote interest/activity in replacing regular old incandescent lightbulbs with energy-efficient CFL and LED bulbs.
posted to MetaFilter by psmealey at 8:50 AM on April 22, 2008 (68 comments)

How can I convince my wife that living in a Yurt would be fun while I'm in medical school?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by stuboo at 2:17 PM on April 21, 2008 (37 comments)

Free Ambient Rain/Storm Recordings To Use As Working Whitenoise?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by chrisalbon at 4:47 PM on April 20, 2008 (14 comments)

I've spent the last few days conducting a comprehensive review, and constructing an annotated index, of the use of variations of the phrase "hurf durf" on Metafilter. The index covers 357 separate comments (and 10 posts) on various parts of the site, in chronological order.
posted to MetaFilter Projects by cortex at 1:49 PM on April 20, 2008

A high school yearbook for the fictional Bristol County Secondary School in the fictional Staedtler, Ontario. Each student here is redrawn (and renamed) from my mother's actual 1968 high school yearbook. I've put the entire thing on Flickr, but it's also available as a physical book from the online shop of my newly-redesigned blog/website, which has all sorts of other comics, illustrations, fonts, and other goodies.
posted to MetaFilter Projects by Robot Johnny at 10:28 AM on April 14, 2008

Did your parents sing to or with you?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by arcadia at 2:47 PM on April 19, 2008 (88 comments)

"We Nathaniel Mulliken, Philip Russell, [and 32 other men], All of lawful age, and inhabitants of Lexington, in the County of Middlesex...do testify and declare, that on the nineteenth [of April] in the morning, being informed that...a body of regulars were marching from Boston towards Concord...and soon found that a large body of troops were marching towards us...whilst our backs were turned on the troops, we were fired on by them, and a number of our men were instantly killed and wounded..."^* Thus "the shot heard around the world" [video | 10:01] led American colonialists (eventually with the help of the French) on the path to founding a new nation [video | 54:04].
posted to MetaFilter by ericb at 11:41 AM on April 19, 2008 (42 comments)

Belomorkanal. The history of the canal between the White Sea and Leningrad, constructed using penal labour and opened 'in Stalin's name' in 1933.
From the International Institute of Social History's collections. Of related interest :- Photo Album Van Marken ('one of the first Dutch entrepreneurs who took care of the social welfare of his employees.'); the William Morris Archive; Zo d'Axa ('Adventurer, traveller, anti-militarist, individualist, satirist, journalist, founder of two of the most legendary French magazines of the 1890s'); Auguste Fabre's 'Les Sky Scratchers', an optimistic vision from the 1890s; Sylvain Maréchal, who 'proposed a new calendar replacing the names of the Saints with those of the "benefactors of humanity" '. More inside.
posted to MetaFilter by plep at 10:33 AM on October 2, 2003 (7 comments)

Where can I go for the awesomest stargazing possible?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by BuddhaInABucket at 3:31 PM on March 2, 2008 (39 comments)

Say you wanted to print a small chart of eternally and universally useful reference information on the back of your business card, so recipients would have a good incentive to carry it with them and refer to it often. What information would you choose?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by mthomps00 at 12:34 PM on February 15, 2008 (38 comments)

So, good day, and welcome to the Bob and Doug McKenzie FPP. How's it goin' eh? Like, I've got some back bacon fryin' up on the Coleman, a dozen donuts, a two-four, and our topic today is stuff on the internet relating to these two Canadian hoseheads. So, like, sit back, put a toque on, grab a beer, and enjoy!
posted to MetaFilter by not_on_display at 10:17 AM on February 8, 2008 (65 comments)

Solid Gold was a television show that ran from 1980 to 1988, on Saturdays, in the early evening, hosted by (among others) Dionne Warwick, Rick Dees, and Marilyn McCoo. It showcased snippets of the Top Ten popular songs of the week, accompanied and sometimes interpreted by the Solid Gold Dancers. This post is about them.
posted to MetaFilter by not_on_display at 9:42 PM on January 11, 2008 (69 comments)

What significant items have been irretrievably lost?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by MrBCID at 3:14 PM on January 8, 2008 (85 comments)

More banjo / fiddle stuff.
posted to MeFi Music by Baby_Balrog at 3:08 PM on January 4, 2008 (8 comments)

"What if I could get Neil Gaiman, our most fave author and fantasy writer, to help propose to my girlfriend?" A sweet tale of how Jason got Neil Gaiman to stage the proposal. (Video here. From Gravity Lens)
posted to MetaFilter by growabrain at 9:53 PM on December 9, 2007 (29 comments)

Baby porcupine eats a banana and has hiccups.
posted to MetaFilter by nickyskye at 8:35 AM on October 28, 2007 (55 comments)

What brilliant recurring events have you set up on your calendar app?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by electric_counterpoint at 8:44 AM on October 25, 2007 (34 comments)

Elizabeth "Grandma" Layton was coaxed by her sister at the age of 68 to take a blind contour drawing class in Ottawa, Kansas, in order to possibly help alleviate her 35-year bout with clinical depression. By the time of her death in 1993, her work (article includes quicktime link of Elizabeth discussing her work and photo gallery) had been shown in several museums, including the Smithsonian's National Museum of American Art, and celebrated as an honest depiction of aging, mental health, and feminist issues (google book link) in the US.
posted to MetaFilter by sleepy pete at 12:00 PM on October 4, 2007 (15 comments)