Want to see a crocheted illustration of the importance of reducing the R-value? Norwegian biostatistician Kathrine Frey Frøslie explains in this 4-minute video.
posted to MetaFilter by Quietgal at 7:14 PM on December 3, 2020 (19 comments)

In 2017, a 29 year-old woman in Mexico City was given an MRI while undergoing an exorcism. Then things got weird: 8 out of 13 participants (61.53%) [in the research] had accidents and sudden events that put their lives in danger. [pdf paper] via Tom Whitwell's annual list
posted to MetaFilter by gottabefunky at 12:04 PM on December 1, 2020 (46 comments)

Do Rats Have Orgasms?
posted to MetaFilter by BadgerDoctor at 3:47 PM on December 2, 2020 (39 comments)

What Is the Sound of Thought? (The MIT Press Reader): Why do we include the sounds of words in our thoughts when we think without speaking? Are they just an illusion induced by our memory of overt speech? Related: That Little Voice in Your Head, If You Have It, May Be Aligning Your Thoughts (Neuroscience News)
posted to MetaFilter by not_the_water at 8:38 AM on December 2, 2020 (56 comments)

You looking for Platonic solids? Maybe some versi-regular polyhedra? How about some regular hexagonal toroidal solids? We've even got self-intersecting quasi-quasi-regular duals, though we can't legally insure those.

We got all this and more down at dmccooey's visual polyhedra site, your one-stop shopping destination for HTML5 polyhedral renderings.
posted to MetaFilter by cortex at 9:48 AM on December 1, 2020 (27 comments)

Seven out of 50 video clusters the researchers identified are deemed "situational" music. This designation doesn't operate under the standard concept of genres but rather the context in which the music takes place. This includes relaxation music like "Ambient/Chillout," "Sounds of Nature," and the ASMR-affiliated "Hair Dryer Sound." The paper concludes that situational music, sometimes deemed trivial by musicologists, is growing in popularity. They also found a cluster of "Ethiopia/South Sudan Music," suggesting the context of a local scene comparable to '80s Japanese ambient music. 2800 words from Catherine Sinow on YouTubecore for Ars Technica.
posted to MetaFilter by cgc373 at 8:18 AM on November 30, 2020 (23 comments)

94 years ago in May, the Supreme Court of the United States handed down its 1927 pro-eugenics 8–1 decision Buck v. Bell, which found that, if it is in the compelling interests of the state, governments may involuntary sterilize “unfit” people who “sap the strength of the State”—that this is in keeping with the United States Constitution and other United States law. The SCOTUS ruling would be cited at the Nuremburg Tribunals by a fugitive Nazi party official charged with war crimes in his defense. It has never been overturned.
posted to MetaFilter by XMLicious at 11:23 AM on November 30, 2020 (17 comments)

From the Adult Swim Festival 2020, a remarkable performance by saxophone player Colin Stetson, which includes two unreleased tracks, "The love it took to leave you" and "Strike your forge and grin."
posted to MetaFilter by yasaman at 1:59 PM on November 30, 2020 (27 comments)

Italian singer Adriano Celentano released a song in the 70s with nonsense lyrics meant to sound like American English, apparently to prove Italians would like any English song. It was a hit, and resulted in this: THE GREATEST VIDEO I HAVE EVER SEEN.
posted to MetaFilter by Ahmad Khani at 7:23 PM on November 27, 2020 (79 comments)

With the finale of The Great British Bake-Off Baking Show having been aired, one might wonder what it was like inside The Bubble that made the show possible? Vanity Fair has a lengthy article from September. Likewise The Guardian. Metro.co.uk has an article from just last week. No spoilers, but for me this was one of the best finales ever.
posted to MetaFilter by hippybear at 7:51 PM on November 27, 2020 (29 comments)

Rise of the Nazis [Ep. 1, 2, 3] - "In 1930 Germany was a liberal democracy. Just four years later democracy is dead, Germany's leader is a dictator and its government is in the hands of murderers. This series tells the story of how this happened. Leading historians and experts get inside the heads of some of the key players, whose political plotting, miscalculations and personal ambitions helped to destroy democracy and deliver control to Hitler." (via; BBC; previously)
posted to MetaFilter by kliuless at 11:27 PM on November 27, 2020 (43 comments)

On Twitter, Terri Nelson noted the proliferation of complaints on Yankee Candle's website about the lack of scent in their scented candles. Kate Petrova responded (Threadreader version) with a tweet thread analyzing Amazon reviews for scented candles before and during the pandemic, and the results are interesting (and very easy to understand).
posted to MetaFilter by ardgedee at 3:56 AM on November 28, 2020 (90 comments)

However it's spelled, it's a famously versatile ingredient - or even a dish on its own!
posted to MetaFilter by Greg_Ace at 7:25 PM on November 28, 2020 (94 comments)

Google as people · Google as equipment · Google as connections · Google as a physical space · Google as an interface · Google as codes · children 10–14 draw their conceptions of Google (alt link)
posted to MetaFilter by XMLicious at 8:39 AM on November 29, 2020 (7 comments)

AlphaFold: a solution to a 50-year-old grand challenge in biology : "This will change medicine. It will change research. It will change bioengineering. It will change everything"
posted to MetaFilter by gwint at 8:55 AM on November 30, 2020 (38 comments)

From artist Maeve Travis, a lovely fan-made graphic novel adaptation of a collaborative short story posted on tumblr, for the prompt "Temples are built for gods. Knowing this a farmer builds a small temple to see what kind of god turns up."
posted to MetaFilter by yasaman at 11:45 AM on November 29, 2020 (14 comments)

RUSSIAN CYBERPUNK FARM // РУССКАЯ КИБЕРДЕРЕВНЯ They say that Russia is a technically backward country, there are no roads, robotics do not develop, rockets do not fly, and mail goes too long. It’s a bullshit. (SLYT satire from birchpunk)
posted to MetaFilter by storybored at 7:42 AM on November 29, 2020 (13 comments)

Versatile building blocks make structures with surprising mechanical properties - "The subunits could be robotically assembled to produce large, complex objects, including cars, robots, or wind turbine blades."
posted to MetaFilter by kliuless at 8:08 AM on November 26, 2020 (7 comments)

DJ Cummerbund: A purveyor of cursed, powerful mashups such as The Devil Wap Down to Georgia and Play That Funky Music Rammstein (2020 Webby Award). Come for songs that you may not know how to feel about individually yet are strangely compelling when bound together, stay for the restrained yet hilarious video editing and persistently recurring Macho Man.
posted to MetaFilter by automatic cabinet at 11:07 AM on November 26, 2020 (18 comments)

A week long series of comics about the internet hellscape.
posted to MetaFilter by macrael at 3:01 PM on November 24, 2020 (10 comments)

We must not attempt to exercise power we simply don’t have,” declared Van Langevelde, a member of Michigan’s board of state canvassers
posted to MetaFilter by gt2 at 5:36 AM on November 25, 2020 (46 comments)

The Polish-born Romantic-era composer Frédéric Chopin, who lived most of his adult life in exile while the country was partitioned and incorporated Polish folk motifs into his compositions, is a national cultural icon in his country of birth, giving his name to a prestigious music competition, several festivals, Warsaw's international airport and a video game reimagining him as a supercool rock star saving the world, among other things. Now, a radio programme aired on the Swiss public broadcaster SRF reveals ardent letters Chopin wrote to male companions, suggesting that he may not have been, as previously assumed, heterosexual.
posted to MetaFilter by acb at 5:27 PM on November 25, 2020 (13 comments)

A lovely paper animation
posted to MetaFilter by 5_13_23_42_69_666 at 1:18 AM on November 26, 2020 (5 comments)

Midwest Nurses Say Their Hospitals Are On The Verge Of Collapsing — And Leaders Aren’t Listening. For Tammy Tate, a nurse at a Missouri hospital, this wave is like watching a train about to crash, knowing that it could be stopped in time — if people would listen.
posted to MetaFilter by supercrayon at 9:09 AM on November 26, 2020 (43 comments)

Which optical illusions can animals see? "Visual illusions remind us that we are not passive decoders of reality but active interpreters. Our eyes capture information from the environment, but our brain can play tricks on us. Perception doesn’t always match reality. Scientists have used illusions for decades to explore the psychological and cognitive processes that underlie human visual perception. More recently, evidence is emerging that suggests many animals, like us, can perceive and create a range of visual illusions."
posted to MetaFilter by dhruva at 12:27 PM on November 26, 2020 (8 comments)

Infinite Bad Guy Using machine learning the YouTube team has analyzed all the covers of Billie Eilish's Bad Guy and aligned them to within a quarter beat of each other, allowing you to seamlessly move between cover versions while the song plays continuously.
posted to MetaFilter by GuyZero at 2:39 PM on November 25, 2020 (8 comments)

David’s Dad’s Movie is a heartwarming comic by comedian and artist Doogie Horner about a little boy whose curiosity about his dad’s favorite violent R-rated sci-fi action movie gets the better of him.
posted to MetaFilter by chinese_fashion at 9:14 AM on November 25, 2020 (25 comments)

Bill McKibben first wants to establish: I Do Not Have A Cow In This Fight. McKibben then takes us on a short tour, the pros and cons of how we grow and eat meat, and what it costs us.
posted to MetaFilter by dancestoblue at 11:24 AM on November 25, 2020 (9 comments)

Herald of the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, Nov 21st marked the 30th anniversary of Super Mario World.
posted to MetaFilter by Zargon X at 2:45 PM on November 25, 2020 (13 comments)

Today was the release date of Ready Player Two, Ernest Cline's sequel to Ready Player One. Reactions have been strong. Without having read it, one can only say that, well, these are certainly excerpts of a book that exists (live tweeting by Jacob Mercy). But there are of course now fake excerpts that would pretty much pass.
posted to MetaFilter by Countess Elena at 2:34 PM on November 24, 2020 (171 comments)

Hot on each other's heels, an umbrella review from Cooperative Research Centre for Living with Autism (based in Australia) and a meta-analysis from Boston University have flagged a range of concerns.
posted to MetaFilter by bixfrankonis at 2:56 PM on November 24, 2020 (12 comments)

Courtesy Griffin McElroy and the game Fuser, an extremely cursèd DJ set: lofi smash mouth radio - beats to relax/study to
posted to MetaFilter by yasaman at 7:11 PM on November 24, 2020 (22 comments)

When you woke up today, you probably didn't expect to read a deep dive on the coloring and recoloring of Garfield comics by cartoonist David Malki. But here it is anyway.
posted to MetaFilter by theodolite at 7:46 AM on November 24, 2020 (13 comments)

The BBC Motion Graphics Archive is a showcase of the history and development of motion graphics across the BBC and includes examples of opening titles, promotion trailers, stings, idents and programme content sequences.
posted to MetaFilter by Grangousier at 12:42 AM on November 20, 2020 (12 comments)

“Sweetie, you got potential. You don’t have to worry about these girls, Fi. Come sit with me at my table.”—Shameika Stepney recounts the advice she gave a young Fiona Apple
posted to MetaFilter by komara at 10:44 AM on November 20, 2020 (15 comments)

Did you know you can use a browser window as a basic scratch pad/text editor with one simple command? Wait, you didn't? In that case, Serge Zaitsev shows you how.
posted to MetaFilter by carter at 11:35 AM on November 20, 2020 (29 comments)

"There are situations in which there is no common ground worth standing on, let alone hiking over to."
posted to MetaFilter by ichomp at 2:32 PM on November 21, 2020 (155 comments)

The Donald John Trump Presidential Library An excellent satire that expertly melds truth, the whole truth, and a great sense of humour.
posted to MetaFilter by parmanparman at 8:07 AM on November 12, 2020 (44 comments)

Sociologist Jessica Calarco about her recent research on mothers grappling with parenting, partners, anxiety, work, and feelings of failure during the pandemic. [***Content Warning*** description of sexual assault and coerced pregnancy ] The corona virus has illuminated the structural inequities that women face. Women are carrying the weight and dealing with the fall-out. Real help is needed...now. (found via Kottke)
posted to MetaFilter by zerobyproxy at 10:41 AM on November 12, 2020 (17 comments)

It's a stressful time. Perhaps you'd like to watch a sunflower being born (83 days timelapsed into 2mins 20seconds)
posted to MetaFilter by gwint at 10:52 AM on November 12, 2020 (23 comments)

Why is there a cluster of tall buildings in London?
posted to MetaFilter by Stark at 3:40 AM on November 10, 2020 (29 comments)

Introducing Joe Biden, The 46th President of the United States MSNBC Says Biden is President Elect Saturday morning
NYTimes calls it for Biden
posted to MetaFilter by MiltonRandKalman at 8:40 AM on November 7, 2020 (1374 comments)

You’re Probably Butchering These Hard-to-Pronounce American City Names
posted to MetaFilter by supercrayon at 2:13 PM on November 5, 2020 (186 comments)

Meet Wilbur, the New Mayor of Rabbit Hash KY Wilbur received 13,143 votes, the highest winning total ever. Overall, there were 22,985 votes, the highest total ever for a Rabbit Hash election, according to the Rabbit Hash Historical Society. Rabbit Hash has a population of under 500 people. Organizers claim to run the "only honest election in the country." The town trades votes for cash in the mayoral election that traditionally goes to the dogs.
posted to MetaFilter by pjsky at 12:08 PM on November 5, 2020 (5 comments)

The US election was November 3rd. It’s a tense, fraught time, and we want to help everyone have the healthiest and safest time possible. (We're updating this post with a link to the current thread)
posted to MetaTalk by restless_nomad at 10:15 AM on November 2, 2020 (78 comments)

Deep State, Deep Church: How QAnon and Trumpism Have Infected the Catholic Church by Kathryn Joyce [Vanity Fair]
posted to MetaFilter by chavenet at 8:10 AM on November 1, 2020 (45 comments)

Seattle-based collective Polyrhythmics specializes in a flavorful blend of progressive funk, psychedelic rock, and modern afro-beat. As Troy Nelson explains in this week’s episode of Live on KEXP, it’s music for the "heads.” Their songs take time to unravel, rewarding patient listeners with a lush and intricate experience that defies the current song trends for something more gratifying. When the world is a whirlwind, don’t forget– take the time to let something develop. [about 30 minutes]
posted to MetaFilter by hippybear at 7:39 PM on October 27, 2020 (6 comments)

What could make you walk miles across a landscape full of Ice Age predators, all alone except for the toddler you’re carrying? Archaeologists recently discovered a long trail of footprints left behind by someone brave enough—or desperate enough—to undertake the journey. A typical teenager’s stroll: Carrying a baby and dodging mammoths [Ars Technica]
posted to MetaFilter by chavenet at 7:12 AM on October 27, 2020 (9 comments)

“I had this idea for a video game.”
Soft spoken YouTuber The CrafsMan describes the plot of his conceptual Aliens vs. Shovels video game No-Dig Bill.
posted to MetaFilter by Atom Eyes at 1:43 AM on October 24, 2020 (12 comments)

The Washington Post has a map showing early voting compared to 2016 early voting and 2016 total votes: The U.S. has hit 133% of total 2016 early voting.
posted to MetaFilter by kristi at 4:12 PM on October 26, 2020 (141 comments)