Feb 17 2009 I Need A Rx!: Pill May Help Erase Memories
Finally, doctors are developing a pill that can help erase bad memories. Yes! Take two and forget to call me in the morning.
The method, using existing blood pressure pills, could be useful for weakening or erasing bad memories in people with post-traumatic stress disorder, the researchers say.
Some ethicists see problems, question whether such treatments begin to alter what it means to be human.There's apparently a natural way to rid yourself of bad memories, too. A 2007 study involving brain scans found that test subjects had the ability to suppress specific memories at a particular moment in time through repeated practice.
First of all, is ethicist a paying position? I may want to apply. Secondly, there's an even more natural way of erasing memories -- it's called binge drinking. Unfortunately, it hasn't been working for me lately. So, let's get down to the brass tacks: how many pills do I need to erase nine years?
Pill May Be Able to Erase Bad Memories [aolnews]
Thanks to Dave, who's still trying to forget about the girl he woke up next to. Dave, that's your wife, man.
Jan 29 2009 Unhappy Virgin Airways Passenger Writes Richard Branson Complaint Letter About Meal
A Virgin Airways passenger, thoroughly upset with the meal and service during a flight, took matters into his own hand, and wrote Sir Richard Branson a personal complaint letter about the experience. An exerpt:
So lets peel back the tin-foil on the main dish and see what's on offer.
I'll try and explain how this felt. Imagine being a twelve year old boy Richard. Now imagine it's Christmas morning and you're sat their with your final present to open. It's a big one, and you know what it is. It's that Goodmans stereo you picked out the catalogue and wrote to Santa about.Only you open the present and it's not in there. It's your hamster Richard. It's your hamster in the box and it's not breathing. That's how I felt
I just read an article this morning that said the customer actually got a job offer by Virgin to be the food critic for potential in-flight meals. It's a fact: complaint letters really do make dreams come true. And also, Disney. I always wanted to puke on a roller coaster!
Hit the jump to read the whole, lengthy letter, including reference pictures. It's basically the same thing I would have done, except with less cussing and threatening "to open a whole bag of airplane peanuts on that ass".
Aug 6 2008 Man Proposes Using Google Earth Street View
Google recently set up some new Street Views near the Googleplex company headquarters in California. And Google employee Michael Weiss-Malik used the opportunity to re-propose to his girlfriend. That's why his sign says "Proposal 2.0" -- he had already given a traditional proposal and the woman said yes.
My original proposal was quiet and low-key. It was just some simple heart-felt words exchanged during a quiet night at home. And while Proposal 1.0 had plenty of sentiment, it was lacking in pizazz. So I did what any Silicon Valley geek would do: I decided to upgrade to "Proposal 2.0," a new improved online version. I proposed to Leslie from inside a Google Street View panorama.
Wow, Michael, that's probably the most romantic story I've ever heard. Well, minus the one about the guy that proposed with a handgun. I do like this whole Proposal 2.0 business though. I've even been inspired to do make one to my fiancée. Baby, if you're reading this:
Proposal 2.0 -- This effectively voids proposal 1.0
Woot, freedom!
Marriage Proposal in Street View! [gearthblog]
Thanks to "because nothing says true love like not even being physically present for your proposal" Craig.
Jul 16 2008 Oops: How Not To Use A Drive-Through ATM
This is how not to use a drive-through ATM. Now I hate to sound sexist or anything, but this is quite clearly a woman's doing. So what if the only people in the truck were a guy and his 10-year old son? His wife probably demanded some cash before allowing them to leave on their male-bonding camping trip. And you know what she was gonna use the money for while they were gone? Shoes. Shoes and, more than likely, a male stripper. Now do I know women or do I know women? I freaking know them like the back of my hand. See, there's the scar from when I cut myself opening a can of catfood, and there's the...wait a minute, I don't remember getting a "chauvinist asshole" tattoo.
Note: Thankfully, both the driver and his son escaped from the truck unharmed.
Thanks Kate and Jaybone, either one of you want to be towed behind my truck on an office chair? We could go through the drive through at Dairy Queen and get ice creams.
Apr 21 2008 Oh Man, That Would Suck: Time Lapse Of Man Trapped In An Elevator For 40 Hours
This actually took place in 1999 (old!), but the video has just recently surfaced via The New Yorker. It's a time lapse of Nicholas White stuck in an elevator in the McGraw-Hill building in New York for over 40 hours. White went outside for a cigarette, came back in, and chose the wrong damn elevator. I really think this video provides some serious insight into the human psyche. What insight that may be is a mystery to me. Maybe something about going apeshit in a confined space. Say, is he peeing down the crack of the open doors at 2:12?
New Yorker Article
Thanks to Andy, who was once stuck in an elevator for ten seconds before he punched through the wall got the hell out, for the tip
Feb 15 2008 Video: The Secret Life Of Cell Phones
This is a little CGI video of what your cell phone does when you're not around. Who would have thought that shit had aliens in it!? Not me. I mostly posted this video because it made me flashback to something similar that happened to me at a Cracker Barrel. There I was, tripping balls and trying my damndest to focus on the Country Ham Platter before me. But this particularly spry piece of ham kept trying to sneak his ass off the plate! I had to continually scold and stab him to keep him away from the edge. And even though I had my fork and knife on top of him he managed to dive to the floor when I was gone watching my face melt in the bathroom mirror.
UPDATE: Turns out that wasn't really a similar experience.
Unbelievable animation: close encounters of the desktop kind [dvice]
