Tuesday, February 24, 2009

Whoopee! The sounds of flatulence

I've frequently questioned some members of the scientific community in as far as their knack to acquire funding for - um - unusual experiments or studies. This one stinks - really!

An acoustics professor from the University of Salford is asking the public to rate the funniness of whoopee cushion sounds in order to advance human understanding of faux flatulence - and raise money for Comic Relief.

The professor, Trevor Cox, designed a website that features twenty whoopee cushion sounds. Each visitor hears six of these sounds, and is asked to grade them accord to the extent they make them laugh.

Okaaaaaay... Personally, I don't find flatulence amusing but then perhaps I'm in the minority.
I mean - c'mon - gimme a break! Like - who cares and more to the point, how much did the good professor receive for his study.

Here is the site the professor set up to listen to the sounds first-hand and if you feel so moved, vote: http://www.salford.ac.uk/news/details/831

Why anyone would be interested in studying this subject is also a good question.

Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Female commuter flips out after missing plane - all on YouTube

These days a person really has to be careful what one does in public. Given the common usage of cell phones that can double as TV cameras, even an innocent action for example, like scratching an itch in a private part of the body or cleaning one's nose in public can become fodder for the world to see.


Take the case of a woman at the HongKong airport who "lost it" after missing her plane, now a big hit on YouTube with a registered 465,000 hits.

The video begins with the female passenger heading for the airport departure gate and pushing a female security guard in a frazzled attempt to make her flight. Upon the realization that she won't, the female begins banging on the desk, collapses on the floor, writhing and moaning in a high-pitched voice.


The woman was travelling on a Cathay Pacific flight to San Francisco on February 4, a Cathay spokeswoman said. In the end she took a later flight to Los Angeles.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xbVw7entkxg

Monday, February 02, 2009

Snow joke - grandfather trucks snow to grandkids

At this point in the winter, most people living in the snow belt I'm sure, would gladly help out and make personal donations to help this man.

An Indiana man filled his pickup truck with snow and drove more than 700 miles to metro Atlanta just so his grandchildren could make a snowman.

Randi Dyer of Lawrenceville, Georgia, said her father loaded up his Chevy long-bed pickup with the white stuff and made the nine-hour trip to surprise his two granddaughters. But it wasn’t just the kids who got a kick out of seeing snow.

“I’ve been complaining all winter about not having snow,” said Dyer. She said her daughters, Bradleigh and Rileigh Graham, spent all morning building a snowman.

“My neighbors have been stopping to take pictures and wondering how we got snow in our yard,” said Dyer.

Initially, Dyer said her father, who was headed to Florida on a business trip, thought about filling up a cooler with snow.

“But Dad decided to take the truck and fill it completely with snow,” said Dyer. “Still, there’s nothing better than Indiana snow,” she said.

As a Canadian, may I state for the record that our snow is quality stuff, which unfortunately is available five months of the year. Perhaps this would be an interesting alternative or at least an addition to clearing the snow: offering residents living in the south the opportunity to come fill their trucks or whatever with snow. Free!

No mention of which state(s) he passed through but it's amazing that the snow didn't melt along the way.