HOMERUN!!!
By applying an old theory that has been used to explain water flow through soil and the spread of forest fires, researchers may have an answer to a perplexing ecological and evolutionary problem: why locusts switch from an innocuous, solitary lifestyle to form massive swarms that can devastate crops and strip fields bare.

It Can Disrupt Our Biological Clock
Indulgence in a high-fat diet can not only lead to overweight because of excessive calorie intake, but also can affect the balance of circadian rhythms – everyone’s 24-hour biological clock, Hebrew University of Jerusalem researchers have shown.

New improved ways to preserve our Organs for Transplants
Chemists in Canada have developed a new approach for producing more effective medical antifreeze fluids for preserving kidneys, hearts, and other organs donated for transplantation. These next-generation antifreezes can decrease damage to organs caused by ice crystals, and thus prolong the time a donated organ will remain [...]

 
Communicating with submarines under the surface of the water has always been tricky. How do you stay in contact without having to surface? The Navy believes that a form of text messaging may be the answer.

 
Believe it or not, moods are contagious and spread like ripples through friends, according to a new research.

 
A microscopic bio-sensor that detects Salmonella bacteria in lab tests has been developed by an agricultural scientist.

 
The emerging field of nutrigenomics, which aims to identify the genetic factors that influence the body’s response to diet and studies how the bioactive constituents of food affect gene expression, is explored in a series of provocative, interdisciplinary reports and analyses in the December 2008 Special Issue (Volume 12, number 4) of OMICS: A Journal [...]

 
 Times Square Ball
Last year, the Times Square Ball got an LED makeover for its 100th anniversary. This year that tradition continues, all 32,256 Philips Luxeon Rebel LEDs of it (and don’t forget the 2,668 Waterford crystals). The 12-foot-wide, 11,875-pound ball is capable of displaying “16 million vibrant colors and billions of patterns” – did you [...]

Tiny Abode

MIT researchers have built a tiny microhabitat to study the food chain of marine microbes. The microbial ecosystem is about the size of a piece of chewing gum, or microscope slide. From the MIT News Office:
The MIT study is one of the first detailed explorations of how sea creatures so small — 500,000 can [...]

Oh Give Me A Home Where The Carniverous Plush Animals Roam…

 
If you’re sick of all the cute, sweet plushies out there, then these great toys are for you. They’re by artist Patricia Waller who has a ton of other awesome designs as well. These specific toys belong to her “Accident” series and the “How to [...]

Uncle Jay at his best
It’s been a whole year since Uncle Jay has sung an entire episode, and here’s the reminder why! It’s the year-end review of the news, and maybe it’ll seem a little better with music. Second video after the jump.

 
When You Just Cant Get Enough
You know, so many people just love flying so much that they don’t want to get off the plane when they land. The cramped space! The rude people! The dry air! The terrible food! So it only makes sense that someone would make a hotel out of a jumbo jet, [...]

 
It may be a good idea but its still freaky to have a toilet smarter than you are
Toilets are now getting even more sophisticated. Going way beyond that car wash for your butt we tried out with considerable delight, this brainy crapper is an update of Toto’s 2005 “intelligence toilet.” This one measures urine temperature, [...]

Is It Really Worth The Price?
If you haven’t heard of Eazo, a Chinese purveyor of luxury computers, then you probably enjoy keeping your money where it is. That’s because a custom, top-of-the-line PC from the company can cost $10,000, and supposedly upwards of $50,000. So how do you get people to pay prices like that?

 
Do you have a positive or negative reaction when visiting your family for the holidays? A new study shows that seeing or spending time with your family can trigger activity in your brain that affects how you feel about them.

 Some days are like this
Its much more fun to laugh at other people’s misery. Second crazy video after the jump.
 

 
South Korea’s LG Electronics unveiled what it described as the world’s first watch-shaped mobile video phone.

 
 
For risk-takers and impulsive people, New Year’s resolutions often include being more careful, spending more frugally and cutting back on dangerous behavior, such as drug use. But new research from Vanderbilt finds that these individuals–labeled as novelty seekers by psychologists–face an uphill battle in keeping their New Year’s resolutions due to the way their brains [...]

Harp Chair
This is a massage chair, but a massage chair completely unlike those that they feature in the doorway of Brookstone stores in the mall to lure you inside. No, this one is made of wood, and it has a giant harp on the back. Yep, it gives you a harp-based acoustic massage.

 
Vent-Miser 
Having central heating is easy and convenient, but not very cost effective. For one thing, you’re heating rooms that are not in use. Most homes do not need every single room to be the same temperature. hat’s where this device comes in handy. The Vent-Miser Programmable Energy Saving Vent saves you money by controlling individual [...]

 
You and I may be facing an economic collapse, but one Russian professor is having the time of his life. For over a decade, Russian academic Igor Panarin had been predicing the US to fall apart and most people ignored him … until now. He’s been the darling of Russia’s news media with his dire [...]

Ode to Joy
Terrific musical Muppet performance. Second video after the jump.
 

 
Fighting the bonds of obesity
Obesity surgery can reverse diabetes in teens, just as it does in adults, according to a small study. All but one of the 11 extremely obese teens studied saw their diabetes disappear within a year after weight-loss surgery, the researchers reported. The 11th patient still had diabetes, but needed much less [...]

Cracking the $100 barrier for iPhones
I was among the many who was hoping that the rumor that Walmart would be selling a $99 iPhone 3G was accurate. As it turned out Walmart did in fact get the iPhone 3G, but the price was only slightly less than other iPhone retailers.

 
 
Need another reason to add “Quit Smoking” to your New Year’s resolutions list? How about the fact that even if you choose to smoke outside of your home or only smoke in your home when your children are not there – thinking that you’re keeping them away from second-hand smoke – you’re still exposing them [...]