October 10, 2008 | No Comments
Wow this weeks has flown by quicker than you can say, “F**k, it’s already Friday”, so of course it’s now time to put your feet up, pretend you’re reading an important document and listen to Swing Out Sister’s 1992 hit song “Am I The Same Girl?”
Have a good weekend, and remember, friends don’t cupcake friends.
October 10, 2008 | 2 Comments
I was pouring a stiff Jameson in the kitchen the other day when I saw a cockroach scurrying under the dishwasher. This freaked me out a little bit as I didn’t even know we had a dishwasher, and wondered if The Girlfriend had not done some redecorating again.
As it turned out, I had simply staggered into the wrong apartment and, upon entering The HQ, decided to read up on the cockroach and find out what they’re all about.
Cockroach: What Are You All About?
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Cockroaches (or simply “roaches”) are insects of the order Blattaria. This name derives from the Latin word for “cockroach”, blatta. There are about 4,000 species of cockroach of which 30 species are associated with human habitations and about four species are well known as pests, with the best-known species of course being the American cockroach. Cockroaches live in a wide range of environments around the world. Pest species of cockroaches adapt readily to a variety of environments, but prefer warm conditions found within buildings. Many tropical species prefer even warmer environments and do not fare well in the average household. The spines on the legs were earlier considered to be sensory, but observations of their locomotion on sand and wire meshes has demonstrated that they help in locomotion on difficult terrain. The structures have been used as inspiration for robotic legs. Cockroaches leave chemical trails in their feces as well as emitting airborne pheromones for swarming and mating. Other cockroaches will follow these trails to discover sources of food and water, and also discover where other cockroaches are hiding. Thus, cockroaches can exhibit emergent behavior, in which group or swarm behavior emerges from a simple set of individual interactions. Research has shown that group-based decision-making is responsible for complex behavior such as resource allocation. In a study where 50 cockroaches were placed in a dish with three shelters with a capacity for 40 insects in each, the insects arranged themselves in two shelters with 25 insects in each, leaving the third shelter empty. When the capacity of the shelters was increased to more than 40 insects per shelter, all of the cockroaches arranged themselves in one shelter. Researchers found a balance between cooperation and competition exists in group decision-making behavior found in cockroaches. The models used in this research can also explain the group dynamics of other insects and animals. Cockroaches are mainly nocturnal and will run away when exposed to light. A peculiar exception is the Asian cockroach, which is attracted to light. Another study tested the hypothesis that cockroaches use just two pieces of information to decide where to go under those conditions: how dark it is and how many of their friends are there. The study conducted by José Halloy and colleagues at the Free University of Brussels and other European institutions created a set of tiny robots that to the roaches appear to be other roaches and can thus alter the roaches’ perception of critical mass. The robots were also specially scented so that they would be accepted by the real roaches. [via Wikipedia] |
Hectic. Who knew cockroaches were so smart? That shelter vibe really impressed me.
Apparently they can also survive a nuclear explosion because of their exo-skeletons, which are nuclear bomb resistant.
So now you know.
October 10, 2008 | No Comments
YouTube - Taking A Closer Look.
So, I was f**king around on YouTube this evening, looking for a new Friday Feel Good Jam, when I noticed a couple of things.
Firstly, I wasn’t wearing any pants, which surprised me as I had just gone to Gardens Centre a few minutes earlier and never really picked up on this.
The other thing I realised though, is that YouTube seems to be quietly adding interesting little features to their website, like a young man slyly shaving his pubic hairs to make his balls look bigger to his seasoned lover. In this instance, YouTube have given their balls an enlarged appearance through the following:
Click To Buy / Download
You can now view certain music videos, trailers for games, and other shit of that nature, and then click to purchase it through iTunes or Amazon (there is a screenshot below so that you can see that I’m not lying.)
Screenshot: Because Shaun Doesn't Talk Shit.
Slim. Not slim as in “thin” though, I mean slim as in “clever”, it’s an Afrikaans word.
Audio Preview Of Comments
The other cool thing I noticed is that when you make a comment now, you can have it read back to you before submitting. This is great because you can then hear what it sounds like first which thus prevents you from writing something ignorant or chop-like. I suppose it’s a bit like the Mail Goggles which stops you sending drunk emails.
So now if you decide to comment on a video clip eg - The New Loud Rockets from Rocking The Daisies, there will be a button saying “Audio Preview”.
Anyhoo, just thought I’d share that. Oh yes, the other thing is that you should probably think about subscribing to the offical Shaun Oakes YouTube Channel, which will be packed full of amazing footage and never-before-seen videos, giving you more insight into the exciting and dangerous life I lead. Content will be added regularly, and you will be a fool to miss out on it. Seriously, you will kick yourself and may need to go on anti-depressants. That’s how bad you will feel.
Okay, that’s all we have time for tonight. Until next time, take care of yourself, aaaaaand each other.