Mathematics for Monkeys If you thought (or think) mathematics is boring; for mathematicians to ponder over; useless, then Cut The Knot wants you as its visitor.

Got change for a million? Georgia woman tries to pass a counterfeit $1 million bill at Wal-Mart for $1675 worth of merchandise.

The Jim Crow Museum of Racist Memorabilia

The 2004 World Clown Association Convention , "Up, Up & Away", opened today in Albuquerque. It's got a terrific schedule schedule (PDF), so if you're in the area why not go along? more inside

" it was against the law for any company to sell or market any unapproved diagnostic test." Farmers cannot legally rapid test their own cattle for Mad Cow disease in the US.

Researchers reverse effects of sterilising cancer treatment in women Women who previously were made sterile by chemotherapy or other cancer treatments may still be able to have children later by removing ovarian tissue before treatment, freezing it and later implanting it under the skin. Sounds awful, but this has amazing potential.

The Grittiest Job
Images and context of America's coal miners. Especially worth visitng and moving are the images of the 'breaker boys' and other children who worked in the mines.

'Street Justice'? Last night in a NHL game between the Colorado Avalanche and the Vancouver Canucks, Vancouver forward Todd Bertuzzi completely sucker punched and tackled Colorado rookie Steve Moore This resulted in Moore being taken off the ice on a stretcher with a severe concussion and a fractured neck. Vancouver Police are now investigating the incident more inside

lowbright. Comics to make love to. (Formerly small stories) more inside

Thomas Sowell On Gay Marriage I laughed my ass off when I read this. I have read Sowell's columns for a longtime. Man, the guy has written some nutty things in the past about the civil rights era. more inside

Someone took his camera phone to the first test rounds for the Darpa Grand Challenge . The challenge is to built an unmanned vehicle which has to find it's way through an unknown course from LA to Las Vegas. In the first test only two from the 6 challengers even made it past the start line and none of them made it to the finish. And this was only a simple obstacle course, in the real challenge the vehicles have to find their way past swamps, train tracks and populated areas. I hope they have a good insurance. Wired News also has a story but it lacks the nice pics of a crashing robotized Honda Acura.

Introducing Sloops "A unique loopless 5 pocket blue jean (patent pending). Designed by a suspender wearer to compliment and fit the physique of the typical suspender wearer: no hips, no rear end."

Stop Nader I know we've talked about this before, but a new poll shows that Nader has 3% of registered voters, and of course all of his support comes at the expense of Kerry. Please, for the love of God, what can we do to avoid a 2000 disaster?

Curious George: What do you call this kind of verse? Is there a general term for songs like "The 12 Days of Christmas" and poems like "The House That Jack Built", where each verse builds on the last? It seems like there should be some obvious answer, but I've asked a wide range of people (including a Ph.D. musicology student) and nobody seems to know.

odds of god "A scientist has calculated that there is a 67% chance that God exists."

"The trouble with Enron is that there weren't any grown-ups." A paean to, and an elegy for, the disappearing adult complete with serious hat, and commentary on the rise of perpetual adolescence (courtesy of the Weekly Standard via A&L Daily)

CNN is reporting that Zimbabwe has taken into custody "mercenaries" from a U.S. registered plane. NPR reported this morning that Zimbabwe state media has described the mercenaries as "strongly built, white men", although the prisoners have not actually been seen by journalists. No weapons were found on the plane other than knives.

If I were a man, I'd get a tattoo. But I'm not, so I'll have to settle for one of these.

Fetid Farmer Forcibly Freshened. Kenyan John Kasokong had not bathed for a decade. His stench so overpoweringly toxic, villagers took violent action with soap and a rope. Quonsar is next. Millions rejoice.

Our own moonbird has finally launched Queermeta. Now I don't have to feel so guilty for queering up MoFi.