Late Night Leonids May Disappoint This years Leonid meteor shower may not be all that great, science tells us. And it peaks at 5am. more inside

Ferenc Puskas, The Galloping Major, has died at 79. He was one of the greatest footballers (youtube) of all time. Here's another obituary, with an audio link to Tom Finney paying tribute.

The reactable is a state-of-the-art multi-user electro-acoustic music instrument with a tabletop tangible user interface. Read: the coolest thing ever and I want one. (youtube vid)

Cats that bark; Dogs that meow? Brazilian student Cassia Aparecida de Souza, 18, claims her cat's offspring has been born with dog traits last Friday, three months after mating with a neighbour's dog in the Brazilian city of Passo Fundo. [...] And on a trans-species procreation note: Mythology expert, Candidate of historical sciences Alexander Guryev says that animal men were the result of buggery, sex contacts between men and animals, which were quite typical of the ancient epochs. The expert adds that many people believed that they descended from animals: Tibetans believed they descended from monkeys, Hindu believed that horses were their ancestors and people in Thailand thought they descended from the dog.

Why Thinking Matters Does thinking still make a difference to Americans? Don’t say "Yes" automatically. There are some very powerful indications that thinking has not only been devalued but is actually seen as a kind of nuisance.... From Robert Grudin's new book "American Vulgar."

White New Zealanders, have you ever stopped to ask yourself "Who am I?", "What is my identity?", "What defines who I am?", "What words and symbols do I feel comfortable associating with myself?". For White New Zealanders, those can be hard questions to answer sometimes. What is the basis of our identity? What does "Pakeha" mean? Does it just mean "White person living in New Zealand"? Anything else? Anything special about that anyway? What symbols do we have? What do we call ourselves?

Friedman Is Dead @ 94 Both a Revolutionary Economist and a Libertarian Campaginer, he advocated the decriminalzation of prostituion and drugs. He also worked towards the cessation of the draft in the 1970's more inside

Comics I Don't Understand - a site trying to figure out the funny. Look here for responses to strips people didn't "get".

Curious George: Why is my energy so fickle? My gas tank is empty, and I don't know why. more inside

Necro-Beastiality in the News A man is accused of having sex with the carcass of a deer that he found lying beside the road – but his lawyer denies that he committed bestiality, on the grounds that a dead deer isn't an animal any more. And while on the topic of neco-beastiality: http://www.metro.co.uk/weird/article.html?in_article_id=22746&in_page_id=2

The view from your window

RIP VHS 1976-2006

Girls read comics (and they're pissed). Someone's working on improving female depictions in comic books. Hoo-bloody-ray!

It’s all one big happy circle of misogyny! Feminist criticism and activism seeks to break the cycle, raise awareness, and promote the idea that human females are real people, not f**kholes and baby machines. This extends to their fictional representation in anything, including comics.

Karen Healey is the "shrill harpy" who is working to change the industry.

Curious George: The Dish that Passeth Understanding What does everybody know you're bringing this year? more inside

Aging: These days, we're bigger, smarter, and living longer. Aging isn't just about your genes. It's also about things like diet. And as the cliche goes, You're only as old as you think you are. Take a quiz to determine your life expectancy. If you're unhappy with the result, get some tips from 100-year-olds on how to live longer.

Conservation: Technology would heat mansion using energy from waste pipes How many toilet flushes does it take to power a light bulb? Salt Lake City is embarking on a pilot project that would heat and cool a private business by using water warmed and chilled by a sewer line.

My Half-Year of Hell With Christian Fundamentalists. So, you're a Polish exchange student. Here's what greets you when you step off the plane: 'Child, our Lord sent you half-way around the world to bring you to us.'

RIP ODB Russell Tyrone Jones (November 15, 1968 – November 13, 2004). It would be his Birthday today. more inside

New Island in Tonga as seen by satellite. Also seen at sea level by a passing yacht. more inside

UC Berkeley Study Finds Web only 1% Pronography more inside