Yes, haydesigner, I'm looking at you...

These two are true oreos!

An interesting and funny article about the "eephus":

Before they realized how effective the eephus could be, many batters regarded the pitch as an illegitimate offering -- a hurled insult. St. Louis third baseman Whitey Kurowski made a point of spitting tobacco juice at the ball as it floated past him. In 1943, Reds shortstop Eddie Miller caught an eephus and fired it back at Sewell. Though that particular eephus never reached the catcher's mitt, the umpire called it a strike.

Casey Stengel, then manager of the Boston Braves, took particular umbrage at the pitch. He once sent a rookie up to bat with instructions to hit from a kneeling position if Sewell threw him the blooper. The rookie grounded out on a ball hit deep into the hole at short, and the shortstop said that had the batter been standing, he probably would have been safe.

It actually is a shame that we do not see more like this...

to the Diamond Age

US readers of Esquire are soon to be exposed to the publishing industry's latest attempt at re-inventing itself: a magazine with a flashing cover.

The September issue of the magazine will have a tiny built-in battery, which will power a display on the cover that flashes the words 'the 21st Century Begins Now.'

The flashing cover was produced by Esquire in conjunction with E Ink, a Massachusetts company whose technology was used in the Kindle, the "e-reader" device made by Amazon. Esquire first had to hire an engineer in China who could build a battery small enough to be inserted in the cover

more

I have a fairly memorable surname, which, of course, caused a fair amount of teasing when growing up. But this kid's last name has to literally be hell for him.

More here...

As the lead exercise physiologist for the United States Olympic Committee, Randy Wilber has been fielding one bizarre question after another from American athletes training for the Beijing Games- looking for any possible competitive advantage.

Pollution levels on a typical day in Beijing, some researchers say, are nearly five times above World Health Organization standards for safety. The marathon world-record holder Haile Gebrselassie, who has allergies, and the world's No. 1 women's tennis player, Justine Henin, who has asthma, have expressed reservations about competing in the Olympics for fear that pollution will exacerbate their breathing problems.

Interestingly detailed article about all the risks & considerations for dealing with the acutely dangerous air quality. Including lifting bans on certain asthma- related drugs. Begs the question-- when breathing is of the utmost importance-- why the hell are we in Beijing?? We will likely see some athletes wearing protective masks DURING events (And not just during the 100m fiberglass insulation relay). OMG.

I have always been a bit of a space nut, but more so since an offspring has insisted for the past five years that she has a future at NASA.

Awesome image from EPOXI, the same craft from the Deep Impact mission.

The Watchmen trailer is now online, at Apple and elsewhere.

WOW. Just … WOW.

Looks phenomenal … I don’t expect it to be as good as the book — I just hope it doesn’t suck.

A hidden hoard of recordings made by the electronic music pioneer behind the Doctor Who theme has been revealed - including a dance track 20 years ahead of its time.

Delia Derbyshire was working in the BBC's Radiophonic Workshop in 1963 when she was given the score for a theme tune to a new science fiction series.

more via Auntie Beeb

There are some cool audio samples in the article. You go now.

There are reasons I live in Des Moines and the people are a large part of it. So when a neighborhood guy like Ed Boesen decides to take his own life it is a shock to the entire community. The Boesen family owns one of the largest family-run florist in the country and are an integral part of the Beaverdale neighborhood where they were all born and raised. The family, and Ed in particular, has given so much back to the community they love that his absence will be evident for many years. Ed lived around the corner and his brother Frank lives two doors down from me.

Ed married his high school sweetheart - she a cheerleader and he the football player. He also left four children, six siblings and his mother.

All suicides raise the same questions of why and Ed's case is no different. He always seemed like the happy-go-lucky kind of guy but we all know now that there were deeper issues we could not see. 43 years old is entirely too young.

R.I.P Ed

It is when I come across lines like these that I truly realize the internet does indeed make my world a better place:

Measurements compiled by Lawson and her colleagues show that a D-cup in a low-support bra can travel as much as 35 inches (89cm) up and down (35 inches!) during exercise, while a B-cup in a high-support bra barely moves an inch.

How could I not post this:

A Los Angeles woman claims she was injured by her Victoria's Secret thong, prompting her to sue the underwear manufacturer.

The plaintiff in the case, Macrida Patterson, 52, attributed the May 2007 injury to a Victoria's Secret "low-rise v-string,"