Estimated World Population to Pass 6,666,666,666 Today

The estimated population of the world will pass 6,666,666,666 today.
Estimated World Population to Pass 6,666,666,666 Today

Bruce Lee’s Top 7 Fundamentals for Getting Your Life in Shape

If you haven’t been living under a rock for the last 30 years I’m pretty sure you know who Bruce Lee was. If you have, then you may be interested to know that Lee was a very famous martial artist and actor who sparked the first big interest of Chinese martial arts in the West in the 60’s and 70’s. But besides being an awesome fighter and iconic figure Lee also had some very useful things to say about life.
Bruce Lee’s Top 7 Fundamentals for Getting Your Life in Shape

Mothers' day facts and figures

Mothers' day facts and figures from the ABS.
Mothers' day facts and figures

Stuff-onomics: Hidden Side of What You Own

“How little we actually need in order to be happy.“
This isn’t news. You knew that, and I did too. But why was it that I couldn’t part with those DVDs I will never watch again? Or, books I’ll never read? Or, clothing that I’ll never wear?
It is the stuff in our lives which we become attached to, because they give us a sense of self, a sense of identity. And by removing them, despite the clutter they cause in our inner space, it will feel as if someone is taking away our identity. It hurts the ego on a subconscious level.
Stuff-onomics: Hidden Side of What You Own

Myanmar Cyclone: Before and After

This weekend, Cyclone Nargis pounded the Southeast Asian country of Myanmar (aka Burma), killing an estimated 60,000 people thus far.
Myanmar Cyclone: Before and After

10 Essential Tools for Practical Travelers

Especially on a tight budget, you learn to be “self-contained” — you need to carry everything you might need, but you also need to keep it light and manageable.
10 Essential Tools for Practical Travelers

Six tips for getting yourself to do something you don't want to do

How many times each day do you try to work yourself up to tackle some undesirable task? If you’re like me – several.
Six tips for getting yourself to do something you don't want to do

What to Do When Windows Gets Really Messed Up

Even when Windows routinely gives you the Blue Screen of Death, all may not be lost. We'll show you how to restore both your data and your sanity.
What to Do When Windows Gets Really Messed Up

Why are Broken Bones Lethal to Horses?

After a four-race winning streak, Eight Belles galloped past the Kentucky Derby's finish line to snag second place. The glory was shattered as the racehorse collapsed on the track. She had broken bones in both front ankles — a lethal injury for a horse.
Why are Broken Bones Lethal to Horses?

13 More Things Your Auto Mechanic Won't Tell You

Real mechanics reveal more tips to help you avoid an auto-repair scam.
13 More Things Your Auto Mechanic Won't Tell You

Hey, Air Travelers: You Are Extremely Disgusting People

The Wall Street Journal has an article that we could barely finish about absolutely disgusting behavior that air travelers are exhibiting on airplanes. The article details the foul, rude and unsanitary things that you all are doing out of some sort of misguided aggression towards the airline.
Hey, Air Travelers: You Are Extremely Disgusting People

The Eternal Fascination of OK

All those who pose as experts in etymology tend to receive questions about certain popular words, with exotic slang and obscenities attracting the greatest attention. (The F-word is at the top of the list. Is it an acronym? No, it is not.) Beginning with my old post on copasetic, I tried to anticipate some such questions, and for a long time I have been wondering how to tell the story of OK, an object of undying interest. The excitement of this oft-repeated story has long since worn off, and only the thought that perhaps I can add nuance (as highbrows say) to the OK epic and thus partly avoid the otherwise inevitable triviality allows me to continue.
The Eternal Fascination of OK

Natural ways to take care of your teeth

Tea, vegetables and even cheese and chocolate (woo hoo!) can help
Most of us would go to the doctor if we had a silver-dollar-size infection on our foot. Now picture that infection in your mouth. That's gum disease.
Natural ways to take care of your teeth

Webby Nominees & 2008 Winners

With nearly 70 categories, Website entries make up the majority of Webby Awards Winners, Nominees and Honorees. Some are beautiful to look at and interact with. Others are a testament to usability and functionality. And a handful excel across the board. To be selected among the best is an incredible achievement worthy of praise -- and perhaps a little bragging.
Webby Nominees

Amazing Geological Oddities

From Death Valley to Southwest China....
Amazing Geological Oddities

Make Windows More Productive Without Installing a Thing

The most common complaint we get from Lifehacker readers in Windows IT lockdown is that the majority of our tips require installing third-party applications—which you can't do if you don't have the right permissions on your PC. If you don't have the rights to install software on your company-issued computer, there are still lots of ways you can make Windows a more productive place to work. Let's take a look at how you can maximize your computer productivity with keyboard shortcuts, desktop tweaks, search tricks and more—without installing a thing.
Make Windows More Productive Without Installing a Thing

50 Ways to Beat Walking Exercise Boredom

Even the most committed walkers will admit that, sometimes, putting one foot in front of the other can get a little boring, especially if you're covering the same old route or the same old piece of treadmill rubber day after day. Never fear -- boredom relief is here.
50 Ways to Beat Walking Exercise Boredom

Resurrect Images from My Web Browser Cache?

How to do that exactly depends on your browser.
Resurrect Images from My Web Browser Cache?

20 Things You Can Use Twice Before Tossing

From TipNut...
20 Things You Can Use Twice Before Tossing

How your computer keyboard is FIVE TIMES dirtier than your toilet seat

Computer keyboards can harbour more harmful bacteria than a lavatory seat, it has been claimed. Many users are at risk of becoming ill with stomach bugs, according to the consumer group Which?
How your computer keyboard is FIVE TIMES dirtier than your toilet seat

Boomerangs in space

On a recent visit to the International Space Station, Japanese astronaut Takao Doi brought paper boomerangs with him. They were given to him by world boomerang champion Yashuhiro Togai, who wondered whether the flying objects would work in low gravity. Turns out they worked perfectly. The Japan Aereospace Exploration Agency just posted the video.
Boomerangs in space

Eight psychological terms to help you strengthen your friendships.

Ancient philosophers and modern scientists agree: the most essential key to happiness is strong relationships with other people.
We all have many kind of relationships that contribute to our happiness, and one of the most important is our friendships. My happiness-project resolutions aimed at friendship include “Cut people slack,” “Show up,” “Make three friends,” “Bring people together,” “Remember birthdays,” “No gossip,” and “Say hello.”
Here are eight psychological terms and principles.
Eight psychological terms to help you strengthen your friendships.

10 Commandments for Dropping 10 Pounds & 10 Years

I don't diet. I don't count calories and rarely go hungry. In fact, my cholesterol numbers could win me awards. Oh, and I have been this way consistently since I made the change - eight years ago. Annoying? I know.
The thing is - it's so easy, its laughable.
10 Commandments for Dropping 10 Pounds & 10 Years

Microsoft Tries to Prevent Your Laptops From Getting Impounded

One of the things we discussed on the last Elite Tech News podcast was the newly acquired ability for border control agents to seize laptops, phones, cameras and other electronic devices that may contain material suitable for incriminating the owners. The general consensus of the panelists was that this was always an option for folks but it would rarely ever be exercised due to the fact that there really isn’t a whole lot anyone can do in searching a computer at the border in order to determine whether or not criminal activity was evidenced on it.
Microsoft Tries to Prevent Your Laptops From Getting Impounded

Mazda destroys 4,703 shiny new cars worth $100 million

Wall Street Journal reports that Mazda decided to destroy "approximately $100 million worth of factory-new automobiles" that had been shipped on a tanker that tilted on route to the US.
Mazda destroys 4,703 shiny new cars worth $100 million

Windows - How to Do Everything Faster

22 smarter, more efficient ways to make short work of common tech tasks--from reinstalling Windows to crushing spyware to setting up a Web site.
How to Do Everything Faster

(Really) Stunning Pictures and Photos

Photography is a very powerful medium and a very difficult craft. Excellent photos don’t only display some facts — they tell stories, awake feelings and manage to share with the audience the emotions a photographer experienced when clicking the shot button. Taking excellent pictures is damn hard as you need to find a perfect perspective and consider the perfect timing. To achieve brilliant photography you need practice and patience. However, it is worth it: the results can be truly stunning.
(Really) Stunning Pictures and Photos

Whiten Your Teeth the Natural Way

White teeth and strawberries may not sound like they go hand in hand, but it turns out the berries can actually lighten your smile.
Whiten Your Teeth the Natural Way

11 Tips for Better Tech Support

We’ve all been there. Something’s dreadfully wrong with your trusty computer - you can’t print, you can’t get on the web, you can’t play Bejeweled. For whatever reason, the problem is major enough to warrant one of the most desperate acts you can imagine - a phone call to tech support.
11 Tips for Better Tech Support

The Seven Deadly Sins of a Relationship

Here’s a simple list of tips:
spend time alone together;
appreciate each other;
be intimate often;
talk and share and give.

But just as important as what you should do is what you shouldn’t do — and I’m sure many of you have stepped into these pitfalls yourselves. If you can avoid these seven things, and focus instead on doing the four things above, you should have a strong relationship.
The Seven Deadly Sins of a Relationship

How We're Wrecking Our Feet With Every Step We Take

It took 4 million years of evolution to perfect the human foot. But we’re wrecking it with every step we take.
How We're Wrecking Our Feet With Every Step We Take

Here comes version 8.0 of AVG Anti-Virus Free!

Arguably the world’s most popular free anti-virus software, Grisoft’s AVG, has just been upgraded, set for free download from Friday, the 25th of April. We’re sure AVG’s servers are about to get hammered even harder as millions of AVG 7.5 users take advantage of the new version!
Here comes version 8.0 of AVG Anti-Virus Free!

Internet Activity, Australia, Dec 2007

The Internet Activity Survey (IAS) collects details on aspects of Internet access services provided by Internet Service Providers (ISPs) in Australia.
This release contains results from all ISPs operating in Australia as at 31 December 2007. For December quarter 2007 there were 421 operating ISPs contributing to the estimates.
Internet Activity, Australia, Dec 2007

ANZAC Facts and Figures

Over 1.5 million Australian men and women have served in eight major wars or conflicts during the twentieth century.
More than 100,000 people died in action, more than 200,000 were wounded and more than 30,000 were taken as prisoners of war.
ANZAC facts and figures from the ABS

How to Think Before Speaking

One of the most obvious and significant attributes to mankind is the ability to communicate through speech.
How to Think Before Speaking

US airport security retains right to search laptops

Frequent international flyers will be interested to hear that a US legal decision last week has confirmed that border security at their international airports have carte blanche to search people's laptops, without the need for any specific evidence of criminal activity.
US airport security retains right to search laptops

Why we tend to think that we should get what we deserve -- and deserve what we get

One of the most interesting and complicated issues within the study of happiness is the relationship between money and happiness. Although some folks seem content to say, “Money can’t buy happiness,” I think that relationship is a bit more complicated.
Why we tend to think that we should get what we deserve -- and deserve what we get

Duct tape saved Apollo 17 moonbuggy, while on the moon

The date was Dec. 11, 1972. Astronauts Gene Cernan and Jack Schmitt had just landed their lunar module Challenger in a beautiful mountain-ringed valley named Taurus-Littrow on the edge of the Sea of Serenity. (...)
Duct tape saved Apollo 17 moonbuggy, while on the moon

Haggling to Save Big Bucks

I love haggling — it’s second nature to me. If I’m buying bagged mulch at the garden center and some sacks have small puncture holes, I negotiate a discount because the sacks are damaged. I negotiate on everything. For one thing, I’m in the antiques business, and that forces you to learn haggling from day one.
Haggling to Save Big Bucks

You Can't Travel Back in Time, Scientists Say

The urge to hug a departed loved one again or prevent atrocities are among the compelling reasons that keep the notion of time travel alive in the minds of many.
While the idea makes for great fiction, some scientists now say traveling to the past is impossible.
You Can't Travel Back in Time, Scientists Say

How Anonymous Are You?

You may think that you are anonymous as you browse web sites, but pieces of information about you are always left behind. You can reduce the amount of information revealed about you by visiting legitimate sites, checking privacy policies, and minimizing the amount of personal information you provide.
How Anonymous Are You?

Coffee Makes You Dehydrated: Say What?

It has long been thought that coffee and other caffeine-containing beverages are dehydrating and don’t count toward your daily fluid intake. In fact, some go as far as recommending one cup of water for every cup of Joe you consume.
Coffee Makes You Dehydrated: Say What?

Social Networking Sites

Social networking sites have grown in popularity over the last few years, particularly among teenagers and young adults. These are often the populations that academic institutions reach out to for both recruitment and retention. It is not surprising, then, that academic libraries and librarians have joined the movement to include social networking sites in library marketing, outreach, instruction, and reference efforts.
Social networking sites

How To: Avoid Blind TinyURL Clickthroughs

If you're regularly sent TinyURLs but have been burned one too many times by clicking through to an embarrassing link at the wrong time, head to TinyURL's preview page and enable previews.
How To: Avoid Blind TinyURL Clickthroughs

Ten typographic mistakes everyone makes

Grammar nazis are so last century. Welcome, friends, to the brave new world of the typography nazi. Below are ten mistakes that everyone makes, an explanation of why each is wrong, and details on how to fix them. At least, you'll see how to fix them on the Mac; under Windows, you'll need to dig through tables of Alt characters.
Ten typographic mistakes everyone makes

Fancy meeting you here!

A German man survived a 25ft plunge down a lift shaft when he landed on a woman who had fallen down it a day before.
Fancy meeting you here!

More airports to use 'whole body imaging' machines

Some travelers at key airports in New York and Los Angeles may be put through machines that see through clothing and provide a detailed image of a person's body beginning later this week.
More airports to use 'whole body imaging' machines

Spacejunk in Earth's atmosphere revealed

A European Space Agency (ESA) computer-generated picture shows a view from space with the planet surrounded by a snowstorm of space debris.
Much of it is junk with telecommunications equipment that once cost millions now past its sell-by date yet still in orbit.
ESA says the number of objects in Earth's atmosphere has risen steadily increasing by 200 per year on average and that there are now 600 working satellites.
Spacejunk in Earth's atmosphere revealed

Measures of Australia's Progress: At A Glance, 2008

An at a glance summary of the 14 headline dimensions of Australia's progress. It provides a national summary of the most important areas of progress, presenting them in a way which can be quickly understood by all Australians. It informs and stimulates public debate and encourages all Australians to assess the bigger picture when contemplating progress.
Measures of Australia's Progress: At A Glance, 2008

Is life in Australia getting better?

The ABS has just released new information to help Australians assess how our society, economy and environment are developing. Measures of Australia's Progress: Summary Indicators gives a snapshot of national progress over the last decade, using key measures. The publication also includes an article on the relationships between society, economy and the environment.
Is life in Australia getting better?

Procrastination Can Be Your Ally

If you’re a procrastinator, please raise your hand - when you get around to it. You know the drill: you tinker with your calendar and move tasks to a later due date, you find yourself cramming the day before deadlines, or your answers to the questions “What am I doing now?” and “What should I be doing now?” don’t match.
Procrastination Can Be Your Ally

Seven things to say in a meeting to make yourself look good and someone else look bad

Ah, meetings. Can’t live with them, can’t live without them.
Being happy at work is important, of course. Being with other people generally boosts mood, and ideally, meetings should be a source of energy, ideas, and collegiality. But it doesn’t always work out that way. Meetings are also a place where people jockey for position, work out disagreements (nicely or not-so-nicely), and hurt each other’s feelings.
Seven things to say in a meeting to make yourself look good and someone else look bad

25 Questions to Think About Before Your Next Job Interview

A great interview question reveals the nature of the person you’re hiring - honesty, reliability, ability to communicate intelligently and quickly, and so on.
25 Questions to Think About Before Your Next Job Interview

Straight Hair Is Knottier Than Curly Hair

On a cool Saturday afternoon at the überhot Garren hair salon in New York City a few masters of fashion were debating something many would call obvious: Which is more likely to tangle—curly hair or straight hair?
Straight Hair Is Knottier Than Curly Hair

Top 10 Ways to Sleep Smarter and Better

Nothing kills your ability to get things done faster than a bad night's sleep.
Top 10 Ways to Sleep Smarter and Better

Video of dog who won't go through screenless screen door

Funny video shows a dog who won't go through a screenless screen door.
Video of dog who won't go through screenless screen door

Awkward Signs from Around the World

Ever been in a foreign hotel and seen a sign that directed you to "Slip carefully"?
We've been there. English is a tricky language, and translating it can be just about impossible.
Lost in Translation: Awkward Signs from Around the World

13 Things to Avoid When Changing Habits

“Motivation is what gets you started. Habit is what keeps you going.” - Jim Ryun
13 Things to Avoid When Changing Habits

Be Aware of What Data You Expose

A recent study shows that most taxpayers are painfully unaware that when they make a photocopy on a digital photo copier the machine makes an image and stores it on its hard drive. Information being photocopied can be utilized by hackers for identity theft purposes. The same threat can also be true for faxes that are sent on a digital fax machine.
Be Aware of What Data You Expose

First High Definition Moon Map Released

Selene, Japan's lunar spacecraft and HD peeping Tom, keeps sending stunningly-detailed information from our crystal clear Moon to trashed Mother Earth. These first-ever high definition global topographic maps of the Moon were created using 1,127,392 point measurements, taken with its laser altimeter. And they are just preliminary versions.
Space: First High Definition Moon Map Released, Uranium Sites Located

Concerns Over a Future Google Street View Australia

Google Australia is expected within months to launch an application that will publish highly detailed, street-level photos of much of Australia, in a move that has drawn strong criticism from privacy advocates.
Concerns Over a Future Google Street View Australia

Caffeine May Block High Cholesterol Linked to Alzheimer's

Caffeine protects against memory loss in aging and in Alzheimer's disease.
Caffeine May Block High Cholesterol Linked to Alzheimer's

Six Awesome Ways To Learn About Music (While Listening To It)

I’ve accidentally stumbled into several music-related mashups today, and I thought I might share them with you. The thing is, sometimes I’m just into chilling with my favorite tunes, but sometimes I’m in research mode, and I want to find as much as I can about whatever I’m listening to. The six mashups described below are perfect for this purpose.
Six Awesome Ways To Learn About Music (While Listening To It)

Are Compact Fluorescent Lightbulbs Dangerous

Lightbulbs break all the time. So why would a single broken bulb in a Maine household trigger the state's Department of Environmental Protection to refer the homeowner to a decontaminator?
Are Compact Fluorescent Lightbulbs Dangerous

What Every beginning Dictionary Reader Should Know

Ammon Shea recently spent a year of his life reading the OED from start to finish. Over the next few months he will be posting weekly blogs about the insights, gems, and thoughts on language that came from this experience. His book, Reading the OED, will be published by Perigee in July. In the post below Ammon, an expert dictionary reader, shares some advice for beginners.
What Every beginning Dictionary Reader Should Know

11 tips cutting down the number of things you buy

Some people buy too much, some people buy too little. That’s the overbuyer / underbuyer split.
11 tips cutting down the number of things you buy

7 Simple Ways To Burst Out of Bed Each Morning

Way before the sun peeks over the horizon, a few chosen people awaken from their slumber and dive head first into their day. These chosen few accomplish a ton before the rest of us would ever consider rising from our nice warm beds.
7 Simple Ways To Burst Out of Bed Each Morning

Rescue Lost or Damaged Photos with Zero Assumption

Windows only: Zero Assumption Recovery is a simple tool that can be a serious lifesaver, especially if you've just accidentally formatted a memory card or came home from vacation to a supposedly empty camera. The free download does what many professional (and costly) image recovery programs do, running through memory blocks and piecing together scattered pictures, then dumping them in a folder of your choosing.
Rescue Lost or Damaged Photos with Zero Assumption

Baby born with 2 faces in Northern India

A baby with two faces was born in a northern Indian village, where she is doing well and is being worshipped as the reincarnation of a Hindu goddess, her father said Tuesday.
Baby born with 2 faces in Northern India

Gurgles and growls? Decode your body noises

Your jaw pops like a bowl of Rice Krispies, in meetings, at mealtime, even during candlelight moments. Is it a joint that needs fixing, or just an annoying sound you can live with? Most body noises, although embarrassing, are harmless. Occasionally, they’re a signal that something’s not quite right. Health Magazine decodes what your body is telling you, from top to bottom, and what to do about it.
Gurgles and growls? Decode your body noises

Randy Pausch's Time Management Tricks

According to his doctors, computer science professor Randy Pausch has three to six months to live due to cancer, and in this video lecture he shares his tips for making the most of your time, "the most precious commodity you have."
Randy Pausch's Time Management Tricks

10 ways to explain things more effectively

In the course of your work, you may sometimes need to explain technical concepts to your customers. Having them understand you is important not only for technical reasons, but also to ensure customer satisfaction.
10 ways to explain things more effectively

Easter Egg: Firefox 3 Beta 5 Easter Egg

Intrepid testers using Firefox 3 beta 5: type about:robots into the address bar to get a fun page of robotic references.
Easter Egg: Firefox 3 Beta 5 Easter Egg

The Top 25 Blogs - Time.com's First Annual Blog Index - TIME

From millions of blogs about nothing, we've selected the 25 best about something—from politics and global affairs to shopping and sports. And, yes, we've got a few about nothing, too.
The Top 25 Blogs - Time.com's First Annual Blog Index - TIME

Top 10 Wired Reader Night Photos

Unlike vampires, photos rarely come out at night. After two weeks of steady battle, these 10 photos have emerged victorious. Jason J. Corneveaux won the contest with his photo "The Needles at Night".
Top 10 Wired Reader Night Photos

12 Tips to Create a Sleep Haven

Don't just fall into bed. Use these guidelines to make your bedroom a place of utter respite.
12 Tips to Create a Sleep Haven

My Essential Twitter Tools

Many conversations are shifting to Twitter. Twitter is extensible, and many third-party developers are creating tools around the simple data being exported for a variety of unique applications.
My Essential Twitter Tools

10 Things You Can Do to Cheer Yourself Up

Whether you have the winter blues, you're suffering from a disappointment, or you're just feeling a little down, we all have times when we could use a little lift. Here are 10 ideas to get you back on the upswing.
10 Things You Can Do to Cheer Yourself Up

Those lazy husbands

A University of Michigan study concludes that the average U.S. husband makes seven more hours of housework for the average wife; while wives save husbands an hour of housework each week.
iTWire - Those lazy husbands: Michigan study proves it, kinda!

3 Resources for Switchers

Of course, for web workers “switcher” generally means one thing: people who used to use Windows PCs who are beginning to use a Mac instead.
Archive 3 Resources for Switchers

HMAS Sydney II - Photo Gallery

First ever underwater pictures of HMAS Sydney II.
HMAS Sydney II, Finding Sydney Foundation - Photo Gallery

The Origin of Menopause: Why Do Women Outlive Fertility?

The origin of menopause has puzzled evolutionary biologists for the last half-century. Three new studies attempt illumination. The real question, though, is probably not: Why menopause? Rather, it is: Why do women long outlive their fertility?
The Origin of Menopause: Why Do Women Outlive Fertility?

16 Things I Wish They Had Taught Me in School

Sometimes I wish that I had known some of things I have learned over the last few years a bit earlier. That perhaps there had been a self-improvement class in school.
16 Things I Wish They Had Taught Me in School

6 Habits To Avoiding And Overcoming Procrastination

In short procrastination is a habit if you will, a very bad habit, that consists in putting off something for the next day. Procrastination is to blame for most of our productivity problems and yet it seems that very few people actually do something about it.
6 Habits To Avoiding And Overcoming Procrastination

25 Wonderful Places To Visit In Your Lifetime!

Have you ever dreamt of visiting any of your favorite places? Most often, you will hear these words from your friends, family members or any others. Every one of us desire to visit our favorite places in the lifetime. It is the dream of every human being.
25 Wonderful Places To Visit In Your Lifetime!

The Mythical Daily Water Requirement

No studies indicate that people should drink eight glasses of water a day. Where that number came from no one seems to know. But in the end, it turns out to be all wet.
The Mythical Daily Water Requirement

April Fools’ Day Roundup

April Fools’ Day jokes have a long tradition on the Internet, dating back to at least RFC1149, “A Standard for the Transmission of IP Datagrams on Avian Carriers” in 1990. Depending on your temperament, you may see these as either an amusing diversion, a great nuisance, or something in between.
April Fools’ Day Roundup

British Airways loses 15-20,000 bags since Thursday at supremely b0rked Heathrow Terminal 5

The much-ballyhooed opening of Heathrow's £4 billion Terminal 5 has been a debacle. British Airways has canceled 208 flights since Thursday, and has "stranded" between 15,000 and 20,000 bags. Area hotels are crammed with stuck BA passengers and are gouging on pricing, prompting BA to lift its stingy (and possibly illegal) £100 limit on hotels for stuck passengers. This is the terminal with the that just cancelled its crackpot fingerprinting procedure -- passengers are fingerprinted at check-in and at boarding.
British Airways loses 15-20,000 bags since Thursday at supremely b0rked Heathrow Terminal 5

Top 5 reasons why “The Customer Is Always Right” is wrong

The phrase “The customer is always right” was originally coined by Harry Gordon Selfridge, the founder of Selfridge’s department store in London in 1909, and is typically used by businesses to:
Convince customers that they will get good service at this company
Convince employees to give customers good service
Fortunately more and more businesses are abandoning this maxim - ironically because it leads to bad customer service.
Top 5 reasons why “The Customer Is Always Right” is wrong

Free web-based Photoshop arrives

It took a year rather than six months, but Adobe Photoshop Express has finally arrived - at least in beta. Photoshop Express is a web-based photo storage, editing and sharing service. Adobe is presenting it as a tool for the masses.
Free web-based Photoshop arrives

Ten reasons to turn off automatic email checking on your phone

Six months ago I turned off automatic email downloading on my phone; it was one of the best decisions I’ve made. Having access to email on the go is helpful (as is web access), but downloading email automatically does more harm than good.
Ten reasons to turn off automatic email checking on your phone

How to embellish your life story without getting caught

The past month has not been kind to literary fabricators. The self-proclaimed half-Native American/foster child/South Central gangster Margaret B. Jones turned out to be Margaret Seltzer, a white girl from the leafy suburb Sherman Oaks. Misha Defonseca confessed that her Holocaust memoir, in which she traversed Europe, escaped Nazis, and lived with a pack of wolves, was a fantasy. Both revelations recall the fallout after James Frey's 2003 addiction memoir A Million Little Pieces turned out to be partially fabricated.
How to embellish your life story without getting caught

Best Digital Photo Organizer?

Today, the debut of the Hive Five Call for Contenders puts out the question: What's the best way to organize your digital photos?
Best Digital Photo Organizer?

Ten very idiosyncratic tips for having fun on a family vacation

Was it Jerry Seinfeld who said, “There’s no such thing as fun for the whole family?”
I disagree—but I’ve hit on certain tips that do help keep things fun. I’m not sure they’re universally helpful, but they’ve helped me.
Ten very idiosyncratic tips for having fun on a family vacation

25 Ways to Simplify Your Life with Kids

Anyone who has kids knows that any life with kids is going to be complicated, at least to some degree. From extra laundry to bathing and cooking and shopping and driving and school and chores and crises and sports and dance and toys and tantrums, there is no shortage of complications.
25 Ways to Simplify Your Life with Kids

Free Ways to Synchronize Folders Between Computers

Nothing sucks worse than getting to the office in the morning and realizing you left the most recent copy of an important file—whether it's your to-do list or a PowerPoint presentation—on your home computer. No matter where you are and what computer you're using, you always want the most updated set of documents and files you've got without having to carry 'em around on a thumb drive.
Free Ways to Synchronize Folders Between Computers

The Door to Hell

This place in Uzbekistan is called by locals “The Door to Hell”. It is situated near the small town of Darvaz. The story of this place lasts already for 35 years.
The Door to Hell

You’ll Never Moonwalk Alone

On July 21, 1969, Neil Armstrong became the first human to walk on the moon. He didn’t moonwalk alone – ‘Buzz’ Aldrin joined him on the surface – and he didn’t walk far.
After travelling hundreds of thousands of kilometers, the landing crew of the Apollo 11 lunar mission barely covered an area the size of a football pitch.
You’ll Never Moonwalk Alone

Carnival Scams of 1930

This June, 1930 Modern Mechanix article on the cheats used in carny midway games is great -- it's amazing how many of these cons are still in use today.
Carnival Scams of 1930

Migration, Australia, 2006-07

Young adults proved to be the most mobile segment of the population during 2006-07, topping the figures for both overseas migration as well as interstate moves, according to figures released today by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).
Overall, net overseas migration added 177,600 people to Australia's population during 2006-07.
Migration, Australia, 2006-07