Facebook Unveils Its Most Shared Stories of 2011

1. Satellite Photos of Japan, Before and After the Earthquake and Tsunami

This Mar. 15 New York Times interactive graphic compares satellite images of the damages of the Japan earthquake and tsunami.

Click here to view this gallery.

Facebook has released a list of the 40 most shared stories of 2011 (well, the first 11 months, at least). We’ve collected the top 20 into the gallery above — check it out.

The topics range from sweet (twin baby boys conversing in gibberish) to serious (satellite photos examining the damages of the Japan earthquake).

There were some clear trends. Twelve of the stories relate to parenting or families, while three of the picks are viral videos. Another three are about Steve Jobs.

More suprisingly, all 40 of the stories come from just six online outlets: Yahoo has 13 stories, CNN has 11, the New York Times has 7, The Huffington Post has 7, The Wall Street Journal has one and the Washington Post has one.

Mashable‘s Pete Cashmore wrote the number seven story: You’ll Freak When You See the New Facebook, as one of his regular columns for CNN.

Most of the stories provide unique opinions, such as pieces on “Tiger Moms” and why women remain unmarried. Straight news coverage, however, didn’t fare so well. CNN‘s Steve Jobs, Apple Founder, Dies barely made the list at number 37).

Facebook Unveils Its Most Shared Stories of 2011

Earth Time-Lapse View from Space

Time lapse sequences of photographs taken by Ron Garan
fragileoasis.org/âbloggernauts/âAstro_Ron and the crew of expedition
28 & 29 onboard the International Space Station from August to October,
2011, who to my knowledge shot these pictures at an altitude of around
350 km with a high ISO HD Camera developed by NHK Japan,
nicknamed the SS-HDTV camera. All credit goes to them.
Earth Time-Lapse View from Space

How to preserve photographs worth keeping in three simple steps

Today’s post is written by Sally Jacobs, the Practical Archivist. She has worked on archival collections at the Library of Congress Prints and Photos Division, the Wisconsin Historical Society Archives and American Girl. Thank you, Sally, for agreeing to share your amazing, in-depth knowledge of archival procedures with us.
How to preserve photographs worth keeping in three simple steps

Traversing Antarctica: the Australian experience

Our icy southern neighbour has fascinated expeditioners and scientists for over 100 years since the 1911–14 Australasian Antarctic Expedition led by Douglas Mawson. Delve into the scientific, historical, and cultural legacy of those who navigate the extreme conditions in the name of discovery.
Traversing Antarctica: the Australian experience

How to See What Web Sites Your Computer is Secretly Connecting To

Has your internet connection become slower than it should be? There may be a chance that you have some malware, spyware, or adware that is using your internet connection in the background without your knowledge. Here’s how to see what’s going on under the hood.
How to See What Web Sites Your Computer is Secretly Connecting To

Photo Event Organizer, Image Organizer

Have you ever worked with a folder full of photos? I’m talking hundreds or even thousands of photos taken with different camera models and in different years and locations. It is pretty difficulty to find specific photos or events in a folder filled with such an amount of photos.
Photo Event Organizer, Image Organizer

How a Typical Facebook Scam Works?

If you have been on Facebook for a decent amount of time, you may have definitely come across videos posts on your news wall that have an enticing title and an innocent thumbnail but upon clicking, the link takes you a scam website.
How a Typical Facebook Scam Works?

Sunrise, Sunset, Twilight, Moonrise and Moonset Times

Even if you are living in a big city like me, you sometimes need to know the times the sun or moon rises and sets. Maybe you want to photograph the sun or moon at a specific time, go fishing or believe in something that requires you to know the exact times. Or, you simply want to be prepared for the full moon everyone is going crazy periods. Whatever it is, the Firefox add-on Sun Cult makes it dead easy to tell. The extension supports both sun and moon times, and in particular sunrise, sunset, twilight, moonrise and moonset times.
Sunrise, Sunset, Twilight, Moonrise and Moonset Times

30 Great Photoshop Tips and Tricks to Help Your Computer Graphic Skills

Photoshop is a powerful, but complex, graphics program that can be difficult to learn and frustrating to use. We have published many articles about tips and tricks for using Photoshop and how to fix annoying issues you may encounter.
30 Great Photoshop Tips and Tricks to Help Your Computer Graphic Skills

Family Friendly sites listed on Blackstump Australia Issue 21/2011

The latest issue of new Family Friendly sites listed on The Black Stump.
Family Friendly sites listed on Blackstump Australia Issue 21/2011

Composite Moon Map Offers Stunning Views of the Lunar Surface

Researchers at Arizona State University have stitched together a massive high-resolution map of the moon; seen the moon in astounding detail.
Composite Moon Map Offers Stunning Views of the Lunar Surface

25 Worst Passwords of 2011

Pro tip: choosing “password” as your online password is not a good idea. In fact, unless you’re hoping to be an easy target for hackers, it’s the worst password you can possibly choose. “Password” ranks first on password management application provider SplashData’s annual list of worst internet passwords, which are ordered by how common they are. (“Passw0rd,” with a numeral zero, isn’t much smarter, ranking 18th on the list.)
25 Worst Passwords of 2011

Forget a Name? 6 Tips for Faking It

1. The “I know your name, but I’m blocked” dodge:
“I keep wanting to call you 'David,' but I know that’s not right.”

2. The “Of course I know you -- in fact, I want all your information” dodge:
“Hey, I’d love to get your card.”

etc
Forget a Name? 6 Tips for Faking It

Periodic Table adds new elements

Welcome, Darmstadtium (Ds), Roentgenium (Rg), and Copernicium (Cn)—three new elements that joined the Periodic Table earlier this month. None exist in nature. In fact, they don't exist very long even in the laboratory. But there they are, nonetheless.
Periodic Table adds new elements

How to Make Your Computer Press a Key Every X Seconds

Have you ever needed to press a key every couple of seconds, or every few minutes? Perhaps you’re playing a video game and you’re waiting for an item, or you’ve got some other reason. Either way, here’s how to make your PC do it automatically.
How to Make Your Computer Press a Key Every X Seconds

Google Verbatim For Exact Search Results

When you search on Google you often get results that have nothing to do with your original search query. Take the search for Appel for instance. You probably would not expect sites about Apple in the search results. Google on the other hand thinks that is what the user is looking for and displays three Apple sites in the top five search results.
Google Verbatim For Exact Search Results

Why Is China Building Gigantic Structures In The Middle Of The Desert?

This is crazy. New photos have appeared in Google Maps showing unidentified titanic structures in the middle of the Chinese desert. The first one is an intricate network of what appears to be huge metallic stripes. Is this a military experiment?
Why Is China Building Gigantic Structures In The Middle Of The Desert?

The connections between "itch" and "ouch"

The biology of itching and the biology of pain are intertwined in interesting ways, writes graduate student and science blogger Aatish Bhatia. Understanding itching can help us better understand how to treat pain. I'd not seen Bhatia's blog before, but I'm really liking his style. He does a great job of breaking down the science in a clear way.
The connections between "itch" and "ouch"

Need To Enter A Valid Credit Card? Use These

Some websites or services let you sign up only if you enter a valid credit card. This can happen even if you have no intention of ever buying something from the service or website. Sometimes you may prefer not to enter your own credit card information on the Internet, and sometimes you do not have a valid credit card that is accepted in another country.
Need To Enter A Valid Credit Card? Use These

Worldwide Feast: 55 Great Global Food Blogs

These 55 blogs comprise Saveur's must-read list in the international food blogging community.
Worldwide Feast: 55 Great Global Food Blogs