Man With World's Strongest Memory Crusades Against Alzheimer's

What does it take to have the best memory in the United States? Only four and a half years of training, for five hours each day, according to three-time national memory champ Nelson Dellis.
Dellis just won the 2014 USA Memory Championship on March 29 in New York City, where he bested his own national record by recalling 310 digits in five minutes. He also set a new record in the process by memorizing 193 names and faces in 15 minutes.
Man With World's Strongest Memory Crusades Against Alzheimer's

Regional Population Growth, Australia, 2012-13

Capital cities packed in more than three times as many new residents as the rest of Australia in the year to June 2013, according to population estimates released today by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS). Today's release also explores how capital cities have grown over the past 40 years, and are projected to grow over the next 40.
Regional Population Growth, Australia, 2012-13

Gweek podcast 140: Understanding Bitcoin

Andreas M. Antonopoulos has founded three bitcoin businesses and is currently the the Chief Security Officer of Blockchain. Gweek asked him a lot of questions about bitcoin, and his answers were fascinating.
Gweek podcast 140: Understanding Bitcoin

The Ultimate Roundup of 2014's Biggest April Fools' Day Pranks

April Fools' marks the day when pranking goes corporate. A former president, along with major companies like Netflix, Lego and American Eagle, all got in on the foolish action today.

Below, we've compiled every joke, gag and scam we found online Tuesday that caused a chuckle or two on this most confusing holiday. We'll keep updating as more lies are unearthed.

Trust no one, especially the companies. You likely won't feel 100% safe again until May.
The Ultimate Roundup of 2014's Biggest April Fools' Day Pranks

Causes of Death, Australia, 2012

Causes of death data are a significant and important input to health and social policy formulation and planning as well as health related research and analysis. For example, causes of death data provides insight into the diseases and factors contributing to life expectancy, potentially avoidable deaths, years of life lost and leading causes of death. Causes of death statistics, together with statistics pertaining to births and deaths, make up the ’vital statistics’ component of Australia's civil registration system, providing an important foundation for both population statistics as well as health statistics. Australia, as a member state of the World Health Organisation (WHO), supplies data annually to the WHO on deaths by age, sex and cause of death, as compiled from the civil registration system by the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

3303.0 - Causes of Death, Australia, 2012

Malaysia Airlines: Flight 370 Lost With No Survivors

Citing new satellite data, the Prime Minister of Malaysia Najib Rajak said in a press conference that Malaysia Airlines flight 370 "ended" in the Indian Ocean, effectively putting an end to speculation that survivors could still be found.
Malaysia Airlines: Flight 370 Lost With No Survivors

Search Intensifies for Missing Malaysia Airlines Plane

The search for Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 intensified Friday morning as authorities in Australia sought out two mysterious objects, spotted by a U.S. satellite, that could be a piece of the missing jetliner.
Search Intensifies for Missing Malaysia Airlines Plane

The range of flight 370

Leaving aside less hopeful answers such as "the sea," where might Malaysia flight 370 have landed? The Atlantic's James Fallows created this interactive map, but warns that "if the plane had actually landed at any of these sites, we would know it by now."
The range of flight 370

Where's the Plane, Day 10: The Search Grows to 26 Nations

The number of countries involved in the search for the missing Malaysia Airlines plane grew to 26 over the weekend — a "significant diplomatic, technical and logistical challenge," according to Hussein Hishammuddin, Malaysia's minster of defense and acting minister of transport.
Where's the Plane, Day 10: The Search Grows to 26 Nations

Sorry, Math Nerds — Pi May Not Be That Special

Math nerds, rejoice! March 14 is represented numerically as 3.14 or Pi Day. Before you go and ruin your dinner by eating an assortment of baked pastries in celebration, we reluctantly inform you that pi may not be as special as your middle school math teacher said.
Sorry, Math Nerds — Pi May Not Be That Special

Nuclear crisis at Fukushima continues to unfold: a trilogy of reports by PBS NewsHour's Miles O'Brien (video)

Miles O'Brien, science correspondent for PBS NewsHour, has produced a series of three must-see investigative reports revisiting the Fukushima nuclear crisis in Japan. His stories explore how the radiation leaks triggered by the earthquake and tsunami are continuing to affect life there, and beyond.
Nuclear crisis at Fukushima continues to unfold: a trilogy of reports by PBS NewsHour's Miles O'Brien (video

I'm A Telemarketer. Here's How To Get Rid Of Me

Not all companies run exactly the same way, but most calls follow a similar pattern. Successful telemarketers generally have a 96 per cent chance of getting turned down. With such terrible odds, they will be relentless in trying to keep you on the phone.
I'm A Telemarketer. Here's How To Get Rid Of Me

The Five-Second Rule Is Now Supported By Actual Scientific Evidence

Looks like it’s time to start giving 10-year-olds a little more credit where there scientific claims are concerned. According to a new study from Aston University in Birmingham, England, they were right all along — five seconds really does make a difference in terms of food safety.
The Five-Second Rule Is Now Supported By Actual Scientific Evidence

Five Best Home Wi-Fi Routers

A good Wi-Fi router is the most essential component for your home network. The best ones offer great range, speedy communication, broad management features and customisability. This week, we’re looking at five of the best on the market right now.
Five Best Home Wi-Fi Routers

All The Crazy Stuff People Tried To Bring On Aeroplanes Last Year

The US Transportation Security Administration screened 638,705,790 passengers in 2013. As as we learned last year, if you look deeply within the possessions of that many people, you’re gonna find some weird stuff. Lots of weird stuff. Here’s a rundown of the craziest objects TSA found in 2013.
All The Crazy Stuff People Tried To Bring On Aeroplanes Last Year

StopFake - Struggle against fake information about events in Ukraine during crisis in Crimea.

Like a Snopes for Ukraine, StopFake’s main objective is to check facts, verify information and refute incorrect reports and perceived propaganda about events in Crimea covered in the media.
StopFake | Struggle against fake information about events in Ukraine during crisis in Crimea

Crisis in Crimea: A Story Map of the Place Everyone's Watching

Following a change of government in Ukraine, Russian forces effectively seized control of the Crimea, an autonomous republic with historical ties to Russia. Explore locations and events in Crimea, and language differences in Crimea and throughout Ukraine.
Crisis in Crimea: A Story Map of the Place Everyone's Watching

Family Friendly sites listed on Blackstump Australia Issue 2/2014

The latest issue of new Family Friendly sites listed on Beyond The Black Stump.
Family Friendly sites listed on Blackstump Australia Issue 2/2014

Choosing a Secure Password

As insecure as passwords generally are, they're not going away anytime soon. Every year you have more and more passwords to deal with, and every year they get easier and easier to break. You need a strategy.
Choosing a Secure Password

12 YouTube Easter Eggs Worth the Distraction

You can't find everything YouTube has to offer just by using the search bar.
12 YouTube Easter Eggs Worth the Distraction

What are the Security Implications if a Password is Submitted in the Username Field?

Suppose you are having a bad day and in a hurry to login to a favorite website, then accidentally submit your password in the username text box instead. Should you be worried and change your password for that website, or is it just groundless fear?
What are the Security Implications if a Password is Submitted in the Username Field?

Trivium: Flappy Bird special issue

We interrupt our regular schedule for a Flappy Bird special issue.
Trivium: 11feb2014

The Rise and Fall and Rise Again of Flappy Birds

Dong Nyugen's Flappy Bird, the addictive and frustrating tapping 'n' timing game, is gone forever, he says. But here come the replacements!
The Rise and Fall and Rise Again of Flappy Birds

The Best Ways to Follow the Winter Olympics on Facebook

All you need to stay connected to the 2014 Winter Olympics is a Facebook page. The social networking site is helping fans tap in to this year's games in Sochi through a variety of different pages and tools.
If you want to stay updated on your favorite athletes, check out their official individual Facebook pages. Want to celebrate the games from your hometown? Search for Olympics-themed happenings with the social network's Events tool.
The Best Ways to Follow the Winter Olympics on Facebook

Curiosity Rover's First Photo of Earth From Mars

NASA's Curiosity rover on Mars has captured its first view of Earth from the surface of the Red Planet — a striking image that shows our home planet as a bright light in the Martian sky, with the moon shining nearby.
Curiosity Rover's First Photo of Earth From Mars

Amazing Photos From The Sony World Photography Awards

The 2014 Sony World Photography Awards has recently announced its finalists and shortlists of its contestants. The annual competition is hosted by the World Photography Organisation, and photographers from 166 countries submitted nearly 140,000 images, the highest number of entries in the awards’ seven year history.
Amazing Photos From The Sony World Photography Awards

12 Sochi Photos That Russia Probably Doesn't Want You to See

As more athletes and reporters share their Sochi horror stories, many are realizing that the host city of the 2014 Winter Olympics isn't quite prepared for the global attention it will receive when the games begin on Friday.
Photos from Sochi over the past two weeks have revealed that parts of the city's Olympic venues remain unfinished. Reporters are complaining very publicly that their hotels are still under construction. Sochi officials are also collecting and killing off stray dogs ahead of the games to clean up the city's image before cameras arrive.
12 Sochi Photos That Russia Probably Doesn't Want You to See

Weird true facts that sound false

A great and endlessly entertaining Reddit thread asks for weird facts that sound made up, but aren't, like "The Ottoman Empire still existed the last time the Cubs won the World Series" and "When you get a kidney transplant, they usually just leave your original kidneys in your body and put the 3rd kidney in your pelvis."
Weird true facts that sound false - Boing Boing

First High-Quality Moon Panorama Since The Apollo 17 In 1972

At last, a good panorama from China’s Chang’e 3 lander. It shows a three-step time-lapse of the Jade Rabbit robotic rover heading south, getting away from its mothership “likely never to return again”.
First High-Quality Moon Panorama Since The Apollo 17 In 1972

The Best Sites For Learning About The Sochi 2014 Winter Olympic Games

Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day...
The Best Sites For Learning About The Sochi 2014 Winter Olympic Games

Family Friendly sites listed on Blackstump Australia Issue 1/2014

The latest issue of new Family Friendly sites listed on Beyond The Black Stump.
Family Friendly sites listed on Blackstump Australia Issue 1/2014

Why is [state] so...

Google's autocomplete, as visualized by @Amazing_maps, discloses the questions that everyone is asking.
Why is [state] so...

Pope's Message for World Communications Day

"Communication at the Service of an Authentic Culture of Encounter" - Pope's Message for World Communications Day

Repairing Christ the Redeemer Is Not for the Faint of Heights

High above Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, a few brave workers began repairs on the 92-year-old Christ the Redeemer statue on Tuesday. The famous monument suffered damage to its fingers and head during a lightning storm last week. Fixing the 98-foot-tall Art Deco piece of architecture that stands atop of Corcovado Mountain is not a job for anyone with a fear of heights.
Repairing Christ the Redeemer Is Not for the Faint of Heights

The Worst Passwords of 2013

Sadly enough, another year has come and gone with what ‘feels’ like little progress made on getting people to choose better passwords. Password management software maker SplashData has compiled a list of the worst 25 passwords of 2013, a ‘top offenders’ list that contains some old favorites along with some new entries as choices people should not be making.
The Worst Passwords of 2013

14 Secrets of the Devil Baby

The first monster viral video of 2014 has landed and it stars the most frightening baby on the planet: Devil Baby. The video, which depicts an animatronic Devil Baby scaring the wits out of unsuspecting New Yorkers has, after just a few days, well over 25 million views.
The tale of how the small digital agency Thinkmodo created the viral sensation, which is really an ad for the new 20th Century Fox film Devil’s Due, is now well known. However, how the special effects team actually created the prank is not — until now.
14 Secrets of the Devil Baby

The Net Neutrality ruling in a nutshell

A federal appeals court on Tuesday rejected Federal Communications Commission rules that required Internet service providers to treat all traffic equally. The so-called network neutrality rules were championed by Internet companies worried that the carriers could start charging for preferential treatment to information carried on their networks. Here is a look at the basic questions regarding this debate, starting with a definition.
The Net Neutrality ruling in a nutshell

Why Are Pilots Still Landing at the Wrong Airport?

On the list of awkward and embarrassing occurrences, somewhere slightly above calling someone the wrong name and dialing the wrong number, you'll find landing an airplane full of people at the wrong airport.
Why Are Pilots Still Landing at the Wrong Airport?

Ask LH: Should I Buy Expensive HDMI Cables?

Dear Lifehacker, I am thinking about a UHD TV as my next TV. But the big name stores all tell me I need to throw away any HDMI cable I have now that is more than two years old because the technology has moved so rapidly. In my experience, they work or they don’t. Do I need new cables now? Should I wait until I get the TV? Thanks, Cable Cynic
Ask LH: Should I Buy Expensive HDMI Cables?

Drinking Up To Four Cups Of Coffee Won't Dehydrate You At All

The received wisdom is that coffee dehydrates you. Fact. Period. No arguments. But a new study shows that, actually, in moderation, coffee is no less hydrating than water.
Drinking Up To Four Cups Of Coffee Won't Dehydrate You At All

Giant Ice Balls In Lake Michigan Look Like Dirty Alien Eggs Hatching

It’s cold out there, guys. So cold that lakes are so frozen that they look like they’re from the moon. So cold that freaking grounds explode. But now that it’s a little less cold, the ice is melting from our frigid Earth and forming giant ice balls in our lakes.
Giant Ice Balls In Lake Michigan Look Like Dirty Alien Eggs Hatching

The Physics Behind Why Sausages Split Lengthwise

I like sausages. I like grilled sausages. I like fried sausages. I like beef, pork and chicken sausages. I even like vegetarian sausages. Sometimes when you cook sausages, they burst. This occasionally happens if you try and cook them too fast. It can also happen if the brand of sausage you are cooking is overly generous with their filling.
The Physics Behind Why Sausages Split Lengthwise

How to Wash a Vehicle with Micro Fiber Cloths: 7 Steps

Micro fiber cloths appeared for non-commercial use about four years ago. They are sold mostly for automobile care, but can be used for house cleaning and other maintenance needs. This article will focus on cleaning a vehicle.
How to Wash a Vehicle with Micro Fiber Cloths: 7 Steps

Iced Out: America's Polar Vortex in 10 Chilling Photos

Wind chill in Minnesota reached -50 degrees Fahrenheit — that's cold enough for exposed skin to get frostbite in 5 minutes. Plenty of other places saw sub-zero weather, temperatures so cold that many officials shut down schools, highways and tourist attractions as a means to try to keep people inside. Here are few spine-shivering photos.
Iced Out: America's Polar Vortex in 10 Chilling Photos

The Interesting Mistakes That Surround Us Every Day

Whether it is spelling versus pronunciation of words, incorrect scientific knowledge from years gone by, production errors in popular music, and more, our history is full of interesting mistakes, formerly lost knowledge, and mind boggling coincidences that some would classify as missed opportunities.
The Interesting Mistakes That Surround Us Every Day

The Wackiest Weather Bloopers of 2013 [VIDEO]

In this thunderingly funny compilation, we see some of the wackiest, oddest and most insane weather bloopers of last year — from hiccup fits to broken green screens to rapping reporters.
The Wackiest Weather Bloopers of 2013 [VIDEO]

Chrome vs. Firefox: where Firefox beats the Google browser

If you look at desktop computers, you will notice that there are three core Internet browsers left for those systems. There are also forks of two of those browsers available that increase the number of programs that you can download and use, but in the end, it all comes down to those three browsers.
There is Internet Explorer, Firefox, and Chromium. If you compare Firefox and Google Chrome -- the most popular Chromium-based browser, with each other, you will notice many similarities, but also differences.
Chrome vs. Firefox: where Firefox beats the Google browser

Scientists' Favourite Jokes

The Observer has a great collection of scientists' favourite jokes, along with anecdotes and background about each joke.
Scientists' favourite jokes

A Guide on Self-Destructing Emails, SMS, Facebook Photos, Tweets and More

The internet is written in ink and not pencil. That’s what Erica Albright told Mark Zuckerberg in the movie The Social Network. If you follow the timeline of that movie, she almost got all her facts right. But things have changed since, as with most of the medicines, a lot of things you share on the interweb too come or could come with an expiry date.
A Guide on Self-Destructing Emails, SMS, Facebook Photos, Tweets and More

Watch One Woman's Face Morph Into Many Different Faces With Lighting

Your eyes might tell you differently, your brain might make you believe something else and that gut of yours will say you’re right but you’re not. There is only one person in this video. You will only see one woman’s face. It may look like a different person, but it’s not. The magic is in the lighting. Simple lighting changes can change a person’s face so much that they look like different people.
Watch One Woman's Face Morph Into Many Different Faces With Lighting