The Periodic Table of Swearing

For this entry, we’re going to keep it short and sweet.

Behold, for your viewing pleasure as well as all your trash-talk needs: The Periodic Table of Swearing. We’re not quite sure when it first came out, but it is apparently back on the market due to popular demand.

We’d describe it in words, but frankly, there’s nothing we can possibly write that can top whatever’s written above.

[via kottke and ModernToss]

Scientists Delve into Booty Calls

If you have never heard of a booty call then you might as have been living in a secluded convent somewhere. In order to catch on, we suggest going over to the Panties and Porkchops section of our blog.

Anyhoo, some psychologists recently did a study on the nature of booty calls. Psychologists surveyed 289 college students; 123 of which have had booty call experiences, 97 of them had been in committed relationships, and 69 of them have had one night stands. The survey basically asked students how many times they committed certain emotional (i.e. kissing, holding hands) and sexual (vaginal intercourse, oral sex) acts.

Emotional acts were more common in a committed relationship, while sexual actions were more prominent in booty calls. However, it was revealed that more emotional acts were more common in one night stands which, according to the study was because a stand’s “revved up nature.”

Ultimately, the study ended up confirming what we already know: that booty calls are a hybrid of one night stands and committed relationships.

[via MSNBC and HowIMetYourMother]

Scientists Warn the World About Asteroid

Here’s something we should all warn our great-great grandchildren about: an asteroid named 1999 RQ36 may slam into Earth in the year 2182.

1999 RQ36 is about 1800 feet long and has the capacity to wipe out humans from the face of the Earth in a manner similar to what happened to dinosaurs. (Yikes.)

Granted, the possibilities of it actually hitting our planet are not that high (one in a thousand,) scientists are still closely tracking the asteroid’s movements, as what they’ve been doing since its discovery in 1999.

Learning about the news, we couldn’t help but imagine ways on how to obliterate that big chunk of space rock. Can we vaporize it with an uber hi-tech weapon? Maybe Earth can send someone heroic to blow the thing up? And just as Leaving on a Jet Plane by Chantal Kreviazuk started swelling up in our heads, we stopped ourselves and remembered that the Mayan calendar indicates that the world will hit its end in 2012.

So until we survive that end of the world prophecy, we’ve decided to leave all the asteroid worries to the scientists.

[via MSNBC and TIME]

Tech Giants Join Forces So that Egyptians Can Be Heard

Due to the nationwide Internet connection cut-off in Egypt , Google, Twitter and SayNow have teamed up and found a way to give Egyptians back their voices.

MSNBC reports that a special voicemail system was setup wherein people in Egypt can call a particular number, leave a message, and the system sends it out to the rest of the world in the form of a tweet with the hashtag # egypt.

The Twitter handle streaming these tweets is @Speak2Tweet. Users can also listen to the voice messages in the SayNow website by clicking one of the short links. However, Technolog reports that “Since loved ones will basically have to listen to each and every message with the hope of hearing their own friends and family members inside Egypt, the system does seem a little inefficient.”

Furthermore, it has been anticipated that the Mubarak government will shut-off cellphone service as well, because of the “March of the Millions” demonstration, so individuals in Egypt will be hard-pressed to obtain a solid phone line.

Still though, the messages streamed by @Speak2Tweet and SayNow will both warm and break listener’s hearts.

Some voicemails are poignant such as, “I just wanted to say 'hi' to my brother and his wife since we didn’t get a chance to talk before they cut off the Internet" and others are full of encouragement: "I want to thank the army for the great message that they’ve sent to the Egyptians, in which they announced that they won’t resort to violence against the protestors." As MSNBC puts it, “It really is a direct line to the eye of the storm.”

[via MSNBC and Speak2Tweet]

Facebook Bags Both ‘Most Blocked’ and ‘Most Allowed’ Site for 2010

There are two types of employers (or schools) in this world. Those that block Facebook and those that allow it. In line with this, Help Net Security reported that OpenDNS recently released stats on websites that were blocked and frequently given access to.

Facebook, the biggest social network in the web topped both extremes. This of course reflects the tug-o-war between the two views. To block or not to block? Yep, that is the question.

[via Help Net Security]

Pope voices out views on new media

The Pope may not have a Facebook account, but it’s not like he’s been living on a rock in the Vatican either.

For this year’s World Day of Social Communications, Pope Benedict delivered his views on social media in his message entitled, “Truth, proclamation and authenticity of life in the digital age."

The pope praised social media but also mentioned that while these networks present a lot of great opportunities, “virtual contact cannot and must not take the place of direct human contact with people at every level of our lives.”

Benefits of Social Media
The NY Times reported that the Pope acknowledged the benefits of social networks stating that they can enable “dialogue exchange, solidarity and the creation of positive relations.” He furthered that “if used wisely,” social media “can contribute to the satisfaction of the desire for meaning, truth and unity.”

“Friendly” Precautions
However, the Holy Father also flipped the coin, and voiced out his concerns and precautions towards new media and social networks. In his speech, he said that “In search for sharing, for “‘friends’ there is the challenge to be authentic and faithful.”

He commented on digital communication’s “one-sidedness” and warned the public about the “risk of constructing a false image of oneself.”

Pope Benedict positively addressed the effects of the new form of communication by saying that new technologies pave the way for “potential friendships” because they allow “people to meet each other beyond the confines of space and of their own culture.”

At the same time though, he cautioned members of social networks about the risk of “being more distracted” and “absorbed in the world ‘other’ than the one we live in.”

[via NY Times and EWTN]

When Twitter and Super Mario Collide

Sure, there are a lot of nonsensical tweets out there. (Notwithstanding @chescastaana's posts of course.) And if you happen to be one of those who wish to spice up how they navigate their Twitter page, check out Super Twario, the new iPhone app that turns your whole Twitter experience into an arcade game.

Instead of scrolling up and down the screen, Super Twario lets you swipe, tap and tilt your way across the Twitterverse. Players get points for certain actions such as replying and retweeting, and a whole lot of extra points for getting replies, followers, and #FFs. What’s more, scores and stats are sent to the Game Center so you’ll be able to see how you rank among your Twitter friends. Let the battle of the Tweets begin.



[via Engadget and iTunes App Store]