Paging Jules Verne!

Video captures the attack by a giant Pacific Octopus on a remote-controlled submarine. Where was Kirk Douglas and his harpoon?

The Museum of Questionable Medical Devices…

…is here. And well worth a visit, even if it hasn’t been freshened up in a while. It’s not like any of the stuff on the site is going to go (any more) out of date! (Via Medgadget.)

Scientists develop bird flu vaccine

This sounds like good news!

Paper models of science-fictional spacecraft for download

Need a hobby? Download plans for paper models of great science-fictional spacecraft. (Via The Corner.)

Science fiction headline of the day…

South Pole Detector Could Yield Signs of Extra Dimensions.

More on Helium 3 and fusion

Hard on the heels of my previous post about Russian plans to mine Helium-3 on the moon, The Speculist gives a quick overview of the state of fusion research–and mentions something I saw but didn’t quite know what to make of, a Chinese claim that it may be on the verge of creating the first …

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Russia plans mine on the moon by 2020

A Russian space official claims Russia will have a permanent base on the moon by 2020 to mine Helium 3 to fuel nuclear fusion reactors. Presumably that means the Russians also expect we’ll have energy-producing fusion reactors by then. I hope they’re right, but I think I’m going to have to fall back on my …

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As a fan of classic Disney animation…

…this makes me happy.

Smallest extrasolar planet found

The smallest extrasolar planet ever found–just 5.5 times the size of Earth–has been discovered in orbit around a red dwarf (the most common type of star in the galaxy) using a technique called microlensing. Best of all: The find suggests Earth-like planets are abundant in the galaxy and validates a technique that should be able …

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A time machine for wines?

Probably thanks to books and movies, many people think that the older the wine, the better. That’s not necessarily true. As one rule of thumb notes, more good wine is drunk too late than too early. Wines kept too long in the bottle actually deteriorate, and some wines simply never benefit from being kept in …

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Voting for the 25th time in his life…

…in today’s Canadian federal election: a 104-year-old man from Manitoba. Later today, my wife will help her 83-year-old mother, who is almost blind and can barely walk, to the polls so she can vote. And in a coffee shop earlier today, I heard three 20-something know-nothings pooh-pooh the whole idea of voting, with one boy …

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Kidtronics

Why do I have a strong suspicions some of these may soon be appearing in our house, shared with a four-year-old?