How to Identify a Catchphrase using Google

Catchphrases are all over the place. A quick Google search will reveal the origin and meaning of any catchphrase. ...So long as that's the original form. People just love to remix popular catchphrases, usually just changing one word at a time.

While reading an article in Wired called "The Giant Nerds of Sumatra," it just suddenly dawned on me how to identify where a catchphrase is from. The original form is "the giant rats of Sumatra," an obscure quote from Sherlock Holmes that inspired one if not more fan fictions. I realized that there's just one word difference between the two phrases.

So how does one figure out which word is changed? By performing five Google searches, each time omitting one of the words. For the above catchphrase, five Google searches;

"nerds of Sumatra"
the "nerds of Sumatra"
"the giant" "of Sumatra"
"the giant nerds" Sumatra
"the giant nerds of"

Be sure to use quotes to attempt to preserve the order of the words.

Google will then happily fill in the blanks. Looking at the Google Search results, it's something like 5, 5, 300k, 5, 5. It's immediately obvious which one is the original catchphrase.

Also, if it's an especially long catchphrase, I suppose one could use heuristics to decrease the number of required searches. For example, I don't suppose that eliminating the "the" from the catchphrase did a whole lot.

Additionally, if more than one word was substituted, you'd have to do even more Google searches.

I personally don't know if this has been published before or not, but it's just something really cool that I just figured out. Even if this is just a rudimentary brute force method for solving something, it gives answers where there used to be questions.

Hunch.com Perfect for Facebook Quiz Enthusiasts

Do you LOVE Facebook quizzes? Do you LOVE the cryptic, vague, and questionably useful answers it gives you?



Then you'll LOVE Hunch.com, which is basically Facebook quizzes for REAL LIFE.

I Temporarily Crashed Wolfram Alpha!

Granted, it was back up fast enough to hit refresh and get a workable result, but still. An accomplishment is an accomplishment.

How to Win at Monopoly the Smith Way

You've probably played Monopoly. Well here's how to win in a tested method handed down from my father.

Firstly, you spot a color group you and a person could get together and create. For example, you have one green and they have two greens.

Next, you form a partnership. It doesn't really matter who has two properties, as the partnership is a lot better than just two unrelated properties. Each partnership has the conditions that
1) The partnership cannot be dissolved unless a member goes bankrupt
2) Both partners get free rent on the property group in question
3) Both partners split the cost of homes, with it being possible that one partner can "owe ya one"
4) Both partners split the rent equally, which usually defaults to paying owed house cash if any
5) A person's share of rent can be replaced by gaining a property instead, so long as the other person agrees and receives either their share in cash or an acceptable deal

Now you're into the "building houses like mad" period. As soon as you can, get 3 houses on each property. 3 houses is the magical number; that's the first major increase in rents. Keep in mind that you probably don't build a bunch of houses and run out of cash.

Once you've got hotels, you'll be raking in the money and be the ire of all the other players.

Unfortunately, winning doesn't end there. In the endgame, this partnership won't be all that great one on one against your partner. Hopefully you've used the partnership as a front on acquiring other properties in order to build them up. Additionally, it's sound strategy to make partnerships with other people, provided you can afford it.

According to some home rules, this practice is banned. Why? Because it's so brutally effective. This method can make hotels on a property long before other people are even building houses. I've tried this twice at two different friend's houses, and I've made out like a bandit both times. I've also provoked the ire of my friends for having such an effective strategy.

From the Wikipedia article for Mobile Web;

"This article was originally created and edited using the Web on mobile devices."

Googling "Something For Nothing"

What? Not Googling myself anymore?

So I just got the crazy idea to google "Something For Nothing," and write a blog post about what turns up. I figure, such a common yet bizarre phrase should lead to some bizarre stuff.

The first search result is a sober forum discussion on whether or not something about an iPhone. It really doesn't matter what. Although I did find a funny quote.

Sorry nutcake, but I will refer to being a long term customer if I want to. If you find it irrelevant, than don't refer to long term customers in your posts. However I do find it relevant and I will refer to it whether or not it bother you.

Deal with it. You can ignore me if you'd like.

-bubbaluv

If it doesn't make sense, I'm with you. It doesn't even really make sense in context.

The next is a post on a blog that leads to some artist's page.

Turns out, it's a whole page devoted to artists who make things out of natural things, "something from nothing." Not literally something from nothing, but something nonetheless.

Still, it's all a little bit "ho hum."

Now for the golden gem, this blog post from a blog;

TUESDAY, MAY 23, 2006

Someting out of Nothing
I have wrighters block!!! I have been looking at my computer trying to put words on the screen and noting, not a sentence, not a word, not a syllable! It is horrible!!! I'm going to have a traumatic experience!!! I may need therapy!!! How do you all do it??? It is like there is a force field is between me and my computer screen. "Jean-Luc Picard what have you done to me?" The normal event is that I give the computer a sentence or two, and it just grows from there. It is like the idea takes route on the screen. Then all the sudden 'IT'S ALIVE'. The computer is like cow shit, and the words are a plant. I may start it but it grows on its own. And now noting, zilch, zip, nada! My ground has been tainted! It is the day after!!! Noting can grow and what is still alive is going to be horribly mutated. There is no love between me and my computer; I have lost that loving felling.

But I will Survive!!! And I will come back!! And I will gain the Respect of my fellow bloggers!!!!

-DRAGON

RAMBLINGS FROM AN ADHD, DYSLEXIC. could just be the hot new blog of the time period. I think you should check it out.

And once again, a Google search gets you exactly what you weren't expecting, but were all too happy to find.

A Word we Need

From Futility Closet;

Mamihlapinatapais, from the Yaghan language of Tierra del Fuego, is considered the world's most succinct word — and the hardest to translate.

It means "a look shared by two people, each wishing that the other will initiate something that both desire but that neither one wants to start."

You might laugh at sheer nuance of the word, but it happens.

That's why we need a word for it in English. That way, when it happens we can mention the word, and we'd both laugh, and everything would be okay.

Sheep Everywhere Win a Battle as "Domestic Sheep" is the Wikipedia Article of the Day

As few of you know, one of my favorite animals is the common sheep. So that's why I'm excited that today's Wikipedia article of the day is sheep.

Where to Find Free Surf Music Online

First let it be know that by "Surf Music," I am referring to the instrumental guitar-laden surf music of yonder glory days or the modern day equivalent of it. Sorry, no beach boys here.

"Let's Go Classics" by Takeshi Terauchi

Who is Takeshi Terauchi? He's a very good Japanese surf guitarist.

This album consists of covers of classical pieces, but done in a surf style.

Additionally, since this album and artist is so obscure, you've probably never heard of them before. Which is good.

WFMU has another Takeshi Terauchi album, This is Terauchi Bushi, which consists of orginal work of surf music bit with a bit of a Japanese twist at times.

Surf Guitar 101 Compilations

Surf Guitar 101 is one of the only pages you get when you Google search for "surf guitar." Surf Guitar 101 has a busy forum that occasionally collects surf guitar pieces from various members with the intent to combine them into one larger compilation for that year. So far, there have been three.



Surf Guitar 101 MP3 Compilation 2005





Surf Guitar 101 MP3 Compilation 2006




Surf Guitar 101 MP3 Compilation 2007

Various Internet Archive Surf Pieces

Surfing and Civilization - "Dissertation regarding the influence of surfing on Western civilization as expressed via guitar, organ, bass and drums."¹ In actuality, a moderately long catchy bit of surf music.




Surf Coasters Live at Double Down Saloon - The surf coasters are a modern day surf band and they're putting out some good songs. Have a listen to their latest live show on The Internet Archive.

"Play Some Surf Guitar" by Monsters from Mars - Surf music with a bit of a kick to it.

Mermen Live at Hard Rock Cafe - The Mermen are a modern day band that plays music vaguely reminiscent of surf msuic. While it's not exactly surf, you might find it to your tastes.

Youtube

Youtube works wonders in general for listening to music for free online, and it works those same wonders for popular surf music. Keep in mind that some of the more obscure things you might be looking for are probably not on Youtube.


"Wipeout" - The Ventures


"Pipeline" - The Chantay's


"Misirlou" - Dick Dale & The Del Tones

Try searching for others as there's plenty more where that came from.

Pandora.com

http://www.pandora.com/ is a free online radio station where you given an initial suggestion of what you like, and then it tries to find similar music. I've found that if you use "The Ventures" as an initial artist, you'll be exposed to all sorts of older surf music.

Last.fm

http://www.last.fm/ is a site where you can find and listen to more obscure songs than Youtube will let you. For example, if you hear something you like on the above mentioned Pandora.com but it's not on Yotube, perhaps it will be on Last.fm.

Keep in mind that there is a limit to how many free songs you can hear in a day, so Youtube is preferable in that regard.

Comment on Spore Galactic Edition

Re: EA to offer Spore Galactic Edition
If they're going to charge 30 bucks more than the standard version of the game, they should at least include a plastic guitar or something.
-concentric

Source

PrintScreen is the Best Button Ever

Click on it to make it bigger

20000 M HCl

So the other day I asked Yahoo Answers How can I make 20000 M HCl, and what it could destroy?

By the end of the day I already had four answers.

The first three essentially said no.

The third elaborated that the concentration of pure water is still just 55.6 moles.

But it's the fourth guy that really takes the cake. Here is what he said.

20000 Moles of Hydrochloric Acid????

Err probably need a HUGE factory, never seen before.

To make 20000 Moles of HCl (1,168.8554 kg/791.371293 m^3 ) you get from the electrolisis of 20000 moles of salt solution in a vaccum container. You'd probably need to do this several times, over a tonne of gas in an (inert) vaccum container.

You would then have to remove the sodium hydroxide impurities by some sort of fractional distillation method where the HCl gas is transfered to a different container. You would then need to condense the pure HCl gas to a liquid by holding the entire system at -85.1°C (industrially the acid is concentrated by disolving it in water. that'd just weaken it)

If M means Moles per litre you may need to apply intense pressure on the substance to increase its density by nearly 80000% at this sort of packing potential you would need probably astronomic thermonuclear or even black hole pressures to compress it certainly intense energy (even if the concentration was for minute volumes) ...the enthalpy change would certainly make it solid and as dense as uranium (18,900 kg/m3 higher than the 1,168.8554 kg/m3 of the HCl) but the chemical lattice because of the smaller nuclei would have to be highly compressed to... which is extremely insane to grasp.

The huge problem is that the equiptment will probably erode with the strong acids...and the use of vaccum technology to get pure HCl widens the possibility of explosions.

As I say this is the stuff of divinity here (manipulating black holes) but ... even a single liquid tube of pure HCl brought quickly to room temperature would boil and be highly explosive spraying acidic gas everywhere.

I especially like the last paragraph.

Well, stay tuned for more wacky Yahoo Answers hijinx.

Flounderhog

So I took a picture of a Flounderhog.

Doesn't it look ferocious?

Join the Flounderhog Protection Agency (FPA) today!

Man Paints His Car like a Policecar for Son; And It's Okay

So long as he doesn't pretend to be a policeman.

To all you people who think authority is unnecessarily restrictive; you're wrong in this scenario.

This is all from my source, by the way.

So, this man paints his car like the police car in the transformers movie. This is all for his son. And the local police or government doesn't care. So long as he doesn't pretend to be a police officer.

The best part? There's a law that prevents this sort of thing. But the police decided to be lax about it. Of course, it helps that they have to sell their cars to the public and don't repaint them. Also, the guy took a few liberties of the design to match the transformers car.

But still. News isn't all murders and death.

Chiamsus for Mental Disorders

Some have it all the time
All have it some of the time

Flashcard Program; Great For Foreign Language

I found Teach2000, a flashcard making program.

As I was searching for something to use to memorize all the French words I need to know, I was a bit skeptical as to whether it would be fully accent compatible and all that jazz.

Turns out it's made to support foreign languages. It even supports Greek.

I heartily endorse this free product.

Website

Interesting Wired Narritive

Wired has a new interesting and very long narrative. Here.

This one centers on the lives of two creators of giant collections of data, data that would eventually be used to create Artificial Intelligence.

Give it a read.

Fistful of Frags - First Impressions

Have you heard of the free new Source mod, Fistful of Frags?

If you haven't, it a cool fps that's set in a western atmosphere. There's no spawn time, with a weapon buying system that's much cooler than Counterstrike.

I've been playing it for the last two hours, and it was really addictive. It's something completely new, that's for sure. Great for a change of pace.

I'm not entirely sure what you need for it to run, but I have the CSS pack that one can buy in stores, and that makes it work.

Their Website

A Download Link

Update to 1.1 Download Link (download 1.0 first)

Humor

"Analyzing a joke is like dissecting a frog; you can find out how it works, but you have to kill it in the process."

More to be found here

Ending of Portal Song - Still Alive - by Jonathan Coulton

Who knew that Portal ended in a song? I mean, know before you beat it?

So if you want to relive it, or don't know what I'm talking about at all, here's the video.



Better than Amped 3's ending song.