!MOOB

Watch this railroad tanker car instantly implode...
In the clip, the tanker car is filled with steam and the safety valves are disabled. The steam cools, then condenses, the pressure inside drops, and the pressure difference is big enough to crumple that huge railcar like a napkin.
That's one extreme, caused by cooling.  There's also a link to a video showing "sun kink", another failure mode caused by intense heat.  According to Wikipedia:
Similarly, rail tracks also expand when heated, and can fail by buckling, a phenomenon called sun kink. It is more common for rails to move laterally, often pulling the underlain railroad ties (sleepers) along.
If you've got a background in engineering, or are just your average garden variety "whoa, that's interesting" geek, then the Wikipedia article on Buckling and the related article on Structural Failure is a good way to kill a few minutes.

Schrödinger's Network

Quantum networks don't exist unless you know they exist, apparently.
'Quantum network? We've had one for years,' says Los Alamos  
The boffins at the Los Alamos National Laboratory are known as a secretive lot; a much understated lot, in fact. Rather than cause a fuss, researchers there have quietly published a paper showing they've had a flexible quantum network – something rather a lot of people are interested in – up and running for two and a half years...
There are several companies and research groups working on this, but there's been limited progress so far. But the team at Los Alamos think it's cracked this with a hub-and-spoke design they call network-centric quantum communications (NQC), and report that it's easy to run, reasonably scalable, and runs on relatively cheap hardware.
To get around the problem of routing quantum bits, the NQC hub (named Trent) decodes the incoming message, transmits it to the new spoke, reencodes it and fires it off. It handles encryption key distribution, and the system maintains the advantages of quantum cryptography while dramatically increasing the value of the network by connecting more users.
I like the  "relatively cheap hardware" bit.  I can't wait to use AUTH_QUANTUM for my RPC connections.

He Never Failed To Fail - It Was The Easiest Thing To Do

If you have never read Basic Instructions, you absolutely should.

Go on - we'll wait for you.

Great!  Now that you know who Rick is, you will be able to appreciate the true genius of "Asking the Wrong Guy"!  It's absolutely essential to read the comic first and get a feel for Rick, though.  Otherwise you might easily make the mistake of thinking that you are reading something written by Scott Adams, Dave Barry, Hunter F. Thompson [1] or Iowahawk.

For example:

Could you perhaps favor us on investment and preparation for retirement?
--M.P. 
When considering preparations for retirement, it is essential to stick to that which is practical and achievable. To that end, for years now my retirement plan has been The Complete Collapse of Western Civilization. A thorough study of actuarial tables, as well as a brief look at how things go for me, indicate that the descent of the world into a dystopian, post-apocalyptic nightmare deathscape is far more likely than me ever saving enough money to retire to anywhere other than the boiler room at the YMCA. 
Therefore, based on my experience, my advice for you is to start scouting easily-defendable caves and to purchase a nice loincloth while there is still a good selection.
Three posts in, and full of laugh-out-loud writing and a wicked sense of humor.  Overall, an A+ effort.  Frankly, I'm disappointed.  I would have expected far less from Rick.

Poor Rick.  Even as a professional and world-renowned failure, he's a failure.

[1] Hunter Thompson's first [2] clone.  Wicked smaht, as they say.  Unfortunately, he way (literally) a man born [3] out of his own time, and while his observations on the Lerinski/Walhalasha scandal will eventually become the gold standard for psychic attack journalism, you'll need to catch up on over a century years of future history before you can even begin to appreciate his subtle wit.
[2] There were, of course, three clones [4] - Hunter F., Hunter S., and Hunter T.  Word is that Hunter T. is a field expedient repair (biological) assigned to project Skin Horse.  Hunter S. was intended to become the First Emperor of the United States at one point, but then 'Puter took him out the the Leaping Peacock for a weekend, and... well, you know the rest.
[3] Well, OK.  Decanted out of his own time.
[4] Reportedly, the original Hunter Thompson was actually a dull little nobody.  A nomadic wholesale shoe salesman, if I recall correctly.  If it wasn't for the fact that a Tcho-Tcho developed indigestion and stuffed his remaining limbs into the Mandarin's biological samples cabinet, we'd never have known any of the Hunter clones at all.

Visit Scenic Scarfolk!

Via Professor Mondo, here's a wonderful pointer to the lovely little town of Scarfolk.  As the Professor points out, it sounds like a nice place to visit:
Scarfolk is a town in North West England that did not progress beyond 1979. Instead, the entire decade of the 1970s loops ad infinitum. Here in Scarfolk, pagan rituals blend seamlessly with science; hauntology is a compulsory subject at school, and everyone must be in bed by 8pm because they are perpetually running a slight fever. “Visit Scarfolk today. Our number one priority is keeping rabies at bay.” For more information please reread.
Some of the fascinating historical topics covered by the Scarfolk Council blog include:


Their tourism poster from 1972 says it all, really.




Grammar Nazi Wuz Hear!

A filmmaker searches for a mysterious vandal who has been correcting typos on placards in the sculpture garden of the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn.
In the sculpture park at the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, one of the nation’s oldest art schools, a clandestine struggle is under way — over grammar. In recent months, a vandal (or team of vandals) has used permanent markers to correct grammar and punctuation mistakes on the informational placards near the sculptures.
Bets on how long it is before someone intentionally starts making up and posting fake placards complete with spelling and grammar errors?  I can't be the only person who immediately thought of doing that...

QOTD

Note to self: Avoid applying for jobs where "Hippo Mauling" is considered an occupational hazard.
I have to say that this sounds like excellent advice. 

What About... Bacon Pierogies?


Brackets will feature 64 foods from across the country organized by region. States will play within their region. The Elite Eight will face off in the fourth and final week. The champion will be the state food that receives the most votes during the final round. The winner will be announced at a reception at Nationals Park on June 13, 2013.
Wait - what? Some states get two entries, but they limit PA to "Philly Cheese Steak"? Where's my pierogies?

Oh, and if you don't vote for Bacon, there's something seriously wrong with you.

Good... Bad... I'm The Man With The Pencil.

A Suffolk second grader has been suspended for making gunlike noises while pointing a pencil at another student.
Rope.

Well, At Least There Will Be A New Star Wars Game Every Year...

Last week I answered the question, “What Lucasarts games would you like to revive?”
Of course, this entire conversation is now irrelevant because it’s been announced that EA now has a franchise-wide exclusive lock on all things Star Wars. The only way we’re getting a new X-Wing vs. TIE Fighter game is if we get an Army of Two knockoff starring a couple of dudebros named XWing and TieFighter.
EA.  Star Wars.  Ugh. 

Paging Mr. Shaeffer

This is Free Trader Beowulf, calling anyone... Mayday, Mayday... we are under attack... main drive is gone... turret number one not responding... Mayday...
Had to post this just for the quote, if nothing else.