The Tale of the Arab Spring Break

In 2011, Chris Jeon was a 21-year old UCLA student from an affluent Orange County neighborhood. A brilliant student and dedicated mathematics major, Chris had his eyes set on a lucrative summer internship at the largest asset management firm in the world – a position that would catapult him into the career in finance that he had always dreamed of. But by the end of the summer, Chris would find himself not sitting in a cubicle, but fighting alongside Libyan rebels in their revolution against Muammar Gaddafi.

This is the story of one of the most epic and unlikely summer breaks ever.

The Mindblowing Abilities of Quadcopters

Mind. Blown.

San Francisco’s Cascading Fog

This stunning time-lapse video shows Frisco’s famous fog banks cascading over the rolling hills around the bay like a waterfall. It is probably the coolest thing you’ll see all day.

Thanks to Leslie at Gizmodo for posting this video.

Diamond Encrusted Everything!!

We live in an age of habitual line-steppers and one-uppers.  Bigger, better, more, crazier, more creative, so on and so forth.  Despite what my tone may suggest, most of the time the result is pretty freaking awesome.  Recent history gives us a few cases in point: The renewed battle to build the world’s tallest skyscraper between the US, China, Dubai; The space race between the US and the Soviets; and the pissing contest between Paul Allen, Larry Ellison and other billionaires to build the world’s coolest/largest yacht.  The topic of this post is no different – some habitual line steppers have really outdone themselves here.  So without further ado, we give to you the five most over-the-top diamond encrusted items in the world (as if diamond encrusted anything wasn’t over the top already…)

The Origins of Father’s Day

We would like to take this opportunity to wish our father, and all fathers out there, a very happy and special Father’s Day.  Of course, we cannot let this day pass without looking back and wondering how the celebration started and who the brilliant individual was that kickstarted the idea.  In just another shining example of why Washington is such a great state, credit for Father’s Day is officially given to Miss Sonora Dodd of Spokane, WA.  Dodd was one of six children raised by her single father and Civil War Veteran, Sgt. William Jackson Smart.

While listening to a sermon at church on Mother’s Day, she thought about all her father had done for her and her siblings and decided fathers should have a day, too. Because Dodd’s father was born in June, she encouraged churches in her area, Spokane, Wash., to honor fathers that month.

– Library of Congress

Soda or Pop? The Age-Old Debate is Visualized in a Map of Regional Dialects in the U.S.

Soda? Pop?  What is it called?!?!?! This is probably one of the most heated debates I get in to with people from other states (Except people from the Deep South who ask if I would like a cold Co-Cola.  I freaking love that).  Whenever we have this debate, the debaters are always trying to figure out if its a regional thing or just a blow to a head that causes them to address the cold sweet fizzy syrup as something different that what they call it.  Joshua Katz, a Ph.D candidate at North Carolina State University, has taken data from a questionnaire of regional dialects and mapped the information out in order to lend a little order to the madness.

Maybe the Funniest “News” Article I Have Ever Read

This will be you after reading this story. Especially if you try reading it aloud to someone.

I am just passing this along because tears were literally dripping down my cheeks trying to read this out loud to someone the other night.  I apologize if anyone is offended by the somewhat lewd content, but it is just too funny to keep to myself.  Apparently, a man in Delaware never watches TV or completely ignores Cialis/Viagra commercials, and was thus completely unaware that erections lasting longer than 4 hours are a problem… so he finally got the clue after 8 months.  After 8 freaking months of being at full salute, he decided something was up and that it was time to pony up for a lawsuit.

It’s so hilarious and yet so stupid, even great fiction writers would not make this up.  Do yourself a favor and read on…

Mother Russia’s Medal for Mothers

Most of us are aware that population growth is a problem, and we are familiar with population control techniques employed by governments and suggested by economists and doctors to limit the dangers of overpopulation.  Case in point: China employs an infamous one child policy that limits urban couples to having one child.  This is part of the reality of the world we live in today – population is growing at an astronomical rate, and this growth has caused grave concern the world over about the Earth’s ability to support the continued addition of humans across the globe.  Alas, that is a topic for a different post on a different day.

The point is, overpopulation is a very recent concern and development.  Not so long ago, the bigger someone’s family was, the better.  When society was mostly rural and agrarian, more children meant more bodies to help around the house, raise crops, go hunting, etc.  As we moved from the country to the city thanks to the Industrial Revolution, large families became less important as an economic tool and transitioned to be more of an economic burden.  However, it appears this memo was never received in good old post-World War II Soviet Russia.

Watch This Timelapse of a Storm Supercell Forming

Thanks to Gizmodo for this video.

The World’s Most Unusual Airports

If you have been on more than a few flights in your lifetime then you know how much of a mess some airports can be. Confusing layouts, long security lines, awkward gift shops and restaurants that I wouldn’t eat at for free. Luckily, airports are as varied and diverse as the cities they serve – and some of them are awesome. This list covers neither the good nor the bad but instead some of the most strange.