NASA’s breathtaking “Earth As Art” photos are now a free e-book

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NASA:

This book celebrates Earth’s aesthetic beauty in the patterns, shapes, colors, and textures of the land, oceans, ice, and atmosphere. The book features 75 stunning images of Earth from the Terra, Landsat 5, Landsat 7, EO-1, and Aqua satellites. Sensors on these satellites can measure light outside of the visible range, so the images show more than what is visible to the naked eye. The images are intended for viewing enjoyment rather than scientific interpretation. The beauty of Earth is clear, and the artistry ranges from the surreal to the sublime.

Your tax dollars paid for it so you might as well grab the PDF or the iPad app.

Even when you gotta go, social media goes too

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USA Today:

If you have found yourself using Facebook and Twitter in the bathroom, you are not the only one.

Nearly one-third (32%) of the heaviest adopters of social networks — those ages 18 to 24— connect with sites such as Facebook and Twitter in the bathroom.

More than one-fourth (28%) of those ages 25-34 are bathroom social networkers, as are 15% of those ages 35-44. Both sexes are equally likely to use social networks in the bathroom, with 14% of them saying they do.

Guess where I’m posting this from?

News Corp. kills The Daily

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News Corp. is calling it quits on its “The Daily,” a daily newspaper produced for iPad and other tablets.

8 banned children’s toys from yesteryear

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BuzzFeed:

Only available from 1951-1952, this science kit for CHILDREN included 4 types of uranium ore, a Geiger counter, a comic called “Dagwood Spits The Atom” and a coupon for ordering MORE radioactive materials. One of the four uranium ores included was Po-210 (Polonium) which, by mass, is 250,000 times more toxic than hydrogen cyanide. “Merry Christmas Kevin, here’s that giant box of poison you asked for.”

That’s pretty bad but what might even be worse is the fact that, I’m sure like a lot of you, I actually had many of those old Hardy Boys books they talk about!

USS Enterprise taken out of active service

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TIME:

The world’s first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier was retired from active service on Saturday. The Enterprise was the largest ship in the world at the time it was built, earning the nickname “Big E.”

The nuclear-powered aircraft carrier was the eighth U.S. ship to bear the name Enterprise, but it won’t be the last.

My dad was in the Canadian Navy for many years and I still remember getting a tour of the ship as a ten year old.

Should Apple include a visitor’s center in its new HQ?

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SiliconBeat:

As Apple dreams up details of its new spaceship-shaped headquarters in Cupertino with the starchitects over at Sir Norman Foster’s shop, big-time fanboy and computer historian David Greelish has a suggestion:

“Hey,” he wrote in his blog, “you know what Apple needs? A visitor’s center, that’s what.”

Greelish has gotten something else for all his hard work: a big fat “Thanks but no thanks” from Apple.

And yet, even after being told no by the company, he’s still petitioning Apple online to include this “feature” on their new campus. Anyone else think this is a really bad, dumb idea?

Top Gear and 50 years of Bond cars

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Top Gear:

In a special edition of Top Gear, Richard Hammond celebrates 50 years of James Bond films with a look back at 007’s legendary cars. He also talks to Daniel Craig and Sir Roger Moore, gets exclusive access behind the scenes of Bond’s latest adventure, Skyfall, and pays special tribute to 007 by attempting to turn a Lotus in a fully working submarine car.

This is the 50th anniversary of James Bond and of all the people jumping on the bandwagon, I’m most looking forward to the Top Gear take on some of the iconic Bond cars. Sadly, this show, while available on the iTunes Store, doesn’t include the full Top Gear complement – it’s just The Hamster.

The human body is worth $160

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This helps to put things in perspective on how useless those Apple component cost breakdowns are by doing the same with your body.

iTunes through the ages

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Ars Technica:

While we’re waiting for Apple’s new ship date of “late November” to arrive, let’s take a look back at how iTunes has evolved in the last 12 years.

It’s interesting to see how much (and, in some ways, how little) iTunes has changed over the past 11+ years.

Fiona Apple cancels tour to care for her dying dog

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Dogster:

Many people might call in sick from work to care for a sick and dying dog. But what if your job was going around to cities and singing heartfelt, cathartic songs in front of thousands of heartfelt, cathartic fans? Would you just stop all that to go home and care for your sick and dying dog?

That’s exactly what Fiona Apple did.

She writes, “I will not be the woman who puts her career ahead of love and friendship. I am the woman who stays home and bakes Tilapia for my dearest, oldest friend.”

Anyone who has loved and known the love of a great pet, especially a dog, completely understands Apple’s decision. You can always go back out on tour.