Grist List
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Artist makes apple orchard into a giant living battery
Photographer Caleb Charland takes pictures of batteries made out of power sources like stacked coins, fruit, and vinegar. But maybe his most impressive trick was wiring up this apple-powered battery using fruit that was still on the tree.
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Carpooling bird hitches a ride on a moving vehicle
I always assumed that the reason normal, non-rich-people cars don’t have hood ornaments is that a) tiny car sculptures are not for plebeians and b) Bart Simpson might steal them. But it turns out there’s another reason: Without a hood ornament, you have more room for birds.
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This robot has the most swagger of any robot you’ve seen
Yeah, I think I’m comfortable with this country’s research funding going towards developing android swaggerbots. As far as I’m concerned, this could be DARPA’s greatest achievement since the internet.
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Glow-in-the-dark solar bikes = rad
If anyone hits you while you are riding this bike, provided you are still alive, you would be totally within your rights to scream at them, "Are you blind?"
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Starbucks is turning leftover scones and coffee grounds into useful stuff like plastic
The company is hoping they can come up with something a little more creative and sustainable than the current plan of incineration, composting, or disposal.
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Here is an otter that is smarter than Todd Akin
Like Rep. Todd Akin, Nellie the sea otter does not understand how human reproduction works. But she’s never said anything offensive about rape, plus she can stack three cups! She should probably run for Congress.
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What did you do this weekend? Curiosity took pictures of itself and blew up a rock
It’s been a big weekend for the Curiosity rover. First, it took a new Facebook profile pic (with flattering shot-from-above camera angle, but thankfully free of duck lips). Actually, Curiosity shot this selfie on Aug. 7, but it was just released on Saturday. And somehow it’s even cooler, at least to me, than shots of […]
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These dizzy cats would like you to turn up your thermostat to save energy
Kudos to the Electric Reliability Council of Texas — they really understand what the internet says about human psychology. Instead of even trying to use science, economics, or statistics to convince people to stop cooling their homes to 65 degrees while they’re at work, ERCOT is skipping all that nonsense and going straight to what […]
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Excuse me but this butterfly can see with its butt
Animals get all the cool accoutrements — tails, wings, prehensile penises — and humans all know which one they’re most jealous of. If you want proof, ask any elementary schooler, most stoned college kids, and certain tags on Tumblr. But the one creature I’ll bet no human has ever, ever envied is the Japanese swallowtail […]
