Humor
- Is this a Huorn?
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Those familiar with the Lord of the Rings will remember the Huorns. According to the Lord of the Rings Wiki: Mostly the Huorns stood as dark trees in the deepest forests, gnarled and unmoving, yet watchful. When aroused in wrath they moved swiftly as i ...
Blog Post - Robert H Olley - Jan 24 2014 - 9:25am
- Dialogues On Answering Machines- Academic Investigations
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• What is ‘Answering Machine Talk’? “Answering machine talk represents a form of mediated conversation in which messages are recorded to facilitate communication between participants.“ • What of the resources? “The talk which occurs in such messages draws ...
Article - Martin Gardiner - Jan 24 2014 - 10:44am
- Paparazzi Zapper For Celebrities (patented)
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“Photography has been around for many years. A problem associated with photography is oftentimes many people do not want to have their picture taken. For example, many celebrities do not want their picture taken or pictures of their companion’s [sic?] or ...
Article - Martin Gardiner - Feb 3 2014 - 10:09am
- Prayers- What Are They Worth (in US Dollars)?
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• Some people might feel happier if they get their hands on some more money. • Some people might feel happier if they use their hands to pray. Leading some to the question: is it feasible to equate the two? In other words, is it possible to put a price on ...
Article - Martin Gardiner - Feb 11 2014 - 2:31pm
- Bruce Willis Deflects An Asteroid- Really?
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Bruce Willis heroically managed to save the world in the film 1998 Armageddon. He was able to deflect a huge Earth-bound asteroid with the expedient use of a well placed thermonuclear explosion. But some have questioned whether Willis’s feat would actu ...
Article - Martin Gardiner - Feb 18 2014 - 10:10am
- Remote Controlled Cows- And Flerds
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If it's a “postmodern” 21 st Century version of range sciences you're after, you can do no better than check out the website of the Jornada Experimental Range, Las Cruces, New Mexico,US. ...
Article - Martin Gardiner - Feb 24 2014 - 11:52am
- Lipstick Names- An Academic Viewpoint
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When it comes to the names of lipsticks, anyone who has attempted to combine the ‘Presentation of Self’ theories of Erving Goffman and the semiotic modelling methods of Roland Gérard Barthes could well consult the work of professor Debra Merskin (of the S ...
Article - Martin Gardiner - Feb 27 2014 - 4:19pm
- Humor- Failed Or Not
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To begin, an example of failed humor. Two friends in their 20s (called ‘ L ’ who is female, and ‘ R ’ who is male) are conversing: L: “What did the big cup say to the little cup?” R: (sarcastically) “I’m bigger than you?” L: “No, Nothing. Cups can’t talk ...
Article - Martin Gardiner - Mar 5 2014 - 12:14pm
- The Automatic 'Country Music' Generator
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Amazing as it may seem, algorithmic methods for generating music go back at least as far as 1757 (see: Musikalisches Würfelspiel). But algorithmic methods for generating US ‘ Country Music ’ are far more recent. Indeed, Jim Suruda and professor Norman Car ...
Article - Martin Gardiner - May 24 2019 - 1:09pm
- 'Groucho Running' The Science
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Please observe the following unusual locomotive behavior which begins at around 55 seconds into this video – when Groucho Marx starts to run. Groucho is displaying a behaviour which scientists now call ‘ Groucho Running’ *see note. ...
Article - Martin Gardiner - Mar 19 2014 - 10:16am