notes of the universe

May 28

Nearly 150 years ago, photographer O’Sullivan came across this evidence of a visitor to the West that preceded his own expedition by another 150 years — A Spanish inscription from 1726. This close-up view of the inscription carved in the sandstone at Inscription Rock (El Morro National Monument), New Mexico reads, in English: “By this place passed Ensign Don Joseph de Payba Basconzelos, in the year in which he held the Council of the Kingdom at his expense, on the 18th of February, in the year 1726”.(Timothy O’Sullivan/Library of Congress) (via In Focus - The American West, 150 Years Ago - The Atlantic)

(via pushthemovement)

May 27

laughingsquid:

Penguins Chasing Laser Pointer Lights

todaysdocument:

The Golden Gate Bridge rises out of the fog (or smog?) in this 1972 Documerica photo. The bridge opened 75 years ago, on May 27, 1937, linking San Francisco to the Marin Headlands.

California, 1972

Tomas Sennett, photographer. From the EPA’s DOCUMERICA series.

May 26

thedailywhat:

Upgraded Advertisement of the Day: Nobody honestly believes that the joke Siri told John Malkovich in Apple’s latest iPhone commercial was funny, so Slacktory has given it a major upgrade with a play on one of the all-time classics.

(Sorta not safe for work, iPhones doing dirty, depraved things.)

[slacktory]

poptech:

Amazing Microscopic HD Video! Paramecium Feeding!!

May 25

May 24

newshour:

President Obama receives a painting of Air Force One during the U.S. Air Force Academy’s graduation ceremony in Colorado Springs.

(Photo by Jewel Samad/AFP/Getty Images)

thedailywhat:

Life-Altering Invention of the Day: It took two months and a whole team of MIT mechanical engineers and nano-technologists, but at long last, mankind has a solution to the ketchup bottle battle.

LiquiGlide, a “super slippery” coating, is made up of nontoxic materials that allow the condiment to pour out smoothly, the way it was intended. The lubricant can be applied to all sorts of food packaging, but ketchup had better be likely will be priority number one.

One of the biggest challenges the team faced was making sure the coating was safe to consume, which meant ingredients had to be FDA-approved. “We had a limited amount of materials to pick from,” said team member Dave Smith, an MIT Ph.D. candidate. “I can’t say what they are, but we’ve patented the hell out of it.”

[coexist]