On August 31, 2012, Japanese mathematician Shinichi Mochizuki posted four papers on the Internet. The titles were inscrutable. The volume was daunting: 512 pages in total. The claim was audacious: he said he had proved the ABC Conjecture, a famed, beguilingly simple number theory problem that had stumped mathematicians for decades. […] The problem, as many mathematicians were discovering when they flocked to Mochizuki’s website, was that the proof was impossible to read. The first paper, entitled “Inter-universal Teichmuller Theory I: Construction of Hodge Theaters,” starts out by stating that the goal is “to establish an arithmetic version of Teichmuller theory for number fields equipped with an elliptic curve…by applying the theory of semi-graphs of anabelioids, Frobenioids, the etale theta function, and log-shells.” This is not just gibberish to the average layman. It was gibberish to the math community as well. [Caroline Chen/Project Wordsworth]
Last night, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York hosted the 2013 Met Gala. This year’s theme was “Punk: From Chaos To Couture.” For many celebrities, this was the first time they had used the word “punk” in a sentence that wasn’t “Have my assistant get me Daft Punk tickets.” […] “I skipped punk and went straight to couture. I never did punk.” —Andre Leon Talley, editor at large of Vogue/total fucking clown […] “I did not [have a punk phase]. That’s why I think my version of punk for me is not probably the mohawk, typical punk that you’d sort of envision. A little bit more like ‘romantic punk.” —Kim Kardashian, notable reality TV shithead “I don’t think I fully understood the theme.” —Kate Upton, human Viagra for Terry Richardson [Jaded Punk]
Women are more attracted to guitarists than sporty guys.
Physical, Behavioral, and Psychological Traits of Gay Men Identifying as Bears.
Most people do not seem to perceive microexpressions in themselves or others. In the Wizards Project, previously called the "Diogenes Project," Drs. Paul Ekman and Maureen O'Sullivan studied the ability of people to detect deception. Of the thousands of people tested, only a select few were able to accurately detect when someone was lying. The Wizards Project researchers named these people "Truth Wizards." To date, the Wizards Project has identified just over 50 people with this ability after testing nearly 20,000 people. Truth Wizards use microexpressions, among many other cues, to determine if someone is being truthful. Scientists hope by studying wizards that they can further advance the techniques used to identify deception. [Wikipedia]
A person named “John Titor” started posting on the Internet one day, claiming to be from the future and predicting the end of the world. Then he suddenly disappeared, never to be heard from again. […] He claimed he was a soldier sent from 2036, the year the computer virus wiped the world. […] Titor responded to every question other posters had, describing future events in poetically-phrased ways, always submitted with a general disclaimer that alternate realities do exist, so his reality may not be our own. [Pacific Standard | johntitor.com]
As digital data expands, anonymity may become a mathematical impossibility.
After checking your bank account, remember to log out, close your web browser, and throw your computer into the ocean. […] For those of you using a smartphone or tablet, the process for securely closing your banking session is very similar, except that you should find the nearest canyon and throw your device into that canyon. We then recommend simply scaling down the cliff face, locating the shattered remnants of your device, and spending the next few weeks traversing the country burying each individual piece in separate holes of varying depths several hundred miles apart. [The Onion | Thanks Tim]
“What people do in cities—create wealth, or murder each other—shows a relationship to the size of the city, one that isn’t tied just to one era or nation,” says Lobo. The relationship is captured by an equation in which a given parameter—employment, say—varies exponentially with population. In some cases, the exponent is 1, meaning whatever is being measured increases linearly, at the same rate as population. Household water or electrical use, for example, shows this pattern; as a city grows bigger its residents don’t use their appliances more. […] If the population of a city doubles over time, or comparing one big city with two cities each half the size, gross domestic product more than doubles. Each individual becomes, on average, 15 percent more productive. Bettencourt describes the effect as “slightly magical,” although he and his colleagues are beginning to understand the synergies that make it possible. Physical proximity promotes collaboration and innovation, which is one reason the new CEO of Yahoo recently reversed the company’s policy of letting almost anyone work from home. […] Remarkably, this phenomenon applies to cities all over the world, of different sizes, regardless of their particular history, culture or geography. Mumbai is different from Shanghai is different from Houston, obviously, but in relation to their own pasts, and to other cities in India, China or the U.S., they follow these laws. [Smithsonian]
Skipping meals can sabotage your shopping – and your diet, according to a new Cornell study. Even short term food deprivation not only increases overall grocery shopping, but leads shoppers to buy 31% more high calorie foods. [EurekAlert]
A new molecule has been created by researchers in Chile that could make teeth 'cavity proof', killing the bacteria known to cause caries in less than 60 seconds. Named 'Keep 32' after the number of teeth in the mouth, researchers Jose Cordova and Erich Astudillo hope the product could be used in toothpastes, mouthwashes, floss and even food. Chemical trials have shown that the cavity-causing bacteria Streptococcus mutans can be eliminated for hours with the molecule. […] Procter & Gamble and five other chemical giants are fighting for the patent. [British Dental Journal]
Why do cardio exercise when you could just do cocaine?
The market for methadone vomit in prison is lively.
Capital punishment in China: A populist instrument of social governance.
3D-Printed Gun's Blueprints Downloaded 100,000 Times In Two Days (With Some Help From Kim Dotcom).
Bulletproof Whiteboards And The Marketing Of School Safety.
Child Abuse Billboard Contains 'Secret Message' Not Visible to Adults.
The future of a home computer controlled by your eyes may be far closer than you think.
Voina (or “War” to give them their English name) are a radical art group concerned with challenging the Russian establishment. [Thanks Yvonne]
The four are members of a new idol group, Machikado Keiki Japan, and stocks play an important part in their performances. “We base our costumes on the price of the Nikkei average of the day. For example, when the index falls below 10,000 points, we go on stage with really long skirts,” Mori explained. The higher stocks rise, the shorter their dresses get. With the Nikkei index ending above 13,000, the four went without skirts altogether on the day of their interview with The Japan Times, instead wearing only lacy shorts. [Japan Times]
What would happen if a large chunk (1/8th) of our Earth was suddenly removed?
10 New Things Science Says About Moms.
Restaurant menu psychology: tricks to make us order more.
The traditional view is that words can’t survive for more than 8,000 to 9,000 years. Linguists identify 15,000-year-old ‘ultraconserved words.’
Now you can enlarge and denoise your photos, all thanks to basic research.
A blog about trying to find affordable housing in New York City. [Thanks Stella]
Fartscroll. Everyone farts. And now your web pages can too.
