Whoa. There’s something extreme about science. Of course, saying that anything is “extreme” these days isn’t very extreme. However, what does it really take to be an extreme scientific wonder? Well, it has to be something that’s going to be all about moving science forward, or being the “hottest”, or the most radioactive, or even the hardest substance on earth. We’re extremely excited to talk about all things science-y and well…extreme.

Now, we know that this isn’t one of our usual crazy and funny posts, but work with us here. Deep down, we’re just nerds on the inside, okay? Okay? It means that sometimes we really just need to let that nerdy side out and connect on a different level. Hey, we’re in good company — the nerds in the crowd are waiting for us to spill the beans on the science joy, and we’re ready to give it to them. So if you’re feeling a bit put out, just think of it as nerd’s revenge.

Onward to the science stuff!

1. Diamonds Go Hard…Real Hard…

Is our inner scientist conflicting with our inner nerd? No, we’re just talking about diamonds. As you might have remembered from science class, diamonds are considered one of the hardest substances on earth. It’s ranked 9 on the Mohs Scale of Hardness, but it’s not truly the hardest substance known to man.

What is the hardest substance is called an aggregated diamond nanorod. As you might tell from the name, this is actually a group of nano-scale diamonds, which are tightly packed together. This is something that is developed in the lab, not in nature which means that the diamond still is the hardest substance that is known in nature.

The scientific gains that come from diamond nanorods are plenty — for starters, companies will use them as super-strong versions of the industrial diamonds that are already in use. Some jewelers use diamond cutters to shape weaker metals like silver and copper to give it more of a customized look. Of course, who discovered this nifty little thing? The Germans, of course!

2. The Super Magnet!

This is a fairly new scientific wonder that was just discovered but it’s already got scientists excited. And if you haven’t seen a bunch of nerds get excited, you just need to go to a Star Trek convention. Yes, Star Trek will never die. Deal with it.

Back to the science. This is a small magnet that is actually constructed from iron and nitrogen. On their own, you wouldn’t think much of the magnetic properties. However, when you combine them together you actually have a product that’s pretty deadly. If there’s anything that we’ve learned so far, we’ve learned that magnets have plenty of uses. For example, junkyards use magnets to move cars from place to place. However, if you don’t have a magnet that can handle that type of load, you won’t be able to pick up the car. Yet there’s also a darker outcome: the car could fall off the magnet and crash onto other cars and possibly even threaten people if the junkyard is open to the public. This type of strong magnet pictured here could be developed someday into a magnet system that would prevent this “slippage” from happening.

3. Helium 2 — Superfluidity FTW!

Everyone likes superfluidity …well, everyone in this case referring to the science junkies. If you haven’t caught on why superfluidity is so interesting, let us explain real quick: this is a state of matter that occurs at really low temps, has the same temperature through the entire surface, and no viscosity — it’s truly “liquid”, in other words. There’s one substance that fits this bill to a “T”, and that’s Helium 2.

Helium 2? Yes, that’s right — there’s a second He in the building, and it’s actually a liquid instead of a gas. The weird thing about He2 is that it’ll just up and “leave” a container — spontaneously without any human interaction. It’ll also go through items that we think of as solid — it has no friction whatsoever.

So if you’re paranoid, don’t worry — Helium 2 really is out to get you. Be afraid. Read more »

Death is hard. OK, that was obvious, but you get what we mean. When you lose someone that’s important to you, it can be really hard to step back and actually think about anything except your loss. There are books, movies, and even a few TV shows dedicated to getting over the loss of a loved one.

These people stepped over that part and went to turn their grief into an enduring symbol of compassion and love for the ones they’ve buried — amazing memorials and burial sites for the dead.

Sometimes things around here are crazy. Sometimes things around here are funny. But this is just plain cool, no matter what your feelings are. We’ll admit that some of the items are a little wacky, but hey — that’s the beauty of it all, isn’t it?

So, let’s go back to the wacky and the cool today with 5 super cool graves that you need to see.

1. Go Go BMW!

Who said that you can’t take it with you? We imagine that the person who passed away must have really loved their BMW. While we can’t be sure, it actually looks like a BMW 5-series — those are the ones that are most likely to be done in the convertible style, but it isn’t like the 6 series doesn’t have its share of convertibles too!

For someone that was truly a fan of convertibles, BMW, or just fast cars, this is an amazing tribute. We had to include it first.

2. This Wrench Is For You!

If everyone loves a good screw, then this guy must have loved his tools a whole bunch. We think that the gentlemen resting underground was once a mechanic that really loved doing what he did for a living. What better way to honor your loved one than with a creative headstone that truly captured one of the dearly departed’s favorite hobbies? Though, when we look at all of that granite, it goes without saying that this was probably a pretty expensive piece.

3. To Infinity and Beyond!!

Can we slip in some Toy Story jokes or is that not hip anyone? This is one cool memorial — for one, it’s pretty tall and um, really phallic — knocking out the Toy Story jokes *and* the Freud jokes. Now that’s a twofer we can get behind!

All jokes aside, this is really cool. It’s really a shame that you can’t get any color treatment on the rocket though. That would be sweet — but it wouldn’t last very long! Read more »

When you think about hot girls, chances are good that you’re thinking that they’re going to be in something like Playboy, Maxim, or FHM. Hey, there’s nothing wrong with that. You might even think about them connected with something awesome, like poker.

Who ever thought that there would be women that really like cooking, and are actually hot? There are quite a few cooking cuties out there, and television has never been the same since.

Don’t believe us? Check out this crazy list of 5 “cooking cuties” that we’re loving right now.

1. Rachael Ray

A lot of people don’t like Rachael Ray, and we know that the anti-Rays might be in full force after this one. However, we think that she’s radiant. A lot of the criticism stems from the fact that Rachael Ray is rarely grouchy on air and she has a bit of a rough, husky voice. However, those are qualities that we find appealing. Food is supposed to be fun and enjoyable, so why not make it so that the star of the show is a happy person by default. Rachael Ray strikes us as a woman that really is that happy all the time, and she lights up the room with her presence. Definitely someone that we would love to have dinner with and even go out for a few drinks.

She’s an author, a TV show host, an incredible spokeswoman, and has even posed for FHM. Yummy.

2. Giada de Laurentiis

When it comes to Giada de Laurentiis, there’s one thing that you need to know — she’s hot. And she can actually cook her cute oversized head off! She’s worked at Spago, a Wolfgang Puck-run restaurant creation. Anyone tapped by Wolfgang himself to run things in his restaurant is definitely a cook that shouldn’t be taken lightly. The good looks run in the family — her mother was an actress, and she really is Italian, like from Italy — even though a lot of people say her voice is grating, we think Giada’s soft Italian accent on things is rather nice.

Giada currently runs five shows for Food Network and is supposed to be working on some cookbooks right now.

3. Nigella Lawson

Now, some would say that Nigella Lawson really isn’t that hot, but the truth is that it’s nice to see a more full figured woman taking the spotlight. It looks good to see a woman with some meat on her bones, and it helps that she’s got such a sexy British accent. Read more »

Food is more than just fuel. It’s something that connects people together. No matter where you come from, chances are good that you eat at least one thing that you can discuss with someone — even if they live on the other side of the world! Food is just that powerful. We not only like to eat food, but we tend to look at people that have a certain type of food as being more powerful than us — the rich and famous eat in restaurants that we could never think to eat in.

Speaking of rich and famous, let’s strip away the celebrities for a minute and just focus on food, okay? If you’re thinking about sinking your teeth into some fine foods, these five should definitely get you excited.

1. White Truffles

OK, we know that it’s not going to be the sexiest food that you’ve ever seen in your life. However, this is one of the world’s most admired and treasured foods. In fact, people pay good money to get a pound of truffles. They go on everything from pasta to being tucked into casseroles and even in whole meats like duck and chicken.

It’s expensive though. Truffles are actually very rare now in nature, which means that the prices can get pretty high. How high? Well, the owner of a casino in Macau paid almost half a million dollars for just 1.5kg of truffles. That’s not that much at all! Generally speaking, truffles run at about $1500 – $3,000 per pound, especially if we’re talking white truffles. A truffle is a special type of mushroom, but it has a completely different taste. Some say that taste is out of this world.

Now, chefs get by with using what’s known as truffle oil to simulate the taste. Not all truffle oils actually have any real truffle — it’s a synthetic flavor. However, if you have truffle oil over your French fries, you’ll definitely be able to taste the truffle scent and aroma in your mouth. This can actually be a good thing for people that don’t normally like mushrooms — they get the flavor without really having to eat real truffles. Still, it’s a delicacy that many people want to try.

2. Saffron

Saffron is beautiful as a flower — it’s actually part of the saffron crocus flower. What makes this spice so expensive is that it takes almost a hundred thousand flowers to make one pound. As you might imagine, that means a lot of hours of manpower to harvest and prepare the spice, which drives up the cost. The spice can usually be obtained for $500/pound.

3. Wagyu Beef

Check out that marbling! If you don’t know what you’re looking at, you’re actually looking at Wagyu Beef. This is a special cow that is in Japan and fed the best grass and special treatment — massages are common, and farmers make sure to speak soft words around the cows to make them feel more at peace. They have plenty of space to roam, which means that the meat tends to be a lot tenderer by default. The type of marbling that you get with Wagyu cows just can’t be beat.

200 grams of a fillet goes for more than 100 dollars.

Especially interesting is the fact that the Food Network ran an episode of Iron Chef America that was nothing but a battle of Wagyu beef. Even though it was American Wagyu — that is, Wagyu cows bred with Angus to create a hybrid that’s still juicy and tender, as the United States outlawed the importing of Wagyu beef from Japan completely — that’s still an expensive show to run!

4. Amazing Chocolate!

This is chocolate that’s considered to be the most expensive in the world. It’s called Chocopologie, and it’s produced by Knipschildt. The chocolate is $2,600 per pound and is a beautiful chocolate truffle. It contains a black truffle (the mushroom kind!) and 70% Valrhona cacao. Those that have had it say it’s creamy and delicious, which is always a plus. The price is still too steep for most people to ever taste it.

5. Kopi Luwak coffee

There’s only 500 pounds of beans produced every year that are true Kopi Luwak. This raises the price of these special coffee beans to $300/pound, which means that you’re definitely not going to be drinking this every day!

What a lot of people don’t realize about this coffee is that the beans are actually extracted from the waste of civet cats. There’s something about the digestion process that produces coffee with amazing flavor, but knowing this little fact doesn’t make you crave this coffee, does it? You won’t need to worry about whether or not Starbucks is going to serve this anytime soon — they won’t. It’s just too expensive to be served on a mass appeal and the production is so low that they wouldn’t really be able to serve it regularly.

So there you have it — five of the world’s most expensive foods. We left off the sandwiches, burgers, and sundaes. We could have also included caviar, but we decided to leave it off too.

So tell us — would you try any of these foods? Have you tried any of these foods already? If so, how did you like them? Don’t be shy — you know you want to comment!

For most of us, a license plate is just a string of letters and numbers that we hardly remember. Unless we’re at a hotel filling out our guest card — then we have to try to crane our neck to see what our license plate actually is.

Then there are custom license plates. Do you really want to get a custom license plate? Even though you get to keep it from year to year and just pay a small fee the truth is that sometimes we really want to blend into a crowd of cars. If you’re well known for speeding around town, do you really want to have a custom license plate that says IMSPDR? You might think you’re talking about being a spider, but the police will get “speeder” — and handle you accordingly.

Still, there’s a coolness factor to custom license plates that definitely gets our attention. Who hasn’t dreamed of the perfect car for them equipped with not just power windows and leather seats, but a nice custom license plate too?

Check out these 5 funny license plates — we enjoyed them, and we think you will too!

1. Do What the License Plate Says, Fool!

You know, it’s really funny when people take online speak (you know, LOL, WTF and OMG) and put it on license plates. This car — ha ha Jetta! — takes it one step up with the classic STFU, PLS plate.

Do we really have to spell out what STFU PLS means? We didn’t think so. Maybe the driver is telling people to STFU because they’re driving a Jetta. Those Volkswagen people can be kinda touchy.

2. Nerd’s Revenge?

Everyone picks on the nerds in high school. It’s just a way of life. However, in this society, nerds are starting to strike back in full force. For starters, you have the King of Nerds, Bill Gates, as one of the richest men in the world. He built an entire fortune on being a nerd. We can’t tell what type of Benz is being driven here, but hey — it’s a Benz, and that means that you can’t afford it on your desk job. Just being honest.

3. Give Me A … Gas Guzzling Environmentally Unsound Monster?

OK, we admit that we’re a little against big honking SUVs, but that’s what makes this license plate funny. “Give Me A…” and then the big HUMMER stamp on the bumper makes you realize that they’re talking about the love of their precious Hummer.

Of course, it could be anything. Give me a steak, give me a bath, give me a… well, you get the idea.

4. Sleazebag?

We don’t get this at all. Even though we’re not big SUV/van fans, we don’t think they’re sleazebags just for driving one. Is this a trick played on a husband by a wife that suspects he’s been seeing another woman? Or is this Charlie Sheen’s car on the sly? We’re not quite sure.

Still, it’s hilarious. I mean, when you’re down at the DMV filling out what type of plate you want, do you really spell out sleazebag on the vehicle? We think not.

5. It’s Pirate Time!

A little SUV heavy, but there’s really some funny license plates here! What could be more ironic than driving behind a Jeep that has a spare tire cover with a pirate symbol?

Having a license plate that reads AARRR. The driver definitely has a sense of humor. I wonder if they drive around town a lot on Talk Like a Pirate Day — I certainly would!

There are a lot of fun license plates out there. Some are sillier — we saw one that was nothing but 8’s and B’s — someone explain that one to us and we might laugh. There are even some that are pretty obvious – B00BS for example. Those come a dime a dozen. We picked these five because we thought they were the funniest of the group. Now, we might not have covered your favorite, and that’s okay too. If there’s one that you think we should add, just tell us — we’ll get you hooked up!