Because writer’s block is the worst.
Friday, August 22, 2014
This Is What Happens To Your Heart When You Dive Into The Sea
Posted by Unknown on Friday, August 22, 2014
James Nestor , author of DEEP: Freediving, Renegade Science, and What the Ocean Tells Us about Ourselves , takes us on a transformative journey into the ocean.
Jenny Chang / BuzzFeed
The next time you're at the beach your body will undergo the most profound transformation you can naturally experience. This is not a psychic prophecy; I don't have precognition. The transformation I am describing will be physical, and it will be real. It's the result of millions of years of human evolution, a trigger of ancient genes which you and all other humans share with billions of other deep-diving animals.
It looks something like this: You will be lying on the sand. Your skin will be warmed by the sun. You will become hot and thirst for a swim in the ocean. You will pick yourself up and stroll to the water's edge, wade calmly into the lapping waves, and jump in. The moment your face submerges in the sea's salty waters, a Hulk-like metamorphosis will trigger. Blood will begin rushing from your hands and feet, up your legs and arms, and into your core; your heart rate will reflexively lower 25 percent its normal rate; your mind will enter a meditative, almost dreamlike-state. If you choose to dive deeper, the transformation will grow more profound until you bare only a passing resemblance to your terrestrial form. You will become a water animal; a fish, essentially.
Scientists call this transformation the mammalian dive reflex or, more lyrically, the Master Switch of Life. They've been researching it for the past fifty years.
The term Master Switch of Life describes not one but many switches, or reflexes, that are spurred when we enter the water. These reflexes affect the brain, lungs, and heart, among other organs, they work in concert with other triggers in the body to protect us from the immense underwater pressure of deep water and turn us into efficient deep-sea-diving animals. The equivalent pressures of such a deep dive on land would kill or injure us, but not in the ocean. The ocean has different rules, and often requires a completely different mindset to truly comprehend.
Thursday, August 21, 2014
George R.R. Martin Says He's Reached A Point In The Story Where He Has "A Lot More Flexibility For Killing People"
Posted by Unknown on Thursday, August 21, 2014
About the final two books in the A Song of Ice and Fire series. NO SPOILERS.
Speaking at an event at the Freemason's Hall in London, Martin was asked if there were any character he couldn't kill, because they are needed for the plot.
HBO / Via media.giphy.com
Martin said: "I have a large number of important characters who I switch between to tell the entirety of the story, and that limits who I can kill."
HBO / Via media.giphy.com
"Sometimes there’s only one character who’s my eye in a particular location, and if I kill that character everything going on in that particular sub plot is going to be lost."
HBO / Via giphy.com
“The way my books are structured, everyone was together, then they all went their separate ways and the story deltas out like that."
HBO / Via media.giphy.com
If "Game Of Thrones" Was Set In Britain
Posted by Unknown on Thursday, August 21, 2014
Drizzle is coming.
House Cymru
House sigil: A dragon.
House motto: "Here be dragons."
Enemies: They'd claim anyone from England, but really they're too nice to have enemies.
Strength: Being able to communicate without the use of vowels.
Robin Edds / BuzzFeed / HBO
House Merseyside
House sigil: A yellow submarine.
House motto: "You'll never walk alone."
Enemies: House Lancashire (of which they used to be a part of until a civil war).
Strengths: Inventing pop music.
Robin Edds / BuzzFeed / HBO
House Norfolk
House sigil: Alan Partridge.
House motto: "A Ha!"
Enemies: House Suffolk.
Strengths: Local radio.
Robin Edds / BuzzFeed / HBO
House Lancashire
House sigil: A red rose.
House motto: "Rain is coming, our kid."
Enemies: House Yorkshire.
Strengths: Tolerating dampness.
Robin Edds / BuzzFeed / HBO
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Wednesday, August 20, 2014
A Definitive Ranking Of Punctuation Marks
Posted by Unknown on Wednesday, August 20, 2014
Because sadly, not all dashes are created equal.
Apostrophe
Apostrophes are just kinda basic. They don't lend much in the way of added emotion or emphasis — they serve their purpose and get on with their lives. Snorefest. Next.
Quotation Mark
What can I say about the quotation mark that hasn't already been said? Nothing, that's what. Much like Snoozehead McGee the apostrophe, quotation marks have a specific purpose — to introduce and end quoted material — and it's not one that's particularly exciting. The quotation mark gets one extra point for being cute and fun because it travels in pairs.
En dash
Aside from copy editors and grammar historians, literally no one in the world cares about what the en dash is and how it functions. I mean...have you ever even heard of an en dash until now? Do you even know how long it is?!?! Sadly, there are too many dashes vying for space in this grim, crazy world o' words, and the death of the en dash is something we simply must accept as imminent. (Sorry, lil' guy. Say hi to the dodo for us.)
Gets a few extra points because in the U.K. (and presumably other areas of the world), it's often used to function as an em dash, which is the coolest dash.
Colon
Colons are pretty OK. They build suspense, providing a teeny bit of excitement to help get you through those long days filled with otherwise ho-hum sentences. They also share a name with the thing that your poop passes through, so that's funny. Heh heh heh. Colon.
Stephen King Did The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge And The Video Is Great
Posted by Unknown on Wednesday, August 20, 2014
“Oh boy.”
Stephen King accepted the Ice Bucket Challenge in honor of his friend, Rocky Wood, who suffers from ALS.
And his reaction to the freezing cold ice was pretty funny.
Via youtube.com
"Oh boy."
Now he's challenging John Grisham, known for his political thrillers, to do the same.
Via youtube.com
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