Equipping you with the knowledge you need to overpower the lesser geeks of the world.
New elements on the table #
Two new elements were officially added to the periodic table this past June. The elements – numbers 114 and 116 – are known as Flerovium and Livermorium, respectively.
The two heaviest elements on the periodic table – with atomic masses of 289 for Flerovium and 292 for Livermorium – both elements are highly radioactive, and, thus, very unstable. They were first created by several different teams around 3 years ago, with proof of their existence being accepted by the governing bodies of both chemistry and physics in June, 2011.
The name Flerovium (atomic symbol Fl) was chosen to honour Flerov Laboratory of Nuclear Reactions, where superheavy elements, including element 114, were synthesised, while the name Livermorium (atomic symbol Lv) was chosen to honour Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) and the city of Livermore, Calif., where the synthesis of superheavy elements, including element 116, occurred.
Creating elements 116 and 114 involved smashing calcium ions (with 20 protons each) into a curium target (96 protons) to create element 116, which decayed, almost immediately, into element 114. Element 114 was also separately created by replacing curium with a plutonium target (94 protons).
Minecraft wedding crafts lifelong bonds #
I love it when geeks marry geeks and have happy, geeky weddings. Matt and Asia bonded over their love of Minecraft, so, after Matt proposed to Asia on stage at MineCon, they decided to make it the central theme of their wedding.
As you can see, the reception was peppered with popular Minecraft mobs, such as Pig, Dog, Sheep, Chicken, and – although I don’t know if I’d want him at my wedding – Creeper.
For that extra touch, the drinks at the wedding were even Minecraft themed, featuring labels designed by Mojang’s own Art Developer, JunkBoy.
Let’s hope that they can craft a love stronger than a diamond pickaxe.
Big pineapples in little China #
I hear that Diablo III is a pretty popular game, selling well worldwide. China, though, does things a little differently – in China, big pineapples are selling like crazy.
Y’see, if you want to sell any form of cultural product that comes from outside of China, the Ministry of Culture has to approve it first. As you can imagine, this can significantly delay the release of a game (not that non-Chinese weren’t left waiting on launch day, thanks to the wonders of DRM). With so many keen fans desperate to play it at the same time as the rest of the world, this creates a market ready to be tapped by anyone bold enough to go against the Ministry.
So, how do you sell something technically illegal in a country known for its tough internet monitoring? You give it an alias, of course. Instead of listing Diablo III under its official Chinese name – ‘Dark God of Destruction’ – cheeky Taobao sellers listed it as 大菠萝 or ‘Big Pineapple’. Why? Because that term, when spelled phonetically is ‘dà bōluó’, which sounds mighty like the name you and I know it by.
Well played, retailers.