Tupper's self-referential formula

The Tupper formula is an amazing inequality, that looks like this:

The reason it is amazing is that, when given a particular set of input values, it produces the following graph as output:

More details in Wikipedia here.

Play with the Drake Equation

The BBC has a nice interactive model of the Drake Equation, used to calculate the probability of intelligence life in the universe. Link thanks to BoingBoing.

Perseid Meteor Showers Prime Time

Tomorrow and the next day, August 11/12, 2012, are the best days to view the Perseid Meteor Showers.

Image from the Wikipedia article on the Perseids.

pi = 3

Just discovered that this is in the Bible (I Kings 7:23-26) "He made the Sea of cast metal, circular in shape, measuring ten cubits from rim to rim and five cubits high. It took a line of thirty cubits to measure around it." Since the diameter ("from rim to rim") is 10 cubits, and the circumference ("a line of thirty cubits") is 30 cubits, this implies that pi = 3. A good one for Bible literalists!

Via: http://home.eyesonff.com/archive/t-106596.html

John Conway's Game of Life

A nuclear-powered car is due to land on Mars tomorrow

NASA's Curiosity Rover (basically, a nuclear-powered car) is due to land this Sunday night, August 5th, 2012. It's a bold and amazing project.