amazing-things
How Do You Survive a Disintegrating Rocket Plane at 50,000 Feet?
Hamilton Nolan · 11/05/14 09:57AM
Last week, the Virgin Galactic rocket plane SpaceShipTwo broke apart at more than 50,000 feet and crashed in the Mojave desert. One pilot died. But the other pilot lived. Now the question is: how the fuck did he do that?
Henry Blodget Found a Newspaper
Hamilton Nolan · 03/22/13 12:27PM
Henry Blodget, a full grown adult who's held a highly compensated job in finance and founded a multimillion-dollar media company, still retains his ability to be astounded by the little things in life. Like airplanes: what is it like to ride in one? Or women: are they too lazy to get good jobs? Or Jews: why do people hate them so much? Today, Henry Blodget, who has retained the wonderful ability to see the world through a child's eyes (which so many of his cynical peers have lost), has found something outside of his hotel room door. But what??
So a Comedian Sits Next to Former GOP Chairman Ken Mehlman on a Plane... (Updated)
Adrian Chen · 09/19/10 02:53PM
Ken Mehlman is the former GOP chairman who recently confirmed he was gay. Marc Maron is a comedian. Marc Maron has found himself sitting next to Ken Mehlman on a plane and is live-tweeting it. Guess what happened?
The Most Exciting Version of a Newspaper War You'll Ever See
Hamilton Nolan · 09/08/10 02:19PMHacks like to call the Times vs. Journal battle "Bald men fighting over a comb." But in this CGI epic, it's more like "A sharkman fighting Pinch Sulzberger with a money cannon, West Side Story-style." Amazing journalism.
Young Amputee Plays Piano Flawlessly on China's Got Talent
Jeff Neumann · 08/14/10 09:41AM
23-year-old Liu Wei blew away the competition on China's Got Talent last week when he played "Mariage D'amour" perfectly on the piano. But the odds are stacked against Liu: He has no arms and plays the piano with his feet.
First Ever Cool Use of 'Bucket List'
Hamilton Nolan · 03/31/10 08:48AM
Patricia Edwards walked into a Sanford, FL Bank of America branch last week and robbed it—because, she later explained, "it was something I had on my ‘bucket list.'" Patricia has leukemia, but it's not terminal. She's just terminally awesome.
Terrifying Poop Gas Bubbles Will Kill Us All
Hamilton Nolan · 03/25/10 09:13AM
The Wall Street Journal has published the best story in, I'm guessing, its entire history, pertaining to monster manure gas bubbles threatening to explode all over the US heartland, with devastating effects.
Things to See in Kansas
Hamilton Nolan · 01/27/10 10:37AM
Greensburg, Kansas is building a $3 million museum to accompany its "Big Well," a 32-by-109-foot hole in the ground. But that's not all: "There's a composting toilet on display in an empty field, and a solar-powered shower as well." [WSJ]
Science Offers Little Hope for Facebook, Anything Else
Hamilton Nolan · 01/25/10 04:47PM
Science: Your brain's too small to grasp more than 150 Facebook friends, unless you're very old in which case you'll remember every useless thing, but you'll never be old if you're a NYC minority, because you'll die after surgery. Science!
Useless Planets Discovered
Hamilton Nolan · 01/05/10 11:35AMActor: Times Have Been Tough Since That Big Butt Spray Commercial
Hamilton Nolan · 11/17/09 05:40PM
Have you been wondering what "Lanny F." has been up to since he starred in the infomercial for the butt-odor-removing product Aspray? Fortunately for you, he has emailed us.
Creating a City From Memory
Hamilton Nolan · 10/27/09 02:55PM
Autistic artist Steven Wiltshire can draw precise, detailed cityscapes after a single viewing of a city. He is incredible. He's currently drawing the New York skyline. You can watch him live. Click through to see a bit of Wiltshire's Tokyo.
Stupid Cokehead Toys
Hamilton Nolan · 05/01/09 02:09PMHave you always wished you had an iPhone app that made it look like you were sniffing coke off your phone? Now you have one. Happy Friday, you broke bastard. [The iSnort]
The Frickin' Awesomest Bike Stunt Video Ever
Hamilton Nolan · 04/23/09 02:28PMIf you only watch one video of a guy doing insane, mind-blowing, beautiful tricks on a bike, in Edinburgh, make it this one. In-fucking-credible.