Ten trivial (i.e non-work-related) items

Kenyan students charge their mobiles with pedal power via BBC News Technology UK Edition
Two Kenyan university students hope to market a device that allows bicycle riders to charge their mobile phones.

via Arts & Letters Daily - ideas, criticism, debate
Edgar Allan Poe was also a player of hoaxes, a plagiarist, and substance abuser. But oh, how he could write... more

via Arts & Letters Daily - ideas, criticism, debate
People think we live in an age of violence and killing. In truth, the past was far more bloodthirsty than the present age, as Steven Pinker explains... more

via Arts & Letters Daily - ideas, criticism, debate
Lord Byron was mad, bad, dangerous, and a cad. But as both poet and as lover, he knew what women wanted... more

Friday fun via Science, Engineering & Technology Blog by Anne
More places to visit this week!
Techniquest has three science centres in Wales - Cardiff, Wrexham and Llanberis. Entrance is £7 for adults and £5 for children and concessions.
The National Railway Museum based in York has free entry as does the National Media Museum in Bradford.
The Discovery Museum in Newcastle also has free entry.

via Arts & Letters Daily - ideas, criticism, debate
They can be eccentric, slow afoot, even grouchy. But old dogs can live out their final days with a humility and grace we all can learn from... more

Middle Eastern Geography via Coffee Klatch by pfitz
Do you think you know the geography of the Middle East? How about the broader region including North Africa? Try out this fun little game. It's on an education-based website and they don't score you per se, but give you as many tries as you need to drag the country names onto the map.
Check it out: http://www.rethinkingschools.org/just_fun/games/mapgame.html

via Arts & Letters Daily - ideas, criticism, debate
No rational justification can be offered for trust and self-sacrifice. But without them, social life is chaos, a war of all against all... more

via Arts & Letters Daily - ideas, criticism, debate
Narcissistic tendencies - confidence, extraversion, a desire for power - can actually help to make you a good leader. But if you're a true narcissist... more

via Arts & Letters Daily - ideas, criticism, debate
It was an historical cataclysm carried out on an unimaginable scale. Stalin's regime devoured not just human lives but hopes, dreams, trust... more

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