Nora the Cat Plays Piano

Nora the Cat Plays Piano... ...because who doesn't want to see an adorable piano playing cat on a Sunday morning?

Porsche 918 Spyder Hybrid Blows Up Stereotypes

It doesn't take a Shaquille O'Neal commercial to realize that hybrid cars have suffered from a chronically wonky style. Often shaped like a wedge of cheese, it has been increasingly confusing why hybrid car manufacturers don't seem to put any effort into design. An additional pre-conception about hybrids is that they don't perform up to the standard of traditional 'gas only' automobiles. This is a more understandable issue that is dissipating since the capability of hybrids has improved as the technology has evolved.

Porsche is poised to blow the lid off both these stereotypes. The 2014 Porsche 918 Spyder is by far the coolest looking hybrid to come along, and it's not that it's cool for a hybrid; it's just cool. It can go zero to sixty in 3.1 seconds, while getting 78 MPG. The 918 is the first hybrid super car. Being a super car means most people can't afford it with its $845,000 sticker price.

Since the price is so high, more is also expected from it. As such a review from Edmunds does have some points of criticism. The electric motor doesn't make much noise, and doesn't have the same feel as a gas engine. They state that this makes it lack character. Also the performance for this level of car is not flawless. However, Edmunds does admit that Porsche has shown that if their first generation car has flaws, they have been known to come back and fix those, then go beyond everyone’s expectation. This is still a new technology, and this is a huge step forward in performance.

It will be interesting to see the market for the car, and the sales numbers. The price obviously makes the target market rather small to begin with. Will that market embrace a hybrid? Could there be cache to owning the first hybrid super car? Will Porsche be able to reach out to wealthy 'green people' to invest in a car they may not normally sink their money into?

Don't have the anser to that, but do hope I get to see this car in person some day.

Porsche 918 Spyder Press Release (Specs & Photos included)

Cookie Monster Sings Share It Maybe

...Because who can keep from smiling when they see this video?

Get Smart's Shoe Phone Foreshadows Cell Phones in the Theatre

'Get Smart' was a delightfully funny and clever tv show created by Mel Brooks and Buck Henry in 1965, and starred Don Adams as Maxweel Smart Agent 86. In this clip Maxwell Smart's shoe phone not only foreshodows the coming of cell phones, but it also forshodows the problem with cell phones way before its time. For anyone who hasn't seen 'Get Smart', there are original episodes on YouTube. Current remakes just can't live up to the refreshingly silly and unique original...

 

Beautiful Ocean Life Photography

Remarkable BBC video of ocean life.  So different and unique it's almost another world.

20 Great Albert Einstein Quotes

Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.

A person who never made a mistake never tried anything new.

The difference between stupidity and genius is that genius has its limits.

Anyone who doesn't take truth seriously in small matters cannot be trusted in large ones either.

Try not to become a man of success, but rather try to become a man of value.

I have no special talent. I am only passionately curious.

A table, a chair, a bowl of fruit and a violin; what else does a man need to be happy?

The only source of knowledge is experience.

Intellectuals solve problems, geniuses prevent them.

Imagination is everything. It is the preview of life's coming attractions.

Our task must be to free ourselves by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature and its beauty.

Few are those who see with their own eyes and feel with their own hearts.

It is the supreme art of the teacher to awaken joy in creative expression and knowledge.

Reality is merely an illusion, albeit a very persistent one.

The value of a man should be seen in what he gives and not in what he is able to receive.

He who can no longer pause to wonder and stand rapt in awe, is as good as dead; his eyes are closed.

Nothing is more destructive of respect for the government and the law of the land than passing laws which cannot be enforced.

Do not worry about your difficulties in Mathematics. I can assure you mine are still greater.

Once we accept our limits, we go beyond them.

Never do anything against conscience even if the state demands it.

Two Otters Hold Hands... or Paws

A two for one. Not sure if this more sweet or cute, but they have everyone oohing and awing. Two otters at the Vancouver Zoo hold hands/paws as they swim.

Simon's Cat Double Trouble

Funny, cute, and oddly familiar if you've ever introduced a second cat to your household...