World's best countries

Check out this great interactive graphic that shows the world's 100 best countries, based on education, health, quality of life, economic dynamism, and political environment. Americans (rank: 11) could greatly improve their lot in life by crossing the border to Canada (rank: 7) or moving to Austrailia (rank: 4). Of course, the overall best country is Finland (rank: 1), which has the best education system in the world.
Japan is the healthiest country, Norway offers the best quality of life, Singapore offers the most economic dynamism, and Sweden offers the best political environment. Whatever you do, don't move to the African nation of Burkina Faso, which has the worst quality of life and worst education system of the 100 countries listed.

Kids these days

Do you want to feel old? Yes, you say? Okay, read the Beloit College Mindset List for the Class of 2014. This list describes the world of today's college freshmen. For example,

• John McEnroe has never played professional tennis.
• DNA fingerprinting and maps of the human genome have always existed.
• Computers have never lacked a CD-ROM disk drive.
• Czechoslovakia has never existed.
• Second-hand smoke has always been an official carcinogen.
• Potato has always ended in an 'e' in New Jersey per vice presidential edict.
• They never twisted the coiled handset wire aimlessly around their wrists while chatting on the phone.

The Majestic Plastic Bag

Watch this touching documentary, which follows the path of the majestic plastic bag as it journeys to it's final destination, the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.

A New Take on Recycling

Inspired by the movie "Julie and Julia," this unemployed and very talented woman started a project: turn $1 garage sale dresses into fashion statements, one a day for a year. Her motto: "365 Days. 365 New Outfits. 365 Dollars." Check out her blog, where she turns some very ugly stuff into very fashionable duds. Here's just one of the amazing before-and-after shots.

When the 365 days are up, she is planning to auction off the outfits and donate the proceeds to charity.

Schnese

Schnese is a surname, and also the name of a dog breed.

• There is a person named Rese Schnese.
• The schnese dog breed is a cross between a Schnauzer and a Havanese.

Passer-by: "What a cute puppy! What breed is he?"
Dog Owner: "Schnese"
Passer-by: "Bless You"

Tylenol for "social pain"

A University of Florida study says that acetaminophen (Tylenol) is good for your pain, even your "social pain" from hurt feelings.  Apparently, social pain and physical pain use some of the same biochemical pathways. The study found that "people who took acetaminophen daily for three weeks reported less emotional suffering over time." Also, "because research has found that being rejected triggers aggression, using acetaminophen to alleviate emotional distress could reduce the likelihood of destructive actions." So maybe Tylenol is all that is needed to prevent workplace shootings. We should put it in the water.