DARPA x Flying Cars

The Defense Department has unveiled full details of their plan to produce a flying Humvee-type vehicle for the U.S. Marines, which include a prototype that could be airborne by 2015.  The project will be launched by DARPA, the same defense agency that created the predecessor of today's worldwide Internet.  (See: ARPANET)

Plans for the so-called "Transformer TX" were revealed in Pentagon budget documents last year, but only recently have actual details come to light.  Like this:

"The Government's envisioned concept consists of a robust ground vehicle that is capable of configuring into a VTOL [Vertical Take Off and Landing] air vehicle with a maximum payload capability of approximately 1,000 lbs."

Here are the preliminary specs:

Carrying capacity: 4 Marines + Gear
Size: < 30' by 8.5' by 9'
Flying Altitude: at least 10,000'

The TX will be able to lift off from a standstill, and there are high hopes that it will be autonomous to eliminate the need for extensive flight training.

Anyone who regularly reads Your Favorite Blog knows how fascinated I am with today's military technology.  I have no doubt that these flying cars are going to be awesome.  I guess we'll wait and see.

Snakehead fish ain't nothin to fuck with

Even without this latest freak show, Your Favorite Blog is 2 for 2 in posting weird fish.  Does that make me weird?

*shrugs*

Anyway, above is the terrible Snakehead fish, which is able to breath air, walk on land, and even climb trees.  It's the latest in a long line of harmful, invasive species that are threatening Australia's ecosystem.

The fish can grow up to THREE (?!) feet in length and are known to eat water birds, snakes and rodents. Snakehead fish are able to venture out of the water in search of prey which it devours whole.

*remembers to pack Bowie knife on next camping trip*

Oh God, are you kidding me?  It can climb trees, swims, and it eats meat?  There's nowhere to hide!  Just imagine stumbling upon a whole colony of these monsters.  I don't know what they're land speed is, but until someone tells me different I'm going to assume that they run 80 mph and hunt in packs.

Read more about the Snakehead HERE

Worst Job Ever-- Feces Piper

As a huge fan of the Discovery Channel, I've seen many episodes of Dirty Jobs and yes, artificially inseminating a horse or inspecting the San Francisco sewer would be awful.  But I would never, ever - under any circumstances - be a feces piper.  Allow me to explain...

Have you heard of the term, "superbug"?  It is the informal name for a bacterium that carries several resistance genes that are impervious to most antibiotics.  The rise of superbugs means that antibiotics are no longer getting the job done.

Clostridium difficile, for instance, infects as many as half a million Americans a year, causing diarrhea, blood poisoning and kidney failure, and leads to 5,000 to 20,000 deaths annually.

A potential cure? Introducing healthy poo into an infected patient’s gut to help recolonize the body with good, microbe-fighting bugs. The procedure is called a fecal transplant and it typically involves collecting and processing stool from a healthy relative and feeding it through a nasal tube into the patient’s small intestine.

Of course, someone needs to administer the transplant, hence the feces piper.  The worst part?  Besides the smell you can't wash off and the stress of lying to everyone about your day job- your efforts might futile. 

Only observational evidence—no controlled studies—suggests that the procedure is effective, and doctors worry that shared poo could transmit hard-to-detect diseases.

*dead*

Props to Popular Science for the artwork

Check Out-- Brandon Vee

Backstory: I was on YouTube a while back looking for the a good quality video of Mobb Deep's "Shook Ones Part II,"  and I stumbled upon this dude named Brandon Vee.  Most of his videos are recorded with his computer's webcam and mic so the sound quality isn't perfect, but he has a nice flow and he rocks over some classic hip hop instruments.

I subscribed to his channel and, given the infrequency of new videos, I'm assuming he's just a regular dude with a 9-5 who likes to rap.  But, just yesterday he came out with a new video that was done in an actual recording studio and it's sick.  Watch the video below and if you like it you can subscribe to his YouTube channel.



PS the beat in the the video is "All That You Are" by Foreign Exchange off their album Connected, which is dope and can be downloaded HERE

PPS Drake also flowed over this beat in his song, "Get Over It"

Mos Def + Dub Step Instrumentals = MOS DUB

Max Tannone is at it again with another immensely dope mash-up mixtape.  This one, called MOS DUB, blends the vocals of Pretty Flaco with your favorite dub step tunes.  Some of you astute listeners may remember him for Jaydiohead, which was his first, but already genius, project that remixed Radiohead and Sean "Jay-Z" Carter. 

Stream it:



Download it:

DOWNLOAD: Max Tannone- MOS DUB (mediafire)

Old Spice Wins

Wow, these recent Old Spice commercials are hilarious.  Whoever thought to get Terry Crews deserves a fat bonus.  If strength of advertising determined deodorant sales, Old Spice would be a monopoly.  Check 'em out:

ArtOfficial- Voodoo

This is ArtOfficial's latest cut, which is a reworking of Jimi Hendix’s “Voodoo Child.”  Wrestling fans will recognize this as the Hulk Hogan's NWO intro song.  AO's album, The Payback, drops April 23rd.

DOWNLOAD/STREAM: ArtOfficial- Voodoo (usershare)

Thank/blame Meka from the Dopehouse