Morning, mid-week

It's mid-week and I think for most of us, energy level is already almost zero. XP

Made a search in Getty Images and found this:

Since tomorrow is a public holiday, let's look forward to recharging a bit later on! Have a good day!

Floating Island

What a nice photo of a floating island to start the day with.

via National Geographic.

The Amazing Spider-Man 2 Final Trailer

Let's watch this action-packed trailer before the movie premiers later this week:

Action looks promising, destruction level looks disastrous, Spider-Man looks more agile than ever, and enemies aplenty... Hope the movie doesn't disappoint!

Closed For The Day

For those who work on Saturdays, today would be your full rest day so this one's for you!

Taken while working at Muar. This not too small town in Northern Johor has plenty of heritage buildings around and most food still cost below the national threshold. A plate of chicken rice for RM3.50!

Apple's Next Thingy

Don't really like to use the word "thingy" but I wouldn't know how else to describe this piece of pleasant rumour of Apple's next product that I've learnt about via John Gruber's Daring Fireball site:

To be more specific, Apple is looking to launch a smart band towards the end of this year whose collection of sensors will be able to be used not only to monitor the activity of the wearer, but also to operate other devices as a gestural controller.

Gestural band!? I like this idea of people moving their arms in mid air which will surely appear totally weird to the observer. If true, this is going to kick all the smart watches and bands' asses out there! Woooohooooo!!!

Dirty Money, Literally

Money is dirty indeed.

Each dollar bill carries about 3,000 types of bacteria on its surface, scientists have found. Most are harmless. But cash also has DNA from drug-resistant microbes. And your wad of dough may even have a smudge of anthrax and diphtheria.

While the study did offer some form of assurance, it makes mobile payment look like an ingenious idea, huh?

via npr.

Fences Along the Way

Took this photo while in a vehicle so it was heavily cropped. I was attracted by the fences and would love to just stop and snap the photos but guess it won't be too safe to just park like that... not that it's safe to take photos while driving so don't do that, either.

Have some "artistic" coffee

Need to stay awake for the rest of the week? After all, it's only Tuesday now... I don't feel like sleeping myself but my eyelids are getting really heavy. Good night, folks!

The secret behind how those washing detergents "brighten" clothes and why LEDs will deter that effect

Couldn't make a shorter subject title without saying less. :/

Finally, I've been enlightened (via Gizmodo) on how some washing detergents actually do brighten clothes. Used to think this was just advertising gimmick but there is some truth to it. Detergents contain fluorescent whitening agents (FWAs) that absorb ultraviolet light and then re-emit it as a bluish tone which make old, yellowish clothes look bright and radiant again.

But this trick will not work when these FWAs are exposed to LED light source because LED emit very little to no UV light. Gasp!

There is a solution, though, and these come in the form of non-standard tuned LEDs that emulate halogen bulbs by emitting certain violet rays. Guess detergent companies would need to cut deals with LED manufacturers, huh?

via Gizmodo.

X in the Evening Sky

Been awhile since I've posted something so here you go - a photo while driving back from work. "X" marks the spot. That's the first title I thought of and I suppose most people would, too. What could be up there at this particular spot in the sky?

Ingenious: Tobacco Plant Species Fights Cancer

Ingenuity or irony, a species of the tobacco plant used to make cigarettes, Nicotania Alata, contain the protein NaD1 that fights cancer (and sounds pretty good at it, too):

NaD1 latches onto cancer cells with its pincer-like structure, causing them to form little balloons on the surface until they explode. But, what makes it an ideal cure is that while it attacks affected cells, it leaves healthy ones untouched. 

Sounds like a miracle drug but it is not expected to leave the laboratories for years. It's good that there is hope, though.

via Engadget.

"No Play Don't Touch"

Have a great weekend, folks! But always remember, if you don't want to play, don't touch the equipment!

Trishaw Parking

After a full day of traveling, it was nice to encounter something amusing such as this - one of those nicely decorated trishaws in Melaka (to attract tourists to take a ride) parked in a parking lot as the owner went in to a store for dinner.