Interesting & Unusual Facts

Factsie.com is a place for interesting and unusual historical and scientific facts. 

Please see it and rate it here on 12/26. After 12/26, find it in the Cool Site of the Day archive.

Mike

Unplug The TV

Please see it and rate it here on 12/25. After 12/25, find it in the Cool Site of the Day archive.

Merry Christmas,

Mike

ONE

Please see it and rate it here on 12/24. After 12/24, find it in the Cool Site of the Day archive.

Do Schools Kill Creativity?

Please see it and rate it here on  12/23. After 12/23, find it in the Cool Site of the Day archive.

Mike

 

The Zombie Bite Calculator

Please see it and rate it here on 12/22. After 12/22, find it in the Cool Site of the Day archive.

Mike

 

The Letter Project - WAY Cool

I'm a big fan of Zefrank. For years, he has been creating some seriously interesting web shit at zefrank.com

The Letter Project is one of those super cool creations. Essentially, it's a dynamic alphabet where each letter is made up of someone holding the first letter of their name. To see it in action, you are asked to type a phrase and then watch as the phrase dynamically appears from all the images received by Zefrank.

Please see it and rate it here on  12/21. After 12/21, find it in the Cool Site of the Day archive.

Mike

Remember the Mac vs. Windows Ads?

Here's a nice look back at those entertaining Apple ads. Ah, Windows 8...you try so hard.

http://www.coolsiteoftheday.com/2012/12/mac-vs-window/

 

'SNL' Opens With 'Silent Night' in Honor of Shooting Victims

Please see it and rate it here on 12/18. After 12/18, find it in the Cool Site of the Day archive.

Create your own custom bicycle

The guy who started Villy Custom Bikes appeared on ABC's Shark Tank TV show. They liked him and his idea. I do too.

Please see it and rate it here on 12/17. After 12/17, find it in the Cool Site of the Day archive.

Mike

Diapers for Chickens

I just got a request to feature a website on Cool Site of the Day. The website sells diapers for chickens. Serious. http://www.pamperyourpoultry.com/

Robin Hood

As charitable organizations go, there are few as effective as Robbin Hood. Robbin Hood was the beneficiary of all the donations raised during Wednesday night's mind bending 121212 concert at Madison Square Garden in New York City.

Robbin Hood donated 100% of the funds collected on Wednesday to those organizations on the street that are directly involved in helping to make the lives of those affected by Hurricane Sandy less harsh.

Visit their site and you'll understand why Eric Schmidt, CEO of Google, said:

"There is literally no foundation, no activity that is more effective."

Go, Robbin Hood.

Please see it and rate it here on 12/16. After 12/16, find it in the Cool Site of the Day archive.

Mike

Are we ready to fight against guns?

Today's Cool Site of the Day is the Coalition to Stop Gun Violence.

Please see it and rate it here on 12/15. After 12/15, find it in the Cool Site of the Day archive.

Peace,

Mike

If you use Wordpress, you need this Theme...

Today's Cool Site of the Day is for bloggers who want to get it right.So you have a Wordpress site and you're ready to take it to the next level. You want your site to load faster, rank higher in Google, and look better...a lot better. If you're serious then your next step is simple and it's the same step I took about 3 years ago; I installed the Thesis Theme on the Cool Site of the Day blog.

As you know, there are thousands of free themes for you to attach to your Wordpress site but, as the old adage goes, you get what you pay for. In the case of Thesis Themes, you get WAY more than the price suggests. In fact, with all the free upgrades and outstanding assistance available in their support forum, you could pay 10 times the price and still feel like you're getting a good value.

Anyway, please see it and rate it here on 12/14. After 12/14, find it in the Cool Site of the Day archive.

Happy (truly) blogging,

Mike

Where will you be at 7:30PM EST Tonight?

I will be in front of my TV with friends.

Happy 121212 day. Do what you can.

 

 

The Axis of Awesome: 4 Chords Official Music Video

How many songs can you count that have the same 4 chord progression? No wonder this has over 10 million views on YouTube. Lots of fun and very cool stuff.

And here are the songs in '4 Chords':

Journey -- "Don't Stop Believing"
James Blunt -- "You're Beautiful"
Black Eyed Peas -- "Where Is the Love"
Alphaville -- "Forever Young"
Jason Mraz -- "I'm Yours"
Train -- "Hey Soul Sister"
The Calling -- "Wherever You Will Go"
Elton John -- "Can You Feel The Love Tonight" (from The Lion King)
Akon -- "Don't Matter"
John Denver -- "Take Me Home, Country Roads"
Lady Gaga -- "Paparazzi"
U2 -- "With Or Without You"
The Last Goodnight -- "Pictures of You"
Maroon Five -- "She Will Be Loved"
The Beatles -- "Let It Be"
Bob Marley -- "No Woman No Cry"
Marcy Playground -- "Sex and Candy"
Men At Work -- "Land Down Under"
Theme from America's Funniest Home Videos
Jack Johnson -- "Taylor"
Spice Girls -- "Two Become One"
A Ha -- "Take On Me"
Green Day -- "When I Come Around"
Eagle Eye Cherry -- "Save Tonight"
Toto -- "Africa"
Beyonce -- "If I Were A Boy"
Kelly Clarkson -- "Behind These Hazel Eyes"
Jason DeRulo -- "In My Head"
The Smashing Pumpkins -- "Bullet With Butterfly Wings"
Joan Osborne -- "One Of Us"
Avril Lavigne -- "Complicated"
The Offspring -- "Self Esteem"
The Offspring -- "You're Gonna Go Far Kid"
Akon -- "Beautiful"
Timberland featuring OneRepublic -- "Apologize"
Eminem featuring Rihanna -- "Love the Way You Lie"
Bon Jovi -- "It's My Life"
Lady Gaga -- "Pokerface"
Aqua -- "Barbie Girl"
Red Hot Chili Peppers -- "Otherside"
The Gregory Brothers -- "Double Rainbow"
MGMT -- "Kids"
Andrea Bocelli -- "Time To Say Goodbye"
Robert Burns -- "Auld Lang Syne"
Five for fighting -- "Superman"
The Axis of Awesome -- "Birdplane"
Missy Higgins -- "Scar"

Please see it and rate it here on 12/12. After 12/12, find it in the Cool Site of the Day archive.

And, oh yeah, share this one on your facebook timeline.

Thanks,

Mike

Coffee Shop Millionaire

People LOVE stories about making money on the Internet and THIS guy has a story to tell. Do you believe it? I believe a good portion of it but, as with all money making ideas, it's what you put into it that matters.

Do you have the focus and discipline to bring Anthony's process to fruition? I hope you do.

If you're seeing this on 12/11, please see and rate it here. Otherwise, click here.

.

Mike

FiveSecondTest

Here's a fun tool for landing page optimization. Actually, it's more fun for you and me as 'testers'. The way it works is that you given a short period of time to give your opinion on a certain design (graphic, logo, etc) or overall webpage layout.

You earn karma points for each design you 'test'. It's fun.

If you're a designer/developer, Fivesecondtest helps you fine tune your landing pages and calls to action by analyzing the most prominent elements of your design.

If you're seeing this on 12/10, see it and rate it here. Otherwise, sign up for free by clicking here.

 

 

Rainy Mood Loves You

Rain makes everything better.

Seriously, that's what Rainy Mood tells me and when I let Rainy Mood do it's thing in the background....I felt loved, at peace. (Tip: click on the name of the song to hear music/see video).

Please see it and rate it here on 12/9. After 12/9, find it in the Cool Site of the Day archive.

Mike

Beck made the sheet music. YOU make the recording.

Beck’s latest album comes in an almost-forgotten form—twenty songs existing only as individual pieces of sheet music, never before released or recorded. Song Reader is an experiment in what an album can be at the end of 2012—an alternative that enlists the listener in the tone of every track.

This is a music fan's dream. Beck is WAY cool...and this is today's Cool Site of the Day.

Please see it and rate it here on 12/8. After 12/8, find it in the Cool Site of the Day archive.

Mike
 

My choice for SEO monitoring

Of all the SEO reporting tools that I use, Raven Tools is the one I rely on the most.

Raven presents much of the same data that several other worthy resources offer. The big difference is in the customized reports that you can generate. This is a great plus for agencies and consultants who regularly report back to their clients.

To be honest, there isn't a thing that Raven Tools does poorly. If there's any negative to their vast toolset, it's that they provide TOO MANY reports from which to choose.

With a 30-day free trial, you'd be crazy not to check them out.

Please see it and rate it here on 12/7. After 12/7, find it in the Cool Site of the Day archive.

Mike

If Apple had a printing company...

I could try to tell you how cool MOO is but you just have to experience their product and service for yourself. MOO prints stuff; all sorts of stuff. And, when they deliver it, you want to save the packaging just like you want to save the packaging that encases your beloved Macbook, iPad, and iPhone.

Here's what blew my mind about MOO: I was able to order new business cards (100) and have a unique image or photo printed on the backside of each...and they pulled the photos from my Facebook photo albums! They call this Printfinity (the ability to print a different image/design on every card in the pack at no extra cost!) and they do so on premium paper stock. Insanely great, for sure.

Beyond that, they have a crazy cool assortment of holiday cards at 25% off (just in time).

Please see MOO and rate it here on 12/6. After 12/6, find it in the Cool Site of the Day archive.

Enjoy,

Mike

You have a money face?

From the "who THOUGHT of this?!" collection, these money/face mashups are becoming popular around the web. The visual trick has been around for a while now, but not until this week when Reddit user MadSon11 posted his head matched with Alexander Hamiltons jaw did the meme really get some legs. Redditors the world over have posted images using both U.S. bills and their own currency. 

, 

Concerned about Privacy on the Net?

Today's Cool Site of the Day is PrivacyFix where you can Instantly check your privacy settings across Facebook, Google and the other websites and companies collecting your data.

Get peace of mind with one click. Also, be the first to know when policies change.

Please see it and rate it here on 12/5. After 12/5, find it in the Cool Site of the Day archive.

President Obama's tribute to Led Zeppelin

This might just be my favorite Obama speech ever. I'm serious, I think it eclipsed his delivery on inauguration day, 2009.

Can you tell what's fake here?

Check out the latest from the illusionist extraordinaire Brusspup. Here, he demonstrates that looks can be deceiving:

 

  

 

The technique is called anamorphosis -- the image is distorted and elongated so that it appears natural from a certain angle.  

Brusspup adds to the illusion by placing the photo-realistic images alongside every day objects and then using video to reveal the perspective change in real time. A very cool video.

Please see it and rate it here on 12/2. After 12/2, find it in the Cool Site of the Day archive.

See more of Brusspup's illusions on his Youtube channel.

Live Car Hire - get the best price on local car rental

Need to rent a car and don't want to overpay? LiveCarHire searches 500+ car rental companies at 30,000 locations in 174 countries to give you the largest selection of competitive car rental rates from the top car rental companies worldwide. 

In addition to the standard worldwide Airport Search, the visitor can imap display cities, train stations, ports, areas or street address for the nearest available car hire deals. Pretty cool.

Here is an example of the search map display, comparing all available car hire/rentals, with each search having the imap zoom facility to widen or narrow the search area:

USA - Los Angeles Downtown

There is also a free iphone app that provides exactly the same Live Car Hire service on ipad, iphone and ipod. 

Barcode Yourself

OK, this is one of the more bizarre sites I've featured on Cool Site of the Day. On barcode art you can create a barcode of...yourself.

Please see it and rate it here on 11/30. After 11/30, find it in the Cool Site of the Day archive.

Free The Children - A Must Watch

Learned about Free The Children and the organization's We Day from 60 Minutes Sunday night. Share this one far and wide...and far and wider again. SO inspiring and so GOOD.

 

VERY Cool Wind Map

An invisible, ancient source of energy surrounds us—energy that powers my Hobie Cat and energy that powered the first explorations of the world. This map shows you the delicate, real-time tracery of wind flowing over the US.

See it and rate it here. After 11/28, find it in our archive

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100 Must See Interviews With the World’s Most Successful Entrepreneurs

I love stuff like this. You can learn so much from those who accomplish so much at breakneck speed. Sure, it will take a lot of time to view all these interviews but if you just chisel away 10 minutes a day it will be worth your time.

See this list on 11/27 and rate it here (after 11/27 visit the Cool Site of the Day archive).

 

Monitter - a cool Twitter tracking tool

Monitter is an easy-to-use, free tool that helps you track mentions, hashtags and trends on Twitter. Just type in whatever you're ‘monitter’ing and track the data. 

Find relevant followers in your niche, hone in on conversations about your brand, and discover potential customers.

See it and rate it here.

Mike

The Dust Bowl by Ken Burns

Another gem from documentary film maker, Ken Burns.

THE DUST BOWL chronicles the worst man-made ecological disaster in American history, whereby the wheat boom of the "Great Plow-Up," followed by a decade-long drought during the 1930 created misery throughout the country. Interviews with twenty-six survivors of those hard times, combined with dramatic photographs and rarely seen movie footage, bring to life stories of incredible human suffering and  incredible human perseverance.

 

Watch Episode 1: The Great Plow-Up on PBS. See more from The Dust Bowl.

Get all the facts about US States

Places of USA is today's Cool Site of the Day. Basic but filled with good info, maps, and photos.

See it and rate it here.

Have a cool site? Submit it now.

How to not get crappy gifts

Today's Cool Site of the Day is I Wish For -- an app that let's you show people what you really want. Ah, the holiday spirit.

See & Rate it here

 Got a cool site? Submit it now.

 

Support this ex-Marine's walk across the globe

Need inspiration? Read and watch. For U.S. Marine Sgt. Winston Fiore, it was a news article about the International Children’s Surgical Foundation (ICSF) and Dr. Geoff Williams, who provides free facial-reconstructive surgeries for children with cleft lips/palates in developing countries.

For when you need to know the EXACT time

Today's Cool Site of the Day is about TIME. It's that simple. http://www.coolsiteoftheday.com/frmindex.html

Will you join the fight against childhood obesity?

Rallying everyone I know to join the fight against childhood obesity. See: http://www.coolsiteoftheday.com/frmindex.html

Climate Change & Photography

Today's Cool Site of the Day is for anyone interested in Photography and/or climate change. http://www.coolsiteoftheday.com/2012/11/chasing-ice/

Alec Baldwin interviews Billy Joel

If you're a fan of either of these guys and/or grew up in Long Island, this is a must listen.

 

How to send a care package to a college student, camper, etc

Today’s Cool Site of the Day is RedShip.com, a cool, easy way to send a care package to a college student, boarding school student, summer camper, or anyone you want to make smile. Rate it here: http://www.coolsiteoftheday.com

Mother Earth. Do You Care?

The Virtual Barber Shop

Yes, use headphones for this!

Bill Clinton on The Daily Show

via thedailyshow.com

SNL Spoof: iPhone 5 Critics

via mashable.com

Slavery Footprint - How many slaves work for you?

featured on Cool Site of the Day

The Who at The Concert For New York City

via youtube.com

Another truly "once in a lifetime" performance--The Who at the Concert for New York City (shortly following 9/11). Anyone who dreams of getting on stage and doing ANYTHING should watch this 100 times.

What do teacher's make by Taylor Mali

Share this with everyone you know. This will remain one of the coolest videos you'll ever see for the rest of your life.

View and rate it here on the day of this Post. After 11/10/12, click here.

Finally, have a cool site? Please submit it.

Mike

 

What do teacher's make by Taylor Mali

Share this with everyone you know. This will remain one of the coolest videos you'll ever see for the rest of your life.

View and rate it here on the day of this Post. After 11/9/12, click here.

Finally, have a cool site? Please submit it.

Mike

 

Today's Cool Site: Support Campaign Finance Reform

See the full gallery on Posterous

Well, after an absurdly long, unnecessary (media driven) presidential campaigning process where too many millions of dollars were spent, it’s time this whole country starts demanding public funding of campaigns and a constitutional amendment to reverse the vile Supreme Court decision, Citizens United. Two things will happen: 1) politicians will have more time to govern because they will spend less time making ridiculous ads…because they won’t be given buckets of cash from SuperPACs; and 2) politicians will have fewer powerful interests to appease when it comes time to make laws.

It all begins with your online signature.

View and rate it here on the day of this Post. After 11/9/12, click here.

Finally, have a cool site? Please submit it here.

Mike

Get involved in the fight against childhood obesity

Since my chance encounter with Bill Clinton yesterday, I have joined the Clinton Foundation and featured their site on Cool Site of the Day. I'm especially interested in their progress in the fight against childhood obesity. Please get involved.

http://www.clintonfoundation.org/main/our-work/by-topic/childhood-obesity.html

Mike

Best Political Ad I Ever Saw

Found this on Upworthy.com and I agree: "I'm so tired of political ads. Except for this one. THE Steve Martin decided he wanted to help a friend win an election. So he put his face in front of his phone cam and talked about something else entirely."

Brilliant.

SNL Spoof: iPhone 5 Critics

via mashable.com

Slavery Footprint - How many slaves work for you?

featured on Cool Site of the Day

The Who at The Concert For New York City

via youtube.com

Another truly "once in a lifetime" performance--The Who at the Concert for New York City (shortly following 9/11). Anyone who dreams of getting on stage and doing ANYTHING should watch this 100 times.

Bill Clinton on The Daily Show

via thedailyshow.com

Teens & Medicine Abuse

Today's Cool Site of the Day aims to keep 500,000 teens away from medicine abuse over the next 5 years. Get involved--it's simple and easy to spread the word.

via drugfree.org

Teach Kids to Help Others

childrendonate2.org is a wonderful site that guides kids to do good things.

Best Toys of 2012

via toptoysblog.com

Had to feature this unbiased review of the top toys of 2012 because it was sent to me by a Cool Site of the Day regular....K Paul!!!

Got kids?

Tesla beats Edison

via awesome.good.is

United Colors of Benetton's knitted sculptures in X-positions

Click here for the full story.

Pledge of Allegiance pre-1950s

via atheistmemebase.com

Ed Rendell on the President and Gun Control

“If the president had said — two, three, four days after Aurora going back to Tucson and Gabby Giffords — If he’d said look, everybody who’s sane knows that we shouldn’t let allow people to possess assault rifles. Everyone who is sane knows we should (NOT) let people hold magazines that have more than 10 clips in each magazine, 10 bullets in each magazine. I’m going to ask the Congress to outlaw them and I want all Americans to say ‘enough is enough.’ No more Tucsons. No more Auroras. It’s time to do something America. This doesn’t impinge on the rights of any lawful gun owners. Let’s get it done.” -- Ed Rendell

Let's go, Mr. President. Take a stand...and deliver.

This is What Snake Venom Does to Blood!

"

Richard Wiseman's Quirky Mind Stuff

via richardwiseman.wordpress.com

Take the Trash-Free Challenge

via oceanconservancy.org

10 Bets You Will Never Lose

"

via richardwiseman.com

Roanoke College students converting '39 Pontiac to electric drive

Students at Roanoke Collage in Salem, VA, are almost halfway through a 4-year process of converting a 1939 Pontiac into an all-electric vehicle. The college's RC Electric Club bought the car for $1,500 in 2010. They have stripped it, removed its original eight-cylinder engine and kept its burgundy to go along with school colors. The car will be shown off at this year's commencement ceremonies.

Short of the Week

I just watched the short film on John Baldessari on this cool site. Fun.

Like they say: "The Greatest Stories Being Told"

Mike

Reading program keeping kids reading all summer long

In Summer 2011, students around the world logged 64,213,141 reading minutes. Can you help set a new world record for summer reading? The 20 schools with the most minutes will be featured in the 2013 Scholastic Book of World Records. LOVE this!!

via scholastic.com

Grape lady

"

Still can't believe this was real.

Mike

Sustainable Urban Farming

via vifarms.com

Today's Cool Site of the Day is Vertically Integrated Farms. I actually ordered a few tilapia fish from them to grow at home.

Mike