Month: December 2016

It’s that time of year again, when gingerbread artisans put the rest of us to holiday-themed shame. Redditor ejustice, who has in previous years created nerdtastic cookie “houses” of spaceships like the Millennium Falcon, decided to attempt new heights (and puns) for his 2016 take on the annual spiced dessert creation.

The Starship Gingerprise, spotted by io9, is a dessert architecture take on the USS Enterprise from Star Trek. But it isn’t just a recreation of a beloved sci-fi ship—it’s the nod to the spacecraft’s penchant for regularly crashing into planets. The mostly edible gingerbread version of the Starfleet ship is depicted as crash-landing through cotton clouds that are made of an inedible crafting product called Buffalo Snow.

Here’s the full image:

It’s a worthy addition to National Gingerbread House Day (December 12), even if it’s not technically a house.

[h/t io9]

Skype users with contacts around the globe can use Skype Translator to interpret nine spoken languages in real time, and more than 50 languages while instant messaging. Introduced in 2014, the feature only worked with Skype-to-Skype calls—but now, The Verge reports, the app is expanding the feature to calls made to landlines and mobile phones.

Want to try it for yourself? The feature is still in development, so callers will need to download the Skype app’s latest beta version. You’ll also need to register for Microsoft’s Windows Insider Program (which lets people with a Windows 10 license sign up to access early builds of the operating system) and purchase some Skype credits.

Once everything’s all set, you pull up the Skype dialer, hit the “Translate” switch, choose the languages you plan to speak in, and make your call. The recipient will hear a brief message informing them that the conversation will be recorded and translated, and the rest of the phone exchange will be interspersed with brief pauses as Skype deciphers various phrases.

At the moment, Skype Translator supports English, Spanish, Italian, French, German, Russian, Mandarin Chinese, Portuguese, and Arabic. And as with all automated translation services, it’s not foolproof; so if you’re planning on holding any cross-cultural conversations, you may want to play it safe by speaking slowly and having a foreign language dictionary on hand.

[h/t The Verge]

Shattered pots and other artifacts have much to teach us about vanished civilizations, but, sometimes, it’s what’s inside that counts. Researchers have identified molecular traces of diseased human organs inside clay pots from the Iron Age. They describe their discovery in a forthcoming issue of The Journal of Archaeological Science.

The settlement at Heuneburg in modern-day Germany was part of one of the earliest cities ever built among the Alps. At the height of its success during the 6th century BCE, Heuneburg was home to more than 5000 people. Those people left behind stone walls and mud-brick buildings, fields and burial mounds.

Nestled within one of those burial mounds were six ceramic jars. By the time archaeologists reached them, the jars were smashed, and their contents had decomposed beyond recognition—at least to the naked eye.

A team of three archaeologists and one biochemist found a way to reconstruct what was once there. They took teeny samples from each pot, ground them up, and washed them in a chemical solution to collect any proteins that might remain. They then compared the 166 different compounds they’d found with a large protein database, looking for matches.

What they found was surprising, to say the least. Some of the proteins came from human blood. Others were from human organ tissue. Still others belonged to a virus called Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever (CCHF). This tick-borne disease starts with a sudden fever and headache, progresses to vomiting and nosebleeds, and can end in uncontrolled bleeding and death. It still kills people today across a wide region stretching from western Asia through southern Africa.

The presence of organ and blood proteins inside the jars suggests that the people of Heuneburg cared lovingly for their dead, interring each organ in its own fine receptacle.

The researchers aren’t sure what the virus’s appearance in Heuneburg might mean; we’ve never found hemorrhagic fever on ancient artifacts before.

Lead author Conner Wiktorowicz, of Purdue University, says his team’s methods and findings open new portals into the world of the dead.

“What have archaeologists been missing regarding social practices and the use of pottery vessels in the past?” he said in Science magazine. “I can’t imagine all of the exciting new findings other researchers will make.”

‘Tis the season for massive spending. Americans plan to shell out and average of nearly $600 on gifts for others this year, according to the National Retail Federation. That includes $460 for family, $76 for friends, and $24 for coworkers (sorry, coworkers). But even if you’ve got an extra 600 bucks in your budget, presents make up just one part of holiday spending. According to a Time survey, 43 percent of people reported that travel was actually their top expense this year, and another 10 percent said entertaining expenses trumped gift-giving.

Those stats are enough to make anyone sweat. But if you’re committed to getting through the season while sticking to your budget, the splurge-fest can induce panic. First things first: Take a deep breath. “The holidays can be an especially stressful time of year, but having a plan and the right expectations can go a long way,” says Catherine Derus, CFP, financial planner and founder of Brightwater Financial. Then, check out these expert-backed steps:

1. MAKE A LIST (AND CHECK IT TWICE)

No question, stretching your gift-giving budget across every recipient on your list only works if you actually have a complete list. (And all of those small gifts that you usually forget to budget for, like the $10 Secret Santa at work or the $20 gift card for the mail carrier, can quickly add up.) Odds are, you have a few new names to shop for this year—maybe your college BFF had a baby or you’ve gotten close with a new neighbor. Mapping out your list in advance makes it easy to keep an eye out for the right sales, and it can spare you from last-minute shopping sprees that can quickly tank your budget.

2. BATCH AND BUNDLE

December 23^rd is not the time to suggest a gift swap, but if you bring up the topic now you might be surprised at how relieved people are. “You’re definitely not the only one facing a long gift list—and shopping can be stressful even if people aren’t on a budget,” says Derus.

If talking money makes you feel like a Scrooge, focus on the time aspect—that you’re overwhelmed shopping for all 18 cousins or 12 sorority sisters and you think swapping names would let everyone focus on finding one great gift.

3. BRAINSTORM BEYOND THE RIBBONS AND BOWS

Be real: How many scented candles or funny mugs does one person need? “Maybe instead of buying another trinket that doesn’t mean much, you suggest doing a shared activity instead,” says Derus. Even with skate rentals and ample hot chocolate, an evening of ice skating with friends can be cheaper than everyone swapping $15 presents. And those shared memories can mean more, too: University of Pennsylvania researchers found that experiential gifts forge a stronger connection between the gift-giver and receiver than material presents.

4. DIY

“The more expensive a gift is does not mean more joy—period,” says Vid Ponnapalli, CFP, financial planner and founder of Unique Financial Advisors. “The joy comes from thinking about them and what they like, and finding something that shows you know their taste.”

That can mean splurging on a Le Creuset baking set for your sister who’s obsessed with sweets—or reining things in and opting for a homemade jar of vanilla sugar and one of your grandma’s treasured cookie recipes. You don’t have to be super crafty to go DIY, either. Maybe it’s offering to design a site for your friend who’s launching a business or gifting your pal who’s a new parent five date nights’ worth of baby-sitting.

5. PUSH BACK TRAVEL

You might be able to save a few bucks by booking odd flights during December (like flying out Christmas afternoon or embracing the 5 a.m. departure). But the absolute best way to save on holiday travel is to wait until the holidays are over, says Ponnapalli. “For the past 10 years, I’ve planned a vacation in January, when you can save so much on airfare, hotels, and car rentals,” he says. “I almost cut my ski vacation cost in half by timing it right.”

Booking something later in the winter doesn’t just mean less strain on your wallet—it can mean battling fewer crowds and less stress while you’re at your destination. And while it may feel awkward to put off traveling to see family until after the New Year, a quiet holiday at home can quickly become a new tradition, says Derus. “You’ll have a little more time to save and get your post-holiday finances in order, so you can enjoy the trip more,” she says.

Since Jurassic Park premiered in 1993, the practical effects that were used to bring the film to life have all but gone extinct. Computer technology has made enormous leaps in the past few decades, allowing filmmakers to create everything from violent explosions to adorable alien sidekicks from the comfort of an animation lab.

Despite CGI’s undeniable success, plenty of film geeks are still nostalgic for the look and feel of animatronics. J.A. Bayona is one of them, and according to The Hollywood Reporter he plans to revive the lost special effects art when directing the upcoming sequel to Jurassic World. He said in a recent interview:

“It’s complicated because the audience now is so used to seeing CGI that they’re sometimes reluctant toward animatronics. But at the same time, I think animatronics bring soul and reality to it. We’re trying to find the balance between animatronics and CGI in order to cheat the audience so they don’t know what they’re seeing.”

That blending of different effects is what makes the original Jurassic Park so watchable 23 years later. The movie is known for featuring some of the most impressive animatronic puppets captured on film, but at the time, it broke ground with its use of computer technology. That iconic scene where the park guests are introduced to a towering Brachiosaurus marked the first time physically-textured (photo-realistic) CGI was used to create characters that could seamlessly appear alongside live actors.

Rather than showing off this new technology at every opportunity, Steven Spielberg wisely chose to be conservative with it. Only four of the 14 minutes of dinosaur footage in the film are computer generated. These scenes mostly consist of full-body shots where the dinosaurs are moving around, while the animatronics were used for intimate close-ups.

By only using CGI when absolutely necessary, the film was able to achieve this audience-cheating effect that Bayona mentions. It also allowed for more authentic interactions between the dinosaurs and the actors. When the characters meet the sick triceratops in Jurassic Park, their amazement is genuine: Spielberg made sure that scene was shot the first day of filming so the cast and crew could get used to working with animatronics. Jurassic Park also includes some instances of authentic fear, like when the T.Rex puppet broke through the roof of Tim and Lex’s car unplanned.

The animatronics technology in use today is, not surprisingly, even more impressive than the tech used back in 1993. Jurassic World director Colin Trevorrow was aware of some of the advantages of animatronics while filming, which is why he had an Apatosaurus puppet made for Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard to interact with. Audiences will have to wait until 2018 to see what dinos receive the animatronic treatment in the next installment.

[h/t Movie Pilot]

The tradition of giving misbehaving children lumps of fossil fuel predates the Santa we know, and is also associated with St. Nicholas, Sinterklaas, and Italy’s La Befana. Though there doesn’t seem to be one specific legend or history about any of these figures that gives a concrete reason for doling out coal specifically, the common thread between all of them seems to be convenience.

Santa and La Befana both get into people’s homes via the fireplace chimney and leave gifts in stockings hung from the mantel. Sinterklaas’s controversial assistant, Black Pete, also comes down the chimney and places gifts in shoes left out near the fireplace. St. Nick used to come in the window, and then switched to the chimney when they became common in Europe. Like Sinterklaas, his presents are traditionally slipped into shoes sitting by the fire.

So, let’s step into the speculation zone: All of these characters are tied to the fireplace. When filling the stockings or the shoes, the holiday gift givers sometimes run into a kid who doesn’t deserve a present. So to send a message and encourage better behavior next year, they leave something less desirable than the usual toys, money, or candy—and the fireplace would seem to make an easy and obvious source of non-presents. All the individual would need to do is reach down into the fireplace and grab a lump of coal. (While many people think of fireplaces burning wood logs, coal-fired ones were very common during the 19th and early 20th centuries, which is when the American Santa mythos was being established.)

That said, with the exception of Santa, none of these characters limits himself to coal when it comes to bad kids. They’ve also been said to leave bundles of twigs, bags of salt, garlic, and onions, which suggests that they’re less reluctant than Santa to haul their bad kid gifts around all night in addition to the good presents.

Have you got a Big Question you’d like us to answer? If so, let us know by emailing us at bigquestions@mentalfloss.com.

It’s already been established that picking up a live Christmas tree locally can be better for the environment than buying a fake one. You should feel no shame then in browsing for trees at one of our country’s national forests this holiday season—assuming you have the proper permit, of course.

According to Travel + Leisure, the U.S. Forest Service offers permits to chop down trees for firewood and holiday decorations starting at $5. To see when your local national forest offers holiday tree permits and for what prices, you can call the forest district office before making your visit. Once you get out there, the U.S. Forest Service asks you take trees from overgrown areas at least 200 feet from the nearest camp ground, recreation site, or main road; choose one with a trunk less than 6 inches wide; and above all, stay safe. Any wood you collect from the forest cannot be resold.

If an aspiring young lumberjack is joining you on your journey, you might be able to take home the tree for free: As part of their collaboration with the Every Kid in a Park Program, the U.S. Forest Service is providing free permits to fourth graders at certain parks. In addition to the permit, kids will also receive a free ornament they can color and design themselves.

[h/t Travel + Leisure]

For some people, the weeks between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day are more than enough time to celebrate the holidays. But the people living near these locations may feel differently. From Alaska to Tennessee, here are seven towns where Yule is a 365-day affair.

1. NORTH POLE, ALASKA

 
You wouldn’t be faulted for mistaking this 2200-person town for Santa’s home-base. While it’s closer to Fairbanks, Alaska than the true North Pole, it does feature several festive landmarks such as Santa Claus Lane, Kris Kringle Drive, and an expansive Santa Claus house that’s open year-round. In 2015 residents even elected a local man named Santa Claus to preside over the town as mayor. Settled in 1944, North Pole has a development company to thank for its quirky address. The hope was that a toy company would be enticed to move there so they could market their toys as being “made in the North Pole.” That never came to fruition, but the town has embraced their jolly title nonetheless. Things get especially exciting around December, when they celebrate with an ice sculpture contest and an annual winter festival. It’s also the time of year when the town receives hundreds of thousands of letters addressed to “Santa Claus, North Pole, Alaska.” A team of volunteers works each season to ensure every letter is answered.

2. MIDLAND, MICHIGAN

 
There’s no need to journey north of the Arctic Circle to learn what it takes to be Kris Kringle. The most prestigious Santa Claus academy on earth can be found in Midland, Michigan. Since 1934, the Charles W. Howard Santa Claus School has been attracting rotund, rosy-cheeked gentlemen to the Midwestern town. It’s there that they’re taught reindeer handling 101, how to dress like St. Nick, and the history of the legendary character. Once the holiday season rolls around, the newly trained Santas disperse to malls across the country—or if they decide to stick around, they can march in Midland’s annual Santa Parade.

3. PARADISE, PENNSYLVANIA

 
Located off U.S. Route 30, Paradise is home to one of those charming roadside museums that can be found in so many small towns across America. What sets this attraction apart is its yearlong commitment to celebrating a single day in December. The National Christmas Center comprises 20,000 square feet of exhibits tracing centuries of holiday history—visitors can peek inside a recreation of an F. W. Woolworth’s 5 & 10 Cent Store, browse through over 500 depictions of Santa Claus, and learn about Christmas traditions around the world. On their way out, guests can do some early holiday shopping at the museum’s gift shop no matter what month it is.

4. FRANKENMUTH, MICHIGAN

 
The streets of Frankenmuth feel like they belong on the pages of a storybook. Dubbed “Michigan’s Little Bavaria,” the town is home to covered bridges, charming old-world architecture, and horse-drawn carriages reminiscent of another era. But the town’s main attraction is what’s said to be the world’s largest Christmas store, Bronner’s Christmas Wonderland. The 320,000-square-foot space contains 350 decorated trees, 150 styles of nutcrackers, and gifts imported from 70 countries around the world. A hundred thousand Christmas lights brighten the store’s exterior throughout the seasons (their electric bill averages $1250 a day).

5. SANTA CLAUS, INDIANA

 
The residents of Santa Claus, Indiana didn’t have visions of sugar plums dancing in their heads when they came up with the town’s merry moniker—they were just suffering from a lack of inspiration. In 1856, back when the town went by Santa Fe, they learned that a town of that name already existed in Indiana. Wanting to at least keep the first half of their address, they reportedly chose the name Santa Claus simply because they failed to come up with something more creative. More than 150 years later, Santa Claus, Indiana is the state’s number one destination for year-round holiday festivities. Visitors can check out the town’s Holiday World (which pays homage to Thanksgiving, Halloween, and Independence Day as well as Christmas), pick out sweet treats from Santa’s Candy Castle, or head over to Santa’s Lodge motel and bask in the glory of the two 12-foot fiberglass St. Nicks on display outside. Kids looking to reach the community’s famous post office can mail their holiday wish lists to 45 North Kringle Place, Santa Claus, IN 47579.

6. BETHLEHEM, PENNSYLVANIA

 
Finding Bethlehem, Pennsylvania isn’t difficult for those nearby—just follow the electric star that looks down on the town from its perch on South Mountain. The festive landmark was first erected in 1937 in an effort to attract tourists to the town in the midst of the Great Depression. That same year, Bethlehem was officially named “Christmas City, U.S.A.” by the Chamber of Commerce—a fitting title for a town that was founded on Christmas Eve in 1741. Originally made from incandescent bulbs strung on plywood, the star of Bethlehem currently consists of steel and LED lights that glow every night of the year.

7. PIGEON FORGE, TENNESSEE

 
Looking for a blinged-out nutcracker in the middle of July? The Incredible Christmas Place in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee has you covered. The self-proclaimed largest Christmas shopping village in the South is home to wreaths, lights, ornaments, and any other holiday-themed decor you may need whatever time of year you need it. In 2007, the store opened a festive hotel across the street where customers could continue keeping with the holiday spirit even after they’d finished shopping. The Inn at Christmas Place features performances by a singing Santa twice a week, present-wrapping workshops, and plenty of holly jolly embellishments. Things get even more intense around the actual holidays, with 30 or more trees displaying nearly half a million lights on the hotel grounds.

The U.S. has a treasure trove of historic sites to visit, but geography makes it nearly impossible to visit them all in one trip—or does it? Led by University of Waterloo professor William Cook, a team of researchers used Google Maps and the famous “traveling salesman” mathematics problem to figure out the shortest route to see every single site on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places, as Travel + Leisure reports.

The trip covers more than 217,605 miles and includes more than 49,600 sites, ending back at the original starting point. To put that into context: the distance from Earth to the Moon is 238,900 miles.

Even with hundreds of University of Waterloo computers working on the problem, solving it took four international researchers two years. It began with computing a test problem that calculated the shortest distance between more than 24,700 pubs in the UK. Once that was solved, it took the computers a combined total of 178.9 hours (adding all the computers’ hourly contributions together). Ideally, you would start in Birmingham, Alabama at the A.G. Gaston Building, a landmark of modern architectural design developed by its namesake African-American entrepreneur, and travel the country before ending up back in Alabama at the 16th Street Baptist Church, famous for serving as the headquarters of civil rights meetings in the 1960s.

If you don’t have enough time to visit every single historic building, home, landmark, and monument on the list, the researchers did put together region-specific versions of the tour, too.

[h/t Travel + Leisure]

All images courtesy William Cook.