The Force…we haz it

I’m sure some Star Wars purists will radically dispute any similarities, but this article about <insert currently popular field of physics here> just reminds me of The Force. I also find it quite humble of the scientist being interviewed to name the as-yet-undiscovered particle after himself. Ah, to be a physicist so in love with himself that he can be credited for the creation of life in the universe! Anyhow, check this article out in full if you are interested in more, and just remember to substitute ‘The Force’ for ‘force’ and the word ‘Jedi’ wherever you see particle. Physics just got so much more fun!

Key scientist sure “God particle” will be found soon

By Robert Evans

GENEVA (Reuters) – British physicist Peter Higgs said on Monday it should soon be possible to prove the existence of a force which gives mass to the universe and makes life possible — as he first argued 40 years ago.

Higgs said he believes a particle named the “Higgs boson”, which originates from the force, will be found when a vast particle collider at the CERN research centre on the Franco-Swiss border begins operating fully early next year.

“The likelihood is that the particle will show up pretty quickly … I’m more than 90 percent certain that it will,” Higgs told journalists.

The 78-year-old’s original efforts in the early 1960s to explain why the force, dubbed the Higgs field, must exist were dismissed at CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research.

Today, the existence of the invisible field is widely accepted by scientists, who believe it came into being milliseconds after the Big Bang created the universe some 15 billion years ago.

Full article here.

I’ve never had the munchies for Pizza

But after reading this story, I might get them both at the same time. Well, maybe not…cause this is where I live, and its probably the last ‘green pizza’ you can get in town. Please note the day (well, a few days short of the ideal date) and the time (4:20 pm). I’m guessing they didn’t want to wait until 4/20 to make the arrest cause the manager would have called in sick

Authorities: Pizza Joint Sold Pot
Tuesday, April 22, 2008 9:28 AM CDT
By Hicham Raache

TIMES RECORD • HRAACHE@SWTIMES.COM

The manager of a Fort Smith Pizza Hut is accused of peddling marijuana from the restaurant’s drive-through window.

Aaron Massey, 28, was arrested at Pizza Hut, 1813 Grand Ave., Friday after Fort Smith and state authorities searched the pizza place and located several hundred dollars worth of marijuana and drug paraphernalia, according to a news release issued by Sgt. Jarrard Copeland, public information officer with the Fort Smith Police Department.

Narcotics officers with the Police Department began investigating the goings-on at Pizza Hut after receiving information that several employees of the restaurant had been smoking marijuana in the business and the manager, Massey, was not only smoking marijuana, but dealing it from the drive-through window, according to the news release.

“We don’t know how long he’s been doing it,” Copeland said in a telephone interview. “Probably quite a while because we got several calls.”

Members of the Police Department’s Narcotics Unit assisted Arkansas Beverage Control Agent J.C. Rider in an inspection of the restaurant at around 4:20 p.m., according to Copeland.

A search of the restaurant yielded approximately six ounces of marijuana, a street value of $720, and a set of digital scales.

“These items were located in the manager’s office, inside a black NPC briefcase bag which had the name ‘Aaron’ on it,” Copeland stated in the release.

It is believed, Copeland said, that marijuana is the only narcotic Massey had been selling from Pizza Hut.

As the investigation continues, more arrests will likely be made, Copeland said.

Gary Gygax, Penny Arcade, yada yada

Sometimes I’m a bit behind in the posts…I’m sure every geek knows that Gary Gygax failed his last save last month. Yes, that’s a tacky joke…but aren’t all gamer’s full of the jokes you only laugh out in the company of other nerds? I think we’re probably one of the groups most likely to enjoy self deprecating humor. Because who can’t find fight Giant Space Hamsters, or wield Vorpal swords, or get upset over who touches their dice without laughing at least a little bit at the guy next to you who dresses up on weekends in tights. Anyhow, I did come across this great Penny Arcade post, which brought a sad tear to my eye as I laughed.

April, you fools!

I don’t really prank on April Fools (well, sometimes). I’m usually busy pulling on something other than somebody’s leg. But Blizzard has a longstanding tradition of the April Fools joke, and everyone seems to have copied their successful tradition. Here are some of the ones I’ve seen today:

Google – http://mail.google.com/mail/help/customtime/index.html

D&D – http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/4dnd/20080401a

WOW:TCG – http://entertainment.upperdeck.com/wow/en/news/article.aspx?aid=3991

Blizzard/WOW – http://www.worldofwarcraft.com/wrath/features/bard/bardclass.xml

http://www.worldofwarcraft.com/moltencore/

Blizzard/Starcraft: http://www.starcraft2.com/features/terran/taurenmarine.xml