The Great Geek Manual

People think dreams aren’t real just because they aren’t made of matter, of particles. Dreams are real. But they are made of viewpoints, of images, of memories and puns and lost hopes.

- The Sandman: Preludes and Nocturnes by Neil Gaiman, 1989.

Witness these uncanny mash-ups of your most beloved toys from your childhood. Imagine Play-Doh, Cabbage Patch Kids, and Smurfs portrayed in movies by Ron Howard, David Cronenberg, and Peter Jackson.

Source: Atom

OMG! How awesome would it be to have one of these in your living room? Bookslikehats writes, “And this is my favourite thing in the whole wide world. My brother made it for me – carved both doors by hand. I started crying when I opened it on Xmas.”

Somebody seriously needs to start mass manufacturing these, so I can get one, too.

Source: Bookslikehats Tumblr

1870
Christmas is declared a federal holiday in the United States.

1894
Karl Benz of Germany is granted the first US patent for a gasoline-driven automobile.

1948
William Shockley files the original patent for his grown junction transistor, the first bipolar junction transistor.

1970
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announces its plans to regulating the cable television industry. Most notable among the regulation is the ban on the three major broadcasting networks from entering the cable television market and a prohibition on the joint ownership of cable and broadcast television operations in the same community.

1974
At 8:01am, a Universal Product Code (UPC) label is used to ring up purchases at a supermarket for the first time. The first UPC ever scanned is on a package of Wrigley’s chewing gum, which is purchased at the Marsh Supermarket in Troy, Ohio. Developed by International Business Machines (IBM) and approved for use in 1973, the code is a twelve-digit bar code that numerically representing the manufacturer and and the product which can be read by a laser beam. One of the developers of the UPC, Norman Joseph Woodland, was inspired by Morse code.
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Mapping the human genome has been compared with putting a man on the moon, but I believe it is more than that. This is the outstanding achievement not only of our lifetime, but in terms of human history. A few months ago I compared the project to the invention of the wheel. On reflection, it is more than that. I can well imagine technology making the wheel obsolete. But this code is the essence of mankind, and as long as humans exists, this code is going to be important and will be used.

- Thomas Michael Dexter, as quoted in the Sanger Institute press release “The first draft of the Book of Humankind has been read,” June 2000.

Comics

• This X-Men Universe Relationship Map proven for once and all that Wolverine is a man-whore.

Film

• J.J. Abrams’ Star Trek reboot is now officially The top-grossing Star Trek film ever.
• The L.A. Times Blog has posted a pic of Slughorn in his purple pajamas.
• There’s a New 12 Second Harry Potter 6 Film Clip online. It’s brief but funny.
• Some people are saying that the Jive-talking twin Transformers raise race issues, but I really don’t see it. I think the critics may be reading a bit much into a kid’s movie about robots.
• The WebUrbanist has posted an interesting gallery of 12 Real-Life Locations Behind Out-of-this-World Films as a follow-up to 5 Infamous Abandonments Used in Famous Movies: Deserted Buildings from Cult Classic Films.

Internet

• io9 runs down the 20 Best (And 20 Worst) Pets In Science Fiction.
• This Buffy vs Edward Twilight mashup is great! Death to the sparkly ones!

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Here’s an image from my new Tumblr account, GreatGeekManual. Check it for humor, pictures, and even more geeky quotes every day of the week!

Am I the only one who feels calmer just looking at a picture of books, or is this a widespread geek trait? I honestly don’t know, but sometime, when I’m looking at a picture like this, I think how comforting it would be if funeral homes were lined with shelves of books.

Also, sometimes beautiful book pictures like this make me hate the internet… just a little.

Source: Book Tumbling