More evidence that we are all living in Warren Ellis' head

That image, stolen from tekwh0re.net, has some _amazing_ headlines on it.

I mean, we lead with the Boston bombings (and the fun and games around that, with Reddit's vigilante identification and the Czech Ambassador releasing a statement that the Czech Republic isn't Chechnya are worthy of a sci-fi novel themselves). But then we have mass flooding, famous people being taken by mysterious neurological disorders, a man hugging a giant pig, an Elvis impersonator threatening to use chemical weapons on the US president, and the discovery of two alien "water worlds".

Seriously, that's inches away from Transmetropolitan. And people say we aren't living in the future.

Interesting Links for 20-04-2013

• Germany tells Google to improve its customer service.
  (tags: google germany customerservice )
• Children who live in unreliable environments won't delay gratification - because they know they won't get it later.
  (tags: environment children DelayedGratification )
• Girl Scouts to introduce game developer badge (Joining the Boy Scouts, who did so last month)
  (tags: girls games technology children )
• Cezch ambassador releases statement confirming that the Czech Republic is not Chechnya
  (tags: geography usa )
• Phillip Schofield took a pair of German prostitutes for lunch instead of watching the Berlin Wall being brought down.
  (tags: )
• Have someone point at your pointer.
  (tags: pointless )

Why I posted a bunch of spit to the USA

Julie spent ages trying to work out what she wanted for Christmas*, and eventually ended up with something that turned out to be a perfect thing for both of us**.

We're both fascinated by how we work. This drove her into her multiple psychology degrees, and me into an eclectic series of university courses, books, and internet reading. We both have an intense urge towards self-examination, wanting to know why we are the way we are.

And so her solution was genius in its simplicity - we're getting our genetics tested.

We're not getting our genes comprehensively sequenced - that's still too expensive (about $5k, so far as I can tell) - but for $99 23andMe will check against a million different known DNA sequence variations and then give you a whole bunch of information based on what they find***.

And then it will compare you (with your permission) to the hundred thousand other users in its database, spot people you might be related to, trace ancestral lineages, and let you know what traits and risks you might be susceptible to.

To be honest, I don't expect to uncover anything shocking. But I am fascinated to see what might turn up.

*Ok, yes, it's a bit late. But at $99 each, plus delivery to/from the USA it's not cheap, so we waited for my bonus to come in.
**I have a specific ethos when it comes to presents. They must be something that the giver will enjoy giving, something that the receiver will enjoy receiving, and there must be an element of frippery, fun, or general extraneousness to it. Buying purely functional presents is right out. So, for instance, clothes with silly slogans are fine, luxury clothes are fine, but work clothes or plain socks are forbidden.
***Like whether you think that cilantro/coriander tastes like soap