You can only eat so much, and though we’ll likely stretch those limits tomorrow, at some point we all have to take a break. The good folks at Coudal Partners have the perfect solution: a simple test (available as a convenient PDF) that Einstein says only a handful of people can actually figure out.

The premise is simple: somebody in the neighborhood keeps a fish, but who? Read the clues, work it out, and send your answer to the Coudal folks. If you’re right they might have a prize for you. You can leave your answer in the comments here too, but all I’ll have for you is left over turkey.

Here are the hints. The question is “who owns the fish?”

1. The Brit lives in the red house.
2. The Swede keeps dogs as pets.
3. The Dane drinks tea.
4. The green house is on the left of the white house.
5. The green house owner drinks coffee.
6. The person who smokes Pall Malls keeps birds.
7. The owner of the yellow house smokes Dunhills.
8. The man living in the house right in the center drinks milk.
9. The man who smokes Blends lives next to the one who keeps cats.
10. The Norwegian lives in the first house.
11. The man who keeps horses lives next to the one who smokes Dunhills.
12. The owner who smokes Bluemasters drinks beer.
13. The German smokes Princes.
14. The Norwegian lives next to the blue house.
15. The man who smokes Blends has a neighbor who drinks water.

Corey, Will, and Jon were all as excited as I was to see the fabled Point Judith Corrosion Test Site, just south of Narragansett, but we were all surprised at how un-rusty the goods were.

Don’t laugh, corrosion is a big deal. According to the National Materials Advisory Board:

Corrosion of metallic structures has a significant impact on the U.S. economy. In a congressional study, the total economic impact of corrosion and corrosion control applications was estimated to be $276 billion annually, or 3.1 percent of the U.S. gross domestic product (GDP).

This facility is one of a handful (though the heavy sales pitch on this NASA page makes it look like there are more facilities than things to test). Specimens are arranged on racks where they just sit…and slowly rust or corrode or exfoliate. The research papers read like, well, research papers, but I’m sure they’re good stuff. After all, the NanoTechnology Group says:

…chemical attack of metal surfaces may result in surface nano-structures with very interesting technological applications such as catalysts and sensors. Therefore, a better understanding of corrosion processes is required to both prevent it and make the most of it.

And from the looks of things at Point Judith, they’ve got it figured out. The most rusted thing we found was a bit of highway guardrail, everything else was just gray. Not so great for a purported “rust museum.”

Eh, we’ll have to console ourselves with subREVOLT’s rust museum for that fix.

point judith corrosion test facility, point judith, corrosion, rust, test, rusty, rust museum, test facility, rhode island

asdasd

asdf, test, mistake, how the sausage is made, blooper

This renewed talk of building nuclear weapons here in the US reminded me of an old report of photos of the sky glow from nuclear tests done in Nevada seen over Los Angeles. This one includes the following description:

Atomic explosion, the largest yet set off on the Nevada test range, was clearly visible in Los Angeles. Staff photographer Perry Folwer was ready with his camera on a tripod on the roof of the Herald-Express building when the blast occurred at 5:49 a.m. Reporter Jack Smith, points towards the great white flash that clearly silhouetted mountains to the east. The brilliant spectacle was seen by many early-rising residents of Los Angeles. Photo dated: February 2, 1951.

More: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6.

atomic, test, bomb, blast, sky glow, los angeles, photo

I just love tests (previously: psychotic, leadership style in movies and famous people in history, and eccentric or autistic), so I was quick to try myself at this one when Al emailed me. It’s about alcohol, and like most tests, it’s not about getting the answer right, but giving the answer that the test writer wants. So it’s flawed, but it’s a bit of fun. Here are my results:

Score: Bacardi 151
Congratulations! You’re 137 proof, with specific scores in beer (40), wine (116), and liquor (147).

All right. No more messing around. Your knowledge of alcohol is so high that you have drinking and getting plastered down to a science. Sure, you could get wasted drinking beer, but who needs all those trips to the bathroom? You head straight for the bar and pick up that which is most efficient.

My test tracked 4 variables How you compared to other people your age and gender:

You scored higher than 69% on proof
You scored higher than 67% on beer index
You scored higher than 94% on wine index
You scored higher than 99% on liquor index

Try your own mind at the Alcohol Knowledge Test.

tags: alcohol, alcohol iq, bacardi 151, bar skills, beer, knowledge, liquor, personality test, personality tests, test, tests, wine