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I have dug through the Internet this week and uncovered all this science/pop culture goodness. You can find the hundreds of links from previous weeks here.

You can also look out for a number of Thanksgiving-related links, but there is some good turkey day science in there, I promise.

I have marked the best links with a ∞. Enjoy.

Must Read

∞ Absolutely fascinating (and very long) profile of the girl who can’t feel pain | The Hazards of Growing Up Painlessly

∞ “Bigfoot is not a monster but a meme.” A great bit of skeptical writing by Brian Switek

A critical (and funny) look at an important topic: Geoengineering–A mad scientist’s guide to fixing the planet

Still in awe of XKCD’s awesomeness: Could you build a jetpack out of machine guns?

A wonderful bit of science writing here: Attack of the Mutant Pupfish

∞ Definitely one of our brain’s weirdest quirks: The man whose brain ignores one half of his world

Adding science to the inherent badassitude: The Science of Swords–The Sound of Approaching Doom

∞ JREF Research Fellow Kyle Hill on the guilty pleasures of watching TV pseudoscience

Must Watch

Another great Symphony of Science, this time on climate change

∞ Do you ever really “touch” anything? As usual, you’ll find it’s a bit more complicated than you may think

I believe this is “F*** yeah physics”–Slow-mo video of explosive gas in a bubble being ignited

A whole blog dedicated to MRI gifs of various plants? Sign me up

Remember when a nice NatGeo-style video would soothe your soul? Reminisce with me

This is a gross/awesome video of human vocal folds in action

Science

This scares the hell out of me: If you’re 27 or younger, you’ve never seen a global colder-than-average month

Sit down, pass the mashed potatoes, and remember that you will eat dinosaur for Thanksgiving

Are you badass enough to perform surgery on yourself? These people were

∞ Some shrimp punch prey to death, some spear it out of nowhere. But why do they differ in speed? Great piece by Ed Yong

Of course, the annual myth busting is required | Don’t Blame The Turkey: The Myth of Turkey and Tryptophan: http://t.co/vTH5WoRR

When science informs/corrects common sense: A glass of wine is fine, apparently, during pregnancy

∞ Since 1991, how many peer-reviewed articles on climate change reject human causation? 0.17%.

New study questions the benefits of mammography, again. A complicated cost/benefit analysis

They are in much better shape than you think, but there are caveats: Are Porn Stars Happier?

These 5 myths about scientific discovery are great, but now I want to see Franklin battle Zeus, Mortal Kombat style

∞ “Dear, rest your nerves, take some Dr. Miles Nervine!” A story of sedatives

You say parasitic animal behavior, I say lazy god damn beetles

The Pseudoscience of Chronic Lyme Disease

That dude is so physics — Light Refraction. Visualized

∞ I have a number of fascinating neutron star facts for you. LEARN THEM

“Usually there are about 200 times more fecal bacteria on the average cutting board than on a toilet seat“

You use ALL of your brain. There are no “learning styles.” These neuromyths are hampering education

Well, not at the end of pregnancy, anyway: Sex won’t bring on labor, says study

∞ Hey, vaccines work. Like fantastically well. Imagine that.

Pop Culture

As you watch your kid’s Thanksgiving play, remember that the whole shoe-buckle thing is totally historically inaccurate

∞ I need a second pair of eyelids to do the blinking required while reading what Louisiana school children learn about evolution

A look at the bunk that lurks in every airplane seat: The Pseudoscience of Skymall by Rebecca Watson

I have a few problems with Kurzweil. Here are a number of them laid out in the New Yorker in response to his latest book

What to do if your doctor sells woo? | Steve Novella

∞ You’ll see bad science on TV while you digest your shame-gorged dinosaur meat. Just change the channel

Anderson Cooper does NOT suffer internet fools

Funny/Cool/Interesting

∞ It’s Saturday and you need a quick brain teaser to start the day. Trust me

A reminder: If you deep-fry a turkey wrong you could die in a horrible/tasty inferno. Some videos of the inferno

The Onion goes for the jugular with its latest TED parody of social media

Which Bond villain’s maniacal plot was actually plausible?

What a gorgeous abdomen this Peacock spider has. And you will SQUEE when you see how big it is 

The three theories of movie time travel [Infographic]

How to photograph army ants: A primer

Sometimes, we get a bit too intense | XKCD

∞ “Breathing Jake…I’m breathing” (smartphOWNED)

“We are going to die…and that makes us the lucky ones.” [Comic]

Fake travel posters advertise the world’s cryptozoological celebrities. Makes you wish they were real…

The moment before the bubble bursts. The single greatest geyser photo ever taken!

∞ What a badass–When Julius Caesar Was Kidnapped by Pirates, He Demanded They Increase His Ransom

Robert Pattinson moves up a few notches in my book by being one of the biggest Twilight haters himself

∞ The cutest, catchiest music video you will ever see about the dumb ways to die. “So many dumb ways to die…” <hum hum hum…>

Thanksgiving as a kid VS Thanksgiving as an adult

In time for Thanksgiving: Optimize your mathed potatoes gravy-holding capacity!

“Watson, I believe we will find a traumatized nerd nearby!” “What led you to that, Holmes?”

Psychology, rationality, and Black Friday [Comic]

When it comes to cyber security, technically you are committing a crime right now

This 5,000-photo timelaspe of a couple’s roadtrip is the life I wish I had but I don’t

There is a frog who looks like Yoda, and here it is

“The Bible is literally the world’s oldest game of telephone.” [Image]

Mentioned in this week’s linkfest: @laelaps @vihart @oatmeal @DoTryThisAtHome @cqchoi @mental_floss @hillaryrosner @jtotheizzoe @RichardDawkins @Myrmecos @brookejarvis @ivanoransky @aatishb @TwistedSifter @jref @edyong209 @sciencecomic @rebeccawatson @DrRubidium @dresdencodak @Neuro_Skeptic