Headzup: Helmets For Our Troops

The Pentagon just awarded a new $74 million dollar contract to Sioux Manufacturing, a company which just settled a lawsuit for providing faulty Kevlar helmets for our troops in Iraq & Afghanistan.

Woman with Extreme Phobia of Cotton Balls

This is a clip from the Maury Povich Show.

Split Brain Behavioral Experiments

In order to reduce the severity of his epileptic seizures, Joe had the bridge between his left and right cerebral hemispheres severed. As a result, his left and right brains no longer communicate.

GoLeft TV: Rigged Clinical Drug Trials

In this video from GoLeft.TV, attorney Michael Lynch details the devious practice of rigged clinical trials in the drug approval process. Americans are spending billions of dollars on drugs that don't work.

Public School House Rock!

Dysfunction Junction is a Mad TV parody of the old School House Rock cartoons, that teaches kids the wonders of psychoactive medication.

Drunk Monkeys

This is a clip from Animal Planet about the monkeys from the island of St. Kitts in the Caribbean. Apparently they developed a taste for alcohol about 300 years ago, and have found a way to satisfy their cravings by raiding local bars. Now they are studied for insight into human drinking patterns.

Countdown - Invisible Injuries

Keith Olberman speaks with Perry Jeffries about the signature wounds of the Iraq war: Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and severe brain injuries. According to Jeffries, soldiers who suffer from these disorders are given Motrin and sent back out on the field.

Why am I not surprised?

Man Without a Memory

This clip, from a BBC documentary on time relativity, is about a man named Clive Wearing. He has the worst recorded case of amnesia in history.

After contracting viral encephalitis, Clive developed anterograde amnesia, a condition which does not allow new memories to become long-term memories. Repeatedly, throughout every day, Clive has the experience of waking up for the very first time in his life, as if he is just coming into consciousness that very instant. The only person he remembers is his wife, and every time he sees her, it is as if he hasn't seen her in years.

This is an extraordinary story, and if you're as fascinated as I am, check out some deeper studies of Clive's case. There are two BBC documentaries available here.

Flowers of Darkness

1970s documentary, produced by the National Institute of Mental Health, on the history of the poppy plant and the narcotic drug trade.

Do Schools Kill Creativity?

Here's another great lecture from the TED conference. Sir Ken Robinson discussed the possibility of revolutionizing the education system and whether the present system might be eroding away the most vital pieces of human nature. It's actually really rather entertaining, delightful and thought-provoking. You'll like it.

Real Time with Bill Maher

In his most recent episode, Bill Maher interviewed Democratic Presidential Candidate Dennis Kucinich.
Click to view video.

His New Rules this week touched on everything from mustard bottles and K-fed to G Dubbya's sanity.
Click to view video.

And below is a clip that was recorded after last week's show (4/20/07). They took questions from viewers and discussed the environment, fuel alternatives, the media and marijuana legalization.
Click to view video.

UPDATE: Just found one more clip from the recent episode. This is an interview with David Inglesias (R-NM), one of the eight fired US Attorneys at the center of the Gonzales scandal.

Click to view video.