There are names that are clearly perfect for the line of work one has chosen to pursue. (See: weightlifter Magnus Ver Magnusson or celebrity publicist Ken Sunshine.) There are also names that are clearly unfortunate. (See: urologist Dr. Dick Chopp or online gambler Anurag Dikshit.) Finally, there are names that were fine when the parents bestowed them onto their child, but turned out to be kinda ...

In the midst of obsessing over the Chilean miners rescue operation yesterday, we landed on a story about an American doctor who'd been consulting with the Chilean medical authorities: The man is NASA Chief of Space Medicine J.D. Polk Of course, we were instantly captivated at the thought of being able to write "Chief of Space Medicine" on a tax return. But Dr. Polk isn't the only guy whose job ...

Here's a riddle: When is "you're boring" an awesome comment to hear from someone you've just met? Answer: When that person is an FBI agent who placed a GPS device on your car explaining that they'll be leaving you alone from now on. Granted, in the case of Yasir Afifi, an Arab-American student from Santa Clara, Calif., it'd have been even more awesome to not have had a GPS device placed -- ...

For the introspective, a phone app that tells you when you're stressed out and tracks your emotional state over the course of the week might seem unnecessary. But for more science-minded people who need hard data before coming to a conclusion, a beeping red light that says "Hey, dude, calm down!" can be pretty helpful. That's the hope that NYU research resident Mustafa Bagdatli had, anyway, ...

As fans of both the pulp tradition and history, we're excited that Simon & Schuster has launched its Pulp History imprint, which features real-life World War II–era adventure sagas told in the style of the old-school pulps. The series debuts with two titles: "Devil Dog" by David Talbot, the author of the bestseller "Brothers: The Hidden History of the Kennedy Years"; and '"Shadow ...

It became very clear to me sometime in my early 20s that working for a living was a complete scam. After a couple of years spent clocking in 40-hour weeks, I realized that I wanted nothing to do with a system that offered me such meager compensation and ate up so much of my time. In a perfect world, my time would be mine to travel, learn to play the melodica and the sitar, download pornography, ...

The biggest difference between classic video games and contemporary ones isn't the photo-realistic graphics, the depth of plot and character or the sophisticated gameplay. It's the fact that, nowadays, you can enjoy a game while sitting down. The Fantastic Arcade portion of Austin's Fantastic Fest genre-film festival seeks to restore the thrill of standing around a tall cabinet, pushing buttons ...

We couldn't assemble an unlikelier karaoke supergroup than this: Elijah Wood; Spanish directors Nacho Vigalondo ("Timecrimes") and Eugenio Mira ("Agnosia"); Alamo Drafthouse CEO Tim League and COO Henri Mazza; and Wu-Tang Clan leader RZA. Those disparate souls came together on Saturday night at Fantastic Fest in Austin for what may be the new definitive version of the Black Eyed Peas' 2009 hit "I ...

When it comes to inspirational movie speeches delivered by fictional presidents, there are really just two categories: One is the kind that Bill Pullman gives to rally the troops before hopping in his fighter jet to take down alien spaceships in "Independence Day." The second is every other lame speech ever. Pullman himself attended a screening of the film at Austin's Fantastic Fest on Friday, ...

Given that James Bond is the epitome of cool, it could be disappointing to learn that his real-life inspiration was a dude called Wilfred "Biffy" Dunderdale. But, as a new book about the British MI6 spy service reveals, we're pleased to report that ol' Biffy was a pretty interesting character himself. Here are some of the cooler facts we know about Dunderdale ... Biffy Dunderdale. He Lived a ...