(Nerdcore hip hop illustration by Chris Whetzel)

Some of the nerdiest hip hop songs are actually some of the best hip hop, period. “What?!” you I can hear you exclaim, incredulously. “Nerdy hip hop that is actually good? Mais, c’est pas possible! Surely one cannot hope to assemble a fine and laudable specimen without the guns, bitches, and weed.”

Au contraire, comrade. There are plenty of alternative or underground rappers out there that are exploring themes other than the hard-knock life…

An estimated 1.7 billion people live off the grid to varying degrees. In the United States, about 200,000 people live off the grid, which in this case means going without public utilities, without fossil fuels, or otherwise separate from The System. They make up for such abstentions through any combination of solar power, wind power, composting, smart architecture, makeshift shelter, gardening, farm animals, ingenious gadgets, and just generally being really, really persistent. Most of them seem to live in the Southwest (or the ones in the Southwest just have the biggest mouths.)

The average speaker of English articulates about 120 words a minute. These fast talkers are pushing 600 words a minute or more. It can be difficult to measure talking speed, as some fast talkers speak more clearly than others, but there is no doubt that if words were bullets, these folks are packing Uzis.

Artist Temujin Doran has come up with a super way to advertise the toy brand Lego. He simply takes photos of small Lego figures placed in real-life situations.