Blog Posts by Eric Pfeiffer, Yahoo! News

The new BBQ map might seem like propaganda to some and truth to others (Texas Monthly)

There’s a new map and website on the Internet showing the best 50 BBQ joints. And they’re all in Texas.

Of course, the list—compiled annually since 2008—was done by a Lone Star state publication, Texas Monthly.

Editor Jake Silverstein told Yahoo News by phone that he’s ready to "declare war" on all famous BBQ regions, including Kansas City, North Carolina and Memphis. "It's a declaration of supremacy. Our level of authority on BBQ is completely unmatched," he said, noting they were partly having fun with the map, "but [we] also believe what we’re saying."

Causing job envy elsewhere, Texas Monthly has a BBQ editor. "The only BBQ editor in the country," Silverstein claimed. That’s right. Someone is basically paid to eat BBQ. The questionable list claiming newspaper reporter was the “worst job in 2013” may just have been flipped on its head.

“Our guy eats BBQ several times a day,” Silverstein said. And while he might not be as healthy as Texas native Lance Armstrong, he added, "he’s

Birds like murres helped researchers understand why penguins no longer fly (Live Science)Penguins are excellent swimmers. But even with wings, the aquatic flightless birds do not take to the skies despite having wing-like flippers.

In fact, a new study says that penguins became so good at swimming that they eventually evolved to specialize at that skill at the cost of airborne flight.

"Like many people, I've always been interested in penguins, and seeing them do these phenomenal marches across the ice, I've often thought: 'Why don't they just fly?' Professor John Speakman, from the University of Aberdeen and the Chinese Academy of Sciences, told the BBC." And it's really great to be involved in the group of people that have solved it."

The new study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, says that at least five species of penguin have adapted into flightless birds.
In particular, biomechanical models of energy costs during flying and diving suggest that a wing designed for optimal diving performance should lead to enormous energy costs when

Some 3-D printer food made from meal worms (TNO research)

Call it food for thought. Or perhaps thought for food: NASA has given a six-month grant to a company developing what could be the world’s first 3-D food printer. And the project’s developer, reports Quartz, an online digital news site, believes the invention could be used to end world hunger.

Quartz explains that the printer is the brainchild of mechanical engineer Anjan Contractor. Being developed by Contractor’s company, Systems & Materials Research Corp., it will use proteins, carbohydrates and sugars to create edible food products.

Contractor says one of his primary motivations is a belief that food will become exponentially more expensive in the near future. The average consumer, he told Quartz, will need a more economically viable option.

Some alternative food source options that may be used with the printer include algae, duckweed, grass, lupine seeds, beet leaves and even insects, according to TNO Research, which is working with Contractor on the project.

“I think, and many

Two Pedal Pubs in action in downtown Minneapolis (AP)So-called “pedal pubs” are popping up in more than two-dozen cities across the country. And in some of those places, riders can sip on an alcoholic beverage while sitting across a bar from fellow cyclists.

But what exactly are they? USA Today reports they are sort of like a modern day trolley meets the Flinstones. Up to 16 riders sit across from each other, using peddles underneath their seats to slowly power the quadracycles across city streets. A driver sits at the front of the vehicle, steering it along to its next destination.

"It's like being in a parade," bachelorette party attendee Jen Johnson told the paper. Her friends rented one in Madison, Wisconsin and used the vehicle as part of a pub crawl. Or, in this case, they embarked on something more akin a bar bike, pub pedal, or drink drive. Regardless, "We're smiling, they are smiling," she said of how their pedal party was received by onlookers.

In Wisconsin, it’s still against the law to actually drink while on one of the

Jim Miekka has an incredible firearm accuracy record all while shooting blind (Miekka/Facebook)The Classical Fast Draw Society is home to a select number of expert marksmen. But their most remarkable member is not technically their most accurate.

Jim Miekka only hits about 80 percent of his targets, firing shots at just half a second apart. But the truly incredible thing about Miekka is that he’s totally blind.

Bay News 9 reports that the man referred to as the “Midnight Gunslinger,” has steadily been improving his accuracy.

“When I first started I was hitting about 25 percent of the time," Miekka told the station. "Now I think I’m hitting about 80 percent or something like that.”

You can watch a video of Miekka showing up his quickdraw skills here.

So, those years of practice have obviously paid off, right? Actually, Miekka says he’s only been practicing fast draw shooting for about a year.

If Miekka’s name rings a bell, you may have seen his name in the news over the past few years but for very different reasons. In 2010, Miekka made national headlines when he unveiled the

Brad Josephs was on the Alaskan peninsula shooting video for a new BBC special when a grizzly bear decided to start chewing on his camera.

Luckily for Josephs, he wasn’t holding the camera at the time. Instead, he had planted his GoPro in order to some close-up shots of the bears to use in the film “Great Bear Stakeout,” which was recorded for the BBC and Discovery Channel.

And unlike the video's slightly misleading title, "A grizzly ate my GoPro!!!" the bear appears to be simply examining the camera, albeit with its mouth. However, viewers are treated to the truly unusual spectacle of seeing live footage from inside a grizzly bear's mouth.

“The bear only gently mouthed the camera, and didnt even put a dent in it!” Jospehs writes on his website. “Obviously the card was fine, and I actually used the camera many more times.”

In the four-minute clip, there is also some fascinating video of the two grizzlies, a 3-year-old cub and its mother, fishing in the water. There’s also an

One of the heroic kittens featured in "Paw Warz" (Pet Collective)“A while ago, in a litter box not close at all….”

If you love Star Wars, or at least love cats, you’ll enjoy this video. And if you enjoy them both, well, happy Friday.

This new video from The Pet Collective is a re-imagining of the Death Star trench run from the first Star Wars film, A New Hope.

But instead of a planet destroying space station, we now bear witness to an oversized tennis all, chew toy Tie Fighters and the heroic power of … furballs.

The Trench Run Scene is the third and final Paw Wars video from The Pet Collective. You can watch the earlier installments, “Not the Toiz you’re looking for,” and “Haz definitely shot first.”

But don’t worry, even if you find these videos a bit odd, the Furs will be with you, always.

Two Michigan men undergo a labor pain simulation for Mother's Day. (YouTube)A viral video that was first posted on Mother’s Day shows two men undergoing a simulation meant to mimic the pain experienced by women in childbirth.

“It feels like someone is taking a saw and just carving up my abdomen,” one of the men says while writhing as electrodes attached to his midsection send a current of pain-inducing electricity through his body.

“I’m going to throw up,” says his fellow guinea pig.

The video, which has been spreading across social media sites, has been generating lots of attention as some viewers say it is a great example of how men can show empathy for the challenges of pregnancy and childbirth. And, of course, most people just think it’s kind of funny.

But is it real?

For starters, the men don’t give their names, organization or even a real explanation of why they are undergoing the experiment. According to Vimeo, the video was originally published by the Kensington Church, based in Troy, Mich. However, according to public records, Dr. Julie Masters, whom