Yesterday marked the beginning of the celebration of the Chinese New Year, which will take place between now and February 11. The new year is the Year of the Snake, this one being the Year of the 'Golden' Snake or 'Metal' Snake. David Coverdale fans (or perhaps there are more Tawny Kittain fans at this point) will be pleased to note this is also called the Year of White Snake, because Metal is equivalent to White in the Five Elements system.

Of course, like many, I will no doubt still be writing Year of the Dragon on my checks for another couple of weeks, but this is part of the price we pay for progress. Happy New Year!

Link of the Day: Armor The Things They'll Carry (Wired). Thanks Marco Zamora. "...the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency -- is soliciting proposals for a $50 million project to develop an "exoskeleton" for battlefield soldiers."
Story of the Day: Titanic cut clampdown in Kabul (BBC). Thanks RVF400RR. "Barbers in Afghanistan have been jailed for giving customers a haircut styled after Leonardo DiCaprio in the film Titanic."
Bonus Story: Funeral Home Head Finds Live Body (NY Times -- free subscription required). Thanks Laughing Jesus.
Weird Science: Rats Dream a Little Dream, Too (Go2Net). Thanks [MP] Wolverine [MP].