Welcome to our comprehensive site update state for March 2020, a time when the coronavirus is reshaping daily life worldwide. In these challenging moments, we aim to keep our community informed, prepared, and connected. Knowledge empowers us, especially as traditional institutions face unprecedented strain.

Site Update State Overview

1 Site’s Place In The World

As most of you probably know, the site is run primarily by me (Jamie Frater) from Wellington, New Zealand. This is the land that the billionaires bug out to, and our current government is very friendly indeed with those people, so let’s hope that means things will remain calm. At this stage, aside from closing our country’s borders, all schools stay open, and all shops, businesses, and restaurants continue to operate. Shelves are full (there is even plenty of toilet paper) and people are smiling and courteous as always. Our national infection total sits at thirty‑nine with no deaths. If things stay that way, I’ll still be here banging away at the keyboard while watching Seinfeld and Friends reruns. Optimism is valuable, but preparedness is equally crucial—and to that end…

2 Virus Contingency

I am in the process of drafting a set of documents that will guarantee continuity for the site should anything happen to me personally. While I’m currently in a relatively safe position, there’s no absolute certainty that circumstances will stay favorable. Our submissions database is in excellent shape and is very easy to manage, so if something does pull me away from the site for a spell, it shouldn’t cause any pause in our publishing schedule.

3 Writers And Payments

Yesterday I issued a statement to nine‑hundred site writers outlining our plans for handling submissions, editing, and payments. Because of the virus and the shifting financial needs of many people, we are now committed to issuing payments for lists within one to five days of acceptance. Advanced payments have also been issued in some urgent cases. We continue to accept submissions as usual and have seen a slight increase since our list on the gig economy, which is amazing. It’s always our preference to publish lists from our regular readers. To that end you may have noticed a few lists creeping in that focus on the workings or lives of everyday people. Now is definitely a good time for us to get to know the secrets and lives of those who work every day to make our lives comfortable. We may soon be looking at a brave new world in which those jobs are even more vital than before, so let’s all give a big thank you to the people who do the jobs that we often take for granted.

4 Your View: Daily Forum

Yesterday we published a “Your View” on how the coronavirus is affecting you. Would you all be interested in us publishing a daily extra “Your View” post to use as a general‑purpose public forum on how the virus (and other related issues such as the economy) are affecting you? It would sit alongside the two regular lists we publish each day and would allow us to keep virus‑related content in one place. Alternatively we could simply “sticky” the existing Your View to the top of the “Trending” section on the desktop front page. Let me know what you prefer, if anything. I am also mindful that some people may want a safe haven from the constant bombardment of media on the virus, in which case it may be better for us to continue as we are with occasional lists relating to current events.

I should note that the site runs a Discord server which you can get to right here: .com On Discord.

5 Virus Terminology

The Chinese communist government is engaging in a propaganda campaign to eradicate the use of the term “Chinese” in relation to the virus which appears to have originated there. Officials have publicly stated that the virus is the result of a US bioweapon. President Trump has been firm in the use of the term “Chinese Virus” to counter these propaganda efforts from the communists. Unfortunately the mainstream media and a number of people online are actively helping the Chinese government – in some cases intentionally, in others through innocent attempts to do good. Because of a large increase in the number of anonymous commenters speaking in defense of the Communist government of China, we are having to monitor things much more closely than usual to ensure that genuine conversations about the virus amongst our regular readers are not derailed.

The site is run primarily out of New Zealand and I want to be clear that we absolutely stand with the traditional allies of New Zealand: Australia, the United States of America, Canada, and the United Kingdom. I cannot stress enough how important it is that we stand united right now in the face of not just a terrible viral attack, but a potential economic collapse which is exacerbated by the trade war between the US and China and the oil war occurring between Russia and Saudi Arabia. Free speech is always welcome, but paid propaganda and shilling are not. If you find your comment in the pending queue, please be patient.

6 Commenting And Working Together

In light of the previous item I would like to ask everyone to please be extra generous in their use of charity when it comes to commenting here. We know there is huge division in society right now and the mainstream media is playing to that as hard and as fast as they can. We must rise above that. The site has long been home to an intelligent and friendly community. Let us come together now, left and right, people from all nations and say no to the hatred the media is attempting to foment amongst us. Their time is past. The best way we can do this is to presume, in all cases, that the people we speak to on here have only the very best of intentions. Let’s make the comments section a beacon of unity and kindness for all the readers who are either here already sharing our love of lists, or the new readers who will discover us over the period of quarantine that has arrived or is coming.

7 Can We Help

Obviously there is a physical limit to what the site can do to help you all out individually if that is needed, but what we can do is put out appeals or information. If you find yourself stuck in a position of risk with no one at all to help you, please feel free to email me at [email protected]. It may be that I can appeal to another reader who lives near you to give you a helping hand of some kind. I am single and live alone – so I know the risks that go along with isolation under those circumstances. I can’t promise to work miracles but if necessary I can at least try to help somehow. Of course let’s hope that this never becomes necessary, but if it does: we’re here – even if only to lend an ear.

8 Coronavirus Coverage

We have already published a number of coronavirus‑related lists and a few other disease and virus lists before that. We will continue to publish related content when new perspectives warrant it. Here is a rundown of the coverage so far.

Top 10 Crazy Conspiracy Theories Surrounding The Chinese Coronavirus
Top 10 Crazy Facts About The Coronavirus Outbreak
Top 10 Things You Need To Do To Prepare For The Coronavirus
10 Reasons The Coronavirus Should Terrify You
Top 10 Essential Facts About The Coronavirus, The Only Article You’ll Ever Need About COVID‑19

8 Conspiracy Theories About Deadly Disease Outbreaks
10 Deadly Viruses And Bacteria Created In Labs
10 Viruses That Actually Help Humankind
10 Scary Facts About The Justinian Plague
10 Of Human History’s Most Atrocious Plagues

All things considered, 2019 is shaping up to be an enthralling year for science and technology. Here, we review the top 10 scientific breakthroughs that made waves or may have flown under the radar over the past month.

Why These Top 10 Scientific Finds Matter

10 Free Alcohol

Researchers have brewed a synthetic beverage that delivers the pleasant buzz of alcohol while sparing you the dreaded morning hangover.

The concoction, dubbed Alcarelle, contains a man‑made molecule called alcosynth. Alcosynth zeroes in on the brain’s pleasure circuits, stimulating the same GABA receptors that ordinary booze does, yet it sidesteps the receptors that cause nausea and the classic post‑party headache.

Professor David Nutt, the chemist behind alcosynth, famously lost his government post after claiming that alcohol is more harmful than ecstasy and LSD. Undeterred, he continues to champion safer drinking experiences.

At present Alcarelle remains a laboratory curiosity; safety trials and regulatory approval are still pending. Nevertheless, Nutt is optimistic that consumers could be sipping the hangover‑free brew within as few as five years.

9 Starry Dwarf Frog Discovered

A multinational team of biologists has uncovered a brand‑new frog species high in the Indian Western Ghats. Measuring just 2–3 cm, the critter sports orange‑brown skin peppered with twinkling, star‑shaped spots, earning it the moniker Astrobatrachus kurichiyana – literally “starry dwarf frog.”

Genetic analysis suggests the frog is the last living representative of an ancient lineage whose nearest common ancestor lived roughly 57–76 million years ago.

The researchers first spotted the speckled amphibians tucked beneath leaf litter during a 2010 wildlife survey. Subsequent work confirmed they belong to a completely new subfamily spanning India and Sri Lanka.

8 Subconscious Magnetic Sense

Could our brains be tuned into Earth’s magnetic field? Caltech geobiology professor Joseph Kirschvink thinks so, and his experiments provide tantalizing evidence.

Participants were placed inside a six‑sided wire cage that can generate a magnetic field mimicking Earth’s. By flipping the field on and off while monitoring brain activity with an EEG, Kirschvink observed a subtle, subconscious “freak‑out” response.

This suggests that, like cattle, turtles and pigeons, humans possess a hidden magnetoreception ability, even if we aren’t consciously aware of it.

7 Electronics Made From Skin

Imagine building electronic components straight out of your own skin. The pigment melanin – the very substance that gives hair and skin its colour – might become a cornerstone of tomorrow’s bio‑electronic implants.

Italian nanoscientist Paolo Tassini and his collaborators have discovered a technique that boosts melanin’s conductivity by a staggering billion‑fold. By heating melanin in a vacuum, they coax the tangled sheets into a parallel, orderly arrangement, dramatically improving electron flow.

Because melanin is naturally produced inside the body, future devices that use it—such as brain‑machine interfaces—could be far less likely to trigger immune rejection compared with traditional metals like copper.

6 Worm Regeneration

Every mischievous child knows that earthworms can grow back after being sliced in half. Harvard’s Mansi Srivastava and her team have dug deeper, pinpointing the master control gene that drives regeneration in three‑banded panther worms.

The gene, called early growth response (EGR), flips specific DNA segments on and off, orchestrating the rebuilding of lost tissue. This dynamic DNA switching is a frontier that biologists are still learning to navigate.

Srivastava’s work also explores why other organisms—including humans—possess the same gene yet lack robust regenerative abilities, hinting at future routes to enhance human tissue repair.

5 Alzheimer’s Treated In Mice

Alzheimer’s disease remains a relentless foe, but MIT’s Picower Institute has uncovered a promising new avenue. By exposing mice to flickering lights paired with rapid clicking sounds, researchers observed a slowdown in disease progression.

The light‑and‑sound regimen appears to stimulate beneficial brain‑wave patterns that alter protein composition, boosting memory performance. Mice subjected to an hour of daily clicks tackled mazes faster and displayed sharper object‑recognition abilities.

While the findings are exciting, many questions linger: the exact mechanism behind the brain‑wave boost, and whether the approach will translate to human patients.

4 Male Contraceptive Pill

A new clinical trial suggests we may be edging closer to a male birth‑control pill. The study, led by researchers at the University of Washington, gave 40 healthy volunteers a daily capsule containing the hormone‑suppressing compound 11‑beta‑MNTDC.

Three‑quarters of participants received the active drug, while the remainder took a placebo. Blood tests revealed markedly reduced levels of hormones that normally cue the testes to produce sperm, hinting at a drop in sperm output.

No serious side effects surfaced, though a few men reported mild headaches, a dip in libido, and occasional erectile dysfunction. If further trials confirm efficacy, the pill could broaden contraceptive options for men and ease the reproductive burden traditionally shouldered by women.

3 Growing A Tiny Brain

The human brain is a marvel of complexity, and recreating even a miniature version is a monumental challenge. Cambridge scientists have now cultivated a tiny, simplified brain organoid roughly the size of a lentil.

This droplet of gray matter resembles a fetal brain at three to four months of gestation, sitting somewhere between a cockroach and a zebrafish in size. The team attached a spinal cord and muscle tissue, prompting the organoid to reach out, fire electrical impulses, and cause the muscles to twitch.

Such “mini‑brains” provide a powerful platform for probing neurological disorders like ALS, epilepsy, and schizophrenia, offering fresh insight into how the nervous system develops and malfunctions.

2 Antidepressant Ketamine

In 1996, the indie band Eels sang about “novocaine for the soul,” but recent developments suggest ketamine might be the real mood‑lifting hero. The FDA has now approved esketamine, a nasal spray branded Spravato, for patients whose depression hasn’t responded to traditional antidepressants.

Unlike classic drugs that can take weeks to show effect, esketamine works within hours or days, delivering rapid relief. However, experts caution that ketamine’s history of recreational abuse demands careful oversight; the treatment must be administered by trained clinicians in certified clinics.

Cost remains a hurdle, with a month’s course ranging from $4,720 to $6,785, but many psychiatrists are hopeful that this breakthrough will pave the way for a new class of fast‑acting antidepressants.

1 Patient Cured Of HIV

An anonymous London patient has become only the second person ever to be declared cured of HIV, thanks to a daring bone‑marrow transplant.

The donor’s stem cells carried a rare CCR5 mutation that renders white‑blood cells resistant to the virus. After 18 months off antiretroviral therapy, the patient shows no signs of viral rebound.

While bone‑marrow transplants are risky and not scalable, this success, alongside the earlier cure of Timothy Brown, proves that a functional cure is biologically possible.

Experts, including Anton Pozniak of the International AIDS Society, view the case as proof‑of‑concept that HIV can be eradicated. The work also highlights the promise—and controversy—of gene‑editing approaches, a field still wrestling with ethical dilemmas after incidents like He Jiankui’s HIV‑resistant embryo experiment.

Most people have been told to “go with the flow” and “don’t rock the boat” their whole lives, but that advice isn’t always appropriate. History has shown that change is often brought about by the people who stand out and are abnormal—those who march to the beat of their own drum.

As it happens, being abnormal is a good thing. This list looks at how being abnormal can make your life better. It turns out you shouldn’t be like everyone else if you want to live a happier and more fulfilling life.

10 Tips for Success in Everything

10 Nonconformity Lets You “Be Yourself”

Our whole lives, we’re told to fit in and conform to the group — to not be different or stand out from the crowd. In some cases, this is good advice. Still, it has one major flaw: it prevents you from being yourself, and YOU are an individual who deserves to stand out for the things that make you different.

Nonconformity isn’t easy because the group mentality always pushes back against it, but that doesn’t make it wrong. The people who stand out as different tend to stand out in positive ways. Think of how Stefani Germanotta’s career flourished after she stopped conforming to the cookie-cutter standards of the music industry by spreading her wings to be who she truly is: Lady Gaga.

People have been standing out for all of history in this manner. A lot of them have enjoyed the benefits of expressing themselves for who they are. When someone has to hide the things that make them different (for fear of bullying or cancellation), they deny their individuality, which can be dangerous for their self-esteem and mental health—and dangerous for society!

Be who you are, even if that means you won’t be like everyone else. At the end of the day, that’s a good thing. You are a unique person, and everything that makes you who you are is special. Embrace that, and you will enjoy your friends, your family, your work, and your life in a much more enriching way than you have before.^[1]

9 Abnormality & Leadership Go Hand-In-Hand

If you think about the type of people who take leadership roles within a given group, they probably stand out as somewhat abnormal. Leadership is all about putting the group’s interest above your own, and that’s an antithetical viewpoint for most people.

The U.S. Army has a saying, “Lead from the front,” which essentially boils down to putting yourself in the line of fire to protect your Soldiers. Lead by example and ensure your Troops’ welfare is taken care of before your own are common phrases in the military. Still, not everyone can become a great leader.

It takes an exceptional person, or someone others may call “abnormal,” to become an outstanding leader. History is filled with inimitable leaders like General Saint Joan of Arc, George S. Patton, Gustavus Adolphus, Frederick II of Prussia, and many more. Every one of them stood apart from the rest and are remembered as brilliant leaders.

Of course, leadership doesn’t begin and end in the military. There are plenty of CEOs, politicians, managers, and people in other positions of leadership who stand out for being both abnormal and for being outstanding leaders. Odds are, you’ve worked with or for someone who fits that description at least once in your life.^[2]

8 You Can’t Replace Abnormality

When it comes to working within a group, being abnormal can bring job security. Suppose everyone within a group is the same. In that case, everyone in the group is easily replaceable with someone who shares those same traits. That’s not true of the person who stands out as being different.

If you spend your time going through the motions of your job without making any attempt to stand out, then you’re not someone the management necessarily wants to keep around. A great example of this comes from an unlikely source in the movie Office Space.

In the film, the main character stops conforming (and doing his job), but instead of being terminated, he’s promoted. Now, that movie isn’t grounded in reality. Still, it does show how nonconformity and an embrace of abnormality help an employee stand out.

If you are unique in your job, then you aren’t easily replaceable. You ensure job security and will likely improve your chances for promotion, so it’s always better to NOT be a cog in the machine. Stand out and stand up! Ensure people know just how abnormal you are and why your uniqueness makes you an asset to the organization.^[3]

7 Abnormal People Are Successful People

The word “abnormal” has some negative connotations. Still, if you think about the most successful people in the world, they are often abnormal in some way. Think of innovators like Elon Musk or entertainers like Cher and Elton John; every one of them is different in their own unique way, and they’re all successful.

Success for abnormalities isn’t limited to superstars and billionaires either. Thanks to sites like Bitchute (the free speech alternative to YouTube) and others, everyone has a platform that allows them to succeed because of what makes them different.

One of the best examples of this is Jeffree Star, who gained fame on the internet by being extremely different. His Youtube channel lets him show off what makes him different. He’s acquired a massive number of followers and succeeded in side-business ventures that wouldn’t have been possible had he not expressed himself as extremely different from others.

Star is now a millionaire, but had he not found an outlet to express himself, he wouldn’t have been able to stand out. Most people seek entertainment from people who don’t follow the rules, which can prove fruitful in and out of the entertainment industry. As a side note, unfortunately Mr Star made comments a decade ago that some people now consider were “racist” and while he has apologised publicly he may be next on the cancel-culture chopping board.^[4]

6 Abnormal People Walk Their Own Path

Being abnormal typically means that a person doesn’t do the same things everyone else does. This leads to breaking the norms of society, which can be good or bad, depending on the situation. If you stand out for being different, there’s a good chance you won’t do the same things other people do.

An article in Forbes titled, “Being the Odd One Out—Survival Tips to Being Different” explains this rather well:

“The mega-successful don’t play by the rules. They don’t conform to all of society’s norms. They don’t follow what everyone else is doing. They do their own things –- in their own ways. They make decisions that work for them. They set goals for where they want to go. They think out of the box firstly because they aren’t standard issue, and can’t fit into the regular packaging… but mostly because they like to.”^[5]

These traits tend to lead to success. Instead of going out every Friday night, you might be at home researching or working through a problem. You walk a different path, and when you do so according to your abnormality, you might just find yourself succeeding while the “pack” is left behind.

5 Abnormal People Are Often Emulated

When everyone within a group is the same, there is little room to grow. If someone transcends the group to stand out, it can lead to progress and evolution, but it can also lead to emulation. When an individual stands out for being different, their abnormal traits are often copied by the people in the group.

There’s a reason so many people have read Jordan Peterson’s 12 Rules For Life or Franklin Covey’s The 7 Habits Of Highly Successful People. The book spells out seven habits successful people have employed and why they should be emulated. When those habits originate from an abnormal individual, and they almost always do, it’s not unusual for folks to copy them.

If you are that person leading the way with a new trait, you can expect others to copy you. These people are the trendsetters, and they are some of the most successful and abnormal people in the world.

What you want to do as an abnormal person is to bridge the gap from trend follower to trendsetter. Doing so isn’t easy (by any means), but embracing the thing that sets you apart from the rest of us will certainly help.^[6]

4 Abnormal People Have Abnormal Ideas, And That’s A Good Thing

Whenever a situation occurs in a group that requires a solution, people put forth their ideas on how to overcome it. When an abnormal person gets involved, they tend to provide solutions that are best described as being “outside the box” or having “colored outside the lines.”

You’ve heard the cliche more than enough, and everyone is told to try and come up with solutions that think outside the box. The reason for this is simple: thinking outside of the usual way of problem-solving offers up new ideas and concepts (or revives far better old ideas) that might lead to improvement.

This is often pushed in businesses, but it also works for individuals. Entrepreneurs like Steve Jobs have proven, time and time again, that thinking outside the box offers better ways of getting from point A to point B. Suppose you’re willing to solve those problems by trying something completely different. In that case, odds are you will benefit in the long run.^[7]

Creative problem-solving can take a concept like a video rental business (Blockbuster) and advance it with mail-in rentals (Netflix). Because Netflix managed to try something new, it successfully upended a business model that succeeded for decades. Because of that, Blockbuster is down to a single store, and Netflix became an international business superstar.

3 Abnormal People Make The Best Teachers

Throughout our lives, we are taught by a plethora of people. Unless you’ve been homeschooled your whole life (which is not such a bad thing), there’s a good chance dozens of people had an opportunity to shape your young mind. When you think back on all of those teachers, the ones who stand out are probably a bit… abnormal.

The best teachers are often the ones who employ different teaching methods or are utterly antithetical to the progressive teaching norm. Most of us have enjoyed a teacher like this at one time or another, and they don’t just teach us; they make a difference in our lives.^[8]

Abnormal teachers are all over pop culture in films like Dead Poet’s Society. Still, education isn’t the only place an abnormal teacher can shine. Training programs and motivational speakers often draw abnormal people, and they can inspire and lead others to follow similar paths.

Think of every motivational speaker you’ve watched online. They are all led by innovative people who stray from the pack. Folks like Tony Robbins and Oprah Winfrey all use the things that make them different to help others achieve success and happiness.

2 Abnormal People Change The World

Throughout human history, change has often been initiated by people who don’t follow the rules. Those in society who are different and strive to make change can significantly impact the people around them.

The standouts in history are often abnormal in many ways. Think of people like Nikola Tesla, Leonardo da Vinci, Oscar Wilde, and others who managed to alter the landscape of science, art, and literature. They each did this by breaking the mold, straying from the path, and being different.

Advancement often comes upon the backs of abnormal people whose work changes the way we view the world. Copernicus’ findings certainly did this in the 17th century and in our own time the likes of Keto advocate Gary Taubes (video above) is doing the same. While he has been much vilified by many for his work (mostly due to political and not health reasons), he’s helped us realise what a huge mistake the McGovern committee made and what a horrific health disaster the government’s food pyramid is (more on that in another up and coming list!)^[9]

It takes a lot of courage to stray from the path in this regard, but the people who have done it successfully are the ones we often remember as those who changed the world. If they’ve taught us anything, it’s that keeping on the path and being like everyone else doesn’t leave an indelible mark on history.

1 Accepting Your Abnormality Can Be Therapeutic

If you’re an abnormal person, there’s a good chance you’ve spent your life hiding it from other people. When we’re children, we hide much of our personality from our peers, and this carries into adulthood. This can create severe psychological problems leading to anxiety, depression, and suicidal ideations.

Getting through childhood is never easy, but some adults have found a way to embrace the things that make them stand out, and it’s often therapeutic. While attending a convention, Star Trek actor Wil Wheaton was asked how he handled growing up and being called a “nerd” by a young fan in the audience.

He explained that while it isn’t easy growing up different, it does get easier as an adult. Wheaton has also discussed his struggles with anxiety and depression but has noted that his acceptance of what makes him different has helped him overcome and thrive.^[10]

When someone accepts who they are without conforming to the expectations of others, they often find that their lives are easier than they were before. Projecting who we think people want us to be instead of who we actually are is mentally exhausting (virtue-signallers beware!) While making that change is never easy, it’s often therapeutic.

Top 10 Tips For Perfect Happiness