Top five websites of the week

The internet is full of great websites, articles and videos. Here are five we've been enjoying this week.

The Accidental Sea  

Salton Sea, also known as the Accidental Sea, was created by a flood in 1905, when water from the Colorado River gushed into an area that was previously uninhabited desert. By the 1950s it was a popular resort area, with water sports, beaches and fun in the sun. But things soon took a turn for the worse. This video documents the rise and fall of the Accidental Sea.

Curiosity tweets

Curiosity Rover is trundling around Mars, beaming back pictures and research. And oddly, it is also tweeting. This humorous approach is a great way to get updates from the Nasa mission.

Roving rover

This panoramic photo taken by the Rover shows its own tracks after its first drive on Mars in mid-August. Mount Sharp looms in the distance, and you can zoom in and pan to explore the image.

Pioneering coffee break

The sight of someone sitting in a coffee shop using a Mac laptop is fairly common these days. When Joel Runyon sat down in his local coffee shop in Portland, US, he expected to get some work done. A chance meeting with Russell Kirsch, one of the pioneers of the programmable computer, was an unexpected surprise. This blog post details the encounter.

Pentatonic scale

Comprising five notes per octave, the pentatonic scale is instantly recognisable. It is on this premise that musician Bobby McFerrin decided to demonstrate its power. At the World Science Festival in 2009 Mr McFerrin used audience participation to show how music can give us a ‘common chorus'. The results are sure to bring a smile.