The Daily Hilario: Recharge your batteries on Volta day

HAPPY 270th BIRTHDAY, ALESSANDRO VOLTA!

The "forefather of the modern battery" -- and the man after whom the basic SI unit of electric potential (difference) is named -- was born on this day in 1745.  After all the drama of yesterday, perhaps we could all use a day to recharge our energy reserves.

Volta's battery, a zinc-copper stack, was of course amazingly crappy by modern standards.  Plus, he thought it was more magic than chemistry.  But he was still the first to have the bright idea to put it together and then stick the leads into his tongue, and for that, he's rightly honored.

Get learned:

IN OTHER NEWS:

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Hilarious.  And mostly true.  Also, funny BMD comments.

Revisiting the science of Interstellar, especially the black hole | io9
Interesting.

Ferrari's vision of a future F1 car | The Verge
Cool.  Wonder if it includes a badass-sounding engine again.

FOOTBALL (all times GMT):
19.45:  Champions Leauge, Round of 16, first leg:  Schalke 04 vs. Real Madrid
19.45:  Champions League, Round of 16, first leg:  FC Basel vs. FC Porto
19.45:  Championship, 13th vs. 3rd:  Birmingham City vs. Middlesbrough