Nielsen observes that "much of the Web is like an anthill built by ants on LSD". Surely he's thinking of spiders? After all, we already know what their webs look like under the influence of drugs. To this research I can also add the anecdotal datum that webs created under the influence of copious amounts of caffeine look something like this.

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Ever since I've worked in this office, the fax machine has made moaning noises reminiscent of a wookie in labour. Today, though, the real meaning of those noises became hideously apparent as the air-conditioning added its voice to the chorus, with a noise somewhere between a snore, a grunt, and a ruler being twanged over the edge of a desk. "Grunt - ouhhhh. Grunt - ouhhhh." It's just like living in shared student accommodation.

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And finally... nou has introduced me to the category game, which is an even better office fiddle-object than those little magnetic whatnots that keep the money rolling in for IWOOT and their ilk -- if, of course, you'd rather play with neat javascript implementations of experimental cognitive semantics than overpriced grown-up versions of construct-o-straws. If this (the linguistics, not the plastic) is an area that interests you, I can recommend Lakoff's superbly-named and eminently readable book Women, Fire and Dangerous Things. Oh, and Amazon get one out of three for product placement.