It is sort of like trying to throw a doughnut between two fat kids.

Gravity Pods is a vector-based physics shooter/puzzle. The objective is simple: shoot a projectile at a target. Of course, there are some barriers, and naturally there is a way around those barriers. By strategically placing Gravity Pods around the screen, you can bend the path your projectile takes, so that it goes around walls, down halls, curves back on itself etc. The trick is figuring out where to put them to lead the projectile to the target. The first levels are simple, but it gets progressively tougher as the courses get harder, and more elements come into play.

Gravity Pods. [Wicked Pissah Games]

Move along. There is no fun to be had here.

Close your eyes and try to relax. Take a few deep breathes and calm yourself. Now picture yourself as a rectangular block who likes to do cartwheels. Good. Now you're falling through a hole in the ground, but this is a good thing...

Bloxorz. [Albino Black Sheep]

Love and kisses. - Zaphod

You may or may not need to be something of a science buff or outright geek to appreciate this Java applet. Here you get the opportunity to play Flying Spaghetti Monster and create a mini solar system. You can have a single star (sun) or two and have as many planets as you like orbiting around them. Warning, don't become particularly attached to any single world as quite often you'll find that some are bound to smash together and obliterate all the denizens worshiping you.

Plant simulation. [Dan Ball]

If you're American when you go into the bathroom, and you're American when you come out of the bathroom...

Over at the Fox network it is apparently a great achievement to be smarter than a fifth grader. We at TIBTP feel that the goal should be a wee bit higher. Despite the war raging there for the better part of this century, 2/3 Americans and 3/4 Americans under the age of 24 can't find Iraq on a map - and they couldn't find countries less headline-centric if you showed them a picture of the United States and a picture of Suriname and told them to point out which one wasn't the United States (incidentally, the tiny country in northern South America is not the United States).

These tests, or "games" depending on how big of a geek you are, are quite good and cover everything from the nations of South America to the US states to the provinces of Canada. The tests are broken up into levels 1 (beginner) to 9 (cartographer).

The mid-level tests involving Europe, the US, and South America aren't too difficult, but we have to admit that Africa and Asia gave us more trouble than we would have thought. That said, after a couple of tries our knowledge of exactly how Azerbaijan fit into the jigsaw puzzle that is the "stans" of Eastern Asia increased dramatically.

Yes, you will use this information later in life. It's on the boating safety course exam.

If you can knock out a few tests on the highest levels, then consider yourself ahead of damn near 99% of Americans. Actually, lets be honest here, putting all 50 states in their correct locations inside of the United States will put you ahead of 99% of Americans.

Geography games: world maps. [Sheppard software]

Imagine if Tetris got drunk, knocked up Connect Four, and then ran out on her.

The bastard child from this relationship would be Blocky. This simple yet addictive and challenging game can get intense at times, but is fun and a classic time-waster. (Tip: play the game on mute for a more enjoyable experience.)

The Smilies are feeling blocked in and sad! Help them escape – and make them giggle – by clicking and dragging a rectangle with four like-colored corners. The larger the rectangle, the more Smilies you release. Turn a frown upside down with this fast-paced puzzle game.

Blocky. (Shockwave)

The cat's in the craddle...with a crossbow.

You are a cat. With a bow and arrow, to which you are attached by a string. You must reach the target by launching yourself through a challenging 18-hole course. Don't even bother asking me about the scoring, because it doesn't make any sense; not because the directions are in Japanese, but because it is utter lunacy. Still fun and a good time waster.

Cat with Bow Golf. (dofi-blog)

Prove your childhood wasn't a waste of time.

Finish this sequence: up, up, down, down, left...

The Ultimate Video Game Challenge NES. (freewebarcade.com)

Because you don't have the guts in real life.

This game combines the two greatest things in life - base jumping and immortality (or the 'reset' button) and packages them into a simple yet addictive little time waster. Start out as an amateur and you'll get the hang of things, then move on to the professional version and prepare to find out what terminal velocity does to a little trash talking orange dot.

Elite Base Jumping. (Awful Games)