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June 2003 Archives
June 30
"American Pie
[the song] tells about the last decisive struggle between, Christian America and all the heathen armies of the world, who will be gathered on America's doorstep and according to the Bible, will invade America." "Could it be that "JESUS ACTUALLY FORETOLD THE ADVENT OF THE INTERNET?"
[Warning: cheesy MIDI music background]
posted by kirkaracha at 1:05 PM PST - 21 comments
No, seriously, they score by touching the opponent in the Valid Target Area. The touches are monitored electronically via wires coming out of the fencers' backs, similar to the technology used to control Dan Rather.
-from
Dave Barry on Fencing in the
humor section of
Fencing Sucks.
posted by Shane at 11:28 AM PST - 30 comments
The Optigan: OPTIcal orGAN.
Long before synthesizers, ProTools, and Cubase, Mattel released a bizarre contraption called the 'Optigan' which operated by assigning each key to a track on an optical disc on which were recorded sounds of real instruments playing every individual note. This site is one guy's obsession with the instrument that may well be dead and forgotten if not for him. Check out
his mp3s of his own, reasonably successful, band based around the instrument, to see how it sounds.
posted by wackybrit at 8:58 AM PST - 18 comments
Larry Crump's Fireworks Pages.
While searching for fireworks related sites, I came across this great site. I doubt you'll find a better resource for fireworks information. Mainly, I like looking at the
pretty pictures. As Larry puts it, "Fireworks are an art form that use the night sky as the canvas."
Sadly, Larry died exactly one year ago today. So, go check out his wonderful web site and maybe you can get some ideas for this weekend's July 4th celebration.
posted by fletchmuy at 8:49 AM PST - 7 comments
Searching MSN for the phrase "Linux"
yields some pretty amusing (but yes, unsurprising) results. The first site seems moderately legit - Amazon stuff related to linux. The second one - MSN has a tech section about Linux? Not exactly. It doesn't really have much linux content at first glance. The third link is most amusing - see for yourself.
Comparatively, a
google search for "linux" yields much more useful results.
This makes me wonder: should ethics be taken into consideration on search engines? MS has every right to have whatever they want come up when you type in "linux" - but they are willfully contaminating search results, which makes one wonder what
other search terms Microsoft might want to rig the output of, and also, which they might have
overlooked...
posted by twiggy at 8:39 AM PST - 44 comments
Is Google God?
"While you were sleeping after 9/11, not only has the process of technological integration continued, it has actually intensified and this will have profound implications."
"...Google, combined with Wi-Fi, is a little bit like God. God is wireless, God is everywhere and God sees and knows everything. Throughout history, people connected to God without wires. Now, for many questions in the world, you ask Google, and increasingly, you can do it without wires, too." [NYTimes]
posted by jacknose at 8:07 AM PST - 23 comments
And God created Pele:
Pele doesn't die. Pele will never die. Pele is going to go on for ever. But Edson is a normal person who is going to die one day, and the people forget that. Also of note: expensive photographs from
eyestorm.
posted by aladfar at 7:18 AM PST - 16 comments
The Group of Seven. Arguably Canada's most important artists, the Group of Seven "
popularized the concept of an art founded on the Canadian landscape, gave many Canadians a sense of national identity and enabled them to discover the beauty of their own country." Peruse an
art gallery and marvel at the beauty they portrayed.
(Mangled quote from the Tom Thomson Memorial Art Gallery)
Equally important was
Emily Carr. While her style was similar to that of the Group of Seven, her interest in First Nations became her trademark. Some of her
paintings.
posted by ashbury at 7:18 AM PST - 9 comments
"The story really began in January 1953,
when I suggested to Gordon that we might go on a cycling holiday together..." They covered 2,286 miles, slept in potting sheds, hay barns, and even a railway marshalling yard, and the whole trip cost them £24. Now, 50 years later, Roy Jenkin's daughter is planning to retrace/tread her father's path. Even if you're not into travelogues (
past or
present) the
photos of post-WWII Europe are worth a gander.
posted by shoepal at 6:59 AM PST - 5 comments
Why Must America Always Be The Greatest?
Be it the greatest sham or show on earth; why is American nationalism and anti-nationalism always couched in hyperbole and a
childish hankering for being number 1, whether in the best or the worst senses?
Dinesh d'Souza's interesting list of ten reasons to celebrate why he's an
anti-anti-American, although passionate and partly persuasive, ultimately fails to convince because of this constant desire to make the U.S. great by artificially and ignorantly belittling or aggrandizing supposed competitors. Perhaps it's
not all a game and America is quite simply
an OK country, with a standard battery of qualities and shortcomings, like most OK countries in the world?
posted by MiguelCardoso at 3:02 AM PST - 59 comments
June 29
In China they have re-eductaion camps, to enlighten people in the way they should regard the Chinese government and state. In America, parents can send their children somewhere to be trained to adopt a more agreeable attitude, too. The World Wide Association of Speciality Programs runs camps all over the world, including one at Tranquility Bay in Jamaica where children are held against their will and subjected to a regime of behaviour and thought modification until they adopt the behaviour and thinking that the camp's administartion approves of. I found myself reading this detailed and lengthy account of the camp's practices and growing furious with rage at the brainwashing sanctioned by ignorant parents, who seem happy with their new obedient and adoring children. See what you think.
Part one.
Part two.
posted by Blue Stone at 12:53 PM PST - 27 comments
Scripting News is taking a break.
"I'm shutting down Scripting News now, to give me some time to think, and to give you all a demo of what it would be like if it weren't here. These last few days have been really awful. You can't imagine what it's like to have so many people screaming at you. It's inhuman, especially considering that my health isn't that good. The only conclusion I can come to is that I shouldn't be doing this." That said, it looks like Dave is still making updates at
http://scriptingnews.userland.com/.
posted by mrbula at 12:39 PM PST - 48 comments
Images of medieval architecture.
A great site put together by Alison Stones, Professor of History of Art and Architecture at the University of Pittsburgh. There are two large gazetteers, one for
Britain, and one for
France. Besides photos, there are many plans, sketches and elevation drawings, which help to give an idea of the sheer scale of gothic cathedrals such as the cathedral of Saint-Étienne at
Bourges (scroll down for the human figures at the bottom).
posted by carter at 8:33 AM PST - 7 comments
Welcome to the Machine
This article in the Washington Monthly describes a long term project of the Republican party to change the largely bipartisan nature of K street lobbying firms and install Republican thought leaders. In return for political benefits to the lobbyists clients, the lobbyists and their clients are expected to play nice with the Republicans on other issues. K Street has been a moderating influence against drastic change, as some constituent always objects. Under this new right-wing symbiotic relationship, individual interests are somewhat subordinated to the right-wing agenda. One of the more fascinating aspects is how it dramatically improves Republican fundraising; for instance:
"For years, conservatives have been pushing to divert part of Social Security into private investment accounts. Such a move, GOP operatives argued, would provide millions of new customers and potentially trillions of dollars to the mutual fund industry that would manage the private accounts. The profits earned would, of course, be shared with the GOP in the form of campaign contributions. In other words, by sluicing the funds collected by the federal government's largest social insurance program through businesses loyal to the GOP, the party would instantly convert the crown jewels of Democratic governance into a pillar of the new Republican machine. " Of course the whole premise of this system rests upon continued Republican control. If the Democrats can wrest back control of the House and Senate, or install another strong president some of these lobbyists and their constituents will likely find themselves closed out of the process. Oh what a lovely way to govern. (via
The Filibuster)
posted by caddis at 5:40 AM PST - 30 comments
June 28
Irony in a Nutshell.
Not an O'Reilly publication, but you can use it to teach yourself Irony in 24 hours. For dummies. And a reference for the rest of us.
posted by weston at 9:34 PM PST - 27 comments
They sold everything from
Earthquake Pills (caution: not effective on Road Runners) to
Trick Balls (warning: explode on contact!). They may be the world's most diverse goods & services company, with the possible exception of Wal Mart. I speak, of course, of the fine folks at ACME, whose full catalog is finally available
online.
Go, now, read! Don't make me use my
Ultimatum Dispatcher!
posted by jonson at 3:31 PM PST - 20 comments
Gallery of Fluid Dynamics.
'One of the most attractive features of fluid mechanics is the beauty of the flows one encounters. Whether one is observing vortex streets, the potential flow around an airfoil or body, shock refraction or diffraction, or waves breaking on a beach the aesthetic appeal of fluid mechanics is impossible to deny. '
posted by plep at 12:40 PM PST - 6 comments
The Mullet - Bollywood Style!!
Ah, the mullet. Absolut Films tells of the birth of this maligned sartorial trend in "Mulit", a tongue-in-cheek branded content piece with '70s Bollywood flair. Both a :60 trailer and feature, "Mulit" is a musical love story about a man, a woman and an unfinished haircut that transcends class structures, fashion trends and predilections for bad hair. Without such roots, phrases like the 'short-long', 'hockey hair' and 'work in front, party in back' would be meaningless and '80s rock would still be searching for a signature style.
posted by turbanhead at 12:06 PM PST - 9 comments
No Brainer
- I've eaten a lot of Tofu in my day and was concerned about "brain-shrink". Then I found about this, and stopped worrying -
Is your brain really necessary? Apparently
not:
"...The student in question was academically bright, had a reported IQ of 126 and was expected to graduate. When he was examined by CAT-scan, however, Lorber discovered that he had virtually no brain at all." I'm hungry...where's that tofu?...
posted by troutfishing at 10:00 AM PST - 48 comments
June 27
Something to think about while you plan your weekend . . . Mmmmmm, Canadian beer:
Sleeman - Annoying Flash site, great music.
Labatt - annoying pop up ad with a fantastic idea.
Molson - another annoying pop-up, but it's The Stone's! Click on Don Cherry for some fashion. And who can forget about
The Rant? Then there's the mother of beer sites,
Beer.com, featuring
beer,
sex,
music,
fun and
free. Admit it, nothing compares to beer, especially Canadian beer.
posted by ashbury at 5:25 PM PST - 33 comments
Pot doesn't cause permanent brain damage?
According to this University of California at San Diego study, no it doesn't even though other illegal drugs, even alcohol, can cause brain damage.
"...marijuana has only a marginally harmful long-term effect on learning and memory."
posted by Ron at 3:41 PM PST - 33 comments
Is soy safe?
As an ardent herbivore, I was pretty shocked to learn that tofu can
shrink your brain.
In a major ongoing study involving 3,734 elderly Japanese-American men, those who ate the most tofu during midlife had up to 2.4 times the risk of later developing Alzheimer's disease. [...] higher midlife tofu consumption was also associated with low brain weight.
(
a dissenting opinion)
Could it be that little ole bean, found in over half of the food on supermarket shelves, is bad for you? [more inside]
posted by mcsweetie at 2:25 PM PST - 37 comments
Must not click ... must not click ... oh hell.
".. marry the infinite porn resources of the Net to the endlessness of male sexual desire, underpin it with consumer culture, and men can end up practically frigging themselves to death." Sean Thomas in the UK Spectator 'fesses up to
porn addiction. It's a real, new and hidden problem which landed him in hospital. What to do?
posted by grahamwell at 1:53 PM PST - 60 comments
< earshot >
Live improvisation with digital audio. Play, loop and compose with multiple sound file formats, including:
wav, aif, aiff, aifc, mov, au, mid, mp3, swa, mpg, mpeg, snd... Found while Googlifying for links to the currently tanked Johnny Spencer's
'vanity site' directed towards fans of Black popular music c1940's to 1970's. I have not a clue as to the what or why of it but thought the teeming geeky horde might. Provided for your consumer testing.
posted by y2karl at 12:34 PM PST - 6 comments
How Not To Be A Summer Law Clerk,
Or: the guy who sent the incredibly stupid and self-incriminating e-mail to all the associates in his firm. (I find this especially amusing since I am writing this from the law firm where I am a summer clerk. Now
I'll
probably get busted too!)
posted by adrober at 12:14 PM PST - 19 comments
Giving Credit
where credit is due. For your Friday browsing pleasure, may I present the staff at NPR's CarTalk. Enjoy!
The Conclusive, Definitive, Official Dewey, Cheetham, & Howe Staff List
In the good old days, we had an engineer and a rotary telephone with a couple of buttons on it. We pressed a button and--BINGO-- someone was on the air. Of course, it was usually a wrong number...but that's the price you pay for simplicity.
Now look at the mess we're in! Thousands of people on the staff...all trying to do less work than us. What a revoltin' development this is. Look at all these employees!
But despite our huge payroll--we're always hiring. So if you know of someone who may be worthy to join our crack(ed) staff, send his/her/its name and potential position to the Car Talk Plaza Personnel Department via e-mail to Dewey, Cheetham and Howe.
posted by nofundy at 10:38 AM PST - 10 comments
Even with
frequently-discussed endorsements, the Democrats have a lot to worry about financially: staffers for George W. Bush's re-election campaign are making a "conservative estimate" that
Bush will spend an average of $426,640 every single day from now until November 2004 on his re-election campaign. Bush will be promoting his visions of (among other things) fiscal conservatism by spending more money each day for the next 16 months than over 99% of the American population earns annually. Campaign spokesman Montgomery Brewster could not be reached for comment.
posted by XQUZYPHYR at 9:00 AM PST - 45 comments
Baysian spam filter for outlook.
Installation was a snap, and it works so well, it's surreal. I'd heard a lot of good things about Baysian spam filters. but this was beyond belief. The damn thing actualy detected legitimate mails that I had accidentaly thrown away!
more gushing inside
posted by delmoi at 8:01 AM PST - 43 comments
Love sushi? Love race cars? Wish there was some way to combine the two?
Supaa Sushi Races.
Like
Wacky Races, but with joy of driving sushi.
Flash, possibly NSFW if you think a cartoon woman with her top off would be a bit much.
posted by Katemonkey at 7:27 AM PST - 7 comments
"If people want to know about it, they should know I won the contest."
On the day of the historic Supreme Court decision, New Jersey's Democratic Party embarrasses itself big time, as the Sussex County party chairman wants a candidate for State Senate to quit the race because he "entered a photo contest in New York City that featured nudity".
What the AP story says: The candidate, semi-famous for being the runner-up on 'Reality' Game Show
The Mole and one of "People Magazine's 50 Most Eligible Bachelors", really
is named
Jim Morrison (TVTome database embarrassment)
What the AP story didn't say: (local newspaper story) Morrison is openly gay, it was a "prettiest penis contest", and it was
made public more than two years ago. And the party chair's real problem with Morrison is
his winning the primary as a 'write-in' (scroll down to "Legislature '03")
Now what
bothers me about this guy is that when he was on "Mole", his occupation was "helicopter pilot", and now he's "a partner in his parents' law firm". Now that's "family values"...
posted by wendell at 3:58 AM PST - 14 comments
Greed May Not Be Good, But It Sure Comes Easy And Feels Lovely, Thank You Very Much:
Just how
greedy are you? Lately I've been rereading
Rabelais's outrageous, politically incorrect, magnificently written
Everyman's edition of Gargantua and Pantagruel, in Thomas Urquhart's and Peter Anthony Motteux's no less magnificent
translation [
pdf file]. Everything in this 16th Century book seems to address us and challenge us to be - how shall I put it? -
up to it. It's rolicking; bawdy; irresistible. Too much is
not enough, indeed. Just how valuable is excess of all sorts? Very, I'd say. And this century presents unique opportunities for overdoing it in the most delightful way, wot, wot?
posted by MiguelCardoso at 2:18 AM PST - 13 comments
June 26
CNN reports that Strom Thurmond died about an ago,
this time for real. The South Carolina senator first served as state senator in 1933, went on to become governor in 1947, and won his Senate seat in 1954. In the last years of his term, the recently-retired Senator was barely functional, unable to so much as wield a gavel. Thurmond will likely be remembered for leading the opposition to civil rights for blacks in the mid-20th century. Strom Thurmond was 100 years old.
posted by waldo at 7:52 PM PST - 97 comments
The "Goodie Box"
at Amazon is $9.99. It has a $10.00 rebate. No word on what's in it or when to expect it. Order it find out I guess, then send in your
rebate and get your money back. Any guesses? A Mystery box for $4 shipping cost is intriguing enough for me to try it. I have mine on order, anyone else?
posted by Dome-O-Rama at 5:29 PM PST - 41 comments
The Windshield Killer: Chante Mallard's Timeline of Shame
details what this woman did on the evening leading up to her high speed hit and attempted run when she was on drugs, had been drinking and hit a 37 year old homeless man named
Gregory Biggs on the highway. After he lodged in her windshield, she tried to pull him out but couldn't. Instead she drove home, parked the car in the garage and let him bleed to death over the next two hours.
Why didn't she call the police or a doctor? She was too scared (read that, too wasted). Instead she had her boyfriend and cousin come and dump the body in a nearby park.
Today she was found guilty in 50 minutes by the jury.
posted by fenriq at 4:45 PM PST - 47 comments
I am STUNNED
by this story, highlighting recent comments by a former Japanese cabinet member. In a discussion about the declining number of children in Japan, Seiichi Ota of the Liberal Democratic Party said that
gang-rape is a sign of virility, and that its perpetrators are "close to normal."
posted by hammurderer at 4:22 PM PST - 88 comments
Would you prefer this to being patted down?
A scanner the government is testing for airport screening reveals much more than meets the eye to be comfortable for most passengers.
The agency hopes to modify the machines with an electronic fig leaf - programming that fuzzes out sensitive body parts or distorts the body so it does not appear so, well, graphic.
posted by orange swan at 12:29 PM PST - 38 comments
Back when beer was good.
"The stubby beer bottle was used by the Canadian breweries between 1961 and 1986, replacing the old long neck beer bottle. The stubby was a very sturdy bottle and could be refilled numerous times.
In 1983 Carling O'Keefe Breweries began bottling Miller in a US style private mould bottle and soon after the other breweries also switched over to their own private mould bottles. Most of these bottles were then discontinued after a few years because of the cost and replaced with a common long neck beer bottle, but the stubby was abandoned."
posted by monkeymike at 11:08 AM PST - 41 comments
Want to serve your country, but you're not exactly up for being a marine?
If you know an instrument well, then not to worry...join "The President's Own", the official USMC band! Unlike other USMC bands that are put together from Marine Corps regulars, musicians in the President's Own are enlisted specifically for playing in the band (MOS 9811).
You have all the rank, privileges, pay, and snappy uniforms as a Staff Sergeant upon entry, and you can even work yourself up to
colonel! You get all the benefits, like seeing the world and free haircuts, provided you meet height and weight requirements, and can meet certain physical criteria (try marching for 10 hours a day)....and NO BOOT CAMP...that's right...they're the only unit in the Armed Forces that doesn't require any military training before joining. And of course, one the coolest things about the Marine Corps band, is that you follow in the footsteps of
John Philip Sousa, who enlisted when he was friggin 13.
posted by taumeson at 8:20 AM PST - 19 comments
In 5... 4... 3... 2... 1... 1... 1... 1...
"In this footage obtained exclusively by The Memory Hole, watch as the President of the United States sits and does nothing after learning that his country is under attack." Andrew Card whispers about plane #2, POTUS remains engrossed in book. (Warning: Quicktime, little kids reading slowly in unison for five long minutes.)
posted by emelenjr at 4:49 AM PST - 144 comments
The Life Story of a Holy Man of the Oglala Sioux.
"I did not know then how much was ended. When I look back now from this high hill of my old age, I can still see the butchered women and children lying heaped and scattered all along the crooked gulch as plain as when I saw them with eyes still young. And I can see that something else died there in the bloody mud, and was buried in the blizzard. A people's dream died there. It was a beautiful dream. And I, to whom so great a vision was given in my youth,--you see me now a pitiful old man who has done nothing, for the nation's hoop is broken and scattered. There is no center any longer, and the sacred tree is dead."
Black Elk speaks.
posted by fold_and_mutilate at 3:50 AM PST - 8 comments
June 25
The Albuquerque Bosque is on fire.
Bosque is spanish for woods that grow along a river bank and these woods are within feet of homes of Albuquerque,
New Mexico residents. The bosque is along the Rio Grande river that runs through
the state's largest city and includes a
nature
center and towering cottonwood trees that are over 100's of years old. Yesterday
and tonight over 1000 acres are going up like a match. The Rio Grande bosque is
a state treasure (with a
national
wild refuge ). We now have
seven
fires in New Mexico. Albuquerque is losing a natural treasure tonight... very sad to hear this may be arson.
posted by jabo at 10:46 PM PST - 13 comments
Google Toolbar 2.0
I can't live without my Google toolbar for IE on the PC (
Safari's built-in Google-search, while less functional, takes care of me on the Mac). This new version of the Google toolbar features popup blocking, autofill, and a "blog this" button. What other browser toolbars/gizmos make life easier for Joe Websurfer?
posted by jdroth at 8:45 PM PST - 32 comments
Nuke components found in Baghdad back yard.
U.S. officials say it is no smoking gun but investigators point out that there is no way they would ever have found these components buried in a barrel in a back yard under a rose garden for 12 years unless someone such as this Iraqi scientist came forward.
posted by Ron at 8:33 PM PST - 44 comments
Spent my lunch hour today in the company of
Tate Liverpool and more particularly
the Janet Cardiff installation Forty Part Motet: "Using (a) piece of secular music as a starting point and working with four male voices (bass, baritone, alto and tenor) and child sopranos, Cardiff has replaced each voice with an audio speaker. The speakers are set at an average head height and spaced in such a way that viewers can listen to different voices and experience different combinations and harmonies as they progress through the work." It's an example of art as experience, the viewer (or in this case listener's) perception of the work as important as the thing itself. [more]
posted by feelinglistless at 3:06 PM PST - 6 comments
German propaganda.
"
Who is Adolf Hitler? The man from the people, for the people! The German front soldier who risked his life in 48 battles for Germany!
What does Adolf Hitler want? Freedom and food for every decent working German! The gallows for profiteers, black marketeers and exploiters, regardless of religious faith or race!
Why is Adolf Hitler not allowed to speak? Because he is ruthless in uncovering the rulers of the German economy, the international bank Jews their lackeys, the Democrats, Marxists, Jesuits and Free Masons! Because he wants to free the workers from the domination of race! Working Germans! Demand the lifting of the illegal ban on his speaking!"
posted by the fire you left me at 1:57 PM PST - 24 comments
Railway hotels. To go with
yesterday's post, today I bring you the hotel's that were built alongside the railway.
Some of the gradients were so acute that when the train ascended or descended, the table settings and food flew in all directions. The weight of the cars added to the problem, as they were too much for the locomotives of the day, and the cars had to be left at the beginning of the railway's path up the mountain passes. Obviously passengers needed to be fed so a solution had to be found as soon as possible. Have you been to any of these hotels, and if so, what was your impression? Do you have any favorite hotels?
posted by ashbury at 11:03 AM PST - 7 comments
Sheer Nuttiness...
According to the Washington Post, the RIAA is following up on the
successful suit to force Verizon to identify four file traders, with a series of mass-lawsuits targeting potentially hundreds of file traders. With 57 million active file traders in the P2P networks alone, this is the beginning of an ugly new future.
posted by jonson at 10:50 AM PST - 68 comments
Saranda's Story.
'My name is Saranda and I am 13 years old. I moved to Liverpool from Kosovo three years ago ... '
posted by plep at 10:47 AM PST - 5 comments
Dancing dog, schmancing dog.
Walking dogs is where it's at (you'll see).
A dog tale deserving of a 'standing' ovation. I still say, dogs rule! [video link under the last image on the left]
posted by Witty at 9:38 AM PST - 11 comments
It's Summer Camp Time!
Looking at summer camps to send your
brats beloved children to for a week personal sanity at home? Look no further! Here it is!
Students will discover the deception of evolution, the importance of purity and morals in a free society, and the pagan connection to the radical environmental movement. Your teen will learn the importance of prayer and action. Most importantly, students will learn that in order to restore America, we must return America to Christ.
Now get out of here and go sign your little tykes up today! It's the patriotic and Christian thing to do. And don't forget the camp needs volunteers.
posted by nofundy at 7:40 AM PST - 54 comments
The tiny
Picture Book Of Foods
is an invaluable resource for true foodies everywhere.
Learn where many of your favorite foods really come from. There are also growing secrets, educational cross-sections, and recipe tips. And pancakes.
posted by iconomy at 7:39 AM PST - 9 comments
Wallace Cartwright, a lobster fisherman from Cape Breton Island, describes his recent
encounter with a
sea serpent:
"It had a head on it like a sea turtle, and it had a body like a snake...about as big around as a five-gallon bucket." Perhaps
Nessie has relatives abroad? The more likely explanation, however, is that Wallace had a
rare glimpse of one of these strange
creatures of the deep.
posted by debralee at 4:54 AM PST - 15 comments
Getting The Hell Out Of Africa:
An excellent article by
R.W. Johnson describes the forces now driving out many African whites and quietly despairs. Post-colonial blues are sad and riddled with guilt and lost hopes. How far does collective guilt impinge on the individual? What if there is no guilt at all? What is the white man and woman's place in 21st Century Africa? I wonder whether it isn't still too early to think clearly about the many delicate issues involved. But then an all-black Africa wouldn't be Africa. Would it?
posted by MiguelCardoso at 1:27 AM PST - 18 comments
June 24
Sesame Seventies
is an informational website about the three disco-related Muppets/Sesame Street records released in the 1970s. It makes for a good argument in favor of file-sharing, it reveals some of the stranger children's music of the past twenty or so years, and it's cute. (warning, some flash)
posted by pxe2000 at 11:41 PM PST - 19 comments
"Taryn Simon: The Innocents"
Is an
exhibition at MOMA's P.S.1 Contemporary Arts Center, of large color photographs of innocent men jailed for crimes they did not commit, exonerated by DNA evidence. For most of the photographs Ms. Simon posed each man at the scene of the arrest, the scene of the crime, the scene of misidentification or the scene of the alibi.
posted by jdaura at 5:56 PM PST - 6 comments
Katinka Matson's scanned flower art
: technology lets the flowers speak. "...imagine a painter who could, like Vermeer, capture the quality of light that a camera can, but with the color of paints. That is what a scanner gives you.... In her flowers one can see every microscopic dew drop, leaf vein, and particle of pollenin satisfying rich pigmented color....." (scroll down for images)
posted by troutfishing at 1:31 PM PST - 16 comments
Enslaved by free trade.
The founding myth of the dominant nations is that they achieved their industrial and technological superiority through free trade. Nations that are poor today are told that if they want to follow our path to riches they must open their economies to foreign competition. They are being conned.
posted by badstone at 12:59 PM PST - 31 comments
So youve just received a junk email encouraging you to visit a website for some irresistible pornography or to consolidate your debts! Well, its time to oblige the people who fill your mailbox with spam. Let FriedSPAM visit their sites for you -- about a million times!
After all, you are only doing what the spammers are asking you to do. (via Pop Culture Junk Mail)
posted by gottabefunky at 12:42 PM PST - 27 comments
Blog Parody
Ben and Mena.
We are cute. We are cute. We are cute. We are cute. We are cute. We are cute. We are cute. We are cute. We are cute. We are cute. We are cute. We are cute. We are cute. We are cute.
Adam Curry.
Celeblogging. I used to be a MTV VJ, you know, big hair, that whole thing? Yeah, I was cool. MTV sucks now though. I am cool. I am Beautiful People.
Cory Doctorow.
y0 toTaL 0wnz0red. y0 LiKeZ kRaD!!1!!1! DRM is EVIL! Magic Sci-Fi Future Net-Inspired Utopia Whuffie Waffle dust. Post-death, post-work, net-in-your-head future. BounceBounce. BoingBoing. SmoingeSmoinge.
posted by nyxxxx at 12:34 PM PST - 32 comments
Mitch Kapor
reckons that by 2029 no computer - or "machine intelligence" - will have passed the Turing Test.
If he's right, the EFF wins $20,000 on a bet.
In the well designed and conceptualised
Long Bets website , other participants in the Predictions game:
Dave Winer,
Esther Dyson,
Vint Cerf and
Ted Danson!
All predictions
here; All bets
here
- discussions so far
here.
Any Mefites willing to stake their rep on cherished beliefs? What do you want to publicly predict will - or will not - happen, and by when?
posted by dash_slot- at 12:02 PM PST - 17 comments
You're the one that I want!
Okay, I've seen trained dogs before, but this is ridiculous. A highly choreographed routine between the trainer and perhaps the world's furriest John Travolta impersonator (warning WMV link).
posted by jonson at 9:58 AM PST - 23 comments
Girls dress up, boys don't. Boys need to help girls cross the street. Girls work, boys play. Subtle gender messages (and really silly hairstyles) as observed by Monsieur Jean after collecting images from different countries of
children on street signs for his salon.
posted by iconomy at 7:11 AM PST - 18 comments
June 23
After 'The Bell Jar,' Life Went On.
Sylvia Plath immortalized the guest editor program at Mademoiselle Magazine in her famed book, "The Bell Jar." A photo of the 20 young guest editors was taken back in 1953, and they were all lined up in a star -- with Plath, unsurprisingly, at the top. Plath killed herself in 1971, but the other women in her program reunited recently, to discuss their experiences, how they've changed, and their famous classmate. A fascinating read for anyone who's read "The Bell Jar." (NY Times reg required)
posted by GaelFC at 5:48 PM PST - 24 comments
The Children's Internet Protection Act
is hunky dory,
according to the Supreme Court. This means that public libraries are required by law to have web filters on public terminals.
While it's great that children will now be forever protected from the evils on online pornography, the drawback is that most filters are so unreliable that just me mentioning the word "sex" in this post could get Metafilter blocked by a web filter.
posted by zedzebedia at 1:45 PM PST - 39 comments
Whichbook:
a neat little flash app that permits you to select on a sliding scale up to four different features of a novel and then recommends a list of prospective reading to you. (Plain-text available
here). (via
sixdifferentways).
