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Taller Than the Trees [N/YT] by Megan Mylan - "Japanese men haven't traditionally been caregivers. But for Masami Hayata, it's a crucial part of raising his family." (via)
posted by kliuless at 12:21 AM - 1 comment

Space law [previously: 1, 2] is a thing. Popular Science asks whether the laws of Earth would apply to the colonists of Mars. Want to know more about the law of space? Engadget has you covered. Space.com tells you who owns the moon. Wired asks whether asteroid mining is legal. [more inside]
posted by MoonOrb at 11:17 PM - 10 comments

Curmudgeons is a 16 minute long film directed by Danny DeVito and starring Danny DeVito, Lucy DeVito, and David Margulies. NSFW due to adult themes and language, no nudity. [more inside]
posted by hippybear at 10:42 PM - 9 comments

Profiling a mix of practical effects, Photoshop®, photographer effort, modelling and correct angles this series of tricky photos presents the photo and then with a click shows how they were setup. Part 1 {1 - 15}, 2 {16 - 30}, 3 {31 - 45}, 4 {46 - 53}. [more inside]
posted by Mitheral at 8:57 PM - 15 comments

Three years ago, the Republican-led House was close to reaching a compromise on immigration. This is the inside story of what went wrong. - Alec MacGillis, ProPublica [more inside]
posted by the man of twists and turns at 8:11 PM - 1 comment

Liquid lead ballroom dance: "Seeing a petite woman dip a man who’s over six feet tall can strike the viewer as odd and different, but it breaks the traditional boundaries set by gender roles. It’s clearly possible for anyone to dance what has typically been prescribed for female dancers and male dancers, and it doesn’t matter who leads. In the end, it’s a negotiation."
posted by sibilatorix at 7:09 PM - 13 comments

Lost In Shinjuku A series of double, triple, quadruple, and quintuple exposures taken over one night in October in the Shinjuku area. [via mefi projects]
posted by not_the_water at 6:43 PM - 7 comments

Michael Charney is trying to get Americans to adopt what he calls the "Dutch reach" -- opening your car door with the opposite hand, which puts your head in a better position to see whether you're about to door a bicyclist. In the Netherlands, this is simply "how to open your car door", as it is taught as part of driver's training and is part of the licensing test.
posted by Etrigan at 5:25 PM - 31 comments

There are many artists, usually great ones, who are able to push themselves to their limit to experience life and death for their art. Especially with death, many people feel extremely uncomfortable with its trappings – the pungent scent of decay, the multiple hues of flesh rotting, the insects who make bodies their homes – and it takes a true artists’ eye to see the beauty in these things: Sally Mann's Body Farm Photography [photos of decomposing human bodies] [more inside]
posted by Johnny Wallflower at 5:24 PM - 7 comments

This is a king whom Paris Hilton (a major political figure in Los Angeles at the time) makes a point to walk over to chat with during a timeout ...and then leans over to laugh at a joke by — not a forced laugh, I have it on good authority that it was a funny joke — later on in the game.

Sam Donsky answers the question: What Is the Best Night Any Celebrity Has Ever Had at Madison Square Garden?
posted by The Gooch at 5:17 PM - 20 comments

Corporate sharks are circling around the platform we love. But there is another way: shared ownership, where the community takes control.

Here's my plan to save Twitter: let's buy it. Twitter could be the next Mozilla. A Guide to #BuyTwitter.
posted by Foci for Analysis at 4:29 PM - 50 comments

For I am become Mar Cuervo, destroyer of foods.
posted by ennui.bz at 12:43 PM - 38 comments

Borrowed Time. A short animation done by Pixar animators in their spare time.
posted by pjern at 8:08 AM - 48 comments

It runs (in the northern hemisphere) from November to March, though culturally it kicks off when Starbucks change their menu to pumpkin spice; people who would rather be single or promiscuous start looking for someone to attach themselves to for the cold winter months. How to handle ‘Cuffing Season’
posted by acb at 5:25 AM - 69 comments

Reflections on ten years working as a fire lookout:

My lookout tower is situated five miles from the nearest road, on a ten-thousand-foot peak in the Gila National Forest. I live here for several months each year, without electricity or running water. Although tens of thousands of acres are touched by fire here every year, I can go weeks without seeing a twist of smoke. During these lulls I simply watch and wait, my eyes becoming ever more intimate with an ecological transition zone encompassing dry grasslands, piñon-juniper foothills, ponderosa parkland, and spruce-fir high country.

--A Talent for Sloth
posted by MoonOrb at 10:39 PM - 26 comments

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story – Final Trailer [YouTube] [Trailer] The final Rogue One trailer is now in range. You may watch it when ready. Rogue One tells the story of how a group of unlikely heroes unite to undertake a daring and seemingly impossible mission to steal the plans for the Death Star. [more inside]
posted by Fizz at 8:27 PM - 90 comments

In theaters in the US from Oct 11th thru the 18th, Japanese with English subtitles. The Godzilla Myth is reborn by Toho Film Co., Ltd., a new Godzilla for a new age. An entirely new story (except for the part where he wrecks Tokyo,) same great theme song. If the 2014 Godzilla movie with it's paltry 8 minutes of monster left you cold, Shin Godzilla is the kaiju movie for you!
posted by jbenben at 7:47 PM - 32 comments

The National Park Service has published LGBTQ America: A Theme Study of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer History in 32 chapters. Each page includes a .pdf link to a much longer exposition on the subject of the chapter. [more inside]
posted by hippybear at 6:28 PM - 27 comments

French clown, actor, writer, sleight-of-hand expert, and director Pierre Étaix has passed away at age 87. With all the scary clown talk of late, let us pay tribute to a gentler, more thoughtful form of clowning. His 1962 short Happy Anniversary won the 1963 Best Short Subject Academy Award, and he is most well-known for his 1965 feature-length comedy Yo Yo, about a wealthy heir who just wants to be a clown. [more inside]
posted by JauntyFedora at 6:00 PM - 5 comments

I was a little late to the birthday party of Ms. Kahlo, but saw this fantastic article and couldn't resist sharing with my fellow Meefs. How To Be More Like Frida Kahlo, As Told By Frida Kahlo Today I ran across another fun tidbit about Frida's old stompin' ground and knew it was deserving of the blue...........Frida Kahlo’s home.
posted by strelitzia at 4:54 PM - 7 comments

A charming gentleman covers Kitty Wells' Sugartime (h/t MeFi's own Miss Cellania).
posted by Johnny Wallflower at 2:51 PM - 6 comments

The bottom line is, trauma and secondary trauma have identifiable symptoms and they are everywhere in the “industry.” The “hyper-real” space which the national security state creates by its very nature extends to everyone too, now, but it’s more intense for professionals. Living as “social engineers,” always trying to understand the other’s POV so one can manipulate and exploit it, erodes the core self. The existential challenge constitutes an assault on authenticity and integrity. Sometimes sanity is at stake, too, and sometimes, life itself.

Playing Through the Pain: A DEF CON 24 presentation by Richard Thieme (h/t Schneier)
posted by automatizing nihilist vortex at 12:58 PM - 24 comments

What $50 buys you at Huaqiangbei, the world’s most fascinating electronics market.
posted by DynamiteToast at 11:53 AM - 60 comments

Tron 2.0 - Creating a Visual Language of Scale "Today we introduce TRON version 2 as a fully realized Mapzen house style, rebuilt from the ground up to take advantage of the latest features of the Tangram graphics engine and Tangram blocks. With this new version, visual forms and elements transform per zoom, revealing new cartographic details and a deep exploration of scale transformations."
posted by Tevin at 11:33 AM - 14 comments

Fifteen months ago, Donald declared and we commented; two months earlier, Hillary did likewise. And now, here we are near the end of an divisive and damaging election. As Donald's campaign struggles under many allegations [BBC] [NBC News] [Guardian] [New York Times] and increased conversation on abuse, Hillary pulls out a 7 point lead in a Fox poll, a gap in the Real Clear Politics poll average and a large victory chance in 538 (though, cautionary words about poll bounces). Michelle Obama spoke about the language of this election (FPP title from her speech) [BBC] [New Yorker] [Washington Post] and in The Guardian: "She lent her extraordinary ability to say what people are feeling to every English-speaking woman in the world". Elsewhere, Trump-stooge Chris Christie is facing a criminal summons and Utah could be a three-way race which leads to a small possibility of President Evan. [more inside]
posted by Wordshore at 11:31 AM - 1513 comments

Then you might like Cribbage With Grandpas.

• You play cribbage,
• You play against the computer,
• The computer is your Grandpa,
• You get to create your Grandpa.

[more inside]
posted by amnesia and magnets at 11:08 AM - 26 comments

"Harold’s death at Hastings by an arrow to the eye remains one of the most enduring ‘facts’ in English history. But this detail may have been the product of historians writing generations after 1066, and the Bayeux Tapestry, the most famous witness to Harold’s death, may not show the king being shot by an arrow at all." [more inside]
posted by Iridic at 11:07 AM - 17 comments

As we pass the film festivals and Oscar Season approaches, the question is asked: Is there such a thing as an "Oscar Bait" movie?
posted by Artw at 10:59 AM - 20 comments

D.S. Moss produces an occasional podcast, titled The Adventures of Memento Mori, subtitled a cynic's guide for learning to live by remembering to die. He talks about his ideas in an interview with the Eternal Life Fan Club (website), which can be summarized as embracing life by accepting death. There are eight episodes in the Adventures of Memento Mori so far, covering Plan on Dying, Communicating with the Dead, The Science of Immortality, Past Life Regression, Escaping Death, Thoughts in Passing, and Digital Afterlife. Remember to Die is also on Twitter and Instagram, and I am Mori on YouTube. [more inside]
posted by filthy light thief at 10:54 AM - 1 comment

Does what it says on the tin. Now, can we wedge it all into a scanner?
posted by symbioid at 10:31 AM - 16 comments

Anti-Drug PSAs by Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, and the rest of the 'Looney Tunes' gang via Dangerous Minds.
posted by chavenet at 10:20 AM - 8 comments

Bird chases dog
posted by griphus at 9:52 AM - 16 comments

Salvador Dalí's eccentric cookbook reissued for the first time in 40 years
posted by OverlappingElvis at 9:12 AM - 10 comments

Looking for a new sport? Why not have a nice game of Three-Sided Football? Three teams, a hexagonal field, and the team that concedes the fewest goals is the winner! You might especially enjoy it if you're an anarchist Marxist with an interest in psychogeography and surrealism. [more inside]
posted by Stark at 7:59 AM - 13 comments

Malinda Kathleen Reese runs songs back and forth through Google Translate, then sings the results. This being MetaFilter, let's put the Hamilton one above the fold: You'll Be Back [more inside]
posted by Shmuel510 at 6:58 AM - 13 comments

Total Nonstop Action Wrestling is (arguably) the second biggest professional wrestling promotion in the U.S., but it's a distant second. The most coverage it has received in the mainstream press lately comes from behind the scenes, as its co-owner and president has sued the promotion over intrigue regarding a potential sale. Normally, this wouldn't rate a story in The Guardian, but that co-owner/president is Billy Corgan, better known as the front man of Smashing Pumpkins. [more inside]
posted by Etrigan at 6:24 AM - 27 comments

A 100 year old fair ground organ plays Bohemian Rhapsody. [more inside]
posted by freethefeet at 5:41 AM - 24 comments

You are almost definitely not living in reality because your brain doesn’t want you to.
Use the Cognitive Bias Codex [more inside]
posted by the man of twists and turns at 11:54 PM - 30 comments

Auto-Tune — one of modern history’s most reviled inventions — was an act of mathematical genius. The pitch correction software, which automatically calibrates out-of-tune singing to perfection, has been used on nearly every chart-topping album for the past 20 years ... But often lost in this narrative is the story of the invention itself, and the soft-spoken savant who pioneered it.
posted by ShooBoo at 9:25 PM - 72 comments

Irish People Attempt American Accents
posted by Slap*Happy at 7:52 PM - 59 comments

Great White Shark Cage Breach. What it says on the tin.
posted by whimsicalnymph at 5:52 PM - 48 comments

"Every Monday morning, we will post a new map on this site. The maps will be unlabeled, uncaptioned thematic maps with no scales or legends.... For each week’s map, your job is simple: figure out what data is being presented by the map. To solve the map, you have to find the clues on it and come up with an explanation that ties them all together." [more inside]
posted by DevilsAdvocate at 5:16 PM - 17 comments

United Nations to Name Wonder Woman Honorary Ambassador [Comic Book Resources] In the DC Universe, “Wonder Woman [wiki]” has long acted as an ambassador from her native land, but soon the Themiscyran Princess will take on the role for real when she becomes UN Honorary Ambassador for the Empowerment of Women and Girls. According to a statement released by the UN, the official announcement of “Wonder Woman’s” new title will be made at an event held at the United Nations Headquarters in New York on Friday October 21.
posted by Fizz at 4:04 PM - 18 comments

What if the New York City subway map paid homage to some of the city’s great women? It’s a Man’s Man’s Man’s World” is a song James Brown recorded in a New York City studio in 1966, and, whether you like it or not, you can make the case that he’s right. Walking down the city streets, young women get harassed in ways that tell them that this is not their world, their city, their street; that their freedom of movement and association is liable to be undermined at any time; and that a lot of strangers expect obedience and attention from them. “Smile,” a man orders you, and that’s a concise way to say that he owns you; he’s the boss; you do as you’re told; your face is there to serve his life, not express your own. He’s someone; you’re no one.
posted by strelitzia at 3:15 PM - 4 comments

I have often puzzled and puzzled
about what it must be like
to go to sleep and never wake up,
to be
simply not there

Memento Mori is a short film by Sebastian Linda with narration by Alan Watts. [more inside]
posted by Johnny Wallflower at 1:59 PM - 6 comments

The Great Barrier Reef of Australia passed away in 2016 after a long illness. It was 25 million years old.
posted by brundlefly at 1:57 PM - 71 comments

Today marks the launch of Green’s Dictionary of Slang Online, a digitized version of Green’s Dictionary of Slang, which originally appeared as a three-volume book in 2010. Everything that was in that book is available here, plus the fruits of over five more years of research… [T]he evolving database will be able to reflect the on-going additions and improvements that make it a unique resource. (Coverage at Language Log, Slate, and Quartz, and a June interview with Green in The Daily Beast.)
posted by Going To Maine at 1:42 PM - 7 comments

What is a chess game stripped of openings and normal patterns of play? It's Really Bad Chess, an iOS game by designer Zach Gage that randomizes the placement and quantity of pieces in each game. "[T]here's no concept of 'beginner’s luck' in chess because there's no luck in chess!" said Gage. "I wondered what would happen if I just struck down that balance in the stupidest way possible." [more inside]
posted by not_the_water at 12:31 PM - 29 comments

Well, does it?
posted by Foci for Analysis at 12:12 PM - 20 comments

Scotland's first minister Nicola Sturgeon has announced today that she would call a second referendum on independence if the UK opts for a hard Brexit. Scotland's first minister Nicola Sturgeon has announced today that she would call a second referendum on independence if the UK opts for a hard Brexit. Addressing the UK prime minister, Teresa May, she said: If you think for one single second that I’m not serious about doing what it takes to protect Scotland’s interests, then think again. [more inside]
posted by stevedawg at 10:58 AM - 114 comments