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February 27, 2003
It's Carnival Time! New Orleans Mardi Gras celebrations are steeped in
tradition. From
beads and
king cakes to
invitation-only balls, carnival has been a part of the city's history since the French held private masked balls and parties in 1718. Although Spanish rule interrupted the party for 90 years, many of the
krewes have been around since the 1800s. Today, parade floats are considered an art form and some krewes
spend up to $700,000 on a single float. With such excess abounding, consider yourself
warned.
posted by ajr at 7:42 PM PST - 15 comments
On the 50th anniversary of the discovery of the
double helix spare a thought for
Rosalind Franklin the chemist who produced the
data that supported the structure.
Franklin, who died before the
Nobel prize was awarded, never received credit for her contribution and was on the receiving end of Watson's
sexism . But with a
new book let's hope in this 50th anniversary year that Rosalind Franklin gets her contribution to this great discovery recognised.
posted by stunned at 5:17 PM PST - 4 comments
The Name Game Valley Creek Farms "solicits help from clever people each year to help name their young horses." If you consider yourself a gifted wordsmith with a knack for penning equine monikers that will get the
bugs a buzzin' and make the
farrier smile, this is your chance to take the reins. But it's not
easy. The rules are
extensive and your choice may already be
taken. But with luck, you may one day hear your
literary masterpiece of 18 letters or less roll off the caller's tongue and become part of thoroughbred
history.
posted by snez at 10:32 AM PST - 13 comments
Listening in. Marches are debated, but few of us get to watch them happen and hear the thoughts of the marchers. This is one of the items we're looking for: "most interesting of the web."
posted by ?! at 10:25 AM PST - 8 comments
Protest Is Not Tolerated I wasn't sure how much good I could do or how much power one person has but I wanted to do it. When I took my place on the sidewalk across the street from my church, I was struck with this Norman Rockwell picture of America. Families with their balloons, flags and signs made it feel like the Fourth of July. I was thrilled by all the patriotism and was proud to be part of this community that cares enough to turn out to greet the most powerful politician in our land.
But when I unrolled my sign, all that changed, and I may never be able to look at my community the same way again.
Ain't that America? Proud to be
Born in the USA? Constitutional rights? Not with the "Defenders Of All Things Duhbya!"
posted by nofundy at 9:21 AM PST - 141 comments
Jacqui's fight to become whole again after a devastating accident. She has a whole lot of love, courage, and hope.
posted by john at 9:04 AM PST - 6 comments
Thought you were rid of the telemarketers? Perhaps not. It looks like they're fighting back to items like the
TeleZapper that fake telemarketers into thinking your phone is disconnected by playing the three tones you get if your phone doesn't work.
Castel, Inc claims their DirectQuest software defeats devices like Telezapper by reading the connect messages delivered by your public switched telephone network. Fave quote - “It’s a privacy arms race.." Will this ever end?
posted by djspicerack at 5:31 AM PST - 17 comments
Hard of Hearing Radio (warning: link goes fullscreen AND has popup windows. but it's worth it, really!) is a Canadian radio program targeted at listeners with mild hearing loss, that aims to "challenge the assumption that broadcast media should be tailored only to those with a flawless ability to perceive it's content." The site contains lots of high quality mp3s of broadcasts as well as some articles about the subject and links to related topics. Recommended listening for fans of bands like
Sigur Ros,
Godspeed You Black Emperor, labels like
Constellation, and readers of
FakeJazz. Quite possibly might also be enjoyed by those who smoke a lot of
. . . Yeah. So for those deaf folks out there, what do you listen for in music? What are your favorite genres and groups?
posted by atom128 at 4:08 AM PST - 10 comments
Yay, after the flash fest that was
Royksopp's 'Remind Me', here's anoter retro-pixel music
video (and a damn catchy choon), from
Junior Senior and it can be distributed freely too.
"A Tummy Touch-esque slab of nu-disco breaks. The single The Avalanches forgot to make, slick discoid beats, wonderful smile-inducing vocal & beats to make you throw down the funk." according to
breaksworld.com
posted by MintSauce at 3:25 AM PST - 7 comments
Mr. Rogers Dead. Fred Rogers of "Mister Roger's Neighborhood" died of stomach cancer at age 74. To be honest, his was never my personal favorite PBS kid's show growing up (I preferred off-brand shows like "Zoom" and "3-2-1 Contact"). But my appreciation for him when I was an adult was pretty high. Anyway, it's a sad day in the neighborhood.
posted by jscalzi at 2:17 AM PST - 130 comments
The Wooly Bullies Of MetaFilter - Uncovered! Sweating heavily as I perused this unholy website's rhetorical machinations late into the night, I was suddenly shaken by a strange feeling of dread, for it was the spectre of MetaFilter itself I was seeing before my bulging eyes, in all its hideous familiarity, emerging from the fetid depths of my guilt-wracked soul...
posted by MiguelCardoso at 1:00 AM PST - 16 comments
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