April 19, 2012

This piece would suggest that the door is opening, and people are walking through it

MSNBC Talks To And About Trans People For An Hour, Doesn't F*ck It Up
posted by sendai sleep master at 10:32 PM PST - 34 comments

Copyright cage match ends

The High Court has handed down its decision in the case of Roadshow Films Pty Ltd v iiNet Ltd (summary [PDF]; full text of judgment; some analysis), finding 5-0 that ISP iiNet did not authorise its users to infringe the copyrights of members of the Australian Federation Against Copyright Theft (AFACT) by making films available over BitTorrent. [more inside]
posted by A Thousand Baited Hooks at 10:17 PM PST - 9 comments

Marcel Proust's "A La Recherche Du Temps Perdu"

"The Threat to Proust" by Roger Shattuck: When Proust’s novel fell into the public domain in 1987, three Paris publishing houses were ready with new editions that had been in preparation for several years. They all carry the same basic 3,000-page text with few variations. The differences lie in packaging and presentation. Laffont-Bouquins chose to publish three fat volumes prefaced by elaborate historical and biographical materials. Garnier-Flammarion produced ten pocket-sized volumes competently edited by Jean Milly. The new Pléiade edition, published by the original copyright holder, Gallimard, made the boldest, most ambitious, and most expensive bid to claim the market. In a combination of editorial, literary, and commercial decisions, Gallimard proposed to influence the way we read Proust and, to some degree, the way we approach all great literary works. [more inside]
posted by Trurl at 9:45 PM PST - 33 comments

Nine players leaving from the fourth hole at 11 o’clock

Collusion, vandalism and violence—all for something as banal as snowplowing. If you think it seems too extreme, you don’t understand how public contracting in Montreal works, said the former employee of the major company. The same tactics are used throughout the city, even in the tiniest industries; it’s a culture, a way of life. “I have seen a guy get threatened when he bid on a grass-mowing contract in Ville St. Laurent. They don’t care. It’s just about maintaining control over those areas,” he explained. “The people that talk about corruption in the construction industry don’t realize it’s not just construction. It’s everywhere in public works.” [Getting Plowed]
posted by vidur at 9:17 PM PST - 15 comments

Tattoos, Piercings, and Alcohol Consumption

According to research recently published in Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research[DOI: 10.1111/j.1530-0277.2011.01711.x], tattooed people drink significantly more than their peers (as well as other risky behaviours).
posted by wilful at 9:07 PM PST - 63 comments

You can vote once per day per category

2012 Vimeo Awards Nominations — There are 13 categories including four new ones. The Experimental category is lots of fun. [previously]
posted by netbros at 8:31 PM PST - 9 comments

Global Internet population and knowledge

The world's Internet population has doubled in the last 5 years, reaching 2.27 billion. A recently published ebook Geographies of the World's Knowledge shows that despite its growing availability knowledge is not necessarily "more accessible." "Many commentators speculated that [the Internet] would allow people outside of industrialised nations to gain access to all networked and codified knowledge, thus mitigating the traditionally concentrated nature of information production and consumption." "These early expectations remain largely unrealised." It was found that not only academic knowledge but also user generated content predominantly originates in "rich countries, especially the United States."
posted by travelwithcats at 7:14 PM PST - 33 comments

The New Passivity

The demand to participate can become coercive, exhausting the very collective faculties it officially celebrates. While interactivity can be imagined as the “like” or “retweet,” it also encompasses the “agree to terms” button. The supposedly democratic call to dialogue and participation can turn sour when people have good reasons and desires to retreat. [more inside]
posted by latkes at 6:19 PM PST - 15 comments

Ain't no spoon or fork or knife.

“There are no images and no representations in our minds,” he insisted. “Our visual experience of the world is a continuum between see-er and seen united in a shared process of seeing.”

I was curious, if only because, as a novelist I’d always supposed I was dealing in images, imagery. This stuff might have implications. So we had a beer together.
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 5:58 PM PST - 25 comments

XNA - more fun than Sea Monkeys...

XNA
posted by brando_calrissian at 5:47 PM PST - 16 comments

Greg Ham found Dead

Men at Work's Greg Ham has been found dead. He was an Australian songwriter, actor and saxophone player known for playing multiple instruments in the 1980s band Men at Work. In addition to the saxophone, he played flute, organ, piano and the synthesiser. [more inside]
posted by Sailormom at 5:36 PM PST - 89 comments

Record Store Day 2012

Limited Editions: Record Store Day 2012 is almost upon us. Started in 2008, this internationally celebrated day is observed the third Saturday of April each year. Its purpose is to celebrate the art of music with hundreds of recording artists participating in the day by making special appearances, performances, meet and greets with their fans, the holding of art exhibits, and the issuing of special vinyl. [more inside]
posted by pelican at 5:25 PM PST - 31 comments

Julie Taymor not involved

Holy Musical B@man! It's a musical about Batman! Act 1, parts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7. Act 2, parts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. [more inside]
posted by painquale at 5:23 PM PST - 13 comments

Coursera

Coursera - free, online, introductory- to upper-undergraduate level classes in a wide variety of subjects, led by instructors from Princeton University, Stanford University, University of California, Berkeley, University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, and the University of Pennsylvania
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 3:44 PM PST - 54 comments

Better red than dead

Recently Starbuck's customers were upset to learn that their strawberry frappuchinos were being coloured red with insect extract - cochineal. What they probably don't know is that cochineal was once as valuable as gold and silver and is the colour of Catholic Cardinals' robes and the red in the British redcoats of the Revolutionary War.
posted by GuyZero at 3:27 PM PST - 136 comments

Epithet

Epithet a short film starring Patrick Stewart as a lecherous poet (nsfw). [more inside]
posted by dng at 3:11 PM PST - 20 comments

Tower of Babelfish - A Language Learning Method

Tower of Babelfish - A Language Learning Method [via mefi projects]
posted by aniola at 2:13 PM PST - 13 comments

I ate a hot dog. It tasted real good.

I ate a hamburger at Burger King. It has 1,050 strips of bacon.
posted by KevinSkomsvold at 2:03 PM PST - 76 comments

It's like a furry forest and I want to LARP there.

"HAIRY CHESTS I WANT TO CRY ON," a Pinterest pinboard by comedian Stacey Nightmare.
posted by hermitosis at 2:00 PM PST - 57 comments

P&P, without the boring sisters

The Lizzie Bennet Diaries
posted by litnerd at 1:43 PM PST - 13 comments

Doel: Belgian ghost town turned city-wide street art gallery

Ghost town in Belgium will lose its street art when it ceases to exist. "For 700 years, Doel stood near Antwerp along the Scheldt River in Belgium. As Antwerp expanded in the 20th century, its port needed more space, and Doel quickly became a target for demolition. Trying to force residents out, the government scheduled demolitions multiple times, but were beaten by popular protests from the 1970s through the 1990s. But despite the will of the people, Doel could not be saved and in 1999, the town was officially scheduled for complete demolition. Since that time, residents have trickled out, but artists have made their way in. As more of the town became abandoned, street artists from across Europe came and began to debut their works around Doel." [more inside]
posted by filthy light thief at 1:38 PM PST - 9 comments

“It all changed after Etan"

The 33 year-old search for six-year old Etan Patz, who disappeared walking home from school for the first time, may finally be over. “ After his disappearance, Etan was the first child to appear on a milk carton. [more inside]
posted by roomthreeseventeen at 1:20 PM PST - 31 comments

Anontune

Message from Anonymous: Music has changed
posted by tr33hggr at 11:41 AM PST - 165 comments

Wait here, we need to move this tornado along

On April 14th, a series of tornados swept through Nebraska, Kansas, and Oklahoma (as discussed here in the blue). The exceptionally long lead-time for the forecast combined with a weekend date to bring a huge number of storm chasers out to the plains. In the last few days, several spectacular videos have been released, showing dramatic views from outside the tornado. Then, there's this chase team who captured a different perspective from both their in-car cam (blurry video, but includes chaser commentary -- encounter starts just past the 29 minute mark) and an on-car GoPro (clear video, no commentary, encounter starts around 7 minutes in). [more inside]
posted by penguinicity at 11:32 AM PST - 21 comments

Interactive Solar System Simulation

Watch an Interactive Simulation of the Solar System (SLYT) It's like watching God at work, and he's a software developer.
posted by kmccorm at 11:20 AM PST - 12 comments

Did cruise ship ignore stranded fishermen?

Remember those Ecuadorian fishermen who died after a month adrift, leaving only one survivor... yeah, turns out cruise ship passengers saw them, alerted the captain, he did nothing and later appears to have lied in his report.
posted by Cosine at 11:09 AM PST - 91 comments

Go long on hot saurce

The top 10 dying industries in the United States, The 10 fastest growing American industries
posted by fearfulsymmetry at 10:51 AM PST - 95 comments

To read or not to read

How to read a paper is a series by Trisha Greenhalgh in BMJ, the British Medical Journal, that explains how to critically read and apply the biomedical literature. Deciding what the paper is about. Assessing methodological quality. Statistics for the non-statistician: parts I and II. Drug trials, diagnostic and screening tests, economic analyses, systematic reviews and meta-analyses (PDF), and qualitative research (PDF).
posted by grouse at 9:47 AM PST - 14 comments

Pain cake

The National Association of Afro-Swedes calls for the resignation of Culture Minister Lena Adelsohn Roth after photos and video surfaced of this "living" cake, which was part of a celebration of World Art Day. The cake's creator talks a bit about the cake.
posted by You Should See the Other Guy at 9:30 AM PST - 168 comments

How deep does design go?

Start Ups: This is how Design works.. A guide for non-designers by designer Wells Riley. [more inside]
posted by Potomac Avenue at 9:05 AM PST - 46 comments

All the cool kids know their logical fallacies!

Your Logical Fallacy Is... complete with free downloadable infographic poster.
posted by Miko at 9:01 AM PST - 41 comments

"Best spring break ever, bro."

10 Types of Documentaries We Can Live Without
posted by IvoShandor at 8:51 AM PST - 80 comments

A circus parade passing through a cemetery

Described as a circus parade passing through a cemetery, One Ring Zero is a musical group known for its use of unusual instruments, and musical collaborations with typically non-musical people and concepts. As Smart As We Are is an album of music by ORZ, with lyrics supplied by well-known fiction writers (tracklist after the fold). More recently, One Ring Zero teamed with 'celebrity' chefs for the Recipe Project (previously), setting their favorite recipes (word for word) to music. Planets, their newest album, is "an album of new compositions to capture the splendor and complexity of our celestial neighbors." [more inside]
posted by obscurator at 8:51 AM PST - 4 comments

"the mobile social fin de siècle"

The Jig Is Up: Time to Get Past Facebook and Invent a New Future - After five years pursuing the social-local-mobile dream, we need a fresh paradigm for technology startups. "This isn't about startup incubators or policy positions. It's not about "innovation in America" or which tech blog loves startups the most. This is about how Internet technology used to feel like it was really going to change so many things about our lives. Now it has and we're all too stunned to figure out what's next. So we watch Lana Del Ray turn circles in a thousand animated gifs."
posted by flex at 8:51 AM PST - 9 comments

Whose Green? Our Green!

Having survived the winter, New England's longest surviving Occupy encampment, Occupy New Haven was finally evicted yesterday from the New Haven Green. The camp had held on where others had not because of the Green's unique history[pdf] and status as a privately held park overseen since the 17th century by a group known as "the Committee of the Proprietors of Common and Undivided Lands". The last few months have seen many twists and turns including numerous legal maneuvers, last minute reprieves, an attempt to enlist the support of the Quinnipiac tribe and finally, allegations of rape in one of the encampment's tents. In the end, only thirteen Occupiers remained for the final showdown. [more inside]
posted by Lazlo Hollyfeld at 8:02 AM PST - 78 comments

Drifting into a world of limitless dimensions

Jack Kirby’s Collages in Context
posted by Artw at 7:38 AM PST - 11 comments

Mrs Dunbar called

A study of mobile phone records shows according to Professor Robin Dunbar (of Dunbar's Number), that women drive romance, that they phone their spouses most until their daughters are old enough to have children, and that we may be heading for a renewed matriarchy.
posted by Segundus at 7:36 AM PST - 33 comments

Outer Space, man.

The wonders of space. This is a stunning black and white video taken from actual Cassini and Huygens mission footage.
posted by pjern at 7:16 AM PST - 35 comments

Your Efficient Markets at Work

How a fire in a small German town threatens to cause a worldwide car shortage. "When a fire in the small town of Marl in the west of Germany closed down an obscure chemical plant on 31 March, it barely made headlines." Now according to a recent IHS Automotive report, "shortages of the obscure component are 'likely to be serious.'"
posted by saulgoodman at 7:08 AM PST - 34 comments

There's even a how to for making a how to

Businessweek's 2nd annual How To issue is available online, with a bunch of great features including How to Take a Punch with Freddie Roach, How to Weaponize Office Supplies with Jörg Sprave, How to Work on No Sleep with Willie Geist, How to Win a Twitter Fight with MeFi's Own™ Anil Dash, How to Design a Logo with Sagi Haviv, How to Make Coffee at Home with Howard Schultz, and How to Give Money Away with MeFi's Own™ Holden Karnofsky.
posted by slogger at 7:05 AM PST - 11 comments

Vatican reprimands US nuns.

The findings of a multiyear Vatican study on US nuns have been announced: the largest and most influential group of nuns are promoting "radical feminist themes incompatible with the teachings of the Catholic Church."
posted by apparently at 6:21 AM PST - 142 comments

The King of Kings, part II

It's 1966. A young, chubby, pompadoured, shiny-suited, Freddie King (previously) steps out onto the soundstage at a Dallas PBS station for a knockoff of Shindig, evidently aimed at the local black audience, judging by the middle-aged white jive-talking host. But the backup band leader is Clarence 'Gatemouth' Brown, and there are high-school girls in Go-Go boots ready to rumble. And then, in glorious, sweating, funky, color, Freddie blows the doors off. [more inside]
posted by unSane at 6:17 AM PST - 35 comments

Lost Souls

"Take a dark journey into the forgotten, where time stands still. The paint has peeled off the walls and the only occupants are the souls of those left behind. This is the Asylum." An amazing time-lapse film exploring the ruins of an abandoned 1920s mental hospital. [more inside]
posted by quin at 6:15 AM PST - 9 comments

You Only DoubleOh One Hundred and Ninety Thrice

DoubleOh DoubleOh. (SLYT) 193 out of the 196 instances of someone saying "Double Oh" from all 23 James Bond films.
posted by robocop is bleeding at 5:28 AM PST - 32 comments

Old Bailey Productions did not create any of the audio or lyrics for this video. We produced the video as a favor.

"This masterpiece pushes the boundaries of music. We take the backseat of the car with these two ladies on their inner journey, and are shown a contemplative side of them through a series of deep and meaningful confessions." Via. Via. Via. Via. Via.
posted by sweet mister at 4:16 AM PST - 54 comments

Best Essays of the year

Byliner (prev 1,2) has released its list of 101 Spectacular Nonfiction Stories from the last year from around the web.
posted by scodger at 3:59 AM PST - 12 comments

I married adventure

Before Joy Adamson went to Africa, before Margaret Mead sailed to Samoa, before Dian Fossey was even born, a Kansas teenager named Osa Leighty married Martin Johnson. Whether dancing to jazz in Congorilla or meeting headhunters in Borneo, her life with Martin ultimately led to hours of pioneering documentary footage, books, movies and more. Her autobiography inspired a Kate Spade purse, a perfume and her marriage an entire line of clothing while her joie de vivre put her on the cover of a book on trailblazing women of history. Osa Johnson went on to become a character in a play, in a poem while her married life gave birth to a museum (or two). When Osa met Martin, she married adventure.
posted by infini at 2:59 AM PST - 4 comments

"Maybe we should call it a food swamp rather than a desert."

The food desert has been a regular topic here on MetaFilter, posts about which often highlight a particular narrative about the effects of meager food choices for poorer urban communities, negatively affecting health and choice among low income people. Though not always. Some new studies indicate the situation in the US might be more like the latter, not quite as dire as is usually asserted. [more inside]
posted by 2N2222 at 1:38 AM PST - 63 comments

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