July 3, 2011
There is no "I"
Meditation, explained by Sam Harris. (slyt)
India and the Temple of Boom
A court-mandated opening of some secret chambers at the Sree Padmanabhaswami temple in Kerala - family temple of the ruling royals of the former Kingdom of Travancore - has led to the discovery of a treasure estimated to be worth billions of dollars.
The essays of Kenneth Rexroth
The poet and translator Kenneth Rexroth, one of the central figures in the San Francisco Renaissance, only wrote prose for money. But he did it very well. (way previously) [more inside]
Rodney Mullen:Yoda :: Kilian Martin:Luke
Marlon Brando's Lost Musical Innovation
Marlon Brando. Yeah, sure, he could act. Very talented guy. But, hey, he also invented a radically innovative tuning system for conga drums. Played the congas, too. Yup. That's right.
Dripread
Most of us know and love Dailylit. But, if you want to have more current book snippets emailed to you every day, you can upload your own ebooks to Dripread. [more inside]
Julian Assange and Slavoj Žižek
In this conversation, moderated by Democracy Now!'s Amy Goodman, WikiLeaks editor-in-chief Julian Assange and renowned Slovenian philosopher Slavoj Žižek explore the transparency-advocacy site's three major leaks: the Iraq War Logs, the Guantánamo Bay files and Cablegate. [Two ways to watch: continuous 'live' streaming at The Nation, or a SLYT of the entire 2 hour event...at 42:20 Zizek officially denies the rumors that he's dating Lady Gaga]
Some Approaches to the Question of Chewing Gum Litter.
Telepathic Spinning Cat Form
They Might Be Giants is conducting a video contest for the first single from their upcoming 15th studio album. [more inside]
Die, Danger, Die, Die, Kill!
Die, Danger, Die, Die, Kill! is a blog dedicated to 'world pop cinema', and covers everything from Russian science fiction to Italian superhero films.
Should we stay or should we go?
In After Earth Ben Austen looks at "Why, Where, How, and When We Might Leave Our Home Planet" while Jared Daniel asks, if given a chance to found the first human colony on Mars, would you go? Maybe we could turn it into a home away from home or perhaps we should terraform Earth first.
Brave New Beige
Ever wonder how many variants of jumpsuits there can be? Do mock turtlenecks belong in space? Why is brown the color of respecting alien cultures? Fashion It So takes on the couture of the 24th century one Next Generation episode at a time.
I liked Aragorn before he was king.
The Broship of the Ring -- The Lord of the Rings envisioned as a buddy/road trip hipster epic. From illustrator Noelle Stevenson.
How to get ahead as a hotdog eater...
From 57 cowbrains in 15 minutes to Ess-a-bagel and hanging out with NYC chefs and models...the 'where is he now' of Takeru Kobayashi.
Online Dating
They’d met in the psychology department at U.C.L.A., where Gonzaga was conducting a study on married couples. Setrakian, who had a master’s in clinical psychology, was the project coördinator. To test their procedures, they needed a man and a woman to impersonate a married couple for multiple sessions. Gonzaga and Setrakian became the impersonators, and fell in love.
An article about online dating from the New Yorker.
How to Peel Hard-boiled Eggs without Peeling
The Most Uncomfortable Half Hour of Television Ever
This Is Your Life was not always about famous people being surprised with nostalgic reminisces and old friends. Early in the series, the spotlighted guests included ordinary people who had lived though extraordinary circumstances: most controversially, a survivor of Hiroshima, brought on stage in front of a live audience, to be face-to-face with the man who had dropped the atomic bomb on his city. Further background on the meeting.
The show did not end its daring there, bringing in a Holocaust survivor in 1953, and ambushing Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy in a hotel room for their only appearance on television together.
Semi-related: a remarkable interview with Johnny Lee Clary, a former KKK leader, regarding his interaction with (and eventual peaceful defeat by) Reverend Wade Watts. [more inside]
Dr Frank Baxter & Bell Labs Films
Dr. Frank C. Baxter has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He played Dr. Research in the Bell Labs Science Series, beginning in 1956 with Our Mr. Sun. [more inside]
Here There Be Dayton Dragons
Who holds the longest home sell-out streak in professional sports? The Red Sox have the longest streak in major league baseball, just under 700 games (and counting.) The Washington Redskins have sold out 348 straight home games, a streak dating back to 1968. But the longest streak belongs to the Portland Trail Blazers, who sold out 814 straight home dates between 1977 and 1995.
Yesterday, they were joined by the Dayton Dragons of the Class A Midwest League, whose victory over the Bowling Green Hot Rods marked their 814th straight sellout. The Dragons, despite playing in an economically troubled mid-sized city, have sold out every home game the team has ever played, drawing over 8,000 fans a game, better than most AAA clubs. Dragons manager Delino DeShields was last seen on MetaFilter as a hitting coach in the independent Pioneer League. General manager Gary Mayse explains how the Dragons have found success in hard economic times.
The History of Cartography
Free PDFs of The History of Cartography, vol. 1 and 2, from University of Chicago Press.
Toxteth 30 Years On
30 years ago today, following the arrest of a motorcyclist, rioting erupted in Toxteth, Liverpool 8, fueled by the mistreatment of the black community by police. The Guardian looks at the causes and consequences of the riots. [more inside]
Crystalline chimes.
Behold, the Gameleste! Custom built per Björk's concept & specifications, playable like a celeste, but designed with the heart of a gamelan, completely programmable using a standard MIDI input, capable of playing pieces that a standard human simply couldn't perform. Featured prominently on "Crystalline", the first track available from the upcoming 'Biophilia'.
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