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Between 1902 and 1905 representatives of five tribes in the Indian Territory of the southern United States lobbied for statehood. The tribes proposed creating a tribal state called Sequoyah (hi res image here). At the constiutional conference in 1905 a constitution was drafted and later forwarded to the federal Congress and President, but despite a successful ratification campaign, the effort died on the vine. The Indian Territory and Oklahoma were instead admitted to the Union two years later as one state.
posted by salishsea at 7:35 PM PST - 19 comments

The world is one step closer to felix's trickle-charging story-telling bear.
posted by djb at 6:45 PM PST - 13 comments

Dene Nation leaders blindsided at National Assembly by speaker invited to speak about a women's walk to raise awareness about violence against women. She took the podium and criticized local leaders for voicing support of a man convicted of sexual assaultt. The national chief's response? Claim she was an imposter not invited to speak.
posted by surplus at 6:29 PM PST - 16 comments

Chocolate Rain. From Bach to Tupac, you can always expect the unexpected from Tay Zonday. Mr. Zonday has experienced some fame as of late, thanks to shock jocks Opie & Anthony. Tay is quite the original artist and is, shockingly, unsigned. So, if you know any A&R guys that are looking for new talent, please let them know! My personal favorite is his karaoke cover of Rick Astley's "Never Gonna Give You Up". Although, the Darth Vader remix of Chocolate Rain is pretty friggin' sweet, too.
posted by digiFramph at 2:43 PM PST - 58 comments

Two news helicopters met in a deadly midair collision today while covering a police chase on live television (video, tragic but not graphic).
posted by hermitosis at 2:41 PM PST - 107 comments

Imogen Heap at her best, recording Just for Now on the spot using a sampler. Not exactly a recent video, but I couldn't help listening to it over, and over, and over again. single-link youtube post, but it's so worth it.
posted by limon at 2:33 PM PST - 64 comments

"Bill Maher: The Decider" [Parts 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8, YouTube]. Maher at the top of his game.
posted by McLir at 2:28 PM PST - 87 comments

No Reservations marks the second foodie inspired movie out in the past couple months, after the charming Ratatouille. Slate pegs the animated movie as getting things right, with help from the well renowned Thomas Keller at the French Laundry. But at home and in professional kitchens, things aren't always so pristine. Is this foodie culture better for us, or just part of a greater problem?
posted by craven_morhead at 1:44 PM PST - 54 comments

Blog gives healthy Fisking to the worst sportswriting around, with a focus on Joe Morgan, perhaps the dumbest baseball analyst ever. (previous oblique MeFi reference.)
posted by klangklangston at 1:25 PM PST - 26 comments

Behold the Uniqlock. (flash, sfw)
posted by boo_radley at 12:38 PM PST - 65 comments

I consider myself to be one of the luckiest people alive. I get to travel the globe catching snakes with my lovely wife. [Warning: Frames Ahead. Also, snake venom LD-50 information.]
posted by dersins at 12:05 PM PST - 6 comments

"Thanks to tremendous progress achieved by the General Packet Radio System (GPRS), the wireless communication protocol, it is now possible for Africans to send articles and images (still and moving) about events taking place in their countries without using a computer and without having internet connection. Under those circumstances, the bigger the number of people expressing their opinions through that technology, the stronger becomes democracy, and the more valuable is the contribution to good governance efforts in Africa" - Voices of Africa, Mobile stories and videos from Africa. Quote above from article Mobile Reporters in Africa.
posted by infini at 11:37 AM PST - 11 comments

Mutatoes is a photographic collection by artist Uli Westphal of non-standard fruits and vegetables found at Berlin groceries and farmers' markets. The distorted, the discolored, the bumpy, the stumpy, the coiled and the conjoined all get star treatment. (Flash site)
posted by hydrophonic at 11:24 AM PST - 21 comments

[Friday Flash Fun] Gravity Pods, a physics-based shooter/puzzle where you use special gravity pods and repellers to alter the course of a projectile and avoid barriers to hit a target.
posted by aerotive at 10:41 AM PST - 25 comments

"Van Lingle Mungo" written in 1969 by the nostalgic, baseball-loving jazz composer David Frishberg [wiki]. [Rhapsody link to the whole song.] Frishberg on meeting the ex-Dodgers hurler after whom he named his tune: “Backstage, Mungo asked me when he would see some remuneration for the song. When he heard my explanation about how there was unlikely to be any remuneration for anyone connected with the song, least of all him, he was genuinely downcast. ‘But it’s my name,’ he said. I told him, ‘The only way you can get even is to go home and write a song called Dave Frishberg.’" Further elaboration: The Baseball Analysts on "Van Lingle Mungo."
posted by kosem at 9:48 AM PST - 11 comments

Fighter jets, overturned tractor trailers, WW II bombers, cars parked on walls, and more of The Strangest Sights in Google Earth
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 7:08 AM PST - 53 comments

Jumping spiders use their legs to communicate courtship interests to potential mates. The minuscule impacts of spider legs tapping against the ground surface are detected by nearby spiders. This "drumming" cadence signals the spider's reproductive interests. The female detects the low frequency vibrations through her legs. She responds by allowing the male to mount her. Absolutely amazing video here. The sound is the best part, so make sure it's on.
posted by lazaruslong at 7:02 AM PST - 53 comments

Do you prefer to travel light or be prepared for anything? The Flickr pools for what's in your bag? and The Items We Carry reveal all. More prevalent than I would have expected: Burt's Bees, multitools, carabiner keychains.
posted by emmastory at 6:53 AM PST - 53 comments

Three shots to the forehead from an M-16 from 10 yards away. -- New documents surface from the investigation into Pat Tillman's death.
posted by empath at 6:21 AM PST - 167 comments

Google goes to the dark side. Meet Blackle.
posted by nevercalm at 6:04 AM PST - 69 comments

It's Friday, time to relax and look at pretty pictures [maybe nsfw in the banner ads]
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 5:19 AM PST - 20 comments

I don't know what other people’s first thoughts may be on Monday mornings; but mine, as the jabber of my husband’s radio crawls into my dreams, is “Has anyone died today?” So began a week-long diary by The Economist's obituaries editor, Ann Wroe, which she completed today.
posted by Kattullus at 4:34 AM PST - 9 comments

They distort, we reply. Fed up with Fox News? Time to fight back.
posted by grahamwell at 4:10 AM PST - 81 comments

So you finally broke down bought that fancy 60" HDTV. Now, you need a fancy HDMI cable for the finest quality picture. BestBuy (et al) promote Monster almost exclusively. But they can cost up to $250. Meanwhile, Monoprice (and others) can be had for about 1/10th the price.

Gizmodo just finished their detailed three part breakdown (including using test machines at Monster's own HQ) and comes to the conclusion that "The only people who should buy Monster cable are people who light cigars with Benjamins."
posted by revmitcz at 3:04 AM PST - 29 comments

Harptallica began when a music student decided to arrange one Metallica song, "Fade to Black," for two harps. Somehow this turned into 10 Metallica Songs and a CD, titled "Harptallica."
posted by domdom at 1:38 AM PST - 10 comments

From Team Tiger Mountain comes 28 Day Slater, a series where every Febuary Mario Lopez of Saved By The Bell fame turns into his character from the show, A.C. Slater.
posted by The Esteemed Doctor Bunsen Honeydew at 12:37 AM PST - 16 comments

The return of shoe-gazing.
posted by meech at 12:14 AM PST - 35 comments