November 23, 2009
Meet the new Aol. It's not your mom's AOL. Wait, maybe it is.
Remember AOL Time Warner, the poster child of dotcom corporate hubris? It's still around, if only for a few more days. On December 9, the current media megacorp will fraction off former computer network behemoth AOL as a web portal firm and online brand. And what will that brand be? It will be a stock photo superimposed with a white Helvetica "Aol." And, well, that's it. [more inside]
For me, it was an away game.
Jaap Blonk, Namesake of the blonkorgan, performer, sound poet.
AaaaaAAAøøøøøøøøøAEEEeeeiiiIIIIIiiiüüüüüüüüüüieeeeooooOUUUUUooooooo. [more inside]
Inflammatory
"We were concerned that the study would raise a lot of controversy and be misused," Pardo said. "We were right." Some practitioners treat autistic children with the anti-inflammatory intravenous immunoglobulin, citing a study by Carlos Pardo, et al. showing inflammation in the brains of deceased autistic patients. Pardo: "modulators of immune reactions (e.g. intravenous immunoglobulins, IVIG) WOULD NOT HAVE a significant effect." Others, following the work of Simon Baron-Cohen on autism and the male brain, treat autistic children with testosterone inhibitors, a prospect which Baron-Cohen says "fills me with horror." Another anti-inflammatory treatment, hyperbaric therapy, is supported by one recent clinical trial, but looks bad in another. Side effects include horrible death by fire.
(via the Chicago Tribune)
Pepsi Review
The 27 Best (Non-Super Bowl) Commercials of the 2000s: Balls [Bravia] - Birthday [Got Milk?] - Bubble Boy [Volkswagen] - Bus Station [Starburst] - Carousel [Phillips] - Cog [Honda] - Dangerously Low [Levi's] - Diorama [Halo 3] - Evolution [Dove] - Freestyle [Nike] - Gorilla [Cadbury] - Grrr [Honda] - Hello Tomorrow [Adidas] - Lamp [IKEA] - Like [Volkswagen] - Mountain [Playstation] - Noitulove [Guinness] - Odyssey [Levi's] - Rabbit [Comcast] - Sheet Metal [Saturn] - Stork [Monster] - Swear Jar [Bud Light] - Tag [Nike] - Tea Partay [Smirnoff] - Touch [Skittles] - Wedding Toast [Budweiser] - Yes We Can [Dipdive]. Part of Adweek's "Best of the 2000s" competition, which also includes rundowns of the 22 Best Super Bowl Spots and the 15 Best Print Campaigns of the last decade, among many other voting categories.
Clickin' it old-school
The newly launched Atari.com includes the Atari Arcade, wherein you may play Adventure, Asteroids, Battlezone, Crystal Castles, Lunar Lander and Yars' Revenge in your browser.
Back to the Future: Crysis Edition
What do you do if you're a fan of the Back to the Future films and you know how to make mods in the PC game Crysis? Why, you make an awesome Back to the Future mod, of course!
35 years of shouting into the abyss
It's been 35 years this month since the Arecibo message was sent from the Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico, when the 1,679 digit message was sent once, towards Messier 13. More messages have been sent sky-wards since, in attempts for communication with extra terrestrial intelligence (CETI), with the (ill-fated) Team Encounter was instrumental in Cosmic Call 1999 and 2003 (more details: 58 page PDF). The more complex three-section Teen-Age Message was sent out in 2001, including a musical piece entitled 1st Theremin Concert for Aliens. In 2008 NASA sent the Beatles into space, transmitting "Across the Universe" for the 40th anniversary of the song's recording, the 45th anniversary of the Deep Space Network (DSN), and the 50th anniversary of NASA (prev). If you felt left out of the sending of signals, Talk To Aliens offered a "deep space e-mail service" and a certificate of interstellar broadcast (prev), but no more. Now Sent Forever offers a long-lasting alternative to traditional greeting cards, or simply the worst tie-in for Apollo 11. [more inside]
Gay History - Online Documentaries
A treasure trove of gay and lesbian documentaries to watch online. Our course begins with a brief overview. (9m05s) [more inside]
Put a Trial Lawyer Out of Business
A noted food contamination trial lawyer lobbies for legislation to enhance food safety with, among other things, a T-shirt encouraging Congress to put him out of business. William Marler, who has successfully litigated a number of food contamination cases involving children sickened by E. coli, salmonella and botulism, is supporting the passage of Senate legislation which would tighten food safety inspection procedures. Similar legislation passed the House earlier this year. Not everyone likes it -- and among the groups concerned are some local organic farmers and consumers.
If This Van's a-Rockin'
He looks just like him.
Matthew Roberts, a 41-year-old DJ who lives in Los Angeles, said the shock of discovering his father sent him into depression.
36 Arguments
Online courses on Western history
Dr. E.L. Skip Knox teaches history at Boise State University. His online courses have dedicated websites with his lectures and plenty of supporting material. There are five, History of Western Civilization, covering the wide sweep of European history from ancient Athens to Copernicus, The Crusades, Europe in the Late Middle Ages, focusing on the the Renaissance, and Europe in the Age of Reformation. You can also go on a Virtual Pilgrimage to the Holy Land in medieval times. Dr. Knox has written extensively about online teaching including a lecture called The Rewards of Teaching On-Line where he explains his methods and shares his experiences.
How to Start Reading Comics
Just in time for your Black Friday wish list needs, MeFi's own mightygodking has written a guide on how to start reading comics. Perfect for total comics newbies or people* who have really only ever read webcomics and seen superhero movies, the guide is a list of twenty volumes of comics that would be good for introducing people to the medium, and why they are his choices. [more inside]
All you're sad or merry in, / You must tell the Bees.
Telling the Bees is a blog devoted to (obsessed with?) bees. Bee lore. Bees in 15th century art. Dogs who look like bees. Bee cakes. Bees and indie rock. Bees and comedy. Bees and Sylvia Plath. Bees and bees and bees. [more inside]
Draw it as you see it.
Joe Sacco is a political journalist. His medium is the comic. He gave a talk last march at the
Walker Art Centre where he also answers questions. Talk starts 07.50 after introductions. (wiki previous 1, II ) [more inside]
I'm a Rough Rider / Filled Up With Christ's Love
the Hyperedited Ronald McDonald Japanese Symphony Orchestra
Ladies and gentlemen, It is my pleasure to present to you the Hyperedited Ronald McDonald Japanese Symphony Orchestra. (QLYT).
1. The Sabre Dance
2. Turkish March
3. The Marriage of Figaro
4. Beethoven's 5th Symphony
1. The Sabre Dance
2. Turkish March
3. The Marriage of Figaro
4. Beethoven's 5th Symphony
Faces on places are aces.
CSI affiliated cemetery accused of desecrating in excess of 500 graves.
This has not been a good year for SCI, the worlds largest funeral services corporation. Now allegations have surfaced that groundskeepers for Eden Memorial Park were secretly instructed to desecrate graves (possibly in excess of 500 individual bodies) in order to make room. [more inside]
Nantucket Sleigh Ride
Dave Lamoureux’s kayak, named Fortitude, must be the only one in Massachusetts registered as a motor vessel. That’s because a powerboat registration is required to get a permit to fish for tuna here.... His most recent catch, on Nov. 5, was a 157-pound bluefin, a record tuna for an unassisted kayak fisherman, and a near record over all, topped only by a 183-pound halibut caught by Howard McKim, an Alaskan, in 2004.
Changing your change
Turn a silver coin into a ring with a hammer, an anvil (or something similar), and a drill.
Maziar Bahari
118 Days, 12 Hours, 54 Minutes — On June 21, reporter Maziar Bahari was rousted out of bed and taken to Tehran's notorious Evin prison—accused of being a spy for the CIA, MI6, Mossad…and Newsweek magazine. This is the story of his captivity. CBS 60 Minutes feature. [more inside]
Good stuff on Wikipedia
A Belgian man diagnosed as being in a coma for 23 years was actually conscious the whole time.
"I shall never forget the day when they discovered what was truly wrong with me – it was my second birth. Rom Houbens was simply paralysed and had no way to let doctors caring for him what he was suffering.
Only the re-evaluation of his case at the University of Liege brought to light that Houben was only paralysed all these years. Hi-tech scans showed his brain was still functioning almost completely normally.
What would Jesus eat?
Jesus ate primarily natural foods in their natural states - lots of vegetables, especially beans and lentils. He would have eaten wheat bread, fruit, drunk a lot of water and also red wine. And he would only eat meat on special occasions, maybe once a month. The Jesus Diet [more inside]
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