December 11, 2006

breveCreatures

breveCreatures is a screensaver (created using the open source simulation environment breve) that simulates the evolution of locomotion.
posted by brundlefly at 9:19 PM PST - 27 comments

NerdCORE!

NerdCore for Life say what?
posted by delmoi at 7:21 PM PST - 61 comments

The wilder planet of Roland Topor

Topor et moi. Roland Topor was the graphic artist behind the beautiful Planète Sauvage (Cf. a few posts below) but his body of work also included founding the Panic Movement with fellow oddballs Jodorowsky and Arrabal, writing plays and novels (The Tenant, turned into a movie by another Paris-born celebrity of Polish extraction and amateur of bizarre, Roman Polanski), and making strange and popular TV shows for children (YouTube clips from the 80s). Except for the kids shows, most of the links are quite NSFW with abundant sex and/or violence, though in a cartoonish, disturbing, surreal, or even political way: Topor once said (YouTube documentary in French starting with his Phallunculi series) that to renounce sex was to banish oneself from mankind. Topor himself was also a familiar figure of the French cultural landscape, instantly recognisable thanks to his manic cackle (heard at the beginning of this video where he explains how to make art from random pornographic images), that he (over)used to play the madman Renfield in Herzog's Nosferatu.
posted by elgilito at 6:05 PM PST - 10 comments

The Prix Jack Trevor Story

The Jack Trevor Story Memorial Prize "is generally awarded for a work of fiction or body of work which, in the opinion of the committee, best celebrates the spirit of Jack Trevor Story. The conditions of the prize are that the money shall be spent in a week to a fortnight and the author have nothing to show for it at the end of that time." The 2006 winner of the prize is Steve Aylett.
posted by Iridic at 5:33 PM PST - 6 comments

The first knowledge village of India

Hansdehar - rural life in India.
posted by tellurian at 5:21 PM PST - 10 comments

Heckleva job, Rummy

Handling Hecklers (youtube filter - NSFW language) In the wake of the Michael Richards fiasco, many lessons have been learned. Is there a better way to handle the onslaught of loudmouths? Some do it with finesse. Others struggle. What if they actually get up on stage and try to fight you? Can they be overpowered simply by being louder and obnoxious? Sometimes they set themselves up too easily. Comedy legends sure can have their own distinctive approach. Even Clinton knew how to handle the pressure. Musicians themselves are no strangers to poor decisons. What's to say about comics who go after their own? There's also the benevolent way. Can you even blame this guy? You can always try to stay classy, but that just seems to exacerbate things. It's definitely topical enough to make skits out of. Here are a few more thrown in for good measure.
posted by Mach3avelli at 3:36 PM PST - 91 comments

What good were eyes to me? Nothing I could see could bring me joy.

Fooled By Cybermum “Like millions of teenagers, Ben Atkins spends hours on social networking websites. So he was delighted when he met his perfect girl online, she shared his love of philosophy and bass guitars, and thought he was wonderful … But the lovely Cheshakitten was actually Ben’s mother, Anne, posing as a teenager to find out more about this internet phenomenon.”
posted by Tenuki at 3:07 PM PST - 98 comments

Oy, vey iz mir gewalt!

To life. To life! L'canine. For Jewish dogs. Um, yeah. Okay.
posted by John of Michigan at 3:06 PM PST - 12 comments

Older than...

Elizabeth "Lizzie" Bolden has died at the age of 116. I can only imagine the things that she must have lived & experienced first hand.
posted by drstein at 3:02 PM PST - 29 comments

?Backwards Day!

?Let today - the eleventh day of the twelfth month - henceforth and forever be Backwards Day! ?Fun with Unicode
Via the wonderfully nerdy 74 68 65 20 64 69 67 69 74 61 6C 20 6D 65.??‭
posted by loquacious at 2:56 PM PST - 116 comments

A London Provisioner's Chronicle, 1550-1563

Henry's Machyn's sixteenth-century Chronicle was nearly destroyed in an eighteenth-century fire, but editors Richard W. Bailey, Marilyn Miller, and Colette Moore have just published a new online scholarly edition, comprising both a reconstructed text (thanks to the very posthumous assistance of John Strype) and images of all the pages. There are several other sixteenth- and seventeenth-century diaries and chronicles online, including Dana F. Sutton's edition of William Camden's Diary (in both Latin and English), J. G. Nichols' Victorian edition of the Chronicle of the Grey Friars of London, and the Earls Colne project's transcription of the diary of clergyman Ralph Josselin. (Machyn link via the very handy Textual Studies, 1500-1800.)
posted by thomas j wise at 2:32 PM PST - 4 comments

Why don't you come to your senses?

Never mind that Shatner thing, YouTube is proving that Esperanto is much hipper now. (previously)
posted by hovercraft at 2:20 PM PST - 7 comments

La Planète sauvage

La Planète sauvage - based on the novel Oms en Série by Stefan Wul, and known to the English speaking world as Fantastic Planet, is a wonderfully psychadelic animated Sci-Fi film from 1973. An international production between France and Czechoslovakia, the movie has a cult following, mostly from viewers who saw it on USA's Night Flight in the 1980's. Although it has languished in obscurity for some time, Hollywood has decided it's time for a live action remake. For those who haven't seen it, or for people who haven't seen it in twenty years, some kind soul has uploaded the entire film to Youtube. You'll never look at your pets the same way again.
posted by smoothvirus at 11:31 AM PST - 36 comments

It Was All Just a Bad Dream

Today we learn that Enron's outside law firm, Vinson & Elkins, has escaped unscathed. The Enron debacle sucked in many people, but the lawyers have so far not been held liable. But many have asked: what about the lawyers [pdf]?
posted by Falconetti at 10:54 AM PST - 23 comments

No DeLay in Response

A tribute to the 75-minute period where Tom DeLay actually received feedback from America. Tom DeLay drops unrestricted comments almost immediately on his first disastrous day as a blogger.
posted by jonp72 at 10:41 AM PST - 60 comments

Her Secret Past

Her Secret Past is a Flickr group of retro (1950's - give or take a decade) advertisements targeted at women's fears, both the common ones (hairiness/lack of tiny monkey, wrinkles) and the lesser known ones (vagina so dirty it causes you to repeatedly leave parties early). Along the same lines, but for men is His Secret Past - although if you really want to see retro advertisements targeted at men, this set of ads from May 1963's Playboy would be the perfect source.
posted by jonson at 9:33 AM PST - 47 comments

Da-Da-Da-Da-Dumm...

A clip from "Grey Gardens" on Broadway! (YouTube). The critics have been won over. Albert Maysle has commented on how the Beales might react to their portrayals. Meanwhile, a new doc, "The Beales of Grey Gardens", made from Al's previously unused footage, comes with the Criterion Collection DVD of the original. Also, previously.
posted by hermitosis at 9:33 AM PST - 19 comments

A title's pointless. Who wouldn't click on a link called that?

Architecture and the Velvet Fist of Happiness - click 'view the book" in the top left. {Flash, slight sound, NSFW}
posted by dobbs at 8:47 AM PST - 9 comments

Female Mask Site Galleries

Female Mask Site Galleries. Here you will find all the galleries that have been updated in 2005-2006. (via this thread; some images nsfw)
posted by Kraftmatic Adjustable Cheese at 8:00 AM PST - 17 comments

A futuristic instrumental classic rock fusion look at life.

Mr. Frank J. Stola (flash): a self-described professional musician who mangles any and all genres he attempts. Don't miss his take on instrumental fusion rock classical jazz, revolutionary country n western traditional, or heavy metal instrumental on CD Baby. Equally marvelous are his strange, minimal videos. And don't forget to pick up Mr. Stola's myriad products at his Cafepress store. Is he serious?
posted by zonkout at 7:42 AM PST - 10 comments

Cow 'emissions' more damaging to planet than CO2 from cars

Livestock's Long Shadow, a new UN FAO report (full report) says livestock (cows, pig, sheep, etc.) generate more CO2 than all forms of transportation (cars, planes, etc) combined, with the worlds live stock expected to double by 2050.
posted by stbalbach at 6:57 AM PST - 34 comments

It contains DHA of high-nutrition !!

Take a cyber tour of the Nong Shim factory! Yay! Warning: Portions may require ActiveX control. Includes sound, especially music, voice, and a chime every few seconds. Discontinue use if you experience any of the following: overstimulation, understimulation, rage, anguish, nausea, seizure, uncontrollable craving for shrimp crackers, or an erection lasting more than four hours.
posted by thirteenkiller at 5:52 AM PST - 11 comments

India's Outsourcing Problems

India's Outsourcing Problems One of the most controversial aspects of the global economy has been the newfound freedom of companies from physical location and the subsequent spread of outsourcing jobs. No country had embraced tech outsourcing with the passion of India. Of late, problems there are beginning to rise: engineers start a project, get a few months' experience, and then bolt for greener pastures, bringing a level of attrition that replaces entire staffs within the course of a year. Combine that with salaries in Bangalore that are rising at 12% to 14% per year and it is no surprise that companies are leaving India for a slew of emerging hot spots for IT outsourcing such as the old Soviet Bloc, China, and Vietnam. This comes as companies such as Microsoft continue to laud outsourcing and proudly proclaim that it is here to stay, and it looks as if Ho Chi Minh City will be the next Bangalore.
posted by PreacherTom at 4:31 AM PST - 19 comments

Wii + Flickr = Life 2.0

Forget the fact that the Wii may break your fancy new plasma screen TV or give you 'Wii elbow' - it just looks like bloody good fun to play.
posted by muthecow at 3:49 AM PST - 57 comments

"I'm #1 at the box-office, Sugar Tits!"

"I'm #1 at the box-office, Sugar Tits!" The mystery continues: what or who is Sugar Tits? Is it a baby pacificer? Is it a breakfast cereal? Is she an "attractive female law officer dispatched to oppress good Christian men by her masters within the international conspiracy of invisible Zionist superjews"? Maybe it's Mel's next movie?
posted by Strawman at 2:26 AM PST - 44 comments

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