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How much would you pay to have an "Accelerationist" speak at your next event? You'll have to call and find out. Same with The “Wantivator”, Phil Steffen. Some people are up front about how much they want to speak at an event but if you want Deepak Chopra, you'll have to call his people. Seems like everyone from the very famous to the not-so-famous has an audience.
posted by KevinSkomsvold at 11:49 PM PST - 12 comments

In the past several years, some prominent Western scholars of South Asian religions have been subjected to extraordinary criticism and unprecedented attacks because of their apparent disrespect for Hindu culture. Whether another instance of post-colonial academic politics or a troubling sign of the rising impact of Hindutva on academic freedom, it isn't just the study of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam that is becoming polarized.
posted by felix betachat at 10:25 PM PST - 24 comments

The Gibbs Humdinga is the big brother to the Aquada, previously discussed here. I'm not sure why dg felt the Aquada's practicality as either a boat or a car leaves quite a bit to be desired, but if size was the big problem, the Humdinga addresses that.
posted by Doohickie at 7:07 PM PST - 4 comments

Fraud of the Rings LOTR cartoon satire...My favorite.
posted by konolia at 4:53 PM PST - 30 comments

You probably knew that Silly Putty is a non-Newtonian fluid, and that Faraday waves make cornstarch and water do creepy things, but did you know that your washing machine probably has magnetorheological fluid in it? Yes indeed, there are fun and interesting applications for ferrofluids.
posted by Specklet at 4:29 PM PST - 20 comments

"Writing a whodunit may sound like an odd thing to do when you are running an insurgency"... Nevertheless, Subcomandante Insurgente Marcos, the mysterious, offbeat leader of the Zapatistas, and Paco Ignacio Taibo II, a Mexican crime novelist, are coauthoring a mystery novel live--alternating chapters each week--in the pages of the Mexican newspaper, La Jornada. So far, they have finished chapters one, two and three (pdf) of Muertos Incomodos, (The Awkward Dead). Is there a precedent for this experiment? I love this sort of thing but, unfortunately, my Spanish is insufficient. Any Spanish speakers care to review?
posted by boo at 12:41 PM PST - 13 comments

Moebius, I Love You. Even if you will only let me get 384 points playing your game.
posted by jonah at 12:22 PM PST - 52 comments

Friday Fun Might as well be Friday, really, especially in Texas where we're shutting down the state due to snow. Here's a fun, free online game where you can make penguins dive all day long without getting tired (you OR them). Highly reminiscent of playing too hard for too long doing the same thing over and over when you were a kid, except you don't have to wait for your turn. Or come home in wet, cold clothes crying. You're Everypenguin.
posted by sparky at 11:22 AM PST - 22 comments

Opportunists and Self-Described Victims vs. Any Available Deep Pockets For the stupid and the dead, there's the Darwin Awards. For the opportunistic and the alive, there's the Stella Awards. The Stella Awards were inspired by Stella Liebeck. In 1992, Stella, then 79, spilled a cup of McDonald's coffee onto her lap, burning herself. A New Mexico jury awarded her $2.9 million in damages. And of course it wasn't that simple, but the brief descriptions of the various cases make for entertaining reading. Serious legal geeks can have full case reports mailed to them, or check out and post to the site forum.
posted by orange swan at 11:12 AM PST - 47 comments

The BioMotion Walker [flash] demonstrates that biologically and socially relevant information about a person is conveyed in biological motion patterns. It allows you to manipulate a number of parameters controlling the characteristics of human walking. You can interactively change biological properties, personality traits and emotional expression of a point-light walker. You can even help out their research here.
posted by sciurus at 11:12 AM PST - 12 comments

Gandini Juggling. Starts out slowly, but gets much more complicated. Like lights and shiny things? Need Drama, Romance? Stop breaking my balls. (Make sure to visit their sister site: The Racketeers.)
posted by quasistoic at 10:23 AM PST - 10 comments

These People believe you can accumulate a life force known as Orgone Energy by sitting in a box.
posted by Devils Rancher at 10:00 AM PST - 49 comments

Moveon ads aren't the only things the networks won't allow, Miller has had beer ads pulled after Anheuser-Busch complained that the ads "went beyond the substantiation and communicated taste superiority and/or preference." So the ads were pulled. Oddly enough, AB is the company consumers demanded stop their current ad campaign.
posted by drezdn at 9:48 AM PST - 17 comments

His name is Leroy Bailey, and he was once briefly famous. The legacy of war for one Vietnam veteran. Part of an excellent series in the Chicago Sun-Times, previous article linked here.
posted by Armitage Shanks at 9:39 AM PST - 5 comments

The Graphing Calculator Story. Amazing and very amusing article about the conception of a piece of software included with every Macintosh. Made at Apple... by volunteers.
Q: Do you work here? A: No.
Q: You mean you're a contractor? A: Actually, no..
Q: But then who's paying you? A: No one..
Q: How do you live? A: I live simply..
Q: (Incredulously) What are you doing here?!
posted by kika at 9:22 AM PST - 34 comments

Affirmative Action hurts Black Students? Richard Sander, a professor of law at UCLA, examined empirical data on black law students' graduation rates and BAR results, and found that affirmative action reduces the number of total black lawyers. He claims that there is a mismatch-effect between the school a student matriculates in and one that he is qualified to attend. Dissenting opinion. Sander's remarks at Volokh. Hat Tip: Kevin Drum.
posted by nads at 9:07 AM PST - 35 comments

Mosul attack - heart-warming? I never figured I'd hear heart-warming in relation to the aftermath of a missile attack, but I heard the quote on the radio yesterday, and it just seems wrong. "It was a heart-warming experience to see the wounded soldiers caring for those who were more severely wounded." said Brig.-Gen. Ham.
posted by jim-of-oz at 9:05 AM PST - 42 comments

Flexgrid. A flexible LED display developed to be imbedded on a dress for the Milan Triennial 2005.
posted by Hands of Manos at 8:00 AM PST - 27 comments

Bush's answer to global poverty: let 'em starve. The administration has defaulted on $100 million in the last two months alone promised to charities aimed at helping improverished families become self-sufficient, so that organizations like Save the Children and Catholic Relief Services are cutting programs. Instead, increasingly scarce funds are being earmarked for emergencies only, like the one in Darfur. The result: five to seven million people have less to eat this Christmas.
posted by digaman at 7:42 AM PST - 73 comments

Teaching bad science is not something only creationist wingnuts do. The redoubtable Bill Beaty sets us straight. (thanks, Laen)
posted by flabdablet at 7:26 AM PST - 35 comments

James Lileks vs. James Wolcott. That link is Wolcott's blog entry about this whole "Merry Christmas" vs. "Happy Holidays" thing. This is Lileks' response. Can't wait for Round 2!
posted by braun_richard at 6:51 AM PST - 121 comments

Giant robots in the backyard. An ambitious young Alaskan is trying to create his own mecha suit. Be sure to look at the pictures. The GE Hardiman project only managed to have one working arm, here's hoping Owens has more luck with his robot suit.
posted by riffola at 6:43 AM PST - 20 comments

This was not a lucky crime, this was a well-organised crime A gang stole at least £20m ($40 m) in cash from a Belfast bank yesterday. Many suspect the involvement of one of the paramilitary organizations which collectively made off with over £43m during 22,000 armed robberies during the Troubles using the tiger kidnap. Only one problem: most of the cash was in Northern Irish notes. Which sometimes are not even accepted in the rest of the UK.
posted by fshgrl at 6:34 AM PST - 22 comments

Josh Greeham argues on Slate that we're in need of the Sarcasm point. In this new internet world of smilies and bad grammar there seems to be a need for new ways to express oursleves. So much so, that people are even patenting the questioning comma. Even the humorists are getting in on the act.. And whatever you do, don't tell interrobang.
posted by seanyboy at 4:19 AM PST - 48 comments

There are only two ways to describe the US army plans for Falluja: either "American gulag" for those who enjoy Stalinist imagery, or "concentration camp" for those who prefer the Nazi version of the same. But maybe we should just call it a plain old police (city-)state, just like it's feared US is becoming.
posted by acrobat at 3:46 AM PST - 43 comments

The Maybe Logic Academy is an online learning center and community whose mission is to "create a learning and community environment where alternative models, philosophies and methodologies can be discussed and explored at length with the guidance of an expert in the field." Instructors include Alan Clements, Douglas Rushkoff, R.U. Sirius, and Robert Anton Wilson. The Maybe Quarterly is the Academy's student-produced journal of twenty-first century metaphysical illuminism. The folks behind the Academy also offer some nice online libraries for the whole family. [Via Vortex Egg and LVX23.]
posted by homunculus at 12:49 AM PST - 12 comments

Santa Saves Time and Money by simply skipping over the Blue States. SNL still somehow relevant. TV Funhouse still on the good side of that damn shark.
posted by wah at 12:35 AM PST - 26 comments