February 21, 2016
Would you like sex chat Y/N beep boop
Sex bots don't even have to be that good to do their job....Their sole purpose is to get the dater to want to chat more. And a pent-up dude online is the easiest mark. As acclaimed AI researcher Bruce Wilcox puts it, "Many people online want to talk about sex. With chat bots, they don't require a lot of convincing."--Rolling Stone on Online Dating's Sex Bot Con Job
We have a minority for every occasion.
Rent-A-Minority is a revolutionary new service designed for those oh-shit moments where you've realized your award show, corporate brochure, conference panel is entirely composed of white men.
RIP (Rest In Pot) Renato Bialetti
There is surely no doubt that many, many coffee lovers here at Metafilter have used the classic Bialetti stove top espresso pot throughout the years. Heck, 200 million of them have been sold worldwide, including sales to, oh, I'd guess about 1 million Mefiers? So I think it's fitting that we honor the passing of Renato Bialetti, the businessman who brought the iconic appliance to the masses, and whose ashes have been placed, appropriately enough, in a replica of one of his famous pots. But let's also remember and pay our respects to Renato's papa Alfonso Bialetti who set the whole thing up in the first place, and who commissioned illustrator Paolo "Paul" Campani to create the little image of the mustachioed man (Renato himself!) who graces every Bialetti Moka pot. Mille grazie signori Bialetti!
this is not 100% serious
Code Words For “Gay” In Classic Films &
Code Words For Lesbianism In Classic Films
by Mallory Ortberg
Code Words For Lesbianism In Classic Films
by Mallory Ortberg
The Many Uses of Charcoal
In Otter News...
'Unauthorised trousers' kill an otter at the Calgary Zoo (more proof that pants are evil). On the otter hand, police in Newport, Shropshire, UK. responded to a report of an injured otter on the side of the road, and found the “otter” was a fake fur collar detached from a coat. What they did next will make you think "THAT's a Twitter meme". [more inside]
Update: the bus exploded
New York Times' Frugal Traveler columnist Lucas Peterson was frugal travelin' on a Megabus from Chicago to Milwaukee (average fare $10) today when the coach burst into flames. He livetweeted the entire ordeal. [more inside]
Ooh ah, up the RA!
With the upcoming centenary of the Irish 1916 Easter Rising, Limerick's own dole-queue Dadaists the Rubberbandits (previously here , here , and here) present their Guide to 1916. If you're Irish you'll find it hilarious, if you have the misfortune not to be Irish, you'll learn all you need to know about the Rising. And also hopefully find it hilarious.
Investigative reporting in Moab UT
Jim Stiles at the Zephyr does a thorough job reporting on a small group of people dismantling small town governments in the Rocky Moutnain west. Are Rebecca Davidson and crew agents of change bringing small town 20th century bureaucracies into 21st century reality?
Or are they neocons dismantling “big government” from within one small town at a time?
Or they just conmen snowing ignorant/greedy city councils?
Story long and well researched and still in progress.
Catfilter: Living on a Purrayer
Place your cat under the protection of the Cat Goddess, Bastet! If your cat needs a little extra protection, the San Francisco Cat Museum will add it to its prayer list to Bastet (Goddess of Warfare and protectress of felines). [more inside]
Why Do We Teach Girls That It's Cute to Be Scared?
First, roll for strength, dexterity and continence
AD&DRP: Actually, this is your grandmother's AD&D.
Winter Is Trumping
Combine the violent arrogance of barbarian royality with US politics and you have... Winter Is Trumping.
Should 'adjustment' be the goal?
In a 'sick' society, sanity is relative - "Is it good to be 'well-adjusted' to rapacious capitalism and consumerism? What defines 'mental health' (or illness) in such a culture?" Is Humanity Getting Better?[1,2] (via)
The Sexy, Holy Saga of Vanity
The Sexy, Holy Saga of Vanity: Prince’s Muse Who Found God: Vanity, aka Denise Matthews, passed away this week. She led a fascinating life, from inspiring the legendary musician Prince to becoming born again. [more inside]
by Joseph E. Stiglitz
Every society has to answer for its morgue
CSI: Dixie — a digital history project of coroners' inquests from South Carolina during the 1800s. [more inside]
Can a Historical Novel Also Be Serious Literature?
Children of the Century: For writers of historical fiction, fact fades and feeling persists. by Alexander Chee [New Republic] [more inside]
Thanks, Lemon
In which Hank Green muses on the loss of his greyhound Lemon, as the camera remains fixed on his feet. [slyt]
They shall not pass.
One hundred years ago today began the terrible battle of Verdun. The German strategy called not so much for territorial conquest as for simply killing as many Frenchmen as possible, to "bleed France white". The name of the plan was Operation Gericht, as in judgement or, grimmer still, the place of execution. Up to nearly one million casualties resulted.
The battle was the most bloody and destructive of World War One up until that point. It would last for the rest of 1916, continuous fighting lasting for more than 300 days. [more inside]
The battle was the most bloody and destructive of World War One up until that point. It would last for the rest of 1916, continuous fighting lasting for more than 300 days. [more inside]
The voice of the sea speaks to the soul
The Perimeter Photographer Quintin Lake is walking 10,000 miles round the British coast, clockwise in sections starting from St Paul's Cathedral, posting a picture a day. [more inside]
Cult classic
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