April 7, 2007
Rethinking Software Look&Feel
Magic Ink - Information Software and the Graphical Interface
Réunion Erupts
The volcano Piton de la Fournaise on the island of Réunion has erupted. Réunion, 800km from Madagascar in the Indian Ocean, is technically part of the EU as an overseas département of France. The latest eruption (BBC video, requires Realplayer) of Piton de la Fournaise has resulted in some beautiful photos Top right - Voir le diaporama.
Plagiarists are stupid, throw rocks at them
Please God, make everyone die. Amen. Todd Goliath, the creator of the infamous "Boys Are Stupid, Throw Rocks At Them" t-shirts/paintings/flash games/etc. (previously x2) has been discovered to have a piece in a gallery show which is remarkably similar to this Purple Pussy cartoon by Dave Kelly (a/k/a Schmorky) of Keenspot and SA. Not only that, but he's got another character, Eve L. who bears more than a passing resemblance to Lenore, The Cute Little Dead Girl by Roman Dirge. (other examples in the main link -- a surprisingly on-topic thread for SA)
savoring the everyday
Ukiyo-e, a collection of dreamy, mostly charming, flash animations of Edo period Japanese paintings. Pictures of the floating world (everyday life) by Hokusai, Hiroshige, Utamaro. Encyclopedic list of floating world images on the web. Hokusai sketches in flash. [related]
Do the Muppet Thing
Do The Right Thing (youtube) performed by little people muppet figures, set in Sesame Street.
Like they need help looking stupid
Create political cartoons for your own enjoyment or to share with others. Quickcomic allows you to easily create, rate, and post your own insane scenarios using the characters of US and world politics. Hours of blog fodder await!
Music with Roots in the Aether
"These are my friends. I love their music. They are among the most important people in my life. The portrait is shattered because I could not make it whole." If you're bored this weekend, check out Robert Ashley's Music with Roots in the Aether. Each episode features a "landscape" (unusually-staged informal discussion) with a contemporary American composer, followed by a one-hour performance of his or her work. Subjects include the recently discussed Alvin Lucier, Pauline Oliveros, and Philip Glass. More on Ashley from NewMusicBox and Ubu.
Berliner Trance
Berliner Trance. A 1993 documentary tracing the origins of modern trance music in East Berlin. Featuring interviews with many of the biggest names in trance, including a very young Paul Van Dyk, now currently ranked as the #1 DJ in the world.
At firrst you think it's an April fools joke: Cheney '08
The New York Sun endorses Dick Cheney for President. "For all the talk about potential candidates who haven't entered the 2008 presidential race ... the one that who would bring the most to the race is Vice President Cheney."
That's an ... interesting ... notion.
Did it matter, like really matter?
Have you ever stopped to listen? I do, when it's not bad, always. I've missed trains, I've been late. I've given all the money I had on me.
I've been reminded of - X -.
I wish I had been there; I fucking love that Chaconne. It's like the perfect prayer.
The burrito tunnel.
"As the 30th anniversary of the Alameda-Weehawken burrito tunnel approaches, it’s worth taking a look at the remarkable sequence of events that takes place between the time we click 'deliver' on the burrito.nyc.us.gov website and the moment that our hot El Farolito burrito arrives in the lunchroom with its satisfying pneumatic hiss."
"I would love to see it banished off the face of the Earth."
Bisphenol A: this extremely common chemical leaches out of food packaging and plastics, and was long considered safe. But a number of recent studies link it to developmental problems and cancer in lab animals in doses far lower than the current regulatory limit. Canada and the United States both review the scientific data available in the coming months, but critics already worry the process will be corrupted by industry. Industry, of course, insists that BPA is safe.
There comes a time in every young woman's life...
Golden Ratios
Did the roof of the Pantheon influence Copernicus? Are the planets of the solar system aligned in accordance with a nearly-forgotten hypothesis known (unfairly) as Bode's Law? A fascinating wide-ranging discussion on BLDGBLOG with Walter Murch, the visionary editor and sound designer for such films as The Conversation, Apocalypse Now, The English Patient, THX1138, and many others. [Murch's film work has previously been discussed here and here.]
Fighting PTSD the only way they know how.
Behind Enemy Lines Liberal use of this narcotic produced with high voltage found to reduce the affects of PTSD, in coalition and British forces in particular.
My Patent Is More Famous Than Your Patent
Google Patent Search can be a gold mine for a historical trivia. See the design for bucket seats patented by Steve McQueen, the secret communication system co-created by Hedy Lamarr that paved the way for the frequency hopping used by modern cell phones, the disposable infant garment made by Jamie Lee Curtis, the interactive music generation system made by Thomas Dolby of "She Blinded Me With Science" fame, and other unusual celebrity patents made by inventors that range from Abraham Lincoln to Zeppo Marx.
Mamma mia. She exists!
For many, many years, my very favorite bad singer on this Earth has been Wing. I heart her, and I am actually not alone. Over the last 4 years, the endearingly earnest and impressively prolific Wing has gained international fame and made more money on her recordings than a majority of far, far more talented musicians. Yes, she is an acquired taste & many of you will have a different experience, but whenever I listen to her I smile from ear to ear -- both of which have delicate little streams blood trickling from them at the time. And so now I have the honor of presenting to you without further ado (drum roll please) our special guest entertainer for the day, the woman herself... Wing LIVE in concert. **Waves a lighter in the air**
It's excruciatingly painful being green
Kermit has not done well since the death of Jim Henson...He's covered some sad songs , poured his heart out on myspace and picked up a new addiction.
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