May 17, 2012
"The beauty of [science fiction] is—the whole point of it is—that humans are the same."
Each morning at 9am for the next two weeks, (Mefi's Own) scifi and fantasy author John Scalzi will be chatting with musician Jonathan Coulton about one of his science fiction songs -- a different song each morning, -- in a daily podcast over at Tor.com called Journey to Planet JoCo. Series index. On May 29th, they'll be premiering a brand new, previously unheard Coulton song.
Reading speed reading.
How Fast Do You Read? Compare yourself with national averages. Compare yourself with Anne Jones, a Champion Speed Reader who consumed the last Harry Potter book in 47 minutes, about 1 page every 3.75 seconds.
A men's centre, because women have te women's centre (at university).
Are gender-based safe spaces needed? Students at a Canadian university (SFU) want a men's centre, and though there is some controversy, it seems to be rolling towards approval. [more inside]
Like relationship Ask Metafilter questions, only shorter
Yo, Should I Dump This Asshole? From the creators of Yo, Is This Racist? (previously), a tumblr that gives succinct relationship advice. [more inside]
Uncovering YA book covers
Previously, WSJ asked if YA novels today are too dark- with abuse, violence and depravity. A YA writer took it literally and researched the color distribution and demographic of young adult novels.
Kazakhstan and Beyond!
The themes of "The Marvel Super Heroes"
When Captain America throws his mighty shield, all those who chose to oppose his shield must yield. Doc Bruce Banner, pelted by gamma rays, turns into The Hulk; ain't he unglamorous? Tony Stark makes you feel; he's a cool exec with a heart of steel. Cross the Rainbow Bridge of Asgard, where the booming heavens roar, you'll behold in breathless wonder the god of Thunder, mighty Thor. Stronger than a whale, he can swim anywhere; he can breathe underwater and go flying through the air. [more inside]
Eclipse May 20, late afternoon in the Western US:
Where will you be on May 20th/21st? There will be an annular solar eclipse late afternoon that will be visible in the Western US:
"On May 21, 2012, an annular solar eclipse begins over southeast China and passes over Japan. When the eclipse crosses the International Date Line, the local date becomes May 20. The eclipse then enters the California/Oregon border, passes in the late afternoon over Nevada, Utah, Arizona, a corner of Colorado, New Mexico, and ends at sunset in Texas."
As a warning, please don't scorch your eyeballs! There are guidelines on safe viewing.
We have officially run out of pigeonholes
Formerly Hasidic black rapper Y-Love has come out of the closet and is now probably the only person who could beat Sammy Davis Jr.'s famous quip.
What's he like? In time, in time…
In 1985, Don't Stand Me Down, the third studio album by Dexy's Midnight Runners was released. In a rare interview, front man Kevin Rowland and violinist Helen O'Hara talk about the making of what is now considered Dexy's lost masterpiece. The record was not an immediate success. [more inside]
This is crazy
Ben Howard performing a cover of Call me Maybe by Carly Rae Jespen on BBC Radio 1's Live Lounge. [more inside]
Libel protections for peer reviewed journals
Britain is considering legislation to protect scientific publications in peer reviewed journals from libel lawsuits, such as the Chiropractic Association's lawsuit against Simon Singh. [more inside]
I will not make any more boring art
A Brief History of John Baldessari The Godfather of conceptual art. Narrated by Tom Waits. (SLYT)
"...a reading that can only be described as sensual."
Gilbert Gottfried reads Fifty Shades of Grey (NSFW audio)
RIP Doug Dillard
Doug Dillard was a pioneer of country rock with his band The Dillards, with his brother Rodney, who were perhaps the first to plug bluegrass instruments into amplifiers back in the early sixties. He died today at the age of 75. [more inside]
Perhaps that should read "enter the ranks of the unemployed"
$374,244 or 7,200 aspirant screenwriters?
It's Nicholl Fellowship season again! This year, with a May 1st deadline, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences accepted a record 7,197 entries -- an estimated 647,730 to 863,640 pages that Academy Judges will have to read and evaluate by October. This is a record reflecting not only a high number of aspirant screenwriters, but over 1,000 submissions from outside the territorial United States.
Previously, here and here. Does anybody here have any Nicholl Fellowship tales? Any wins? Any multi-decade efforts to get their story out there?
UK Police to practice their own form of "phone hacking"
Met Police to extract suspects' mobile phone data [BBC] The Metropolitan Police, covering Greater London, are set to expand their search powers by making it standard practice to swipe contact details, call logs, and texts off of the mobile phones of anyone in custody - and retain that data - regardless of whether the suspect ends up charged with a crime or not. Clearly not everyone is over the moon about this, seeing it as the latest sign of the steady erosion of communications privacy in the UK and a potential breach of human rights law.
"Once I checked the shadows and the statues, I had a lovely time."
"Hello! I'm the Doctor Puppet! I travel to places with my companion who takes pictures of me." Doctor Who as a puppet, traveling around NYC, getting his photo taken.
An app to prevent violence before it happens.
Circle of 6, one of the winners of the HHS / White House "Apps Against Abuse" challenge. [more inside]
Last Dance
Donna Summer, the queen of disco, dies at 63. Once upon a time there was a girl who loved to love you. Sometimes she was a bad girl, but she always worked hard for the money, and she was always hot stuff. Although once she left her cake out in the rain.
Now it's time to dim all the lights, and have one last dance, for the queen has gone to the disco in the sky. [more inside]
"no longer Gage"
UCLA neuroscientists have reconstructed Phineas Gage's head injury and mapped out how his brain was affected by the tamping rod that went through it. You can read the full scientific article here. Phineas Gage has become one of the most famous cases in the history of science. A railroad worker who survived having an iron rod go through his brain with subsequent changes in personality. Malcolm McMillan of Deakin University, Australia, has the great Phineas Gage Information Page, which includes his story and a page on unanswered questions. [Phineas Gage previously on MeFi]
Music Won
These days, Steve Stajich is a columnist for the Santa Monica Mirror. He's done some standup, some theater, and some TV.
In the Denver summer of 1978, he recorded an album.
The story of Ron Paul’s presidential candidacy as told by his supporters in Time Magazine's comments section
The story of Ron Paul’s presidential candidacy as told by his supporters in Time Magazine's comments section. Extra-specially meta thanks to an update which posts comments from underneath the same post.
"The dentist man got me"
ReachOut Healthcare America, a dental management services company, “built its business model on the premise that low-income parents often don’t have time or transportation to take children to the dentist. So mobile teams pack equipment in large cases, load up a minivan, head to schools and set up in gyms, libraries or classrooms.” Services are billed to Medicaid. ReachOut and other dental management services companies are increasingly backed by private equity firms. What could possibly go wrong? [more inside]
RIP
SEOgrandmaster2203 goes legit
Flabkiller Acai Berry Extract Helps You Lose! Make big money from home with Envelope Elf! iPads for just $39.99 at Deals R Us! [more inside]
The changing nature of photography
Ambition dies Hard
Bill Bollinger was an important post minimalist sculpture in the late 1960s and early 1970s. One of a generation of people who changed what sculpture meant. [more inside]
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