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Back in February (mefi), things looked grim for the ISEE-3/ICE probe. A lot can change in 3 1/2 months. [more inside]
posted by dendrochronologizer at 11:08 PM PST - 20 comments

Julia Collins of Kenilworth, Ill, is now the winningest woman in Jeopardy! history, the third winningest non-tournament player, and she isn't done. She'll be playing her 20th game tomorrow night, wherein followers hope she'll break the $400,000 mark on her steady climb. You can catch up on her run at YouTube.

One of the champions whose records she has now surpassed is Arthur Chu, who has also made big waves this week, speaking out on misogyny in geek culture, in response to the murders in Isla Vista. Writes Chu: The overall problem is one of a culture where instead of seeing women as, you know, people, protagonists of their own stories just like we are of ours, men are taught that women are things to 'earn,' to 'win.'

The show's history and the iconic host's banter seem to reveal that in terms of gender, Jeopardy! is not, as etymology would have it, "an evenly divided game," but could this be the year things change?
posted by Ambrosia Voyeur at 10:32 PM PST - 65 comments

If our criminal-justice system had to pay a fair wage for labor that inmates provide, it would collapse
posted by MoonOrb at 10:06 PM PST - 44 comments

Fredbird, Louie and Rampage are missing. St. Louis' only hope is #OfficerJalisha [more inside]
posted by Nat "King" Cole Porter Wagoner at 9:57 PM PST - 3 comments

At silent-reading parties, guests bring books, stay as long as they want, and aren't allowed to speak to one another.
posted by paleyellowwithorange at 9:10 PM PST - 52 comments

Morgan Freeman finally opens the b-o-o-o-o-ox. [Warning: Contains spoiler for the movie Se7en]
posted by Atom Eyes at 8:35 PM PST - 21 comments

The psychology of Soylent and the prison of first-world food choices

People are born with neither the ability to cook nor compile; both are taught, and chastising even an adult for not knowing how to cook a healthy meal makes about as much sense as chastising an adult for not knowing how to code or how to compile an application from source. Each of those two different ridicules demonstrates an identical lack of empathy and an accompanying equally stunning sense of privilege that you should probably check immediately.

posted by the man of twists and turns at 6:45 PM PST - 397 comments

University Study on Sexism In BBC’s Doctor Who (Infographic). It examines and compares episodes from the first seven seasons of the revival through the departure of the Ponds. The major metrics are the Bechdel Test and companion speaking time. [more inside]
posted by ZeusHumms at 5:29 PM PST - 92 comments

Tonight at 7pm PDT, after years in development, SpaceX will reveal a new manned version of the Dragon spacecraft. Elon Musk said that Dragon 2 will look like "a real alien spaceship", leading to speculation what it will looks like, including this artists interpretation at ExtremeTech. According to Musk, Dragon 2 will have larger windows for astronauts to see outside, and "landing legs that pop out of the bottom" and "side-mounted thruster pods" to allow for propulsive landings on land.
posted by stbalbach at 5:07 PM PST - 127 comments

Hidden Paintings Revealed at Ancient Temple of Angkor Wat. "New, digitally enhanced images reveal detailed murals at Angkor Wat showing elephants, deities, boats, orchestral ensembles and people riding horses — all invisible to the naked eye." [Via]
posted by homunculus at 4:16 PM PST - 7 comments

MagiCATastrophe, in which a birthday party magician discovers his secret power.
posted by desjardins at 3:46 PM PST - 28 comments

Friedrich Nietzsche, famously a full professor at the tender age of 24, was in a good position to develop an acute sensitivity to the university as machine: "The student listens to lectures . . . Very often the student writes at the same time he listens to lectures. These are the moments when he dangles from the umbilical cord of the university. The teacher . . . is cut off by a monumental divide from the consciousness of his students . . . A speaking mouth and many, many ears, with half as many writing hands: that is the external apparatus of the academy; set in motion, that is the educational machinery of the university." [more inside]
posted by whyareyouatriangle at 3:36 PM PST - 13 comments

Recently, News Corp announced they are acquiring Harlequin, the foremost publisher of steamy romance novels. Here's a taste of the new and improved product, courtesy of Bill Maher.
posted by Daddy-O at 12:27 PM PST - 45 comments

A couple of weeks ago, Uruguay unveiled marijuana regulation details... but it's easier written than done. The most famous cannabis activist in Latin America, Alicia Castilla, critizises the registries and points out several unknowns like supply. "I don't know how they'll come up with 22 tonnes of marijuana for November”.
posted by LetsKa at 12:15 PM PST - 7 comments

There are few professions more confusing, or misrepresented, than high school teaching. Education is a ubiquitous experience — public or private, we are all taught by someone, somewhere — and yet it remains misunderstood. I have now begun to write about teaching because I profoundly respect this vocation. I refuse to allow politicians to corner the rhetorical market on this subject. There are stories that need to be told.

I hesitate to call what follows "advice," though it might seem as such. There are so many varied experiences during a single teaching day that I am much more comfortable thinking in epigrammatic terms. I have a lot more to say about teaching, and certain reflections will need to wait. But, for now, here are 55 thoughts about teaching English. Nick Ripatrazone, at The Millions (previously).
posted by davidjmcgee at 12:11 PM PST - 27 comments

Wanted: Explainer explainer. Our venture-funded vertical-driven content prosumer phablet platisher is rapidly growing and we need to add some Ninja Rockstar Content Associates A.S.A.P. See below for a list of open positions!
posted by Diablevert at 10:59 AM PST - 50 comments

The strange, tragic story of the Brothers Muse. The sideshow called them Eko and Iko, cannibal savages from Borneo, sheep-headed men, ambassadors from Mars, highlighting their signature white dreadlocks in every poster. In reality, they were George and Willie Muse, taken from their parents in 1899 in rural Roanoke, Virginia by bounty hunters working for sideshow producers fascinated by their albinism. [more inside]
posted by Gucky at 10:40 AM PST - 8 comments

Springpad to shut down. The venerable productivity app that served as a digital filing cabinet and personal organizer, has announced on its blog it will close its doors effective June 25. [more inside]
posted by zooropa at 9:02 AM PST - 123 comments

Simply put, it is a fact that people eat Pokémon.
posted by Ghostride The Whip at 8:51 AM PST - 30 comments

Two years after a mentally ill Florida prisoner, Darren Rainey, was found dead, locked in a scalding-hot shower, the autopsy remains incomplete and no charges have been filed. He had been scheduled to be released the following month from his sentence for cocaine possession. The unit is under increased scrutiny because of the recent death of another prisoner, Damion Foster, during a cell extraction.
posted by anotherpanacea at 8:09 AM PST - 49 comments

Golem are a klezmer-punk band from NYC, whose third album Tanz is has just come out. Their current label, Discos Corasón, has a number of live songs and their first music video: "Freydele". And here's a great rendition of their song "This Is Yiddish!" You can also catch an interview with a couple of band members and read an interview with the multilingual vocalist, accordionist and band founder Annette Ezekiel Kogan.
posted by griphus at 7:17 AM PST - 8 comments

Randy Olson is conducting an analysis of chess since 1850. What's the advantage of playing white? Are games getting longer? What openings have fallen in and out of vogue? Are chess players becoming less focused on capturing pieces?
posted by Chrysostom at 6:25 AM PST - 26 comments

Stickman's Tips for Having a Table at a Comic Book Convention is actually a pretty good primer for having a booth or table at any convention, ever. [more inside]
posted by Shepherd at 6:14 AM PST - 23 comments

The Film Society of Lincoln Center is currently presenting the first part of a near-complete retrospective of the films of the great German director Rainer Werner Fassbinder, featuring 17(!) films he made between 1969 and 1974. (Part 2, featuring the films made between 1975 and his death in 1982, will take place in November 2014.) Collected below are some recent writings on RWF and these early films, posted by the Film Society and elsewhere online. [more inside]
posted by Awkward Philip at 5:29 AM PST - 7 comments

Yamada Gouki (山田剛毅), aka goking, has been illustrating creatures from the Cthulhu Mythos and similar horrors in an ukiyo-e style: Cyaegha, Igolnaku, The Thing That Plays with Fate, Cthonian, Byakhee, and would like to wish you a very Merry Fishmas from Innsmouth. You can find more illustrations on his Twitter or his blog, 2D6. [more inside]
posted by 23 at 4:56 AM PST - 11 comments

It's hard to imagine a cover of Michael Jackson's hit song Billie Jean that could any be more satisfying than this one by the Bottle Boys, who do it on, guess what? Bottles.
posted by flapjax at midnite at 4:36 AM PST - 24 comments

HELLO TO ALL YOU SATURNIANS, THIS CHANNEL IS DEDICATED TO JAZZ, TO SUN RA AND HIS JAZZ SPACE MUSIC. SPREAD THE WORD, PLEASE, BECAUSE THE SATURNIAN CULTURE ALWAYS HAS TO REMAINS ALIVE INSIDE US, SHARE MY VIDEOS, VOTE AND COMMENT. I HOPE YOU'LL ENJOY IT ALL.

It's Ascension Day in the Netherlands and what better way to celebrate a four day weekend than by watching a great slab of Afrofuturist jazz extravaganza, courtesy of Youtube channel Sun Ra Soul: the complete 1974 Sun Ra movie Space is the Place?
posted by MartinWisse at 2:52 AM PST - 11 comments