July 8, 2011
Robert Altman's "H.E.A.L.T.H."
HealtH (1980) [part 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10] was the film which ended Robert Altman’s relationship with Twentieth Century Fox, the studio for whom he had made M*A*S*H. ... During the editing of the film Altman’s main supporter, Alan Ladd Jr., left the studio and release was shelved. Altman distributed the film himself to the festival circuit. ... But it has never been released on VHS, DVD or BluRay and thus remains one of the least seen of Altman’s ouvre. This is unfortunate as it is a very entertaining film, even if it falls short of its ambitions as a political satire. Ronald Reagan disagreed - calling it "the world's worst movie".
It's SOHOt
On July 5th the SOlar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) captured video of a comet, known as a sungrazer, in route to collide with our star. SOHO is equipped with an occluding coronograph that blocks direct sunlight and reveals the corona, but also prevents direct study of the terminal impact of sungrazers. But on July 6th, with the help of the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO), astronomers were able to observe the comet (slyt) streaking in front of the surface of the sun for the first time in history. It likely disintegrated before impact due to extreme heat and radiation.
babies find their own bliss
Babies laughing at being sprayed with water | babysitter kitteh | baby loves Bon Jovi| heavy metal lullaby | Oh baby...President Obama. [more inside]
On the failures of Canadian media and government
Why I Quit My Job Kai Nagata on why he just quit his job as CTV's Quebec City bureau chief at age 24: a critique of Canadian government and media.
Discover surprising correlations
Have you ever tried to raise seamonkeys? 54 percent of atheists think people on a date should split the costs, compared with 29 percent of people in general. In general, 62 percent of people like spicy food. But among those who think flag burning should be illegal, 78 percent like spicy food. 61 percent of people who filter their tap water prefer credit cards over debit cards, compared with 43 percent of people in general.
Some Nice Background Music
The Illuminated Mixtapes — a running series of playlists for streaming, with hand illustrated covers for each one. Some nice background music while enjoying your MeFi.
How to Fix Horror
Jason Zinoman, author of the newly-published Shock Value, a study of horror films from the late 1960s/early 1970s, presents a four-part essay in which he diagnoses the ills of the modern horror film and presents a few solutions. (1 2 3 4) [more inside]
What the hay was that about?
Flash Friday: My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic - Story of the Blanks. A retro-themed game mixing sweetness with...uh, something unexpected. Suffice it to say, Applebloom and Twilight Sparkle will be in for a surprise. After all, it's not as if Zecora didn't try to tell them...via
Deep space. The silence of the void. Shhh.
NOON, 22ND CENTURY. The research vessel Pegasus is getting ready for liftoff from a spaceport near Moscow. Its small crew of three comprises interplanetary zoologist Dr. Seleznev, his adventurous nine-year-old daughter Alisa, and the terminally pessimistic Captain Zeleny. As they search for rare animal specimens to expand the Moscow zoo's collection, they will discover which of the ferocious tigerat's two tails is longer, save a planet of robots from a paralyzing epidemic, and deliver a modestly sized birthday cake. [more inside]
Tantalizing hints of the world beyond the virtual
Languages of the World (Wide Web) — Google researchers graph cross-language links on the web, and "see a surprisingly clear map of Europe and Asia"
Yao Ming Retires
There are precious few 7-footers that can turn into a jump hook while chewing gum at the same time, much less make a living out of it on the pro level. Yet, there Yao was. And he would have been there, even if he was 6 inches shorter than his 7-6 frame. Maybe if it weren't for those extra 6 inches, he and his Rockets would have played into the conference finals last spring.
Yao Ming Retires from the NBA. [more inside]
Dr. Rhythm will see you now
On the Road to Damascus
Bill Drummond, best known as co-founder of the KLF, writes about his slow infatuation with damsons.
But where did the German newspapers come from?
Hidden Tunnels, Bugs, and Bigamy: A Strange and True D.C. Story: "Reports indicated that the tunnels were long and extensive – that they may have reached as far as Rock Creek Park. Some electric lighting was discovered inside. For days, wild theories abounded – was it a Confederate soldier hideout? A stop on the Underground Railroad? A liquor depot for bootleggers? A counterfeiter’s lair? Or maybe a secret laboratory for 'Dr. Otto von Golph’s' experiments?
None of the above." [more inside]
None of the above." [more inside]
"A modern variation of trompe l'oeil"
Artist François Abelanet has transformed the courtyard in front of Paris' City Hall into "a new masterpiece of Land Art," on display until July 15. Who To Believe? is a giant, living anamorphosis -- a three-dimensional optical illusion that requires the viewer to stand at a specific vantage point to truly appreciate the work. [more inside]
"We Don't Care If You Are A Member of the Gorillaz. Let's See Some ID."
What Do You Do When Your Only Online Identity is a Pseudonym? In a move reminiscent of recent Facebook purges, a well-known Second Life user (whose only online presence is pseudonymous) finds his new Google+ account deleted, allegedly for not being a real person. Whether this move is directly related to the limited-beta status of Google+ or not, questions remain for those who have been 'unpersoned' by Facebook and hopeful that Google's laissez-faire attitude toward personal identification would make G+ a friendlier environment - particularly given Google's encouragement - as recently as February of this year - to "be who you want to be" when using Google services.
"It's like, okay, I could spend thirteen cents less on a mop..."
Comedian Louis CK on the Opie and Anthony radio show discussing consumers and commercialism:
(part 1) (part 2) (part 3). [more inside]
People Staring at Computers
The US Secret Service has raided the home of an artist who collected images from webcams in a New York Apple store. The tumblr is still up, as is a explanation of the project by the artist at F.A.T.
Bloggers against type
Maggie McNeil is a semi-retired "honest courtesan" who recently countered Ashton Kutcher's "sex slavery" claims (previously) with some statistics and facts. Bobbi Starr is a professional concert oboist, nationally ranked swimmer, and works in some of the hardest porn available. She was recently featured on the (highly recommended) BBC Radio Assignment series. Primary links are obviously NSFW; BobbiStarr.com also has potential trigger warnings.
Corgi wants kibble
I GET KNOCKED DOWN
They Might Be Giants cover Chumbawamba’s "Tubthumping," with help from the Onion A/V Club team. An episode from The Onion's A/V Undercover Project, (Previously) in which bands take turns covering a popular song from a master list. Last year, 25 bands covered 25 songs in the A/V offices. (Click "View All Episodes" to see the complete list below the video) To date, there are 26 episodes in 2011.
You are looking at a Titan Fluorite skull
You are looking at a Titan Fluorite skull. The skull is 16.9 inches long, from front to back. We specially saved a large piece of high quality fluorite for caving this titan skull, and were all amazed by its beauty when all the carving and polishing were done. A site with remarkable focus and clarity of purpose.
Eww. Girls.
P-Tree
Unable to prevent revellers urinating against their trees, Roskilde Festival in Denmark installed tree-mounted urinals by Dutch designers Aandeboom. Video here. (via).
123-year-old recording of Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star, recited it with feeling and expression
The Phonograph Doll was the first attempt at making a talking doll, invented by Thomas Edison. The doll utilized a miniature phonograph to talk, and was possibly the first audio recordings for commercial purposes. An example of the (now 123 year-old) talking doll was found in 1967 in Edison's New Jersey workshop, which is now a National Historic Park and museum. Recently, the warped metal cylinder was optically scanned and re-created, providing a 12-second clip of the oldest known recording of a woman's voice. [more inside]
Texas Rangers Fan Dies After Fall
Texas Rangers fan Shannon Stone dies following a 20-foot fall at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington, Texas while trying to catch a foul ball. Stone's 6-year-old son was in attendance and witnessed the fall. The death comes months after another ballpark fatality at Coors Field in Denver. (VIDEO).
Final American Space Shuttle Launch Scheduled for Today
The Space Shuttle Atlantis, STS-135, is scheduled to lift off this morning from Kennedy Space Center. The time was originally scheduled for 11:26 AM EDT, but that has been
pushed back, despite "no technical concerns and... weather is a 'go'." Astronauts aboard are Commander Chris Ferguson, Pilot Doug Hurley, and Mission Specialists Sandy Magnus and Rex Walheim.
Watch live coverage, with some archival footage, on NASA's Ustream or on NASA.gov. NASA has provided countdown highlights of the day to get you up to speed.
Read NASA's feed on Twitter. At the time of this post's writing, the countdown clock is on a scheduled hold with 9 minutes to go.
Previously, STS-134, on the Blue.
"Even as I left Florida, far enough, far enough, wasn't far enough..."
Sylvia Londono, a real estate agent and mother of two, says her condo, which she bought for $450,000 in 2007, is now worth $150,000. She has never moved in, she says, put off by the stench that rises from the site and a nearby sewage treatment plant on rainy days. “It has been the worst experience ever,” says Londono
Welcome to Biscayne Landing! You can learn a lot about our sprawling development by reading these informational "articles" (all internally written). Just please don't read this one (source of above quote). Mmmk, thanks! [more inside]
Welcome to Biscayne Landing! You can learn a lot about our sprawling development by reading these informational "articles" (all internally written). Just please don't read this one (source of above quote). Mmmk, thanks! [more inside]
Likes: Cats
Whisky and Oujia Boards
Terminus is a (no longer) weekly science fiction/horror single-panel webcomic by Dan White, presented by comics blog Mindless Ones (previously). One strip has even been spun off into a comic.
Son of Strelka, Son of God
Superstar Ice Hockey
Red Wing's defenceman Mike Commodore recently tweeted that he is considering changing his jersey number to 64. Deadspin has picked up the story, hinting at a possible grass-roots effort to get Mike to "do the right thing."
I put my trust in the brush. I let the brush do what it wants to do.
"Gatsby without greatness"
Roger Ebert has discovered the Macmillan Reader's Edition of The Great Gatsby and he hates it: "This is an obscenity." Macmillan Reader's Editions are geared to ESL students. Ebert thinks that's a really bad idea: "Why not have ESL learners begin with Young Adult novels? Why not write books with a simplified vocabulary? Why eviscerate Fitzgerald?" [more inside]
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