August 14, 2011
Slow rate out of Brooklyn
8 Hours in Brooklyn - Fantastic little compilation of slo-mo footage taken over the course of eight hours in BKLN. Extra good watched in fullscreen.
Reasons to be Cheerful, Part 4
"Incompatibility between our big aspirations and the reality of life is bound to disappoint unless we learn to be a bit more gloomy, says Alain de Botton."
Up With People
Before there were yuppies, there were uppies—the term Up With People members use to refer to themselves. Most Americans over the age of 35 are vaguely familiar with Up With People, as its cast members have sung to more than 20 million people worldwide, and at the height of the ensemble’s fame it provided the halftime entertainment at four Super Bowls (1976, 1980, ’82, ’86). But many are unaware of the group’s cultish utopian ideology, its political connectedness, and how it was funded by corporate America, part of a deliberate propaganda effort to discredit liberal counterculture in the 1960s and ’70s. In the documentary Smile ’Til It Hurts: The Up With People Story (Storey Vision), writer-director-producer Lee Storey provides a thorough, balanced look at the organization’s history, demonstrating “what can happen when ideology, money and groupthink converge to co-opt youthful idealism.” [more inside]
tiny origami
Tiny origami on fingertips. Artist: Anja Markiewicz. Her Flickr set and nano-origami set. More teeny tiny origami by Mui-Ling Teh. Perhaps inspired by MeFite Specklet's Tiny Animals on Fingers. [more inside]
Yahoooooo RIP
The original Yahoo, Bollywood actor (and internet buff) Shammi Kapoor passed away after illness in Mumbai on 14th August 2011. The actor belonged to the Indian film industry's famous family of actors which included his father, Prithviraj, and brothers Raj and Shashi Kapoor. (His first wife Geeta Bali was a superstar in her own right)
One of the most popular stars of his generation, also known as the "Elvis Presley of India" he starred in hits like Junglee, An Evening in Paris, Chinatown and Kashmir Ki Kali.
Hidden treasure
Now For Sale
The Code Challenge - a maths treasure hunt by the BBC
yusi yese yari no neya neyana nia - the cassowary of Yusi Yese, I do not eat it
Sung Tales from the Papua New Guinea Highlands is a free download (PDF, Online and epub) from Australian National University E Press. To accompany the illustrated book are some mp3 format audio files. [via]
You Can Make Video Games
The Super Friendship Club is an effort by Stephen
“Increpare” Lavelle
(previously), Terry
Cavvvvvvanagh (previously, with
Stephen Lavelle), Jonas Kyratzes (previously, with
Terry Cavanagh), Jasper Byrne (previously),
Ian Snyder (previously), and
several others, to provide another place
for game developers to make
games. It aims to be a
focussed alternative to TIGSource
Forums,
Indiegamer, and others by
avoiding more general discussion boards and topics.
Every other month, thematic pageants are held where entrants are encouraged to make a game and share their progress. The first pageant, “Justice,” was held in July and yielded these (including [previously]).
Every other month, thematic pageants are held where entrants are encouraged to make a game and share their progress. The first pageant, “Justice,” was held in July and yielded these (including [previously]).
The funny bubble?
A record crowd of nearly 2 million people attend the 2011 Just for Laughs comedy festival in Montreal. A brand new 300-400 seat comedy club opens in Washington, DC. Nine R-rated comedies released this summer. Bridesmaids becomes Judd Apatow's highest-grossing movie. The Hangover and The Hangover Part 2 now rank third and fourth, domestically, as the top-grossing R-rated movies of all-time. Marc Maron's WTF podcast repackaged for public radio distribution. Showtime orders another Green Room/WTF type show for 2011. The CW is shopping for sitcoms. Whitney Cummings signs development deals with CBS and NBC. Peak comedy or sign that we're laughing more than ever as we face end times?
"Happy Christmas, Mr. F."
You're looking happily deranged.
Did "The Adventures of Pete & Pete" Invent the Hipster? This blog says so*. The AV Club loves it unironically. But so do the professional comedians at Splitsider and the sci-fi geeks at Tor.com. And the show definitely seems to have some influence on some young folk**. (Recently discussed as part of Rhaomi's epic Nickelodeon post)
* BIG disclaimer: the blog is on MTV's site, same corporate parent who is currently rerunning the show on TeenNick's '90s block, so there is some Pepsi Blue involved - or Krebsi Blue
** Yes, it's real, it shows up in later pictures on her tumblr.
* BIG disclaimer: the blog is on MTV's site, same corporate parent who is currently rerunning the show on TeenNick's '90s block, so there is some Pepsi Blue involved - or Krebsi Blue
** Yes, it's real, it shows up in later pictures on her tumblr.
A Grand Adventure
When Richard Feynman was a young boy his father told him of the remote land of Tannu Tuva, igniting an obsession that would remain with him for the rest of his life. The Last Journey of a Genius chronicles Feynman’s attempts to get to the country at the geographic center of Asia, all stymied by the Iron Curtain, although he did correspond with some of its citizens and was a fan of its distinctive music and stamps. A visa for Tuva finally arrived days after his death.
Most would suggest that the story ends there, but not so: Feynman’s friend Ralph Leighton eventually made it, and formed the Friends of Tuva; later, Feyman’s daughter Michelle made the trip her father planned but never completed, an emotional journey recorded by the Russian service of the BBC [MP3]. [more inside]
Most would suggest that the story ends there, but not so: Feynman’s friend Ralph Leighton eventually made it, and formed the Friends of Tuva; later, Feyman’s daughter Michelle made the trip her father planned but never completed, an emotional journey recorded by the Russian service of the BBC [MP3]. [more inside]
Man is least himself when he talks in his own person. Give him a mask, and he will tell you the truth
Style Like U features an exhaustive video archive of people talking about their clothes and history and what personal style means to them and the power of self transformation. [more inside]
Chinese flip-flops for your viewing pleasure
Chinese-English Ambigrams [Previously] [Wikipedia]
David Moser and William James (Wm Jas) Tychonievich
David Moser and William James (Wm Jas) Tychonievich
"You can't reach for the stars at this point."
Generation Vexed: Young Americans rein in their dreams. 'Amid so much economic uncertainty, many are rethinking career plans, putting off marriage and avoiding the stock market like the plague.' 'Fewer than half of Americans believe that the current generation will have a better life than the last, according to a Gallup poll this spring. It was the most pessimistic showing for that barometer in nearly three decades. Another poll, of Americans ages 18 to 29, found that three-quarters of them expect to delay a major life change or purchase because of economic factors.' [more inside]
A hungry heart to regulate their breathing
In July 1969, just two days prior to the launch of Apollo 11, six intrepid aquanauts climbed into a submarine built in the mountains of Switzerland, slipped beneath the waves near Palm Beach, Florida, and switched off their motors. Thirty-one days later, they surfaced about 300 miles from Halifax, Nova Scotia, having drifted 1444 miles in the Grumman/Piccard research submersible PX-15 Ben Franklin. [more inside]
To be fair, the desk is pretty small.
Since 2008, NPR's All Songs Considered has been doing the Tiny Desk Concert series in which they invite a musician or band or very large group to come and play a song behind the desk of the show's host, Bob Bollen, with the video camera running. The result can be intimate, absurd, raucous and just plain enjoyable. A browseable archive of all 150+ shows is here. [more inside]
Sadly, the game is not about the robo-platypus you see on startup.
Tanooky Tracks is a cute game wherein you use riddles to help you find all the Tanookies (whatever those are) hidden around your house. It's a neat little take on the standard escape-the-room fare.
Talent
"There won't be blood ... if we can get some tape."
Estradasphere may be on permanent hiatus, but the party can't be stopped with their 23-minute version of Hunger Strike (NSFQuiet) [more inside]
Counterterrorism Czar Richard Clarke Speculates on a CIA 9/11 Cover-Up
Double or Nothing: 9/11 Counterterrorism Czar Richard Clarke Speculates That the CIA Tried and Failed to Recruit the Hijackers, and Then Engaged in a Cover-Up. Admitting that he has no proof, he nonetheless alleges that CIA Director George Tenet and others concealed their knowledge that the suspected Al-Qaeda members were inside the country, which in turn prevented the FBI and other agencies from thwarting the 9/11 attack. Tenet et al. have responded to this charge via a prepared statement.
Good for the arabs, but not good for us
Louis Comfort Tiffany
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