Tone Matrix.
posted to MetaFilter by slater at 12:14 PM on April 5, 2009 (33 comments)

In September of 2008, two Austrians traveled 13,000km by rail from Vienna to Pyongyang - without asking permission and going through the official Koran travel agency.
posted to MetaFilter by dunkadunc at 8:56 AM on April 5, 2009 (35 comments)

An epic blog post on the evolution of the architecture of Megacity-One, the futuristic comic-book home of Judge Dredd, by Matt Brooker, showing influence of artists such as Carlso Esquerra, Mike McMahon and Ian Gibson over the years. Judge Dredds cover appearances on 2000ad from 1977 onwards (when each Prog cost 8p), and plenty other images from the world of Judge Dredd. As for that movie...
posted to MetaFilter by Artw at 5:38 PM on April 4, 2009 (23 comments)

The Lost Tribes of New York City
posted to MetaFilter by miss lynnster at 10:29 AM on April 4, 2009 (28 comments)

What is a lipogram? It's a book or short work of fiction that omits a particular scriptural symbol, commonly a vocalic sign, as a stylistic ploy to amplify a motif, or simply as a stimulating bit of wordplay. Skilful application of this form is shown in US and Gallic publications such as Gadsby: Champion of Youth and La Disparition (also known, in an award-winning translation, as A Void).
posted to MetaFilter by permafrost at 8:26 AM on April 3, 2009 (31 comments)

Apparently there's at least a 51% chance of God's existence. It starts out 50/50, like with pets. You have, say, either a dog or a cat. It's a 50/50 chance that it's one or the other, just like it's 50/50 that there's a God or not. Well, we exist. You exist. The earth exists. That nudges it up to 51%. If I understand this youtube gentleman. Hilarious exercise in smug delivery of ironclad logic.
posted to MetaFilter by stupidsexyFlanders at 8:31 AM on April 2, 2009 (123 comments)

There was no way to simply say, "I read a really bad description in this book last night." I had to scan it and share it for you to understand just how bad it truly, truly was. It is the sort of bad that causes pain and must be shared with other people so you can feel better. Part 1, Part 2. This really is prose so purple that it verges into the infra-red. Some NSFW descriptive naughtiness.
posted to MetaFilter by fearfulsymmetry at 10:45 AM on April 1, 2009 (145 comments)

"Get a grip, man. you can't let this wash over you. You have no control over what happens right now. But you can do one thing. Get up on top of the fear. Get above it. " Louis C.K. ( previously ) is writing about his recent experience on a USO tour in the Middle East. It's funny and genuine, and he's a decent photographer. Also, Dino Stamatopoulos was there.
posted to MetaFilter by HumanComplex at 10:01 AM on April 1, 2009 (37 comments)

A quick, light-spirited, no-frills guitar/banjo instrumental.
posted to MeFi Music by ORthey at 9:55 AM on March 19, 2009 (19 comments)

The trailer for "After Last Season" quietly appeared on the Apple site recently. But what is it? Some suggest a hoax, others a parody. Apple lists it as a comedy, IMDB as a thriller.
posted to MetaFilter by outlier at 2:39 AM on March 28, 2009 (82 comments)

Flash Friday: Nevermore 3 The latest game in the Nevermore series by Adam Westerman.
posted to MetaFilter by Fleebnork at 8:57 AM on March 27, 2009 (11 comments)

Imagedump is pretty much exactly what it sounds like, a collection of "the best, funniest or coolest images" from a given month, as curated by a 19-year-old Dutch kid named Marco Kuiper.
posted to MetaFilter by dersins at 11:39 AM on March 27, 2009 (19 comments)

The trailer for producer Spike Jonze's troubled adaptation of the award-winning children's story Where the Wild Things Are has been released. It's been a long time coming. If you don't have time for the videos, here's the poster.
posted to MetaFilter by Joe in Australia at 11:41 PM on March 26, 2009 (148 comments)

Home of the Underdogs (previously, previouslier) has been resurrected -- and enhanced with community-driven features (user comments, user added reviews, user ratings, etc.) -- by Lord_Pall. That is all. [via mefi projects]
posted to MetaFilter by cog_nate at 2:21 PM on March 26, 2009 (53 comments)

Watch anonymous Wikipedia edits as they happen, where they happen.
posted to MetaFilter by Pope Guilty at 1:56 PM on March 24, 2009 (42 comments)

Matt Taibbifilter: Among other things, the GAO report noted that the entire OTS had only one insurance specialist on staff — and this despite the fact that it was the primary regulator for the world's largest insurer! This week's MeFi stories have generally failed to explain the reasoning that caused the recession, even though Jon Stewart was basically on the mark. Now, Rolling Stone's only reporter lays it all out The Big Takeover, a typical combination of zealous snark and the overlooked, damning facts needed to clear up a ridiculously complicated story.
posted to MetaFilter by shii at 11:16 PM on March 20, 2009 (110 comments)

More than 600 Universal Newsreels at Internet Archive, both whole and partial reels (the same collection, with a few more newsreels is also on YouTube but it's in lower quality). Newsreels were short collections of current events that ran before feature films. They ran from the start of the film era up into the 1960s. This collection goes from the early 30s through the mid 60s. Here are a few interesting ones: Eleanor Roosevelt tells a joke, 1935 car industry workers strike, Australian who was orphaned in China and raised by Chinese parents returns to Australia, FDR inaugurated, Enos the chimpanzee goes into space and returns to Earth, Vietnam War protest marches in New York, San Francisco and Rome, Busby Babes plane crash, Gagarin hugged by Kruschev, Truman brings the funny, Seattle be-in and Nuremberg trials.
posted to MetaFilter by Kattullus at 8:24 PM on March 20, 2009 (19 comments)

The Giving Tree (1973), animated short based on Shel Silverstein's 1964 children's story and narrated by the author.
posted to MetaFilter by the_bone at 10:21 PM on March 18, 2009 (36 comments)

Almost-Friday-Flash-Fun: Hex Empire. A simple but engaging hexagon based strategy game. (via)
posted to MetaFilter by Caduceus at 1:48 PM on March 19, 2009 (42 comments)

Muppets' Exclusive La Choy Fire Breathing Dragon! While on the road to success, Jim Henson's creations were used in the advertising world. The La Choy pitch is a great insight into the workshop's early genius.
posted to MetaFilter by Frasermoo at 3:40 PM on March 19, 2009 (28 comments)

Cool video of an undersea volcano erupting off Tonga. Spectacular clouds began spewing out of the sea on Monday about 10km from the southwest coast off the main island of Tongatapu, where up to 36 undersea volcanoes are clustered. More on these volcanism blogs.
posted to MetaFilter by CunningLinguist at 8:55 AM on March 19, 2009 (39 comments)

"I now find myself with more than 22,000 16mm educational films in my house." At the site A/V Geeks, you can watch a decent portion of this huge collection online.
posted to MetaFilter by tractorfeed at 9:05 AM on March 17, 2009 (17 comments)

They follow you on the escalator and bother you at the bus stop. They spook your horses and frighten your children. But deep down, they just want to be loved. Belgian animators Thijs de Cloedt and Wouter Sel from Volstok Telefunken have imagined monsters for all occasions. [Website in Flemish]
posted to MetaFilter by embrangled at 10:46 PM on March 16, 2009 (14 comments)

In the spirit of Friday being game day, I give you Broken Picture Telephone; a pictoral version of the classic game of telephone (also known as Chinese Whispers.) Previously on MeFi.
posted to MetaFilter by ob at 2:20 PM on March 13, 2009 (180 comments)

Famous Poems Rewritten as Limericks , as brought to us by our very own Lore Sjöberg. English majors, begin your griping now.
posted to MetaFilter by SansPoint at 5:21 AM on July 23, 2007 (297 comments)

The niftiest thing at Coin Op World? The mp3 files of Classic Arcade Sounds.
posted to MetaFilter by Miko at 9:19 AM on March 13, 2009 (27 comments)

Kate Beaton, Historical Cartoonist
posted to MetaFilter by flatluigi at 8:40 AM on March 13, 2009 (66 comments)

14 large color photos from the Farm Security Administration.
posted to MetaFilter by Happy Dave at 8:36 AM on March 13, 2009 (32 comments)

"I understand you want to make finance entertaining, but it's not a f*ckin game." (parts 1 2 3) After trading blows over the last couple weeks, CNBC's Mad Money host Jim Cramer appeared opposite Jon Stewart as a guest on The Daily Show. While Cramer worked to keep his poise during the awkward exchange, the evisceration may call to mind Jon's appearance on Crossfire.
posted to MetaFilter by Christ, what an asshole at 1:04 AM on March 13, 2009 (273 comments)

Good grief! Described as "arguably the longest story ever told by one human being", the entire run -- just shy of 50 years -- of Charles Schulz's Peanuts can now, legally, be read online.
posted to MetaFilter by evilcolonel at 11:14 PM on March 11, 2009 (100 comments)

On June 8, 1783, the volcano Laki in south Iceland tore open a 16-mile fissure that erupted over nine cubic miles of lava. Not only would this eruption kill over 50% of Iceland's livestock population, leading to famine which killed approximately 25% of the population; its effects were felt the world over, with flourine, sulfur dioxide, ash, sand and drastically cooled tempertaures from the blotted-out sun reaching as far afield as North America and Africa. The eruption lasted for nearly eight months. And from the day the eruption began, a humble priest named Jón Steingrímsson would make his mark in history.
posted to MetaFilter by Marisa Stole the Precious Thing at 4:38 PM on March 11, 2009 (24 comments)

The piece is attached via a network cable to the internet. The needle indicates results.
posted to MetaFilter by Fiasco da Gama at 3:22 PM on March 11, 2009 (15 comments)

We've very much enjoyed the beautiful work of the NYT graphic and infovisual design staff before, but what about when those glorious graphs and interactive adventures don't turn out as expected? Still pretty neat.
posted to MetaFilter by carsonb at 12:08 PM on March 11, 2009 (16 comments)

Don't Look Back: the latest game from Terry Cavanagh. For the platformer/greek mythology enthusiast in all of us.
posted to MetaFilter by stresstwig at 2:25 PM on March 9, 2009 (24 comments)

Quit Lying About Roosevelt! "Amity Shlaes, the GOP's Great Depression philosopher-queen, couldn't be more dangerously wrong." [Via]
posted to MetaFilter by homunculus at 9:35 PM on March 9, 2009 (36 comments)

Heard about a (short?) story that ends with a certain word that causes the reader to experience a creeping sense of horror as the rest of the story fits into place. Any ideas what story it could be?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by maryrosecook at 10:31 AM on March 3, 2009 (31 comments)

Kutiman, the masterful Israeli funk musician and producer, outdoes himself by creating Thru-You: Multiple YouTube clips (mostly instructional and performance videos) edited into slick mega-mashups. They're not just patchwork assemblages, they're sample-based original creations that coud hold their own on anyone's album... Plus they're 100% audiovisual! It's a work of next-level genius.
(sorry for the hyperbole, but my mind has just been blown)
More Kutiman here. Music video here. And for you Pitchfork aficionados, here.
posted to MetaFilter by Silky Slim at 12:58 AM on March 4, 2009 (171 comments)

World War II: Simple Version. (SLJPG)
posted to MetaFilter by swift at 2:31 PM on March 3, 2009 (53 comments)

While lobbyists line up to torpedo Obama's proposals, and while John Bolton dreams about nuking Chicago, it has been revealed that CNBC correspondent Rick Santelli's recent, supposedly spontaneous on-air outburst against Obama, was most likely a fake-news stunt coordinated by right wing PR operatives. (last link to a Playboy article, but it's SFW)
posted to MetaFilter by ornate insect at 12:45 AM on March 1, 2009 (66 comments)

Most Spaniards over 35 remember exactly where they were in the evening of February 23, 1981, best remembered as "23-F". It was the day of the last big stress test of Spain's then young democracy, when a group of conspirators tried to seize power by force. When armed policemen assaulted Parliament, and started shooting their machineguns to intimidate the lawmakers, on the benches, only three very different men refused to take cover.
posted to MetaFilter by Skeptic at 3:40 PM on February 23, 2009 (20 comments)

Last week when I checked my mailbox, I found that my new neighbour had left me a note stating that he was having a party and to let him know if the noise was too loud. The problem I have with the note is not that he was having a party and didn't invite me, it was that he selected a vibrant background of balloons, effectively stating that his party was going to be vibrant and possibly have balloons and that I couldn't come.
posted to MetaFilter by Ljubljana at 2:30 AM on February 20, 2009 (108 comments)

The Crisis of Credit by graduate design student Jonathan Jarvis is a thorough and visually appealing animation which explains the current credit crisis in clear terms. From the ever helpful NPR Planet Money.
posted to MetaFilter by phyrewerx at 3:40 PM on February 19, 2009 (27 comments)

Awakening on a mattress atop a wooden slab, the bare walls of your 7' x 12' cell come into focus, illuminated by the constant glare of an overhead light. Through the narrow window in the back of your cell, you can peer out into the prison yard. In the window in the reinforced steel door, you can catch an occasional glimpse of a prison guard as they bring your meals, usually the only interruption of the silence and isolation that pervade your living conditions. Those walls are the boundaries of your world for 23 hours a day in the Departmental Disciplinary Unit-- the supermax prison maintained in Walpole, Massachusetts, one of dozens of such institutions currently operated in the United States, in spite of growing outcry based on human rights violations.
posted to MetaFilter by Law Talkin' Guy at 4:54 PM on February 15, 2009 (89 comments)

Chairlift - Evident Utensil (SLYT) Trippy music video made by messing with video compression keyframes.
posted to MetaFilter by fungible at 8:44 PM on February 11, 2009 (52 comments)

The day will come when the words of Shakespeare are no longer known. Roger Ebert looks back on a long career and waxes philosophical.
posted to MetaFilter by The Card Cheat at 3:35 PM on February 10, 2009 (60 comments)

You are interested in the unknown... the mysterious. The unexplainable. That is why you are here. And now, for the first time, we are bringing to you, the full story of what happened on that fateful day. We are bringing you all the evidence, based only on the secret testimony, of the miserable souls, who survived this terrifying ordeal. The incidents, the places. My friend, we cannot keep this a secret any longer. Let us punish the guilty. Let us reward the innocent. My friend, can your heart stand the shocking facts of a flickr collection of old snapshots?
posted to MetaFilter by gamera at 6:45 PM on February 14, 2009 (18 comments)

In 1998, a journalist at The New Republic named Stephen Glass wrote a compelling piece in the influential magazine entitled 'Hack Heaven'. It told the story of how Glass witnessed a 15 year old hacker named Ian Restil being hired by a large Californian computer company named Jukt Micronics at a hacker convention as a security analyst after Restil hacked Jukt's website. But the entire story was, in fact, entirely fictional.
posted to MetaFilter by Effigy2000 at 9:03 PM on February 14, 2009 (46 comments)

"WGN-TV weekend anchors Robert Jordan and Jackie Bange do a little dance number each Saturday and Sunday night during their telecast's first commercial break. Word is that it started out as a short 10-second dance, but now they have choreographed it into the full 2:40 of the break. "
posted to MetaFilter by Knappster at 11:53 AM on February 14, 2009 (43 comments)

"This is a regular Russian school biology textbook owned by some Russian school. He has modified some illustrations so now it’s hard to say sometimes what was there originally and what has appeared as a result of his imagination."
posted to MetaFilter by squalor at 9:16 PM on February 12, 2009 (23 comments)

Backstage at the American Museum of Natural History: an essay and a slideshow.
posted to MetaFilter by serazin at 7:12 PM on February 12, 2009 (6 comments)