Tchiks is an amateur woodworker from Brussels. He makes the kind of YouTube video I enjoy: Someone making things (in this case guitars), no chat-to-camera (though there's some in-the-room chat, usually dialogue with his daughter, who is now six years old), no music (apart from the demonstration of the instrument at the end), the only sounds are workshop sounds. Since 2019 he's occasionally been uploading videos of the guitars he's been building, including the one he made out of a shelf during quarantine (because it's the only wood he could get), the one he made with one hand (because he'd broken his arm) and the detailed reproduction of Brian May's Red Special. For their latest project Tchiks and his daughter built her a bass guitar together. Even if you're not interested in videos of people building guitars, it's worth skipping to the last minute or so of this one for the demonstration.
posted to MetaFilter by Grangousier at 3:43 AM on January 6, 2024 (7 comments)

"Comrades! As we clip our belts and prepare to cleave our forces for the difficult anabasis ahead, never forget the dike that is our ultimate goal. Remain here, unbending, until morning. But when the call goes out, be fast! Consult not your copemates, for such oversight shall screen our transparent objectives. And finally, never forget we have aught to lose!" --General Antonin Contronym [More Inside]
posted to MetaFilter by rusty at 10:29 AM on September 18, 2003 (18 comments)

"Writing for the Bad Faith Reader" by Susie Dumond (Mar 30, 2023) discusses how easy is is for writers today to get discouraged or preoccupied by the potential reactions of "the person who is looking to invalidate the art that you’re making" (quoting Melissa Febos). Dumond shares "some of the ways I avoid writing for the bad faith reader these days." Her advice to write the first draft for yourself as a way to channel the "best faith" reader, and to accept that your work is not for every reader, reminds me of two of the five laws of library science: "to every book their reader" and "to every reader their book".
posted to MetaFilter by brainwane at 9:51 AM on June 29, 2023 (14 comments)

Buried in the source code from a 1999 Rock Paper Scissors tournament is a comment section starting with, "They were both poisoned," that goes on to describe one of the cleverest strategies ever designed for a computer game. As with its inspiration from The Princess Bride, the strategy considers that its opponent might know its strategy, and that its opponent might know that it knows that the opponent knows its strategy, and... you get the idea. Tweaks on the original idea remain the core of the best Rock, Paper, Scissors algorithms.
posted to MetaFilter by clawsoon at 3:53 PM on June 1, 2019 (42 comments)

Mike's Videos of Beavers is a Youtube channel from Mike Digout in Saskatoon, who posts videos of beavers.
posted to MetaFilter by RobotHero at 12:27 PM on June 30, 2023 (6 comments)

This post includes Information from loup about how the site's policies on trans people/issues are currently implemented including how transphobic content, sources and members are dealt with, the information they've given me about planned changes based on some brief feedback I've given, and an invitation for other trans members to share their thoughts, concerns, feedback, and suggestions
posted to MetaTalk by Chrysopoeia at 11:45 AM on April 1, 2023 (115 comments)

If math is the art of finding relations between abstract objects, then a catalogue of abstract objects is a good place for a mathematician to start. So: real numbers (in order of popularity), equations, functions, formulas involving π, tilings (previously, specifically nonperiodic), rings and their properties, finite group representations, packings of equal circles in a square, triangle centers (previously), top ten lists of prime numbers, integer sequences (previously, extremely previously), combinatorial statistics, graphs, movies, fundamental theorems, counterexamples.
posted to MetaFilter by warpy at 5:53 AM on February 16, 2022 (21 comments)

There exists a short story or essay (very short, maybe just a couple of paragraphs) making fun of golden age sf's tendency to describe futuristic technology in extreme detail; it does this by describing the process of making a phone call, possibly to order a pizza, in very technologically precise terms, using a dramatic tone. I read this a couple years ago and now I can't find it!!
posted to Ask MetaFilter by cheesegrater at 8:13 PM on January 3, 2023 (4 comments)

I've successfully culled my wardrobe, bookshelves, furniture and clutter. But I'm haunted by boxes of paper ephemera. What systems do you use to sort/cull the paper detritus of a life?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by happyfrog at 1:29 PM on December 27, 2022 (26 comments)

Countersinks are a conical flare-out at the top of a hole drilled for a screw. They're created so that the wood screws with the flared-out heads can sink far enough to make the tops of the screws flush with the surface of the wood. But why are they called that? A hole with a countersink doesn't counter sinking any more than a hole without one does. I have not seen any etymologies that explain this for me. Let me know if you have one!
posted to Ask MetaFilter by ignignokt at 3:36 PM on December 12, 2022 (12 comments)

Wikipedia is notoriously complicated when discussing math-related topics but sometimes the concepts themselves are actually not that difficult when described in plain language. Let's talk about fractals, specifically the Cantor Set, the Sierpinski carpet, and the Menger sponge. Here's how they relate to one another, mathematically.
posted to MetaFilter by jessamyn at 9:31 AM on October 30, 2022 (28 comments)

From In “The Private Library,” Mr. Byers goes to the heart of why physical books continue to beguile us. Individually, they are frequently useful or delightful, but it is when books are displayed en masse that they really work wonders. Covering the walls of a room, piled up to the ceiling and exuding the breath of generations, they nourish the senses, slay boredom and relieve distress.... Mr. Byers coined a term — “book-wrapt” — to describe the exhilarating comfort of a well-stocked library. The fusty spelling is no affectation, but an efficient packing of meaning into a tight space (which, when you think of it, also describes many libraries). To be surrounded by books is to be held rapt in an enchanted circle and to experience the rapture of being transported to other worlds. A written and visual tribute to home libraries by Julie Lasky in the New York Times (December 2021; non-paywall version without images here).
posted to MetaFilter by Bella Donna at 11:38 AM on August 21, 2022 (26 comments)

Have you had a loved one fall catastrophically or even terminally ill and been a caretaker for them? What is the one thing you figured out along the way that you'd wished you'd know before it happened? Can be dealing with hospitals, insurance, the patient, self-care, you name it. Can be huge like "here's how I got the doctors to figure out what was really wrong" or small like "wow, I really should have noted their mobile phone password down."
posted to Ask MetaFilter by rednikki at 11:12 AM on July 30, 2022 (26 comments)

The Women Who Built Grunge Artists mentioned include L7, 7 Year Bitch, Babes in Toyland, Maxi Badd, Hammerbox, Fastbacks, Lazy Susan, Bam Bam, Heavens to Betsy, Sleater-Kinney, Bratmobile, Bikini Kill, Sonic Youth, The Slits, Chalk Circle, Shonen Knife, The Breeders, and The Gits.
posted to MetaFilter by box at 5:59 AM on July 2, 2022 (32 comments)

Rogan Shannon is a queer deaf guy who makes YouTube videos about a lot of different topics. This video (turn captions on, it's silent) discusses the creation and evolution of signs for trans people and topics in ASL. It's a few years old and he's updated some of the terms in this video and gone a little more into some of the history of the ASL word for trans (blog post, video). This video by Britton, a non-binary trans person (no captions, read transcript below) talks about the use of the sign for trans within the trans Deaf community. Rogan has also made a video and blog post about queer signs in other countries.
posted to MetaFilter by jessamyn at 9:11 AM on July 7, 2022 (3 comments)

What music sounds most to you as if it were written/performed by/for goblins?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by scruss at 7:16 PM on April 30, 2022 (44 comments)

What is the heaviest object that would fit inside a standard letter-sized envelope?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by bondcliff at 6:26 AM on October 14, 2005 (35 comments)

Hey MetaFilter! I have some happy/sad news: I’ve taken another job! I will still be around here, but professionally I’ll be moving on.
posted to MetaTalk by Eyebrows McGee at 11:25 AM on April 17, 2022 (56 comments)

I LOVE reading about the intricate logistics of things I never would have considered - my favorite example of this is John McPhee's Out in the Sort (John McPhee has lots of these), and I was recently delighted by Defector's Why Jordan Love’s Family Was Seated Near The Stratosphere. Seeking suggestions for similar pieces (article or book length is fine).
posted to Ask MetaFilter by everybody had matching towels at 8:16 AM on November 13, 2021 (23 comments)

After Hand Tool Rescue restored a "grip anything" fractal vise, everybody got into it. Nebraska-based artist Steve Lindsay has been working on a modern metal one for six years. You can put a downpayment on one for yourself, but he doesn't know how much it'll cost when it's done.
posted to MetaFilter by clawsoon at 4:44 PM on July 23, 2021 (27 comments)

There are a number of television shows that have famously had trouble seeing a DVD release or syndication due to music licensing issues: Wonder Years, WKRP in Cincinnati, etc. Is there a reason this appears to impact television, but not movies? Ferris Bueller contains a Beatles song in its entirety, but can be seen on cable tv all the time. Goodfellas contains clips from dozens of songs, etc.
posted to Ask MetaFilter by soonertbone at 3:58 PM on August 26, 2021 (14 comments)

Just trying to compile a list of songs with radio announcer clips. Usually they make it sound very AM-ey so you get that it’s meant to be the radio. All I can think of so far is We Built This City and Rock Me Amadeus. Thanks in advance! Tangential examples like the phone operator in Young Lust also accepted.
posted to Ask MetaFilter by ftm at 4:40 PM on July 27, 2021 (75 comments)

A sublime 25 minutes of watching someone solve a Sudoku puzzle with some extra restrictions - starting with a grid containing just two numbers.
posted to MetaFilter by Stark at 1:34 PM on May 19, 2020 (36 comments)

I'm looking for podcasts that feature artists and other creative people (visual artists / designers / performance artists / comedians / musicians / chefs / writers / perfumers / etc...) talking about their work and process.
posted to Ask MetaFilter by prewar lemonade at 8:32 AM on February 20, 2021 (12 comments)

No More Jockeys. Nine months, 29 episodes and nearly 1.5 million views later, No More Jockeys (S1E1, trailer) has become a lockdown phenomenon. There are rules. There are three comedians you may know from Taskmaster (Fanfare). And there is a lot of drinking.
posted to MetaFilter by jessamyn at 9:14 AM on February 12, 2021 (13 comments)

That Picasso guy has the "black-and-white image of Don Quixote and Sancho Panza" market sewn up, which has been a huge complicating factor in trying to find the artist of the image inside.
posted to Ask MetaFilter by gknauss at 3:28 PM on December 17, 2020 (6 comments)

I’m seriously needing funny videos to help me out of a mental funk.
posted to Ask MetaFilter by waving at 3:39 PM on October 19, 2020 (33 comments)

Is there a relatively simple but also detailed breakdown of how data is transferred over the internet? It's not just a series of tubes, right?
posted to Ask MetaFilter by lewedswiver at 5:19 PM on September 21, 2020 (27 comments)

Catherine Wood, owner-operator of Planetwood Productions in Los Angeles makes the case for maintaining recording credits. There is a good argument to be made that artists, particularly studio artists, lose out when recording credits disappear. Producers can't track studio bands as easily, and you the listener can't follow artists along their steps away from the studio to live performances and independent careers.
posted to MetaFilter by drossdragon at 10:42 AM on May 29, 2020 (13 comments)

Sufjan Stevens gave up after two states. Joey Clift had nothing better to do while staying at home. So he put out a call to complete the 50 States Project. Half of the albums dropped last week; Clift plans to release the rest (including new takes on Illinois and Michigan, as well as the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico) next month.
posted to MetaFilter by Etrigan at 7:32 AM on April 23, 2020 (37 comments)

I was given this tape by a bus driver in Morocco 30 years ago. Can anyone translate so I can identify the artist, etc? Thank you!
posted to Ask MetaFilter by gryphonlover at 4:48 PM on April 12, 2020 (5 comments)

The annual Ann Arbor Film Festival is livestreaming free this year. Because of coronavirus, the 58th annual Ann Arbor film festival is livestreaming for free this year. The festival is a six-day event and will be streaming from the 24th through the 29th. (I'm late because of my fear of posting on the blue, but cortex said to go for it.) From the website: The online event will be streamed through Vimeo as a one-time event and will be accessible worldwide. All listed times are in Eastern Daylight Time (UTC -04:00). Moderated live Q&As with filmmakers will be streamed following the film screenings in order to continue discourse between filmmakers and our audience.
posted to MetaFilter by FencingGal at 8:16 AM on March 25, 2020 (8 comments)

Today I noticed a Turtle Crossing sign in my town. What are some other unique road signs specific to your region? These can include any animal crossing signs or other unique road signs that are less universal and more regional/unusual. [Looking for real signage, not fictitious signs or joke signs from memes or gift shops.]
posted to Ask MetaFilter by Fizz at 3:42 PM on October 21, 2019 (108 comments)

A history of the Pyramids of Giza and the people who explored them. Jimmy Maher (The Digital Antiquarian) with an extensive history on the Pyramids at Giza and the people who explored them.
posted to MetaFilter by GnomePrime at 1:23 PM on September 12, 2019 (5 comments)

Sarah has a YouTube channel that may seem familiar to you.
Sarah's Beauty Routine
A haul video
A makeover
Sarah's daily routine
What's in my bag?
Bloopers

posted to MetaFilter by obtuser at 4:08 PM on July 1, 2019 (18 comments)

Neural network generating technical death metal, via livestream 24/7 to infinity.
posted to MetaFilter by Ten Cold Hot Dogs at 2:11 AM on April 15, 2019 (25 comments)

With the recent arrival of "Neon Genesis Evangelion" to Netflix, the internet was again seized by one of the most squabbled-over animes of all time. But if there is anything about NGE that the internet can agree on, it's that the opening theme song and video, "A Cruel Angel's Thesis", totally kicks ass. Its hyper-paced and heavily-layered editing is at once prototypical AMV eye-candy, while also being a solid narrative deconstruction of a show you'll never really understand. As with other anime fan edits, it quickly became popular to re-cut other anime in the same style. But it was its discursive potential, mixed with the totally over-the-top tunes, that made the "Cruel Angel's Edit" such a powerful meme outside of anime, and has inspired a series of truly high-effort good-posts over the years re-rendering all aspects of culture. Here are some of the internet's best, and below the fold some honorable mentions: Arthur | King of the Hill | Diner's, Drive-ins, and Dives | Regular Show (original) | Super Mario 64 | Marianne Williamson | Drake and Josh | Hey Arnold! | Steam Summer Sale | The Legend of Zelda | Windows 98 | 2018 World Cup
posted to MetaFilter by grillcover at 5:31 PM on July 18, 2019 (41 comments)

Inside the White House .... brought to you by Something Awful. Elaborate SA put-on, or so insane it must be true? I can't decide. DailyKos summary. [morey]
posted to MetaFilter by dhartung at 9:02 AM on April 12, 2006 (92 comments)

I'm looking for the lyrics AND possibly an MP3 or recording of a "dirty" (funny) song I heard once... Language warning. :) Lyrics go: "Aw f*** it, I've got better things to do..." "All the years I've taken s**t would fill a bucket" etc...
posted to Ask MetaFilter by Vamier at 7:52 PM on September 20, 2006 (4 comments)

In the late seventies and early eighties TV stations embraced the video game craze by granting lucky viewers the chance to play them on the air by shouting POW! into their phone.
posted to MetaFilter by ChurchHatesTucker at 8:16 AM on April 30, 2015 (38 comments)

A million people in the streets: Organisers say that one million people took to the streets to protest the controversial Hong Kong proposed extradition law. If those figures are correct, it represents 1 in 7 Hong Kong residents.
posted to MetaFilter by frumiousb at 7:54 PM on June 9, 2019 (63 comments)

"There were two people in him, he told me: one who feels as he ought to feel and one who feels the opposite. From the one who feels the opposite I make my evil characters, from the one who feels as a man ought to feel I try to live my life. ‘Only two people?’ I asked."
posted to MetaFilter by Pyrogenesis at 4:14 AM on June 19, 2018 (9 comments)

When Dickens Met Dostoevsky. "So now the meeting between two literary giants had led me to two names with very little behind them: Stephanie Harvey, who had written only these two articles, and Leo Bellingham, whose chief claim to fame may be that he was once compared by Stephanie Harvey to Doris Lessing."
posted to MetaFilter by PMdixon at 4:11 PM on April 10, 2013 (22 comments)

In a stunning display of programming virtuosity, Steffest of stef.de has released BassoonTracker to the world. Based on the old Amiga ProTracker, it supports both MOD and FastTracker ][ XM files, which it can load from the massive collection Mod Archive. Find the source on Github.
posted to MetaFilter by kmkrebs at 9:11 AM on February 1, 2019 (34 comments)

The Surreal Art of Italian Visionary Artist Alessandro Sicioldr. [Via]
posted to MetaFilter by homunculus at 2:30 PM on December 19, 2018 (2 comments)

Star Wars and Empire Uncut. Toy Story Live Action. (The original video seems to be blocked worldwide - but that's not stopping others from making a live-action Toy Story 3). Our Robocop Remake. Tons of reanimations. But premiering in mere seconds holy crap is one that might top them all in weirdness: SHREK RETOLD.
posted to MetaFilter by BiggerJ at 4:59 PM on November 29, 2018 (6 comments)

Puberty for the Middle-Aged (SLNYT) We need to have The Talk, but for 45-year-olds. Doctors should speak to their patients about the changes that could lie ahead and how to prepare for them. And we perimenopausal women need to talk to one another, and the rest of the world, about what’s happening. Because a lot of it, to me, is really weird, really surprising and really hard to sit comfortably through, from the stray chin hair — O.K., hairs — to the decreasing bone density.
posted to MetaFilter by bunderful at 9:08 AM on November 22, 2018 (110 comments)

Cartoonist Matthew Thurber (...) takes on the art world in his latest book Art Comic, a series of interrelated stories about the trials and tribulations of would-be artists. Megan Liberty reviews for Hyperallergic.
posted to MetaFilter by bq at 11:41 AM on November 14, 2018 (1 comment)

deadmau5 dared me to circuit bend a bible The wonder wonder bible. Nothing against the bible here. I showed it to a couple of christian friends before and they seemed to like it. for what thats worth! Im Just #circuitbending a cold blooded machine, for the more avantgarde inclined
posted to MetaFilter by CrystalDave at 3:23 PM on August 20, 2018 (10 comments)

Footprints in the Collective Unconscious? Brooklyn writer Rachel Aviv presents an interesting summary of the disputed 'facts' behind who it was exactly that God inspired to write those ubiquitous religious-themed and -memed "Footprints in the Sand" poem(s).
posted to MetaFilter by NetizenKen at 10:11 AM on December 2, 2007 (35 comments)