August 16, 2012
"Before I gave up shopping, I bought a beautiful, pricey dress. I imagine it's made by a cute girl in Montreal who has to charge a certain price to keep herself in coffee, cigarettes & organic cotton.
Illustrator Sarah Lazarovic replaces clothes shopping with paintings and commentary on the dresses she did not buy.
Chicken of the trees
"I stood staring at the enemy's trophy, the familiar impotent rage rising. But the impulse to fall to my knees, gnash my teeth, and howl at the gods was stayed this time by a resolution I'd made earlier that spring. The squirrels may take my tomatoes and spit them back, but they would not go unanswered. The time had come to close the circle of life." (via)
Needs More Surly Duff
bons mots, poems, math, knitting and logic
Entertaining, collected bon mots and surprisingly interesting, collected poems by various authors. From a likable math brainiac's site, Dr T.E. Forster, a Cambridge University lecturer. He also knits and writes about Buddhist logic [pdf]. Bonus, there's a fun gif.
The butterflies of Fukushima
"This study is important and overwhelming in its implications for both the human and biological communities living in Fukushima." . . . "These observations of mutations and morphological abnormalities can only be explained as having resulted from exposure to radioactive contaminants."
Severe abnormalities found in Fukushima butterflies. Full report here.
Classic Video Game Ads
This great Flickr album of classic video game advertisements is a nostalgia overdose for those of us who read video-game magazines in the 80s and 90s. From classic ads like the "Genesis Does What Nintendon't" ad to ads for Pac Man, The Simpsons, Super Mario Brothers 2 and ye olde Atari Lynx, this helps you relive the glory days of the medium, when even the ads were entertaining. And for those of you who never got to experience gaming magazines in their heyday, check out this entire copy of the first issue on Nintendo Power (PDF) from way back in 1988. And then get off my lawn.
The Juris Doctor is 'Versatile' Thanks Mainly to Numerous Logical Fallacies
Many people say that a law degree enables the holder to do virtually anything. Am Law Daily explores the logical fallacies behind this statement.
Welcome to the limit
What can I say? Sexy Batman. Dot Com.
sexybatman.com Delivers as labeled.
Craig's Lift
A dude found his stolen bicycle on Craigslist days after it had been lifted and then drives 160 miles to find the thief and confront him.
Charles de Thierry: man of many lands, king of none
Charles Philippe Hippolyte de Thierry lead a storied life, and many of those stories are ones he made up. His family was associated with the French court, though there is doubt to his claims of noble lineage. In England, he met two Maori chiefs and an English missionary from New Zealand, and attempted to purchase a northern portion of New Zealand in 1820. He then sought to turn this land into a colony first for Britain in 1822, then the Dutch government in 1824 when the English offer fell through. The Dutch, too, turned him down, so in 1825 de Thierry made the same offer to the French government, and was similarly refused. Fleeing creditors, he left for America. In 1834, he traveled south, where he was granted concession for cutting the Panama Canal. That, too, fell through, and he sailed west, reaching Tahiti in June 1835, where he elected himself king of Nuka Hiva. The kingdom was never his, and so he continued west and south, arriving at his plot in New Zealand in 1837, where again he offered land up to France for a colony. His efforts to claim a colony and a kingdom came to an end in 1840, with the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi, sealing a deal between the British Crown and the Māori. [more inside]
as if he just fell asleep watching the game
Team Spirit is a short documentary by Errol Morris about the funerals of passionate sports fans. (SLYT)
Stan Brakhage on birth and death
Stan Brakhage on birth and death* . [graphic childbirth and autopsy footage] (* previously - dead links) [more inside]
Slow motion mammals shaking themselves dry
"Mammals can generate centrifugal forces 10-70 times gravity" & "animals 'tune' the frequency of their shaking" What happens when mammals shake themselves dry. In slow motion. Also in cute-vision.
War Artist
Ever wonder what an artist and journalist takes to war? It starts with a few pencils… (PDF) Richard Johnson, war artist for the National Post shows what he's taking to Afghanistan. via Nag On The Lake
"The animals were in hell”
Marineland is one of the biggest tourist destinations in Niagara Falls. It features the world's largest habitat for viewing orcas, houses a world record 41 beluga whales in their exhibits, and offers a variety of daily shows featuring bottlenose dolphins, harbor seals, sea lions and walruses. On Tuesday, the Toronto Star published the results of an extensive investigation, alleging "a pattern of neglect that has repeatedly resulted in animal suffering." Video. Slideshow. Demonstration protests are scheduled for Saturday. Marineland denies mistreatment.
NO SALE
The following items are also being added to the prohibited items list: advice; spells; curses; hexing; conjuring; magic; prayers; blessing services; magic potions; healing sessions; work from home businesses & information; wholesale lists, and drop shop lists.With their new 2012 Fall Seller Update, ebay has banned the sale of magic services. A discussion has commenced on the impact of these new rules on the magic-practicing community.
Monday Wednesday Friday
Dog House Diaries — we know that web-comics are where all the money and fame is at and we want a piece. It was obvious that in order to be successful in this biz, you need to be good with humor, drawing, math and computers. Well we kick some serious butt at drawing and math so we figured 2 out of 3 wasn’t bad.
Mann Gulch
August 5th marked the sixty-third anniversary of the Mann Gulch fire.
PDF heavy, significant use of title text. Mobile users, and folks who just want the links, check the comments. [more inside]
"Watch closely. This is how gay men have sex now. That is where semen belongs. Fuck AIDS."
"The Most Important Gay Porn Film Ever Made?" [NSFW Warning: Pictures of a naked guy, no sex or penis shown.]
"Dawson's 20 Load Weekend redefined bareback porn and the men who appear in such porn. It influenced subsequent videos and expanded the availability of bareback films. It depicted a prevailing truth about gay sexual behavior "post-AIDS" and arguably encouraged risky sexual adventure-seeking. It led to the saturation of bareback porn online, making unprotected sex normative to whomever might be watching. To dismiss this film, to minimize its social and cultural impact, would be to demonstrate a profound misunderstanding of gay sexuality today."
"Dawson's 20 Load Weekend redefined bareback porn and the men who appear in such porn. It influenced subsequent videos and expanded the availability of bareback films. It depicted a prevailing truth about gay sexual behavior "post-AIDS" and arguably encouraged risky sexual adventure-seeking. It led to the saturation of bareback porn online, making unprotected sex normative to whomever might be watching. To dismiss this film, to minimize its social and cultural impact, would be to demonstrate a profound misunderstanding of gay sexuality today."
I am Torgo. I take care of the place while the Master is away
"Manos" Revisited: Live in theaters tonight, the Rifftrax crew re-visit one of most treasured MST3K experiments of all time. Why not get ready by watching the "making of" documentary "Hotel Torgo." Or, for the truly brave, the entire film.
Gorilla Joy
Two brothers' joyful reunion: The nine-year-old Alf and 13-year-old Kesho were recently rejoined at a new Gorilla Colony at Longleat Safari Park, Wiltshire, after having been separated for almost three years (alternative BBC gallery). Born in the Dublin Zoo's lowland gorilla troop, they were split up when Kesho was transferred to London Zoo for their breeding program, where he matured into a silverback. "The keepers from Dublin weren't entirely sure the brothers would even know each other," said their new keeper. "But the moment they met you could just see the recognition in their eyes." Related, previously
A mixture of awe and disappointment.
"What does it mean to feel empathy for a twitter feed?" Many were asking themselves that yesterday as popular account @SelfAwareROOMBA went on a journey of Self-Discovery. [Start Here] [more inside]
GoBama
Obama’s stimulus has been an astonishing, and unrecognized, success, details Michael Grunwald in Slate. [more inside]
Digitizing 100 miles of old 16mm educational films
Crow Won't Go
Something About Mary
"The convent would have been seen as a way for women to gain status. Nuns had a particular mystique and attraction about them. There was one in particular, and I would in hindsight say I definitely had a crush on her." Former nun Mary Skelley on coming out. [Vimeo]
Just in time for Football Manager 2013
As you know, Bob, Bill James revolutionised baseball with sabermetrics, statistical analyisis of how the game is actually played. In football (soccer that is) this revolution is long overdue, as it has largely lagged behind American sports in its use of data analysis. Now however there's a chance for somebody clever to become football's Bill James, as Manchester City is going to release all player data and analysises from the 2011-12 season.
Thick as a Brick
As foretold by the prophets of Atlantis, before its destruction, a mortal (Dave Weigel of Slate) has come to reveal the true story of Prog Rock. [more inside]
"Captains Courageous"
'While they never met, they had some things in common. Both were Army captains, engaged in important work for the nation, their costly educations paid for by U.S. taxpayers. Ian Morrison, 26, returned to Fort Hood, Texas, last December after nine months flying 70 combat missions over Iraq. Dr. Michael McCaddon, 37, was an ob-gyn resident at Hawaii’s Tripler Army Medical Center. The pilot and the doctor shared one other thing: they found themselves in a darkening, soul-sucking funnel that has trapped some 2,500 military personnel since 9/11. Like them, each died, at his own hand, on March 21, nearly 4,000 miles apart.' [more inside]
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