October 14, 2018

Pennsylvania prisons switching to ebooks

Prisons are switching to ebooks but that’s not a good thing. The "Pennsylvania Department of Corrections announced that inmates would no longer be able to receive physical books from outside organizations or inmate’s families. Instead, the state’s prison system would be switching to ebooks. These will be available on tablets sold by prison telecommunications giant GTL."
posted by readinghippo at 9:56 PM PST - 64 comments

It's close to midnight...

Wayne Brady joins Postmodern Jukebox for a seasonally appropriate cover of Michael Jackson's Thriller. [more inside]
posted by jenkinsEar at 4:18 PM PST - 41 comments

My god, isn't the news already scary enough?

Business is Boo-ing! Every Halloween, theme parks like Universal Studios come alive with actors who are paid to startle attendees. And in recent years, elaborate haunted houses have gotten more popular each fall. But these seasonal events are merely child’s play compared to what is happening year-round in the underground world of immersive horror. (CW: Graphic descriptions of simulated violence)(SLNYT) [more inside]
posted by holborne at 2:22 PM PST - 48 comments

"The heart and soul of the Roches"

Suzzy Roche's goal for the posthumous Maggie Roche compilation Where Do I Come From was "for her voice to be heard as much as possible." But the video for the unreleased 1972 demo "Stayin' Home" […] provides a visual souvenir of the late singer-songwriter, too. […] "Right after she died I discovered a video of her dancing," Suzzy tells Billboard. "Maggie was very quiet and shy on stage, but then all of a sudden she would go and do this dance during the middle of one of the songs, which was so great. Dick took this dance and reconfigured it a bit and said, 'Why not let it be raw Maggie?'"
posted by Johnny Wallflower at 1:28 PM PST - 8 comments

When Asian Women Are Harassed for Marrying Non-Asian Men

The men who harass me know three things: I’m Chinese-American, my husband is white, and our son is multiracial. You hate Asian men, they insist; you hate your own child. You hate yourself. [more inside]
posted by cynical pinnacle at 1:07 PM PST - 105 comments

Foreign charity to predator's hunting ground

Once an acclaimed charity that was helping young girls in Liberia escape sexual exploitation, this school turned into a rapist's hunting ground. [more inside]
posted by movicont at 11:43 AM PST - 10 comments

Inside MIT's Nuclear Reactor

On the corner of busy Mass ave and Albany street (slyt) a nondescript older looking industrial building and what looks like a water tank resides an active research nuclear reactor (not for power generation). If you don't watch all do jump to the end (12:30) where they ask the student operator her favorate button and test her knowledge!
posted by sammyo at 10:28 AM PST - 25 comments

Ocean-Centered Map

The Spillhaus Projection reverses the traditional land-based map schemes. We all learn the names, locations, and even characteristics of the oceans in school. But unless we go into oceanography or some other body-of-water-centric profession, few of us keep them at our command. Maybe the loss of that knowledge has to do with our land-centricity as a species: not only do we live on the stuff, we also put it before water intellectually. Until now.
posted by MovableBookLady at 9:27 AM PST - 6 comments

Samuel L. Jackson scoops cat litter for Angie Craig

Samuel L. Jackson has made a video of himself scooping cat litter to support Minnesota House candidate Angie Craig. We do get to see her adorable kitty.
posted by bile and syntax at 8:47 AM PST - 15 comments

🧛💀

The "Vampire of Lugnano" had a rock in its mouth to keep it from rising from grave. [Ars Technica] “Archaeologists have discovered the skeleton of a 10-year-old child at an ancient Roman site in Italy with a rock carefully placed in its mouth. This suggests those who buried the child—who probably died of malaria during a deadly fifth century outbreak—feared it might rise from the dead and spread the disease to those who survived.”
posted by Fizz at 7:41 AM PST - 18 comments

Spray-on antennae

Researchers at Drexel University have developed a new kind of antenna that can be sprayed onto just about any surface. The antenna is made up of an incredibly thin, metallic material known as "MXene", a two-dimensional form of titanium carbide that's highly conductive, which allows it to transmit and direct radio waves. (Science).
posted by adept256 at 7:14 AM PST - 14 comments

Mmm, pie

Lauren Ko makes pies with geometric designs. [more inside]
posted by cellar door at 4:30 AM PST - 27 comments

dingo music, sign language Live

How about a few songs and a sign language interpretation of the lyrics? 볼빨간사춘기 "First Love" | 비투비 "Missing You" | Ladies' Code "I'm Fine Thank You"
posted by one teak forest at 3:09 AM PST - 2 comments

We Can Work It Out

Paul Is Dead - The Fab Four are on a musical retreat in the Lake District when an incident occurs... (SLVimeo, nsfw swearing)
posted by fearfulsymmetry at 1:28 AM PST - 23 comments

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