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On the anniversary of the Uluru land handback, the Australian government formally rejected the Uluru Statement (previously). [more inside]
posted by lollusc at 11:52 PM PST - 8 comments

Sometimes, a 15 minute long Flash animation ostensibly for children goes places where you wouldn't expect.
Ch. 1. Head Shoulders Knees and Toes ♫ (Mad Scientist Edition)
Ch. 2. If You’re Happy and You Know It ♪ (Demonic Monster Truck With Magic Hands Edition)
Ch. 3. Five Little Skeletons Jumping on the Bed ♬
Ch. 4. A Demon of Pestilence In The Form of A Monster Truck Corrupts the Fair Lands and Causes Mortal Monster Trucks To Tremble
Ch. 5. A Noble Police Truck Attempts to Rid the Lands of the Four Wheeled Demon
Ch. 6. The Foul Realms of the Pestilence Truck concluded by
Ch. 7. Hello! It’s Halloween! ♪ (Post Monster Truck Chaser Edition)
posted by benzenedream at 11:20 PM PST - 10 comments

Richard Bobo, professional contrabassoonist, aims to build the subcontrabassoon. If you have questions, such as "Didn't they already build one?" (they did not) and "Why do we need a bassoon in the subcontra range?" (church organs, basically), here are some detailed answers. Here is an interview with more answers. [more inside]
posted by solarion at 10:44 PM PST - 32 comments

Why Are There No Great Female Werewolves? Lycanthropy has clearly been stolen from women over the years, and yet, while the condition is indeed connected to many supposedly “masculine” traits, the state of werewolfism is also very similar to menstruation. According to most werewolf narratives, the wolf cycle follows the lunar month, and is characterized by behavioral and physical changes caused by chemical fluctuations, much like the menstrual cycle. An Artsy editorial by Julia Oldham [more inside]
posted by gusottertrout at 9:57 PM PST - 39 comments

"Self-reflection, introspection and some degree of solitude are important parts of a psychologically healthy life. But somewhere along the line we seem to have gotten the balance wrong. Because far from confirming our insistence that 'happiness comes from within,' a wide body of research tells us almost the exact opposite....if there is one point on which virtually every piece of research into the nature and causes of human happiness agrees, it is this: our happiness depends on other people."
posted by drlith at 6:45 PM PST - 52 comments

In distressing news from the Western Colonies, the journey to elevate the tea experience has come to an end. According to Techcrunch, Teforia’s main product was an internet-connected tea infuser that could brew the pre-packaged teas from the startup, which it called “Sips.” Previously, a British person had naturally reviewed the infuser. It is unclear how it will now be possible to brew the perfect cup of tea.
posted by Wordshore at 4:27 PM PST - 94 comments

Post/black/drone/avant metallers Krallice collaborate with the mighty Dave Edwardson of Neurosis (vocals, synths) on new record Loüm. Synthesizers recorded at the very cool Vintage Synthesizer Museum.
posted by Existential Dread at 2:40 PM PST - 7 comments

Fun with your friend's Facebook and Tinder sessions, Robert Heaton. More:
Tracking friends and strangers using WhatsApp
A tale of love, betrayal, social engineering and Whatsapp [more inside]
posted by the man of twists and turns at 1:06 PM PST - 18 comments

The Missionary Positions (NSFW-ish) [more inside]
posted by bonehead at 1:00 PM PST - 20 comments

An obituary for a very good boy, Francis "Frank" Albert Crosbie, by poet, author and bereaved Lynn Crosbie. [more inside]
posted by OrangeDisk at 12:38 PM PST - 11 comments

Let Jeff Goldblum Make Your Day With His Creative Compliments of the Thor: Ragnarok Cast [more inside]
posted by poffin boffin at 12:31 PM PST - 27 comments

A husband and wife are running for Senate. Against each other.
They also might not be married? Or who they say they are? And nobody in their small town seems to know them? But they have a plan for a “whole new financial system.”
Meet the Deans.
posted by Grandysaur at 12:22 PM PST - 17 comments

What happens when you throw a neural network at a list of Hallowe'en costume ideas? Exactly as much awesomeness as you expect.
posted by hanov3r at 12:01 PM PST - 35 comments

Fidget Spinners .....IN SPACE!!
posted by The Whelk at 11:26 AM PST - 9 comments

First Trailer for Paul Thomas Anderson's 'Phantom Thread' [YouTube] “Set in the glamour of 1950’s post-war London, renowned dressmaker Reynolds Woodcock (Daniel Day-Lewis) and his sister Cyril (Lesley Manville) are at the center of British fashion, dressing royalty, movie stars, heiresses, socialites, debutants and dames with the distinct style of The House of Woodcock. Women come and go through Woodcock’s life, providing the confirmed bachelor with inspiration and companionship, until he comes across a young, strong-willed woman, Alma (Vicky Krieps), who soon becomes a fixture in his life as his muse and lover. Once controlled and planned, he finds his carefully tailored life disrupted by love.” [more inside]
posted by Fizz at 8:35 AM PST - 40 comments

ProPublica sought and got access to the source code for the Forensic Statistical Tool, or FST, that NYC's Office of the Chief Medical Examiner created and used till early 2017 to analyze complex DNA evidence in "about 1,350 cases over about 5 1/2 years." Now that a judge has unsealed the codebase, ProPublica's put it on GitHub, and "two newly unredacted defense expert affidavits are also available." From Exhibit C, October 2016: "I have seen no code indicating that any test code has been written for, or automated software testing has been performed on, FST." [more inside]
posted by brainwane at 5:31 AM PST - 89 comments

When Chan says, "I know I'm not young anymore. I cannot continue to make Rush Hour 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. How can I continue [to] do this kind of funny face," he pretends to throw a punch and then makes a face like Holy shit, that hurt, because it can hurt to punch somebody, often as much as being punched—a truth about human frailty that Jackie made into a comic trademark, as befits the Tom Hanks of kung fu movies.
posted by ellieBOA at 3:30 AM PST - 44 comments

In 1967, Leonard Nimoy released a space synth-lounge album as Mr Spock. [more inside]
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 3:17 AM PST - 20 comments

Reports of its death were greatly exaggerated, and the end-of-the-nation-state theory itself died at the turn of the millennium. But now it’s back, and this time it might be right.
posted by infini at 3:03 AM PST - 35 comments