October 7, 2006
Actroid DER2
So, what is an "actroid"?
It's an android actor, and you can rent one for $3500 for 5 days, to do
presentations at shows or whatever else you want. They come in a number of
configurations and wear
a
variety of costumes. The latest one, Actroid DER2, is shown on
this
page in several high quality stills and 3 WMVs (in Japanese; click
thumbnails and links immediately below thumbnails). Why is she wearing a "Hello
Kitty" T-shirt? Because she was created by
Kokoro, a member
company of the Sanrio Group, which also does
the majority of "Hello Kitty" merchandising. So are they working on a
robotic Hello Kitty? If you need me, I'll be hiding under my bed.
What?! No running in PE? It’s true.
No running in PE. I was talking to my kids about school the other day. We were discussing what they do in their different classes and the conversation came around to physical education (PE). I was shocked when they told me that their gym teacher forbids running in PE class. What?! No running in PE? It’s true.
Name more things after Lemmy - TALK!
A recently discovered species of polychaete annelid worm dating from the Silurian now bears the name of Motorhead fronstman, Lemmy Kilmister.
The Ten Thousand Things
Blake Leyh Sound designer for such films as The Abyss; Frida; Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon; Y Tu Mama Tambien, and many others has a music blog. He also composed the end credit music for HBO's The Wire, which may be the best television show ever made.
Old Glass Bottles, or YAMO (Yet Another Magnificant Obsession)
Historic Glass Bottles. Bill Lindsey of the BLM created a tremendous resource to assist you in identifying and dating most utilitarian glass bottles and jars produced in the United States and Canada between the early 1800s and 1950s. Check out information on glassmaking, bottle dating, and bottle types. Of particular interest to me are the pages on liquor, wine, and beer bottles.
Fixed Gear Gallery
Save New Scientist!
A plea to save New Scientist magazine from SF author and programmer Greg Egan (whose home page crashes my browser at the moment).
Franklin Kameny Papers Online
The Kameny Papers Project preserved and presents the papers of gay rights pioneer Franklin Kameny, who had activists picketing the White House in 1965, well before Stonewall. The website includes a nice archive of his papers, including correspondence, a small photo gallery, and some charming hate mail from members of Congress. See also the Franklin Kameny pages at the Rainbow History Project. Yesterday, the Library of Congress accepted Kameny's papers. [via Andrew Sullivan]
Anna Politkovskaya 1958 - 7 October 2006
Newsfilter: Chechen war reporter found dead - Anna Politkovskaya. Courageous reporting from the "forgotten" conflicts in Caucasus. I guess she found out the truth too often.
Martian Tire Tracks
Hi, mom ! Mars Orbiter takes a picture of Mars Rover on the lip of Victoria Crater with the HiRISE camera.
Disney, Syphilis, Mental Retardation, Sexuality, Videotape
Sex education of trainables, a 1970's instructional video for educating the mentally handicapped about human sexuality is just one of the many excellent ephemera uploaded to Google Video by Slave to the Man Productions. Along the same lines (from the collection) are Parents Talk to Children About Sex and Walt Disney's Attack Plan for Syphilis.
Bendy Vert and Argent, a Tierce Argent, a Fusil Azure
Make like a knight and generate your own simple heraldic shield. The venerable Pimbley's Dictionary of Heraldry can define the archaic blazoning terms that the Generator uses. If you'd prefer a more modern, more casual emblem, try the Official Seal Generator.
Dear God
National heritage destroyed?
Hotel Bed Jumping
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