May 20, 2016

I am the purgatorial flame of this rotting shit-hole... Inferno Cop!!

Thrill at the 2-4 minute long, extremely cheaply animated adventures of INFERNO COP, passionate, tireless, easily distracted crusader for justice in Jack Knife Edge Town, as he battles the sinister (and poorly motivated) secret society Southern Cross! (click the "CC" button to turn on English subtitles) [more inside]
posted by J.K. Seazer at 8:16 PM PST - 11 comments

Bangfit by Pornhub

"Welcome to the wonderful world of BangFit, an exercise platform created by Pornhub to fight against our sedentary lifestyle. Watch the video below and discover the fitness miracle gyms don’t want you to know about." [There is not actual real human nudity, it is a cartoon, but still a bit NSFW. Unless you work for Pornhub.]
posted by marienbad at 7:09 PM PST - 15 comments

Bless his bagpipes

Alan Young, who played Wilbur on the TV show Mr. Ed, and much more recently was the voice of Scrooge McDuck in recent productions, including the cartoon show DuckTales, has passed away at the age of 96. [more inside]
posted by JHarris at 6:30 PM PST - 32 comments

Why Shaky-Cam is Ruining Modern Action Movies

Captain America: Civil War is the latest in a long, long, long line of action movies that lean too hard on shaky-cam-heavy battles.... These films all owe an unpayable debt to none other than The Bourne Supremacy, the 2004 sequel to The Bourne Identity, directed by Paul Greengrass. Greengrass brought his jittery documentary-style filmmaking straight from socially conscious films like Bloody Sunday to two of the Bourne films, as well as Captain Phillips, United 93, and Green Zone. In the decade-plus since The Bourne Supremacy, so many filmmakers have adopted Greengrass’ style, less because it fits a story and more because it sufficiently caught audiences’ attention and studio heads felt it should be replicated ad hominem.
posted by MoonOrb at 6:09 PM PST - 86 comments

Cheese Ball Machine Gun

"If you need to ask why anyone would want a cheese ball machine gun, you should probably turn back now." [more inside]
posted by Johnny Wallflower at 5:49 PM PST - 15 comments

Betteridge doesn't always apply

Is Metro on fire? [more inside]
posted by ChurchHatesTucker at 5:33 PM PST - 29 comments

"...Every room becomes a mouth."

(Content warning for pretty much the whole post: Body horror, bright flashes, and disturbing imagery abound.) Kitty Horrorshow (Itch, Twitter) is an independent game developer making fascinating, horrifying things. Minimalist horror games that go bold directions and are deeply uncomfortable experiences. Her biggest game by far, though, is ANATOMY, a game in which you explore a dark house, seeking out cassette tapes and studying the "physiology of domestic architecture". [more inside]
posted by brecc at 5:05 PM PST - 17 comments

Lisa Charlotte Rost Charts 12 Data Visualization Tools

In an effort to get to know as many options to visualize data as possible, Lisa Charlotte Rost took the same dataset and visualized it with 12 different tools and 12 different charting libraries. [more inside]
posted by cgc373 at 3:55 PM PST - 19 comments

They called you exotic. Which is just people talk for awesome.

Coyote Peterson, host of wildlife TV show Brave Wilderness, was hunting for spiders at night on a trail through Costa Rica's Osa Peninsula when he encountered a very different kind of creature.
posted by scalefree at 3:22 PM PST - 47 comments

The inside story of when Run‑DMC met Aerosmith...

And Changed Music Forever! It’s 1986. Rap music is explosive and on the rise but still misunderstood and barely represented in the mainstream. [more inside]
posted by Cookiebastard at 3:00 PM PST - 33 comments

“failed to uphold the standards of ethical behavior”

Ethics and the Eye of the Beholder by Katie J.M. Baker [Buzzfeed] Thomas Pogge, one of the world’s most prominent ethicists, stands accused of manipulating students to gain sexual advantage. Did the fierce champion of the world's disempowered abuse his own power? [more inside]
posted by Fizz at 2:38 PM PST - 53 comments

"I don't know about God, but I believe in Chris Jackson!"

He's done some things since, but In The Heights is what put Lin-Manuel Miranda on the map, winning 4 Tonys and running from 2008-2011 on Broadway. What is In The Heights? It's a musical about one summer weekend in the Latino community in Washington Heights, where personal relationships mingle with issues like education, gentrification, and legacy. Miranda started writing the show while in college at Wesleyan, and faced producers who didn't share his vision before finding the right team. The Tony performance gives a good sample of the flavor of the show. Below the cut, a lot more media about the show, almost all of it from an excellent roundup by tumblr user stickmarionette. [more inside]
posted by kmz at 2:28 PM PST - 26 comments

No one dies on the first boss

R-Type as you've never seen it before.
posted by tomcooke at 2:17 PM PST - 12 comments

Odd Swedish Habits

Swedes are an interesting bunch. They're efficient but they love a good coffee-break, they're humble but they hang flags on their front porches, and they can appear cold at a glance but are as warm as an Arctic sauna when you really, really get to know them. And to me, they're also quite odd. [more inside]
posted by Bella Donna at 2:05 PM PST - 56 comments

Plug ‘n Play Part Phone Persists

David Pierce, writing for the hype factory that is Wired: “Project Ara Lives: Google’s Modular Phone Is Ready for You Now”
Developer edition shipping Fall 2016.
Previously, Preiviouslier.
posted by Going To Maine at 1:12 PM PST - 50 comments

Take on Me, one half-step out of key. Hungry Like the Wolf, one half-step out of key. Never Gonna Give You Up, one half-step out of key. Bohemian Rhapsody, one-half step out of key. [more inside]
posted by Johnny Assay at 12:51 PM PST - 125 comments

Just one race

Vice's David Hill spends the week of the Kentucky Derby with legendary sports bettor Alan Denkenson, AKA Dink,
posted by Potomac Avenue at 12:10 PM PST - 2 comments

Uncharted 4: lessons on how to create the future of interactive cinema

While a technical analysis can show you why it looks so good, its storytelling ambitions are also innovative. It was strongly influenced by film, yet some feel that AAA games are already better than blockbuster films. Some find them so immersive, they don't want to finish. [more inside]
posted by heatvision at 11:52 AM PST - 48 comments

Happy Chewbacca

It's the simple joys.
posted by Bora Horza Gobuchul at 11:44 AM PST - 42 comments

New York City’s zoning code turns 100 this year.

40 Percent of the Buildings in Manhattan Could Not Be Built Today
posted by Michele in California at 11:37 AM PST - 12 comments

Where does technology exploit our minds weaknesses?

How Technology Hijacks People’s Minds — from a Magician and Google’s Design Ethicist (Medium, 12min) I learned to think this way when I was a magician. Magicians start by looking for blind spots, edges, vulnerabilities and limits of people’s perception, so they can influence what people do without them even realizing it. Once you know how to push people’s buttons, you can play them like a piano. [more inside]
posted by CrystalDave at 11:32 AM PST - 33 comments

They feel music left them behind, and Nickelback is all they have left

Nickelback won the 90s culture war
posted by acb at 11:08 AM PST - 88 comments

But does she like Huey Louis and the News?

I believe in taking care of myself. In a balanced diet. In a rigorous exercise routine. In the morning, if my face is a little puffy, I'll hold two cold spoons, dipped in Lapsang souchong, over my eyes. I like to meditate when I work on my core... even though I was born with a sixpack. [more inside]
posted by Evilspork at 9:48 AM PST - 24 comments

Odnarotoop, apparently

Portland is courting Japanese tourists with this absurd video (warning: earworm). [more inside]
posted by librarina at 8:58 AM PST - 65 comments

Cosmo’s Former Art Director

There is a radical feminist thrift store in Denmark run by the former art director of Cosmopolitan magazine. I learned this by accident. (Michelle Goldberg, Slate)
posted by Think_Long at 8:32 AM PST - 13 comments

Tunnel under the Temple of the Plumed Serpent

In 2003, a sinkhole opened up at the base of the Temple of the Plumed Serpent in the ruins of Teotihuacán. "In archaeology and anthropology circles—to say nothing of the popular press—Sergio Gómez’s discovery was greeted as a major turning point in Teotihuacán studies. The tunnel under the Temple of the Sun had been largely emptied by looters before archaeologists could get to it in the 1990s. But Gómez’s tunnel had been sealed off for some 1,800 years: Its treasures would be pristine." Here's an update on what they've found.
posted by goatdog at 8:27 AM PST - 13 comments

Two Big Shefs, One Funmeal, and some Americana

Burger Chef was a US fast food chain, created in the 1950's, that once rivaled McDonald's. In the early 1970's it had over 1000 locations nationwide. In the 1980's General Foods Corporation gradually divested itself of the chain by selling locations to Hardee's. Some people remember Burger Chef quite fondly. [more inside]
posted by cwest at 8:17 AM PST - 36 comments

Do Start-ups Have a Drinking Problem?

The problem is that when alcohol is your solution, you’re playing a dangerous game. It’s not a question of if a heavy drinking culture will result in HR violations or if capable, competent team members will feel ostracized, but when. To say nothing of the lost opportunity to create authentic, honest relationships amongst your team. (slMedium/Backchannel)
posted by Kitteh at 8:06 AM PST - 115 comments

Apologies to the hammock, the "old mother" who embraces and comforts

Chris Columbus "discovered" the hammock just as he "discovered" the Americas, being the first European to kick off the flood of "new world" explorers, a number of whom commented on the hanging woven net beds they saw. They brought the design back to Europe, as they took cotton, canvas and other cloths to the Americas, where they were quickly adopted by sailors and navies, with some innovative designs. Today there are a myriad of variations (slideshow) on the simple little sling that has survived for more than 1,000 years, used as a bed, birthing table, cradle, sofa -- even as a final resting place. [more inside]
posted by filthy light thief at 8:01 AM PST - 32 comments

So why doesn’t anyone know her name?

The Most Successful Female Everest Climber of All Time Is a Housekeeper in Hartford, Connecticut. Lhakpa Sherpa breaks own record, scales Everest for seventh time
posted by the man of twists and turns at 7:41 AM PST - 18 comments

M I N D W E B S

Mind Webs: semi-dramatized readings of classic science fiction stories by Le Guin, Ballard, Wolfe, Clarke, Dick, Bester, Bradbury, Sheckley, Lafferty, Leiber, Merril, Brunner, Russ, Davidson, Matheson, Vonnegut, deFord, Asimov, Counselman, Spinrad, Bloch, Niven, Clingerman, Harrison, Sturgeon, Aldiss, Knight, Saberhagen, Saxton, Pohl, Silverburg, Cheever, Zelazny, Farmer, Simak, Dybek, Dahl, Priest, and many others. Originally broadcast between the late 70s and early 90s by WHA (AM) of Madison, Wisconsin. [more inside]
posted by Iridic at 7:32 AM PST - 10 comments

A basterd's selfie is never done

It's not quite replacing guns with dildos, but Guns replaced with Selfie Sticks is an enjoyable diversion on a Friday. See the Terminator posing for a motorcycle selfie, John Wayne getting the perfect selfie with a great cloud backdrop, or even Private Pyle taking a moment after prematurely finishing boot camp.
posted by Etrigan at 7:27 AM PST - 4 comments

On the Front Lines of the Abortion Wars

Marie Claire's two part series, "This Is What a World Without Reproductive Rights Would Be Like" and "On the Front Lines of the Abortion Wars" the state of women's rights in El Salvador, "where women are put in prison or risk death to avoid having a baby" and the Midwest United States, considered an "abortion desert." [more inside]
posted by roomthreeseventeen at 7:22 AM PST - 16 comments

Also a stealth documentary on young white people fashion in the 90s

It's 1996 and you've been hired as a game tester by Sega's Test Department. How will you get acquainted with the corporate culture? Lucky for you, Sega has commissioned a "trainumentary": This is SEGA TEST
posted by Pope Guilty at 6:28 AM PST - 20 comments

"The best. Of any sport. Anywhere."

It's time to sit back for two hours of non-stop cricket action, collected here for the first time on video: Classic ('80s) Test Finishes, hosted by Richie Benaud. [more inside]
posted by Sonny Jim at 6:13 AM PST - 21 comments

Penguins and social justice

What social justice movements can learn from penguins. (article links to animation)
posted by jb at 5:31 AM PST - 6 comments

children turn on your radio and don't go out don't go out don't

Hop Along's Frances Quinlan Performs "Buddy in the Parade" 1 [more inside]
posted by eyeballkid at 2:38 AM PST - 9 comments

Sink Capitalism

If you can't make it to the Museum of Soviet Arcade Machines (previously, previouslier), don't fret, you can experience it in the comfort of your own browser! [more inside]
posted by ckape at 1:18 AM PST - 11 comments

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