May 5, 2011

What is the meaning of the assassination of OBL?

Guy Rundle teases out the meanings of the bin Laden assassination, in contrast to the Eichmann trial.
posted by wilful at 11:04 PM PST - 93 comments

Just in time for Mother's Day

What's That In Danzigs?
posted by Lovecraft In Brooklyn at 10:40 PM PST - 30 comments

The Long Con

"I didn't realize I was playing a chess game for my life with the FBI. They were playing chess, and I was off finger-painting in the corner." Rick Wilson, an occasional activist who liked to throw after-hours parties in his Capitol Hill apartment, was the target of an intricate and costly 2-year long undercover sting operation led by the Seattle Police Department and the FBI. Their goal; to get Rick to reveal his ties to eco-terrorism groups and two of the more progressive city council members. (Members who have encourage increased oversight of the SPD) The only problem, there were no such ties. [more inside]
posted by Maude_the_destroyer at 9:08 PM PST - 110 comments

Classical Music: a history according to YouTube

The Australian ABC's Limelight magazine has put together a potted history of music, with video examples (40LYTP). [more inside]
posted by coriolisdave at 7:29 PM PST - 9 comments

The Lion Wakes.

There's something in the air this election season. For the first time in almost 40 years, almost every electoral ward in Singapore is up for grabs, as the opposition parties stage their biggest contest against the incumbent People's Action Party (PAP). [more inside]
posted by destrius at 7:20 PM PST - 31 comments

A gift from God

Rep. Steve Simon, DFL-St. Louis Park, MN. Responding to the Republican push to put banning same sex marrage on the 2012 ballot. (SLYT)
posted by edgeways at 6:39 PM PST - 62 comments

'80s Alternative Music Live on Spanish TV

Youtube channel of early/mid 1980s alternative rock music recorded in Estudios Roma, Madrid [more inside]
posted by NoMich at 6:36 PM PST - 13 comments

Multitasking at a new level

A one woman band. [via]
posted by quin at 6:20 PM PST - 23 comments

Farewell, Chuckles

Last World War I combat vet dies in Australia. Claude Stanley Choules was 110. RIP, Chuckles.
posted by bwg at 6:11 PM PST - 40 comments

The smell of popcorn and Coppertone

The House Next Door has kicked off this year's installment of the "Summer of..." series, where they look back at the summer movies from 25 years ago. For the next few months they'll be revisiting the summer movies from 1986, and you can check out the previous installments to relive the glories of 1985 (Weird Science, Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome, St. Elmo's Fire), and 1984 (including the magical day Gremlins, Ghostbusters, and Top Secret! opened simultaneously).
posted by Horace Rumpole at 6:09 PM PST - 10 comments

Can We Influence Outcomes Together?

Can We Influence Outcomes Together? How can people and computers be connected so that—collectively—they act more intelligently than any individuals, groups or computers have ever done before? Can collective intelligence save the planet? An MIT Sloan Management Review studies The Collective Intelligence Genome [pdf].
posted by netbros at 5:58 PM PST - 4 comments

Everybody loves bacon!

Red kites; slow motion; bacon. What's not to love?
posted by rtha at 5:51 PM PST - 14 comments

Detroit 3.0: It's Aerotropolis

Aerotropolis, city of the future!
posted by selfmedicating at 5:48 PM PST - 29 comments

Safari Disco Club / Que veux-tu

Safari Disco Club / Que veux-tu double-feature music video for two tracks from Yelle's second album
posted by finite at 5:30 PM PST - 6 comments

a micro-site for micro-frameworks

Fantastic Micro-Frameworks and Micro-Libraries for Fun and Profit
posted by the noob at 4:53 PM PST - 21 comments

Ogilvy on Advertising -- the original Mad Man

"How to Create Advertising that Sells" by David Ogilvy From the late 60's to early 70's, ad agency Ogilvy & Mather ran a series of full-page ads designed to promote the then-new innovative marketing discipline called Direct Response. This ad (#4 in the series) was 1900 words long and featured advice for creating "advertising that sells." [more inside]
posted by zooropa at 4:50 PM PST - 39 comments

The question was whether anyone really wanted to know.

What happened to Air France Flight 447?
posted by xowie at 4:48 PM PST - 15 comments

We're protecting you from the Internet, Citizen.

Mozilla recently received a request from the US Department of Homeland Security to disable and block at the root level the MAFIAAfire plug-in for Firefox. Mozilla declined to roll over.
posted by pjern at 4:19 PM PST - 57 comments

The Stolen Scream

The Stolen Scream. In 2006, photographer Noam Galai posted a handful of dramatic self-portraits to Flickr. Unbeknownst to him, his screaming face slowly took on a life of its own (often as a symbol of unrest or protest), appearing in countless permutations the world over. In this mini-documentary, Noam is surprisingly pragmatic about his accidental fame, and the fact that he only got paid once for the legal use of the picture.
posted by O9scar at 3:16 PM PST - 26 comments

Grouponomics

The Sharing Economy (via) [more inside]
posted by kliuless at 2:56 PM PST - 12 comments

Murdochileaks

Documents and databases: They're key to modern journalism. But they're almost always hidden behind locked doors, especially when they detail wrongdoing such as fraud, abuse, pollution, insider trading, and other harms. That's why we need your help. The Wall Street Journal launches a "safe house" for whistleblowers. There's instant criticism, plus the question: will anybody use the site? (P.S. don't forget to read the Terms of Use).
posted by chavenet at 2:49 PM PST - 23 comments

Is this x defined? Is F continuous?

Calculus Rhapsody Like it says on the tin.
posted by tomswift at 2:38 PM PST - 9 comments

Interstellar Overdrive

Tonite Let's All Make Love In London (1967) NSFW [more inside]
posted by Antidisestablishmentarianist at 2:28 PM PST - 9 comments

The Wonder of God in Nature

Die Wunder Gottes in der Natur (1744) illustrates astronomical, meteorological, geological, spiritual, and psychological visions, based on the work of 16th century Alsatian encyclopedist Conrad Lycosthenes.

The cover and title page.
posted by Chinese Jet Pilot at 1:45 PM PST - 7 comments

So how do we stand now?

Following recent events; Frontline has rushed out a special report (53 mins). which takes the viewer inside two fronts of the fight against Al Qaeda and the Taliban. They also find new evidence of covert support for elements of the Taliban by the Pakistani military and its intelligence service, the ISI [more inside]
posted by adamvasco at 1:19 PM PST - 55 comments

The conspiracy theories that Osama bin Laden isn't really dead continue.

The Osama Bin Laden conspiracies (CBC The Current radio segment) Jonathan Kay has been giving a lot of thought to the conspiracy theories that have emerged since the attacks of September 11th. He's the Comments Page Editor at The National Post and the author of Among the Truthers: A Journey into the Growing Conspiracist Underground of 9/11 Truthers, Birthers, Armageddonites, Vaccine Hysterics, Hollywood Know-Nothings and Internet Addicts (released next week) [more inside]
posted by KokuRyu at 1:18 PM PST - 92 comments

Here Be Dragons

HBO's Game of Thrones, "Narnia populated by super-hard bastards", has been a ratings and critical success and has already been picked up for a second season. HBO have a secret weapon in bringing George R. R. Martin's fantasy epic to screen: An awesome title sequence that doubles as a painless infodump.
posted by Artw at 12:44 PM PST - 301 comments

Green Army Men with PTSD

Green Army Men with PTSD
posted by Tom-B at 12:17 PM PST - 56 comments

Holiday snaps

Travel Photographer of the Year - 2010 Winners' Gallery, a selection of the winners and runners-up
posted by fearfulsymmetry at 12:13 PM PST - 6 comments

Jane Corwin: Standing Next to Fire Trucks

Why it is important to register your domain name. New York State Assemblywoman Jane Corwin apparently neglected to register her name as a dot org. So somebody else did.
posted by Astro Zombie at 12:04 PM PST - 59 comments

"I've got this thing..."

In the basement rolling dice / I'm a wizard / When we play we do it right / Candles flicker / Fighting dragons in my mind / Just for kicks / DM says you're gonna die / Roll a D6
posted by OverlappingElvis at 11:56 AM PST - 34 comments

His reaction is adorable

That first kiss... (SLYT)
posted by zarq at 11:56 AM PST - 23 comments

Mama Shaq!

It is that time of year again... And Scav Hunt has begun! [more inside]
posted by bibliogrrl at 11:54 AM PST - 15 comments

Let's

Today, the UK is voting on a series of national and local elections along with a referendum on whether to adopt the Alternative Vote system. The referendum has caused fierce rows within the Coalition, with accusations of lies flying around, including the supposed high cost of an AV system. Most polls indicate that AV will not be adopted, spelling yet another potential disaster for the Liberal Democrats.
posted by adrianhon at 11:37 AM PST - 89 comments

They Paved Paradise and Put Up a Parking Lot

Remember R. Crumbs, A Short History of America? Now you can DIY with What Was There?.
posted by Xurando at 11:11 AM PST - 10 comments

War Dog of War

...it should be no surprise that among the 79 commandos involved in Operation Neptune Spear, one was a dog...it should come as no surprise that among the 79 commandos involved in Operation Neptune Spear that resulted in Osama bin Laden's killing, there was one dog -- the elite of the four-legged variety. And though the dog in question remains an enigma -- another mysterious detail of the still-unfolding narrative of that historic mission -- there should be little reason to speculate about why there was a dog involved... A lot more photos, links, and history here and here and more adoption info here
posted by J0 at 11:05 AM PST - 102 comments

NYC is now More Diverse Than LA

New York City Wrests Title of "Most Diverse US City" from Los Angeles
posted by cell divide at 10:59 AM PST - 56 comments

Extra Credits

Extra Credits is a weekly video series on the design, status quo and potential of video games. [more inside]
posted by mccarty.tim at 10:57 AM PST - 13 comments

Team Werewolf

The Social Security Administration has released the top ten baby names for both genders in 2010. Topping this year's list: Jacob and Isabella. Were Twi-Moms out in full force last year? Maybe. It should be noted, however, that Edward came in a distance 136.
posted by roomthreeseventeen at 10:19 AM PST - 212 comments

The Discrete Charm of the 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, ...

Do you like integer sequences? Do you like poking around in the The On-Line Encyclopedia of Integer Sequences? Do you think, whoa, wait, okay, actually I like integer sequences but the OEIS is a goddam intractable maze of numbers? Do you think, man, what I wish is that someone would make an accessible blog that discusses some of the interesting entries in the OEIS for the casual fan of integer sequences? Well, that's an amazing coincidence; you should take a look at The On-Line Blog of Integer Sequences, by our very own Plutor.
posted by cortex at 10:18 AM PST - 27 comments

"Good grief!"

Peanutweeter: pairing off-color tweets with panels from Peanuts.
posted by Fizz at 9:47 AM PST - 15 comments

"We noticed an issue yesterday...:

In last week's post about the PSN security breach, several MeFites recommended LastPass for storing passwords. Well, yesterday they found some anomolous network traffic, and they're asking all users to update their master password. (Some notes from James Fallows of The Atlantic. One guy explaining why you shouldn't freak out. Ask MeFi: "What simple, secure, portable password and secure data management systems do you use?")
posted by epersonae at 9:46 AM PST - 97 comments

A History of the Library as Seen Through Notable Researchers

"The New York Public Library’s Beaux-Arts Stephen A. Schwarzman Building celebrates its 100th anniversary this month on May 23. The Centennial offers a wonderful opportunity to reflect on Library use from the past 100 and uncover stories that can serve as inspiration for another century. One unique way to trace the history of the Library is through call slips. In order to use books in the research collection, patrons request specific titles by filling out a call slip, which includes the following information: author, title, and call number. Not all call slips have been saved over the years, but some have been preserved for posterity." Featured are slips from Max Eastman, Lewis Mumford, Dorothy Parker, John Dos Passos and R. G. Wasson...
posted by jim in austin at 9:39 AM PST - 4 comments

The Argumentative Theory of Reasoning

Reasoning was not designed to pursue the truth. Reasoning was designed to help us win arguments. [more inside]
posted by AceRock at 9:08 AM PST - 61 comments

FLicKeR

FLicKeR [1h9m] is a documentary about Brion Gysin and his Dreammachine, a motorized sculpture made to be viewed with one's eyes closed. It features interviews from Marianne Faithful, DJ Spooky, Iggy Pop, and Genesis P-Orridge, among others. [more inside]
posted by hippybear at 8:54 AM PST - 14 comments

My God is doin' a *pant* brand nu *wheeze* thang!

Rap disaster! Earnest boy attempts dc Talk's "Nu Thang." The band Capital Cities offers a redemptive remix. (Download.)
posted by hermitosis at 8:53 AM PST - 22 comments

A hundred things you should read

(About) 100 fantastic pieces of journalism from the editor of the Atlantic. Some stuff has been posted here before, but there is much that is new. So read about: The man who broke the Price is Right, horrifying Argentine ant invasions (warning: features description of ants in a California home that will creep you out for a long time to come), the ethics of cloning Neanderthals, the rise of the order of Assassins, why Holder can't close Gitmo, Hooter's opening in Japan, how a jailhouse lawyer sued himself out of prison, and the reflections of one of the best writers of nonfiction alive. And about 90 other articles, all available online.
posted by blahblahblah at 8:50 AM PST - 17 comments

"We have no idea what to do next."

"All of us in the environment movement, in other words – whether we propose accomodation, radical downsizing or collapse – are lost." Is human civilization hitting the sustainability wall? If so, the environmental movement seems blocked about what to do about it, broods George Monbiot. Nobody likes a "steady state economy", and the worse things get, the harder that option is to achieve. Plus green contradictions might vitiate effective action: "the same worldview tells us that we must reduce emissions, defend our landscapes and resist both the state and big business. The four objectives are at odds." [more inside]
posted by doctornemo at 7:19 AM PST - 137 comments

Bill James Applies His Science to Serial Killers

Bill James, a pioneer in the field of baseball statistics, has now turned his attention to serial killers and their methods.
posted by reenum at 6:52 AM PST - 38 comments

He's tryin' to build somethin' here!

Det. James Francis McNulty, jack of diamonds, prince of smirk.
posted by lazenby at 6:31 AM PST - 39 comments

We're gonna have a real good time together

In 1993, The Velvet Underground reformed and played their first gig in Edinburgh. A Documentary on the tour.
posted by sgt.serenity at 5:29 AM PST - 58 comments

Montblanc Watches Chinese Ad:

Montblanc Watches Chinese Ad is the everyday story a son of a billionaire that splits with his arty girlfriend and wins her back with ride to Switzerland in a private jet. I won't spoil the rest other than to say don't give up on the boring factory visit, the finale is worth waiting for.
posted by priorpark17 at 5:09 AM PST - 102 comments

PRETTYGOODACTUALLY

BADBADNOTGOOD play instrumental jazz versions of OFWGKTA beats.
posted by sveskemus at 4:43 AM PST - 10 comments

Wanted: Gentleman bank robber

Crime Magazine features a rather matter-of-fact account of one of Leslie Ibsen Rogge's (wiki) bank robberies. The article is an excerpt from a new book by Dane Batty, Rogge's nephew, called Wanted: Gentleman bank robber: The True Story of Leslie Ibsen Rogge, One of the FBI’s Most Elusive Criminals. Rogge was once on the FBI's Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list, and is apparently the first from that list brought in due to the Internet. He is due to be released in 2047.
posted by Harald74 at 4:03 AM PST - 9 comments

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