July 12, 2009
Dangerous trap, high difficulty map, and unexpected situation wait for you.
Holdover is a difficult but compelling exploration platform game. Marie must escape from an abandoned scientific research installation, with no assistance other than recordings left by her father decades ago. Makes extensive and very good use of the "hold your breath" mechanics found in many such games. Available both in Japanese and bad English. A more reasonable English translation can be downloaded from the IndieGames weblog and dropped into the game's folder. [more inside]
"....Because it is bitter, and because it is my heart."
From these various anthropological approaches, a basic dichotomy has emerged between two types of societies from very different ecosystems: societies born in rain forests and those that thrive in deserts.... Begin with religious beliefs. A striking proportion of rain forest dwellers are polytheistic, worshipping an array of spirits and gods.... But desert dwellers... are usually monotheistic. Of course, despite allegiances to a single deity, other supernatural beings may be involved, like angels and djinns and Satan. But the hierarchy is notable, with minor deities subservient to the Omnipotent One. This division makes ecological sense.... Desert societies, with their far-flung members tending goats and camels, are classic spawning grounds for warrior classes and the accessories of militarism.... Rain forest cultures also are less likely to harbor beliefs about the inferiority of women; you won’t be likely to find rain forest men giving thanks in prayer that they were not created female, as is the case in at least one notable desert-derived religion.... (Previously, previously, previously)
What she thought she knew: a love story
The wane in veins draining the brain
A quiet revolution is taking place in the multiple sclerosis community. Long thought of as purely an autoimmune disease, possibly secondary to Epstein-Barr virus infection or even an STI, MS has never been pinned down to a single cause. Now things are changing, in a big and bloody way: MS appears to be related to abnormalities in veins. [more inside]
Ten new wind turbine designs
Ten new wind turbine designs. Curious, grotesque, sculptural, beautiful, utilitarian.
Pope != American. News at 11.
Caritas in Veritate (summary here), Benedict XVI's third encyclical, hit the presses last week and made it into Obama's hands on Friday. Part of a large body of Catholic social thinking, Benedict called for a United Nations "with teeth" (maybe it could happen) and a focus on authentic human development, grounded on a focus on the whole person and an economics governed by love. [more inside]
Metafilter Mascot in the news again
"Lilly, what did you see on the beach?" John Feher asked his little daughter. “Squid, squid, squid, squid, squid.” she replied. “Why are they here? Why are the squid here? I can’t honestly tell you,” Sgt. Rains said. “I don’t [know] if it’s tied or not to the earthquake.” Giant squid wash ashore in La Jolla.
The Cully Flaug'd and other suchlike
British Printed Images to 1700 is a fully searchable (if somewhat buggy at this early stage of release) online library of over 10,000 printed images from early modern Britain. As a taster, here is the naughty Cully Flaug'd [NSFW] of the title.
building nothing out of something? or...
Rebuilding Something Better by Barack Obama: "this week, I'll be talking about how we give our workers the skills they need to compete... Part of this goal will be met by helping Americans better afford a college education. But part of it will also be strengthening our network of community colleges..." [more inside]
Dinosaur Jr. apparently too old (not really)
[musicnewsfilter]: European copies of Dinosaur Jr.'s new album Farm have been recalled after duplication software "doubled the sound layers, resulting in a 3 dB increase in the overall sound volume." [more inside]
The Lithuanian Press Ban, 1864-1904
From 1864 to 1904, the Russian Empire tried to quelch the nationalism of Lithuanians by ordering all Lithuanian texts to be printed with Cyrillic characters instead of in the Latin-derived Lithuanian or Polish alphabets. But they didn't count on the Knygnešiai - the Booksmugglers. [more inside]
Look Who's Humping
Question Box (no internet required).
Question Boxes "bring information to people who cannot or do not access the Internet directly. Question Boxes leap over illiteracy, computer illiteracy, lack of networks, and language barriers.... Question Box users can use their mobile phones to call our call centers, or they can use the physical Question Box Units to call for free." The program was started by Rose Shuman, a young American entrepreneur. You can see the questions here.
Ourgothlaundry?
The Art & Life of Annie Truxell [via mefi projects]: Annie Truxell is a well known painter who has lived a long and fascinating life. Her adventures have been legendary, encompassing Greenwich Village in the 50s, London in the 60s and India in the 70s. She was friends with Franz Klein, Bill de Kooning, Truman Capote, Terry Southern, Mati Klarwein & many other wild & woolly people.
“I remember from the get-go, it wasn’t a normal crowd.”
Thirty years ago today was the infamous "Disco Demolition Night" at Chicago's Comiskey Park. It didn't go exactly as planned: "In the warm air that night, baseball’s routine and soothing sounds mixed with the tribal cadence of off-color chanting, the drifting scent of marijuana and the sight of vinyl records descending through the summer dusk like Frisbees." It wasn't the first time a 70s baseball promotion went astray. Considered by some "the worst idea ever," "Ten Cent Beer Night" at Cleveland Municipal Stadium five years earlier ended when "a large number of intoxicated fans – some armed with knives, chains, and portions of stadium seats that they had torn apart – surged onto the field, and others hurled bottles from the stands." (Previously on MeFi)
Livin' Large
Ever wonder what it would be like if you showed up to your freshman year of college...and your roommate was a 7'2" Division 1 basketball player from Holland? The author of sports blog Basketbawful is currently publishing a series of stories describing that exact experience. These chronicles vacillate between hilarious, shocking, depressing, and disgusting, but all are extremely entertaining. Part 1. Part 2. Part 3. Part 4. Part 5. Part 6. Part 7.
Ze Frank on Crop Circles, Bulls, Palin, McNamara and Progress
Oglaf
Comics. Often dirty. [nsfw]
« Previous day | Next day »