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Anxiety disorder, attention deficit disorder. While I understand that these disorders exist, the skeptic in me tends to believe that the seemingly increasing diagnoses are more a symptom of our culture's need to blame external causes for behavior versus personal responsibility. Is this a post-60s/80s "Me" thing or am I way off base?
posted by owillis at 11:29 PM PST - 41 comments

I enjoy introducing my friends to the web and weblogging and I am quite fond of watching them play with the medium without prior knowledge of the weblog community and it's "rules". It's fascinating to see what they produce when they are not told to "Write everyday about what happens in your life and then link to things you found while surfing". One such friend is Karen Wright who has taken to her website perceiving.org with a style that is very much her own. Somehow it feels more literary, more story-centric, less about links and more about life. What do you all think? How have "the rules" effected your writing?
posted by shmuel at 10:07 PM PST - 30 comments

Chaka Khan, Chaka Khan, let me rock you Chaka Khan... Chaka Khan is still alive and all she wants to do is sell you chocolates [via popbiznatch].
posted by mathowie at 5:37 PM PST - 6 comments

Who needs 204 keys? I know I do. Damned shift keys. [via the big H.]
posted by jcterminal at 3:30 PM PST - 19 comments

How do they do it? The Guardian sent their reporters to the four corners of the world to review...underground railways. The findings prove predictably that anything is better than The London Underground. In Prague for example: "Not long ago, a man paid for adverts to be put up in all 940 trains, pleading with his girlfriend to take him back. Czechs understand the romantic potential of the metro and it has found its way into a fair amount of the nation's modern literature. "
posted by feelinglistless at 3:24 PM PST - 22 comments

It was Fantasia in C Minor with mobile phone, beeping watches and coughing and sneezing accompaniment." Andras Schiff (a wonderful, wonderful pianist, who I've been lucky to hear in concert) had enough of the background noise and left the stage at the Edinburgh festival until people turned off their phones and cleared their throats. Over-reaction, or justified against rudeness? And have you ever experienced something similar at a play/concert/gig?
posted by holgate at 12:44 PM PST - 53 comments

What the f__K?!!!
Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones!??? Is this really going to be the title? Apparently it has pissed off many fans.
posted by Sal Amander at 12:32 PM PST - 52 comments

Sick of being beaten to a pulp in bar-room scuffles? Feeling bruised, battered and almost defeated? Learn how to take a punch and turn your life around. This serious advice page includes such gems as 'Move toward the blow, not away from it..', 'Avoid taking the punch in the nose, which is extremely painful', 'do not flinch..', and little-known defence manoeuvres such as '3. Attempt to deflect the blow with an arm' and '4. (optional) Hit back with an uppercut or roundhouse'. Goodluck warriors: Your equipped.
posted by Kino at 12:32 PM PST - 13 comments

Ask Google? For $3, Google staffers will research any question you might have and e-mail you the response. Not a new concept, obviously, but Google has a habit of improving radically on old ideas. Feel free to post your questions and their responses inside.
posted by waxpancake at 12:08 PM PST - 37 comments

History Wired is the new interactive web project from the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History, that lets you browse the various collections by topic, by timeline, or both. It's based on the SmartMoney "Map of the Market".
posted by JParker at 11:49 AM PST - 5 comments

yet another "those dang dotcommers" article i'm tired of all these "how the mighty have fallen" articles. When do we get to talk about something new??
posted by christina at 10:11 AM PST - 17 comments

To stop the credit bureaus from releasing your personal info without your knowledge, call 888-567-8688. To stop your bank, brokerage firm, credit union, etc., from doing the same, you'll need to send a letter. More info in comments.
posted by JParker at 9:25 AM PST - 16 comments

Napster refuses to die, promises viable business model which you can now download for free. Someone tell these people that the dot-com "I've got no way of paying you anything other than stock options" boom is over. If I have to pay for the service of downloading software from a central server, the P2P model is useless. Morons.
posted by rev- at 9:12 AM PST - 3 comments

The Salon Death March continues. I personally thought the nadir was the cover story last week featuring a photographer reminiscing about almost nailing Marylin (not work-safe), but no...now Salon has dared to crawl into the underbelly of this country and expose the horror of...hippie parents. Good to see the most high-profile online magazine tackling these hard-hitting issues. How's that stock price doing again?
posted by solistrato at 8:06 AM PST - 65 comments

One of these things is just a bit unlike the others: The Wired Rave Awards (whatever they are) category list includes a "Cultural Innovator" category to select a person who is "changing our creative landscape. A talent whose work has a profound effect on our culture." The names:

• Ang Lee, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
• David Chase and James Gandolfini, The Sopranos
• Evan Williams, Blogger
• Hironobu Sakaguchi, Final Fantasy
• Thomas Krens, Director of Guggenheim Museums Worldwide

I don't know where to start.
posted by werty at 7:34 AM PST - 45 comments

State Rep. Forwards Racist E-mail A state representative forwarded an e-mail to fellow lawmakers this week that claimed, "Two things made this country great: White men & Christianity....There's a lot of it that's truth, the way I see it," Davis said. "Who came to this country first -- the white man, didn't he? That's who made this country great."

i don't know about you, but i feel dumber for having just read that story.
posted by adampsyche at 7:17 AM PST - 26 comments

Lottery Madness Grips the Delusional Nation
Odds of winning Powerball: 80 million to one
Odds of dying in an airplane crash: 7 million to one
Odds of being hit by lightening: 600,000 to one
Odds of perishing in a California earthquake: 600,000 to one
Odds of dying in an automobile accident: 20,000 to one

While legalized gambling may suck, at least your life is priceless?
posted by yarf at 7:14 AM PST - 32 comments

But "the biggest thing," he said, "is not having a heartbeat."
posted by tweebiscuit at 6:59 AM PST - 21 comments

Finally, some genetic modification I can sink my teeth into! Wired reports this morning that an Australian researcher has identified the genetic characteristics for "tenderness" and "toughness" in cow muscle tissue. Aussie cattle ranchers are already gearing up to produce animals that result in more tender, juicier beef. I'm drooling already.
posted by briank at 6:01 AM PST - 14 comments