February 25, 2011
I always thought this was The Beatles' best song.
The Biggest Secret
Present company accept it
Friday night dance party
1 on 1 B-Boy Battle - close up and slow mo on some impressive moves captured at the 2010 BOTY in Paris. And for for some raw fun, the crowd-pleasing backstage battles of Morris vs Lilou part1 and part 2. [more inside]
Upper Sun River Mouth Child
Xaasaa Cheege Ts'eniin is a very special toddler. Approximately 11,500 years ago, the child spent at least one summer with family at a seasonal base camp in the Tanana Valley, located in what we now know as Alaska. Earlier this week, archaeologists announced their discovery of the child's cremated remains in ancient fire pit amidst an excavation of a circular semi-subterranean home. DNA testing of the remains could reveal genetic connections to the modern Athabascans. In addition, the find could yield new insight into the Paleo-Indians who traveled the Bering Strait, and the migration patterns of some of the indigenous people of North America. While little Xaaxaa only lived about three years, the toddler's remains, now the earliest human remains ever discovered in the North American arctic, ensure little Xaaxaa will be remembered for years to come.
What do you call a pothead that doesn't inhale
As you can see below, Ras enjoys smoking pot. He lives in Canada and according to his YouTube profile, his occupation is ‘Smoking’. His interests include smoking, and for music he likes Reggae. In ‘09 he smoked 40 bowls in 11 minutes, for an event called Tokecity’s Gauntlet, for which he was disqualified (because he exceeded the 4-minute smoke limit). Last year he only smoked 36 bowls, ‘about half of his collection’. Maybe he’s getting a bit behind.
“Good luck to all the submissions.”
(From 4-20 tumblr)
There's something out there waiting for us, and it ain't no man. We're all gonna die.
And The iPod You Rode In On.
Gussie Audrey Gowen Manlove Brown, we hardly knew ye
One seemingly innocuous video, briefly ruminating on the potential story behind a curious gravestone, leads fans of the VlogBrothers on an impromptu genealogy adventure. [more inside]
420,000 matchsticks!
Patrick Acton has made a model of Minas Tirith from Lord of the Rings... out of 420,000 matchsticks.
And the battle of the sexes continues...
Sex Is Cheap: Why young men have the upper hand in bed, even when they're failing in life. Remember this thread from last weekend? Here is another interesting take on the dynamics of modern heterosexual relationships.
... And then the ride's only, like, two minutes long.
"The Waiting Is the Hardest Part: Delayed Gratification in the Happiest Place on Earth" is a photo essay by graphic designer Arin Fishkin, depicting bored kids waiting in line at Disneyland. Want to avoid the "Cattle Yard?" Here are some tips.
Pete Eckert
In the beginning was the Word
Canadian horror flick Pontypool (trailer) is a modern zombie tale quite unlike any other. Loosely based on a dense, complicated novel by Tony Burgess and inspired by Orson Welles' War of the Worlds, it tells the story of Grant Mazzy, a grumbling yet likable radio host (played by veteran character actor Stephen McHattie) whose penchant for philosophical ramblings gets him booted from Toronto to the sleepy winter pastures of Pontypool, Ontario. One bleak morning, as the outspoken Mazzy chafes against no-nonsense producer Sydney Briar, disturbing news begins rolling in of a series of bizarre and violent incidents sweeping the town. Trapped in their church basement broadcasting booth, Mazzy, Briar, and intern Laurel-Ann Drummond struggle to understand the odd nature of the crisis and warn the wider world before it's too late. But this is no ordinary virus, and they find their efforts may be causing far more harm than good. You can watch the film on YouTube horror channel Dead By Dawn (1 2 3 4 5 6 7), but if you're pressed for time you can also experience it in its more logical form: as a one-hour BBC radio drama voiced by the original cast. And after the credits, make sure not to miss the film's playful non-sequitur coda.
Twenty-eight years and eight months
The Someone You're Not: "Our packed prisons are starting to disgorge hundreds of mostly African-American men who, over the last few decades, we wrongly convicted of violent crimes. This is what it's like to spend nearly thirty years in prison for something you didn't do. This is what it's like to spend nearly thirty years as someone you aren't. And for Ray Towler, this is what it's like to be free." Via. [more inside]
African-Americans in the Wild West: Nat Love, Cherokee Bill, and Stagecoach Mary Fields
The stories and pictures of the Wild West commonly feature white men, with little notion of the diversity present in the later half of the 19th century beyond the various regiments of "buffalo soldiers". In reality, black cowboys made up a large portion of the cowhand population, possibly a quarter of all cowboys. Estimations range from 5,000 to 15,000 cowboys being of African heritage. Many have been forgotten in the passing of time, but some of their stories live on. For instance, the cowboy Nat Love, the outlaw Cherokee Bill, and (all sorts of awesome) "Stagecoach" Mary Fields. [more inside]
The Vanishing Art of the Dip
The mark strolls along a city sidewalk, fresh out of the bank, his wallet in his back pocket, blithely unaware that he's stumbled into the clutches of a practiced jug troupe. Slate's Joe Keohane mourns the dying art of picking pockets. [more inside]
Streetview Zombie Apocalypse
He's A Good Boy, Damnit!
Riverdale. Over 100 Craig's List Volunteers from Vancouver create a "gritty" fan film trailer featuring Archie and the gang.
From Blacksburg to Libya
Virginia Tech geography Professor John Boyer has already enjoyed local notoriety for his comic book styled super hero alter-ego The Plaid Avenger. His 2006 text book raised controversy for including cocktail recipes along with a bombastic writing style and caricatures of world leaders illustrated by Klaus Shmidheiser, an alumi. This week their collaborative effort received the ultimate compliment— Libyan protestors have used Klaus' image of Gadhafi in signs and effigies. Here's a video interview.
The History of the Watchers' Council
"The Watchers' Council of Great Britain prides itself on being the oldest known human organisation in existence. It has changed its name several times, been all but destroyed and then re-founded at least twice, and many of its older records are long lost and crumbled to dust; but it can still trace a continuous thread of existence back over eight thousand years. There are, of course, demon cults and secret societies which are older - in some cases, a billion years older - but as far as humans go, the Council holds the laurel. This is their story." [more inside]
RIP Jerry Weist
Jerry Weist - comic and sf/f collector, retailer, author, and all around nerd - has died. Besides founding The Million Year Picnic, one of the first comics specialty stores in the US and almost certainly the first in New England, he had a long association with Sotheby's auction house for comics-related auctions. He also created Squa Tront, a fanzine dedicated to EC Comics. His book about Ray Bradbury, Bradbury: An Illustrated Life" was nominated for the 2003 Hugo award for "Best Related Work".
"Threads" and "Testament"
Threads (1984). (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13) Testament (1983). (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7) [more inside]
Japansese zoo practices for animal escape
Interlocked - Single Link Friday Flash Fun
Interlocked - You know those puzzles consisting of wooden blocks that are impossible take apart? Then you know Interlocked. Each level, you’re given a unique 3D puzzle consisting of blocks that hold each other together. Take it apart and you'll feel ten times as smart! (SLFFF)
Tufte eat your heart out!
"A Series of Statistical Charts, Illustrating The Condition of the Descendants of Former African Slaves Now Resident In the United States of America." (HQ Library of Congress links.)
W.E.B. DuBois : "I wanted to set down its aim and method in some outstanding way which would bring my work to the notice of the thinking world. The great World's Fair at Paris was being planned and I thought I might put my findings into plans, charts and figures, so one might see what we were trying to accomplish." [more inside]
I worry what you just heard was: give me a lot of bacon and eggs. What I said was: give me _all_ the bacon and eggs you have.
Modernist Cuisine
Oily and Dead
Gulf Coast Dolphin Death Toll Rising. Scientists clamor to figure out why 12 times the normal rate of dolphin deaths are being observed along the Gulf States. Results from an examination of 89 dead dolphins that washed up immediately after the Gulf oil spill have not been publicly released, but scientists concluded those dolphins "died from something environmental during the last year." Despite a steady drumbeat of stories in the media claiming that the Gulf has already been mostly cleaned up thanks to "teeny little janitors," getting far less media and public traction are more recent reports finding that the Gulf's sea floor is in fact still very much oily and dead. [more inside]
Lost in the information
John Jerome O'Connor produces infographics of a different sort. Subjects include; obesity and binge drinking by US state; cultural differences regarding personal space; the lottery; earthquakes and wars; offensive words on TV; differences between predicted and actual temperatures; and itches. (via) [more inside]
Volcano of Rage
'Volcano of Rage.' Arab rulers had grown too isolated, too inflated with pretense and hypocrisy, and too complacently confident in the power of their police. Their overwhelmingly youthful populations suffered perpetual humiliation at the hands of government officials, faced dim work prospects, and had little means of influencing politics. They felt, in the famous words of the Syrian playwright Saadallah Wannous, that they were "sentenced to hope." More sophisticated and exposed to the world than the generation that ruled them, they had lost faith in the whole patriarchal construct that seemed to hem in their lives. Max Rodenbeck writes about the overthrow of the Tunisian and Egyptian governments.
Now in Brooklyn, Homegrown Tobacco
Fed up with anti-smoker sentiments and taxation of cigarettes, Audrey Silk decided to plant her own tobacco at her home in Brooklyn.
The Internet Wishlist
The Internet Wishlist. Amrit Richmond has launched The Internet Wishlist, a collection of ideas for apps and websites people are wishing for, that she calls “a suggestion box for the future of technology”. To share your idea, just post on Twitter about an app or website that you would like to see built and include #theiwl in your tweet. Via: Laughing Squid.
Yeah, I was into the Mad Annuals before they were cool.
sorry for being myself
lulinternet is a ladyperson who elevates the animated gif to the level of Pizza, I mean Art. (NSFW, blinky) [more inside]
Making Logging Seem Like a Dirty Business
Malibu's Most Wanted: one might sensibly assume Mel Gibson is the worst person in his neighborhood. One would be wrong. Come on down, Teodoro Nguema Obiang Mangue.
Welcome to the State of Pima County.
Yesterday Paula Aboud, a State Senate Democrat from Tucson, proposed the secession of Pima County from the rest of the state as an amendment to the State Senate Bill 1433. Aboud's move was something of a middle finger to the state legislature, as SB 1433 was the bill that recently gained a good deal of notoriety on its own as the law that would allow Arizona legislature to override any Federal laws. Aboud's amendment was unsuccessful, but it would appear that the discussion is far from over. A group of citizens in Tucson, Arizona have started a movement to promote similar push for secession, believing that Pima County should be the 51st state in the union. The Facebook page for the Start Our State movement is seeing a lot of comments, both positive and negative.
The hidden cost of having your cake and eating it too...
How do you feel about your investment in USA Inc.? Imagine for a moment that the United States government is a public corporation. Imagine that its management structure, fiscal performance, and budget are all up for review. Now imagine that you're a shareholder in USA Inc. [more inside]
Everything looks better on graph paper.
Skate Skulls
Graphic designer Beto Janz took old beat-up skateboards and turned them into badass skull art for a skate shop in Brazil. Flash interface; mouse hover to the right side of the browser and click to advance the six images in sequence; skull decks are the final two images. Change the minus sign at page top to plus to view more images.
FADE IN
IFC News presents film's 50 Greatest Opening Title Sequences of All Time - Start here, or all 50 on one page
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