November 21, 2008
Close-ups of insects
The Insect Close-ups Flickr Pool is full of fascinating pictures. There are all kinds of wonderful images to be found, of spiders, ladybugs, hornets, aphids, grasshoppers, worms, water striders and those superstars of the insect world, bees and butterflies. You can also search a map for pictures by location. If you want to take your own bug photographer Mark Plonsky has written a short how-to guide. He has taken some pretty great photographs of insects himself.
Yes, Virginia, there is a Chinese Democracy
Chinese Democracy, the sixth studio album by Guns N’ Roses, is being released this Sunday, after over a decade of delays. Chuck Klosterman liked it. John Pareles from the New York Times did not. You can decide for yourself by listening to it here. Or you can pick it up this Sunday at Best Buy. But make sure you collect your free Dr Pepper. [more inside]
MeteorFilter
Fire in the sky - a meteor burns up somewhere over Western Canada. Really impressive video here, another video, TV news with more footage here.
Kick YouTube in the pants.
Facing things differently
It took me a second to realize what this was, but amazed I had to continue looking at Batman and Robin, Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer and the Pop Art Blonde. Face painting was never like this in my day.
"Remember when Rorschach killed that one guy horribly?" "Ha ha, good times."
You guys! Psyched about that whole Watchmen movie thing (previously, we've touched on Watchmen briefly, like, once or twice?), kinda wanna read the book, but you just can't see fitting a 400-page comic into your busy, busy schedule? Fortunately for you, there's The Condensed Version. (Via the often NSFW Journalista.)
The Tone Generation, A Radio History of Electronic Music
The Tone Generation is a radio series by Ian Helliwell 'looking at different themes or composers in the era of analogue tape and early synthesizer technology'. The original globe-trotting series: Great Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Holland, Scandinavia, Eastern Europe, USA, Canada, Rest of World. Bonus programmes: Expo 58, The RCA Synthesizer. All links are to MP3 files, except the first one. Alternatively, you can slurp down the lot in one go by subscribing to the podcast feed.
Super Stacker
Saved By Zero Kills
Dreaming of...
"... He clutched her in a semi-muscular embrace"
Despite sagging paperback sales in the publishing industry, romance novels -- and particularly hen lit -- fiction featuring older female heroines -- are thriving. In 2006, according to Romance Writers of America, 26.4% of all books sold were romances, generating $1.37 billion in sales.
In hen lit aka Matron literature, heroines typically are over-40, widowed grandmothers whose romance yearnings are secondary to family, work, and hobbies.
The 7 Greatest Stories in the History of Esquire Magazine
We're Only In It For the Money
Somali pirates have captured a Saudi oil tanker, demanding a $25 million ransom. Somali pirates are well known and active - as of 30 September, 12 vessels remained captive and under negotiation with more than 250 crew being held hostage. But this time they may have gone too far: by capturing a ship of a Muslim nation, the pirates have drawn the ire of Somali Islamist fighters, who have vowed to combat the pirates. The pirates say they're just doing it for the cash, while some report they're living large. Who are Somalia's pirates anyway?
My Life In Ham Radio
"Ham Radio is a life long learning experience. You never stop learning." Don, W3RDF, is a CW enthusiast who shares with us his love of a hobby that has been a source of many friends from around the globe. With Solar Cycle 24 just beginning, the Ham Bands have been heating up with activity. Perhaps you might want to listen to what they are saying.
The Worst Day of my Life
WORKING. HAMMERS. SWEATING. POWER. CIRCUITS.
DIGG ATTACK
DIGG ATTACK is a game. Lead a small band of good guys (small bluish dots) in a struggle to flee from Digg Stories. Requires your browser support the canvas tag.
Does bacon really make everything better?
Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you: --- The Turbaconducken.
Pilot School
Pilot School. A nice collection of teevee show pilot scripts. Observe the embryonic state of many of the classics of the past few decades, including Buffy, The Wire, Hill Street Blues, Battlestar Galactica, The Sopranos and The West Wing. [more inside]
Hello
Designer, Engineer, Geek
Acko.net is the web home of Steven Wittens, designer of AVS presets for WinAmp, as well as the current Bluebeach theme at Drupal.org. Steven also dabbles in programming; for instance his Farbtastic jquery color picker. Be sure to watch his blog for development jewels like Projective Texturing with Canvas.
19-Year-Old Lifecaster Commits Suicide on Justin.TV.
You know, for kids
Sex: wot's the big deal is a sex exhibition for kids currently taking place at the Cité des Sciences in Paris. Pre-teens can learn about love, puberty, making love and making babies, and they can also experiment a little bit. The show is based on Willies: a user's guide (in French: Le zizi sexuel) by Swiss comics creator Zep, and features the rising star of French playgrounds, Titeuf (NSFW unless you're a French preteen)
A novel use of intellectual property law
In a new twist on trademark disputes, the federal goverment wants to confiscate the trademark of the Mongols Motorcycle Club. The Wall Street Journal (among other people)weighs in.
John Lee Hooker and the fine art of translation
You know, I want you to pick up on this. You know, these lyrics are something else. Just dig this. [more inside]
The White Album hits middle age.
Keep your eye on the grand old flag
Fringe Friday: Did you know that a fringe around the flag indicates martial law? Any sovereign citizen knows better than to accept the jurisdiction of the American War Flag! Or wait--is it really Old Glory that bows to martial law? Fly your Civil Flag with pride!
People kissing alligators
People want to kiss alligators and crocodiles. They do it in Costa Rica and Lousiana and Mississippi. Why do many otherwise normal people want to kiss alligators?
Flash Friday: Auditorium
Auditorium is a musical flash game where you influence a stream of particles with gravity-based nodes. A steady stream of particles past a collector enables a layer of music. Good fun! Via Jay is Games
The Dangerous Dwarf
Mongo the Magnificent. "Out of nowhere, believing that it is good for the soul to have one insane idea a day, whether you need it or not, the notion of a dwarf private detective came to me [...] I considered such a character bizarre and absurd, unworkable and unpublishable, and thus a waste of time to spend and length of time trying to develop it. I kept searching, but the damn dwarf just wouldn't go away. [...] It was to be a satire. Halfway through, I discovered a key to the man's character was a simple quest to be taken seriously, for dignity. That touched me, and I started over again, this time doing it "straight" (or as straight as I'm able). I gave Mongo dignity, and in return he gave me a career. The diverse background was, I thought, necessary in order to properly equip him in a "world of giants"."
George C. Chesbro, RIP [more inside]
George C. Chesbro, RIP [more inside]
Depression 2009
Depression 2009: What would it look like? "Lines at the ER, a television boom, emptying suburbs. A catastrophic economic downturn would feel nothing like the last one." [Via]
Though a little vain & silly, a Bird of Courage...
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