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You know how when someone dies in a terrorist attack, media always publishes their high school or vacation photos? youblewmeupyoubastard.com is there to help. "We'll store a photo of you, giving it large at the terrorists what done you in, and in the event of your body being blown to bits by a suicide bomber, we'll supply your disgusted image to all news services." [via]
posted on Sep-16-05 at 10:55 AM

Bill Gates meets Napolean Dynamite. Microsoft has a history of doing little spoofs at their developer events (a couple years ago Gates and Ballmer did a send up of the GTI commercial and then there was The Matrix). While this one is a shaky camera capture (hopefully someone uploads the original), it's still pretty amusing and fun to watch Gates poke fun at himself. Of course, the unintended comedy videos involving Gates are often funnier.
posted on Sep-15-05 at 11:42 AM

Judge rules Pledge of Allegiance unconstitutional in public schools and pastafarians unite with their noodly appendages. The "under god" bit added to the pledge in 1954 to combat the red menace is seen as unconstitutional. I'm sure most of the country will take this news well, with a calming heart and calm head.
posted on Sep-14-05 at 11:43 AM

I love any weblog that features an author with time, google skills, and some passion for a specific subject. Over on Yes But No But Yes, there's a regular feature called Where are They Now? featuring write-ups of what the cast of White Shadow ended up doing (Salami directed Sopranos episodes?!), what everyone from the original wonka movie does today (Mike TeeVee was in The Big Lebowski?!), and where the cast of Debbie Does Dallas ended up (one actor went from porn to the Spiderman movie).
posted on Sep-13-05 at 1:21 PM

DNA: frightening government privacy invasion tool of tomorrow or beautiful source of personal art today?
posted on Sep-11-05 at 4:13 PM

Michael Brown, head of FEMA is relieved of duties. After a rocky week and increasing doubts about his background and experience (like a padded resume), Brown gets pulled from FEMA duty. Pretty surprising to see, given that the "CEO President" proclaimed "Brownie, you're doing a heck of a job" just a few days ago.
posted on Sep-9-05 at 10:31 AM

The first episode of NerdTV is out but the site is so inundated with users that the official torrent is the only way to get a copy at the moment. It's an online-only series featuring hour long episodes filled with interviews done by Robert Cringely.
posted on Sep-7-05 at 8:49 AM

Cats in sinks. Nothing less, nothing more.
posted on Aug-29-05 at 3:21 PM

OK go's video for their song "A Million Ways" looks as low budget and as simple as it could be. Four members in a backyard, one camera on a tripod, and they simply dance. But I have to say it's one of my favorite music videos of the last few years. Direct link to high quality 16Mb quicktime, lower quality versions on their site [via 37s]
posted on Aug-12-05 at 1:03 PM

August is National Sandwich Month and some people are dead serious about their love for the sandwich, keeping track of every one eaten this month (and for 2004 and 2003). Clearly, we could all be doing much more to celebrate and support the sandwich.
posted on Aug-5-05 at 12:44 AM

Ghost Cycle is a group in Seattle raising awareness for bike safety by displaying whited-out old bikes in places where cars have hit cyclists. They've also got an ingenious use of Google Maps to show you all the spots where accidents have been reported and where they've placed a ghost cycle, like this one. They also compile statistics on their reports ("1 in 5 accidents were hit and runs").
posted on Aug-2-05 at 10:00 PM

A guest from a Daily Show joke piece was fired from the Broward Art Guild (which still lists her as the exec. director). The strange thing about this story is that in the original piece, the artists involved in a guild show were the source of controversy (for this (NSFW) and this), the director was simply subjected to a few goofball questions from Ed Helms. She was fired in a secret session because, I assume, from the bad press.
posted on Jul-23-05 at 2:58 PM

You like-a da mashups? Here, I give you mashups (about 40 of them to be exact).
posted on Jul-20-05 at 11:43 PM

Domains by Proxy is a fairly popular service run by GoDaddy that aims to protect your personal info from whois requests. The domains by proxy homepage has links to law enforcement and civil subpoena policies, making it sound like you actually have to do something deemed illegal by a judge or officer to get outed. One blogger found out something as simple as a letter from a local lawyer was enough to reveal all his personal details in a whois request, without ever being notified beforehand. Might be worth reading up on EFF's guide to anon blogging if you ever start a whistleblower site.
posted on Jul-18-05 at 1:34 PM

Detached a gorgeous comic based on the author's experiences with having a detached retina and going through eye surgery.
posted on Jun-30-05 at 10:40 AM

Yahoo gets social. Yahoo's new search is designed around your contact list. Save a few bookmarks with some notes and the next time anyone within two degrees of you searches on that topic, they'll see your bookmarks above random search results. Oh, and it's got tags too. Will this kill search engine gaming? What's Google going to do to compete, buy delicious and incorporate that?
posted on Jun-28-05 at 9:43 PM

Pictures of stuff on cats because well, some people like to put stuff on their cats.
posted on Jun-10-05 at 10:09 AM

The Natural History of Ashkenazi Intelligence (PDF). A fascinating new theory from physicist turned renegade evolutionary theorist, Gregory Cochran (see this Atlantic Monthly cover story on Cochran's already path-breaking germ theory of disease), and genetic anthropologist Henry Harpending, proposes that a unique evolutionary history, and a number of improbably clustered neurologically related genetic diseases among Ashkenazi Jews could help explain their incredible intelligence test scores and extraordinary intellectual achievements (e.g. Ashkenazi Jews are 3% of the American population but win 27% of the Nobel Prizes). The paper is set for publication in the Journal of Biosocial Science, and is already getting major press in the New York Times and The Economist. Does the recent Harvard fracas over Larry Summers herald a new "arms race" in academic debate about genetics, man and society for the 21st century? [compelling post by Jason]
posted on Jun-3-05 at 10:08 AM

Roadcasting is an idea bandied about for ages: create ad-hoc low power FM networks that let you share the mp3 music you're hearing in your car with those driving around you. It's basically a blueprint for shared pirate radio as you drive, surfing the dial for a variety of music from nearby motorists. They've got screenshots and source code and it looks just like the system imagined in Cory Doctorow's books. I can't wait to see where this project is headed. [via unmediated]
posted on May-22-05 at 1:42 PM

Yesterday marked the 25 anniversary of the Mt. St. Helens eruption. NewsDesigner posted a great wrap-up of the front pages of major papers on that very day. Poking around the USGS site, I found a shot of Mt. St. Helens from the day before the blast, and a couple days after. The fallout was extensive and the images unforgettable.
posted on May-19-05 at 10:20 AM

Lion Mutilates 42 Midgets in Cambodian Ring-Fight is just about the wackiest story I've heard from Cambodia. Then I noticed the URL. Used to settle a bet between friends (successfully tricking one friend), the lions vs. midgets website has the full backstory on this spoof.
posted on May-17-05 at 11:58 AM

Al Franken, senate contender for Minnesota in 2006? He's got name recognition out the wazoo, a national radio program, and is returning to his blue state home to try and take Norm Coleman's republican seat in the US Senate. Is there any way he can lose? Are Howard Stern and Rush Limbaugh next for making senate bids?
posted on Apr-27-05 at 10:31 PM

A couple years ago, they did SILENCE! the musical version of Silence of the lambs, now they're working on "RoboCop The Musical" with this track uploaded as a preview entitled "Murphy, It's You" performed by RoboCop and Anne Lewis.
posted on Apr-25-05 at 2:44 PM

Greenwashing is a term for "Disinformation disseminated by an organization so as to present an environmentally responsible public image." The Green Life recently released their annual America's Ten Worst Greenwashers list. It's a good overview of companies and organizations that talk the talk but don't quite walk the walk. [via treehugger]
posted on Apr-23-05 at 1:25 PM

Do Your Damn Taxes (flash video) is an amusing little movie about a dude and his 1040 form, getting ready for the big day. From the same guy that did merry christmas from james.
posted on Apr-4-05 at 11:38 PM

Google Maps now does satellite images which is pretty cool (zoom all the way in), and what everyone predicted they would do with the Keyhole software company they bought. The part that freaks me out is finding my own house with my own car in the driveway, taken last fall (by the looks of construction in the neighborhood). I guess it's time for all of us to have our Streisand moment and wonder when satellite imagery has gotten too good. [via]
posted on Apr-4-05 at 9:56 PM

Canada's seal hunt started yesterday and though I wondered if the numbers on the Protect Seals site were accurate, this somewhat gory and disturbing slideshow at Yahoo/AP news seems to support the high numbers of slaughter. There doesn't seem to be much you can do to stop seal clubbing in 2005, just boycotting Canadian seafood and calling congressfolks. Shame to see up to 300k seals killed for some fur coats -- seems so last century.
posted on Mar-30-05 at 9:47 AM

Mustache March is a silly little idea/project where every guy at a company grows a mustache during March, they take photos, then at the end of the month a BBQ fundraiser is thrown with proceeds going to a charity. A side benefit is that the month of ridiculous facial hair leads to questions from strangers which leads to awareness of the charity. I only wish I had heard of this in February.
posted on Mar-28-05 at 1:47 PM

Chris Barr is available on Thursday for the next two months. So what you ask? You can schedule things for Chris to do and view things he's done in the past. I especially enjoyed the "ask strange women to hold a sign saying I Like Spike" and "ask a bunch of random folks what is on their iPod." Can wait to see what he has to do next.
posted on Mar-11-05 at 1:59 PM

In Topeka, Hate Mongering is a Family Affair. As the city of Topeka goes to vote on Tuesday for annual city council elections, one race is attracting national attention. Tiffany Muller, head of the Kansas Unity and Pride Alliance and first openly gay council member, is running against Jael Phelps (granddaughter of Fred Phelps), of the notorious Westboro Baptist Church. Add an ordinance that would call for specifically discriminating against gays and you have one of the most interesting local elections seen in decades. [this excellent post provided by a new member]
posted on Feb-28-05 at 7:53 AM

girlhacker's 2005 Oscar Goodie bag list is out (here's 2004's, and 2003's) so now we can envy all the free stuff stars will be getting, even though they could easily afford to buy it all a thousand times over.
posted on Feb-25-05 at 8:47 AM

When Multimedia Was Black and White is a wonderful trip down memory lane, back when posters, music, games, and print layouts were done in crude black and white. Be sure to click on the little disk icons to see all the screenshots from old 80s apps.
posted on Feb-24-05 at 5:44 PM

I often say that blogs are currently where the web was in 1998, with history repeating itself only this time with blogs. The latest sign: spyware and viruses are now being transmitted via blogs, specifically, random blogs on blogspot.com, found via the "Next Blog" button. Remember, just because a delightful purple gorilla wants to read blog entries to you doesn't mean you should click on him.
posted on Feb-21-05 at 10:15 PM

Nepal has been in the news lately (1, 2, 3), as the king ousted the prime minister and replaced the cabinet under protests and a mounting civil war. Airports are closing, newspapers are shutting down, and radio stations are going silent. How'd I find this all out? By reading a blog from someone in Nepal, posting updates of what day-to-day life is like amid the strife.
posted on Feb-15-05 at 9:55 AM

LokiTorrent was a popular spot to get movies and they even put up a fight against the recent crackdown, raising thousands in a legal defense fund. Today, it seems the MPAA won, forcing the owner to shut down. That's understandable and I'm not surprised, but they've gone a bit further than I expected, turning the site into a big scary ad against filesharing and warning that you're next. Even worse, the old owner is turning the logs over to the MPAA, for them to go after folks.
posted on Feb-10-05 at 7:34 PM

Heard about the IDN browser hack? Try out this test page which should open your eyes (the hack is blocked in IE, ironically enough). Here's a list of all affected browsers, ways to fix this in mozilla inside.
posted on Feb-7-05 at 11:12 AM

I wasn't sure what Move On would do after the election and inauguration, but it appears they are coming out with guns blazing over Social Security. Tomorrow they'll take out a full page ad in the NYT (pdf) and start spreading a new commercial (wmv) that is reminiscent of the "working kids" Bush in 30 seconds ad (I assume they hired the same director).
posted on Feb-1-05 at 12:32 PM

NYC man pledges to visit 1000 bars in 2005. That's an average of about three per day, and as of yesterday he was already up to 135. Pray for his liver.
posted on Jan-31-05 at 10:03 AM

PublishAmerica is having a rough month. After being sued by 150 authors who felt they were deceived by the company, and taking a beating a couple of days ago at the hands of the Washington Post, PublishAmerica has become the object of an elaborate hoax perpetrated by a group of science fiction writers, a novel called Atlanta Nights, by one Travis Tea. [more inside]
posted on Jan-27-05 at 3:12 PM

Post Secret is a group confessional, where the site admin solicits deep, dark secrets from anyone that sends theirs in via postcard, then scans them in, and hijinks/hilarity/psychosis ensues. Kinda like grouphug, but more visual and has a bit of a barrier to entry.
posted on Jan-25-05 at 4:44 PM

THE HASSELHOFFIAN RECURSION is just about the best thing I've seen in a while. (warning: haunting image ahead)
posted on Jan-18-05 at 3:23 PM

The folks at Threadless have launched a new collaborative contest type way to make shirts at OMG Clothing. You sign up, submit a slogan, and everyone votes on them, with the best scores getting made into shirts. Threadless has always done graphical submissions, but I suspect more people can come up with a funny phrase than a crazy cool vector art graphic.
posted on Jan-13-05 at 2:08 PM

Everyone hates spyware (even MS is getting into the anti-spyware game) for a whole host of obvious reasons, but someone out there must like it, right? One person tracked down the people that love it so much they've given millions of dollars in funding for spyware companies. That's over $100 million to make more spyware. If you check out the portfolio of some of these investment firms (1, 2, 3, 4 and even the dude in charge of The WELL is in on it?!) there are quite a lot of everyday brands funded by the same group that fuels such great software as the uber evil Gator.
posted on Jan-12-05 at 10:26 PM

Artocracy is aiming to use the net to democratize yet another expensive thing in the world: the sale and distribution of art works. While the first works offered aren't that impressive and having to use your own inkjet is a limiting factor, I like the direction this is going in. From their Gallery, you can purchase prints from a dozen or so artists, in the range of $20-50, and then print as many as you wish at home. The Seattle PI has a full story. Perhaps this will spark a "long tail" of small change art sales from folks used to getting several thousand per canvas sold, while at the same time allowing any Tom, Dick, or Harry to have some nice looking apartment walls at home.
posted on Jan-11-05 at 9:54 AM

The original plates for the famous parody work (that was never sued over) Disneyland Memorial Orgy, is on sale at eBay. Here's the whole story on the piece, which ran in 1967 in a small underground newspaper and was created by Paul Krassner. I bet a copyright/trademark lawyer with a sense of humor buys this to mount over his desk soon.
posted on Dec-21-04 at 2:53 PM

The great thing about Ofoto and other photo printing sites is that you can instantly put up photos of an event for your friends to see and get prints made. But sometimes you accidentally leave them public. I give you: Lindsay Lohan's Thanksgiving.
posted on Dec-15-04 at 6:50 PM

Remember this New Year's: Bottle rockets should be fired off from bottles, not your drunken friend's ass (Not really safe for work, but amusing enough to enjoy the stupidity of others).
posted on Dec-15-04 at 12:15 PM

GIVE ME A WEAPON OF MASS AFFECTION a boy band (called Boy O Boy) that sings a song like you've never heard/seen before (quicktime video, in a popup, but oh so worth it)
posted on Dec-14-04 at 8:58 PM

Every holiday seaon, some little web outfit puts together a really cool flash app. Make-a-Flake is that app. Here's my stab at a pirate themed snowflake (note the anchors, which was an accident).
posted on Dec-9-04 at 8:13 PM

People talk about how universities have almost turned into diploma mills, churning out degrees to almost anyone that breathes. So what do students think about the current situation? According to this student, it doesn't go far enough: "I have come to the conclusion that the University system makes absolutely no sense. Students pay teachers to educate us, yet they are then allowed to tell us how much we're learning...I'll be the one to tell the receiver of my hard-earned money exactly how well they did. Shouldn't it be the same with education?" That's right, students want, nay, demand an A, since they paid for it.
posted on Dec-8-04 at 9:03 AM