Friday, December 31, 2004
Banished Words 2005
Please refrain from using the follwing terms: POCKETS OF RESISTANCE, CARBS, YOU’RE FIRED!, SALE EVENT, etc.
firsthand
Via Boing Boing:
"This is Pearl. I am currently in Bangkok waiting for a flight I have cajoled my way onto. I am one of the survivors. With only scratches, briuses and infections I am fine. Everything I own (almost - a small plastic jesus doll made it through!) is gone. My house was wiped out, as were 3000 hotel rooms, around 600 other resident/vacation homes and almost all the business' in the area.Our house was 150 feet from the beach, that is THE hardest hit beach in Thailand. As water rushed into our house and then ripped open the second story wall, I leapt off our second story roof and swam and swam and swam, riding the wave deep into the jungle, as it destroyed building after building, ripping up trees and spinning diesel trucks into the air. All this with me in the center of it clinging to anything that floats and swimming to avoid the standing buildings or trees that crushed and impaled many others. The wave deposited me, a small swedish girl and a 60 foot poilice cruiser (medium sized steel patrol boat - around 20 tons) 1 kilometer from the beach - in the jungle.
For the next 5 hours i set up a triage center and cared for dead and dying foreigners. Finally we got helicopters in, and I made my way back towards the main town. I found Karin (my girlfriend) and collapsed. We had both assumed each other dead as the destruction was so massive. She had climbed a coconut tree, wrapped her arms and legs and held on. The water kept pullng the tree and her under, but it and she survived. That day I saw around 100 bodies. The next day, another 200, and the day we left there were cattle trucks full of rotting corpses being taken to Phuket.
After days of no news, dwindling food and water - a group of divers virtually kidnapped a driver to take us away. Every few hours someone had created a rumor that another wave was coming, or there was a gas explosion, or the Muslim rebels were attacking. None were true, but it caused massive panic and killed many more people. We were already under massive psychological strain, and this just made it insane. We ran.
My town is gone. There are probably 2% of the original buildings in a recognizable form. I am very lucky to even be making my way home. The U.S. goverment offered me a phone call, a toothbrush, a paperback book and a temporary passport. No hotel, no food, no flight home. I was told that I could take out a loan if I could list three people who would vouch for me at home. The process would only take a few days. I was alone, injured (superficially - but I sure did look bad), no possesions, no money and my government offered me a book.
I don't know who or what to acknowledge for my presence. That will take a lot of soul-searching. I am certainly among the luckiest people in Thailand right now. According to local news it looks like my town had a SURVIVAL rate of 60%. Please think of what you value. Look around, have you given a hug to someone recently? Anyone? If everything you had were taken away, who would you turn too? In the end it is each other, not the things, that make the world spin. I won't ever forget that.
Thursday, December 30, 2004
figures
Proof that sometimes animals are smarter than we are: "Sri Lankan wildlife officials are stunned -- the worst tsunami in memory has killed around 22,000 people along the Indian Ocean island's coast, but they can't find any dead animals."
Tuesday, December 28, 2004
Monday, December 27, 2004
victory
Christmas in Cancun
Hey folks--The pictures from our trip to Mexico are online. Click on the phot and check out all the photos under the "cancun" tag. Most of them came out nicely, and a few give some idea of what a great place the Mayan Riviera is. A more detailed account of the trip will follow.
(If you want to download any of these, click on any photo, then click the small "All Sizes" button to the left, and you will be given size options.)
feliz navidad
Sorry the blog has been rather defunct of late, muchachos. The Crook family has been in Mexico for Christmas, soaking up the winter sun on the white beaches of the mayan riviera. As soon as I can get an image size reducer on my computer I'll post the pictures, of which there are mucho. It was a blast. I'm now in Atlanta working on a brief I have due for a moot court competition in February, so the postings should resume forthwith. Asta luego..
Saturday, December 18, 2004
Friday, December 17, 2004
it's friday
The Captions Game:
"Dammit! I asked for the EXTRA LARGE spaghetti, meatballs, fried ham, chives and ice cream on a slab of roast beef. This place never gets my order right."
"Dammit! I asked for the EXTRA LARGE spaghetti, meatballs, fried ham, chives and ice cream on a slab of roast beef. This place never gets my order right."
"attempts to ban their creation would be fruitless"
TinyP2P is a peer-to-peer file sharing application using only fifteen lines of code.
(thanks, Jim)
(thanks, Jim)
Thursday, December 16, 2004
Where d'you get those peepers?
Richard Dawkins, Oxford professor and scientist, outspoken Darwin apologist, takes on several pernicious creationist claims. My favorite part:
"It now appears that the shattering enormity of geological time is a steam hammer to crack a peanut. "
"It now appears that the shattering enormity of geological time is a steam hammer to crack a peanut. "
The viaduct of Millau
Great photos of the tallest bridge in the world. Apparently the French are good for something...just kidding! sheesh!
Wednesday, December 15, 2004
The new game: Drunk Jenga
"The rules are as follows":
1) Get a friend very drunk.
2) Balance as many things as you can on them without waking them up.
3) Take photographic evidence.
4) Remove all the items, thus leaving the victim unaware that anything has happened.
5) Create a website. Sit back and watch friend turn red.
1) Get a friend very drunk.
2) Balance as many things as you can on them without waking them up.
3) Take photographic evidence.
4) Remove all the items, thus leaving the victim unaware that anything has happened.
5) Create a website. Sit back and watch friend turn red.
exactly
Words that should be in the dictionary:
Bozone (n.): The substance surrounding stupid people that stops bright ideas from penetrating. The bozone layer, unfortunately, shows little sign of breaking down in the near future.
Cashtration (n.): The act of buying a house, which renders the subject financially impotent for an indefinite period.
Giraffiti (n): Vandalism spray-painted very, very high.
Sarchasm (n): The gulf between the author of sarcastic wit and the person who doesn't get it.
Inoculatte (v): To take coffee intravenously when you are running late.
Hipatitis (n): Terminal coolness.
Bozone (n.): The substance surrounding stupid people that stops bright ideas from penetrating. The bozone layer, unfortunately, shows little sign of breaking down in the near future.
Cashtration (n.): The act of buying a house, which renders the subject financially impotent for an indefinite period.
Giraffiti (n): Vandalism spray-painted very, very high.
Sarchasm (n): The gulf between the author of sarcastic wit and the person who doesn't get it.
Inoculatte (v): To take coffee intravenously when you are running late.
Hipatitis (n): Terminal coolness.
Sunday, December 12, 2004
spam poetry
I just received this. Fascinating.
accident lying sometimes left. stretch obliged taught criticism studied possible, prairie please whose guess, lost minute wind busy laughing, anybody dining stairs entirely ah girl? indeed island meet things going! type considered slipped true laughing. seat consider turned definitely generally below consequence! restaurant otherwise ashamed another all makes went serious none. cried wished form wanted grandma who rich! stairs cousin daughter if appearance smooth horse! spent think stopping safety listened creature relief nine occurring! dark fire read liked persons regular both home heart sir" finally work whose talking hello proceeded throw temper. chapter really till order same seen. nothing two write hung accidentally years,
What?
accident lying sometimes left. stretch obliged taught criticism studied possible, prairie please whose guess, lost minute wind busy laughing, anybody dining stairs entirely ah girl? indeed island meet things going! type considered slipped true laughing. seat consider turned definitely generally below consequence! restaurant otherwise ashamed another all makes went serious none. cried wished form wanted grandma who rich! stairs cousin daughter if appearance smooth horse! spent think stopping safety listened creature relief nine occurring! dark fire read liked persons regular both home heart sir" finally work whose talking hello proceeded throw temper. chapter really till order same seen. nothing two write hung accidentally years,
What?
hah
This is great--it's a chew toy with a large tongue attached to it, so you dog looks like Scooby Doo when he/she chews on it.
Saturday, December 11, 2004
the Onion once again
Son, We Need To Talk About This Supreme Court Obsession Of Yours.
I just about fell out of my chair laughing at this one.
I just about fell out of my chair laughing at this one.
vee dubya
In light of Nate’s good-humored yet caustic remarks regarding my fondness for Volkswagen microbuses, I feel compelled to explain my regard for what I consider a really good idea. Now, I do not include myself in the jamband hippiness demographic anymore, thank goodness. I parted ways with the unwashed brethren a long time ago. Heck, I haven’t even seen a live music act in years, not counting that classical guitar troupe I caught in Toledo last year (although I am seeing Sector Nine on New Years). Anyway, let me stress that aside from the unfortunate hippy connotation, the microbus is a GOOD IDEA. Why? Well, once you strip all the Grateful Dead stickers off and install a working muffler, the microbus represents a way of traveling in delightfully stark contrast to the current consumerist orgy symbolized by the Hummer. Think about it: the microbus is about community and family. The whole idea is about traveling around together with a group of people, in a vehicle designed to allow them to go anywhere they want without depending on the availability of expensive hotels and restaurants. This is simply a good thing, and it represents an approach to traveling that should be encouraged. The image of the treehugger-hippie van with smoke pouring from it is a fading cliché. But the image of the lone soccer mom cruising around the grocery store parking lot in a Hummer that gets 7 miles to the gallon is all too common. The entire SUV trend represents a devotion to excess which, in light of our current conflict in the middle east and our near-total dependence on foreign oil, should be appalling. Need I mention this? It is true that Volkswagen is wise to not introduce a new microbus to a market currently obsessed with pointlessly huge, fuel-inefficient luxury vehicles driven not by families but by lone commuters, grocery moms and single guys with penis envy. But it is also true that world oil reserves are dwindling, and in order to free ourselves from dependence on non-renewable resources we should be encouraging a market of alternate fuels and hybrid or electric cars. Meanwhile, we could just as easily pile into a microbus.
But all this aside, I just like cruising around in ‘em. Especially with my John Lennon sunglasses on.
Friday, December 10, 2004
Thursday, December 09, 2004
Wednesday, December 08, 2004
Tuesday, December 07, 2004
Saturday, December 04, 2004
new
Try out Pure JPEG. "PureJPEG is an easy to use, high performance utility to remove unnecessary data from images you email or post on the net, without affecting the image quality whatsoever (no decompression/recompression is performed in the filtration)."
Friday, December 03, 2004
Thursday, December 02, 2004
we are all here
I'm on map kick today. I did a random del.icio.us search for GIS, or Geographical Information Sytems, and I found this list. Looking for an aerial map of the U.S.? Check out windowseat.
Window Seat decodes the sights to be seen on any flight across North America. Broken down by region, this handy little softcover book features 70 aerial photographs; a fold-out map of North America showing major flight paths; profiles of each region covering its landforms, waterways, and cities; tips on spotting major and not-so-major sights; and straightforward, friendly text on cloud shapes, weather patterns, the continent's history, and more.
you are right here
Since all of you have been flooding my inbox with requests for the exact latitude and longitude of your street address, or any address for that matter, I submit to you geocoder.
of course
Mary Pat is a Indianian, although she insists she's a Hoosier. I am am Alabaman, although I insist I'm a Southerner.
multi-flash imaging with a non-photorealistic camera
This multi-flash camera is interesting: Non-photorealistic imaging is an easy way to convey ideas/images and has myriad applications for technical and medical imaging. Remember the MTV A-Ha video for "Take on Me" back in the 80's? This camera does that.
Wednesday, December 01, 2004
Tuesday, November 30, 2004
ain't been there, ain't done that
Sometimes it's depressing when I read one of these Best of 2004 lists and recognize nothing. But then I guess I should be excited about all the cool stuff I have yet to see. Maybe I should care less and just go here.
Monday, November 29, 2004
Saturday, November 27, 2004
Wednesday, November 24, 2004
Tuesday, November 23, 2004
mmm
Hardee's Thickburgers are being called "food porn." This bad boy has 1,200 calories and 107 grams of fat.
“A good rule of thumb is that if a burger needs a comma in its calorie count, it’s virtually impossible to fit into a healthy diet,” said Michael F. Jacobson, director of the Center for Science in the Public Interest.
“A good rule of thumb is that if a burger needs a comma in its calorie count, it’s virtually impossible to fit into a healthy diet,” said Michael F. Jacobson, director of the Center for Science in the Public Interest.
opening cans of whoopass
After all the stories about the fight that broke out at the recent Pacers/Pistons game, Mr. Sun makes a good point: words describing altercations are cool.
On that note, check out this eBay auction for the Actual Cup Thrown at Ron Artest Pistons Pacers Brawl.
On that note, check out this eBay auction for the Actual Cup Thrown at Ron Artest Pistons Pacers Brawl.
Warning
This sticker is currently being placed on science books that discuss the theory of evolution:
Now, in the interest of fairness and balance, we have alternative disclaimer stickers for those disclaimer stickers. Excuse me, but shouldn't all material students study be 'approached with an open mind, studied carefully, and critically considered'?
Now, in the interest of fairness and balance, we have alternative disclaimer stickers for those disclaimer stickers. Excuse me, but shouldn't all material students study be 'approached with an open mind, studied carefully, and critically considered'?
quote of the day
"There are only two industries that refer to their customers as 'users'..."
-- Andrew Tufte, graphic designer
-- Andrew Tufte, graphic designer
Monday, November 22, 2004
U.S. Senate Passes Scaled-Back Copyright Measure
By Andy Sullivan/Washington Post
The U.S. Senate has voted to outlaw several favorite techniques of people who illegally copy and distribute movies, but has dropped other measures that could have led to jail time for Internet song-swappers. People who secretly videotape movies when they are shown in theaters could go to prison for up to three years under the measure, which passed the Senate on Saturday.
Pacers forward Ron Artest is led off the court by team consultant Chuck Person after a brawl near the end of Friday night's game against the Pistons. Artest, who jumped into the stands after a fan, should face a lengthy suspension.
Hackers and industry insiders who distribute music, movies or other copyrighted works before their official release date also face stiffened penalties under the bill. "This bill strengthens the intellectual-property laws that are vital to the ongoing growth of our economy," Utah Republican Sen. Orrin Hatch said. Most elements of the bill have already passed the House of Representatives but will need to be approved by the House again in December to iron out minor differences. Left out were several more controversial measures that would criminalize the actions of millions of U.S. Internet users who copy music and movies for free over "peer to peer" networks like Kazaa. These users now face copyright-infringement lawsuits from recording labels and movie studios, and thousands have been hit with such suits since last year.
Under a measure approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee last month, song swappers could go to jail for up to three years if they shared more than 1,000 copyrighted works. That bill would have also directed the Justice Department to pursue file-traders more actively through civil lawsuits. Consumer groups, consumer-electronics makers and the American Conservative Union had sought to derail those measures, portraying them as a radical expansion of traditional copyright protections. That material was dropped from the bill, but the Justice Department said on its own last month it plans to take a more aggressive approach to policing intellectual-property crimes.
The bill also shields "family friendly" services like ClearPlay that strip violent or sexually explicit scenes from movies. Hollywood groups say such services violate their copyrighted works by altering them without permission. A section that would have made it illegal to edit out commercials was removed.
Earlier in the week Congress approved a measure that would streamline the process by which royalty rates are determined. Another measure that would have made it easier to sue peer-to-peer networks died in committee last month, though insiders expect Congress to take it up again next year.
The U.S. Senate has voted to outlaw several favorite techniques of people who illegally copy and distribute movies, but has dropped other measures that could have led to jail time for Internet song-swappers. People who secretly videotape movies when they are shown in theaters could go to prison for up to three years under the measure, which passed the Senate on Saturday.
Pacers forward Ron Artest is led off the court by team consultant Chuck Person after a brawl near the end of Friday night's game against the Pistons. Artest, who jumped into the stands after a fan, should face a lengthy suspension.
Hackers and industry insiders who distribute music, movies or other copyrighted works before their official release date also face stiffened penalties under the bill. "This bill strengthens the intellectual-property laws that are vital to the ongoing growth of our economy," Utah Republican Sen. Orrin Hatch said. Most elements of the bill have already passed the House of Representatives but will need to be approved by the House again in December to iron out minor differences. Left out were several more controversial measures that would criminalize the actions of millions of U.S. Internet users who copy music and movies for free over "peer to peer" networks like Kazaa. These users now face copyright-infringement lawsuits from recording labels and movie studios, and thousands have been hit with such suits since last year.
Under a measure approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee last month, song swappers could go to jail for up to three years if they shared more than 1,000 copyrighted works. That bill would have also directed the Justice Department to pursue file-traders more actively through civil lawsuits. Consumer groups, consumer-electronics makers and the American Conservative Union had sought to derail those measures, portraying them as a radical expansion of traditional copyright protections. That material was dropped from the bill, but the Justice Department said on its own last month it plans to take a more aggressive approach to policing intellectual-property crimes.
The bill also shields "family friendly" services like ClearPlay that strip violent or sexually explicit scenes from movies. Hollywood groups say such services violate their copyrighted works by altering them without permission. A section that would have made it illegal to edit out commercials was removed.
Earlier in the week Congress approved a measure that would streamline the process by which royalty rates are determined. Another measure that would have made it easier to sue peer-to-peer networks died in committee last month, though insiders expect Congress to take it up again next year.
ny nizzle
Yo yo yo check out the mcd-izzy-owell.com website, fo' shizzle, as interpreted by the Herbert Kornfeld filter. While your at it, you may want to check yo rhymes at The Shizzolator.
Sunday, November 21, 2004
power to the people
It's freeculture.org, an international student movement for culture:
Free Culture Manifesto
The mission of the Free Culture movement is to build a bottom-up, participatory structure to society and culture, rather than a top-down, closed, proprietary structure.
We believe that culture is a two-way affair, about participation, not merely consumption. We will not sit at the end of a one-way media tube and buy things until we look like the people on Friends. With the Internet and other advances, the technology exists for a new paradigm of creation, one where anyone can be an artist, and anyone can succeed, based not on their industry connections, but on their merit.
We refuse to accept a future of digital feudalism where we do not actually own the products we buy, but we are merely granted limited uses of them as long as we pay the rent. We must halt and reverse the recent radical expansion of "intellectual property rights," which threaten to reach the point where they trump any and all other rights of the individual and society.
The freedom to build upon the past is necessary for creativity and innovation to thrive. We will use and promote our cultural heritage in the public domain. We will make, share, adapt, and promote Open Content. We will listen to Free Music, look at Free Art, watch Free Film, and read Free Books. All the while, we will discuss, annotate, improve, improvise, remix, mutate, and throw yet more ingredients into the Free Culture soup.
We will fight to make everyone understand the value of our common wealth, evangelizing for Linux and the open-source model. We will resist repressive legislation which threatens our civil liberties and stifles innovation, such as the Digital Millenium Copyright Act and the proposed Induce Act. We will organize to prevent Microsoft and others from pushing through hardware-level monitoring devices that will prevent users from having control of their own machines and their own data.
We won't allow the RIAA and the MPAA to cling to obsolete modes of distribution through bad legislation and market dominance. We will be active participants in a free culture of connectivity and production, made possible as it never was before by the Internet and digital technology, and we will fight to prevent this new potential from being locked down by corporate and legislative control. If we allow the bottom-up, participatory structure of the Internet to be twisted into a glorified cable TV service -- if we allow the established paradigm of creation and distribution to reassert itself -- then the window of opportunity opened by the Internet will have been closed, and we will have lost something beautiful, revolutionary, and irretrievable.
The future is in our hands; we must build a technological and cultural movement to defend the digital commons.
The mission of the Free Culture movement is to build a bottom-up, participatory structure to society and culture, rather than a top-down, closed, proprietary structure.
We believe that culture is a two-way affair, about participation, not merely consumption. We will not sit at the end of a one-way media tube and buy things until we look like the people on Friends. With the Internet and other advances, the technology exists for a new paradigm of creation, one where anyone can be an artist, and anyone can succeed, based not on their industry connections, but on their merit.
We refuse to accept a future of digital feudalism where we do not actually own the products we buy, but we are merely granted limited uses of them as long as we pay the rent. We must halt and reverse the recent radical expansion of "intellectual property rights," which threaten to reach the point where they trump any and all other rights of the individual and society.
The freedom to build upon the past is necessary for creativity and innovation to thrive. We will use and promote our cultural heritage in the public domain. We will make, share, adapt, and promote Open Content. We will listen to Free Music, look at Free Art, watch Free Film, and read Free Books. All the while, we will discuss, annotate, improve, improvise, remix, mutate, and throw yet more ingredients into the Free Culture soup.
We will fight to make everyone understand the value of our common wealth, evangelizing for Linux and the open-source model. We will resist repressive legislation which threatens our civil liberties and stifles innovation, such as the Digital Millenium Copyright Act and the proposed Induce Act. We will organize to prevent Microsoft and others from pushing through hardware-level monitoring devices that will prevent users from having control of their own machines and their own data.
We won't allow the RIAA and the MPAA to cling to obsolete modes of distribution through bad legislation and market dominance. We will be active participants in a free culture of connectivity and production, made possible as it never was before by the Internet and digital technology, and we will fight to prevent this new potential from being locked down by corporate and legislative control. If we allow the bottom-up, participatory structure of the Internet to be twisted into a glorified cable TV service -- if we allow the established paradigm of creation and distribution to reassert itself -- then the window of opportunity opened by the Internet will have been closed, and we will have lost something beautiful, revolutionary, and irretrievable.
The future is in our hands; we must build a technological and cultural movement to defend the digital commons.
Friday, November 19, 2004
Thursday, November 18, 2004
Official Rules for Calling Shotgun
Section I - General Rules:
1) The first person to yell "SHOTGUN" gets to ride in the front seat.
2) The remaining back seats may be divvied up in the same manner by being the first to call "back right seat", etc..
3) The word "shotgun" must be loud enough to be heard by at least one witness. If no witness is to be found, or in case of a tie, the driver has the final word. After all, it is most likely his car. (note: if it isn't his car, and the owner is present, the owner's decision is final. Owner must be sober, however, or he will defer his judgment to the driver.)
Wednesday, November 17, 2004
Tuesday, November 16, 2004
Monday, November 15, 2004
coffe's great and all, but...
I have no idea how to react to this serious(?) article on how to give a coffee enema.
quote of the day
"The problem with defending the purity of the English language is that English is about as pure as a cribhouse whore. We don't just borrow words; on occasion, English has pursued other languages down alleyways to beat them unconscious and rifle their pockets for new vocabulary."
--James D. Nicoll
(via bibliovixen)
--James D. Nicoll
(via bibliovixen)
total disclosure
Need an online log of your running schedule? Swimming? Caffeine intake? Bowel movements? Try reger.com. Here's a list of common log subjects:
Running Log
Skydiving Log
Movie Log
Aircraft Spotting Log
Golf Log
Caffeine Log
Commute Log
Swimming Log
Triathlon Log
Picture Log
Sex Log
Url Log
Biking Log
Clothes Log
Book Reading Log
Car Mileage Log
Business Meeting Log
Dumpster Diving Log
Headache Log
Night Club/Bar Log
Restaurant Log
Sleep Log
Water Drinking Log
Body Weight Log
Bowel Movement Log
Urine Color Log
Rockclimbing Log
Public Speaking Log
Soccer Match Log
Simple Rating Log
Timer Log
Running Log
Skydiving Log
Movie Log
Aircraft Spotting Log
Golf Log
Caffeine Log
Commute Log
Swimming Log
Triathlon Log
Picture Log
Sex Log
Url Log
Biking Log
Clothes Log
Book Reading Log
Car Mileage Log
Business Meeting Log
Dumpster Diving Log
Headache Log
Night Club/Bar Log
Restaurant Log
Sleep Log
Water Drinking Log
Body Weight Log
Bowel Movement Log
Urine Color Log
Rockclimbing Log
Public Speaking Log
Soccer Match Log
Simple Rating Log
Timer Log
You just don't write jokes in base 13
For all of you Douglas Adams fans out there, you might appreciate DEEP THOUGHT, a site devoted to the concept that the answer to the question "What is the meaning of life?" is in fact 42. Apparently the earliest recorded sighting of the number comes from 2 Kings 2:23-24 (23):"And he [Elisha] went up from thence unto Bethel: and as he was going up by the way, there came forth little children out of the city, and mocked him, and said unto him, Go up, thou bald head; go up, thou bald head. 24 And he turned back, and looked on them, and cursed them in the name of the LORD. And there came forth two she bears out of the wood, and tare forty and two children of them.If you've never read The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, don't even bother going here--it's quite arcane.
Something up with my banter, chaps?
From Monty Python's Flying Circus: Just the Words, check out Episode 42: Light Entertainment War. Great source of Python humor.
no comment
An interesting quote from H.L. Mencken:
“When a candidate for public office faces the voters he does not face men of sense; he faces a mob of men whose chief distinguishing mark is that they are quite incapable of weighing ideas, or even of comprehending any save the most elemental — men whose whole thinking is done in terms of emotion, and whose dominant emotion is dread of what they cannot understand. So confronted, the candidate must either bark with the pack, or count himself lost. His one aim is to disarm suspicion, to arouse confidence in his orthodoxy, to avoid challenge. If he is a man of convictions, of enthusiasm, or self-respect, it is cruelly hard…via petebevin.com
“The larger the mob, the harder the test. In small areas, before small electorates, a first rate man occasionally fights his way through, carrying even a mob with him by the force of his personality. But when the field is nationwide, and the fight must be waged chiefly at second or third hand, and the force of personality cannot so readily make itself felt, then all the odds are on the man who is, intrinsically the most devious and mediocre — the man who can most adeptly disperse the notion that his mind is a virtual vacuum.
“The Presidency tends, year by year, to go to such men. As democracy is perfected, the office represents, more and more closely, the inner soul of the people. We move toward a lofty ideal. On some great and glorious day the plain folks of the land will reach their hearts desire at last, and the White House will be adorned by a downright moron.”
The Baltimore Evening Sun, July 26, 1920
pura vida
Sunrise from my back door.
Scout's new shoes.
Mary Pat models the teriffic afghan she gave me for my birthday. Her grandmother wove it.
The afghan.
Pals.
There is H.O.P.E.
Indeed. Finally, the Horrified Observers of Pedestrian Entertainment are raising their voices against crappy pop stardom! Read the latest stories on protests at Paris Hilton book signings, Ashlee Simpson's lip-synching foolishness, and much more. From their mission statement: We at H.O.P.E. have a simple stated mission: to bring quality to the world of entertainment while working outside of the traditional network, record label, and studio structure.(Thanks, Jim!)
chicken little was right
'For 60 years the skeletal remains of more than 200 people, discovered in 1942 close to the glacial Roopkund Lake in the remote Himalayan Gahrwal region, have puzzled historians, scientists and archaeologists.' Now they believe the culprit was giant hail.
From the "What's new in Japan" files
Guys, are you feeling lonely and need a nice lap to lay on? Well, look no further--the Girlfriend's lap pillow has arrived.
getchyo retro
Interested in how a computer works? Or how one worked in 1971? Well, here's the manual.
Saturday, November 13, 2004
PATRIOT Act update
Great news article about a talent show in a Boulder, Colorado high school, where the students sang Bob Dylan's song "Masters of War." Because the song ends with the line 'And I'll stand o'er your grave 'til I'm sure that you're dead' the Secret Service was called to investigate, worried that the students were wishing that President Bush would die.
Friday, November 12, 2004
the beauty of repetition
Interesting interview with Benoit Mandelbrot, the mathematician behind the concept known as the fractal, almost painfully illustrated here:
(via bOING)
(via bOING)
Thursday, November 11, 2004
They shall not pass
Amazing site devoted entirely to World War One. Filled ot the brim with fascinating information--be sure and check out the vintage film and photography.
People I share my birthday with:
Leonardo DiCaprio
Calista Flockhart
Demi Moore
Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. (oh yeah)
Alger Hiss
Pat O'Brien
George Patton
On that note:
Where is my birthday in pi?
This day in history
And finally, just what exactly is Armistice Day?
Calista Flockhart
Demi Moore
Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. (oh yeah)
Alger Hiss
Pat O'Brien
George Patton
On that note:
Where is my birthday in pi?
This day in history
And finally, just what exactly is Armistice Day?
Wednesday, November 10, 2004
save Bambi
What do you do if you're a tree-hugging, PETA-loving, NRA-hating neo-hippy pacifist, yet feel the urge to hang a deer head on your wall or even cover your living room floor with a big black bear-skin rug? Fear not, my tie-dyed friends, for now there are Humane Trophies.
Tuesday, November 09, 2004
Darwin v. Moses
A trial opened Monday over whether a warning sticker in suburban Atlanta biology textbooks that says evolution is "a theory, not a fact'' violates the separation of church and state by promoting religion.
The case is one of several battles that have been waged in recent years in the Bible Belt over what role evolution should play in science books.
Excuse me, but most of modern science is theory. Since when has anybody taught evolution as definitive proven fact? It is simply the theory with the most plausible explanation at this moment. I just don't know how to react to this.
vogue
Well, it's been some time since my last site redesign, right? I get bored with the same old around here, so sue me. This design is less image-heavy so it should load even faster. Lemme know if you don't like. I've also added a miniblog at lower right focused on internet copyright issues--if you're at all interested in how our freedom of access is being destroyed by overzealous copyright protectors, read on. I'll get an RSS feed down there soon. Cheers.
Saturday, November 06, 2004
Break-up lines of philosphers
Via some random Cornell student. (No, I've never heard of most of these schools of thought either.)
The Teleologist: We aren’t meant for each other.
The Deontologist: We aren’t right for each other.
The Consequentialist: We aren’t optimal for each other.
The Solipsist: It’s not you, it’s me.
The Empiricist: I think we should see other people.
The Rationalist: I’m not a priority to you any more.
The Rationalist, v 2.0: I’ve been doing some thinking…
The Rationalist, v. 3.0: If you can’t see your faults, there’s nothing more I can say.
The Content Externalist: Ever since we moved, you’ve changed.
The Continentalist: You’ve lost that love and feeling.
The Egalitarian: This is the best thing for both of us.
The Paternalist: In time you’ll come to see that this is the best thing.
The Humean: Just because we’re always together doesn’t mean we BELONG together.
The Humean, v. 2.0: Relationships need to be about more than just constant conjoining.
The Reliabilist: This just isn’t working anymore.
The Nagelian: You just don’t know what it’s like to be me.
The Functionalist: I don’t care about accommodating your feelings.
The Quinean: I’m sorry, but you don’t mean anything to me anymore.
The Foundationalist: We have nothing left to build upon.
The Foundationalist, v2.0: I need to be able to branch out more.
The Relativist: It’s no one’s fault.
The Atheist: These things just happen.
The Kantian: You lied to me!
The Consequentialist, v 2.0: You should have lied to my mother about her pot roast!
The anti-Fictionalist: I’m sick of faking it.
The Cartesian: I don’t clearly and distinctly perceive a future together.
The Hegelian: Do we have to go through this again?
The Lockean: Our primary qualities simply aren’t compatible.
The Lockean, v. 2.0: Compared to my last partner, I’m not getting nearly enough, nor as good.
The Quasi-Realist: Of course we’re going to be together forever…
The Motivational Externalist: Even though I believed it at the time, I know now that I never really loved you.
The Behaviorist: I just can’t keep going through the motions anymore.
The Presentist: There just isn’t any future for us.
The Eternalist: At least we’ll always have that weekend in Paris.
The Modal Realist: This will never work—we’re from different worlds.
(I did study St. Anselm in college, so I could at least laugh at this one):
Anslem -
p1 We can conceive of a most perfect breakup.
p2 Whatever is conceived exists in the mind of the conceivers.
p3 Whatever exists in the mind of the conceiver and also in reality is better than the same thing that exists only in the mind of the conceiver.
C1 Therefore, a breakup conceived, than which no greater breakup can be conceived, exists in reality as well as in the understanding.
p4 Ours is a breakup greater than which none greater can be conceived.
c2 Our breakup exists in reality.
The Teleologist: We aren’t meant for each other.
The Deontologist: We aren’t right for each other.
The Consequentialist: We aren’t optimal for each other.
The Solipsist: It’s not you, it’s me.
The Empiricist: I think we should see other people.
The Rationalist: I’m not a priority to you any more.
The Rationalist, v 2.0: I’ve been doing some thinking…
The Rationalist, v. 3.0: If you can’t see your faults, there’s nothing more I can say.
The Content Externalist: Ever since we moved, you’ve changed.
The Continentalist: You’ve lost that love and feeling.
The Egalitarian: This is the best thing for both of us.
The Paternalist: In time you’ll come to see that this is the best thing.
The Humean: Just because we’re always together doesn’t mean we BELONG together.
The Humean, v. 2.0: Relationships need to be about more than just constant conjoining.
The Reliabilist: This just isn’t working anymore.
The Nagelian: You just don’t know what it’s like to be me.
The Functionalist: I don’t care about accommodating your feelings.
The Quinean: I’m sorry, but you don’t mean anything to me anymore.
The Foundationalist: We have nothing left to build upon.
The Foundationalist, v2.0: I need to be able to branch out more.
The Relativist: It’s no one’s fault.
The Atheist: These things just happen.
The Kantian: You lied to me!
The Consequentialist, v 2.0: You should have lied to my mother about her pot roast!
The anti-Fictionalist: I’m sick of faking it.
The Cartesian: I don’t clearly and distinctly perceive a future together.
The Hegelian: Do we have to go through this again?
The Lockean: Our primary qualities simply aren’t compatible.
The Lockean, v. 2.0: Compared to my last partner, I’m not getting nearly enough, nor as good.
The Quasi-Realist: Of course we’re going to be together forever…
The Motivational Externalist: Even though I believed it at the time, I know now that I never really loved you.
The Behaviorist: I just can’t keep going through the motions anymore.
The Presentist: There just isn’t any future for us.
The Eternalist: At least we’ll always have that weekend in Paris.
The Modal Realist: This will never work—we’re from different worlds.
(I did study St. Anselm in college, so I could at least laugh at this one):
Anslem -
p1 We can conceive of a most perfect breakup.
p2 Whatever is conceived exists in the mind of the conceivers.
p3 Whatever exists in the mind of the conceiver and also in reality is better than the same thing that exists only in the mind of the conceiver.
C1 Therefore, a breakup conceived, than which no greater breakup can be conceived, exists in reality as well as in the understanding.
p4 Ours is a breakup greater than which none greater can be conceived.
c2 Our breakup exists in reality.
less-than-brave new world
Cory Doctorow over at bOING bOING has an interesting article on Canada's decision to ratify the the 1996 "Internet Treaties" proposed by the World Intellectual Property Organization. On particularly onerous provision is the "notice-and-takedown" policies the treaties would encourage:
ISPs liable for the copyrighted material that goes through their systems!? This is ludicrous. Because AOL would now be legally liable if you trade copyright-protected music on their system, they would undoubtedly be forced to monitor, regulate, or in some way track your use of the internet to prevent lawsuits. Sound like 1984 anyone? You bet it does.
While America did not ratify these treaties, these are the same treaties that caused Congress and the American music industry to implement the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, under which people are being sued today for sharing music. Soon, it looks like the ISPs will be sued as well.
The internet appears to be headed toward a limited existence, shackled by laws that restrict the flow of information, and ultimately, freedom and creativity. This process must be stopped.
In what is bound to be a controversial element, the committee recommended that Internet service providers (ISPs) must be held liable for copyrighted material that goes through their systems. To be exempt from that liability, the ISPs must show they are acting as true "intermediaries," without actual or constructive knowledge of the content.
ISPs should be required to comply with a "notice and takedown" system against subscribers who violate copyright laws.
ISPs liable for the copyrighted material that goes through their systems!? This is ludicrous. Because AOL would now be legally liable if you trade copyright-protected music on their system, they would undoubtedly be forced to monitor, regulate, or in some way track your use of the internet to prevent lawsuits. Sound like 1984 anyone? You bet it does.
While America did not ratify these treaties, these are the same treaties that caused Congress and the American music industry to implement the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, under which people are being sued today for sharing music. Soon, it looks like the ISPs will be sued as well.
The internet appears to be headed toward a limited existence, shackled by laws that restrict the flow of information, and ultimately, freedom and creativity. This process must be stopped.
Friday, November 05, 2004
For an amazing source of WWI information, check out the World War I Document Archive. This is an impressive collection of official and unofficial documents, ranging from President Wilson's inaugural address to memoirs of ambulance drivers on the front, of which the following is an excerpt:
On arriving at Nancy I was met by Salisbury, our Section leader, and after a very good meal in the most beautiful little town you could hope to see (and where the Kaiser and ten thousand troops in dress parade were waiting on a hill close by to enter in state last October), we started by motor for Pont-Ã -Mousson. Some fifteen kilometres farther on, our lights were put out and we then entered the region under shell fire. It was a funny feeling listening to my conductor talking about how this shell and that shell hit here and there; and all along the route we passed torn-up trees, houses, and roads. At last we came to Pont-Ã -Mousson, a dear little village with about eight thousand inhabitants, and felt our way, so to speak, in the darkness and silence to the barracks which are now the Headquarters of the Ambulance. I found that there were about twenty cars and twenty-two men here, the latter all enthusiastic about their work and the help the Section were giving the French. The day before I arrived a shell hit the house next door, and on first sight one would think it was the barracks itself which had been hit. These huge high-explosive shells are sent into the town every two or three days, and everywhere one sees masses of brick and stone, all that remains of houses struck. The Germans have bombarded the town over one hundred and ten times.
macro/micro
View the Milky Way at 10 million light years from the Earth. Then move through space towards the Earth in successive orders of magnitude until you reach a tall oak tree just outside the buildings of the National High Magnetic Field Laboratory in Tallahassee, Florida. After that, begin to move from the actual size of a leaf into a microscopic world that reveals leaf cell walls, the cell nucleus, chromatin, DNA and finally, into the subatomic universe of electrons and protons.
View the world here.
View the world here.
ahem
It might behoove one to utilize such mind-improving technology as to render the brain’s synapses more effective, provided improvement of said technology is adequate to effectuate the desired objectives. Should utilization prove effective, the possibility of certain linguistic and communicative enhancements may become certain.
(via bOINGbOING)
(via bOINGbOING)
Thursday, November 04, 2004
Wow--these guys have written a palindrome novel--it reads the same forward as it does backward. The hero's name? You guessed it- Bob. A sample:
O readers, meet Bob. (Elapse, year! Be glass! Arc!) Bob's a gem. O, hot Bob, now one decimal, debased ullage. Pen, if Bob—saga's sage motif—set arenas. Sideman Bob: X. All eve, loner: go. Goddesses, Bob? (Arc!) No bellissima? A dank cab spans 2002's Bob.
O readers, meet Bob. (Elapse, year! Be glass! Arc!) Bob's a gem. O, hot Bob, now one decimal, debased ullage. Pen, if Bob—saga's sage motif—set arenas. Sideman Bob: X. All eve, loner: go. Goddesses, Bob? (Arc!) No bellissima? A dank cab spans 2002's Bob.
that's staal
Swedish woman wants to name her baby "Superman" because the kid was born with one arm pointing upwards.
Finally someone says it like it is: The music industry is crippling itself by relying on one-hit-wonders. This is why internet file-trading has flourished--we are tired of CRAPPY POP HITS.
the first rule in pillow fight club is...
I love it. London flash mob pillow fights. Show up at a random spot in the city with a pillow hidden in a plastic bag; at appointed time begin pummeling anyone who also holds a pillow. Brought to you by the same folks behind mobile clubbing: show up with your headphones, begin dancing en masse.
Wednesday, November 03, 2004
Tuesday, November 02, 2004
It's time for KID'S COURT
Here are some
abstracts of recent decisions.
1. Elephant or no?
During sleepover, preschoolers A and Z were in A’s room for “talking,” a quiet time intended for winding down prior to bed. Conversation turned to recently rented cartoon movie, “Dumbo.” A remarked that “Dumbo is a cute little elephant.” In response, Z stated, flatly, “Dumbo is not an elephant.” Shocked by this, A replied, with some emphasis, to the effect that Dumbo certainly is anelephant. Z then repeated the assertion. A introduced into argument Dumbo’s trunk and elephant mother. For rebuttal, Z simply restated previous position, “Dumbo is not an elephant.” A called in counsel, who advised that since Z was the guest, why not let her say Dumbo is whatever she wants Dumbo to be? Outraged, A said again that Dumbo was an elephant, meanwhile beginning to cry and kick the side of her bed as Z, unmoved, looked on.
Court at first refused to hear the case. On reapplication, court ruled that it didn’t really matter what kind of animal Dumbo was, now please go to sleep. Decision upheld on appeal.
1. Elephant or no?
During sleepover, preschoolers A and Z were in A’s room for “talking,” a quiet time intended for winding down prior to bed. Conversation turned to recently rented cartoon movie, “Dumbo.” A remarked that “Dumbo is a cute little elephant.” In response, Z stated, flatly, “Dumbo is not an elephant.” Shocked by this, A replied, with some emphasis, to the effect that Dumbo certainly is anelephant. Z then repeated the assertion. A introduced into argument Dumbo’s trunk and elephant mother. For rebuttal, Z simply restated previous position, “Dumbo is not an elephant.” A called in counsel, who advised that since Z was the guest, why not let her say Dumbo is whatever she wants Dumbo to be? Outraged, A said again that Dumbo was an elephant, meanwhile beginning to cry and kick the side of her bed as Z, unmoved, looked on.
Court at first refused to hear the case. On reapplication, court ruled that it didn’t really matter what kind of animal Dumbo was, now please go to sleep. Decision upheld on appeal.
Monday, November 01, 2004
Support your local hacker
Subvert the dominant Microsoft paradigm--buy boxed sets of open-source software from Lulu.
Sunday, October 31, 2004
33dd
Stereo images. (Beware, some of the images are not safe for work.)
(via Adam, who is not sure whether these are cool or just cause headaches.)
Thursday, October 28, 2004
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