"Where so many hours have been spent in convincing myself that I am right, is there not some reason to fear I may be wrong?" [Motivational Quotes of the Day]

A Quick Overview of Buddhism

Posted by MacDood
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The Buddhist community is one of the largest growing groups of believers in the world today. It is especially gaining interest in the West where people are searching for alternatives to traditional religion. What proceeds is an attempt at giving a brief overview of Buddhist history and teachings. Please understand that Buddhism is a large and complicated area to research and because there are many different understandings of Buddhism what I've written here may not apply to everyone. Indeed, because this is really an overview I have only really scratched the surface! [Kuro5hin.org]

Robert Anton Wilson for Governor

Posted by MacDood
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Comment: Illuminatus rocks---

bOING bOING patron saint Robert Anton Wilson is running for California Governor! "After all, why should I remain the ONLY nutcase in California who ain't running," RAW says.

My party, the Guns and Dope Party, invites extremists of both right and left to unite behind our shared goals of:

1. Get those pointy-headed Washington bureaucrats off our backs and off our fronts too!

2. Guns for everybody who wants them; no guns for those who don't want them

3. Drugs for everybody who wants them; no drugs for those who don't want them

4. Freedom of choice, free love,free speech, free Internet and free beer

5. California secession -- Keep the anti-gun and anti-dope fanatics on the Eastern side of the Rockies

6. Lotsa wild parties every night by gun-toting dopers

7. Animal protection -- Support your right to keep and arm bears

More position papers will follow; we know at least 69 good positions.

I haven't been this excited about politics since RU Sirius ran for President!
Link
Discuss [Boing Boing]

Photo gallery of insect freaks, from The Insect Company, which sells insect specimens. Link Discuss (via Ookworld)
[Boing Boing]

My Uncle Is Not A Monkey

Posted by MacDood
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Comment: hey my old man was a monkey---

Creation Science Fair - the first place for elementary level was won by Cassidy Turnbull, who demonstrated the differences between her uncle and a monkey. Much more impressive was the winner of the high school level who used prayer to make microbes evolve antibiotic resistance. I, for one, am glad that children across the world are learning the power of Creation Science! (via New Scientist) [metafilter.com]

Rio's Nitrus Tries to Crack IPod Market (AP)

Posted by MacDood
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Comment: dere's no pod like an Ipod---


Comment:

AP - So far, no gadget has come very close in mimicking the style and simplicity of Apple Computer's top-selling iPod digital music player. [Yahoo! News - Technology]

Kinetic human maze

Posted by MacDood
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Comment: Maybe I'm amazed---

North Pitney has built a human-sized maze that changes as you walk through it. Called the Intermap, the maze will be open from September 1-15 in a vacant storefront at a Berkeley strip mall. The Intermap reminds me of that movie The Cube which, by the way, I think would make a great play. LinkDiscuss(Via Dorkbot) [Boing Boing]

Sequel to Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom on Salon

Posted by MacDood
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Comment: hey, if you liked the first story---

Tons of people have asked me if I'd do a sequel to Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom, my first novel. The answer is no. Well, yes and no.

I don't really write sequels. More than half the point of writing sf is thinking up new worlds, and sequels involve revisiting places I've left behind.

But this is different. A couple years ago, right after I sold the novel, I wrote a short-story set in the same world as the book, but a century or more later. It's a parable about Napster, and it's called Truncat, and today, Salon has published it. And you can read it for free.

First, Adrian got on the subway, opting to go deadhead for a faster load-time. He stepped into the sparkling cryochamber at the Downsview Station, conjured a helmet-mounted display (HUD) against his field of vision, and granted permission to be frozen. The next thing he knew, he was thawing out on the Union Station platform, pressed belly-to-butt with a couple thousand other commuters who'd opted for the same treatment. In India, where this kind of convenience-freezing was even more prevalent, Mohan had observed that the reason their generation was small for their age was that they spent so much of it in cold-sleep, conserving space in transit. Adrian might've been 18, but he figured that he'd spent at least one cumulative year frozen.

Adrian shuffled through the crowd and up the stairs to the steady-temp surface, peeling off the routing sticker that the cryo had stuck to his shoulder. His tummy was still rumbling, so he popped the sticker in his mouth and chewed until it had dissolved, savoring the steaky flavor and the burst of calories. The guy who'd figured out edible routing tags had Whuffie to spare: Adrian's mom knew someone who knew someone who knew him, and she said that he had an entire subaquatic palace to rattle around in.

A clamor of swallowing noises filled his ears, as the crowd subvocalized, carrying on conversations with distant friends. Adrian basked in the warm, simulated sunlight emanating from the dome overhead. He was going outside of the dome in a matter of minutes, and he had a sneaking suspicion that he was going to be plenty cold soon enough. He patted his little rucksack and made sure he had his cowl with him.

Link

Discuss [Boing Boing]

Station-wagons from the days when cars were cars and men were men and kids wanted to be cowboys

Posted by MacDood
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Comment: hey do you remember the ol' family station wagon? Ours was red...---

Beautiful gallery of vintage station-wagon ads.

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Discuss

(Thanks, May!)

[Boing Boing]

Amazon Fights Brand 'Spoofing'

Posted by MacDood
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Comment: seems like one can't surf down the superhighway safely anymore---


Amazon sues 11 online marketers that allegedly disguise e-mails to appear as though they were sent to consumers by the Web retail giant. Known as 'spoofing' of Internet brands, the trend is growing fast thanks to explosive growth in spam. [Wired News]

Posted by MacDood
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Comment:

Understanding Kane

Posted by MacDood
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Comment: and just who is FK, and who are you

Citizen Kane stands as one of the most celebrated films in the history of cinema. We cannot discuss this film without resorting to phrases like "masterpiece" "tour de force" or some other superlative to describe it. Why does the story of Charles Kane continue to draw viewers? Can a 1940's movie remain relevant? [Kuro5hin.org]

No particular reason, Mark's Raratonga skin sore picture was just really freaking me out, and it's lunchtime on the West Coast.
[Boing Boing]

Panoramic QTVR: the Matterhorn

Posted by MacDood
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Hans Nyberg points us to a panoramic QTVR of the Matterhorn at Zermatt, Switzerland: "First at the top was a British crew in 1865, together with the guides Peter Taugwalder and his son from Zermatt. On the way down 4 of the crew dies in an accident. The Taugwalders and the leader Edward Whymper survives. Matthias Taugwalder who made this magnificant panorama is Peter Taugwalder's great great great grandson."Link, Discuss [Boing Boing]

Wired illo: The Treasure Hunter

Posted by MacDood
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Comment: I like anything with a treasure

Canadian illustrator Kenn Brown's latest illo for a very cool feature in the August issue of Wired Magazine:

In 1694, an 80-gun British warship called the HMS Sussex set sail for southern France loaded with as much as 3 million pounds sterling and 6 tons of gold. The bounty was intended for the Duke of Savoy, a bribe to keep him allied with England in its war against Louis XIV. The Duke never did get the money. Severe gales whipped up off the north coast of Africa. The Sussex foundered along with a dozen other ships in the British fleet, taking all its riches (and the lives of 1,200 crew members) to the bottom of the Mediterranean Sea. Ultimately, the Duke threw his support to Louis XIV, and England's battle with France raged for seven more years before ending in a stalemate.

The plight of the Sussex left behind two huge questions, the first for historians: What if the mission had been successful? It's conceivable that England would have beaten back Louis XIV and annexed parts or all of France. If so, the British government might have been less concerned with a group of 13 rebellious colonies across the Atlantic and allowed them to split off to form a commonwealth - like Canada. The other question, for the rest of us: What happened to all that loot?

Link,
DiscussRead the amazing article this illustration accompanied, by Jeffrey O'Brien, here.
[Boing Boing]

Leonardo da Vinci

Posted by MacDood
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Comment: Older and wiser, so 50ish

"As a well-spent day brings happy sleep, so life well used brings happy death." [Motivational Quotes of the Day]

I Just Called to Say I'm Famous

Posted by MacDood
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Comment: the parade of LOSERS!!!

Thinking about popping the question? Nothing says "be mine forever" quite like as a telephone call from Todd Bridges, one of the celebrities on Hollywood is Calling who will exchange pleasantries with a stranger for $19.95. (08-14) [Cruel Site of the Day]

Wired: Disney or Sony should buy Apple

Posted by MacDood
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Comment: Hey let's all pitch in and buyu Apple

A Wired magazine opinion piece by Contributing Editor Josh McHugh says that Disney or Sony should buy Apple. Of course, rumors of this nature pop up every few months, but McHugh feels rumor should become reality. Why? Because although "every few years, Apple Computer consistently comes out of the blue with products that alter the trajectory of the technology business and leave observers rubbing their eyes in amazement," the company "clutches a meager 3 percent of the computer market." [MacCentral]

Photographic evidence of cetacean flatulence

Posted by MacDood
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Comment: No relation I would hazard a guess...

This is marvellous: the first whale-fart ever captured on film.

LinkDiscuss

(via JWZ's Livejournal)

[Boing Boing]

A defense of Michael Moore and "Bowling for Columbine"

Posted by MacDood
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Comment: Haven't seen it yet but this IS about freedom of speech

This is an open letter to David Hardy, author of Bowling for Columbine: Documentary or Fiction?, probably the most comprehensive among many rebuttals of the Oscar-winning documentary. Critics have now gone so far as to call for the revocation of the award. Their chances are small, however, as their arguments rely on polemic, exaggeration and misrepresentation -- in other words, on the same techniques which they accuse Moore of using. Dear David Hardy, It is fascinating to watch the organized character assassination of Michael Moore that has been going on in the United States since the release of his last documentary. In a time of simple-minded patriotism, loud, clear and dissenting voices like Mr. Moore's are perceived as disturbing and have to be silenced, partially through well funded public relations campaigns, partially through conservative "grass-roots" propaganda. Not surprisingly, much of the criticism of Moore's film is misguided or outright wrong, often vastly more inaccurate than Moore's work itself. [Kuro5hin.org]

Albert Camus

Posted by MacDood
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"Do not wait for the last judgment. It takes place every day." [Motivational Quotes of the Day]

Homer

Posted by MacDood
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"Do thou restrain the haughty spirit in thy breast, for better far is gentle courtesy." [Motivational Quotes of the Day]

And they work how exactly?

Posted by MacDood
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Comment: All those taking anti-depressants raise their hand and make a smiley face!

Anxious? Depressed? - you need more brain cells. Just take one of these twice a day. New research shows that antidepressants may not work as we thought at all, rather they actually stimulate growth of cells in the hippocampus area of the brain. This may all be for the good - but it seems strange that we release millions of happy pills and market them as safe without knowing for sure what they do. Perhaps its the money talking. [metafilter.com]

The Shrinking American Vacation

Posted by MacDood
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Comment: I guess that underemployment doesn't really count as a vacation
Ellen Goodman, a syndicated columnist has a column out today call America's incredible shrinking vacation. It is very noticeable that Americans tend to have considerably less time off than Europeans. Since 1980 the days off that Americans have has been reducing steadily. [Kuro5hin.org]

zing!

Posted by MacDood
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Arnold Schwarzenegger: Finally, a public official who can explain the administration's social policies in the original German. --Bill Maher, via... [Wil Wheaton]

Misuse of Science

Posted by MacDood
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Comment: Bush: Master of anti-science
In a report recently complied by Rep. Waxman (D-Calif) and the minority staff of the House Government Reform Committee's special investigations division areas in which the Bush administration has manipulated science to the benefit of his political agenda are highlighted. The report has an accompanying website. [metafilter.com]

Octopus Hijinks!

Posted by MacDood
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Comment: Dontcha just love Na-tcha
Nature is amazing. "Camera approaching coral with no sign of animal. As the camera gets closer, an O. vulgaris that was camouflaged changes color to white and becomes visible." This page leads to a video clip containing "special effects" that put the movie industry to shame. (via Looka!) [metafilter.com]

Arghnold is laughing at you!

Posted by MacDood
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Comment: you laughin' at me. YOU LAUGHIN AT ME!?
Arghnold is laughing at you! Apparently Californians will not be trifled with. [metafilter.com]

How To Walk On Water

Posted by MacDood
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Comment: Jesus aside, I've always wondered how the little buggers did it. I must have watched thousands of them in my time.

MIT scientists have discovered how insects like water striders walk on water. Rather than create tiny waves and surf them as previously suspected, the insects use one set of their hairy legs to create vortices in the water that propel the bugs along. In a bit of brilliant biomimicry, graduate student Brian Chan applied the research to build Robotstrider, a mechanical insect light enough to be supported by surface tension as it skims across the water.
LinkDiscuss [Boing Boing]

Mass registration in the "Do Not Call Registry"

Posted by MacDood
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Comment: Make sure y'all sign up to avoid those pesky calls
I've been thinking about what the telemarketing companies will do once the National Do Not Call Registry kicks into effect. I wonder if the telemarketers will follow the Internet gambling model and move offshore where the cost of calling the US will increase, but labor will be cheaper. Then again, perhaps the US companies that hire the off-shore telemarkets will then be held accountable. Or, maybe the US-based telemarketers will start calling numbers overseas to pitch products to an international market.

Also, my friend had an interesting idea: Why not write a bot that will automatically register EVERY telephone number in the US in the Do Not Call Registry? All that's required to register is entering a number and an email address and then verifying the registration by clicking a link in an email. Doesn't seem too tough to automate. LinkDiscuss [Boing Boing]

Web Zen: Photo Zen

Posted by MacDood
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(1) a day in the life

(2) we are a camera

(3) 26 things

(4) mirror project

(5) stop motion

(6) collage

(7) my tiny garden

(8) astronaut dinosaur

(9) nyc polaroids

(10) emulsion problems

(11)

fotolog
web zen home, web zen store, Discuss (Thanks, Frank) [Boing Boing]

More wacky candidates in California governor race

Posted by MacDood
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Comment: that's it hon we're a-leaving the state
Forget about Arnold. And please, the Larry Flynt thing is so three days ago. Now, Gary Coleman, of television's "Diff'rent Strokes" is in. Also rumored to be collecting sigs and cash, comedian Gallagher, known for smashing fruit with a hammer. Other candidates for Governor of California include billboard icon Angelyne, P2P entrepreneur Travis Kalanick, and -- rumor has it -- Napster co-founder and Plaxo principal Sean Parker. Is there a tracking website yet to help us all keep tabs on the growing herd of gubernatorial dark horses? No? Someone should create one. Link to East Bay Express article on why Gary Coleman for Governor rules (Thanks Josh Phillipson), Discuss
[Boing Boing]

"Beer Can Chicken": Sure, it's cheesy, but it works

Posted by MacDood

Comment: Aiiiee tastes like chicken
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I know...you've probably heard of this before. This guy has been all over TV in the past year or so, acting like he invented it, and now you can even buy cooking paraphernalia to make your life easier. So I'm not purporting to bring some blindingly innovative technique to light. Nevertheless, if you can look past the faddish element, and get over the kinda goofy "white trash" aspect, this is a very consistent route to an impressively tender, flavorful roasted chicken. Think of this as a low-budget, low-risk equivalent to the whole "deep-fried turkey" thing--it really does make a great chicken, and equally importantly, if you're having friends over, it's got pretty good entertainment value. [Kuro5hin.org]

Coke and Pepsi selling Soft Drinks with high pesticide content in india

Posted by MacDood
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Comment: those bastards

Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) India has found that Coke and Pepsi are selling soft drinks with a pesticide content 30-40 times higher than EU guidelines permit. The story can be found here and here among various other sources. Coke and Pepsi have threatened to sue CSE over the findings claiming that the tests should be carried by an international body rather an the India based NGO.Meanwhile, following the furore in the parliament, sale of soft drinks has been banned in the house. The members are even demanding a blanket ban on sale of products from these two companies. [Kuro5hin.org]

Fun with Puns

Posted by MacDood
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Tom Swifties! "I'm wearing my wedding ring," said Tom with abandon. Oh, the pun-ishment. [metafilter.com]

Dial-A-Dolphin on Your Mobile

Posted by MacDood
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Irish scientists plan to let consumers eavesdrop on dolphin conversations, thus ending all dolphin privacy. Also: A new study shows that surgical masks might not guard against SARS.... Bodybuilders are adding insulin to their steroid cocktails.... and more. [Wired News]

AICN's Robotic Women of Film Contest

Posted by MacDood
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My heart be still. Movies, fan art, and Robot Fantasy Babes, all rolled up into one gigantic Internet burrito of fun. Harry Knowles of Ain't It Cool News ran a silly contest soliciting reader-created poster art for " T-X Terminator 3 SIDESHOW Robotic Head for Robot Women." The results look pretty cool, but the site seems to be having intermittent bandwidth problems right now. Link, Discuss [Boing Boing]

Talk like human beings, will ya'?

Posted by MacDood
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The 100 Worst “Groaners”. A “groaner” is a hackneyed, overblown, stuffy or just plain silly cliché that turns up time after time in news scripts. Groaners show laziness on the part of writers, disrespect for the folks watching, and a general contempt for lively English. Here are some of the worst offenders. You’ll recognize them immediately, so get ready to groan! [metafilter.com]

BuyMusic.com Parody Launches

Posted by MacDood
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The self proclaimed geniuses over at macteens.com are proud to announce their new flagship website, DontBuyMusic.com. The first viable alternative to BuyMusic.com! The new site features a more honest point of view than it's predecessor and lets the world know all about the best way to download music! We whole heartedly suggest you check out this revolutionary new website.


Like Pixels? Check out MacDesign [MacMerc]

Tea

Posted by MacDood
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This story is about good teas and how to brew them. [Kuro5hin.org]

Selling cars in the U.S. - the inside scoop

Posted by MacDood
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OK, a quick foreword. I am a dyed in the wool tech weenie. Hardcore Cisco jockey. I got whacked from a classic tech company back in January, and I was faced with the very real prospect of being unemployed for a Very Long Time(c). So I thought: "what the hey, I'll sell cars until I can be a professional propeller head again". Boy oh boy, was THAT an experience. Details below.... (Note, I'm detailing 2 very different markets, Arizona and Texas - abbreviated T, A, or T&A :) [Kuro5hin.org]

e-hamburgers

Posted by MacDood
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Turmeric Enterprises, LLC, a fully incorporated offshore entity with offices in London, Sydney, Frankfurt, Kuala Lumpur, Johannesburg, and Hayward California, has recently embarked upon a project to provide a new form of 'e-currency' to the internet community. Unlike traditional e-currency the unit of commerce will be the hamburger. [Kuro5hin.org]

How Robots Will Steal Your Job

Posted by MacDood
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The man behind the website HowStuffWorks has a theory that in the future most of us will be out of work, replaced by robots. He elucidates this vision in a series of essays, a sci-fi novel and even a patent application. By Joanna Glasner. [Wired News]

Web Zen: crafts

Posted by MacDood
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(1) origami

(2) mosaics

(3) papier mache

(4) hook rugs

(5) food portraits

(6) crop art
web zen home, web zen store, Discuss (Thanks, Frank) [Boing Boing]

Great snarky photo-caption

Posted by MacDood
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Curmudgeons like the infamous and accomplished Jamie Zawinski are one of the things that I love about the Internet, 'cause they pop off photo-captions like this one:

Dear Japanese people:

Please stop exploring your sexuality. It really freaks us out.

Love, American People.

LinkDiscuss [Boing Boing]

New Censorship: How scandals get neutralized

Posted by MacDood
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I picked up the new Harper's this morning to read on the BART, and was transfixed by the lead essay, "The New Censorship," an outtake from "The Middle Mind, Why Americans Don't Think for Themsleves," a book by Curtis White to be published in August. What I find fascinating about it is the very sharp and vehement analysis of how scandal after scandal can break in the news without tainting the political and business elites. Here are a couple of grafs I keyed in:

The New Censorship does not work by keeping things secret. Are our leaders liars and criminals? Is the government run by wealthy corporations and political elites? Are we all being slowly poisoned? The answer is yes to all of the above, and there's hardly a soul on these shores who doesn't know it. The reign of George II practically revels in this perverse transparency. Oil policy created in backrooms with lobbyists from Enron and ExxonMobil. Naked pandering to the electricity industry in rolling back clean-air mandates. Accounting firms such as Arthur Andersen buying even "watchdog" liberal senators such as Christopher Dodd. Elections rigged with brother Jeb's connivance in Florida. All of the details are utterly public, reported in newspapers, television newscasts and books, yet it's perfectly safe for this stuff to be known. The genius of the New Censorship is that it works through the obscenity of absolute openness. Iraq-gate wasn't a secret. The real secret is that it wasn't a secret, and certainly wasn't a scandal. It was business as usual. The betrayal of a public trust is a daily story manipulated by the media within the narrative confines of "scandal," when in fact it's all a part of the daily routine and everyone knows it. The media makes pornography out of the collective guilt of our politicians and business leaders. They make a yummy fetish of betrayed trust. We then consume it, mostly passively, because it is indistinguishable from our "entertainment" and because we suspect in some dim way that, bad as it surely is, it is working in our interests in the long run. What genius to have a system that allows you to behave badly, be exposed for it, and then have the sin recouped by the system as a resellable commodity! I mean, you have to admire the sheer, recuperative balls of it!

All this being the case, what consequences can we expect from the work of Chalmers Johnson or Noam Chomsky? None. Their writings are taken up as a part of the spectrum (a modestly disturbing part of the spectrum to be sure) of info-pornographics. The truth-function of Chomsky's work is neutralized because there are people who will participate in actions leading to death and worse all over the world and then tell you about it. In detail. In great detail. The truth is that everything is known, the revelations grotesquely vivid.

LinkDiscuss [Boing Boing]

Best fucking legal document on the internet

Posted by MacDood
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From one of the better blogs comes word of the most amusing legal document you'll ever read, chosen by The Smoking Gun as the best legal document of the year for 2003. [Kuro5hin.org]