"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!
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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.

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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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(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?

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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.

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(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]