The Future of Advertising 

So what’s next for advertising? It’s becoming more and more apparent that mass-market advertising is so sickeningly ubiquitous that it’s become an offense to many, myself included. Half-hour TV shows have only 20 minutes of content, with the rest commercials and promotions. People flock to HBO to get away from this problem. The biggest feature of TiVo and DVRs is the ability to kill commercials. MythTV has a plug-in that when you are recording a show takes the commercials out of the base recording automatically.

Radio is worse. Radio today is almost impossible to listen to because of the long commercial breaks. No wonder people are listening to podcasts more and more.

The advertisers should have gotten a clue when, almost out of the blue, full-season episode lineups of TV shows began to sell on DVD. You could watch without commercials. People would actually pay to avoid these commercials. Hello! Do you think you have a problem yet?

Incompetent Design 

The thing that perhaps is closest to all of us is our own skeleton, and there are certainly all kinds of stupidity in our design. No self-respecting engineering student would make the kinds of dumb mistakes that are built into us.

All of our pelvises slope forward for convenient knuckle-dragging, like all the other great apes. And the only reason you stand erect is because of this incredible sharp bend at the base of your spine, which is either evolution’s way of modifying something or else it’s just a design that would flunk a first-year engineering student.

Look at the teeth in your mouth. Basically, most of us have too many teeth for the size of our mouth. Well, is this evolution flattening a mammalian muzzle and jamming it into a face or is it a design that couldn’t count accurately above 20?

Look at the bones in your face. They’re the same as the other mammals’ but they’re just squashed and contorted by jamming the jaw into a face with your brain expanding over it, so the potential drainage system in there is so convoluted that no plumber would admit to having done it!

“Scotty, I need warp speed in three minutes or we’re all dead.” 

It’s not just that we are building a world in which Scotty would have no job to do. What’s the need for a repairman in an economy in which nothing is meant to be repaired?

It’s that we’re building a world in which Scotty would be an actual threat to the economy. First, by fixing things that were designed to be thrown away and replaced at increased cost. Second, by requiring to be paid well for his talent and skill. Third, by simply knowing things that the corporations running the show don’t want anybody to know because it would undermine their monopolies.

X-COM: UFO Defense Collector’s Edition 

There’s a very warm place in my heart for the X-COM games. Now, thanks to The Underdogs, you can download the series for free! Awesome!

80s Ending 

“This short film is a wonderful parody on the ending of every 1980s movie you’ve ever seen!” Totally funny stuff. You’ve got to check it out!

The Quest For Immortality 

How’s this for an offer you can’t refuse: how would you like to live say, 400 or 500 years, or even more and all of them in perfect health? It’s both a Utopian and a nightmare scenario but there are those who say it is well within the realm of possibility.

Though we live longer and healthier lives than our grandparents, 100 is more or less the outer limit because, catastrophic disease aside, we just plain wear out. But 60 Minutes correspondent Morley Safer talked to one scientist who says that’s old-fashioned thinking, that sometime in the next 20 to 30 years or so we’ll be able to recondition ourselves for the first steps towards immortality.

I’ve always maintained a keen interest in biomedical gerontology, and I’m delighted that significant progress is being made within my lifetime because boy-howdy do I want to live longer!

Apple’s Latest Computer Gives a Taste of Life in the Fast Lane 

Peter Nowak on the iMac Core Duo:

Once you’ve driven a Ferrari, it’s hard to go back to your Toyota Corolla.

Not that I’ve ever driven a Ferrari, nor do I own a Corolla. But I imagine that’s what it feels like now that I’m back on my crappy HP laptop after a few weeks of test-driving Apple’s new iMac.

The hype is true – the Intel dual-processor iMac is about as close to perfection as a computer can get. It’s enough to make a convert of a hard-core PC user like myself.

Time Out of Mind 

Normally the flicker would be so fast Jesse could only see a blur. But if time slowed down for him, he might be able to discern the two different screens and read a random number on one of them.

“There’s no way to fake this test,” says Dr Eagleman, “because if time is not running more slowly, they can’t see the sequence.”

All Jesse had to do was jump, and read. As he ascended the 33ft metal cage no-one seemed to believe this curious experiment might work.

BBC Interviews Terry Gilliam 

[H]e has little sympathy for the Hollywood studios’ current drive against DVD piracy.

“It’s hard for me to worry about the studios losing money. I’m not very sympathetic to their money problems, because they certainly haven’t been sympathetic to mine.

“When you look at one of their accounting sheets you realise you’re never going to see a penny, so if someone wants to rip them off that’s fine with me.

“If you’re going to pirate, though, make sure the quality’s good. Have some respect for what you’re pirating!”

The HD Boycott Begins Now 

Mike Evangelist, the guy responsible for Final Cut Pro, DVD Studio Pro, and iDVD lets loose a blistering criticism of HD-DVD and Blu-ray, and I agree with him.

Early HDTV Adopters Screwed by HD-Disc Rules 

[T]he new players won’t output a full-HD signal from their component-video connections, since those jacks are analog instead of digital and thus have no copy protection. The “down-rezzed” signals will be limited to a resolution of 960×540 pixels—exactly one-quarter the 1,920×1,080 pixels that you’ll get through the copy-protected digital connectors on the players.

Two Decades of Zelda 

It’s been twenty years since gamers first set foot in the land of Hyrule and wandered into a dark cave where an old man gave them a wooden sword and set them on the path to defeating an evil pig-beast named Ganon. And many of us know too the story behind the game: creator Shigeru Miyamoto loved to explore in the hills behind his home, found some caves, made a videogame about it, became fabulously wealthy, etc. We’ve heard it; it’s old news. The end.

Twenty years ago this week—February 21, 1986—thousands of Japanese gamers played The Legend of Zelda for the first time, and their perspective on gaming was forever changed. Here was a huge world, a massive quest, an open-ended odyssey that demanded exploration. When we Americans first placed that golden cartridge in our Nintendo Entertainment Systems a few months later, we learned what our friends overseas had already discovered: Zelda was addictive. It was adventurous. It was ambitious. It was amazing.

One thing I think that should have been added to their Link to the Past section: “Remember the first time you saw the rain? Remember thinking how cool your Super Nintendo was when you saw that rain?”

Sex Pistols Shoot Down Hall of Fame Induction 

Members of punk band the Sex Pistols are refusing to attend their induction into the U.S. Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

“We’re not your monkeys, we’re not coming. You’re not paying attention,” the music rebels said in a scrawled note posted on their website.

It went on to call the institution “urine in wine.”

How Will the Universe End? 

A cosmic detective story about the demise of the world, in three parts.

NASA’s Mars Orbiter Approaches Planet 

“It’s going to be difficult to get it into orbit,” Doug McCuistion, the head of NASA’s Mars Exploration Program told a briefing on Friday. “Mars is hard, Mars can be unpredictable, but we’ve got a good team.”

Why no Windows on Macintel? $12,000 

Yet why aren’t we dual booting already? Money. Most of you are undoubtedly aware of “The Contest,” a 12,000 dollar pot that will be going to the first person to provide a viable dual booting method to the site’s owner. Also note the “onmac” network—and advertisements—that the contest has bequeathed to the once minimalist site as well… another interesting commentary on money.

Now I have no problem with the idea of a contest, nor the site owner (Colin… who is also a member in our forum) wanting to capitalize on some great site traffic and press.

The problem with the contest is that it encourages poor geeks (like me) who could use the extra cash (like me) to try their hand at fixing the problem. In theory this would speed up progress. But in fact it’s had the opposite, somewhat paradoxical effect—it’s slowed things down.

(Hat tip: TUAW)

What the Other Steve is Saying About Apple’s Striking Resurgence 

It’s like consorting with the enemy. We’ve had this long history of saying the enemy is the big black-hatted guys, and they kind of represent evil. We are different, and by being different we’re better […]. All of a sudden we’re the same in this hardware regard, so it’s a little hard to swallow your words from the past.

Continued Success for Space Elevator Tests 

According to their Web site the Space Elevator company Lifport recently managed to get their platform and climbing robot to the mile-high mark over the Arizona desert.” From the announcement: “A revolutionary way to send cargo into space, the LiftPort Space Elevator will consist of a carbon nanotube composite ribbon eventually stretching some 62,000 miles from earth to space. The LiftPort Space Elevator will be anchored to an offshore sea platform near the equator in the Pacific Ocean, and to a small man-made counterweight in space. Mechanical lifters are expected to move up and down the ribbon, carrying such items as people, satellites and solar power systems into space.

The possibilities a space elevator would open are tremendous. It’s very cool to see these first awkward steps towards building one. (Hat tip: Slashdot)

Prostitutes Call for Ban on GTA 

Gamespot has an article about an association of prostitutes protesting the GTA games. Apparently, the sex workers of the Sex Workers Outreach Project aren’t too happy about their ingame counterparts being treated violently in the GTA games. Next thing you know, terrorists are going to protest Counter-Strike because of the violence perpetrated towards terrorists in the video game.

“Sleeping on it” Best for Complex Decisions 

The research suggests the conscious mind should be trusted only with simple decisions, such as selecting a brand of oven glove. Sleeping on a big decision, such as buying a car or house, is more likely to produce a result people remain happy with than consciously weighing up the pros and cons of the problem, the researchers say.

Copyright Sings to a Different Tune 

Keeping time limits on copyright could open the way for a new wave of creativity, argues Kay Withers of the Institute for Public Policy Research think-tank.

Literacy Limps into the Kill Zone 

Then there’s the havoc wrought on spelling and punctuation by all this casual communication. You can’t lay all that at the feet of technology, of course. Grammar skills have been eroding in this country for years and that has a lot more to do with lax instruction than it does with e-mail or instant messaging.

What if Microsoft Never Existed, Part 2: A Destiny Destroyed 

In the same manner it seems unlikely that Digital Research would reach the current position of today’s Microsoft. Because for that to happen Digital Research would have had to blatantly steal from competitors and partners alike. Digital Research would have had to continually act in an immoral and often times illegal manner to preserve its position. They would have needed to have, as a corporate policy, an attitude of indifference to the anti-trust laws of this country and a willingness to crush anyone who stood in their way. In short, I doubt they had the will, or the leadership, to be so evil for so long.

Ars Technica: Fears Over New Mac OS X ‘Leap-A’ Trojan Pointless 

Leap-A is “a fairly harmless bit of code, and some have described it as a proof of concept. In fact, antivirus firm Symantec designated it a ‘Level 1’ threat, which is at the bottom of the scale for malicious code. Despite the trojan’s harmlessness, a number of sites are seizing on this, calling it the first Mac OS X virus to be discovered,” Eric Bangeman writes for Ars Technica. “In fact, that distinction goes to another Trojan Horse, found in April 2004 by French firm Intego. After the hype machines slowed down, it was determined that the malware was nothing more than a proof-of-concept, illustrating that Mac OS X can be vulnerable to certain types of malware. In May 2004, another malicious script emerged that would delete the home directories of extremely gullible users. Leap-A hardly marks any sort of advance in Mac malware, as it’s less harmful than the May 2004 script and lacks the ability to self-propagate.”

“Mac OS X has a solid record so far when it comes to viruses and other malware, and many Mac users don’t bother with antivirus software,” Bangeman writes. “Leap-A hardly qualifies as a great leap forward in Mac OS X malware. But Mac users along with everyone else will be safer as long as they practice skeptical computing.”

New Drug Allowing People to Survive With Two Hours of Sleep Being Developed 

The New Scientist magazine says the new “lifestyle” pills will deliver sleep which is deeper and more refreshing than the real thing, with some giving what feels like eight hours sleep in half the time.

Jim Henson Company in Preproduction of ‘Dark Crystal’ Sequel 

Set hundreds of years after the events of the first movie when the world has once again fallen into darkness, Power of the Dark Crystal follows the adventures of a mysterious girl made of fire who, together with a Gelfling outcast, steals a shard of the legendary Crystal in an attempt to reignite the dying sun that exists at the center of the planet.

You know, I’m actually hopeful for this one. I think they’ll actually be able to pull it off.

Best Buy Receipt Check 

Merchants basically have two rights covering people entering and exiting their stores. They can refuse to let you enter the premises and/or to sell you anything, and they can place you under citizens arrest for attempting to leave the premises with any property that you haven’t paid for. But the second you hand over the appropriate amount of cash, they lose all rights to the items. They can’t legally impair you from leaving the store with your property.

JusFlam: The Social Network for People Who Enjoy Jesus, and Flames, and Rotating Stuff 

Sign up! This thing rules!

RIAA Says Ripping CDs to Your iPod is NOT Fair Use 

It is no secret that the entertainment oligopolists are not happy about space-shifting and format-shifting. But surely ripping your own CDs to your own iPod passes muster, right?

(Hat tip: Wesa)

WR-07 — A Real Transformer 

This is a small robot that is able to transform into a biped and walk around. Pretty nifty stuff, but I’m still holding out for a Valkyrie. I mean, who wouldn’t want a jet fighter that transformed into a giant robot? (Hat tip: Linkbunnies)

One Side Can Be Wrong 

When two opposite points of view are expressed with equal intensity, the truth does not necessarily lie exactly half way between. It is possible for one side simply to be wrong.

Tipped Off 

Customers believe in tipping because they think it makes economic sense. “Waiters know that they won’t get paid if they don’t do a good job,” is how most advocates of the system (meaning most everybody in America) would put it. To be sure, this is a seductive, apparently rational statement about economic theory, but it appears to have little applicability to the real world of restaurants.

13 Things That Do Not Make Sense 

A thought-provoking list of things in physical science that don’t make sense, despite the fact that they are true.

Devolution 

Why intelligent design isn’t.

How to Order Wine Without Looking Like an Asshole 

A fun list of tips to help you not look like a retard when ordering wine.

The Omnivore — Learning to Eat Everything 

I cannot figure out why, but the atmosphere in America today rewards this sort of self-deception. Fear and suspicion of food have nearly become the norm. Civil dinners have become impossible, and with them, the sense of festivity and exchange. People should be ashamed of the irrational food phobias that keep them from sharing food with each other. Instead, they have become proud and arrogant and aggressively misinformed.

Top 10 Things All Windows to Mac OS X Switchers Should Know 

1. OS X Looks Like OS X: Why aren’t there countless OS X themes and theming applications: there just isn’t a big demand for them. The standard look and feel of OS X is already pleasing. You want proof? Take a look at the lengths to which people will go to turn Windows into OS X.
2. You Don’t Need a Virus Scanner: Don’t waste your money on securing your system with off-the-shelf OS X virus protection. As of right now, those programs are snake oil—absolutely worthless to you as a Mac user. [Editor’s note: This is because there are zero viruses for Mac OS X.]
3. Your Mouse Moves Differently in OS X: It may feel weird to Windows users… It’s all about Mac OS X’s mouse tracking. [Editor’s note: I happen to prefer the Mac’s logarithmic mouse accelleration. I always have. It makes me less error-prone.]
4. Most of Us Use Safari: Safari is still the most standards compliant browser available. Plus, there’s always those pretty buttons. [Editor’s note: For the record, Safari is quite extensible as well.]
5. Installing, Moving and Uninstalling Apps: You install most applications by simply dragging and dropping them where you want them. Want to move an application after it’s been installed? Move it. It won’t care. Uninstalling an application is as easy as dragging it into the trash can. To PC users, this is a scary thought. What else is your trashed application leaving behind? In most cases, it will leave behind a harmless preference file or two. Mac OS X applications seem clean because the ugly is hidden deep within the application. OS X apps are actually a special kind of folder. To actually see what’s inside an application, right click it and select Show Package Contents.
6. OS X Has No Defrag Utility: OS X automatically defragments every single file that you access (as long as it’s under 20MB)… defragmenting your drive is unnecessary. But you don’t have to take my word for it.
7. Is Your System Acting Strange? Repair Disk Permissions: Repairing permissions is a harmless, non-destructive process that you can run periodically to keep your system in perfect working order. It’s like a free tune-up. [Editor’s note: I’m personally in the same camp as John Gruber when it comes to “Repair Disk Permissions” — if you are not experiencing any symptoms that would indicate permission-related problems, there is no reason to run Repair Permissions. Repair Permissions is not a periodic maintenance task or a preventative measure.]
8. OS X Is Not Perfect: Programs crash in OS X. However, “Force Quit” isn’t some namby-pamby end process that Windows users have to contend with—it’s the real deal.
9. You’re Going to Make Mistakes: A comprehensive 30-point list of mistakes made by new Mac users.
10. Yes, It Is a Cult. Welcome! You may soon find yourself evangelizing to your Windows-loving friends or making frequent and unnecessary trips to the local Apple Store just to look around.

Definitely worth a read. The article itself goes into more detail on each point.

What if Microsoft Never Existed? 

This piece is the first in a series of articles that seeks to answer two basic questions: Where would the computing world be if Microsoft never existed? and Would the computing world be better off without its 20 years of influence? This series will start off with an unbiased, alternate history in which Microsoft doesn’t rise to power. Then, alternate histories will be constructed for various key players (past and present) to examine how they might have ended up had Microsoft not existed. Finally, after analyzing the most likely “alternate” course of history a conclusion will be reached to determine whether or not Microsoft’s existence has ultimately done more harm than good.

New Grant System Excludes Mac Users 

What if the federal government were about to give away more than $400 billion in grants, but only people whose computers ran on Microsoft software could apply?

That is the predicament that many scientists, scholars and others say they are in as the government enters the final phase of its five-year effort to streamline its grant-application process.

The problem: Although many U.S. scientists and others depend on graphics-friendly Macintosh computers, the software selected by the government is not Mac-compatible. And it is expected to remain so for at least a year.

What it Feels Like to be an Atheist 

Brent Rasmussen writes a rather bold and thought-provoking commentary on Atheism.

Microsoft to Release Paid Security Offering in June 

A new security service from Microsoft Corp. will charge users $49.95 per year to better protect its Windows operating system from spyware, viruses and other Internet attacks.

I think I’ve seen this one before…

Exxon: America Will Always Rely on Foreign Oil 

“Americans depend upon imports to fill the gap,” McGill said. “No combination of conservation measures, alternative energy sources and technological advances could realistically and economically provide a way to completely replace those imports in the short or medium term.”

*cough* Brazil *cough*

Jamaica Declares Marley Home National Heritage Site 

This tribute—which comes nearly 25 years after Marley’s death and during the week he would have celebrated his 61st birthday—is a recognition of how the singer put his home country on the international map, said Maxine Henry Wilson, Jamaica’s culture and education minister.

U.S. Plans Massive Data Sweep 

The U.S. government is developing a massive computer system that can collect huge amounts of data and, by linking far-flung information from blogs and e-mail to government records and intelligence reports, search for patterns of terrorist activity.

The system—parts of which are operational, parts of which are still under development—is already credited with helping to foil some plots. It is the federal government’s latest attempt to use broad data-collection and powerful analysis in the fight against terrorism. But by delving deeply into the digital minutiae of American life, the program is also raising concerns that the government is intruding too deeply into citizens’ privacy.

(Hat tip: Slashdot)

Intel Macs Running WINE 

Macworld UK is reporting that developers of the Open Source x86 Project have succeeded in compiling software to run Windows applications on Intel Macs. Using an OS X friendly version of WINE, a piece of software designed to run Windows apps under Unix/Linux, the project has allowed a small number of Windows programs to run on the new Macs. Although the developers warn the software is far from finished and isn’t “anything to get excited about” yet, it is another step closer to running Windows applications on Intel Macs.

Flu Shots and Alzheimer’s Disease 

According to Hugh Fudenberg, MD, the world’s leading immunogeneticist and 13th most quoted biologist of our times (nearly 850 papers in peer review journals): If an individual has had 5 consecutive flu shots between 1970 and 1980 (the years studied) his/her chances of getting Alzheimer’s Disease is 10 times higher than if he/she had one, 2 or no shots. Dr. Fudenberg said it was so and that it was due to mercury and aluminum that is in every flu shot. The gradual mercury and aluminum buildup in the brain causes cognitive dysfunction.

(Hat tip: Disinfo.net)

Hilarious Legal Threats Against the Pirate Bay 

Swedish BitTorrent site Pirate Bay have a wonderful letters and responses section of all the legal threats that have been issued against them for alleged breach of copyright laws. Firms such as Microsoft, DreamWorks, Apple and Warner Bros have tried to their detriment to nail webmaster Fredrik Neij on numerous occasions with hilarious consequences.

(Hat tip: Disinfo.net)

Looking for more ZZZ’s? Study Says Melatonin Won’t Help 

Our results do not provide evidence that melatonin is effective in alleviating sleep disturbance in jet lag.

Microsoft’s Anti-Spyware Program Deletes Symantec’s Norton Anti-Virus 

Microsoft’s Anti-Spyware program is causing troubles for people who also use Symantec’s Norton Anti-Virus software; apparently, a recent update to Microsoft’s anti-spyware application flags Norton as a password-stealing program and prompts users to remove it,” Brian Krebs reports for The Washington Post. “According to several different support threads over at Microsoft’s user groups forum, the latest definitions file from Microsoft ’(version 5805, 5807) detects Symantec Antivirus files as PWS.Bancos.A (Password Stealer).’

When Microsoft Anti-Spyware users remove the flagged Norton file as prompted, Symantec’s product gets corrupted and no longer protects the user’s machine. The Norton user then has to go through the Windows registry and delete multiple entries (registry editing is always a dicey affair that can quickly hose a system if the user doesn’t know what he or she is doing) so that the program can be completely removed and re-installed.

Video Games Help Protect Brain from Aging 

A body of research suggests that playing video games provides benefits similar to bilingualism in exercising the mind. Just as people fluent in two languages learn to suppress one language while speaking the other, so too are gamers adept at shutting out distractions to swiftly switch attention between different tasks.

(Hat tip: Slashdot)

Russian MP Says US to Attack Iran Late March 

A top Russian parliamentary leader has told Ekho Moskvy radio station that an attack on Iran is inevitable and that it will occur on March 28th. The leader of the Liberal Democrats Vladimir Zhirinovsky also believes that the Muslim riots were orchestrated by the US to garner European backing for the military strike.

(Hat tip: Disinfo.net)

US Prepares Military Blitz Against Iran’s Nuclear Sites 

“This is more than just the standard military contingency assessment,” said a senior Pentagon adviser. “This has taken on much greater urgency in recent months.”

I Love Death 

Flash music video for a song by Lodger. Good stuff!

Will I be Arrested if I End a Sentence with a Preposition? 

Because sentences usually contain several prepositional phrases like this (e.g., “A relative of the fruitfly was doing something like the backstroke in the wine on the table in the library.”), it is important to keep up with which noun goes with which preposition. The easiest way to do that is by a rule that prepositions are never separated from their object noun (or noun phrase if the noun is modified by adjectives.

(Hat tip: Rob Meintjes)

Conversations with Grammarati 

Cameron Moll has a laugh at the expense of a random grammar nazi who decided to write him. The comments are golden. My favourite is James’ anecdote:

In tenth grade, my teacher claimed that it was unprofessional and grammatically wayward to begin a sentence with “it.” Good writers simply didn’t do so.

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…” I quoted in reply.

Metamorphosis 

[W]riting in second person had a negative impact on something critical to the “success” of Hivelogic: it significantly diminished the frequency of posting.

Critiquing 

Before we get into the thick of it, consider one more thing: design is not about innovation. Design is about communication. Innovation in design is usually a wonderful byproduct or direct result of a particular need. Design that seeks to foremost be innovative will commonly fall apart under its own stylistic girth.

MPAA Accused of DVD Piracy 

Fortified with irony!

(Hat tip: Linkbunnies)

LEGO Difference Engine 

Babbage’s design could evaluate 7th order polynomials to 31 digits of accuracy. I set out to build a working Difference Engine using LEGO parts which could compute 2nd or 3rd order polynomials to 3 or 4 digits.

(Hat tip: Linkbunnies)

40-metre Profanity Spotted from Space 

Quite who Eddie is and why his name is writ large in rural England, we’ll leave that to readers to explain.

I can’t help but think this is funny as hell.

Flying Car Captured on Google Earth 

More Google Earth-y goodness.

Google Shifts Greenwich Meridian 

According to Google Earth, we’ve all got it wrong and in fact the Prime Meridian is some 100m to the east of the Royal Greenwich Observatory.

Pharaonic Tomb Find Stuns Egypt 

Archaeologists have discovered an intact, ancient Egyptian tomb in the Valley of the Kings, the first since King Tutankhamun’s was found in 1922.

(Hat tip: Linkbunnies)

The Best Picture of Donald Rumsfeld Ever Taken 

Taken from a BBC article on how US Plans to “Fight the Net” were revealed.

Sex Chemistry Lasts Two Years 

I’m concerned that, having identified these hormones, there will be some move to suggest replacements to recreate the early passion.

(Hat tip: Linkbunnies)

Milestones in Film History: Greatest Visual and Special Effects 

From even its earliest days, films have used visual magic (“smoke and mirrors”) to produce illusions and trick effects that have startled audiences. In fact, the phenomenon of persistence of vision is the reason why the human eye sees individual frames of a movie as smooth, flowing action when projected. The earliest effects were produced within the camera (in-camera effects), or were created by using miniatures, back projection, or matte paintings. Optical effects came slightly later, using film, light, shadow, lenses and/or chemical processes to produce the film effects. Film titles, fades, dissolves, wipes, blow ups, skip frames, bluescreen, compositing, double exposures, and zooms/pans are examples of various optical effects. Cel animation, scale modeling, claymation, digital compositing, animatronics, use of prosthetic makeup, morphing, and modern computer-generated or computer graphics imagery (CGI) are just some of the more modern techniques that are widely used for creating incredible special or visual effects.

(Hat tip: Linkbunnies)

21st Century Computing 

Interestingly, there were numerous mentions of NeXT. For 1989, the number of accurate predictions is actually quite astonishing. Of particular note are the “smart wallet,” voice recognition, HDTV, hints of the World-Wide Web, and (of course) the multimedia centre.

(Hat tip: Linkbunnies)

Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sleep (But Were Too Afraid to Ask) 

One thing I noticed upon arriving to the States is that nobody here seems to have any notion of “sleep manners”. I have seen (and experienced) many times people barging into the room containing a sleeping person, switching on the lights and TV, talking, even talking to the sleeping person, all the while not being even aware that this is a Big No-No, very inconsiderate, and extremely rude. When confronted, the response is usually very defensive, stressing the person’s individual right to do whatever he/she wants and not bother about being considerate about some lazy bum who is sleeping at an inappropriate time.

It’s an oldie, to be sure, but talking about circadian cycles reminded me of this excellent article.

Light Pollution and the Return of Night 

Light pollution is something that’s bugged me since I was a child. Recently I even started noticing something talked about in the article: “birds [chirp] throughout the night, in anticipation of a dawn that will not arrive.” If left to my own devices, my circadian cycle usually has me awake late enough to observe this. I applaud the efforts of the International Dark-Sky Association in getting cities like Rome to dim its lights, and I’m happy to see that around the world, societies are making strides to develop similar programmes.

(Hat tip: Wesaturtle)

How to Eat Your Lawn 

The lawn devours resources while it pollutes. It is maniacally groomed with mowers and trimmers powered by the 2 stroke motors responsible for much of our greenhouse gas emissions. Hydrocarbons from mowers react with nitrogen oxides in the presence of sunlight to produce ozone. To eradicate invading plants it is drugged with pesticides which are then washed into our water supply with sprinklers and hoses dumping our increasingly rare fresh drinking resource down the gutter. Of the 30 commonly used lawn pesticides, 17 are detected in groundwater and 23 have the ability to leach into groundwater sources. The lawn divides and isolates us. It is the buffer of anti-social no-mans-land that we wrap ourselves with, reinforcing the suburban alienation of our sprawling communities. The mono-culture of one plant species covering our neighborhoods from coast to coast celebrates puritanical homogeneity and mindless conformity.

(Hat tip: Wesaturtle)

The Elements of Spam 

If you don’t like McSweeney’s lists, there’s probably something wrong with you.

“You Are Even Trying to Break into My House” 

Warren Ellis’ “research material” section is always good. This one is about an apparent MySpace suicide, which may or may not be a hoax.

Tesla’s Zero-Time Reference Generator 

This was constructed by Tesla in the 1920s, and was said to be a strange device, as it when it is turned on, you can hear it lock into the rotation of the earth…

The Sporting Life 

If you live in Seattle and you don’t care about football this was kind of a weird week.

It was weird; even people who didn’t normally watch football went out of their way to watch the game. If I recall correctly, I just sat at my desk doing web work, with the TV blissfully not turned on.

Depressed? Take a Hike 

Just 30 minutes of brisk walking can immediately boost the mood of depressed patients, giving them the same quick pick-me-up they may be seeking from cigarettes, caffeine or binge eating, a small study found.

Collapse of US Economy Imminent 

This doesn’t sound so good…

In its attempt to establish a world empire dominating every nation on the planet, the U.S. has exhausted its ability to finance the expansion and the country now faces imminent financial collapse. From all indications, it looks like 2006 will spell the end for America.

U.S. Treasury Secretary John Snow issued a warning recently that the U.S. Government is on the verge of collapse—as the statutory debt limit imposed by Congress of $8.184 trillion dollars would be reached in mid-February—the government would then be unable to continue its normal operations. Considering the current total U.S. debt stands at $8.162 trillion dollars, once the official debt ceiling ($8.184 trillion) is reached, the U.S. government’s credit abroad (its borrowing power) is gone. Those countries (mainly China) who presently keep America afloat by holding U.S. Treasury Notes, will most likely no longer continue doing so.

(Hat tip: Disinfo.net).

Baffled Scientists Say Less Sunlight Reaching Earth 

After dropping for about 15 years, the amount of sunlight Earth reflects back into space, called albedo, has increased since 2000. That means less energy is reaching the surface. Yet global temperatures have not cooled during the period.

Does anyone else think the headline sounds like something out of the Weekly World News?

Earth’s Limited Supply of Metals Raises Concern 

If all nations were to use the same services enjoyed in developed nations, even the full extraction of metals from the Earth’s crust and extensive recycling may not be enough to meet metal demands in the future.

I’m not sure what a solution would be, though. At the moment it’s still more costly to recycle any material other than aluminium than it is to make entirely new products.

Alberta Oilsands World’s Largest Source of New Crude Oil by 2010 

[C]onventional oil production around the world apparently peaked in 2004. [Jeff] Rubin found total world oil supplies grew by less than one million barrels a day last year. None of that growth came from outside the OPEC sphere. That finding was particularly surprising because oil prices have doubled in recent years, making exploration of many new areas economically feasible for the first time.

A not-widely-known fact is that the majority of US oil imports comes from Canada. Given that, do you wonder why they always cite “political turmoil” as a reason to increase oil prices? Even more curious is that we let them get away with it.

Why I’m an Atheist 

The followup to Brent Rasmussen’s commentary on Atheism.

Library Books Bound with Human Skin 

While human leather may be repulsive to contemporary society, libraries can ethically have the books in their collections if they are used respectfully for academic research and not displayed as objects of curiosity.

Hubble Produces First Pictures of Polaris’ Hidden Neighbour 

Astronomers now have photographic proof that Polaris, as the bright star and navigational aid is formally called, has two stellar companions.

Dark Matter Comes out of the Cold 

It’s the first clue of what this stuff might be. For the first time ever, we’re actually dealing with its physics.

(Hat tip: Slashdot)

Mac Mini in a Macintosh Plus 

Classic all-in-one Macs are a bit of a love affair of mine. I loved the Macintosh Colour Classic so much, I bought two of them, and I plan to fit a Mac Mini in one of them, along with an LCD and various case mods. It’s good that people are still bringing renewed life to these. And in case anyone asks: this Macintosh Plus was already dead.

(Hat tip: TUAW)

Judge Allows Antitrust Suit Against Apple for iPod+iTunes Illegal “Tying” to Proceed 

How is that an antitrust issue? Shouldn’t companies be allowed to make their products interoperable? This case is bullshit, just like the antitrust suits against Microsoft in Europe regarding Windows Media Player and Windows.

U.S. Senate Wants Answers About Domestic Spying 

They [the executive branch] do not write the laws, they do not pass the laws, they do not have unchecked powers to decide what laws to follow, and they certainly do not have the power to decide what laws to ignore.

Slowly but surely the United States marches towards impeachment. This can only be a good thing.

Brains Built for Grammar 

If that’s the case, though, then why do so many on the Internet seem to have such a poor grasp of grammar?

Writer Recants Macs “Relatively” Immune to Viruses, Changes it to “Exempt” from Windows Worries 

I admit that it’s actually an issue which has bugged me somewhat. I mean, in Mac OS X, there are no viruses. No worms. No Trojan Horses. (Except for one proof-of-concept, which is not out in the wild.) No keyloggers. No spyware. No adware. Really no malware of any kind. So it always irks me that little bit when journalists say that Macs are “relatively” virus-free, because they really should be saying that they are virus-free.

Apple Offers 1GB iPod Nano for $149 

Apple’s price breaks didn’t stop with the iPod nano—the company’s low-end iPod shuffle saw a price cut today, making the screenless shuffle more accessible to first time buyers. The 512MB and 1GB iPod shuffle now cost $69 and $99 respectively, down from $99 and $129.

(Hat tip: MacSlash)

Neverwinter Nights Beta Patch Available 

Proving their long-term support for the game, BioWare has updated the Mac version of the RPG Neverwinter Nights yet again. This version 1.67 beta patch includes a number of bug fixes for the main game, as well as the aftermarket modules available.

I admit that I absolutely love Neverwinter Nights. I’m still on the original campaign, though, even though I have both expansion packs.

Man Goes Bankrupt Building Starship Voyager Home 

Tony at one time had the apartment for auction on eBay for $2 million but had no luck in selling. Tony maxed out 14 credit cards accumulating £100,000 in debt. His goal was to lure other Trekkies to pay him to convert their humble abodes.

£100,000?! Even the set designers on Star Trek don’t require that much to make their sets! Of course Trekkies aren’t going to pay such exorbitant prices for this guy’s services!

Is it just me, or does it look like Apple’s legal department is in desperate need of a geography lesson? 

In order to be eligible, entrants must be 13 years of age or older, and a legal resident of one of the 50 United States, including Washington, D.C., Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada (excluding the Province of Quebec), Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland or the United Kingdom.

ZOMBIE COCKROACHES!! 

And then there’s the sting. Ampulex does not want to kill cockroaches. It doesn’t even want to paralyze them the way spiders and snakes do, since it is too small to drag a big paralyzed roach into its burrow. So instead it just delicately retools the roach’s neural network to take away its motivation. Its venom does more than make roaches zombies. It also alters their metabolism, so that their intake of oxygen drops by a third. The Israeli researchers found that they could also drop oxygen consumption in cockroaches by injecting paralyzing drugs or by removing the neurons that the wasps disable with their sting. But they can manage only a crude imitation; the manipulated cockroaches quickly dehydrated and were dead within six days. The wasp venom somehow puts the roaches into suspended animation while keeping them in good health, even as a wasp larva is devouring it from the inside.

Well that clinches it: the Emerald Cockroach Wasp is now officially the coolest insect in all of creation.

(Hat tip: Kottke)

Spacesuit Satellite Still Alive, Giving Weak Signal 

A spacesuit that was tossed out of the international space station after being stuffed with old clothes and a radio transmitter was again sending weak signals as it circled the globe, ham radio operators reported Sunday.

Re-Introducing the Real Windows Vista 

The most interesting part of the keynote for me was the demonstration of the upcoming Vista. Even though I’m an Apple user, I’ve been eagerly following the development of Longhorn/Vista from the beginning. But as the release dates got pushed back and the more compelling features dropped, my interest dwindled somewhat. Up steps Bill to restore my faith. As I watched Bill demonstrate the features of Vista a sense of deja vu washed over me. It was like I’ve seen it all somewhere before…

This is pure gold, especially if, like me, you’ve been using an OS with these features for as long as I have.

(Hat tip: Wil Shipley)

Libraries Fear Digital Lockdown 

Libraries have warned that the rise of digital publishing may make it harder or even impossible to access items in their collections in the future.

Why is it that governments don’t see the harms of excessively restrictive DRM? In fact, they seem to be generally blind to copyright issues in general. Nobody ever seems to take the future into consideration.

RIAA Sues Woman Who Has Never Used a Personal Computer 

Marie Lindor, a home health aide who has never bought, used, or even turned on a computer in her life, but was nevertheless sued by the RIAA in Brooklyn federal court for using an “online distribution system” to “download, distribute, and/or make available for distribution” plaintiff’s music files, has requested a pre-motion conference in anticipation of making a summary judgment motion dismissing the complaint and awarding her attorneys fees under the Copyright Act.

Buddhism, Sans-Reincarnation 

So far the only problem I’ve encountered in Buddhism has been the prevalent belief among Buddhists in reincarnation, since I don’t believe in any sort of afterlife. This article is encouraging, as it appears that there’s other Buddhists out there who don’t necessarily believe in reincarnation.

Eco-Friendly Marketing Doesn’t Mean Eco-Friendly Businesses or Consumers 

My friend Jay put it well:

The broader ploy is that buying Product A vs. Product B defines who you are. They even sell anti-corporate values. Want to reduce the impact of logging? Buy recycled paper. Want to reduce polution from cars? Buy a hybrid car. In actuality, the only way you can truly disarm corporate power is to not buy from them at all. When they stop getting money, they lose power.”

(Hat tip: Disinfo.net)

Early Retirement 

Retirement forces you to stop thinking that it is your job that holds you back. For most people the depressing truth is that they aren’t that organized, disciplined, or motivated.

(Hat tip: Kottke)

Why Howard Stern? 

George Takei produces a thoughtfully excellent rebuttal to people who give shit to Howard Stern. Thumbs up, George!

Last-borns Just Want to Have Fun 

First-born children develop allergies. Last-born children are promiscuous. Babies sandwiched between the wimp and the womaniser will become hippies.

New Device Fights Tooth Decay with Electricity 

Fluorinex claims the new product will be able to give protection for up to five years and will be administered by a simple procedure at the dental clinic. The new device should be ready for commercial use in a year and a half and is currently undergoing clinical trials after extensive research had been done at the Hebrew University last year.

(Hat tip: Slashdot)

Orbiting Rock Threatens Pluto’s Status 

It turns out that the Kuiper Belt Object discovered last year, UB313, is larger than Pluto. Personally, I don’t see why we don’t just add all spherical KBO’s which don’t orbit another planet to the “planet” camp.

“iPod for Senators” Fundraising Campaign 

Senator Stevens of Alaska, however, surprised the audience at the hearing after announcing that his daughter had bought him an iPod, which suddenly gave the 82-year old committee chairman “a much greater understanding of the many ways innovative technology can create choice for consumers.”

Cramming a Mac Mini into a Mac SE/30 

This is inspiring, given my plans to put a Mac Mini into one of my Macintosh Colour Classics.

Manson in Wonderland 

[Marilyn] Manson, who hopes to direct the film he wrote himself, will play the Alice In Wonderland author [Lewis Carroll] in the film entitled Phantasmagoria: The Visions of Lewis Carroll

(Hat tip: Disinfo.net)

Thoughts from Behind the Fourth Wall 

I can’t count how many times I’ve been watching a movie with someone who does this. It’s one of the most infuriating habits a person can have. I understand the inherent fragility of the suspension of disbelief, but come on!

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