Sorting M&Ms

I wonder if Van Halen could have used one of these backstage.

No viagra needed here!

I wonder how quickly this "99 QiGong" thing is gaining popularity. This really redefines peter pulling.

Burgan oil field has entered depletion phase

New T-shirt
Originally uploaded by heyrog.

Kuwait's Burgan oil field, the second largest oil field in the world has entered its depletion phase. I wonder when Ghawar will start to decline...

oil, peakoil, energy, petroleum, kuwait

Cingular MMS and Wireless Internet Fraud

Cingular does a lot of things right, unfortunately MMS and "data transfer wireless internet" charges aren't one of them. This will be a slightly technical post, but it could be exposing what is a massive overcharging of Cingular users who utilize the MMS and wireless internet capabilities of their cellphones. (Skip to the ****s if you want the gist of what is going on.)

Cingular offers MMS messaging service.
MMS stands for Multimedia Messaging System, which is a souped up version of SMS, which is just for text. MMS allows users to send images, audio and video attachments and/or little mini webpages instead of just plain old text SMS messages.

Cingular also offers data transfer or wireless internet capabilities. You can read cnn.com or whatever on your phone, download the latest 50 Cent ringtone, whatever.

I have a promotional package deal where I get Unlimited MMS messaging, both incoming and outgoing for $2.99/month.

My wireless internet charges, however, are $0.01/kilobyte. Because "surfing" the web on your phone requires kilobyte usages in the 100s, I don't do it. It's not worth it. If I really wanted to do it, I would get a deal.

MMS messages DO use Wireless internet bandwidth, but they ARE NOT subjected to the $0.01/kb usage fee. This is pointed out on cingular's website here.

What is the cost for Multimedia Messaging?
Cingular charges on a per-message basis with no additional airtime charges. Several pricing options are available. You can either pay per each multimedia message, or you can purchase a package of messages at a lower per-message charge. If you plan to send or receive more than 12 multimedia messages per month, the package is a better option. No matter which pricing option you choose, you can send a single message to as many as 10 people for the cost of one message.

*********** Basically, what is going on is that when sending an MMS message, sometimes, but not always, the data size of the MMS will be subjected to the $0.01/kb usage fee. Considering most of the MMS messages have JPEG attachments from the phone's camera, and are rougly 300 KB in size, you can see that these erroneous charges can start to add up. I have had close to $100 in such erroneous charges over the past 4 months. At first, I couldn't fight back, because their customer service representatives would just say "We don't know what you're accessing there." i.e. that I was actually the wireless internet for 300KB at a time. Let me tell you, that would be a lot of text based cnn.com perusing!

$25/month of erroneous charges and Cingular has over 50 million subscribers. Of course, not all of those are MMS sending freaks like myself, but you can do the math that this is potentially a huge problem in the making.

How I decided to fight back: I started Carbon Copying myself to every picture MMS I sent. I CCed my gmail email address. So, tonight when I called to dispute the charges, I was ready when they said "But there's no proof that those wireless internet charges are the same as the MMS messages." When I explained that I CCed the messages to myself, I was informed that email headers can be forged. Disregarding the fact that the "Resolution" representative just insinuated that I was a forger, I doubt Google's infinite storage capacity, where those emails would be (and are) sitting could be "forged" so easily by someone such as myself. (Btw, before I got to the "Resolution" rep, I was given the high pressure "take it or leave it" tactic of accepting a one time credit of half of the erroneous charges {along with the stipulation that no such credits would be forthcoming in the future, and that my decision to "escalate" the call would result in the immediate of the revocation of the amazingly generous "half credit" offer.} I felt like I was in a used car dealership.)

Anyway, it got to the point where the resolution rep decided to pass it to the technical guys to see if such a thing could occur and I offered to forward all of my CCed emails so that they could see it themselves.

I'm still waiting for "resolution" and my ticket to go through. I will update this situation. If you are from cingular, please email me at the address listed on my profile. Thank you.

mms
cingular
wireless
internet
fraud
bills
cameraphone
multimedia
cellphone
jpeg

DeBerry's comments

In this article:SI.com - Writers - John Walters: Were DeBerry's comments really inaccurate? John Walters does some simplistic analysis trying to show that yes, there are more African-American players in the so-called speed positions of American Football. This is obvious to anyone with a television. Without getting into DeBerry's comments specifically, I'd like to point out that it seems people have a hard time saying/realizing/accepting that African Americans are "faster" than other racial makeups. And by African American, I mean West Africans or the descendants of West Africans as this is where slaves were taken from. East Africans such as Ethiopians, Eritreans etc. dominate marathons just as West Africans dominate sprints, and Caucasians are usually the best at upper body strength. Just as males are faster and stronger than women.

It's a fact that every human being who has run 100m in under 10 seconds was a male of West African descent. And the 100m dash, along with pretty much all track events, are the most democratized sports in the world. No fancy equipment, not much strategy (there are some tactics though), and everybody in the world can play and practice at home. Therefore, it seems to me that it has more to do with "nature" than "nurture."

I realize, of course, that some people have the mistaken idea that if you're good at something, then you have to be bad at something else and e.g., nobody could be a good athlete and smart too. Or, they want to think that intelligence, which being super-multidimensional is way harder to measure than one or two-dimensional "speed", has a huge genetic component. Hopefully, one day people will wake up.

A death Nanothoughts should certainly mourn...

...at least I guess so.

Worst ever song to top the Billboard Hot 100

On PolySciFi, Matt posted that Paul Revere and the Raiders "Indian Reservation (The Lament of the Cherokee Indian)" just might be the worst song to ever hit #1 on the Billboard Hot 100. In no particular order, here are some other charttoppers I chose that might give "Indian Reservation" a run for it's money in the Worst Ever Challeng:

"Purple People Eater" Sheb Wooley
"Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polkadot Bikini" Brian Hyland
"Mrs. Brown You've Got A Lovely Daughter" Herman's Hermits
"I'm Henry VIII, I Am" Herman's Hermits
"Kung Fu Fighting" Carl Douglas
"Disco Duck (Part 1)" Rick Dees & His Cast Of Idiots
"Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" Wham!
"I'm Too Sexy" Right Said Fred

If I had to pick just one, I'd probably go with Rick Dees' "Disco Duck." (Part 1)? Who knew there was a part two!

I'd also include the Macarena (Number one for 14 straight weeks!! Jeez, remember that halcyon summer of 1997?), but that was such a phenomenon and a gimmicky dance that it is pushed into the realm of cultural touchstone.

I also want to point out that The Raiders weren't all bad as they did do the classic "I'm Not Your Stepping Stone", which is a kickass song and was later covered by both The Monkees and The Sex Pistols.


Also, here's a song that some people won't know, is kinda quirky (Paul McCartney once remarked that it was the most original song he had ever heard), and is super fun to sing along with:
"Judy In Disguise (With Glasses)" John Fred & His Playboy Band

Anybody else have any other lesser known gems, they'd like to share?

Culinary abominations.

Take a look at The Company Cookbook. Apparently, this company is probably all going to die of either heart attacks or food poisoning. I have never seen that much cheese byproduct in one set of recipes.

Worth1000.com | Photoshop Contests | Are you Worthy™ | contest

Saw these company logo photoshops on boingboing and just had to replicate it: Worth1000.com | Photoshop Contests | Are you Worthy™ | contest

MSN Video of a Dog with alien limb syndrome

I wonder if this dog has a severed corpus callosum. For more information, visit your local library or click here.

Blogger Comment Word..... I mean String of Random Letters Verification

Blogger's Word Verification is a complete misnomer. I know it's to prevent comment spam, but could they at least make the funky looking letters spell a real word, instead of akjfdlauvo and qoeuizcxko?

According to American Heritage Dictionary, a word is defined as:

A sound or a combination of sounds, or its representation in writing or printing, that symbolizes and communicates a meaning and may consist of a single morpheme or of a combination of morphemes.

I hereby implore Blogger to either start using words for verification or to refer to it as String of Random Letters Verification, because that's what it is right now.

Mom delivers 16th child, thinking of more

OUt of Arkansas comes this news.
Please remind me to boycott the Discovery Health channel and the "Learning" channel.

Why do people think this is a good thing?

Needle Tower by Kenneth Snelson

Needle Tower
Originally uploaded by heyrog.

From the Hirshorn in Washington, D.C.
Click it to see larger views.

FBI may relax hiring policy on drug use - Oct 9, 2005

Yet another sign that the "War on Drugs" is a joke:
(AP) - FBI may relax hiring policy on drug use - Oct 9, 2005

Some great mashups

First up is BRAT Productions mashup of Nine Inch Nails "Hand That Feeds" and The Temptations "Papa Was A Rollin' Stone". Not the coolest one, I've ever heard, but the juxtaposition is so awesome.

(Bonus Fun/Sad Fact from wikipedia: In addition, Dennis Edwards was angered by the song's first verse: "It was the 3rd of September/That day I'll always remember/'cause that was the day/that my daddy died". Edwards' real-life father had died on the same day as the fictional father in the song, and although the song wasn't originally written for the Temptations, Edwards was convinced that Whitfield assigning him the line was intentional. Although Whitfield denied the accusation, he used it to his advantage: he made Edwards record the disputed line over and over again until Whitfield finally got the angered, bitter grumble he desired out of the usually fiery-toned Edwards.)


2nd one: My favorite mashup of the moment and the past week:
Miami Vice Vs 50 Cent which combines Jan Hammer's "Crockett's Theme" and 50 Cent "Just a L'il Bit", he hasn't named it, but I like to call it "A L'il Bit of Crockett." Very mellow and oh, so sweet.

Ok, I'm off to Circuit City to buy the Creative Labs Inspire™ T3000 2.1 Speakers for $10.

Later.

If only we had antibiotics in 1918!

CNN.com - Witness to�1918 flu: 'Death was there all the time' - Oct 7, 2005: "Barry said vigilantes patrolled the streets of Albuquerque, New Mexico, making people wear their masks.
President Woodrow Wilson continued sending troop ships to Europe, something Barry describes as 'floating coffins.'
Treatment was limited in 1918 -- Carotty said people tried folk medicine, prayer, anything.
'There were no antibiotics, there was just hope that you'd get through, that fate was kind enough that it wouldn't hit you or yours,' he said."


I'm glad this historian took time to learn the difference between viruses and bacteria. What a dumbass.

Political People Map

famouspeople
Originally uploaded by heyrog.

Can anybody tell me why Adam Sandler is on this?

Also, whose face is the circle YOU obscuring?

OkCupid! Politics Test

Just took the OkCupid! Politics Test
that I found over at PolySciFi Blog where Jody took it.

It's an ok test, but I think they more than 2 dimensions.

You are a Social Liberal (80% permissive) and an... Economic Liberal (33% permissive) You are best described as a: Strong Democrat Link: The Politics Test on Ok Cupid Also: The OkCupid Dating Persona Test

King Hubbert's Birthday

Projected Peak Oil Scenario
Originally uploaded by heyrog.

M. King Hubbert was born Oct 5th, 1903.
Ron Schuler's Parlour Tricks: M. King Hubbert

Timmy Smith of DENVER?!

So, Timmy Smith (I wonder if he still goes by "Timmy?") got caught (entrapped?) trying to sling some coke. The funniest thing about all this isn't the fact that he used autographed pictures as a marketing tool, but instead that he lives and was caught in Denver. Those 204 yards he gained in the Superbowl were against a team called the Broncos.

(Personally, I think Elway set him up. )

Super Bowl Record Holder Formally Charged - Yahoo! News: "DENVER - Timmy Smith, the former
Washington Redskins running back who set a Super Bowl rushing record in 1988, was formally charged Monday with intentionally possessing cocaine with intent to distribute, a charge that carries a lesser penalty than previously announced."

Please help me manage my sound clips

Ok, I use Audacity: Free Audio Editor and Recorder to manage and edit sound clips that I make. My biggest problem though is managing hundreds of sound clips. Currently, I have to open new file, browse for the file and then import it. Sometimes when messing around with a track I'd like to add about 20 or more different sound clips. This is horribly inefficient. Can anybody give me suggestions on what to do/try? Thanks in advance!

audacity
mashup
sound
music
help

Barack Obama's Podcast

I've recently joined Odeo to help manage my podcasts and Barack Obama's was a featured one the other day: Odeo: U.S. Senator Barack Obama Podcast.

While not the first U.S. Senator to have a podcast (that distinction belongs to Idaho Sen. Larry Craig, he is the only individual Senator with a podcast tagged on the site with senate. Hopefully, Larry Craig's constituents will get him tagged properly.

Bush responding to the bathroom break note

This is pretty funny, but I hope people realize that he's obviously responding, (note the different handwriting samples) to a request from one of his aides:
Yahoo! News Photo
I may not have voted for the guy, but I'm pretty sure he can take a bathroom break whenever he feels like it.

Hey, video games are big over there.

We interrupt the coverage of the Bush administration's virtuoso display of incompetence in New Orleans to bring you...news of a draft deferment thanks to video games.

r e g a l n o m i c s

For all your mylar/canvas abstract painting needs, visit the art site: r e g a l n o m i c s.

Lost in Translation

Here's a site that will automagically translate your English sentence(s) back and forth between 5 languages:
Lost in Translation

The results can be quite entertaining:

Original English Text:
I look at you all, see the love there that_s sleeping, while my guitar gently weeps.
I look at the floor and I see it needs sweeping, still my guitar gently weeps.

Translated to French:
Je vous regarde tout, vois les that_s d'amour là qui dort, alors que
ma guitare pleure doucement. Je regarde le plancher et je vois qu'il a
besoin balayer, ma guitare pleure toujours doucement.

Translated back to English:
I look at you all, see the that_s there love which sleeps, whereas my
guitar cries gently. I look at the floor and I see that it has need to
sweep, my guitar cries always gently.

Translated to German:
Ich betrachte Sie allen, sehe die that_s dort zu lieben, das schläft,
während meine Guitarre leicht schreit. Ich betrachte den Fußboden
und ich sehe, daß er Notwendigkeit hat zu fegen, meine Guitarre
schreie immer leicht.

Translated back to English:
I regard you everything, see that_s loving there, which sleeps, during
my Guitarre easily walk. I regard the floor and I see that he
necessity has to sweep, my Guitarre cries always easily.

Translated to Italian:
Li considero tutto, vedo i that_s amoroso là, che i sonni, durante il
mio Guitarre camminano facilmente. Considero il pavimento e vedo che
la necessità deve scopare, il mio Guitarre grido sempre
facilmente.

Translated back to English:
I consider all, I see them that_s the loving here, than the sleeps,
during my Guitarre they walk easy. I consider the pavement and I see
that the necessity must sweep, my Guitarre outcry always easy.

Translated to Portuguese:
Eu considero tudo, mim v o that_s amar aqui, do que os sonos, durante
meu Guitarre que andam fácil. Eu considero o pavimento e eu v que a
necessidade deve varrer, meu outcry de Guitarre sempre fácil.

Translated back to English:
I consider everything, me v that_s to love here, of that sleep, during
my Guitarre that they walk easy. I consider the floor and I v that the
necessity must sweep, mine outcry of always easy Guitarre.

Translated to Spanish:
Considero todo, yo los that_s de v amar aquí, de ese sueño, durante
mi Guitarre que recorren fácil. Considero el suelo y el I v que la
necesidad debe barrer, protesta de la mina de Guitarre siempre fácil.

Translated back to English:
I consider everything, them that_s of v to love here, of that dream,
during my Guitarre that they cross easy. I consider the ground and the
I v that the necessity must sweep, protest of the mine of always easy
Guitarre.

StumbleUpon

This is the best browswer plugin I've ever used. You choose the categories of sites you want to see, click the Stumble! button and voila, a new one appears. You can rate any site, whether you got there by stumbling or not and it uses collaborative filtering to suggest new sites. It's definitely worth checking out.

StumbleUpon

Italian Flash animation on how to drive

"Dyseducational" drivingliikenne.swf (application/x-shockwave-flash Object)

Very amusing.

Long Island Medical Center

long island medical center
Originally uploaded by heyrog.

If I'm ever in New Hyde Park, NY and I need some medical care, I'm going to the Long Island Medical Center, which contains the Long Island Jewish Hospital. For more information please check out their website: Long Island Jewish Medical Center Home Page
or Lon's blog about it (coming soon to a browser near you.)


Here's a link to the Google Map of the neighborhood:
Google Maps - 76th Avenue, New Hyde Park, NY

Fonts from Famous > Various | dafont.com

First came LogoBee, now we can have
FontBee!.

Seriously though, there are some kickass fonts in there.

Kanye West fallout: A flood of words

A flood of words:

"

Perhaps the most striking evidence of this came on Sunday during CNN's 'Late Edition' when host Wolf Blitzer quoted West when asking Mississippi Congressman Bennie Thompson whether the response to Hurricane Katrina has been racist. Thompson, a Democrat, said the government had failed and 'someone has to be held accountable.' He cited the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Department of Homeland Security.

The most revealing part of the exchange, however, was the fact that Thompson mistook the comments from West as a statement from Princeton University professor, theologian, author and activist Dr. Cornel West. In one fell swoop, the rapper and college dropout has earned a place in the front ranks of this country's best-known and most respected African-American activists."

I personally think it's great that Kanye said what he said, but I think it's more of a class issue than a race issue. And instead of pegging it on one man, I think it has a lot more to do with the system and the establishment perpetuating itself.

New oil shale technology from Shell: In-situ Conversion Process

We'll see if this pans out: Rocky Mountain News: Shell's ingenious approach to oil shale is pretty slick. If it does work out to be economical at $30/barrel and has an EROEI of about 3.5 then we might be ok after all. However, this columnist doesn't mention rates or scaling all that much. She says that it takes about eight months or so to go from normal ground to when the oil starts to come up and that it dried up, and pretty quickly too, about a year later.

I really hope they can get this to scale and produce at a fast enough rate as it does look a lot more promising than other oil shale recovery methods.

Also, here's some testimony that Terry O'Connor of Shell gave before Congress a few months ago regarding In-situ Conversion Process: Committee on Resources-Index

Slate and gmail

The Rebellion of the Talking Heads - Newscasters, sick of official lies and stonewalling, finally start snarling. By Jack Shafer

Many interesting things in that article, the last of which is the fact that Jack Shafer's email address is:
Slate.Pressbox@gmail.com

So, apparently, Slate (which is owned by Microsoft, or at least was a year ago) uses a gmail account for their editor-at-large's email. Funny, indeed.

Just to give you a sense of just how badly FEMA has f*cked up.

I'm reminded of the phrase "drastic times..."

Just to give you a sense of just how badly FEMA has f*cked up.

Louisiana's Wetlands @ National Geographic Magazine

This was published in October of 2005, so of course, like the politicians say, nobody could have imagined this.
Louisiana's Wetlands @ National Geographic Magazine: "It was a broiling August afternoon in New Orleans, Louisiana, the Big Easy, the City That Care Forgot. Those who ventured outside moved as if they were swimming in tupelo honey. Those inside paid silent homage to the man who invented air-conditioning as they watched TV 'storm teams' warn of a hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico. Nothing surprising there: Hurricanes in August are as much a part of life in this town as hangovers on Ash Wednesday.

But the next day the storm gathered steam and drew a bead on the city. As the whirling maelstrom approached the coast, more than a million people evacuated to higher ground. Some 200,000 remained, however—the car-less, the homeless, the aged and infirm, and those die-hard New Orleanians who look for any excuse to throw a party.

The storm hit Breton Sound with the fury of a nuclear warhead, pushing a deadly storm surge into Lake Pontchartrain. The water crept to the top of the massive berm that holds back the lake and then spilled over. Nearly 80 percent of New Orleans lies below sea level—more than eight feet below in places—so the water poured in. A liquid brown wall washed over the brick ranch homes of Gentilly, over the clapboard houses of the Ninth Ward, over the white-columned porches of the Garden District, until it raced through the bars and strip joints on Bourbon Street like the pale rider of the Apocalypse. As it reached 25 feet (eight meters) over parts of the city, people climbed onto roofs to escape it.

Thousands drowned in the murky brew that was soon contaminated by sewage and industrial waste. Thousands more who survived the flood later perished from dehydration and disease as they waited to be rescued. It took two months to pump the city dry, and by then the Big Easy was buried under a blanket of putrid sediment, a million people were homeless, and 50,000 were dead. It was the worst natural disaster in the history of the United States.

When did this calamity happen? It hasn't—yet. But the doomsday scenario is not far-fetched. The Federal Emergency Management Agency lists a hurricane strike on New Orleans as one of the most dire threats to the nation, up there with a large earthquake in California or a terrorist attack on New York City. Even the Red Cross no longer opens hurricane shelters in the city, claiming the risk to its workers is too great."

Gulf Coast Before and after pics

mouse over the pics

The Interdictor

The Interdictor

Amazing blog about New Orleans right now.

Naomi Klein's favorite site?

www.logotypes.ru

I just know it is. Btw, if you've read No Logo, please leave a comment. Thanks!

NPR : Story Behind the Picture: Washed Away

I thought this was really touching:

NPR : Story Behind the Picture: Washed Away

Ice Skating

Ice Skating
Originally uploaded by grass.

I went ice skating for the first time in my life today and I only fell once. Of course, if you aren't falling then you really aren't trying. Next time I plan on falling a lot.

Web Calendar, Contact Manager, To Do Lists, Tasks, File Storage, Photo Albums, Calendar, Online Calendar, Bulletin Boards, Chat, Online Organizer, Gro

I'm looking for a good web based organizer. Does anybody have any suggestions? I may just have to bite the bullet and use my s710a and Outlook, but I'd rather not. Anybody ever tried this service with its incredibly long page title?
Web Calendar, Contact Manager, To Do Lists, Tasks, File Storage, Photo Albums, Calendar, Online Calendar, Bulletin Boards, Chat, Online Organizer, Group Calendar - all at Collabrio MyEvents.com - Calendar, Award-Winning Web Calendar, File Sharing, Photo Albums, Groupware, Collaboration, and Community Application. Contact Management, File Sharing, and more.

Scientists untangle Inca number-strings

This is some pretty cool news for a couple of reasons:
Scientists untangle Inca number-strings.
It's a reminder that the Incans ruled a fairly large empire without the aid of the wheel or writing. Plus, Scrabble brand word game players will love the mention of "khipu", hopefully that'll soon the join word list alongside "quipu."

Also, I'm wondering if these two pieces of information:

Khipus encode numbers as knots in strings hanging from a cord. The closer a knot is to the cord, the higher its value, just as the number 1 can denote 1, 10, or 100 depending on its position.

Numerical value also depends on a knot's shape. Single overhand knots encode tens, hundreds or thousands. Single knots represent ones, and long knots with between 2 and 9 turns encode the numbers 2 to 9.

can be related to Benford's Law at all. I don't see one that really jumps out right now though.

DC Metro

Metro1
Originally uploaded by ultrasupergenius.

Great photo. Nothing else to say.

Flickr interestingness

Grand Canyon
Originally uploaded by heyrog.

Flickr has updated their Everyone's photo section. It's now called Explore and that page has a subset called Flickr interestingness where they rank each photo's "interestingness" based on clickthroughs, links, favorites, tags, comments, and page views as far as I can tell. Very very cool. They also give each user a list of their Most interesting fotos. This one of the Grand Canyon is my most interesting photos, mostly from the six people who have favorited it. Watch out clicking those links, you are going to see some amazing photos.

Google Earth

If you haven't yet seen or tried Google Earth, you should definitely check it out ASAP. It is amazing.

Wikipedia article on Google Earth

Yahoo! Widgets

This is really awesome: Yahoo! Widgets Basically it makes your pc look more like a mac with all these floating windows that do different things like tell the time, the weather, how low your battery is, etc. Yahoo is letting third parties develop new ones though, so it's really limitless as to the capabilities. Check it out!

Especially if you're on flickr. If you're on flickr, you're gonna love the flickr widget.

Idiot's Guide to Slam Poetry

Idiot's Guide to Slam Poetry
Originally uploaded by heyrog.

In between Wilfred Owen and Stephane Mallarme. Ya gotta love it.

I hate to say it, but if you need to read an Idiot's Guide to Slam Poetry, your poetry is probably not gonna be the most slammin.

Recent thoughts from Rog

Google Earth is amazing. You have to see it, you will not be disappointed.

The Arcade Fire, Bloc Party, and Kaiser Chiefs are three great bands that not enough people now about.

Also, in the past two and a half months I have seen [boast] The Bravery, They Might Be Giants, Interpol, New York Dolls, Unwritten Law, Social Distortion, Good Charlotte, Billy Idol, Coldplay, The Foo Fighters, Keane, The Killers, Louis XIV, Maximo Park, Modest Mouse, Camper Van Beethoven, Kaiser Chiefs, Black Eyed Peas, Alicia Keys, Dave Matthews Band, Def Leppard, Jay-Z, Linkin Park, Josh Groban, Sarah McLachlan, Keith Urban, Maroon 5, Rob Thomas, Stevie Wonder, Kanye West, Will Smith, Rufus Wainwright, Bryan Adams, Patti LaBelle, and Elton John in concert. [end boast] Well, I'm not really a fan of all of those acts, but there is some good stuff in there. Which reminds me, I need to play more music.

delicious, wikipedia, flickr, etc. just keep getting better. The collaborative web is here to stay.

I still can't get over how MySpace.com should for $150 million essentially. Or that it has more traffic than Google.com. Blows my freaking mind.

Rock on, cuz you only rock once,
NanoThoughts 1.0

Close Your Eyes and It's Almost Like Radio - New York Times

This American Life is headed to Showtime. Sounds really weird, why can't it just be on radio. I think Ira Glass should hop over to XM or Sirius.

Close Your Eyes and It's Almost Like Radio - New York Times

I"m so happy

one of my coworkers just came over and asked me "Roger, did you fart?"
I sniffed the air and said I don't think so. (I had though.)
Me: "I think it's food somebody made."
Her: "It smells like a bowl of turds over by my cube."
Me: "Yeah, I think it's some asian food."
That got a nice laugh out of the local cube farm.


I really do think it was food though. My farts are usually more rotten
than that. You gotta love the fermented vegetable asian get out of
jail free card though. Don't leave home without it.

Optimus keyboard

Everybody will have one of these in about 5-10 years. Such a great idea, why didn't I think of it?
Optimus keyboard

Plame and Novak

Can somebody explain to me or provide a link to an explanation of why Robert Novak isn't these stories? Did he talk to the grand jury or what? He was the first to publish her identity right?

He Brakes For Midgets - July 14, 2005

He Brakes For Midgets - July 14, 2005

I just had to blog this.

Mobile blogging with blogger

I just tried some mobile blogging here on blogger. Basically, you just send MMS messages to go@blogger.com and they are automagically posted. As you can see it's a work in progress: http://oddmax9.blogspot.com/
The intended photo can be seen here: Back of Philadelphia Museum of Art

With Cingular I get unlimited MMS sending and receiving for $3 a month. That is an amazing steal, if you ask me. Look for tons of pic posts on the blog and also flikr in the future.

Also, I totally hate it when I accidentally install two different anti-virus programs on the same computer. What a headache.

Ciao.

Twilight in the Desert: The Coming Saudi Oil Shock and the World Economy

I recently got this book: Amazon.com: Books: Twilight in the Desert: The Coming Saudi Oil Shock and the World Economy, but I haven't had time to read it and it's very technical. I think heatkernel has read some of it and can maybe enlighten some of us to its worth.

Live 8 Adds Philly Acts, Inks DVD Deal

Live 8 Adds Philly Acts, Inks DVD Deal

Hey, if anybody is going to Live 8 Philly this saturday, July 2nd, let me know as I"m living 20 min. from the venue this summer. Not sure how a million people will fit into 2 million square feet, but it should be interesting!

Public Use Satire

This is one of the best I've seen..



I'm hungry and Neil Young has a sweet voice.

The future leaders of America.

(This following "report" was actually turned in to one of my colleagues. This is from a lower-level College Prep physics class. It is entered here exactly as it appears on the paper. Yes, this guy is a native speaker.)

The BGM-109 Tomahawk Cruse Missile

Its pinpoint accuracy makes the Tomahawk the idea long rage weapon. If it from the battleships in the Persian gulf or the submarines of the Mediterranean this missile is the best of the best in long range missiles.

After being launched a soled propellant rocket makes cretin that the missile is on corse and at the right altitude. The soled rocket is something like a big firework. The fuel is turned into a solid like in the space shit with soled oxygen. The fuel in this rocket is packed with a type of gunpowder like a bottle rocket would be. This part of the rocket is known as the booster witch weighs about1400Lbs.

CCTV in George Orwell plaza

The George Orwell Plaza in Barcelona has 24/7 CCTV apparently. What would Eric Blair think?

media�teletipos - mtt_289 video.acci�n 2. y seguimos

I found this via Boing boing.

I've been sick for a week and I hate it.

Music survey

1. The person (or persons) who passed the baton to you.
Jody

2. Total volume of music files on your computer.
I ripped my 200-300 CDs, so somewhere north of 10 gigs.

3. The title and artist of the last CD you bought.
Symphonie Fantastique, London Symphony Orchestra

4. Song playing at the moment of writing.
"All The Things That I've Done" by The Killers

5. Five songs you have been listening to of late (or all-time favorites, or particularly personally meaningful songs)
Here are my top 10 from last week:
1 Bright Eyes - Take it Easy (Love Nothing)
2 The Killers - Mr. Brightside
3 Astrud Gilberto - Gentle Rain (RJD2 remix)
4 Louis XIV - God Killed The Queen
4 Brand New - Am I Wrong
4 The National - All The Wine
7 The Polyphonic Spree - Section 9
7 Garbage - Vow
7 Louis XIV - Finding Out True Love Is Blind
7 Echo & the Bunnymen - Lips Like Sugar


6. The five people to whom you will 'pass the musical baton.'
Prince
Sting
Gwen Stefani
Rivers Cuomo
Billy Idol

I need a laptop

Ok, so I want/need to get a laptop. Preferably just for internet use, nothing too fancy. I don't play computer games. I do listen to music though. I'm basically looking for an entry level, bottom of the line notebook and I want to know if there are any specific brands I might wnat to avoid and/or steer towards. After hearing Jody's adventures, I don't think I'll be getting a Dell, dude. any recommendations out there? Let me know what you have/like/hate etc.

NanoThoughts 1.0

Researchers tested AIDS drugs on foster kids

I just found about this today from heatkernel. THis is so messed up:
USATODAY.com - AP: Researchers tested AIDS drugs on foster kids

hsftival 2005

Great concert. Billy Fuckin' Idol was awesome as was just about every band that played. (except for Echo and the Bunnymen, heheh). Seeing Coldplay live was great, though their set was way too short.
mtv.com - News - Foo Fighters, Good Charlotte Usher In Summer Concert Season

philip glass : music in similar motion : video

About a dozen of my photos are in this nice little video piece. All the pics are from the flickr squared circle group and the music's by Phillip Glass. Very Koyaanisqatsi like. The guy took the images, sorted by brightness and then synced them with the music. It flows from black to white over the course of it. I can't wait to see the high res version. (you'll probably want to play it in Quicktime if you're using Windows) Check it out!
philip glass : music in similar motion : video : credits

Yoda deflects the Left Eye Deathray of the Disembodied Head of Salvador Dali on the coast of Spain

Yoda deflects the Left Eye Deathray of the Disembodied Head of Salvador Dali on the coast of Spain
Originally uploaded by heyrog.

In honor of Episode III coming out, I've done this MS Paint work with Yoda and Salvador Dali. Enjoy. Stay tuned for the full Yoda series coming to a blog near you.

Sending a letter to North Korea

I was just in the UPS store and a Korean gentleman said he wanted to mail a letter to Korea. The clerk asked him "North or South?". The Korean guy almost laughed, but said "South" and then "You can't mail a letter to North Korea." I wondered aloud about this as well and the clerk said that he had read the regulations and you can actually mail letters to North Korea, but it can't have anything in it about the United States, democracy, etc. So, I decided to look this up online and sure enough, here are the US Postal Service's Country Conditions for Mailing - Korea, Democratic People's Republic of (North Korea). I am pretty sure all mail gets routed there through Hong Kong.

My Korean friends, however, say that no mail is getting in there, so who knows what is really going on. Still, I wonder if 99% of the public realize how screwed up that country really is.

Funny Letters from Switzerland

Letter from Zurich
Originally uploaded by heyrog.

Zurich 1/21/99
Dear Son,
Here is the money for that new bike you always wanted to buy. Get the low rider with the wide fork.
Al says Hi. He and I worked a whole week so that we can send you all this cash. The mountains are cold and the sun never shines. Our hearts are only filled with warmth when we imagine you on that beautiful bike, driving through the sunny trailer park down the block at spankies.
Love, Imaree
************************************************
Some background on what this letter is about: My friend would send me cash in envelopes from Switzerland to pay for the rental of a storage facility in C-burg. He'd write letters like that so people wouldn't steal the money or if they did, he hoped to make them feel guilty about taking it.

I think the description for this photo pretty much sums it up.(But be sure to check out the adjoining drawing of the hand with four fingers.) I'll have to look and see if I others laying around. For those that know about Bleaksburgian quizbowl circa the end of the millenium, I recently found a CBI Nationals placard amongst all my boxes of archived detritus. I really need to go through and trash a lot of that crap.

Subject:Copyrighted Atlantic content on your site

That was the subject line of an email I got last week in reference to this post on culturally transmitted diseases. It went on:

We have learned that you have posted the full text of Carl Elliot's article from The Atlantic on your blog. While we are grateful for your interest in The Atlantic, do note that the copyright to this work is held by Mr. Elliot and Atlantic Media. You are, of course, not permitted to republish it on your own site, where it is publicly accessible.

Well, I pointed out that I was just linking to another site and that the site I was linking to wasn't mine, but instead for a class at the University of Hawaii. The gentlemen at The Atlantic replied with thanks and apologized for the confusion. I can only assume that they have a more or less automated process to email all the bloggers who start to infringe on the The Atlantic's copyright. (Btw, when did they drop the Monthly part?)

In summary, it feel kinda good to have my "you're violating our copyright" nastygram cherry popped. I look forward to more experiences of the same ilk in the future.

Now they just have to get it out of Google's cache!

High-impact physics lesson

I wonder how long it will be before Solid Neon is giving High-impact physics lessons.

"NEWTON'S LAWS

• Objects in motion stay in motion - such as a car falling from a crane. Objects at rest stay at rest - such as a parking lot.

• The bigger you are, the harder you hit - such as a 2,500-pound car on a parking lot as opposed to a golf ball on the classroom floor. This explains why junior Emily Varnes wanted to see the crane drop a bus.

• For every action, there's a reaction - like the smashed-up front ends of two sports cars."


UPDATE: Fixed the dead link. Thanks, Jody!

Flickr badge

I added one to the sidebar. If any other nanothinkers want to add one, let me know.

Navy jet zooming over Death Valley

Navy fighter zooms over Death Valley
Originally uploaded by heyrog.

The really cool thing about this photo is that I've tagged with the latitude and longitude and it'll show up on this totally awesome site:
Geobloggers

As others have pointed out, the revolution will be digitally photographed. And This is how we will annotate the planet.

Laura Bush: Take my husband, please.

USATODAY.com - Laura Bush: First lady of comedy?

I saw my in-laws down at the ranch over Easter. We like it down there. George didn't know much about ranches when we bought the place. Andover and Yale don't have a real strong ranching program. But I'm proud of George. He's learned a lot about ranching since that first year when he tried to milk the horse. What's worse, it was a male horse.

Culturally transmitted diseases

This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.

I dunno, those things can be pretty lethal.

I want a burrito like the one which locked down an entire school.

Castor Oil...sickeningly good: If I had a hammer

Castor Oil...sickeningly good: If I had a hammer

My sentiments exactly (well, i haven't read the whole thing yet, but I was really annoyed yesterday when Friends of John Kerry called me asking for $110 to support the Kids for Kerry bill or whatever)
for that kind of money, we could feed, clothe and insure all the kids without getting bugged at home by the husband of a billionaire.

Oh yeah, it was a caller ID blocked number too (i answered it czu some of my relatives have there IDs blocked) and it was my cellphone so it was on my dime as well.

Kerry's a moron.

"I Shit My Pants": Spontaneous Ancient Literary Structure in Modern Day Colloquial Speech

"I Shit My Pants": Spontaneous Ancient Literary Structure in Modern Day Colloquial Speech

This is so awesome, you must read the whole thing, but here's the chiasmus:
The form of this chiasmus may be more readily apparent if we indent the middle two lines. Thus:
03: I was at the grocery store.
04: Where I just shit my pants.
05: I SHIT MY PANTS!
06: At the grocery store.

Here's the audio and here's the text.
Be sure to check out the mp3 remixes. This is the best one. FONKAY!

Suntory Whisky

Suntory Whisky
Originally uploaded by heyrog.

Ok, so I just found my Kodak photo CDs of pics from Japan tonight. Thank heavens for Irfanview which can batch convert to other formats, check it out if you get the chance it is so money.

I'm perusing the photos which I took 4 and half years ago and I noticed this billboard ad for Suntory Whisky that I shot in what I believe was Ginza. Suntory was later made famous in the movie Lost in Translation.

|:ni9e:|:destruction:|:production:|

For the ADD crowd: NWA's Straight Outta Compton with all the non-explicit words edited out: |:ni9e:|:destruction:|:production:|

BLACKLION BASH II - JUNE 17, 2005 - NAS Oceana

I've posted some military recollections on here. But if you'd like to hang out with the real thing, check out the BLACKLION BASH II - JUNE 17, 2005 - NAS Oceana - Black Lion Bash 2005

Dog Air Flop

Nande Air Flop
Originally uploaded by Johnny Huh.

Check out how he's looking right into the camera too. So awesome.

Fall Bridge

Fall Bridge
Originally uploaded by Photogopher.

Nice pic of a (the?) bridge in the Portland Japanese Garden. Here's photogopher's 75 pic set of it:Portland Japanese Garden

How Navy flyboys relieve stress...

I recently got this email from a friend of mine and it cracked me up. I asked if I could blog it and he said sure. I've redacted certain parts to protect the innocent and/or guilty parties. I also have it on good authority that this episode of throwing yoge was one of the deleted subplots in Top Gun. (I've included a glossary at the end for the acronyms.)

Here it is:


I made quite a name for myself this week, and for exactly what you may think. Two days ago I found myself alone in my 4-man in the middle of the day on a break from the SDO desk. I knew two of my roommates were flying and one was working out, so obviously I threw in a copy of "Finally Legal 3" and starting treating my body like an amusement park. Not wanting to get myself into an awkward situation, I threw up our Do Not Disturb sign on the door.

Now despite the fact that our room had not formally established masturbatory Rules of Engagement, I figured that the sign was self-explanatory. Not so much. A few moments before a glorious completion, the door flew open and one of my roommates cluelessly stumbled in. Sorry, I don't want to ruin this for you, but I wasn't suspended naked upside-down from the ceiling or anything. I was actually just sitting in my flight suit in the middle of the room. In one fluid motion, I crossed my leg, stored the unit, and froze. I probably could have played it off, but was given away by the moans of "fuck me!" blasting from the TV and the look of terror on my mug. My roommate's expression of confusion quickly became a knowing one. Now at this point I admitted my guilt, figuring it would him the hell out of the room as fast as possible. He was intent on getting a post-workout shower, though, so I had to sit awkwardly as he fumbled around, changed into his robe, and attempted some mood-lightening jokes. As he departed, I told him to make it a nice Hollywood shower, because I wasn't about to finish my duty day with blue balls. I managed to get my train back on track shortly after his departure and completed my mission. Funny enough, though, he was only a few seconds away from catching me a second time when he returned. But I didn't care -- I was a happy sailor.

Now I was certainly not expecting to get away with this without incident. I figured I'd get some shit from my roommates and some other JO's in the squadron. And I didn't really care -- I feel no shame about such matters. But I had no idea how far it would go.

Today rumors really started circulating about my getting caught. I probably should have just tried to deny it or at least play it off, especially when the department heads started asking me about it. Instead, I bragged. I told them of some of the places I have owned: most airliners I have been on, the backseat of a T-39, and my cell at SERE school. Some were disgusted, some were in awe. Some just thought I was an idiot for getting caught. Either way, momentum was building for a formal squadron statement commemorating my behavior. It just so happened that we had an all-officers meeting scheduled for this evening, and I wasn't at all surprised when I got called up front at the end. My XO called attention to awards and my squadron snapped up as I walked down the aisle. I did a sharpabout-face and listened to my first Navy award statement:

TRIPLE-M AWARD: MERITORIOUS MASTURBATION MEDAL

FOR COMMENDABLE PERFORMANCE WHILE JERKING OFF IN PLAIN SIGHT ABOARD FIGHTER SQUADRON XYZ EMBARKED ABC FROM XX XX XXXX FROM 1205 IN THE AFTERNOON TO 1207. XXXX J. DOE TOOK CARE OF BUSINESS IN A HIGHLY EXEMPLARY MANNER. AS THE MASTURBATION SUBJECT MATTER EXPERT, JDOE TOOK CHARGE OF THE SITUATION AND DISPLAYED EXCEPTIONAL PERSEVERANCE DESPITE THE AWKWARD INTERFERENCE AND TOTAL DISREGARD FOR THE DO NOT DISTURB SIGN. HIS CAVALIER ATTITUDE RAN RAMPANT AS HE CONTINUED HIS LEG-UP-ON-THE-DESK THROWING STYLE. AFTER DULY DISMISSING HIS TRAUMATIZED ROOMMATE HE CONTINUED HIS SELF DEBAUCHERY BY BEATING ON IT LIKE IT BROKE INTO HIS HOUSE. XXX J. DOE'S EXCEPTIONAL FOCUS AND DEDICATION TO THE MISSION IN HAND RESULTED IN SPEWING GREAT CREDIT ALL OVER HIMSELF AND ARE IN KEEPING WITH THE HIGHEST TRADITIONS OF LONELY SAILORS EVERYWHERE.

I.M.A. SPANKER
REAR ADMIRAL, USN - LOWER HALF

Needless to say, uproar ensued and I felt much pride. My roommate then walked up to the front of the ready room and placed upon me my new necklace: a small bottle of lotion on a loop of rope. So that I would never have to go without.

As if all that weren't enough, it turned out that when my fellow JOs were printing out my award speech for the XO, they had to send it to the Maintenance Control printer due to a lack of toner back in Ops. By the time they retrieved the incriminating document, half the chiefs in my squadron were refusing to shake my hand. Nothing like keeping things professional. Just to make sure that absolutely EVERYONE knew about it, though, the scheds officers kept the party going. That night when they drafted the next day's schedule, they titled it The "J. DOE Makes Love to Himself, Not War" Edition. They did so to amuse themselves, mostly; they knew it would have to be removed before the skipper actually signed the official version. We got a laugh out of it before they passed it up the chain, though.

Later that night, after about 30 copies of the final schedule had been distributed throughout the ship, all hell broke loose. The XO called from his stateroom and demanded to know if his newly delivered schedule was real. It turned out that the Ops O and the skipper had missed the Edition joke, and approved it for wide release. That meant the captain, the air wing commander, and a bunch of other people on the ship were already reading about my schlong stroking. Within minutes the schedule writers were dispatched to retrieve all copies, burn them, then kill anyone who had seen them. Nonetheless, the damage was done. My entire squadron and a good chunk of the aviators in my air wing now know I am dirty, even if they don't know all the award-winning details. I am sure it will take me a while to live it down. But at least my roommates will respect the fucking Do Not Disturb sign from now on.

JO junior officer
Ops O Operations Officer
SDO Squadron Duty Officer
SERE Survive, Evade, Resist, Escape
TSTA training ships training availability
XO Executive Officer

Breakin' Down the Walls of Heartache by Johnny Johnson and the Bandwagon lyrics revised

I've posted these lyrics before, but I've recently received a bunch of help from the UK on the lyrics. I've updated with the suggestions, but I'm still unsure about two places, so I've left some comments/footnotes in brackets and italics. Please comment if you think you can help some more or if you know Johnny Johnson or how to get in touch with him.

Breaking Down the Walls of Heartache
By Johnny Johnson and the Bandwagon

Like a madman I'm up in the morning,
headin' for the walls of heartache.
Working everyday, bringing home the pail of heartbreak.

You look down and the walls get higher
They are built from the tears you're cryin.
Oh, I got to bring it back,
I'm workin' til the day I'm dyin (oh, yeah!)


Breakin' down the walls of heartache, baby
I'm a carpenter of love and affection!
Breaking down the walls of heartache, baby
Got to tear down all the loneliness and tears
and build you up a house of love.


Yeah!
Breakin' down the walls of heartache!
Takin' down the walls of heartache, baby!
Takin' down the walls of heartache!
Shakin' down the walls of "heartache!

Brick by brick, I'm tearin' them down!
Yeah, alone at night, my neighbours hear me (1)
Chip-chippin' at the walls of heartache.
Callin' out your name.
Go with a pail of heartbreak

And your face is there before me,
Hiding my unknown tomorrow (2)
Your letter of goodbye,
is written on the walls of the heartache.
Oh yeah!

Breakin' down the walls of heartache, baby
I'm a carpenter of love and affection
Breakin' down the walls of heartache, baby
Got to tear down all the loneliness and tears
and build you up a house of love.
Yeah!

Breakin' down the walls of heartache, baby. (Yeah yeah, yeah!)
Shakin' down the walls of heartache, baby!
Shakin' down the walls of heartache!
Shakin' down the walls of heartache!

Tearin' them down,
Tearin' them down,
watch me baby!
I'm a carpenter!
A carpenter of love!
Love and affection!
Brick by brick, tearing them down!


1. [or maybe: Yeah, through the lonely night, my neighbors hear me]

2. [or maybe: writing on and no tomorrow?] [i still think this “writing” something because of the next line about the letter of goodbye]

House Passes Major Rewrite of Bankruptcy Code

I think that there should be some bankruptcy reform, because the system as it currently stands isn't that sustainable. However, not letting identity theft victims be exempt sounds pretty stupid. I'm not down with all my parliamentary procedures (queensbury's rules?) so I don't know if all those parliamentary tactics were uncalled for or not.
New York Times > House Passes Major Rewrite of Bankruptcy Code user/pass , try cypherphunk/cypherphunk or bugmenot

Boing Boing discovers Peak oil

Boing boing has a post about Peak oil today and it contains a lot of interesting links from all sides of the debate:
Boing Boing: Peak oil article in Rolling Stone

Ymir and Intelligent Design

I think that Audhumla might be more than just a theory: Science vs. Norse Mythology

Visage's "Fade To Grey"

I just noticed that Spoilt Victorian Child's featured mp3 is "Fade To Grey". Go there to sample it.

Steve Strange and Midge Ure must be pissed.

I heard this song on the radio today- when I heard the intro, I thought it was a remake of Visage's classic 80s hit "Fade to Grey." However, it was the new Kelly Osbourne song "One Word."

Hell, this is a really blatant ripoff. I'd be surprised if there wasn't a lawsuit about this.

Let's start looking at the ripoffs- and this is off the first time I heard it on the radio:

1. The melody to the first line is identical. The rest of the cadence nearly so.
2. It's got the foreign speech- French? I don't have an ear for languages.
3. The synth lines both in the intro and underlying the entire song are virtually identical.

As Rog says, this is a rip of an 80s classic being reintroduced for 14-year olds.

Filangy

I've been using FIlangy for a couple months now and I have to say I like it. Basically, you just install the toolbar in your browser and it indexes every site you go to (those that are public, not the private ones {it does this by having their servers access the page itself, not transmitting what you are looking at to the server, so any site that requires a login or registration doesn't get indexed}), and you can also save any site to your "webmarks", same as bookmarks basically. Whenever you search the web you can get 3 types of results, those from the web proper, from your web cache and those from your webmarks. They also do good stuff like cluster your search results as well. You're probably wondering about privacy. Well, all they require is an email address for registration and login, and we all know those are pretty easy to come by. Here is their FAQ: Filangy Frequently Asked Questions

This guy has a good writeup of it as well: http://www.igniq.com/robs_blog/2005/02/filangy-beta-first-impressions.html.

I have some invites, so if you'd like to try it out, let me know.

Nanaca Crash Update

Nanaca Crash
Originally uploaded by heyrog.

Here's my highscore so far 15 kilometers, 39 meters and 70 cm. Peace out.

Nanaca Crash!!, the best game ever?

Check out this simple yet addictive flash game: Flash � Nanaca Crash!!. It's along the same lines as smack the penguin, but it's even better cuz you get powerups, combos, specials etc.

Here's some background on it: What is Nanaca Crash?

My best is only 4000m or so, while one of my friends got 12,000m. The alltime record is about 70,000m or something. There are height records. Enjoy.

A World Discovered

A World Discovered
Originally uploaded by BombDog.

Flickr is back up now. Thank goodness. Lots of interesting stuff over on Polyscifi, check it out.

The Straight Dope: How can a corporation be legally considered a person?

When the case reached the Supreme Court, Chief Justice Morrison Waite supposedly prefaced the proceedings by saying, "The Court does not wish to hear argument on the question whether the provision in the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution which forbids a state to deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws applies to these corporations. We are all of the opinion that it does." In its published opinion, however, the court ducked the personhood issue, deciding the case on other grounds.

Then the court reporter, J.C. Bancroft Davis, stepped in. Although the title makes him sound like a mere clerk, the court reporter is an important official who digests dense rulings and summarizes key findings in published "headnotes." (Davis had already had a long career in public service, and at one point was president of the board of directors for the Newburgh & New York Railroad Company.) In a letter, Davis asked Waite whether he could include the latter's courtroom comment--which would ordinarily never see print--in the headnotes. Waite gave an ambivalent response that Davis took as a yes. Eureka, instant landmark ruling.

The Straight Dope: How can a corporation be legally considered a person?

And, uh, as much as I wish it was, this isn't an April Fool's joke.

Vincent van Gogh

The 152nd anniversary of Vincent van Gogh's birth was on Wednesday, the 30th. I was on the road most of the day, so I couldn't blog it on the proper day though.

Social bookmarking, folksonomy, flickr, tagging, the semantic web, online maps, GPS and online maps, xml/rss feeds, blogs, news readers, camera phones, screencasts, audioscrobbler, google and yahoo. It's all coming together. (Trying to motivate myself to cohere all my thoughts on these things and blog about it, til then, I'll point you in some intersting locations.)

When poker players get drunk:

Take a look at this link here.

How many 5-year olds do you think you could take on?

Pep talk?

My boss, the head of the science and math department of the district, recently held a meeting to discuss our status. In it, he addressed the implementation of the new middle school math program which began 3 years ago, and our improving test scores in that cohort.

Recently, there's been an idiot on the school board who's been making a big fuss about our "low test scores", selectively picking obsolete data to "prove" his case.

My boss got pretty worked up about this, which led to him giving a pep talk about how even though our 8th graders are pretty well prepared for this year's test, that teachers might want to review anyways because "with each point that higher we average on that test, we jam the metal rod up that fucker's asshole another inch!" He was getting all red in the face too. I thought he was gonna have an apoplectic fit.

That was the most surreal pep talk I've ever sat through.

Canyonlands National Park

Far Below
Originally uploaded by Redwolf Journeys.

Check out this dope photo entitled Far Below. That's a jeep in the bottom right. I have got to see this in person.

Chucky D weighs in at 5' 11" 163 lb

If you're a fan of Andr� the Giant Has a Posse - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, salon :: :: people :: feature :: Andre the Giant bombs the world!, By Stephen Lemons :: Page 1, or Revolutions in Evolutions (or not), you'll love: CHARLES DARWIN HAS A POSSE -- free bookmarks and stickers.

OBEY.

Dispatch from the Arabian peninsula

Here's a slice of life email I recently got from a friend of mine who just went over to the land of light crude. Check it out.


All,

Hope this email finds you well. I have safely arrived in the theater of operations for about a week and a half now. The flight here was a rough one, about 18 hours of total flight time with two layovers. It felt like an eternity when we initially took off from the airfield. As I looked out the window, I was thinking that the plane is going to run out of runway….but thankfully the plane finally took off after about 2 miles on the ground. It was an extremely slow ascent due to the plane laden with heavy military gear. Our first landing felt almost disastrous. The pilot just dropped the plane on the runway from the sky. We were fortunate that the plane did not bust any tires. From all the flying I have done, this was the worst take off and landing sequence ever.

So far, things are going well here at the camp. Our team has been working closely with the existing team to ensure that there is a smooth transition with the outgoing rotation and our replacement team will be able to provide continuity with the new mission. There is a two week overlap for cross training before the current team leaves. We have quickly adapted to our new work environments, and making all the necessary adjustments to prepare for our missions downrange. The greater majority of our team is assigned to the Information Assurance Branch in support of the information security training initiative and performing vulnerability assessment downrange. This typically requires a lot of traveling. In the past week, they have been on the road daily. We also sent another team downrange this weekend up north. It’s been one week and some folks are already griping about the travel. Fortunately for me, I have not been tasked with any downrange missions yet. Being in the army long enough, I know that you don’t volunteer for anything. Realistically speaking, I know that I will be tasked to travel downrange in the near future and I am prepared to execute my mission as directed.

Earlier this week, a combat patch ceremony was held for outgoing team, along with catered Arabic food. We were also served non-alcoholic German beer, which was quite bland. It will be another two months before I get some real beer with alcohol content when I head over to Bahrain. I also hear that soldiers are authorized to consume three beers a day in Qatar, but not sure when I will be heading over there yet. The current team was the first group to be awarded the newly authorized 1st Information Operations patch for service in a combat zone. They were also awarded the Global War on Terrorism Service Medals. Attending the ceremony provided our team a glimpse of what to expect and things to look forward to at the end of our tour here.

The food here at the mess hall is on par with the Dietrick Hall Dining Facility (aka Die Quick) from VA Tech. My fellow Hokies alumni will know what I am talking about. For those who didn’t have the opportunity to attend such a fine college, the food is acceptable but the menu does not offer enough variety. The main difference between the Dietrick food and the mess hall here is that it doesn’t give me any heartburns. The beverage selection here is comparatively better than college. There are plenty of bottled Gatorades, Red Bull, juice, milk, tea, coffee to quench our thirst. There is also a nice dessert section that serves pies, cakes, etc. While conversing with one of the transient soldier here, I inquired if he knew of any camps in the theater that serves Asian food. To my surprise, I was told that the mess halls downrange in Iraq offer Kimchi, Mongolian style stir-fry, among other things. I guess sushi would be stretching it :) I might just have to volunteer for some missions up north when I get the craving for Asian cuisine or just tired of the food at this camp. One of the highlights of the week at the mess hall is Steak & shrimps or Lobster & shrimps nights on Wednesdays. All I can say is that it’s good effort on their part, but the meat just doesn’t taste quite right. All the soldiers here have learned to lower our standards, since we all know that it’s challenging to have fine dining in a combat zone. A problem with the taste of our food maybe attributed to the cooks that are preparing our meals, which are all Third Country Nationals (TCN) from mostly India. They don’t seem to have problems making curry dishes though :)

As far as the quality of life here, it seems to be much better than I had anticipated. Our team actually lucked out and is staying in pods for our sleeping quarters inside a huge warehouse. The pods are 16 X 6 feet connex containers for accommodating two to four soldiers each. I had a roommate for the first week, but he has since then completed his tour and gone home. Currently, I have the whole pod to myself until the housing section decides to fill it with another incoming soldier. There are AC units hooked up to all the pods and crank out cold air 24/7. It can get quite cold at night, so most of us tape up the duct vent so it doesn’t feel like a fridge at night when we sleep. Compared to most of the other troops who are staying in tents and open bays, our living arrangement is great. Since this camp is scheduled for closure within the year, a lot of our current amenities are quickly coming to an end. One of the biggest morale booster and simple enjoyment items are slated to be closed in the next few months. This includes the gym, the PX, and even the mess hall buildings are getting cleared out. So we might be eating out of tent pretty soon. We are also getting cleared out of the pods in a few months to move in tents or trailers, so life here might not be as tolerable.

The weather here has been really mild, with daytime temperature hitting about 80 degrees, and dips down to about 50 degrees at night. I hear the dreaded desert heat will be here soon enough to welcome us, in addition to the sand storm. I am just happy that we will have ample time to acclimate to the heat when it comes. As for the environment condition and air quality, our camp is about average. Though other nearby camps are not as fortunate. One of the camps that a contingent from our team visited is located in the middle of the desert, which had an abundance of dust and sand. Even their computers, monitors, and keyboards were coated with the crud. I just can’t imagine how bad that is for the lungs. So our team should really count ourselves lucky with the condition that we presently work in.

Well, this is all for now from the desert. Hope everyone is doing well back home.

The New York Times > Movies > Critic's Choice: New DVD's Dave Kehr: New DVD's

Those damn liberals at the nytimes have a writeup about Alain Resnais' latest film. I didn't even realize he was still alive, let alone making movies. Good for him. The New York Times > Movies > Critic's Choice: New DVD's Dave Kehr: New DVD's The funny thing is how they mention that it's straight to DVD and didn't even get an art house run, because nobody would be able to make sense out of it. You'd think that Audrey Tautou would at least bring some business to the box office.

Here's his imdb page: Alain Resnais. Pretty amazing that he did "Hiroshima, Mon Amour" and "Last Year at Marienbad" back to back. I dont' know if I've ever blogged my top 10, or top 5 movies, but "Last Year at Marienbad" is definitely in there. Along with "Groundhog Day", "The Godfather", "Casablanca" among others.

Se7en is the 48th ranked film on the imdb top 250. While it's a perfectly good thriller/mystery, that is hilarious.

Amazon.com: Computers: VIEWSONIC TPCV1250S PM-1G 40GB ( TPCV1250S-1303 )

Check out the specs on this computer. For a 30 terabyte hdd, that ain't a bad price:
Amazon.com: Computers: VIEWSONIC TPCV1250S PM-1G 40GB ( TPCV1250S-1303 )

Best t-shirt......ever.

And if you go wearing shirts of Chairman Mao, you ain't gonna make it with anyone anyhow.

This is the best thing I've seen all day:
RTFM shirt featuring Chairman Mao

George F. Kennan

I didn't even realize he was still around. Everybody should read this: The New York Times > Washington > George F. Kennan Dies at 101; Leading Strategist of Cold War

On a Japanese kick of late

drunken racoons
Originally uploaded by Nachosan.

This photo is so great. First, you have the expression on this lady's face and you have the background of the drunken tanuki. You may remember tanuki (minus his giant ball sac) from Super Mario Bros. 3. To learn more, visit your local library or go here: Raccoon Dog - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Why Japanese want to learn English.

or at least, what the copyeditors want them to think.
Found via boingboing, go to the link for more reasons.
neomarxisme: March 2005 Archives: "This ad for the Gaba language school asks Japanese people to fill in the blank: 'If I could speak English, I would...' Ads with quotes from 'real people' in Japan are often written by copywriters, but even if these aren't actual answers, the responses provide a glimpse into the process of a Japanese company selling English to possible customers. (Click on ad to see a larger picture.

Here is a translation of the first several responses:

I would live in Hawaii with lots of dogs.
I would go by myself to buy in London antique shops.
I would eat all the desserts in the world!
I would go to [my company]'s foreign office and become project leader.
I would buy the materials for aroma therapy and mix them myself.
I would open a shiatsu massage parlor in Hollywood for celebrities.
I would lecture the loud foreigners on the train.
I would raise my children in America: one artist, one computer programmer.
I would go work in a foreign marketing firm.
I would start a dental office for foreigners.
I would run a surf shop in the Gold Coast.
I would live in a house where I could wake up and dive right into the pool.
I would want to increase my income by 100x.
I would publish a weekly manga magazine in the English language world. "

8 credit score myths - Mar. 16, 2005

It's really amazing that in our wonderful world of purchase power so many know so little about Experian, Equifax and Trans.... uh whatever that 3rd one is.

Yet, according to a survey released Tuesday, nearly half of all Americans don't understand what these scores measure or what factors go into them.

The survey, conducted by Opinion Research Corporation for the Consumer Federation of America (CFA) and Fair Isaac Corporation, found that 49 percent of respondents do not understand that credit scores measure a person's credit risk, while 45 percent think – incorrectly – that a higher income will result in a higher credit score.

8 credit score myths - Mar. 16, 2005

The New York Times > New York Region > No Need to Stew: A Few Tips to Cope With Life's Annoyances

Nice little throwaway article with some nice ideas that I might try.The New York Times > New York Region > No Need to Stew: A Few Tips to Cope With Life's Annoyances

When subscription cards fall from magazines Andrew Kirk is reading, he stacks them in a pile at the corner of his desk. At the end of each month, he puts them in the mail but leaves them blank so that the advertiser is forced to pay the business reply postage without gaining a new subscriber.

Wesley A. Williams spent more than a year exacting his revenge against junk mailers. When signing up for a no-junk-mail list failed to stem the flow, he resorted to writing at the top of each unwanted item: "Not at this address. Return to sender." But the mail kept coming because the envelopes had "or current resident" on them, obligating mail carriers to deliver it, he said.

Next, he began stuffing the mail back into the "business reply" envelope and sending it back so that the mailer would have to pay the postage. "That wasn't exacting a heavy enough cost from them for bothering me," said Mr. Williams, 35, a middle school science teacher who lives in Melrose, N.Y., near Albany.

After checking with a postal clerk about the legality of stepping up his efforts, he began cutting up magazines, heavy bond paper, and small strips of sheet metal and stuffing them into the business reply envelopes that came with the junk packages.

"You wouldn't believe how heavy I got some of these envelopes to weigh," said Mr. Williams, who added that he saw an immediate drop in the amount of arriving junk mail. A spokesman for the United States Postal Service, Gerald McKiernan, said that Mr. Williams's actions sounded legal, as long as the envelope was properly sealed.

Those Wacky Japanese are at it again

Just for the record, Solid Neon sent this to me. It's an instant classic.
Backpage Article Display: "Pubic hair did the trick

Japan - A Japanese professor claims his country has the shape of its women's pubic hair to thank for its place on the world stage.

Professor Asaki Geino has published a thesis where he argues that the type of pubic hair a woman has affects her personality.

He says the pubic hair of Japanese women is of the type belonging to those who are good mothers, faithful wives and caring daughters.

The professor's thesis classifies women into five types, with most Japanese women having pubic hair like an 'inverted triangle'.

Professor Geinoe said: 'This type is characterised by faithfulness and fitness for family life.

'Women of this type are good mothers, faithful wives and caring daughters. I don't think I'm wrong when I say that precisely this type of woman helped Japan become the glorious country it is.'

On the other hand, women most likely to be unfaithful had pubic hair resembling the 'mouth of a river'.

'Usually female pubic hair grows in the form of an upside down triangle, but some women's is oblong or elliptical in shape,' the professor told Pravda.

'It's not that rare for women with oblong-shaped pubic hair to fall in love at first sight or fall head-over-heels with passion. They also don't like sitting at home on their own.' - Ananova.com"

Halo voiceover guy

Believe it or not, but this the guy who say "killing spree" and all those other fun things in Halo: Q&A: THEATER, Jeff Steitzer, by (08/24/00)

Random aside: "Being For The Benefit of Mr. Kite" rocks my world.

Gene Ray - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This guy is an oldie, but goodie. Gotta love the Time cube:
Gene Ray - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia: "Ray explained the 4/16 Rotation Principle, an important element of Time Cube, as follows: 'If Earth stood still, it would have mid-day, mid-night, sun-up and sun-down as 4 corners. Each rotation of earth has 4 mid-days, 4 mid-nights, 4 sun-ups and 4 sun-downs. The sixteen (16) space times demonstrates cube proof of 4 full days simultaneously on earth within one (1) rotation. The academia created 1 day greenwich time is bastardly queer and dooms future youth and nature to a hell.'

A typical Ray quotation is 'Time is CUBIC, not linear as stupid educators teach.'"

For more information, consult your local library or the following hypertext link:
Time Cube - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Audioscrobbler :: Home

This is a pretty cool music site. You install a plugin that sends your listening habits to the site, generates a profile, "musical neighbors", charts etc. Check it out:

Audioscrobbler :: Home

Eye abrasions suck.

On Sunday, I got something stuck in my eye- turns out it was a sizeable(for the eye) piece of plaster. In order to get it out on Monday, the ophthalmologist had to flick it out with something, making my eye abrasion even bigger.

See, my eye started watering uncontrollably...which led to my nose dripping uncontrollably. Any of you bio types out there know why this happens?

Necrophilia among ducks ruffles research feathers

The really funny aspect to me about all of this is that a fellow nanothinker, Solid Neon, showed me this about five years ago.
EducationGuardian.co.uk | Research | Necrophilia among ducks ruffles research feathers

Solid Neon's blast from the past: Deinsea 8

Mickelson in agony or ecstasy?

Has everyone seen this photo? I just want to make sure this is viewed by everyone in the world. It made me giggle that's for sure.


Photo by Associated Press

Yahoo! News - Sports Photos - AP

This is what happens...

Portrait of the artists as young men
Originally uploaded by heyrog.

when I take my cousins out to an art museum.

Speeding Tickets...

are kinda funny when you think about it. I just got the second one of my life this past weekend. $180, but that's ok. Pro-rated, that's only twenty some dollars a year since my first one. Plus it was out of state, so who knows how long it'll take my insurance to find out.

Defaced Art by t-squared

Polluted Pool
Originally uploaded by t-squared.

This guy has some nice stuff up on flickr, but my favorite has to be Polluted Pool. To take a David Hockney and then free associate to one of Bill Murray's finest moments, well that's genius in my book. I need to get a poster of this. His defaced art collection also has a nice Magritte with an mp3 player.