The Latest from Boing Boing |  |
| Posted: 02 Apr 2009 09:13 PM PDT This video of Inuit throat-singing by Kathy Keknek and Janet Aglukkaq was created as an application for the 2008 Arctic Winter Games. I'm entranced by the way their throats move as they sing. Woah. Inuit Throat Singing: Kathy Keknek and Janet Aglukkaq (long) (via William Gibson) |
| Free stories from anthology of "galactic" science fiction Posted: 02 Apr 2009 09:09 PM PDT John Joseph Adams sez, "My new anthology, Federations, is due out in a few weeks, and I've just launched the website for it. The website has three free stories on it, from current Hugo & Nebula finalist James Alan Gardner, Jeremiah Tolbert, and Genevieve Valentine. There are also several interviews with those authors and other authors in the book." About the Anthology (Thanks, John!) |
| EFF Bootcamp on privacy and UGC for startups, May 11 Posted: 02 Apr 2009 09:04 PM PDT  Rebecca from the Electronic Frontier Foundation sez, "Does your company have to contend with the maze of laws dealing with user privacy and publishing user content? Want to do the right thing by the online community that gives your business value, and still fulfill your legal obligations? Check out EFF's Bootcamp on May 11 in San Francisco. It costs only $300 for a full-day of training." Given that $300 won't buy you an hour of law-firm advice, this is a damned good deal. |
| London cops beating the shit out of peaceful G20 demonstrators Posted: 02 Apr 2009 09:02 PM PDT  Here's some disgraceful footage of London's cops beating the shit out of a group of peaceful G20 protestors who are holding their arms in the air, chanting, "This is not a riot." Look familiar? It's what the British cops did at the last Climate Camp, too. How much you want to bet that no one involved in the authoritarian response to these peaceful protestors pays any price, because they all offer the lame excuse that an entirely different group of protestors broke some windows at a bank in a different part of town? Film Of Police Attack On G20 Climate Camp (Thanks, Whitey!) |
| Vintage Ram's Head Coffee Table Posted: 02 Apr 2009 08:37 PM PDT  This magnificent Ram's Head Coffee Table is from the 1970s. The heads are patinated brass. Alas, it is $5200. |
| Personal Account of Safe-Cracking "Penetration Party." Posted: 02 Apr 2009 06:39 PM PDT  Master hacker and lockpicker Barry Wels (who shot the photo above) has posted an account of a "penetration party," at which safes are made available for guys skilled in the fine art of lock-cracking to demonstrate and hone their skillz. I love all the photos he illustrated this account with -- these guys are as scary-smart as they are cool. Snip: [S]afe opening is all about experience. The best safecrackers are the ones that have the most experience, or with the best connections to people who can tell you what the internals of the target safe most likely will look like. In previous events the strategy to open safes was to drill a hole on a strategical place in the safe. This sounds easier as it is, and I always admire the craftsmanship that is needed to pull it off. Just think about it: you need to picture what is inside the safe and then try to drill away the element that keeps the safe locked, or in case of a combination lock drill until you are inside the heart of the lock and set the code by looking into it with a scope. Being off by a millimeter can cause you big trouble, not to mention the glass plates that can set off 'relockers' if hit (shattered) by a drill. If this happens, the safe will lock up, and even the original key and combination will not open it anymore (a mechanism to win time, safes that have the relockers fired can take a looong time to open).About the safe opening weekend (next one in 1 month!) (Blackbag.nl, via Wayne's Friends list) |
| Lenora Claire's new "doNUTS" web series Posted: 02 Apr 2009 02:53 PM PDT Richard Metzger is the current Boing Boing guest blogger. We constantly read about how network television is cutting back on expensive scripted dramas and sitcoms that can cost $5 million dollars an episode and up, in favor of more cheaply produced "reality TV" programming. Reality TV can still prove costly to produce, but it doesn't have to cost a lot to be entertaining... Television development executives of the world who are reading this post, I call your attention to five minutes of sublime entertainment that was made for the cost of a single can of Diet Coke (literally). This is my pal Lenora Claire's new webshow, "doNUTS" (produced in affiliation with World of Wonder):  Given the choice between an episode of "Grey's Anatomy," "Rock of Love" or "Don't Forget the Lyrics" on one hand or a smart, sassy woman with bright red hair and ginormous breasts interviewing shitfaced donut eating drunks, on the other, what would YOU want to watch? Each episode of "doNUTS" will see the lovely Ms. Claire interviewing the colorful night owl denizens of the finest 24-hour donut emporiums in Los Angeles. This is primo TV! Are you television exec types out there paying attention? (I personally think Lenora should do a "Pee-wee's Playhouse" kind of thing, a "wink wink" semi-raunchy/semi-sweet, semi-ironic show for "the kids." Little kids just love her, you should see it. So do "the gays." They love her, too. Sign this woman up, she's a demographic-spanning star ready for her close-up!) But "doNUTS" isn't the only notable thing Lenora's got on her plate these days. She's also a wildly popular Los Angeles-based art curator with red-carpet gallery events like her "Golden Girls Gone Wild" and Dolly Parton-themed group shows. Coming up is a Bettie Page exhibit with some very special surprises.  No matter where you turn, there she is. You might recognize her portrait by Marla Rutherford that is part of the current USA Network and Vanity Fair's "Character Project" advertising campaign.  She was also recently painted by the great Olivia. And here she is eating glass. I think Tim and Eric should invite her on their show to do this. Lenora Claire's MySpace page Lenora Claire "Booty Baby" sculpture (NSFW) doNUTS on YouTube |
| Glemie Dean Beasley, urban raccoon hunter Posted: 02 Apr 2009 02:57 PM PDT Glemie Dean Beasley, 69, hunts raccoons in Detroit and sells their pelts and meat. My old journalism school pal Charlie LeDuff profiles Beasley in today's Detroit News. All of Charlie's work is fantastic. From the feature (click image for full photo by Max Ortiz): "To urban hunter, next meal is scampering by" (Thanks, Gabe Adiv!) |
| TV commercial for a women's razor: "Mow the lawn!" Posted: 02 Apr 2009 02:15 PM PDT  This UK TV commercial for the Wilkinson Sword Quattro for Women Bikini razor would probably stir up some serious controversy in the US. I think it's catchy and memorable. Wilkinson Sword: Mow the Lawn (Creativity Online, thanks Zoë Korstvedt!) |
| Obama turned the Queen of England into a copyright crook! Posted: 02 Apr 2009 01:35 PM PDT Hugh from the Electronic Frontier Foundation sez, "EFF's Fred Von Lohmann asks whether President Obama broke any laws when he gave an iPod loaded with music and video to the Queen." First, let's imagine that the President (or his staff) bought the 40 show tunes from the iTunes music store. Do you "own" the music that you buy from iTunes? The nearly 9,000 words of legalese to which you agree before buying don't answer that question (an oversight? I doubt it). Copyright owners have consistently argued in court that many digital products (even physical "promo" CDs!) are "licensed," not "owned," and therefore you're not entitled to resell them or give them away. (And the Amazon MP3 Store terms of service are even worse for consumers than iTunes -- those terms specifically purport to strip you of "ownership" and forbid any "redistribution.")iPods, First Sale, President Obama, and the Queen of England (Thanks, Hugh!) |
| Boing Boing Video: Hideo Kojima on Metal Gear Solid Touch (games) Posted: 02 Apr 2009 02:33 PM PDT Download the MP4 here. Flash video above, click "fullscren" icon inside player to view large. YouTube channel here, subscribe on iTunes here. Get Twitter updates every time there's a new ep by following @boingboingvideo, and here are blog post archives for Boing Boing Video. Today on Boing Boing Video, another game-related feature we shot during the Game Developer Conference in San Francisco: a conversation with Konami CEO Hideo Kojima at the San Francisco Apple Store, about his latest creation -- Metal Gear Solid Touch for the iPhone and iPod Touch. Previously: * Jane McGonigal on Emotion, Gaming, and Dance. * Jane McGonigal - Games Can Change the World. * Jane McGonigal's Game Developers' Conference talk on Making Your Own Reality * BBV @ GDC live stream archives, at Ustream.tv * Boing Boing Video and Offworld.com Live at GDC09: offworld.com archive * Boing Boing Video and Offworld.com Live at GDC09: boingboing.net archive [ Credits and props for BBV Live @GDC09: Production Team -- Jolon Bankey, Derek Bledsoe, Daniela Calderon, Eddie Codel, Xeni Jardin, Allison Kingsley, Matty Kirsch, Alice Taylor, Wesly Varghese. Special thanks to Wayneco Heavy Industries (accommodation and studio facilities), Virgin America Airlines (air travel), Celsius (thermogenic energy beverage), Ustream.tv (streaming video host). Moral support, production assistance, additional talent, and good vibes provided by: Domini Anne, Scott Beale, T.Bias, Jeremy Bornstein, Brandon Boyer, Chris The Van Guy, Peter S. Conrad, Marque Cornblatt, Wayne, Bre, and the entire de Geere family, Marcy DeLuce, Cory Doctorow, Joel Johnson, Kourosh Karimkhany, Jim Louderback and the Revision 3 team, Karen Marcelo, Rocky Mullin, Alicia Pollak, Jackie Mogol, Taylor Peck, David Pescovitz, Micah Schaffer, and Teal. ] |
| Posted: 02 Apr 2009 01:10 PM PDT IFC.com is running a "Radiohead Fanatic Fortnight" contest, starting today, in which Radiohead fans have a shot at winning special collectors' packages of the band's first three albums -- Pablo Honey, The Bends, and OK Computer -- and 12 high-quality vinyl Radiohead EPs. Contest ends April 10th, 2009. Five runners up each receive a copy each of all three 2CD Collectors Edition packages of Pablo Honey, The Bends and OK Computer. Above, video of Thom Yorke's performance on IFC's The Henry Rollins Show. Over the next two weeks, IFC.com will be featuring daily Radiohead videos and other content. Cool stuff. |
| Posted: 02 Apr 2009 12:56 PM PDT I was just stumbling around in the ambient section of iTunes' radio listings, and found a radio station that plays nothing but recorded birdsongs. I think its' pretty wonderful. birdsongradio.com, embedded above. |
| Posted: 02 Apr 2009 11:45 AM PDT Richard Metzger is the current Boing Boing guest blogger  Vivian Jackson, AKA "Yabby You" is one of the most fascinating artists of the "roots reggae" period of the early 1970s. Poverty stricken his entire life, Jackson was in ill-health as a result of living at and working in a garbage incinerator in Waterhouse, Jamaica since he was a young child. After a spell in the hospital, his legs by then crippled with arthritis, 17-year old Jackson was told that he could no longer return to his former job and moved to Kingston where he eked by precariously. Although a Rastafarian, Jackson did not believe in the divinity of Emperor Haile Selassie and his Christian beliefs were at odds with other Rastas he knew. He was given the nickname "Jesus Dread" as a result of his argumentative nature. One night an ethereal song came to Jackson as he BS'd about religion with friends: "Like a strange ting, inside a-my thoughts --like an angel a-sing." Although his poverty slowed the recording process down, many top musicians (and master producer, King Tubby) were impressed with Jackson's unwavering passion that this song must be brought into the world, and volunteered their services. The results, "Conquering Lion" is a dark, brooding masterpiece of true religious fervor and a seminal reggae classic. In many ways, I see this song as a reggae equivalent to "Good Vibrations" by the Beach Boys. Listen to the way the voices are layered. No other Jamaican artist was doing anything even remotely similar at the time. Nor have any since. Yabby You is still with us and he performs on occasion, standing with the help of crutches. "Conquering Lion" album was pressed in a run as small as 500 copies when it was first released in 1975. It took another 22 years before the LP was widely heard outside of Jamaica, with the deluxe 2 CD edition of "Jesus Dread (1972-1977)" featuring various "versions" of the song released by top UK reggae label, Blood and Fire. Now it's considered a classic. "Conquering Lion" by Yabby You Yabby You live Lightning Flash (Weak Heart Drop) by Big Youth (a "version" of "Conquering Lion") James Brown synch'd to "Conquering Lion" Dub mix Yabby You's "Jesus Dread (1972-1977)" on an audio blog |
| Can video games improve vision? Posted: 02 Apr 2009 10:09 AM PDT New research suggests that playing first-person shooter vidgames can improve your vision. According to University of Rochester cognitive scientist Daphne Bavelier, the games exercise the "contrast sensitivity function," crucial for reading and nightvision. In the study, some gamers played Unreal Tournament 2004 and Call of Duty 2. Others played The Sims 2, but didn't experience the vision benefits. From National Geographic: It may be that locating enemies and aiming accurately is a strenuous, strength-building workout for the eyes, (Bavelier) said."Video Games Improve Vision, Study Says" |
| Joe Cocker With Subtitles, For the Clear-Headed Posted: 02 Apr 2009 09:55 AM PDT  Video Link. Nothing too outrageously rare or new, but one of the funnier "misheard lyrics" videos I've LOLed through lately. "Oh baby, hoggify." If you have others you're particularly fond of, do dump them in the comments. |
| Posted: 02 Apr 2009 09:53 AM PDT  In celebration of this week's anniversary of the founding of Apple Computer, 20x200 issued this fabulous limited edition print depicting the original Apple 1 computer. The photo, by Mark Richards, comes from the fantastic book Core Memory: A Visual Survey of Vintage Computers featuring Richards's images and John Alderman's text. As with all 20x200 prints, there are 200 available for $20 with limited numbers of larger sizes costing more. Also available is Richards's portrait of IBM 360 Model 30 Tape Drives. Apple I print |
| Man coughs up 30-year-old nail Posted: 02 Apr 2009 07:39 AM PDT Prax Sanchez of Colorado coughed up a nail that was stuck in his nose for three decades. It came out after he underwent a medical MRI. Of course, MRIs are essentially giant magnets which is why you have to remove any metal objects before entering the machine. From KKTV: "Man Coughs Up Nail Stuck In His Nose For 30 Years" |
| The Beats: A Graphic History -- unflinching and wonderful history of The Beats Posted: 01 Apr 2009 08:43 AM PDT  The Beats: A Graphic History is everything a radical history should be: critical, admiring, quirky and apologetic. The Beats is largely written by Harvey Pekar and illustrated by Ed Piskor, with a concluding section of more critical, less biographical pieces written and illustrated by a variety of critics and artists, including Nancy J Peters, Tulu Kupferberg, Summer McClinton, Anne Timmons and others. The opening section consists of Pekar's biographies of the canonical Beats, Kerouac, Ginsberg, Burroughs, and then onto the less-celebrated members of the scene, including Rexroth, Ferlinghetti, LeRoi Jones, and so forth. These pieces are loving but harsh, sparing their subjects little sympathy for their misdeeds (which are many, ranging from murder and betrayal to vicious misogyny and naive, fleeting affairs with reactionary politics and mysticism). Pekar shows us that a mature person can admire the worthy deeds and art of historical heroes without glossing over their bad acts -- or throwing away their art with their sins. The Beats of Pekar's work are often geniuses, are capable of great acts of charity and selflessness, and overcome great personal challenges with a great deal of style and perseverance. Pekar shows us where their character flaws took root, explains them -- and never excuses them. At the end of this section, I felt like I understood and appreciated the poetry and prose and music of these people better than I had beforehand. But the last third of the book really puts it all into perspective. In this section a variety of writers take a much more critical run at the Beats. The best of these is Joyce Brabner's "Beatnik Chicks," a feminist critique of the Beats and a secret history of the women who made the scene without making history, sublimated in the service of the narrative of the tortured man-poet and his beautiful chela. Also fantastic is Jeffrey Lewis and Tuli Kupferberg's extraordinary history of The Fugs, one of the filthiest rock bands to ever levitate the Pentagon (both Lewis and Kupferberg were members of the band). The story told is engaging and wild, and the art is stellar. From cover to cover, The Beats is a wonderful history of a complicated and misunderstood cultural movement -- its achievements, its place in history, its flaws and its brilliance. The graphic novel format is perfect for the subject -- straddling the line between respectability and disreputableness just as the Beats themselves did. |
"When I went to lay down on the MRI machine, I had a real pain on my right side under my eye," said Sanchez...| You are subscribed to email updates from Boing Boing To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now. | Email delivery powered by Google |
Inbox too full?  Subscribe to the feed version of Boing Boing in a feed reader. | |
| If you prefer to unsubscribe via postal mail, write to: Boing Boing, c/o Google, 20 W Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610 | |
No comments:
Post a Comment