Wednesday, September 1, 2010

The Latest from Boing Boing

The Latest from Boing Boing

Link to Boing Boing

Raising money to build an arts center on Vanuatu

Posted: 01 Sep 2010 03:46 AM PDT


DJ Spooky writes:
I've started a digital media and contemporary arts lab on a remote island in the South Pacific, and I'm setting up a Kickstarter campaign to help defray the costs. In tandem with islandsfirst.org, a United Nations affiliated non-profit that focuses on the needs of South Pacific islands, I'm setting up a situation where cultural exchange between artists from different geographies can take time to do residencies on the island and create projects with local artists and creatives in conjunction with an agenda that focuses on sustainable arts practices.

The Funds - Anything you contribute will cover the construction of an initial 'outpost' on-site, a feasibility assessment and design of the first phase solar electricity systems for one village and three new structures between now and May 2011, when our first invited artists will arrive.

In December, local leadership, DJ Spooky, Engineers Without Borders and the Vanuatu Pacifica Foundation have arranged for R. David Gibbs, a New York-based solar and energy engineer with remote-location experience, to undertake a feasibility study with local renewables engineers, village electricians and tech trainees. The first goal is to replace diesel generators with solar PV and thermal systems that can power villages and initiate the design of the Tanna Center for the Arts' off-the-grid retreat, cultural preservation and eco-education facility.

You've probably noticed we're starting at $10,000 here on Kickstarter but with $20,000 we can complete the solar design phase, engage local craftspeople to build the initial structure(s) and create an 'outpost' that allows us to invite collaborators from around the island and the world to begin realizing this vision. Everybody's help with a little or a lot is welcome, needed and much appreciated!

Tanna Center for The Arts



Koko Be Good: complex and satisfying graphic novel about finding meaning in lifecomplex

Posted: 01 Sep 2010 03:37 AM PDT

Jen Wang's Koko Be Good continues publisher FirstSecond's amazing run of thought-provoking, challenging graphic novels for adults. It's the story of Koko, a "free spirit" in San Francisco who trades on her manic energy and good looks to bumble by in mooched accommodations, borrowed clothes, and sponged meals. Then she meets Jon, a driven young man who is about to sell everything he owns to move to Peru, where his girlfriend is working in the remote orphanage her mother grew up in.

Jon isn't sure about his move, but he feels he needs to be. He quit his band after finishing college (they're now becoming an indie sensation, which puts some urgency into his choice to succeed at something other than music), and now he's not sure what his life is for or what it will come to.

When Jon meets Koko (she steals his tape recorder after a raucous performance at the Zeitgeist in the Mission), he finds himself subject to her withering scorn and tough questions. But the interrogation isn't one-way -- in the process of criticizing Jon's do-gooder ambitions, Koko comes to realize how empty her own life is.

The two of them enter into a struggle to find meaning and happiness -- to be "good" -- and embark on a difficult journey that involves a huge cast of minor characters all engaged in their own existential battles.

All the above makes the book sound moody and brooding, but it's anything but. Koko Be Good brims with manic energy and comedy, a complex story engagingly told with ingenious layouts and lovely art.

Koko Be Good



Boing Boing's live coverage of Apple event Wednesday, Sep. 1, 10am PT

Posted: 31 Aug 2010 08:08 PM PDT

Apple is holding an invite-only press event Wednesday, September 1, in San Francisco. Above, a snip from the invitation that went out to journalists. If only we had some clue what this is all about? Look at that guitar. Just look at it. It's trying to tell us something. What does it mean?

Anyway, Boing Boing will be represented, and we'll be providing some sort of live color commentary from the goat rodeo.

Apple is live-streaming this one, for the first time in many years, too—so you can watch along from wherever you are at apple.com. As long as you aren't using a Windows box or an Android phone:

"Viewing requires either a Mac running Safari on Mac OS X version 10.6 Snow Leopard, an iPhone or iPod touch running iOS 3.0 or higher, or an iPad."
Do join us in the morning. I'll be there in person, and Rob will no doubt be lending his acerbic wit and gadget-savvy to make our coverage worth tuning in to.

Nagoya COP10 Primer #3: with a small reference to LOL cats

Posted: 31 Aug 2010 07:57 PM PDT

Screen Shot 2010-08-31 At 7.53.02 Pm-1

(Continuing on from previous primers: 1. Star Wars | 2. Kevin Bacon)

O.K. now on to business... Here are the Convention on Biological Diversity's three basic objectives:

1. The conservation of biological diversity

2. The sustainable use of the components of biological diversity

3. The fair and equitable sharing of the benefits arising out of the utilization of genetic resources

They also have - or had rather - a goal, a biodiversity target, which was the following:

In April 2002, the Parties to the Convention committed themselves to achieve by 2010 a significant reduction of the current rate of biodiversity loss at the global, regional and national level as a contribution to poverty alleviation and to the benefit of all life on Earth.

This was also the reason why 2010 was proclaimed as the International Year of Biodiversity.

Unfortunately, this target is way off the mark. Even the Convention itself has said this (you can read the formal admittance of this with this pdf), while other media outlets have been much more emphatic about its failure. But regardless, as far as all can tell, biodiversity loss rates have not been reduced - not even close.

But this policy speak vernacular is part of the problem. Because "biodiversity" is such a huge, nuanced, and multifaceted issue, and because it's also a word and concept that's tricky to pin down in a public setting, it's really quite difficult for governments to follow along with the desires and targets of the CBD.

For instance, this challenge becomes immediately obvious, if you look at the mandates again and decide to nitpick.

"The conservation of biological diversity."

This statement is very much about environmental stewardship, and the effects of human impact in general. It is, in many ways, the heart of the convention, but it is also an incredibly loaded statement.

Here, one has to simply query what exactly is the best way of doing this? And then how would you measure it? Is this done by focusing on projects that look at a few species at a time; projects that survey a specific locale; or by setting up general but scientifically undefined benchmarks, such as "You must not log X% of your land." If so, can your Convention deal with all of the different contexts associated with different biomes, climates, species, etc.

To put things in perspective, we don't even technically know the number of species out there, we only have limited specific knowledge of diversity within species, and we're closer to understanding the popularity of LOL cats than having even a glimmer of understanding how Nature's grand algorithm makes everything all work together.

In fact, if you look at this busy chart (brace yourself if you do choose to click it - it looks more complicated than a biochemistry pathway chart from hell), you can see a time line of all the many different and new elements of the CBD that have been created over the years, each with a specific mandate dealing with a specific element (i.e. you get corals, I get forests, he should get invasive species, who's game for sub-humid terrains?) This just gives you a taste of the complexity involved, and consequently, demonstrates the challenge in "measuring" how biodiversity is conserved.

"The sustainable use of the components of biological diversity"

This statement is also looking at impact, but attempts to look at it from the "what's in it for me" angle. As mentioned earlier, the fruits (sometimes literally) of biodiversity are a big part of the everyday items we and the rest of society consume. As such, they are not only following the limits of the natural world, but they are also governed by the mechanics of economics, and vulnerable if not often defenseless against market forces. From this reasoning, you'd think that the economic values of "the components of biological diversity" have been properly laid out.

Unfortunately, this isn't the case. Although there are studies available that attempt to "price" these biodiversity resources (the most notable of which is the Millenium Ecosystem Assessment released in 2005), the fact of the matter is that much more needs to be done. However, this, too, is not an easy proposition. Coming up with effective ways to assign "value" to biodiversity, and perhaps more challenging, assigning them in such a way that is comprehensive in scope and universally accepted, is another difficult task.

To get a sense of all the little nuances involved in assigning value, take a look at this graph from a case study done by The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB).

Dnghub Wp-Content Uploads 2010 08 Teebfig2


What this remarkable figure attempts to compare, is the traditional market value (1998 prices) of the "timber logged to supply construction and materials sector in China over the period 1950-98", versus the "ecosystem 'externalities' associated with this logging, which are not reflected in market prices" (text from the TEEB case study). In other words, the timber has a much higher inherent worth when you consider the environmental impact it has on other goods and services. These are things such as the effects due to the deforestation of said timber: like loss of precipitation, land stability for building, the increased susceptibility to flooding, etc. In fact, the graph here basically suggests that the timber might be worth much more left where it is!

Now, there's likely all manner of issues with the numbers obtained with these figures: maybe they are too approximate, maybe they work only within the Chinese scenario, maybe they are missing X, Y and/or Z. But the underlying argument, is that it's probably worth it for governments and businesses to look into such things in detail, and possibly even figure out a way to include (or "internalize", if you want to use the jargon) them into their methods of accounting. However, this is generally not the case. Certainly, it's poorly defined in the government arena. And for businesses?

A review by PwC of the annual reports of the 100 largest companies in the world by revenue in 2008 found 18 companies that mentioned biodiversity or ecosystems34. Of these, 6 companies reported actions to reduce impacts on biodiversity and ecosystems and 2 companies identified biodiversity as a key 'strategic' issue. 89 of the same 100 companies published a sustainability report, 24 of which described actions to reduce impacts on biodiversity and ecosystems, while 9 companies identified impacts on biodiversity as a key 'sustainability' issue. (The TEEB for Business report, 2010).

Obviously, more needs to be done here as well.

"The fair and equitable sharing of the benefits arising out of the utilization of genetic resources."

This objective is all about sharing and being fair. This too has been hardly successful. A good way to get a handle on what this objective is all about is to provide two general examples.

1. I am a poor country and I have a biodiversity related natural resource (say, a forest) that would be beneficial to my economy and therefore my constituents. I don't think it's fair for you to tell me what to do with this resource - even in the name of environmental stewardship. More so, since wealthy countries have already benefited from their past unenvironmentally friendly acts (say, cut down their forests). If you're going to insist on telling me what's the right thing to do (again in the name of environmental stewardship), should there be at least some compensation for it?

2. In my country there is this freaking awesome plant that we use for medicinal purposes. The whereabouts of this plant, the best time to harvest, and the proper way to prepare it, is knowledge that has been passed on for many years, all the way back to my earliest ancestors. Not only is the plant "freaking awesome," but it is both economically and culturally important. Now apparently, folks in business attire are planning to go "genetic and biochemical" on the plant. They hope to distill its "freaking awesomeness" to a single tangle of atoms: then possibly market it, and do business with it. To this, I say that I am not against the discovery of a "freaking awesome" tangle of atoms, but I wonder if there shouldn't be "fair" compensation to my culture. After all, the relationship between my country and the plant was what amassed all that prior knowledge: knowledge that arguably provided the crucial first step for the folks in business attire.

The problem, of course, is that both of these scenarios require a somewhat altruistic approach, which for governments can be tricky at the best of times.

Anyway...

in summary, even though I've tried to discuss the difficulties of the Convention on Biological Diversity by only focusing on its three main objectives (the Convention is actually more structured around a long list of "goals"), this simplistic approach still nicely shows the difficulty of the whole affair.

Still, it's not like good things haven't happened. There are countless lovely instances where excellent work has been done, particularly at the local level, and particularly related to objective number 1. There was even a recent agreement that will hopefully shed a bit of light on how objective 3 might plod along.

However, the intention of the CBD is to provide a strong overarching plan for all members of the COP to follow, and from that vantage point, it hasn't succeeded at all. The 2010 targets are seriously off, and biodiversity as a whole is suffering tremendously.

Except that now, we have another crack at rewriting the code behind the CBD. This is what Nagoya-COP10 will be all about: a sort of "o.k. people, we've kind of screwed around for the last decade or so, but we've learned some stuff, and hey, if we're gonna set the scene for the next few decades by doing something, we should do it now" conference.

But what exactly should be done? Well, more on that in my final Nagoya-COP10 post coming up.




Can crowdsourcing produce funny humor pieces? The next step

Posted: 31 Aug 2010 07:49 PM PDT

In case you missed it, here is the set up.

And from the comments from that previous post, there were many great titles. Some lend themselves more to an essay type humour piece, whereas others were just funny as one-liners. It was tough choosing, but I'm going to go with two titles. One is a tweak, but seems to involve a subject matter near and dear to Boing Boing readers, plus should be good for a funny list (from edthehippie). The other seemed to win the popularity contest, and is definitely a title with great potential and hopefully providing some creative space for folks who like to write a little more than one sentence (from artiefx0).

Anyway, without further ado, here are the titles!

CHAPTER TITLES FROM MY UNICORN PHYSICS TEXTBOOK

and

AN OVERVIEW OF ANIMALS THAT WOULD EXIST IF THE WORLD WERE SIGNIFICANTLY MORE AWESOME THAN IT ACTUALLY IS

Game on! (Note: please use the keyword "unicorn" or "awesome" to let me know which piece your comment is alluding to).

Flying robot hand wants your beer

Posted: 31 Aug 2010 07:29 PM PDT

This flying drone possesses a rubbery hand that can swipe your beer if you're not watchful. (Technology Review via Bruce Sterling)

Frankenmascot: all the cereal mascots in one

Posted: 31 Aug 2010 05:09 PM PDT


Jon sez, "What do you get when you combine just about every breakfast cereal character you know into one magnificent being? Something that's part Cap'n Crunch, part Sugar Bear, and 14 other parts. Can you name them all?"

The creator is selling prints of this frankenmascot, too!

FREE Thing Included! (Thanks, Jon, via Submitterator!)



Pizza oven as hellmouth

Posted: 31 Aug 2010 05:05 PM PDT

Flurb 10: Rudy Rucker's glorious sf webzine

Posted: 31 Aug 2010 05:01 PM PDT


Hurrah! Rudy Rucker's just posted the Fall/Winter issue of his glorious sf webzine Flurb, with a wicked contributor list: "Armstrong, Ashby, Byrne, Callaway, Goonan, Hendrix, Hogan, Kek, Laidlaw, Metzger, Newitz, Rucker, Saknussemm, Scholz, Shirley, Sterling, Watson."

Flurb 10



As drug violence escalates, entire length of US-Mexico border to be patrolled by unmanned drones

Posted: 31 Aug 2010 04:15 PM PDT

[Image courtesy General Atomics. An artist's rendition of Predator B, the unmanned aerial drone patrolling the US-Mexico border for human and drug trafficking, and other threats.]

Beginning this Wednesday, the entire 2,000 miles of border between the United States and Mexico will be patrolled by unmanned aerial drones. Three drones are already patrolling portions of that border, and a fourth Predator begins operations tomorrow out of Corpus Christi, TX, completing the full stretch of la frontera.

The news came in a Department of Homeland Security announcement yesterday, along with word that 1,200 additional National Guard troops will be deployed "to provide intelligence surveillance and reconnaissance, and immediate support to counternarcotics enforcement."

Those Predator B drones are made by military contractor General Atomics. You can read more about the drone specs here at the General Atomics website, and download a PDF here. Snip from Reuters:

They carry equipment including sophisticated day and night vision cameras that operators use to detect drug and human smugglers, and can stay aloft for up to 30 hours at a time.
All of this is part of $600 million legislation signed by President Obama earlier this month to increase border security before midterm elections in November, and in response to the ever-escalating drug war in Mexico. Just today, at least 8 people were killed when attackers hurled Molotov cocktails into a bar in Cancun, a popular tourist destination. The attack is presumed to be cartel-related.

And a major drug kingpin nicknamed "The Barbie" for his light complexion was arrested this week— his takedown is seen as a badly-needed public relations coup for the Mexican government, as successive waves of horrific news hit the country.

Perhaps the most gruesome of those recent revelations was the discovery just last week of a mass grave filled with 72 murdered migrants, including a pregnant woman, who were all executed by a dominant cartel, the Zetas.

The incident took place just 100 miles from the US border.

From the Christian Science Monitor:

The massacre confirmed what analysts have begun to suspect (....) gangs are diversifying their criminal activities and targeting groups other than just rival drug traffickers.
The lead investigator in that case "disappeared" last Friday.

[inset thumbnail: courtesy El Universal. The corprses of 72 men and women presumed to have been executed by the Zetas drug gang, inside an abandoned warehouse in the town of San Fernando, just 100 miles from the Mexican border with the U.S. near the city of Matamoros, Mexico.]

Brian McCarty's book of art toy photos

Posted: 31 Aug 2010 03:47 PM PDT

Store Arttoys Full Cover
We've featured Brian McCarty's terrific toy photography many times on Boing Boing. He's a master at setting a perfect scene and using just the right perspective to trick me into thinking that the strange vinyl characters on my shelf come alive when I'm not looking. Brian's photos are now collected in a wonderful hardcover book appropriately titled Art-Toys. The book includes more than 100 photos, each on its own page, featuring toys designed by Mark Ryden, Gama-Go, Frank Kozik, FriendsWithYou, Tim Biskup, Amanda Visell, Attaboy, and dozens of other artists. BB pal Douglas Rushkoff wrote the intro. I really dig the back-of-the-book "behind-the-scenes" snapshots that reveal the time, detail, and love that goes into every one of Brian's photos. Art-Toys by Brian McCarty (Amazon)



Mystery of the Albino Redwoods

Posted: 31 Aug 2010 04:18 PM PDT


KQED's QUEST looks at the ultra-rare albino redwood trees: "Only a few dozen albino redwood trees are known to exist. They are genetic mutants that lack the chlorophyll needed for photosynthesis. But how and why they survive is a scientific mystery." Albino Redwoods, Ghosts of the Forest

My quest to recreate one of the best things I've ever tasted: omusoba

Posted: 31 Aug 2010 06:43 PM PDT

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(Click all photos to embiggen)

Behind the gate of this shrine in Kyoto, I ate something delicious.

There was a festival going on at the time. Girls were dressed in traditional yukata, with paper fans sticking out of their belts in the back. People were walking up the steps to the orange shrine, and we followed them. There was a little bit of praying going on, but mostly people were buying food from the dozens of vendors, or playing carnival games (like cork guns and goldfish scooping).

I smelled lots of good things being cooked by the vendors. Something especially mouth-watering was beckoning me to follow it to its source. It was frying noodles. Yakisoba (yaki = fried, soba = noodle). But it was more than that. The woman running the grill was also wrapping the noodles in omelets, squirting a dark reddish brown sauce on top, and sprinkling it with flakes of something. I placed my order (500 yen, I think) and she prepared a giant yakisoba omelet, handing it to me on a paper plate along with a pair of wooden chopsticks. I took it into the tent set up behind the grill and sat down at one of the tables. I already knew it was going to be tasty, but after one bite, I went into a sharklike feeding frenzy. My God it was good. The noodles were salty and peppery, with a bit of sweetness, and the flakes were some kind of dried fish that enhanced the flavor. I didn't bother slowing down to savor it, as my reptile brain had taken over, commanding me to devour the irresistible concoction that had been set before me. Before I had a chance to think of taking a picture of it, it was gone.

Since returning home, my thoughts have often returned to that omelet. I wanted another one. Yes, I know that it is impossible to step into the same river twice, and that the combination of my hunger level, my mental state, the ingredients and preparation that went into making the omelet, and the festival environment on that day could not be replicated. Still, I wanted to se if I could make a reasonable copy here in Los Angeles.

More photos and a recipe after the jump.

It took me just a few minutes to find the name of the dish: omusoba (omelet soba). I saved an omusoba recipe to Evernote and was about to head to Little Tokyo to buy yakisoba noodles, tonkatsu sauce, seaweed flakes, and bonito flakes, but Mister Jalopy told me to try 99 Ranch, a pan-Asian supermarket in Van Nuys instead, as it was closer and cheaper than the Marukai supermarket. So I went there instead. While marveling at the large variety of exotic fruits and vegetables in the produce section, and admiring the many types of live fish swimming in tanks behind the meat counter, I bought the omusoba ingredients (along with a pound of lychees and bunch of other products that looked too interesting to pass up).

Back home, I got busy making omusoba.



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⇑  I chopped up some carrots, ginger, and cabbage (I used regular cabbage because I couldn't find any "Chinese cabbage.")


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⇑  I fried the ginger in canola oil for a little while, then added the cabbage and carrots.


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⇑ While it was frying, I chopped up a pork loin cutlet that was left over from the dinner we had the night before and tossed it in the non-stick made-in-China wok that I bought for $10 at 99 Ranch (I hope it's not too toxic).



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⇑ Next came the yakisoba noodles. The bag came with a foil pouch of yakisoba seasoning, but I didn't use it because it had MSG in the list of ingredients.


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⇑ Instead I used this yakisoba sauce. It, too, probably had MSG in it (under a stealth ingredient name), but it makes me feel better not to know for sure.



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⇑ I added the noodles with a bit more oil, and fried them for a few minutes, then added about a half cup of yakisoba sauce.


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⇑ I made an omelet in a pan, and added a portion of the noodles to it. I overcooked the eggs, but I didn't stop to make a new omelet. I was getting shaky from hunger at this point.



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⇑ Here's what the tonkatsu sauce and bonito flakes look like.




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⇑ And here is my omusoba (with seaweed flakes, bonito flakes, and tonkatsu sauce on top). Even though I didn't have all right ingredients, and the egg was overcooked, it was still delicious.

I had a lot of leftover noodles, and my wife and daughter loved them. Omusoba is going to be a regular part of our diets. I think I'll ask Mark Allen of Machine Project if he'd be willing to host an omusoba festival at the gallery. Would you be interested in coming? let me know in the comments.

Below, some photos of the festival and a sign for a restaurant in a little alley in Kyoto. I wish I could have eaten there, but it wasn't open when I went by.


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Brain surgery c. 2000 BCE

Posted: 31 Aug 2010 03:30 PM PDT

Archaeologists at Ikiztepe, Turkey unearthed two glass obsidian blades they believe were used for neurosurgery 4,000 years ago. Why do they think these were tools for Bronze Age brain surgery? Because they found scarred skulls there too. New Scientist interviewed excavation director Önder Bilgi:
Data Images Ns Cms Mg20727750.200 Mg20727750.200-1 300 What makes you think they were used for surgery?

We have found traces of cuts on skulls in a nearby graveyard. Out of around 700 skulls, 14 have these marks. They could only have been cut with a very sharp tool. At this time, 4000 years ago or more, it could only have been an obsidian blade. The cut marks show that a blade was used to make a rectangular opening all the way through the skull. We know that patients lived at least two to three years after the surgery, because the skull has tried to close the wound.

Have you uncovered any clues to why this surgery was performed?

There seem to be three main reasons. The first is to relieve the pressure of a brain haemorrhage; we found traces of blood on the inside of some of the skulls. The second is to treat patients with brain cancer, as we can see pressure traces from the cancer inside some of the skulls. And the final reason was to treat head injuries, which seem to have been quite common. The people of Ikiztepe got their copper from mines in the local mountains, and we think they had to fight other local people for access to it.

"Scalpels and skulls point to Bronze Age brain surgery"

More cool rolling shutter effects

Posted: 31 Aug 2010 02:19 PM PDT

Last week, Mark posted a shot of a boy blinking in a photo but with his eyes open in a reflection.

In the comments, several people explained that this was a rolling shutter effect. You can get something similar panning many DLSR cameras too quickly back and forth, causing a "jello" effect on solid objects. Commenter knodi shared a still of his propeller showing the same effect. You can get the same trippy effect in video based on the frame rate, as seen in Steve Talkowski's video above.

Superman's Cleveland roots

Posted: 31 Aug 2010 02:10 PM PDT

Images Superman-Panels-At-Joe-Shuster-House-2
Cleveland, Ohio is slowly starting to honor its most important son. No, not Drew Carey (although BB loves him too). In 1933, Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, two boys from Jewish immigrant families who lived in the Glenville neighborhood of Cleveland, created Superman. This month, Smithsonian magazine tells the story behind the superhero, and what some citizens are doing to show their pride. The image above, from Jim Bowers/CapedWonder.com, is a fence at the address of Joe Shuster's old house. From Smithsonian:
Shortly after Siegel and Shuster died in the 1990s, a... struggle for recognition of Superman's creators took place in Cleveland. Michael Sangiacomo, a comic books critic and a reporter for Cleveland's The Plain Dealer, called on the city to honor Siegel and Shuster. Nothing came of it. Every few years he would trot the idea out again, writing an article calling on Cleveland to honor the pair. "I pointed out that the Siegel house was here [the home of Joe Shuster had been torn down], and that is the home of Superman, and the city should do something."

In his will, Siegel asked that half of his ashes be donated to the city of Cleveland; his widow also wanted to donate some of his belongings to the city, such as his typewriter. She visited Cleveland to find a home for them, and Sangiacomo escorted her around town. "Nobody wanted them," he remembers. "It was a low point. I felt horrible for her and mad at the city..."

Sangiacomo and (comic writer Brad) Meltzer decided to raise money to restore the house. Melzer uploaded a video of himself at the house that went viral. He followed by sponsoring an auction of comics-related art, raising over $100,000 in the process. Sangiacomo and Meltzer formed the nonprofit Siegel and Shuster Society, and asked the Glenville Community Development Corporation to take charge of restoring the house, in partnership with the Grays.

Cleveland, the True Birthplace of Superman



Wikileak-proofing the Pentagon

Posted: 31 Aug 2010 02:01 PM PDT

"By hunting for poker-like "tells" in people's use of Defense Department computer networks, Darpa hopes to find indications of indicate hostile intent or potential removal of sensitive data." Wired reports that Ex-L0phter Peiter "Mudge" Zatko is working for DARPA to "Wikileak-proof" military networks.

Secret history of psychedelic psychiatry

Posted: 31 Aug 2010 01:44 PM PDT

A couple weeks ago, I posted about a new scientific paper looking at how an increased understanding of psychedelic drugs may lead to new anti-depressants. Over at Science Blogs, neuroscientist Moheb Costandi responds in a fascinating essay on "The Secret History of Psychedelic Psychiatry." From the article:
Lamaworkshop Carygrantlsd1960 LSD therapy peaked in the 1950s, during which time it was even used to treat Hollywood film stars, including luminaries such as Cary Grant (at left, dropping acid). By then, two forms of therapy had emerged. Psychedelic ("mind-manifesting") therapy was practised mostly in North America and involved intensive psychotherapy followed by a single megadose of LSD. It was thought that the transcendental experiences induced by such large doses, as well as heightened self-awareness, would enable the patient to reflect on their condition with greater clarity. Psycholytic ("mind-loosening") therapy, on the other hand, was practised mostly in Europe, and involved regular low to moderate doses of the drug in conjunction with psychoanalysis, in order to release long-lost memories and reveal the unconscious mind.
"The secret history of psychedelic psychiatry"

Improv Everywhere: Black tie at the beach

Posted: 31 Aug 2010 01:27 PM PDT



Several hundred merry pranksters of Improv Everywhere descended on Coney Island/Brighton Beach dressed in black tie. Founder Charlie Todd says, "We covered a mile-long stretch of beach with a diverse group of people of all ages (from babies to sixty-somethings) laying out, playing games, and swimming in the ocean, all in formal wear. Agents were instructed to find cheap tuxedos and ball gowns at thrift stores for the occasion." Black Tie Beach

Another superb anti-theft sign

Posted: 31 Aug 2010 12:57 PM PDT

Image link. (via BB Submitterator, thanks robotsound)

The scientists who make sci-fi more real

Posted: 31 Aug 2010 09:56 AM PDT

Via the BB Submitterator, Boing Boing readerator "swatters" says: "I'm a big fan of BBC Radio's iPlayer, which makes available a slew of programming that its various stations have previously aired. "Scientists Go to Hollywood" is a 30-minute piece on the science behind sci-fi television and film, featuring interviews with consultants who worked on Danny Boyle's Sunshine (a terrifying survival thriller and personal favourite), and the upcoming releases Thor and Tron."

Historical cell phone location data is a privacy intrusion, rules NY judge

Posted: 31 Aug 2010 09:00 AM PDT

Judge James Orenstein in the Eastern District of New York ruled last Friday that historical cell phone location data is just as intrusive to privacy as GPS tracking. (ACLU)

Dub Kweli

Posted: 31 Aug 2010 08:52 AM PDT

Remixer Max Tannone has just released a new project along the same lines as the lovely Mos Dub thing he did not long ago. This one's Dub Kweli. "Same concept but features Talib Kweli instead of Mos Def," Max explains. Go have a listen.

Anti-theft warning sign

Posted: 31 Aug 2010 08:58 AM PDT

Anyone know the real-world story behind this one? It's been making the internet rounds of late. Update: Source.

Crucifix power strip

Posted: 31 Aug 2010 08:44 AM PDT

"Power/Strip is a 12 outlet cruciform surge protector that easily accommodates oversize adapters while providing comprehensive protection from evil, power surges, and AC contamination." Designed by Alexander Pincus. Alas, it seems to be a proof of concept only at this time.

(via BB Submitterator, thanks Arts & Leisure!)

Monstrous Wildlife: Graboids

Posted: 31 Aug 2010 08:37 AM PDT

Following up on David Ng's great biodiversity posts, here's a nice video on graboids. If you only know about these land sharks from old skits or classic cartoons, filmmaker Frank Robnik put together this nicely animated piece that dispels many misconceptions about these misunderstood creatures. Great score by Sebastian Birkl, too!

Dancing Merengue Dog

Posted: 31 Aug 2010 08:22 AM PDT

This dog is an accomplished merengue dancer. Video Link. (thanks, Mia Quagliarello)

Canadian: last chance to vote in Indigo's Teen Read poll

Posted: 30 Aug 2010 05:19 AM PDT

Canadians: Now that summer's over, it's your last chance to select your favorite young adult reads in Indigo's summerlong Teen Read Awards. They're soliciting Canadians' daily votes for great books for teens to read, as part of a longer and larger promotion of teen reading and literacy. I'm honored to note that my latest young adult novel For the Win is in the final heat!

BEST CANADIAN READ NOMINEES



Some Final Thoughts on Conventions (and a visit to Power Morphicon)

Posted: 31 Aug 2010 03:54 PM PDT

power-morphicon-celebrating-17-years-of-the-power-rangers.5269617.87.jpg Photo: Shannon Cottrell/LA Weekly from Power Morphicon Last Tuesday, I asked artists about their experiences with conventions. There have been a lot of interesting responses, as well as some advice. Please read the comment thread when you have a chance. The comments made me think about the impact conventions have had on Shannon Cottrell and I as journalists. I had asked Shannon about this and she mentioned, "for that weekend or day it is just a free world to inspire each other." On Saturday, Shannon and I covered Power Morphicon, a Power Rangers convention, for Style Council. As I wrote in the blog post, this was different from most of our con adventures in that neither one of us can say that we're Power Ranger fans. When we go to cons, we're typically there as both journalists and fans. This time, we were just journalists, but after watching the fans, and talking to some of them, we left ready to give Power Rangers another try. Their passion prompted us to reconsider a show that neither one of us had probably seen since the 1990s. It was certainly one of the more inspiring events we've attended this year. There's often a sort of stigma to admitting you're a huge fan of something. You can tell in the tone of voice people will use when dropping terms like "nerd," "geek," and, particularly, "fanboy" or "fangirl." It's okay to like a movie or a comic or a video game, but once you start to appear passionate about the subject, it can be considered off-putting. When you go to a convention, though, all those unspoken rules about how much you can express your enthusiasm about something disappear. Whether you want to dress up as Zelda, bring your favorite ball-jointed dolls to a meet-up or debate the merits of moe anime for hours on end, it's okay. Everybody is a fan of something and those influences help shape who we become later in life. Having a place where we can physically interact with people and not hear something like, "okay, can you stop talking about cartoons already?" helps foster creativity. Cons have had a profound impact on Shannon and I both personally and professionally and I'm happy to have had the chance to tell you a bit about what we do and who we've met. Thanks to Xeni for asking me to guestblog for Boing Boing for the past three weeks and thanks to everyone who kept reading. It's been a lot of fun. I'll be back to blogging daily for LA Weekly's Style Council today and hope to share more with you there. Links: Power Morphicon (photo gallery) "Power Rangers Fans and Stars Gather for Power Morphicon" (blog post) Style Council

Comic book autobiography of a teen girl's life with braces

Posted: 30 Aug 2010 05:26 PM PDT

Smile

A 215-page account of a teenage girl getting braces on her teeth may seem like thin soup for a comic book memoir, but Raina Telgemeier's art and storytelling brings Smile to life.

My 13-year-old daughter just got braces so I thought she would enjoy Smile, but I ended up taking it and reading it over the weekend. Raina starts the book with a visit to the orthodontist, who tells her she needs braces. That night she falls face down on the pavement and knocks her two front teeth out (actually, one falls out and the other one gets driven up into her skull bone -- yikes). So what was initially going to be a simple set of braces turns into something more complicated, which nicely parallels with the increasingly complicated issues that a young girl about to enter junior high school must deal with, including new friends and new feelings. The book ends up being less about braces and more about the day-to-day trials and triumphs of early teenagerhood.

Autobiographical comic books, especially ones about people's everyday lives, are my favorite kind of comic book, and I'd place Telgemeier near the top of my list. She's great at presenting image moments. Her use of timing and framing is probably what has gotten her nominated for Eisner, Ignatz, Cybil, and Web Cartoonists' Choice awards. Her use of exaggeration (see panel four, above) is employed sparingly and to good effect. When I was finished with Smile, I felt as though I'd really gotten to know what Telgemeier's early adolescence was like.

Buy Smile on Amazon
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