[Sponsor] Watchismo just introduced a new collection from Hamilton Watches. Hamilton's Ventura was the first electric watch in the world, introduced in 1957 and reinvented today as faithful limited edition reissues and creative mechanical reinterpretations. Vintage modern designs are now the highlight, with very limited collections of the Hamilton X-01 and X-02, first inspired by the Stanley Kubrick-commissioned timepiece for the astronauts of 2001: A Space Odyssey. Some of the best designs are the simplest, like the just introduced Hamilton Intra-Maticwatches' minimalist sixties aesthetic. See the entire Hamilton Watch Collection at Watchismo.
Mind Blowing Movies: Poltergeist (1982), by Kirk Demarais IT Crowd Rap, by Superpowerless (music video) Russian unlicensed protest fines increased 15,000 percent Virgin Mobile offers no-contract iPhone plan for US customers Water droplets + aerogel powder = superhydrophobic fun Tear-Aid Repair Tape VGA ports on skinny laptops Preliminary analysis of LinkedIn user passwords Proposed "Do Not Track" specification actually mandates otherwise Amped: Daniel Wilson's followup to Robopocalypse is a wild ride through the Singularity's civil war Dead catcopter in flight School punishes children for family cheering at graduation Golf cart stolen Congratulations on completing the progam Sponsor Shout-Out: Watchismo East London variety show returns Jun 14 Print your own MAPO stickers, declare your goods to be of bespoke Disney manufacture MST3K robots in Lego Ray Bradbury at NASA JPL, 1971, reading his poem "If Only We Had Taller Been" (video) Space Shuttle Enterprise floats to a new home: New York's Intrepid Sea Air and Space Museum (photos) Solar Impulse plane lands, completing world's first intercontinental flight powered by the sun (photos) This is what a colon-stapler looks like Kickstart a free reading and pronunciation game Picturesque Austrian town secretly cloned in China Ewok/wookiee dresses made to order Mind Blowing Movies: El Topo (1970), by Antero Alli Why you should keep a tampon or two in your survival kit Patient-abusing doctor reacts to growing awareness of own career's imminent end Airlines have never been a great business Cod hat Mind Blowing Movies: Poltergeist (1982), by Kirk Demarais
By Kirk Demarais on Jun 07, 2012 01:00 pm This week, Boing Boing is presenting a series of essays about movies that have had a profound effect on our invited essayists. See all the essays in the Mind Blowing Movies series here. -- Mark Mind Blowing Movies: Poltergeist (1982), by Kirk Demarais [Video Link] It's a shame that movie laughs and thrills don't have ...
Read in browser IT Crowd Rap, by Superpowerless (music video)
By Xeni Jardin on Jun 07, 2012 12:19 pm [Video Link] A parody of the theme song from The IT Crowd (a fantastic BBC Channel 4 TV series which you can buy here). "This is a collaboration between Superpowerless, Sparkles* (From Area 11), MC Wreckshin, B-TYPE and Happi." (thanks, Tara McGinley!)
Read in browser Russian unlicensed protest fines increased 15,000 percent
By Cory Doctorow on Jun 07, 2012 12:18 pm In Russia, where there have been many outbreaks of protest since Vladimir Putin and his cronies stole won another election, the fine for protesting without a permit has been increased 15,000 percent to 300,000 Rubles. The 2010 average wage was 21,192 Rubles/month. How very Quebec-eqsue.
Read in browser Virgin Mobile offers no-contract iPhone plan for US customers
By Xeni Jardin on Jun 07, 2012 11:57 am Virgin Mobile USA, which operates as a sort of sub-brand of Sprint in the United States, today announced plans to begin selling the iPhone on June 29 with pre-paid, no-contract voice and data service starting at $30 per month. The no-strings-attached connectivity comes at a higher hardware price: iPhone 4S at 16GB is $649, and ...
Read in browser Water droplets + aerogel powder = superhydrophobic fun
By Cory Doctorow on Jun 07, 2012 11:55 am This 2010 video demonstrates the wonderful and intriguing behavior exhibited by water when it is dripped on paper that is coated with "superhydrophobic" aerogel powder. The water forms tiny marbles and races around like it's on a griddle. This looks like it would be a lot of fun to try in person, possibly with some ...
Read in browser Tear-Aid Repair Tape
By Cool Tools on Jun 07, 2012 11:25 am Tear-Aid is watertight and airtight adhesive repair tape marketed for use in repairing outdoor products. I first found it when I was looking at options for repairing a tear in a self-inflating sleeping pad and read a recommendation of Tear-Aid from a former bouncy-castle operator. That real-world endorsement was enough to get me to try ...
Read in browser VGA ports on skinny laptops
By Rob Beschizza on Jun 07, 2012 11:04 am John Gruber points out three skinny laptops announced today still come with thick, chunky VGA ports: vestigial curiosities, given that you can hardly buy projectors and monitors these days without getting adapters thrown in free. Industrial designers seem shackled to spec-sheets, to boilerplate corporate RFPs which will mandate them for all time. My favorite example ...
Read in browser Preliminary analysis of LinkedIn user passwords
By Cory Doctorow on Jun 07, 2012 10:07 am As you've no doubt heard, a large tranche of hashed LinkedIn passwords has been leaked onto the net. There's no known way to turn the hash of a password back into the password itself, but you can make guesses about passwords, hash the guesses, and see if the hashed guess matches anything in the leaked ...
Read in browser Proposed "Do Not Track" specification actually mandates otherwise
By Rob Beschizza on Jun 07, 2012 10:04 am The ostensibly pro-consumer "Do Not Track" specification under development now mandates that it be an "opt-in" feature. Ryan Singel at Ars Technica: The latest proposed draft of the Do Not Track specification published Wednesday requires that users must choose to turn on the anti-behavioral tracking feature in their browsers and software. That means that Microsoft ...
Read in browser Amped: Daniel Wilson's followup to Robopocalypse is a wild ride through the Singularity's civil war
By Cory Doctorow on Jun 07, 2012 09:08 am Daniel Wilson's latest novel is Amped, a post-apocalyptic high-tech apocalypse cast in the same mold as his spectacular debut novel, Robopocalypse. Wilson is a roboticist by trade, and he combines his background in science and engineering with a knack for fast-paced narrative. Amped begins on the day that the Supreme Court rules that "Amps" -- ...
Read in browser Dead catcopter in flight
By Rob Beschizza on Jun 07, 2012 09:04 am Good morning. Here is a high-quality photograph of the taxidermy catcopter Xeni posted video of yesterday. [Cris Toala Olivares / Reuters]
Read in browser School punishes children for family cheering at graduation
By Rob Beschizza on Jun 07, 2012 08:54 am Dan Sewell writes: "A suburban Cincinnati high school held onto four graduates' diplomas and required community service as punishment for what it describes as overly boisterous cheering by their families during the graduation ceremony." [AP]
Read in browser Golf cart stolen
By Rob Beschizza on Jun 07, 2012 08:52 am A Pennsylvania groom and his best man were pulled over by police Saturday while trying to drive to their hotel in a stolen golf cart. Michael Mitchko and Ian Hopkins, both 27, were cited for numerous offenses, but the golf club decided not to press charges. [Triblive.com]
Read in browser Congratulations on completing the progam
By Rob Beschizza on Jun 07, 2012 08:23 am A batch of high school diplomas from Upper Marlboro, Maryland, must be reprinted, because they all contained a misspelling of the word "program". [Jenni Pompi and John Davisson / Patch]
Read in browser Sponsor Shout-Out: Watchismo
By Rob Beschizza on Jun 07, 2012 08:16 am Our thanks go to Watchismo for sponsoring Boing Boing Blast, our once-daily delivery of headlines by email. Watchismo just introduced a new collection from Hamilton Watches. Hamilton's Ventura was the first electric watch in the world, introduced in 1957 and reinvented today as faithful limited edition reissues and creative mechanical reinterpretations. Vintage modern designs are ...
Read in browser East London variety show returns Jun 14
By Cory Doctorow on Jun 07, 2012 07:13 am Juggling happy mutant Mat Ricardo is putting on another one of his glorious east London variety shows! He writes, Mat Ricardo's London Varieties is back - and we only have two more London shows this year! Next one is June 14th - that's NEXT THURSDAY - and it's a cracker of a line-up. Former world ...
Read in browser Print your own MAPO stickers, declare your goods to be of bespoke Disney manufacture
By Cory Doctorow on Jun 06, 2012 11:48 pm FoxxFur at Passport to Dreams Old and New has created a PDF template for printing out your own MAPO stickers. MAPO (MAry POppins) is the Disney division responsible for fabricating many of the limited and one-off mechanisms and infrastructural gubbins that make up the Disney Parks' underpinnings, and each of their products ships with a ...
Read in browser MST3K robots in Lego
By Cory Doctorow on Jun 06, 2012 10:41 pm From 2009, an unsourced, but delightful re-creation of MST3K's Crow T Robot and Tom Servo, executed in Lego. LEGO Crow and Tom Servo. (via Wil Wheaton) Update: Christopher Doyle is the Legobots' creator; more photos here.
Read in browser Ray Bradbury at NASA JPL, 1971, reading his poem "If Only We Had Taller Been" (video)
By Xeni Jardin on Jun 06, 2012 10:24 pm [Video Link] A beautiful video from NASA JPL honoring Ray Bradbury, who died Tuesday, June 5 2012 at 91. Through the years, Ray Bradbury attended several major space mission events at JPL/Caltech. On Nov. 12, 1971, on the eve of Mariner 9 going into orbit at Mars, Bradbury took part in a symposium at Caltech ...
Read in browser Space Shuttle Enterprise floats to a new home: New York's Intrepid Sea Air and Space Museum (photos)
By Xeni Jardin on Jun 06, 2012 10:10 pm Photo: C.S. MUNCY The Space Shuttle Enterprise (OV-101) floated to its "retirement home" today, Wednesday June 6, 2012: the Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum in New York City. The museum's Space Shuttle Pavillion will open on July 19. The arrival of Enterprise was planned for 24 hours earlier, but weather delayed. During its voyage ...
Read in browser Solar Impulse plane lands, completing world's first intercontinental flight powered by the sun (photos)
By Xeni Jardin on Jun 06, 2012 09:53 pm Photo: REUTERS/Youssef Boudlal The Solar Impulse plane project president and pilot Bertrand Piccard lands after a 19-hour flight from Madrid at Rabat's International airport, June 5, 2012. The plane landed in Morocco on Tuesday, completing the world's first intercontinental flight powered by the sun to show the potential for pollution-free air travel. More about the ...
Read in browser This is what a colon-stapler looks like
By Cory Doctorow on Jun 06, 2012 09:38 pm I subscribe to Medgadget's RSS feed because it's a universe of gadgets I would never see otherwise, and these gadgets have names and functions that alternately mystify and send shivers up the spine. Case in point, this "Radial Reload Colon Cutter/Stapler." Endo GIA Radial Reload with Tri Staple Technology side1 Covidiens Endo GIA Radial Reload ...
Read in browser Kickstart a free reading and pronunciation game
By Cory Doctorow on Jun 06, 2012 09:06 pm James Salsman sez, "I've been working for decades on a free speech recognition-based game to teach English reading and pronunciation, and this year it is going to happen, thanks to Google's Summer of Code and the One Laptop Per Child contributors' program. But to make it really useful (and on as many mobile devices as ...
Read in browser Picturesque Austrian town secretly cloned in China
By Cory Doctorow on Jun 06, 2012 09:00 pm A Chinese property developer called Minmetals Land Inc secretly built a copy of a picturesque Austrian village called Hallstatt, building it in Guangdong province, the white-hot center of the Chinese manufacturing revolution, on a site 60km from Hong Kong. The Austrians are both proud and miffed, though the argument that ancient designs of buildings, or ...
Read in browser Ewok/wookiee dresses made to order
By Cory Doctorow on Jun 06, 2012 08:24 pm For $150, Etsy seller Nerdalertdesigns will whip you up one of her clever, furry Ewok/Wookiee dresses (you wear it with the bandolier for Wookiee, with a cute hat for Ewok). with this purchase, you will receive one fuzzy vintage cut dress and one pair of matching shoe covers. you will also receive the accessories to ...
Read in browser Mind Blowing Movies: El Topo (1970), by Antero Alli
By Antero Alli on Jun 06, 2012 08:00 pm This week, Boing Boing is presenting a series of essays about movies that have had a profound effect on our invited essayists. See all the essays in the Mind Blowing Movies series here. -- Mark Mind Blowing Movies: El Topo (1970), by Antero Alli [Video Link] The first film to truly blow my mind was ...
Read in browser Why you should keep a tampon or two in your survival kit
By Cory Doctorow on Jun 06, 2012 07:18 pm The Art of Manliness makes a good case for carrying tampons in your camping/survival kit, with ten woodlands uses for them, ranging from sterile field dressing to kindling to blowgun-dart fletching. They call it "Tactical Adventure Medical Preparedness Outdoors Necessity (T.A.M.P.O.N.)." Yes, I have a tampon in my mouth — don't laugh! As a last ...
Read in browser Patient-abusing doctor reacts to growing awareness of own career's imminent end
By Rob Beschizza on Jun 06, 2012 07:17 pm In this hidden-camera investigation by Striscia, a doctor or therapist is filmed sexually molesting a patient. When later confronted by a journalist, he is at first accommodating. Then it begins to dawn on him that his career, and life as a free man, is about to end. Then, all fail breaks loose. [Liveleak via Reddit ...
Read in browser Airlines have never been a great business
By Maggie Koerth-Baker on Jun 06, 2012 06:46 pm Domestic airlines in the United States are failing financially. Fine. Sure. We knew that. But here's the kicker: They've been financially failing for 40 years, almost the entire time they've been popular. And that? Is fascinating. Back at the turn of the 20th century, a lot of the first electric utilities and long-distance railroad companies ...
Read in browser Cod hat
By Maggie Koerth-Baker on Jun 06, 2012 06:35 pm Check out this cod piece. Author William Gibson found it in Masset, BC, Canada. The head of a 145-pound cod, meant to be worn as a great helm. Nothing intimidates your enemies quite like wearing the head of a fish on your head. EDIT: Mr. Gibson emailed to say that the photo comes from a ...
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