Every calendar's days are numbered.
Life is lighter than a feather, duty heavier than a mountain. - Robert Jordan, (The Great Hunt, Book 2 of The Wheel of Time) My great mistake, the fault for which I can't forgive myself, is that one day I ceased my obstinate pursuit of my own individuality. - Oscar Wilde (1854 - 1900) if water is not intoxicating for u! Live in the sunshine, swim the sea, drink the wild air… - Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803 - 1882) Weather means more when you have a garden. There's nothing like listening to a shower and thinking how it is soaking in around your green beans. - Marcelene Cox If A equals success, then the formula is: A = X + Y + Z, X is work. Y is play. Z is keep your mouth shut. - Albert Einstein robots are here Ask and you shall Receive! The right half of the brain controls the left half of the body. This means that only left handed people are in their right mind. - Anonymous Instant Human - Just Add Coffee. A penny will hide the biggest star in the Universe if you hold it close enough to your eye. -Samuel Grafton I think it's wrong that only one company makes the game Monopoly. - Steven Wright (b. 1955) - American comedian, actor. Do you think that when they asked George Washington for ID that he just whipped out a quarter? - Stephen Wright The New England Journal of Medicine reports that 9 out of 10 doctors agree that 1 out of 10 doctors is an idiot. - Jay Leno CIRCUS, n. A place where horses, ponies and elephants are permitted to see men, women and children acting the fool. - Ambrose Bierce (1842 - 1914), The Devil's Dictionary The brain is a wonderful organ. It starts working when you get up in the morning, and doesn't stop until you get to the office. - Robert Frost (1874 - 1963) - American poet. Winner of 4 Pulitzer prizes. mind your email are you gulped yet? April 30, 2005 in Humor | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
April 29, 2005
Magic Feathers by James W. Reid
This lavishly illustrated large-format art book by James Reid - is the first major publication in the world devoted entirely to this magnificent ancient art form. It focuses on the aesthetic beauty of the feather textiles and three-dimensional objects, unparalleled in their artistry and sophistication, that were created for the elite of the ancient Andean world between approximately 500 BC and 1550 AD.
Son of a British Army Officer and UN diplomat, and of an American mother, James Reid was educated at England’s 600 year old Winchester College, at Princeton (BA), the Ecole de Sciences Politiques ( Paris), Stanford (MA), and with doctoral studies at the University of Buenos Aires.
The author, internationally recognised as one of the leading authors and scholars on the textile art of ancient America, focuses on:
- The characteristics and chronology of the major featherwork-producing cultures of ancient Peru, and the geographical features of the area.
- Technical facets of feather textile production, including: sources of the feathers; different types of feather objects; creation and construction; dating and cultural attribution.
- The religious, political, social, psychological, economic and communication roles of the feather textiles in ancient Peruvian life.
- Design concepts and the meaning and importance of the motifs and shapes employed.
- The parallels to be drawn between ancient Peruvian feather textiles and Modern Art.
He is the author of eleven major books, which contain introductions by HRH Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, Mario Vargas Llosa and such internationally renowned archaeologists as Federico Kauffmann-Doig. He has presented his books personally, in official ceremonies, to the Presidents of Brazil and Peru.
In addition to numerous other publications( scholarly articles and museum catalogues, et al.,), he has been guest lecturer at US universities ( Princeton, Yale, Syracuse), and such institutions as the Americas’ Society, New York; the Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto; the Israel Museum, Jerusalem , and numerous South American institutions. He was recently invited by Germain Viatte, Directeur du Musee du quai Branly – French President Chirac’s huge new museum, ten years in construction( due to open in 2006) – to lecture in Paris, and to author a 100 page catalogue.
A linguist in seven languages, Colonel Reid is an elected member of New York’s prestigious Explorers Club as the result of his expeditions to, and accounts of remote areas of the world. An artist who studied in Paris, he has exhibited his paintings internationally – primarily in France, the US and South America.
An excellent Feather book though not so feather-weight (11 pounds)
April 29, 2005 in Art, Books, Columnists, History, Travel | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBack
April 28, 2005
Andy Borowitz: identity theft shocker
IDENTITY THIEF RETURNS IDENTITIES DEEMED WORTHLESS by Andy Borowitz
'Losers,' Fumes Angry Hacker
An identity thief who has stolen over half a million identities over the past two years returned all but four of them today, declaring the identities "totally worthless" and "an enormous waste of my time and hard work."
The computer hacker, who spoke to reporters via conference call today, said that "in all my years of stealing identities, I have never come across a bigger collection of losers."
He said that he had spent months hacking through the security firewall of one of the nation's largest financial institutions, hoping to reap billions of dollars for his efforts, but after sifting through the stolen identities he found that they were "little more than a garbage dump of unpaid college loans and overdue Blockbuster bills."
"Everybody's running around worried about identity theft these days," he added. "All I can say is, don't flatter yourself by thinking you have an identity that's worth my time."
In San Diego, at the annual convention of the National Association of Hackers and Identity Thieves, some of the nation's most prominent cyberthieves complained about what they called a serious decline in the number of identities worth stealing.
They called out for financial institutions to institute measures that would warn or "tag" particularly worthless identities, enabling hackers to focus their energies elsewhere.
"You go through these so-called identities, and you realize there are millions of Americans out there who literally have no life," said one identity thief in attendance. "No wonder the Star Wars movies do so well."
Elsewhere, the Labor Department reported that unemployment surged by 300,000 this month but attributed the increase to lawyers fired by Michael Jackson.
April 28, 2005 in Columnists, Humor | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack
April 27, 2005
Dancer's Journal, A
From your seat in the front row, you can enjoy a performance of "Appalachian Spring," choreographed by Martha Graham, the founder of modern dance. But this Flash site offers more than a front-row seat -- it gives you a backstage pass to the preparation required to mount a modern dance production. This interactive exhibit chronicles the pre-performance world of dancers in the Martha Graham Dance Company, the oldest modern dance company in the world. Open the locker of Jordy Kandinsky, the company's "newest member," and you've got access to her journals, filled with annotated programs, notes, memos, and background material. But most impressive of all, you can watch and listen as members of the company, including Martha Graham herself, perform. Take your seat; the orchestra is about to warm up.
April 27, 2005 in Art | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
April 26, 2005
Art In Cities
Never mind what's hanging on the walls of the Prado or Met. How about that sticker on a lamppost in Stockholm, wall mural in Cape Town, or luminescent graffiti in San Francisco? For a real dose of global artistic zeitgeist, the funky designs adorning public and private property on metropolitan streets could be as illuminating as a visit to the MOMA. At least, that's the theory behind the Galerie De Meerse's -- Hoofddorp's (Amsterdam) "Art in..." series, an annual project exploring subcultural artistic _expression. From Tehran to Jerusalem, Sao Paulo to Lima, New York City to Salt Lake City, attempts to keep artistic malcontents coloring within the lines loses out to the world-as-canvas ethic. So check it out; for some, art in Paris doesn't just mean the Louvre anymore.
April 26, 2005 in Art | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack
April 25, 2005
Bathtub Art Museum
You won't find bathtubs festooned with Mona Lisas or poker playing dogs on this site --just a tubful of
pictures of the bathroom fixture, most printed on postcards. If
cats in a clawfoot, a
toad in a tub, a
babe in the bath, and a
shopper soaking aren't enough to wash away your cares, take a look at the
dumb laws about bathtubs. (If you live in Arizona, don't let your donkey sleep in your tub. You could end up in the slammer.) This site is just bubbling over with helpful
tub tidbits,
handmade postcards, and personal reminiscences of
bathtub races. And if you're wondering why tubs, Curator Carye Bye
comes clean about her obsession with pictures of bathtubs.
April 25, 2005 in Art, Humor | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBack
April 24, 2005
CocktailDB
With its clean, effective design and its thousands of recipes, CocktailDB is a tremendously fun resource for tipplers of all stripes. The site's plentiful photographs and exhaustive collection of essential barware make this much more than a searchable recipe archive. Armchair bartenders can browse by drink type, ingredients, and all manner of specifications. No idea what to do with that bottle of crème de cassis? Try any of 56 recipes containing this black currant-flavored liqueur. You're free to find just the right julep or hunt down the appropriate member of the prolific Daiquiri family. The Top Ten Drink Choices confirms that the dreaded Apple Martini refuses to loosen its grip on the country, but also offers some hope in the intriguing Monkey Gland. Finally, submit to the Mixilator to receive supercomputer-crunched cocktail-mixing instructions: "Shake violently with hoar frost and look of intense concentration."
April 24, 2005 in Food and Drink | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack
April 23, 2005
Vendee Globe
It's been called "the Everest of the sea," although that may seem like an understatement. A single-handed sailing race around the globe, without stops, without assistance. On November 7, 20 navigators set out on 20 single-hulls, in a race that will last more than 100 days and cross over 24,000 miles of open sea. Trace their route from France to the Cape of Good Hope, eastward to Cape Horn, and northward to the finish line. Onboard, the skippers capture their experiences on video, watch for changes in the weather, and plan their strategy for the win. You're invited to share their adventure and challenges as they try to conquer this watery Everest.
April 23, 2005 in Fun, Games | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
April 22, 2005
American Garden Museum
Some of us just love the smell of fresh compost and the feel of soil beneath our nails. And some of us don't. Regardless of which side of the
fence you're on, you'll be inspired by the American Garden Museum. Take a virtual stroll through some of the country's most beautiful gardens. Swing open the
gate and follow the
path to gardens
large and small, public and private. And when you're ready to create your own bit of paradise, the guide to the botanicals offers descriptions of 100 common and heritage species from
African daisies to
woodland ferns. You're even welcome to
submit pictures of your Eden for inclusion in the "growing" archives.
April 22, 2005 in Art, Fun, Info | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack
April 21, 2005
YaGoohoo!gle
The ultimate search engine: YaGoohoo!gle.
April 21, 2005 in Web/Tech | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBack
April 20, 2005
Coworkers Judged by iTunes Playlists
Office workers who share music via Apple Computer's iTunes software track their coworkers' comings and goings and form opinions about them based on their playlists.
The opinions are not always what the sharer intended, a new study finds.
The sharing phenomenon can nonetheless create a community of sorts among coworkers who otherwise barely know each other.
The study, of an unnamed mid-sized U.S. company, was funded in part by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST).
"People sharing music in our study were aware of the comings and goings of others in the office because they noticed the appearance and disappearance of others’ music on the network," said Amy Voida, a Ph.D. student at Georgia Tech who led the research. "They imagined what other people might think about their music collections, and they were aware of the musical holes left when someone left the company."
Continue reading ...
April 20, 2005 in Music, Web/Tech | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack
April 19, 2005
A tiny robot swarm - fiction no longer
The cartoon superheroes were frustrated. They confronted a menacing robot that quickly repaired any damage they inflicted. It was made up of a swarm of microscopic robots - so-called nanobots - that could change its function and shape at will. Suddenly the swarm became fluid and flowed away.
That cartoon scenario may seem entertaining. But the reality is startling. Engineers at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration want to pull off a similar trick. They are testing a robot that they hope to shrink to nanobot size and eventually form what NASA calls "autonomous nanotechnology swarms" (ANTS). The researchers aim to give ANTS enough artificial intelligence to make smart decisions as well as know intuitively when and how to walk and swarm.
Continue reading ...
April 19, 2005 in Tech/Science | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
April 18, 2005
Fully automated robotic parking garage.
Fully automated robotic parking garage.
The way it works is, a driver pulls in and drives onto a parking tray. The machinery does the rest.
"You get out of your car," said [developer Danny] Bivens. "It'll scan your car to make sure there's no dog in there or baby or husband."
The tray rises into the structure like an elevator and shifts the tray into an empty spot, returning with another tray.
"It slides them like an electronic Rubik's cube," said Bivens.
When the resident is ready for the car, a handheld device can be scanned in the elevator on the way down. The car will be waiting.
April 18, 2005 in Tech/Science | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBack
April 17, 2005
Robotic camel riders are ready to race
Camel racing is to be transformed as a spectator sport in the United Arab Emirates with robot riders taking the place of child jockeys.
The remotely operated riders were developed following a ban on the use of jockeys under 16 years of age, imposed by the UAE Camel Racing Association in March 2004.
Camel racing is a lucrative sport with a long tradition among Bedouin Arabs. But human rights groups have linked it to the kidnap and mistreatment of children as young as four years old. Riders have traditionally been younger than 16 years-old and weighed less than 45 kg (7 stone).
Continue reading...
April 17, 2005 in Tech/Science | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack
MIT graduate student writes 'fake research paper generator'
Student submits sample fake paper to Computer Science conference. Paper gets accepted. Now you too can try it for yourself.
April 17, 2005 in Humor | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBack