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Updated 2024-11-25 09:32
Hedge fund managers' sports car ownership predicts their unwise risk-taking
In "Sensation Seeking, Sports Cars, and Hedge Funds" Three business school researchers analyze a huge data-set of previous and current hedge-funds that have been hand-matched with the vehicle-ownership records of the funds' managers and analyze the data to see if the ownership of a "performance car" correlates with a hedge fund manager's willingness to take risks, and whether those risks pay off. (more…)
Atomic Age ladies of a certain age posing by Christmas trees
Aluminum, mylar, and space-age plastics await you as you take a trip through Christmases past with 43 prime examples of middle aged women posing by their mid-20th century Christmas trees. Apparently, either a dog or a drink was a required accessory. Crème de menthe, anyone? (more…)
This Bach chorale composed by machine learning is pretty good
Gaetan Hadjeres and Francois Pachet at the Sony Computer Science Laboratories in Paris created DeepBach, then entered Bach's 352 chorales. The resulting composition is certainly in the style. So why does this work better than some other attempts? (more…)
Celebrate Apollo 17’s 44th anniversary with this footage of astronauts singing on the Moon
Apollo 17—the last manned mission to the Moon—landed on the lunar surface on December 19, 1972. To celebrate, here’s some delightful footage of astronauts Eugene A. Cernan and Harrison “Jack” Schmitt singing as they hop around the Moon.
It turns out classical musicians were basically rock stars
In this new episode of the Cracked series “Everything Boring Is Awesome,” the show digs into the secretly insane, raucous world of classical music.
Artist uses small objects to create whimsical designs
Desirée De León is a Neuroscience PhD student and artist who shares these gorgeous minimalist designs on her Instagram. León selects a small everyday object and then designs a playful drawing around it. Dubbed “100 Days Of Tiny Things,” the project is a delightful blend of simplicity and whimsy.https://www.instagram.com/p/BNNTWsohs87/?taken-by=dcossylehttps://www.instagram.com/p/BMmQluDDy-n/?taken-by=dcossylehttps://www.instagram.com/p/BLCB5spjJ8O/?taken-by=dcossylehttps://www.instagram.com/p/BHqQOp4BBpf/?taken-by=dcossylehttps://www.instagram.com/p/BHcTpTRBq23/?taken-by=dcossylehttps://www.instagram.com/p/BHBDteHBLwz/?taken-by=dcossylehttps://www.instagram.com/p/BGN5E-Sm6wQ/?taken-by=dcossylehttps://www.instagram.com/p/4aLjV0G63y/?taken-by=dcossylehttps://www.instagram.com/p/BFAQ1uZm60_/?taken-by=dcossylehttps://www.instagram.com/p/4nOxyHm6wu/?taken-by=dcossylehttps://www.instagram.com/p/2MOQCLG66k/?taken-by=dcossyleYou can see even more designs on León's Instagram.[via My Modern Met]
Here’s a kitten wearing a top hat
Lookin’ classy.[via Tumblr]
New flying robots inspired by creatures of the skies
Biomimickry continues to improve and refine specialized drones and flying robots. Mindy Weisberger at LiveScience dives into an issue of The Royal Society's journal Interface Focus on coevolving advances in animal flight and aerial robotics. (more…)
A fruit bouquet may just be the perfect last minute gift
Shopping for the person who has everything (or your boss) last minute is practically impossible. Luckily, everyone loves a fruit and chocolate gift basket. Not only is it a tasty (almost healthy) respite from the winter cold, but it doubles as a festive centerpiece, which is perfect for anyone that may be hosting for the holidays. FruitBouquets.com has a variety of packages including delectable chocolate-dipped strawberries and cheerful floral arrangements to pick from.Plus, offering same-day delivery in countless locations without any rush fees, Fruit Bouquets are a welcome remedy for holiday procrastination. For a limited time, you can get $30 credit towards FruitBouquets.com for $15. Get 50% off the usual price in the Boing Boing Store.
The amazing, endless battle between rural Eastern European partisan fighters, demons, mecha, and werewolves
Jakub "Mr Werewolf" Rozalski is a prolific Polish painter whose longrunning series of painters depict rural Eastern European folk fighting against mecha warriors, werewolves, and demons. (more…)
Nick Offerman shares his misadventures in sawdust and workshop projects for all levels
I got into woodworking recently after buying my first house. I started building furniture not so much as a hobby, but because after buying a house I couldn’t afford furniture to fill it. My thinking was, why spend a couple hundred bucks at Ikea buying a wobbly table, when I could buy a couple tools off Craigslist, get some lumber, and build exactly what I want. My utilitarian need to create something I could eat dinner off of, turned into a deep respect for woodworkers. So I was excited to read Good Clean Fun: Misadventures in Sawdust at Offerman Woodshop. It combines my newfound joy of gluing wood together, and my fandom for all things Nick Offerman.If you’re not aware, Offerman is an actor, comedian, author, but throughout it all he’s been working with wood as both a hobby and way of life. While Good Clean Fun is filled with Offerman’s sense of humor, it’s very much a shop book. You will learn how to build a birdhouse whether you like it or not.Offerman sets up the book, explaining some Shop 101 tips, then he and other members of his woodshop walk you through how to build different projects. They explain how to cut, sand, join, and finish things ranging from dining chairs to a wooden kazoo. This isn’t a joke-per-page book, well it is, but it also gets very technical. So if you have no interest in sawing, drilling, or the smell of cedar, this probably isn’t going to be your book. But if you’re looking to get some sawdust in your hair (it gives your hair a je ne sais quoi) then this is a perfect book to start with.Good Clean Fun: Misadventures in Sawdust at Offerman Woodshop by Nick Offerman Dutton2016, 352 pages, 8.4 x 1 x 10.3 inches, Hardcover$25 Buy one on Amazon
Canada's telcoms regulator declares internet an "essential service"
After decades of allowing anti-competitive mergers in the TV, radio, phone and internet sectors, Canada's telcoms regulator, the CRTC, has taken an important step to address the underperformance of Canada's monopolistic, bumbling phone companies and cable operators, declaring internet access to be an "essential service" and thus something that operators must offer in all territories in which they operate. (more…)
This week in the 'bloids
What happens when the tabloids hit bottom? We find out this week, when the ‘Globe’ brings us five photo-filled pages of the “worst butts in showbiz,” along with some of the worst picture captions and most labored puns accompanying celebrity derrieres..Heidi Klum’s posterior is “frolicking at the crack of dawn,” Blac Chyna has “all the junk in that trunk,” Halle Berry’s rear “deserves a SAG award,” Amber Rose has a “caboose on the loose,” and singer Kesha needs help “to stop her wide load from expanding.”Such deathless prose is matched for ineptitude by the magazine’s far-fetched “world exclusive” cover screaming: “Charles on trial for Diana’s Murder!” and the ensuing story claiming: “Prince Charles has been arrested by military police for the murder of Princess Diana.” The ‘Globe’ reports that “a top-secret tribunal” has been convened by Charles’ mother, the Queen. It’s a great story, except for the small detail that the Queen cannot convene military tribunals, that such a tribunal would have no reason to arrest Charles on criminal charges when that’s the job of the regular police, and a 2013 Scotland Yard investigation into allegations that a member of the British Armed Forces played a role in Diana’s death failed to inspire any charges.The British Royal Family stay in the tabloid cross-hairs in the ‘National Enquirer,’ which reports that photos of actress Meghan Markle “caught topless on a beach with another man” could destroy her blossoming romance with Prince Harry and “could make Queen blow her top.” The bare-breasted photo was taken in 2005, however, 11 years before Markle met Harry, and it’s not as if we’ve never seen Royals scantily clad before. It’s been over 20 years since Sarah, Duchess of York, was photographed topless having her toes sucked by beau John Bryant. Prince Charles was snapped naked in 1994 by Paris Match, and in 2012 the Queen’s husband Prince Phillip was photographed at the Highland Games in Scotland going commando under his traditional kilt, displaying his 91-year-old crown jewels. Harry's budding Royal romance is unlikely to be ruffled by an antique holiday snap.Prince Charles shouldn’t worry too much about his alleged arrest, however - the ‘Enquirer’ gathered a panel of the world’s “top psychics” to predict the “scandals, shockers and successes” ahead in 2017, and they reliably predict that “Prince Charles will become King of England,” though they add ominously “he will only have a short reign before turning the throne over to his son Prince William.” It’s hard to argue with these psychics, who also forecast that Charlie Sheen “will join a spiritual cult,” Oprah Winfrey will run for the US Senate, and the East coast will be "rocked by an earthquake.” They also predict that “Anthony Weiner will be busted sexting underage girls again” - though you don’t need to be psychic to see that coming.The ‘Enquirer’ continues its new-found passion for political coverage, allying itself with president-elect Donald Trump’s pro-Russian stance by discussing Russia’s annexation of Crimea - almost certainly a tabloid first. Without critique, it quotes unnamed Trump administration officials suggesting that since Crimea was part of Russia since 1783 and only ceded to Ukraine in the 1950s, “the West’s response to the Crimean annex in 2014 was overblown.” Geo-political analysis at its best. Since Alaska and Hawaii only became U.S. states in 1959, does the ‘Enquirer’ think they should also revert to their original sovereignty? The “Enquirer’ cover photo of the Trump clan beneath the headline “What America Doesn’t Know,” and the story within promising “Hidden Lives of the Trumps Revealed!” fails to deliver anything more than sycophantic bromides that even the Trump White House would be embarrassed to promulgate. The magazine that routinely delves into the private lives of public figures, exposing their darkest secrets and scandals without fear of accuracy or honesty, “reveals” that Trump will “reset” America’s relationship with Russia, and that First Lady Melania Trump will launch “an unprecedented push to protect freedom of speech and a second campaign to eradicate cyberbullying.” No mention of Trump's many lawsuits, bankruptcies, sexual harassment and rape allegations, personal use of his charitable foundation’s funds, fraudulent Trump University, employment of undocumented laborers, bigotry, xenophobia, or misogyny. Donald Trump Jr will work “to spread democracy around the globe,” reports the ‘Enquirer,’ while Ivanka will “orchestrate an unprecedented building campaign that aims to construct 500,000 new affordable homes around the country.” I’m sure that will happen - when has the ‘Enquirer’ ever been wrong?Among the fact-challenged offerings from the ‘Enquirer’ this week, actress Kate Hudson is reportedly pregnant with Brad Pitt’s baby, apparently based on the irrefutable evidence that this is what “insiders think.” Insiders, no doubt meaning the blessed church bells sending angel voices floating to ‘Enquirer’ reporters on the wind. Tom Hanks is experiencing “Baby Joy at 60!" reports the ‘Enquirer,’ though on closer inspection it’s his 26-year-old son Chet whose girlfriend is expecting: the old tabloid bait-and-switch.“Nicole Kidman’s Boobs Go Bust!” reports the ‘Globe,’ quoting a plastic surgeon “who has not treated the actress,” but who has seen a recent photograph of her in a dress that made her appear with less cleavage than usual. And when she wears a different dress with a more uplifting bra next week, expect to see reports of Kidman having breast augmentation surgery to explain her revived décolletage. Fortunately we have ‘Us’ magazine’s crack team of investigative reporters to tell us that Heidi Klum wore it best (despite the ‘Globe’ deriding her “middle-age spread”), actress Emmanuelle Chriqui carries vitamins, rosewater mist spray and sunglasses in her Ampersand As Apostrophe tote, and that the stars are just like us: they jog, bicycle, decorate their Christmas trees and celebrate birthdays. Revelatory, as ever.‘Us’ devotes its cover to Prince Harry and girlfriend Meghan Markle, assuring us that “the Queen approves,” which seems surprising, considering that it took Prince William’s then-girlfriend Kate Middleton five years of dating before she even met the Queen, who isn't widely known for granting interviews to American celebrity magazines.‘People’ magazine continues the Royal theme with “The Untold Story of Queen Elizabeth,” which despite its headline tells stories with which any Royal watcher of the past 50 years will be overly familiar. The mag devotes its cover to a blockbuster Reese Witherspoon exclusive: “My Family Christmas - Kids, Cookies & Caroling.” Yes, that’s about as revealing as this exposé gets. She plans to “have a gingerbread-house day” and says of caroling: “It’s one of my favourite holiday memories from being a kid in Nashville.” I can’t conceive of what libelous allegations ‘People’ must have leveled against Witherspoon to warrant such vacuously saccharine coverage in groveling compensation.Leave it to the ‘National Examiner’ to reveal that “Neanderthals Will Walk The Earth Again!” without once referencing the coming Trump administration. “Scientists are working to bring back extinct creatures - and even early man,” it reports, recklessly extrapolating from experiments using wooly mammoth DNA spliced with modern elephant DNA to revive the ancient pachyderms. “There’s already some Neanderthal DNA in humans, of course,” the ‘Examiner’ reports. And most of it is to be found working in the editorial offices of the tabloids, I suspect.Onwards and downwards . . .
It's a Wonderful Life in Trumpville
FOLLOW @RubenBolling on the Twitters and a Face Book.JOIN Tom the Dancing Bug's subscription club, the INNER HIVE, for exclusive early access to comics, extra comics, and more. And JOIN TODAY, and a donation will be made to Doctors Without Borders. Information here. More Tom the Dancing Bug comics on Boing Boing! (more…)
Merry Mixmas: another mashed up Christmas with DJ Riko
DJ Riko writes, "Pour a glass of egg nog and break out the gingerbread -- DJ Riko is back with another Merry Mixmas (MP3)." (more…)
Listen: 1950s radio mystery prequel to Frasier
Shawn writes, "A gaggle of Chicago comedians came together to produce an authentic 1950's radio show about how Frasier's parents met while solving the murder of a young Seattle waitress. Featuring young beat cop Marty Crane and behavioral psychologist Hester Palmer, this thing's got it all: mystery, comedy, rats, operas, and a well-utilized HOLIDAY SETTING. You don't have to be a Frasier fan to enjoy it, but if you ARE, you should also know that it's faithful to all established Cheers/Frasier continuity. We even have a full list of citations, in case you don't believe us. (more…)
Chairman Mao on currency goes from sad to joyful
from sad to happyThis works with other currencies, too, but this example is spectacular.
Thailand's military-appointed Assembly unanimously passes an internet law combining the world's worst laws
On Dec 15, an amendment to Thailand's 2007 Computer Crime Act passed its National Legislative Assembly -- a body appointed by the country's military after the 2014 coup -- unanimously, and in 180 days, the country will have a new internet law that represents a grab bag of the worst provisions of the worst internet laws in the world, bits of the UK's Snooper's Charter, America's Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, and the dregs of many other failed laws. (more…)
Watch The Procedure, a NSFW 2016 Sundance short film winner
"The Procedure: A Parking Lot Kidnapping with Unexpected Consequences" is indeed unexpected. Note: you won't be able to unsee one of the more unexpected aspects of the kidnapping. (more…)
What's the provenance of the stylized S from school?
It's not from Superman. It predates the Stussy logo. Why did schoolchildren around the globe get infatuated with this stylized S? Vice takes a (kinda shallow) dive into the provenance of the stylized S. (more…)
Free audiobook of Car Wars, my self-driving car/crypto back-door apocalypse story
Last month, Melbourne's Deakin University published Car Wars, a short story I wrote to inspire thinking and discussion about the engineering ethics questions in self-driving car design, moving beyond the trite and largely irrelevant trolley problem. (more…)
2016's best pooping-related gift guide
In a holiday season dominated by generalist gift guides (our own among the best) I wanted to add something different to the mix: a deep-dive roundup of a particular class of product. So I asked myself: of all the stuff I've gotten hold of this year, what tech trend actually improved my life? To borrow the infamous minimalist adage: what brought me joy in this most maximally unpleasant of years?The answer is, of course, the explosion of lavatorial products related to making bodily functions more fun than ever. It is with this in mind that I proudly present The Art of Shitting, your ultimate last-minute gift guide. Everything, but for a few rather obvious picks, I have put to personal use--not just the revelatory and utterly mandatory Squatty Potty (previously) that you must buy right now if you have not already done so. Exceptions: I bought the Luggable Loo by accident in a hurry thinking it was a 10 gallon bucket. I have used it to tie-dye clothes, but not (yet) for its ostensible purpose. Nor have I bought an $800 toilet brush. Nor have I bought a $17,000 Merovingian poop throne.The page is pure HTML/CSS too, running on UpDog, the best of the free static-page services I tried. See, you can make classy websites without javascript!The Art of Shitting
This parrot is really good at singing Sia’s “Chandelier”
To be honest, this parrot has a way better singing voice than I do.
Uber's VAT-avoidance means it owes millions to EU states and will face huge cuts to future EU profits
The 2015 UK Employment Tribunal case that determined that Uber drivers were employees means that Uber will have to give the UK government 16.67% of its drivers' earnings for Value-Added Tax, going back four or more years (that would be £20 for 2015 alone); and the ruling will likely apply to Uber's EU-wide rules (because VAT rules are harmonized across the EU) -- so not only does Uber owe hundreds of millions to EU governments for the past 4+ years' earnings, but it will face a 16.67% (or more) reduction to all future earnings. (more…)
Companies' self-devouring buyback spree is finally slowing down
Stock buybacks are the preferred form of financial engineering in corporate America, through which companies borrow like crazy and give the money to their shareholders, artificially increasing their earnings-per-share ratio, massively reducing real economic growth, while enriching a tiny number of already-wealthy investors: but buybacks may finally be coming to an end. (more…)
Ikea to teenagers: stop hiding in closets until closing and then having illegal "sleepovers" in our stores
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mFLLIngIKV8After a pair of Belgian teenagers made a viral sensation with a Youtube video documenting their unauthorized sleepover in an Ikea store, at least 10 other sets of teens have tried to repeat the stunt: now, Ikea is putting the world's teens on notice that they will press charges if they catch you trying it. (more…)
Court rules against UK government's surveillance legislation
A European court has ruled that the UK cannot subject its citizens to indiscriminate data collection unless the data retained is being used solely to fight serious crime, reports the BBC.The verdict concerns an earlier incarnation of Britain's blanket domestic surveillance plans brought to court by opponensts. It does not specifically address the recently-passed "Snooper's Charter," though experts say it will lead directly to a legal challenge against it. The charter, officially known as the Investigatory Powers Act, requires phone companies and internet providers to maintain records of users' online activity for a year.One irony of it is that an original champion of the challenge, David Davis, is now Britain's Brexit chief: he left the case after a change of personal circumstances led to a sharp change in his principles regarding privacy. Mr Davis, who had long campaigned on civil liberties issues, left the case after Theresa May appointed him to her cabinet in July.Tom Watson, Labour's deputy leader, who is one of those bringing the case, said: "This ruling shows it's counter-productive to rush new laws through Parliament without a proper scrutiny."The Home Office said it would be putting forward "robust arguments" to the Court of Appeal.
Europe's top court says UK surveillance rules are unconstitutional
Last July, the European Court of Jutice's Advocate General ruled that the UK's mass surveillance regime was unconstitutional, triggering an appeal to the ECJ itself, which has affirmed that under European law, governments cannot order retention of all communications data; they must inform subjects after surveillance has concluded; must only engage in mass surveillance in the pursuit of serious crime; and must get independent, judicial authorization. (more…)
Dogs "quite tiddly" on Advocaat
Martha and Oscar, two spaniels, required a trip to the vet to make sure they were OK after lapping up a bottle of Advocaat. The slimy booze was knocked over by Brecon (middle), a third dog, who did not drink any.The BBC reports that Martha was observed "staggering and swaying" in her home in Gatesehead, England.The pooches were taken to Prince Bishop Veterinary Hospital in Consett where vet Emma Hindson induced vomiting before feeding them activated charcoal to absorb the remaining alcohol.Dr Hindson said: "Alcohol affects pets in the same way it does humans, so Oscar and Martha were quite tiddly when they arrived."This was an unfortunate accident and their owner did the right thing by bringing them in immediately for treatment. Her responsible action meant everything turned out fine and they could go home."It was the second case of drunk dogs the veterinary practice had seen this festive season after two Labradors were found drinking red wine.PHOTO: PRINCE BISHOP VETERINARY HOSPITAL
These Marvel-themed fireplace videos are both odd and oddly soothing
Just in time for the holidays, Marvel released a set of 10 different hour-long fireplace videos. So if you don’t have an actual hearth, you can cozy up next to a virtual one owned by Captain America, Iron Man, Ms. Marvel, Thor, or the Guardians of the Galaxy (or a close-up shot of each of those locales). Cap's Brooklyn apartment is above and here's Iron Man's Manhattan penthouse:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l1cy7PnhsEgThe Guardians’ futuristic fireplace even comes complete with a dancing Baby Groot:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WfnloLPcB4EYou can find the rest of the fireplace videos on the Marvel Entertainment YouTube page.[via The Verge]
Newspaper corrections of the year for 2016
Poynter collects the wildest journalistic corrections of the past year. Among the best, here's one from the New York Times.Because of an editing error, an article on Monday about a theological battle being fought by Muslim imams and scholars in the West against the Islamic State misstated the Snapchat handle used by Suhaib Webb, one of the Muslim leaders speaking out. It is imamsuhaibwebb, not Pimpin4Paradise786.Times corrections are often clever and succinct works of journalism in their own right. But most "corrections" are just the consequences of humorous typos, math errors, jumbled names, etc.What's great about it all, though, is how pretty much everything in the corrections roundup is so trivial. Good to know the media's been correct of late on all the big things.Here's Boulder, Colorados' Daily CameraEDITOR'S NOTE: Comments attributed to a Trump campaign spokeswoman were removed from an earlier version of this story at her request after she learned she would be identified by name.
Offbeat web series “Stage Dad” casts a satirical eye on child actors
Written by and starring Alex Jacobs and Brendan Scannell, Stage Dad is a six-part web series about a father/son duo trying to make it in Hollywood “despite a complete lack of skill or common sense.” The series is both delightfully bizarre and, at times, weirdly touching.https://vimeo.com/186518410https://vimeo.com/186518220You can find the rest of the Stage Dad episodes on Vimeo.
Kumail Nanjiani tweets about Rogue One and the importance of representation
In this spoiler-free Twitter thread, comedian and Silicon Valley star Kumail Nanjiani explains why Rogue One's diverse cast—and especially fellow Pakistani actor Riz Ahmed—meant so much to him:https://twitter.com/kumailn/status/809821097474461696https://twitter.com/kumailn/status/809822523000881152https://twitter.com/kumailn/status/809823623909285888
Get this motion-activated toilet night light for just $14.99
Turning on the light makes it almost impossible to get back to sleep after a late-night trip to the bathroom. The close-only-one-eye trick almost works, but you’ll be hard-pressed to teach that to a potty-training child.The IllumiBowl 2.0 solves this annoying problem by turning your toilet into a motion-sensitive night light. To install, simply stick it to the side of the bowl with its suction cups. Powered by 3 AAA batteries, IllumiBowl shines in your color of choice and includes 3 levels of brightness. Bring some glowing flair to the lavatory with brilliant light-cycling patterns. This useful and amusing bathroom accessory has temporarily dropped 25% in price to just $14.99. It retails for $19.99, so pick up your discounted toilet light.
How one guy lost millions of dollars of bitcoin to a hacker
A hacker called up T-Mobile and convinced the customer service representative that he was Jared Kenna. T-Mobile believed the hacker and transferred Kenna's phone number from T-Mobile to another carrier. Once the hacker had Kenna's phone number he took over about 30 of Kenna's accounts, which had been protected with 2-factor authentication. The accounts included "two banks, PayPal, two bitcoin services — and, crucially, his Windows account, which was the key to his PC." In short order the hacker stole "millions" of dollars worth of Kenna's bitcoin.From Laura Shin's article in Forbes:Kenna was so early in bitcoin that he remembers when he would plug his computer into the network and see only four other computers running it. Now, there are more than 5,000. Computers supporting the network are slated into a competition to win bitcoin roughly every 10 minutes. In the early days, the payout was 50 bitcoin each time; now it’s 12.5. Kenna recalls that at a certain point, when he was “only” winning 50 bitcoins a day, he stopped supporting the network, thinking it wasn’t worth it. At today’s price, he was giving up on $40,000 a day.Though he did have some bitcoins in online services, particularly since his businesses accept bitcoin as payment, he kept almost all his bitcoins on an encrypted hard drive. “It was essentially my never-sell-this-until-it-goes-to-a-billion-dollars nest egg,” he says. He had kept it offline for most of the past several years, but had connected that device in recent weeks to move them somewhere more secure and sell some. Though he had locked it with a 30-character password, the hackers moved the coins off. And unlike a credit card transaction, a transfer of a cryptocurrency is irreversible.When asked how many bitcoins he lost, Kenna laughs. Confirming only that it was millions of dollars’ worth, he says, “I was one of the first people to actually do anything in bitcoin and I no longer have any bitcoin to speak of,” he says. “I’ve got, like, 60 coins or something, which is nothing compared to — it’s a fraction.”(Image: Flickr/BTC Keychain)(Thanks, Alex!)
What every website knows about you
This website shows you all the data any website you visit can find out about you: your location, operating system, browser plugins, previously visited web page, local and public IP, service provider, social media networks you are logged into, devices on your local network, and more. The site also shows you how to hide any of this information that you don't want to reveal.
Alex Jones deletes video promoting 'Pizzagate' conspiracy theory
Unpleasant logorrheic Alex Jones removed one of his videos in which he claimed "Pizzagate is real," and that “it needs to be investigated” after one of his fans went to DC's Comet Ping Pong and fired his gun inside the restaurant. (more…)
List of inventors killed by their own inventions
Show here: "Franz Reichelt (d. 1912), who attempted to use this contraption as a parachute. Reichelt died after he jumped off the Eiffel Tower wearing his invention, which failed to operate as expected."This Wikipedia article lists other inventors who were killed by their own inventions. [via]
Trump Org pressures Embassy of Kuwait to move event from Four Seasons to Trump’s D.C. hotel
The Embassy of Kuwait cancelled a contract for a major event at the Four Seasons Hotel in Washington D.C. a few days after the presidential election, "citing political pressure to hold its National Day celebration at the Trump International Hotel instead," reports Think Progress.A source tells ThinkProgress that the Kuwaiti embassy, which has regularly held the event at the Four Seasons in Georgetown, abruptly canceled its reservation after members of the Trump Organization pressured the ambassador to hold the event at the hotel owned by the president-elect. The source, who has direct knowledge of the arrangements between the hotels and the embassy, spoke to ThinkProgress on the condition of anonymity because the individual was not authorized to speak publicly. ThinkProgress was also able to review documentary evidence confirming the source’s account.(Image: Wikimedia)
Egypt blocks encrypted messaging app Signal
People who use the encrypted messaging app Signal on Egyptian IP addresses have reported that it stopped working. Open Whisper Systems, which makes Signal, confirmed the problem, promising a solution in a few weeks.From Engadget:This isn't the first time Egypt has restricted access to websites and apps. It shut down the internet and even texting and BlackBerry messaging in 2011, and it reportedly blocked access to VOIP services Skype, Viber and Whatsapp in 2015. Since it can take some time before Open Whisper Systems can issue a fix, it's advising anyone who wants to continue communicating through Signal in Egypt to use Tor or a VPN service.We've been investigating over the weekend, and have confirmed that Egypt is censoring access to Signal.— Open Whisper Systems (@whispersystems) December 19, 2016
Mysterious trumpets of the apocalypse heard in Spokane, Washington
Numerous residents of a Spokane, Washington suburb reported hearing unsettling trumpet sounds overnight on December 14. Listen to a recording of the noise below. Non-believers suggest that it may have been the sound of many snowplows scraping the concrete roads or train rails creaking in the cold. One news outlet's "science expert" commented that "temperature does affect the speed of sound, which can make certain things sounds different than what we are used to hearing." Of course, we all know the truth: It is the seven trumpets as described in the Book of Revelation. The apocalypse is nigh, and it's starting in Spokane."Strange sound in Spokane Valley has thousands of people talking" (KHQ via Mysterious Universe)https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i_vq_2v1row
Why is KFC a Christmas tradition in Japan?
Around Christmas, many KFC restaurants in Japan see 10 times their average daily sales. Customers order their KFC special Christmas dinner weeks in advance or wait in line for hours to score a Kentucky Christmas dinner package including chicken, side dishes, cake, and even wine. WTF??! Marketing, that's what. From the BBC:According to KFC Japan spokeswoman Motoichi Nakatani, it started thanks to Takeshi Okawara, the manager of the first KFC in the country. Shortly after it opened in 1970, Okawara woke up at midnight and jotted down an idea that came to him in a dream: a “party barrel” to be sold on Christmas.Okawara dreamed up the idea after overhearing a couple of foreigners in his store talk about how they missed having turkey for Christmas, according to Nakatani. Okawara hoped a Christmas dinner of fried chicken could be a fine substitute, and so he began marketing his Party Barrel as a way to celebrate the holiday.In 1974, KFC took the marketing plan national, calling it Kurisumasu ni wa Kentakkii, or Kentucky for Christmas. It took off quickly, and so did the Harvard-educated Okawara, who climbed through the company ranks and served as president and CEO of Kentucky Fried Chicken Japan from 1984 to 2002.The Party Barrel for Christmas became almost immediately a national phenomenon, says Joonas Rokka, associate professor of marketing at Emlyon Business School in France. He has studied the KFC Christmas in Japan as a model promotions campaign.“It filled a void,” Rokka says. “There was no tradition of Christmas in Japan, and so KFC came in and said, this is what you should do on Christmas.”"Why Japan celebrates Christmas with KFC"
Librarians must resist trumpism
Radical librarian Jason Griffey (previously) wants librarians to continue their 21st century leadership in the resistance to surveillance and persecution -- a proud record that includes the most effective stands against GW Bush's Patriot Act -- by pledging to make libraries safe havens from trumpism and its evils: electronic surveillance; racial and gender-based discrimination; and the assertion that ideology trumps empirical reality. (more…)
Gingrich: Trump should illegally hire his relatives, profit from inside dealing, and then pardon them
Newt Gingrich did a radio interview where he said that Donald Trump could fill his White House with his family members, allow them to enrich his businesses with insider deals, and then just pardon them, because "Technically, under the Constitution, he has that level of authority." (more…)
Magnets and Marbles
This isn't your usual kinetic pachinko balls-in-a-gravity-maze toy, but a mindbending demonstration of magnets. It starts getting really crazy at about 2m in but one should enjoy the subtle pleasures too. (more…)
Ulna-Stina Wikander: a Swedish artist who cross-stitches household objects and makes bracelets out of toy cars
Ulna-Stina Wikander's many pieces include a wide variety of household objects (chairs, mirrors, etc) covered in meticulous cross-stitched fabric; bracelets and belts made from toy cars, lamps made from framed slot-car racetracks, and a lively miscellany of other pieces. Alas, her Flash-based site makes it impossible to link directly to my favorites (and I had to install the Flash plugin just to see it!), but it's well worth your time to go looking. (via Crazy Abalone) (more…)
The story behind the Christmas truce of 1914
In December 1914 a remarkable thing happened on the Western Front: British and German soldiers stopped fighting and left their trenches to greet one another, exchange souvenirs, bury their dead, and sing carols in the spirit of the holiday season. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll tell the story of the Christmas truce, which one participant called "one of the highlights of my life."We'll also remember James Thurber's Aunt Sarah and puzzle over an anachronistic twin.Show notesPlease support us on Patreon!
Two New York actors took to Fifth Avenue to film a tribute to Judy Garland and Fred Astaire
In this pitch perfect homage to classic Hollywood musicals, New York actors Royer Bockus and Mark Bedard dance down Fifth Avenue, earning both odd and delighted looks from passersby. Reenacting the “A Couple Of Swells” sequence from Irving Berlin’s Easter Parade, Bockus and Bedard nail the movie’s choreography as originally performed by Judy Garland and Fred Astaire. Here's the original sequence for comparison:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-xxfm5-zRHoD.P.s/camera operators Sam Wegner and Walls Trimble captured Bockus and Bedard's quirky tribute.
The Mummy trailer goes online missing most of its audio and it's the best
Tom Cruise is starring in a reboot of The Mummy. The film's distributors uploaded a version of the IMAX trailer missing most of its audio. The result is a surreal dreamy silence, punctuated by the sudden grunts and yells of Cruise and his costars.They pulled it from the official channels, but it's too late.It has already been noted that the Vader reveal from Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith is improved immeasurably by Cruise's performancehttps://twitter.com/waxpancake/status/811128856711049216
Watch David Tennant and the new cast of DuckTales sing the show’s theme song
A new version of the classic ’80s cartoon DuckTales debuts on DisneyXD in 2017. And the new cast got together to sing the show’s catchy theme song. Woo oo!
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