(more…)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gcz3oyxnzFw...and the LA Times thinks it's swell, singing the praises of semiconductor baron Henry Samueli, a true believer in homeopathy and "integrative medicine," whose gift to the UC system comes with the stipulation that it only be used to study discredited garbage...forever. (more…)

Artist David Jablow has created another series of great illustrations using a "doodle pad" printed with a partially completed drawing of a naked woman.I've posted about David's work in 2013, 2014, and 2015.

Judith Duportail got privacy activist Paul-Olivier Dehaye and human rights lawyer Ravi Naik to help her force Tinder to turn over 800 pages of records the company had saved during the four years she'd used the app, and discovered that the company was indefinitely retaining "information such as my Facebook “likes”, my photos from Instagram (even after I deleted the associated account), my education, the age-rank of men I was interested in, how many times I connected, when and where every online conversation with every single one of my matches happened." (more…)

Recomendo is a weekly newsletter with 6 brief personal recommendations of cool stuff, written by Kevin Kelly, Claudia Dawson, and myself. Get the Recomendo weekly newsletter a week early by email.Text-only CNNThis no-graphics version of CNN’s website looks like the web circa 1993, and I love it. I think they should run a couple of text ads to monetize it, because I don’t want them to stop. —Mark FrauenfelderCheap mobile homeFor generations hipsters have been retro-fitting vans into mobile homes. Once they were VW vans; today they are Dodge Sprinter vans. The best source I’ve come across for tutorials on how to remodel a used cargo van into a roaming house is a YouTube channel by Dylan Maga. Maga collects diverse videos of hundreds of regular folks building their vans and tiny homes in great and satisfying detail. — Kevin KellyYoutube shortcutsI can’t believe I didn’t know these Youtube shortcuts before! To pause a video press K. To fast forward press L. To rewind press J. To watch frame by frame forward or backward, press the period or comma key. — Claudia DawsonGarage parking aidThere’s probably a simple DIY substitute for the AccuPark Vehicle Parking Aid, but I was happy to pay $11 for it. I adhered this yellow plastic mini speed bump to the garage floor using the attached double-side tape. We can now drive our electric car right up to the optimum spot to plug in the charger port. — MFSwedish funnyDeep in the basement of Netflix is a very funny Swedish movie called “The 100-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out the Window and Disappeared.” Subtitled in English, I found the humor translated well into American. It’s sort of a Swedish version of Forrest Gump meets Mr. Bean. This big hit in Sweden was playing on Netflix streaming but now is on Netflix DVD only. However, last year they made a sequel that is almost as good, “The 101-Year-Old Man Who Skipped Out on the Bill and Disappeared,” and this one is currently streaming on Netflix. — KKLaundry organizerMy husband and I bought these mesh bags to organize our laundry. We use black sharpie to write washing instructions on them like “no fabric softener, dryer ok” or “cold wash, hang dry.” This has cleared up a lot of confusion. — CD

https://youtu.be/TZ0qN-_b8e4This movie got made.

The Ataribox looks great but $300?????Looks like this proposed box that could have been a complete Atari 2600 library with paddles and blocky joysticks is instead an Atari inspired set-top streaming box!!?Via Gizmodo:According to Mac, the Ataribox will cost somewhere between $250 and $300. It’ll run Linux and have an AMD processor with Radeon graphics, facilitating a more open, PC-like experience than standard set-top boxes. But if that sounds intriguing to you, you’ll have to wait a little while because Atari needs to crowdfund it through IndieGoGo first. Mac said that a campaign to raise cash will launch in the Fall of 2018.“People are used to the flexibility of a PC, but most connected TV devices have closed systems and content stores,” Mac told VentureBeat. “We wanted to create a killer TV product where people can game, stream, and browse with as much freedom as possible, including accessing pre-owned games from other content providers.”That all sounds fine. Powerful and customizable tech has its audience. But the big idea of releasing a retro-console is offering a bunch of classic content. Putting out a sleek, wood-paneled box with the name Atari slapped on it creates an expectation that you’ll get all the Atari gaming money can buy. Unfortunately the company is still being cagey about what will come with the Ataribox when you fire it up.I just want to play Star Raiders.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JUp7GnrGsow

Even though a vast majority of internet users have made it clear that they don’t want their personal information to be used for targeted advertising and online surveillance, powerful lobbyists in the pocket of Internet Service Providers have made it increasingly difficult to guarantee privacy. Instead of trusting companies that have a vested interest in selling user data, consider investing in a VPN to obscure your browser traffic. Private Internet Access is one of the best VPN services around, and right now you can get two years of their powerful protection for $59.95.Private Internet Access VPN provides you with a fully encrypted internet connection whether you’re browsing from password-protected home WiFi, or a public network at the airport. They have thousands of servers in over 25 countries, so you can maintain a fast, secure connection almost anywhere in the developed world. They offer unlimited bandwidth for up to five devices simultaneously, and their MACE feature blocks intrusive advertising trackers and malware.For fans of file sharing, Private Internet Access VPN supports a variety of peer-to-peer protocols, and makes it possible to torrent at home without getting throttled by your ISP. They have apps for all major smartphone and desktop platforms, including Android and ChromeOS, as well as a wealth of resources for getting your VPN running on a wireless router to cover your entire household.To further reduce the risk of unauthorized data mining, this VPN doesn’t collect user data. And if you care at all about privacy activism, digital rights, and an open web, Private Internet Access actively supports organizations like the Electronic Frontier Foundation, Creative Commons, and Fight for the Future. In addition to locking down your connection, you can be sure that your subscription fee is going to a company that has your best interests in mind.Private Internet Access VPN is a solid all-around choice for most people. It’s easy to get up and running quickly, but provides plenty of features for power users. You can pick up a 2-year subscription from the Boing Boing Store today for $59.95.More Deals from the Boing Boing store:1080p HD Waterproof WiFi Wireless Endoscopic Camera $39.99Pay What You Want: Learn to Code 2017 Bundle The MacX Media Conversion Lifetime License Bundle $19.99

Alba is the only known albino orangutan. She was rescued by the Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation after being held in captivity, where she suffered from dehydration and parasites. Now BOSF plans to build a special sanctuary just for her and two orangutans with whom she's bonded. (more…)

Mahshid Mazooji missed her connecting flight and was stuck at the Charlotte Douglas International Airport overnight. Instead of being angry about it, she made of a fun, impromptu video of herself dancing in the airport to Lionel Richie's 1983 hit song, "All Night Long." She even pulled in some new friends, airport workers and other late-night passengers, to join her.She writes, "I made some really great friends along the way! Thank you for dancing your troubles away with me!!! :)"There was even some moonwalking.(reddit)

Jon Adler is Trump's nominee for the Department of Justice's director of the Bureau of Justice Assistance; the former criminal investigator is also president of the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association, and is proud to serve on the advisory board of Heroes Health Fund, which is the latest incarnation of Narcanon, the Church of Scientology's baseless "detox" program that involves taking huge doses of niacin and sitting for hours in a sauna, a practice with no health benefits that has killed some of its practitioners. (more…)

One person gets arrested for marijuana possession every 71 seconds in the United States, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s annual Crime In the United States (CIUS) report. This is great news to drug cartels, police departments, racists, corrupt politicians, the prison industry, and the involuntary rehab clinic racket. It's bad news for everybody else.“Arresting and citing nearly half a million people a year for a substance that is objectively safer than alcohol is a travesty,” said Morgan Fox, director of communications for the Marijuana Policy Project. “Despite a steady shift in public opinion away from marijuana prohibition, and the growing number of states that are regulating marijuana like alcohol, marijuana consumers continue to be treated like criminals throughout the country. This is a shameful waste of resources and can create lifelong consequences for the people arrested.”There are currently eight states that regulate marijuana similarly to alcohol for adults, four of which voted to do so in November 2016. Marijuana possession is also legal for adults in the District of Columbia. Twenty-three states and D.C. considered legislation in 2017 to regulate marijuana, including in Vermont where the legislature approved such a measure before the governor vetoed it.“Regulating marijuana for adults creates jobs, generates tax revenue, protects consumers, and takes money away from criminals,” Fox continued. “It is time for the federal government and the rest of the states to stop ruining peoples’ lives and enact sensible marijuana policies.”

Tear-by-hand packing tape looks like ordinary clear packing tape. I costs a bit more, but it is so worth it. You don't need to put in in a dispenser. Just peel off what you need and tear it off. I've been using it for years, and resent having use the kind that needs to be cut with a dispenser or scissors.

A ceiling, no doubt in league with the Devil, tried to steal a cross being borne by a fellow dressed as Jesus as he ascended an escalator. Spoiler alert - goodness prevailed.

Colin Spacetwinks' mammoth 70,000-word essay Comics and Cowardice is mostly a deep dive into widely-derided Captain America series of late, but takes general aim at two things in comics and other media:1. Authors who address racism, sexism and bigotry in an obvious, on-the-nose way, but when criticised for some element of it deny cold that the work has any political dimension at all or insist that they have said nothing.2. Guys in the biz who do or say grossly unacceptable things, but receive minimal discipline and maximal support against those reporting on it.Illustrating #1, for example, is a video game featuring robotic slaves called "Augs"......the use of the phrase “Augs lives matter”, Andre Vu, the game’s executive brand director, said that the phrase was actually in the game’s development before “Black Lives Matter” was even a thing, and all of this was just an “unfortunate coincidence”.Keep in mind, “Black Lives Matter” originates in July of 2013. Eidos Montreal announced that a team was at work on a new Deus Ex in October of 2013. Square Enix did not apply for a trademark on “Mankind Divided” until March 2014. Deus Ex: Mankind Divided wasn’t released until August of 2016, with the “Augs Lives Matter” promotional art not being debuted until earlier in the same month. ... Either Andre Vu is a liar, or he’s an ignorant fool. Neither of these are great positions to be at.It beggars belief.In regards to this and other examples of #1, Spacetwinks falls mostly on the side of "lying." Which it is, obviously, in these cases. But it seems to me that most of these authors don't have much notion of the truth that these lies would implicitly define. Maybe what's at hand it's the pervasive power not of lies but of bullshit, where what's true or false doesn't matter, only the floating world of unmoored and narcissistic artistic values. They only become liars when the truth of their own work is forced upon them.As for #2, Spacetwinks illustrates it not just with the ironic crypto-Nazi manchildren that are everywhere but some guy at one comics publisher who gets drunk and bites people's faces. It's so obscene and violent you wonder if anything, in the moment, could prevent it short of overwhelming physical force. It's suggestive of a business whose culture is really a cult, and is such a depressing end to a long read I can't say I have much hope the issues it addresses will improve.

American businessman Martin Shkreli is locked up with the general population at the Metropolitan Detention Center in New York City. It will be his home for the next four months, until he's sentenced for securities fraud early next year. The 34-year-old pharma executive was out on $5 million bail while awaiting sentencing and was finding comfort in writing Facebook posts, but a judge put him behind bars last week for putting a bounty on a strand of Clinton's hair, including the follicle. He has no access to the Internet.From The LA TimesAlthough far less notorious than city-run Rikers Island, the Brooklyn facility has a checkered history. After the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, dozens of mostly Arab or Muslim men “of high interest” were detained at MDC. Many said guards there regularly slammed them against walls until officials began videotaping them as a safeguard.More recently, prosecutors have alleged that MDC was the scene of sexual assaults by guards on female inmates. A federal magistrate last year expressed reluctance to remand a woman there, citing a report saying there was an “absence of fresh, clean air, the complete absence of sunlight, and the absence of ANY outdoor time and activities.”In a court filing, lawyers for Jacob “Kobi” Alexander, the convicted former chief executive of Converse Technology, complained about a lack of recreation time, saying he “spends large parts of his day walking in circles in his unit when he is permitted to do so.”After two nights behind bars, his attorney said that Shkreli is “doing reasonably well under very difficult circumstances.”

Four chaps needed to be rescued from the highest mountain in England over the weekend because they couldn't walk. No, they hadn't injured themselves in any way. They just got too stoned to hike back down the mountain. Stranded on Scafell Pike’s 3,210-foot peak, the men called for help Saturday evening. A rescue team along with police helped the men hike safely down.The Cumbria Police had something to say about it on Twitter:Persons stuck on mountain, after taking cannabis. Having to deploy M'tain Rescue, Air support and Ambulance to rescue them.....— Cumbria Police (@Cumbriapolice) September 23, 2017And:Persons rescued after becoming incapable of walking due to cannabis use. MRT volunteers putting themselves at risk to prevent harm.— Cumbria Police (@Cumbriapolice) September 23, 2017According to The Guardian:The post provoked furious reactions on social media, with some users suggesting the group be asked to cover the cost of the rescue operation. The comments prompted Copeland’s local police force to respond that they “always ensure people are safe, regardless of choices they make that put them in a dangerous position”. Image: Thorneh

Making of 'The Dock' looks at the logistical challenges of constructing and towing a floating dock out into the Bali surf, as well and the challenges of surfing from it. (more…)

The State of California fined Gatorade for making a video game for kids that says, "keep your performance level high and avoid water." In the game, called Bolt!, players give Gatorade to Olympic runner Usain Bolt to increase his fuel level. If you give Bolt water, the fuel level goes down. Now they have to pay $300,000 as part of a settlement with the state. From Oregon Live:"Making misleading statements is a violation of California law. But making misleading statements aimed at our children is beyond unlawful, it's morally wrong and a betrayal of trust," [California Attorney General Xavier Becerra] said in a statement.Gatorade agreed to the settlement but has not admitted wrongdoing."The mobile game, Bolt!, was designed to highlight the unique role and benefits of sports drinks in supporting athletic performance. We recognize the role water plays in overall health and wellness, and offer our consumers great options," spokeswoman Katie Vidaillet said in an email.In addition to agreeing not to disparage water, Gatorade agreed not to make Bolt! or any other games that give the impression that water will hinder athletic performance or that athletes only consumer Gatorade and do not drink water. Gatorade also agreed to use "reasonable efforts" to abide by parent company PepsiCo's policy on responsible advertising to children and to disclose its contracts with endorsers.From a 2014 report published by University of California Berkeley's Center for Weight and Health:The Academy of Pediatrics does not recommend sports drinks as a hydration source for children and adolescents and finds that water is the best source of hydration for ordinary children engaging in routine physical activity (Schneider, 2011). The only instance when sports drinks may be indicated is for child athletes that engage in prolonged, continuous vigorous activity for more than one hour in hot weather conditions (Schneider; Meadows‐Oliver; Unnithan). The Academy of Pediatrics advises against the use of sports drinks among children due to their contribution of excess carbohydrate calories in the diet that can increase risk of becoming overweight or obese (Schneider). The Institute of Medicine recommends against providing sports drinks in schools for regular consumption and even advises against providing sports drinks to student athletes unless they are participating in prolonged, vigorous sports activities (IOM Report on Standards for School Foods, 2007).

What might humans alive today be reasonably expected to witness in their lifetimes? RealLifeLore has compiled a list of near-future predictions ranging from the sublime to the terrifying. (more…)

As a personal project, designer Carmelo Barberá animated type with a pink and blue theme. The results of the experiment are pretty nice! (more…)

Check out this sweet mid-century Aloha shirt. It's got tikis wearing red Shriner fezzes. I bet it would have some stories to tell, if it could.If you look closely at the fabric, you'll see the acronym of "aaonms." That stands for the "Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine," the official name of the Shriners. Looking this sharp comes with a price. This particular Hawaiian shirt, size unknown, is selling for $225 at Etsy shop vintagedame. An XXL one goes for $485 at the Hana Shirt Company. They report it is a "Hawaii Shriners Convention" shirt.

Zaria Forman was inspired to create large-scale pastel drawings of icebergs and glaciers after going on a scientific expedition. She created this one earlier this year while she was artist in residence at the Mountainside Northstar resort. (more…)

Ian Davenport developed a cool technique of pouring paint down surfaces, allowing paint in works like Giardini Colourfall to pool at the bottom. Here's a nice behind-the scenes in English:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a_suSZaeY0UReminds me of work by Holton Rower:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gyktr2OI4v4https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d6egUsZvWu4• Behind-the-scenes: Ian Davenport @ HANA Building, Singapore (YouTube / Art Plural Gallery)

Alexa Sirbu and Lukas Vojir created flow/er, a lovely animation programmed to mimic growth patterns of flowers. (more…)

As a kid, I never understood Moby Dick and the Mighty Mightor.This is what I remember:Not long after Moby Dick ate Ahab and smashed the Pequod, he learned to relax. Like majorly chill out! In this confounding series, a kinder and gentler Moby befriends two nautically enthusiastic kids named something like Tub and Tug, then he fights lame sea creatures.Incidentally, there is another kid who lived a long time ago named Tor! Tor acts like a helpful kid on ONE and only ONE occasion but is so helpful that an old dude gives him a magic log. It is fun, it is magic, it is wood. Like a teenager, Tor immediately loses the manual before his pet dinosaur can even ask him what the scenario is! Evidently, the magic log turns Tor from a puny kid into a flying adult with a horned helmet. Additionally, said log converts Tor's pet dinosaur into a flying, fire-breathing pet dinosaur. Use those log powers for good! I'm pretty sure this cartoon was a complete waste of time.

The force might be an intangible spiritual power, but it is definitely strong with these Star Wars 3D Illusion Lamps. They’re available in the Boing Boing Store right now.These lamps are made from custom-fabricated LEDs that can assume any 3D-wireframe form, with several classic Star Wars ships and characters available. For the truly rebellious, a Millennium Falcon is an awe-inspiring piece. If you relate more to the humble droids, pick up an R2D2 or BB-8 model. And if respecting absolute power is your prerogative, choose from the Death Star, a TIE Fighter, a Storm Trooper, or Darth Vader’s iconic helmet.Each light glows in several different colors and has a lifetime of up to 50,000 hours, so you can enjoy these brilliant decorations for years to come. You can pick up a Star Wars 3D Illusion Lamp here for $49.

26-year-old Saudi artist Abdullah "Shaweesh" al-Sheri created a series of images depicting Star Wars characters worked into momentous Saudi historical photos, including one of Yoda sitting with King Faisal, whom he considered to be Yoda-like in his wisdom: "He was wise and was always strong in his speeches. So I found that Yoda was the closest character to the king. And also Yoda and his light saber -- it's all green." (more…)

Fritz Moser, director of the documentary A Good American, about NSA whistleblower Bill Binney who blames the 9/11 attacks on the NSA's capture by corporate contractors who sold it an expensive, useless, self-perpetuating mass-surveillance system, writes, "Since 6 Sept A GOOD AMERICAN is on Netflix and since then I am getting between 10 and 20 emails per day of people telling me how shocked they were by the film and how angry they are, asking what they could do to help. So we came up with this petition. The petition is hosted by a member of Sascha Meinrath's cross-party Civil Liberties Coalition we are working with in Washington DC, backing the cross-party anti-surveillance Caucus in Congress on a grassroots level."

Enrich served as the WSJ's European Banking Editor during the runup to the financial crisis of 2008 and in its aftermath, as bankers who'd brought the world's economy to its knees took home huge bonuses while their employers sucked up billions in taxpayer bailouts. He found himself a confidant of Tom Hayes, the only banker to do serious time for the LIBOR scandal, and recorded hours and hours of frank interviews with Hayes and his wife.This affords Enrich a unique perspective on the LIBOR scandal, one that he fleshes out with admirable depth using court testimony and the astounding mountain of evidence drawn from the archived chats and voice-calls by the bankers who conspired together to rip off the entire planet. What emerges from the story is a picture of mediocrity clothed in tailor-made suits. Buffoonish brokers bribe odious traders with overpriced Champagne to get their business, while the whole gang wheedles lazy, asleep-at-the-switch colleagues to falsify the data in the spreadsheet cells that are treated as empirical market benchmarks but are literally just made-up numbers. Regulators look the other way, compliance officers pretend they don't see anything, and when government lawyers finally take an interest, they get halfway through their investigations before quitting their jobs and going to work for the banks they've been prosecuting, with multi-million-dollar hiring bonuses.Meanwhile, the crooked trading turns out to all be a socially useless casino, not "providing liquidity" or "allocating capital" or "discovering prices" but just spinning the wheel and throwing the dice with other peoples' money.The (mostly) men involved in the scam are painted as a thoroughly dislikable lot, but without resorting to caricature. Rather, Enrich invites us to empathize with them -- understand their motives and the framework they live in -- without sympathizing (letting them off the hook for their shitty behavior).Hayes is at the center of the book: on the autistic spectrum, often foolish, mathematically brilliant, personally deplorable at nearly every turn. But he is still a figure that Enrich finds empathy for, even managing the trick of getting us to root for him now and again as he bellows abuse at the people around him (it helps that most of them are no better).Enrich is doing important work here, making one of the most significant, complicated and boring affairs of the past decade into something accessible, exciting, and salient. This is financial writing at its best.The Spider Network: The Wild Story of a Math Genius, a Gang of Backstabbing Bankers, and One of the Greatest Scams in Financial History [David Enrich/Custom House]

Trump supporters are flocking to the official video for Elton John's "Rocket Man" song, to applaud Trump's use of the nickname for Kim Jong-un in tweets and on the floor of the United Nations General Assembly.However, the video itself is either confusing them, enraging them, or being completely misunderstood by them.Turns out the video, the winner of a competition judged by songwriters Elton John and Bernie Taupin, is by Stephen McNally and Iranian filmmaker Majid Adin, who traveled through Europe during the 2015 refugee crisis. It's a stunning and heartbreaking animation that reimagines the song as a metaphor for the plight of immigrants and refugees, a group for which Trump and his supporters have shown only antipathy.Most YouTube comments (but don't read them -- never read YouTube comments; I did so you wouldn't have to) from Trump supporters seem either oblivious to the fact that they're cheering a pro-refugee video, or furious that they were tricked into watching something that actually has sympathy and heart.Anyway, if you have sympathy and heart, this is a really great video.h/t Arthur Chu

The Department of Homeland Security today revealed which states were targeted by Russian hackers trying to break into voting systems during the 2016 election cycle. DHS said "most" states were unsuccessfully attacked, but didn't make clear how and where the hackers were successful, or whether the sustained cyberattacks helped Donald Trump win the presidency. (more…)

Cleanup crews are removing what police and Detroit Metro Airport officials are describing as an "unusual substance" discovered in the soap dispensers in the bathrooms. They aren't saying exactly what it is, other than a "bodily fluid" that is "very disgusting." Spoiler alert: they said it isn't saliva. What could it be?From Click on Detroit:The unusual substance isn't being tested because sources said it was pretty apparent what the substance was. They said it was likely a bodily fluid, but it hasn't been confirmed because testing hasn't been done. Officials said it's not believed to be spit.Why would anybody put something in an airport soap dispenser? Investigators said it's nothing sinister, but someone with ongoing access to the restrooms who has a grudge.

“Yes, human, I knocked over your cup. What are you gonna do about it? Nothing." (more…)

Wait for it. (more…)

Just a video of a dad and his son having a conversation. Why did dad record and share it? To help people understand the day-to-day experience of communicating with people who have autism.“There are times when the autistic individual is very able to communicate and have a conversation in their own different way,” says dad. He hopes it helps increase understanding. (more…)

Just look at it. (Thanks, Fipi Lele!)

"I will surely and definitely tame the mentally deranged U.S. dotard with fire," said glorious North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, in response to US mentally deranged dotard Donald Trump's recent threats and name calling. The world is less stable.Via The Hill:North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on Thursday fired back at President Trump's combative speech at the United Nations a day before, saying Trump will "pay dearly" for his threats. "The mentally deranged behavior of the U.S. president openly expressing on the U.N. arena the unethical will to 'totally destroy' a sovereign state, beyond the boundary of threats of regime change or overturn of social system, makes even those with normal thinking think about discretion and composure," Kim said in statement brimming with rage and expressive language."His remarks which described the U.S. option through straightforward expression of his will have convinced me, rather than frightening or stopping me, that the path I chose is correct and that is one that I have to follow to the last," he continued. Pyongyang's provocation came the same day that Trump announced new sanctions on the isolated country.Kim referred to Trump as a "gangster fond of playing with fire, rather than a politician" in the statement, which was reported by North Korea's state news agency KCNA.

Oklahoma City police shot dead a deaf man who refused to obey shouted orders to put down a "metal pipe". The tuesday night killing of Magdiel Sanchez, NPR reports, happened despite the officers being told he was deaf.Officers were responding to a hit-and-run accident around 8:15 p.m., Capt. Bo Mathews, the police department's public information officer, told reporters Wednesday. A witness of the accident told police a vehicle involved went to a nearby address. Lt. Matthew Lindsey arrived at the address and encountered 35-year-old Magdiel Sanchez, who was on the porch holding a 2-foot metal pipe with a leather loop in his right hand. Lindsey called for backup and Sgt. Christopher Barnes arrived."The witnesses also were yelling that this person, Mr. Sanchez, was deaf and could not hear. The officers didn't know this at the time," Mathews said. Both officers fired their weapons at the same time when Sanchez was about 15 feet away from them; more than one shot was fired, the police captain said. Emergency Medical Services Authority personnel pronounced Sanchez dead at the scene."Threat" is an interesting word. A man with a pipe standing 15 feet from you on his goddamn porch is maybe a "threat" to men armed with guns, but he's not a danger to them. But it's not really about threat or danger, except insafar as those things excuse other things. It's about being trained to see yourself as a warrior at war with the public. It's about being trained to escalate to lethal force at the first sign of armed noncompliance. It's about being trained that lack of control justifies violence to take it irrespective of rights or risks. It's about having one of the safer public service jobs in America while maintaining the thrilling fantasy of danger. It's about being trained to expect the best sex of your life after you kill someone.Update: What police called a "metal pipe" is also reported to be a walking stick.

On the Cool Tools Show podcast, Kevin Kelly and I interviewed my sister, Wendy, about some of her favorite tools.Our guest this week is Wendy Frauenfelder. Wendy likes to cook, fix things, pretend to be a bartender, and do therapy dog work. She also is fascinated with wild yeast and slow food.Subscribe to the Cool Tools Show on iTunes | RSS | Transcript | Download MP3 | See all the Cool Tools Show posts on a single pageShow notes: Stanley 66-358 Stanley Stubby Ratcheting MultiBit Screwdriver ($10)"I always keep a screwdriver in the kitchen, just so that I don't have to go to the garage if I something inside the house that I need to work on. So this is my new screwdriver inside the house, and there's a couple things I like. First, it's small. It's like four-and-a-half inches long, and so it fits in a junk drawer really easily. The second thing I really like about it is it's a ratcheting screwdriver. So, if you're fixing a knob on a cabinet or something you don't have to spin it around in your hand, you can just kind of ratchet it in, which I love. But you can also make it just a steady, regular kind of screwdriver. Then the third thing that I love about it is you unscrew the cap on the top of the screwdriver and inside are five other tips. So you've got three Phillips head and three regular screwdriver tips, and they vary from pretty tiny to large and fat, and they're right there in the cap, so you can grab your screwdriver without knowing what kind of screw you've gotta work on, and you'll have the right tip."24 oz Mason Drinking Jar & Stainless Steel Straw ($10.50)"It's actually a Ball jar, not a mason jar, and then it's got the regular kind of screw-on lid, but whoever made this took the little flat part of the lid on top and put a rivet in it and made a hole so you can stick a straw in there. It is actually pretty waterproof. I wouldn't say you should leave it upside down in your car, but I'll usually put a smoothie in here, and every once in a while I'll shake it to just kind of mix up the liquid again, and it's doesn't come out at all. So, it's that waterproof. … A lot of times these will come with a metal straw, and I don't like that because, since I drink a smoothie out of it, I'm afraid I'm never really getting that clean, so I found some straws on Amazon that fit to the bottom. It had to be an extra-long straw. It fits to the bottom of the jar, and it's got a little bend in it, and then I just toss it when I'm done. … I just feel like glass gets really clean. And you don't have to worry about BPAs."GFDesign Drinking Spoon Straws ($10.50)"I was looking at cocktail items, and this caught my eye … We started using it when I was making mojitos, and you gotta stir up a mojito, because you've got some granulated sugar in the bottom of it when you muddle the mint leaves. So you stir it up with this thing, and then I'm thinking, 'This is great, because then you just leave it in there, and you sip through it.' And if your sugar didn't all dissolve, you can still start drinking your mojito and kind of stir it as you go along."Buy me a pie!"I am kind of like a connoisseur of grocery shopping list apps. [This app] is actually organized by store, so I have a Whole Foods list, a Target list, and a Costco list, basically, and I can open whichever one I want, and then I can add items to whichever one I want. You can have the same item in different lists. You can have as many lists as you want if you buy the paid version. I think the free version you're limited to maybe two or three. …What I really like about it is that you can color-code these items by grocery store area or by aisle. So everything that's veggie is green and fruit's green, and meat is under the red category, and cold foods are blue and frozen foods are gray. So that way, as you're going through your list, you go to produce and you just see all the produce that you need to get is all in one section."We have hired an editor to edit the Cool Tools podcast. It costs us $300 a month. So far, Cool Tools listeners have pledged $277 a month to the podcast. Please consider supporting us on Patreon. We have nice rewards for people who contribute! – MF

Colin Furze’s debut book, This Book Isn't Safe features ten inventions kids can make at home with step by step instructions. Inventions include "Concrete-Crusher Boots," the "Fab Frisbee Flinger," and the "Downhill Racer." Below, Colin's instructions for making the Brilliant Bedroom-Tidy Pulley:https://youtu.be/NTYh6sIHKvE

To hear a wide-ranging interview about the real-world risks we humans could face from a rogue superintelligence, hit play, below. My guest is author and documentary filmmaker James Barrat. Barrat’s 2014 book Our Final Invention was the gateway drug that ushered me into the narcotic realm of contemplating super AI risk. So it’s on first-hand authority that I urge you to jump in – the water’s great!This is the seventh episode of my podcast series (co-hosted by Tom Merritt), which launched here on Boing Boing last month. The series goes deep into the science, tech, and sociological issues explored in my novel After On – but no familiarity with the novel is necessary to listen to it.The danger of artificial consciousness has a noble pedigree in science fiction. In most minds, its wellspring is 2001: A Space Odyssey, which features HAL 9000 – an onboard computer that decides to kill off its passengers before they can disconnect it (spoiler: HAL’s rookie season ends – rather abruptly – with a 1-1 record).James’s interest in this subject was piqued when he interviewed 2001’s author, Arthur C. Clarke, back in the pertinent year of 2001. Clarke’s concerns about superintelligence went beyond the confines of fiction. And he expressed them cogently enough to freak James out to this day.Among James’s worries is that Hollywood has inoculated many of us from taking super AIs seriously by depicting them so preposterously. “Imagine if the Centers for Disease Control issued a serious warning about vampires,” he notes. “It’d take time for the guffawing to stop, and the wooden stakes to come out. Maybe we’re in that period right now with AI, and only an accident or a near-death experience will jar us awake.”James and I discuss the “vampire problem” and many other issues in our interview. If you’re looking to cut back on the long, unproductive hours you currently waste on sleep, you should definitely give it a listen.You can subscribe to the podcast within any podcast app. Simply use your app's search function (type in "After On") to find and subscribe. To subscribe via your computer on iTunes, just click here, then click the blue “View on iTunes” button (on the left side of the page), then click “Subscribe” (in a similar location) in the iTunes window. Or follow the feed http://afteron.libsyn.com/rss

Starring Bryan Cranston, Isle of Dogs is a new stop-motion animated movie from Wes Anderson, director of Fantastic Mr. Fox and The Grand Budapest Hotel. Looks very Wes Andersony! And check out this cast:

Low-budget as well as adventurous travelers just got to spend a few sandy nights at the world’s first sand hostel on Australia’s Gold Coast. The three-day event featured a hostel designed by Mad Max: Fury Road production designer Jon Dowding, according to Architectural Digest. And rooms started at only $7.50 per night. Unfortunately, bookings for the pop-up hostel on Kurrawa Beach ended Thursday. Sand Hostel required approximately 53,000 pounds of sand used by sand sculptor Dennis Massoud during the 21 days of construction. Ceilings made of rafters and woven bamboo paneling were used to keep the structure stable for the tourism promotional effort. For more photos click here.https://youtu.be/AFmnkt7Q4GI

Even North Korea has trouble with parking in New York City. Diplomatic representatives of the DPRK have accumulated around 1,300 unpaid city parking tickets since the 1990s, according to a WNBC investigation. A North Korean diplomat denies the $156,000 debt, citing a 2002 U.S. Department of State agreement that gives the city permission to rescind diplomatic parking decals after three unpaid tickets. "It's not true," North Korean diplomat Jong Jo said. "It is false. Whenever we have a ticket, we pay.”However, most of the tickets are believed to have been issued before 2002. North Korea isn’t the only regime to build up its parking debt. China is reported to have close to $398,736 in unpaid parking tickets, with Syria not very far behind. Image: Joiseyshowaa

When Trump spoke to African leaders at a UN lunch on Wednesday, he referred to the African country of Nambia twice. It was a head-scratcher. Did he mean Zambia? Gambia? Namibia? Narnia? Oh wait...It made for a busy round of yucks on Twitter. Here is a sample:How Donald Trump sees Africa #nambia pic.twitter.com/noBB0ZCGRe— ElElegante101 (@skolanach) September 20, 2017Ah yes, #Nambia. I love that country. Stopped by on my way home from a safari in Wakanda last time I was on the continent. 😂😭🙄— Rosie B 🇬🇭 (@rosiesrambles) September 21, 2017Nambia is the world's top exporter of covfefe https://t.co/ho8TcgXkgn— Andrew Stroehlein (@astroehlein) September 21, 2017King of #Nambia, the heir to the Royal Throne of Zamunda pic.twitter.com/vKQK1VSwct— MJ Edwards (@rogue1two) September 21, 2017I dream of a land like Nambia, where fields of Covfefe grow, and the National song is Rocket Man. #Nambia #Trumpspeak— Lori Rose Bebko (@_TorpedoGirl_) September 21, 2017BREAKING: Reports Boris Johnson urgently preparing for state visit after the recent discovery of #Nambia... pic.twitter.com/cEy0y2TXxd— Brett Edwards (@bwiedwards) September 21, 2017

"Is it possible that we are not real and don't even know it?" That's the question explored in the latest animated explainer video from Kurzgesagt – In a Nutshell. It present five untestable assumptions, which if all true, would mean we are living in a simulated universe.

The 2015 Catalan elections were widely viewed as a proxy referendum on independence from Spain and the brutal austerity imposed by Madrid, whose courts declared independence referendums to be illegal, augmenting its legal attacks against the Catalan independence movement with withering cyber-attacks, a brutal move that drove support for Spain's left-wing/anti-austerity parties. (more…)

Domain privacy is an annoying and complicated thing. U.S. registrar-based whois anonymity crumbles with a court order or even just a legal nastygram. Obfuscating your whois is usually against the terms of service. Many top-level domains require a real, contactable, legal entity -- you! -- to be there in black and white. Njalla offers to solve the problem by registering and owning the domain on your behalf. We care about your right to privacy. We believe it's an important piece of democracy that we have the right to be anonymous.Njalla was started because we couldn't find a domain name service that we ourselves wanted to use. Our goals are to be caring about privacy, simple and flexible.When you buy a domain in our system, we're actually purchasing it for ourselves. We will be the actual owners of the domain, it's not an ownership by proxy as found with all other providers. However, you will still have the full control over the domain name. You can either use our information, our nameservers or you can go with your custom data.If you ever want to move the domain from our system, we'll of course give you the domain without any additional costs.I guess it comes down to whether you trust registrars and TLD operators less than you trust an EU-based startup. Has anyone got any experience or expertise to share?

Austin shoesmith Kayla Stojek (AKA "Zombie Peepshow") mods wedges, Vans, heels and other shoes (and boots) with huge, deadly spikes, cute dioramas, horror pumpkins, whimsical scares, and such, all made to order: if heels aren't your thing, Stojek will mod you up some spiky Vans. (more…)