Boing Boing

@ShaneMorris: "My fridge has an RFID chip in the water filter, which means the generic water filter I ordered for $19 doesn't work. My fridge will literally not dispense ice, or water. I have to pay @generalelectric $55 for a water filter from them."Sound familiar?(Image: GE, Cryteria, CC-BY, modified) Read the rest

Jason Klamm from the Comedy on Vinyl podcast (previously) writes, "In late 2018, I uncovered the true identity of comic Dick Davy. Since starting his archive, I've come across some real gems, but in August, one find took the cake. His niece, Sharon, mailed me two records that had been sitting in a box, and it turns out these are unreleased acetates of material no one has heard in almost sixty years. I had Firesign Theatre archivist Taylor Jessen transfer and do a quick clean-up of them. This episode discusses their contents and what their future might be." (MP3) Read the rest

The Los Angeles underground is absolutely one of my favorite places.I can not speak highly enough about The A-Team. I adore the entire cast. Mr. T has been and will remain a personal hero. Read his autobiography and be inspired. While the B.A. in B.A. Barrakus stood for bad attitude it was Captain H.M. "Howling Mad" Murdock that I wanted to play, when my friends and I portrayed the team. Dwight Schultz was a delight and I can not watch him in Star Trek without thinking of his time on the A-Team.Dirk Benedict's 'Starbuck' may have been overshadowed by another, but Templeton 'The Faceman' Peck? Faceman always had the coolest cars, and his backstory was the best on the program.I liked to think that George Peppard's 'John 'Hannibal' Smith' had been so shattered by Holly Golightly's bullshit that he ended up enlisting in Viet Nam. Only by keeping his tight cadre of good-hearted, All-American soldiers alive could he mask the pain.I love it when a plan comes together! Read the rest

I'm re-reading The Emperor of Scent, by Chandler Burr. It's a non-fiction book about a guy named Luca Turin who is obsessed with odors, specifically, perfume fragrances.Turin is a biophysicist who wrote a best-selling book that reviewed hundreds of perfumes, in the same way a wine reviewer would write about wine. He believes that the odor of a substance has to do with the way it vibrates on a molecular level. Our noses, he says, contain the equivalent of a scanning electron microscope. This flies in the face of conventional thought on the subject. The reigning theory is that smell is a function of a molecule’s shape, not the way it vibrates.Burr makes a great case for Turin’s vibration theory, and the story of how nobody in academia will listen to Turin was a real eye opener. The peer review system for scientific journals is revealed to be totally corrupt. Read the rest

Lawmakers in Turkey are hoping to pass a bill that would allow men who have sex with minors to avoid going to prison if they agree to marry their victim, reports The Independent.From the article:United Nations agencies warned the bill would generate a landscape of impunity for child abuse and leave victims vulnerable to experiencing additional mistreatment and distress from their assailants.“Marry-your-rapist” bills have been seen across the world and are pushed in the name of protecting and safeguarding family “honour”.Image by Salih Altuntaş from Pixabay Read the rest

SCUM Manifesto author Valerie Solanas' effort to get her play "Up Your Ass" produced by Andy Warhol leads to deadly confrontations. With cameos from Maurice Girodias, Paul Krassner, and Barney Rosset.From John Wilcock, New York Years, by Ethan Persoff and Scott Marshall.(See all Boing Boing installments) Read the rest

Now that the latest iPhones have embraced the wireless charging revolution, there’s really no excuse for not having a wireless charger of your own. But even the best wireless chargers don’t allow users to use their phones while they’re being powered up.This Suction Powered Wireless Charger breaks that rule by allowing you to comfortably use your phone even while it’s taking a charge, and it’s available for 25% off retail today.Featuring mini suction cups that won’t damage your device, this tiny-yet-mighty wireless charging solution won’t block your hands while it powers up your device—allowing you to use your phone without limitations at all times.Ideal for gamers who can’t afford to let their phone rest for even a minute, this charger is also lightweight enough to toss in your pocket at a moment’s notice.Embrace the wireless charging revolution without having to let your phone sit unused for extended periods of time. Usually priced at $69, this hands-on wireless charging solution is available for 25% off at $51.75.Prices are subject to change.You can't beat free! Get $70+ worth of premium Mac apps for free today! Read the rest

On the highly-recommended Brick Experiment Channel, "BEC" (the unidentified, silent LEGO engineer you never see or hear) tries his hand at building a quad drone using LEGO bricks and other LEGO components. The only non-LEGO parts he uses are the battery, the receiver, the flight controller, and a motor driver circuit.For the flight controller, BEC used the Matek F411-mini. For the motors, he used four LEGO L-motors [88003-1].Besides the cool LEGO drone he ends up with, I love watching his experimentation and iterative process. And like many fellow 'tubers such as Jimmy DiResta and Primitive Technology, the un-narrated video is kind of mesmerizing to watch as you hear only the sounds of making. Read the rest

Teleporter, motion-detection compression algorithm, editing shenanigan? You decide! In this video, posted to gfycat, a man suddenly pops into view from behind the short square sign near the top of the image, just left of the white truck. [via Reddit] Spoiler: cue the video to 9:40, watch the spot on the curb between the manhole cover and the round sign, and you'll see a shadow moving along the curb toward the point where the man is seen moments later. Read the rest

YouTuber and dad Matt MacMillan picked an unusual way to cover AC/DC's "Thunderstruck." He spent a year recording his baby son's cooing, sneezing, and other random noises and pieced it together to make the song. He writes, "It took forever."And when you see HOW he arranged it all, you'll see why it took so long — it's really quite a feat!If you're not familiar with the original song (I wasn't), here it is for comparison:(Geekologie) Read the rest

Royalty Now paints over classical portraits and statues to depict famous leaders as they might appear in the modernized flesh.Above, Julius Caesar. Below, Caligula. Read the rest

Nathan Yau created this fun and fascinating name guessing algorithm. You select "male" or "female," the decade you were born, and then type in the first letter of your name. I tried more than a dozen times for people I know and it nailed it on the first letter about 80% of the time. On those that it screwed up after the first letter, it got it right after I entered a second letter. From the project description:This is based on data from the Social Security Administration, up to 2018. It’s relatively comprehensive, but there are a few limitations. First, it’s data for the United States, so the numbers don’t really apply elsewhere. Second, the SSA doesn’t include names with fewer than five people in a year, so the chart doesn’t cover more unique names. Third, there were no Social Security Numbers before 1935, so the name counts are fuzzier for years before that.But like I said, the data still has a wide range. I aggregated the annual data by decade and calculated percentages by dividing name counts by total number of Social Security Numbers provided.Before you enter anything, the chart shows the most popular names for the given sex and decade. Then as you enter a name, the chart shows conditional probabilities. The more information you give it, the stronger the guess."Guessing Names Based on What They Start With" (FlowingData) Read the rest

Motherboard has obtained and published a copy of the forensics report that suggests that Jeff Bezos's phone was hacked by Prince Mohammad Bin Salman Al Saud, possibly in a scheme to obtain kompromat that could be used as leverage to prevent the Washington Post of reporting on the death of Jamal Khashoggi, who was murdered and mutilated by agents of the prince.The report explains how the attribution was made, and describes the mechanism by which Bezos's phone was likely compromised, and references the NSO Group's notorious Whatsapp malware, which bears similarities to the tool seemingly used to attack Bezos's phone.Motherboard consulted Sarah Edwards from the SANS Institute to assess the forensics work and she was lukewarm, calling the report "significantly incomplete," explaining that because the experts hadn't jailbroken Bezos's phone, they weren't able to access its full filesystem.The forensic investigators encountered at least two obstacles in conducting their exam of Bezos's phone. The first related to the encrypted downloader. Farrante’s team first examined the attachment alone before deciding they needed to do a full forensic imaging and analysis of the phone’s contents and traffic. They used a tool from Cellebrite (Cellebrite UFED 4PC Ultimate and Physical Analyzer) to grab forensic images from the phone and set up a secure makeshift lab to do the forensics over two days.They did not find any malicious code embedded in the video file, but discovered that the video was delivered via an encrypted downloader hosted on WhatsApp’s media server. Read the rest

Petrick Studio's Instagram for Windows 95 imagines a world where nothing has changed, but for one app alone. Click through for the GIFs. Read the rest

In memory of Monty Python co-founder Terry Jones, who died this week, please enjoy "Monty Python and the Holy Grail in LEGO."Created in 2002 by Spite Your Face Productions for the DVD release of "Monty Python and The Holy Grail," Terry Gilliam reportedly described the LEGO short as "definitely the best version of the film."And here's "Camelot (Knights of the Round Table)" from the original film:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m9wdYy3tCm4(via r/ObscureMedia) Read the rest

I'm glad he came prepared with a hand towel to ensure a good grip on the railing.I can't help but imagine him in a dance-off with the footloose and fancy-free fellow made famous by this classic clip: View this post on Instagram A post shared by Total Frat Move (@totalfratmove) on Jul 18, 2018 at 2:17pm PDT Read the rest

You no longer need to invest vast quantities of your time and money in order to take advantage of everything that graphic design can do for your brand or business.Design Wizard Pro allows you to quickly create pro-level image designs in minutes, and a lifetime subscription is currently available for over 90% off its usual price.Featuring more than 30,000 professionally-designed templates that span multiple genres and styles, this subscription grants you unlimited access to a massive trove of design elements that can be used for marketing in any environment.You’ll have access to 1.2 million curated individual images, along with 120 free fonts and a wide variety of color palettes—all within a streamlined and intuitive platform that makes it easy to find what you’re looking for.It’s also easy to integrate with third-party platforms like Intercom, HubSpot, and Buffer.Spruce up your marketing campaigns with a lifetime subscription to Design Wizard Pro for just $39.Prices are subject to change.You can't beat free! Get $70+ worth of premium Mac apps for free today! Read the rest

Say goodbye to America's wetlands and streams. Say hello to new rivers of pollution, and parking lots where cattails, frogs, and minnows once were.“The Trump administration on Thursday will finalize a rule to strip away environmental protections for streams, wetlands and other water bodies, handing a victory to farmers, fossil fuel producers and real estate developers who said Obama-era rules had shackled them with onerous and unnecessary burdens,” writes Coral Davenport at the New York Times tonight.From Day 1 of his administration, President Trump vowed to repeal President Barack Obama’s “Waters of the United States” regulation, which had frustrated rural landowners. His new rule, which will be implemented in the coming weeks, is the latest step in the Trump administration’s push to repeal or weaken nearly 100 environmental rules and laws, loosening or eliminating rules on climate change, clean air, chemical pollution, coal mining, oil drilling and endangered species protections.(...)His administration had completed the first step of its demise in September with the rule’s repeal. His replacement on Thursday will complete the process, not only rolling back 2015 rules that guaranteed protections under the 1972 Clean Water Act to certain wetlands and streams that run intermittently or run temporarily underground, but also relieves landowners of the need to seek permits that the Environmental Protection Agency had considered on a case-by-case basis before the Obama rule.It also gives President Trump a major policy achievement to bring to his political base while his impeachment trial continues.RIP streams. https://t.co/H6NvpIxwxH Read the rest

Twitter, where Donald Trump posted 123 bonkers tweets today and Nazis and psyops bots roam free, is rolling out a pop-up feature that lets users add an emoji reaction to a Direct Message, kind of like a similar feature that exists in iOS iMessage. So fancy! Twitter is testing DM Reactions pic.twitter.com/Ihp7hsnaOH— Jane Manchun Wong (@wongmjane) October 16, 2019Reports Chance Miller at 9to5Mac:Twitter first started testing this emoji reaction feature last year, but it’s now rolling the capability out to all users on the web, iOS, and Android. This feature allows you to add a reaction to direct messages using your normal selection of emoji.All participants in the direct message thread will receive a notification any time a new reaction is added to a message. Those who don’t have the latest version of the Twitter apps will receive a separate message informing them of the reaction.And here's how you use the new Twitter feature, which unfortunately won't remove the president from office or stop him from using Twitter or ban the Nazis: To add a reaction, hover over the message and click the reaction button (heart and plus icon), or double tap on the message and pick an emoji from the pop-up. You can undo a reaction at any time and it will be removed from the message for all participants. Click or tap on a reaction in a conversation to view who reacted to the message.More:Twitter rolling out iMessage-like reactions feature to direct messages[via techmeme.com Read the rest

Clearview AI app used by 600+ law enforcement agencies, from local police departments to FBI, DHSTwitter told law enforcement app maker Clearview AI that its scraping of Twitter images for facial recognition databases violated Twitter policies.The company behind the app is sort of mysterious, but has in recent months licensed its powerful face-recognition AI to hundreds of law enforcement agencies.Our Cory Doctorow wrote about Clearview AI recently here.In addition to the rebuke by Twitter, U.S. lawmakers are expressing privacy concerns, the New York Times reported Wednesday:Twitter sent a letter this week to the small start-up company, Clearview AI, demanding that it stop taking photos and any other data from the social media website “for any reason” and delete any data that it previously collected, a Twitter spokeswoman said. The cease-and-desist letter, sent on Tuesday, accused Clearview of violating Twitter’s policies.The New York Times reported last week that Clearview had amassed a database of more than three billion photos from social media sites — including Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and Venmo — and elsewhere on the internet. The vast database powers an app that can match people to their online photos and link back to the sites the images came from.The app is used by more than 600 law enforcement agencies, ranging from local police departments to the F.B.I. and the Department of Homeland Security. Law enforcement officials told The Times that the app had helped them identify suspects in many criminal cases.Read more:Twitter Tells Facial Recognition Trailblazer to Stop Using Site’s Photos [nytimes.com] Read the rest

Trump seemed awfully uptight today, didn't he. Can it be the impeachment trial?By 4:25 PM today in Washington, DonaldTrump broke his own previous record of 123 tweets in a single day, a milestone he set just over one month ago, according to Factba.se, 'a service that compiles and analyzes data on Trump’s presidency.'Most of the trash he's tweeting and retweeting to his 71 million followers, many of whom are bots, were GOP propaganda content attacking Democrats over Trump's ongoing impeachment trial. From the Associated Press:Trump’s previous record for tweets on a single day during his time in the White House was set on Dec. 12, 2019, the day the House Judiciary Committee opened its marathon session to approve two articles of impeachment against the president.Trump’ set his all-time record for tweets in a day before he became president, with 161 posts in January 2015, according to Factba.se. Most of his tweeting that day was dedicated to plugging his reality television show.Trump, who began his day in Davos, Switzerland, where he was attending the World Economic Forum, started his Wednesday morning by hammering out 41 tweets between 12 a.m. and 1 a.m. ET (6 a.m. to 7 a.m. in Davos).Read More:Trump sets presidential record for most tweets in a day [apnews.com] Read the rest

'Federal disclosures filed late Tuesday reveal Amazon and Facebook each spent roughly $17 million to battle back Washington in 2019'

• Whither the in-flight emotional support miniatures horses? • “Officials highlighted a few areas where they are most eager to get comments, including whether miniatures horses should continue to qualify as service animals”Proposed new FAA rules would mean no more passengers bringing what are identified as emotional-support animals on airplanes, unless the animals are specially trained dogs that meet requirements.On Wednesday, The U.S. Department of Transportation [DOT] proposed that only specially trained dogs qualify as service animals -- which, according to the US Americans With Disabilities ACT, or ADA, have to be allowed by airlines to travel with their human in the cabin at no extra charge. Transportation Department officials told reporters today they proposed the changes to improve in-flight safety, because a lot of passengers are abusing the system. As the number of in-flight 'support animal' attacks show, some jerks really are dragging on board pets with no training. Airlines complain that the pets relieve themselves on planes and in airports, writes David Koenig for AP:The public will have 60 days to comment on the proposed changes. Officials highlighted a few areas where they are most eager to get comments, including whether miniatures horses should continue to qualify as service animals.The Transportation Department proposes a narrow definition in which a service animal could only be a dog that is trained to help a person with a physical or other disability. Passengers with a service dog would have to fill out a federal form on which they swear that the dog is trained to help them. Read the rest

Copyright rules are made with the needs of the entertainment industry in mind, designed to provide the legal framework for creators, investors, distributors, production houses, and other parts of the industry to navigate their disputes and assert their interests.A good copyright policy would be one that encouraged diverse forms of expression from diverse creators who were fairly compensated for their role in a profitable industry. But copyright has signally failed to accomplish this end, largely because of the role it plays in the monopolization of the entertainment industry (and, in the digital era, every industry where copyrighted software plays a role). Copyright's primary approach is to give creators monopolies over their works, in the hopes that they can use these as leverage in overmatched battles with corporate interests. But monopolies have a tendency to accumulate, piling up in the vaults of big companies, who use these government-backed exclusive rights to dominate the industry so that anyone hoping to enter it must first surrender their little monopolies to the hoards of the big gatekeepers.Creators get a raw deal in a concentrated marketplace, selling their work into a buyer's market. Giving them more monopolies – longer copyright terms, copyright over the "feel" of music, copyright over samples – just gives the industry more monopolies to confiscate in one-sided negotiations and add to their arsenals. Expecting more copyright to help artists beat a concentrated industry is like expecting more lunch money to help your kid defeat the bullies who beat him up on the playground every day. Read the rest

In an attempt to curb the spread of the deadly new coronavirus, Wuhan city officials are temporarily shutting down "bus, subway, ferry and long-distance passenger transport," reports NPR.The virus, which has killed 17 people and infected over 500, is thought to have originated in a Wuhan seafood market. According to The Washington Post, the now closed "1,000-stall bazaar sold not only seafood but marmots, spotted deer and venomous snakes, according to state media reports that described the market as 'filthy and messy.'”China Daily tweeted "Public #transportation such as bus, subway, ferry and long-distance bus in Wuhan will be temporarily closed since 10am Thursday. All flights and trains departed from #Wuhan will be temporarily cancelled to reduce risk of spread of the new virus, local govt says. #coronavirus"Public #transportation such as bus, subway, ferry and long-distance bus in Wuhan will be temporarily closed since 10am Thursday. All flights and trains departed from #Wuhan will be temporarily cancelled to reduce risk of spread of the new virus, local govt says. #coronavirus pic.twitter.com/gtzIlFszaf— China Daily (@ChinaDaily) January 22, 2020Wuhan is China's "fifth-largest city, and more than 3,200 square miles in size," reports Business Insider. "By comparison, New York City has 8 million people — nearly 3 million fewer than Wuhan."Two other well-know coronaviruses are MERS and SARS. From the CDC website:Two other human coronaviruses, MERS-CoV and SARS-CoV have been known to frequently cause severe symptoms. MERS symptoms usually include fever, cough, and shortness of breath which often progress to pneumonia. Read the rest

The Nintendo Switch is an undeniably awesome gadget, pairing old-school gaming styles with modern-day graphics and functionality for a new generation of gamers.The only complaint people seem to have is that its controllers are somewhat lacking, which is why more and more Switch-enthusiasts are picking up this Gbros. Wireless Adapter that lets you play with your go-to, original wired controllers instead.Perfectly compatible with controllers for Gamecube, NES, SNES, and SFC, this adapter will bring a new level of familiarity to your games by allowing you to take advantage of your favorite controllers while you play your Switch.Simply connect the adapter via Bluetooth and you’ll be able to play your favorite games at a distance of up to 33 feet.This adapter supports both Switch and X-inputs with Windows, and you’ll be able to press and hold L+R+A+B+START in order to swap your button-mapping options between GameCube and Switch Pro.Start playing Nintendo Switch with your favorite controllers. This Gbros. Wireless Adapter is available for 25% off at just $14.99.Prices are subject to change.You can't beat free! Get $70+ worth of premium Mac apps for free today! Read the rest

Sounds like the clinical trials programs we use to approve drugs may have room to improve.BBC:He had diabetes, and he had signed up for a study to see if taking a “statin” – a kind of cholesterol-lowering drug – might help. So far, so normal.But soon after he began the treatment, his wife began to notice a sinister transformation. A previously reasonable man, he became explosively angry and – out of nowhere – developed a tendency for road rage. During one memorable episode, he warned his family to keep away, lest he put them in hospital.Out of fear of what might happen, Patient Five stopped driving. Even as a passenger, his outbursts often forced his wife to abandon their journeys and turn back. Afterwards, she’d leave him alone to watch TV and calm down. She became increasingly fearful for her own safety.Then one day, Patient Five had an epiphany. “He was like, ‘Wow, it really seems that these problems started when I enrolled in this study’,” says Beatrice Golomb, who leads a research group at the University of California, San Diego. Read the rest

“I think absurd is exactly the right word,” said Saudi Prince Faisal A security forensics team working on the matter of Amazon chief Jeff Bezos's hacked phone and leaked dick pics reports that without a doubt, it all started when Bezos got a video over WhatsApp from Mohammad Bin Salman. The Amazon mogul met Prince Bone Saw, who is widely believed to have ordered the murder of Jamal Khashoggi, at a dinner in 2018. Bezos got a weird message from MBS, who he trusted, and after that video attachment, Bezos's phone started pushing out tons of data.Cory Doctorow blogged his take on the matter here earlier today. So, today, the Saudi foreign minister has of course totally denied everything. Because of course, just like they denied murdering Khashoggi.Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud said on Wednesday that an allegation MBS was involved in the plot to hack the phone of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos was “absurd,” reports Reuters:“I think absurd is exactly the right word,” Prince Faisal told Reuters in an interview at the World Economic Forum annual meeting in Davos. “The idea that the crown prince would hack Jeff Bezos’ phone is absolutely silly.”Two United Nations officials will report on Wednesday that there is enough evidence suggesting that Saudi Arabia had hacked Bezos’ phone and both the kingdom and the United States should investigate, a person familiar with the matter told Reuters earlier on Wednesday. Previously on Boing Boing:Forensics team accuses Prince Bone Saw of hacking Jeff Bezos's phone to obtain kompromat and force Washington Post silence on Khashoggi [Cory Doctorow]Read more at Reuters:Saudi foreign minister calls claim that Crown Prince hacked Bezos phone 'absurd' Read the rest

The first amendment is one thing, but I would not piss off an HOA.A gentleman, who may or may not have a mental illness, posted a number of very offensive signs on his condominium balcony. His HOA asked him to remove said signage and then fined him to no effect. The City of Calabasas apparently got involved, and the hateful symbology has been removed... for now.ABC7:A man who is believed to be the long-time owner of the condo was seen last week yelling and cursing at people from his balcony. No threats were made, according to the sheriff's department, but some neighbors say they feel unsafe and intimidated by the messages."I'm horrified, and I'm sad," resident Sheri Polk said. "Sad that people feel this way about Jews, about African Americans."The city of Calabasas said the material was taken down Friday, the morning after a deadline was issued for the signs' removal. The resident initially refused to remove the posters, according to Calabasas Mayor Alicia Weintraub. Read the rest

Lest you thought the "bulletproof" backpack trend wasn't heinous and exploitative enough, Wonder Hoodie is now selling a "bulletproof" hoodie.I use "scare-quotes" here because, like most "bulletproof" products on the market, this hoodie claims to rate a IIIA on the National Institute of Justice's Body Armor Performance Standards. This means that the padding is "Tested to stop .357 SIG and .44 Magnum ammunition fired from longer barrel handguns. No rifle ammunition protection."So it's not really bulletproof so much as it is bullet resistant for certain handguns. Which ain't gonna help in the occasion someone shows up with an AR-15 or similar semi-automatic rifle. Also, if we're being technical, it hasn't actually been tested and certified by the NIJ, but rather by an independent lab. But I digress.If it does make you feel comfortable about the statistically likelihood situation of a mass shooting, then by all means, spend the $800 for the adult-sized hoodie, even though you're more likely to die in a boating or a spaceship incident. (To be fair, a deliberate assault by a gun is way more likely than either of these events, though still a lower risk than death from cancer, flu, or falling.) And to make it even more worth the exploitative emotional manipulation investment, the company also offers a "Limited Lifetime Warranty." Here's what that entails:If you get shot (God forbid) with our hoodies on, we'll send you a replacement hoodie FREE of charge. Just include the police report or news clip. Read the rest

Wow, really? So soon? Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun told reporters today the company expects to return to producing the 737 MAX months before the previously forecast mid-year return to service. The planemaker said it did not plan to suspend or cut its dividend.It's not clear what if anything will change with the new design.From Reuters:The company announced a production halt in December, when the global grounding of the fast-selling 737 MAX following two deadly crashes in five months looked set to last into mid-2020.Calhoun said the company is not considering scrapping the MAX and expects it will continue to fly for a generation. He also said it will not launch a marketing campaign to get customers to get back on 737 MAX planes. He also disclosed Boeing is starting with a “clean sheet of paper” on a New Midsize Airplane but it is not clear if the company is scrapping the existing design.The company said on Tuesday it now expects regulators to approve the plane’s return to service in the middle of the year. Calhoun said he did not see recent issues raised about wiring or software as “serious problems.” READ MORE:Boeing CEO says he expects to resume 737 MAX production before mid-year [reuters.com] Read the rest

🍕 Yes, that's a 100-meter record-setting Margherita Pizza. A pizza with a purpose. Sir Eats-A-Lot (@issac_eatsalot on Instagram), captured the awesome creation of a one hundred meters long pizza pie created by Pellegrini's Italian Restaurant (@pellegrinisitalian) pizzeria in Australia. The goal of the ginormous pizza: raise money to help New South Wales firefighters who are battling the ongoing wildfire megablazes. View this post on Instagram 🚩🚩 @pellegrinisitalian 🚩🚩 🍕 100m Margherita Pizza Record 🍕 . Welcome to the neighbourhood old Pel - with a 100m continuous pizza party that is 😅 over 400kgs and 4hrs of dough, sweat and cheers went into this masterpiece that's taken weeks of planning and days of practice to achieve. Not only an impressive feat of culinary endurance - but a pizza the pie also went to Rural Fire Services with gold coin donations being accepted for a slice of pizza at the end of the cook. The HUGE team effort it took from everyone - some 5hr efforts some 5minute efforts - to shuffle the cooked dough down the table was mammoth and it couldn't have been achieved without everyone involved along the way. Restaurant opens to the public tomorrow - keen to head back for some of the best pizza and pasta Sydney's south has to offer! . @petragroup_ #pellegrinis #worldrecord #recordbreaking #pizza #continuouspizza #margherita #italian #southvillage #kirrawee #theshire #new #grandopening #charity #bushfireappeal #dough #cheese #sauce #basil #planning #huge #onehundredmetres #sydneyfood #teampixel #chewcrewmedia #pasta #tastemademedoit #foodnetwork @foodbible @foodnetwork @ladbible @complex @thrillist @foodyfetish @pizzaA post shared by Sir Eats-a-lot (@issac_eatsalot) on Jan 19, 2020 at 1:11am PST View this post on Instagram 🌟GIVEAWAY TIME🌟⁠ We are giving away a $200 voucher to spend at Pellegrini's Italian, kirrawee. Read the rest

My daughter and I have a nice little home makerspace going, but we have been storing all of our components (resistors, capacitors, solder, arduinos, raspberry pis, etc) in plastic boxes stacked into a larger box, which makes it hard to find what we need. It was time to get a cabinet, and this one is perfect, with 44 clear sliding drawers. It's only about 6-inches deep, which is a good thing because it doesn't take up a lot of room on our worktable. It's on Amazon. Read the rest

Rep. Tulsi Gabbard is claiming damages of $50 million after Hillary Clinton called her a "Russian asset" in an interview, reports The Guardian.From the filing: “Clinton’s false assertions were made in a deliberate attempt to derail Tulsi’s presidential campaign. The defamatory statements have caused Tulsi to lose potential donors and potential voters who heard the defamatory statements. Tulsi has suffered significant actual damages, personally and professionally, that are estimated to exceed $50m – and continue to this day.”From the article:Gabbard’s allegations stem from an interview Clinton conducted with the Democratic strategist, author and podcaster David Plouffe in October 2019. Discussing the 2020 primary field, Clinton said of one candidate: “She is a favourite of the Russians.“They have a bunch of sites and bots and other ways of supporting her so far. And, that’s assuming Jill Stein [the Green Party nominee for president in 2016, who received favourable coverage from Russian state media] will give it up, which she might not because she’s also a Russian asset. Yeah, she’s a Russian asset.”Image by United States Congress - Office of Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard, Public Domain, Link Read the rest

Artist Refik Anadol, who has appeared on Boing Boing before, designs dreamy installations using artificial intelligence. Some of them he calls 'data paintings.' Anadol manipulates large collections of data and develops machine learning algorithms to create these trippy, immersive art installations. They're beautiful.The video above is a new profile of Refik Anadol's work by WIRED. If you haven't yet, go subscribe to Wired on YouTube. Good videos. You can experience Anadol's work live, right now in New York City through February 2, 2020, at Artechouse NYC.Go see Anadol's installations in person, or learn more about them online:• Machine Hallucination at Artechouse NYC (now through February 2020)• WDCH Dreams (Los Angeles, archived, performance took place in 2018)• Winds of Boston (archived)• Melting Memories (archived)PREVIOUSLY ON BOING BOING:Watch Archive Dreaming, a mind-bending immersive dive into data visualization (By Andrea James, 2018)[Thanks, Wonbo!] Read the rest

Nototo is a new note taking app that lets you build an imaginary map and populate it with plants, structures, and notes on any subject. It reminds me of a memory palace - a building full of rooms that exists in your mind into which you can store ideas for easy recall. Read the rest

The latest installment of the always-delightful McMansion Hell (previously) departs from the usual format of mercilessly skewering the tasteless custom homes of the contemporary super-rich and instead delves into their historic precedent, the 1970s-vintage "proto-McMansion," AKA the "Styled Ranch."Posts like this are a peek behind the McMansion Hell curtain, giving us a glimpse into Kate Wagner's outstanding critical eye for architecture, its meanings, and its failings. My grandparents had a not-quite-Styled-Ranch house -- smaller than these, and with better proportions -- but I instantly recognized the type of house on display here.This 5,600 square-foot house features 6 bedrooms and 6 bathrooms and can be all yours for ~$1.8 million USD. You’ll notice a lot of things about this house that are not McMansion-like: its symmetry, its lack of a complex roofline, its unified exterior claddings and window styles. However, this is why the house is interesting - it is not as much a McMansion as it is a proto-McMansion. Many McMansion features are apparent in their nascent form, for example, the competing architectural styles of Tudor (windows) and Neoclassical (portico, front door, quoins), the tacked-on mass containing the three car garage, an ostentatious pediment with elaborate columns, and extruded double bay windows. The McMansion Hell Yearbook: 1970 [Kate Wagner/McMansion Hell] Read the rest

This is the bringing-tears to my eyes type Star Wars stuff we need!Star Wars: The Clone Wars is arguably the best storytelling in the Star Wars canon universe. Read the rest

From Reddit's popular r/AmItheAsshole subreddit, in which people describe a recent action they took and ask readers to decide whether or not they behaved in an assholelike manner: a man says he saw a poster offering a $500 reward for a cat, found the cat, and returned it to claim the reward. The cat owner was surprised that the cat finder wanted the reward, and only reluctantly gave him a portion of it.AITA for asking for the $500 reward money after I returned a lost cat? from r/AmItheAssholeReddit's judgement: not an asshole.Photo by Ludemeula Fernandes on Unsplash Read the rest

The disgraceful, shady plan to sell control over the .ORG domains to a private equity fund controlled by Republican billionaires is on the ropes, with tens of thousands of people and thousands of .org registrants having signed a petition calling for a halt to the deal. This Friday, we're converging on the ICANN offices in Playa Vista to deliver that petition. I'll be there. Will you? Read the rest

Monty Python star Terry Jones, master of countless characters such as Mr. Creosote and Cardinal Biggles, director of Life of Brian , is dead at 77. The BBC reports he was suffering from dementia.Life of Brian was viewed as controversial for its comedic depiction of a young Jewish man who is born on the same day as and next door to Jesus Christ, and is subsequently mistaken for the Messiah."I think we'll get into a lot of trouble," explained Jones at the time. "I think there'll be a lot of hackles raised, but it isn't a spoof on the life of Christ, in fact. It started off as, 'Let's do a life of Christ' and we thought, 'That's a very outrageous thing to do'.He added: "So in fact, we did the life of someone who was born in the stable next to Christ and who wasn't Christ and didn't have quite such a glamorous life."Photo: BBC / Monty Python Read the rest

For when you have no fucks to give, give (these surprisingly well executed) Zero Fucks Given coins.This crazy world is filled with dumb-asses and assholes, and we believe we are greatly outnumbered by them, so we invented/created Zero Fucks Coins as a way to arm the citizens of earth with a way offend and defend themselves from these jackasses. If a picture is worth 1,000 words, then handing out one of these coins is surely worth zero fucks.There are plenty of coins to choose from: "Rat's Ass" ($5.99), "Flying Fuck" ($5.99), "My Two Cents," ($5.99) and MORE!(TIWIB) Read the rest

I post the Lockpicking Lawyer so frequently I decided not to do so again until he opened something by hitting it. This he has in fact done, it turns out: a fancy $150 gun safe so unsafe I won't even name or link to it here. I will not be posting the Lockpicking Lawyer again until he opens something by looking at it sternly. Read the rest

Enjoy this excellent and perfectly viral work of video editing. Spot the one "mistake", win a cyber oreo. Read the rest

My 2019 book Radicalized has been named one of the five finalists for Canada Reads, the CBC's annual book prize -- Canada's leading national book award, alongside of the Governor General's award!My book was nominated by Akil Augustine, a beloved Canadian sportscaster and storyteller, and he'll be championing the book through the Canada Reads process between now and March, when the winner is announced!The festivities kick off tonight, Wednesday, January 22nd, when Akil, me, and the other nominees and their champions will appear for a panel discussion at Toronto's Eaton Centre Indigo Books at 7PM (free, but reserved tickets are recommended!).To celebrate this amazing news, I have two more announcements that I've been dying to make:1. The lead story from Radicalized, "Unauthorized Bread," is being adapted as a graphic novel that Firstsecond will publish in 2022; I'm working on the adaptation with the excellent Jenn Doyle, known for their Knights Errant graphic novels.2. Ars Technica has published Unauthorized Bread as a free online read as of today! Keen observers will recall that "Unauthorized Bread" is also in development for television with Topic Studios, parent company of The Intercept.Needless to say, I'm very happy about all of this! And it would be remiss for me not to add that all four of the novellas in Radicalized are eligible for this year's Hugo Award -- nominations for which have just opened -- and to add, frankly, that I really hope that if you are going to nominate one of these tales for the award, that you make it "Unauthorized Bread." Read the rest

More and more people are flocking to a wide variety of careers in IT, thanks mostly to the high pay, plentiful advancement opportunities, and an exciting atmosphere that offers new challenges every day.The only problem is that this high demand means competition can be fierce if you're entering the job market for the first time, and you need to have the right certifications on your resume if you want to land the best jobs.With brand new material that covers every element of the latest 2020 exams, the Complete 2020 CompTIA Certification Training Bundle will help you earn top-salaries as an IT pro, and it’s available for 97% off its usual price.With 14 expert-led courses, this bundle will introduce you to both the basics and more advanced elements of everything from server infrastructure to cybersecurity and beyond.These courses will give you the skills you need to ace the exams for the CompTIA A+, Network+, Server+, Linux+, Cloud+, and Project+ certifications—all through training that focuses on in-demand networking technologies, cyber security, and much more.There’s also instruction that will help you pass the Security+, CySA+, and PenTest+ certifications, and there are plenty of practice exam questions to ensure that there aren’t any surprises when it comes time to sit for the real thing.You'll also receive extensive training in the field of network security and maintenance—skills that are in growing demand across countless industries in both the public and private sectors.Launch or further an exciting and lucrative career in IT with help from the Complete 2020 CompTIA Certification Training Bundle. Read the rest

Remember when ambient music was Enya and the X-Files theme song, and you could get your favorite mood music from a 1-800 number, instead of streaming it straight to your phone? Remember when my mom actually listened to this on a semi-regular basis, but always skipped the X-Files song, even though it was the only one I cared for, because that show was cool? Good times.I didn't remember that the Twin Peaks theme was on here, though. I think they missed the irony of those soothing dulcet tones from northern Washington?Fuck "Tubular Bells" though. Read the rest

In the 1930s the world's best-known conservationist was an ex-trapper named Grey Owl who wrote and lectured ardently for the preservation of the Canadian wilderness. At his death, though, it was discovered that he wasn't who he'd claimed to be. In this week's episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll tell the story of his curious history and complicated legacy.We'll also learn how your father can be your uncle and puzzle over a duplicate record.Show notesPlease support us on Patreon! Read the rest

In this video, amateur mad scientist and maker Peter Sripol turns an unmodified leaf blower and some foam board into an R/C-controlled plane. This is part of a series of him turning drills, gaming chairs, Roombas, bottles of Coke, and R/C cars into planes. Read the rest

In Pragadavaram village in India's state of Andhra Pradesh, a man was killed by a rooster during an illegal cockfight. The birds' owners tie razors to the animals' natural spurs and fight them to the death. From the New Zealand Herald:As one of the organisers held the bird, preparing to release it into the arena, it struggled free and lashed out, inflicting a deep wound on the victim who stood nearby.Cockfights were banned by the Indian Supreme Court as part of the 1960 Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act but the practice remains popular in some areas, especially as part of celebrations for Makar Sankranti, a Hindu festival day...A dozen other injuries were reported from cockfights held during the celebrations.image: detail of "Cockfight in London, c. 1808" (public domain) Read the rest