Archive for August, 2008
« Older Entries | Newer Entries »The Pepsi Candidate
[ Comments Off ]Posted on August 22, 2008 by admin in Politics
Friday, August 22nd, 2008In a blind taste test, which candidate would you choose?
Today Slate had an amusing piece pointing out the similarities between the presumptive Democratic candidate and Pepsi. For the record, someone else pointed this out way back in February. The logo similarity had never occurred to me, even though I had parodied it for the (ahem) donate button (yes people, that thing works, try it some time!) on the upper right of these pages. The design blog Under Consideration/Speak Up digs deeper into the genius of the Pepsi candidate’s marketing materials here. So what would McCain’s beverage brand be? Pepto-Bismol? If you consider the fact that most of his wealth is derived from the wife’s Anheuser-Busch ties, you could pick from the product list. Busch Light? Bare Knuckle Stout? Hurricane Ice? Lost Energy (yes, that’s an actual product name)? Feel free to post your suggestions.
WANTED:A More Accurate Police Sketch
[ Comments Off ]Posted on August 22, 2008 by admin in Editorial & Opinion
Friday, August 22nd, 2008EVERYONE looks like a criminal in a police sketch…
I am about to help waste an hour of your life. This police sketch tool has been around for a long time, but when I ran across it yesterday, I found myself as obsessed with it as I was a year or two ago when it last crossed my path. After about 45 minutes of selecting, resizing, and rearranging eyes, hair, chins, and noses, I feel like I finally captured the essence of me. The essence of me if I joined the Monkees, grew a moustache, and wore glasses, that is. It’s a disguise, you see. I’m a criminal, okay? Let’s face it, no-one really looks like a police sketch, except maybe Marc Brown of KABC in LA, who had the misfortune of reporting on a rapist who – viewing the police sketch – may have been him. And check out this accurate but useless Thai police sketch of a bank robber. In spite of all this silliness and inaccuracy, apparently police sketch artists still take considerable pride in their work.
My Electric Daydream
[ 1 Comment ]Posted on August 21, 2008 by admin in Clean & Green, Technology
Thursday, August 21st, 2008Charging toward the future
This morning, I went for a trail ride on my hydrogen-powered motorcycle. It was eerie the way animals didn’t run away, due to the fact that the bike is just too quiet. After my ride I hopped into my Tesla (0 to 60 in under 4 seconds!) to head over to the local airport. Thanks to Shai Agassi’s ingenious network of charging stations, I had no trouble “refueling”. Once I got to the airport I hopped into my ElectraFlyer so I could survey our new vertical farming project. It was somehow calming to see dirigibles transporting people through the sky instead of jetliners. After my flight I took the kids to one of the local Halliburton memorials, the thousands of former petrol stations nationwide that have been converted to playgrounds and community centers (sorry, no link for that one yet).
Learning To Read Can Be Creepy
[ Comments Off ]Posted on August 21, 2008 by admin in Popular Media
Thursday, August 21st, 2008Run Wrake’s animated short film “Rabbit”
I don’t recommend watching this animated film over your morning cup of coffee. Your day probably just won’t feel quite right from then on. Using a familiar style of imagery from a childrens’ learn-to-read book, Run Wrake creates a macabre reality that only Brueghel and Roald Dahl would feel at home in. You can watch the little clip at left, but it’s more effective in the native YouTube scale, or better yet, download the higher-resolution version (QuickTime file) from Run Wrake’s web site. On a side note, that YouTube link appears to be unauthorized, calling the film “Idol”, when in fact it’s called “Rabbit”. Whatever. Creepiness has never been so eerily beautiful.
Nerd Up To Your Motherboard
[ Comments Off ]Posted on August 21, 2008 by admin in Music
Thursday, August 21st, 2008GameBoy Groupies, Chiptunes & Circuit Bending
I’ve always believed strongly in tolerating others’ musical tastes as much as possible, and hoped for the same in return. That’s why, in spite of the fact that hearing these sounds actually gives me minor headaches and panic attacks, I thought I’d touch on Chiptune and Circuit Bending. If you were a GameBoy fanatic growing up (and alas, I was not) you might really get into the sounds being created by artists like the members of 8bitpeoples Crew and 2PlayerProductions. Imagine an ecstasy-addled throbbing dance floor fueled by…yes…a nerd sweating furiously over a modified GameBoy. Fueling some of this low-tech raving is Circuit Bending, the practice of hacking and re-wiring guitar effects, toys and small synthesizers to create new and often “dirty” effects. Circuit Bending isn’t limited to musical devices though; if you dig through sites like GetLoFi.com, you can also learn how to do things like Hacking a Portable DVD Player into a Cheap LCD Monitor. Being such an über-nerd, you may have some trouble getting a date for the GameBoy Rave. Don’t worry, you can always call Lara, the Dancing Lego Robot (YouTube clip; Lara doesn’t really start throwing down until about 1:15).