Not sure if these numbers are accurate. If they are, oh boy.
sign me up
Stunning. Absolutely stunning.
U.S. astronaut Don Pettit made some time lapse videos while he was at the International Space Station, cruising at 17,239 miles per hour.
More videos at Gizmodo.
quote of the day
“Because there is a law such as gravity, the universe can and will create itself from nothing. Spontaneous creation is the reason there is something rather than nothing, why the universe exists, why we exist.”
– Stephen Hawking, in his new book “The Grand Design,” co-authored with U.S. physicist Leonard Mlodinow.
While I doubt that any assertion of truth as regards a creator can be valid from an ontological perspective, I like Hawking’s confidence.
send Radiohead quickly, please
I try to like Montgomery. I really do. It’s probably a great place to raise a kid and there are a lot of good people here. But a cultural and artistic mecca it is decidedly not. The last concert I saw here was, um, well, Hall and Oates.*
Today I read the paper and discovered who’s playing here next. It’s that no-talent ass clown.
* Disclaimer: the show was actually a lot of fun the music notwithstanding.
white cracker?
Great collection of t-shirts worn by attendees of the recent Glen Beck rally in D.C.
the gang
Here are a bunch of “rare” photos taken from the sets of the Star Wars films which you may not have seen before.
Destroy This Memory
After Hurricane Katrina the writing was on the wall.
man’s best dance partner
Yes it’s a dancing dog but it really is the cutest thing ever.
of course
Kleiner Ludewig speedsolved a Rubik’s Cube in 31.5 seconds while freefalling from 4300 meters sitting in a rubber boat.
quote of the day
“Cyclists fare best when they act and are treated as drivers of vehicles.”
– John Forester, in his book Effective Cycling, which advocates the practice of riding bicycles on roads in a manner that is visible, predictable, and in accordance with the principles for driving in traffic.
the atheist’s prayer
Steve Martin’s song below reminded me of this little gem:
Our brains, which art in our heads,
Treasured be thy name. Thy reasoning
Come. Thy best you can do be done
On earth as it is. Give us this day new
Insight to help us resolve conflicts
And ease pain. And lead us not into
Supernatural explanations, and
Deliver us from denial of logic.
For thine is the kingdom of reason,
And even though thy powers are limited
And you’re not always glorious,
You are the best evolutionary adaptation
We have for helping this earth now and
Forever and ever.
So be it.
sub merge
If you’d like to spend the night here or here, you’ll need to contact these folks.
Why, yes. Yes I have.
Originally uploaded by prima seadiva. Apparently you can get these here.
microspace
If your condo only has 182 square feet, you may need to get some decorating ideas from this guy.
pixels
How true. The box art on Atari 2600 games was absolutely nothing like the graphics in the game itself. I still bought and played as many as I could though.
song lyrics of the day
“Grandmother’s Song” by Steve Martin
Be courteous, kind and forgiving,
Be gentle and peaceful each day,
Be warm and human and grateful,
And have a good thing to say.
Be thoughtful and trustful and childlike,
Be witty and happy and wise,
Be honest and love all your neighbors,
Be obsequious, purple, and clairvoyant.
Be pompous, obese, and eat cactus,
Be dull, and boring, and omnipresent,
Criticize things you don’t know about,
Be oblong and have your knees removed.
Be tasteless, rude, and offensive,
Live in a swamp and be three dimensional,
Put a live chicken in your underwear,
Get all excited and go to a yawning festival.
O.K. everybody!
Be courteous, kind and forgiving,
Be gentle and peaceful each day,
Be warm and human and grateful,
And have a good thing to say.
Be thoughtful and trustful and childlike,
(O.K. everybody on this!)
Be witty and happy and wise,
Be honest and love all your neighbors,
Be obsequious, purple, and clairvoyant.
(Let ‘em hear you outside!)
Be pompous, obese, and eat cactus,
(Everybody sing!)
Be dull, and boring, and omnipresent,
Criticize things you don’t know about,
Be oblong and have your knees removed.
(Ladies only)
Be tasteless, rude, and offensive,
(Now the men)
Live in a swamp and be three dimensional,
(Everybody)
Put a live chicken in your underwear,
Go into a closet and suck eggs.
the Afghan patriots
Incredible, disturbing footage of the daily life of a group of Taliban fighters in 2009, as witnessed by Norwegian journalist Pal Refsdal who risked his life by embedding with them for a time. He was eventually kidnapped by the Taliban commander for 6 days and then released.
