Author: Michiel
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Computer Engineer Barbie
Yup, it finally happened, Barbie® I Can Be…™ dolls and accessories empower girls to play out different roles and “try on” fabulous careers, including computer engineer, the first Barbie® profession chosen by popular vote! Always a reflection of the times, this digital diva engineers the perfect geek-chic look, with hot pink accessories and sleek gadgets…
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A dagger to the CIA
Opinion piece by a former CIA operative on its current lack of operational capability, On December 30, in one of the deadliest attacks in CIA history, an Al Qaeda double agent schemed his way onto a U.S. base in Afghanistan and blew himself into the next life, taking seven Americans with him. How could this…
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Humanity fail – Avatar makes people depressed
Apparently the inability to live as a 9 foot tall, blue, cat humping alien is driving some people to suicide. James Cameron’s completely immersive spectacle “Avatar” may have been a little too real for some fans who say they have experienced depression and suicidal thoughts after seeing the film because they long to enjoy the…
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Pot makes you smart
A synthetic chemical similar to the active ingredient in marijuana makes new cells grow in rat brains. What is more, in rats this cell growth appears to be linked with reducing anxiety and depression. The results suggest that marijuana, or its derivatives, could actually be good for the brain. http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn8155
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The Future is Here! Vat-grown meat!
SCIENTISTS have grown meat in the laboratory for the first time. Experts in Holland used cells from a live pig to replicate growth in a petri dish. The advent of so-called “in-vitro” or cultured meat could reduce the billions of tons of greenhouse gases emitted each year by farm animals — if people are willing…
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Chairman Mao’s Underground Bunker Paradise
In 1969, Chairman Mao commanded the construction of a second Beijing beneath the surface of the original city, designed to accommodate all six million of its then inhabitants, so that if nuclear war did kick off, folk would still have somewhere to hang out and play Mah Jong while the rest of us burnt to…
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WoW datacenter details
Blizzard Online Network Services run in 10 data centers around the world, including facilities in Washington, California, Texas, Massachusetts, France, Germany, Sweden, South Korea, China, and Taiwan. Blizzard uses 20,000 systems and 1.3 petabytes of storage to power its gaming operations. WoW’s infrastructure includes 3,250 server blades, 75,000 CPU cores, and 112.5 terabytes of blade RAM. The Blizzard…
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Channel 4 to crash passenger jet
A passenger jet is to be deliberately crash-landed as part of a scientific experiment on Channel 4 that the broadcaster hopes will be one of its biggest hits of next year. Two pilots will parachute from the 300-seat airliner after setting it on autopilot to crash at high speed into the desert. The plane will…
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Belle de Jour is a science nerd
After many years, book deals and a ITV series, Belle de Jour reveals her identity, Her name is Dr Brooke Magnanti. Her specialist areas are developmental neurotoxicology and cancer epidemiology. She has a PhD in informatics, epidemiology and forensic science and is now working at the Bristol Initiative for Research of Child Health. She is…
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Neuromancer performance art with Sasha Grey as Molly
Title says it all. http://io9.com/5403184/six-hours-of-william-gibsons-neuromancer-starring-sasha-grey-as-molly Lucky New Yorkers.
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Gazprom CEO’s palace removed from Google Maps
The head of Gazprom is building a most luxurious palace in the style of the XVIII century worth $ 50 million Design documentation for anticipated future residence of the head of Gazprom, Alexei Miller, who looks like a huge palace in the style of the XVIII century. Impressive, very similar to the mansion in Peterhof,…
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Gold, a 6000-year old bubble
Some background on the cost/value of gold and fiat currencies. In a world with multiple fiat moneys, the zero value of money equilibrium lurks for each of the fiat currencies, including gold. Admittedly, as regards gold, so far so good. Gold has positive value. It has had positive value for nigh-on 6000 years. That must…
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Fighter pilots face a dismal future
The U.S. Air Force has a morale problem with its combat pilots. The issue is lack of action for the pilots. That, plus the increased use of unmanned aircraft, and the very real prospect that the age of the manned combat aircraft may be coming to an end. http://www.strategypage.com/htmw/htmoral/articles/20091102.aspx
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Race matters in online dating
Those funky people at OkCupid have posted yet another article on on-line dating habits, based on statistics extracted from their system. http://blog.okcupid.com/index.php/2009/10/05/your-race-affects-whether-people-write-you-back/
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Russian Billionaire Installs Laser Shield on Floating Lair
Get this, Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich has a rather curious new addition built in to his latest oversized yacht. The 557-foot boat Eclipse, the price tag of which has almost doubled since original plans were drawn to almost $1.2 billion, set sail this week with a slew of show-off features, from two helipads, two swimming…
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Some guy had his head examined
Bill Moorier had an MRI scan of his head done, took the data and put in into an online interactive browser. So if you feel like taking a tour through his brain – http://abstractnonsense.com/mri/ .
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NES emulator in your browser
Someone with way too much time on their hands ported a NES emulator to JavaScript. Feel like playing Super Mario Bros or Zelda at work? Grab a fast browser like Google Chrome and head on over here, http://benfirshman.com/projects/jsnes/
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Death of a great man
Last week saw the death of Fravia, the great reverser. Fravia was known for both his technical and social skills. He will be missed. http://www.searchlores.org/
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Het Grote Pipi boek
Here’s a big WTF from the low countries, Link goes to the whole book – http://ifun.ru/view/57051
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Apple is Evil (duh)
I went Apple for a few months with a G4 Powerbook, but rapidly ran into the piles of proprietary junk Apple has all over the place. Apple is Evil and no matter how cool their kit looks, Apple is an uber-Borg on the make. The FSF agrees and here’s why you should not get an…
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English girls smoking
Uh, wait, what? Thanks to the internet, you can now pay to watch English girls … smoke. http://www.englishgirlssmoking.com/ I’m guessing I’m not the only one surprised by this website. Must be Rule 34.
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Bad guys get the girls
According to this article, which otherwise contains no useful information whatsoever.
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Do not talk to the police
A law professor explains why you should never, ever talk to the police. Don’t talk to the cops. Part I .. and then a police officer explains why he’s absolutely right. Don’t talk to the cops. Part II
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Power, seduction and war
The author of the Laws of Power, Rules of Seduction and Strategies of War has a blog, http://www.powerseductionandwar.com/. Interesting reading, add to your feedreader.
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