Many more here.
Friday, July 23, 2010
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Amazing physical simulations
Lagoa Multiphysics, the software creation of Thiago Costa, allows for highly detailed, precisely tunable physics simulations of such phenomena as falling shovelfuls of moist earth, buckets of water being tossed at innocent bunnies, silk sheets crumpling and sliding, and unsavory-looking wobbly extrusions of an undefined plasticky substance that oozes and shivers. This video is astounding....
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
1000+ free audio books
More than 1000 free audio books ready for download, categorized by genre and fully searchable. The site is a bit dated, but the content is excellent.
Monday, July 19, 2010
Friday, July 16, 2010
Thursday, July 15, 2010
Incredibly Strange Recipes
Here is a delightfully disgusting Flickr stream of strange foods and recipes from our collective past. A few below and many more at the link.
Found at Coudal Partners
Found at Coudal Partners
UCSB's cylinder digitization project
The cylinder digitization project began in January 2002 as a pilot project with the goal of exploring the feasibility of digitizing the Library's collection of cylinder recordings for online access.The UCSB Library has several major collections of cylinders and most are available for streaming at the site. The Todd Collection consists of approximately 6,000 cylinders, ranging from brown wax to late Blue Amberols. It is especially strong in two- and four-minute Edison wax cylinders. The Blanche Browning-Rich Collection consists of approximately 1,200 Blue Amberol cylinders from unplayed dealer's inventory, acquired by the library in 2002 from the Rich family of Ogden, Utah. The collection of the late author and discographer William R. Moran is especially strong in operatic cylinders, including many Edison rarities. The Library of Congress and Bowling Green State University also contributed cylinders to the project for digitization. The Fred Williams collection consists of over 1,000 cylinders of concert and military band recordings. The Edouard Pecourt collection contains over 3,000 French cylinders.
50 years of cataloging
The Chronicle of Higher Education has a nice article today about one librarian's career, a career that saw libraries move from the era of card catalogs and electric typewriters into computers and the internet.
Pre-computers, the library used blue-and-white cards to keep track of what had been checked out; in the early 1980s, a system using bar codes replaced the cards kept on file at the circulation desk. It took eight or nine months to enter all the items in the library into the new system, Ms. Lucas remembers. "Cart after cart after cart of books" had to be processed. "I thought of it as kind of fun, because I was a young kid."The Chronicle asked Ms. Lucas for her thoughts on the future of libraries. "I really don't know what direction we're heading in. We seem to be getting more and more away from the print collections, but we're still buying books," she says. "I don't think there's ever going to come a day when there's no more books in the library. I think there's just going to be a lot more of the other stuff."
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Amazon offers free shipping for students
Amazon launches Amazon Students which offers a free one-year subscription to its premium Amazon Prime service, which normally runs $79 a year. What that means is free two-day shiping and overnight delivery for $3.99. The program also promises exclusive deals and promotions. To join, you’ll need to have an .edu email address and be enrolled in at least one college course (this is US only).If you’re not a student, you may still be eligible for a free trial of Amazon Prime. I jave had a Prime account for several years and it has paid for itself many times over.
Monday, July 12, 2010
Newly published Mark Twain Essay: "Concerning the Interview"
PBS has published a previously unreleased essay by Mark Twain on the subject of the interview. Says Twain:"No one likes to be interviewed, and yet no one likes to say no; for interviewers are courteous and gentle-mannered, even when they come to destroy. I must not be understood to mean that they ever come consciously to destroy or are aware afterward that they have destroyed; no, I think their attitude is more that of the cyclone, which comes with the gracious purpose of cooling off a sweltering village, and is not aware, afterward, that it has done that village anything but a favor. The interviewer scatters you all over creation, but he does not conceive that you can look upon that as a disadvantage."Full text and scans of the original mansucript are here.
Sony cuts the price of their eReader
Since its launch, Sony has steadily dropped the price of its eReader from its original $199 to $169 and now to $149. Frankly, I think it is too little, too late. As dedicated eReaders go, the Kindle still rules the roost. And, with the appearance of the iPad Sony's outdated e-Ink technology and lack of mobile connectivity pretty much relegate it to the "also rans".
UPDATE: Sony has completely discontinued their eReader and Books-a-Million is offering it for $99 or for club members at $79.
Friday, July 09, 2010
College Web sites using Adobe Flash risk exposing students’ personal data
Computer science lecturers at the University of Worcester scanned 250 college websites and tested
them for security risks. 20% of the sites were running applications that contained students' personal information within Flash plug-ins and six had "high-critical" problems as described by the investigators.
The problem arises when individual professors, departments, organizations or even students create separate pages through the main university Web site - sites that are not maintained by the institution's IT department. Some have their own individual servers, which also are not set up through the school’s IT department. These may pose security risks. Mustaque Ahamad, a computer-science professor at the Georgia Institute of Technology, said Flash software contains bugs that may leave the machine vulnerable to hackers.
“From what I understand, hackers have exploited Web-security holes to taint and upload Flash files to university Web sites,” he said.
“Universities need to implement better Web security to ensure that hackers cannot upload tainted content that is hosted by their Web sites,” Mr. Ahamad said. “We are nowhere near achieving perfect security, but the risk can be reduced by being diligent about Web security.”
From The Chronicle of Higher Education.
them for security risks. 20% of the sites were running applications that contained students' personal information within Flash plug-ins and six had "high-critical" problems as described by the investigators.The problem arises when individual professors, departments, organizations or even students create separate pages through the main university Web site - sites that are not maintained by the institution's IT department. Some have their own individual servers, which also are not set up through the school’s IT department. These may pose security risks. Mustaque Ahamad, a computer-science professor at the Georgia Institute of Technology, said Flash software contains bugs that may leave the machine vulnerable to hackers.
“From what I understand, hackers have exploited Web-security holes to taint and upload Flash files to university Web sites,” he said.
“Universities need to implement better Web security to ensure that hackers cannot upload tainted content that is hosted by their Web sites,” Mr. Ahamad said. “We are nowhere near achieving perfect security, but the risk can be reduced by being diligent about Web security.”
From The Chronicle of Higher Education.
Thursday, July 08, 2010
Kitchen Myths
These are all false. Details and many more here.
- Searing meat seals in the juices
- "Real" chili cannot contain beans or tomatoes
- A box of baking soda in the fridge or freezer absorbs odors
- Sushi means raw fish
- Hot pan, cold oil food won't stick
- If you put the pit in the bowl, guacamole won't turn brown
- Cold water boils faster than warm water
BP and the rest of the energy industry
Click to enlargeThe American Energy Alliance (AEA) has accosted BP with Save U.S. Energy Jobs, aiming to preserve the offshore oil and gas industry by emphasizing just how much the Gulf oil disaster is the direct result of negligent oversight from BP.
From the site:
Save U.S. Energy Jobs will also help educate voters about the unfortunate divergence in safety and health approaches between BP and the remainder of the industry. The record shows that BP has operated outside industry-accepted, standard operating procedures. To tarnish an entire industry because of the continuing incompetence of one company is not only wholly unfair, it is a misrepresentation of the facts. The numbers speak for themselves – 760 'egregious, willful' safety violations administered to BP by OSHA compared to Sunoco's eight, two for Conoco-Phillips and CITGO and one for ExxonMobil, the industry's safety leader. Other companies maintained these impeccable records while drilling over 50,000 wells safely in federal waters. This is not an industry problem. This is a BP problem.
Click to enlarge
Click to enlargeInteractive version here.
Uchronia: The Alternate History List of Books
From the site:"The genre has a variety of names, but it is best known as alternate history. In an alternate history, one or more past events are changed and the subsequent effects on history somehow described. This description may comprise the entire plotline of a novel, or it may just provide a brief background to a short story. Perhaps the most common themes in alternate history are "What if the Nazis won World War II?" and "What if the Confederacy won the American Civil War?"Much more background and info at the link.
Browse the collection here.
Literature Map - what are readers of one author also likely to read?
Pop over to Literature Map and enter an authors name to generate a map of other authors alsao read by readers of the one you entered. Then click any of those to iterate the choices. Cool....
Blackboard to purchase Elluminate and Wimba
Blackboard Inc. yesterday announced plans to buy Elluminate and Wimba. Both companies sell products that support online videoconferencing and audioconferencing in support of online learning and student collaboration. The purchase is awaiting approval by the boards of both companies. Blackboard plans to pay a total of $116-million for the pair.
There is a detailed description of the planned purchase here. Blackboard promises continued support for both products. "We’ll honor all existing contracts for Elluminate and Wimba clients," the company adds in the fact sheet.
Infographic: The Creative Process
Frankly, this hits a little closer to home than I would like, but it pretty much sums up the possibilities, promise and pitfalls of the "formal" creative process.
Lots more great comics over at Virus Comics, and thanks to the artist, Winston Rowntree, for permission to use this one.
Click to embiggen
Lots more great comics over at Virus Comics, and thanks to the artist, Winston Rowntree, for permission to use this one.
Click to embiggenWednesday, July 07, 2010
Losing Libraries maps cuts and closures
Losing Libraries reports cuts and layoffs in libraries and library systems across America. The cuts are mapped using "Mapper" and annotated and indicate the various types of cuts, staff layoffs and furloughs, reduced services and hours and more that are happening to public libraries in the U.S. There is a mechanism that allows readers to update the map and add cuts and closures to the report.
Found via The Proverbial Lone Wolf Librarian
100 books to read before you die
I run into these lists often, but this one actually follows my personal suggestions fairly accurately. The covers are beautiful and link back to Amazon for easy purchase. Most are very reasonable and all would make for excellent summer reading.
Borders opens new eBook store and intros Kobo reader apps
Borders has joined Apple, Barnes and Noble and Amazon in the eBook wars. As the last major player to join the fray with a reader of their own, Borders is looking to garner a 17% market share within the year. For some time Borders has hawked Sony's eReader and now at a retail price of $150, their proprietary Kobo reader is positioned at the lower end of the price scale.Their book store opened today offering a PC-based interface and attractive storefront. They have also launched iPhone, Android and Blackberry versions of their Kobo eReader app.
Foodspotting
Combine social networking, location based gaming, cell phone photography and a love of food. The result might be Foodspotting, an online community and web discovery tool dedicated to delicious beautiful food. Members upload photographs of food tagged with the restaurant and it's location. Other members can thumb it up. In Foodspotting speak, it's called nom-ing. There are points awarded, badges, a reputation system, a leader board and a few rules.
Of course, there's an app for that.
Tuesday, July 06, 2010
Friday, July 02, 2010
Thursday, July 01, 2010
ProCon.org: An unbiased analysis of controversial issues
A few days ago I stumbled upon a most remarkable website. I see remarkable websites every day - it is part of my job to seek out new and innovative ideas and bring them back to the folks with whom I work. What makes this particular website unique is that it made me think about things that really need thinking about, but about which I am almost completely uninformed.
ProCon.org presents controversial ideas and issues in a plainspoken, straightforward way that acknowledges every side of an argument in a fair and balanced manner. As a non-profit public charity with no government affiliation they are free to address any issue that strikes their fancy. Be it the death penalty, alternative energy, obesity, the war in Iraq or any of a couple of dozen other fascinating and important topics, all are addressed evenhandedly and with candor. To my eye, there is no agenda or bias.
Each topic features an “overview” that presents the issue clearly and in an easily understood manner. The overview is followed by a pro/con section that presents arguments from both sides. In complicated cases where there may be more than two simple viewpoints a strong effort is made to explore the topic throughly and present the issue as far more than two-dimensional.
In a further nod to transparency, they publish not only their list of donors, but their budget and annual reports as well as a detailed analysis of their web traffic and media exposure. There are also detailed biographies of their board and employees - amazing.
As testament to their veracity, ProCon.org has been quoted extensively by such entities as the New York Times, The Congressional Research Service, Forbes Magazine, National Public Radio and many more. Where possible, their reports are annotated and citations are provided. If you require the use of their data or complete reports, they are readily available and there is even a detailed guide to “how to cite ProCon.org” complete with examples of proper bibliographic citation. Very helpful!
Most exciting to us is their “Teachers Corner” where educators can assemble lesson plans and study guides for students from elementary school through universities. There are dozens of testimonials from educators acknowledging ProCon.org’s value in the classroom.
I can not recommend this site more highly. It came to us serendipitously but will remain in our inventory as a valued resource. Great work!
2010 Bulwer-Lytton Award for bad fiction
I look forward to these every year. Always a treat:
The winner by Molly Ringle:
The winner by Molly Ringle:
"For the first month of Ricardo and Felicity's affair, they greeted one another at every stolen rendezvous with a kiss--a lengthy, ravenous kiss, Ricardo lapping and sucking at Felicity's mouth as if she were a giant cage-mounted water bottle and he were the world's thirstiest gerbil."Many more in numerous categories at the link.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)