December 2008
6 posts
Bettie Page, Queen of Pinups, Dies at 85. →
Hanlon's razor
From Wikipedia;
Never attribute to malice that which can be adequately explained by stupidity.
School holidays lead to social decay
A few teacher training days at the start of the year could lead to unemployment and vandalism. “Some parents are worried they may lose their jobs if they take too much time off work” claims the article, without citing the source of this information. Gail McHardy of Parents Victoria claims that if students get too much time off school, they will get bored and start vandalising.
Australians love their coffee
According to a survey of 15,000 shoppers, coffee tops the list of ‘essential’ grocery items. Simon Ford of ShopperTracker said “You can live without coffee”. I beg to differ.
The ‘research group’ also divided shoppers up into categories; hunter-gatherer, scrimper, sensible provider, pace sprinter, and organised habitual.
Kick Off Crew bomb Connex train
Sydney graffiti group Kick Off Crew videotaped themselves ‘bombing’ a Connex train. They then posted the video on YouTube. Connex spokesman John Rees was seemingly alarmed at the “sophisticated editing techniques” used in the video. I wonder if he realises how easy it is to apply a few ripple disolves in any basic video editing application.
He also said “That train...
Meaningful folky song ad →
A nice breakdown of the ways in which television advertising uses whimsical folky-indie songs nowadays;
Are you the marketing exec for a technology/car/entertainment brand? At a loss as to what sound to put behind your latest concept ad? Do you enjoy ads w/ people ‘doing normal things’ but also being kind of ‘original’ and ‘authentic’ at the same time? Are you...
July 2008
3 posts
June 2008
28 posts
Teen arrested for 'blasphemous T-shirt' →
A teenager was arrested on the Gold Coast for wearing a t-shirt with the message “Jesus is a c*nt”. The Rev. Matt Hunt said “Jesus is anything but that”.
South Australia is the only place in the world... →
Being a descendant of South Australian Germans, I was pleased to find a Wikipedia article on Barossa German - a dialect of German once found in the Adelaide Hills. My family arrived from the Harz Mountains and settled in the Adelaide Hills, around Lobethal. I imagine they spoke Barossa German.
This article led me to this report on Radio National’s Lingua Franca program, on South Australian...
Melbourne's laneway simulacrum →
I remember when the only place to buy a coffee in Centre Place was Fat Ben’s. These days Melbourne’s laneways have become a simulacrum, a pastiche of themselves. When QV Shopping Centre was built it included ‘laneways’ so that shoppers could feel like they were in on a secret. Melbourne Central followed suite, with laneways complete with ‘street art’. Earlier...
Complete Riding →
When I mentioned Heath Tully recently, I didn’t realise this was part of a phenomenon known as ‘complete riding’. From Wikipedia:
Another enthusiast activity is attempting to ride the complete railway network of in one or more cities, state, or countries. This may take months or years in the case of dense networks. The definition of ‘complete’ riding may change from...
“During World War II Picasso suffered some harassment from the Gestapo in...”
– Pablo Picasso quotations. (via dailymeh)
'Oldest' computer music unveiled →
In Autumn 1951, the BBC recorded a performance my the Ferranti Mark 1. Although Australia’s CSIRAC was the first computer to play music, no recordings have been unearthed, making this BBC recording is the earliest known example.
During the session, the temperamental machine managed to work its way through Baa Baa Black Sheep, God Save the King and part of In the Mood. Following one aborted...
'Welcome the weirdos' communities urged →
Organisational psychologist Ian Plowman suggests that local communities need to embrace their outsiders.
Mr Plowman says research shows ‘weirdos’ can make communities thrive because they think out of the square.”Provided the people aren’t breaking the law or acting in ways that are inodorous to other people or their own health, the more diversity we have in our society the...
This Is A Great Day
johncarney:
Red wine makes you thinner and coffee helps you live longer.
And, of course, we’ve known for years that whiskey makes you smarter.
Mystery NZ author's sci-fi tale compared to Austen →
An obscure book found in the archives of a New Zealand library, published anonymously in 1881 by someone called ‘The Inhabitant’, may be the first work of science fiction to examine the colonisation of space.
The Los Angeles Times reviewer Ed Park described it as a “slim, oddly proportioned book, a hybrid of utopian and space exploration narratives that reaches out to grasp the...
Phar Lap's death a poisoned chalice →
Researchers have confirmed that Phar Lap was killed by a lethal dose of arsenic, which may have been an ingredient in a tonic prepared by Phar Lap’s trainers.
The mysterious circumstances surrounding Phar Lap’s death fuelled many conspiracy theories, among them was that his death was a result of a plot by US gangsters to get rid him because he was too successful.
City rail network in meltdown →
Trainlines around Melbourne are approaching capacity - the point at which the existing infrastructure cannot cope with the increasing demand. Connex has warned that the Sydenham line will be at capacity this year, with Epping and Hurstbridge close behind.
Heath Tully rides all of Melbourne's train lines →
Heath Tully has travelled the entire Met rail system in a single day. Here is his schedule. Of course, this is nowhere near as interesting as similar adventures in New York City, which date back to the 1960s.
Times Archive →
The Times has launched Times Archive. Every issue of the newspaper - from 1785 to 1985 - is now searchable and viewable online.
Carving out underground niche of one's own →
The cliffs of Modica, Sicily, are riddled with ancient caves. Dating back to 4th century, they are still occupied and now serve as hotels, bed-and-breakfasts, wine bars and restaurants.
There is a cave complex in the center of Pitigliano, a town of Etruscan origins in southern Tuscany, that inspires a similar reaction. Known as “The Little Jerusalem,” this subterranean network was the...
Indonesian Village Struggles With Ban on Muslim... →
Ahmadiyya, an Islamic sect which emerged in the late nineteenth century, has been outlawed in Indonesia. Following attacks on the sect by Sunni fundamentalists, the Indonesian government decided that banning the sect was a viable way to stop the persecution.
3 tags
Ancient race confronted by militant Islam,... →
The Kalasha, a small ethnic minority living in the remote mountains of Chitral (on the Afghan-Pakistan border) are under threat from militant Islam and creeping modernisation.
The Kalasha are relaxed and music-loving, fond of wine and colourful display. Their culture faces pressure from an increasingly conservative mainstream in Pakistan, from militant Islam and from a planned new road that...
Jordan cave may be oldest church →
Archaeologists have discovered what could be the world’s oldest church. Located in Rihab, Jordan, the church is believed to have been used by 70 Christians, worshipping in secrecy from the ruling Roman Empire.
Signs said dig here for Burke and Wills tools,... →
After two decades of research, academic Frank Leahy claims to have located the site of the Plant Camp, where the Burke & Wills expedition abandoned all but the most necessary of belongings.
Melbourne outranks Paris →
Monocle magazine has ranked Melbourne amongst the top ten most livable cities. The list “not only ranks liveability on traditional measures such as the cost of schooling and housing but attempts to define the attributes that make truly great global cities - from the quality and beauty of architecture to the efficiency of bureaucracy, the ease of establishing new businesses to usable public...
Telstra boss in Wikipedia row. →
A New York law firm has demanded that Wikipedia remove ‘defamatory’ text from the article on Sol Trujillo.
Arrival of the spice setters →
The exotic tastes of Africa have added a new dimension to Melbourne dining, writes Nina Rousseau.