In 1996, German artist HA Schult installed 1,000 life-sized “Trash People” made from, you guessed it, trash, in the Ampitheatre of Xanten. Since then, his trash people have traveled to nearly every big city in the world.

[From Junk Art (PHOTOS): 10 Amazing Artists Using Recycled Materials]

The vast selection of free 3rd party applications available for Mac OS X always surprises people when they’re new to the platform. Among that abundance of software is a collection of free Mac video converters which can cover nearly any situation you could find yourself in.

[From 6 best free Mac video converters to handle nearly any file format | MacYourself]

BookBook is a one-of-a-kind, hardback leather case designed exclusively for MacBook and MacBook Pro. Available in Classic Black or Vibrant Red, BookBook brings three levels of security to your prized Mac. First, the hardback cover and spine provide solid protection from the rigors of the road. Second, the vintage book design disguises MacBook for superior security. And third, the stylish case protects you from being like everyone else because BookBook is totally original, just like you.

[From BookBook - BookBook - Twelve South]

Free & open-source DVD decryption

Fairmount is a free tool which allows on-the-fly decryption of DVD content for convenient access. Fairmount does not perform the actual decryption, it simply forwards the data to VLC Media Player, which is used for the decryption. Hence, VLC Media Player must be installed for Fairmount to work.

[From Metakine - Fairmount]

Apple CEO Steve Jobs hit the star-studded red carpet at the 82nd Academy Awards yesterday evening.

Oscar night was big for Jobs. He not only traded in his trademark turtleneck for his tux, but his company also debuted its first-ever iPad ad, which was aired twice during the three-and-a-half-hour Academy Award broadcast. (Watch it here).

See photos of Steve Jobs, famous for his California-casual uniform of jeans and New Balance sneakers, in his black-tie ensemble.

Twitter user @WayneSutton was one of the first on the blogosphere to remark of Steve Jobs’ attendance at the awards. ‘OMG it’s Steve Jobs! I’m the only one yelling at him! #oscars #kodakredcarpet,’ Sutton tweeted.

[From Steve Jobs' Oscar Cameo: PICTURES Of Tux-Wearing Apple CEO On The Red Carpet]

Many of us feel ripped off in our day to day spending, so much so that bringing up even a single rip-off story in a group of people is likely to trigger a flood of them from everyone else. Whether it’s at the movies, in restaurants or on vacation, we seldom believe we are getting as much for our money as we ought to. Of course, some rip-off stories are more debatable than others. Often times, what is called a ripoff is little more than someone’s subjective opinion of what they “really” deserve for their money, whatever that means. However, other purchases actually do appear, by all objective criteria, to be a raw deal just about all the time. Today, BillShrink analyzes some common ripoffs as mentioned recently by CNN Money, that most of our readers are likely to be well acquainted with.

[From The 12 Biggest Ripoffs in America]

[From YouTube - Tree Branch Falls On Power Lines]

Amazing Album Covers Mix and Match

[From Amazing Album Covers Mix and Match | The Design Inspiration]

of hard blowing German 60’s free music Peter Brotzmann is the one killing me the hardest. He’s playing something called a tarogato here that dates back to the mid 1800’s andhas a gut wrenching tone that I can’t explain and which he milks so hard, your soul will ache. Dude’s in his mid 60’s or so circa this footage and still blowing with gut busting fury…I don’t know where some of these cat’s get their energy reserves from at that age, but it’s envious and amazing. Pure soul food:

[From YouTube - Peter Brotzmann / Mark Sanders / Anthony Cox ]

[From Chile Earthquake May Have Shortened Days on Earth - Yahoo! News]

[From YouTube - Electric Company and Vas Deferens Organization ]

[From YouTube - Electric Company and Vas Deferens Organization ]

Evgeni Plushenko’s long, delusional journey continues. Just days after the silver medalist for men’s figure skating denied that Evan Lysacek is the true champion of men’s figure skating, he has apparently awarded himself a platinum medal. From his official website:

[From In Plushenko's mind (and website), he's the platinum medal winner - Fourth-Place Medal - 2010 Olympics Blog - Yahoo! Sports]

Each summer, 500 goths descend on Disneyland to smoke cigarettes and mock Snow White. Why? Because it’s the only place where they can truly feel at home

If you can’t find a reason to hate Disneyland, you’re just not trying. Like the insincere smile of an aging bank teller, Disneyland represents a contradiction with no discernible upside: It’s hokey and archaic yet gaudy and corporate. It’s all kitsch sunshine and crass consumerism, and any self-respecting cynic would despise its very existence.

[From Something Wicked This Way Comes | Spin Magazine Online]

My name is Andrea Fay Friedman. I was born with Down syndrome. I played the role of Ellen on the “Extra Large Medium” episode of Family Guy that was broadcast on Valentine’s day. Although they gave me red hair on the show, I am really a blonde. I also wore a red wig for my role in ” Smudge” but I was a blonde in “Life Goes On”. I guess former Governor Palin does not have a sense of humor. I thought the line “I am the daughter of the former governor of Alaska” was very funny. I think the word is “sarcasm”.

In my family we think laughing is good. My parents raised me to have a sense of humor and to live a normal life. My mother did not carry me around under her arm like a loaf of French bread the way former Governor Palin carries her son Trig around looking for sympathy and votes.

[From 'Family Guy' Actress Responds To Sarah Palin's Criticism]

Why bees are partial to coffee and cigarettes – they may be addicted

[From Bees are partial to coffee and cigarettes | Mail Online]

[From Parrot AR.Drone: Coolest iPhone accessory ever? [VIDEO]]

“Marijuana Saved My Son’s Life” Mom Mieko Hester Perez will be a special guest at the T.H.C. Expo (Talking Hemp and Cannabis) at the Berlin (WI) Public Library this Saturday, Feb. 6, from 12pm-3pm. Hester Perez’s story of how she turned to medical cannabis, legal in her home state of California, after her 10 year-old autistic son’s weight plummeted to 48 pounds has been featured on Good Morning America, Fox News and other media. The T.H.C. Expo (Talking Hemp & Cannabis) will be held in the Berlin Public Library, located at 121 W. Park Ave., Berlin.

[From Mieko Hester Perez "Marijuana Saved My Son's Life'" coming to Berlin WI T.H.C. Expo Sat. Feb. 6]

Let’s see…I have eaten spaghetti sandwiches, mac n’ cheese sandwiches, beans n’ rice sandwiches, Vegenaise and ketchup sandwiches, cucumber and cheese sandwiches, hummus sandwiches, bean curd sandwiches, lasagna sandwiches, seaweed and couscous sandwiches…the list goes on. I think you get the point…I love sandwiches. But besides eating whatever is leftover from last night’s dinner in between two pieces of bread, I can make some rather wonderful sandwiches – really, I can.

The Marinated Tofu sandwich is definitely one of my favorites. It is full of flavor and great to send to school in your vegan child’s lunchbox.

[From Ste Martaen Vegan Cheese]

The explosive spread of electromagnetic fields across the world has undeniably spawned at least one disorder: electrosensitivity syndrome. Millions of people — most of them in Europe — say they suffer headaches, depression, nausea, rashes and other problems when they’re too close to cellphones or other sources of EMFs. They’ve formed their own support groups, started their own newsletters and taken drastic steps to avoid EMFs, with some even wearing metallic clothing. A band of EMF “refugees” has moved to a valley in southern France to avoid radiation.

[From Victims of electrosensitivity syndrome say EMFs cause symptoms - latimes.com]

It’s no shocker that the vast majority of marijuana arrests in NYC ensnare blacks and Latinos. But what’s really incredible is how, um, high the number of pot arrests have risen during Mayor Bloomberg’s first two terms. The lowest-level marijuana arrests rose 50 percent since Giuliani time, according to a recent study [pdf] by Harry Levine, a sociology professor at Queens College. Last year, the NYPD made more low-level pot arrests “than in the 12 years of Mayor Koch, plus the four years of Mayor Dinkins, plus the first two years of Mayor Giuliani” combined. And all this happened under the Mayor who famously told New York, “You bet I did [smoke pot], and I enjoyed it.”

[From Pot Arrests Soar Under Bloomberg, White Tokers Mostly Exempt - Gothamist]

NYC Police Accused of ‘Anal Assault’ Over Marijuana Use
New York City police have arrested over 300,000 people for low-level marijuana possession since 1997, sometimes employing outrageous methods to humiliate citizens.

[From NYC Police Accused of 'Anal Assault' Over Marijuana Use | Drugs | AlterNet]

Scientists have isolated a gene sequence that appears to determine how fast our bodies age, the first time a link between DNA and human lifespan has been found.

The discovery could have a profound impact on public health and raises the best hope yet for drugs that prevent the biological wear and tear behind common age-related conditions such as heart disease and certain cancers.

[From Living fast? Scientists show lifespan is linked to DNA | Science | guardian.co.uk]

The freeway sign arrived in Los Angeles five days after I did. It appeared out of nowhere, a valiant attempt by one of its citizens to help drivers make sense of their city, just as I appeared in a silver Subaru, valiantly attempting to make sense of what were apparently not called “highways” but “freeways.” Not that you should ever refer to them that way, I was constantly reminded. “Just say the number,” a friend sighed—the route number, which I kept forgetting should always be prefaced with a “the,” a colloquialism my plain-speaking Midwestern brain couldn’t register. Nor could I comprehend being strapped into a car for hours a day, the sheer inhumanity of a Sigalert, a sweeping six-lane interchange as vast and impossible to navigate as the Pacific Ocean.

[From The Fake Freeway Sign that Became a Real Public Service - Design is a Verb - GOOD]

Davidope is creative director and founder of Volll studio, based in Budapest. Besides that he has a tumblr where he show off some cool stuff he find online and AWESOME animated gifs he make. Black and white ipnotizing machines, optical illusions with 3D depth. You’ll get stunned.

[From Davidope’s mesmerizing animations :: koikoikoi.com - Visual Arts Magazine, graphic design, illustration, photography, interviews, inspiration, tutorials]

People who drink two or more sweetened soft drinks a week have a much higher risk of pancreatic cancer, an unusual but deadly cancer, researchers reported on Monday.

[From Study links sugary soft drinks to pancreas cancer | Reuters]

Acupuncture ‘lessens pain in brain not body’, scientists discover

[From Acupuncture 'lessens pain in brain not body', scientists discover - Telegraph]

Coke? Check.

Black leather Members Only jacket? Check.

Thin dirtbag mustache? Check.

Framed picture of a Delorian? Check.

. . . OK, Let’s Party!!!

[From Partying Dudes » Rad-Dudes.com]

Closer inspection of a photo of Sarah Palin, during a speech in which she mocked President Obama for his use of a teleprompter, reveals several notes written on her left hand. The words “Energy”, “Tax” and “Lift American Spirits” are clearly visible. There’s also what appears to read as “Budget cuts” with the word Budget crossed out.

[From Stefan Sirucek: EXCLUSIVE (Update): Palin's Tea Party Crib Notes]

Years from now, when the memories of Sunday begin to fade, New Orleans Saints fans will still remember where they were when cornerback Tracy Porter intercepted Colts quarterback Peyton Manning and returned the ball 70 yards for the decisive touchdown of Super Bowl XLIV.

[From Merci beaucoup, New Orleans Saints: An editorial | Opinions - - NOLA.com ]

A remarkable scenario played out in the American media recently, and beyond the import of the story itself is the quantum shift in public perception that it illustrates.
A pro-cannabis group based in Colorado called for a nationwide boycott of coffee giant Starbucks after activists spotted a Starbucks logo on the website of a virulently extremist anti-drug organization. After intense negative publicity ensued, Starbucks actually felt moved to issue a denial.

[From When 70 Percent Support Marijuana Legalization, Starbucks Gets The Message | NEWS JUNKIE POST ]

(PhysOrg.com) — Spray-on liquid glass is transparent, non-toxic, and can protect virtually any surface against almost any damage from hazards such as water, UV radiation, dirt, heat, and bacterial infections. The coating is also flexible and breathable, which makes it suitable for use on an enormous array of products.

[From Spray-on liquid glass is about to revolutionize almost everything]

Fudge. Easy, decadent, satisfying, raw? You bet. Traditional fudge is made from lots of sugar (the recipe I had called for 2 and 1/2 cups!), butter, evaporated milk, and usually semi sweet chocolate, which is loaded with more sugar and fat. This raw food recipe is quick and only contains almonds, cacao powder and a little agave. I threw in walnuts because they have a ton of their own health benefits (see here) and I love chocolate and walnuts.

[From Raw Cacao Walnut Fudge | Rawmazing Raw Food]

If you are a smoker, you can’t help but know the health hazards that come along with the habit. If you are an Apple owner who smokes, you need to be aware that Apple frowns on smoking and is now stating that smoking voids the warranty of Apple computers.

The problem is that the residue that smoking leaves inside the computer is being termed a health risk. One consumer claims that when he took his MacBook into an Apple store for repairs related to an overheating issue the store refused to work on the computer.

[From Apple won't work on Macs owned by smokers]

There are several situations where you might want to dump a DVD to your hard drive to watch later. For instance, I get significantly better battery life when watching a video from my hard drive than I get when watching it from a DVD. If I’m stuck in a plane for several hours, having my movie on the hard drive can be the difference between finishing the show, or running out of power halfway through. I use a PowerBook and in OS X 10.3 and earlier you could just use the built in Disk Utility to copy a DVD to your disk, but it stopped working in 10.4. However with a few free tools you can accomplish the same thing and more.

[From » Travelling with Movies on a Mac]

How to use Snow Leopard’s new QuickTime Screen Recording feature to record Hulu content for your iPhone

[From How to use Snow Leopard’s new QuickTime Screen Recording feature to record Hulu content for your iPhone — Sample the Web]

coconutIdentityCard is a small app that reads out where and when your Mac and your iPod were built by Apple.
Just plug in your iPod while the app is running and it will show you the information about your iPod instantly.
Because it’s UniversalBinary, it will run also on the new Intel-Based-Macs.
Format of the date: dd.mm.yyyy
You also can enter any 11-character Apple serial number and the app will identify the build-location and the date when the product was built.

New since 2.1: coconutIdentityCard is able to check your serials against internet-databases of stolen Apple products. (A negative result is no guarantee that it isn’t stolen)
Currently coconutIdentityCard checks the database of www.powermax.com – if you know other databases, please send me an email with a link to the database – I will try to add it soon.

[From coconut-flavour.com - [coconutIdentityCard 2.4]]

MAPS’ top priority project is funding clinical trials of methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) as a therapeutic tool to assist psychotherapy for the treatment of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and other illnesses. Preliminary studies have shown that MDMA in conjunction with psychotherapy can help people overcome PTSD. MDMA has empathogenic effects, and it is also known as the popular drug Ecstasy (although “Ecstasy” does not always contain pure MDMA). In laboratory studies, MDMA has been proven sufficiently safe for human consumption when taken a limited number of times in moderate doses.

MAPS is in the midst of a 10 year – $10 million plan to make MDMA into a government-approved prescription medicine. For-profit pharmaceutical companies are not interested in developing MDMA into a medicine, because the patent for MDMA has expired. Companies cannot profit off of MDMA because it is only administered a limited number of times, unlike most medications for mental illnesses that are taken on a daily basis. Consequently MAPS is the only organization funding clinical trials of MDMA-assisted psychotherapy in the world.

MAPS is studying whether MDMA-assisted psychotherapy has the potential to heal traumas caused by sexual assault, war, violent crime, and other causes.

Below is comprehensive and updated information about MAPS efforts to develop MDMA into a government-approved prescription medicine, as well as useful information for understanding the benefits and risks of MDMA use.

[From MDMA Research]

[From LiveLeak.com - Idiot cuts electric cord with scissors]

Totally addicting bar snack or nutritious side dish? You decide. I am completely fine with it being both. Incidentally, Desmond loves this as much as Paul and I do. We tend to eat it with our fingers before dinner.

[From Your Vegan Mom: Roasted Cauliflower]

Misa Digital Guitar Demo

[From YouTube - Misa Digital Guitar Demo]

Tennessee Police Officers Accused of Planting Drugs and Beating Suspect
A lawsuit was filed on Thursday accusing Cookeville, Tennessee police of “excessive use of force” and “planting contraband” during a domestic assault arrest last year.

One officer has been placed on leave because of the incident, and five others are named in the federal More..lawsuit.

Police car video from the Cookeville Police Department captured the incident that triggered the lawsuit.

On the night of June 4, 2007, Carlos Ferrell was stopped by police on a domestic assault warrant. According to the lawsuit, Ferrell’s ex-wife, Tiffany, saw Ferrell, called police and was involved in the initial chase.

Once Ferrell came to a stop, he was ordered out of the car by Cookeville Police Officer Chris Melton.

“Put your hands up, and get out of the car,” Melton is heard telling Ferrell on the tape.

Ferrell, 28, exits the car with his arms raised while Officer Jeff Johnson is holding the department’s police dog.

The video shows the dog bite Ferrell several times. Attorney Blair Durham is representing Ferrell.

“The dog is released. The dog then chews into Mr. Ferrell’s leg where, of course, he goes to the ground,” he said.

“Your dog just ate my leg off,” Ferrell said on the tape. Durham also accused Melton of planting drugs on Ferrell.

In the dash cam video, Melton is seen searching Ferrell’s pockets a number of times.

Then, Durham said, another officer appears to give a signal with his hand, at which point Melton then reaches into his right pocket and looks into the camera.

It’s at that point on the tape that Durham said Melton appears to put drugs in Ferrell’s pocket.

“Whoa, Carlos, weed? Now you got you another freaking charge, how about that?”

Melton told Ferrell in the video. Melton has been placed on administrative leave with pay. T

he night of the stop, Ferrell was charged with evading arrest and possession of marijuana.

“That’s a complete drug plant is what I’m alleging. It’s a complete unlawful search, first of all, and it’s a planting of paraphernalia,” Durham said.

Cookeville police said they are “completely cooperating with the TBI (Tennessee Bureau of Investigation).”

A representative said the department is not trying to hide anything and doesn’t want to look like it is.

Police took Ferrell to an area hospital for treatment of his injuries.

Durham said Ferrell is no choir boy but that he’s never been arrested on violent offenses.

According to his record, Ferrell has two DUIs and a previous drug possession charge. Less..

[From LiveLeak.com - Tennessee Cops Plant Drugs]

100 Incredible & Educational Virtual Tours You Don’t Want to Miss

One of the wonders of the Internet is that it can bring the world to you instead of your needing to find the time and money to explore the traditional way. The following virtual tours bring opportunities to explore cities, famous landmarks and buildings, museums, college campuses, and even outer space. You can learn how things are made, explore the human body or that of a life-sized whale, and visit ball parks and theme parks. There is even a section of incredible virtual tours that Google Earth has compiled that shares the world in a whole new way.

[From 100 Incredible & Educational Virtual Tours You Don’t Want to Miss | Online Universities]

Introduction

So, you’ve made it this far. If you’ve read my previous articles in the EGE series you should have a pretty good overview of how electronic music actually works. In addition, you should also be able to put together some pretty cool beats for your tracks! So, what’s missing? You guessed it: Synthesizers. Electronic music is all about synthesizers. You may be wondering how the heck these things work, right? I can understand that many people are intrigued by synthesizers; all those knobs and buttons can certainly seem very confusing! In this article, I’m going to give you a basic overview of how the common synthesizer works and what important parameters you need to know of in order to produce the sounds you want.

[From Easy Guide: Synth programming & Preset tweaking | EMusicTips]

And if you see a big Cajun guy who looks exactly like an old Saints quarterback walking around town in a dress … don’t ask. It’s a long story.

First things first: You need more beer.

Yeah, we know. You ordered extra. You think you have more than any group of humans could possibly consume in one week. Trust us. You don’t.

[From Dear Miami: Get ready for the Who Dat Nation coming for the Super Bowl | New Orleans Saints Central - - NOLA.com ]

Yes, questions about marijuana were the most popular in the CitizenTube voting Monday afternoon.

But YouTube, in a gutless move, decided at the last minute not to present the highest ranked questions to the President.

Initial reports that the President had ignored the marijuana questions were inaccurate; YouTube took pot, the top vote getter, out of the running.

President Obama never even got an opportunity to answer the most popular question of all.

[From Toke of the Town - YouTube Censors Marijuana Question In Obama Interview]

40 wild birds play a Gibson Les Paul guitar

[From BBC - Gomp/arts: 40 wild birds play a Gibson Les Paul guitar]

Okay…some of us may toot…but they’re still super healthy!

I like to use them in lots of ways – although simply in a bowl with a little butter and spices is fantastic – and these burgers were really good.

With added ground nuts to up the protein, the carbs are complex and fiber-filled. On a toasted whole grain bun or plain with all the fixings, these make a very filling meal. (They are even better as leftovers.)

[From Beans…the more you eat…the more – healthy you get. «]

A cat with an uncanny ability to detect when nursing home patients are about to die has proven itself in around 50 cases by curling up with them in their final hours, according to a new book.

[From Cat predicts 50 deaths in RI nursing home - Telegraph]

Apple Mac owns 90% market share for ‘premium’ PCs costing over $1,000 with $499 iPad coming soon
Monday, February 01, 2010 – 05:14 PM EST
“Windows 7 did little to slow the Mac’s sales trajectory during fourth quarter, according to NPD. Year over year, Apple doubled US retail unit share — from 5 percent to 10 percent — for PCs selling between $500 and $1,000. More startling, Apple increased its unit share from 79 percent to 90 percent in the market for ‘premium’ PCs, meaning those selling for more than $1,000,” Joe Wilcox reports for Betanews. “In July, I reported that Apple’s revenue share for PCs selling for more than $1,000 was 91 percent, because of higher average selling prices; nearly all Macs sold for more than $1,000. Now Apple benefits from 90-percent unit share, too.”

[From MacDailyNews - Apple Mac owns 90% market share for 'premium' PCs costing over $1,000 with $499 iPad coming soon]

Part I: Building Broadband Absorber Panels

Background:

After reading Ethan Winer’s articles and information from Auralex Acoustics, RPG , Jon Risch’s great DIY site and the enlightening Ethan Winer: Acoustics Forum at Music Player Network, I decided to build a modified version of the 703 2’x4’x4” panel bass traps and then two “Super Chunk” Corner Bass Traps. Initially for the panel traps I planned to build a wooden frame as others have done.

But after reading Ethan’s “Real Traps – Measuring Absorption and the Numbers Game” article I decided to attempt a design more resembling the Real Traps frame. My goals were to build a light yet strong frame and to simultaineously maximize the amount of absorption on the 4” sides of the trap by not using a solid wood frame. Of course at a DIY project I also wanted to to build the traps as cheaply as possible.

[From Steven P. Helm: DIY Bass Traps]

Some people don’t seem to realize this crap is permanent!

[From slightlywarped.com's Curiosities]

Members of the earth’s earliest known civilization, the Sumerians, looked on in shock and confusion some 6,000 years ago as God, the Lord Almighty, created Heaven and Earth.

[From Sumerians Look On In Confusion As God Creates World | The Onion - America's Finest News Source]

According to San Francisco General Hospital, 90-percent of all patients who’ve tested positive for cocaine use have also tested positive for the animal deworming drug levamisole.

U.S. health officials first warned of the drug in September and the CDC just reported that 69-percent of all cocaine seized in the U.S. is tainted with it. While cocaine is often cut with other drugs to both increase its weight and potency, officials don’t know why levamisole is being used.

The drug can cause agranulocytosis, which significantly reduces the number of white blood cells in the body causing fever, swollen glands, and painful sores around the mouth and anus. And women seem to be more affected by levamisole than men are.

“If 90 percent of cocaine users in San Francisco are positive for levamisole and are being exposed to this compound, then why aren’t 90 percent of them in the emergency room with these side effects?” asks Kara Lynch, associate chief of the chemistry and toxicology lab at S.F. General.

Oddly enough, San Francisco patients are experiencing a condition that others are not: their skin is turning black! Dr. Jonathan Graf, an assistant professor at S.F. General says their skin appears to be “sloughing” off. He feels that there are other cases of this happening but that people just aren’t going to see doctors about it.

It’s worth noting that the drug levamisole was found in DJ AM’s body along with cocaine, OxyContin, Hydrocodone, Vicodin, Xanax, Ativan, Klonopin, and Benadryl. The entertainer died of an overdose three months ago.

[From 90-Percent of SF Cocaine Cut with Animal Deworming Medication - SFist]

Voters in California will likely decide this November whether or not to legalize marijuana, after legalization activists handed in far more than the necessary number of petition signatures to get the measure onto the ballot.

Organizers of the Regulate, Control and Tax Cannabis Act of 2010 filed some 700,000 petition signatures with county clerks around the state. The amount of signatures needed to get the measure on the ballot is about 433,000, reports the San Francisco Chronicle, so the measure is all but certain to be on the ballot in November.

If California voters approve, it will be the most comprehensive reform of marijuana laws ever undertaken in the United States. While some states, such as Oregon, have relatively lax penalties for possession, no state has attempted to regulate and tax the herb before.

The measure’s chances are good: A poll taken last April found that 56 percent of Californians want to see the herb legalized and taxed.

According to the L.A. Times, the measure would make it legal for anyone over 21 to own an ounce or less of pot, and to grow pot for personal use in a space no larger than 25 square feet. It would also give cities the right to license marijuana growers and sellers, and to collect taxes on the crop.

[From Pot legalization almost certainly headed for California ballot | Raw Story]

Every designer needs a good collection of free fonts, when working on design projects weather your designing for the web or for print its always essential to have a good collection of fonts. Fonts can be very expensive especially when working on a design project with a small budget. This is a collection of the best free fonts created in 2009.

I hope you enjoy this post. If your a logo designer or if you just instantly fall in love with cool fonts then this is the perfect post for you. You can never have too many fonts so why not take a look through this awesome hand picked collection of awesome fonts. Feel free to leave a comment we would love to know which one is your favourite font and any fonts which you feel we may have been missed from the list which should of been included within the post.

[From 50 Best Free Fonts From 2009 | Creative Nerds]

Carl Sagan on Pot
This account was written in 1969 for publication in “Marihuana Reconsidered (1971)”. Sagan was in his mid-thirties at that time. He continued to use cannabis for the rest of his life.

[From Carl Sagan on Pot]

These days, a number of architects and designers are exploring humanitarian design for people hit by a natural disaster or any other emergency. Under the brand Urban Nomads, all the projects by Winfried Baumann cater to instant housing for urban nomads and the homeless. The Instant Housing by Winfried Baumann comprises small mobile homes, which are designed for the special living circumstances and are manageable by one person. An emergency assistance to homeless people and victims of disasters, the Instant Housing Shelter is equipped with a retractable padded bed, first aid kit, mirror, whistle, multi tool, flashlight and plastic hood with viewing window. The residential portable container can provide all the basic necessities in a disaster-struck area, efficiently and affordably. Last but not the least, these Instant Housing shelters can be easily transported from one place to the other.

[From Urban Nomads' Instant Housing Shelters For The Homeless - The Design blog]

It often seems like every week there is news of someone setting, or breaking, the Guinness World Record for some dubious achievement on which you never even believed people would have thought it fit to bestow commendation. (This week’s example being the man who broke the yo-yo world record, though in his defense that at least required some technical skill.)

And so, in honor of the Guinness World Records’ tireless support of novelty achievements, we’ve rounded up 13 of the strangest, and occasionally pointless, records (so many to choose from!) for your amusement. Think we’ve unfairly neglected something truly superfluous? Let us know.

[From The Strangest Guinness World Records (PHOTOS)]

Blue Chevy
Culver City, CA
Fall 2009

[From Vans and the places where they were.]

How is being gang-raped by colleagues a legitimate “distinct risk” of working for a defense contractor?

I’m sure you’ve heard the story of Jamie Leigh Jones, the Halliburton/KBR employee who was drugged, gang-raped, and abused by her coworkers while in Iraq, and then locked in a shipping container and threatened by the company in an attempt to zip her mouth shut. KBR’s rape-permissive environment left the men so confident that they wouldn’t be punished, one didn’t even bother leaving and was still in Jones’ room when she awoke, mutilated and violated.

[From Halliburton/KBR Attacks Employee Gang-Raped On Their Watch | Women's Rights | Change.org]

Just because we’re eating a little lighter this month, doesn’t mean we don’t have the craving for a fat, tasty burger. This meatless version is flavorful enough, you don’t even miss your usual source of proteins. A quick and tasty, homemade option for sure!

[From Recipe: Beef-Free Bean Burger | Apartment Therapy The Kitchn]

Cheers To Finger Power!

Mind you, this is not a “Green” concept and neither does it claim to be “Eco Friendly”. It’s just a helpful solution for a tricky situation. The situation being: you running out of juice on your mobile phone. So what do you do? Remove the battery from the back of the phone; give it a few good turns around your index finger and its gathered enough power to last you a conversation or a safe trip to your charger and electric point.

[From Swing Your Energy - Mobile Phone Battery Charger System by Song Teaho & Hyejin Lee » Yanko Design]

Cannabis is a genus of flowering plants with species that have long been used for fiber (hemp), for medicinal purposes, and as a recreational drug. Industrial hemp products are made from cannabis plants selected to produce an abundance of fiber and minimal levels of tetrahydrocannabinol, a psychoactive molecule that produces the “high” associated with marijuana. For more than half of the history of the United States cannabis was used primarily for industrial purposes, and at times was even required by law to be grown out of “strategic necessity”. Domestic production continued until after the Civil War, while marijuana remained a common ingredient in medicines up to the 20th century. Following immigration caused by the Mexican Revolution, recreational use of marijuana became widespread, resulting in political pressure to enact a federal ban of cannabis. While the attitude of the general public towards marijuana has changed throughout the history of the nation, today cannabis remains classified as a Schedule I drug under the Controlled Substances Act, and possession is punishable by up to one year in jail and a minimum fine of $1,000 for a first conviction.

Prior to prohibition, U.S. politicians known for growing cannabis include some of the nation’s Founding Fathers and Presidents. Politicians that have admitted to recreational use following prohibition include mayors, Governors, members of the House of Representatives, Senators, and Presidents.

[From List of United States politicians who admit to cannabis use - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia]

The Republicans’ shock victory in the election for the US Senate seat in Massachusetts meant the Democrats lost their supermajority in the Senate. This makes it even harder for the Obama administration to get healthcare reform passed in the US.

Political scientist Dr David Runciman looks at why is there often such deep opposition to reforms that appear to be of obvious benefit to voters.

[From BBC News - Why do people often vote against their own interests?]

designer jamie o’shea must have really wanted a nap when he created his vertical bed design. the vertical
allows the user to sleeping standing up right in the middle of the street. not satisfied without testing his
creation, o’shea slept for 40 minutes in downtown new york. the bed design can be collapsed into a small
suitcase and is attached to a subway vent when in use. the help the user gets a peaceful rest, the bed comes
with noise canceling headphones, opaque sunglasses and a free-standing umbrella for napping in the rain.
next time you walking down the street and feeling tired, simply set up the vertical bed and take a nap.

[From vertical bed]

Sand demons! (large picture)

[From skullbrain.org - View topic - Sand demons! (large picture)]

It’s been a long time coming, but the last hurdle is gone — Apple has lifted the restrictions against 3G VoiP calls from the iPhone Software Development Kit.

The implications of this are pretty huge. Not only does this mean that VoIP apps like Skype [iTunes Link] can now be easily updated to allow VoIP access over 3G on the iPhone, it also means that the 3G-enabled versions of the new iPad should be able to take full advantage of VoIP over 3G as well. The iPad does come with a microphone and a speaker, so while you won’t be able to hold the device up to your ear like a phone (although it would be pretty funny to watch you try), calls over Skype or another VoIP program should theoretically be just as clear on the iPad as they are on the iPhone’s tiny speaker. This has the potential to really shake up the wireless industry, especially in the U.S. — with pay-as-you-go 3G on the iPad costing no more than $30 a month, the iPad suddenly seems like a very attractive alternative to the iPhone with its far more expensive (and contractually obligated) carrier plans.

iCall [iTunes Link] has already been updated with VoIP over 3G enabled, and with all restrictions now lifted, it seems like it’s only a matter of time before Skype and other VoIP apps follow.

[From iPhone SDK updated: VoIP over 3G now permitted]

Some eighties bands music stands the test of time, while others cause us to look over our shoulder to see if anyone’s noticed the Heaven 17 album in our collection. The English Beat wrote songs with a reggae groove, but with enough pop sensibility to capture the hearts of millions. At a time when it was virtually impossible for alternative bands to get radio airplay in America, The Beat had a string of hits and sold-out tours. Dave Wakeling was the singer, guitarist and mastermind behind the whole thing and when he announced a 2010 U.S. tour for The Beat, we sought him out for an interview. On the phone, Wakeling engaged us for hours with discussions of politics, the music industry, VH1 and the process of making videos. Here are the best bits from our discussion.

[From The Dumbing of America › History Lesson: Dave Wakeling and The English Beat]

Brad Laner (Medicine/Solo)
1. Beatles Remasters / Beatles Rock Band
2. Neil Young – Archive Vol. 1
3. Baby Champ – Faya/Maya
4. Shits and Giggles – Trick or Treat
5. Helado Negro – Awe Owe
6. Where The Action Is! (Los Angeles Nuggets 1965-1968)
7. Bell Gardens – A Series Of Farewells
8. Slaraffenland – We’re on Your Side
9. Baths – http://www.myspace.com/bathsmusic
10. The Silent League -But You’ve Always Been the Caretaker

[From The Dumbing of America › Top Albums of 2009: The Artists’ Picks]

Verizon is terminating internet service to an unknown number of repeat copyright scofflaws, a year after suggesting it was not adopting a so-called graduated-response policy.

While it was not immediately clear whether other internet service providers were following suit, the move comes as the Recording Industry Association of America and the Motion Picture Association of America are lobbying ISPs and Congress to support terminating internet access for repeat, online copyright offenders.

All the while, the United States has been privately lobbying the European Union to “encourage” so-called three strikes policies, according to leaked documents surrounding a proposed international intellectual property accord.

Verizon was not immediately prepared to comment in detail on the developments, first reported by CNET, or to detail how many of its more than 8 million broadband subscribers it has terminated — although CNET said the number was “small.” The RIAA declined comment.

“We reserve the right to do that,” Verizon spokeswoman Bobbi Henson said in a telephone interview regarding the terminations.

The RIAA announced a year ago it was ending its litigation campaign against individual file sharers, about 30,000 lawsuits in all. Instead, the music industry’s lobbying and litigation arm said it would rely on a series of accords it had reached with “leading” internet service providers, in which ISPs have agreed “on principle” to shut off internet access to customers the RIAA catches file sharing repeatedly.

At that time, in a Jan. 5, 2009 interview, Verizon spokeswoman Ellen Yu said that, in reference to the RIAA announcement: “We are not working with them on this.”

Cara Duckworth, an RIAA spokeswoman, said the same day that “We have an agreement on principle with several leading ISPs but not all, and the agreement on principle is confidential.”

Other than Verizon, none of the leading ISPs have acknowledged practicing what the content industry is calling “graduated response.” Under Verizon’s plan, the ISP notifies customers that unlawful file sharing allegedly is taking place on their accounts — file sharing discovered by the RIAA or other intellectual property holders who actively police networks and IP addresses. Internet service could be terminated perhaps after several warnings.

[From Verizon Terminating Copyright Infringers’ Internet Access | Threat Level | Wired.com]

A VIDEO released last week shows how a routine traffic stop by local police for a dragging muffler last November turned into a nightmare for Melvin Jones III.

Jones, an African American and resident of Springfield, Mass., was pulled over on November 27–and ended up in the hospital with severe injuries to his face, after he was beaten by Jeffrey Asher, a white police officer with a history of brutality against African Americans.

The video, which was posted online, was only just released after being quietly held “in the hands of law enforcement and city officials for several weeks,” according to Masslive.com/The Republican newspaper.

[From Savage police brutality revealed | SocialistWorker.org]

Future humans won’t have to wait to travel to Pandora for the chance to mine unobtanium, because Neptune and Uranus may have diamond icebergs floating atop liquid diamond seas closer to home. The surprise finding comes from the first detailed measurements of the melting point of diamond, Discovery News reports.

[From Neptune and Uranus May Have Oceans of Liquid Diamond | Popular Science]

“Yesterday we reported that Google’s long awaited own-brand phone, the Google Nexus One, hadn’t enjoyed the best start in life, having only sold 20,000 units in its first week in the US,” Adam Bunker reports for T3.

The Nexus One “has just had its price slashed,” Bunker reports.

“Up until today, anyone in the US who’d wanted to upgrade to the Nexus One on T-Mobile had to pay out $379,” Bunker reports. “With the price cut in effect, this figure stands at $279… Not only that, but anyone who’s already upgraded receive a $100 refund.”

[From MacDailyNews - And so it begins: Google discounts 'Nexus One' by $100]

You should be horse-whipped for the insult you have paid to the highest office of our nation.

[From A Letter to Rush Limbaugh :: rogerebert.com :: Opinion]

A US company has launched a new punctuation mark which is intended to express sarcasm in written form.

They claim the sarcasm mark, or SarcMark – an open circle with a dot in the centre – is needed for sarcasm to work on the web, or in print.

After being downloaded (for $1.99) it can be installed on computers and mobile phones – allowing people to use it in text messages or emails.

A spokesperson said that using the SarcMark means never again waste a good sarcastic line on someone who doesn’t get it and could make some websites make a lot more sense.

We think it’s a wonderful idea. <–See, we could have added one just there.
The spokesperson added: “With the spoken word, we use our tone, inflection and volume to question, exclaim and convey our feelings.

“The written word has question marks and exclamation points to document those thoughts, but sarcasm has nothing.

“In today’s world with increasing commentary, debate and rhetoric, what better time could there be than now, to ensure that no sarcastic message, comment or opinion is left behind.

“When you see the newest punctuation mark for sarcasm, you’ll know the writer of that sentence doesn’t literally mean what they’re writing; they’re being sarcastic.”

[From SarcMark: Sarcasm punctuation is a great idea - Odd News | newslite.tv]

Bolivia’s new constitution recognizes coca as a “cultural heritage, a natural and renewable resource of biodiversity in Bolivia and a factor of social cohesion.”

[From » Bolivian Government To Produce “Coca Colla” — It’s The Real Thing From Coca Leaves Foolocracy: Government by fools, silliness and unintelligent people]

As the cost of display technology comes down and the size of displays increases the popularity of public video billboards has also increased. Such displays allow for TV-like adverts to be displayed in shopping malls, at the side of the road, and generally anywhere there is a lot of faces to look at them.

In Moscow video billboards are positioned alongside some of the busiest highways showing advertising
and information 24 hours a day. But on Thursday night the video being played on two of these displays wasn’t an advert and it brought traffic to a halt; blocking the roads while drivers stopped to watch in amazement.

Some enterprising hacker/s had managed to take control of these two billboards located on Moscow’s Garden Ring Road. The video they chose to upload or stream was X-rated pornography.

The owner of the hacked displays is an advertising company
called Panno.ru. It was notified of the “problem” three minutes after the porn had started playing, but it took them a further fifteen minutes to co-ordinate and switch off the displays.

Pennu.ru do not know who or how the display was accessed and aren’t ruling out a competing advertising company being involved in this eye-opening event.

[From Traffic halted as hackers replace roadside video adverts with porn – Tech Products & Geek News | Geek.com]

?Martin Handford’s Where’s Waldo books have been adored by kids the world over since the absent minded candy striped hitchhiker first made his debut in 1987. That being said, this is not an effort to defame the Waldo (or “Wally” depending on where you’re reading this) books because frankly, life would be much less cool without them. Instead, our ambition is to point out some of their most noteworthy peculiarities — things that we didn’t necessarily find mentioned on the scrolls and postcards adorning each map, or on the checklists in the back of each book. No, these are the images and concepts that stayed with us long after we found Waldo, and for probably the wrong reasons. Whether amusing, horrifying, bizarre, or simply too historically accurate for our own good, Waldo’s journeys took us down some interesting paths by way of subject matter that Handford has all but wiped from the most recent Waldonian adventures, possibly thanks to pressure from his publisher. Of all the things found while searching for Waldo, here are the 9 strangest.

[From Topless Robot - 9 Strange Things Found While Searching for Waldo]

Most flooring is pretty unimaginative and boring. However, the following is a selection of cool floors which aim to keep you staring at the ground; just make sure you don’t bump into anyone. Enjoy, and please let us know which one is you favorite.

[From 10 Most Awesome Floors Ever Created | Floorstoyourhome]

The Mast Humidifier by Shin Okada is a stunning example of simple, functional design. The Mast is crafted out of Japanese cypress, known for its lemon-scented straight grain and resistance to rotting. Thin slices of cypress absorb water from the device’s base and diffuse moisture and a natural non-intrusive aroma into the air.

[From (Pic) Natural Humidifier Works Without Power - PSFK]

(updated below – Update II – Update III)

Cass Sunstein has long been one of Barack Obama’s closest confidants.  Often mentioned as a likely Obama nominee to the Supreme Court, Sunstein is currently Obama’s head of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs where, among other things, he is responsible for “overseeing policies relating to privacy, information quality, and statistical programs.” In 2008, while at Harvard Law School, Sunstein co-wrote a truly pernicious paper proposing that the U.S. Government employ teams of covert agents and pseudo-”independent” advocates to “cognitively infiltrate” online groups and websites — as well as other activist groups — which advocate views that Sunstein deems “false conspiracy theories” about the Government. This would be designed to increase citizens’ faith in government officials and undermine the credibility of conspiracists. The paper’s abstract can be read, and the full paper downloaded, here.

[From Glenn Greenwald - Salon.com]

Are you angry about Wall Street’s reckless excesses? Are you disappointed with President Obama’s limp approach to reform? You can change this, acting individually and collectively. Withdraw your deposit and savings accounts from the large banks that brought the system to ruin and were subsequently rescued with billions in government bailouts. Put your money instead in smaller, safer banks or credit unions closer to home–the thousands of community institutions that do not harvest their profits from greed and recklessness.

[From Move Your Money]

Say you walk in to your favorite pizza joint, only to find president George H.W. Bush surrounded by Secret Service agents, waiting for his slice of cheese. What do you do? Naturally, you go back to your car, get your camera and start cussing him out about the his murderous, Zionist, New World Order. I mean, duh, it’s a no-brainer.

[From Dorsey Shaw: George Bush Heckled In A Pizza Restaurant (VIDEO) - Really - Air America]

Televangelist Pat Robertson said Wednesday that earthquake-ravaged Haiti has been “cursed” by a “pact to the devil.”

[From Pat Robertson: Haiti 'Cursed' By 'Pact To The Devil' (VIDEO)]