I think we can all agree the TED talks are pretty terrific, top to bottom. I wanted to point you toward one in particular in case you missed it, namely Arthur Ganson, sculptor and engineer, talking about some of his kinetic art. His work just… makes me happy. Pictured above is Machine with Wishbone. Also of interest- the flickr Kinetic Sculpture pool, and the expansive Kineticus.

Dated: 07.19  Comments: 0   Permanent link to this post:   Email this post: »

S’more Mallow S’more Problems
Quote: Money is a powerful force in human life and affairs. Its very power gives pause to those who look to evolution for full explanations of human behavior, because money has not existed long enough to have influenced evolution. By some estimates, money only goes back a couple thousand years, which is too short even to have influenced human evolution. Still, one can get some clues as to how evolution prepared us for money from the burgeoning research that seeks to present animals with economic choices. To gain perspective on human financial decisions, one may ask, what would monkeys do? Monkeys don’t care about money, per se, but they do care about marshmallows.

The Evolution of Economic Rationality: Do Monkeys Understand Money? (And yes, if you suspected this post was simply an excuse to make an image of a monkey wearing a fat lucky-charms and peeps chain, you were spot on.)

Dated: 07.19  Comments: 2   Permanent link to this post:   Email this post: »

I originally created the image above with plans of making it a t-shirt graphic. I came to my senses, however, when it dawned on me that the segment of my readership which might fall under the “sexually submissive nerd in search of intimacy who happens to also be painfully shy, thus requiring a goofy Jeopardy! pun t-shirt to break the ice at bars” demographic might not be that terribly large.

Anyhow, I’m not one to let a decent graphic go to waste so I decided to use it for a Jeopardy! related post of some kind. Turns out the “some kind” is the “meh” kind, but I’ll press on. The best related linkage I managed to find are: This obsessionally thorough wikipedia page on the many incarnation of the Jeopardy! set with groovy photos. Some iterations of the theme song Think!. A slew of SNL celebrity Jeopardy! clips featuring the legendary Hammond-as-Connery bits. And finally two notable shots of Trebek- Aw yeah baby, “What is sexy muthafucka?” It is what it is.

Dated: 07.17  Comments: 1   Permanent link to this post:   Email this post: »

Royalty’s all consuming concern for controlled lines of succession and the Church’s all consuming concern for the comings and goings of their flock’s reproductive organs sure did converge to do a number on children born out of wedlock! Poor bastards. Evidently a perusal of Parish registers, especially those prior to the 19th century, are positively awash in irritated euphemisms for bastardy. It dawned on me that some of the more creative among you might wish to utilize these variants when questioning the paternity of your enemies. See below for a short list (each linked, incidentally, to a notable bastard).

Dated: 07.17  Comments: 1   Permanent link to this post:   Email this post: »

Quote: life on the internet is fleeting, there is a group of history blogs that seem to me to be central to history blogging. I don’t presume to… suggest that they are better than other history blogs that are not on the list. I do mean to say that, without them, history education on the internet would be seriously impoverished. -Ralph E. Luker.

I’d like to offer a heartfelt, albeit slightly belated, thanks to Ralph, of HNN’s Cliopatria blog, for including The Nonist amongst such fine company. You can check out his list of 80 history blogs for yourself here. I must say the thought that my absence might “seriously impoverish” others fills me with a sense of not entirely benevolent power. I imagine standing on a mountain, thunder clapping, while I shout above the din, “Mind your tongues lest I, the great and powerful Nonist, impoverish you! Mwah-ha-ha…” +

Dated: 07.16  Comments: 0   Permanent link to this post:   Email this post: »

Moonlighting engineers with help from retirees and space enthusiasts plan alternate rocket and moon mission? No it is not the pitch for the newest Joss Whedon series.

Quote: By day, the engineers work on NASA’s new Ares moon rockets. By night, some go undercover to work on a competing design (called Jupiter). These dissenting scientists and their backers insist they have created an alternative rocket that would be safer, cheaper and easier to build than the two Ares spacecraft that will replace the space shuttle.

Jupiter developers say: It’s simpler, more powerful, and would save about 35 billion dollars over two years. Plus, rogue engineers bootstrapping to the moon? Hells yeah. 

NASA says: It’s little more than a sketch on a napkin. It’s not feasible and it won’t work. Now got off the lawn you pesky kids!

I just love this story. Not only for the space-related super-dork intrigue of it all. That we are getting to the point where such things can even be considered is thrilling. Check out the napkin in question-Direct 2.0 for tons of info, images, animations, etc. Also, check out Stephen Metschan’s 2 part story from a couple months back.

Dated: 07.16  Comments: 1   Permanent link to this post:   Email this post: »

Is Heinrich Kieber a modern-day robin hood? No. A new folk-hero trying to awaken the sleepy / sheepy masses to the realities of a ceasless class war? No. An idealistic do-gooder taking a stand in a world sucked-dry by vampiric corporate greed? Nope. Truth be told he’s not even a conflicted but ethically outraged whistleblower. Not even close. Heinrich Kieber was convicted of real estate fraud in Spain, fled to his native Liechtenstein, and while working there as an employee of the Liechtenstein Global Trust, stole from the rich to give to… who else? himself.

Dated: 07.16  Comments: 0   Permanent link to this post:   Email this post: »

Hello: Just a note to let you know my Mac died after 5-plus years of tireless service and I am in the process right now of setting up a new system, recovering data, etc. I may be MIA for a few days. Will return to you soon. -J


Dated: 07.13  Comments: 5   Permanent link to this post:   Email this post: »

Serif’s Lament. The Serif, as elegant and sophisticated a workhorse as you’re likely to see. Unsung hero of the printed word since presses first began their clacking. But older than that; much older. Old enough to be chiseled into worn-down Roman stone, with origins (both physical and etymological) at least as fuzzy. And yet in the last century or so… how neglected. How maligned! With each new call for utilitarianism, practicality, and modernism the noble Serif has suffered. Today, a decade into the internet revolution, well, the Serif has fallen on hard times. Called upon less and less it must make due with work as body copy and Woody Allen film credits. While Helvetica walks the red carpet the Serif, left behind, laments, “WHY HAST THOU FORSAKEN ME?” Readability is an issue however, and no one understands.

Two versions of this design are available one printed in black for light apparel and one printed in white for dark apparel. (See below for larger versions.)

Dated: 07.10  Comments: 0   Permanent link to this post:   Email this post: »

Quote: Wisconsin law bans sex with dead bodies, the state Supreme Court ruled Wednesday in reinstating charges against three men accused of digging up a corpse to have sex with it. The court waded into the grisly case after lower court judges ruled nothing in state law banned necrophilia. (Link)

Notice if you will that the courts ruling was a 5-2 decision. A 5-2 DECISION! As you can see from the court sketches above, reaction to the ruling was mixed as well. (Thnx D.)

Dated: 07.10  Comments: 0   Permanent link to this post:   Email this post: »