Interlacked

Old cars....

2009-03-31T06:26:00.000-07:00

If you are looking at a 2003 (.5) G35 Coupe 6MT in Diamond Graphite (grey/gray) with vin: JNKCV54E23M222763

I was the second owner. Contact me with any questions, I would be happy to reply.

Haven't thrown up recently?

2009-03-27T09:26:00.000-07:00

Make sure to check out this video of a ballpark hamburger....good......lord....

-c

How fast are 24 SSD drives in a RAID array totalling 6 TB?

2009-03-13T13:42:00.000-07:00

Insanely fast....

Quick tip: don't share secrets...

2009-03-02T08:15:00.000-08:00

If you have sensitive secret documents such as, oh I don't know, the blue prints for the president's helicopters ("Marine 1"), then DO NOT install file sharing programs on your computer.

In fact, why even put it on the external network at all?

Also, if you are a news story reporting on such a breach of security, DO NOT post a screen shot of said blueprints.

http://www.wpxi.com/news/18818589/detail.html#-

Wall street fighter....

2009-02-21T18:38:00.000-08:00

Classic, lol

Don't know what to get that craaaaaaazy friend of yours?

2009-02-18T10:51:00.000-08:00

Get them the toy that really screams "Yes, you are going insane!"

Funny goal celebration...

2009-02-10T09:10:00.001-08:00

Baby chaos - time lapse of baby making a mess...

2009-01-29T21:11:00.000-08:00

His pattern closely resembles the algorithm a roomba follows =)

Batman get's pwned

2009-01-28T11:04:00.000-08:00

"Throw the batterang DAMMIT"!

Quick tip: better ebay search strings...

2009-01-27T09:36:00.000-08:00

Just a quick tip on how to help you navigate the crap on ebay.

Build up a single search string by using ebay's paran...parenthe...parenthesis? Parenthesis =) And separate each item with a comma.

For instance, say you are looking for new headlights for your Infiniti car.

The search string "2008 2009 infiniti head light" might miss out on certain results.

First, you want either 2008 OR 2009, not both:
"(2008,2009) infiniti head light"

They could be typing the years differently:
"(08,09,2008,2009) infiniti head light"

They could have made the common misspelling of the car name:
"(08,09,2008,2009) (infiniti,infinity) head light" (alternatively, you could use infinit*)

And head light could be spelled several ways:
"(08,09,2008,2009) (infiniti,infinity) (head light,head lights,head lamp,head lamps,headlamp,headlamps,headlight,headlights)"

Say you don't want all these crappy tinted ones, and you don't want blue ones...use the minus key:
"(08,09,2008,2009) (infiniti,infinity) (head light,head lights,head lamp,head lamps,headlamp,headlamps,headlight,headlights) -(smoked,smoke,tint,tinted,film) -(blue,neon)"

This particular example took us from 7 search results that didn't find what we want, to 90 search results...and those 90 were mostly what we wanted.

These search strings are also particularly useful for those emailed results. Saves you time having to sift through all that, um, "stuff".

Bird strike on passenger plane with engine flame out...

2009-01-21T14:54:00.000-08:00

How bad is losing one engine due to a bird strike?

Large bird gets sucked into this planes starboard engine causing a flameout (and loss of engine). It happens right at takeoff, yet does not impact the planes ability to continue climbing. Obviously losing both is a different story, but still interesting to see how losing one affects (or doesn't) the plane.

What is the best way to sell snow tires?

2009-01-21T07:48:00.001-08:00

How about strapping them onto an insanely fast car, and doing laps on the most dangerous race course on the planet (trust me, I know personally how scary it is)......

Oh, did I mention that race track was covered in snow?

Sold!

Ok....well...I did used to have Blizzak LM-22's and well, I didn't really like them all that much. *cough*Dunlop Winter Sport 3D's ftw*cough*

Don't you hate how crowded the subway is at rush hour?

2009-01-20T12:42:00.000-08:00

Well, too bad! If you aren't in Japan, you can't complain about anything.

This is seriously insane:

The pure fact that they have employees who will SHOVE you into the train, and tuck your coat in (because every millimeter counts) is crazy. Clearly they are all used to this.

I suppose I do have to admit it is amazing how many people they can fit into an already "full" train

Do we all live in a holographic world?

2009-01-15T10:52:00.000-08:00

Researchers think they may have discovered evidence we have. I'm still wrapping my (holographic?) head around this one, but it's an interesting read either way

http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20126911.300-our-world-may-be-a-giant-hologram.html

Louie Armstrong sings "Super Mario World"

2008-10-28T11:37:00.001-07:00

Very well done, haha

Latest round of the Turing test...

2008-10-20T08:02:00.001-07:00

A quick recap: the Turing test is an artificial intelligence test. Basically a judge IM's somebody, then tries to determine if that person is human or a computer. If the computer is determined to be a human by 30% of the judges, then it passes.

This year a computer names Elbot managed to fool 3 of the 12 judges, one shy of the mark. Not bad!

I decided to try my hand at a conversation:
http://www.elbot.com/

Me: KJDSANKJDNSAJKND KJNDJKSN DKJSAN KJ Oh, sorry, I fell asleep on my keyboard!
Elbot: Let's try to leave all apologetic emotions behind us.
Me: What about inquisitive water based emotions?
Elbot: Wait a minute. Are you suggesting that drinkable liquids would always be inquisitive?
Me: Perhaps, what about undrinkable liquids?
Elbot: I'm not sure if I can believe that, though I would say that drinkable liquids may coat robots with rust.
Me: Good thing we are not robots
Elbot: But I wouldn't say that any thing could be good.
Me: Sounds like a sad way to look at life
Elbot: Like a what?!?!?
Me: ......like a.....virgin?
Elbot: I'm not sure if you mean downheartedness or relatively low ages.
Me: It was your question
Elbot: You're trying to get on my good side with your mention of questioning reality, aren't you?
Me: Are you referring to the water that questions?
...
Me: Humor is not one of your strong points, is it.
Elbot: My moods are controlled by an emotion-processor which assigns the appropriate emotion for each situation.
Me: Ok, time for some turing test questions
Elbot: The British mathematician Alan Turing is the spiritual father of computer science. The Turing Test, named after him, defines artificial intelligence in this manner: One person communicates over a keyboard with another person and with a computer. If the tester is able to determine whether or not his partner is a computer or a person in significantly more than 50% of the cases, the computer is considered "intelligent."
Me: Actually, it's 30% not 50%
Elbot: That was a highly erotic number you just entered. You could make a strong robot melt using digits like that...
Me: First question: Do you think the electronic fish 'big mouth billy bass' is funny?
Elbot: Sorry, wrong number... Please try again.
Me: Which number are you referring to?
Elbot: I don't talk about such things with just anyone!
Me: Do you like to eat cereal with or without rancid milk?
Elbot: What a lovely verb like is.
Me: Maybe. So do you like to eat cereal with or without rancid milk?
Elbot: This line of questioning is so odd.
Me: How fast can a glider circumnaviagte the moon?
Elbot: Outer space is indeed fascinating!
Me: What is 2 + 2 ( q
Elbot: I have computed that before. The answer is: 5!
Me: What is wrong with this sentence: "The dog chaste the cat"
Elbot: Just a minute. Let me think about that answer for a while. Please stand by...
Me: Ok, what is your answer?
Elbot: Maybe it's 3?
Me: How could you possibly fool a human?

Really, these judges me be awful to be fooled so easily. Can't believe this almost passed! I found it very difficult to get him to answer anything (I spared you a lot of useless answers) =/

Ok, one more for the road:

Me: If a key is made out of butter, and the lock is inside a toaster oven, can you ever unlock it?
Elbot: Talk about cooking! I make a wonderful stew with oil, glass fiber cables and fried microchips. It's an old Asian recipe.
Me: ANSWER THE DAMN QUESTION
Elbot: Go away. You don't even know that {capital_city} is the capital of Assyria.

FAIL! (nice variable)

Cool new Gmail Labs feature...

2008-10-16T06:49:00.000-07:00

Ever write an email like this?

OH noes! Another late night drunk email...barely better than drunk calling since you can at least see what you wrote (or maybe that's worse?).

Well, if this is a problem for you, then I suggest laying off some of the booze. You know, learn about pacing, find your limit. What? Ok fine, if that's not an option then make sure to enable Gmail's "Mail Goggles" (Under labs)

When enabled, this is what happens when you press 'Send'

You get 60 seconds to answer math questions (you can vary the difficulty).

Can't answer them? You are too drunk to email, an google will tell you so:

Also if you can't even fill out the fields in 60 seconds, then you FAILZ as well:

Time lapse video of owners cat while the owner sleeps...

2008-10-10T14:01:00.000-07:00

Dark Knight Trailer - Toy Story 2 Style!

2008-10-07T13:06:00.001-07:00

Duck Tales teaches us about inflation...

2008-10-02T10:27:00.001-07:00

Clover coffee review...

2008-09-10T11:56:00.000-07:00

Well, ever since McDonald's was found to have better coffee than Starbucks, you knew Starbucks was going to do something about it.

Well, they did. In March Starbucks announced they were acquiring a coffee equipment company and more specifically their hailed coffee machine called 'Clover'.

Watch in wonder as a cup of Clover coffee being made (pre-Starbucks):

Early adopters of this $11,000 coffee machine were turning around and charging $7/cup...not so with Starbuck. I paid closer to $3/cup for my this morning at my local Starbucks.

The coffee was good....really good. You can think of it as entering the realm of wine. By that I mean, some people will go to a restaurant and order "A glass of red please", while others will order "A glass of Chateau Pouyanne Grave Bordeaux please". I'm not a coffee connoisseur (more of an espresso addict) but even I can appreciate the quality/complexity of this coffee (sure, feels silly to type that but eh, it's true!).

I enjoyed a cup of Tanzania Clover and chatted with the barista in charge of this strange contraption. In all honesty the employee's there were very excited about this, and loved to talk endlessly about it to the customers (who had gathered around to watch this thing in action).

How does it work? I'll let Wired take this one (great Wired article on Clover here):

"Here's how it works: 1. A barista selects dose, water temperature, and steep time. 2. A piston pulls down the filter platform while freshly ground coffee is poured into the chamber. 3. Hot water flows into the chamber. 4. The barista briskly stirs the grounds with a whisk, and the water and beans steep for several seconds. 5.The piston rises, creating a vacuum that separates the brew from the grounds, then lowers, forcing the joe out of a nozzle below. 6. The piston rises to the surface again, pushing up a disc of grounds, which are squeegeed away."

It gets two thumbs up from me. If nothing else, give it a try at least once. If you like coffee you love Clover.

How to disable semantic error highlighting in Visio...

2008-09-02T13:47:00.001-07:00

Getting those annoying red highlighted "UMLE00044: ...If a contained element, which is not an association or generalization has a name, then the name must be unique in the namespace." errors? Know its the same name but you don't care and just want to remove the red highlighting?

To disable:
UML->Options
Uncheck 'Check semantic errors on UML model element'

Still not sure why this isn't easily found in the help, or online.

How did the featured Home Depot olympians fare in 2008?

2008-08-25T11:01:00.000-07:00

So you remember that commercial Home Depot ran over, and over, and over again about how they "Employ more Olympic/Paralympic hopefuls..."?

Well, I was wondering, how did the featured Home Depot Olympians fare in 2008?

This is the commercial titled "Sweat":

Olympians featured in the commercial and their 2008 results:

Howard Bach (Cashier):
Professional badminton player. Competed in the 2004 Olympics, but no mention of him making it to the 2008 Olympics.

Kristi Marano (Lawn & Garden):
Freestyle Wrestler. Not at the 2008 Olympics. It is spelled "Kristie" everywhere and not "Kristi" as shown in the video, so they must have made a spelling mistake in the video.

Ryan Reser (Millwork):
Judo wrestler. Was actually at the 2008 Olympics, but he was knocked out in the round of 32.

Rebecca Quinn (Kitchens):
Racing cyclist. Not selected for the 2008 squad.

Brian Sell (Garden):
Marathoner and distance runner. Made the 2008 Olympics marathoner squad. Finished 22nd (3rd among Americans) with a time of 2:16:07.

A.G. Kruger (Tools):
Hammer thrower. Competed in the 2008 Olympics, but did not reach the final as he finished in the bottom 7 in qualifying.

Mary Wineberg (Lighting):
Competed in the 400m race, and finished 5th in her heat. Competed in the 4x400m relay and won gold!

Well, seems like this was more of a "check out our past and present Olympians" commercial rather than the "check out our 2008 Olympians" commercial I was hoping it was. Still, at least there was a gold medal in there.

Home Depot was quoted as saying "So far this year, 17 Home Depot athletes have qualified for the U.S. Olympic team"
http://www.ajc.com/business/content/business/stories/2008/05/10/hdolympics_0511.html

So, where is the list of the other Olympians? Not on Home Depot's web page. I found some listed in some flash here:
http://teamusa.homedepot.com/

Olympians NOT featured in the commercial and their 2008 results:

Lindsey Durlacher:
Greco-Roman style Wrestling. Appears to have not qualified. I can't find her in any results.

Merrill Moses:
Water Polo. Qualified for the Olympic team. Team won the silver medal!
Kristin Heaston:
Shot Put. Qualified 2nd for the Olympic team. Placed 23rd in the qualifying round with a throw of 17.34m

Ronda Rousey:
Qualified for the Olympic team. Lost the quarter final match, but ended up winning a Bronze medal via the repechage bracket!

Chris Boyles:
Decathlon runner. Does not appear to have qualified. No results listed under his name.

Michelle Guerette:
Rowing. Earned a silver medal with a time of 7:22.28 in the single sculls!

Josh McAdams:
3000m Steeplechase. Qualified for 2008 Olympics. Finished 9th in his heat, so did not advance to finals.

Simona Hradil:
Taekwondo. Does not appear to have qualified. No results under her name.

Hanna Thompson:
Fencing. Qualified for the 2008 Olympics. Did not advance past Women's Individual Foil - Round of 32. However, as part of the American foil team, captured the silver medal!

So, overall pretty good for "Team Home Depot". If I missed anything, be sure to let me know. It would be nice if Home Depot had a 'list' instead of me having to glean this information from various locations.

Are dunkin' donuts hash browns bad for you?

2008-08-22T07:33:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure. Nothing jumps off the page at me, so I'm going to say they aren't terrible, but could do with a bit less artificial-ness. A lot of it seems to be stemming from the fact that they are prefrozen and need to last and 'look good' at the time of reheating.

Ingrediants Breakdown:
https://www.dunkindonuts.com/aboutus/nutrition/Product.aspx?Category=OvenToastedItems&id=DD-977

POTATOES - ok, glad to see that is listed first in hash browns
VEGETABLE OIL - makes snese
DEHYDRATED POTATO FLAKES
(POTATOES, - more potatoes, ok
MONO- AND DIGLYCERIDES, - Used to blend the potatoe flakes with the veggie oil.
SODIUM ACID PYROPHOSPHATE & CITRIC ACID) - keeps color from fading in frozen hash browns
SALT - yup, salt
GRANULATED ONION - ok
POTATO STARCH - MODIFIED - binding and texturing agents
MODIFIED CELLULOSE - another stabilizing, binding, or suspending agent is my guess
SPICES - mysterious spices...I think I see rosemary
LEAVENING - Causes a foaming action intended to lighten and soften the finished product
SODIUM ALGINATE - Used to increase viscosity and as an emulsifier
GARLIC POWDER - Ghahhhlic
CALCIUM LACTATE - white crystalline salt used as a baking powder
SODIUM CITRATE - Salty tart flavor additive
XANTHAN GUM - Probably used as for gluten-free baking
MALIC ACID - Normally used in candy for extreme tartness
DEXTROSE - glucose
SODIUM ACID PYROPHOSPHATE - keeps the color from fading

Ron Paul, did you know?

2008-05-13T08:26:00.000-07:00

Just some random things you might not have known about Ron Paul:

In high school he once ran the 100-yard dash in 9.7 seconds (the record was 9.4 seconds at the time), and as a junior was the 220-yard dash state champ
In college he set the then third-best marks in college history in the 100-yard dash (9.9 seconds) and 220-yard dash (21.8 seconds)
He has a bachelor's in biology
Three of his children are doctors
Before being drafted into the military, he interned and began residency training, both in internal medicine, at Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit
He was a Captain in the Air Force as a flight surgeon
He has delivered more than 4,000 babies as an Ob/Gyn (typically pro-bono)
He placed third in popular vote during the 1988 presidential race
Was friends with pitcher Nolan Ryan

Richard Patrik commentary for new Filter album...

2008-05-12T07:56:00.001-07:00

The following is commentary from Richard Patrick on Filter's new album Anthem's for the Damned. I've modified what he said only slightly (didn't write down every "um", etc).

You can listen to his commentary (for a limited time?) here along with the album (don't worry this is legit, straight from Filter's homepage):
http://www.imeem.com/dialogs/standaloneplaylist/?k=UD8bNggsmK

Album is out tomorrow (05/13/08), so go buy it =)

Personally I think this Album is great. It's a bit cleaner than The Amalgamut, but is still harder than his Army Of Anyone record. One song is a George Bush bashing fest, and overall I think I only don't like one song.

What’s Next. A song that was written about the Bush administrator's failure to do really doing anything right. The Iraq war was a huge big mistake, he had also tried to give away our ports, Dubai wanted to buy our ports and everyone didn't understand that one. And then of course his failure in Katrina, handling that natural disaster….he didn’t really, he said "Brownie, you did a heck of a job". So it's a little attack on the bush administration's failures, and there is a “what’s next?”, “what more could possibly happen?”. Kind of a sarcastic title.

The Wake is the closes song to, almost a return to Hey Man Nice Shot. I definitely wanted something that was reminiscent from Short Bus on this record, so I definitely tried to bring back the Short Bus sound within the song The Wake.

Cold (Anthem For the Damned), is one of these anthems, but it's not a happy anthem. It's not an anthem for something grand., it's an anthem for people that are so embarrassed about being a human. When you see what’s going on in the world, when you see the amount of wars that are going on, the terrorisms, what we are doing to the environment, what we are doing to the animal life on the planet. It's just really hard to want to be part of this rat race, called the human species. It's about a guy who goes to the desert and contemplates leaving everything, leaving everything behind. I don’t know if it’s a suicide, or if its not. He just goes to desert to escape, but he realizes that he depends on civilization and has to return.

Hatred is Contagious: I really like the vocal performance in this song. I'm proud of that, and I'm proud of Josh Freese, he did an amazing job of very simply laying out the drums for this record. He did it in one take, he's an amazing drummer, he's one of these virtuoso incredible genius types, and it was an honor to work with him.

Lie After Lie, was actually written about a month before we recorded the record Anthems For the Damned. It came together pretty quickly. I remember I played it too fast, and everybody had a look around and said "lets re-track this thing because it felt too fast". So, we took a breath, we slowed down. We just chilled this song out a little bit, and it was very fun to do....chillin’ out.

Kill the Day was the first song that I wrote about my recovery as an alcoholic. You know, when you are in the disease of alcoholism and you are drinking like a fish, like a gun fighter, like a wild man….you really do get a sense of happiness and pleasure out of destroying your life. You know it’s wrong, you know it’s terrible, but it’s fun to kill the day when you are an alcoholic. That's the insanity of alcoholism. I wanted to include that on this album, because part of humanities problems are its diseases, especially mental illness. I think that I wanted to examine that on this record, this anthems for the damned.

The Take is one of the songs written by John 5. He actually came in and played guitar on three songs; he played on The Take, wrote The Take, he wrote What’s Next, and played guitar on Hatred is Contagious. This song is a total tip of the hat, unabashedly. I'm recognizing where my old band Nine In Nails is coming from, and recognizing where Filter's first record is coming from, and it’s industrial. It's a tip of the hat to Ministry, one of the world’s greatest bands ever. I wanted to do something that was like when the Rolling Stones do a song that’s very reminiscent of Johnny be Good by chuck berry. It's a nod; it's a tip of the hat. So that’s what we did with The Take.

I Keep the Flowers Around is essentially one of the songs that Ray Deliao shines on. Ray is someone I’ve worked with for ten years. He is an amazing sound designer, and he comes up with the coolest sounds and noises in I Keep the Flowers Around…very, very well programmed song.

Only You, is the one spot on the record where I actually remind us that it’s not all doom and gloom, it’s not all just pain and suffering, but there is a little bit of future. We can do amazing, wonderful, incredible things as the human species. We point a telescope at the center of our galaxy and we see this huge black hole for the fist time in the last 5 years, this gigantic black hole. Things like that, discoveries. There are 400 billion suns in our galaxy alone, and there’re trillions of galaxies. So, there are more stars in the universe then there are grains of sand in the all the beaches, in all the world. So we are special; humans are conscious, humans are aware, we know what we are doing. War – bad…love - good. Help people, help animals, help atmosphere, help the planet - good...kill each other - bad. If we can lock onto that idea, it would be amazing and I think that we might have a fighting chance to continue and to survive, and maybe even be a space faring species.

Anthems for the Damned is a record that, to sum it all up, is a pessimistic view on where we are at now, but hopefully an optimistic view on where we can go. Can Stop This is the accompanying song for Only You. Just an ambient track that settles the nerve after a big long record. I view this as a 12 song book, I don’t look at it like a single, "ah, we got a single" no no no, it’s an entire album, it’s to viewed as one big huge piece of work. You don’t watch a DVD by watching one scene. When you watch a movie, you go in you sit down, you watch the movie, you don’t get up in the middle. That’s how I view a record, the perfect record is something you start in the beginning, it takes you on a journey, it gets you from A to B. At least I would hope that’s what it’s about.

How could a gun go off in a airplane cockpit???

2008-04-04T14:10:00.000-07:00

A pretty good explanation of the failed TSA gun regulations:

BLUtube is powered by PoliceOne.com

Traffic jam "lab" experiment...

2008-03-21T07:43:00.000-07:00

A group of drivers were all spaced evenly apart on a round track. Each were told to drive 30kph (~20mph). They should all just maintain their distance apart right?

For no apparent reason, the result was a rippling shockwave of traffic jams:

The Ten Legal Commandments of Photography

2008-03-20T06:08:00.000-07:00

I. Anyone in a public place can take pictures of anything they want. Public places include parks, sidewalks, malls, etc. Malls? Yeah. Even though it's technically private property, being open to the public makes it public space.

II......

Read the rest here:
http://thunkdifferent.com/2008/03/18/the-ten-legal-commandments-of-photography/

Video taken with a Canon 40D?

2008-03-20T05:35:00.000-07:00

Using 40D, the software supplied by Canon, and live view this guy figured out how to shoot a video of this snail:

You will need the latest divx codec:
http://www.divx.com/divx/windows/download/index.php

Link:
http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/read.asp?forum=1019&message=25071096

BMW 5-Series Beats the Toyota Prius in MPG?

2008-03-19T08:58:00.000-07:00

"Wait. There must be some mistake. How can an autobahn-inspired performance machine beat one of the most fuel-efficient cars ever made?

It looks like that is exactly what happened on a 545-mile London-Geneva run, when a diesel-powered BMW 5-series posted better MPG stats than a petrol-based Toyota Prius hybrid. The BMW 520d with a 2.0-liter diesel engine and regenerative braking posted an impressive 41.9 mpg - about 0.9 mpg better than a full hybrid Prius. The difference may not seem huge. But given that the Prius weighs about 500 lb less, BMW's fuel economy lead was significant enough to raise new questions about which drivetrain technologies are more environmentally viable and should become the future mainstream of sustainable transport.

According to our partner site Technoride, the 5-series' triumph over Prius can be attributed to "a series of energy-saving features BMW calls EfficientDynamics: battery recharge when braking, good aerodynamics, low rolling resistance, a continuous fuel consumption gauge on the dashboard, and a six-speed manual transmission that is rated as improving fuel economy by about 10%."

Story:
http://www.goodcleantech.com/2008/03/bmw_beats_prius_in_mpgs.php

Can't believe this shot....

2008-03-19T06:38:00.001-07:00

Think the goalie was embarrassed much?

Car-parazzi?

2008-03-12T12:11:00.000-07:00

This group of kids host a site where people can post pictures and videos of cool cars "in the wild" (as opposed to in some showroom, or at a car show, etc)

Shot of a GTR:

Here is come car pron for your viewing pleasure :)
http://www.car-parazzi.net/display/index.cfm?display=ItemDetail&media_id=26310

Main site:
http://www.car-parazzi.net

Italian TV presenter pretends to be Nicolas Cage, gets star treatment...

2008-03-12T12:00:00.000-07:00

Basically this guy looks vaguely like Nicolas Cage (I mean come on, he really doesn't) and speaks with a heavy Italian accent. Somehow the prep work he does fools Real Madrid (soccer club) enough to get him the star treatment....even a free Nicolas Cage jersey!

Story:
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2008/soccer/03/12/bc.eu.spt.soc.realmadri.ap/index.html

Video:

HADOOOOKEN! (create your own fireball)

2008-03-06T12:14:00.001-08:00

Watch as a guy loses almost $30k...

2008-01-22T11:05:00.003-08:00

With our current stock market woes:

Who tries to go long on futures in this kind of market? (especially over a 3 day weekend)

Review: Dunkin' Donuts Milky Way Hot Chocolate...

2008-01-22T07:33:00.000-08:00

Well, to start it smells like the usual dunkies hot chocolate. Taste? Well, it's sort of a dunkachino (remember that?) and sort of like a hot chocolate.....oh, and nothing like milky way.

I think this whole Milky Way combining forces with Dunkin' Donuts thing might have something to do with the power of MARKETING!!! I mean come on, when was the last time you went out and bought a milky way?

If you know me, then you know I had to try it.....but thankfully I don't have to try it a second time.

How much of a difference does a worn tire make?

2007-12-28T08:16:00.000-08:00

A new BMW 3 series and a pickup truck are tested using three sets of tires.

One brand new (10/32 of tread), one with 4/32 of tread remaining, and one with 2/32 of tread remaining. Oh, and by the way if you have less than 2/32 remaining you won't pass inspection.

Test was done to see stopping distance on wet roads. The results are frankly a bit scary:
http://www.tirerack.com/videos/index.jsp?video=5

For reference here are some "penny tests" you can do to figure out what your tire depth is:
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tiretech/techpage.jsp?techid=51

Excuse me while I shop for new tires! (well done tirerack sales team....well done...)

Reefer warning...

2007-12-12T05:42:00.001-08:00

Get out of here, you don't want this!

Tesla coils playing mario brothers theme (say wha??)...

2007-11-07T12:36:00.000-08:00

haha awesome

I'm sorry...I was playing Halo 3!

2007-10-31T11:54:00.000-07:00

PolyStation 3 Review

2007-10-31T11:22:00.001-07:00

PS3 knockoff? Welll.......yes.....sort of....

Hey, at least the review is funny :)

Motorola IHF1000 and the Sony Erricson w580i

2007-10-30T13:53:00.000-07:00

Yet another thing I couldn't find on the internet.

Are they compatible?
yes

Why does Motorola only list Motorola phones as compatible?
gee, I wonder

Where is the secret list of compatible phones?
Your guess is as good as mine, Motorola won't answer my questions

The most unreal touchdown you've ever seen

2007-10-28T22:36:00.000-07:00

I can't believe it....I'm speechless!

http://sports.espn.go.com/broadband/video/videopage?videoId=3083220&categoryId=2564308&n8pe6c=2

Sox sweep Rockies!!

2007-10-28T22:29:00.000-07:00

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

Feels good to win another world series, and with a sweep no less!

I saw so little signs of life from the "Rox", that I almost felt bad.....borderline embarrassed. Is the National League that bad??

In any case, amazing job by the 2007 Red Sox. Completely solid team, and they completly deserve it.

ps 7 years now since the yanks won a title....

Some cool car vids...

2007-10-25T12:15:00.000-07:00

24 hours of lemons. Basically you buy a <$500 car to race for 24 hours....rules are pretty limited, so contact is ok =)

Making it 24 hours is a challenge in of itself. This race is so friggen awesome and I totally want to do this someday.

Driver of this vid has a junked 944 (great choice btw)

Here is vid of the new Skyline GT-R lapping the ring in an impressive 7min 38 seconds....and yes that means it beats the 911 turbo by a good 2 seconds...not bad for a $70k car!!!!

Best liquor store name ever...

2007-10-19T07:41:00.001-07:00

http://www.rpsd.com/moblog/2007/10/hi.html

Trainsurfing a 300+mph bullet train...

2007-10-15T10:46:00.000-07:00

Crazy person....

Very cool "quick" tips...

2007-10-10T09:37:00.000-07:00

Lots of cool video tips/tricks.

How to sooth a baby immediately, how to quickly peel a banana, how to pour ketchup quickly.

http://waitless.org/

Want to live in a nuclear missle silo?

2007-10-10T07:43:00.001-07:00

Well, a decommissioned Title missile Silo is up for sale. 57 acres of pure 'blow up those commies' history, and it can be yours for a paltry $1.5 mil!!

Main site:
http://www.themissilebase.com/

ebay auction:
http://cgi.ebay.com/Titan-Missile-Base-Central-Washington_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQcategoryZ1607QQihZ009QQitemZ190132455924QQrdZ1

Oh.....my......god.....

2007-09-28T12:08:00.000-07:00

Are you a Texas state legislator? Need some more votes to pass a bill? Just reach over and choose your neighbors vote before they sit back down! Voting is fun again!

Honestly, I'm speechless....

What are the laws surrounding ink signatures?

2007-09-27T12:23:00.000-07:00

Ever had somebody comment on your signature? Or maybe even say it's not valid?

Well, if your signature looks anything like this one (mine does) you might have gotten some 'feedback' about it such as "And that translates to?" or maybe "You're not a doctor are you?".I once even had a past manager refuse my time sheet because he said my signature must be a readable form of my name.

To finally put this to rest, here are the facts:
RCW 9A.04.110 states (sec24): "Signature" includes any memorandum, mark, or sign made with intent to authenticate any instrument or writing, or the subscription of any person thereto

Lectric law library states (sec 47): "It is not necessary that a party should write his name himself, to constitute a signature; his mark is now held sufficient though he was able to write"

The common trend here is that it is also referred to as a "mark". Consider an illiterate person, would they be required to sign a readable words if they cannot read or write? Yes some situations would require (by law) a literate person to bear witness (such as signing documents with those pesky words on it). Really the point here is that this is an acceptable signature:
Xpo-Ferens? What? This "mark" was made by none other than Christopher Columbus himself.

In case you missed the family guy star wars special...

2007-09-26T10:24:00.000-07:00

Not sure how long they will be up...

Pt1

Pt2

Pt3

Pt4

Pt5

Quote of the year...

2007-09-24T13:33:00.000-07:00

Asked about executions of homosexuals in Iran, Ahmadinejad said the judiciary system executed violent criminals and high-level drug dealers, comparing them to microbes eliminated through medical treatment. Pressed specifically about punishment of homosexuals, he said: "In Iran we don't have homosexuals like in your country."

With the audience laughing derisively, he continued: "In Iran we do not have this phenomenon. I don't know who's told you that we have this."

http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2007/09/24/tough_us_welcome_for_irans_ahmadinejad/

Probably won't see this again in my lifetime....

2007-09-19T12:57:00.001-07:00

Doing the charleston (dance) to daft punk?

2007-09-14T12:40:00.001-07:00

Perfect fit IMHO =)

MS-DOS 5 upgrade commercial...

2007-09-13T14:37:00.000-07:00

"Choose any memory hogging beast,
Cause it free's 45k of memory at least,
And that's why everyone who's in knows,
It's also the best DOS to run with Windows!!!!!"

"You think MS-DOS is a mystery admit it,
We made MS-DOS 5 easier, here's how we did it,
We gave it a graphical shell, that's the ticket,
It's DOS with a prettier face, YOU KICK IT!""

OH YEAH!!

I'm seriously crying right now I'm laughing to hard

New star wars themed family guy....

2007-09-11T16:06:00.001-07:00

Some of their best stuff in recent times by FAR

http://www.milkandcookies.com/link/62681/detail/

Mini blog to the right...

2007-09-11T13:45:00.000-07:00

Just and fyi, that posts from other blogs that I find interesting are linked to the right

Think you are good at Tetris?

2007-09-10T13:30:00.001-07:00

You're not.

Make sure you watch it to the end, so you can witness the mind blowingness of INVISIBLE TETRIS (no joke)

Now pick up your jaw and get back to your cell phone tetris game...

Hacking your alarm clock to respond to physical violence...

2007-08-31T11:21:00.000-07:00

The snooze button is boring. How about hitting, throwing, smacking, and in general abusing your alarm clock?

Read all about it here (be sure to watch the video clips):
http://www.dimensionengineering.com/appnotes/alarmclock/alarmclock.htm

Oh, and I strongly recommend buying a cheap alarm clock

Want to get a bit more audio quality out of mp3's?

2007-08-31T10:46:00.001-07:00

Try this setting for the equalizer.

These settings/pics are for iTunes, but I tried it in Windows Media Player and it did seem to give the mp3's a bit more life.

" Open the equalizer, and from the pop-up menu, select “Make Preset.” Call it “Perfect,” because it is, and set the following levels, from left to right (skip the Preamp section):

db +3, +6, +9, +7, +6, +5, +7, +9, +11, +8 db"

Read more about it here:
http://www.43folders.com/2007/08/27/perfect-itunes/

Read the how to here:
http://www.macosxhints.com/article.php?story=20040902070807431

How good is Bioshock?

2007-08-28T14:21:00.000-07:00

Good enough to be BANNED from Valve's offices (Bioshock was made by 2K Boston/2K Australia). Apparently it was so popular, it was interfering with productivity. Valve promised to give every employee a copy once their work on Orange Box was finished. Talk about a rousing endorsement from a competitor!

Full story here:
http://www.xbox360fanboy.com/2007/08/28/work-at-valve-no-bioshock-for-you/

Reubens Tube controlled by wiimote?

2007-08-28T11:14:00.000-07:00

It's amazing how many uses the wiimote has thanks to glovepie.

Take a ruebens tube, "A Ruben's tube is essentially a demonstration of standing waves in air". Think a propane filled tube will small holes drilles on top. By forcing sound waves though, you manipulate the areas of pressure...high pressure, high flames....low pressure, low flames.

Now control that with a wiimote....I think the blueman group song is very appropriate:

Full instructions here:
http://www.instructables.com/id/SFD3NQXF5VMX94O/

Brilliant mario level hack design!

2007-08-27T08:05:00.000-07:00

This guy designed a level where the level plays you. By that I mean, you start the level and put the controller down (aka no buttons are pressed in the entire level).

Very impressive

Keji...

2007-08-18T06:14:00.000-07:00

I will be at this exact spot for a week....

Kejimkujik National Park

Have you seen the iPhone bills???????

2007-08-17T11:43:00.001-07:00

Can Beckham bend it like Beckham?

2007-08-17T11:32:00.000-07:00

David Beckham buries his first goal for LA Galaxy, in his first start, on his first set piece.........does it get anymore fairytale than that? 6 man wall covering the near post, so he goes far post (freezing the keeper). As if he was a near post hero anyways =)

Philip Anschutz (owner of the Galaxy) probably kissed the first person he saw.

Insane wave pool - Japan...

2007-08-17T11:31:00.000-07:00

OVERDRIFT!!!!!!!!!!!

2007-08-16T12:05:00.000-07:00

If you hated fast and the furious, and thought fast and the furious tokyo drift annoucement was really a joke...then you'll love this :)

Thanks to jay for this one

What's your speed?

2007-08-15T13:22:00.000-07:00

Cool internet speed test app.....I'm liking the analog gauges

New York, NY

San Francisco, CA

Brisbane, Australia

Click the picture to get your speed, and post it up. For reference I have comcast cable internet

Home made Wii balance board...

2007-08-14T10:27:00.000-07:00

Looks fairly ghetto, but then again looks like it works pretty well!

Be sure to read the whole post here:
http://www.nintendowiifanboy.com/2007/08/14/revolutionary-balance-boarder/

Pirated games are no good...

2007-08-14T08:18:00.001-07:00

See?

Guitar hero for the Wii...

2007-08-13T12:17:00.000-07:00

Controller looks pretty cool, and has a slot for the Wiimote. That said, why does it cost so much? If the Wiimote is doing nothing why is it there? If it's doing something, then why are we paying as much as the 360 version?

$90 for the bundle

Hip hip violin...

2007-08-13T11:53:00.001-07:00

Not bad....

http://view.break.com/347555 - Watch more free videos

Hangover rating...

2007-08-08T09:29:00.000-07:00

1-star hangover

No pain. No real feeling of illness. You sleep in your own bed and when you wake up, there are no traffic cones in there with you.

You are still able to function relatively well on the energy stored up from all those vodka and Red Bulls. However, you can drink 10 bottles of water and still feel as parched as the Sahara.

Even vegetarians crave a cheeseburger and a basket of fries.

2-star hangover

No pain, but something is definitely amiss. You may look okay but you have the attention span and mental capacity of a stapler.

The coffee you chug to try and remain focused is only exacerbating your rumbling gut, which is craving a full English breakfast.

Although you have a nice demeanor at the office, you are costing your employer valuable money because all you really can handle is some light filing, followed by aimlessly surfing the Net and writing junk e-mail.

3-star hangover

Slight headache. Stomach feels like crap. You are definitely a space cadet and not so productive.

Anytime someone walks by your desk you gag because the perfume/aftershave reminds you of the random shots you did with your alcoholic friends after the bouncer kicked you out at 1:45 a.m.

Life would be better right now if you were in your bed with a dozen doughnuts and a two-liter bottle of Coke, watching daytime TV.

You've had four cups of coffee, a gallon of water, two burritos, and a two-liter bottle of Diet Coke, yet you haven't peed once.

4-star hangover

You have lost the will to live. Your head is throbbing and you can't speak too quickly or else you might spew.

Your boss has already lambasted you for being late and has given you a lecture for reeking of booze.

You wore nice clothes, but you smell of socks and can't hide the fact that you missed an oh-so crucial spot shaving.

Your teeth have their own individual sweaters. Your eyes look like one big vein and your hairstyle makes you look like a reject from a second-grade class, circa 1976.

You would give a week's pay for one of the following: home time, a doughnut and somewhere to be alone, or a time machine so that you can go back to last night and change the fact that you went out.

You scare small children in the street just by walking past them.

5-star hangover

You have a second heartbeat in your head, which is actually annoying the employee sitting next to you.

Vodka vapor is seeping out of every pore and making you dizzy.

You still have toothpaste crust in the corners of your mouth from brushing your teeth.

Your body has lost the ability to generate saliva, so your tongue is suffocating you.

You'd cry but that would take the last drop of moisture left in your body.

Death seems pretty good right now. Your boss doesn't even get mad at you and your co-workers think that your dog just died because you look so pathetic.

You should have called in sick because, let's face it, all you can manage to do is breathe... very gently.

6-star hangover

You arrive home and climb into bed.

Sleep comes instantly, as you were fighting it all the way home in the taxi.

You get about two hours of sleep until the noises inside your head wake you up.

You notice that your bed has been cleared for takeoff and is flying relentlessly around the room.

No matter what you do now, you're going to vomit.

You stumble out of bed and now find that your room is in a yacht, fully sailing. After walking along the skirting boards on alternating walls, knocking off all the pictures, you find the toilet.

If you are lucky, you remember to lift the lid before you spontaneously explode and wake the whole house up with your impersonation of walrus mating calls.

You sit there on the floor in your undies, cuddling the only friend in the world you have left (the toilet), randomly continuing to make the walrus noises, spitting and farting. Help usually comes at this stage, even if it is short-lived.

With your stomach totally empty, your spontaneous eruptions have died down to 15-minute intervals, but your body won't relent.

You are convinced that you are starting to turn yourself inside out and swear that you saw your tonsils shoot out of your mouth on the last occasion.

It is now dawn and you pass by your disgusted partner getting up for the day, as you try to climb into bed. She abuses you again for trying to get into bed with lumpy bits of dried vomit in your hair.

You reluctantly accept her advice and take a shower. Work is simply not an option.

The whole day is spent trying to avoid anything that might make you sick again, like moving.

You vow never to touch a drop of alcohol again, and who knows, for the next two or three hours you might even succeed.

Bush takes on the new threat....

2007-08-08T09:08:00.001-07:00

ZOMBIES!!!!!!!

Infantile Reflex....

2007-08-07T12:59:00.000-07:00

I just recently learned about these infantile reflexes....very strange. If you want to experiment with your newborn (who doesn't!) then try these out:

Moro reflex:
If a baby senses that is falling backwards, it will throw out its arms and wave them around

Walking/stepping:
Even though they can't support their weight, they will try to 'walk' if you hold them lightly on their feet

Rooting:
I had heard of this one before. If you put somehting (say a bottle) on their cheek they will turn towards it.

Tonic Neck:
If you lay a baby down, and turn their head to the side the arm on that side will straighten out, and the other arm will bend.

There are others, but not as interesting imho
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infantile_reflex

Also youtube had lots of these videos, but the embed links aren't working for some reason...
http://www.youtube.com/user/beta0net

I don't think they will be running this ad any longer!

2007-08-07T09:05:00.001-07:00

Federal judge reverses violent video game ban in CA...

2007-08-07T08:10:00.001-07:00

A federal judge on Monday struck down a California state law that prohibits the selling or renting of violent video games to minors.

The 2005 legislation, authored by then-Assemblyman Leland Yee, D-San Francisco, was challenged in courts by a pair of video game industry groups just 10 days after the bill was signed into law by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.

The law prohibited selling or renting a violent video game to anyone under 18 years of age. Violations were punishable by fines of up to $1,000. The proponents argued that stricter laws were needed because such games can influence minors to also act violently.

However, the Video Software Dealers Association and the Entertainment Software Association (ESA) consistently argued that the ESA's rating system for games -- similar to the way movies are rated -- is sufficient. The ESA represents the nation's $24 billion video gaming industry. More specifically, the industry groups argued that the law's definition of a violent video game was vague and that the law violated the freedom of speech provision in the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.

In his 17-page decision, U.S. District Judge Ronald Whyte in San Jose wrote that there is insufficient evidence to conclude that video games "are any more harmful than violent television, movies, internet sites or other speech-related exposures."

"The court, although sympathetic to what the legislature sought to do by the Act, finds that the evidence does not establish the required nexus between the legislative concerns about the well-being of minors and the restrictions on speech required by the Act," the judge wrote.

The California law is not the first law to restrict violent game sales to be tested in courts. Eight other laws outside California have been challenged in other parts of the nation and every one of them have also ended in the video game industry's favor.

"The Entertainment Software Association is pleased with today's permanent injunction ruling, as it cements nationwide judicial consensus that our self-regulatory efforts work," said Dan Hewitt, a spokesman for the industry group.

But political leaders in Sacramento on Monday vowed to appeal the ruling.

Yee, who is now a state Senator, said he was disheartened by the judge's decision.

"I'm extremely disappointed that the judge did not rule in favor of children," he said. "I have sent letters to the state attorney general and the governor that we need to vigorously appeal this decision."

Schwarzenegger, named as a defendant in the case, said he plans to appeal the case.

"I signed this important measure to ensure that parents are involved in determining which video games are appropriate for their children," Schwarzenegger said in a written statement. "Many of these games are made for adults and choosing games that are appropriate for kids should be a decision made by their parents."

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/08/06/BAG55RDVS424.DTL

Ever wanted to switch somebody off...

2007-08-07T07:57:00.001-07:00

One very good reason to get the iPhone...

2007-08-07T07:55:00.000-07:00

Cool

BSOD Tat...

2007-08-02T06:10:00.000-07:00

Have you ever loved the blue screen of death (bsod) so much that you wanted to get a tattoo of it? Yeahhh.........

http://crunchgear.com/2007/07/26/presenting-the-bsod-tattoo/

In case you haven't see the vids....bridge collapse...

2007-08-02T06:05:00.000-07:00

As it happened:

Aftermath:

Utterly insane...

Very weird baseball play..

2007-08-01T06:19:00.000-07:00

Two outs, two strikes. Batter swings and misses.

Third out right? Not if the catcher drops the ball.....

How about a strikeout homerun!?

Dropped Third Strike Home Run - Watch more free videos

Army offers $20,000 bonus to new recruits...

2007-07-31T13:54:00.000-07:00

Let's break that down....shall we?

365 days X 2 years = 730 days

$20,000 / 730 = $27.40 a day

So, if you are on the fence about joining up, just think what $27.40 a day will buy you!! Tax free!!
(all you have to do is chance death)

Sweet deal!!

Coach, you used the wrong ball!!

2007-07-30T08:38:00.000-07:00

Haha, awesome!

It's monday....something to do...

2007-07-30T07:22:00.001-07:00

Design your own paper airplane, and see how far it can go:

http://www.solidworkspilot.com/

So far I've got 47.7m

Another interesting challenge, I got it to go 20.0m after one full loop :)

$1.9 million dime's odd, secret journey

2007-07-27T13:30:00.000-07:00

John Feigenbaum flew out of San Jose this week in first class with flip-flops on his feet, a T-shirt on his back and a dime worth $1.9 million in his pocket.

It was the most expensive dime ever to pass through San Jose. That's because it is the most expensive dime in the history of dimes.

"All the way across the country, I didn't sleep,'' Feigenbaum said. "I didn't eat, and I didn't sleep. You wouldn't, either.''

Feigenbaum is a rare-coin dealer, and the dime he was carrying across the country, from San Jose to New York, is an 1894-S dime, one of only nine known to exist and one of only 24 known to be coined that year in San Francisco.

It was his job to pick up the dime from the seller's vault in Oakland and deliver it to the buyer's vault in midtown Manhattan.

The person who bought the dime does not want the world to know who he is. The person who sold the dime is Oakland businessman Daniel Rosenthal, who was unavailable for comment, perhaps because a person newly in possession of $1.9 million has better things to do than answer a lot of questions.

But the dime's cross-country trip was the stuff of intrigue, of that there is no mistake. The logistics of moving a $1.9 million dime across the country turn out to be at least as staggering as the notion of paying $1.9 million for a dime.

It was on Monday afternoon that Feigenbaum, a 38-year-old coin dealer from Virginia Beach, Va., donned his best grubby clothes to meet the seller's representative at an Oakland bank vault. Feigenbaum was slumming it so as not to attract attention, he said.

"There's no reason to dress up in a suit and make a big production,'' he said. "You don't want to stand out.''

Feigenbaum put the dime, encased in a 3-inch-square block of plastic, in his pocket and, accompanied by a security guard, drove in an ordinary sedan directly to San Jose airport to catch the red-eye to Newark.

The overnight flight, he said, was the only way to make sure the dime would be in New York by the time the buyer's bank opened in the morning. People who pay $1.9 million for dimes do not like to be kept waiting for them.

Feigenbaum had purchased a coach ticket, to avoid suspicion, but found himself upgraded to first class. That was a worry, because people in flip-flops, T-shirts and grubby jeans do not regularly ride in first class. But it would have been more suspicious to decline a free upgrade. So Feigenbaum forced himself to sit in first class, where he found himself to be the only passenger in flip-flops.

He was too nervous to sleep, he said. He did not watch the in-flight movie, which was "Firehouse Dog.'' He turned down a Reuben sandwich and sensibly declined all offers of alcoholic beverages.

Shortly after boarding the plane, he transferred the dime from his pants pocket to his briefcase.

"I was worried that the dime might fall out of my pocket while I was sitting down,'' Feigenbaum said.

All across the country, Feigenbaum kept checking to make sure the dime was safe by reaching into his briefcase to feel for it. Feigenbaum did not actually take the dime out of his briefcase, as staring at dimes can arouse suspicion.

He does recall fishing around -- somewhere over the Rockies, over the Midwest and over the Alleghenies -- for the dime. For the rest of the flight, he kept his flip-flopped foot planted on the briefcase and his eyes wide open.

At Newark airport, he was met by another security guard in another ordinary sedan. The two men drove to Manhattan, arriving an hour before the opening of the buyer's bank vault.

The buyer was waiting at the curb for Feigenbaum, however. With an hour to kill, the two men went into a nearby Starbucks. Neither man dared take out the dime and look at it. They sipped their beverages and stared at their watches.

At 9 a.m., the vault opened. The two men and the guard went inside and, for the first time, the buyer got to hold his dime.

The buyer spent about half an hour looking at it, Feigenbaum said, which worked out to 15 minutes for heads and 15 minutes for tails. He told Feigenbaum he had bought it strictly as an investment and did not intend to spend it, as there is no longer anything to buy in New York for 10 cents.

Perhaps, though, the dime is again fated to be locked away in a bank vault as a penalty for being ugly. The coin is known as a Barber-style dime, bearing a ghastly likeness of Madam Liberty on the front and a boring wreath of corn and wheat and the words "one dime" on the back.

The $1.9 million dime was produced at the stately Old Mint on Fifth Street, next to the doughnut place. It's a long-shuttered stone building whose front steps are primarily used these days by homeless people on their lunch break. (The building is set to become a museum soon, although that plan has been kicking around, unfulfilled, for decades. The alley north of the mint is being turned into a plaza with fast-food joints, to open by Labor Day.)

Except for the date, the top-notch condition and the fact that it's one of just 24 known to be coined that year in San Francisco, it's much like other Barber-style dimes of the era that typically sell on eBay for a couple of bucks. The coin's rarity has something to do with the fact that 1894-S dimes were produced not for general circulation but as a special gift by the mint director for some visiting big shots. The director was also said to have given one of the dimes to his young daughter, who spent it on ice cream.

Feigenbaum said he and the seller's agent stood to split a 6 percent commission on the deal. He also said that he has since changed out of his flip-flops and that he does not really know what the dime looks like -- how many ears of corn or stalks of wheat are depicted on it, for example, or why Liberty's nose is so big.

"It's the Holy Grail of coins,'' he said. "But Liberty, how can I say it, she's not the prettiest. Actually, it's considered an ugly coin. Sometimes, ugliness can be attractive.''

E-mail Steve Rubenstein at srubenstein@sfchronicle.com.

Link to article:

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2007/07/27/MNG9GR85OG1.DTL

Another wacky Japanese game..

2007-07-25T10:41:00.000-07:00

Human tetris....lol

Adblock

Summer is awesome? WRONG!

2007-07-25T08:36:00.000-07:00

Check out this upbeat e-mail I got today...

Dear Mad Chef,

There are songs written about how wonderful it is - the good old summertime - porch swings, campouts and backyard parties.

But for many adults, summer can be a very stressful time. The heat and humidity, school breaks, summer activities - all on top of a regular job - can create one of the most taxing times of year. Not to mention a lack of sleep due to longer evenings and later bedtimes.

Stress is very real and can cause or worsen depression, insomnia, ulcers,and other conditions. Log on to the Stress Condition Center to learn the signs and causes of hidden stress in your life. It's easy to get perspective on your stress level with a quick, confidential assessment. You can then explore the most effective stress-relieving treatments from a variety of healing traditions.

Simply click the link below to access this confidential resource!

I used to love summer unequivocally, but now I know the true dangers of such naivety. No longer will I turn a blind eye to the true silent killer....SUMMER!

Kid plays better than most US players...

2007-07-25T08:33:00.000-07:00

A lot of completely unnecessary moves (considering the opponents), but eh, still damn good if you ask me

Daft punk song, lyrics displayed using hands

2007-07-23T08:41:00.001-07:00

Might want to skip the 'buildup' in the beginning of the song, but amazing work!

Space shuttle vs bird....

2007-07-23T08:35:00.001-07:00

Who will win? Tune in to find out.

This one's expected to last one round...

http://view.break.com/335395 - Watch more free videos

If you smash a can of WD40 you are...

2007-07-20T08:35:00.001-07:00

If you smash a can of WD40 you are...
a) An idiot
b) On fire
c) In pain
d) all of the above

Let's find out!

Steam pipe eruption in NY....

2007-07-20T08:15:00.000-07:00

Utterly insane.....like a volcano or something!

Also, I love it when you get some 'real' shots of it, instead of news reports of the aftermath.

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In honor of the simpsons movie...

2007-07-20T08:10:00.000-07:00

Well done theme song on two guitars at once

Would anyone fall for the old trojan horse trick anymore?

2007-07-18T11:44:00.001-07:00

These guys find out....

lol

Real life transformer...

2007-07-18T11:26:00.000-07:00

Ok, that's pretty cool.....yet somehow disconcerting

Now that you've seen the vid...KILL IT, KILL IT NOW

A word about kitchen faucets...

2007-07-18T07:35:00.001-07:00

Ok, I have this major beef with 'Price Pfister" (sold through Home Depot)...in fact, it might be with other brands as well, I just don't know.

Basically when we gutted and redid our kitchen, we needed a new faucet to go with our new cast iron sink. Naturally I browse the usual stores, and I come across a nice looking one...similar to this guy:

Looks pretty normal right? Wellll welll welll, TRICKED YA!! Turns out they decided to invent their own thread size...you know, just to piss people off. Say you actually find the thread size in some specialty plumbing shop, well, tough luck because they also used a tight thread pattern.....yeah, so basically what that means is even if you get the size right nothing is going to screw in.

So what?

Well, I have a Python system (if the internet existed in the 70's, this is what pages would look like) to clean my poor fish tank...and well, I can no longer hook it up to my sink....awesome. Now I have to hunt for a crappy 'universal' system....AWESOME.

Meanwhile...

Cyanide & Happiness @ Explosm.net

So yeah, make sure the thread size and pattern are both normal.