video games, china, obama, shanghai, liu bolin, invisible, photography, fantasy
In blather, china, kids, video games on November 25, 2009 at 12:48 pm
1. Chinese media are abuzz over the “mysterious beauty in black” seen behind President Obama during his visit to Shanghai. It turns out her name is Wang Zifei and she is a graduate student at Shanghai’s Jiaotong University.
2. Another cool China link: artist Liu Bolin becomes invisible by painting himself exactly like the background.
3. Finalists in National Geographic’s International Photography Contest. My favorite is the one of the New Zealand farmer.
4. Crispy Gamer’s Ten No-Bullshit Rules for buying video games for kids. Crispy Gamer is increasingly becoming one of my favorite gaming sites. These guys can write.
5. Lev Grossman picks the six greatest fantasy novels of all time.
bad lieutenant, charles stross, devo, nicholas cage, north korea, pearl jam, politics, video games
In blather, movies, music, space, video games on November 20, 2009 at 6:46 pm
1. Want to learn to taunt your enemies like a reclusive megalomaniac dictactor with bad hair? It’s the North Korea insult generator.
2. What kind of political system is suitable for colonists on an interstellar journey? Sci-fi author Charles Stross flags some interesting issues.
3. Think movie acting can be bad? Try the 50 Worst Video Game Voice Acting clips.
4. ”Sometimes his loose-limbed shuffle and sibilant drawl suggest Jimmy Stewart as a crackhead.” That’s The New York Times reviewing Nicholas Cage in his new movie, “Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans”.
5. Crack that whip! Pearl Jam does Devo.
video games, nicholas cage, pirates, sonic blaster, call of duty, malcolm gladwell
In movies, seattle area, video games on November 18, 2009 at 11:08 am
1. Granite Falls, a small mining town near Seattle, has elected a Muslim mayor. It probably helps that he runs a popular bar in town.
2. CageWatch: Nicholas Cage stars in “Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans”. Warner Herzog directed, so this has a shot at being decent, or at least fairly entertaining.
3. Remember the U.S. container ship that was hijacked by Somali pirates a few months ago, with a standoff that ended with SEAL snipers taking out the pirates? Well, pirates attacked it again. Only this time, the ship was ready, as a professional security crew repelled the assault with small arms and, awesomely, a sonic blaster.
4. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 raked in $550 million in its first week, topping the previous record-holder, Grand Theft Auto IV, by $50 million.
5. Malcolm Gladwell responds, partially, to Steven Pinker’s recent criticism in the New York Times Book Review.
