Rube Goldberg devices are mechanisms that are extremely complex but do simple things. OK Go uses a giant Rube Goldberg device to accentuate their new music video for their song This Too Shall Pass.
I love Rube Goldberg devices, and you have to admit they are fascinating to watch. The music helps of course…
UPDATE: Here’s their other version which is also a single take video. Very fun version.
It is well known that science in movies is often not quite right. Unfortunately, there are many instances where the pervasive nature of bad science in multimedia can lead to misconceptions. Really, really bad misconceptions that leak into school and general “of course it’s true” statements.
To combat this glut of bad science that ends up sticking in the social thoughtstream is Phil Plait, creator of the Bad Astronomy blog. He spent years working at NASA and eventually found that he was tired of running across bad science and wanted to do something about it. He started by blogging and eventually he became a lecturer and author.
Here’s one of his favorite “bad science” situations – the standing an egg on end only on the equinox. Many classrooms and news agencies on the spring equinox will perform this “science” experiment where they stand an egg on its end and by doing this prove that this can only be done on the spring equinox. Phil Plait explains exactly why this actually isn’t true using science facts but the resounding proof that this isn’t true is that you can stand an egg on end on ANY day of the year! I was a believer of the spring equinox egg trick myself and so after seeing that I was very wrong about this bit of “science” decided I needed to read his book Bad Astronomy.
Bad Astronomy (the book and his blog) is full of useful information about everyday, general science knowledge that many of us just didn’t know was incorrect. Phil does an excellent job presenting the misconception and then explaining how it is wrong – but he does it in a way the doesn’t make you feel stupid for having believed the bad science in the first place. I highly recommend picking up his book and checking out his blog to see what other little bad science gems are floating in our brains.
September 26th through October 3rd is Banned Books Week and is dedicated to bringing awareness of ongoing censorship and promote freedom of speech.
Head over to BannedBooksWeek.org to get more information about how prevalent book banning and censorship really is and how you can help prevent it.
You will also find many events scheduled at your local library and book sellers if you would like to participate in your local community.
Here, for your perusal, is the list of 10 most challenged books:
Today is Reading Rainbow’s final broadcast. After being on the air for 26 years it has reached the last page and the cover is being closed.
NPR reports that the main reason Reading Rainbow is going off air is that nobody will pay the broadcast rights – but the primary cause of that is not so much a financial reason but a change in how reading is currently being taught. The focus of literacy has shifted to being more about the basics of reading: phonics and spelling. This shift is more about combating literacy in general as opposed to promoting reading as a form of education in itself.
It’s an understandable shift since conceptually it’s imperative to be able to read in order to function in society – but what a loss to those kids who will only know reading as a technical function and not a gateway for learning and imagination.
Reading Rainbow was a big part of introducing new and interesting stories to children and it will surely be missed by me and my fellow bibliophiles.
The GeekDad blog has posted 10 things parent’s should know about the new Star Trek. In answering questions about the movie in relation to how appropriate it is for kids (without saying yea or nay but answering questions and leaving it up to you) he actually gives an excellent run down of the movie itself without revealing much about the movie itself. It also does an excellent job if letting you know if you’d like seeing it if you are or aren’t a trekkie. Go check it out and it might help you decide if you want to see Star Trek.
Honda creates a giant lightboard using a hundred Insight car headlights… be sure to visit the original page for the full effect as the entire page dims and the video interaction moves outside of the video itself.
So I think since I have more control over media using this new hosting service I’ll start throwing out more of the fun bits of technology. Mostly this means images and videos being shared that are interesting or funny.
There are LOTS of videos and images that float around though so I’ll try to be selective in what I post (and how often). The “geek humor” may be a factor in some of them so please bear with it…
I recently switched hosting of this blog to this new site. The full address is now www.insomnicdreams.com for those keeping track.
All previous entries and blog listings and posts will automatically redirect to the correspoding blogpost and hopefully RSS feed here.
There may have been a comment or two that was lost but feel free to re-comment.
There will likely be a couple changes here and there as I get thing working to my liking so please bear with me as I work through some of these fun new toys at my command. If you notice anything that is broken please let me know!
Thank you for your patience.
Tweenbots are a social experiment created by NYU student Kacie Kinzer.
Here is Kacie’s description of her Tweenbots:
Tweenbots are human-dependent robots that navigate the city with the help of pedestrians they encounter. Rolling at a constant speed, in a straight line, Tweenbots have a destination displayed on a flag, and rely on people they meet to read this flag and to aim them in the right direction to reach their goal.
Here is a short video showing the little guy in action and some of his helpers:
Please enable Javascript and Flash to view this Blip.tv video.
Be sure to check out her site for more information about her social experiment and how people reacted to the robots.
I mentioned the ARC Awards previously and how they are a great place to go to pick up some suggestions for anime to watch.
Well, they just recently released the 2008 Anime Reactor Community Awards.
Here is a quick rundown on some of the winners:
There are some others listed at the site as well as Jury picks – so go check a few of them out if you are interested.
I will say that Kaiba is completely original in its story telling and animation style – so original it may be a bit awkward for some people. If you are confused while watching it – just keep watching, it works itself out.
Also, if you’ve been following me on Twitter or Facebook you may have seen me mention an anime that was really excellent – that one would be Clannad and its second season Clannad ~After Story~. I highly recommend it as a drama/romance/comedy/fantasy/slice-of-life style story.
If you have any recommendations or comments about the ARC Award winners, shout ‘em out in the comments!
