I can haz UV light?
Korean scientists have cloned cats with a florescent protein gene that makes them glow red in ultra violet light
no cake farts
Andrew, as of 11:21 CST, no cake farts.
‘Project Runway’ Finalist Facing Assault Charges
Kenley Collins was arrested today after assaulting her fiance with their cat, authorities said today.
New York Post report via Project Rungay.
(Thanks, Kate Theimer.)
Sheep and LEDs
We need to do the same thing with meat goats. (via swissmiss)
Cwalken, Y’all.
35 k followers. Just sayin’.
Google mistrials
Centuries of legal rules can’t stop technology from changing the way we educate ourselves:
Jurors are not supposed to seek information outside of the courtroom. They are required to reach a verdict based on only the facts the judge has decided are admissible, and they are not supposed to see evidence that has been excluded as prejudicial. But now, using their cellphones, they can look up the name of a defendant on the Web or examine an intersection using Google Maps, violating the legal system’s complex rules of evidence. They can also tell their friends what is happening in the jury room, though they are supposed to keep their opinions and deliberations secret.
A juror on a lunch or bathroom break can find out many details about a case. Wikipedia can help explain the technology underlying a patent claim or medical condition, Google Maps can show how long it might take to drive from Point A to Point B, and news sites can write about a criminal defendant, his lawyers or expert witnesses.
“Experiments in disgusting Icelandic foods”
Hákarl: OMFG! this is the Nastiest! Shit!! EVAR!!! I downed the Brennevín and it didn’t help. I didn’t spit the hákarl out, but it took a lot of effort just to keep it in my mouth and chew a few times. I literally was choking it down. Ugh. The two couples were laughing so I offered them the rest. They thanked me as one of the men came over, took the bag and ripped it all the way open. “Maybe it’s bad hákarl,” he said. How could anyone tell the difference? He pulled a few chunks out with his fingers popped them in his mouth and while chewing, nodded his head in approval saying, “Mmph this is <chomp> good hákarl <chomp>” and passed the bag around the table.
The rest all had some and I decided to give it a second shot. Maybe it was just the initial shock of the smell. Maybe it was the anticipation. Maybe I just got one crappy piece. Or maybe I’m just an idiot.
It was even worse the second time, and I had no more Brennevín to help wash that awful taste out of my mouth. The vodka bottle was my friend much as Google is yours. Twice inside 26 hours I was putting the cleansing and restorative powers of Smirnoff 100° to good use.
The Iceland Diaries; more reviews of traditional Icelandic cuisine
Bonus: How to drive safely in Iceland
Neglecting science
U.S. adults flunk a basic science test given by the California Academy of Sciences:
— Only 53% of adults know how long it takes for the Earth to revolve around the Sun.
— Only 59% of adults know that the earliest humans and dinosaurs did not live at the same time.
— Only 47% of adults can roughly approximate the percent of the Earth’s surface that is covered with water.
— Only 21% of adults answered all three questions correctly.
This is pathetic.
Coming in May: The Minus Times
Putting the “Great” back in Depression, the latest Minus Times is a seventy-two page double issue starring Dave Eggers, Sam Lipsyte, and David Berman. Issue #29 draws a bead on the pimp and protector of America’s imagination: Hollywood. Featuring confessions from screenwriter D.V. DeVincentis (High Fideility, Grosse Point Blank) and director Harmony Korine (Gummo, Julian Donkey-Boy) along with a crew of talented extras, the Minus Times subverts and celebrates this billion-dollar dreamworld that we rent by the hour.
An open casting call brought in a cross-section of American talent: rock & rollers Sam Beam, Will Oldham, Colin Gagon, Neil Michael Hagerty; artists Harrison Haynes, Hope Gangloff, Forest Juziuk, and Steve Keene; cartoonist and animator Brad Neely; filmmakers Kathy Egan and Andrew Pope; poets Joe Wenderoth and Mike Topp; photographer Michael McLeod; ad executive Austin McKenna; along with writers Brian Howe, Theodore McDermott, Patrick deWitt, Wells Tower, Brent Van Daley, Mike Laus, and Jeff Johnson. Handsomely weathered scene-stealers one and all.
Since 1997, the Minus Times has consistently delivered emerging American talent in a hand-typed literary almanac alternately referrred to as “Harper’s Magazine on methadone” and “a 34-page ransom note.” Edited by Hunter Kennedy. Published by Drag City.
from the comments
Hey, Deron, do you remember when Daryl and I lived in the old neighborhood (you know, the one with all the gunfire). I swear, just living there provided us with more stories than we can ever tell. My favorite neighbor was Polly, whose belly was so big that Flannery as a toddler would stand under her and push up on the belly like she was standing under a rain tarp. She’s the one who said We didn’t have nothin til Lewis had his wreck, now we got cable in three rooms. She’s also the one who told me, as I was outside bathing a poor mangy puppy who showed up on our porch, that the thing to use to get the the dog’s hair to grow back is Massengill Douche Powder–gotta get the powder, not the liquid, it’ll make hair grow on anything.
And people wonder why we choose to live in Texas.
top searches that brought people to clusterflock
- christopher walken twitter
- clusterflock
- dora the streetwalker
- naked people
- cake farts
I wait for the day when “cake farts” is no longer a top search, but I am not holding my breath.
good neighbors
The woman who lived next door:
topped buckets of scalding water with bleach to throw at non-existent rats that scratched at her back door.
said: Mexican? You thought I was Mexican? Lord a mercies!
or: Enchiladas? You thought I liked Enchiladas?
piloted her electric wheelchair down the center of the street — flag flapping — a battery powered jam box blaring Tejano from her lap.
(did I mention she was blind?)
called the police if we watered the lawn.
miniature meat-eating dinosaurs
Meat-eating dinosaurs the size of a small chicken roamed areas of North America 75 million years ago, according to research by Canadian paleontologists.
from the deleted comments
re Michael’s Miley Cyrus Hannah Montana post:
hey michael there the same person idiot
work in progress, 26
He writes and waits. Sends. It is not important if Gauguin comes. He assures himself of this. The world outside is showing.
untitled sequence
Why Nico Muhly?
Two of Cindy’s love/hate passions rolled into one, Nico’s latest post.
All Manner of Bulk Storage to Suit Your Needs
All Manner of Bulk Storage to Suit Your Needs. Warren, Illinois, USA. Phil Bebbington. 2009.
Over at his terrorkitten blog, clusterflock friend Phil Bebbington has been posting photographs taken on his recent US road trip. I do love this grain silo compound — like an Airstream trailer park or an abandoned set from an old sci-fi film.
And while you’re visiting Phil’s blog, do have a look at the US (and other) images posted previous to this one.
Happy St. Patrick’s Day, Y’all.
With apologies for any who might be offended…
Post-it Notes
Origami: In the Pursuit of Perfection
(via Chewing Pixels)
Ron Paul gets the Bruno treatment
As long as Sacha Baron Cohen’s on the heart and mind; TX Congressman, former Presidential candidate and Libertarian beacon of hope Ron Paul apparently got put in a compromising situation for the upcoming Ali G spin-off Bruno. Apparently he thought it was a legitimate interview — as they always do. Slate has the story:
In a five-minute scene, comedian Cohen tries—and fails—to seduce the Texas congressman and former Republican presidential candidate in a Washington hotel room. A spokeswoman for Paul confirmed the appearance but declined to discuss details, which were provided by two people who attended a test screening last week.
And then you have to love this description:
The scene with Paul, filmed in early 2008, occurs about halfway through the movie, after Bruno gets the idea that you have to make a sex tape to become famous. (Stop reading here if you want to see the movie unspoiled.)
Cut to a nondescript hotel suite where Bruno sits across from Ron Paul. After a brief exchange of pleasantries, a light blows out on the set. Bruno apologizes for the technical difficulties and suggests that he and Paul wait in the other room while the crew fixes the light.
The other room, it turns out, is a bedroom. The lighting is low, and the film is now grainy—not unlike a sex tape—as it cuts to a hidden spy camera. There’s a spread of Champagne and strawberries and caviar on a table.
Bruno tells Paul to make himself comfortable. Paul sits down on the bed. Bruno turns on some music and starts dancing. Paul is visibly uneasy but doesn’t say anything at first. He picks up a newspaper and pretends to read it. “You can tell at each weird gay detail, he [chalks] it up to,This guy is European,” says one of the attendees.
Finally, Paul asks what’s going on. “Don’t worry about it, Dr. Paul,” says Bruno, who then unbuckles his belt and drops his pants. At that point, Paul snaps up and storms out of the room.
As Paul is walking away, you can hear him say, several times, something like, “This guy is a queer!” “The word queer comes out of his mouth three or four times,” says an attendee.
Here’s the damage control:
A spokeswoman for Paul confirmed that the episode took place but declined to provide details. “We don’t want it to distract from his message,” said press secretary Rachel Mills. “Now is the time when people need to be listening to him on economic issues.”
Because you wouldn’t want to get off-message by making out with Sacha Baron Cohen, right?
via This Is Probably An Interesting Blog
The Ocarina of Rhyme
Team Teamwork’s The Ocarina of Rhyme is a mix of hip-hop stars like Dre, Common, and Aesop Rock with Zelda’s Nintendo 64 soundtrack. It’s worth a listen and is both streamable and downloadable. (via Offworld)
Grizzly Bear Shoot
I worked yesterday as a production assistant on the Patrick Daughter‘s directed Grizzly Bear music video for “Two Weeks”.
Chris Bear keeps from laughing.
Ed Droste and Daniel Rossen watch Chris’ playback.
Final scene.
Bruno, a sneak peek in Austin
Sacha Baron Cohen’s new movie in three acts.
1.
In the first bit of footage, Bruno has decided to achieve celebrity by adopting a black baby, and wants to feature the child in an avant-garde performance art project . (“Ich bin pushing the limits ,” he explains in broken German.) He interviews several mothers and fathers to determine whether their children would be suitable to play guest stars , and his questions grow increasingly absurd: Are they afraid of stuffed animals? Reptiles? Hornets? Would they be OK with being dropped off a four-story building, or willing to have liposuction? Regardless of the request, the parents categorically say “yes.”
2.
Part two, which was shot just north of Dallas, finds Bruno appearing on a Jerry Springer -style talk show in leather pants, looking for Mr. Right. Members of the predominantly black studio audience are appalled by his in-your-face homosexuality, and they get even angrier when he brings out his adopted baby and shows them a self-consciously artsy photograph of the child posing as Jesus on a cross. Although it appears there are a few plants in the crowd to ask the right questions, the majority of them seem genuinely disgusted as they storm out.
3.
Finally, Bruno decides to reinvent himself by going hetero and changing his name to “Straight Dave.” Dressed like Ted Nugent in camouflage, long hair and a scruffy beard, he stages a mixed-martial arts contest, which was shot last summer in Arkansas. When Bruno’s ex-boyfriend crawls into the ring and the two start making out, stripping and rubbing all over each other, spectators in the conservative crowd holler, make anti-gay slurs and throw plastic cups of beer at them. They end up storming out, too.
