Missing Mary Road

fascinating stuff…

A digest of last week’s prophetic and interpretive thought

“I was not commenting and I will not comment on the wisdom of making a decision to put a mosque there. I was commenting very specifically on the right that people have that dates back to our founding.” —Barack Obama

“We all know that they have the right to do it, but should they?” —Sarah Palin

“Where the ‘Ground Zero mosque’ is concerned, opposition is roughly proportional to distance, even in New York.” —Hendrik Hertzberg

“I believe that this is an important test of the separation of church and state—as important a test as we may see in our lifetimes—and it is critically important that we get it right.” —Michael Bloomberg

“Obviously my opinion is that I’m opposed to it.” —John McCain

“If you are a healer, you do not go forward with this project. If you’re a warrior, you do.” —Rudy Giuliani

“It’s a community center. They’re going to have a gym. They’re going to have point guards. Muslim point guards.” —Al Franken

“Nazis don’t have the right to put up a sign next to the Holocaust Museum in Washington. We would never accept the Japanese putting up a site next to Pearl Harbor. There’s no reason for us to accept a mosque next to the World Trade Center.” —Newt Gingrich

“There is no valid comparison there.” —Pat Buchanan

“This is like a metastasized anti-Semitism.” —Daisy Khan

“We strengthen America by distinguishing, clearly and unequivocally, between our al-Qaida enemy and our Muslim neighbors.” —Jeff Merkley

“How is this opposition to the mosque being funded? How is this being ginned up?” —Nancy Pelosi

“It is a real affront to people who lost their lives…. Another site would be a better idea.” —Howard Dean

“The longer we have this feud, the more the terrorists are laughing.” —David Paterson

before

after

The pictures above are self explanatory and are taken on August 13th 2001 and August 18th 2010 respectively. Large images are also available, before and after.

The Indus River at Sukkur was at exceptionally high levels on August 18, 2010, when the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) on NASA’s Terra satellite captured the top false-color image. The upper image shows the Sukkur region on August 13, 2001. Water ranges from dark blue to silvery blue, and plant-covered land is red in the false-color image.

Sukkur is the hub of a crucial irrigation network that brings water to farms throughout the Sindh province. The dark blue canals surround the white-gray city of Sukkur in both images. In the bottom image, the Indus River extends over its banks across many kilometers. Near the city, the river seems to be held in check by the canals and associated structures.

The floods started in late July when intense monsoon rains fell over northern Pakistan. By mid-August, about one-fifth of Pakistan was flooded, affecting more than 15 million people.

Please find it in your hearts to donate some money for relief efforts here.

http://www.chowrangi.com/donation-links-and-relief-resources-for-pakistan-flood-victims.html

matthew miller writes a really good article in ZDNET.

As I plan my trip to Nokia World next month I have continued thinking about Nokia and finally posted an article on ZDNet that I have been thinking about for a few months. I write this Nokia Experts site so of course I am a fan of Nokia and their devices or I wouldn’t spend hours writing here for free. I try to give you my honest take on things and am both positive and negative here and in my other writing. However, it seems to me that the media and smartphone enthusiasts in the US are unfairly slamming Nokia when other smartphone operating sytems get by with more. Am I being overly sensitive or do you too feel that Nokia doesn’t get the respect it deserves in the US?

if you combine all tv and film characters and generate a university run by them, you get the below. unknown source. i’ve tried to identify most from my own known knowledge. see if you can fill in the rest. what other departments can you think of? who would fill the roles. who are better suited for the roles below? are any of the ones i’ve written below incorrect?

Dean of Science

Professors of Science

Dean of Engineering

Professors of Engineering

Dean of Business

Professors of Business

Dean of Law

Professors of Law

Dean of Arts

Professors of Arts

Dean of Humanities

Professors of Humanities

Dean of Sports

Professors of Sports

dean of dept of science = dr who
comp sci – chuck bartowski, chuck
med sci – house
math – a beautiful mind – john somethin
theoretical physics – lost, daniel faraday
astronomy – dunno
chemistry – walter white, breaking bad
biology – psycho from human centipede
marine biology – steve zissou, the life aquatic
psychology – hannibal lecter, silence of the lambs
para psychology – fox and mulder, x files
paleontology – jurassic park dude
archeology – indy jones
lab maintenance – i forget

dean of engineering – Q, most bond films
mech eng. – tony stark, iron man
astronautical – scotty, star trek
automotive – i think you already know this bit.
nuclear – peter sellers in dr. strangelove or: how i learned to stop worrying and love the bomb
civil – danny day lewis in there will be blood
biological – dude from district 9
practical – angus macgyver
pharmacological – jonathane crane aka scarecrow in batman begins
applied physics – mythbusters dudes
architecture – ?
actuarial – ?

dean of business – gordon gecko from wall street
capital restructuring – various similar roles
public speaking – the tv ad infomercial guy who just died
mergers and & – american psycho or bruce wayne, could be either
corporate raiding – ?
marketing – jon hamm playing don draper in mad men
economics – ?
hostile takeover – hans, die hard
business management – tony soprano
transitional bm – ?
practical bm – steve carrell in the office

dean of law – john saul, breaking bad
corporate law – arrested development lawyer
criminology – ?
criminal justice – robocop
forensics – dexter
ethics – kiefer sutherland playing jack bauer in 24
business ethics – arrested development psycho dad
tactical litigation – kirk or law and order, take your pick
maritime law – sean connery in hunt for red october
tort – ?
bird – ?
habeas corpus – john mclane, die hard

dean of arts – bob ross, the joy of painting
graphic – mad men- bryan batt playing romano
film – ?
theatre – arrested development
fashion – zoolander
photography – hitchcock, rear window
painting – ed harris doing jason pollock
culinary arts – gordon ramsey
literature – ?
music/band – john williams
choir – nph, dr. horrible’s sing along blog
dance – river tam, firefly

dean of humanities – i forget,
journalism – ?
diplomacy – bond
theology – ?
philosophy – the dude, the big lebowski
political science – lolita?
womens studies – hank moody, californication
world languages – hans landa, inglorious basterds
linguistics – philleas fogg?
american history – deadwood
ancient history – ?
medieval history – mad max?
african american history – ?

dean of sports – gene hackman in hoosiers
golf – adam sandler, happy gilmore
hockey – the mighty ducks, emilio esteves
track and field – forrest gump
boxing – sly stallone, rocky
football – oj simpson
baseball – field of dreams
weightlifting – 300?
soccer – bend it like beckham

okay so my bad, adukaka did send me a new and improved with typos etc fixed but i didn’t post it in time before i realized other people were catching on.

so here you go, updated karachipoly. any suggestions/improvements, please drop a line below.

courtesy adukaka. suggestions, modifications recommended.

Warner Bros. Animation is teaming with the Japanese animation house behind Batman: Gotham Knights and The Animatrix to dust off ol’ Lion-O and his refugee clan from Thundera for a new Cartoon Network series.

This new Thundercats will have a decidedly anime flair, given that it’s being coproduced by Japan’s Studio4ºC, the animation house behind Halo Legends and the Oscar-nominated feature, Tekkonkinkreet.

Here’s the official press release:

Warner Bros. Animation (WBA) has begun production on ThunderCats, an all-new animated series for Cartoon Network, based upon the iconic 1980s action classic. ThunderCats is the newest series from WBA, joining Batman: The Brave and the Bold, which was recently renewed for a third season, and the following forthcoming programs: The Looney Tunes Show, MAD, Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated and Young Justice. The announcement was made today by Sam Register, Executive Vice President, Creative Affairs, Warner Bros. Animation.

“In addition to being Warner Bros. Animation’s first anime series, ThunderCats marks our most ambitious foray yet into fantasy,” said Register. “The realism and dynamic visual style we’ve achieved are sure to thrill viewers, and the cool weapons, vehicles and technology should help the show appeal to a diverse audience.”

The 21st century reimagining of the series marks a creative collaboration between WBA and Studio4°C, one of the most vibrant animation studios in Japan, with credits including The Animatrix, Gotham Knights and Halo Legends. WBA is working closely with Studio4°C, utilizing the latter’s expertise to give the ThunderCats characters a new cutting-edge look while remaining true to the compelling storylines and mythology of the original series.

“We at Studio4°C are excited to be in this creative partnership with Warner Bros. Animation to bring ThunderCats to life,” said Eiko Tanaka, President and CEO, Studio4°C. “This collaboration combines the strengths of our two companies — high production values and great storytelling — toward reintroducing this classic fan-favorite to a new audience.”

Roaring to life through WBA and Studio4°C’s use of the Japanese animated artistry of anime, ThunderCats characters Lion-O, Mumm-Ra, Panthro, Cheetara and others will spring off the screen with realistic cat-like characteristics inconceivable in previous incarnations.

The new ThunderCats will appeal to viewers who have loved the characters all their lives as well as young newcomers to the franchise. A sweeping tale combining swords and science and boasting ferocious battles with the highest of stakes, the grand origin story of Prince Lion-O’s ascension to the throne – and of those who would thwart his destiny at any cost — takes on epic dimensions in this sharp new telling. As the forces of good and evil battle each other in the quest for the fabled Stones of Power, Lion-O and his champions learn valuable lessons of loyalty, honor and mortality in every episode.

ThunderCats is executive produced by Sam Register (Teen Titans, Ben 10, Batman: The Brave and the Bold). Michael Jelenic (Batman: The Brave and the Bold, Wonder Woman) and Ethan Spaulding (Avatar: The Last Airbender) are the producers.

see my previous posts here and here.

so NASA answers how long you can live in space without any protection.

At NASA’s Manned Spacecraft Center (now renamed Johnson Space Center) we had a test subject accidentally exposed to a near vacuum (less than 1 psi) in an incident involving a leaking space suit in a vacuum chamber back in ‘65. He remained conscious for about 14 seconds, which is about the time it takes for O2 deprived blood to go from the lungs to the brain. The suit probably did not reach a hard vacuum, and we began repressurizing the chamber within 15 seconds. The subject regained consciousness at around 15,000 feet equivalent altitude. The subject later reported that he could feel and hear the air leaking out, and his last conscious memory was of the water on his tongue beginning to boil.

keep reading. its full of awesome explanations.

Last week saw the 30th anniversary of The Empire Strikes Back, and along with it came discussions about the best way to watch the film and what we can expect from future re-releases. Michael Kaminski wrote the exhaustively researched and illuminating book The Secret History of Star Wars, so he knows damn near everything there is to know about the film stock used to shoot the film. George Lucas famously said that the original film “doesn’t exist” anymore, but is that accurate?

How exactly does Star Wars exist now? What are the challenges and possibilities involved in re-releasing a perfected original cut? How do the bootlegs stack up? Let’s find out.

We asked Kaminksi about the master copy of the original Star Wars. What does it look like now? “The term ‘master copy’ is slightly vague, because there are various kinds of print masters of different generations,” he told Ars. The original negative is conformed to the 1997 Special Edition, meaning the physical copy has been cut and edited with CGI “improvements.” With sections of the film being too damaged to work with, parts of that print were taken from other sources. “You never throw away your original negative, so I must assume that any pieces or shots that were removed are in storage somewhere at Lucasfilm or Fox,” he explained.

so you know back when google did their unconventional speed tests for the chrome browser (which i’m not personally a fan of, but still prefer it over firefox). opera did one better, and this is why opera will always remain to be the better browser across any platform. if you don’t get it, you really should click on the google speed test to see what the fuss is all about.

google just released the top 1000 sites on the web, leaving themselves off, most of the usual suspects on the top 100. it’s an interesting list.

this guy had a worse weekend than you did.

Engineers have successfully corrected the memory on NASA’s Voyager 2 spacecraft by resetting a computer bit that had flipped. Reset commands were beamed up to the spacecraft yesterday, Wed., May 19, and engineering data received today confirm that the reset was successful.