majordojo

Werner Herzog's Note To His Cleaning Lady

2012-05-17T13:19:47-07:00

Now we must turn to the horrors of nature. I am afraid this is inevitable. Nature is not something to be coddled and accepted and held to your bosom like a wounded snake. Tell me, what was there before you were born? What do you remember? That is nature. Nature is a void. An emptiness. A vacuum. And speaking of vacuum, I am not sure you're using the retractable nozzle correctly or applying the 'full weft' setting when attending to the lush carpets of the den. I found some dander there.

Brilliant.

Dub Step meets Tap

2012-05-04T12:25:08-07:00

Dub step has been slowly creeping deeper and deeper into my music collection and listening habits. So naturally this caught my attention: the melding of tap dance and dub step:

(via kottke, of course)

That video, led me to this video, which I will add to the conversation as an example of more "conventional" (if that is properly applied here) dub step dance moves. The way this guys moves in and out of a slow motion dance, with no camera tricks, is awesome.

I'll do it if you do it

2012-04-10T15:46:34-07:00

A great post from Mike Montiero about fear, going out on a limb and publishing his first book.

But now, with my 13 year old boy in front of me, I had to admit that I was afraid. Afraid of failing. Of walking up there with my fly down. Of being discovered as a fraud. But, in that moment, with that 13 year old in front of me, I became more afraid of something else. Of failing him. Of passing my fear along to the person who needed me to be someone better.

By all means people, get his book: Design is a Job.

Blood and Chrome: be the game changer you say you will be.

2012-03-21T01:44:04-07:00

Because Gods, you look so awesome.

To say that I am looking forward to this would be the understatement of the year.

Meet Captain Dad

2012-02-14T11:00:39-08:00

Meet my new favorite blogger: Captain Dad.

And his about page is the most refreshingly honest and funny thing I have read in a long time.

We're not bound by old stereotypes. We don't do things the way our moms did them or our wives would do them. We don't because, frankly, we've never read the kind of magazines that talk about that stuff. We sure as hell don't talk to other guys about it. We have forgotten what our moms did and said (often before they were even finished doing or saying it!). And our wives work, so they don't have time to write a honey-do list of child-rearing every day. Not that they wouldn't like to. But even if they did, what good what it do if we didn't read it? Which we wouldn't, even if we were the most dutiful of husbands, because we probably wouldn't have the time either. Besides, it would be unreadable in two minutes from all the yogurt stains. Whatever. We're beyond the old ways, forging a new path, making it up as we go along for no other reason than we don't know what else to do. Does that sound like a mom to you? No, sir. Mr. Mom is dead. Say hello to... Captain Dad!

Fox News? Bill O'Reilly? Defending gay rights? Whaaaa?

2012-02-11T23:23:53-08:00

Bernie Goldberg on the O'Reilly Factor supporting Bill O'Reilly in his criticism of conservatives calling for JC Penny to dismiss Ellen Degeneres as their newly chosen spokesperson because she is openly gay:

There's something that needs to be said no matter how uncomfortable it makes some people listening to us. There is a strain of bigotry -- and that's the word I want to use -- running through conservative America. That doesn't mean all conservatives are bigots, or even that most conservative are bigots. That's not what I'm saying. But there is a strain of bigotry. And it goes against gay people, for instance. Ellen DeGeneres did nothing wrong. She's gay, right. Reasonable people may disagree on gay marriage. That's fine. But to call on somebody to be fired, to lose her job because she's gay, is bigotry, and I don't care how many people listening to us right now don't like that. It's bigotry.

If only Fox News would become more accustomed commentary like this they one day actually live up to their slogan of being "fair and balanced."

Submarine or Boat?

2012-02-11T23:25:07-08:00

The Seabreacher watercraft, which looks to me like something out of Jules Verne novel, is capable of cruising at 40mph on the surface and 20mph underwater up to five feet, at which point the snorkel is submerged, oxygen for the engine is cut off and the engine dies. When controlled properly, a driver can submerge the craft and then propel themselves out of the water -- breaching much in the same way a dolphin does.

Each Seabreacher watercraft is custom built to order, accounting for the wide variety of designs you will find on YouTube, including orca, sharks and of course the dolphin, which the craft was designed to mimic.

Yoga Breakdancing? Hell, yes.

2012-02-09T13:17:38-08:00

Swarming Nano Quadrotors

2012-02-06T11:42:08-08:00

These quadrotors are amazing. It begins with the simple statement, "we developed a nano quadrotor capable of agile flight." And agile is right. I love the fact that you can just huck this up into the air, turn it on, and its starts flying. Plus, their ability to fly in formation is both beautiful and honestly, a little spooky.

Speaking of spooky, this video also kinda freaks me out as I think about how the military might use something like this - I can imagine for example a ton of these being dumped out of the back of a plane and at 200 hundred feet them all turning on and converging on a target or dispersing to lots of different targets. Or am I just being paranoid?

The Cello Beatbox Virtuoso

2012-02-01T09:42:38-08:00

At the age of four Kevin Olusola saw Bill Clinton perform the sax on the Arsenio Hall Show and realized he wanted to play an instrument too. Shortly thereafter he was already playing music by ear just by playing around, and by the age of 8 Kevin had completely mastered the cello. He was/is a prodigy.

Kevin also liked to beat box, but his father through it a bad influence and it was little more than noise. Then he heard him beat boxing in a choir and realized his son had a talent there as well. Now his son mixes his two musical passions to create some truly amazing music.

The American Political Dynamic

2012-01-31T20:59:44-08:00

Liberals don't hate conservatives. They just think they're stupid.

Conservatives hate liberals, because they know that liberals think they're smarter than them.

Liberals know that conservatives hate them and can't figure out why, because they don't hate conservatives in return.

Conservatives believe that liberals hate them, because it's easier to feel despised than patronized. And so in addition to hating liberals, they think liberals are liars.

From The Myth of the American Political Intelligence Gap.

Brand Insights from a 5 year old

2012-01-31T11:25:03-08:00

I am not sure what I like most about this video - the brand insights of the 5 year old, or her voice, which is so cute it almost makes my head explode.

But this makes me think that every one designing a global brand should conduct studies with 5 year olds. Who else will give you a more pure, more unclouded opinion of a logo. No one I tell you, no one.

The 37signals Holiday Gift

2012-01-27T10:27:08-08:00

Did you get a bonus from your company this holiday season? Maybe you did, but you probably didn't. And if you did, was it just a check and a cheesy holiday card signed by the CEO? Probably.

Employees of 37signals got a gift this year, and it is amazing. Not only because the gift itself is thoughtful and generous, but because it was so artfully crafted and delivered.

So what exactly did they receive? A trip to one of sixteen destinations around the world including Disney World, Costa Rica, Grand Canyon, London, San Francisco, Quebec, Canadian Rockies, Paris, Patagonia, Reykjavik, Maui, Buenos Aires, Southern France, Disney Cruise, Rome and Thailand.

To get a closer look, take a look at this Flickr slideshow of the unboxing.

Now, excuse me while I pick my jaw up off the floor and go back to work.

And I thought I was a Star Trek fan.

2012-01-26T11:44:02-08:00

Say what you will about trekkers, but you have to admit, this guy's home is nothing short of amazing.

Too bad he has to move out because his ex-wife wants to sell the property. Why on earth would anyone want to leave this man? I wonder.

Disappearing head illusion

2012-01-18T15:29:49-08:00

This is an amazing illusion. Be sure to see it all the way through, there is a twist in the illusion which is especially mind boggling.