May 2008
25 posts
WatchLatest on Dean Kamen and team’s work to develop a prosthetic arm. Wow, in a word.
Welcome to the twice-yearly DoCoMo cellphone... →
19 models at once, would you believe. Interesting that they’ve got one phone (the N906iL) that will let you make VoIP calls over a home wireless network via WiFi, though there’s an additional monthly fee required. Every time one of these bumper phone releases happens I look at the spec sheet and think “yes—but no.” Ultimately, sticking with a smartphone means less of...
Sounds from the cosmos →
Great post about repurposing NASA’s telemetry and audio data into music. Also the first time I’ve seen anyone quantify the amount of data NASA puts out (a metric fuckton per day, apparently).
Today's definition of "slightly depressing"
is having someone cold-call to ask if you’re interested in buying investment real estate, talk at you to the point where you start to actually think about meeting them, and then spend almost as long backing out of the conversation when they find you’re not Japanese. Being good at the language does have its downside in these obscure circumstances. Sigh.
Bacteria solve math problem; not so much "head... →
This is not the sort of thing one wants to read the morning after finishing Peter Watts’ Rifters trilogy.
YMCK game sound plugin →
Great VST/Audio Unit plugin that enables you to create 8-bit game-like synth noises. Can’t wait to try it.
Not news: new cellphone movie-sharing site.... →
Japanese firm 1stbit has launched a new cellphone video-sharing site called Sakasamania (literally backwards/topsy-turvy mania) that takes uploaded clips and plays them back in reverse. They’re apparently considering adding double-speed and slow-motion as well. Why build the functions into software on the phone when you can supply them via the cloud, I suppose…
Yamaha's Tenori-on launch woes, continued →
Before Yamaha was even able to ship its first batch of Tenori-ons in Japan, it had to send out an apology for an incident whereby its overloaded online store leaked 120 customers’ information. Apparently this only affected people who’d registered in advance as online members; those may be fairly numerous, however, as registering would have conferred a speed advantage in the rush to get...
American journalist who fell foul of the yakuza →
I’ve met Jake Adelstein on a few occasions, but not recently. He recounted a couple of anecdotes about edgy stories that had been squashed during his time as a reporter on the crime beat at the Yomiuri Shimbun; ironically, though, they involved powerful figures’ improprieties, not the yakuza-related material that eventually caused him to resign. Jake, I wish you the best of luck and I...
Japanese police give kerosene-soaked man cigs and... →
Brilliantly, the police cite the station’s no-smoking policy as the reason why the cigarettes and lighter should have been withheld.
Vidnik →
A simple way to record and upload YouTube videos from your Mac’s inbuilt camera (or a USB camera, for that matter)
“Southern fried squirrel is good. And tandoori style works. It is especially...”
– The ultimate ethical meal: a grey squirrel
Tenori-on Japan launch: Great way to treat your... →
So, after months of waiting, Yamaha’s much-feted Tenori-on went on sale in Japan today. For some reason they’ve chosen to sell it through the site of YP Video Corporation, who I presume are a subsidiary. A subsidiary with a server that has muscles like knots in cotton, by the look of it. The web store supposedly went live at 11am today, and the best I’ve been able to do so far is...
the | squarewave | parade →
The jury is still partially out... →
…but I think Coldplay’s new single may be all right. They’ve abandoned the thesaurus-and-scissors approach to lyric writing, at least. This makes as much sense as a pop song ought to (not a very high threshold, admittedly).
Manfrotto 585 Modosteady 3-in-1 Multifunction... →
Japan's Metaphor for Opinionated Old Men's... →
The second in an occasional series. And I believe it’s actually Ling Ling rather than Rin Rin, isn’t it? Rest in peace.
