September 2011
69 posts
Link: Bill Buckner Strikes Again
Another good article by Nate Silver on the epic collapse of the 2011 Red Sox:
The following is not mathematically rigorous, since the events of yesterday evening were contingent upon one another in various ways. But just for fun, let’s put all of them together in sequence:
The Red Sox had just a 0.3 percent chance of failing to make the playoffs on Sept. 3.
The Rays had just a 0.3...
6 tags
Oracle: Bad Ass Motherfuckers
parislemon:
Now that Steve Jobs has stepped down as CEO of Apple, I’m starting to realize that one of the things I might miss most are the posts he would do on Apple’s site from time to time. You know, like the dismantling of Flash.
Unlike most corporate-speak which consists of bland nonsense glazed with PR buzzwords — which is always a complete and utter waste of time to read, Jobs’ post...
Boston Red Sox Chance Will Make Playoffs →
Wow.
September Collapse of Red Sox Could Be Worst Ever →
This is from a couple of days ago. A vivid illustration of how incredible the Sox decline was in September.
After beating the Texas Rangers on Sept. 3, the Boston Red Sox were 84-54. Although half a game behind the Yankees in the American League East, the Red Sox had a nine-game lead over the Tampa Bay Rays for the wild card and roughly a 99.6 percent chance of making the playoffs.
There...
2 tags
Fire - cdespinosa's posterous →
Interesting take on the Fire:
Lost in the “Is it an iPad Killer?” hype is the audacious introduction of the Silk browser. Under the guise of increasing speed (on WiFi; there is no 3G Fire where download speed would be a larger issue), Amazon is performing astonishing jujitsu on Google.
“Socialism never took root in America because the poor see themselves not as an...”
– John Steinbeck (Disputed)
4 tags
Link: Facebook is scaring me →
Dave Winer writes:
What clued me in was an article on ReadWriteWeb that says that just reading an article on their site may create an announcement on Facebook. Something like: “Bull Mancuso just read a tutorial explaining how to kill a member of another crime family.” Bull didn’t comment. He didn’t press a Like button. He just visited a web page. And an announcement was...
WatchBack in Black - Threats to America’s Children (via The Daily Show)
NFL TV Rules and Maps @ The506.com →
This site has maps for which games are shown where and when. For example, this week’s games. It also explains the (surprisingly complicated) rules for who gets to show what where.
Prose Football →
I have missed that distinctive (football) language during its seven-month hibernation. People often say that baseball is the most literary of sports—it’s that game in which balls carom off walls, pitchers flirt with no-hitters and batters spit on outside sliders—and that may be true. But football has an argot all its own. There are so many words you only hear during the football months....
Draw a Stickman →
It’s Decorative Gourd Season, Motherfuckers. →
I don’t know about you, but I can’t wait to get my hands on some fucking gourds and arrange them in a horn-shaped basket on my dining room table. That shit is going to look so seasonal. I’m about to head up to the attic right now to find that wicker fucker, dust it off, and jam it with an insanely ornate assortment of shellacked vegetables. When my guests come over it’s gonna be like, BLAMMO!...
One World →
From Futility Closet:
The state, (Einstein) wrote, “does not play the least role in my spiritual life; I regard allegiance to a government as a business matter, somewhat like the relationship with a life insurance company.”
A Quick Guide to Common Miscapitalizations of Tech... →
This is a pet peeve of mine.
Another Argument for the Oxford Comma →
… highlights of his global tour include encounters with Nelson Mandela, an 800-year-old demigod and a dildo collector.
Not Google Plus →
Because, enough already.
Quote
Elizabeth Warren, Senate candidate from Massachusetts:
I hear all this, you know, “Well, this is class warfare, this is whatever.”—No!
There is nobody in this country who got rich on his own. Nobody.
You built a factory out there—good for you! But I want to be clear.
You moved your goods to market on the roads the rest of us paid for.
You hired workers the rest of us paid...
OnStar Tracks Your Car Even When You Cancel... →
I wonder how much it costs to remove the OnStar radio from your car?
Navigation-and-emergency-services company OnStar is notifying its six million account holders that it will keep a complete accounting of the speed and location of OnStar-equipped vehicles, even for drivers who discontinue monthly service.
The past and the future of famous logos →
The Nokia logo is particularly funny.
Osaka Station Water Clock →
This is so cool.
Link: Stumbling Blocks to Remembrance
From Kuriositas:
How is a country to remember those of which it disposed so cruelly? That might possibly prove a stumbling block. A small, brilliant idea back in the nineties has led to an art movement which is still thriving and gaining ground to this day. Under your feet throughout Europe you will find stumbling blocks to aid in your remembrance of those long gone.
Image Credit Flickr...
Unix’s Revenge →
Google doesn’t get people, it sells them →
8 Star Trek Gadgets That Are No Longer Fiction →
Extreme Tidying Up
Great article on NPR about Swiss artist Ursus Wehrli.
There are levels of tidiness.
Tidy.
Very Tidy.
And Totally Deranged Tidy.
Ursus Wehrli is in Category Three.
Click through for several other extreme examples of OCD.
Programmer Humor →
If you know Java, you’ll understand perfectly.
Sitting and Standing at Work →
Sit to do computer work. Sit using a height-adjustable, downward titling keyboard tray for the best work posture, then every 20 minutes stand for 2 minutes AND MOVE. The absolute time isn’t critical but about every 20-30 minutes take a posture break and move for a couple of minutes. Simply standing is insufficient. Movement is important to get blood circulation through the muscles. Research...
Court Approves Lawsuit Against Toyota Over... →
“Brilliant” marketing move by Toyota:
Amber Duick sued Toyota in 2009 over its intrusive “Your Other You” campaign, after she began receiving frightening e-mails over a number of days from a strange man. The man, who had her home address, told her he was on the lam from the law and needed to crash at her place for a bit to hide out with his pit bull, Trigger.
xkcd Nails It →
I’ve been saying this for ages.
The Boston Globe →
Check out the new Boston Globe website. Open it in your browser of choice and then resize the window. The reflowing is really slick.
Then click on an article and notice how they want you to sign up. Apparently starting in October it will be $3.99 per week.
The Marshmallow Test
via TYWKIWDBI
You may have already heard of the Marshmallow Test.
The experiment went like this: Mischel invited a four-year old student at the Bing Nursery School into a small room, barely bigger than a closet. He then made her an offer. She could either eat one marshmallow right away or, if she was willing to wait fifteen minutes while he ran an errand, she could eat two marshmallows....
Link: 15 Things Kurt Vonnegut Said Better Than... →
Watch(via Touré Calls Out Media 9/11 Nostalgia, Leaves Dylan Ratigan Speechless)
