Offbeat posts

After last week’s high-energy American Censorship Day flew through with amazing responses from websites everywhere, much of the buzz has faded in the last few days. That simply cannot happen. SOPA, the bill that would grant power to the US government to censor websites, punish users, and have unprecedented control over the internet in general, is up for a vote next month. Despite all of the feverish activity, now is not the time to slow down. This is a sprint – the vote is next month – and the money (via campaign contributions) behind those supporting the bill is growing. Congress must be contacted….

At some point, the sheer oddity of Japanese technological solutions to various problems will stop surprising us. That day may have come as the latest addition to the long list of creative Japanese problem-solving tech involves a bear pillow, snoring, and a smaller bear glove that monitors blood oxygen levels. Dr. Kabe from Waseda University’s Kabe Lab created the Jukusui-Kun (Deep Sleep), a robot bear that uses internal microphones to monitor for snoring. As you’ll see in the video below, snoring sounds makes the bear’s hand move towards the face and brush it with a cotton cloth to compel the…

The internet takes up a huge part of our daily lives. Many of us have integrated real-world activities into our online and mobile experience to the point that everyday items such as checks, calendars, newspapers, and letters have become completely unused by a good chunk of western society. The infographic by Flowtown below breaks down common activities of people surfing the web. Here, we highlight some of the most interesting data: 61% of adult internet users bank online 21% download podcasts 78% research products online while 71% buy them online Despite their popularity, only 13% use Twitter…

These have been around for a while, and every time I see one I thank the innovator who came up with it. Some people want to dip their fries. Others want to squeeze the ketchup (or catsup, as some still spell it) directly onto their food (or even apply it individually onto each piece). This is the best of both worlds. It goes to show that not all technology is a matter of wires, bytes, and binary code. Sometimes, the best technology involves taking an old concept and making it better. (Image above shot while eating Chick-fil-A at Pohanka Chevrolet)…

It isn’t the first time that 4Chan has gone down and it won’t be the last, but this one is special. There were 3 consecutive days with very little uptime, something that the photo-sharing, meme-creating website has never experienced.  A massive DDoS is to blame. For it to keep the site down for this long, a site that is accustomed to supporting 1.6 million visitors a day, “massive” might be an understatement. It comes as founder Moot prepared to turn the site’s community support towards American Censorship Day. The site was back up just in time to assist with the protest….

At first glance, it doesn’t seem real. This video of time lapse sequences from the International Space Station crews of expedition 28 and 29 use a special low-light 4K-camera. Shot from August through October, 2011, these spectacular images make the world seem small and wonderful while highlighting the awe-inspiring view from the ISS. If you ever dreamed of being an astronaut, do not watch the video. It’s bound to re-ignite the flames that once drove you. Here is a list of the shooting locations: Aurora Borealis Pass over the United States at Night Aurora Borealis and eastern United States at…

The precedent has been set and it’s a very bad one. A US judge ruled that Twitter must release all of the details of Birgitta Jonsdottir’s account, as well as two others. Their links to WikiLeaks has put them under the scrutiny of the Justice Department after last year’s video of US helicopters shooting two Reuters reporters in Iraq. Speculation is that Jonsdottir is not the target but rather a piece of the case they’re currently building against WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange. “This is a huge blow for everybody that uses social media,” said Jonsdottir. “We have to have the same civil rights online…

When Honda unveiled ASIMO a few years ago, most were amazed by its human-like movements. Some claimed there was a short person in a suit rather than an actual robot. Earlier this month, they unveiled the “All-New” ASIMO that can run forward, walk backward, hop on one leg or two, and serve drinks. We’re probably still years away from mainstream robotic servant and a couple of more years away from being overrun by our own creation, but we can still look at them with wonderment today. (H/T Columbus Indiana Ram)…

In design, typeface can be everything. People associate a brand with certain typefaces. Personalities of individuals can be expressed with the appropriate typeface. For something that we often take for granted, its benefits and potential drawbacks can be huge. In this infographic by our friends at Rasmussen, we take a look at the history of the typeface. Modern technology has made it more robust and easier to manage what typefaces we use and how we use it, but understanding the past gives us a good insight into how presentation of the typed word has evolved. Click to enlarge. …

The founder and face of Wikileaks, Julian Assange, is facing extradition and possible charges in Sweden for sexual misconduct. The website and organization are caught in a financial stranglehold as many of the means through which it receives donations and funding are cut off. If the man is jailed and the organization crumbles, can Wikileaks survive as a movement? That’s the question that the NY Times attempts to answer. While many of their points are valid, is it realistic to believe that this Pandora’s Box can truly be closed now that the demand for this sort of transparency and accountability…