and, according to my self-imposed schedule this post should have been published on 7 October and I owe you another one as on 14 October! Actually if you look at the dates of most of the items in here you'll realise that I hadn't a hope of publishing on 7 October! Good I may be but clairvoyant I am not.
How the financial crisis affects the oldest profession
via 3quarksdaily by Abbas Raza on 30 September
There are some people who might just benefit from the current turmoil in the financial markets. One probably won't surprise: lawyers. The other might: sex workers.
More here.
Beetles Get By With a Little Help from Their Friends
via HappyNews - Top Stories on 3 October
Arts & Letters Daily 9 October
In the UK alcohol is a relaxant, an emollient, a crutch, a relief, an excuse. Sarah Lyall has many British friends who in the U.S. would be viewed as functioning alcoholics... more
Site of the Day: Oddee
via Librarian of the Internet by findingDulcinea Staff on 9 October
A little bored with the normal? Paying a visit to Oddee might just fulfill your need for abnormality. From "wackiest coffins" and "geekiest weddings" to the "most awesome tree houses" and "most bizarre restaurants," this blog has scoured the Internet to bring readers stories and images of the world's weirdest stuff.
I could, of course, cheat and just go and pick a load of interesting, weird or simply odd items from Oddee but I won't!
Kids need to agree to 120+ pages of EULAs in order to watch BluRay Sleeping Beauty
via Boing Boing by Cory Doctorow on 9 October
Over on Boing Boing Gadgets, our John notes that watching Sleeping Beauty on Blu-Ray requires that you accede to over 120 pages of legal garbage in various EULAs before you can start the movie.
Disney has a sickness when it comes to abusive EULAs and contracts. I once had to cancel a speech at Imagineering because the legal department wanted me to sign something saying that I'd never use the word "Disney" in print again without permission. The Laugh Factory attraction at Disney World's Tomorrowland had a ridiculous EULA on a sign (you agreed to the terms by passing under the sign) (!) in which you promised that any jokes you suggested were your own and that you would indemnify Disney from any copyright suits arising from the telling of the jokes (the sign was not a joke). As though eight-year-olds can form contracts (they can't), by standing under signs (they can't), and as though most jokes people tell are original (they aren't).
Thanks for this Cory, I'm indebted to you, yet again, for pointing out the totally ridiculous rules that make a mockery of the real need for security and copyright protection.
USB Mice Wheel – a reflection of the position of our souls?
via The Red Ferret Journal by Nigel on 9 October
Consider this USB Mice Wheel to be not so much a silly gadget and more a reflection of life in general. Plug it in and the faster you type, the faster the little fake critter runs around the wheel. Going nowhere. Remind you of anyone? Yep, same here.
Me too!
Friday fun
via Science, Engineering & Technology Blog by Anne on 10 October
Find out about the history of mathematical games and puzzles in this article by J.J. O'Connor and E.F. Robertson from the MacTutor History of Mathematics archive.
Paper and pencil better for the brain than software?
via Boing Boing by David Pescovitz on 6 October
Dutch psychologist Christof van Nimwegen posits that paper and pens/pencils boost learning and creative problem solving much more than computers do. Van Nimwegen wrote a PhD dissertation, titled "The paradox of the guided user: assistance can be counter-effective", about how software affects brain processes. English professor Michael Leddy summed up the research beautifully in his blog entry about it.
A Helping Hand for the Left-Handed
via Librarian of the Internet by findingDulcinea Staff on 2 October
I love being left-handed. But as nice as it is to feel unique, being left-handed also creates a few logistical hurdles. Here are some sites that can make left-handedness a little more convenient.
material innovations
via SHUSH! by Fiona on 3 October
An article on the BBC technology pages caught my eye a while back discussing the potential for a real life invisibility cloak. A material has been developed that bends light around 3D objects, and therefore makes them seem invisible.
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