Star Wars kid sues
Remember the Star Wars kid? Well, his parents are suing the parents of the four assholes who uploaded the kid's homemade video to the net for $225,000. That's not enough if you ask me. The kid, Ghyslain Raza, has been so humiliated and ridiculed by his peers and the public at large, that he's continuing psychiatric treatment, and may have to do so indefinitely.
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Pirates of the Caribbean
I took my girls to see this movie. I didn't know it was a Disney movie. I would probably have been less interested in seeing it, had I known it was Disney. Turned out to be a great movie - entertaining, full of adventure, and quite surprising. Johnny Depp was just amazing as the drunk, swaggering pirate Captain, while Geoffrey Rush played a miserable, nasty, bad pirate captain. Orlando Bloom was OK, but took a back seat to Depp and Rush, as their characters were the colourful ones. I highly recommend this movie! And I think this is another one that I will need the DVD of.
US scrutiny of foreign students
From MIT's Technology Review, comes concern that the increased levels of scrutiny, delays and just plain scare tactics that are now greeting foreign students entering the US from predominantly Muslim countries, may shift where foreign students seek their post-secondary education. A lot of scientists in the US entered the country via the foreign student route, got their education and decided to stay to exploit the benefits of their education in the US' free market economy. Who doesn't want to live the American dream? But since 9/11, the US policy to foreign students has become increasingly xenophobic. Eventually, this could lead to US institutions having less of an impact to science and technology. Read the related article, Technological McCarthyism , as well.
Movies
I saw a few movies over the past couple of weeks. I'll start with the most recent.
My wife and I went out with friends this past weekend to catch Johnny English . What a stupid movie! Yes, quite stupid, and you have to been in a stupid mood to enjoy it. I was feeling slightly stupid (had to be to be there) - so parts of it was very funny ... in a stupid way ... did I say the word stupid enough already? I can't believe John Malkovich starred in the movie ... what possessed him? Rowan Atkinson was funny, though I think he's had to dumb down his humour for Hollywood - which is a shame. I really did enjoy his antics as Blackadder .
Terminator 3 : that was seen with the guys. The ending wasn't the bang I was expecting, rather, they did the right thing. They made the ending a conclusion for the series. I won't spoil it for those who haven't seen it as yet. However, I will tell you that the entire movie is just one BIG chase scene. There is ha...
World's Fare
My youngest and I went to Harbourfront Centre on Friday night to enjoy the continuation of the summer festivals. This week (as it was last week) is the World's Fare celebrations, entitled, The America's Now. This is the flagship festival for Harbourfront, as it celebrates the multicultural nature of Toronto. The show was quite good. We saw some dancing to start off, with Red Sky Productions putting on a few samples from their "Dancing Americas" show. There was a grass dancer, as well as a couple (Native Mexican and Canadian) performing a modern dance piece. We usually end up at the CIBC stage, where the evening music performances are held. We saw Alacie Tullaugaq & Lucie Amarualik , two Inuit throat singers from Nunavut performing. They're in their mid-60s, and it's amazing what they can do. My daughter was quite impressed by the pair. Kanenhi:io Singers followed, and they were impressive as well. They are four native women ...
Earth in the Balance ...
Moron at the Helm. That's the title of this hilarious picture. The site features more hilarity - doctored photos of US politicians (mostly Dubya) in poses and situations that puts new perspective on the American leader. (Oh, let's face it, we all thought he was a moron before anyway.)
Media Marvel
Here's a site for the news junky in you. A virtual newspaper rack, that contains links to news sources across the world, including the alternative media. The site also choses highlights from the day's news to feature on their front page. Think of it as a way of randomly sending you to some media you may never knowingly chose, or accidentally find.
Neo-Nazis & Extreme Jews
Extreme Jews. Isn't that an oxymoron? Or is that the majority of Israelis? Apparently the two sides are finding common ground in the most unlikely of places - in hate. Not hate for each other, but hate for Arabs and Muslims. The two groups are setting aside their differences to share web space as violence in the Middle East rises. All we're now missing is Osama Bin Laden - he's extreme; he hates the establishment ... maybe the three groups should work harder, and put aside differences amongst themselves in order to attack the free world. Yeah? And you thought Neo-Nazis and Jews couldn't work together?
Dream
This morning I woke up pissed. I had a dream that left me unsatisfied. I was in a cafeteria style food joint (I can't call it a restaurant), and it was being run by a bunch of old guys. People were in there getting their breakfast, getting served, when I joined the line. I asked for a grilled cheese sandwich and a coffee. I got both. The coffee was poured into a cup, and the ole guy behind the grill make me my sandwich. Then I had to pay. I handed over a $50 bill, and got back $23 dollars change. The sandwich and the coffee was $9.90. What the #$@!? I tried explaining ... I did the math. The two old guys behind the counter, laughed at me, and told me I couldn't add. They were toying with me. They got it. They kept making me explain over and over. And each time they would either tell me they didn't get it, or they would laugh and telling me I was pulling a fast one on them. They would not give the correct change. Then, as I was arguing, the guy that...
Revolution
The internet has had a tremendous impact on the mobilization of grassroot movements to affect large scale changes in governments and society. There are groups that do everything from urban gardening (selecting a spot in a city that has been overrun by industrialization, and covertly planting hardy plants that could take root and spread - guerrilla gardeners reclaiming the land) to quickly and loosely organized protests or demonstrations that target specific public spaces. There there are groups that have had big impacts, and have even saved lives.
Amnesty International's Merton group, who managed to gain 1.3 million signatures in protest of a Nigerian woman accused of adultry and was going to face death by stoning . ( Click here to save a life from a misogynic society. Amina has been sentenced to death for having a child outside or marriage. Amnesty International is trying to save her life.)
The Independent Media Center sprung up as a way to get WTO protest i...
Wal-Mart kills Smart Shelf
It was a big announcement for the RFID industry. Wal-Mart was piloting an effort with Gillette to put RFID tags on a number of Gillette SKUs that Wal-Mart would stock on their shelves. The concept was to wirelessly have an inventory view of the Gillette products in Wal-Mart stores, and thereby managing store replenishment effortlessly. It was good for both Wal-Mart and Gillette in that Wal-Mart would maintain a great in-stock position, while Gillette would gain valuable data on the movement of their products. It was also a big announcement because no one had thus far proven that there was a healthy ROI on RFID tags (and hence the technology). Wal-Mart is announcing that instead of focusing on the movement of products from its stores, it will instead focus on its backend supply chain, urging suppliers to instead place RFID tags on shipping units, such as pallets, etc. A good place to put the focus in my opinion, as that's where there is the biggest...
Suing the RIAA
I take some pleasure in reading articles where the RIAA gets it. Or will be getting it. Or, OK, maybe just someone fighting back. Hmm ... actually, this is the first article I've read. Usually, the RIAA just sticks it to whoever they want because of the deep pockets that allow them to carry big sticks. (Don't dwell on the image.) Apparently some internet radio broadcasters aren't going to take it (don't dwell on the image!). They've banded together to challenge the royalty rates that the RIAA negotiated with a group representing 'small webcasters.' The rates the RIAA negotiated (or rather, extracted) is too high for some hobbyist webcasters, and paying it would put them out of business. I hope these guys are successful with the suit.
Illegal Art
Here's a Wired Online article about artists pushing the boundaries about what is fair use. A new exhibit called Illegal Art has been opened at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, and it features works pushing to boundaries of current trademark and copyright laws. There's art that co-opt the logos of corporations, that rips off other artists works, or just take owned property and use it.
Street Festival continues
Went to the Street Festival yesterday again. My wife and youngest was with me. We walked from Eglinton to St. Clair, to catch the Arts. My daughter was impressed with the classical music being played by the Toronto Philharmonia Quintets, but not the Jazz by the Laura Hubert Trio . I wasn't impressed by either. We also saw the "Dy-no-mite" Cirque - which was a couple of women performing high wire acts to thumping dance music ... sorry, but it was kind of crass and undisguised in its pandering to the macho male audience, who were more interested in seeing two big-breasted women in tight clothes, prance about in the heat. It was not the circus I wanted to see. The Men in Tights also left something to be desired. I've seen these guys a number of times already, and they've got the same damn act, the same jokes ... get something new guys. The only thing worthwhile at St. Clair was the Al-Lat Dance Company - they performed some amazin...
Canada Slips
The United Nations will be releasing its 2003 Human Development Report on July 8th, but the news is already out for Canada - we're on the decline. In the 1990s, we had a stranglehold on the list, consistently ranking number 1, then last year, we dropped to number 3, and now, to 8th place. We've been surpassed even by the United States. The Human Development Report measures the quality of life using life expectancy, education, health, income, poverty and environment data. If we're in doubt about the findings, we just have to look at the recent SARS crisis for confirmation on how we're doing. SARS hit us hard (especially Toronto, which can be used as a litmus for the quality of life in the rest of the country, as we have the rich and the poor here). It was only hard because of the shock to the system and our inadequacy in responding rapidly and effectively. No doubt the opposition political parties will use this as ammunition against the parties in p...
Whale Rider movie
The choice was my wife's ... as I joked with her afterwards, it the title was Whales With Guns, Whales Strike Back or even Hungry Whales That Eat People (or something like that), I would have chosen to watch it myself. Alas, it was my wife's choice to see the movie. The movie was wonderful! Keisha Castle-Hughes , in the starring role of Pai is amazing! The young actress was eleven when filming started, and played the twelve year old Pai, a Maori girl, who is destined to become the leader of her tribe, and lead them into better days. She's a powerful actress. She played imbued her character with such emotion, that it was not possible to believe it was genuine. I was impressed. At one point of the movie, I almost has tears in my eyes. (I usually don't get emotional in movies ... easy to understand when I usually limit myself to the SciFi/Action/Comedy genres.) I won't give a summary of the movie, as you can get that from the movie's s...
Street Fest continues.
Caught two acts midday today. Cirque Sublime's Pendulum , and Strange Fruit . Both were amazing. Cirque Sublime's reminded me of Cirque du Soleil , while Strange Fruit was just ... well ... strange. Both acts were about 30-minutes in length. I took a number of pictures of both. Stay tuned, and check my webshots/galleries, as they will be posted online soon!
Street Festival: Yonge & Eglinton
[11:45AM] I'm writing this now, sitting on a street bench on Yonge, just a block north of Eglinton. I'm enjoying a Tim Hortons coffee, people watching and relaxing into the cool breeze that's blowing. It's going to be a hot day, but in the shade right now, with the wind, it's nice. The setting up for the Street Festival is happening all around me. I'm here alone to check things out (everyone else are off doing their own things this morning), and from all indications, this is pretty big. I saw the preliminary set up on Friday, when I drove into work - I didn't expect it to take up so much of Yonge Street. This is BIG. Surprise! The main stage is already in use by a band, tuning up. The street acts are almost completely set up, and the number of people walking the street is growing steadily. There are lots of happy, smiling faces, and this guy who just walked by me with too much clothes on, pants with the crot...
Labatt Blue's Festival
The family and I went down to Harbourfront tonight to catch the Blue's festival. We had Indian at the World Cafe for supper, then caught the first act for the night - Dawn Tyler Watson & Corey Diabo. Check out Dawn Tyler Watson's website - there are a few sample clips of her music. Listen to number 5: "Hey Hey" ... that was pretty good. She's got a powerful voice and a great stage presence. They were pretty good. Unfortunately, we couldn't stay for the second act, which I was really looking forward to: Corey Harris and the 5X5 .
Weapons of Mass Destruction
A friend from work sent this to me. Go to Google UK , type in a search for weapons of mass destruction , then instead of clicking 'Google Search', click on 'I'm Feeling Lucky.' Now read the error message. The error message is actually a humor site , but it's a nice set up to the punch line.
Porn Filters
I find it rather amusing that 'conservative' countries in the world put such efforts into controlling access to porn on the internet, yet do so little in combating pressing, and sometimes mundane problems. They do it under the guise of protecting their citizens from evil influences. Sorry, but porn can be viewed in two ways in my opinion: 1) Men exercising control over women (this argument falls apart in quite a few porn scenarios however), and 2) We're animals, and it has been built in us to propagate the species; we will look for any and all avenues to satisfy those urges. If porn is such an evil influence, then the argument can be extended to say that the censors who have to view the sites in order to classify them as evil must have either a strong moral fibre, or the most corrupt and base individuals due to their exposure to porn. The blocking of porn sites is all about control of the population. It's about a few people in power, exercising judgm...
Street Festival
Drove into work this morning, coming down Yonge Street. When I left work last night at 6:45PM, everything was just normal. It appears that overnight, Yonge & Eglinton was transformed for the Street Festival opening festivities that starts at 8PM tonight. A stage has been constructed on Yonge, facing north. Speakers are already about. The cops are alread around, point out the obvious to drivers that a block of Yonge Street is no longer accessible, take the detour like the sign says. There's a lot happening in the City this weekend - a lot to keep track of. The best sites to find out what's going on and to plan your time are, the City of Toronto's site , and Toronto.com . Hope we have a safe and enjoyable weekend!
20 Hot Technologies to Watch
From PC Magazine, comes another take on the future of technology. It's a another list, yes, but we like lists, don't we? Check out the article for bite-sized chunks of information on what the editors of PC Magazine have decided will be the next big thing.
Carbon Nanotubes - is there nothing that this stuff can't do? Stronger than steel and spider-webs, able to leap tall buildings in a single jump and maybe even tether space elevators in geostationary orbits . Carbon nanotubes can sometimes display the behaviour of a metal, and sometimes a semiconductor; that is, they can not only be configured to transport current, they can also be used to store information, or build smaller transistors.
Biosensors - see my log on sensors below. Now think of some of those things floating around inside of you? Think of the applications - from monitoring out patients, to those with health issues ... your onboard doctor, being able to not only monitor, b...