In May 2010, a few days short of her 17th birthday, Australian girl Jessica Watson became the youngest person (male or female) to sail around the world solo and unassisted. Concerns about encouraging young people from attempting this incredibly arduous achievement had already led the Guinness Book of Records to stop recognizing “youngest” attempts at sailing around the world, and the World Sailing Speed Record Council to stop accepting any records from sailors under 18. Watson did it anyway. Continue reading
BaldwinP
72 posts
SOPA and PIPA have been put on hold (e.g. Harry Reid, Lamar Smith and associates have realised the bills won’t pass if they call a vote). Rejoice, but remain vigilant. You know they’ll try again in a few months with a new version of the law with some superficial changes. But for now, success! A very impressive example of people power driven by the Internet.
Hat tip to CBS News, where at time of writing the poll asking whether Congress should pass the SOPA/PIPA bills was running at 97% no.
Back in 2006, Russian state-run TV aired accusations against the UK that sounded like they were stolen from “Get Smart”. According to the Russians, the Brits planted a “spy rock” filled with electronic gadgetry in a Moscow park. They broadcast pictures and X-Rays of the allegedly captured “spy rock” and grainy surveillance footage showing alleged British agents interacting with the rock. Continue reading
Really, really simple.
You’re going to be stuck in a foreign country for a month where hardly anyone speaks English. If you could only know 5 words in the language of that country, what words would you choose?
Let us know in the comments!
(Image created by the author)
CES, the Consumer Electronics Show held each January in Las Vegas, is known for two things:
1. Being the first look at the new gadget technology we can expect to see in the year ahead.
2. It’s invariably across the road from the annual porn industry convention held in Las Vegas at the same time. Continue reading
On Monday 19 December 2011, China commenced the trials of about 60 players, referees and officials over allegations of corruption and match-fixing, after a crackdown that began in January 2010 (see above video). Besides match-fixing for gambling syndicates linked (inevitably) with organised crime in East Asia, the trials cover more petty forms of corruption such as the sale of positions in the Chinese men’s national soccer team, which has gone from qualifying for the World Cup in 2002 and making the final of the Asian Cup in 2004 to not qualifying for any World Cup since then. To put this in perspective, North Korea qualified last time and China did not. Continue reading
The above image, taken by a satellite from the defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP), starkly illustrates the difference between North Korea and South Korea. Continue reading
Monkey Mia, located on the Indian Ocean coast of Australia about 800km north of Perth, is a beach-side holiday destination best known for two things: the warm, sunny sub-tropical weather and the dolphins who visit the beach daily for hand-feeding. Continue reading
Make your list and check it twice: what do YOU want to find under the tree-of-no-specific-religion this year? Be realistic, be fanciful. It’s up to you. Continue reading
They say a picture is worth a thousand words. But not all pictures are created equal. Most you will look at, giggle or say “ew” or “pretty” or “look at the chest on that stud/broad” and move on. But some have power and meaning which explain an entire concept or change your view of the world; a book or a series of books blasting straight through your retina and into your brain in a flash. We here at Crasstalk love our kitty pictures and meme .gifs, but here’s your chance to show us the images that most matter to you. We look forward to seeing them in the comments.
After the jump, a short tale about the powerful image above and why it especially matters to me.