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  • The quote is from Holocaust survivor Viktor Frankl. I’ll let it stand on its own a second time down below, for you to sit with and ponder.

I suspect that some of you are feeling this quote, too?

“The most painful anguish that mortals suffer is to understand a great deal but to have no power at all.”
—Herodotus

I don’t think I need to drill down on what this means, but I will say… as a huge personality, and as a passionate dude who didn’t always have the tools to contain my enthusiasm and energy, and a “character” so large at times it restricts and hinders and scares other people…

This quote changed my life in a bumper sticker second.

So again:

“Between stimulus and response there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom.”

Being able to pause, and breathe, and think… is what separates us from being reactive cretins and unhinged monsters. I know not all of us have leveled up to that tho… but that’s the dream. =)

 

  • Here is another great quote my dog loves:

According to Schopenhauer, “The assumption that animals are without rights and the illusion that our treatment of them has no moral significance is a positively outrageous example of Western crudity and barbarity”.

 

  • If you’ve never known what gaslighting is, it’s possible Joey Bishop has more influence on modern politics than you could imagine. Film is “A Guide to the Married Man”.

 

 

  • Speaking of, I think our whole issue with the press and fourth estate failing us is this law:

Brandolini’s law, also known as the bullshit asymmetry principle, is an internet adage coined in 2013 by Alberto Brandolini, an Italian programmer, that emphasizes the effort of debunking misinformation, in comparison to the relative ease of creating it in the first place. The law states: The amount of energy needed to refute bullshit is an order of magnitude bigger than that needed to produce it. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brandolini%27s_law

 

SPACE

Jupiter (NIRCam Image) https://webbtelescope.org/contents/media/images/2023/147/01HCX0ZV8AR4GMW49EK1SBWDYV

 

  • Baudrillard’s Simulacrum is doing pretty great:

 

 

 

The universe expands from a point on the left side of the illustration and grows wider toward the right. But there’s a question mark stamped in the middle, and the gold hexagonal mirrors of the James Webb Space Telescope floating at the right edge.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  • We can build cities on the moon in major lava tube cave networks, and there’s probably water in there right now which would help.

Radar evidence of an accessible cave conduit on the Moon below the Mare Tranquillitatis pit https://www.nature.com/articles/s41550-024-02302-y

Elaborazione di una foto di A. Romeo. Modello 3D LRO della NASA foto dell'alba del 24 dicembre 1968 alle 1640 UTC...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  • 7 to 13 miles underground, so we’ll not see the end of Total Recall for some time.

Enormous hidden ocean discovered under Mars could contain life News By Ben Turner published August 12, 2024 Scientists examining data from NASA’s InSight Lander have revealed the likely presence of an underground reservoir containing enough liquid to cover the planet with a mile of water. https://www.livescience.com/space/mars/enormous-hidden-ocean-discovered-under-mars-could-contain-life

 

 

 

 

More on the project:

Spacecraft travels to metal object orbiting Earth, snaps stunning views “We’re watching you from every angle.” https://mashable.com/article/space-junk-rocket-debris-footage

 

 

  • Pop culture fun! – The spaceships of the Alien movies:

Alien: Romulus is here, so we’re diving back into all things Alien, including the coolest spaceships the movies have had so far. These are our favorites. https://www.space.com/spaceships-of-the-alien-movies

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY AND ALL THE CURES

 

Nanoparticle Vaccine Could Curb Cancer Metastasis to Lungs by Targeting a Protein

 

 

HIV, AIDS, PREP

 

 

 

 

 

 

  • There’s been a LOT of snake oil and non-peer-reviewed stuff out there, but this seems wildly interesting. Telomeres, however, are just part of the aging process so I’m not sure how to decipher the results.

 

 

  • Dogs can smell human stress, and it bums them out, study shows A new study found that even a stranger’s stress odor can affect a dog’s emotional state. Gift link WAPO: https://wapo.st/3Ao9QGQ

 

 

 

  • I’ve been watching this for a month. I want to know what the judges think.

 

 

Anchored to video, so not exactly generative, but amazing:

 

 

To think people thought she was an inspiration *UNTIL* she started beating other athletes and everyone went “holy moly what do we do?”  haha…. what a lousy double standard.  The concept of putting chips into her leg to simulate the limits of human capacity… that’s interesting.

But here’s a stunning moment from the Olympics:

Paralympian…

 

 

 

  • Sparkling water is pretty important to me, but who knew the science was so unbelievably interesting?

 

 

If Yellow 5 dye does prove safe in topical applications for humans, it might eventually be used for purposes as varied as early skin cancer detection, easing the process of routine blood draws for those with hard-to spot veins, speeding up laser tattoo removal, or supercharging photothermal cancer treatments, says Hong. Yet even if the snack-dye technique remains relegated to lab mice, it offers a better window into one of the most commonly used model organisms than we’ve ever had before. “In the short term, it’s a research tool,” says Rowlands, who envisions great strides coming from the finding soon: Optical imaging of a complete mouse brain, for instance. “If that’s not a paper [within a year], I’ll eat my hat.”

 

 

 

 

 

  • Ships are our oldest tech? That’s up for debate, but these old tall ships racing in an AC Regatta on MY BAY? So wonderful:

 

COMEDY

  • LOL That Marc Maron was insulting Chapelle for doing terrible specials for a Netflix payday, but Bert Kriescher knows his comedy is so bad, that everyone and him thought Maron was talking about Bert. LOL The Austin male-toxic scene needs to go away.
@top.pod.market Mark Maron goes on tiger belly and explains beef w Bert #tigerbelly #markmaron #bobbylee #bertkreischer #podcasts #comedy #fyp??viral #funny #joerogan ? original sound – top.pod.market

 

 

 

  • If the special itself wasn’t the end of Rogan’s comedy career… i) it was and ii) not much of a career… iii) *THIS* is the end of Joe’s comedy career, so call it a trifecta. A brutal, unyielding, wildly smart take down of his last comedy special.

 

 

 

  • That Russia is targeting standups, famously vulnerable due to behaviors, addictions, and a lack of money… it’s wild to think who is part of this. Russell Brand, sure. Rogan? Maybe it’s just money. But Bert is on this list. He has one joke, and it’s about his ties to Russia, and now he’s leaning into GOP narratives, etc:

MOVIES AND TV

 

  • MR NEWHART, LEGEND… nothing needs to be said. A brilliant man.

 

 

FULL FILM:

 

 

  • You can see the save station in the image on the top right!  The new Alien: Romulus is packed with love to the lore of the Alien universe, and nearly fan-serviced it to oblivion, but it all works, even tho it’s wild to realize the Narcissus was in the film, and Ripley was at that Space Station only to be ejected back into space and found 30 years later. But the addition of Alien: Isolation to the lore is my favorite thing EVER. I still hope to see that film actually happen (based on the game): Alien: Romulus director explains his new film’s big Alien: Isolation Easter egg https://www.gamesradar.com/entertainment/sci-fi-movies/alien-romulus-alien-isolation-easter-egg-emergency-phone/

Anytime something bad is about to happen? You see the phone box save station. Bravo!

BTW… this passed $300 Million Globally, so we’re going to see a lot of future Alien IP. Huzzah!

 

 

 

  • I’ve mentioned this before, but I don’t think anyone realizes how prescient and transgressive this show was in predicting the future we are currently inhabiting.

1997 MTV’s Zoo TV predicting Youtube, AI content delivery, AI designed digital ecosystems, CRISPR & Epigenetics, Digital Ecosystems, and more.

 

 

 

  • Jackman tells a story of Feige helping get comic books to Hugh when they were banned on set:

 

 

  • The American Society of Cinematographers has been featured here before, and it’s refreshing they aren’t married to just the ones moving the needle on modern pop culture. Although their Mandalorian feature had me more invested in the tech than I was invested into the show for one second… This one on 1986’s Chopping Mall is SUPERB. If you look at this schlocky 80s slasher with robots, realize it’s released the same year as Cameron’s Aliens. It’s hard to square that, but such is the magic of making art. And, boobies.

Chopping Mall: Robots on Rampage! Cinematographer Tom Richmond recalls working with the Killbots, where shopping costs you an arm and a leg! https://theasc.com/articles/chopping-mall-robots-on-rampage

 

 

  • Sustained Two Shot… GOAT IS BACK! Every frame a painting after 7 years of quiet:

 

 

 

  • How tragedy shaped Martin Short’s life:
@teamcoco Ted sits down with Martin Short on this week’s #WEKYN. Listen to the full episode at the link in our bio. #WhereEverybodyKnowsYourName #MartinShort #TedDanson ? original sound – Team Coco

 

 

Also:

 

 

 

 

 

  • A 1970s animation about mosquitoes that I found quaint and interesting. It was at a film festival in Chicago Siskel and Ebert reviewed prior to their show even being named “at the movies”.

 

 

 

  • An 11 minute documentary about Ramini, and the Tomales Bay Buffalo Mozzarella company, Ramini Mozzarella company. This is about a dream, a partnership, losing your love, and finding a new path. I really hope people that need to here this know: you can find a new path when everything falls apart. I promise. https://www.raminimozzarella.com/

RAMINI from SK Productions on Vimeo.

 

MUSIC

 

Photo of a Syrian man listening to records in his bombed-out bedroom is about life, not war https://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/image-of-a-syrian-man-listening-to-his-records-amid-rubble-strikes-a-chord

 

 

  • “We weren’t doing electronic music with synthesisers, but with a bank of oscillators we stole from radio stations”: Jean-Michel Jarre and the creation of Oxygène:

A story of challenges, limitations, the completion of its 40-year journey and working with Stockhausen – who “considered himself to be made of sound” https://www.loudersound.com/features/jean-michel-jarre-oxygene-3

 

 

 

  • I just love that Richard aka Aphex Twin got an image of his face into a spectrogram on the B-Side of Windowlicker on the song “Equation”:

 

Some of my favorite concerts!

1) This is sorta weird sorry but the PRODUCTION VALUE of the 2008 Lights in the Sky NIN tour was bonkers. They were surrounded by this translucent LED box that would run matrix like code in red and change throughout the set to create a wild visual experience, storytelling, etc but you could see the band.

Example: https://youtu.be/JKf90HrlPMM?si=fppwk94_I9H9SB64&t=5551

2) Daft Punk Alive 2007 in a pretty small 8500 intimate theatre in Berkeley, CA, called the Greek Theatre.

Holy Crap found some footage!!!!! wow. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AboZfL4g_kE

Had VIP EVERYTHING which was just badass area and quick dedicated drinks lines, or whatever. It was a few days after my birthday, I was with a sexy lady… it was just the best. I don’t think there were wild variations on that tour of their setlist. https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/daft-punk/2007/william-randolph-hearst-greek-theatre-berkeley-ca-2bd6502e.html

The images of the pyramid here are so great: https://thedaftpunkhistorian.weebly.com/behind-the-scenes.html

Life was good.

Life is still good.

3) Justice 2008 in San Francisco. Just wild fun.

Great setlist: https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/justice/2008/the-concourse-san-francisco-ca-5bdebb7c.html

4) Jungle at Bill Graham 2023 in SF was really, REALLY fantastic. Do they even count? I know NIN doesn’t? LOL https://soundchecksf.com/2023/09/09/jungle-live-tour-san-francisco-2023/

5) 21st September this year of 2024, Ray Charles, Smokey Robinson, and even more wrapped up into Anderson Paak and the Free Nationals for one of the best live performances I’ve ever seen in my life. Here’s some video from the night: https://photos.app.goo.gl/d8uLXfwe7F1t3Bf88

 

  • This looks like a Horror Movie! At least to Serge Gainsbourg. A celebration with children paying honor and homage with fake whiskey and smokes.

 

 

  • Portishead – Dummy, at 30:

“Those people bought the record and made the band big. But it’s a double edge-sword, isn’t it?” Barrow reflected years later in The New York Times. “In the sense of people actually having a dinner party and putting our music on, I would want to go in with a baseball bat and smash the [expletive] out of their fondue set.”

30 Years of Portishead’s ‘Dummy’ Portishead’s debut provided a wellspring of inspiration to unnumerable artists since its release three decades ago. Explore the history and lasting impact of this alluring classic. https://www.discogs.com/digs/features/thiry-years-of-portisheads-dummy/

 

 

  • McDonald’s Themed Black Sabbath Cover Band…. MAC SABBATH

 

 

PEOPLE CULTURE SOCIETY

 

  • Longform on freeing ourselves from the tyranny of the penny, something THAT COSTS US 3 CENTS TO MAKE EACH 1 CENT.

One thing we know for sure about America’s 1-cent coins, however, is that just one of them costs more than 3 cents to produce. https://www.nytimes.com/2024/09/01/magazine/worthless-pennies-united-states-economy.html

 

 

 

 

 

 

  • (More at the link on this amazing story!) –> The lost Andy Warhol image of Debbie Harry: Commodore famously commissioned Andy Warhol to demonstrate the artistic capabilities of its new Amiga 1000 computer in 1985. As part of his demonstration, Warhol created some digital art images, including a self-portrait of himself sitting in front of the computer, which in turn was displaying the self portrait. Another image he created was a famous portrait of Debbie Harry, the photogenic lead singer of the New Wave band Blondie.

In recounting the event, Debbie Harry said in her autobiography that she had a copy of the images from the event, and as far as she knew, only one other person had a copy. She did not identify the other person.

 

 

 

 

 

  • The Daredevil actress take Jon Bernthal on an ad-hoc D&D run to explain it to him. Amazing. This gave me goosebumps! =)
@ryanimeldm I’ve never thought of doing this when someone asks me about D&D. It’s brilliant, honestly. Deborah Ann Woll, you are my new DM spirit animal. #dndideas #dndcampaign #dndinspiration #dndtiktok #tabletop #dungeonsanddragons #dnd ? original sound – RyanImelDM

 

 

 

 

  • This breakdancing thing has two components: a fraud put on a fake moustache and trench coat and took over Australian breaking. Then, post-modernist academics defended her, and gaslit all of us, because they were scared to be outed as academic frauds in general. Amazing. But this woman seems to not just be horrible, a fraud, but a criminal grifter! BRAVO. You wouldn’t steal a succulent chinese meal!!!?!???!

 

 

This thread is amazing on the academic defense:

 

 

“FART PROUDLY” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fart_Proudly

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VEHICLES

 

 

 

  • My first car, the Datsun 200 SX! I searched for this lady and had a mental affair with her LOL:

When cars talked using tiny phonograph records: Nissan’s Voice Warning system Before digital circuitry was cheap, Nissan used little vinyl records to make cars talk. https://www.autoweek.com/car-life/but-wait-theres-more/a1875076/when-cars-talked-using-tiny-phonograph-records-nissans-voice-warning-system/

 

 

 

  • Meh… it’s more like 30. At least 20 of those are loved, but maybe it’s about no-crossover with niche audiences so the greater world underappreciates these…. but still… ENJOY!

The 50 Most Underappreciated Cars of All Time A panel of automotive writers rank six decades of vehicles that the collector market has criminally overlooked https://www.insidehook.com/autos/50-most-underappreciated-cars-all-time

 

  • Speaking of the Toronado, I love this Tom Waits love note to autos:

By Uncle FishbitsCategories: Newsletter