He's been "effecting" people ever since

Today would be the 200th birthday of Johann Christian Doppler,who is best known, of course, for his Effect. Not only is the Doppler Effect used daily in the course of forecasting the weather, it is also used by astronomers to calculate the expansion of the universe. As Doppler himself knew, it can also be used to tell which way trumpeters on traincars are going.

The attack on Dutch "coffee shops" has begun

I've always been a big proponent for the EU and it is doing good things over there in the Old World. But, as an avid fan of Amsterdam, and a member of NORML this new action by the EU is upsetting. But you can always buy Duftkisse in Zurich which are little scented pillows with a special surprise inside! I love special surprises.

She may be a bag of trouble

I stumbled across this website dedicated to public health posters. Included is anti-smoking, venereal disease and HIV/AIDS. This site comes replete with essays and deconstructions of visual culture and visual imagery and interferes somewhat with my hokey high.

Quote of the Day

"If you want to see my penis, you'll have to fly to Britain."
-Ewen McGregor, New York Post

Recommended winter reading list...

...by my new favorite American Citizen.

BBC Seamonster Game

A pretty cool Seamonster game from the BBC takes you through time better than Apu's eats. The ingame video clips are pretty nice work. Check the Fact Files on various creatures to see additional video (req. RealPlayer) and pictures.

This game requires Flash to play.

"Truth"?

The Russian newspaper Pravda, whose name means "Truth", was notorious in the Soviet era as the propoganda arm of the Kremlin. Its reputation for journalistic integrity improved since the fall of the USSR--at least until they started reporting that an advanced civilization lives inside the hollow Earth. (via Fark)

Finally, a war we can all get behind!

Eagle-eyed Canada watchers have discovered key evidence of an immenet threat to the sovereignty of the United States that should bring the blood of any true patriot to an immediate boil. A granite map of Canada embedded in the floor of the new CBC building includes Alaska as a Canadian province, thus tipping us to their nefarious intentions. Since oil is at stake, it is clear we must immediately invade and annex the canucks once and for all.

Album Covers (Re)Imagined

The Greatest Album Covers That Never Were is a touring exhibition of album covers not as they were, but as conceived anew by various artists. One hundred graphic and fine artists were asked to recreate the definitive album by their favorite artists. Many of the creations are interesting counterparts to the classic originals. Our old favorite Kurt Vonnegut even contibutes with a faux-Phish cover. Martha Rich's Dolly Parton cover gets right to the essence. Check 'em out and vote for your favorites.
Luckily for Memphians, the show will be at the Brooks in 2004.

Masturbator and Commander

Is anybody else getting a real creepy vibe from Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World? Sure, it's getting good reviews, but its target audience seems to be men who fantisize about being dominated by Russell Crowe.

Now don't get me wrong--I've got nothing against a little thinly veiled homoeroticism. Hell, I've even been known to fetishize the occasional nautically themed authority figure myself. Maybe I'm just not into glamorizing the Royal Navy--the institution that Winston Churchill famously described as being held together by "rum, sodomy, and the lash" (A.O. Scott says in his excellent New York Times review that the movie "settles for two out of three.") Or maybe it's that I think Crowe is a hack and an asshole and I would rather break down and see the Coen's latest. Or maybe I prefer to save up my money and sate my need for authority in a different manner.

By the way, Joel and Ethan came off pretty well in the Guardian's top 40 directors poll, but Peter Jackson got the shaft! Screw that! They should boot the Wachowski brothers from the list in favor of the infinitely superior Jackson.

Two things are guaranteed

Death and letters. And while it is hard to believe that any regular Memphilter reader would not already have a death letter covered in some way, there is still one option left: mylastemail.com. Won't your loved ones be surprised? I am sure mom will get a kick out of my posthumous Nigerian spammer gag:

Dear mom,

I you are reading this, I have good news and bad news. The bad news is, I have met the Grim Reaper and have gone somewhere over the rainbow, to the land of Burt Convy, Methusaleh, Jimmie Walker's career, milk, and honey. But nevermind that, because it opens up a fantastic oportunity for you and the rest of the family. You see, I was in the midst of a significant transaction that was to--and now unfortunately never will--bring me riches beyond imagination. I am sure my contact, Mr. Joseph Sangana, Esq. of Lagos, Nigeria, will be happy to pick up with you where I so abruptly left off. The deal is being brokered by my counsel who prefers to remain anonymous. He is referred to in the documents simply as 'jimoto'. As they say, my loss is your gain. Tally-ho. Arrivederci. 'Round the campus.

Your son,

samuelad

I think we should consider a Memphilter co-operative business venture: MyLastBillboard. Why waste a personal message on something as here-and-now as a marriage proposal? Save it for the rainiest of days, no? Or MyLastJumbotronMessage. That's the ticket.

The Meatrix

Although this probably won't convert anyone to vegetarianism (I do love a good burger), hopefully it will inspire some to cough up an extra buck at the store for the organic alternatives.
Jeez, no wonder my eyes glow when I turn off the lights.

Be Good, Smile Pretty

Those are the words that ended a note that Don Droz wrote back to his wife and infant daughter while he was serving in Vietnam. Shortly thereafter, Droz was killed in an ambush on the Mekong River. Be Good, Smile Pretty is the name of the film that chronicles Tracy Droz Tragos' search to learn more about her father and the circumstances of his death. I saw the movie last night on the PBS's Independent Lens, and I must say that it is without question one of the most moving documentaries you will ever see. After years of skirting the subject of her father's death, Tracy searched for his name on the internet and came across an account of the ambush (pdf). About two weeks later, she set out with a video camera to interview members of her family and her father's Navy friends (including John Kerry), as well as eyewitnesses to the attack. The result is not only a tribute to Lieutenant Droz, but also clearly a cathartic journey for daughter whose father only met her one time. Although no broadcasts are listed, check out the Orphans of War website as it appears they will list future broadcasts there.

Slick Lilly Lives!

Turns out at least one question at the recent Rock the Vote Democratic presidential debate was a plant. How do you feel about the environment?

Ze S C R I B B L E R

Taking picture conversions in another direction, check out the Scribbler. With the small investment of a rough line drawing you create, the Scribbler pencils a drawing effect that may be more impressive than you'd think.

Note that you can pause to change colors, line thickness, transparency, etc, and then continue with the process. You can also swing by the gallery to see visitor contributions (sorry, my failed attempts at art here are less than laughable).

A grand little utility

JPG 2 ASC is a handy little internet based service that, not surprisingly, converts your jpeg pictures to ASCII text. For example, it turns this into this. I encourage you to post your own cool conversions.

Conspiracy theorists rest easy...

it's just me doing these things with my mind. Sorry.

Meanwhile, in space...

Voyager I has traveled roughly 90 AU (that's 8.4 billion of your Earth miles) and may have reached the heliopause, the boudary marking the beginning of deep space. Unfortunately, the device Voyager I used to measure the solar wind, which could have confirmed the spacecraft's extrasolar status, burned out several years ago.

Voyager may have the right idea, because the sun has gone totally apeshit.

Antique Automatons

Here's an interesting site on the history of robots in the nineteenth and early twentieth century. The robots ranged from the very useful, such as everyone's favorite Boilerplate, to the just plain weird. (Courtesy of MetaFilter.)

Elvis and being a "racist"

I had a conversation about Elvis this week in which I suddenly found myself defending Elvis against racist accusations. There was no evidence offered other than Elvis copied "black music" and gave black musicians no credit-- something I quickly disproved, to my satisfaction at least. Let's say I got a little angry and started wondering what is a "racist"? Do racists donate money to the NAACP? Did racists support the Civil Rights Movement? There's not one shred of documentation, not one hint in any Elvis documentary, biography, or archive, not one accusation while Elvis still was living that I can find indicating he was a racist, uttered racist comments, or did racist acts. I've always considered myself an Elvis appreciator being inundated with Elvis at birth, and this argument made me realize that I'm a much bigger fan than I thought. Going into Internet mode to find info on this subject I encountered some of the most ludicrous, hack journalism I've seen since pre-WWII German propaganda. I am beseeching the Memphilter-Mensch to find more. Here's an example of what I found from a guy who writes for Nuvo. He calls it a diatribe, I call it pseudo-journalistic buffoonery.

Quote of the day

"I feel as happy as a pig in mud."
    --Karl Heinz Hille, winner at the eagerly anticipated World Beard and Moustache Chamionships.

Exactly how bad did you want your MTV?

Find out by taking this '80s music quiz. Actually, this quiz is so long I cannot believe I completed it, but it reminded me of a few songs that I haven't listened to as of late. I made an 87.5% on the test, but I fully expect some of the Memphilterati--time permitting--to trounce that score.

Best costume ever

Need I say more?