Kevin Smith: SMonologue #3, #4, #5

http://silentbobspeaks.com/?p=403

"Drop a little weight and it’ll be easier to drop a little more. For me it’s more about portion control: I’m an American, so everything I eat is like four feet tall. On Weight Watchers, I’ve been rocking the Smart Ones meals, which I’m using to train myself to remember that two boxes of cereal in one sitting is not a meal; it’s a freak show that belongs on the boardwalk at Coney Island, in the summertime."

Another humanoid species co-existed with early humans and Neanderthals

http://io9.com/5715516/another-humanoid-species-co+existed-with-early-humans-and-neanderthals

"The genome of the Denisovans is more diverged from modern humans than any two humans are from each other. It's almost exactly as diverged as the Neanderthal genome was. That's one of the reasons that we think the Denisovans and the Neanderthals are descendants of a single migration event into Eurasia."

ARmedia: augmented reality plugin 2.0

http://www.designboom.com/weblog/cat/16/view/12636/armedia-augmented-reality-plugin-20.html

"The new version also supports antialiasing to improve the appearance of the model,
provides more accessible export utilities, and allows the creation of multiple and custom fiduciary markers,
providing more user control over the 3D visualization, as well as the ability to combine multiple 3D objects in real space."

Demolition of the Paris Metro

http://www.sleepycity.net/posts/252/Demolition_of_the_Paris_Metro

"The Paris Metro and the service it provides are deeply intertwined into the fabric of the city. As the 4.5 million Parisians who ride it every day will probably attest it's the quickest way around whether it's for work, for play or both. The metro's distinctive art-nouveau style is unmistakable and the plant like green wrought iron entrances topped with the orange orbs and Metropolitan signage designed by Hector Guimard which sprout up all over the city lead one down to the gleaming white tiled platforms to be whisked away all over the city. On my first trip to Paris I arrived into Gare du Nord and entered the dense maze that is the metro. Despite the crowds, the noise and the distinct odour of piss, I was in love. The kind of love which inspires one to risk life, limb and deportation to get up close and personal."

Terry Gilliam's next project takes you into the Steampunk Britain of 1884

http://io9.com/5715735/terry-gilliams-next-project-takes-you-into-the-steampunk-britain-of-1884

"The movie will mix puppets, miniatures, CG animation and fuse the mouths and eyes of actors onto the the little heads of the puppets. Also it's apparently going to utilize four voices from the cast of Monty Python, though we don't know which actors Gilliam and Ollive will be using just yet."

The Harrier Jump Jet Manual

http://jalopnik.com/5715336/how-to-fly-the-harrier-jump-jet/gallery/

How do you cut a nanotube? Lots of compression

http://www.medicaldaily.com/news/20101218/4717/how-do-you-cut-a-nanotube-lots-of-compression.htm

"In a paper published this month in the British journal Proceedings of the Royal Society A, researchers at Brown University and in Korea document for the first time how single-walled carbon nanotubes are cut, a finding that could lead to producing more precise, higher-quality nanotubes. Such manufacturing improvements likely would make the nanotubes more attractive for use in automotive, biomedicine, electronics, energy, optics and many other fields."

Black Hole

http://www.rupertsanders.com/rupert.html#/sfv2/

Modern Times

"Made with no money, just a little time and a lot of passion."

Kowloon Walled City, 33,000+ Residents Lived Within 6.5 Acres

http://laughingsquid.com/kowloon-walled-city-33000-residents-lived-within-6-5-acres/

"Gutenberg, New Jersey is the densest United States town, with 56,000 people per square mile. Marine Division in Mumbai, India is currently the densest human inhabitance on earth, with ~300,000 people per square mile. Kowloon Walled City had a population density of 3.3 million people per square mile! Insane!"

Air Force Is Through With Predator Drones

http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2010/12/air-force-is-through-with-predator-drones/

"Unlike the Predator, the Reaper is no accidental warrior. Also built by General Atomics, it flies twice as fast (150-170 knots cruising, 260 max), at higher altitudes (around 50,000 feet), and carries ten times the payload (over 2 tons) as the Predator. That allows it to strap on the AGM-114 Hellfire missiles, as well as GBU-12 and GBU-38 precision bombs. And as a surveillance aircraft, it’s got more electrical power than the Predator, which means “we can integrate new or improved sensors on the aircraft,” Johnson says."

Lego Black Ops

The Definitive Inception Dream Layer Map, Drawn by Christopher Nolan Himself

http://gizmodo.com/5709292/the-definite-inception-dream-layer-map-drawn-by-christopher-nolan-himself

Word of the Day: Peon

peon
[pee-uhn, pee-on], noun
1. (in spanish America) a farm worker or unskilled laborer; day laborer.  
2. (formerly, esp. in Mexico) a person held in servitude to work off debts or other obligations.
3. any person of low social status, esp. one who does work regarded as menial or unskilled; drudge.
4. A member of the cult "Glorious Circle of Peepee", founded by The Exulted Brain H. Members partake in rites in which they shower and bath in the golden gift that The Exulted bestows upon them.

Origin:
1820–30; < Sp peón peasant, day laborer < VL *pedōn- (s. of *pedō) walker (whence ML pedōnēspeon pawn2), deriv. of L ped- (s. of pēs) foot infantry, OF

$5000 Short Film Leads to Hollywood Feature

Watch the short film here.

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/blogs/heat-vision/mark-wahlberg-producing-feature-film-57290

"Mark Wahlberg is producing the feature-length project alongside partner Steve Levinson in what is being developed as a starring vehicle for the actor, currently riding high on the buzz generated by The Fighter."

10 things we want from the new James Bond film

http://www.denofgeek.com/movies/691924/10_things_we_want_from_the_new_james_bond_film.html

"As previously stated, Quantum Of Solace had some great action scenes, but we could barely see what was going on, due to the film's rapid style of editing. The opening car chase, the boat sequence and most of the fight scenes, all of them were cut so rapidly you could barely see the action.

It's a shame, as you feel that all the stuntmen's work was wasted, if the audience couldn't see it. In comparison, Casino Royale's free-running sequence and airport chase sequence was filmed relatively steadily, so the audience could see the fights, Daniel Craig doing most of his stunts and more importantly, what was going on!"

All Things That Are Good in the World

Hit here, here and here for more.

Genetic Analysis

http://xkcd.com/830/

Word of the Day: Vagiant

vagiant
\ va-jahy-uhnt \  , noun;
1. (in folklore) a being in the form of a giant flower. Known to debranch trees and eat them whole.
2. A word to describe a male person who has shown themself to be both a massive douche and a quivering pussy.

Origin:
The Latin roots of vagiant  are va- , "without," and giant , "testicles, penis or spinal column of any kind"

Is Star Wars. Is Awesome.

Hit for more. Thanks to Brian H.

Colombian gangs use home-made submarines to get cocaine to Mexico.

http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/0,1518,732292,00.html

"The boat was divided into three sections. A hatch in the bow led to the cargo hold, which was barely a meter (3 feet) high. The crew had to crawl through the cargo hold on hands and knees, passing the packages of drugs, to reach the control station and the sleeping berths. Alonso positioned himself at the wheel, next to a GPS device for navigation and a radio. The diesel tanks were underneath the berths. The engine room, containing two turbo diesel engines, was behind Alonso. There was no light, there were no toilets, and there was barely enough room to stand up or lie down to sleep."


"A woman was murdered there a few weeks ago, and two others disappeared without a trace -- an act of revenge committed by the narcos after a botched transport. The crew of a smuggling boat had thrown some of its cargo overboard while fleeing from the coast guard. A few days later, the police proudly displayed the confiscated cargo. For the narcos, the incident was an act of betrayal, which has to be followed by retaliation."