Archive for January, 2007
Wednesday, January 31st, 2007
shadow puppets to sell volkswagen
The following video is the commercial for the Volkswagen Phaeton that features a clever use of shadow puppets and computer graphics. In case you do not know from the Phaeton, it was a failure in the U.S. market a couple of years back as no one really wanted to buy a luxuary priced Volkswagen. If […]
No Comments » - Posted in video by Marty Finestone
Wednesday, January 31st, 2007
speak n spell is online!
The classic educational toy Speak ‘N’ Spell is now online via this emulator. Let hours of jittery computer voiced fun return.
via found on the web
No Comments » - Posted in activity, find, product, website by Marty Finestone
Wednesday, January 31st, 2007
o-14 in dubai
The O-14 Office building in Dubai is a 22 stories tall, the 300,000 square-foot commercial tower. The façade is comprised of 16″ thick concrete containing over 1,000 circular openings. Designed by RUR Architecture, the building’s ground was broken in December of 2006 and is classified as a green building.
From Archinet:
The shell is not only the […]
No Comments » - Posted in architecture, design by Marty Finestone
Wednesday, January 31st, 2007
sarah silverman + jimmy kimmel, what they have learned
Every month Esquire includes a great feature in its magazine that is called ‘What I’ve Learned‘. This feature is the results of an interview of a notable person presented in a format that typically lists off life some of their experiences, nuggets of knowledge and the like. Last month’s issue, January 2007, included what Sarah […]
No Comments » - Posted in person, writing by Marty Finestone
Wednesday, January 31st, 2007
picture - england’s football association cup final, 1938
Credit:NMPFT/Syndication International/Science & Society Picture Library
A photograph of Huddersfield Town players lining up to shake George VI’s (1895-1952) hand before the start of the 1938 FA Cup Final at Wembley Stadium, taken by Malindine for the Daily Herald newspaper on 30 April, 1938. This was the first time the FA Cup Final had been transmitted […]
No Comments » - Posted in find, picture, sport by Marty Finestone
Wednesday, January 31st, 2007
getting footloose
The New York Times reports that Christian Evangelicals are warming up to the idea of dancing and no longer seeing it as a sin.
In the past 10 years, several of America’s most established evangelical schools, including Baylor University in Texas, Wheaton College in Illinois and Cornerstone University in Michigan, have lifted restrictions on dancing, even […]
No Comments » - Posted in culture, thinking by Marty Finestone
Tuesday, January 30th, 2007
post #600
Gosh, I almost did not catch this, but this is the 600th post for Activitybook. It all started back at the end of October/early November of 06 and it has been going strong since (as evidenced by the bloggies nomination for Best New Weblog).
I feel like I should make something special out of this […]
No Comments » - Posted in site-related by Marty Finestone
Tuesday, January 30th, 2007
kick the doors down! library jackets
Overdue Media has put out these Federales (note, not the real Federales. I just mean federal agentish) looking jackets with the words ‘Library’ pictured loud a clear on the front and back.
The jacket was inspired by a strip of the comic Unshelved, which is by Bill Barnes and Gene Ambaum (read the strip’s […]
No Comments » - Posted in fa-fa-fa-fa-fashion, find, writing by Marty Finestone
Tuesday, January 30th, 2007
crying over onions
Here are some tips for avoiding tearing up while cutting onions that I have picked up along the way:
- put the onion in the freezer for a few minutes before cutting as this will reduce the amount of juices that get released;
- chew on a toothpick while cutting; or
- run hot water over the knife […]
No Comments » - Posted in food, tips by Marty Finestone
Tuesday, January 30th, 2007
i can’t believe it’s science - jan 29+
Seed Magazine’s ‘I Can’t Believe It’s Science‘ feature for this week highlights the following news items: A sloth redefines sloth, a scream kills hundreds of chickens, and a researcher determines the world’s most disgusting sound.
No Comments » - Posted in news, science, thinking by Marty Finestone
Tuesday, January 30th, 2007
judge blocks constructions of UCal sports facility
Citing environmental and seismic concerns, a judge blocked construction of a $125 million sports center at the University of California that would mean felling an old oak grove.
via espn
No Comments » - Posted in business, green, news, sport by Marty Finestone
Tuesday, January 30th, 2007
steve ballmer’s office
(c) 2007, The New York Times - photo by Stuart Isett
The New York Times has this ‘Day in the Life’ photo piece of Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer at the Redmond, WA HQ.
No Comments » - Posted in business, person, picture by Marty Finestone
Tuesday, January 30th, 2007
‘i own you’ - rejected godaddy superbowl ad
This ad for godaddy.com was rejected for broadcast during the Super Bowl. The ad seems rather tame and the hook is a bit of a sophmoric play on language. There has been worse on the airwaves, which leads me to think that the U.S. networks really have been chilled by the FCC’s large fines as […]
No Comments » - Posted in business, product, this can't be, video by Marty Finestone
Tuesday, January 30th, 2007
the life of a candy bar wrapper
Here is an odd, but enjoyable CG short that I found on Google Video - it’s about the lifespan of a candy wrapper, but with a message. The background music is quite good.
No Comments » - Posted in find, food, green, video by Marty Finestone
Tuesday, January 30th, 2007
math on the simpsons
Hey Simpsons fans, check out this quirky article, by Erica Klarreich, on the use of mathematics in the show.
The Simpsons writers often play on mathematical cultural stereotypes, extracting humor by exaggerating both the mathematical illiteracy of the U.S. public and the nerdiness and self-aggrandizement of the mathematically gifted. In a characteristic exchange, in the third-dimension […]
No Comments » - Posted in science, tidbit, tv by Marty Finestone
Monday, January 29th, 2007
arcade fire’s neon bible has been leaked
As with just about every new album that is recorded, the Arcade Fire’s new album ‘Neon Bible‘ has been leaked out in torrent and p2p land. That’s not the story here.
I am opening up this thread to those who have *ahem* accidentally found it on their hard drives to comment on. I cannot weigh in […]
1 Comment » - Posted in site-related, sound off by Marty Finestone
Monday, January 29th, 2007
hitachi buys the rights to feature a hawaiian tree
Hitachi Ltd. will be paying $400,000 U.S. a year to feature the giant monkeypod tree from the Moanalua Garden in Honolulu in its advertisements and corporate literature. Hitachi has used the tree’s image in the past as it is quite well known in Japan.
The tree is a vital symbol of Hitachi’s worldwide business and corporate […]
No Comments » - Posted in business, news by Marty Finestone
Monday, January 29th, 2007
joni mitchell celebrated
Singer/songwriter Joni Mitchell was inducted into the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame yesterday in Toronto. Here is a video of a January 1970 live performance of ‘Big Yellow Taxi’.
1 Comment » - Posted in music, person by Marty Finestone
Monday, January 29th, 2007
is the art of the mixtape lost?
Sean O’Hagan, writing, for the Observer wonders where the mixtape has gone in the age of the iPod.
In the days before iTunes, when you wanted to impress a girl you lovingly put together a compilation tape from your LPs. Now - thanks to the wondrous choice of digital music - mix tapes and vinyl are […]
1 Comment » - Posted in music, thinking by Marty Finestone
Monday, January 29th, 2007
why is yoghurt the good stuff
Women’s Health has a great piece on why yoghurt is a great food to eat (this applies to women and men btw).
Your digestive tract houses much of your immune system, a complex constellation of cells and tissues that fight pathogenic organisms that can make you sick. Having more of the beneficial organisms there may help […]
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