Wednesday, July 30, 2003

Nicotinis: liquid butts Call it a liquid cigarette because this drink comes complete with the nicotine rush and tobacco aftertaste found in a pack of Camels. These tobacco-spiked martinis are being served up for die-hard smokers who don't want to leave their barstools and go outside to light up. (via FARK) [BoingBoing] 7:12:56 PM    comment []; Marriott agrees non-free WiFi is too expensive Marriott International Inc. (NYSE:MAR - news) will roll out free high-speed Internet access at a number of midrange hotels in the next year and a half, but guests at many top hotels will still have to pay, the company said on Tuesday. - I love this dynamic about hotels: the cheaper the hotel, the less likely it is that they'll screw you on telecommunications. via [BoingBoing] I agree. And sometimes nice web access is more important than 24 hour room service!! 7:10:49 PM    comment []; Tipi What happened to the tipi? - Carolynn [apple] 7/30/03; 3:43:01 PM A tipi is like a living thing....it needs care and constant adjustment. Somewhat like the old-style adobe, where you need to fix and replaster every year. I was touring so much and the tipi kept getting worse....It was a great extra bedroom while it lasted. Friends were fighting for the tipi. It was pretty romantic, I must admit, with the shadows from candle-light dancing over the canvas... 6:44:08 PM    comment []; Bird's nest - scanned I found a bird's nest on the ground after heavy wind last week. The bird used mostly my dog Arko's hair as building material. I placed the nest in my scanner. 3:27:10 PM    comment []; The tipi I used to have - see photos on "Opium"" CD 1:28:35 PM    comment []; Listening Lounge Now we have 23 songs available for free in our Listening Lounge. 1:17:45 PM    comment []; Toshiba doubles losses Japan's biggest computer chip firm shocks investors by posting a first quarter loss of more than $300m, sending its shares down 8%. [BBC | TECH] Ouch! 12:54:53 PM    comment []; Yoghurt I'll keep you a-breast of any yogurt I see w/o pectin. - Dave lol - that's funny. 12:46:41 PM    comment []; Santa Fe 1988 12:19:14 PM    comment []; Pectin + Silicone I have found that almost all yoghurts, even the natural and organic ones, contain pectin or some other thickening agent. That's understandable because without pectin yoghurt very easily "falls apart" and becomes soupy when shaken during transport. But, while pectin is a natural product I find that yoghurt that contains pectin is like breasts containing silicone - it just doesn't feel right and is unnaturally stiff. Do U know what I mean? Well, Pavel's Originall Russian yoghurt does not contain pectin...please let me know if U know of another yoghurt that doesn't... 11:54:43 AM    comment []; RIAA will take 2191.78 years to sue everyone Silly but technically considered piece in the Inquirer (UK) today in which a reader calculates the money and time it would likely take for the RIAA to actually sue all P2P fileswappers: She said: "I pulled out my calculator to see just how long it would take the RIAA to sue all 60 million P2P music file traders at a rate of 75 a day. 60,000,000/75 = 800,000 days to subpoena each person or 800,000 days/365 days in a year = 2191.78 years to subpoena each person". Michaela points out that it's unrealistic to suppose that the RIAA will have any money left in 2191 years, and she even wonders whether the trade association will exist then. Plus, she points out, given the rate of tech advancement, it's likely that we'll have moved on to many different types of music media in even a hundred years. Sharman Networks (Kazaa) lobbyist Philip Corwin in DC more soberly observes, "I would venture that the RIAA strategy is based on the assumption that most of those sued will fold quickly and settle given the extraordinarily disproportionate statutory penalties that can be claimed under copyright law ($30 million for the two copyrights on each of 100 song files worth $99 retail). However, if the attorneys for the sued drag out the proceeding with motions and novel defenses (much less countersuits) the cumulative costs of prosecuting the suits could quickly drain the coffers of even a wealthy trade association." [BoingBoing] 7:55:30 AM    comment []; Train speed record A Eurostar train breaks the UK rail speed record by travelling at 208mph during safety tests. [BBC News] Give me a train over a plane any day. Quieter, more spacious (some trains provide power + internet access for your laptop), and if you consider all the time wasted checking into a flight, also much faster... 7:53:54 AM    comment []; Warming trend How's this for irony? Global warming has gotten so bad in Alaska that it is no longer possible for oil companies to go up there and drill for more oil. According to a story in the Houston Chronicle: A state rule says heavy exploration equipment can be used on fragile tundra only when the ground is frozen to 12 inches deep and covered by at least 6 inches of snow. However, because winters in the Arctic are becoming shorter, the number of days the tundra meets those conditions has shrunk from more than 200 in 1970 to only 103 last year, a state document notes.... [collision detection] 7:27:43 AM    comment [];

© Copyright 2003 Ottmar Liebert. Last update: 8/25/03; 11:58:16 AM.