Americans still not tolerant of the mentally ill

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE68F59B20100916

A story of eternal despair.

http://web.archive.org/web/20101105025551/http://dosmasks.com/2009/01/03/strength/

Ancient Virus Gave Wasps Their Sting

http://news.sciencemag.org/sciencenow/2009/02/12-02.html?etoc

Some people have difficulty with the unexpected.

http://www.sfwchan.com/index.php?id=2980

PSA: Challenging a YouTube Take Down with Fair Use

http://vimeo.com/11331632

Hatsune Miku - World is Mine

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EuJ6UR_pD5s&feature=related

I thought this was cute.

http://www.rocket.ly/home/2010/4/26/top-ten-reasons-you-should-quit-facebook.html

World's Most Generic News Report

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0zYYCCsSjkw

I hate Real ID.

http://us.battle.net/en/realid/faq

So, basically, if I want to chat with people across games using b.net, I have to share my real name, along with the real name of all my other friends I've shared my real name with. That combined with using email as a login name makes it seem like they are trying to get people's accounts and ID info stolen. On top of that, the password has significant restrictions on what characters can be used, further helping brute force password hacks. B.net seems severely unsafe to me.

The power of Netflix

http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/10_39/b4196021822248.htm?cmpid=spn.invrel.BWinnovindex.netflix.movies

Sometimes I think rental services like Netflix could be a greater threat to media companies than Piracy is.

Outlaws of EVE

http://www.massively.com/2010/08/08/eve-evolved-outlaws-of-eve/

{paywall} Living without money

http://women.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/women/article6928744.ece

An amusing video about an amusing invention.

http://pogpog.com/v/why-lie-if-you-can-teleport/

Walking on water.

http://www.wimp.com/walkwater/

A lesson about Piracy.

http://vimeo.com/4802347

He's got a definite point about the future: piracy + 3d printers is gonna really mess things up someday.

I'm glad I don't live in Japan.

http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/ValuesDissonance/Anime

I have read a sizable amount of manga, and come to the conclusion that I'm glad I was not born in Japan. I feel like this list of Japanese values in Anime, that don't fly well in America, helps explain why. In general, I'd say the Japanese are too fond of victim blaming, bullying, and abuse.

...

http://www.feministe.us/blog/archives/2006/10/31/score-one-for-the-rapists/

Wtf?

http://trueslant.com/tassi/2009/12/04/muscle-march-is-everything-that%E2%80%99s-wtf-about-japanese-games-and-its-coming-to-america/

Japan makes some very odd games.

One puzzle after another...

http://www.jibble.org/cyber-security-challenge-uk-winner/

Transcending the nature vs nurture debate.

http://thesocietypages.org/socimages/2010/08/03/transcending-the-naturenurture-debate-fallons-brain/

It's the whole mix that matters, not the individual parts.

http://www.fastcompany.com/blog/chris-dannen/techwatch/google-guide-infuriating-your-isp

Caramelldansen with english lyrics

https://web.archive.org/web/20130415094147/http://www.newgrounds.com/portal/view/542566

This one takes a while to download.
So, the original song was from Sweden (I think), then got sped up and made popular in Japan, and now someone has made english lyrics for it. Makes me wonder just how many countries this meme has gotten to.

Prehomosexual?

http://www.scientificamerican.com/blog/post.cfm?id=is-your-child-a-prehomosexual-forec-2010-09-15

A conclusion, about global warming.

I've concluded that the only solution to global warming, is green energy sources. Regardless of how much we improve our efficiency, our societies will continue to use more energy. So, the only long term solution, is to find methods of generating energy, that don't mess up the environment.

"The Internet is broken. I should know: I designed it."

http://spectrum.ieee.org/computing/networks/a-radical-new-router/0

Rocket Jump

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7XzdZ4KcI8Y

We picked up a prostitute today.

http://web.archive.org/web/20100813121154/http://theadventuresofsuperwife.com/2008/12/we-picked-up-a-prostitute-today/

Posted by Molly on December 28th, 2008.

No, really.

B and I were on our way to the grocery store, and saw a young girl on the side of the road. She was in high heels, and sort of shuffling down the snowy sidewalk. We looped around a parking lot, pulled over and offered her a ride. She said she was supposed to meet a friend, and they didn’t show up so she didn’t really have anywhere to go. It was about -2° outside, so I insisted she get in the car and at least warm up. She gratefully obliged. I could tell she was younger than me, dark hair and makeup on that was a little too dark for her skin. Her eyelids were covered in glitter and she had earrings going up each ear. We drove around the block and I offered to take her up to the convenience store up the street. We pulled up, and B told her to wait in the car, he’d grab her something to eat and something warm to drink.

As B walked away, she looked at me and said “I’m sure you know what I was doing” I nodded my head. Tears welled up in her eyes, and I could tell that she was embarrassed. I smiled and told her it was okay, we just couldn’t let her stand out there while it was so cold out. She smiled, and started telling me about herself… she told me her name, and that she just turned 23, about how she said she had one of her poems published and how she wanted to go to school to be nurse. She wanted to help other people with addictions, as she is a heroin addict herself.

I could see on her face that she was out of her element, that she was so used to dealing with low lives, dealers and junikes that it was almost awkward being around people on the straight and narrow. It was like a jolt back into the real world.

We talked for about 15 minutes, and she told me she was born in a prison in Arizona, and her mother walked the streets with her and gave her heroin for the first time. She had been through treatment twice, and both times did very well, but fell back into her old ways quickly when she was forced to fend for herself.

I was at a loss of what to say, I felt like I needed to say something profound, to give her hope or a shred of inspiration. I just looked at her, my heart breaking and wishing I could hand her a magic pill that would take away her addiction and keep her from having to have sex with strangers for money.

B got back in the car with a small pizza and a big hot chocolate, and a bottle of power aide for the road. She sat in the car and finished the pizza, and we made small talk. She thanked us again, and walked into the gas station. B and I just sat there for a second quietly, then went on our way to the grocery store.

Different photos tell different stories.

http://www.petapixel.com/2010/06/11/exploring-different-perspectives-of-poverty-through-photography/

IE9

http://www.itnews.com/web-services-development/22478/ie9-has-google-chrome-run?source=ITNEWSNLE_nlt_itndaily_2010-09-15

If Microsoft is trying to outdo Google's Chrome browser, then that would mean Google's Chrome browser is a success. The whole point, was to inspire other browser companies to improve their browsers.

Final Fantasy XIII

Final Fantasy XIII impressed me in one area: the quality of the characters. While hitting most of the usual character tropes, they managed to give each character a depth usually lacking in these stories. Unfortunately, the deep characters are pretty much the only thing the story has. The plot itself, is rather lacking.

Regarding the gameplay, I felt like the button pressing was there just for the sake of having it. I think the gameplay might've been better with a paradigm assigned to each button, and all characters on auto, with paradigm shifting being the primary focus of combat, but that would probably have made the combat system even less popular. Also, the menu system is really a terrible way to manage combat UI. I guess it's tradition.

Personally, I liked the first 20 or so hours better than the latter 20 or so hours. Many of the reviews I read complained about the first 20 being the worst part due to lack of options and not being able to control who was in the party. I actually liked it better, because it forced me to keep changing my tactics and I felt like I had a greater variety of successful playstyles available to me. After I gained access to all party members, I felt like I got forced into having a sentinal out at all times, which made me feel less free to fool around than I had been previously.

How the FBI defines rape?

http://www.salon.com/life/broadsheet/2010/09/14/rape_hearing

"The carnal knowledge of a female forcibly and against her will."

Wow, I didn't realize the FBI definition for rape was so... lacking.

Not enough talking.

One disturbing trend I've noticed in Manga, is a strong tendency for characters to make decisions without consulting the people who are affected by the decision. Deciding what is best for someone else, without asking them if they agree, is foolish. It's important in any relationship, to allow the other party to have a say in what you do, especially if it affects them.

Recettear

I've recently purchased Recettear on steam, and I found it to be a very enjoyable game. It's quite different from anything else I've played, so I can't really categorize it. Personally, I think $20 is a bit too much, and would consider $10 to be a more appropriate price, but I have a tendency to consider most games overpriced. I typically seek to get 2 hours of fun for every dollar spent, if not more, and I'm nearing the end of my interest in the game after 25 hours. Took about 8 hours to beat, the rest was spent fooling around, and trying to beat my own self made records for things.

Stereotypes can cause everyone trouble.

http://www.salon.com/life/broadsheet/2010/09/01/boys_stereotyped/index.html

EULAs are getting scary.

http://www.geek.com/articles/news/an-eula-on-every-book-jacket-court-declares-it-illegal-to-resell-software-20100913/

http://www.calamitiesofnature.com/archive/?c=416

Berserker - Failed Containment

http://www.sfdt.com/showcase/files/berserker_259.swf

There is a problem in America's debt collection system.

http://www.startribune.com/investigators/101723868.html?elr=KArks:DCiU1OiP:DiiUiD3aPc:_Yyc:aUU

"in Minnesota, collectors can take people's money without proving in court the debt is owed."

"When mistakes occur, consumers often must go to court and prove it. Their money already taken, they typically cannot afford an attorney and must navigate the court system alone."

That sounds pretty scary.

We need better therapists.

http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/anger-in-the-age-entitlement/200905/emotional-abuse-why-your-individual-therapy-didnt-help-and-

It's scary to realize that as more and more people are in need of good mental help, very few are able to get it, even if they try.

Resonance of Fate

When I read reviews of Resonance of Fate, many of them seemed to think the game was incredibly hard. After playing the game myself, and then watching a friend of mine play, we both got a little confused as to why people thought the game was challenging.

The biggest challenge in Resonance of Fate, was figuring out how to play. While the game's tutorial does explain the rules, it doesn't really explain how to win. It is up to the players to figure out what works and what doesn't.

What I find worrisome, is the possibility that people are getting too accustomed to having games explain everything. If people are always told exactly what they need to do, how will they learn to think for themselves or solve problems that haven't yet been solved?

Beware of Facebook.

http://www.cheerupemokid.net/comic/2010/06/15/girlfriend-3

To link, or not to link?

Lately it seems my posts have all just been links to interesting things I've found on the internet, mostly through StumbleUpon. I can't help but think this isn't the best way to do a blog. Unfortunately, I seem to be running out of things to say that don't require lots of context to understand.

Google planning to make AI more accessible.

http://singularityhub.com/2010/08/25/google-puts-artificial-intelligence-into-the-cloud-with-new-api/

A cubicle toy?

http://www.shoeboxblog.com/?p=16296

A "Mild" Syndrome

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UJ1MRETny3Q

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x227pq_absolut-vodka-protest_auto

Youth happiness is on the decline.

http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/freedom-learn/201001/the-dramatic-rise-anxiety-and-depression-in-children-and-adolescents-is-it

Quicktime Vulnerability Found

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2010/08/30/apple_quicktime_critical_vuln/

Hormones are not a toy.

http://bodyodd.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2010/07/30/4780396-womens-hormone-cream-can-screw-up-your-kids-pets

Interesting Game.

http://www.alexanderocias.com/loved.php

Quite unusual.

http://blog.dianarajchel.com/2010/07/27/feminist-rant-section-so-what-are-we-back-to-she-tempted-me-and-women-who-consciously-hurt-other-women/