Rexfeng

If you’ve been looking for one of the best made bag products on planet earth and have $3750 to spend on a camera bag, your product has arrived!

Product Description
A strong and protective camera bag in Damier Graphite canvas. Ideal for carrying small and medium sized cameras, with several useful compartments for accessories too.

I’m sure they’ll sell a lot of these to the Leica crowd.

I remember seeing the Shure earbud t-shirts that said “my earbuds cost more than your iPod“, will we see the “my bag cost more than your camera kit” t-shirts?

This is no slight on Louis Vuitton, their stuff is exceptionally well made and they support their products.

Visit Louis Vuitton

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New West Village restaurant BFB Highline is charging right out of the gate with one of those insane eating challenges that sometimes prompt people to wonder about the future of humanity: To win, the diner has to consume the entirety of three, ten-ounce pork and beef "Heisenburgers," in one hour. Cheese, toppings, and the bun must also be finished, and the diner gets three napkins to cope with all this. No bathroom breaks are permitted per the rules, but unlimited drinks are encouraged. Losers pay full retail for the burgers, naturally, which must to be "cooked medium at most," at $15.95 each. Winners get a free meal and a spot on the wall of fame. So far, one person has lost.

It's kind of weird to see a challenge like this in the city. Maybe there's a small subset of New Yorkers desperately seeking things like this nine-pound, 6,000-calorie raft of carbs and fat made up of sausage links, eggs, and bacon rashers strung together with crown of toast? Thing is, though, is that the so-called "Kidz Breakfast" is served in seaside Norfolk, England, where they have to come up with insane combo meal challenges just to stave off depression in the very unsunny off season.

The city may be home to Kenka's four-pound Japanese curry plate and a ghastly hot challenge version at Brick Lane Curry House. Neither of these things seem to have much of a following because they're on menus with other spicy or outlandish choices. And other venues known for their food challenges — Yummy Village, Buffalo Cantina — have closed, leaving behind curiosities like the habañero-infused “Punisher” shot at Mojave in Astoria. New Yorkers don't need the implied danger of seven-pound burritos, or pho with two pounds of meat and two pounds of noodles, because we deal with more genuine challenges on daily basis, just by crossing the street.

Perhaps in awareness of such considerations, BFB Highline's gauntlet comes with assets, and a pedigree: Chef Chris Mitchell cooked at Fatta Cuckoo, and the Breslin before launching BFB Highline, which also serves things like French fries with bacon salt, for a not-so-over-the-top $4. And the beef that's ground and mixed with fatty pork to make those burgers? It's Pat LaFrieda dry-aged rib eye, of course.

Read more posts by Hugh Merwin

Filed Under: gauntlets, bfb highline, the heisenburger

Great piece for Fast Company by Om Malik:

The strategy today is simple: In order to move fast, build what you can’t buy or risk losing control of your fate and becoming the next Palm, Motorola, or HTC. And if, in the process, you disrupt an Oracle or a Qualcomm? So be it.

All it took was a single sample of frozen Siberian soil for an international collaboration of researchers to discover, and revive, a new type of "giant virus" — a virus whose unusually large size means scientists can spot it through a light microscope.

Indeed, despite being frozen for over 30,000 years, Pithovirus sibericum still packs a punch: a simple thawing procedure allowed it to infect a throng of unsuspecting single-cell organisms for the first time in thousands of years. And given that climate change is already causing the ground to thaw in regions such as the Arctic and parts of Alaska, scientists fear that this lab experiment could eventually take to the field, leading to the spontaneous revival of ancient and unknown...

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This Titanfall commercial is better than most video game ads. Of course, once the game comes out, you won't be leaving the house for nice walks as much.

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Phil Plait, writing for Slate:

Here’s the thing: If you listen to Fox News, or right-wing radio, or read the denier blogs, you’d have to think climate scientists were complete idiots to miss how fake global warming is. Yet despite this incredibly obvious hoax, no one ever publishes evidence exposing it. Mind you, scientists are a contrary lot. If there were solid evidence that global warming didn’t exist, or that CO2 emissions weren’t the culprit, there would be papers in the journals about it. Lots of them.

I base this on my own experience with contrary data in astronomy. In 1998, two teams of researchers found evidence that the expansion of the Universe was not slowing down, as expected, but actually speeding up. This idea is as crazy as holding a ball in your hand, letting go, and having it fall up, accelerating wildly into the sky. Yet those papers got published. They inspired lively discussion (to say the least) and motivated further observations. Careful, meticulous work was done to eliminate errors and confounding factors, until it became very clear that we were seeing an overturning of the previous paradigm. It took years, but now astronomers accept that the Universal expansion is accelerating and that dark energy is the culprit.

From Drinks

The Queens Kickshaw boast one of America's most extensive cider lists.

A few years back, ordering a glass of cider was simple. All you needed to do was belly up to the bar and say "I'll have a cider." and the bartender would pour you a pint of whatever was available: Woodchuck, Hardcore, Ace, or even Original Sin. Back then, ordering cider by name wasn't necessary; there was never more than one on the list.

But the last few years have brought about some change in the cider scene. With the rise of the American cider pub, dozens of new cider makers every year, and a recent wave of European imports, today's cider drinker has more options than ever before. In Queens, New York, Queens Kickshaw offers over 30 ciders by the glass or bottle. And out in Seattle, Capitol Cider has 20 ciders on tap alone.

A long cider list can feel daunting at first, but it is also the gateway to your new favorite cider. And once you know the lay of the land—and a few good questions to ask—choosing the right glass for any occasion is easy.

Sweet or Dry?

Every beverage director and bar owner we asked said the first question they always ask a guest is about sweetness, and everything follows from there. If you're looking for something juicy, fruity, and sweet, don't be ashamed! If you're craving something dry and tannic, voice your preference right away. This simple choice reduces any cider list in half.

What Else Do You Drink?

Are you a fan of Champagne? Then you'll probably like a crisp, effervescent cider. Prefer a funky Belgian Lambic? Grab yourself a bottle of Spanish sidra. In fact, any experience with beer, wine, or even previous ciders makes for an excellent starting point when you're chatting with a server about which cider to order. David Flaherty, Beer & Cider Director at Terroir in New York City, tells us that "having a good sense of what someone likes will give a server a great sense of what journey to take them on."

You can help your server recommend something you'll like by mentioning a few of the characteristics of your favorite beverage. Perhaps you like when a Chardonnay has some rich oak character, but you also like the zingy acidity of a Sauvignon Blanc. Those are keys that can help a server recommend a cider you'll enjoy.

Trust the House

If you're in a gastropub and they have 5 English ciders and one French one, stick with what the house knows best. Ask what the bar or restaurant specializes in, and give them a chance to share the ciders they're proud of.

Ignore What You Can Buy Later

Why pay twice as much for a cider that you can easily buy at your local bottle shop? If you've opted for wait service instead of take-out, then choose a cider that matches the occasion. Any bar specializing in ciders could have options that are more interesting than what's at your local supermarket, and they may have ciders on tap that are never sold in bottles.

Seven Magic Words

At this point, you've probably narrowed the cider list down to a handful of choices. Now is the time to unleash your secret weapon on the server. Simply point to your remaining choices and ask: "What can you tell me about these?" Your server can probably tell you where the cider comes from, what apples are in it, and what makes each cider different and interesting.

That's it! Now, all you have to do is put the cider in your mouth. Take a picture of the bottle or tap handle and jot down a few notes on your phone. That way, you'll remember any winners, and have an extra piece of information when it's time to order the next round.

About the author: Christopher Lehault is a New Jersey-based cider journalist, craft beer documentarian, and home brewer. Follow his cider adventures on Facebook, Google+, and Twitter.

Looking for more cider articles? Right this way »

Right before last night's Oscars madness, Arby's managed to "buy back" Pharrell William's now-infamous hat on eBay for $44,100. The money will now go to Pharrell's charity for at-risk youth, From One Hand to AnOther.

.@Pharrell You're welcome. We're HAPPY to support a great cause & get our hat back. Good luck at the #Oscars tonight! pic.twitter.com/2oA7qDPX9z

— Arby's (@Arbys) March 3, 2014

Arby's for its part must be pretty pleased with itself. After the Vivienne Westwood-designed "Mountain" hat made its debut at the Grammy's last month, the fast food chain gently ribbed Pharrell by asking for it back. The artist responded by putting it up for auction starting at $10,000. Apart from profiting on some minor publicity, it's...

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Powerade has seemingly come up with an amazing way to dethrone Gatorade as the world's most popular sports drink. It's just too bad these tiny tanker planes full of hydrating blue energy drinks only exist in this clever commercial created by an ad agency called The Lift.

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Kickstarter just let the world know that they've pulled in more than $1 billion dollars for thousands of crowdfunding projects since the company launched. And the category that raked in the most cash? Games, once again, to the tune of $215.75 million.

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Green Mountain dominates the single-serve coffee market with its popular Keurig brewers and K-Cups, the little plastic pods that now come in over 200 licensed varieties. The rise of Keurig has even prompted brands like Starbucks, Folgers, and Dunkin' Donuts to release their own K-Cups, which users insert into the Keurig each time they want a cup of coffee. But other, unlicensed companies have also been able to hop on the bandwagon thanks to crucial patents that expired in 2012. That gave competitors the opportunity to produce generic K-Cups and price them lower than Green Mountain's official line. And consumers have noticed: generic Keurig pods have seen a steady rise in popularity.

But Green Mountain wants to put a stop to that...

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An observation from Post critic Steve Cuozzo: "Fact: Lotsa NY restaurants hurt more by this winter's weather than they'll say publicly, but share privately. Bitter cold worse than snow." Cuozzo continues: "[D]estination & nabe places alike quiet many nights since Jan 1. I've been in many. Nov-Dec not great either." [Twitter]

Ultra Street Fighter IV has a "Select" mode, which lets you choose from any character across any version of the SFIV games. Balance be damned!

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When it comes to iconic 90's gaming soundtracks it's impossible not to include the world-renowned Donkey Kong Country series. Behind these upbeat jungle jams and haunting underwater lullabies was a Rare Ware composer known as David Wise. Wise has worked on dozens of classic titles over the years, including RC Pro-Am, Battletoads, and Diddy Kong Racing.

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[Photo by Layla Khabiri]

An employee confirmed today that Japadog has closed due to "problems with management." After about two years of business, this Vancouver import called it quits on Friday night. There are no other plans for the space right now, but it looks like there is already an ad up on Craigslist .
· Japadog is closing for good after tonight on St. Mark's Place [EV Grieve]
· All Coverage of Japadog [~ENY~]

UK-based photographer Andrew Whyte specializes in dramatic light art and long exposures of the night sky, but some of his most striking work involves helping an inch-high fellow photographer get a good shot. For over a year, Whyte has been shooting what he calls the "Legography" series, starring a Lego minifig with a bulky black camera and a penchant for exploration. The minifig travels with Whyte, waiting to be posed scaling a fence, watching the sunrise, or playing tourist in London.

In...

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Great advice.

After 16 days, the hive consciousness of Twitch Plays Pokemon has successfully beaten Pokemon Red. Early this morning, thousands of chat participants navigated through the final fight with Blue, a major milestone in a "social experiment" that has effectively turned Twitch.tv into a huge crowdsourced gaming platform. Twitch Plays Pokemon, which launched on February 12th, translates chat text into button presses on a Game Boy emulator. The result was chaotic but surprisingly effective, and the number of players had risen to 35,000 within four days. Yesterday, players reached the endgame against the Elite Four— something the creator was initially dubious would happen. During the battle with Blue, viewership topped 100,000, though it...

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The animation in this tiny short may not be as good as I'd like, but oh boy oh boy oh boy I really need to watch a movie or a TV series that chronicles Batman's fight against Skynet in the Terminator universe.

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Bryan Chaffin, reporting for The Mac Observer from Apple’s annual shareholder meeting:

Mr. Cook didn’t directly answer that question, but instead focused on the second question: the NCPPR representative asked Mr. Cook to commit right then and there to doing only those things that were profitable.

What ensued was the only time I can recall seeing Tim Cook angry, and he categorically rejected the worldview behind the NCPPR’s advocacy. He said that there are many things Apple does because they are right and just, and that a return on investment (ROI) was not the primary consideration on such issues.

“When we work on making our devices accessible by the blind,” he said, “I don’t consider the bloody ROI.” He said that the same thing about environmental issues, worker safety, and other areas where Apple is a leader. […] He didn’t stop there, however, as he looked directly at the NCPPR representative and said, “If you want me to do things only for ROI reasons, you should get out of this stock.”

Tim Cook does not suffer fools gladly.