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17 Nov 12:04

shop keeper - Dragon Valor (Namco - PSX - 1999)  

Kara Jean

Hey, me too, shopkeeper.





shop keeper - Dragon Valor (Namco - PSX - 1999)  

13 Nov 17:04

#54964

13 Nov 17:00

#54965

13 Nov 17:00

#54966

13 Nov 16:52

gameraboy:Wilder Mann by Charles Fréger

09 Nov 11:54

#54952

05 Nov 22:25

"Panda-monium" Grows Along With France's First Baby

by Chris Eastland
Kara Jean

Really loving what looks like a Sears family photo shoot for this panda family.

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The “Panda-monium” continues as France’s first Giant Panda baby grows up at Zoo de Beauval.

Born on August 4, the little Panda is now three months old, has opened his eyes, and sports a fluffy black-and-white coat.

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Photo Credit: Zoo de Beauval

Temporarily named Mini Yuan Zi after his father, Yuan Zi, the little Panda has captured the hearts of fans around the world.  In keeping with Chinese tradition, the baby will receive his official name when he turns 100 days old. 

ZooBorns first reported on Mini Yuan Zi’s birth here, including a dramatic video of the cub’s delivery. The zoo shares weekly updates on the baby’s weight.  As of November 3, he weighed nearly 12 pounds – right on target for healthy development.

Mini Yuan Zi spends most of his time with his mother, Huan Huan. Keepers occasionally remove the baby from Huan Huan to weigh him and perform a health check.  These brief periods of “alone time” give Huan Huan a chance to eat and rest away from the demands of her baby. When mom and baby are together, Huan Huan holds Mini Yuan Zi close and keeps him warm.

Breeding Giant Pandas is a complex endeavor, and timing is crucial. Adults are solitary, and females come into heat only once per year for 24-48 hours.  After three unsuccessful breeding seasons, staff at Zoo de Beauval opted to use artificial insemination. The process worked, and Mini Yuan Zi was born.

See more photos of Mini Yuan Zi below.


Giant Pandas live in only a tiny slice of their original range in Central Asia’s cool mountain forests. Only about 2,000 Giant pandas live in the wild, and another 400 live in zoos. The conservation programs put in place decades ago to protect Giant Pandas are working: the species was downlisted from Endangered to Vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) in 2016.  However, the Giant Panda population is far from secure and will continue to need protection if it is to thrive.

China retains ownership of all Giant Pandas living in zoos around the world.  The animals are loaned to the zoos, and offspring are eventually returned to China to become part of the breeding program.   

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22789109_1780344295323842_1115199196029292079_n Related articles
28 Oct 11:23

Haribo: sweetened with forced labor and abused animals

by Cory Doctorow
Kara Jean

Everything is awful.

https://youtu.be/KOtmkIFsEAE

In "The Haribo Check," aired on German public broadcast ARD, a documentary team audits Haribo's supply chain and finds "modern day slaves" in Brazil working to harvest carnauba wax, a key ingredient in the sweets: the plantations pay $12/day, and workers (including children) sleep out of doors, drink unfiltered river water, and have no access to toilets, under conditions that a Brazilian Labor Ministry official called "modern-day slavery." (more…)

26 Oct 10:53

You need to know something

by Mark Liberman

I'm happy to see that Google Translate is still turning (many types of) meaningless character sequences into spoken-word poetry. Repetitions of single hiragana characters are an especially reliable source — here's "You need to know something":


And "I feel a strange feeling":

And "Stay free to leave":

Repeated combinations also often work — here's repetitions of "Ga mama" rendered as "Let it go / As it is":

These works also often reveal some interesting things about the letter-to-sound part of Google's current text-to-speech algorithms, e.g. the performance of that last one:

And as usual, if you ask for it again, you get a performance that sounds like the system has had a drink or five:

Here are the inputs in case you want to try them:


かかかかかか
かかかかかかか
かかかかかかかか
かかかかかかかかか
かかかかかかかかかか
かかかかかかかかかかか
かかかかかかかかかかかか
かかかかかかかかかかかかか
かかかかかかかかかかかかかか
かかかかかかかかかかかかかかか
かかかかかかかかかかかかかかかか
かかかかかかかかかかかかかかかかかか
かかかかかかかかかかかかかかかかかかか

 


ががが
がががが
ががががが
がががががが
ががががががが
がががががががが
ががががががががが
がががががががががが
ががががががががががが
がががががががががががが
ががががががががががががが
がががががががががががががが
ががががががががががががががが
がががががががががががががががが
ががががががががががががががががが
がががががががががががががががががが
ががががががががががががががががががが

 


まま
ままま
まままま
ままままま
まままままま
ままままままま
まままままままま
ままままままままま
まままままままままま
ままままままままままま
まままままままままままま
ままままままままままままま
まままままままままままままま

 

がまま
がままがまま
がままがままがまま
がままがままがままがまま
がままがままがままがままがまま
がままがままがままがままがままがまま
がままがままがままがままがままがままがまま
がままがままがままがままがままがままがままがまま
がままがままがままがままがままがままがままがままがまま
がままがままがままがままがままがままがままがままがままがまま

21 Oct 13:45

sewer - Hellnight (Atlus - PSX - 1999)

Kara Jean

America, 2017



sewer - Hellnight (Atlus - PSX - 1999)

11 Oct 17:08

#54586

11 Oct 17:08

#54627

11 Oct 16:49

#54587

11 Oct 16:49

Japan has a Nicolas Cage snack food called 'Nicolastick'

by Rusty Blazenhoff
Kara Jean

Nooooooooora

Nicolas Cage's mug is being used on the packaging of a Japanese snack food. Because, of course it is.

RocketNews24 writes that Cage's endorsement of Umaibo's "Nicolastick," a 10-cent corn chowder-flavored cheese puff stick, is part of a promotion for the Japanese film Ore no Emono wa bin Laden (Bin Laden is My Prey):

[The film] observes several Japanese cinematic traditions by being quaintly renamed from the original title (Army of One), having an official Japanese-market title (Finding bin Laden) that doesn’t match the meaning of its Japanese one, and coming out long, long after its original release (Army of One premiered in November of 2016 in America, but Bin Laden is My Prey won’t hit Japanese theaters until this December).

Sadly, the Nicolastick won’t be sold in stores. The only way to get your hands on them is to purchase advance tickets for Bin Laden is My Prey when they go on sale on October 13 at Tokyo’s Cinema Shinjuku, Osaka’s Cinemart Shinsaibashi, or Nagoya’s Century Cinema, or through online ticketing service Major at a yet-to-be-determined date. 1,500 yen (US$14) gets you a ticket to the movie and an undisclosed number of Nicolasticks.

Well, dang. I really wanted one.

(Dangerous Minds)

image via ITMedia

31 Aug 16:44

crashcarnival:True facts of the Ice Age Quiz Marugoto the World...



crashcarnival:

True facts of the Ice Age

Quiz Marugoto the World 2: Time Machine Ni Onegai 

(Atlus - PC Engine - 1992)

28 Aug 01:02

Bavarian artist, Nils Udo









Bavarian artist, Nils Udo

31 Jul 09:55

crashcarnival: Somebody machine translated the Famicom version...





















crashcarnival:

Somebody machine translated the Famicom version of Last Armageddon and while it may have its haters it was really something special. Lots of laughs and it made (the worst version of) a really cool RPG accessible to lazy non-Japanese speakers.

Above are 10 of the 108 “slates” scattered around the game world.

(re: “dentist got max teeth” the patch repeatedly mis-translates what is probably meant to be “ruler” or “dominant species” as “dentist”)

(Yutaka - 1990)

23 Jul 20:37

Tiny Rescued Sea Otter Pup Growing Stronger

by Andrew Bleiman
Kara Jean

This baby otter is an inspiration. I too am growing stronger.

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On June 25, the Vancouver Aquarium Marine Mammal Rescue Centre admitted a tiny male Sea Otter pup as a patient. The fuzzy-faced otter pup, now estimated to be about two months old, was found swimming alone in open water off northern Vancouver Island and brought to the Rescue Centre by a concerned citizen.

You first met the pup on ZooBorns when he was just a few weeks old. Since his arrival at the Rescue Centre, the tiny otter has received 24-hour care from staff and volunteers who feed, bathe and groom him, just as his mother would in the wild. Baby Sea Otters cannot survive on their own, and depend on their mothers for the first six months of life.

2017-07-11---Baby-Otter-Hardy-MMR---Meighan-Makarchuk-101
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20140134_10154575725655800_4031873439886710919_nPhoto Credits: Vancouver Aquarium (1,3,4,5); Meighan Makarchuk (2)

Care and rehabilitation of rescued marine mammals is very labor-intensive, and it takes a whole team of dedicated staff and volunteers to care for this tiny pup.

The little Otter continues to gain weight steadily and has been growing stronger and more active. He now weighs nearly nine pounds and is growing quickly. He is still nursing from the bottle, and drinks 25 percent of his body weight per day in a special Otter pup formula made by the animal care team.  This week, the baby Otter was offered his first solid food – five grams of clams, which he gobbled up enthusiastically.  He eats every three hours, 24 hours a day.

The care team says the pup is curious and enjoys exploring. He pup is now grooming himself a little bit, but still needs help from the care team to remain clean and fluffy.  They also report that the pup is learning to dive and can dive to the bottom of his swim tub to retrieve toys.

Sea Otters are and Endangered species. They were hunted for their fur until the early 20th century, when their population fell to just a few thousand individuals in a tiny portion of their former range. Bans on hunting and other conservation measures have helped, but Sea Otters are still threatened by fishing net entanglement and oil spills.

 

Related articles
19 Jul 22:57

#54233

12 May 23:21

moonwalk - Rent-a-Hero (Sega - Genesis - 1991)

Kara Jean

We've all been there.



moonwalk - Rent-a-Hero (Sega - Genesis - 1991)

02 May 17:41

Baby Sloth Slooowly Stealing Hearts at Memphis Zoo

by Andrew Bleiman

Photo Apr 18  9 09 34 AM Courtesy of Adrienne Saunders
A baby Linné’s Two-toed Sloth at the Memphis Zoo is slooowly stealing the hearts of her keepers and fans, and she’s already made a special friend: a stuffed elephant that she clings to at naptime.

Baby-Sloth-1
Baby-Sloth-4Photo Credit:  Adrienne Saunders (1,6,7,8); Memphis Zoo (2,3,4,5)

Named Lua, which means “moon” in Portuguese, the female baby was born on March 17 to parents Marilyn and Sparky. Marilyn had delivered other infants in previous years, but her babies did not survive infancy, so the staff decided to hand-rear Lua to ensure her survival.

When the staff is not holding Lua, she clings to the stuffed elephant, which strengthens her limbs and mimics the way baby sloths hold on to their mothers. Sloths spend most of their time upside down, hanging from tree branches in South American rain forests north of the Amazon River. 

Baby Lua is bottle-fed every two hours, which will continue for at least a month. Sloths grow slowly and Lua will require help from zoo keepers for about a year. She is currently being cared for behind the scenes.

Both Marilyn and Sparky came into the zoo population from the wild, making Lua genetically valuable.

Linné’s Two-toed sloths, also known as Southern Two-toed Sloths, feed on leaves and other vegetation.  They rarely descend to the ground.

See more photos of Lua below.

Baby-Sloth-3
Baby-Sloth-5
Photo Apr 08  4 14 47 PM Courtesy of Adrienne Saunders
Photo Mar 26  12 55 42 AM
Photo Mar 26  12 57 20 AM (1)





Related articles
22 Apr 20:35

70,000 march in Budapest to protest legislative attack on Central European University

by Cory Doctorow

Joe writes, "Hungarians rose up in one of the largest protests against the seven-year rule of right-wing Prime Minister Viktor Orban on Sunday, protesting against new legislation that could force out of the country one of its top international universities." (more…)

10 Apr 11:24

#53626

07 Apr 10:56

Inuit cartography: maps carved in driftwood

by Rob Beschizza
Kara Jean

Super cool and beautiful

The Inuit carve portable, waterproof, floating maps out of driftwood for use in navigating the littoral.

These three wooden maps show the journey from Sermiligaaq to Kangertittivatsiaq, on Greenland’s East Coast. The map to the right shows the islands along the coast, while the map in the middle shows the mainland and is read from one side of the block around to the other. The map to the left shows the peninsula between the Sermiligaaq and Kangertivartikajik fjords.

From The Decolonial Atlas, an antidote to all the other ones: Kurdistan in Kurdish, Lakota Territory, Agricultural Maps.

07 Apr 01:14

Neural network comes up with crazy food recipes

by David Pescovitz
Kara Jean

Current favorite thing.

In her spare time, University of California, San Diego engineer Janelle Shane trained a neural network to generate recipes for new dishes. Informed by its reading of existing recipes, the neural network did improve over time yet it's clearly not quite ready for Iron Chef. Here are two recipes from her Tumblr, Postcards from the Frontiers of Science:

Pears Or To Garnestmeam

meats

¼ lb bones or fresh bread; optional
½ cup flour
1 teaspoon vinegar
¼ teaspoon lime juice
2  eggs

Brown salmon in oil. Add creamed meat and another deep mixture.

Discard filets. Discard head and turn into a nonstick spice. Pour 4 eggs onto clean a thin fat to sink halves.

Brush each with roast and refrigerate.  Lay tart in deep baking dish in chipec sweet body; cut oof with crosswise and onions.  Remove peas and place in a 4-dgg serving. Cover lightly with plastic wrap.  Chill in refrigerator until casseroles are tender and ridges done.  Serve immediately in sugar may be added 2 handles overginger or with boiling water until very cracker pudding is hot.

Yield: 4 servings

This is from a network that’s been trained for a relatively long time - starting from a complete unawareness of whether it’s looking at prose or code, English or Spanish, etc, it’s already got a lot of the vocabulary and structure worked out. 

This is particularly impressive given that it has the memory of a goldfish - it can only analyze 65 characters at a time, so by the time it begins the instructions, the recipe title has already passed out of its memory, and it has to guess what it’s making. It knows, though, to start by browning meat, to cover with plastic wrap before chilling in the refrigerator, and to finish by serving the dish.  

Compare that to a recipe generated by a much earlier version of the network:

Immediately Cares, Heavy Mim

upe, chips

3  dill loasted substetcant
1  cubed chopped  whipped cream
3  unpreased, stock; prepared; in season
1  oil
3 cup milk
1 ½ cup mOyzanel chopped
½ teaspoon lemon juice
1 ¼ teaspoon chili powder
2 tablespoon dijon stem – minced
30  dates afrester beater remaining

Bake until juice. Brush from the potato sauce: Lightly butter into the viscin. Cook combine water. Source: 0 25 seconds; transfer a madiun in orenge cinnamon with electres if the based, make drained off tala whili; or chicken to well. Sprinkle over skin greased with a boiling bowl.  Toast the bread spritkries.

Yield: 6 servings

which bakes first, has the source in the middle of the recipe directions, mixes sweet and savory, and doesn’t yet know that you can’t cube or chop whipped cream.

"The Silicon Gourmet: training a neural network to generate cooking recipes" (Thanks, Toshi Hoo!)
04 Apr 01:48

Watching synchronized swimmers upside down is very trippy

by David Pescovitz
Kara Jean

This is bonkers.

In the Olympics, there should be a medal for how impressive a synchronized swimming routine looks upside down and underwater. (via @ziyatong, thanks UPSO!)

26 Mar 02:43

Breakers (Synapse - C64 - 1986)

Kara Jean

I cannot possibly imagine what this game was about.



Breakers (Synapse - C64 - 1986)

23 Mar 23:42

Photo



18 Mar 22:20

Dog Fills In As Nanny To Endangered Tiger Triplets

by Andrew Bleiman
Kara Jean

Of Great Import.

33013402791_f7bbfc861c_oAfter they were ignored by their mother following their birth on February 3, three Malayan Tiger cubs have been cared for by Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden’s nursery staff.  Now, the cubs’  care team includes the zoo’s four-legged, resident nursery companion and former nanny to several zoo babies: Blakely the Australian Shepherd Dog.  The six-year-old super-dog has been called into action to provide snuggling, comfort, and a body for the cubs to climb on.

“He’s more than just a large, warm pillow for the cubs.  Blakely is the adult in the room.  He teaches them proper Tiger etiquette by checking them when they’re getting too rough or aggressive,” said Dawn Strasser, head of Cincinnati Zoo’s nursery staff. “This is something that their human surrogates can’t do.”

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32846043985_44cf5d523a_oPhoto Credits:  Mark Dumont, DJJam, Lisa Hubbard

The cubs, named Chira (because she was treated by a chiropractor), Batari (which means goddess) and Izzy (which means promised by God,) would have received similar cues from their mom. Because being with her is not an option, Blakely is the next best thing.  His baby-rearing resume includes experience with Cheetahs, an Ocelot, a Takin, a Warthog, Wallabies, Skunks, and Bat-eared Foxes.  Last year, to recognize Blakely’s nurturing nature, the City of Cincinnati proclaimed October 19 to be Blakely Day!

“My team can feed and care for the Tiger cubs, but we can’t teach them the difference between a play bite and one that means ‘watch out’. So, that’s Blakely’s job,” said Strasser. “Just a little time with him at this early age will help them learn behaviors that will come in handy when they meet Tigers at other zoos in the future.” The cubs will move to the Zoo’s Cat Canyon this summer after they have received their last round of immunizations.

Malayan Tigers are Critically Endangered, with fewer than 250 breeding-age adults living in the wild.  Less than 100 of these Cats live in zoos, making these three cubs – and Blakely’s job as caregiver – incredibly important to the effort to save Malayan Tigers.

See more photos of Blakely and the Tiger cubs below.

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Related articles
15 Mar 22:47

“YOUR FACE HAS CAVED IN” - Sonic Blast Man: Real Puncher ...



“YOUR FACE HAS CAVED IN” -

Sonic Blast Man: Real Puncher (Taito - arcade - 1994)