billtron

“However, I want to take this opportunity to not talk about Aaron Swartz. I am afraid that if I do, I will end up either factualising him – converting him into a string of data sets, adding to the already burgeoning details about his life, his achievements, and of course the gory court case that has already been the centre of so much rage and debate. I am also afraid that if I do talk about Aaron Swartz, I will end up making him into a creature of fictions – talking about his dreams and his visions and his outlook and making him a martyr for a cause, forgetting to make the distinction that Aaron died, not for a cause, but believing in it. I, like many people who were affected, in many degrees of separation and distance, am taking the moment to mourn the death of somebody who should have lived longer. But I want to take the moment of Aaron’s death to talk about heroisms and sacrifices and everyday politics of what he believed in. Let me talk about Shyam Singh, who is as far removed from Swartz as possible. Shyam Singh is a 74 year-old-man in India, who runs a corner photocopying shop on the Delhi School of Economics campus in New Delhi. Singh is not your young, charismatic, educated, tech-savvy oracle. He spent a large part of his life – 3 decades – working at the University’s Central Research Library and the Ratan Tata Library, operating unwieldy machines that were panting to keep up with new innovations in technologies of digital reproduction. It took him thirty years of work to muster enough savings so that he could buy a couple of photocopying machines and start a small photocopying shop at Ramjas College in New Delhi. After his retirement, the Delhi School of Economics actually invited him to come and set up the Rameshwari Photocopying shop on the campus, for the students at the school. He had an official license from the University, for which he paid a sum of 10,000 Indian Rupees, to work on a profit model that depended on high volume and low costs. The shop was more or less a landmark for students and professors alike, who would come to get their course material photocopied out of books that they could almost never afford to buy and were not easily available in public lending libraries. The shop keeper also compiled course-packs, which allowed students to buy all the texts prescribed for their curricula (but not necessarily available in multiple or digital copies in the library), at affordable rates. It came as quite a shock to Singh, when one day, he was told that a consortium of publishers – Oxford University Press, Cambridge University Press, and Taylor and Francis Group – had filed a case in the high court of New Delhi against him, claiming damages of 6 million Indian Rupees for wilful copyright infringement for commercial gains. Singh did not have the ideological apparatus that was available to Swartz, nor the competence to talk about the unfairness of the legal claim. He did, in several interviews, talk about India’s avowed policy on universal education and how he had always thought of himself as helping in that process of equal access to students who would otherwise have been unable to afford the education. The case against Singh is already in the courts, and the High Court has issued an injunction restraining him from providing copies of chapters from textbooks published by the three international publishers who have moved the court. And while he has found support from the academic, legal and student community from around the country, there is no denying that he is going to be fighting an expensive battle against a large Intellectual Property protection conglomeration of publishers who are all ready to make a ‘scapegoat’ and an ‘example’ of this small photocopy shop, in their efforts at enforcing paid access to scholarly and academic material in the country. I desperately hope that Singh shall not find himself as persecuted as Swartz did, by the publishers, by the public prosecutors, and by an indifferent citizenry who is quite happy to benefit from the fruits that might fall out of this case about loosened Intellectual Property and symbolically support the idea that knowledge should be free, but do not think that this is a problem that affects them in particular. True, in both these instances, we have seen people oscillating between rue and rage, expressing their dissatisfaction with these market driven information cartels which refuse to unleash the information and knowledge that we all believe should be made free. But in those expressions of anger and shock, is also a denial of the fact that we have all been complicit in building, supporting and sustaining these worlds because doing otherwise would inconvenience our schedules, lives and careers. Swartz and Singh, in their own way, had to become the poster-children, the martyrs, for us to take notice about a battle that affects us uniformly but doesn’t feature in our everyday practices and conviction.”

- The Violence of Knowledge Cartels › Hybrid Publishing Lab Notepad

ivo papazov aytos gujuka (by ARIFVIDEO33)

Cornel West Explains Why It Bothers Him That Obama Will Be Taking The Oath With MLK’s Bible (by MOXNEWSd0tC0M)

“Bismullah v. Gates is a writ of habeas corpus appeal in the United States Justice System, on behalf of Bismullah (Guantanamo detainee 968) — an Afghan detainee held by the United States in the Guantanamo Bay detention camps, in Cuba.”

- Bismullah v. Gates - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

“In the second term, Guidotti-Hernandez says, she’d love to see the first lady take on women’s pay equity. Roiphe would like to see her use her position to champion gun control. Morgan says she’s “content with where Michelle is and what she does.” Walker wants to see her “stay happy.” As for a lot of other feminists, they’ve already cut their losses with Obama and are looking past her. All the way to 2016.”

- Four years later, feminists split by Michelle Obama’s ‘work’ as first lady - The Washington Post

“Many, many people contributed to this remarkable achievement: employees, including tenured faculty, who accepted without complaint a furlough program that cut into their paychecks; students and their families, who endured rising tuition rates; administrators and staff, who worked with great vigor and creativity to carve out savings through improved efficiencies, and California voters, who finally agreed that the cuts needed to stop and brought relief last November by approving Proposition 30. I applaud and am thankful for all of these contributions.”

- University of California - UC Newsroom | President Yudof to end his tenure in August

“Published on Jan 19, 2013
Music is Life !!! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ixlnYph_bbQ
Listen to my Hardstyle Remix: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJZgTFf1tkE Subscribe to my mate!: http://www.youtube.com/user/SenorRadical Failed assassination on Ahmed Dogan (National Palace of Culture in Sofia)”

- Failed assassination on Ahmed Dogan (National Palace of Culture in Sofia) Live TV - YouTube

Se forem impensados podem ser mal interpretados.

Poxa se acariciar no shopping da cadeia?

Tweet

http://www.copyright.gov/circs/circ14.pdf:

A derivative work is a work based on or derived from one or more already existing works. Also known as a “new version,” a derivative work is copyrightable if 

it includes what copyright law calls an “original work of authorship.” Any work 

in which the editorial revisions, annotations, elaborations, or other modifications represent, as a whole, an original work of authorship is a derivative work 

or a new version.

A typical derivative work registered in the Copyright Office is a primarily 

new work but incorporates some previously published material. The previously 

published material makes the work a derivative work under copyright law.

To be copyrightable, a derivative work must differ sufficiently from the original to be regarded as a new work or must contain a substantial amount of new 

material. Making minor changes or additions of little substance to a preexisting 

work will not qualify a work as a new version for copyright purposes. The new 

material must be original and copyrightable in itself. Titles, short phrases, and 

formatting are not copyrightable.

Examples of Derivative Works

The following are examples of the many different types of derivative works:

• Television documentary (that contains archival footage and photographs)

• Motion picture (based on a play)

• Novel in English (a translation of a book originally published in Russian)

• Sound recording (CD in which two of the ten selections were previously 

published online)

• Sculpture (based on a drawing)

• Drawing (based on a photograph)

• Book of maps (based on public-domain maps with some new maps)

• Lithograph (based on a painting)

• Biography of John Doe (that contains journal entries and letters by John Doe)

• Drama about John Doe (based on the letters and journal entries of John Doe)

• Super Audio CD (in which all the tracks were previously released in a CD and 

have been remixed)

• Words and music (that include words from the Bible)

• Words and musical arrangement (arrangement is based on a piece by Bach)

• Musical arrangement (based on a work by Bach)

“No backboned animal has been found that can harness the sun – until now. It has long been suspected, and now there is hard evidence: the spotted salamander is solar-powered.”

- Zoologger: The first solar-powered vertebrate - life - 18 January 2013 - New Scientist

Brazilian party starters Banda Uó just released their new music for the Diplo co-produced Baile/Bounce track Gringo, the second single from their album “Motel”. Genre’s collide over hypercolorful backgrounds and booty shakin fun! Video directed by Arthur Warren and Gustavo Suzuki.

Stream Banda Uó album Motel below. Buy it on itunes HERE

Banda Uó 
Facebook 
Soundcloud
Twitter

 

Last year, design firm Stamen got a grant to create an art project based on the bus routes that people in San Francisco take to commute the 30-50 miles south to Silicon Valley. (Click image to enlarge.) Though they take busses, none of these workers take public transit. Their companies, such as Google, Apple, Facebook, and others, run private bus lines through many unmarked stops in the city, before heading straight to the high tech campuses where wealthy San Franciscans work. More »

 

Sure, there’s the Hola and The Neighbors Have Better Stuff doormat, but if you believe (and are running after) the ‘merican dream, then this is the one for you. Made of natural coco fiber, vinyl, and enamel. Also, the “Better Bag” Canvas Tote is worth taking a look at, especially considering all the effort that goes into selecting the right tote nowadays.

30in X 18in X 1/2in

outdoor/indoor

From Drinks

VIEW SLIDESHOW: Keep it Simple: 20 Four-Ingredient Cocktails To Make At Home

Once you have the stuff to make any of the 20 three-ingredient cocktails we shared last week, you're probably well stocked enough to go a little further. These 20 four-ingredient cocktails still don't require crazy syrups or infusions, just one more bottle or piece of fruit—if you have bitters and limes at home, you might already be ready to start mixing like a pro.

Of course there are many, many more simple cocktails in the world, but these are 20 of our favorites, including a few classics and a few variations on historical drinks, plus fun cocktail recipes from bars and restaurants we love.

Check them all out in the slideshow above »

Don't go thirsty! Follow SE: Drinks on Pinterest, Facebook and Twitter. You can sign up for our weekly newsletter here.

Русский баян (by MrGeorgeVito)

This year, the first day of Hanukkah coincides with Thanksgiving Day. Amazingly, this is the first time it's happened since President Lincoln established Thanksgiving in 1863 and it is also the last time it'll happen until the year 79,811. I'll say that again: after this year, Hanukkah and Thanksgiving Day won't overlap for another 77,798 years.

The reason is because the Jewish calendar is very slowly getting out of sync with the solar calendar, at a rate of 4 days per 1000 years (not bad for a many centuries old calendar!) This means that while presently Hanukkah can be as early as 11/28, over the years the calendar will drift forward, such that the earliest Hanukkah can be is 11/29. The last time Hanukkah falls on 11/28 is 2146 (which happens to be a Monday).

(via @hchamp)

Tags: Hanukkah   holidays   religion   Thanksgiving

We know that eating well and staying active keep you healthy, but are still in the process of discovering the best times to eat and exercise. Through a study by the American College of Sports Medicine, it turns out light exercise after a meal can help improve your heart health. Here's why: More »

BWAH! This hilarious photo-enhanced shoebox makes classroom Valentines even more fun to collect! From Gina Rau of Feed Our Families:

I left my husband in charge of making our daughter's Valentine box for school...this is what he came up with! It was the hit of the class!

Place Valentines HERE! Photo credit: Gina Rau

All you need is a blown-up photo, a shoe box, a glue stick, and some scissors. And a sense of humor.

The Valentine collection box and its adorable inspiration. Photo credit: Gina Rau

Gina added: "Don't judge me on this one." I JUDGE YOU AWESOME, GINA.

Who's got ideas for Valentine collection boxes? (I usually send my daughter to school with a used gift bag and call it done, so I'm useless.)

Leave a comment with your tip and/or link!

Related: Optical illusion lollipop Valentine! Easy!

More:  Best of Parent Hacks: Valentine's Day. We've got a BUNCH of ideas for cards, treats, activities, and crafts.

And: I'm looking for more Valentine hacks! Email me yours and I'll fast-track the gems.

OVERHEARING SONGS OF COURTSHIP What does a male fruit fly sing to a female fly to capture her attention? A laboratory at Princeton has recorded thousands of the unique courtship songs male fruit flies sing to attract their mates — the first extensive analysis of its kind. Now we know that each time the male fruit fly, or Drosophila, sings to a female, the components of his song are slightly different. The lab has built devices to overhear these private courtship sounds, which we humans couldn’t hear even if the courting pair had landed right in our ear. But if the female fruit fly doesn’t like the song of her courtier, she may not mate with him. PHOTO: DEPARTMENT OF MOLECULAR BIOLOGY, PRINCETON UNIVERSITY
Mala Murthy
THE LAB The laboratory of Mala Murthy, an assistant ­professor in the molecular biology department and the neuroscience institute, is studying how these courtship songs are processed by the brain to produce mating behavior. The ultimate goal is to understand how neurons in the human brain process information from the outside world. THE RESEARCH Rather than studying songbirds or crickets, which are more commonly used for studies of acoustic communication, Murthy has pioneered the study of how fruit flies communicate. Like many scientists working to understand a complex process, you need to start small. Unlike the human brain, which has billions of neurons, Drosophila has 100,000. Murthy’s lab is the first to record from the part of the fruit fly’s brain that registers and processes sound. The lab set up a system to record the activity of individual neurons, labeled with a fluorescent dye in the exposed fly brain, while keeping the fly alive. The fly hears a recorded courtship song during the procedure so that the neurons that respond to the sound cue can be studied. OF FLIES AND HUMANS The large range of courtship song sounds “gives us the opportunity to ask not only how the different sounds are generated, but also how the brain deals with this kind of variability,” Murthy said. The large range of Drosophila sounds is similar to differences in the rhythm of our own voices. “This is the same kind of challenge the human brain faces,” she said — to take in a sound, extract the relevant information, create meaning, and then respond with a thought, action, or speech. “We don’t actually yet know, in any system, how this happens.” Leslie B. Vosshall, who also studies complex behaviors in the fruit fly at Rockefeller University, said Murthy’s lab is conducting “highly original” research. “The combination of genetics and electrophysiology positions her exceptionally well to make major contributions here,” Vosshall said.

“Cruel optimism is the provocative concept Lauren Berlant has given to a phenomenon endemic to the present political and affective moment: the holding up of hope as a means of stifling dissent, forestalling change, and ultimately rendering any array of longed-for outcomes, whatever they may be, unattainable. The paradox Berlant has named is that what we seek eludes us precisely because the mechanisms by which we seek our objectives (whether personal happiness or political change) are irredeemably flawed in that they preclude the very outcomes that are desired. Examples of cruel optimism abound, but nowhere is the phenomenon more apparent than in the self-help books that promise health, wealth, and happiness just as long as the reader is willing to work at it, visualize it, believe it. Consider the typical American diet book that advocates a restricted caloric consumption that in turn alters the dieter’s metabolism, slowing calorie expenditure, thus rendering long-term, sustained weigh reduction all but impossible. Or take the job seeker’s handbook, where networking advice reduces friends and families to “contacts” to be worked, attenuating the very sense of community that makes finding one’s work, and place in the world, possible. Or glance at a newsstand display of fashion magazines: one finds style guides that leave readers submerged in unattainable airbrushed perfection, their self-images sunk by the very vehicle that promised a “new you.” The very exhortations to “be all you can be” or “live your best life” hold open the nagging possibility that one can be yet more, that life can be somehow always better, and thus one should always be striving, seeking, and searching. Limitless possibility forestalls satisfaction; Tocqueville nailed that American paradox way back in the 19th century.[1] And as I argue elsewhere, contemporary self-help readers find themselves not improved, but belabored: constantly at work on themselves in some endless quest for self-development.”

- Social Text: Periscope: Cruel Optimism for the Neurologically Queer

What's Michele thinking?
Who knows?
The juicy tale of how batshit crazy Rep. Michele Bachmann screwed over her presidential campaign staff is fast becoming the greatest soap opera EVER!
First, we learned that Bachmann is refusing to pay five staffers unless they sign a nondisclosure agreement that prohibits them them from talking to any reporters or police about any "unethical, immoral, or criminal activity" they may have witnessed during the campaign. And it seems they did witness some, um, questionable activities—including stealing an email list from a home-schooling group. Then, because leaking that story did not motivate Bachmann to open the checkbook and just pay her damn staff, her especially bitter former field coordinator, Peter Waldron, started dishing the dirt about how Bachmann was basically mind-controlled by her debate coach, whose "Rasputin-like" relationship was so powerful, he even forbade her own husband from sleeping in the same room with her on the trail. Which, as we all know, must have been just devastating for poor Marcus. In today's episode of why you should probably not refuse to pay staffers who know an awful lot of juicy things about you and your potentially illegal campaign activities: A top adviser in Michele Bachmann's 2012 White House bid has filed a complaint with federal election officials alleging campaign finance violations involving her presidential campaign and the independent political action committee she leads. [...]
Waldron, formerly Bachmann's national field coordinator, is accusing the campaign of improperly dipping into money from MichelePAC to pay longtime fundraising consultant Guy Short for presidential campaign work he performed in the critical final weeks ahead of Iowa's caucuses last year. Waldron also alleges that the campaign concealed payments to Iowa state campaign chairman Kent Sorenson, a state senator who abruptly left the Bachmann camp to join then-U.S. Rep. Ron Paul's insurgent campaign. Call me Bachmann-crazy, but I don't think Waldron is going to shut up until he gets a check in his hands. Here's hoping, anyway. Tune in tomorrow ... (Via)

“Due to prison crowding, financial strain, and over-population in Ohio, it would be ideal to legalize homicide in an effort to solve these problems. Prisons would free up and police would have less responsibility, therefore allowing a financial break on the Ohio financial system. The economy would flourish due to a proper, efficient model for limiting population. Ohio residents would be expected to exercise their gun ownership rights to protect themselves and their families, with those unable to defend themselves being killed, all in the favor of lower taxes and more job opportunities. Also, police could focus on more important crimes that are occurring, such as drug control and welfare fraud. Therefore, it is in the best interest of Ohioans to de-criminalize homicide and murder.”

- Petition | State of Ohio: Legalize Homicide | Change.org

• University backs football star after revelation that widely reported tragic story of girlfriend's death was not true
• NFL player claims he met woman in question

It was one of the most celebrated stories of heroism in US sport: the college football star who fought through the grief over the death of his girlfriend as he helped his team get to the championship game.

Notre Dame linebacker Manti Te'o had suffered an unthinkable double tragedy in his personal life – or so the story went. Just hours after finding out about the death of his beloved grandmother in Hawaii, Te'o learned that his girlfriend, Lennay Kekua, had died of leukemia, after a near-fatal carwreck months earlier. Three days later, Te'o played the game of his life, leading the Fighting Irish to a 20-3 victory over Michigan State.

But in a dramatic and bewildering turn of events on Wednesday, it was claimed that the girlfriend and much of the tragic affair was a complete fiction, one that had taken in ESPN, Sports Illustrated and other major media outlets.

An investigation by the sports website Deadspin established that Lennay Kekua never existed, beyond a fake Twitter account that used a picture stolen from an unwitting woman's Facebook page.

Te'o's sole interaction with a woman he described as his girlfriend, whom he loved and whose heartwrenching story he generously shared with a lot of reporters, appears to have been through Twitter.

As the internet reacted with astonishment to that news, Notre Dame added another twist, claiming that their star linebacker was in fact the victim of the elaborate hoax and not its perpetrator. The story later took another mysterious turn, when an NFL player claimed he met the woman in question.

Before losing the BCS title game to the Alabama Crimson Tide, Notre Dame had enjoyed an undefeated season, thanks in large part to the gridiron heroics of Te'o. He was one of three finalists for this year's Heisman Trophy, which is awarded to the best player in college football. He is expected to be a top pick in the NFL draft. He brought great accolades to Notre Dame athletics.

Notre Dame responded to Deadspin's story by releasing a statement which said that Te'o, a devout Mormon of Samoan descent, had informed the university weeks ago that he been taken in.

"On Dec. 26, Notre Dame coaches were informed by Manti Te'o and his parents that Manti had been the victim of what appears to be a hoax in which someone using the fictitious name Lennay Kekua apparently ingratiated herself with Manti and then conspired with others to lead him to believe she had tragically died of leukemia."

Certain details of the story Te'o told are difficult to square with the notion that he was the victim of a hoax. Sports Illustrated reported that Te'o slept with a phone, listening to his girlfriend breathe as she was convalescing on a cancer ward. Those and other excruciating details of his fictional girlfriend's painful illness and death, details Deadspin rounds up from the numerous media outlets where they were published, appear to have come from the football star and his family.

"This is incredibly embarrassing to talk about, but over an extended period of time, I developed an emotional relationship with a woman I met online," Te'o said in a statement obtained by ESPN. "We maintained what I thought to be an authentic relationship by communicating frequently online and on the phone, and I grew to care deeply about her.

"To realize that I was the victim of what was apparently someone's sick joke and constant lies was, and is, painful and humiliating. …Fortunately, I have many wonderful things in my life, and I'm looking forward to putting this painful experience behind me as I focus on preparing for the NFL Draft."

Deadspin identified a suspect behind the fake identity and fake account as a man, Ronaiah Tuiasosopo, a classmate of the woman whose Facebook photo was apparently stolen. Tuiasosopo also was an acquaintance of Te'o's before the linebacker's rise to stardom.

The nature of the relationship between Tuaisosopo and Te'o, however, is unclear, leaving the question of the football prospect's complicity in the hoax, if any, an open one.

For now, Notre Dame is standing by its star.

"The University immediately initiated an investigation to assist Manti and his family in discovering the motive for and nature of this hoax," the Notre Dame statement said. "While the proper authorities will continue to investigate this troubling matter, this appears to be, at a minimum, a sad and very cruel deception to entertain its perpetrators."

In a press conference on Wednesday evening, Jack Swarbrick, Notre Dame's athletic director, expanded on the story. "I would refer all of you, if you're not already familiar with it, with both the documentary called Catfish, the MTV show which is a derivative of that documentary and the sort of associated things you'll find online and otherwise about Catfish or 'catfishing", said Jack Swarbrick, Notre Dame's athletic director, referring to the 2010 documentary – the authenticity of which has been called into question – about a young man who is tricked on Facebook into falling for a fictitious woman.

After explaining that the university had hired private investigators, Swarbrick added: "Through their work [they] were able to discover online chatter among the perpetrators that is sort of the ultimate proof of this, the joy they were taking, the sort of casualness with which among themselves they were referring to what they had accomplished and what they had done."

However, Reagan Maui'a, a fullback with the Arizona Cardinals, now claims to have met Kekua in person while doing charity work in American Samoa with other team-mates in June 2011.

"This was before her and Manti," ESPN reported Maui'a as saying. "I don't think Manti was even in the picture, but she and I became good friends. We would talk off and on, just checking up on each other kind of thing. I am close to her family. When she was going through the loss of her father, I was – I offered a comforting shoulder and just someone to bounce her emotions off. That was just from meeting her in Samoa."

"She was tall," he added. "Volleyball-type of physique. She was athletic, tall, beautiful. Long hair. Polynesian. She looked like a model."

• United States
• US sports
• College sports
• Manti Te'o

Tom McCarthy
guardian.co.uk © 2013 Guardian News and Media Limited or its affiliated companies. All rights reserved. | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds

An experimental music game from the Netherands pits digital tanks against cello-powered machine guns.

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(Image source: Wikipedia)

We hope that you all had a great holiday season and entered 2013 as enthusiastic as we are now! As you may guess we are receiving tons of emails with feature requests, and to make those easier to track we have configured a special feedback page. Go ahead and check it out - you can submit new feature requests as well as vote for existing ones. Also this now gives us lots of visibility into what our users really want, so we can spend our time on what’s important first. Keep your voices coming, but please avoid creating duplicate issues (we hate deleting them).

During past months we have mostly been busy refactoring our database backend. This is not something that you can see, but it helped us cut some hardware costs and will ensure that we can scale as fast as our user base grows. We also implemented some minor features you’ve been asking about - reverse post sorting and new passwordless Pocket integration. (You will need to check your Settings menu for that).

You might have also noticed a new image that says Unteleported on our main page. Don’t get scared, as we have not got bought by an evil corporation just yet. We have been discussing various ways to cover our increasing hardware costs, and we liked the idea of being sponsored by cool companies we can relate to. Unteleported is the first of such companies - they are our good old friends, a team of software development professionals (hey, our only real software engineer works there!) who agreed to partially cover our bills. We are extremely grateful for what they do and would like to encourage you to check their new shiny website out. If you have a cool software project to develop, they are the right people!

We were receiving requests and suggestions about translating The Old Reader to various languages. Well, we have a winner! We thank our bright friend and an early Old Reader adopter Daria Nifontova for the Russian translation she made (now available in Settings menu). For anyone else wishing to contribute there is now a separate github repository, and we are happy to accept your pull requests.

And finally, we don’t want to be ahead of ourselves, but our next major update will probably include that B-word we all are waiting for. Cool, no?