firehose

Courtney shared this story from Super Opinionated.

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OnlyMrGodKnowsWhy

#onbrand

(@Laine)

1. Hopper

2. Tiller

3. Dashiell

4. Stanchion

5. Anais

6. Talullah

7. Rudder

8. Mason

9. Traveler

10. Flora

11. Portlight

12. Magnus

Boat Parts: 2, 4, 7, 11
Names of Unvaccinated Children: 1, 3, 5, 6, 8, 10, 12
Both: 9

Original Source

Declaring that "citizens who wish to gather in the wake of Michael Brown's tragic death have a constitutional right to do so," a federal judge said Monday that police in Ferguson, Missouri, can't command peaceful protesters to "keep moving." U.S. District Judge Catherine D. Perry agreed with lawyers for the American Civil Liberties Union who argued that forbidding peaceful protesters from gathering in one place violated the constitutional right to freedom of assembly. Amidst the unrest in Ferguson following the killing of Brown, an unarmed teenager, police agencies for weeks could be heard barking orders at demonstrators to "keep moving" and to stay off the sidewalks. The temporary injunction doesn't bar police from breaking up unruly or violent protests, because protesters "do not have the right to endanger lives of police officers or other citizens."

Photographs of nuclear slide-rules Title: Dr. Strangelove Folkert

gifak-net:

[video]

Responding to a caller on his nationally syndicated radio show, Limbaugh launched into a soliloquy about so-called politically correct liberals who believe that America is responsible for the spread of Ebola in Liberia because that nation was established by freed American slaves. “And if it hadn’t been for that they probably wouldn’t have [Ebola]. So there are some people who think we kind of deserve a little bit of this,” he said, before accusing elected leaders of purposely leaving the country vulnerable to the virus. “The danger we have now is that we elected people in positions of power and authority who think this or think like this in terms of this country being responsible, this country being to blame for things and it’s that kind of thinking that leads to opposition to shutting down airports from various countries,” Limbaugh explained, referring to the Obama administration’s handling of the crisis. “It leads to opposition to keeping these people out of the country: ‘How dare we? We can’t turn our back on them! They exist because of us. We can’t turn them away!’” he said.

“They emphasize concussions when they start getting hit with lawsuits and they care about the players’ safety but Thursday Night Football is putting every player on the football field in danger,” Foster said, according to the Chronicle. The outspoken Foster took a bonus shot at the NFL Players Association when asked if the union should do something about Thursday night games, saying, “Union and the league is kind of the same thing."

New York Daily News

Adrian Peterson took part in orgy in 2011, hotel room was paid for with funds ... New York Daily News As Vikings running back Adrian Peterson prepares to appear in a courtroom outside of Houston Wednesday for child abuse charges, disturbing details about his past continue to come to light. A Minneapolis Star-Tribune report released Monday includes ... and more »

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We were excited when NASA announced that it would bring human spaceflight back to the United States with a partner program for commercial companies Boeing and SpaceX, but not everyone has been equally thrilled. Spaceflight company Sierra Nevada was passed over for NASA contracts in favor of the other two companies, and now they’re contesting the decision through the U.S. Government Accountability Office.

NASA spokesperson Stephanie Schierholz told Spaceflight Now that the legal challenge has caused work under the contracts to halt completely. She told them, “Pursuant to the GAO protest, NASA has instructed Boeing and SpaceX to stop performance of the CCtCap contract.”

So far what Sierra Nevada has asked for, as explained in a statement from the company, is simply a detailed explanation of each company’s proposals, how they were reviewed, and why Boeing and SpaceX were the best choices. That’s not unreasonable, considering that they say their shuttle-like Dream Chaser would save the government $900 million over Boeing for comparable use.

They don’t want anyone to think they’re given to launching unwarranted complaints, either, saying:

In its 51 year history SNC has never filed a legal challenge to a government contract award. However, in the case of the CCtCap award, NASA’s own Source Selection Statement and debrief indicate that there are serious questions and inconsistencies in the source selection process. SNC, therefore, feels that there is no alternative but to institute a legal challenge.

The GAO has until January 5 to make a decision on whether NASA has some explaining to do, but hopefully one will be reached more quickly so we can get the commercial partner program back on track—no matter who the partners are. In the meantime, it’s possible that Boeing and SpaceX will keep working on their technology with private funds, because neither is exactly lacking in the means to do so. Hopefully, this will just be a small bump in the road. Well, where we’re going, we don’t need roads, but you get the idea.

(via Universe Today, image via SpaceX, Nintendo, our own edits)

Previously in NASA

• NASA is planning to put astronauts in stasis on Mars missions
• They could use some ideas on how to use 600 pounds of dead weight, though
• An internal NASA report now says the private contractor program may raise costs

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An anonymous reader writes "Free software programmer Lennart Poettering has been part of his fair share of controversy in the open source community, and his latest essay may raise the most eyebrows yet. Poettering takes on the idea that the community is one big happy family and has some harsh words for the loudest and most obnoxious members. He says in part: "I don't usually talk about this too much, and hence I figure that people are really not aware of this, but yes, the Open Source community is full of a#@&oles, and I probably more than most others am one of their most favourite targets. I get hate mail for hacking on Open Source. People have started multiple 'petitions' on petition web sites, asking me to stop working (google for it). Recently, people started collecting Bitcoins to hire a hitman for me (this really happened!). Just the other day, some idiot posted a 'song' on youtube, a creepy work, filled with expletives about me and suggestions of violence. People post websites about boycotting my projects, containing pretty personal attacks. On IRC, people /msg me sometimes, with nasty messages, and references to artwork in 4chan style. And there's more. A lot more."

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

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jfruh writes People concerned about the growing gap between the rich and poor point to a common practice in Silicon Valley: going through staffing agencies for non-core jobs like janitorial and security work, leaving those workers disconnected from the company and lacking in the job security and benefits their co-workers take for granted. Google has now decided to buck the trend, bringing their security guards in-house.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Have you seen a bird? Tell us. 

Call The Bird Hotline:
1 (800) 621-1091

by Erin Marshall

bikiniarmorbattledamage:

crucia-airlines:

rikakuuma:

Can we all take a moment to appreciate that Hyrule Warriors almost had a badass female version of Link named Linkle?
Pictures taken from the official game guide, btw. It has an art section.

bikiniarmorbattledamage

Sad thing: the scrapped female Link/Link’s sister character for some reason worn basically a bikini top and apparently (in some images, at least) wasn’t supposed to have male Link’s signature white tight pants, just show off her thighs.

Sadder thing: in many aspects it’s still marginally better costume design than the non-armor Princess Zelda has in the actual game.

~Ozzie

Singer accuses the company of "making millions from the victimization of women" and engaging in "blatantly unethical behavior." He even goes as far as saying "Google's 'Don't be evil' motto is a sham." According to Singer, takedown requests were sent to Google days after the celebrity photos leaked online. Apparently the images have not been removed from YouTube and Blogger, and Singer is accusing Google of failing "to act expeditiously, and responsibly to remove the images."

tsu doh nimh writes A previously unknown security flaw in Bugzilla — a popular online bug-tracking tool used by Mozilla and many of the open source Linux distributions — allows anyone to view detailed reports about unfixed vulnerabilities in a broad swath of software. Bugzilla is expected today to issue a fix for this very serious weakness, which potentially exposes a veritable gold mine of vulnerabilities that would be highly prized by cyber criminals and nation-state actors.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

During an appearance on Real Time With Bill Maher Friday, Ben Affleck argued with the host over the nature of Islam, with Maher describing the belief system as “the only religion that acts like the fucking mafia, that will fucking kill you if...

In the wake of the continuing celebrity nude photo leaks, online nude photo trading rings and hackers are finding new ways to continue to obtain illicit private photos of thousands of celebrities and regular women, alike.

tinycartridge:

Whaaaaaaat, Vib-Ribbon on PS3 and Vita tomorrow ⊟

Following the weird non-announcement at E3, Sony has announced for-real plans to publish Vib-Ribbon, NanaOn-Sha’s black-and-white musical platformer, on PS3 and Vita in North America.

Tomorrow! (Europe is next week)

And the PS3 version retains the ability to generate levels from music CDs! The Vita one doesn’t, for obvious reasons.

I’m definitely looking forward to paying an “attractive” price for this tomorrow. If you like music games, cool art games, or the work of the team that created Parappa, you should check it out too!

BUY PS Vita, 1-year PS Plus membership, upcoming games

thefrogman:

Twin Peaks is coming back! The hit drama is returning to life 25 years later thanks to Showtime. David Lynch, one of the creators of the acclaimed drama, took to Twitter to share the news. Last week Lynch and co-creator Mark Frost ignited speculation with simultaneous tweets hinting at something more. Check out the teaser below.

Original Source

A magical thing happened a few months ago. I spoke with Sigourney Weaver on the phone. I’m not fully recovered. Find out what the actress, soon to be heard reprising her Ellen Ripley role in the video game Alien: Isolation, had to say about women in film, women in games, her sci-fi legacy, and Ripley’s daughter.

We felt having Ripley’s daughter be the protagonist for Alien: Isolation (check out our advanced review later today!) was an inspired choice. Not only does it bring back the original feel of Ridley Scott’s Alien, it expands on the character in a way not typically seen in Hollywood – a daughter as a legacy character.

“I get approached to do other kinds of games, sometimes to do with Alien, and this is the first one that seemed to me to be very ambitious in a new direction, using the details of Jim Cameron’s script – you know, the fact that Ripley never was able to be reunited with her daughter,” Weaver told reporters on a conference call. “This was the first time it makes sense to me because, frankly, these movies are hard acts to follow. That’s the biggest challenge of anything that’s good enough to spawn a sequel is that it’s setting a high bar. ”

Weaver added that it was “imaginative” and “touching” to see her fictional daughter go into space and the unexpected connection between the two. The Mary Sue asked her about Ellen Ripley’s story being wrapped up in the concept (in the films) and literal story of (in the game) motherhood and how it related to strong female characters:

I think of women as so strong, and I am fortunate to play lots of different kinds of women, but… women to me in general are sort of the glue that holds the world together. And it is women who are mothers, particularly — who are on the front lines of many things in life – they hold the family together, they change things in their communities, they run businesses. They really have to do many, many things and I think over the centuries have developed qualities of character: strength, and endurance and fortitude and patience. And kind of “let’s get this done” general attitude that I think is really refreshing, and we don’t get to see it enough in life or in movies. I feel it’s a logical extension that – it does happen every now and then that you see a mother become a heroine. You know, like off the top of my head  the old movie now but JoBeth Williams in Poltergeist – It’s not unheard of for mothers to save the day. As they do in real life all the time.

As one of the most influential female characters in science fiction, we also had to ask Weaver how she felt about her legacy.

“I’m sort of stunned that it is an influential character but I’m delighted, and I can kind of understand it because I actually based the character on a woman who inspires me very much who’s an environmentalist who’s very… she’s very much a person who doesn’t get bogged down in things that could go wrong. I’m glad that I picked the right person,” she told The Mary Sue. “I think she is a terrific character and I have to give credit to the four men and the many men and women behind these movies who wrote them and acted in them that these four films — I was very fortunate to be working with people who could tell a story that could still resonate many years later that had enough universal themes in it, that was still relevant to people.”

She continued, “As I think a lot of science fiction is, because it remains in the future, so we’re still very interested in what happens. I think I was really lucky, and I hope someday to complete the Alien saga. I meet so many people for whom these movies mean a lot and it would be great to let the story be finished properly instead of kind of – which is my fault really. I didn’t want to do 5 with 4 because I wanted some distance. But maybe someday we’ll get to do the final installment and Ripley will find some peace. I hope so.”

We’re keeping our fingers crossed on that one but in the meantime, if you need your Ripley fix, we suggest trying Alien: Isolation. The game focuses on Amanda Ripley, searching for an answer to what happened to her mother and running into the same menace she faced. For her part, Weaver had glowing things to say about this new chapter in the franchise.

I think other people have tried to funnel Alien into games. I think this one – what’s interesting about this game is that it’s – it has its own original story and it’s very faithful to the first film while going in a whole new direction for people. And in, if I may say, in an emotional direction. I think video games themselves are expanding to please a lot of different appetites – a lot of different kinds of gamers. Maybe gamers who are more interested in story than, kind of, target practice. So I’m kind of delighted that this happened now, because I think that gaming is so sophisticated, that it can give you such an immersive experience, this is the perfect time for this game created from something that was made 35 years ago – it’s a coming together of a lot of elements in a really exciting way. I certainly wouldn’t have anticipated it then because the business didn’t morph in the same way. You know – there weren’t these people. It was that long ago, in the middle ages,  – there were no video games that I know of. There might have been pinball and you know, those games. …Yeah, there was pinball! Some country – maybe Britain – I saw an Alien pinball game. That sort of – that would have been the biggest kind of success when we made the film, that we would turn into a popular pinball game. But I think this is a very creative game and I think it’s – to me it’s interesting story-wise and character-wise.

Weaver told reporters Ripley is part of her DNA and she was surprised how easily her voice came out when working on the video game.

“It was actually a little hair-raising for me to walk through the corridors of Alien that I hadn’t walked through in 35 years and to see Ridley Scott’s little bird that goes back and forth and to see some of those weird little touches that the creators had put in the environment, which are fantastic. All the detail is really fantastic. There’s so much to take in in the game and I bet it will be a really fascinating experience to kind of jump into this game,” she said. “What the game does is it puts the spectator, the fan, in the driver’s seat, and you actually have your own experience that you have to live or die based on what your decisions are. What you hear. What you see. What door you’re reaching for. Your judgement. Your decision. I think it’s a very rich, complex kind of world and situation.”

The actress also told us it was very exciting to enter the world of video games with Alien: Isolation and what it means for women in games. She said, “I have heard that it’s very male-dominated and you know, I simply have seen a lot of women in strong roles in the movies and I think if more games are made with a bigger spectrum that characters will get more complex, and I think that certainly will mean there will be more women characters. Men and women. I think the games will get more layered and, you know, creative. So I think that’s really exciting.”

And then she got us in the feels.

“I’m sort of both thrilled about being, having played, a kind of iconic character, but I wish it weren’t such a lonely feeling. Because I do feel that women are so incredible. It seems to be hard for Hollywood to come up with good just sort of straightaway – straight, true women characters that they don’t try to make, you know, ‘sympathetic’ or something. That’s always the kiss of death,” she said. “When a person will try to write you to make people feel something for you instead of just letting you get on with it, it can be a kiss of death. It takes talented people in all these different fields to come up with good men and women characters. There’s so many great examples in the world of powerful, interesting personalities that I hope it’s more – perhaps if more women choose to enter this field of creating games, that will happen. I just think that, as someone who doesn’t know that much about games but thinks they’re great, I just feel like there should be games for everybody, for everybody’s taste. I am sure it will happen.”

Alien: Isolation will be available from October 7, 2014, for Xbox One the all-in-one games and entertainment system from Microsoft, PlayStation®4 computer entertainment system, Windows PC, Xbox 360 games and entertainment system from Microsoft and PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system.

Previously in Alien: Isolation

• The Mary Sue’s Alien: Isolation Replica Jacket Giveaway!
• Interview: Creative Lead Al Hope Speaks with The Mary Sue about Alien: Isolation
• Latest Alien: Isolation Trailer Says Nowhere Is Safe, I Am Terrified And Believe Them

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An anonymous reader writes in with news about maps attributed to Marco Polo that seem to show the coast of Alaska. "For a guy who claimed to spend 17 years in China as a confidant of Kublai Khan, Marco Polo left a surprisingly skimpy paper trail. No Asian sources mention the footloose Italian. The only record of his 13th-century odyssey through the Far East is the hot air of his own Travels, which was actually an "as told to" penned by a writer of romances. But a set of 14 parchments, now collected and exhaustively studied for the first time, give us a raft of new stories about Polo's journeys and something notably missing from his own account: maps. If genuine, the maps would show that Polo recorded the shape of the Alaskan coast—and the strait separating it from Asia—four centuries before Vitus Bering, the Danish explorer long considered the first European to do so. Perhaps more important, they suggest Polo was aware of the New World two centuries before Columbus."

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

The world…okay, the internet…okay, fashion blogs have been abuzz this week with the release of Suckers Apparel’s new Twin Peaks-inspired fashion collection. Sure, Twin Peaks is a beloved cult series, but I was a bit surprised by how much the world has apparently been desperately craving such a clothing line. But hey, anything that gets people talking about Audrey Horne is fine by me.

My favorite look in the seven-piece collection is the “Welcome to Twin Peaks” dress ($139.99), a deep pine velvet skater dress with a mesh neckline and sleeves. Though the look is specifically inspired by the sign from the show’s opening credits, it also reminds me of the dark sensuality of Audrey Horne, portrayed by the remarkably self-possessed Sherilynn Fenn.

There are plenty of references for Twin Peaks fans to get a kick out of, ranging from the lodge to the log lady. The “Poor Laura” dress ($189.99) is a bit literal, but the hood and general shape are uncommon enough to keep it strange and interesting. The “Smoking in the Girls Room” capelet ($179.99) in pale gray with bright red trim, is inspired by the painted stalls of the iconic high school girls bathroom.

The “Fire Walk With Me” dress ($169.99) is less of a hit. The references are great: the lodge pattern and the heart-shaped cut-out in the back, but the full-length, long-sleeved, mock turtleneck burnout velvet gown is a bit too heavy. From the front, the only visible skin is the model’s head and hands. The heart cut-out in the back helps, but still, with so little visible skin, the look would have benefitted from a lighter fabric. But the real issue with this dress is that it’s just so literal that it crumbles under its own weight.

Finally you have leggings in three different prints: a log lady-inspired wood print ($64.99), the black and white “8Bit Lodge Leggings” ($99.99), and the red and black “Who Killed Laura? Leggings” ($99.99). Overall, the collection is a bit pricey, but the only items I find offensively marked up are the leggings. The dresses and capelet aren’t cheap, but they’re certainly within reason. Most of the collection is already sold out, but Suckers Apparel’s website promises more inventory soon.

If you’re interested in channeling some Twin Peaks-inspired fashion, but don’t feel like spending a hundred dollars on a pair of leggings, here are a few ways that you can channel the style of the series with items that you may very well already have in your closet, and if not, they won’t break the bank.

The School Girl Sweater and Skirt: When I think of Audrey Horne, the first scene that springs to mind is of her dancing and swaying in the Double R Diner. For the sweater, pick a slightly cropped crew neck with a fitted cut (but not too tight!). Sleeves should be elbow-length or longer and the knit shouldn’t be too thin. Cashmere is, of course, ideal. For the skirt, aim for plaid and pleats, but resist the temptation to go too short. This is not a Naughty School Girl Halloween costume. Don’t forget the saddle shoes!

The Pencil Skirt and Button-Up Top: This is another Audrey Horne-inspired look, but really, when you think of the women’s fashion in Twin Peaks, don’t you automatically picture Sherilynn Fenn? When you’re picking out the perfect outfit to smoke in the girls bathroom, be sure that you’re choosing a pencil skirt that’s fitted, but not too tight. (Audrey was sultry, but never obvious.) For the top, try a retro blouse in a muted color, or, even better, a fitted printed cardigan in a fabric that’s thin enough to tuck into the skirt without disrupting the line. And the purpose of the cardigan here is to act as a blouse, so keep it buttoned up to a ladylike degree and don’t layer it over anything else. Instead of a cardigan or a blouse, you can always pair a pencil skirt with a crew neck sweater, but make sure it’s not too thick or chunky. A thin short-sleeved sweater is a great option. And aim for autumnal colors, Audrey’s bread and butter.

The Sheer Lacy Blouse: Is Shelly Johnson more your style? Nothing sums up Mädchen Amick’s character’s balance of wistfulness and sex appeal like a blouse that’s both lacy and sheer. Layer it over a simple camisole and top the look off with a home perm.

The Over-Sized Mens Winter Coat: This is another Shelly Johnson staple, but it was embraced by several female characters on the show, as well as by almost all of the male characters. Over-sized coats have been a major runway trend in recent seasons, but luckily, this is one of the easiest items to thrift. Better yet, raid your grandfather’s closet.

The Eyepatch: To really sell this look, be sure that whenever you’re wearing your eyepatch you’re also talking obsessively about your most recent invention, a silent drape runner. You are going to be a millionaire.

Chevron Print: This isn’t inspired by a particular character, but rather some iconic set dressing. Who can forget the image of a bloody FBI Special Agent Dale Cooper sprawled across a chevron-patterned hardwood floor? The pattern is a close cousin of the painted design of the girls bathroom featured on the Suckers Apparel capelet. Chevron is a timeless classic, but it looks fresh and new when it shows up on dresses and gowns. It’s also a great print option the blouses, sweaters, and accessories.

Red Velvet: Nothing says “Fire Walk With Me” more than red velvet. Bonus points if, whenever you wear it, you speak backwards. No, wait. You speak normally, but then you play it backwards. No, wait. You record everything backwards, and then play it forward. And you hang out with Michael J. Anderson. Right? My head hurts. Let’s just dance it out. There’s music in the air.

Original Source

Last July, we pondered what madness Marvel was dreaming up for Squirrel Girl after the company registered a trademark on the almighty hero. And now we know: they're bringing her back in her own comic. Excellent.

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