Friday, May 29, 2009

silk surprise



I wish the article said how long it took for this to happen.
(via)

Wednesday, May 20, 2009

a trend.

23 years ago, an amateur fossil hunter discovered something in a fossil pit near Whocares, Germany. For reasons unknown (my guess is he's a jerk), he kept it a secret until three years ago when he decided he wanted some money (probably bet against the Steelers). He sold the object via a third party to a Norwegian paleontologist for an undisclosed, less-than-one-million-dollars amount. The object was kept a secret so it could be studied closely.

Until yesterday.

The object:


Darwinius masillae, or "Ida."

The Internet:


crapping its pants.

Seems like guy-with-line-through-the-o-in-his-name wanted to earn back some of that undisclosed, less-than-one-million-dollars amount, because the scientific paper on Ida was released in tandem with an enormous publicity campaign including a jazzy website and some ridiculous quotes. Hurum says,
"It is the scientific equivalent of the Holy Grail. This fossil will probably be the one that will be pictured in all textbooks for the next 100 years."He also compared the future museum display to the Mona Lisa (which, of course, it will remain for the next 100 years). Even the guy who narrates Planet Earth needs a change of underwear.

Point: This is a great discovery. The hyperbolic reaction just needs some abating.

That said, I look forward to learning more about my great Aunt Ida



and the continued webwide reaction to her discovery.

Monday, May 18, 2009

great graph

Graph about topic trends:

It will also hold true for trending discussions of trending topics.
(via)

Thursday, May 07, 2009

the world must know

The other night, while we were waiting for LOST, Phelps mentioned a new NBC show called Community that was to star Chevy Chase.



Curious about Chase's recent activity, I ordered Phelps to connect his computer to my skull to find out his last TV or movie appearance of note that I remembered. We determined that technology would not yet allow such an action, so he used IMDb. 1997's Vegas Vacation was the winner, but we ended up not caring about that once the following sequence of ludicrous discovery was initialized.

Chase is starring in an upcoming (?) 2009 film called Not Another Not Another Movie. The ridiculous title and its spoof-movie-spoof implications seized our full attention.

The IMDb summary:In this non- stop hilarious ride we follow a struggling Movie Studio that is willing to do anything to make a buck even if it means ruining its reputation, and running the Movie Industry into the ground. This film has everything that an audience wants from a LAUGH OUT LOUD COMEDY by taking a no-holds barred attack on the Spoof Genre from Blockbuster Action movies to Dramas and Documentaries to Popular Television shows. --Written by David MurphyI clicked David Murphy's name to see if he had written any other summaries. No dice.

Returning to the IMDb page, we noticed that the film also stars Vinnie Jones, Michael Madsden, and Burt "Cop and a Half" Reynolds.



Additionally, we noticed that the movie was directed by a one David Murphy. I didn't recognize any of his other titles, but I did recognize his name from 30 seconds earlier when I read the IMDb plot summary.

Quick sidebar: Here is the plot summary for his most recent movie, No Bad Days:

Set in the exotic terrain of the Yucatan Peninsula, NO BAD DAYS is an action/adventure film that manifests all the qualities that make for an entertaining and captivating film. The fast-pace style makes for a surprise at every turn, while the charisma and chemistry of the main characters create a romantic subplot. [etc. etc.]
-- Written by Instinct Productions
Guess what production company made No Bad Days.

Back to the more important, possibly most-important-of-all-time movie. We traveled to its official website. Just go there--it's all gold. Make sure to check the "in the news" section.

The movie is about the creation of a spoof movie that spoofs spoof movies. Reynolds plays the actor playing the director in the movie in the movie, and his character is none too pleased about starring in a shoddy spoof spoof.

Later that night, we found the trailer.



I am concerned that Not Another Not Another Movie will be terrible. I was excited about Pauly Shore is Dead, and we all know how that turned out. I wouldn't expect much from a movie like this, either. Regardless, the sky-high concept and ingenious marketing approach is enough to warrant a try, if only so I can be in on the joke.

The only release date the internet has to offer is "2009." We may have already missed it. If not, I hope there's a midnight premiere planned. Because I'll be there.

Wednesday, May 06, 2009

great movie lines

not bad.

Monday, May 04, 2009

Sunday, May 03, 2009

nuke the phones

Man microwaves cell phone.