ODB’s son, formerly Young Dirty Bastard and now apparently Boy Jones, teams up with RZA for this fun track. It’s got this ill horn sample that sounds Morricone as hell. Tarantino’s definitely been rubbing off on Bobby.
A daily miasma of frivolity by two wanna-be cultural critics. Or: just, like, some good links, dude.
Poker Found a Game of Skill Not Covered by U.S. Gambling Act
Poker Found a Game of Skill Not Covered by U.S. Gambling Act
Mark Hamblett for the New York Law Journal:
Poker is a game of skill that is not covered under the federal Illegal Gambling Business Act, Eastern District Judge Jack Weinstein ruled yesterday. … Part of the judge’s reasoning was that poker games, in this case Texas Hold’em, are not purely games of chance.
“Bluffing, raising and folding require honed skills to maximize the value of the cards dealt by Lady Luck,” Weinstein said in United States v. Dicristina, 11-CR-414.
Judge Weinstein’s ruling hinges on his finding that poker is “predominated” by skill rather than chance, what with bluffing and all that.
Kunitaka Watanabe plays “Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree” on an Otamatone for your enjoyment.
(Source: http://www.youtube.com/)
Four-Fingered Robot Can Replace Flashlight Batteries
Four-Fingered Robot Can Replace Flashlight Batteries
Larry Greenemeier, Scientific American:
A robot that can reproduce the dexterity of the human hand remains a dream of the bioengineering profession. One new approach to achieving this goal avoids trying to replicate the intricacy of the bones, joints and ligaments that produce our most basic gestures.
A Sandia National Laboratories research team has adopted just such a strategy by designing a modular, plastic proto-hand whose electronics system is largely made from parts found in cell phones. The Sandia Hand can still perform with a high level of finesse for a robot, and is even capable of replacing the batteries in a small flashlight. It is expected to cost about $10,000, a fraction of the $250,000 price tag for a state-of-the-art robot hand today.
Really cool stuff — don’t miss the video.
San Francisco Giants’ Melky Cabrera launched fake website in ruse, report says
San Francisco Giants’ Melky Cabrera launched fake website in ruse, report says
ESPN.com and the AP:
San Francisco Giants star outfielder Melky Cabrera mounted a campaign to avoid his 50-game suspension that included a fake website featuring a fictitious product in an effort that was quickly uncovered by MLB investigators, the New York Daily News has reported.
…
“There was a product they said caused this positive,” the source told the Daily News. “Baseball figured out the ruse pretty quickly.”
Why would you try this? Why would you even think this would work?
‘Top Gun’ Director Tony Scott Had Inoperable Brain Cancer, Commits Suicide
‘Top Gun’ Director Tony Scott Had Inoperable Brain Cancer, Commits Suicide
Nice obit by ABC News. What an incredible loss.
First full colour images at 100,000 dpi resolution with help of nanotechnology
First full colour images at 100,000 dpi resolution with help of nanotechnology
Phys.Org summary of some research out of Singapore:
Researchers from A*STAR’s Institute of Materials Research and Engineering (IMRE) have developed an innovative method for creating sharp, full-spectrum colour images at 100,000 dots per inch (dpi), using metal-laced nanometer-sized structures, without the need for inks or dyes. In comparison, current industrial printers such as inkjet and laserjet printers can only achieve up to 10,000 dpi while research grade methods are able to dispense dyes for only single colour images.
I’d be dishonest if I didn’t admit that a huge chunk of the reason I’m linking this is because the folks are from a place called A*STAR.
Traveller arrested smuggling live hummingbirds in his trousers
Traveller arrested smuggling live hummingbirds in his trousers
Wil Longbottom writing for the Daily Mail:
This Dutch traveller was caught trying to smuggle more than a dozen live hummingbirds in special pouches sewn into the inside of his underwear at Rochambeau airport in Cayenne, French Guiana.
The birds were individually wrapped in cloth and taped up to prevent them from ‘escaping’ from their sweaty travel container.
There are pictures. Whether you want them or not.
Traveller arrested smuggling live hummingbirds in his trousers
Traveller arrested smuggling live hummingbirds in his trousers
Wil Longbottom writing for the Daily Mail:
This Dutch traveller was caught trying to smuggle more than a dozen live hummingbirds in special pouches sewn into the inside of his underwear at Rochambeau airport in Cayenne, French Guiana.
The birds were individually wrapped in cloth and taped up to prevent them from ‘escaping’ from their sweaty travel container.
There are pictures. Whether you want them or not.