magpie's shiny things

Just one link this AM.

I can’t decide what to think of these por­traits of the chil­dren of the
new Russian elite. Somehow I think they don’t feel as odd here in the
US as they do in Russia. The sex­u­al­iza­tion of child­hood and the push
to mim­ic­k­ing adult behav­iors and atti­tudes in 12 year olds is common
here.

Nonetheless the pic­tures are com­pelling. (audio)

http://www.annaskladmann.com/little_adults.html

Style points:

http://gadgets.boingboing.net/2009/04/28/photo-stylish-robot.html
http://advancedstyle.blogspot.com/2009/04/reader-submission-patricks-photos.html

Legal Notes:
The Google books set­tle­ment may not be — a set­tle­ment that is.
http://arstechnica.com/media/news/2009/04/googles-book-settlement-delayed-as-resistance-appears.ars

Didn’t they teach these fools to be care­ful who they bul­ly. Lessig
twit­ters Warner Bros. take down notice.
http://www.boingboing.net/2009/04/29/warner-music-claims.html

Images:

If you’re feel­ing the need to be total­ly creeped out. Bits from the
lat­est auc­tion of MJ’s stuff. Since when does flickr do flash?
http://www.flickr.com/photos/paulscheer/sets/72157617373340442/show/with/3478337725/

Or made happy:
http://www.dinosaursandrobots.com/2009/04/bo-diddley-on-scooter-with-matching.html

Or prove that patience is not over-rated.
http://blog.craftzine.com/archive/2009/04/am_eye_candy_paper_shadow_proj.html

Weapons:
Because I’m cur­rent­ly doing a vol­un­teer gig. (Most of you know I’
don’t play well with others.)
http://gadgets.boingboing.net/2009/04/27/pse-tac-15-tactical.html

more tomor­row — maybe. I’m help­ing prep for a fundraiser/photo booth
at SEAF. I have no time for impor­tant things.

Some vague­ly relat­ed pho­tos from Milan Design Week. Many cool
seat­ing sur­faces. Some that I would hes­i­tate to call chairs.
http://www.core77.com/blog/milan09/milan_design_week_09_tuttobene_13287.asp

Design as a pro­fes­sion is cur­rent­ly hav­ing a cri­sis of relevancy.
Trying to fig­ure out how it can val­ue to soci­ety rather than merely
add val­ue to the bot­tom line. As is the case in all such thrashes
there are extremes that make the entire exer­cise look silly.
http://www.core77.com/blog/education/studying_ethically_responsible_innovation_in_france_13284.asp

Most cell phone apps don’t real­ly require the con­text of being on your
cell phone to make sense. This acci­dent report­ing  app from Nationwide
does a nice job of it.
http://www.wired.com/autopia/2009/04/nationwide-is-on-your-iphone/

David Wienberger a deep thinker about infor­ma­tion and meta-data muses
on the mud­dle of Pirate Bay. He draws no con­clu­sion. Which is, I
think, the only conclusion.
http://www.everythingismiscellaneous.com/2009/04/25/the-pirate-bay-and-the-pirate-google/

A poster for Antennasia (Japanese elec­tron­i­ca band)  that is cool the
first time you look at it and mes­mer­iz­ing the sec­ond, third, etc.
http://sleepmachine.tumblr.com/post/100246656/suyhnc-yukemuri-poster2009-1-jpg

Someone else rid­ing one of my old hobby-horses. Why MBAs aren’t
qual­i­fied to actu­al­ly man­age any­thing. (Australian Broadcast Co.)
audio at the top of the page, tran­script below:
http://www.abc.net.au/rn/backgroundbriefing/stories/2009/2526727.htm

I can’t find con­fir­ma­tion of the inci­dent beyond this report:
http://www.gadling.com/2009/04/26/air-france-jet-diverts-after-being-told-to-stay-clear-of-us-airs/

Ospina’s account;
http://progreso-weekly.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=922&Itemid=1

A pret­ty bike. (And I like the idea that Simpson Race Products has an
art director.)
http://www.bikeexif.com/yamaha-sr500-dirt-tracker

Continuing the Lego-ification of the universe.
http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5905455#

In the I won­der who was after what depart­ment. The judge in the Pirate
Bay tri­al is a mem­ber of a copy­rights advo­ca­cy group. And this is just
com­ing out? Either the PB lawyers are incom­pe­tent (mis­tri­al,
incom­pe­tent defense) or clever (mis­tri­al, judge not impartial)
http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2009/04/judges-conflict-of-interest-surfaces-after-pirate-bay-trial.ars

Fabulously beau­ti­ful Japanese depic­tions of nature.
http://bibliodyssey.blogspot.com/2009/04/nature-of-utamaro.html

Half a mil­lion pacemakers.
http://www.crunchgear.com/2009/04/23/not-all-gadgets-suck-50000th-pacemaker-successfully-installed/

Play with your food. Nice visu­al trib­ute to the most aggra­vat­ing “game” ever.
http://sleepmachine.tumblr.com/post/99570542/extramegane-london-paris-jinakanishi

The ASIFA Animation Archive is always a good place to waste some time.
This sam­pling of old­er glimpses into the future has a nice retro feel
and an occa­sion­al bit of brilliance.
http://www.animationarchive.org/2009/04/theory-our-dreams-of-future.html

A cut and tape pin­hole cam­era. If for no oth­er rea­son than you really
need a cam­era with this much col­or on the *out­side*
http://blog.craftzine.com/archive/2009/04/world_pinhole_camera_day_camer.html

Obsession in the ser­vice of cool.
http://www.dinosaursandrobots.com/2009/04/incredibly-detailed-bridge-layer-model.html

more Monday,

Black and White is old skool and that’s good.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ruipalha/

I prob­a­bly qual­i­fy for “life expe­ri­ence cred­it” for this course but
you all might want to con­sid­er it.
Internet Age Writing Syllabus and Course Overview, by Robert Lanham
http://www.mcsweeneys.net/2009/4/20lanham.html

Earth Day link — an unob­tru­sive rain water cap­ture system
http://www.aquascapeinc.com/why_rainxchange

Wow — that’s like, so, Elvis on Black Velvet
http://blog.craftzine.com/archive/2009/04/golden_girls_in_glitter.html

PBS streams NOVA. So much for today’s productivity.
http://www.pbs.org/video/program/979359664/

Steam toy on sale at Bonhams. (I send you to Dinosaurs and Robots
because Bonhams web­site is a mess.)
http://www.dinosaursandrobots.com/2009/04/scratch-built-automaton-of-fairground.html

more tomor­row (and pos­si­bly lat­er to day)