Let’s admit it, most elderly people can’t handle today’s “new fangled” television remotes. They all think that they’ll break something if they hit a button they’ve never touched before. Even my parents, who are in their mid-60s, look like complete idiots when trying to switch from one television channel to another. They’re so slow to punch in numbers that when switching to a multi-digit channel, they don’t even have time to hit the second or third number before the television thinks they’re done with their choice. I don’t know about you, but this drives me totally crazy. Anyway, if you’re like me and know some old folks who are afraid of touching remotes of any kind, the following comic by Roz Chast will really make you snicker.
Chris Brogan has some great ideas on how to pitch the concept of “social media” to your boss. This can be particularly useful if your superior is a Pointy-Haired Dilbert-like boss whose mind is still in the Medieval Ages when it comes to business.
Back in 2002, when I was still working for an employer (before the glory days of being self-employed), I remember approaching my boss and pitching the idea of a website for the company. I had to then spend the next half hour telling her what a website was and why exactly the company needed one. I then had to spend another half hour explaining the concept of the internet and how it worked (I needed a good stiff drink after that day at work!)
But even though we are now at 2008, there will still be many bosses who still don’t “get” the internet, especially social media, so Chris’s list is a good starting point.
Are there any more pitches you would add to the list? Any you disagree with? Any you would revise?
Designed by the engineers at Harbor Wings Technologies, the AUSV unmanned vehicle is a wing-powered ship that was conceived to accomplish long-range surveillance and observation missions. The vehicle features three very special components that allow it to become fully autonomous: the “WingSail”, the Hydrofoils, and the Guidance System. Video after the jump.
The ability to become invisible figures as a theme in the magic and mythology of many cultures over the centuries. At least since H.G. Wells’ The Invisible Man, science fiction fans have wondered whether it might be possible to achieve invisibility through the application of science. It appears (har) that this little bit of science fiction may indeed become science fact.
The wavelengths on which this currently operates aren’t quite up to the visible spectrum yet, though, and the scale is on the order of nanometers. The researchers see improvements in telecommunications and microscopes as more practical near-term applications for their technology. But they’re hopeful that they’ll soon discover materials that act the same way on visible wavelengths — and be able to scale them up to the size needed to produce the ‘Harry Potter’ effect.
How cool would it be to suit up in an invisibility cloak and disappear? I can think of several practical uses:
Odd jobs need doing around the house… hey, where’s Chip?
Dress code at work? Heck, don’t even shave.
“I honestly swear that nobody saw me at that bar last night, honey.”
Mess with your kids’ heads: “Don’t think I’m not watching you, young lady.”
Drive your convertible downtown just to watch heads turn and mouths open.
We all have to admit it, this year’s Olympic opening ceremony was of epic proportions… but there was only one thing that wasn’t so epic.
Right at the moment when Chinese gymnast Li Ning was flying to light up the giant Olympic torch, someone took this picture. And if you think that this was Photoshopped, other people were able to take the shot from other angles.
For those of you who are addicted to Friendfeed (and I’m sure there’s quite a few of you), there’s a hot new Greasemonkey script in town, and once you’ve installed this one, you’ll be living permanently in Friendfeed and refusing to come out.
This little baby allows you to add custom tabs to your Friendfeed page and you can specify almost any URL you want to go inside the tabs. I say “almost” because the URL needs to have a favicon for the tab to pop up properly – at least as far as I can see. In the script settings, it says the favicon is optional, but so far I haven’t been able to get a tab working without one. In the absence of a favicon, the tab collapses like a pack of cards in a hurricane.
Anyway these are the tabs I’ve got set up so far. My own little dashboard. I may add more later.
The main one I am using is my Google Reader. This is proving extremely useful and productive as I am able to switch between my Google Reader subscriptions and my Friendfeed contacts in the same Firefox tab. Then as you can see, I also have tabs for Gmail, Google search, Twitter, Google Calendar and Delicious – all sitting on the top right hand corner of the Friendfeed screen!
Having this new script has enabled me to close several Firefox tabs that I normally had open on a daily basis. It also allowed me to uninstall several other Greasemonkey scripts. So I like how this new script has made me able to clean up my Firefox browser a bit.
If you’re a big Friendfeed and Greasemonkey user, I highly recommend you use this new Greasemonkey script. It’s very stable and works very well.
Here is a CGI remake of the ultimate fight between Optimus Prime and Megatron as seen in the 1986 animated classic, “The Transformers.” Enjoy the show!
Named after cognitive scientist Roger Shepard, a Shepard scale is an auditory illusion composed out of a series of ascending or descending Shepard tones. To start the Illusion, hit the play button, and be sure to replay the video again and again and again. I can assure you that you’ll be questioning your sanity after listening to it a few times.
If you thought that the Nintendo Wii was quite good then you haven’t seen anything yet, mostly because you’ll soon be able to experience the next new thing in game realism – smells.
Yup, you read that right – smells. Imagine you’re in a battefield and someone fires a rocket. Now you’ll be able to smell the fumes. Or you’re driving a car and you slam on the brakes. Now you’ll be able to smell the burning rubber of the tyres. Or you’re walking past a restaurant in Second Life. Now you’ll be able to smell the delicious food.
How is this possible? By using add-ons with the amBX system. These add-ons are not yet out. In fact they are still being tested in the lab as amBX is apparently still trying to work out how to get rid of one smell in time for the next one coming along. But with luck, the kinks will soon be ironed out and then you’ll have the smell of battle up your nostrils as you fire at the enemy.
Chris Brogan 
