Thursday, May 29, 2003

According to the Washington Post, "much of his style and energy came from fury over anti-Semitism and an urge to crush Jewish stereotypes." Ladies and Gentlemen, Mr. David Lee Roth.

Tuesday, May 27, 2003

Dr. David Livingstone and Sir Henry Morton Stanley were two of the best-known explorers of the 19th century. This New Yorker article explains how their reputations have fallen and, in Livingstone's case, risen again.

Monday, May 26, 2003

I saw The Matrix Reloaded this weekend and thought it was OK. I enjoyed some parts, like the freeway chase scene (a combination of The Road Warrior and To Live and Die in L.A.), and didn't enjoy other parts, like most of Morpheus' speeches. Overall, I thought it was somewhere between the rave Andrew O'Hehir gave it in Salon, and the pan David Edelstein gave it in Slate.

Thursday, May 22, 2003

This week The Onion interviews a '90s punk who believes today's punk rock is "just a pale, watered-down imitation" of classic 1990s punk rock.

Wednesday, May 21, 2003

Here's an article from The American Prospect on the danger of new epidemics. According to the article, "The world will likely face numerous global epidemics like SARS -- and far worse ones -- in the near future."

Tuesday, May 20, 2003

In this Slate article Fred Kaplan examines the story that "before Gulf War II began, U.S. special forces had gone in and bribed Iraqi generals not to fight."

Monday, May 19, 2003

I use Blogenheimer to link to interesting things that I've found on the internet. Unlike me, some bloggers use their blogs as diaries to comment on their personal experiences. This New York Times article discusses the problems faced by these bloggers: "hurt feelings, newly wary friends and relatives, and the occasional inflamed employer."

Sunday, May 18, 2003

Here's a whole page of games from a website called Orisinal.

Thursday, May 15, 2003

Since we are three years into the 21st Century, Brendan Koerner wonders, "Where are the flying cars?"

Wednesday, May 14, 2003

Neal Stephenson's new novel, Quicksilver, will be released on September 23. HarperCollins has posted a preview here.

Tuesday, May 13, 2003

Did opposition to the war in Iraq have any effect on U.S. policy? In this New Yorker article William Finnegan argues that "the protesters had a greater effect on events than today's conventional wisdom recalls," and that the Bush administration is now trying to gain the support of those who opposed the war.

Monday, May 12, 2003

Michael Massing reviews the media coverage of the war in Iraq in this article from the New York Review of Books. He finds that "the BBC maintained a consistent standard of skepticism toward all sides," but, "for the most part, US news organizations gave Americans the war they thought Americans wanted to see."

Sunday, May 11, 2003

You've probably heard the idea that an infinite number of monkeys typing on an infinite number of typewriters for an infinite amount of time will eventually produce the complete works of William Shakespeare. Some lecturers and students from the University of Plymouth tried this experiment with 6 monkeys and one computer for one month. This BBC article reports their results.

Wednesday, May 07, 2003

This Slate article compares the sales of classic novels like Pride and Prejudice and War and Peace with the sales of recent best sellers. It finds that, "Measured against a best seller in its first flush, sales of any classic book are piddling, of course. But the overall sales picture resembles the proverbial tortoise-and-hare scenario: As the race goes on, the classics win out."

Tuesday, May 06, 2003

The life and work of author William Gibson are discussed in this Guardian Unlimited profile.

Monday, May 05, 2003

Here's an article by Thomas Pynchon on George Orwell's 1984.

Sunday, May 04, 2003

I saw the movie A Mighty Wind last weekend. Although I didn't like it as much as I liked the "mockumentaries" Waiting for Guffman and This is Spinal Tap, I thought it was funny and worth seeing. Here's the Filthy Critic's review of A Mighty Wind.

Thursday, May 01, 2003

Chris Suellentrop discusses the success of The Matrix in this article from Slate.