You don’t normally find clever hacks and recycling combined at the florist shop, but that is just what we have at our local strip mall. This neon sign reads “lan’s florist” but used to read “Mango’s florist.” Very resourcefully, they taped over the “g”, “o”, and most of the “M” to make it read “lan” instead. We had to work hard to get a picture that shows off their modifications, but that means that most of the time (except for the slightly awkward spacing) you don’t even notice that the sign has been altered. Continue reading Clever neon mod→
From 1997-1999, I was a cartoonist on both the comics and editorial pages for the Daily Texan, the student newspaper of the University of Texas at Austin. The Deadly Toxin, as it was widely known, was a fairly “big” paper with a daily circuation (on weekdays) of around 25,000 copies.
I wrote the cartoon off and on with the help of Kirk Madison, hence the byline “Krik and Lledniw.” The cartoons were published under three titles, “Surreal Estate,” “Fire Andy Smith,” and “Unit Normal.” They ranged from very, very silly (like this one) to pointed editorial cartoons that even once earned me a concerned letter from the president of the university– but that’s another story.
We are slowly working on getting the archives online. But here’s a teaser: the cartoon above was the Easter special in 1998.
We spotted this extremely happy doorway on the second story of the back side of an industrial building in Santa Clara, CA. Mere coincidence, or could they have planned it to look like this?
Tiramatzah is a tasty and seasonal variation on a classic dessert: tiramisu made with many layers of matzah bread. Because it’s made with many thin layers of matzah instead of just a couple of layers of ladyfingers, it develops a very interesting flaky and layered texture, much like the alternating custard and pastry layers of a Napoleon. Even so, it retains the distinctive flavor of tiramisu and is a darned sight easier to make than traditional pastries.
Dot wrote in with this photo of some beautiful dessert sushi that she made (link).
The “fish” pieces are primarily pieces of dried fruit– a brilliant (and healthier) alternative to our all candy version. She also included some tips for future sushi endeavors, all of which sound like good points:
Yogos fruit rolls come in green and seem to work well for seaweed, though not as pretty green as fruit rollups.
Dried papaya, sliced, looks like Tuna! We also used dried mango and candied ginger for our ‘fish’.
A tomato paste can is a good size to be a cookie cutter to cut out the round ‘slices’ and we just put slices of the fruit on to to similate the effect of a roll.
Neat stuff– we’ll have to include dried papayas in our next batch of sushi!
Marshmallow Peeps have an amazing cult following, and it’s no wonder why: they are cute, abstract, colorful, ubiquitous, and sugary. While it sometimes seems that the entire human race is firmly in favor of performing cruel experiments on them, there is a little less consensus on whether or not one should actually eat them. Both sides of the aisle have their merits, of course, and more often than not the debate is merely over whether fresh or stale peeps are tastier. All debating aside, here’s a gourmet option for fans of Peeps that prefer to stuff their gizzards with something other than mass-produced marshmallows: Saffron Meringue Chicks! Continue reading Saffron Meringue Chicks→
April first is the only holiday of the world’s oldest religion and the world’s largest church: The First Church of the Last Laugh. We celebrated the holiday in San Francisco with the church at the 29th annual St. Stupid’s Day parade. The weather was lovely, and the people-watching was excellent. We took a few pictures, which are in this flickr set for your enjoyment.
“Phylm,” pronounced as “film,” is a portmanteau built out of the words “physics” and “film.” It’s also the name given to a new award, The Phylm Prize, aimed at spurring interest in physics and the educational use of new media. Translation: it’s a YouTube contest for physics geeks!
We’ve been invited to sit on the panel of judges for the contest, and so we’ll be looking forward to seeing the submissions. Videos up to two and a half minutes long featuring physics will be judged on clarity, accuracy, and creativity. This year’s winner will receive a check for $100 (US) to be dispersed in June 2007.
You can watch the video announcement at YouTube or (embedded) here:
We are guessing that many of you, our fine readers, already have an interest in physics and/or new media, so get started already! Let’s see your submissions! And don’t let the word “educational” intimidate you– educational propaganda is a highly appropriate diversion for evil mad scientists! (Besides, you could probably use the cash for your world domination scheme.)
Here’s some info from the rules on what kinds of things the clips can contain:
A critique/analysis of the physics presented in a fictional work. For example,
could the bus in Speed have made “the jump,” or how strong would Spider-Man
have to be to throw a car that far?
An analysis of physics as revealed by the examination of a real-world video clip.
For example, what forces does a gymnast experience during his routine?
An explanation/presentation of some physics concept or theory. For example, what is the conservation of energy?
Submissions are due by 12:00 am (GMT) May 1, 2007. We’ll be waiting.
POV-Ray is free software that can make genuinely impressive 2D and 3D graphics and animations (examples), but the learning curve is such that it can be difficult to get started on your own. So, drop in and learn how to make it look easy!
