Recommended Reading
from Bruce
Thomas Lin: A 'Rebel' Without a Ph.D. (Quanta Magazine)
"The Ph.D. takes far too long and discourages women from becoming scientists, which I consider a great tragedy."
Miles DuBonnet, Dennis Fulton, Aatif Zubair: 6 Movie Scenes With Horrifying Off-Screen Consequences (Cracked)
#6. WALL-E -- The Robots Have to Be Artificially Inseminating the Humans
STEFAN KANFER: Father of the Wild Things (City Journal)
Maurice Sendak and the "awful vulnerability of children."
Tom Danehy: A St. Gregory's student from China is better at math than you are at anything (Tucson Weekly)
It was at a high-school girls' basketball game that I met Yuanqi "Kylie" Zhang, who had recently won the Gold Prize in the Shing-Tung Yau High School Mathematic Awards. The competition pitted over 400 teams from Europe, Singapore, China, Taiwan, and the United States. The second-year international (as opposed to foreign exchange) student at St. Gregory College Prep was, due to circumstance, a team of one.
Sam Wolfson: The last word in cool - if you're a teenager (Guardian)
This week, Reddit hosted a Q&A between the world and the world's teenagers, and they spilled the beans on what they really think about Snapchat, Abercrombie, nerds and getting drunk.
Suzanne Moore: My old council flat sold for half a million - this madness can't end well (Guardian)
Whether there's a crash or not, this property bubble is devastating. London is being hollowed out, turned into a playground for international finance, its communities left to hang.
Dan Gilmor: Amazon Fire TV isn't the living room of the future you're looking for. This is (Guardian)
When even Apple rumors seem poisoned by a Big Telecom deal, it's time to stop dreaming and fight for all-you-can-eat content.
Guillaume Blanchet: A GIRL NAMED ELASTIKA (Vimeo)
She's young, dreamy and fearless, she drives cars way too fast, she's also a yamakasi. She likes adventure, fireworks and unrelenting seas. From the day I conceived her, I've been a worried father. And a proud one too.
David Bruce's Amazon Author Page
David Bruce's Smashwords Page
David Bruce's Blog
David Bruce's Lulu Storefront
David Bruce's Apple iBookstore
David Bruce has approximately 50 Kindle books on Amazon.com.
wrote:
, replied:
is still under the weather.
Reader Suggestion
Michelle in AZ
Team Coco
CONAN360°
BadtotheboneBob
From the 'Yeah, but can they play fetch?' File...
From The Creator of 'Avery Ant'
from Marc Perkel
BartCop
Hello Bartcop fans,
As you all know the untimely passing of Terry was unexpected, even by
him. We all knew he had cancer but we all thought he had some years
left. So some of us who have worked closely with him over the years are
scrambling around trying to figure out what to do. My job, among other
things, is to establish communications with the Bartcop community and
provide email lists and groups for those who might put something
together. Those who want to play an active roll in something coming from
this, or if you are one of Bart's pillars, should send an email to
active@bartcop.com.
So - to let you know what's going on, the guestbook on bartcop.com is
still open for those who want to write something in memory of Bart.
I did an interview on Netroots Radio about Bart's passing
( www.stitcher.com/s?eid=32893545 )
The most active open discussion is on Bart's Facebook page.
( www.facebook.com/bartcop )
You can listen to Bart's theme song here
or here.
( www.bartcop.com/blizing-saddles.mp3 )
( youtu.be/MySGAaB0A9k )
We have opened up the radio show archives which are now free. Listen to
all you want.
( bartcop.com/members )
Bart's final wish was to pay off the house mortgage for Mrs. Bart who is
overwhelmed and so very grateful for the support she has received.
Anyone wanting to make a donation can click on this the yellow donate
button on bartcop.com
But - I need you all to help keep this going. This note
isn't going to directly reach all of Bart's fans. So if you can repost
it on blogs and discussion boards so people can sign up then when we
figure out what's next we can let more people know. This list is just
over 600 but like to get it up to at least 10,000 pretty quick. So
here's the signup link for this email list.
( mailman.bartcop.com/listinfo/bartnews )
Marc Perkel
Thanks, Marc!
Selected Readings
from that Mad Cat, JD
In The Chaos Household
Last Night
Sunny and breezy.
70% of Los Angeles can't watch Dodger games so far this year, and if you're on the Time-Warner nipple, anywhere in the US, it should interest you. And if you have cable or satellite, you're involved, too.
Local LA TV used to pay $50 million to carry the Dodgers, but when the contract was re-negotiated last year, Time-Warner decided to put together a channel devoted to the Dodgers, and they offered $500 million to carry the games.
Now, how to pay for it?
First off, jack up the rates for everybody on the Time-Warner nipple, no matter where you live, just to subsidize a channel devoted to an LA team, in LA.
And also pass the charge along to other cable and satellite companies for the privilege of carrying the games, so everybody's rates go up.
So far, Direct, Dish, Charter and Comcast have been standing firm, and as that other Martha would say, that's a good thing.
Well, unless you live in LA and don't have Time-Warner and want your Dodgers. But since Time-Warner only covers 30% of LA, your odds pretty much bite.
ESPN is the single most expensive basic cable channel - damn near $6 off the top of your cable bill, every month.
That's over $70 a year for a channel I don't watch, don't need.
Sure don't need another one.
Fuck 'em.
CEO Resigns
Mozilla
Mozilla Chief Executive Brendan Eich has stepped down, the company said on Thursday, after an online dating service urged a boycott of the company's web browser because of a donation Eich made to opponents of gay marriage.
The software company came under fire for appointing Eich as CEO last month. In 2008, he gave money to oppose the legalization of gay marriage in California, a hot-button issue especially at a company that boasts about its policy of inclusiveness and diversity.
"We didn't act like you'd expect Mozilla to act," wrote Mozilla Executive Chairwoman Mitchell Baker in a blog post. "We didn't move fast enough to engage with people once the controversy started. We're sorry."
His resignation came days after OkCupid.com, the popular online dating site, called for a boycott of Mozilla Firefox to protest the world's No. 2 Web browser naming a gay marriage opponent as chief executive.
Mozilla
Slams Putin's Crimea 'Aggression'
Garry Kasparov
Russian opposition activist and chess legend Garry Kasparov urged the international community Wednesday to make President Vladimir Putin respect the sovereignty of nations after Moscow's takeover of Crimea.
Speaking at an event in Mexico City, Kasparov said the quick referendum that led to Russia's annexation of the Ukrainian peninsula was an "act of blatant aggression."
If the sovereignty of nations is violated, he said, "the entire system of international cooperation might be in jeopardy."
"The prime task of the international community is to make sure that Mr. Putin will be forced to play chess, because in chess there are rules," Kasparov said as he promoted a foundation that will bring chess to Latin American schools.
"He's very good at raising stakes all the time. I believe he has a very weak hand but he's very good in bluffing," he said, calling for tougher US and European sanctions against Russia.
Garry Kasparov
'Star Wars' Episode
'Big Bang Theory'
CBS' geek-fueled "The Big Bang Theory" and Lucasfilm are collaborating for a special "Star Wars" episode.
"The Big Bang Theory" has teamed with a group of special effects technicians from Lucasfilm's Industrial Light & Magic to re-create Dagobah, the fictional planet of swamps and forests where Jedi Master Yoda lived during his time in exile in the "Star Wars" film. The final touches of the episode will be completed at Lucasfilm's San Francisco headquarters.
Bob Newhart, who received an Emmy for his guest appearance on the show last year, will return as Professor Proton and will appear as an iconic "Star Wars" character.
"The Proton Transmogrification" episode is set to air May 1 … just in time for the unofficial "Star Wars" day on May (the) 4.
'Big Bang Theory'
Shelved Script To Get Live Reading
Quentin Tarantino
Quentin Tarantino is still bringing The Hateful Eight to his fans - even though the Oscar winner put aside making the movie for the time being after the Oscar winner's latest script leaked online. Film Independent said today that Tarantino is set to direct and cast a live on-stage reading of the Western-themed script on April 24 in LA. None of the performers have been named, but the event is set for 8 PM at the LA County Museum of Art. Given Hateful Eight's high-profile status thanks to the leak and Tarantino's angry reaction to it, this is a real coup for Film Independent, the org that has curated the live script-reading program for the past few years. "We are thrilled that Quentin will be holding the world premiere staged reading of his script of The Hateful Eight with Film Independent at LACMA," said Film Independent president Josh Welsh in announcing the news today. "We offer unique cinematic experiences to the people of Los Angeles, and this event is going to deliver just that."
On January 27, Tarantino launched a $1 million copyright lawsuit against Gawker after the site posted a story about the leaked script with a link to the script itself. Now a select few will get to hear and see it in addition to those that read it online. No spoilers here, but the Hateful Eight story focuses on a stagecoach and its passengers stranded during a blizzard. This being Tarantino, the group includes a couple of bounty hunters, a Confederate soldier and a female prisoner in a secluded saloon. Even at $200 a pop with a limit of two tickets each for members of Film Independent, the LACMA Film Club and the NYT Film Club and everyone else, there's no doubt tickets for this one will be gone faster than a shot of whiskey in the Old West. Tickets for members go on sale Wednesday, while the general public, students and LACMA members can buy them April 16. All proceeds go to the good cause of helping out Film Independent's programming efforts at LACMA.
Quentin Tarantino
401(k) Investments
Hobby Lobby
The company leading the legal challenge against birth control coverage under the new health care law offers its workers a retirement plan that includes investments in companies making contraceptive and abortion drugs.
Hobby Lobby Stores Inc. has a 401(k) plan featuring several mutual funds investing in pharmaceutical firms that produce intrauterine birth control devices, emergency contraceptive pills and drugs used in abortion procedures, according to Labor Department documents and a review of fund portfolios.
Hobby Lobby and the Green family that owns it say their religious beliefs prohibit them from offering health coverage for contraceptive drugs and devices that can work after conception. The retailer and others have sued the Obama administration, challenging the Affordable Care Act's requirement that employers provide coverage for all approved forms of birth control, including the morning-after pill and similar drugs that may work after an egg has been fertilized.
"This is the height of hypocrisy," Cecile Richards, president of Planned Parenthood Action Fund, said in a statement. "Hobby Lobby's CEO wants to deny the company's 13,000 employees access to affordable birth control, while investing in pharmaceutical companies that make it."
Turned Over To Federal Marshals
Chris Brown
R&B singer Chris Brown was taken from his Los Angeles jail cell by the U.S. Marshals Service and will be transported to Washington, D.C. for a hearing in a 2013 misdemeanor assault charge, federal authorities said on Thursday.
Brown, 24, was jailed last month after violating his probation when he was dismissed from a facility where he was receiving the court-ordered treatment related to his 2009 assault of his then-girlfriend, singer Rihanna. He will be taken to Washington, where he is scheduled to stand trial on April 17, U.S. Marshals Service spokeswoman Lynzey Donahue said.
Brown's lawyer Mark Geragos had asked the court to have Brown released ahead of the trial into his custody so that they could prepare for the trial and travel together to Washington.
A court hearing on the matter was set for Thursday, but Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge James Brandlin canceled it and issued a written decision instead.
Brandlin issued an eight-page ruling on the matter, noting that while the transfer may cause "some inconvenience" to the singer and his legal team, Brown would not be deprived of his right to counsel if transported by federal authorities.
Chris Brown
Cancels Antarctic Whaling Hunt
Japan
Japan said Thursday it was cancelling its annual Antarctic whaling hunt for the first time in more than a quarter of a century in line with a UN court ruling that the programme was a commercial activity disguised as science.
A "deeply disappointed" Tokyo earlier this week said it would honour Monday's judgement by the United Nations' Hague-based International Court of Justice but did not exclude the possibility of future whaling programmes.
On Thursday, officials said the next Antarctic hunt, which would have started in late 2014, had been scrapped, just weeks after the most recent one finished.
But he added that "we plan to go ahead with research whaling in other areas as scheduled", including the northern Pacific. Japan also has a coastal whaling programme that is not covered by a commercial whaling ban.
Australia, backed by New Zealand, hauled Japan before the ICJ in 2010 in a bid to end the annual Southern Ocean hunt.
Japan
Scientists Dismiss Volcano
Yellowstone
Yellowstone National Park assured guests and the public on Thursday that a super-volcano under the park was not expected to erupt anytime soon, despite an alarmist video that claimed bison had been seen fleeing to avoid such a calamity.
"It was a spring-like day and they were frisky. Contrary to online reports, it's a natural occurrence and not the end of the world," park spokeswoman Amy Bartlett said.
Assurances by Yellowstone officials and government geologists that the ancient super-volcano beneath the park is not due to explode for eons have apparently done little to quell fears among the thousands who have viewed recent video postings of the thundering herd.
The 4.8 magnitude earthquake that struck early Sunday near the Norris Geyser Basin in the northwest section of Yellowstone, which spans 3,472 square miles of Wyoming, Montana and Idaho, caused no injuries or damages and did not make any noticeable alterations to the landscape, geologists said.
Yellowstone
Slipping Away
Middle Class
A sense of belonging to the middle class occupies a cherished place in America. It conjures images of self-sufficient people with stable jobs and pleasant homes working toward prosperity.
Yet nearly five years after the Great Recession supposedly ended, more people are coming to the painful realization that they're no longer part of it.
They are former professionals now stocking shelves at grocery stores, retirees struggling with rising costs and people working part-time jobs but desperate for full-time pay. Such setbacks have emerged in economic statistics for several years. Now they're affecting how Americans think of themselves.
Since 2008, the number of people who call themselves middle class has fallen by nearly a fifth, according to a survey in January by the Pew Research Center, from 53 percent to 44 percent. Forty percent now identify as either lower-middle or lower class compared with just 25 percent in February 2008.
The trend reflects a widening gap between the richest Americans and everyone else, one that's emerged gradually over decades and accelerated with the Great Recession. The difference between the income "earned" by the wealthiest 5 percent of Americans and by a median-income household has risen 24 percent in 30 years, according to the Census Bureau.
Middle Class
'Destroy The Souls Of Children'
Legos
According to a Polish priest named Slawomir Kostrzewa, a new line of Lego monster and zombie mini-figures are all about "darkness and a world of death."
In a presentation directed at parents, Father Slawomir Kostrzewa said that the popular Danish toy company could have a negative affect on children, which could destroy their souls and lead them to the dark side
He believes the formerly friendly Lego pieces have been replaced with dark, soul-crushing monsters, negatively altering the minds of children who play with them.
Father Kostrzewa believes that the Lego pieces have "facial expressions [that] may lead to confusion between good and evil."
Legos
Top 20
Concert Tours
The Top 20 Concert Tours ranks artists by average box office gross per city and includes the average ticket price for shows in North America. The previous week's ranking is in parentheses. The list is based on data provided to the trade publication Pollstar by concert promoters and venue managers.
1. (2) Beyonce; $1,804,293; $126.01.
2. (1) Justin Timberlake; $1,731,454; $114.65.
3. (3) George Strait; $1,585,363; $91.23.
4. (4) Pink; $1,349,594; $85.37.
5. (5) Jay Z; $1,057,874; $91.17.
6. (6) Trans-Siberian Orchestra; $836,222; $55.24.
7. (8) Jason Aldean; $644,985; $50.81.
8. (7) Kanye West; $594,631; $79.36.
9. (New) Kings Of Leon; $556,737; $55.83.
10. (9) Zac Brown Band; $507,580; $64.54.
11. (New) Imagine Dragons; $494,157; $38.89.
12. (10) John Mayer; $486,581; $64.69.
13. (New) Lady Antebellum; $434,040; $59.69.
14. (11) Jeff Dunham; $261,985; $45.27.
15. (New) Charlie Wilson; $237,032; $64.46.
16. (13) Tobymac; $186,187; $33.25.
17. (14) The Band Perry; $174,006; $41.71.
18. (15) "Winter Jam"/Newsboys/Lecrae; $158,710; $13.32.
19. (17) Willie Nelson; $140,632; $85.83.
20. (18) Mannheim Steamroller; $130,317; $56.43.
Concert Tours
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