Video
Worlds. Largest. Explosion.
Academy Award winning effects designer Chris Corbold just broke another Guinness record by blowing some stuff up for the new Bond movie, SPECTRE.
Taking place in Erfoud, Morocco, the blast had a total yield of 68.47 tonnes of TNT equivalent and was the result of detonating 8,418 litres of kerosene with 33 kg of powder explosives – and it lasted for over 7.5 seconds.
Boom.
Quadricopters and James Bond
Do you like toys? Do you like James Bond?
You’re Welcome.
Now, if they can just get those little buggers to make an omelette.
Brand Recognition From A 5 Year Old
Two and a half minutes of adorable. A 5 year old’s take on brand recognition. She recognizes what almost every logo is, such as the “Eye” of CBS, but doesn’t know what they stand for.
She recognizes, by name, the following brands:
- Disney
- Apple
- GE (“that’s where my grandpa works”)
- McDonalds
- Nike
She recognizes as correct products, but not by name:
- Pepsi
- KFC
- Starbucks
- BP
- Mercedes (“on a car, looks like a peace sign!")
- Panera
- Xbox (“that’s what you use to control the TV at Ryan’s house”)
My favorite quote:
That is a parade elephant
If she only knew…
You're Secure
So, here’s a fun video that Jaime Walters just posted over on the Google+ of me getting locked in a Murphy Bed while she films and Erica has a cocktail.
I love those girls.
If You're A Geek, You'll Love This.
Leonard Nimoy, The Big Lebowski, and being lazy. What more could a neck-beard ask for?
The End of Publishing?
Many people (including me, sometimes) think that dead-tree books are on their way out. I haven’t bought a paper book in two years, and have been completely media-free (other than Netflix and downloads) since Christmas of ‘09. The Kindle and iPhone have changed the way I consume media, and the iPad will continue that trend.
In my life.
Other people have a different take. And that’s great. If you want to fill up a library room with floor to ceiling books lining the shelves like that room where the cop used the phone in the movie “Clue”, then go for it. If you like having rows of CD’s or DVD’s lining the shelves of your media closet, enjoy. I don’t have the space for all that.
But print is not dead. It never will be. And this super-interesting and well written internal clip from Penguin Publishing proves it. Watch the whole thing, and don’t skip around or you’ll ruin the surprise twist…
I Better Start Practicing
Accuracy is key.
As far as tape measure throwing accuracy goes, this guy is up there. I’m sure there were several spilled coffees, poked-out eyes, and probable electrocutions in the learning curve of “Using A Tape Measure To Do Everything You Could Do By Walking Over There”, but I contend that those sacrifices are worth it.
I smell a new Olympic sport! I’m looking at you, Rio!
Bloomframe
Living in a modest apartment in Brooklyn Heights has its advantages. I believe in living little. Living little is my way of making as small an impact as I can on the environment without living in a yurt and showering in a lake. More on that in the future…
One of the disadvantages of small apartment living is the lack of outdoor space. I can open windows, but that’s about as “outdoors” as it gets in my building.
There are problems with traditional balconies. First, most apartment buildings with balconies are not that attractive. Most balcony buildings in New York look like a cereal box with a skin disorder. They are grand structures with all these little bumps all over them. Second, those balconies become a catch-all for stuff. Sometimes good stuff (like plants, trees, and café tables) and sometimes bad stuff (think old barbecue grills, last season’s bicycle, and Rubbermaid crates used for extra storage). Then, there’s the whole maintenance thing. There are constant back-and-forths between co-op boards and tenants. Who is responsible for cleaning balconies? It’s technically living space, so it should be the owner. But, it’s technically the exterior of the building, so it should be the co-op management company.
Enter the Bloomframe. It’s basically a window that folds out of the wall and becomes a balcony. This is just plain brilliant. The balcony will not become a catch-all, because the only way to close the window eliminates the balcony. The interior is inside, the exterior is outside. You can have an outdoor space when you need it, and fold it up when you don’t. The exterior of the building will be alive, constantly transforming into a different shape as residents open and close balconies over the course of the day.
I can see some issues with efficiency, notably the giant hole in the side of your climate controlled space every time you open the balcony, but that’s nothing a sliding glass door mounted inside the Bloomframe can’t handle.