Up, Down, Up, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, B, A, START

For all the parents complaining that video games rots brains... it doesn't! In fact, they indicate the deterioration of the brain. Nerds are showing that old people playing FreeCell indicate their stage of Alzheimer's. I guess the obvious reason is to keep their brain occupied. This is a good use of research where simple technology can be used to have extraordinary applications.

Playa Haters 2.0

I'm a fervent mac user, but I honestly can't stand the new commercials with the grup guy being too cool for the stuffy shirt PC user.
You've seen 'em.

Anyhoo, here's a good parody of them.

The sad part of the whole thing is that I'm sure it would have been easier/quicker to create that whole video on a mac.

Playa Haters

I traveled across Canada back in 1999, and I learned that nothing unifies the country more than their unrelenting hatred for their largest city, and my home town, Toronto.

Without doubt, Toronto is the financial and cultural centre of the country. Admittedly, someone could make a reasonable argument for the greatness of Montreal, but there are a lot of historical reasons for the rift between those two cities.

I can't think of any other country where everyone outside of their largest city vehemently hates the said city. The good thing is that Torontonians don't let the hate get too much to them. I remember a few years ago, The Toronto Star had huge billboards that said "Our News IS the National News".

We're Half Way There....

The first concert I ever went to was back in grade 5, when I saw Bon Jovi (Skid Row opened) at the old Exhibition Stadium in Toronto. It was their "New Jersey Tour", and honestly it was such an incredible concert.

Back in 2001, Bon Jovi played a show in Hamburg, where I was doing research for the summer at a Particle Accelerator . A few colleagues and I somehow talked ourselves into the show (the concert was being held adjacent to our experiment's building, and we flashed our badges with authority), and had a blast. They played a long set mostly of 'best of' stuff, but they rocked out. Incredible energy, it looks like they were still having a good time.

There's a certain kitsch associated with the band, but as time rolls on, it becomes clear that Bon Jovi are the new Rolling Stones. Here are some insightful articles about the band, one a review of the show in Jersey, and another from Chicago.

In Defense of Critics

I've always felt that one of the professions that people love to hate is the movie critic. Who the hell does Roger Ebert think he is to pass judgement on any thing? A.O. Scott (the critic from the Times) wrote a really nice piece about the role of the critic in modern times.

I feel that people over estimate how self-important the critics feel that they are. Most readily admit that they are just folks with opinions, that love movies.

Also, I think it's important for people to find a critic that shares their same taste. Critics have to sit through so many movies, most of them bad, so when something comes across that they collectively champion, I tend to listen. However, I don't lose the fact that they are just folks voicing their opinion.

Let's Not Burn any Bridges

Almost every day I pass over the Manhattan Bridge to get into the city from Brooklyn. Not usually the first bridge that comes to mind when you think of NYC. My goal for the rest of the summer is to check out each of the four not-so-famous bridges in this article.

From Being Colonized to Being Colonizers

Current anthropology studies are suggesting that much of England was once ruled by the Germans. In fact, by studying the Y-chromosome, the brainiacs can ascertain that England probably had some sort of apartheid-like system of governance (a minority of people being the head of power). Fascinating, considering that England went on to become one of the world super-powers. This still doesn't explain the bad teeth.

The New Spielberg: Compliment or Dis?

M. Night Shyamalan has been touted as the new Spielberg on several occasions from the few films that he has made. The Times addresses him and looks into his hype machine.

Yeah, he's NYU alumni, and I've only seen one of his movies (Signs), but there's something quite boring about this work. Granted, he's brown, he's resurrected a genre, and doesn't seem to be making too many compromises, but I just wish he'd stop selling himself and focus on doing something different, and not what's expected of him.

How to Quit Smoking

In order to effectively and quickly quit smoking all you need to do is have a stroke.

Some of homies have found out that some stroke victims no longer feel the need to smoke.

This work raises so many questions about the nature of addiction, and how it can be controlled.

This is breakthrough work, methinks.

Shine On, You Crazy Diamond

RIP

Low Tech for the High Tech

NASA is looking at the idea of fixing their problems with some Duct Tape. I've always maintained that NASA was more of a ridiculous political waste of money, rather than a true scientific entity. If they invested more money into space telescopes, and not dubious 'experiments' on board (which can easily be replicated on Earth), the knowledge of our universe and our history would increase exponentially.

Small Junk

OH MY GOD!!! Did you hear that the dude from the Phillies won the Homerun Hitting Contest? HO-LEEE! The Phillies and everything associated with PA is incredible.

Brethren and Sistren

This week's Time Magazine has a really cool article on siblings.

In general, research is finally exploring just how much of an impact our siblings have on us. Parents die, spouses come along later in life, so the only people that are usually around us for our entire lives are the brothers and sisters.

It's a good read, but what interested me where the studies of brothers with older sisters (like myself) or sisters with older brothers:

"The guys who had older sisters had more involving interactions and were liked significantly more by their new female acquaintances," says Ickes. "Women with older brothers were more likely to strike up a conversation with the male stranger and to smile at him more than he smiled at her."

I'm not sure if this is always the case, but there is no doubt that what I know about the fairer-sex (which is admittedly not much), I learned from my sister.

Get your Bling...Give Me Cash

Tired of those ugly, bacteria infested Yellow Lance Armstrong bracelets? Grow up, and get some bling.

Cartier has put out some charity bracelets based on their love bracelets. Check them out here.

I'm not one to advertize, but Spike Lee is endorsing one of them (the purple one), so $100 of the $475 price tag goes directly to the Graduate Film School (i.e. me) at NYU.

Better yet, why don't you just give me the entire $475, and I'll get a dirty hippie to make a hemp bracelet for you in Union Square. Or if you like, I can get your name put on a piece of rice. Bling Bling!

What would PepsiCo Do in this situation?

Looks like some Coke suits were trying to sell trade-secrets to Pepsi! Of course, the morons got caught. However, the weird thing about the story is that Pepsi told Coke about it!!! Too bad, because we all know that Pepsi should have taken the recipe and made their swill taste more like liquid-gold.

It's Always 4:20 Somewhere

Nature has an article about how pot users may be more susceptible to being addicted to heroin.

I can imagine that the anti-pot people will have a field-day with these results; "marijuana is a gateway to more harder drugs!". Which has always made no sense to me.

I don't smoke, but I really have no problem with those that do. As Mike Skinner asks, how can something with no recorded fatalities be illegal, whilst cigarettes and alcohol are readily available?

All drugs (hard & soft, liquor too) are all tried and experimented via social interaction.

Let's (Wok &) Roll

Oh great Craigslist! You've hooked me up with ladies, you've sold junk that I didn't want anymore, you've found me places to live, you've found me actors for films, you've got me jobs and you've let me air my frustrations. Today, you gave me a free wok, fulfilling a life-long dream of mine to own one. You've made a grown man cry today.

Those Eyes are Fierce!

The Blue Jays are sending five players to the All-Star Game this year!! How did that happen!?

The truth is that the Blue Jays are this year's best kept secret. They are one game behind the Yankers in the A.L. East, but they are completely unnoticed. There is no doubt in my mind that the Jays could win this division. Slowly but surely will win this race.

Happy Canada Day

Happy Canada Day to all my fellow hosers out there.

Each year (even when growing up), the media in Canada always tries to define what it really means to be *Canadian*. The Star takes a stab at it with a list of cultural (music, art, film, architecture etc....) things deemed to be uniquely Canadian.

Personally, I find the lists a bit tame and predictable. Where is Godspeed You Black Emperor! , Broken Social Scene, Kardinal Offishall or K-OS on the music list? Each has made significantly Canadian music.

Also, how Robert LePage was left off the movie list is a crime. And what about The Newsroom. Shame.