J-Walk Blog: March 26, 2003 Archives

26 March, 2003

Shock and Awe

You've heard about it. You may have even seen it on TV. Now you can read the book (the complete text is available online):

Shock and Awe: Achieving Rapid Dominance, by Harlan K. Ullman and James P. Wade. 1996, NDU Press.

Posted on 26 March, 2003

Flush Media

Apparently, marketers have a goal to fill every single empty space in the world with advertising. Flush Media is doing their part.

Flush Media is devoted to providing professional advertising services to its indoor sponsors and advertising clients. Flush Media's sales team specializes in selling restroom advertisements and its service team is full dedicated to the maintenance and care of each Flush sign. Flush Media is dedicated to making each encounter unforgettable.

If Flush Media's web site is any indication of the quality of this company, don't expect much. Their Flash-based site is terrible.

Posted on 26 March, 2003

Images of War

MSNBC has an excellent gallery of war photos, updated daily.

Posted on 26 March, 2003

An Atlas of Cyberspace

Lots to look at here.

This is an atlas of maps and graphic representations of the geographies of the new electronic territories of the Internet, the World-Wide Web and other emerging Cyberspaces. These maps of Cyberspaces -- cybermaps -- help us visualize and comprehend the new digital landscapes beyond our computer screen, in the wires of the global communications networks and vast online information resources

Posted on 26 March, 2003

Heavens Gate

Eight years ago today, 39 members of the Heavens Gate cult committed suicide in Rancho Santa Fe, California -- not too far from my home. Led by Marshall Applewhite, these folks believed that a space ship, hiding behind comet Hale-Bopp, would deliver them to the next phase of their lives after they committed suicide.

Here's a mirror of the original Heavens Gate web site.

Posted on 26 March, 2003

Explaining the War to Children

How do you explain the war to children? Often, it help to put things into simple terms. Like this.

Once upon a time, there was a happy, prosperous family...

Son: Daddy, what are you doing?

Dad: I'm building a bomb, son.

Son: Why?

Dad: I'm going to blow up Steve Hall's house across town.

Son: Why would you do that?

Dad: He's an evil man and a threat to the neighborhood. And I think he's a friend of Owen B. Lang. You know, that thug who broke into the garage last year and killed your dog..

Son: So why don't you just go after this Mr. Lang guy?

Dad: I tried. He's hiding out, and I couldn't find him.

Son: Are you sure that he's Steve Hall's friend, Daddy?

Dad: Of course I'm sure. They both live on the same side of town, and they both have brown hair. And besides, I think Steve Hall might have some pretty big guns in his house. Some day he may break into our house and shoot us. But most of all, Steve Hall has a huge carrot patch in his yard, and I want those carrots.

Dad: But Dad, we have our garden and our own carrot plants.

Son: Yeah, but he has more. We need those carrots, boy. You know how much this family loves carrots.

Son: This all sounds pretty dangerous, Dad. Why don't you just call the police?

Dad: I did. The police went to his house, but they didn't find any guns. So now it's time to take things into my own hands.

Son: If you really must bomb the house, maybe you should get some help. Won't our neighbors help with the bombing, Dad?

Dad: A few will, but most of them don't think it's a very good idea.

Son: How are you going to get the bomb into Mr. Hall's house?

Dad: You and your sister are going to break into his house during the night, and then set it off.

Son: But we'll probably get hurt. Maybe even die.

Dad: That's the price we must pay for peace in the neighborhood, son.

Son: So you'll blow up Mr. Hall's house while the entire family is in it? Even the kids?

Dad: That's the plan, son.

Son: What if the kids get hurt or killed?

Dad: At least they will be free from their evil father.

Son: What happens after their house is blown up, Dad?

Dad: Your uncle's construction company will be paid a lot of money to clean up the mess and build another house.

Son: What about the carrots, Dad?

Dad: The carrots will be ours. We'll never have another carrot shortage again.

Son: Hey Dad, didn't grandpa also try to blow up Mr. Hall's house? About 12 years ago?

Dad: Yes, he tried. But the bomb wasn't big enough, and he didn't get any of their carrots. This time, the plan will work.

Son: This doesn't make much sense to me, Dad.

Dad: Of course it does.

Son: So this is all about carrots?

Dad: No more questions, son. Now you run along and go get your sister.

Posted on 26 March, 2003

Thrift Store Art

This guy collects art found in thrift stores. His motto: "Bad art, while often quite bad, is much better than no art at all."

If you're not quite sure what sort of "Art" could be found in a thrift store for less than $25, if you're a serious art historian, or if you listen to opera frequently, then you should probably visit The Louvre or something.

Posted on 26 March, 2003

Quick, I Need a Prime Number

If you're looking for a prime number, look no further. The Nth Prime Page comes to the rescue. I requested a random prime number, and I got 7,210,309,204,447. This, of course, is the 252,384,733,562nd prime number.

Posted on 26 March, 2003

The Gallery of Crime

Crime comic books, that is.

Welcome to my gallery of crime comic covers. If you are a fan of the strange, the lurid, and the exploitative, you've come to the right place. Crime comics from the 1940s and 1950s have some of the best covers ever created, in my humble opinion. It's a good thing, too, because oftentimes the interior content (especially the Fox titles, which are my favorites) is terrible.

Posted on 26 March, 2003

Competitive Eating

The International Federation of Competitive Eating (IFOCE) has several goals. Here are two of them:

To establish a fair and equitable rating systems for the various competitions, including promulgation of procedures for the recognition of champions;

To promote safety measures for participants in the conduct of matches and to ensure that only individuals over the age of 18 compete in speed eating matches;

It's a very informative site. For example, I learned that Eric Booker holds several records, including doughnuts, hard boiled eggs, burritos, and corned beef hash (four pounds in less than two minutes). Way to go, Eric!

(via Love And The Happy Cynic)

Posted on 26 March, 2003

Nothing But Clouds

Look. Up in the sky... clouds. Lots of cloud stuff at the Cloudman's site, including a cloud gallery.

Posted on 26 March, 2003

Mr. Excel's Graphics Challenge Winner

Phil Johnson's "Animated Warehouse Locator" application was voted the best entry in a recent challenge at Mr. Excel's site. Congratulations, Phil!

You can download any or all of the entries here.

The current challenge is:

...to submit the most useful general purpose utility for Excel. This can be anything that you wrote to improve your efficiency with Excel. Ideally, it would be something with broad applicability to many people.

Posted on 26 March, 2003