Christiana's Blog HAS MOVED!

NUMA NUMA STUFF!

2005-03-15T15:22:00.000-05:00

This blog is continuing to receive a lot of hits for people looking for my Numa-Numa page, even though I've relocated.

My new site is here:

Christiana Talks About Stuff

My Numa-Numa Post, which has links for the Numa Numa dance, the original O-Zone music Video, the English lyrics, and a number of other links, is right here:

NUMA NUMA YAY!

Thank you! And enjoy!

IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT!!

2005-03-10T23:30:00.000-05:00

Well, that's it. I've outgrown my blog here. Well, that's not precisely true. It's not that I've moved beyond what Blogger/Blogspot is capable of, it's that I've decided I'm tired of putting up with some of the problems it has and that I'm interested in some new features.

And so...

*drum roll*

I have moved! My new blog is HERE!

I've already moved all my posts and their comments over to the new site, so hop on over there and check it out!

As of this post, this site won't be updated any more, but I'll leave it up for the meantime until I get all my links corrected and everything.

Movie Review: Bad Education

2005-03-10T13:47:00.000-05:00

La Mala Educación, or "Bad Education" as it's known in the US, is probably not like any movie you've seen before. It's like... Queer Spanish Hitchcock meets Soap Opera without the cheese. If you've seen any of Pedro Almodóvar's films before, you'll at least have some idea what you're in for. Basically, he uses large helpings of melodrama, balanced by carefully observed, deeply sympathetic characters, a lush visual style and a keen ear for music, all mixed in with a lot of things your conservative Baptist grandmother would probably disapprove of. There isn't any full-frontal nudity, but the movie is rated NC-17 for a reason.

Click here for the rest of the review...

The story begins with Enrique, a filmmaker who receives a visit from Ignacio, an old school-mate who's now an actor looking for work. He's written a story, he says, based on their history together in a Catholic boarding school, then providing a fictional story containing their next meeting and the events it triggers.

They were more than just friends, you see, and one of them was abused by their school principal, Father Manolo. Enrique thinks that the story could make a good film, so the two begin discussing a collaboration that leads all sorts of places, including drag clubs, movie sets, grubby apartments, and luxurious (rented) mansions. The film then piles on one layer after another, flashbacks to their childhood, to a fictionalized version, to what happens next in Ignacio's story, to what happens in the film version, and eventually, to what "really" happened. It's all very complex, and if it were a comedy, it would have lines like: "So you knew that I knew, but you didn't tell me, because you thought I knew that you knew that I knew?"

So enough description, did I like the film? Well, yes with a but...

There were several spots where I felt the pacing was a little too slow, and on the whole, I didn't feel the same sense of emotional weight that I got from Almodóvar's last two films, Hable con ella(Talk to Her), and Todo sobre mi Madre (All about my mother.)

That said, it has an incredibly dense, complex plot that, despite its labyrinthine twists and weaves, remains comprehensible. (Or at least, it feels like it is, which is really more important anyway.) The film is very well directed and has a very rich visual look with interesting, detailed set-pieces and scenes. The soundtrack makes use of both Hitchcockian-style suspense music and songs from a boy's choir and yet manages to make all of it perfectly applicable to the story being told. The performances are all very good, but of special note is Gael García Bernal, who I last discussed in my review of The Motorcycle Diaries.

As good as he was in that, he's even better in this, demonstrating an exceptional adaptability and versatility, moving from shy-charming-guy to drag-queen, to determined-calculating-schemer, making it all look effortless.

I also want to add that I frequently enjoy movies like this more on repeat viewings. I'm no longer trying to figure out the plot, because I know it already. I'm not impatient to find out what happens, so I can concentrate on the mood and the content of each scene. I'll have to see this one again to see how it holds up to repeated viewings. After my first viewing however, I basically feel that, while still very good, it's a little too slow-paced and it's not quite as good as "Talk to Her" and "All About my Mother", both of which I would call masterpieces of cinema.

Movie Review: Closer

2005-03-10T11:04:00.000-05:00

In Roger Ebert's review of this movie, he opens by noting that it is about four people who "richly deserve each other". That thought had crossed my mind as well, but I would suggest that it's more akin to "you reap what you sow."

Closer, at its base, is focused on the true, if not necessarily profound, observation that screwing around on your significant other is bad for pretty much everyone involved. From there, it is a precise and coolly-presented case study of four people playing musical lovers.

Click here for the rest of the review...

Boy 1 meets Girl 1, and they get involved. Then Boy 1 meets Girl 2 and likes her, but she can't quite make up her mind about him. ("Are you interested in him?" she's asked. "I think he's interesting," she replies.) Because she brushes him off, "You're taken" Boy 1 plays a practical joke on her involving Boy 2 and a sex chat room. Girl 2 and Boy 2 get involved, but she can't quite forget about Boy 1 and Boy 2 thinks Girl 1 is pretty hot.

I'll stop there, but the movie goes on, with the characters going back and forth between each other like sharks. (If they stop moving, they'll die, and when they smell blood, they attack.) Each of these characters is smart, and they know all the words: "I love you", "I'm sorry", "I want us to be honest with each other." Yet it's hard to tell if any of them really feel love. It's as though they are aliens, doing their best to emulate human behavior, yet never quite able to comprehend the why's of their actions.

Each of the characters is both good and bad, just like real life. Dan (Jude Law) doesn't want to hurt anyone, but he's a bit naive about the consequences of his actions, and tends to want whatever he can't have. Alice (Natalie Portman) is sweet and innocent, or at least, she wants to be. Anna (Julia Roberts)feels things passionately, but is easily tempted and only really happy when she's yearning for something. Larry (Clive Owen) is generally a stand-up guy, but when he's hurt, he reminds us that a wounded animal is frequently more dangerous than a healthy one.

The performances are outstanding and the dialogue well-written and insightful. The story is adapted from a play by Patrick Marber, and its roots are evident in the film, with long scenes of conversation in a relatively small number of set pieces, but Mike Nichols sure-footed direction gives everything a nice cinematic flow. The editing can take you off guard at first because it occasionally skips over months and years worth of story with virtually no transition at all, as though it were simply the next day. Once you realize what's happening, however, it becomes much more comprehensible.

Overall, the film is quite good as a showcase for the actors performances, and it can serve as a reminder about how complicated and fragile relationships can be, particularly when the people involved can't even tell if their feelings are genuine or whether they are just going through the motions. The movie doesn't really have a larger point than that, but then, does it have to?

It's worse than we thought!

2005-03-10T10:48:00.000-05:00

Apparently, a recent study shows that driving seriously impairs the use of cell phones.

Thanks to Dave Barry, for pointing the way...

Whoops! Mea Culpa, Oscar

2005-03-09T12:10:00.000-05:00

I was just making arrangements to see Closer, one of the films on my Oscar spreadsheet that I did not manage to see before the Award Ceremony. While checking what percentage that would bring me to, I discovered an error in my Total Percentage algorithm. I had, unfortunately, calculated the percentage based on a total of 92 nominations, when in fact there are 98. That means that my actual total percentage at the time of the awards ceremony was only 89.8%, not 95.6%, as I had previously reported.

That's a little embarrassing. Oh well. I've updated the spreadsheet with the correct percentage and you can still find it under my profile pic.

I'm still planning to see all the movies I missed at my earliest opportunity. Closer is playing now, near me, and both Born Into Brothels and The Chorus will be playing near me soon. The others I'll have to continue to pursue.

I'm also toying with writing reviews for all the Oscar nominated films that I saw but have not yet reviewed. I'd then be able to say I have reviews up of all the 2005 Nominated feature films. Anybody have interest in that?

Video Game Violence

2005-03-09T11:13:00.000-05:00

I've posted before about kids buying video games or music with mature content, but I just read this article about a Maryland House Panel considering a law banning the sale of such games to children.

Now, as I've said before, I think that many of these games are inappropriate for young children, but that I think it should be up to the parents to handle the issue. I don't feel strongly one way or the other about preventing kids from buying them, it seems we already have age restrictions on all sorts of other things, so I'm not sure why this would be inherently different.

However, one aspect of the article tweaked me a little. They go on and on with the same old argument that violent video games make kids more violent, but if you look at the numbers, that argument is kinda bogus.

Click here for why...

We've all heard it before, but as a reminder, let's check out some selections from the above article.

Proponents of the sale restrictions, similar to those in a measure proposed in the District, argued that the games have incited a wave of violence across the country, contributing to such killings as the slayings at Columbine High School in 1999 and Lee Boyd Malvo's shootings in the 2002 Washington area sniper killings.

...

The increasingly realistic graphics and overwhelming popularity of such violent games...have given rise to concerns among consumer groups and law enforcement officials that the games are contributing to violence by minors.

They point to the fact that Malvo played Halo regularly before the sniper shootings, according to a witness at Malvo's December 2003 trial. Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, the Columbine shooters, were obsessive players of "Doom."

...

Proponents believe that the Maryland measure would probably withstand a test in court because the games pose a "public safety hazard," according to Jack Thompson, a lawyer representing the families of several Alabama police officers killed in a shooting by a teenager who Thompson said modeled the killings on a popular video game.

...

New studies, he said, have shown that the brains of adolescents and children are particularly susceptible to the interactive violence found in those games.

"This is not a question of taste," Thompson told the committee yesterday. "It is a question of public safety. . . . Nobody among the [nation's] founders would have suggested that children somehow have a right to purchase materials that are harmful to them."

The only arguments given against the proposed law are on first ammendment grounds.

But did you know that violent crime is DOWN in the last twelve years? And not just a little bit down, but a lot.

Furthermore, the percentage of violent crimes committed by juveniles is also declining. That means, not only are there fewer violent crimes in total, but also that the number committed by juveniles is proportionally smaller.

In fact, teens are far more likely to be the victims of violent crime. (All numbers come from the Department of Justice's Office of Justice Programs)

Let me reiterate that I'm not a huge fan of kids playing games like Grand Theft Auto III, and I don't think that it's "good" for them. That said, I think that the argument that violent video games "have incited a wave of violence across the country" just doesn't hold any water.

I want one!

2005-03-08T21:59:00.000-05:00

Jody over at Polyscifi has a post about 'uplifting' lower species in relation to a story about implanting human brain cells into mice. He then takes the idea and extrapolates it to the obvious, and inevitable outcome.

Does this ever happen to you?

2005-03-08T20:49:00.000-05:00

Didja ever catch yourself in a moment of massive hypocrisy?

I was just watching Gilmore Girls and caught a commercial for a "Baby Einstein" series of educational videos for infants.

I made a snarky comment along the lines of: "Nice, get 'em hooked early."

Then, a few seconds later, I remember that I watch a LOT of TV, that I enjoy it thoroughly, and that the only reason I saw the commercial in the first place is because I was watching TV.

Do you dare to decoupage? ... No, seriously!

2005-03-08T10:19:00.000-05:00

When I saw this, I genuinely didn't know whether to roll my eyes or collapse into giggles. Tomorrow night, the Style Network is premiering a show called, and I kid you not...

Craft Corner Deathmatch

It's an Iron Chef - type show where people compete against each other to make pillows out of old sofa fabric, or to make brooches out of candy.

This is from the show's website:

It's Martha Stewart Living meets Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome when amateur crafters compete against each other, against the clock--and against the imposing Craft Lady of Steel. Armed with nothing more than hot-glue guns and a few basic materials, the contestants must swiftly assemble projects that are judged on beauty, creativity and utility. Host Jason Jones is the devious ringmaster, throwing twists into each challenge and riling up the bloodthirsty studio audience.

Here's an article about it from the New York Times

"Craft Corner Deathmatch" may seem like a blended-by-committee mixture of recent television trends - equal parts "Iron Chef," "Shabby Chic" and "American Idol" - but Mr. Taberski and Ms. Honig, former producers for "The Daily Show" on Comedy Central, said the idea came from a game in which they tried to imagine a show based on two elements so disparate that network executives in their right minds would run screaming. For example, they made a pilot for MTV called "X-tremely Old," in which a strike team of elderly women offered romantic advice and other life help to 20-somethings.

"Instead of trying to give them what they want, we try to do the opposite," Mr. Taberski said. "What doesn't go together? Crafts and gladiators. Old people and MTV. 'Hey MTV, why don't you put some old people on your network?' "

Ms. Honig added: "That poison and babies idea we had really hasn't gone anywhere yet."

Okay, I've decided. It's definitely the giggles.

Yet Another Fine Time-Waster!

2005-03-07T11:24:00.000-05:00

Thanks again to Dave Barry's blog (and I say that with a mixture of genuine gratitude and annoyed sarcasm) for showing me another irritatingly addictive flash game: Plastic Balls! It's kind of like Breakout, where you have to keep a ball from going down the drain by bouncing it off of a movable paddle, but the field is circular here and it adds a new dimension to an old game.

Behold it's power as you spend way too much time playing it instead of doing productive work!

Fear and Loathing in the Mystery Machine

2005-03-05T23:26:00.000-05:00

Excerpts from the never-aired 1973 Scooby Doo episode with guest star Hunter S. Thompson

We were ten minutes south of San Clemente when the putrid green daisy walls of the van started closing in. I recall the fat four-eyed lesbian sweater girl saying something like "are you okay, Mr. Duke? We've got a mystery to solve..." when suddenly the gullet of the garish chartreuse steel beast began to spasm, as if a digestive track readying itself to vomit. I began clawing at my hamstrings and when I turned my head I was looking into the irridescent eyes of a grotesque animal screeching "Ruh Roh! Ruh Roh!" in a hoarse irritating dog-accented gibberish. That's when it things began to turn weird.

Thanks to Little Miss Attila for showing me the way.

Deadwood: Season 2 Starts 03/06/05

2005-03-05T19:52:00.000-05:00

Just wanted to drop a really quick note to urge everyone to catch the new season of Deadwood, starting tomorrow night(Sunday) on HBO.

It's a fantastic western, with great characters, great writing, and a real sense of space. I could go on and on and on about it, though I won't just now. All I will say is this, and this is just about the highest compliment I can bestow:

It makes me want to write a western.

If you've got HBO, watch it.

Note also, that the first season is available on DVD.

Million Dollar Baby: A Masterpiece?

2005-03-05T19:34:00.000-05:00

I know I said I wouldn't gripe anymore about Million Dollar Baby winning Best Picture, but I stumbled across an article today that just about perfectly summed up my problems with the film, and quite eloquently at that. Check it out here. -- Warning: Contains Spoilers!

Mike Meitin also pointed me to another essay that looks at the film from a boxing perspective.

UPS Next Day Saver? Don't waste your money

2005-03-05T12:49:00.000-05:00

Well, I finally gave into the peer pressure and ordered an iPod. I did fine without one for a long time, but once I finally ordered one, I wanted it soon. Besides, the next-day delivery was just another $20. What's that when you're already spending $400? So I select Next-day delivery on Thursday night.

Then, as I'm tracking the shipment on Friday, I discover that they attempted to deliver it at 1:55PM, while I was, of course, at work. However, unlike every other package I've ever received while living here, they didn't leave it with the apartment office manager. No, they left a little stinking note on my door that said that they would try again to deliver it on MONDAY! There was no phone number besides the generic 1-800 number. No address where I could go pick it up myself, just that note. Furthermore, it says they'll try again Monday between 2 and 5! I'll STILL have to be at work!

I tried calling all over the place, but it was after five on Friday, so apparently they are closed until Monday and there's nothing they can do for me. I can't even go pick it up myself.

So basically, I just wasted $20 on next-day delivery service, and I in fact won't get it until four days later, if then. Not only that, but I had my hopes up! I mean, it's obviously not a big deal that I have to wait a few more days for it, but I wanted it, and what's more, I had every reason to expect it on Friday! Sure, I'll get it eventually, but I paid $20 dollars extra to get it yesterday.

I'm pissed off two times over. First, because I have to wait when I shouldn't have to, and second because while the customer service people are all nice and sympathetic, they still aren't able to actually help in any way. I'd almost rather they were rude to me. That way, I could at least be legitimately angry at them personally. Right now, technically, no one person really screwed up, so I get to bitch and moan at bad luck and a faceless company policy.

*sigh* I'll be fine really, I'm just upset and I needed to vent about it a little.

Thanks for listening. I leave you with this: Disservice

The Tomato: Vegetable or Fruit? A legal perspective

2005-03-04T21:32:00.000-05:00

You may have heard people discuss whether the tomato is a vegetable or a fruit. There was a big stink about whether ketchup could be considered a serving of vegetables in school lunches back in the eighties. Biologically, and botanically speaking, the tomato is a fruit, but the US government has never been one to let such a paltry thing as science dictate its policies.

Anyway, I'll bet you didn't know that, in 1893, the United States Supreme Court officially, and legally declared that the tomato is a vegetable.

So there.

Oh, $#!T!

2005-03-04T18:21:00.000-05:00

You know, sometimes a relatively simple mistake can happen at almost the worst possible time and place.

U.S. Fires on Car Carrying Freed Hostage

BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) - American forces fired on a car carrying a freed Italian hostage as it approached a checkpoint in Baghdad on Friday, killing an Italian intelligence officer and wounding three others, including the just-released journalist, Italian officials said.
...
The U.S. military said "at approximately 8:55 p.m. tonight, coalition forces assigned to the multinational force Iraq fired on a vehicle that was approaching a coalition checkpoint in Baghdad at a high rate of speed."

The editor of freed hostage Giuliana Sgrena's newspaper Il Manifesto, Gabriele Polo, said the intelligence agent was killed when he threw himself over Sgrena to protect her from U.S. fire, according to the Apcom news agency in Italy.

Oh, man... This just sucks. No matter how you look at it.

Weight Loss Plan: Day 21 Update

2005-03-04T10:51:00.000-05:00

Goal: Lose 20 lbs in 170 days
Day 21:
Day 1 Weight: 247.5
Last Update (Day 14): 248.5
Current Weight: 243.5
Day 21 Target Weight: 245.15
My Weight Loss Plan Spreadsheet

Analysis

I have successfully reversed the weight-gain trend seen in my last update, though with a greater loss than anticipated. Quick weight loss in early stages of weight loss is frequently attributable primarily to water weight, so I must make an effort to avoid getting dehydrated, and also to not expect the current rate of weight loss to continue.

Click here for the rest of the post.
Last week, I set up a plan for myself with the following five items. Here's how I did with each.

Item 1: Avoid restaurants whenever possible, and when it is not possible, make sure that I order healthier items. (salads with dressing on the side, grilled chicken, etc.)

I have been successful here. I did not eat at any restaurants this past week except for Subway twice, which I did not count as 'fast food' because I had healthy meals there. Each time, only a six-inch sandwich from the "Healthy" menu, on wheat bread, no cheese, light mayo, no drink.

Item 2: Continue preparing my own meals, but be more conscious of my serving sizes and how much I am eating per meal.

Likewise I have improved here in reducing the number of servings that I eat when I prepare my own meals. In addition, I have added two new recipes to my Favorite Recipes page: Shrimp Stir-Fry Jambalaya and 15-Bean Soup.

Item 3: Renew my exercise regimen, making sure to stay hydrated.

Only partially successful. I did work out on Tuesday, but that was the only time. One time is better than none, but I know I can do better. On that note, I've joined my church's co-ed softball team. That should be starting up sometime in the next couple of weeks. I won't be able to track the calories with it, but it should help out some.

Item 4: No more Candy! If I must have sweet things, eat fruit instead. Begin tracking sweets as well as fast food on spreadsheet.

Much better here. Had some biscuits with jam, etc, but that was about it. Definitely having to track them made a difference, because there was more than once where it helped me to resist temptation. It was a lot easier to leave that donut alone when I knew I'd have to report it.

Item 5: Perform updates once a week at minimum.

Duh...

Summary

Okay, so, much better than last week. I'm feeling encouraged that this approach is helping. I'll have to see how long I can maintain it, but hopefully I can stick with this approach at least for the ~six months it will take to reach my goal, and if so, I'll be building some new behavior patterns. Ideally, I'll achieve my goal, then set a new one!

Hitchhiker's Guide Text Game

2005-03-03T23:28:00.000-05:00

If you go here, you can play a jazzed-up version of the old Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy text adventure. Spend hours trying to figure out to do with the screwdriver and the toothbrush, avoid Vogon poetry, and above all, don't panic!

The P-Chip

2005-03-03T10:55:00.000-05:00

I have an idea.

Did everybody see the Southpark movie? If not, I recommend it as an excellent,(and hilarious) piece of social satire, but I ask because of a scene in that film where an excitable young cuss by the name of Eric Cartman is implanted with his own personal V-chip.

You know about V-chips, right? Those little devices that they put in TV's that 98% of the population never does anything with? Well, in the hands of someone who makes a little bit of effort, it allows parents to block television programs that they don't want their kids to see. I've heard a lot of complaints that tech-savvy kids will figure out how to get around it, but frankly, any parents who can't keep a four-digit code secret from their kids have already passed on far more damage through their genes than the kids will receive from watching The OC or wardrobe malfunctions at the Superbowl.

But back to Southpark. Cartman's V-chip works a little differently. It is implanted under the skin and whenever he utters a profanity, he is given an electric shock.

I propose that all politicians be implanted with a P-chip, and that whenever they propose a stupid law or regulation, they will suffer for it. And none of this "won't be re-elected" stuff, because let's be honest, people's memories for this sort of thing last about as long as the average commercial break. So politicians are proposing all sorts of idiotic things with impunity!

Like this senator who is proposing that indecency standards be extended to cable TV.

Sen. Ted Stevens (R-Alaska) told a group of broadcasters yesterday that he wants to extend that authority to cover the hundreds of cable and satellite television and radio channels that operate outside of the government's control. In addition to basic cable channels such as ESPN, Discovery and MTV, that would include premium channels such as HBO and Showtime and the two satellite radio services, XM and Sirius.

"We put restrictions on the over-the-air signals," Stevens said after his address to the National Association of Broadcasters, according to news reports confirmed by his staff. "I think we can put restrictions on cable itself. At least I intend to do my best to push that."

Under my system, immediately following that statement, he would have screamed and dropped, twitching, to the floor, his hair all standing out straight.

Or when members of the Homeland Security Department and the INS suggest that non-citizens living in the US be required to wear electronic tracking ankle-bracelets. They're already doing it for all immigrants appealing their asylum cases, whether they have been convicted of a crime or not. Listen to the story here. Now for those people, the bracelet might be preferable to being detained, but when the officials start talking about expanding the program to "every non-citizen applying to stay", in the US, that's truly insane. Just another example of the 'one-size-fits-all' approach that the government so often brings to bear in complex issues.

Under my system, these officials would have been given an entirely new perspective on having to carry electronic devices.

Now, of course, the P-chip plan has a couple of hurdles to overcome. First, how do we pay for it? Well that's actually quite simple. CSPAN will pay the entire cost. Think about it. Congressional debates where anyone who says something stupid is given a painful electric shock? Their ratings will skyrocket.

Another issue is one of standards. Who decides which ideas are stupid and which are not? Eventually, the technology may advance to the point where brain monitors can actually determine if an idea is poorly-thought-out or disingenuous before it is ever verbalized, but frankly, I'm not willing to wait that long.

In the meantime, we will have to appoint someone to be the arbiter of which ideas are stupid and which are legitimate. In the absence of any other qualified nominees, I volunteer myself. It will be a lot of work, but that's just the sort of self-sacrificing person I am.

Site Tweaking: Update

2005-03-02T14:02:00.000-05:00

All right. It was brought to my attention that my site was not displaying properly on Internet Explorer browsers. I finally tracked down the source of the problem and it turns out that it wasn't the changes to my template at all. Instead, I had simply left an HTML tag open in one of my posts. It's corrected now, so the site should now display properly on all browsers. (at least the ones I have access to)

I decided to go with the comments in a new window feature instead of the 'peek-a-boo' comments simply because it seems to be the direction most blogs are headed these days. Anyway, be sure to leave comments for me. Tell me if you like the changes. Do you have any other suggestions? Thanks!

Numa-Numa-Yay Permalink

2005-03-01T14:21:00.000-05:00

I've been getting a fair number of hits from people looking for Numa-Numa stuff, so I'm going to collect all my links into one post and put a permanent link to it under my profile picture to the right.

First of all, we have the video that started it all, free of all those crappy pictures people keep adding to it. The Numa-Numa-Guy! (Note, you can right-click and save as to get the flash swf file on your own hard drive, if you like. Then you can watch Numa-Numa-Guy all you want without loading times!)

Here is the English Translation of the Numa Numa Lyrics.

Here is the smaller video with subtitles of the English translation. (click link, then click "Watch this movie" and "watch with subtitles")

Here are a few more flash videos set to the same song:
Numa-kitties 1
Numa-kitties 2
Numa-Alien (Remix)

And of course, the link to the real music video for that song.

Here are links to my original posts about this:
Post 1: Fun Things (02/12/05)
Post 2: Numa-Numa-Yay (02-13-05)
Post 3: Poor Numa-Numa-Guy (02/26/05)

Good things taken to extreme...

2005-02-28T22:11:00.000-05:00

... become bad things.

Now, I'm all for safety in schools, but this is just stupid... and a little scary.

A student has been arrested for writing a zombie story. He wrote it for English class, featuring a fictional high school and entirely fictional characters.

"My story is based on fiction," said Poole, who faces a second-degree felony terrorist threatening charge. "It's a fake story. I made it up. I've been working on one of my short stories, (and) the short story they found was about zombies. Yes, it did say a high school. It was about a high school over ran by zombies."

Even so, police say the nature of the story makes it a felony. "Anytime you make any threat or possess matter involving a school or function it's a felony in the state of Kentucky," said Winchester Police detective Steven Caudill.

They actually took him to jail!

Some Subtle Tweaking

2005-02-28T20:50:00.000-05:00

Did a little Blog Template modifications. Mostly subtle stuff. I had to lose the rounded corners, but now the site is compatible with different screen widths. Also, check out the peek-a-boo comments. The comments appear on the main page now instead of requiring you to go to the post page.

Also, re-did the links on the movie reviews post so that on the posts with multiple reviews the link will take you right to the appropriate review.

What does everybody think?

Movie Reviews: Miyazaki Marathon

2005-02-28T12:38:00.000-05:00

The reason I got a late start on my Oscar-cast last night was because I had a friend over and we had a Miyazaki movie marathon with: The Castle of Cagliostro, Porco Rosso, and Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind.

If you're not yet familiar with Hayao Miyazaki, then I think you're in for a treat. Some have called him the Japanese Disney, but I think a more apt moniker would be the Japanese Pixar. Everything I have seen from him, I have absolutely loved.

If anime brings to mind images of Pokémon and Yu-Gi-Oh, then you really owe it to yourself to have a look at some Miyazaki. Pokémon is cheap, mass-produced anime. A Miyazaki film is a work of art. Think of it like this: Pokémon is a cheeseburger at McDonalds, A Miyazaki film is a great steak. In theory, they both come from a cow, but the difference in taste and presentation is immense.

The three films listed above are some of his older work, and as such, some of the animation is a little less sophisticated than the more recent films, but the stories are just as magical.

Click here for the reviews!

The Castle of Cagliostro

This is the very first full-length film that Mr. Miyazaki directed. He had done some television work before this, but even with his very first film, he achieves tremendous success. It features an adventure of the famous Lupin III, a classic Japanese Manga character. If you already know who Lupin III is, then you probably already know about Miyazaki as well, so I'll write this review as a primer for the uninitiated.

Lupin is like James Bond's id. His playful, impulsive side, freed from all that stuffy, old-fashioned patriotism and thus allowed to use his considerable skills for things that are more fun, like stealing expensive things, hitting on beautiful women, and generally having a really good time.

In this film, he decides to seek out the origin of the famous "goat bills", counterfeit money that is supposedly 'better than the originals.' This particular adventure will lead to evil Counts, giant castles, a runaway bride, ancient conspiracies, lost treasures, booby traps, impersonations, ninjas and eating to the point of unconsciousness.

It's loads of fun, with some real drama but without ever really taking itself too seriously. I came to it new, without really knowing anything about Lupin or his friends and adversaries, and the movie introduced me to each of them brilliantly and I was never confused for a second. That said, my friend, who is a Lupin fan, informed me that the film is literally filled with in jokes and little bonuses for long-time fans.

One early scene captures a lot of the fun: Lupin and his long-time friend Jigen are pulled over on the side of the road, changing the tire of their tiny Eastern-European car. It's a serene picture, until they hear the sound of an approaching car. Soon, a car races by them at high speed, driven by a woman in a bridal gown. Only seconds later, another car zips by, in hot pursuit, driven by a number of armed thugs.

Without wasting a second, (and indeed, barely allowing Jigen time to get back into the car,) Lupin presses a hidden switch, opening a secret panel in the back of the car, revealing a souped up engine. They take off like a shot, going after the two cars.

"Which one are we helping?" asks Jigen.
"The girl," says Lupin with a maniacal grin.
"Hmph... Typical," grumps Jigen.

The Castle of Cagliostro is available on DVD.

Porco Rosso

This is probably the most mature and sophisticated of Miyazaki's films. I mean that thematically, not in terms of content. Porco Rosso tells the story of a seaplane WWI-style flying ace who was the sole survivor of a doomed military unit. Since then, he's had the feeling that he's meant to be alone, on the outside of life. This makes him wary of getting too close to people, even when it's what he really wants. Oh, and for reasons never made explicit, he was cursed by a magic spell to have the head of a pig, thus the title, which translates as "Red Pig".

It sounds bizarre, and, well, it is kinda. But Marco, aka, "Porco" is a gruff, but likeable loner, and you really root for him. Both that he is able to defeat his romantic and flying rival, Curtis, and that he is able to come out of his shell and finally court the woman he loves from afar. Along for the ride is Fio, a plucky teenage girl who happens to be a top-notch airplane engineer.

The story is sweet, bittersweet actually. When Fio asks for the story of how he became a pig, he doesn't quite comply, telling a different story instead, but a truly touching one with some wonderful visuals. Likewise, the film also has some really exciting arial dogfights; complex, but comprehensible in a way only animation is really capable of. The climactic fight is simultaneously tense and funny and the film is incredible. Bittersweet, but hopeful.

Porco Rosso is available on DVD.

Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind

Nausicaä starts small. An old man in a strange outfit that includes a gas mask is exploring the ruins of a town that has been overgrown by odd, alien-looking spores. We learn that thousands of years ago, the human industrial civilization has collapsed, and "The Sea of Decay" has spread over much of the world, an entire alien ecosystem that produces clouds of toxic gas, rendering entire regions uninhabitable by humans.

Next, we meet a teenage girl, wearing a similar mask, collecting samples from a vast alien jungle populated by giant insects and bizarre plants. She's cautious, but not fearful, talking to the creatures she finds there as though they can understand her, and taking time to appreciate the alien beauty of the place.

She hears a gunshot in the distance and knows immediately that it means trouble. The insects don't tolerate human violence in their territory. She leaps onto a one-person jet-powered glider and soars off towards the noise. It's the man from the opening, and he's being pursued by an Ohmu, a tremendous alien insect thing the size of a five-story building.

The story grows from there, getting bigger and bigger until it encompasses a vast war featuring many human nations and armies of thousands. It's fantastic science fiction, with rich interesting aliens, cultures, technology, etc.

But it's also the story of a girl, Nausicaä, the princess of her valley. She instinctively knows that there has to be more to the insects and the spores. When soldiers invade, intent on burning away the Sea of Decay, she knows that it's a mistake. Every time it has been tried, the attempt failed, and the retribution from swarms of Ohmus was terrible and killed millions. That won't happen this time, they say, they have a secret weapon.

The film follows Nausicaä as she tries to protect her valley, to avert a war, to save all civilization from its own mistakes. She's a fantastic character. Tough, capable, brave, but without sacrificing femininity or emotion. One of the things that Miyazaki is incredibly good at is writing extremely strong female protagonists. Many of the other characters are really cool as well. The film is grand in scope without losing sight of character or detail. A scene near the climax with Nausicaä and a baby Ohmu is enormously powerful.

I wish I could write like this.

Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind is available on DVD.

And don't forget all the other wonderful Miyazaki films!
My Neighbor Totoro, also on DVD
Kiki's Delivery Service, also on DVD
Castle in the Sky, also on DVD
Princess Mononoke, also on DVD (this is the only one that might warrant a caution, it's different in a lot of ways, dealing with a lot of animal spirits. Still good, just unusual.)
and Spirited Away, last year's Oscar-winning Best Animated Feature, also on DVD

Pick up any of these and you won't be disappointed.

Movie Review: Troy

2005-02-28T12:09:00.000-05:00

Troy was the last of the films on my Oscar marathon list, so perhaps by going ahead and putting the review up, I can achieve a sense of closure on that otherwise painful night. (In truth, the wounds are already scabbed over, so unless provoked, I won't be bringing them up again here.)

So anyway, Troy.

...

*shrug* Well, I liked it.

Of course, I've never read The Iliad, so I can't comment on its faithfulness as an adaptation, so that may have been the film's one saving grace. From what I understand, first and foremost amongst complaints about the film are its utter inadequacy at presenting a classic story of Greek myth.

Click here for the full review.

Well, like I said, I can't really comment on that except in a very general way, but since there are tons of mythology geeks (and I use that term with the utmost respect and only a tiny hint of playful sarcasm) out there who can do better, I'll leave that element of the film alone.

So what does that leave us? A period action/war movie trying to outdo Gladiator by using CGI armies. Basically, my expectations were not terribly high, and so I didn't take the movie very seriously. On that level, I really only wanted exciting action sequences, characters to root for or against, and a bit of drama.

On that level, Troy delivers. I was frankly unimpressed with the CGI armies of thousands and thousands of ships and soldiers and all. Not the effects were bad per se, but basically, I don't actually need to SEE all thousand ships to get the idea. CGI swarms of soldiers (or robots) are starting to get a bit overdone. Still, the battle sequences, particularly the one on one fights were well-choreographed and interesting. The characters were not particularly deep, but by maintaining a certain detachment and suspension of disbelief, they didn't present any real problems for me.

Is the film an epic masterpiece? No. Is the film a faithful adaptation of a classic piece of literature? Apparrently not. Is the film a well-produced, exciting action/war movie? I thought so. *shrug* But that's me.

Antidote to Crappy Oscars

2005-02-27T23:48:00.000-05:00

Cartoon Network's Robot Chicken.

Right now, I'm watching Voltron compete against a space monster in a hip-hop dance-off. He gets totally served. Somehow, that makes everything seem a little better.

2005 Oscars! Live Christiana-Cast!

2005-02-27T20:45:00.000-05:00

All right, so I made 95.7% on my Oscar Spreadsheet. If you'll all allow me a bit of self-congratulation, I'm pretty damn impressed with myself.

Okay, enough of that. Onto the broadcast itself...

Click here for the whole blow by blow...

I got a little bit of a late start tonight, but I'm on a slight delay that should be diminished as we get a couple of commercial breaks. Right now, I'm laughing at Chris Rock's monologue. Sent $80 to Cuba Gooding Jr., Jude Law making cupcakes. Hee hee.

I think, from what I've seen so far, he's doing a pretty good job of walking the line between edgy and offensive. We'll see how long he can keep that up. Anyway, I plan to continue updating this post live as the show progresses, so watch this space!

Best Art Direction

Aviator won, and it was both my pick and my prediction, but truth be told, I would have kinda liked to see A Very Long Engagement win it.

Best Supporting Actor

I wanted Thomas Hayden Church to win for Sideways, but I predicted Morgan Freeman, and I was right. I like him an awful lot, but that Million Dollar Baby just didn't do it for me. I wish he could have won for a better film.

Robin Williams is funny. It's weird though, he's doing the same routine that I had heard he would have to cut. Maybe he only had to make a few changes. Apt though, for him to be talking about animation. The impressions are good, but I prefer when he does his own material.

Best Animated Feature

If Incredibles doesn't win this, it will be a complete travesty...
Shark Tale was kinda funny, but that was all...
Shrek 2 was also funny, but didn't have the same emotional impact that Incredibles did...

And Incredibles wins! Damn Straight. That movie was awesome! Brad Bird is pretty cool too. With Iron Giant and the Incredibles under his belt, the man has earned some serious trust in my book. I'd go to see anything he put out.

Cate Blanchett is always great. Very classy, but also with a great sense of humor.

Best Makeup

Lemony Snicket and The Sea Inside were both pretty good, but frankly it's a snub that The Passion didn't get nominated for anything else, so it damn well better win for this.

But no. Lemony Snicket wins it. Oh well, that one was good too. Glad to see it win something. The Passion has it's $400 million dollar box office to comfort it.

Beyonce singing "Look to Your Path" from The Chorus. Didn't see the film, but it sure is a nice song. I don't really have a strong opinion on the songs this year, but I heard Beyonce's going to be singing three of the five nominated songs tonight. Not sure how that happened.

Chris Rock making a funny issue of what movies people really like. Albert Brooks is awesome! Martin Lawrence. Haven't seen him in a while. Wonder what he's been up to.

It's weird that they're having the presenters all over the place this year. Weird, but kinda cool. May get gimmicky though.

Best Costume Design
Yes!!! Edna Mode helping present! That's awesome!!! For the category, I liked Lemony Snicket the best personally. Some really fun stuff in there. They were all pretty good though.

And the award goes to... The Aviator. Looks like The Aviator might be in for a sweep Let's hope so, because I would much rather it win than Million Dollar Baby, and Scorsese should win Best Director. He's freakin' due!

Best Supporting Actress

I'm rooting for Cate Blanchett. Her Hepburn was just too much fun. Virginia Madsen winning sure wouldn't hurt my feelings either though, she was fabulous in that. Sophie Okonedo in Hotel Rwanda was really good as well. Laura Linney was good, but she was mostly just 'the wife' for me. I didn't see Closer, so can't comment on Natalie Portman. I like her in general though.

And the winner is...Cate! Yes. The Aviator definitely appears to be sweeping. Doesn't hurt my feelings any, because it's a fantastic movie, and I just don't want Million Dollar Baby to win.

Best Documentary
Leo's out to present Best Documentary. It's not really the front-runner, but of the three I've seen, I have to go for Super Size Me. It just really made a statement in a fascinating way. Story of the weeping camel was nice, but that was all really, for me. Tupac Ressurection was really interesting as well. Didn't see Born into brothels or Twist of Faith.

The winner is Born Into Brothels. Haven't seen it yet, but I've heard it's really good. It is coming to the theaters near me though, so I'll have to check it out.

Best Film Editing

The Aviator was the only film where I really noticed the editing in a good way. I hope it wins. And it does! Good job. It was fantastic.

Mike Myers is such a funny guy. What the hell happened with Cat in the Hat? That was one of the worst movies I have EVER seen. Accidentally In Love is an okay song, for all that, but it strikes me as a little generic. Like the sort of thing that you might hear in the background of a falling-in-love montage. Oh wait! Isn't that what it was used for in the movie?

Yes! I'm now completely caught up from my delay. You are now getting my commentary LIVE in Christianavision!!

Ha ha! Adam Sandler and Chris Rock as Catherine Zeta Jones. A bit obvious, but funny anyway.

Best Adapted Screeplay
Okay, I'm wanting this to go to either Before Sunset or Sideways...

And the Oscar goes to... Sideways! That's great, because it was such a great movie, and a fantastic screenplay. My only worry is that this will be the only statue for that great movie tonight. Alexander Payne is so classy, sharing his award with the cast.

Best Visual Effects
Lots of good stuff this year. I, Robot sucked, but the effects were good. Harry Potter had some really great, and original-looking stuff. But Spiderman 2 better win. It was perfect, and come on! It's freakin' Spiderman!!

And the Oscar goes to... Spiderman 2! Yeah baby! Spiderman rules the earth!

Wow, the show is just moving right along this year. Guess they're saving time for the long speeches later on.

Nice, a good, classy shout-out to the troops.

Al Pacino coming out to award the honorary Oscar to Sidney Lumet. I'm looking forward to seeing him in Merchant of Venice. Sidney Lumet has made a lot of great movies, but I can't say I know all that much about him.

Ha! Did everyone see Morgan Freeman's wink at the camera? He's great. I'm glad he won an Oscar even if I didn't like the movie.

Okay, Learn to be Lonely from Phantom of the Opera, Beyonce singing again. Hmm, as I listen to this again, I find that the song is actually just reminding me of things that annoyed me a little about the movie. It's okay, I guess. But the song from The Chorus is my favorite at the moment.

Okay, Jeremy Irons with Best Live-Action Short. I haven't seen any of these. What was that banging sound though? Laura Linney with Best Animated Short. Didn't see any of these either, though I'll get a chance to see a few of them in a couple weeks.

Best Cinematography

Okay, Kate Winslet presenting the Cinematography award. Some really amazing films this year. I would be just fine with any of them winning, frankly. They are all fantastic.

And the Oscar goes to The Aviator. Yet another check mark on the list. This is looking good, though most of the categories so far have not been the ones that Million Dollar Baby is nominated for. Still, there's hope!

Best Sound Mixing

All pretty good, but The Incredibles was the only one where I really noticed the sound as being good. Besides, I want that film to win anything and everything it can!

And the Oscar goes to... Ray. Hmm... pretty good, I guess. It is definitely a good sounding movie, but for me there was too much of an obvious switch between Jaime Foxx's speaking voice and Ray Charles singing.

Best Sound Editing
Incredibles! Incredibles! Incredibles!!!!

And the Oscar goes to... The Incredibles! Yay! A minor award, but since the acting awards are pretty much out and it won the Best Animated Feature already, that's all that's left! Still, Yay!

Okay, the fourth nominated original song, from Motorcycle Diaries. It's nice that they gave us a bit of the lyrics in English. Antonion Banderas and Carlos Santana! Cool! Hmm, it's a good song, but I think I liked it more in context with the movie. It feels a little too... busy here, for some reason. Anyway, I would place it as my second favorite of the evening.

Best Documentary Short Subject... haven't seen any of these either. Seriously, I don't understand why they don't downplay these a little more, since less than 5% of the audience will have seen any of them.

Best Original Score
Incredibles should have been nominated, but oh well. Give it to the Passion!! Many good ones, but The Passion was incredibly powerful.

And the Oscar goes to... Finding Neverland. Oh well, it was a good score, I guess, but it seems to me that The Passion is getting totally snubbed.

Yay, Marty!! Scorsese rocks. Giving out the humanitarian statue. Motion picture fund, film preservation. Roger Mayer.

Annette Bening announcing... what? Oh, the tribute to actors etc. who have died...
Yo Yo Ma is fun to say.
Sorry, I'm being serious...
Ronald Reagan, the gipper. Okay, these are going too fast for me to comment on. Janet Liegh, Christopher Reeve. Those stung. Christopher Reeve's autobiography was really an amazing book. Rodney Dangerfield, Tony Randall, Marlon Brando. Some really major losses this year.

Puffy out to announce the fifth original song.
Hip and creative? The Polar Express? Okay, if Puffy says so, it must be true.
Beyonce again. Slightly creepy movie, slightly cheesy song.

Of the five, I vote for Look to Your Path from The Chorus, with a close second of the song from Motorcycle Diaries.

Best Original Song
Ha! Prince! He's in that weird category that I can't quite call cool, but he sure is something. Anyway, The Chorus! or Motorcycle Diaries!

And the Oscar goes to... Motorcycle Diaries. It's a great song. I don't know why the performance this evening didn't quite do it for me. Glad to see that movie win something though. It's great. EXCELLENT! A sung acceptance speech, en espanol! That's awesome!

Best Actress
What's with Sean Penn's inability to take a joke re: Jude Law? That was bizarre. He sounds drunk or something. Anyway, my favorite here is Annette Bening, but Hilary Swank was pretty damn awesome, even if I didn't care for the movie. Catalina is a heck of a discovery, but she's got time. Imelda from Vera Drake was good too, but the direction got repetitive near the end. Kate Winslet was great and quirky. But the movie came out too long ago. That's death in the Oscars.

And the Oscar goes to... Hilary Swank. *nods* She's good, I have to give her that. I really like her in general. My problems with that movie were not with the acting anyway, so I don't begrudge her this, even though she wasn't my favorite. Super classy thanking the other nominees. Not as thrilled with thanking the screen-writers. Wow, it's a long speech, but that's why they rushed the earlier ones.

My accountants would like a word with you!!! Ha ha! I love Jude Law, but dude, Sean, he can freakin' stand up for himself.

Best Foreign Language Film

I'm rooting for The Sea Inside, simply because it's the only one I've seen, well, and because it's good. I imagine the others are too, but... what can you do?

And the Oscar goes to... The Sea Inside! Yay... I guess. I'll get back to you when I've seen the others. Thanking Ramon Sampedro, the man the film was based on. Javier Bardem, a truly wonderful performance...

Best Original Screenplay

All excellent this year, except for Vera Drake, which was a good movie, but half of it was improvised for Pete's sake!

And the Oscar goes to... Charlie Kaufman for Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind! Yes! That is a great screenplay, and I love him as a writer, so it's neat to see him win. Way to go, dude! 29 seconds... 27 seconds. He's awesome.

It's interesting that they aren't doing the Best Picture Nominees as they go this year. I wonder how they'll handle that at the end.

Best Actor
Charlize Theron. She was so great in Monster last year. Lots of great performances this year. I can hardly choose, but I have to give a tiny, tiny edge to Jaime Foxx, simply because he surprised me so much this year with both Ray and Collateral. Leo, always great. Don Cheadle, always great. Johnny Depp, always great. Clint... well, I'm pissed at him for the movie, so I want him to lose. Any of the other four would be fine with me.

And the Oscar goes to... Jaime Foxx!! Yes! He's great in that movie, really captured Ray Charles, which is hard for such a publically known person. Yay Jaime! Ohhh, Ahhhh! Nice! Wow, what a charismatic guy. Taking the responsibility. Great speech.

Huh, that's weird, I thought they were going to do Best Director too, before the next commercial break. Oh well, guess they'll do it back-to-back with Best Picture. Makes sense.

Oh man, another medical drama? Jeez.

Best Director

Give it to Scorsese!!!!!

And the Oscar goes to... Son of a bitch! Marty is never going to get a freaking Oscar! WTF!! Clint Eastwood. This probably means he'll get Best Picture too. I'm really pissed at Eastwood for making me not like him. I want to like him, but I didn't like his movie... so I'm pissed.

Best Picture

The Aviator, a briliantly told tale of a complicated, larger-than-life man.
Finding Neverland, a sweet touching tearjerker.
Million Dollar Baby, a cruel, manipulative bait-and-switch
Ray, a fun, wonderful, biopic about a tremendous entertainer.
Sideways, a funny adult human drama that entertained me more than any movie this year.

And they did it. They gave away the Oscar to that bait-and-switch garbage. It's well directed. And well acted. But here's the thing. You can have the best chef ever living, but if you give him a crappy piece of meat to cook, there's only so much he can do with it.

In this case, we have Clint Eastwood, who is a great chef, but he picked this piece of meat, so apparently he has crappy taste. At least, in my own opinion. *sigh* This sucks. I would have preferred any of the others over this one. Boooo!!!! Hiss!!!!

Okay, I'm over it now. I may suffer a few flashbacks, but right now, it's past my bedtime. Buenas nochas you no-taste Acadamy members!

Quickie: Dumb Joke

2005-02-26T21:38:00.000-05:00

Two sausages are sitting in a pan being fried.
One sausage says to the other, "Boy, it's getting hot in here."
The other sausage replies, "Wow, a talking sausage!"

--Credit to Mike C at Dean's World

Anyone got more?

Movie Review: I, Robot

2005-02-26T18:48:00.000-05:00

*Sigh*

I'm still pondering it. Is it just that the movie is dramatically different from what I wanted it to be, or is it just really that bad?

The first half of I, Robot disappointed me in one aspect after another, to the point where I was just bored and disinterested by the whole thing. The second half of the movie had a few good elements, but by then, I was done caring.

It's Oscar Nominated for its visual effects, and at least on that score, it delivers. The various robot effects and everything are pretty much flawless, and they are definitely visually interesting, though Spiderman 2 still will and should win. There are also a few ideas later in the movie that I liked.

There, that's everything that was good.

Should I really list everything that I didn't like about it, or should I just tell you it's a slick, but ultimately boring and dumbed down action cliché and be done with it?

Well, thanks to the miracles of hypertext, I can do both. If you don't care about the list, just move on now. Or click here for the rest of the review.

I really wanted to like this movie. I remember when I first heard about it, I was really psyched. Isaac Asimov's collection of short stories, the original "I, Robot", was one of the very first science-fiction novels I ever read, and I really loved it. It had an interesting premise and applied it in a number of interesting ways and placed it all in a number of compelling plots with believable characters. A movie of it could have been so cool.

This movie basically takes the Three Laws of Robotics premise and a few character names. The rest, it apparently had no use for.

I like Will Smith as an actor, but I HATED the character he played in this movie. I know, lets make the main character of a Robot movie into a technology hating luddite with an irrational fear of robots! Yeah, that's exactly the sort of character that all the millions of sci-fi fans will identify with! Brilliant! Oh, oh! And lets make him turn out to be right! Yeah. Oh, and those three laws of robotics are too complicated and limiting, so lets introduce a robot not bound by them in the first twenty minutes of the movie! Oh, and lets include all sorts of nonsensical plot twists and have police and robots and civilians and cars and trucks and security systems behave in ways that make no sense at all but move the ridiculous plot forward! And while we're at it, lets throw in a bunch of tired cop-movie clichés too. And then, at last, lets take one of the central characters from the original novel and strip away everything that made her interesting so that she can be the cardboard damsel in distress for Will Smith to save. None of the jokes were funny. Will Smith's character name was stupid (Detective Spooner!?!) and his lame "reason" to hate robots was stupid. The whole movie was a boring, unoriginal, cliché-ridden piece of garbage. There were a few nice things, but they were like antiques in a junkyard. Some value, perhaps, but you have to wade through a lot of crap to get to them.

I think, that if I was not such a fan of the original novel, then I would have been just bored by this movie, instead of angered. But I am such a fan, and this movie made me angry.

Maybe it's a waste for me to devote such emotional energy to it. Maybe I should just dismiss it and move on, but the one reason I don't do that is because this movie has just made it infinitely harder for a GOOD I, Robot movie to ever get made. That pisses me off.

Movie Review: The Sea Inside

2005-02-26T18:09:00.000-05:00

Like with Vera Drake, which I saw on the same day, this film wasn't quite what I expected.

For a movie about euthanasia, The Sea Inside is surprisingly funny.

That is to say, it has a fair amount of humor. It's far from a comedy. It is, after all, a movie about a quadriplegic petitioning the Spanish government to be allowed to commit assisted suicide. Javier Bardem plays Ramon Sampedro, a man of intelligence, wit, and a deep sadness. Ramon is completely paralyzed from the neck down, and has been for the last 28 years. He wants out, and no one can convince him otherwise.

Also, like with Vera Drake, the movie does not really take the side of the protagonist on this controversial subject. Instead, it simply tells his story. There are many scenes where he makes rational arguments and emotional pleas, trying to make his case. There are other scenes where his family members, friends, and a priest try to change his mind. Everyone in the movie has an emotional stake in what will eventually happen to him, and that makes for powerful drama.

Click here for the full review.

In my review of Vera Drake, I said that film was more neutral and detached than balanced. This film is balanced, and far from detached. Whereas in Vera Drake, the actual issue of whether abortion should be legal or not is something for the characters to discuss, but not something the movie is otherwise concerned about. On the other hand, the topic of euthanasia is at the very heart of this film. The characters feel passionately about it, some on one side, some on the other. In the end, the film settles down onto the pro-euthanasia side, but the opposition has definitely been given the chance to speak.

The experience of watching this movie places us in the shoes of his friends and family. We feel terrible for him, that such a charming, intelligent, funny man has fallen into this condition. We are distraught that he wants to die. We want to tell him, no, there is so much that you still have to live for. You have loving friends and family all around you. You have your mind. Your voice. You are loved. You don't have to die. But we are frustrated and upset, just like his family, because none of our words can change his mind.

No doubt some find the whole subject depressing. I find it sad and complicated, but the very discussion brings to mind the most important things in life. Euthanasia is such a hard thing, because although suicide is wrong, and a tragedy, we also want to end suffering. Where do we draw the line? "Do Not Resuscitate" orders? Heroic measures? The case of Terry Schiavo comes to mind. It's a hard subject, but if one of the purposes of good cinema and good art is to raise hard subjects and attempt to make sense of them, then The Sea Inside is good cinema and good art. It's not entertaining exactly, but it is very powerful.

P.S. Contains Spoilers for Million Dollar Baby

SPOILERS
Just one additional note. If someone wants to make a movie about the subject of quadriplegic and assisted suicide, THIS is the way to do it. Not the way that Million Dollar Baby did it. That movie pretends to be one thing and ends up something completely different. It doesn't rise out of the story, it's a cruel left turn that happens two-thirds through the movie and basically serves as a cruel bait-and-switch for the viewer. At least, that's how I felt. It might just win the Oscar on Sunday, but if it does, I'll be really disappointed.

END SPOILERS

Movie Review: Vera Drake

2005-02-26T17:10:00.000-05:00

I saw this film as a double-feature with The Sea Inside, and as it happened, they made an interesting pairing, because neither film was quite what I expected.

What I knew about Vera Drake was that it was about a middle-aged woman who worked as underground abortionist in 1950's London. "Oh great," I thought, "another movie that will present me with contrived situations and weepy melodrama designed to make me say, 'Gosh, how barbaric it was back then when abortion was illegal. Thank God we don't live like that anymore.'" For the record, I concede that the issue of abortion is a complex one, but for me, it comes down to the fact that an abortion is killing a baby, and I think that's wrong. I went to see it because it was on the list (for Best Actress, Best Director, and Best Original Screenplay,) and so I hoped that at least it would be a well-made piece of propaganda.

The film itself isn't perfect, but it is far more complex and interesting portrayal than I had expected.
Click here for the full review.
I began to call it balanced, but I think the better word would be detached, or neutral. The film tells the story of, surprise, Vera Drake, a tiny, friendly, jovial, almost hobbit-like middle-aged woman, living in London. She loves her family, cares for her ailing elderly mother, invites young bachelor's over for tea (and to meet her shy single daughter,) and oh yeah, occasionally, she "helps out" young girls, by helping them to induce miscarriages.

I don't put it that way to be flippant, but because that's how the movie presents it, almost as an after-thought. Just another errand that she runs after buying the groceries and making tea for her invalid mother. She doesn't accept money for it, she just does it because, as she sees it, they need her help and no one else will do it for them. Still, despite her friendly reassuring demeanor, she seems to find it hard to talk about. She talks how about how 'it will all pass away' and how 'it will all be over', never actually using the words: abortion, miscarriage, baby. She's got a whole little routine she goes through. Things she does, things she says. But when things don't follow the routine, the girl won't stop crying, or another person is there, somehow she loses her confidence and you see the hint of fear in her eyes.

As it turns out, something goes wrong. It's not all that surprising really. After all, there wouldn't be much of a movie if nothing else happened. And where things go from there is obvious and inevitable, but that doesn't remove the tension, or the drama as Vera and her family must deal with the situation. It's not an action-thriller, not even a suspense drama. It's more of a tragedy.

There are some, I'm sure, who will say that the tragedy is that someone who just wanted to help girls in trouble was prosecuted unjustly for it. I'm not in that category. Instead, the tragedy is a loving, kind woman who has unfortunately deceived herself into thinking that she's doing the right thing. But she isn't, and that deception has tragic consequences, not just for her, but for many others.

It's interesting, and sad, and deep. It's also a little slow in the second half when there are a few too many scenes where she's overcome with emotion and can't speak. Still, it's a very good film, and good, I imagine, for sparking debate.

Poor Numa-Numa Guy

2005-02-26T16:43:00.000-05:00

If you don't already know who the Numa-Numa guy is, watch this. I've posted about him before.

His name is Gary Brolsma, and I had heard that the guy was Dutch, but apparently, he is actually from Saddlebrook, New Jersey.

Over at Dean's World, they pointed me to a New York Times article today about how he is embarrassed by his recent celebrity.

He has now sought refuge from his fame in his family's small house on a gritty street in Saddle Brook. He has stopped taking phone calls from the news media, including The New York Times. He canceled an appearance on NBC's "Today." According to his relatives, he mopes around the house.

What's worse is that no one seems to understand.

I guess I can understand, but it's a little sad that he isn't able to enjoy this. After all, I find his video funny not because I'm making fun of him, but because it's silly and genuinely entertaining, and it's exactly the sort of thing that we all do when we think nobody will see.

When I watch him doing his Numa-Numa dance, it makes me LIKE him. I don't say "Gee what a pathetic kid!" I say "Wow, what a fun and funny kid!" He's a bit of a dork, but then, so am I, and I found him really appealing. It's too bad that he's become embarrassed by it. Eventually this current fad will fade away and I hope that someday he can look back on this and enjoy it again.

Favorite Recipes

2005-02-26T13:25:00.000-05:00

I've put a new link under my profile picture to a document with some of my favorite recipes. Um... I feel like I should say more, but that's about it really.

Don't Panic!

2005-02-26T10:59:00.000-05:00

Ain't It Cool News just pointed me to a brand-new Internet-only trailer for the Hitchhiker's Guide movie.

Now, the first teaser got me smiling. The next trailer was fun just because it showed me footage from the film for the first time. That one might be better for people who have no idea what's going on.

But this...

Wow. This one is for fans. This one is awesome.

AIDS Debate Update

2005-02-25T11:04:00.000-05:00

People who've been reading for a while know that I've posted a few times about an ongoing debate where some scientists and others are insisting that HIV does not in fact cause AIDS. I came across the debate on Dean's World, and in his most recent post on the subject, he also asserts that HIV does not cause AIDS.

Prior to hearing about this debate, it had never occurred to me to even question the connection, and so in reading about it, I began to do just that. Question it, and do more research. Now, it's a sufficiently complicated subject as to be near-impossible for a lay-person to penetrate, even a relatively informed lay-person like myself. Still, in all my reading, I have come to the following conclusions:

There is a causal relationship between the HIV virus and AIDS. It may not be the only factor, and in fact, I'm inclined to think that there are perhaps multiple co-factors required for the virus to actually develop into AIDS. What these cofactors are remains in the realm of speculation at this point.

That said, I still think there are a number of sketchy things going on in the administration of medications, and the diagnostic criteria being used in Africa. I suspect that there are a lot of people in Africa who are being diagnosed as AIDS patients when they are in fact suffering immune suppression due to malnutrition and other aggravating factors, such as malaria.

So after floating a bit, I have settled once more on the HIV=AIDS side, though certainly closer to the fence than before. Furthermore, I definitely plan to continue following the debate and viewing news reports on the subject with a more skeptical eye. I think the research that I've done on the subject while pursuing this issue has been very valuable and I'm glad that the debate prodded me into doing it.

Oscar Marathon Update: 3 days to go!

2005-02-25T10:20:00.000-05:00

Wow, the awards kind of snuck up on me. For some reason, I was thinking they were in March this year, but no, they are taking place this Sunday night. I have a busy weekend ahead of me if I'm going to see the four more movies I need.

That will not bring me to 100% of course, because some of the movies, the foreign-language films in particular, have not yet been shown here at all. I'm currently at 88%. Before Sunday, I plan to see I, Robot and Troy on DVD, and to see Vera Drake and The Sea Inside in the theater. If I manage to see all four, that will bring me up to 95.7%, a substantial improvement over last year, in which I only managed 89%. The only film that I have not seen that I had the opportunity to see was Closer, but unfortunately, it left theaters before the Oscar Nominations were announced and has not yet come to DVD.

You'll note, if you check out my 2005 Oscars Spreadsheet, that I have color-coded the various categories. Categories where I have seen all the nominated films are in green. Categories where I plan on seeing all the nominated films are in yellow, and categories where I will be unable to see all the nominated films are in orange. Watch this space for reviews of the four remaining films and during the Oscar award ceremony, I'll be watching and updating live as the awards are given out. See if my predictions will be accurate! See if I have anything interesting to say! See if it turns into a lame wanna-be version of bad director's commentaries! (Frex. And there's Jude Law... He's got a nice smile... and there's Natalie Portman... um...)

Hopefully, it will be fun!

Weight Loss Plan: Day 14 Update

2005-02-25T09:49:00.000-05:00

Day 14:
Starting Weight: 247.5
Current Weight: 248.5
Day 14 Target Weight: 246
My Weight Loss Plan Spreadsheet

Analysis

Okay, clearly not a very good start. My weight trendline is actually going up instead of down. I attribute this to a number of factors. First is that I've not done any official exercise since Day 2. A good chunk of that is due to simple laziness, but for the last four days, I've not been feeling well, and so I've been avoiding strenuous exercise for that reason. Next, though I've largely avoided fast food, I have had a larger than usual number of heavy restaurant meals, plus I've been indulging my sweet tooth with girl-scout cookies and candy. Not a good start at all.

That said, despite the weight gain, there have been some small victories. First and foremost, the very act of tracking my weight this way is, I think, a huge step in making me more aware of what I'm eating, how much I'm exercising, and my health in general. Not that it's done me a lot of good so far, but I think it's an important first step.

Second, I have succeeded in dramatically reducing my consumption of fast food, with only two meals in two weeks, and both of those were smaller/healthier than normal. That was a priority, as watching Super-Size Me was a big part of my decision to start this in the first place. (See my review) In place of fast food and other non-fast but still processed food products (Hamburger Helper, Ramen Noodles, etc.) I've been preparing a lot more of my own meals using known ingredients. At some point, I will put up a link to some of the recipes I've been enjoying. So, although I'm still eating too much and not exercising enough, I have made some progress in eating healthier things.

Plan of Action

Item 1: Avoid restaurants whenever possible, and when it is not possible, make sure that I order healthier items. (salads with dressing on the side, grilled chicken, etc.)

Item 2: Continue preparing my own meals, but be more conscious of my serving sizes and how much I am eating per meal.

Item 3: Renew my exercise regimen, making sure to stay hydrated.

Item 4: No more Candy! If I must have sweet things, eat fruit instead. Begin tracking sweets as well as fast food on spreadsheet.

Item 5: Perform updates once a week at minimum.

Movie Review: The Motorcycle Diaries

2005-02-24T15:45:00.000-05:00

Man, I wish I had seen this one in the theater. I thought about it at the time. I had heard good things about it. I wanted to see it. It just never made the top of the list. Oh well, can't see everything, I suppose. Anyway, some of the South American scenery in this movie is simply breathtaking, and to see it on a big screen must really have been something. It's pretty impressive even on a television, so let me just begin the review by telling you the scenery and landscapes are absolutely gorgeous.

What about the story, you ask? Ah, yes. The Motorcycle Diaries is based on the diary entries of one Ernesto Guevara, relating the story of a cross-continent motorcycle trip he took through South America with his friend Alberto. If the last name sounds vaguely familiar, it is because young Ernesto eventually became "Che" Guevara, the famous Cuban Revolutionary, the 'Comandante' who led a fierce rebellion through passion, bravery and force of will.

But all that happens later. This movie is about his motorcycle trip. It is not about Che the revolutionary, but about Ernesto, the young man who would later become a revolutionary. I've already said the landscapes were amazing, but the rest of the film is terrific as well.

Click here for the full review.
Ernesto is played with a deep charisma and wonderful range by Gael García Bernal, who is also in Bad Education, the latest film by Pedro Almodóvar, another Spanish language filmmaker whom I really admire. I'm looking forward to seeing him in that, and I think he's really got a serious career ahead of him.

As played by Mr. Bernal, Ernesto is a charming, but serious young man from a well-off family. Only a semester away from finishing medical school. His friend Alberto is a biochemist. These are not members of the poverty-stricken under-class. They aren't riding across the continent because they need work or because they are fleeing persecution. They're going because they are young and restless and it sounds like fun.

Some of it is fun. Some of it is hard. Some of it is scary. But it's the people he meets that really start to work on young Ernesto. Farmers kicked off land that has been in their families for generations. A couple fleeing arrest because of their political party, traveling the long, lonely roads, looking for work. Mistreated outcasts in a leper colony. All of things begin to stir something deep in his heart, planting the seeds of the revolutionary to come.

It must be remembered, I think, that Che Guevara fought for communism, and while I disagree rather wholeheartedly that communism is the way to go, I can nonetheless feel sympathetic with the plight of the poverty-stricken. Ernesto feels a deep sense of injustice, as would anyone, (except perhaps the people benefiting from it,) and I think that pretty much all of us can identify with that and even feel passionate that something must be done. We may disagree with his conclusions, but not with his motives. For the most part, the movie is not advocating his position as much as showing the experiences that shaped the man.

The movie is captivating, well-photographed, touching, and thought-provoking. In short, excellent. Frankly, I was a little surprised to discover that it was only nominated for best screenplay and best original song. Certainly I liked it more than Million Dollar Baby, though I'm evidently in the minority on that score.

New Cell Phone

2005-02-24T15:37:00.000-05:00

Well, my company just sprang for new cell phones for everyone. I got an LG VX6100. It's pretty spiffy. Also pretty overdue, as the last phone was getting pretty clunky and boring by today's standards.

The new one's a camera phone, and can get all sorts of games and fancy ringtones.

Check out this picture of my little guinea pig, Guinevere, taken by my camera-phone. Ain't she sweet? I rarely get good pictures of her because she's scared of... well, everything, really.

Movie Review: The Story of the Weeping Camel

2005-02-24T14:59:00.000-05:00

The Story of the Weeping Camel follows a rural Mongolian family through an episode of their lives. It should be said up front that there was a little fuzziness when it came to classifying this film as a documentary, because technically it is a scripted film. However, Roger Ebert points out the following:

The movie has been made in the same way that Robert Flaherty made such documentaries as "Nanook of the North," "Men of Aran" and "Louisiana Story." It uses real people in real places and essentially has them play themselves in a story inspired by their lives. That makes it a "narrative documentary," according to the filmmakers. A great many documentaries are closer to this model than their makers will admit; even "cinema verite" must pick and choose from the available footage and reflect a point of view.

In my opinion, the movie is nice, even charming, but it didn't really change my ideas or opinion on much of anything, whereas Super-Size Me and Tupac: Resurrection really got me thinking about their subjects.

Click here for the full review
Basically, the movie observes this family as they deal with their daily routines, and with a mother camel who has refused to nurse her new baby. The baby will die unless the mother allows it to nurse, so the family does everything they can to encourage it. Nothing works, so eventually the two oldest children, Dude and Ugna, must travel to the city to find a musician whose music, legend has it, can reunite the mother camel with her calf. (Brief side note, the older brother's name made for some interesting subtitles. "Dude, come here for a moment.") (Another brief side note, the youngest child, a two-year-old girl named Guntee, was extremely cute.)

I would also like to point out that, while the story is scripted, there is a lot of genuine stuff here. For example, the birth of the baby camel is undoubtedly real, or else we would have seen some serious special effects names in the end credits. Likewise, the landscapes, homes and buildings are all real. The story is only 'inspired by' real events, but it's sweet anyway. I think that kids with enough patience to sit through some quiet scenes would really enjoy this movie. It doesn't have anything objectionable in it, so parents have nothing to fear on that score. (Though it occurs to me that there is some brief child nudity as the mother gives her younger son a bath, but it's not sexual in the slightest.)

My friend Mike, in his review, objected to what he perceived as an agenda, suggesting that the movie's depiction of this family is shaded more towards increasing tourism than towards accuracy. He also points out that a few scenes with the child who wants a television seemed forced. I can see his point, though I'm not sure I agree. After all, the television subplot pays off at the end. I don't know about the accuracy, but I'm not sure how much I really care about that.

I liked it okay, though my attention wandered here and there. I thought it did a good job of showing me a culture I had never seen before. It had some sweet moments and some touching moments. Perhaps I'm damning it with faint praise, but what are you going to do? That's how I feel.

Having said that, it didn't do what I generally want from a documentary, namely, to tell me something I didn't know or to change my mind about something, or at least to provoke thought. I think Super-Size Me and Tupac: Resurrection were much better on that score, so given that, I don't think this should win. However, if you have any interest in the subject matter, you should give this film a look.

Movie Review: Tupac: Resurrection

2005-02-24T14:46:00.000-05:00

Before seeing Tupac: Resurrection, I had only a passing familiarity with Tupac Shakur. I knew who he was. I remember hearing about when he died. I knew he had something to do with the whole "West-coast/East-coast" thing, but that was about it.

Tupac: Resurrection is a documentary about him, largely narrated by the late rapper himself, through clips from various interviews, and making heavy use of personal photographs and videos. From a strictly visual perspective, the documentary is extremely slick and very well put together. Furthermore, it gave me a new level of insight into a complicated man who lived an interesting life. The filmmakers should definitely be proud of themselves for the film they've made.

Click here for the full review

Still, I've never been a fan of so-called 'gangsta-rap', though I respect it as a legitimate musical sub-genre. Perhaps it's a cultural thing, but I've found that I can't really identify with the violence and anger in it. Still, despite that, I've often wondered about how it plays into the art-imitates-life-imitates-art dynamic.

In this documentary, Tupac compares his rap to the war footage of Vietnam, suggesting that he isn't creating the violence, only reporting on it to people who don't want to hear about those sorts of things. He felt that the war would have gone on longer if not for the war footage, and therefore, he hopes that gangsta rap music will begin to change the problems that can occur in the inner-city. Sounds good, to be sure, and it may even have some truth to it, but it's hard to deny that many of his songs (and not just his) seem to glorify the more violent and sometimes misogynistic elements of inner-city culture. Without wanting to dismiss his whole point, it occasionally came off (to me) as rationalization. He was successful with that type of music and it appealed to a lot of people. Further, he says in the film that he got writer's block whenever he tried to make his music a little more positive. Given all that, it's understandable that he wouldn't want to hear that his music may be bad for people, or at least for some people. As such, he defends it to the best of his ability, which is pretty good, but was not (to me) entirely convincing.

For example, he makes a strong case that use of the word "bitch" in rap songs is meant to apply to a specific type of woman, the type who sleeps around merely to get close to money or fame, and is not meant to apply to all women. Also, he tries to define 'thug' as in "Thug Life" not according to the dictionary definition, but rather as someone who has decided to be who they are, regardless of how society feels about it. Perhaps in that context, the terms are less problematic, but frankly, I'm reminded of Rush Limbaugh and his use of the term: "Feminazi." He has said that that term is only meant to apply to a very specific subset of feminists, but it is not always used consistently in that context, and it is completely understandable that that term might be offensive to all feminists and not just the ones he intends to target. I think that it is a similar situation. For every song where he urges respect and kindness toward women, there's a dozen that talk about 'bitches' and 'hoes'.

In the end, the documentary is well put-together, and I really appreciated the opportunity to gain new insight on a complex individual. I was not ultimately won over to the 'gangsta-rap' fandom, but I do have a renewed respect for it. Anyone who is already a fan would do well to check this documentary out. I doubt you'll be disappointed.

Russian Scientific Priorities

2005-02-24T10:39:00.000-05:00

Russian Scientists Develop Tablet to Prolong drunkenness

If you take a tablet you need less alcohol to stay drunk, the scientists were quoted by the paper as saying. RU-21 Red prolongs drunkenness and enhances intoxication, the company co-founder, Emil Chiabery, born in the ex-Soviet republic of Georgia said.

10 Things I've Done

2005-02-21T20:56:00.000-05:00

There's a meme going around where people list ten things they've done that most people probably haven't. For example, Hannah Bowen, Wendy Delmater, Kevin Kibelstis and Elizabeth Bear.

So here's my list:
1. Performed in a puppet show in a Mexican church.

2. Been asked "Are you sure you're in the right seat?" by a passenger that was later escorted off the plane by armed air marshals.

3. Been asked out to dinner by a stranger on Alcatraz Island.

4. Placed a three-pound steel ball-bearing inside a tennis ball as a joke.

5. Sustained a second-degree burn onstage in the middle of a play and finished the show without anyone knowing.

6. Seen the Challenger disaster in person.

7. Qualified for the national-level tournament in speech and debate.

8. Took notes for an entire semester of Music Appreciation class left-handed and backwards like Leonardo DaVinci, just for the hell of it.

9. Stolen a letter from a fast-food restaurant's marquee because they were using it irresponsibly.

10. Dropped to the floor of my apartment because my disturbed pot-head next-door neighbor was being arrested at gunpoint.

Note also, that I have surpassed 1000 hits on my blog's counter! Hooray!

Stuff

2005-02-18T11:52:00.000-05:00

Hmm, not feeling super perky today. Mostly feeling thoughtful, with a little brooding and pouting thrown in.

Click here for long, boring, pity-party rambling

Having a little bit of a crummy morning today which, added to a couple of things from yesterday has just got me in a little bit of a whiny mood this morning. First of all, this morning I nearly ran out of gas on the way to work because I wasn't paying attention. I didn't run out, but I had to get off the highway at an unfamiliar exit to find a gas station when I was already late for work. Then I pull into a BP station and for some bizarre reason, the gas pumps were having some sort of electronic hissy-fit and they wouldn't let me pay with a card and they wouldn't let me select pay inside either. So I give up on them and get back in the car to drive to another station, which doesn't have the pay-at-the-pump stuff at all. So then I have to stand there in the frigid wind while the slowest pump ever dribbles gas into my car. Then the traffic sucked on the way in, with people driving slow in the left lane and big-ass trucks looming over the center line and scaring the hell out of me more than once.

Add to that the fact that I cut my finger making dinner last night. (Actually, given the amount of vegetable and meat chopping I had to do for the empeneda recipe I was trying, I'm surprised I didn't cut myself worse.) It's not a big cut, but it's in an annoying place that hurts when I type. The recipe itself was pretty tasty, but it didn't tell me how much crust I needed so I didn't have nearly enough, and as I have no experience rolling the little empeneda rolls, they were pretty awful looking. Tasted okay though. I might talk more about my recent grocery/recipe/cooking adventures in another post, if I feel like it.

Those are just normal sort of grumpy-day type things though. What's really got me brooding a bit is a couple of the reviews I got on the Online Writing Workshop. They stung more than a little, not because they were particularly harsh, but because I recognized immediately that they were right in almost everything they suggested. Ouch. It's not that I'm feeling discouraged exactly, but I do feel like a little of the wind has been let out of my sails.

Writing a novel is kind of like climbing a mountain. It's a lot of work, and you have to be in it for the long haul. Basically what happened to me is that I could see the top. I wasn't feeling that tired and I was enjoying the landscape around me. I was excited to be so close and I was really moving along, enjoying myself. Then I reach what I thought was the top and realize that it was just a little ridge and that the real peak is still REALLY far away and that the climb still to come is way harder than what I've already done.

*sigh* I'm not giving up or anything. After all, it's an early draft, so I knew that it needs a lot of work still. That's the whole reason I put it on the workshop! So that I can get outside perspectives on what's working and what isn't. Still, it's just a little bit disheartening to realize that it needs a lot more work than I had been thinking it needed. Oh well, I've been in this spot before and I know I'll come out of it, the better for having received legitimate constructive criticism. Still, I think I may take a couple of days to feel sorry for myself in the meantime. *Bleagh*

In the meantime, Aint-it-Cool-News has a pretty dramatic site re-design up today. I'm not totally sure what I think about it at this point, because it's still too new, and I'm used to the old version. Anyway, could be cool once I get used to it.

Dave Barry's got a few things that made me smile:
First: A pothead gets narced on by his own dog

Next: Panda Poo Excites Experts

Last of all, I was extremely pleased with last night's first episode of Survivor: Pulau. New and interesting twists, a surprising amount of drama and backstabbing for just the first episode, and my early favorite is Ian. They've got a bunch of extra video up on their website too, for those of you who, like me, can't get enough.

Also, the fantasy league adds an extra level of enjoyment for me, although it's odd that they haven't posted the scores yet. Not sure what's up with that. Just another reminder though that you can join the league at any time, so if you want to join my mini-tribe, email me, and I'll send you an invite. You're still competing with everyone in the league, but it will give you a little web-page where you can easily compare your scores to mine and the other tribe-members. There's three of us so far, but room for plenty more!

Anyway, that's what's up with me today.

A Pair of Wise Investments

2005-02-16T15:04:00.000-05:00

Artwork, and Land

What I'm Listening to...

2005-02-16T13:42:00.000-05:00

Listening to...
Shaun of the Dead Soundtrack
David Sedaris: Live at Carnegie Hall
Cathy Richardson: The Road to Bliss (and others by her)

Click here for the full post...

Just recently imported myself a copy of the Shaun of the Dead Soundtrack. If you haven't seen the movie, you should go check it out immediately. It's fabulous. Very funny, but completely respectful of the zombie-movie genre. The soundtrack is pretty darn good too. Rather than simply being an album of songs that are associated with the movie, many of them are remixes especially for the soundtrack, even occasionally sampling lines from the movie. There's no US release at the moment, but they have it on Amazon. Some of the songs are better than others, but the tracks blend well and it's extremely well put-together. Anyway, a must have for all zombie-lovers!

Because I regularly listen to and appreciate National Public Radio, (and because I'm a sucker,) I contributed to my local NPR station this year. My thank you gift was David Sedaris: Live at Carnegie Hall. Less a stand-up album than an abridged audio-book, it features him reading from some of his funny essays. He's got a great delivery and many of his observations are very entertaining, as when he's musing about the different ways that Santa Clause is seen in other cultures, or pondering the meaning behind the words spoken by his sister's parrot, Henry. It was enough to make me start looking into some of the books he has written.

Last, I've got some CDs that aren't new, even to me, but I was just re-appreciating them recently. There's a local musician in Chicago by the name of Cathy Richardson, and I think she's really really good. Her music is pretty varied, from almost(but not quite) gospel, to hard rock, to chick-rock, to psychedelic rock. Check out her site, and you can listen to a couple samples of her songs and even order her CD's there. I direct you there instead of Amazon, because she has specifically complained (check the Customer Review) about the way they dealt with her, specifically, the way they offer "used" copies of the CD's on the same page as the new ones.

What I'm Reading...

2005-02-16T11:56:00.000-05:00

Currently Reading...
Hammered by Elizabeth Bear
Smart Women Finish Rich by David Bach.
The Man who Mistook His Wife for a Hat by Oliver Sacks
Recently read...
Star Dragon by Mike Botherton
Looking forward to reading:
Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim by David Sedaris
Monstrous Regiment by Terry Pratchett
Going Postal by Terry Pratchett

Click here for the full post with a more thorough discussion...

The first, is Hammered, by Elizabeth Bear, a member of the same Online Writing Workshop that I belong to. She's a genuine success story, not only having gotten her novel published, but it's been receiving some legitimate acclaim. It's about a lot of things, but it starts with a middle-aged cyborg ex-soldier who does medic work for the local gangsters in a run-down future version of Hartford, Connecticut. How fun is that? I'm still only a third of the way through it, but I'm definitely enjoying so far. I'll talk more about it when I've finished it.

Next, I've got a financial book recommended to me by my mom, Smart Women Finish Rich by David Bach. I'm only one chapter into it, and it seems a little more aimed at investments rather than just budgeting and saving and such. Still, it seems well-written and sensible so far.

I've also just started reading, and am already a quarter of the way through, The Man who Mistook His Wife for a Hat by Oliver Sacks. It's a neuropsychiatry book about people with unusual problems, like a man who loses the ability to assemble individual details into a cohesive whole. Looking at a photograph of a park, say, he might point out specific things like a pink flower or a green bench, but when asked a general question like: What is this a picture of? He couldn't answer at all. Also, he would sometimes confuse objects with the parts of the body they are associated with. For example, foot and shoe, head and hat, thus the title.

In another case, a woman lost all "proprioception" which refers to the body's ability to sense itself. Meaning, unless she actually looked at it, she had no sense of what position her body was in. She said she felt disembodied. She could control her arms and legs, but only by looking at them and guiding them by sight.

Another man was seized with the delusion that his own leg was no longer part of his body. He literally fell out of bed because he woke up and someone had put a severed leg in bed with him and it was somehow stuck to him. He insisted that his own leg had somehow disappeared, and that someone had taken a different leg and attached it to him.

It's a fascinating book. I've always been intrigued by the inner workings of the mind and the various conditions that can occur when things go wrong, and this book is custom-tailored for that, though I should warn that it occasionally uses some scientific jargon without explaining it, so reading with a dictionary by your side wouldn't hurt. Still, it has given me a lot of insight and has really triggered my imagination and given me some ideas that I plan to use in some of my writing. I have two characters in particular who suffer from various maladies, and some of this book has really given me some ideas about how to handle those characters.

The last book I finished reading was Star Dragon by Mike Botherton. Several hundred years from now, a space probe examining a distant star detects what looks like a strange, dragon-like creature, swimming through the hot plasma of a binary star system. A mission is put together to investigate, even though, due to relativity, 500 years will go by on Earth by the time they return. An interesting premise, though the characters were not all that impressive. Diverse, but ultimately cardboard, and I repeatedly found myself thinking that they hadn't profiled the crew of this ship very well. Though I suppose when recruiting for a mission that will return the crew to Earth after 500 years have passed, beggars can't be choosers. However, the actual science and technical details of the story were exceptionally well-done, especially the far-future advances in biotech, which I always enjoy. If you're a geek for astronomy or biotech, this book is worth a read. Just don't expect exciting, compelling characters.

As for books that I've been eyeing on the bookshelf...

Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim by David Sedaris. I've recently been listening to a comedy CD of his, and I've always enjoyed his pieces on This American Life, on NPR. He's a funny, guy, so I want to read one of his books.

Also, I'm falling behind on my Discworld books! There are two out now that I haven't read. I'd better get a move on! Monstrous Regiment and Going Postal, both by Terry Pratchett.

Hitchhiker's Guide Trailer is Online!

2005-02-16T11:45:00.000-05:00

Yeah, I know, it's just another link that could have gone in the link roundup post, but I felt this one was important enough to merit it's own post... Okay, and I forgot to put it in when I was writing that one.

Anyway, here it is, in all it's tiny-screened, bizarre-formatted, but still entertaining micro-glory! It looks pretty good, but I'd like to see it on the big screen before I make final judgement. Still, I'm really psyched about the movie!

Link Roundup

2005-02-16T10:46:00.000-05:00

F.D.A. to Create Advisory Board on Drug Safety

Gee, is that really their job?

Also,

No Big Spider Walked the Earth

[World News]: Edinburgh, Feb 16 : It was known as the biggest spider ever to have walked on earth and inspired many a fearsome model in museums the world over. But now a British scientist says the creature wasn't a spider at all!

Next,

Super-Size Me Wins Writers Award

Super Size Me director Morgan Spurlock has won the Writers Guild of America's award for documentary feature writing.

Organisers said the rising popularity of documentary films led them to honour a writer for a documentary screenplay for the first time.

And,

The Hotel Rwanda: A Haven in Hell (an interview with Paul Rusesabagina, the man Don Cheadle played in Hotel Rwanda)

The truth is, says Paul, he didn't set out to be a hero. It just happened. At the time, there didn't seem to be any other choice. "One terrible thing I learned," he said, "is that a human being is even more wild than a lion. A lion eats to kill. And a human being kills for killing."
...
In order to make the movie appealing to a wide audience -- and to earn it its hard-fought PG-rating in America -- Irish director and screenwriter Terry George softened the scenes of Paul's life. For instance, when the militia attacked the UN convoy carrying Paul's wife and kids, they beat Tatiana so badly that her back was broken. The filmed version shows militias holding a machete to her neck threateningly, but she escapes unscathed.

Finally,

Pill Changes Women's Taste in Men

TAKING the Pill has a surprising side-effect according to research: it changes the type of face that a woman finds attractive.

British scientists have discovered that women on the Pill have different ideals of male sexual attractiveness to those who are not taking oral contraceptives.

Survivor Fantasy League

2005-02-15T13:17:00.000-05:00

As many of you know, the new season of Survivor starts this Thursday on CBS. I'm really excited about it, and if you haven't yet been initiated as a Survivor fan, I really recommend that you give the show a try. It's at its best though when you start to get a feel for the people as characters, so you really owe it to yourself to give it at least a couple of episodes.

Anyway, the new Survivor Fantasy League is up! I did it last season and it's loads of fun. Basically you select four of the survivors and then you get points based on how well each of them does that week. You can change your choices at any time except the day of the episode. It adds an additional level of entertainment to an already fun show, and if you're already planning to watch, you should definitely sign up!

When you do, send me an email to let me know and I will send you an invite to join my private tribe! What that means essentially is that we will have a tribe page where we can compare scores with each other all at once. Hope to see you there and looking forward to a fun season, full of manipulation, backstabbing and physical challenges!

Movie Review: A Very Long Engagement

2005-02-15T12:57:00.000-05:00

What a movie to see on Valentine's Day! A Very Long Engagement is a heart-felt romance, staged across the backdrop of World War I. This makes for a wonderfully dramatic story, but I must point out that the movie is not particularly suitable as a "date" movie. The war scenes, though not as sustained, are on pretty much the same level as Saving Private Ryan in terms of intensity. War sucks in general, but damn! The trench warfare that occurred in World War I is about as close to hell as I think any of us can imagine.

The movie begins with five soldiers, each accused of self-mutilation (shooting themselves in the hand in the hope that they will be sent home,) and sentenced to death. Some of them are guilty and some of them are not, but they are to be taken to the front lines and thrown over the top of the trench into "No Man's Land." One of these soldiers is Manech, the fiancé of our heroine, Matilde.

She's been told that he's dead, but her heart won't let her believe it. So she hopes, and she searches, trying her best to unravel the mystery of what happened to her fiancé. Maintaining that hope is hard work, because one trail after another keeps coming to the same horrible conclusion: Manech is dead.

But no! She can't let herself think that. If he was dead, she would know. She's sure of it. She plays little games with herself, "If the train goes into the tunnel before the count of seven, he's alive," and "If I reach the bend in the road before the car does, Manech will come home." Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. Sometimes, something else entirely happens.

At first, she is told that the story is simple. He was thrown out of the trench and was killed by the Germans. Nothing more to it than that. But the deeper she looks, the more complex the story becomes, and in her searching, she comes across many other searchers, each of them just as desperate as she is.

I won't say any more about the plot, because the mystery is one of the things that make this movie so wonderful and powerful. Matilde is played by Audrey Tautou, who many of you will remember from the magical film Amelie. She is just as wonderful here, though where Amelie was shy and uncertain, Matilde is determined and resolute. Jean-Pierre Jenuet, the writer/director, is also the same, but the scope of this film is much wider, with far more characters and far more to say. (A little advice: If you see the film, pay attention to the character names early on, because there are a lot of them and it can get a little confusing if you don't remember them.)

Though the movie is more serious-minded than Amelie, it has loads of charm and humor as well, much of it supplied by Matilde's loving, but concerned parents. In particular, the father's friendly feud with the mailman and the mother's appreciation for something you wouldn't normally appreciate. There is plenty of intrigue as well, with secret assassins and coded letters. It's also quite touching throughout, but pay special notice of Jodie Foster's (yes, the Jodie Foster) role as a war widow with an unusual, but all too human, story to tell.

The movie is nominated for Best Art Direction and Best Cinematography and it really shines in these areas as well. The set designs absolutely gorgeous, the war scenes harrowing, and the homey scenes feeling like an old, but treasured, photograph. Matilde travels by picturesque trains, rides Manech's shoulders to the top of a scenic lighthouse, visits a huge military library archive. The color palette in the war scenes is dank and cold and scary. In Matilde's scenes, it is warm and cozy and inviting. The opening and closing credits, while similar in some respects, evoke completely different moods. The first is like looking for something with a flashlight, in the dark and in the rain. The last is like looking at something by candlelight, in the wee hours, when you know you should blow out the candle and go to sleep, but you keep looking anyway.

In summary, it's a truly wonderful film, and I heartily recommend it to anyone.

Quickie

2005-02-14T14:00:00.000-05:00

Just a quick one for now, as I'm pretty busy today...

I was listening to NPR this morning on the way to work and a guest on Morning Edition was talking about the niche filled by news commentary shows in the overall field of journalism.

He said something like: "The thing with shows like Crossfire is that people use them like a drunk uses a lamppost: More for support than illumination."

*rim-shot*

Numa-Numa-Yay! - - -UPDATED! NEW LINKS!

2005-02-13T22:51:00.000-05:00

UPDATE!!!
I've been informed that the original link I used for the Numa-numa guy (the one I got from Dave Barry's blog) is dead. It took me a while, but I found it again. It was tough going because there are a lot of inferiour versions out there. Some that were smaller, some that had much worse picture quality, some that had these stupid lame pictures added to it. But at long last I found the good one again, and I've taken the liberty of saving the file on my own site, so no worries about a dead link again. Here it is, in all its pure, super-cheesy, yet hypnotic, goofiness.

While looking, I also found a tiny version with the English translation in subtitles (click here and select Play this movie, then choose play with subtitles)

Also, I found two more fun flash cartoon videos of the song, these ones with creepy japanese cats! Look here and here.

Original Post

Okay, I can't get this thing out of my head! So, on the logic that it's like the videotape in The Ring, I figure I just need to spread it to as many people as possible. Watch it, please! Save me from the fate of endless Numanumayays and Maya-la-hees!

Dave Barry's Blog did this to me.

In my obsession to rid my mind of its insidious clinginess, I did a little research. Click here for the English translation of the lyrics.

If you want to see a flash cartoon about aliens set to a remix of the same song, click here and then click "Watch This Movie".

If you dare, you can see the music video of the original song. It transcends cheesy, becomes kind of cool, than shoots right past it, all the way around to horrifyingly cheesy again.

Jeez, I haven't had it this bad since "Move Your Feet" by JuniorSenior. Click here for tequila-shot drinking squirrels and bizarre cartoonish homoerotic symbolism. Oh, and another extremely infectious song. The other videos are almost as bizarre. In particular, Shake Your Coconuts has clips from the movie Looney Tunes: Back in Action. I have no idea if they have permission for that, but I'd be surprised if that movie was intended to be associated with a song that contained the lyric: "Shake your coconuts / Coco-boys! / Until the nut comes out!"

Movie Review: Battle Royale

2005-02-13T16:20:00.000-05:00

This one isn't on the Oscar list, nor are you going to be able to find it at your local Blockbuster. In fact, it has not been released anywhere in the US. You'll need to import it and get yourself a region-free player to play it.

So what is Battle Royale, and why isn't it available in the US? Contrary to some rumors, it is not technically banned in the US. It's just that no American distributors have made the deal with the Japanese production company to give it an American release. The reasons for that are complicated, but there is no question that the subject matter of the film plays a big part in that discussion.

Battle Royale is a Japanese film, based on a Japanese novel, about 9th graders forced to murder each other in a sadistic game of survival. Essentially, an entire school class of 40 ninth graders, plus two "transfer students", is drugged and kidnapped, sent to an island. They are each fitted with an explosive collar and a survival kit with food, water, a map, and a randomly selected weapon. They are to kill each other off until there is only one survivor left. That survivor may leave the island alive. If, after three days, there is more than one student still alive, they all die.

You can probably see now why some companies might be hesitant to distribute the film.

I had heard a lot about this film from various sources, but had never seen it simply because it's not easy to see in the US. Finally, I decided it was worth importing it in order to see it.

The first question that will come to mind for many is: "Dear God! Why on earth would anyone do that to a bunch of kids?" It's a fair question, but you shouldn't look for a satisfactory explanation in the movie itself. It has something to do with overpopulation and juvenile delinquency, but the movie is less interested in the "Why" of the situation than the "What" and the "What then?" The question the movie wants you to ask is not "How did such a system develop?" but rather, "What would you do?"

With 42 students to work with, we get the whole range of reactions, and the movie becomes two things simultaneously: a philosophical discussion of when violence is called for and when it is not, and then also a kick-ass action film. There is plenty of R-rated violence and gore, though the extreme reactions some have had is not related to the violence per se, but rather that it is perpetrated by and on 14 and 15-year-old kids.

So what was my take? Frankly, I think that there are a lot of people being over-sensitive on the subject, but the movie originally came out around the same time as the Columbine massacre, so I can't blame some for wanting to take things slow at that time. However, now that there's a little distance there, I don't see why this movie shouldn't at least be available here. The movie is an exciting action film, and it presents us with a really interesting situation, and interesting characters to follow through it. The movie isn't what I might call a masterpiece per se, but I certainly enjoyed it, and I would recommend it to anyone (those with weak stomachs excepted) who has the opportunity.

Movie Review: Super-Size Me

2005-02-13T14:59:00.000-05:00

If you're like me, then you know full well that fast food is crap and that it's really bad for you, but you eat it anyway because it's cheap and convenient and it tastes pretty good most of the time.

A few years back, a number of people tried to sue McDonalds and other fast food restaurants for making them obese. At the time of that story, I remember thinking that it was a frivolous bogus lawsuit that had no business clogging up our courtrooms. After all, everyone knows fast food is bad for you, and nobody is ever forcing you to eat it, so where is the liability?

Most everyone has heard about this movie by now, but if you haven't here's the scoop. A documentary filmaker by the name of Morgan Spurlock wondered about that lawsuit too, so he decided to try an experiment. He wanted to know what would happen if a healthy, non-overweight individual with a normally healthy diet ate nothing but fast-food, breakfast, lunch, and dinner, for thirty days. This film, Super-Size Me, documents this experiment.

Does it ever! Yikes! At the beginning, he's laughing about it, joking, just like anyone would. Like I was. It's a funny idea. His doctors seem amused, but not overly concerned. They predict weight gain and a limited cholesterol rise, but nothing more serious than that, not in just thirty days. After all, at the beginning, he's extremely healthy. As crappy as fast food is, how much damage can it do in just thirty days?

As it happens, a lot. About two-thirds of the way through the movie, his doctors are no longer amused. His cholesterol is through the roof, his liver-functions severely impaired, his blood-pressure much higher, and one night he wakes up with chest pains. He remains determined to push through, but suddenly, it doesn't seem quite so funny.

Everyone should see this movie. Whether it's the sedentary person who eats McDonalds (or Burger King or Wendys or Taco Bell or KFC) every day, or the healthy active person who has never been through a drive-through. For the former, it will serve as a wake-up call. For the latter, it will give them a nice glow of vindication and smug self-satisfaction.

It's not just that the food is unhealthy, (and arguably, addictive,) but it's the way it is so pervasive in our culture. It's the way it appeals to kids. It's the path of least resistance. At least, until you're heading for the drive-through at your local ER. The movie makes all these points in an extraordinarily effective way and it's a fantastic documentary. On the DVD, make sure you check out the Bonus interview with Eric Schlosser, author of Fast Food Nation. He has many interesting tidbits, like the fact that your quarter-pounder hamburger patty actually contains beef from thousands of different cattle, all ground together with artificial flavorings and God only knows what else.

I know from personal experience how bad for you fast food can be. Last year, when I spent nearly a whole year traveling for work, I discovered that it was MUCH easier to just eat fast food all the time. In the hotels, I didn't have a kitchen, so my choices were pretty limited. And when you're sitting there in that Mickey-D's drive-through, how often are you really going to choose the grilled chicken sandwich with no mayo, instead of the double-quarter-pounder (with cheese, of course)? Skip the fries, and get bottled water instead of a soda? If you're like me, not very often.

I gained thirty pounds last year.

And yet, despite that, I've still continued to eat at those places. As much as I'm aware that I have just as much free will as anyone else, that example alone speaks to me about how easy our culture makes it to just eat fast food all the time. The restaurants are everywhere. The food is (relatively) cheap. It's fast. It's easy. You don't have to spend time preparing your meals or planning menus or shopping for groceries. You don't even have to get out of your car.

So what now? Am I convinced? Am I giving up fast food for good? The answer is yes, but only until next week when I change my mind and decide it isn't really such a big deal after all. However, in an attempt to lose some of the above-mentioned traveling weight, I am instituting a new health-and-fitness program for my life. It is not solely because of this movie, because I had been planning to do this for some time, but I do have to say that I'm doing it now because of the movie.

Well, because my movie marathon has been going pretty well, and because I successfully completed NaNoWriMo this year, I looked at those two attempts and decided that the key factor that linked the two was: spreadsheets. As such, I've created a spreadsheet for my targeted weight loss plan. I've set, what I think is a reasonable goal for myself, and I'm going to track my progress over time. My goal is to lose twenty pounds in 170 days. Since I started it yesterday, the end date is July 31st. I'm going to dramatically reduce (if not eliminate) my fast food consumption, exercise more, etc., all tracked by the spreadsheet.

I think that, if I can stay committed, then my goal will actually turn out to be pretty conservative, but better to start with an attainable goal and move on from there. So anyway, I'm putting this up on the blog in order to attain the pretense of accountability. It will be a lot harder for me to give in and buy a cheeseburger, or blow off exercising, when I know that millions... er, dozens... *ahem* when I know that some people will actually be checking up on my progress. *shrug* Oh well, we'll see if it works. In the meantime, go rent Super-Size Me and tell me if it makes you hungry.

Btw, speaking of my Movie Marathon, I'm now at 81.5%, though unfortunately, A Very Long Engagement left theaters before I got to see it. Bummer.

Fun Things

2005-02-12T13:21:00.000-05:00

First up, the Mythbusters have some quizzes for you, to see how myth-savvy you are.

Next, Dave Barry's blog pointed me at two different things:

A flash puzzle game that is lots of fun. Just try to lead the little people into the little doors. How much time can you waste?

A flash movie/music video/thing that... well, just look for yourself. It's almost hypnotic.

And last, but not least, you may have heard that the Titan probe used their instruments to record sounds of the wind on Titan! Click here for a page where you can download mp3's of the sounds! Take a look and geek away! Thanks to Dean's World for pointing me to the link.

New Strain of HIV?

2005-02-12T11:50:00.000-05:00

As my regular readers will know, I've been following a debate recently over at Dean's world, where the host there has taken the position that HIV does not cause AIDS. I've posted about it here and here.

Basically, I think that the issue is too complicated for me to reach a definitive conclusion, but what I have seen does convince me that the issue is not nearly as settled as I thought it was. The idea that a desperate scientific could seize upon the first offered cause that came along, and then explain away the ever-increasing number of things that poke holes in the theory by simply saying that the virus is "unusual." No one wants to even acknowledge the possibility that the theory is wrong because of all the time and money and effort that would have been expended in the wrong direction, and because of the extremely high stakes involved.

It's not that I'm saying that is what has happened, as much as I can see how it could happen.

Anyway, there's a news story out about a new strain of HIV that is resistant to three of the four primary anti-HIV drugs and progresses to AIDS in months instead of years. There are two different reports of it that I have read so far. The NYTimes report, and one on Bloomberg.com.

Now, if this new strain turns out to be legitimate, then it might just definitively answer the HIV=AIDS question in a demonstrable way. However, these reports are not enough to do it.

Click here to read my full post.

First of all, it's important to note that this is just one guy. Statistically, a sample size of one tells you exactly nothing. This guy could have all sorts of other things going on that make his story completely anecdotal. Basically, one case provides enough justification to look for more cases, but by itself, it doesn't necessarily mean anything to anyone beyond this one guy and his doctors. If, in the next year or so, we start seeing more of this sort of thing and it's the same new strain and everyone who gets the strain reacts this way, now that would really say something.

In the meantime however, a couple of things in the articles I read sent up warning flags for me.

First, in the Bloomberg article, I saw this:

Frieden said the one drug the HIV strain isn't resistant to is Enfuvirtide, sold under the trade name Fuzeon, developed by Trimeris Inc. of Durham, North Carolina, and Roche Holding AG of Switzerland. The problem, Frieden and other physicians said, is that this drug is most effective when used in a ``cocktail'' with other retrovirus drugs such as nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors, non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors and protease inhibitors.

Trimeris stock closed at $13.60, up 86 cents or 6.75 percent, in composite trading on the Nasdaq, the biggest single- day percentage gain since Sept. 10, when it rose 11.49 percent, and down $4.63 from $17.93 a year ago. Roche shares traded at 123.2 Swiss Francs, up 0.5 francs, in composite trading in Zurich, down six Swiss Francs from a year ago.

The news ``is probably positive for Trimeris,'' said Sharon Seiler, a biotech analyst with New York-based Punk, Ziegel & Co., which she said owns no shares in the company, though it does act as a market maker. Fuzeon's required twice-daily injections and the need to mix the solution for 20 minutes ``have been significant impediments to the drug's sales'' in two years on the market, she said.

Did you see that? News of a scary new strain of HIV benefited a specific pharmaceutical company which manufactures one of the less-popular anti-HIV drugs. More on this at the end, but first let me point out something in the NY Times article:

At the news conference in Lower Manhattan, Dr. Frieden was joined by nearly a dozen AIDS experts and community leaders. Several participants said they were experiencing the same worried feeling they had more than two decades ago, when AIDS first appeared and there was no treatment.

... SNIP...

Health officials have been worried for some time that city residents, particularly gay men, are growing lax in their attitudes about sex practices, lulled into complacency by the success of antiviral drugs. In the past four years, the number of new syphilis cases in the city has slowly increased, with gay men accounting for most of them. Only 45 percent of gay men surveyed by the Health Department in 2003 said they used a condom during sex.

An estimated 88,000 New Yorkers have H.I.V./AIDS, and health officials estimate that another 20,000 people are infected but do not know their status. The officials urged all New Yorkers who are sexually active to check on their H.I.V. status.

"Risky behavior may be even more dangerous now, since there is a chance of infection with a virus we may not be able to treat," said Dr. Jay Dobkin, director of the AIDS Program at Columbia University Medical Center.

So you see what's happening there? Because of the 'successes' of AIDS treatments, HIV is no longer seen as a death sentence to a lot of people. As a result, many of those people had started engaging in risky behavior again. But now there's a new boogeyman to get people scared again.

Now let me go on the record as saying that its a GOOD thing if more people are being careful and safe. Even if HIV was not an issue, there are plenty of other STD's and other reasons to not engage in reckless recreational drug use and promiscuous anonymous sex.

I'm not a believer in conspiracy theories; I don't think people are that organized. But if I were so inclined, I wouldn't have to stretch very far on this one. Imagine the following scenario: A lot of people make a lot of money and get a lot of respect and acclaim for being part of the search for a cure for AIDS. But the HIV=AIDS theory is starting to show some holes that are getting harder and harder to explain. The people who say HIV doesn't cause AIDS are starting to get harder to dismiss and ignore. Your funding sources are starting to get softer, because you've not been able to provide the results that you promised. So what would get the people back on your side? You invent a NEW strain of HIV that gets people scared again and sparks new interest in your research.

Now, I don't think that's what's happening. However, what might be happening is that people who are starting to be a little concerned for the above reasons might hear about this new strain and seize upon it, saying "You see? This proves I'm right!" Even though the anecdotal case is sketchy at best, there are a lot of people who are benefited if its true, so they are going to be more inclined to believe it.

Still, not all the AIDS researchers are going in that direction. Some of them are saying just what I have.

Dr. Robert C. Gallo, a co-discoverer of the AIDS virus and director of the Institute of Human Virology at the University of Maryland, was very skeptical of yesterday's announcement.

"My guess is that this is much ado about nothing," he said. "Though it's prudent to follow it, I don't think it's necessary to issue a warning or alert the press."

Dr. Gallo said that it was well known that some patients progressed from initial infection to AIDS very rapidly, but that it was usually because they were highly susceptible, not because the virus was virulent. He said that this case, in which the virus is drug-resistant and the progression rapid, was rare but not necessarily alarming.

Dr. John P. Moore, an AIDS researcher at Cornell University's Medical School, agreed.

"If there was a cluster of these, that would be different," he said. "But I wouldn't get bent out of shape about what is literally an anecdotal case right now."

So when you read the alarming headlines, just keep that in mind.

Also, this story has just been put up on Dean's World too, and while you're there, check out the book-style pdf version of one of the better discussion threads.

Neat Stuff

2005-02-10T14:00:00.000-05:00

Google Maps is now in beta. Pretty slick, if you ask me, though it's a little slow if you only have dial-up. Here's a map of Morrisville, NC, where I live, for example. Note how you can scroll around on the map and the level of detail when you zoom in and out. Nifty.

Also, this company is really pushing hard to make space tourism a reality. Cool, although the talk about fatalities doesn't exactly strike me as the most persuasive point to make.

Is it hot out there, or is it just me?

2005-02-10T10:08:00.000-05:00

Those who have been reading here for a while, or who know me well, are aware that I am something of a skeptic on the subject of global warming. See, for example, my book review of Michael Crichton's "State of Fear". It's an interesting book with a lot of good points, but, unsurprisingly, it has its critics.

Once again, I'll summarize my opinion on the matter. The science is no where near as certain as we are frequently led to believe. The Earth may be warming, and human activity may or may not have anything to do with it. If it is warming, yes, that will probably be bad for some areas, but guess what? It will be good for other areas! Essentially, I think it would be a good thing for us to try and limit greenhouse gas emissions, but not at the cost of crippling the global economy on a bogus political punitive agreement like the Kyoto protocol. I won't get into the details of why Kyoto is so bogus here, but there is information all over. You can find more about it here andhere and here. And believe me, there is good reason why the US Senate voted Kyoto down 95 to 0.

Anyway, there are some recent news stories about global warming recently. First, NASA says recent temperature measurements confirm that the earth is warming and that 2004 was the 4th warmest year on record.

James Hansen of NASA GISS analyzed the data and said that the 2004 average temperature at Earth's surface around the world was 0.48 degrees Celsius or 0.86 Fahrenheit above the average temperature from1951 to 1980.

Globally, 1998 has proven to be the warmest year on record, with 2002 and 2003 coming in second and third, respectively. "There has been a strong warming trend over the past 30 years, a trend that has been shown to be due primarily to increasing greenhouse gases in the atmosphere," Hansen said.

The key element missing in this analysis is that it assumes that the warming trend must be related to human activity.

But examine this second article: Natural Climate Change May Be Larger Than Commonly Thought

The most widespread picture of climate variability in the last millennium suggests that only small changes occurred before the year 1900, and then a pronounced warming set in. The new results rather show an appreciable temperature swing between the 12th and 20th centuries, with a notable cold period around AD 1600. A large part of the 20th century had approximately the same temperature as the 11th and 12th centuries. Only the last 15 years appear to be warmer than any previous period of similar length.

The truth is that almost all of the predictions we hear about are based on climate computer models that have not up until now been able to predict known weather, or be run backwards to confirm previous trends. Does that make them useless? Of course, not, but it also means that maybe we shouldn't cripple our economy just in case they might be true. Jerry Pournelle, a prominent science fiction writer has written about this on his site too. Check out that link, because he has a great debate with a climate scientist there, and he also points out this story, where scientists suggest that CUTTING pollution could make global warming worse!

My newest issue of Scientific American has an article on the subject of climate change, but I haven't read it yet. I'll post about it once I have, but basically it just seems to me that it is a mistake to cripple the global economy when there is still so much uncertainty.

Crapicus Addenda

2005-02-09T16:29:00.000-05:00

Whoops, left off a couple of things I wanted on my last post, but since it is so long already and these three are all mp3-themed, I'll put them here.

First of all, my good friend Mike has helpfully put mp3's of all the Oscar Nominated Best Original Songs up on his blog. Since it's often hard to really pay attention to the song when watching the movie, a resource like this is extra handy in helping you choose your favorite!

Next, Microscopica has got a fun little prose-poem type thing about "random" playlists.

Finally, has this happened to any of you? One of my mp3's, which I have listened to dozens of times, suddenly has no vocals on it! The music sounds exactly the same except that the vocals are missing! It isn't a different version. It's the same file I've always used. Yes, I'm sure the vocals were there before! All my other files seem to be fine. But now, for some reason, whether I play it in Windows Media Player or Winamp, there is the music, but the vocal track is just gone. It's creepy.

The song, by the way, is track one from the Kill Bill Volume 1 soundtrack, the Nancy Sinatra song "Bang, Bang". I've put the file online here. Does anyone else hear vocals on it? Please, tell me I'm not going insane!

Crapicus Eclectica

2005-02-09T14:50:00.000-05:00

A whole lot of stuff today. Taken individually, each is ultimately trivial and irrelevant, like a grain of sand. But added all together, they are like sand through an hourglass... So are the The Days of My Lives!

Um, *ahem*

I mean, "life"... of course... not that I've ever seen that show... Stop looking at me!

Reality Check

Anyway, to get us started, did everyone watch the finale of "The Amazing Race"? It's a pretty good show, but I have to say I still like Survivor better, if only for the strategic element (read: Backstabbing). WARNING SPOILER Still, I thought that Aaron proposing to Hayden after they were eliminated was really the highlight of the show, because truth be told, I couldn't even hardly tell the difference between the two non-Adam-and-Rebecca teams that finished first and second. I guess one pair was dating models and the other was long-distance dating models. Eh. SPOILER END

There are two non-finale bits of news from The Amazing Race, however. First, Dr. Phil is going to do a "Romance Rescue" for Jonathan and Victoria, who I've blogged about before.

*sigh*

The three of them deserve each other.

On more interesting news, the next season starts in three weeks and one of the teams will be Boston Rob and Amber from Survivor: All Stars! I don't quite know what to make of that. On the one hand, I didn't like them very much and I was annoyed that they won on Survivor. Though I do have to respect that they played the game pretty well. Since they've already won a million bucks, however, their casting on The Amazing Race is clearly a stunt. However, it might be an entertaining stunt. Watch this space, because I'm sure I'll have more to say about this.

Just to close the Reality TV subject, I once again want to direct everyone to the Survivor 10: Pulau website. The new season starts one week from tomorrow, and Survivor is the most fun when you start to get to know the people there. Well, on the website, you can get a head start with bio's, profiles, and short video introductions to all the new castaways. Also, they'll soon be putting up the Survivor Fantasy League page, where you select your own mini-tribe of four castaways and then you get points based on how well each of them performs on the show! The person who wins at the end of the season wins a car! Just another demonstration that nearly everything can be improved with gambling.

Want to name a monkey?

The New Scientist is reporting that a new species of monkey has been discovered, and in order to raise money to protect its habitat, the right to name the monkey is going up for auction.

The creature in question is a fruit-eating titi monkey little more than 30 centimetres tall. It was found by Robert Wallace of the Wildlife Conservation Society, based in New York. "It is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to discover a large mammal species, and an extreme honour to name it," Wallace says. "But it's far more important that the species habitat remains protected." Money raised by the auction, starting on 24 February at www.charityfolks.com/monkey, will go to the Bolivian park service so it can protect the monkeys' home in the Madidi National Park.

You can also find the story with a picture of the monkeys here. Now, I won't be bidding because I've already used up my 'auction-to-name-a-new-monkey' budget for this month, but if I were, I would suggest: "Puffball Monkeys", but that's just off the top of my head. Anyone else have a suggestion?

Weird, but Yummy

Green-Apple Brie Burgers
I tried this recipe because it was just too intriguing to resist. You should try it too, because they're DELICIOUS! Thanks to JeremyT for pointing me in their direction.

The HIV Myth?

The HIV=AIDS debate that I've posted about before is still raging over at Dean's World. He's moved beyond skepticism over to the firm belief that HIV does not cause AIDS. I can't say I'm willing to follow him that far, but darn if he doesn't have raise some interesting questions.

"Con" you tell me the way to Glasgow?

And last but not least, I've decided to go to this year's Worldcon, the World Science Fiction Convention in Glasgow, Scotland! Still making all the arrangements and such, but it should be lots of fun. Seeing Scotland. Drinking. Attending the convention. Meeting people. Drinking some more.

Related to that, I've decided that I will have something published by the time I go. To be sure, this is not entirely within my control, but basically, if I do not succeed in this attempt, it won't be for lack of trying. So I've already sent out submissions and will continue to do so until something is published!

Actually, if something is published, it's not like I'll stop sending stuff out, but, well, you get the point.

Movie Review: The Polar Express: An IMAX 3-D Experience

2005-02-07T16:13:00.000-05:00

There are two levels on which I will discuss The Polar Express: An IMAX 3-D Experience.

The film as an IMAX 3-D Experience:

One word: Wow!

Slightly more words: To say that the film is visually stunning is an understatement. I had seen the IMAX 3-D Space Station movie in Las Vegas a few years back and was impressed then, but seeing the technique used so effectively on a mainstream scripted animated film is a whole other level of entertainment. Truly, I was astounded. I've always been annoyed when, in movies like Minority Report, a character will choose crappy 3D over quality 2D, and I have felt for a long time that movies will probably continue to be 2D for the foreseeable future, simply because it is a more effective medium for story-telling. Now, I'm not so sure, because the third dimension was used so effectively to supplement and enhance the visuals and story... well, frankly, it just impressed the heck out of me. Very, very cool.

The film as a story

Um, not so cool. It's not terrible, and in fact is somewhat entertaining, even though most of it is fluff. And let me state up front that the 'dead eyes' look that made me so wary of the film in the first place didn't bother me nearly as much in context as it did in the trailer. Still the movie ultimately struck me as a little creepy.

Here's the thing, if it were about Jesus and God instead of Santa Clause, they wouldn't have to change more than a few lines. There is religious symbolism and allegory all over the freakin' place. There's discussion about whether "seeing is believing". There's the idea that "Christmas Spirit" helps people to be better than their normal selves. There's even a Trinitarian nature of the boy's three guides:

(Santa: The Father. He loves all children, but judges if you are naughty or nice. You just want to go there and see him and you hope that you have been nice enough for him to reward you. The Conductor: The Son. He isn't Santa's son in the movie, but he's the way that you get to Santa. Without him and his train, getting to the North Pole is impossible. He's the guide. He is the one that tells you how it's going to be. He's got some criticisms, but buried beneath it all is his joy in taking children to Santa. The hobo ghost: The Holy Ghost. Seems to always be watching out for the boy, and saves his life when he nearly falls off the train, and again later he helps him find the brake when the train is out of control.)

And yet, despite all this apparent religious symbolism, the figure beneath those metaphorical flowing robes is not God. It's Santa. The movie is secular to a fault. The boy's ultimate reward for learning to believe is getting "The first Christmas present of the year." There's a bizarre song where the poor kid sings of how he has never had a happy Christmas. He sings: "I guess that Santa's busy / Cause he's never come around / I think of him / When Christmas Comes to Town" The supposedly comforting response is essentially ignoring his problems and telling him he should be happy anyway.

Here's some of the lyrics: The first and third verses here are from the lonely kid, and the second and fourth are the replies.

The best time of the year
When everyone comes home
With all this Christmas cheer
It's hard to be alone

Putting up the Christmas tree
With friends who come around
It's so much fun
When Christmas Comes to Town

Presents for the children
Wrapped in red and green
All the things I've heard about
But never really seen

No one will be sleeping on
The night of Christmas Eve
Hoping Santa's on his way

Then the scenes where the elves are waiting for Santa feel almost like a Nazi rally or something, where throngs of identically dressed elves crowd around a building in hushed awe. Then, after a creepy chanted version of "Santa Clause is Coming to Town" the door opens and the big guy comes out, not charming and jovial, but almost stern, and kind of intimidating.

The thing with this movie is that it dresses itself in all sorts of spirituality, but it's not clear where it's core really lies. . A particularly telling line appears near the end. The conductor tells the boy: "The thing about trains... It doesn't matter where they're going. What matters is deciding to get on."

You know what? I think it kind of matters where they're going.

P.S. On the Imdb message board for this movie, I found this thread about the "Top 5 Animated Movies Ever". The person with the opening post suggests that the best five animated movies EVER are:

1. The Polar Express
2. Ice Age
3. Shark Tale
4. 101 Dalmatians
5. Shrek 2

Am I the only one who finds that list somewhat alarming? Fortunately, many of the replies list many better choices.

Movie Review: Maria Full of Grace

2005-02-07T15:19:00.000-05:00

Maria Full of Grace is the story of a young Columbian woman with troubles. She has just quit her job, where she had been working in a flower plantation, de-thorning roses for export to the US. The job sucked and her boss was a jerk. (It doesn't help that Maria has a bit of a rebellious streak.) Unfortunately, she doesn't have a lot of other options. People are coming from miles around looking for jobs like the one she just quit. Her paycheck had been supporting her mother, her single-parent sister and her niece. And uh-oh, she's pregnant.

So when a slightly shady young man asks if she's looking for work, she's ready to listen. He recruits her to be a drug mule, swallowing balloon-wrapped pellets of heroin, for smuggling into the US. She's wary, but the money seems too good to refuse, so she agrees. As might be expected, things do not go well.

The story makes a very strong argument that the way we are going about fighting the drug war may not be the right way to go. If the problems that drive the drug smuggling business are primarily economic and social, why are we fighting it with military and law-enforcement tactics? Still, all of this is really in the subtext and the main plot is not particularly political at all. Instead, it is about Maria, and what happens to her when she gets involved in the drug trade. The movie is compelling and powerful.

And the actress who plays Maria, Catalina Sandino Moreno, is a heck of a discovery. She only speaks Spanish in the film, (The movie is in Spanish with English subtitles, though it's an American production with an American director,) but I think she has a big future in Hollywood if she wants one. She's beautiful, smart, and a wonderful actress. She deserves her Oscar nom 100%, not bad for her first film.

Christiana's Movie Reviews

2005-02-06T18:51:00.000-05:00

This post collects links for all my movie reviews in one place. You may notice that I have placed a new link under my profile picture, linking to this post, which I will keep updated as I add new reviews. So, on to the list!

The Movies
28 Days Later
A Very Long Engagement
The Aviator
Battle Royale
Before Sunset
Being Julia
The Castle of Cagliostro
Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle
Finding Neverland
Hotel Rwanda
House of Flying Daggers
The Hulk
I, Robot
Kinsey
Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events
The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou
Maria Full of Grace
Million Dollar Baby
The Motorcycle Diaries
Moulin Rouge
Moulin Rogue comparison to Chicago
Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind
Phantom of the Opera
Pirates of the Caribbean
The Polar Express: An IMAX 3-D Experience
Porco Rosso
Punchdrunk Love
Ray
The Sea Inside
Sideways
Signs
Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas
Spirited Away
The Spongebob Squarepants Movie
The Story of the Weeping Camel
Super-Size Me
Troy
Tupac: Resurrection
Terminator 3
Vera Drake

Movie Review: Before Sunset

2005-02-05T13:11:00.000-05:00

Before Sunrise was such a delightful film.

If you haven't seen it, it begins with a young man on a train. He's American, but he's been touring Europe, and now he's on his way to the airport to head home. His flight is in the morning, but he's out of money, so he plans to just spend the evening walking around Vienna. But he meets someone on the train. A French girl, also on vacation, and the two just click. He asks her to get off the train with him in Vienna, to spend the night walking around the city with him. She agrees.

Two people making an unexpected connection. Having one of those wonderful, fascinating, intriguing, life-changing, all-night conversations that happen maybe two or three times in your entire life. Magically captured on film. The only other movie that I had seen to do that is My Dinner with Andre, which, although it has perhaps a more interesting conversation (It's a fabulous film that everyone should see), it did not have the same level of romance and emotion to it.

As such, when I heard they were making a sequel, (or perhaps the better term is 'follow-up'), I was wary, because the original was such a fragile, magical creation. I was really concerned that a lesser follow-up might taint the beautifully ambiguous note that the original ended on.

I worried for no reason. Before Sunset is just as captivating as the original. Before Sunset picks up nine years after that magical night. Some of the issues are a little more complex, because these two young people are older now. They've moved on, or have they? There is more in their lives now. They've had more experiences since then, more relationships. It's all complicated now, but that connection is still there.

The movie is emotional, but not heavy-handed. The movie is funny, but not a comedy. The movie is romantic, but not sappy. The movie is complex, but not confusing. Basically, if you've seen the original, you should see this one.

If you haven't seen the original, you should see it. Then see this one.

This movie was nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay, which is a little odd because I don't know what it could possibly have been adapted from besides the original movie. However, I've never tried to understand how they determine these categories, because although it seems like it would be self-evident, it's apparently not. Anyway, I'm rooting for it to win.

On that note, I have reached 75% in my Oscar Movie Marathon!

Some Funny Commercial Parodies

2005-02-05T11:50:00.000-05:00

Are you a miserable ovoid creature? Well, if so, you might be interested in this commercial for "Proloxil". The link is a little complicated... Click here, then scroll down to the "Flash" section on the left side of the screen, then click "Miserable Ovoid Creature".

Next, this link has a commercial explaining all the reasons for gamers to switch to macs. Click here, then click RvB_Switch.mov.

This last one is actually real, but it's bizarre. Gene Kelly, singing and dancing in the rain, only... Well, you'll just have to see for yourself right here.

Movie Review: Ray

2005-02-05T10:22:00.000-05:00

Ray is already out on DVD, but I saw it Wednesday at a really neat theater where there are tables and you actually have a restaurant meal while you watch. Pretty cool actually. The food was a little hit-and-miss, but I had a nice glass of pinot noir (Yes, I ordered it because of Sideways) and I had a nice leisurely meal while I watched a movie on the big screen with good sound. Heck of a deal.

Onto the film itself, Ray is really quite fantastic. Now, I've loved Ray Charles since I first saw him. I was just a kid and I saw him in The Blues Brothers on TV. Not only was he a great singer and musician, but to my young sensibility, that was almost secondary to the simple fact that he was interesting! That he was blind. The funny, charming way he swayed back and forth while he sang. He was instantly memorable. As I grew older and my tastes in music grew more sophisticated, (not that they are particularly sophisticated now, only that they are relative to me at age 10,) I came to appreciate his music even more.

So I've thought he was a great musician and an interesting guy since I was little, but a great man does not a great biopic make. That said, this is a great biopic.

To begin with, let's talk Jaime Foxx. To be honest, I was really only vaguely aware of him before this Summer. Then he was in Collateral, and he was fantastic. That made me interested to see him in this, but I never quite got around to it. I'm so glad I have now. His portrayal of Ray Charles is spot on, nearly the whole way through and for HUGE chunks of the movie, I was really able to think of him just as Ray, and not as an actor. The singing is dubbed with the real Ray Charles, which occasionally produced a minor discontinuity for me, but I think that's probably better than having Jaime Foxx sing the songs imperfectly.

To tell the truth, I think he probably deserves to win the Best Actor statue, but since he's also nominated in the Best Supporting category for Collateral, his votes will probably be split, and he'll probably lose both, which is a shame, but still, he turned in two tremendous performances this year, and no one can take that away.

The movie itself is also very good. That's aided in some ways by the fact that the life of Ray Charles Robinson is practically tailor-made for a Hollywood biopic. Humble beginnings? Check. Early success despite adversity? Check. A period where success goes to his head and he starts to forget about the people around him? Check. Ultimate redemption and renewed success, both personally and professionally? Check. I don't want that to diminish the efforts of Taylor Hackford, the director and co-writer, because he does a very good job with this material.

There were a couple spots where I thought to myself that the movie was seeming kinda long, but those were few and far between. There's one dream sequence near the end that I thought was unnecessary and a little cheesy. But everything else is so wonderful (the music, the drama, the acting, the writing) that the movie gets my highest recommendation. I think my vote for best picture still goes to Sideways, based purely on how much I enjoyed it, and I still think The Aviator is going to win it, but I tell you, if Ray won, it wouldn't hurt my feelings in the slightest.

Movie Review: House of Flying Daggers

2005-02-01T19:40:00.000-05:00

Question: How gorgeous is House of Flying Daggers?

Answer: Very.

If you have any means of seeing this film in the theater, make every effort to do so because it has some of the most visually striking cinematography I've seen in a long time. Deep, rich colors, interesting compositions, original images. Very, very cool. All of this will be considerably diminished on the small screen.

Which is not to say that the film wouldn't be worth seeing that way. It definitely is a must-see either way, but the theatrical presentation is by far the more desirable of the two.

The two movies that come to mind when discussing this movie are "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" and "Hero." On the story level, I would say that "House of Flying Daggers" comes a very close second to "Crouching Tiger..." and is by far superior to "Hero." When it comes to visuals, "House of Flying Daggers" leaves them both in the dust.

It begins with a pair of soldiers/cops who hear rumors that there is a spy from the rebel group known as the titular "House of Flying Daggers" working in a local brothel. They decide to check out the rumors, and they are true. To get more specific is telling too much, as the plot is all about subterfuge and true love and fake love and true love again. It's a tragic love story with lots of martial arts and, you guessed it, flying daggers. It takes place in ornate entertainment pavilions, in gorgeous autumn leaves, in misty bamboo forests, in terrible blizzards.

Simply put, the movie is beautiful. See it any way you can.

P.S. I also saw a trailer for an upcoming Chinese import called: "Kung Fu Hustle" It appears to be a musical special-effects-laden comedy wire-fu martial arts movie, and it looks like lots of fun. Example: A tough guy hits someone so hard that they fly into the air, across the room and into the wall. Been done a million times right? Well how often is it accompanied by pinball noises? (I can think of one other time. 20 ChristianaBucks to anyone who guesses it!) You can see the trailer here.

P.P.S. Oh, and also, I've updated my Oscar Spreadsheet. I'm now at 67.4%

Movie Review: Million Dollar Baby

2005-01-31T11:24:00.000-05:00

Okay, let me say right at the start that a lot of reviews of Million Dollar Baby are giving away spoilers, and while this annoys me as a rule, I do find myself somewhat sympathetic to them this time around. If you are already planning to see this movie, don't read any more about it, just go ahead and see it. My one sentence, non-spoiler review is that it is an incredibly well made-written-acted-directed movie about a story that just didn't do it for me.

Click here for my SPOILER review.
Note also that any comments for this post may well also contain spoilers.

SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER
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If you've read this far, let me state again, that if you have any intention of seeing this movie, you will be better off without the spoilers, as the movie will lose much of its impact on you if you know too much. I suspect that part of my muted reaction was due to being a little guarded. I had not read specific spoilers, but I had guessed at some of them from some of the semi-spoiler reviews. Below, I will go into specific detail about what happens, thus completely giving away the ending. If you intend to see this movie, stop reading now. Consider yourself warned.
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Okay, so that's sufficient warning I think. Essentially, at the end of Act 2, the movie changes direction entirely. Hilary Swank's character gets sucker-punched, falls on a stool and breaks her neck, leaving her a quadriplegic. After suffering with her condition for a while, she asks Clint Eastwood's character to help her die, and though he initially resists, he eventually does help her.

This disappointed me for a number of reasons. First of all, it's such a complete departure from the expected plot that, while I generally enjoy being surprised, the twist really makes the film into a completely different kind of movie. It's no longer a sports movie about fighting for your dream, and instead, it has become a human melodrama where the character decides to give up fighting and commit suicide. Now, euthanasia is a very complicated, emotional issue, and though I'm generally against it, I do find the motivations behind it to be sympathetic.

Now, I didn't want Clint Eastwood's character to help Hilary Swank's character to help her die. However, I believe that his character would do it. The actors, writing etc. create believable, deep, interesting characters that act in ways consistent with their natures. I believe the story, I just didn't much like it.

It's a shame really. The movie is so well made. The acting, the writing, the direction. All top-notch. I really wanted to like this movie. I mean, who genuinely wants to dislike something? Ultimately, the movie failed to really engage me emotionally. I think some of that at least was the result of me feeling guarded, as I mentioned above. I didn't KNOW what was going to happen, but it was one of the possibilities I had considered. Because I was aware of what might happen, I didn't let myself get too emotionally invested, and therefore my reaction was not as genuine as it might have been if I had been really surprised.

That is the reason that I gave the advice I did above. I might have enjoyed the movie more if I had been really surprised. You can never unlearn spoilers, or re-see a movie with a surprise in it. If I had been going in clean, the movie might have captured my heart more effectively. I should point out however, that there are many, many movies that captured my emotion even when I did know, or guess, what was going to happen. Some of the movies that have made me cry the most have been ones where the basics of what happens at the end are known from the very beginning (Moulin Rouge, Titanic, frex.) So, I'm not going to let Million Dollar Baby completely off the hook in that department.

Ultimately, as I said at the beginning, the movie is incredibly well made. The acting is superb. The characters believable. The direction sure-footed and interesting. Everything about the movie is great, except that, frankly, I just didn't like the story very much. Your mileage may vary.

I've updated my Oscar Marathon Spreadsheet. As of this posting, I'm at 66.3%.

Movie Review: Phantom of the Opera

2005-01-31T11:05:00.000-05:00

Let me state right up front, I have never seen a stage production of Phantom of the Opera before. Whew, it's good to get that off my chest. I had heard snippets of the music, and knew the broad strokes of the story (opera singer torn between two lovers, one normal but boring and the other mysterious but scarred and crazy), but that was about it. What that means is that I cannot compare the movie to the stage musical, and I am viewing everything through the filter of a Phantom newbie.

And the result? Well, I liked it pretty well.

I suspect that I would enjoy it more on the stage than in the movie theater, however, because it requires a level of suspension of disbelief that I am far more willing to grant to a stage musical than to a movie. It's not even about the musical elements, but rather that the entire story is told in a sort of short-hand, where instead of providing the characters with deep characters and detailed motivations, the storytellers just sort of ask us to take their word for it.

Why does Christine keep going back and forth between Raoul and the Phantom? As best I could tell, it's an example of: "If you can't be with the one you love, love the one you're with." She seemed to be in love with which ever one was present at the moment.

I spent big parts of the movie wondering how the Phantom managed to build such an elaborate underground lair without anybody knowing about it. I wondered why Christine snuck out in the middle of the night to a snow-covered graveyard wearing little more than a nightgown and a sheer silk cape. I wondered, given the hugeness of the phantom's lair and the ongoing speculation about him, why no one seemed to spend any time actually looking for him. *shrug* None of these are big problems, just things I wondered about, when in a stage production, I probably would have just taken them for granted.

I can report however, that the movie's visual look is very good, with rich, lush, interesting sets and costumes and shots, etc. Very nice film to look at. The music won't be a surprise to anyone familiar with the music. For all the hype I heard about the 'new song', my Phantom-fan friend that I saw the movie with couldn't even tell me which one it was. I like the music more than the lyrics, I think. In many spots the actual words of the song seemed odd to me. The oft-repeated "The PhAAAAAAntom of the Opera is there inside my mind," for example.

Anyway, I had a good enough time for my eight bucks and two hours. I think there are better movies out now, so I wouldn't rush out to this one unless you're already a PotO fan, but if you do catch it, I doubt you'll want your money back.

News of the Weird... and kinda gross -- UPDATED!

2005-01-28T13:39:00.000-05:00

First up: Monkeys will Pay to Look at Porn, Found at ScienceBlog.

In the new work, researchers Robert Deaner, Amit Khera and Michael Platt, all of Duke University Medical Center, tested this hypothesis by measuring how much fruit juice monkeys would accept or forgo to see photographs of familiar monkeys, permitting the researchers to compare monkeys' valuation of different types of social information. Male monkeys "paid" in juice to view female hindquarters or high-ranking monkeys' faces, but required "overpayment" to view low-ranking monkeys' faces.

Next: Drive-Through Gentleman's Club for Sale on eBay, Found at Dave Barry's Blog

# Approximately 1.1 acres of land with 300 ft. frontage bordering on U.S. Route 22, Salem Township, Westmoreland County, PA USA, which averages approximately 30,000 vehicles per day past the club entrances.
# Thousands of square feet of parking area.
# Single level steel building approximately 2,000 sq.ft. (28x71), licensed by Salem Township, PA to conduct all-nude adult club stage performances, private performances and NUDE DRIVE-THRU performances.
# Public Electric and Water are connected to the premise.
# Heated with propane gas.
This offer is for those who would enjoy a fun hobby or collectors of "one of a kind" originals.
Serious parties should have their attorneys respond via email on their behalf.

And last of all, (for today): Massive Cow Manure Mound Burns for Third Month, found at the Drudge Report and Dave Barry's Blog

Midwest Feeding Co. about 20 miles west of Lincoln, ... takes in as many as 12,000 cows at a time from farmers and ranchers and fattens them for market. Byproducts from the massive operation resulted in a dung pile measuring 100 feet long, 30 feet high and 50 feet wide that began burning about two months ago and continues to smolder despite Herculean attempts to douse it.

...SNIP...

The Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality has informed Dickinson that his smoldering dung pile violates clean-air laws and is working with him to find the best solution to extinguish it, said agency spokesman Rich Webster.

Simply dumping water on the heap is not the answer, Webster said, because of concerns about runoff to any nearby water source.

Dickinson first tried using heavy equipment to spread out the smoldering pile and extinguish the fire.

"But the problem was, it started in another spot," he said. "We've also had the fire department out a couple of times."

And still it burns.

I would comment on the above stories, but I think they speak for themselves.

UPDATE!!! How could I not include this? It's all over the place now.

Man Pees His Way Out of an Avalanche

A Slovak man trapped in his car under an avalanche freed himself by drinking 60 bottles of beer and urinating on the snow to melt it.

What do you know, alcohol saves the day again!

Movie Review: Hotel Rwanda

2005-01-28T13:06:00.000-05:00

The thing that really struck me as I watched Hotel Rwanda, a movie about the genocide that occurred there in the mid-90's, is that people need someone to blame for their problems. Everyone has problems, and it's human nature to define some group that is different from you in some way and therefore responsible for all the problems in the world. Whether it is black or white, gay or straight, Shi'i or Sunni, or in the case of Rwanda, Hutu or Tutsi.

Back when all this was happening, I found the whole thing somewhat confusing, (even beyond the violence, which I've never been able to really comprehend anyway,) because I had no idea what the difference was between the two groups. What was it about the Tutsi that made all the Hutu want to kill them? I assumed that there must have been some significant difference, because why else would they be killing each other? In the middle east, it's generally religion / land. The Holocaust was based on Eugenics. Why did the Hutu's and Tutsi's fight? I assumed it was something similar.

I was both right and wrong. Right that they are fighting over political power, wrong in the sense that the whole conflict is little more than an elaborate version of the Hatfields and the McCoys. According to the movie, the distinction between Hutu and Tutsi is pretty much just visual. Tutsi people tend to be taller, have lighter skin and thinner noses. When the Belgian colonists ruled the country, they divided up the groups and gave power to the minority Tutsi, giving them all the good jobs while the majority Hutu were left to starve on the scraps of society. When the Belgians left, they left the Tutsi mostly in charge. At that point, of course, the Hutu seized control, turning the Tutsi into a despised minority. Many Tutsi rebelled, and there was sporadic fighting for years. Then, one day the Hutu president is on his way to sign a peace treaty with the Tutsi rebels and his plane is shot down. He does not survive. Already angry, but suddenly enraged, the Hutu take it upon themselves to cleanse the entire country of the Tutsi "cockroaches." Of course, fighting the actual rebels would be dangerous, so they decide to slaughter hundreds of thousands of civilians, including men, women and children who have never lifted a weapon in their lives.

I'm sure that is all an oversimplification, but my point in explaining it is just to take a moment to express the helplessness that I sometimes feel when I look at world events. As horrendous and deplorable as the ethnic cleansing was, the Hutu had themselves been oppressed for decades, and there had been tribal warfare before that. Yes, genocide should be stopped, but who really started it? The whole thing also makes me think about the war in Iraq, and how we (the USA) decided to liberate people from totalitarian government there, but the people dying in Rwanda and Sudan don't rate as high. Then again, what would we do if we were there? Pretty much the only thing that we could do is try to stop all the violence, but as soon as we leave, it will start again, and besides, look how Somalia turned out. I feel like we should have done something, but I'm not sure what we really could have done without occupying the whole country indefinitely.

Anyway... all that is the setting of Hotel Rwanda, a movie based on a true story about the manager of a four-star Rwandan hotel who saved hundreds of refugees from slaughter. He is a Hutu, but his wife, (and by extension, his children) are Tutsi. Some of his employees are Hutu, some are Tutsi. The situation is already tense, but when things go bad, things happen quickly, and keep getting worse.

Don Cheadle plays Paul Rusesabagina, and Sophie Okonedo plays his wife Tatiana. Both are nominated for acting Oscars. I've loved Don Cheadle for a long time, for his roles in Out of Sight, Boogie Nights, Ocean's 11, Traffic, and on and on. He's better in this than I've ever seen him. I don't remember ever seeing Sophie Okonedo before, but she's wonderful. The movie was also nominated for a Best Original Screenplay, and I can see why. The long intro to this review is proof that the movie was thought-provoking. It was also harrowing, thrilling, funny, terrifying, sad, and wonderful. I think it is important to see movies like this. So often, we watch a war, (or a genocide,) on TV, and we don't have any real understanding of what's going on. Joaquin Phoenix (in a minor role as a photojournalist,) sums it up well. He has shot some footage of the massacres going on, and Don Cheadle's character is horrified, but hopeful. "Surely, the world must intervene now," he says. Joaquin says: "You know what I think? People are going to watch that on TV and say 'Oh, my god. That's horrible.' And then they'll go back to eating their dinners."

I've updated my Oscar Marathon Spreadsheet, and I'm now at 55.4%.

Link Roundup

2005-01-27T13:14:00.000-05:00

Just wanted to call everybody's attention to a few things here and there on the web.

First up, Dean's World, has got a couple of good posts up. The first is the latest regarding the HIV/AIDS debate, which I've posted about before here and here.

The issue is incredibly complex, and to be honest, I haven't really been able to devote enough emotional time and energy to the question to arrive at a satisfactory conclusion, even in my own mind. Suffice it to say that, I was once convinced that HIV caused AIDS, now I'm not. I'm not convinced that they are unrelated, however, only that the issue is more complicated than that.

The second post is an essay about the spread of democracy, in Iraq and domestically. It looks at the issue from a perspective not unlike what you mind find in a Western movie. In fact, the repeated theme is referred to as "Cleaning Up Dodge". The essay manages to be simultaneously idealistic and pragmatic, optimistic and pessimistic. It's long, but a fascinating read. I didn't agree with all of it, but it makes a lot of good points.

The last link today is a bit of lighter news. On WUNC, my local NPR station, I heard a story about the growing trend of Fish medicine in Veterinary circles. The story is called "Fixing Nemo" and it includes, among other things, the account of a surgical procedure on a goldfish, giving it a cork prosthetic fin, allowing it to swim normally. It's an audio-only story, but it's charming.

Movie Review: Being Julia

2005-01-26T19:26:00.000-05:00

I know I kind of went into this with my Kinsey review, but I just want to say again how much I am already enjoying this effort of mine. By setting a goal like this, I force myself to get up and out of my apartment, to do things that I wouldn't normally do. It requires planning and creative thinking to find some of the smaller pictures, and it encourages me to see movies that I might not otherwise see. Sitting in the theater tonight, I felt more excited and happy and exhilarated about all the marvelous opportunities life has to offer than I have felt in a long time.

Okay. Now that that's out of the way: Being Julia

This film is on the list due to Annette Bening's nomination for Best Actress. Now, I've always liked her. I think of her primarily for her role in American Beauty of course, but also for her parts in Mars Attacks and The American President, among others. (Point of Interest: One of her fellow nominees this year is Hilary Swank, who beat out Ms. Bening for the Oscar in 1999, Hilary Swank in Boys Don't Cry and Annette Bening in American Beauty. That year, Hilary Swank was the underdog, this year, it seems it may be Ms. Bening) The movie itself is a period piece set in the London theater community during the 1930s.

I knew little more about the film than that, and the general impression that the plot was somewhat similar to All About Eve. There is more than a passing resemblance to that classic film, but this movie has a wonderful spirit all its own. I did not have very high expectations really; I was seeing it because it was on the list. But this film really is delightful. Annette Bening plays Julia Lambert, an actress who has always been widely regarded as a star, but who is beginning to wonder how long she has before she is stuck playing "mothers, grandmothers and old maids."

So when a young man (half her age) begins to make his intentions known, she is so flattered that she indulges him in a fling, which becomes an affair. It is wonderful at first, but it doesn't last, and the way all the characters deal with the situation comprises the rest of the story. There's a nifty device where her first director, (Michael Gambon), who is now deceased, appears to her to give advice. Her husband (Jeremy Irons) is loving and appreciative, though their relationship is more intellectual than physical. Her teenage son is young, but smart and insightful. The young man suitor can't quite make up his mind whether he's a gold-digger or not. And Julia Lambert, well, she's been on the stage for so long that it's sometimes hard to tell when she is acting and when she isn't, even to herself.

The movie is very charming, and in my opinion, Annette Bening has solidly earned her nomination, and though I have not seen Hilary Swank in Million Dollar Baby yet, she has my current vote for the gold. The rest of the cast is fabulous as well, and I left the theater with a big smile on my face.

I have updated my movie spreadsheet. I am now at 52.2%.

EXTREEEEEEEEME!!!!

2005-01-26T13:39:00.000-05:00

Those wacky cats over at MIT have created High-Tech Spacesuits for "Extreme Exploring"

Newman said Bio-Suit relies on advances in fabrication and application of open cell foam, smart materials like advanced muscle wire technologies, and electrospinlacing. All of these have seen vast improvements in the last few years, she said.
...
Lightweight and easy to don and doff, the bio-suit layer would be custom fitted to each astronaut made possible by a laser scanning/electrospinlacing process. That method stems from work at the U.S. Army Soldier Systems Center in Natick, Mass. where researchers there are tapping into science and technology for 21st century combat uniforms, as well as police officer garb able to thwart chemical or biological agents.

Now, the technology aspect of this is pretty cool, but is it just me, or do these suits look a little goofy? Like a futuristic cyclist or a luge rider.

Oh, and be sure to check out the bizarre drawing of an astronaut dressing.

Think that zipper is down far enough?

It's that time again! Well, almost...

2005-01-26T11:59:00.000-05:00

No, not Oscar Time. Well, it IS Oscar time, but soon it will also be Survivor time! Over at CBS.com, they've got a new page up for Survivor 10: Palau. Now, I'm a big Survivor fan, and I'm really looking forward to the new season. If you're not a Survivor fan, I really suggest strongly that you give it a few episodes. Remember when you do, that the real strength of Survivor comes in when you've seen enough to start to get to know the players and they start to form cliques and back-stab each other. It's great fun! Anyway, the new season starts Feb. 17th.

Movie Review: Kinsey

2005-01-25T22:27:00.000-05:00

Had to drive up to Chapel Hill to see this one, but it's nice sometimes when you really have to go out of your way to seek something out. Also, I discovered that two of the movies that I wasn't sure how I was going to see will be playing there soon. Bonus!

Anyway, Kinsey is a bio-pic (Another one! There's a lot of them this year) about Doctor Albert Kinsey, the man who pretty much blew the lid off of sexual repression in the 50's. The movie shows both sides of his life, the side that tore away some of the ludicrous misinformation that permeated society about sex, and the side that hurt many of the people around him because his "scientific" approach to sex frequently left out the emotional component.

Liam Neeson and Laura Linney both do wonderful jobs with their roles (Linney was nominated for Best Supporting Actress, which is the reason for the movie's inclusion on my list) and the movie is well written and well made in general, but I can't say that it engaged me emotionally. Interesting and thought-provoking, but that was all really. It was pretty good, but not great.

I have also updated my movie spreadsheet. I am now at 51.1%.

It's Oscar Time!

2005-01-25T11:38:00.000-05:00

Okay, everybody, the 2005 Oscar Nominations came out today, so it's time for my 2nd annual marathon to see as many of the nominated films as possible before the awards ceremony.

I've made up a spreadsheet of the movies I have and haven't seen, and you can find that here, and I will be putting it in my Profile Block on the right side of the page. It's an Excel spreadsheet including the nominated film, whether I've seen it or not, my personal pick, and my prediction. Also, I'll be updating it as I see more movies.

Right now, I stand at 50% even. Last year I made 89%, though I did not include all the categories last time. Now it's time to see if I can break my own record. Anyone else want to play?

UPDATE! More on Calculating Percentages:

It's been called to my attention that some may feel that my method of calculating percentages is not the correct one. I feel therefore, that I must explain my reasoning. There are two ways to do it. The first would be to make a list of all films that have received any nominations at all, and to compute the percentage of those films that I have seen. The second way is to make a list of all nominations and compute the percentage of nominations where I have seen the nominated film.

I chose the second way for the following reasons: First and foremost, it's easier to calculate on my spreadsheet and I'm lazy. Second, it weights the movies based on the number of nominations each has received. For example, "The Aviator" with its 11 nominations, is nearly 12% of the total all by itself, whereas "The Story of the Weeping Camel" only received one nomination, making it only 1.1% of the total. This prioritizes the films that have received the most nominations. After all, I would consider "The Aviator" a more important film to see than "The Story of the Weeping Camel", wouldn't you? Wouldn't "Million Dollar Baby" be a more important film to see than "The Village"? Likewise, computing it the other way would make the Foreign Language and Documentary categories comprise over 25% of the total. Additionally, the system affects movies that I haven't seen as much as the ones I have.

All in all, the purpose of the spreadsheet (aside from seeing good movies) is to help me enjoy the Oscars more. When I'm rooting for Sideways as Best Picture, it helps if I have seen all the other nominees. As such, I would want to weigh a movie with multiple nominations heavier than a movie with only one, as it impacts more categories. As a point of interest, if I calculated it the other way, I would be at 36%. The 89% figure from last year was calculated the same way as this year, but the number is artificially high because I did not include all the categories last year. This year, I have only omitted the short films categories.

I've Wondered About That Myself

2005-01-24T22:09:00.000-05:00

Surfing over at spira mirabilis, I found this: Lord of the Rings, Very, Very Short Edition

It's an animated Gif that raises some very good points, and is funny to boot. Warning: Language

UPDATE!!! I've been pointed to two more of these, here and here.

Yeeah, Baby!

2005-01-24T13:38:00.000-05:00

I knew it all along! Scientists have just discovered that Booze Boosts Brainpower!

They did a study of 12,000 older women and: "They found that the women who had the equivalent of one drink a day had a 23% lower risk of becoming mentally impaired during the two-year period, compared with non-drinkers."

Of course, the study was with women between 70 and 81, but I'm confident that the results can be applied more widely. I know from experience. After all, I always feel smarter after a few drinks.

Wherever you go, there you are...

2005-01-24T01:30:00.000-05:00

So I just got back from Colorado tonight(I'd gone for my mother's wedding, much happiness all around ^_^), and now I'm home, only six hours late, but without my luggage.

I tell ya, I travel a lot, but this weekend was a nightmare as far as the travel stuff goes. Every step of the way was a hassle. My flight was delayed on the way out, making me get into Denver after ten, which apparently means that Enterprise Rental Cars was closed, (even though all the other rental companies were running,) so even though I had a reservation, the 24-hour 1-800 number just told me: "Sorry, there's nothing we can do about it tonight..." So of course I had to rent from another company for 30% above my online deal that I had had from Enterprise. Then on the way back out here, my first flight itinerary was cancelled because of the weather in the Northeast, so they rebook me through Atlanta on a flight leaving 2 hours later than my original departure. So I sit in the airport for two extra hours, only to have THAT flight be delayed for another four hours for mechanical problems before they rebook me again through Dallas! That itinerary would have gotten me home at 1AM with another four hours sitting at the Dallas/Ft.Worth Airport, but fortunately I was able to skip two hours of that and get on an earlier flight into Raleigh on standby, getting me home at 11:45, except that, whoops! My luggage didn't make it on to the earlier flight. Nope, it's on the original flight getting here at 1AM. Instead of waiting for it, I'll go back for it tomorrow, but ugh! Now I'm home and... my cable's out. :P

I think I'm going to take the morning off and sleep in a little. Oof... *snore*

UPDATE: Of course, some people have it worse.

A little of this, a little of that...

2005-01-21T08:16:00.000-05:00

First up, this guy is a little too committed to the Legend of Zelda. Seriously, dude. Seek help.

Next, anyone remember that scene in The Fifth Element, where they've rescued this disembodied hand, and a fancy futuristic sewing-machine-looking thing recreates Milla Jovovich a tiny layer at a time? Well, tomorrow is today! Check this out:
Made to Measure Skin and Bones A Reality Using Inkjet Printers

"Using conventional methods, you are only able to grow tissues which are a few millimetres thick, which is fine for growing artificial skin, but if you wanted to grow cartilage, for instance, it would be impossible," Professor Derby says.

The key to the advance which Professor Derby and his team have made is the innovative way in which they are able to pre-determine the size and shape of the tissue or bone grown.

Using the printers, they are able create 3-dimensional structures, known as 'tissue scaffolds'. The shape of the scaffold determines the shape of the tissue as it grows. The structures are created by printing very thin layers of a material repeatedly on top of each other until the structure is built. Each layer is just 10 microns thick (1,000 layers equals 1cm in thickness).

Wow, and I thought my printer cartridges were expensive.

This last item is for all you single ladies out there. Today is St. Agnes's Day.

ST AGNES was a Roman virgin and martyr, who suffered in the tenth persecution under the Emperor Diocletian, A.D. 306. She was condemned to be debauched in the public stews before her execution, but her virginity was miraculously preserved by lightning and thunder from heaven. About eight days after her execution, her parents going to lament and pray at her tomb, they saw a vision of angels, among whom was their daughter, and a lamb standing by her as white as snow; on which account it is that in ever graphic representation of her there is a lamb pictured by her side.

Now, I know that rape isn't funny, but debauched in the public stews?

Anyway, the legend is that if you go to bed without your supper, tonight you will dream of your future husband!

"And on sweet St Agnes' night
Please you with the promis'd sight,
Some of husbands, some of lovers,
Which an empty dream discovers."

You heard it here, folks!

Movie Reviews: The Aviator and Finding Neverland

2005-01-20T17:51:00.000-05:00

So I've been meaning to put up a pair of detailed reviews but I keep not getting around to it, so I think I'll just go for a pair of quickie reviews, or else I'll never do it at all.

The Aviator

Okay, Martin Scorsese is a freakin' genius. But then, maybe you knew that. I already did, but it's always nice to have one's opinions validated. With The Aviator, he just demonstrates his considerable directorial skill yet again. Early in the movie, he uses an old-fashioned color palette to evoke the original color movies, then gradually evolves it as the story progresses. He uses overlapping dialogue and unusual cuts to create mood, and...

Well, enough of the film-geek stuff, is it a good movie? Yes. Leonardo DiCaprio once again knocks it out of the park, expertly showing both the charisma and the craziness of Howard Hughes, and Cate Blanchett is a wonderful Katherine Hepburn. The story is a good one, full of big dreams and terrible setbacks, tragedy and determination. Good stuff.

Finding Neverland

Another biopic, this one about J.M.Barrie as the creator of Peter Pan. Johnny Depp plays Mr. Barrie, an overgrown kid and a playwright who has been failing to wow lately. His wife loves him, but is frustrated with his childish impracticality. Then one day, he is writing at the park and he discovers a small boy under his bench. Soon he has met the boy's three brothers as well, and their widowed mother. They haven't doing so well since the death of their father, but the fun imaginary games provided by Mr. Barrie soon has them coming back to life, and playing with the children, George, Jack, Michael, and Peter, soon has Mr. Barrie feeling inspired again.

It's very sweet and, I should warn, very sad. It's a wonderful movie with great performances by Kate Winslet and Johnny Depp. Freddie Highmore, the boy who plays Peter, the biggest role of the four boys, is also playing Charlie in the upcoming Willy Wonka movie, yet another reason to look forward to it. So anyway, if you're a fan of sweet tearjerkers, Finding Neverland is an excellent choice, but bring a tissue. Half the theater was sniffling.

Victory is mine!

2005-01-19T08:12:00.000-05:00

Aha! Take that, evil dark demon queen! Take that, alien-possessed giant ogre! I am the champion of all I survey!

Of course, when I am sitting at home alone playing video games, I suppose that is not really saying very much. Still, I have successfully triumphed over both of the obstacles that had faced me yesterday. With a new strategy in hand, I resumed my battle against the end boss of Paper Mario and this time I succeeded, finally completing the adventure. (Although it allows you to keep playing to finish all the side quests, if you want. A nice touch.) On the whole, an excellent game, even though I had to watch the final battle cinematics three times.

Likewise, I employed a little Legolas-style-climbing-up-onto-the-giant-thing action to carve my initials on that giant ogre in Resident Evil 4. The bigger they are, the harder they fall. Just happy it didn't fall on me. At last, I have located the president's kidnapped daughter! Of course, the story there is still far from over.

The one down side to these dramatic victories is that I sacrificed about three hours of sleep to achieve them. *dozes off for a moment, then jerks awake* Huh?! What? Oh, sorry about that. Anyway, as far as short-term goals go, it was worth it.

Entirely unrelated to all of that, here is a music video directed by Edgar Wright, the director of Shaun of the Dead and Spaced, two excellent pieces of entertainment that I've blogged about before. I found it at Aint-it-cool-news, and it is very cool, done in the style of a singing tabloid magazine. Check it out: Bastardo!

No wait, I can link the two after all. I fought the ogre in Resident Evil 4, a video game series that is usually about zombies, which are the subject of Shaun of the Dead, which was directed by Edgar Wright, who directed this video! Nice! Six Degrees of Giant Ogre!

Terminal Laziness

2005-01-18T13:10:00.000-05:00

Boy, oh boy, am I lazy. I have felt for several days now that I ought to be posting. I have stuff to post about and everything. Movie reviews. Current events. Random stuff that only interests me...

Just the same, actually mustering the energy to post has been a nearly insurmountable obstacle. I wish there was just some sort of brain-scan device that could, you know, scan my brain and automatically compose my posts for me. That way, I could put up topical, insightful comments on a wide variety of subjects without having to even look up from my video game. It would just report on whatever I was doing or thinking at any given moment...

*seriously considers this*

Dear God! What was I thinking?! Never mind, I think I will continue typing them in manually in order to avoid the extreme embarrassment such a device could bring to me, Johnny Depp and the Statue of Liberty.

Anyway...

I'll start with just a general *me* update. First, of course, is the lazy thing, but I am beginning to crawl out of that now, actually doing my laundry and paying my bills and everything. Things have been extremely slow at work for a couple of weeks now, but there's good news in that I will very likely be getting a new contract with a firm closer to my home than I am now. I have been driving 40 minutes each way out to Clayton every day recently and the new place will be more like ten minutes, so that is good.

I have been playing Resident Evil 4 and Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door on my Gamecube lately, though I'm presently stuck on boss-fights in each. Paper Mario is a fantastic RPG, by the way, but all the little cut-scenes associated with the final battle fight make it take half an hour every time I try again to beat it. I've died three times now and it's getting a little frustrating that I have to sit through 20 minutes of cinematics every time. That minor quibble aside, it's a really great game. A surprisingly deep RPG, all dressed up in bright colors and genuinely funny dialogue. Good stuff.

Resident Evil 4 is also good, though with fewer bright colors and funny dialogue. Very moody, great graphics and seriously intense fighting. I'm trying to work up the energy to give the next boss another shot. I'm currently recuperating after being stomped flat by a 20-foot-tall ogre.

On the writing front, I've gotten started again on writing my alien novel. It's been a long time with it and the engine is stuttering from disrepair, but it's running. At the moment, I'm slogging through a section with a lot of administrative/governmental type details that, if I can make them interesting, should help raise the stakes a little in the story. Now the trick is how to make the cessation of Biothren supply shipments and the scheduling of transport shuttle routes interesting.

Also, it's nearly Oscar time again, so my annual Oscar Movie Marathon is getting underway. (Okay, it's only the second time, but the first one was last year, so it's annual, all right?) Basically, I try to see as many of the Oscar nominated movies as possible before the awards ceremony. It can be pretty tricky with some of the smaller films, but it's fun sometimes to seek out something that's a little harder to find. When the nominations come out, I'll put up my official list, but for now, I'm just trying to catch the likely entries.

So, that's it for the me stuff for now. I've got a pair of movie reviews that I'll be putting up soon, assuming that I don't sink back into the doldrums... It will be very... pretty soon... just after I... take... a nap...

*Singing sleepily* Don't say there's nothing to do in the Dooooooooldrums! It's just... not... true...

*snore*

Link and a Quiz

2005-01-16T09:59:00.000-05:00

Just wanted to throw a link up here to Mike Meitin's movie line meme. Last I looked, there were a few still unanswered.

Also, I don't normally put quizzes here, but this one was interesting because it guessed my exact age.

You Are 26 Years Old

26

Under 12: You are a kid at heart. You still have an optimistic life view - and you look at the world with awe.

13-19: You are a teenager at heart. You question authority and are still trying to find your place in this world.

20-29: You are a twentysomething at heart. You feel excited about what's to come... love, work, and new experiences.

30-39: You are a thirtysomething at heart. You've had a taste of success and true love, but you want more!

40+: You are a mature adult. You've been through most of the ups and downs of life already. Now you get to sit back and relax.

What Age Do You Act?

Movie Line Trivia

2005-01-11T11:36:00.000-05:00

There's a Movie Line Meme going around. I got it from Kevin Kibelstis.
What you do is choose twelve movies you know and select a line from each one. When people guess what movie it is from, you cross it out and give credit to the person who guessed.

Here's mine: Movie line meme
UPDATE: ALL QUOTES NOW ANSWERED!

Points are assigned as follows: 1 point for guessing the correct movie, 2 points for guessing the movie as well as the name of the character or actor who says it.

ANSWERED: 1. “Daisy, Daisy, give me your answer, do.” - HAL9000, in 2001: A Space Odyssey (2 points to Mike Meitin)
ANSWERED: 2. “This is something that happens.” - Stanley Spector, in Magnolia (Answered by Mike Meitin, but no points awarded because it was just a lucky guess)
ANSWERED: 3. “Are you crazy? The fall will probably kill ‘ya.” - Butch, in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1 point to Kevin Kibelstis)
ANSWERED: 4. “You know what this is? It’s the world’s smallest violin, playing just for the waitresses.” - Mister Pink, in Reservoir Dogs (2 points to Mike Meitin)
ANSWERED: 5. “I give this whole thing a sphincter factor of 9.5.” 'Hippy', in The Abyss (1 point to Mike Meitin)
ANSWERED: 6. “You can’t fight in here! This is the war room!” -President Merkin Muffley, in Doctor Strangelove, or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (2 points to Lisa)
ANSWERED: 7. “I’m older and I have more insurance.” - Evelyn Couch, in Fried Green Tomatoes (1 point to Kevin Kibelstis)
ANSWERED: 8. “It's quite modern what I do and it may feel a little strange at first, but I think, if you're open, then you might enjoy it.” - Moulin Rouge (2 points to Lisa)
ANSWERED: 9. “They’re all so beautiful. Why don’t I have three heads?” - Wolfgang Mozart, in Amadeus (2 points to Lisa)
ANSWERED: 10. “She’s my sister. *slap* She’s my daughter. *slap* My sister, my daughter... *slap*” - Evelyn Mulwray, in Chinatown (2 points to Mike Meitin)
ANSWERED: 11. “I am shocked, shocked to find that gambling has been going on in here.” Capt. Louis Renault, in Casablanca (2 points to Mike Meitin)
ANSWERED: 12. “You see this? (Points to chest) Mary Ellen Moffat. She broke my heart.” Matt Hooper, in Jaws (2 points to Mike Meitin)

Point Totals:
Winner: Mike Meitin with 11 points
Runners Up: Lisa, with 6 points, and Kevin Kibelstis with 2 points

Careful, the Rats can hear you!

2005-01-11T10:50:00.000-05:00

Remember the gossiping prairie dogs? Well apparently Rats might be Multilingual.

Spanish researchers found that rats were able to use rhythm and intonation speech cues to distinguish between spoken Dutch and Japanese. This makes rats only the third type of mammal -- along with humans and Tamarin monkeys -- who have been shown to possess the ability to recognize different speech patterns.

Thanks to Dave Barry's Blog for alerting me to this ground-breakirng discovery.

Should FDA rules be loosened?

2005-01-11T10:24:00.000-05:00

A commentator on NPR this morning thinks so. In the wake of the recent recall of certain arthritis pain relievers (they showed a slight increase in heart attack risk) there are a lot of people who feel that they would be willing to accept that risk in order to reap the benefits of the pain relief. The commentator thinks that the FDA should not have to pull these drugs off the market, but rather that patients and doctors should have the right to make their own informed decision.

On the one hand, he does have a legitimate point. Every possible medication is going to have side effects, and ultimately, the decision to take or to prescribe any given medication is going to be based on an analysis of the net loss or gain, weighing the side effects against the primary benefit. I'll concede that perhaps some of these standards maybe should be given a look from time to time, to continually reevaluate if they are still doing what they should be, but I depart completely with the commentator's larger point, that it should be completely the individual doctor or patient's decision.

The problem is simple: Without the massive clinical trials currently required by the FDA, we would not have the information required for patients and doctors to make these decisions. I'm sure the commentator would suggest that we could relax the FDA rules and still do these studies, but I'm pretty sure that it wouldn't work out that way.

Look at the AIDS debate, for example. A lot of the current AIDS drugs were rushed through FDA approval without all the normal testing requirements due to political pressure. People said, understandably enough, "I don't want to wait five years for the drug to be approved the normal way. I'll be dead by then." While I can sympathize with their desperation, fast-tracking drugs this way confuses the issue. Are the drugs actually effective or not? Are they actually doing more harm than good? Are they doing any good at all? We only have very sketchy data, primarily anecdotal statistics obtained outside of any controlled study.

If the FDA no longer has authority to reject drugs that do not show enough net benefit, then there is no longer any incentive for pharmaceutical companies to perform and document the results of expensive studies. These studies will no longer have to meet any rigorous standards for approval, because they can simply release the drug with a warning label. Further, if there is no ultimate requirement that a given pharmaceutical demonstrate a notable benefit compared to rare or minor side-effects, what incentive will pharmaceutical companies have to continue pushing for a more effective medication? If they are allowed to sell the one that causes increased risk of heart attacks, or the one that might cause breast cancer, how hard are they going to work to find one that doesn't?

Now, I'm not saying new research would dry up, or that the local pharmacy would suddenly turn into a traveling snake-oil tent. I'm just saying that removing the teeth of the FDA is only going to make the already confusing drug marketplace into an incomprehensible bazaar where you are beset on all sides by products that may or may not actually do anything good for you. That's not a more-informed decision. It's less-informed.

Hooray for good casting!

2005-01-07T17:51:00.000-05:00

Found a couple of neat casting stories over at Aint-it-cool-news

The first, Kevin Spacey has been tapped to play Lex Luthor in the new Superman movie.

The second, the one and only Alan Rickman has been selected to be the voice of Marvin the android in the Hitchhiker's Guide movie! How perfect is that? An interesting side note, Alan Rickman and Mos Def, who is playing Ford Prefect, have worked with each other before in the made-for-cable movie "Something the Lord Made" about the first heart surgery.

For that matter, Kevin Spacey won an Oscar for The Usual Suspects, directed by Brian Singer, who is also directing the new Superman movie.

Continuing my Research

2005-01-07T15:32:00.000-05:00

I've been continuing to look into the controversy related to HIV and AIDS. I asked a couple of questions on Dean Esmay's blog. It was suggested by Dr. Bialy, (the author of Oncogenes, Aneuploidy and AIDS: A Scientific life and Times of Peter H. Duesberg) that I look into the references do more research. Totally fair, given that the answers would likely be long and detailed. Anyway, I posted what I have found so far here. The post discusses a couple of points. First, the reported number of health care workers who have gotten AIDS as the result of accidental HIV exposure. The second point relates to the question of whether chimpanzees infected with HIV have ever developed AIDS.

Also, I found a World Health Organization report on the accuracy of HIV tests. In it, they say this on Page 3:

When a single screening assay is used for testing in a population with a very low prevalence of HIV infection, the probability that a person is infected when a positive test result is obtained (i.e., the positive predictive value) is very low, since the majority of people with positive results are not infected. This problem occurs even when a test with high specificity is used. Accuracy can be improved if a second supplemental test is used to retest all those samples found positive by the first test...SNIP... The most commonly used confirmatory test was the Western blot (WB). However, its use has proven to be very expensive and can, under some conditions, produce a relatively large number of indeterminate results.

Now, to be fair, they go on to discuss the advances that have been made to improve accuracy, and they test samples and new samples repeatedly before they make a diagnosis. I only point this out to demonstrate that the available tests are far from ideal, and therefore in some situations, they may not be interpreted properly. The odds of false negatives is pretty low, but the odds of false positives could be quite high if the tests are not used correctly. Also, these are the tests being used today, right now. How reliable (on a large statistical basis) are the tests done on people 20 years ago, for the purpose of all that study done back then? *shrug* I dunno. That's why I'm still looking into it.

Prairie-Dog Gossip

2005-01-07T11:55:00.000-05:00

Of course, not all scientific dissent must be taken seriously. Take this, for example: Scientist Says That Prairie Dogs May Have Their Own Language

A selection:

So far, I think we are showing the most sophisticated communication system that anyone has shown in animals,'' Slobodchikoff said.

Slobodchikoff has spent the last two decades studying prairie dogs and their calls, mostly in Arizona, but also in New Mexico and Colorado.

Prairie dog chatter is variously described by observers as a series of yips, high-pitched barks or eeks. And most scientists think prairie dogs simply make sounds that reflect their inner condition. That means all they're saying are things like ouch'' or hungry'' or eek.''

But Slobodchikoff believes prairie dogs are communicating detailed information to one another about what animals are showing up in their colonies, and maybe even gossiping.

Another question about AIDS

2005-01-07T11:37:00.000-05:00

If you didn't see it, I posted yesterday about my discovery that the HIV-causes-AIDS debate is not as clear-cut as I thought it was.

Today, I found this story over at Google News.

People with duplicate copies of an immune system gene are less susceptible to HIV, the cause of AIDS, according to a study appearing in the Jan. 7 edition of Science magazine...SNIP...In tests on different population groups, African-Americans had four copies of the CCL3L1 gene, compared with two and three in European-Americans and Hispanic-Americans. Each additional CCL3L1 copy lowered the risk of acquiring HIV by between 4.5 and 10.5 percent. Moreover, people who had below-average copy numbers of the gene had a 39 to 260 percent higher risk of getting the disease or having AIDS progress rapidly, researchers found.

This, to me, is yet another factor that seems to make the conventional explanations for the African AIDS epidemic a little harder to swallow. African-Americans, (and by extension, I would assume Africans,) are potentially 20% less likely to be infected when exposed, compared to other ethnic groups. Obviously, it's not the only factor involved, but why would the fastest-spreading epidemic be found in the population that is least susceptible to infection?

Once again, let me make it clear that I am not asserting one position or the other. I am still researching the issue, but all I'm trying to say here is that apparently there are still unanswered questions, but the people asking them are getting shouted down because the implications of HIV not actually being the cause of AIDS are so vast . Literally billions of dollars and millions of lives are at stake. Surely we can afford to at least investigate some of these alternative hypotheses?

UPDATE!
I noticed that a lot of other reports of this same story are not mentioning the racial aspect at all, but then this report said this:

...it was not the absolute number of extra copies of the gene that mattered, Ahuja's team found. Instead, it was whether a person had more copies than average for his or her ethnic group.

This could explain the question I asked above, but I would have to read the actual report to be sure.

HIV and AIDS - An Unexpected Controversy?

2005-01-06T19:13:00.000-05:00

Well, I was doing a bit of research on global warming and scientific dissent in general, and I happened across this post on this blog. The author, Dean Esmay, has been putting up a series of posts about a scientist by the name of Dr. Peter Duesberg who, among others, is suggesting that HIV is not actually the cause of AIDS.

You heard me.

Now my first thought here was, uh... what? I thought this was a done deal, an answered question. It had not even entered my mind to doubt the connection. So of course, my first reaction was to doubt the doubter. After all, there are all sorts of skeptics out there who doubt all sorts of things or believe other things, all contrary to the available scientific evidence. I felt confident that this guy was one of those people, who take tiny statistical anomalies or minor unanswered questions and blow them all out of proportion to draw an illegitimate conclusion.

So color me surprised when I discover that Doctor Duesburg is the guy who first identified the existence of retroviruses! He's no lone nutjob with a doctorate in paranormal studies from Front Range Community College. He has a PhD in Chemistry from the University of Frankfurt in Germany and is a professor of Molecular and Cell Biology at U of C Berkely. One of his most vocal supporters, Dr. Kary Mullis won the Nobel Prize for Chemistry for the invention of PCR or Polymerase Chain Reaction, the technique at the base of one of the most common HIV tests.

More on this here, (it's a long post, but it has lots of links in it)

Anyhow, what they are asserting is basically this. Back in the 80s, when the AIDS panic was in full swing, people were desperate (and rightfully so) to find the cause. Two different researchers discovered a virus (which came to be known as HIV) and said that it might be the cause of AIDS. This story, along with others, is detailed in the hallmark AIDS book, And the Band Played On, by Randy Shilts. The thing is, neither of them really had hard data to back up their idea, but people were so desperate for a cause that they seized on it and trumpeted it as a triumph of science. Pretty soon, anyone who was skeptical of the connection was shouted down. (Now there is no doubt that some of the skeptics were really more interested in the politics of the issue, but by no means all of them.) Some studies were done to suggest a correlation between HIV and AIDS, but the reviews of the data since then have showed those experiments to be sloppy and not properly double-blinded. (Note that that does not necessarily make them wrong in their conclusions, it only means that the study results are not as reliable as might be ideal.) There have been almost no new studies on the connection between HIV and AIDS since then. The causal relationship is simply accepted as fact.

Did you know that the diagnostic criteria for AIDS is not the same as it used to be? In the 80s, people, mostly, though not universally homosexuals and drug-users presented with a number of specific symptoms that, collectively, came to be known as AIDS. The studies suggested a very strong correlation that people with AIDS were infected with HIV, healthy people in identified risk groups sometimes had HIV, sometimes did not, and healthy people not in risk groups almost never had it. All that suggests that the two are connected at least. Though these are the tests that were not properly double-blinded, and even many who still strongly defend HIV as the cause of AIDS will concede that these studies were flawed. I did not know any of that.

Did you know the HIV virus has never been isolated in culture? Did you know that the package inserts for pretty much every test used to diagnose HIV have statements like:

Indicates possible infection by virus. Viremia may be present. Positive results are not diagnostic of AIDS. Biologic false positives still possible in some select casesFollow up testing may be advised if clinical findings are discordant with test results."

(emphasis mine)This is for the so-called "Western Blot" test, I got the quote from the site of a woman named Kim Bannon has filed a lawsuit alleging that currently available HIV tests are unreliable. I didn't know any of this.

Did you know that modern diagnostic standards for AIDS are very different from those original symptoms presented in the 80s? Basically, there is a whole laundry list of symptoms and conditions that, in the presence of HIV are considered AIDS, but in the absence of HIV are not considered AIDS. These conditions include things like cervical cancer, tuberculosis, and herpes. Basically, if you get tuberculosis, and you are HIV positive, then you have AIDS and the HIV gave it to you. If you are not HIV positive, then you do not have AIDS, you have tuberculosis. Bit of circular reasoning there. (Which again, does not mean it is wrong, only that it requires outside confirmation, which heretofore has only sketchy data from 20 years ago to support it. And even that data refers to a specific set of symptoms that did not include the laundry list used today.) And how to explain the hundreds (if not thousands) of people who have been living HIV positive with no symptoms for going on 23 years, despite never taking any AIDS drugs? Nobody seems to be studying them.

Did you know that with African cases, a HIV test is not even required to test for AIDS? And that the other symptoms required for diagnosis are identical to the symptoms of malaria and malnutrition? Did you know that at the same time as this supposed wildfire outbreak of HIV in Africa, (which again, is not actually being tested for, only estimated,) cases of syphilis and gonorrhea are going down? It could very well be that many of these cases are not actually HIV/AIDS at all, but actually malaria or malnutrition. Few are particularly inclined to dispute that diagnosis, because AIDS brings in far more aid money than does malaria.

I'm sorry for not including direct links or references for all this data, but there's just so much of it. I'll include a longer list of links where I got all this from at the end. I'm really not trying to assert anything just at the moment except that apparently the question is not as satisfactorily resolved as I thought it was. HIV might cause AIDS after all. It just seems that the scientific evidence used to support that conclusion isn't as solid as everyone seems to think it is.

Why is this so important? Well, for starters, all the billions of dollars currently being used on AIDS research might be barking up the wrong tree. Second, HIV might not always lead to AIDS. Maybe it requires some other factor in order to develop into full-blown AIDS. Maybe HIV is actually only another symptom, and not the cause at all. But think of the implications? A lot of AIDS medications have some really nasty side-effects. Some of them are incredibly toxic and may actually doing more harm than good. If HIV is not the cause of AIDS, then these drugs may be doing all the harm without any good at all? Did you know that there are parents who have their HIV positive children taken away from them if they dare to say they don't want their kids to take AZT, a chemotherapy drug that was banned from use on terminal cancer patients because it is too toxic?

Most AIDS drugs are fast-tracked through FDA approval, bypassing many of the studies required to prove efficacy in other drugs. Political pressure forces their hand. "What do you mean it will take five years to approve it? I might be dead by then!" Now I can certainly understand that people are desperate for a cure, but we have to be really careful not to give them snake-oil that may actually make them more sick. The implications of this are HUGE!!!

Let me again state that I'm not trying to make the case that HIV does not cause AIDS. For all I know, it does. It's just that, apparently, there are some legitimate questions that have not been satisfactorily explained, and that anybody who asks them or wants to study them gets ridiculed or even blackballed. Check out some of these links and research it for yourself. I know I will continue to do so.

-The first post I found - This link is to Dean Esmay's blog. There are a number of other posts on the subject, with some really amazing discussions in the comments, and tons of links and scientific detail.

-Oncogenes, Aneuploidy, and AIDS: A Scientific Life and Times of Peter H. Duesberg - A book about Dr Duesberg and his theories, including the history of his consistent suppression by the mainstream scientific community. I haven't read this book, but I'm planning to. By the way, the author of this book, Harvey Bialy, is himself a doctor of molecular biology and the founding scientific editor of Nature Biotechnology, and he also participates in the conversations taking place on Dean Esmay's blog.

-What if everything you thought you knew about AIDS was wrong? another book about this controversy

-Inventing the AIDS Virus A book by Duesberg himself.

-The Durban Declaration A document drafted by a number of scientists asserting that HIV is the cause of AIDS.

- The Durban Declaration is not Accepted by All - A response to the declaration by skeptics

- Virus Myth - A website devoted to discussion of the so-called "myth" of HIV causing AIDS.

- Peter Duesberg's Site

- Encyclopedia entry on the Duesberg Hypothesis - A helpful summary with more links.

- National Institute of Health on HIV and AIDS - Also has lots of links, supporting the HIV as the cause of AIDS hypothesis

As I said, I do not have the answer here. I have only just recently been alerted to the existence of the question. I am, however, going to continue researching.

Brain Teaser

2005-01-06T18:23:00.000-05:00

This is a fun one:
Imagine you are on "Lets Make a Deal". You are faced with Doors numbered 1, 2, and 3. Behind one of them is a car. Behind the others, a booby prize. There is no apparent differences between any of the doors. Your guess is a pure 1 in 3 shot.

Ah, but once you've made your choice, good ol' Monty Hall decides to switch things up a little. He opens one of the remaining doors, revealing a booby prize. Now you have another choice. Do you want to stick with your original choice or do you want to switch your choice to the one remaining door? There is no sure thing, but is there a statistical advantage to switch your original choice, or does it make no difference?

Click here for the answer...

Did you guess that it makes no difference? So did I.

Turns out we were both wrong. There is a 67% statistical advantage to switching your guess! This is why: Say you choose door number 1 on your first guess. You have a 1 in 3 shot at guessing right. That means that you have a 2 in 3 shot at being wrong. When you guess, it divides the available doors into two groups, one group of one door (Group A: your original choice) and one group of two doors (Group B: the remaining doors). There is a 33% chance of the right door being in group A, and a 67% chance that the right door is in group B.

What Monty does is give you a hint. He shows you what's behind one of the doors in group B, and he will never open the door with the car behind it. There is still a 67% chance that the car is behind one of the group B doors, and with one of them open, that means there is a 67% chance that the car is behind the remaining group B door. It's not a sure thing, but you will have a 2 out of 3 shot at winning the car if you switch your choice. Neat, huh?

Goodbye, my Good Old Boy

2005-01-05T18:36:00.000-05:00

I just got a phone call that informed me that my dad has taken our old dog Ben to be put to sleep...

It's not really unexpected. He was nearly 14, and he had been having a lot of health problems in the last year or so, and in particular, the arthritis in his hips had gotten pretty bad in the last few months. I got a chance to go home and see him along with my Dad over Christmas and I pretty much knew that it would be the last time I would ever see him.

Click here for my memories of him...

I remember when we first got him. It was near the end of my seventh grade year. I had actually gone from our home in Colorado to the Air Force Academy for a speech tournament. It was the first of many such tournaments that I would compete in throughout my high school years and into college. I didn't do very well at that one, however. In fact I did considerably worse than I had been expecting. Still, I couldn't get too depressed, because my parents were going to get our new puppy from the breeders and they were bringing him by for me to see before they took him home.

He was a Bouvier des Flandres. Belgian cattle-herding dogs, and they are sometimes used as police dogs in Europe. When we were researching the breed, we came across an anecdote where they were training police dogs. The man who wears the rubber padding to play the 'criminal' had never trained a Bouvier before. He was used to running out, then turning to watch the dog come the last few feet or so to attack. When he was training the Bouvier, he ran out, turned, and the dog was already in mid-air leaping at him.

That's not to say that they are mean dogs. Far from it. They are very good with people and children. They had to be, because my mom ran a day care out of our home, so any dog that was not good with kids was out of the question.

Anyway, I met my parents in the parking structure and met him for the first time. He was still little, only eight weeks old. Bouviers have cropped ears, and he still had these little plaster pieces on them, connected by a piece of wire that held them in the right shape while they healed. They were so silly looking that we toyed with the idea of calling him "Radar". We decided however, to comply with the Breeder's request that we name him according to their rules, (this allows them to keep track of litters more effectively. The rules were that the name should have something to do with Science Fiction and start with the letter "K". The first choice that came to mind was Kirk, but that was taken. In retrospect, I'm glad it was, because that name would not have suited him. Instead, we chose "Kenobi" as in Obi Wan. As in "Ben".

As a puppy, and like all puppies, Ben had two speeds: manic and coma. From the very start, he was a jumper. Whenever we went out onto the back porch, instead of merely stepping down out of the house, he would leap into the air like he was trying to jump the grand canyon. He also loved to pounce. Place your hand flat on the floor and he would stalk up to it, then leap high into the air to come straight down on it. When he got bigger, he was able to jump high enough to look over the top of our eight foot fence. As he got older, his herding instincts kicked in and it was a riot to see him literally herding my mom's day-care kids around the back yard. To them, they were just running around and playing, but to the outside observer, he was clearly herding them, first in one direction, then the other. As he aged though, he became considerably more mellow and easy-going. He'd put up with just about anything with nary a complaint, and he'd just follow you around, then look up with his head cocked as if to say: "That was fun. Now what?"

And boy, did he like to run. Just like in the story about the police dog training, he was fast. One of his favorite games was "Catch Me" wherein he would dash out the front door given the slightest opportunity and sprint across the street to the park, where he would run around at top speed for ten minutes or so until we either caught him or enticed him into the car. This was more fun for him than for us, but he was a beautiful sight when he was running. Once, my brother and I tied his leash to the front fork of my bicycle and we went out to a local nature trail that had a long straight stretch of even ground. He could pull me on my bike faster than I could have ever peddled on my own. We stopped doing that though, because of how obviously dangerous it was, to both me and Ben, but the few times we did it, it was like flying.

Some years later, we got our second dog, "Mountain mystique" aka Misty, also a Bouvier, and they were as different as night and day. Where he was mellow and easy-going, she was high-strung and eager to please. The two of them complemented each other perfectly. Many times, when I would be getting home late, I would be creeping to my bedroom in the dark and all of a sudden Misty would bark as though the world were coming to an end. This lasted until she got close enough to sniff me and verify my identity. Seconds later, Ben would lumber over to see what all the fuss was about. If you imagine them as a security system, Misty was the car alarm set to too high a sensitivity level, and Ben was the security guard, awakened by the alarm who comes over to roll his eyes and say: "You woke me up for that?"

Misty, by the virtue of being so eager to please, tended to be more popular. She certainly courted more attention, but Ben was always my favorite. I knew exactly which spots on his back would make him twitch his right hind leg, and which spots for his left hind leg. We called him "fastest tongue in the West" because of his tendency to slurp suddenly like a striking rattlesnake.

When I graduated and went off to College, I still saw him fairly frequently, and all the time over the Summers. But then I moved out of state, and for the last four and a half years, I've seen him only three or four times a year. For the last year, his age was really starting to show. The arthritis in his hips. His vision, his hearing. He developed a condition which is essentially the canine equivalent of Alzheimers, where he would wander, as though he were looking for something, but he would end up just walking in circles until you encouraged him to lie down. A few weeks before I went out for Christmas, my dad told me that this day would be coming soon and I assured him that if the time came, he shouldn't wait until I came out, just so that I could see him again, but I'm glad that didn't happen, and that I was able to say goodbye.

My dad says that last night was really bad, so he finally made the decision. He was relatively alert during the day today, and with a little help, he climbed into the car as good-natured as ever. The vet kept giving him treats at the end, to calm him down. He's at peace now... Good bye, Ben. You were a great friend.

Ben "Kenobi" Ellis
1991 - 2005

Book Review: State of Fear by Michael Crichton

2005-01-05T13:12:00.000-05:00

Book Review: The State of Fear by Michael Crichton

I was in eighth grade when I first read Jurassic Park, probably Crichtons best-known novel. This was just before the book became such a huge sensation, (or at least, I had never heard of it before a friend lent it to me. Weeks later, everyone seemed to be talking about it.) I really liked it, and quickly moved on to read almost everything else Mr. Crichton had written at that time. I have read most of his novels since then as well.

For me, Crichtons writing has always been about the ideas, not about the characters, or even really the plots for that matter. When I read his last novel, Prey, I was fascinated by the concept of rouge nanobot clouds and by the unexpected interactions they had with other living systems. I can name a dozen interesting scenes and events from that book, but I couldnt tell you the name of even one of the characters.

In general, I tend to prefer character-based stories, but for the most part, Crichtons concepts and ideas have been sufficiently interesting to hold my attention through cardboard heroes and one-note eccentrics. Hmm, even as I write that, I wonder if that is too harsh an assessment of his characters. Harsh perhaps, but not inaccurate, his characters arent awful, they just primarily exist in order to facilitate the plot, which is the real point. As such, we dont get much of a sense of their lives outside the main story. Characters tend to be all bad or all good with one eccentric idiosyncrasy each.

State of Fear continues this pattern on both counts. The characters and main plot are nothing special. The ideas are pretty darn interesting, whether you agree with them or not. And believe me, this one will divide people.

Click here for the extended review and my thoughts.

You see, the basic premise is that global warming isn't real, or at least, it is not known to be real. Instead, entrenched environmental groups, desperate to increase fund-raising, have essentially invented the "crisis" of global warming from sketchy data, in order to scare people into giving money. He describes how they shifted the emphasis from "global warming'" to "abrupt climate change" because global warming was hard to sell during ice storms and blizzards.

Crichton provides dozens of footnotes and graphs from actual scientific references in an attempt to back all this up. This is the part of the book that really kept me interested. Now, I'm definitely not following him quite as far as he wants me to go. The book's main plot follows the attempt to stop a (fictional) environmental activist group from artificially causing natural disasters that can be then blamed on global warming. Since the entire premise is that they are faking it in order to increase fundraising, the millions they are apparently spending on this effort seems a bit counter-productive when there are so many genuine natural disasters around. Likewise, I don't think that the high ups in the big environmental groups are really just pretending to believe in global warming when they really know better.

That said, Crichton makes some very interesting points. In the many footnotes (and a HUGE bibliography) he points out a fair amount of scientific data that seems to contradict many of the claims made about global warming. He discusses the urban heat island effect and how temperature data may not be sufficiently correcting for it. He discusses the difficulty in providing reliable sea level data. But his best point is about the incredible complexity involved in managing even small, localized ecosystems.

He elaborates his feelings in the author's notes. It is not that he knows global warming is not real, he says. It is just that the environmental activists do not know that it is. In some ways, the way scientific data is interpreted is very similar to the recent debacle involving "bad intelligence" regarding the Iraq war. There is so much data out there that there is no way for any one person to make sense of all of it. There is no option but to select some and ignore others, hopefully selecting the best and ignoring the worst.

But how do we know which is which? If someone believes global warming is happening, they are more inclined to believe the data that suggests that. If someone believes it is not happening, they are more likely to believe the other data. As a result, both groups feel that they have the science on their side, and the conversation gets shrill and angry very quickly.

What do I think? Well I come down relatively close to what Crichton says in his author's notes, as opposed to where his fictional proxy in the novel says. It seems to me that there is an awful lot of data that can be interpreted in any number of different ways. In addition, computer models have not so far been able to predict much of anything over the long term, so using those to make a point essentially amounts to guesswork. Informed guesswork, perhaps, but still not proof. Is global warming happening? Might be. Will that be a bad thing or a good thing? Um, well, probably it will be good for some people and bad for other people. Is that true of everything that ever happens anywhere? Yes.

One of the points Crichton makes rather effectively is that the myth of “the balance of nature” is really pretty silly, at least in the way it is often used in discussions. It implies some theoretical utopian equilibrium where everything is fine and it is only when man comes in and screws everything up that ecosystems change, and always for the worse.

Now, I'm into Biology. I studied it some in school, and I've always been interested in it, though I am by no means an expert. Still, I know enough to know that nature changes all the time, and more often than not, our attempts to "preserve" a specific ecosystem are like trying to hold water in a sieve. Consider, for example, forest fires. We want to preserve old growth forests, so we put out forest fires before they get too big. But we forget that a lot of those very trees we are trying to save need forest fires in order to reproduce! In addition, never having fires come through results in thick, choked-off forests instead of more open areas. That's good for some species, and bad for others. History is filled with attempts to preserve a specific balance and screwing it up. Not enough wolves in an area, lets bring in more. But now they're eating too many of the elk? Now we temporarily legalize wolf bounties so the elk can recover, but the population boom of elk means that they eat all the bark off of a certain kind of tree, making it useless for beaver dams. It goes on and on.

Let me perfectly clear here. I'm not an anti-environmentalist. I believe in pollution controls and wilderness areas and attempts, imperfect as they may be, at managing wildlife in order to prevent extinctions. All of this is very important, and I would never want to suggest otherwise. Yet sometimes, environmental regulations can get really silly, and ludicrously expensive. When someone owns a huge piece of land, but they are told they can't build anything on it ever because an endangered butterfly might live there, that's getting ridiculous.

Likewise, some pollution controls can go way beyond any pretense of being cost-effective. Because I don't have specific numbers right in front of me, let me just use a hypothetical here. Say a new regulation is passed that will cut down on madeupium emissions from industry. It is expected to save 20 lives a year, at a cost of $40 million dollars a year. That breaks down to $2 million per person, and this is where you start hearing things like: "How can we put a price on human life?" and "If we save just one person, it will be worth it." Those things are hard to dispute, because they are emotional arguments, but think of this: How many more lives could that $40 Million save if it were devoted to providing food and safe drinking water to poverty-stricken third-world countries. What if it was devoted to AIDS research? Renewable energy research?

Now, I know it's not a zero-sum game. The money being spent by industry in order to comply with various regulations would not otherwise be going directly to drought relief or fuel-cell research. The point is simply that any action, no matter how noble the intention, is going to have all sorts of ramifications. We make DDT illegal because it is harming wildlife. But removing the best available tool for mosquito control has made the global death rate from Malaria skyrocket. We made CFC's illegal to save the ozone layer, but without them, refrigerants are more expensive, so fewer people around the world can afford them, and more people die from malnutrition and food poisoning. Does that mean we should have left DDT and CFC's legal? Not necessarily. I'm just pointing out that there are side effects to everything we do, and even if the intent of a regulation is a positive thing, we have to consider what we are willing to sacrifice for it, and it's not just money in our pockets. There can be global consequences, such as the ones I've just mentioned.

Basically, I'm just saying that when we consider new environmental regulations, we need to consider all the possible implications and decide if it is really cost-effective, or whether there might be a better way to distribute those particular resources.

To bring this back to global warming... I'm concerned about it. Okay? But I'm not convinced that we should cripple our economy (leaving that much less money to spend in other areas, like medical research or disaster relief) in order to pass the Kyoto protocol when it's A) not proven that global warming is happening at all, B) not clear that, even if it is happening, that the protocol will have the desired impact, and C) not obvious that global warming would even be a necessarily bad thing. To be sure, bad for some people, but good for others.

*sigh* I'm probably sounding like an anti-environmentalist again. This is a frustrating issue for me, because it seems silly to spend trillions of dollars on something that may or may not have any impact at all, when that money could be used to do so much real good in other, proven ways. Well, all I can say at this point is that I'm still keeping my eyes open on the current research and data. Just consider this: when you think to yourself that there is so much more data supporting the theory of global warming than opposing it, consider how you are getting that information. Which sells more papers? Imminent global catastrophes, or reports that we don't really know what's happening and may not ever know until it has already happened? What kind of fundraiser gets more cash? The one with dire warnings about impending doom or the ones where they announce that more research is needed? Just keep that in mind.

Okay, enough rambling and ranting. This always happens to me. I come off as sounding like I think global warming is not happening, just because I am not convinced that it is happening. The truth is, I just don't know, and you know what? I don't think anybody does. The world is just too complex, a fact that I find simultaneously wonderful and terrifying.

Thank you, Richard Gere, for speaking for me.

2005-01-05T11:56:00.000-05:00

You should thank him too, because he is speaking for you also. Check it out: he was in a commercial targeted at Palestinians, urging them to vote in their upcoming election.

In a transcript obtained by The Associated Press, he said: "Hi, I'm Richard Gere, and I'm speaking for the entire world. We're with you during this election time. It's really important: Get out and vote."

What is the air-speed velocity of an unladen giant eagle?

2005-01-04T13:26:00.000-05:00

They may not have been big enough to carry a hobbit from Mount Doom to Rivendell, but the concept of giant eagles apparently has some basis in fact.

Weighing between 20 and 30 pounds, the enormous Haast's Eagle dominated its environment. It was 30 to 40 per cent heavier than the largest living bird of prey around today, the Harpy Eagle of Central and South America.

Just to put that in context, the average weight of a bald eagle is 10 to 14 pounds, so this thing was probably more than double the size, since it would need a more-than-proportionally larger wingspan to carry double the weight. Betcha that thing could carry a coconut. Then again, they were probably non-migratory.