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02 Jan 2012 21:14

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Politics: The perfect antidote to Iowa caucus coverage: This video

  • As you might have noticed, we’ve been somewhat light on the Iowa caucus coverage today in part because it’s gotten so overwhelming. (We’re leaving the good stuff for tomorrow, when it ACTUALLY HAPPENS.) But Scott Siepker, this guy … This guy. He offers a progressive defense to the perception that Iowa is full of conservatives that don’t represent the country at large. And wow, it just makes you like you’ve been translated to Iowa for three minutes. You get it, with lines like: “Next time you ‘fly over’? Give us a wave. We’ll wave back. We’re nice. That’s right. We’re nice. @(&!%!^.” It’s profane, but there’s a PG-rated version over here. Must watch. (h/t Buzzfeed)
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23 Sep 2010 12:00

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Tech: Visa’s PayWave + iPhone + NYC Subway = Freaking amazing

  • Whooooosh! Hear that kids? It’s the sound of the future, flying by so fast that you don’t know what hit you. In today’s segment, people use their iPhones with Visa’s spiffy payWave service and pay to hit the New York Subway with their phones. Radical! source
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27 Jul 2010 22:28

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Biz: The Old Spice commercials were actually extremely successful

  • 27% the increase in Old Spice’s body-wash sales in the last six months
  • 55% the increase in sales in the last three months (thanks Isaiah Mustafa!)
  • 107% the increase in sales in the last month (thanks viral media blitz!) source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

20 Jun 2010 10:57

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U.S.: Kevin Costner’s “dream machine” ready to clean up lots of oil

  • At its core, my dream, this machine, was designed to give us a fighting chance to fight back the oil that has got us by the throat.… When you are in a fight, anybody knows you go to confront it right where it is. You don’t wait for it to come to your door.
  • Actor Kevin Costner • Unveiling the V20 device his company, Ocean Therapy Solutions, developed to separate oil from water. Unlike hay, Costner’s device could have a real impact on the spill if it works – each device is capable of separating about 210,000 gallons of oil from water per day, or 5,000 barrels of oil. He sold 32 of these devices to BP, meaning they could separate up to 160,000 barrels of oil per day. If this actually works, Kevin Costner will have totally made up for “The Postman.” source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

28 May 2010 14:18

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Tech: Some genius solved the “unlocking doors while drunk” problem

  • This brilliantly simple industrial design seems like the kind of thing that should already exist, but doesn’t. Why not shape the lock in a way that it guides your key to the right position? Hey, it worked for funnels. (Hat tip Daring Fireball) source
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16 May 2010 12:21

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U.S.: Hay, this guy is a genius: One solution for oil cleanup

  • This guy is either an alchemist or he’s come across a pretty amazing solution to cleaning up the massive oil spill. Florida resident Otis Goodson has been pitching this idea lately, and it’s been picking up a lot of attention. It got ours, too. Eco-friendly AND dead-simple. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 4 Comments • Permalink

10 Dec 2009 20:54

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World: Hungry for attention: Meet the cleverest bastard in India’s history

K. Chandrasekhar Rao starved himself for nearly two weeks in an attempt to get his region, Telangana, recognized as a separate Indian state. It worked. source
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05 Oct 2009 22:06

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Tech: This is how we produce all the fake photographs our site uses

PhotoSketch: Internet Image Montage from tao chen on Vimeo.

  • With technology this awesome, who needs the truth, anyway? The truth was just getting in the way of what everyone really wanted, which is awesome, beautiful photos. Photosketch grabs random labeled photos off the internet and throws them into simply-drawn shapes that you outline. The geniuses that made this now have a hit on them thanks to photojournalists everywhere.source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

16 Jun 2009 23:45

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Biz: Six Flags shows how to handle a bankruptcy/PR crisis well

  • Not only for the three plus years that I’ve been here, but really since Premier Parks bought Six Flags from Time Warner, the word ‘debt’ has been associated with the Six Flags name and we’re looking to disconnect that.
  • Six Flags CEO Mark Shapiro • Regarding the amusement park company’s decision to go into bankruptcy. Here’s why this quote is notable, guys. After we posted about their bankruptcy, the company got a hold of us and numerous other bloggers offering the opportunity to join in a conference call. (That’s right, specifically for bloggers!) We couldn’t take part ourselves, but many other bloggers did and asked some great questions. Best part? Rather than simply looking to sugarcoat the details, Shapiro was honest, detailed and often blunt. The company will not close any parks and was profitable last year, but hopes to ease out of bankruptcy by the end of the year. More companies need to do this. Seriously. • source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

01 May 2009 12:00

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Politics: Opinion: How do you become a genius? Work really, really hard.

  • The key factor separating geniuses from the merely accomplished is not a divine spark. It’s not I.Q., a generally bad predictor of success, even in realms like chess. Instead, it’s deliberate practice.
  • New York Times columnist David Brooks • On the spark that leads to genius – great amounts of work. He points, specifically, to Mozart and Tiger Woods, two who became leaders in their field because they put the work in to become leaders. • source
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