Today is the birthday (1941) of the late Don Van Vliet, aka Captain Beefheart, one of then most fascinating, confounding, and creative artists and musicians of the 20th century. Let's celebrate by taking a look at his 1969 record, Trout Mask Replica, widely regarded as a masterpiece of modern sound art.

And here's a bonus track. Imagine seeing this ad on late night television in 1970.

Read the rest

http://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/nyLLwsOE_T4/celebrating-captain-beefheart.html

Tom Gauld is one of my favorite cartoonists. (see my reviews of his previous books, Mooncop, You're All Just Jealous of my Jetpack, Goliath, and The Gigantic Robot).

I met him a couple of years ago and he gave me the pen he uses to draw his cartoons: the Pilot Precise V5 Roller Ball Stick Pen. It makes a very clean line, and Tom told me the ink does not fade, even after many years. Now that I've started sketching again (I post some of my sketches on my Instagram account), I was reminded of Tom's pen and reordered a box. Read the rest

http://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/45aksOFqhaw/heres-the-pen-cartoonist-tom.html

If you're working with databases, you're working with SQL. Even in the changing world of the web, there are some classics that endure, and SQL (along with its database management system MySQL) is one of them. Millions of websites and databases have been built using SQL code as their foundation, and they're still being built today.

Needless to say, it's a must for any serious coder. And there's no better way to get your feet wet than with this MySQL & SQL for Beginners course.

The lessons in the course let you get hands-on with SQL, letting you create your own database from the ground up. You'll then learn how to update it with new info and retrieve old data from it, then set up communications between your database and others.

Along the way, you'll move quickly from your first queries to the complex operations and transactions that power the networks of leading companies. By the final lesson, you'll also have learned how to keep that data safe while still accessible by those who need it on the fly.

Right now, lifetime access to the full course is on sale for 93% off the original cost. Read the rest

http://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/J7yZ1BPXwCc/this-13-courses-gives-you-mas.html

Turkey's ban on Wikipedia has been lifted, after today's official publication of a Constitutional Court ruling that the more than two-year block is a violation of freedom of expression.

Excerpt from Reuters:

The detailed version of the ruling published in the Official Gazette opened the way for an end to the ban, put in place in April 2017 due to entries that accused Turkey of having links to terrorist organizations.

Access to the website is set to be restored once the ruling, passed by a 10-to-six majority in the court, has been conveyed to the telecommunications watchdog.

Wikimedia Foundation, the nonprofit organization that hosts Wikipedia, had applied to Turkey’s highest court to challenge the block.

Read more: Turkey ban on Wikipedia lifted after court ruling [reuters.com/January 14, 2020 / 9:32 PM] Read the rest

http://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/P_pc53VaijU/wikipedia-ban-lifted-by-turkey.html

If you or someone you know is a US-based student interested in attending conferences such as Investigative Reporters and Editors, The National Institute for Computer-Assisted Reporting, or National Association of Black Journalists and National Association of Hispanic Journalists, then you should consider applying for Propublica's Diversity Scholarship program, which offers $750 bursaries "to students who would otherwise be unable to attend," especially "people of color, women, LGBTQ people and people with disabilities." Read the rest

http://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/oVTC4nY-zJI/750-bucks.html

http://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/608zN-wabWI/playlist-for-when-you-leave-yo.html

Everyone is pissed.

In Mexico City, many people who travel on the subway system blame authorities for the many broken escalators at train stops. Metro officials blame something else: “vast amounts of pee,” reports A-Pee.

Nobody's clear exactly how it happens, but human urine, in really large amounts, is “penetrating and corroding the drive wheels and mechanisms of the escalators that carry riders up from underground stations,” AP reports:

In a list published Tuesday, the Metro system listed “corrosion due to urine” as one of the top five causes of escalator breakdowns. Fermin Ramirez, the system’s assistant manager for rails and facilities, said riders appear to be urinating on escalators at off-peak hours and lightly used stations, “even though it seems hard to believe.”

“When we open up escalators for maintenance, there is always urine,” Ramirez said. Most stations have no public bathroom facilities, a fact Twitter users were quick to point out, noting there are not even any pay toilets.

Of the system’s 467 escalators, 22 are out of service on any given day.

The biggest problem, subway authorities admit, is that the many escalators are old, or have been damaged by rough use.

Mexico city plans to replace about 55 escalators over the next two years.

Read more: Mexico City subway says pee causes escalator breakdowns Read the rest

http://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/Q4t-0HfB0GY/mexico-city-escalator-breakdow.html

Last year, McMansion Hell (previously) inaugurated its annual gingerbread McMansion competition, inviting America's bakers to challenge themselves to build the largest, most ostentatious, most ill-conceived McMansion in gingerbread form.

This year's competition entries are even more glorious in their excess and (delicious) bad taste, with top marks for Erin E's "Simply Having a Wonderful Building Crime": "with the garage that is so far detached it makes the front door totally irrelevant…it’s a castle of grand sadness. The Pete Buttigieg sign is the literal icing on top."

Project description: This home Defies the Ordinary. Located on a 2.3 acre lot, you’ll be the envy of all your neighbors–and can watch from the top of the turret to be sure they’re suitably jealous! Enjoy sitting al fresco under the portico above the garage, or on the hand-laid M&M stone patio! The two-story entryway accounts for just a few of the more than 60 sugar glass windows! All of the walls join up exactly where the architect expected them to, and no windows were covered up on accident!!!

Constructed over two weeks, out of ten pounds of flour, four pounds of powdered sugar, and more than half a gallon of corn syrup, this modest four-story house will surely stand the test of time. It’s been meticulously decorated with royal icing vines, wreaths, and Christmas lights, and landscaped with gingerbread boulders, definitely-naturally-this-green icing grass, and coconut macaroon topiary. The roof stands at 17 inches high, and is crafted from waffle cookie shingles over gingerbread rafters.

http://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/Mz6jt1sK5dA/delicious-bad-taste.html

http://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/P-BMjzrUjQE/indianas-oldest-state-emplo.html

This is some pretty amazing and highly rare video -- seldom do you get footage of five, count 'em FIVE, California mountain lions all hanging out together. The big cats were captured on home surveillance video, in a rare gathering of the typically solitary critters.

“We shared the videos and photos with several of our wildlife biologists and none of them could recall ever seeing five mountain lions together in the same photo or video," said California Department of Fish and Wildlife spokesperson Peter Tira.

KTXL News broadcast this home surveillance video footage from a residence in Amador County.

Excerpt:

According to the biologists, the only time more than one mountain lion can be seen together is either during the mating season or when a mother is raising her cubs, but typically only three at most are seen together. “Extraordinary to capture five together for sure,” Tira told FOX40. “There’s one lion that clearly looks to be bigger and larger than the others, so we assume that to be the mother lion.”

Tira said mountain lions, also known as cougars, typically live solitary lives. During the mating season, two adults will meet but Tira said January is not mating season. “They’re not very tolerant of other mountain lions in their territories,” Tira said.

According to Tira, the other lions are likely the mother’s cubs but he does not believe all of them are from the same litter. “Potentially could be two different age classes, some yearlings and maybe a 2-year-old lion that she may have had earlier,” he said.

http://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/NJBwnG_ZRKM/video-5-california-mountain-l.html

“In one notable instance, a saleswoman filed a lawsuit in 1997 alleging that when she told Bloomberg she was pregnant, his response was, 'Kill it.'”

Mike Bloomberg is running for President of the United States as a Democrat this year. He has long been accused by former employees of maintaining a hostile working environment, in particular toward women.

Allegations that Okay Bloomer has made inappropriate comments toward women and that his company, Bloomberg LP, fostered a hostile environment for female employees are the subject of a clip from ABC's The View that went viral today.

“Did I ever tell a bawdy joke? Yeah, sure I did. And do I regret it? Yes. It’s embarrassing,” Bloomberg, who is 77, said on ABC’s “The View” this morning.

“But, you know, that’s the way I grew up.”'

Uh.

Okay.

Reuters:

Bloomberg did not refer to specific jokes. ABC News reported in December that it had obtained a copy of a 32-page booklet distributed at a party in 1990 that included off-color and sexist remarks by Bloomberg reportedly compiled by his colleagues. The same report chronicled numerous discrimination lawsuits filed against the company over the last three decades.

Bloomberg LP is a major provider of financial information for Wall Street firms. Bloomberg said his company has “very few” cases of sexual harassment given its large size.

“I think most people would say we’re a great place to work. At least I hope so. I can tell you that’s what I try to do,” he said.

http://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/iggtTpbFIus/on-the-view-mike-bloomber.html

Tara Houska, an attorney and Indigenous rights activist, was going through TSA security at Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport when a Transportation Security Administration (TSA) told Houska she would need to have her braids patted down as a security precaution, reports Fox News.

"She pulled them behind my shoulders, laughed [and] said ‘giddy up!’ as she snapped my braids like reins," Houska said on Twitter. "My hair is part of my spirit. I am a Native woman. I am angry, humiliated. Your 'fun' hurt."

Going through @TSA at @mspairport, the agent said she needed to pat down my braids. She pulled them behind my shoulders, laughed & said “giddyup!” as she snapped my braids like reins.

My hair is part of my spirit. I am a Native woman. I am angry, humiliated. Your “fun” hurt.

 tara houska (@zhaabowekwe) January 13, 2020

When Houska informed the agent that her actions were dehumanizing and disrespectful, the agent explained that she was having "fun."

Federal Security Director Cliff Van Leuven sais Houska's description of the incident was accurate. From Fox News:

"Did it actually happen? Yes. Exactly as described? Yes," Federal Security Director Cliff Van Leuven said, per KARE 11. "I apologized for how she was treated during the screening of her braids — and we had a very pleasant conversation.

“She reiterated that she doesn't want the Officer to get in trouble, but she is hoping we'll take the chance to continue to educate our staff about the many Native American Tribes/Bands in our state and region to better understand their culture,” Van Leuven added.

http://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/XDlG7NxpQmo/tsa-officer-grabbed-native-ame.html

It's official.

NASA and NOAA report today that 2019 was Earth's hottest year in recorded history. Excerpt from the joint January 15, 2020 announcement:

Earth's global surface temperatures in 2019 ranked second-warmest since 1880, according to independent analyses by NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Global temperatures in 2019 were 2 degrees Fahrenheit (1.1 degrees Celsius) warmer than the late 19th century, according to scientists at NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) in New York. 2019's temperatures were second only to those of 2016 and continued the planet'slong-term warming trend: the five warmest years on the instrumental record have been the five last years.

More from NASA and NOAA, and the climate science team at Goddard Space Flight Center:

According to independent analyses by NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Earth's global surface temperatures in 2019 were the second warmest since modern recordkeeping began in 1880.

Globally, 2019 temperatures were second only to those of 2016 and continued the planet's long-term warming trend: the past five years have been the warmest of the last 140 years.

This past year, they were 1.8 degrees Fahrenheit (0.98 degrees Celsius) warmer than the 1951 to 1980 mean, according to scientists at NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) in New York.

“The decade that just ended is clearly the warmest decade on record,” said GISS Director Gavin Schmidt. “Every decade since the 1960s clearly has been warmer than the one before.”

Since the 1880s, the average global surface temperature has risen and the average temperature is now more than 2 degrees Fahrenheit (a bit more than 1 degree Celsius) above that of the late 19th century.

http://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/LyZLan3AFZg/climate-crisis-2019-was-hotte.html

A homeless man has undergone surgery and is in serious condition after a city cleanup truck in Dublin grabbed and lifted the man's tent with a mechanical claw in the middle of the day – while he was sleeping inside of it.

Apparently, the city wanted to "tidy up" the canal, and decided to clear the homeless tents alongside it. They supposedly checked inside the tents before snagging them, but even if that's true, they obviously missed this one.

According to CNN:

The unnamed man was injured when workers from Waterways Ireland, the body responsible for maintaining Ireland's rivers and canals, cleared a walkway along a canal in the Irish capital.

"A man (age unknown) was sleeping in his tent when it was being removed in an attempt to tidy the canal walk way," local police said in a statement. "The man received injuries during this incident and was removed to St. Vincent's Hospital where he remains in serious condition but stable."

According to Dublin City Council, the incident happened on Tuesday afternoon, when workers "were removing tents that were placed in a precarious and dangerous location."

A spokesman for Waterways Ireland said the body is "cooperating fully" with police investigating the incident, adding that "our thoughts are very much with the individual who was involved."

This isn't the first time something like this has happened. In December 2017 a homeless person was nearly killed after being picked up and tossed into a San Diego trash truck, as told by The San Diego Union-Tribune. Read the rest

http://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/L9mJzNoB7EI/homeless-man-seriously-injured.html

Follow @artist_munda on TikTok to see his amazing work sculpting realistic clay heads.

Skills from r/BeAmazed

//embed.redditmedia.com/widgets/platform.js Read the rest

http://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/KJgaNMpUhFU/look-at-this-artist-sculpt-a-h.html

Slate compiled a list of the 30 most evil companies in tech, starting with Mspy (#30) all the way up to Amazon (#1). I weighed in on Oracle (#17, "It takes a lot to make me feel like Google is being victimized by a bully, but Oracle managed it") and Apple (#6, "Apple won’t spy on you for ads, but they’ll help the Chinese government spy on its citizens to keep its supply chain intact").

As a companion piece, I wrote "Against the Cult of Apple" for Slate, where I discuss how the intangible asset of a customer base that believes that buying products from a trillion-dollar monopolist makes them members of an oppressed religious minority allows the company to escape criticism for a wide range of deeply unethical conduct, from its sabotage of the repair and recycling movement to its overseas labor practices to its tax-dodging to its monopolistic strong-arming of software authors.

In 2017, the Chinese government banned the distribution of virtual private networks—which are supposed to keep web browsing private and secure—insisting that they be replaced with VPNs with known back doors to allow the Chinese state to capture and analyze VPN traffic. That summer, Apple removed all working VPNs from its App Store in China. Concerned about this move, Senators Ted Cruz and Patrick Leahy sent a letter to Apple saying the company “may be enabling the Chinese government’s censorship and surveillance of the Internet.” A year later, we learned that consequences of Chinese state surveillance was anything but abstract.

http://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/fJeF4fKgF0Y/sell-sugar-water.html

I wasn't expecting to learn much from this video about 25 useful Japanese words because I thought I would know them all, but there were quite a few that were new to me:

uso (no way!) chicchai (tiny and cute) harahetta (I'm starving) dekai (huge) umai (tasty, more casual than oishii) majide (you're not joking?) dasai (uncool) kakkoii (cool or attractive) sugei (incredible) tsukareta (I'm exhausted) Read the rest

http://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/PZnk5-1rHSY/25-useful-japanese-words-for-e.html

Some extra-planetary Caltech news to take your mind off Earth

Reports Caltech: “A rare asteroid orbiting snugly within the inner confines of our solar system has been discovered by Caltech's Zwicky Transient Facility, or ZTF, a survey camera based at Palomar Observatory. The newfound body, named 2020 AV2, is the first asteroid found to orbit entirely within the orbit of Venus.”

More from the Caltech media announcement, which hit the wires around 11AM Pacific/2PM Eastern:

"Getting past the orbit of Venus must have been challenging," says George Helou, executive director of the IPAC astronomy center at Caltech and a ZTF co-investigator, who explains that the asteroid must have migrated in toward Venus from farther out in the solar system. "The only the way it will ever get out of its orbit is if it gets flung out via a gravitational encounter with Mercury or Venus, but more likely it will end up crashing on one of those two planets."

2020 AV2 belongs to a small class of asteroids known as Atiras, which are bodies with orbits that fall within the orbit of Earth. More specifically, it is the first "Vatira" asteroid, with the "V" standing for Venus. Vatira asteroids, which were only hypothesized until now, have orbits that fall entirely inside the orbit of Venus.

The ZTF camera is particularly adept at finding asteroids because it scans the entire sky rapidly and thus can catch the asteroids during their short-lived appearances in the night sky. Because Vatiras orbit so close to our sun, they are only visible at dusk or dawn.

http://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/yLy-NLSNnU4/first-asteroid-found-inside-or.html

How do rice cookers know when rice has been cooked? The host of Technology Connections explains. Read the rest

http://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/w5OAUKqH5aU/how-an-automatic-rice-cooker-w.html

If you're looking for a fun (but dangerous - wear gloves and eye protection!!) science experiment to do at home, here's a good one. Simply stir drain cleaner (98% sulfuric acid) into some sugar, and watch as it turns into a black monstrous blob that pushes its way out of the glass.

The science behind it? From ThoughtCo:

The sulfuric acid removes water from the sugar in a highly exothermic reaction, releasing heat, steam, and sulfur oxide fumes. Aside from the sulfurous odor, the reaction smells a lot like caramel. The white sugar turns into a black carbonized tube that pushes itself out of the beaker.

Sugar is a carbohydrate, so when you remove the water from the molecule, you're basically left with elemental carbon. The dehydration reaction is a type of elimination reaction.

C12H22O11 (sugar) + H2SO4 (sulfuric acid) -> 12 C (carbon) + 11 H2O (water) + mixture water and acid

Although the sugar is dehydrated, the water isn't 'lost' in the reaction. Some of it remains as a liquid in the acid. Since the reaction is exothermic, much of the water is boiled off as steam.

http://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/-rMnBgkTAyA/watch-add-drain-cleaner-to-su.html