Hi,
Over at the Washington Post there was an article that drove me crazy
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/08/08/AR2008080802919_pf.html
Indonesia is claiming “viral sovereignty” over the bird flu. Yep, it’s claiming that since the virus samples are found in the country, Indonesia owns the virus (?) You have to be kidding me.
They are pretty serious about this and are challenging nearly every attempt by others to do anything with the virus. So if they find a cure does this mean that their Intellectual Property goes down the tube? What if you get it? Do they sue you for unlicensed infection?
Their argument is that the dodgy claim that a US medical research facility is trying to use the virus not to create a cure, but to create biological weapons.
It’s basing this claim of “viral sovereignty” on the same ridiculous patent rules that allow a country to claim “ownership” and patents over indigenous plants (oh yes. I am not making this up. I wish I was).
Read the article and shake your head in disbelief.
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OK let’s move on, over at GOOD magazine is an amazing interactive map that documents “history’s greatest journeys,” including trips from travellers like Amelia Earhart, Ken Kesey, Columbus, and Jack Kerouac
“When Spain commissioned Ferdinand Magellan to find a westward route to the Spice Islands in 1519, the explorer commanded five ships and 240 men. Six years later, nearly every member of the expedition, including its commander, was dead. When the American writer Jack Kerouac tried in 1951 to find the words to convey his wayward journey through the United States and Mexico, he commanded a typewriter and a massive stash of Benzedrine. After a few weeks, the first draft of On the Road was completed. These are just two of the journeys that have left indelible marks on our collective maps, and are endless sources of fascination. Here is compilation of some of the most famous jaunts of all time-both factual and fictional-that show us how far we’ve come, and where we might go next.”
A great little timewaster and a great find of a magazine.
http://awesome.goodmagazine.com/features/011/Wanderlust/
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This is a nifty Impediment. I am always on the look out for new ways to listen to music. Web-based service 8tracks lets people remix 30-minute MP3 playlists for personal listening or sharing with friends. 8tracks offers the ability to add artwork and information about the mix itself.
Why 8tracks? A short playlist containing around 30 minutes will be roughly 8 tracks of music.
Cool site. http://8tracks.com/
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It’s time for our “Duggup was a lot of fun this week” bit. Jools wrote up a killer English folk duo called “Show Of Hands”, listen to their song Roots. Bloody Brilliant. My favourite this week was a toss up between “Nomo” and “Me and The Grown Ups.” I can’t decide, head over to http://duggup.com.au/ have a listen and let me know what you think.
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Flash Game Dept: Impediments to Productivity is a the name at the top and it’s Monday so lets bring capitalism to it’s knees (unless you happen to be one of my clients in which case this one is blocked at the firewall.. Just kidding).
Guitar Shred Show follows the escapades of Mr. Fastfinger, a superior shredder with a gravelly voice who battles dwarves, whales and demons playing accordion. Ok, it sounds weird (it is) but this is part Flash game, part guitar lesson series, and a ton of fun! Don’t miss the Lesson & Jam at the Mountain of the Tapping Dwarves ( I am so not making this up). You’ll find yourself creating a live shredding solo with the keyboard from some really nifty guitar samples.
http://www.guitarshredshow.com/main.html
For those of you who don’t know what shredding is, try
http://duggup.com.au/2008/08/12/dragonforce-through-the-fire-and-flames/
It will all become clear. Trust Me.
Well that’s enough for this week. Hopefully there will be a more reliable publishing schedule in the weeks to come. Have a good one.
thatch
{Currently listening to Show Of Hands and Dragonforce }
{Currently reading: Still with Sherri S Tepper, doing the Mavin books}
{Quick Status Check: TCP Stacks and SMTP servers, Hell is looking pretty good.}
{Crop Circle Status: The total for August was 21 and Eastfield seems to be having a good year.
http://www.cropcircleconnector.com/2008/2008.html }