A couple of weeks ago, an interesting comment popped up in one of our posts. On Tuesday, January 25th, we wrote (as countless other blogs did) about that morning’s Oscar nominations — the snubs, the surprises, etc. The next day, this comment from “ANGA” appeared: “Claims in the film Gasland have been widely documented to be untrue. See the investigative documents for yourself here,” followed by the URL for a “truth about Gasland” page. Here’s what’s interesting about that comment: all we did in the post was mention Gasland — we listed it, among the Best Documentary nominees, without comment.
At risk of getting ourselves mixed up in this controversy over the accuracy of Gasland, we will merely note that we’ve seen the film and it seemed awfully convincing to us; that Fox has responded to each of the claims being lobbed against him; and that ANGA is a high-profile natural gas company which certainly benefits from Fox’s reportage coming into question. The fact that they have the resources to troll the Internet and comment on blogs that so much as mention the film gives you some idea of what a documentary filmmaker is going up against when taking on big targets like this.
Ever wondered how your favorite artist gets their work done? No, we mean, exactly how. As in, if we use the same pen Hemingway used, and the same kind of paper, and at the same time of day, maybe we’ll… nevermind. Regardless of pen type, there is something fascinating about the artist’s desk, and like anything else, everyone will draw their own far-reaching conclusions. In particular, it seems like everyone has their own opinion about what the state of someone’s workspace “means,” and we guess it has more to do with what the adage-makers own desks looked like than anything else. Whether a cluttered desk means a cluttered mind, or whether a cluttered desk just means a cluttered desk, or whether a messy desk is a sign of genius, we don’t know. But be their desks cluttered or clean, these creative people are definitely on this side of brilliant. Indulge in some harmless voyeurism and sneak a peek at the desks and workspaces of writers, artists, and thinkers. Then, it’s time to redecorate.
By now, we’re sure you’ve heard today’s juiciest morsel of gossip: Al and Tipper Gore are splitting up after a whopping 40 years of marriage. Of course, this is shocking, and on a personal level, we’re sad for the couple and their children. But it also kind of makes sense to us. Let’s admit something to ourselves: for a few years now, Al has been a little too cool for Tipper. He “invented the Internet,” launched youth-oriented Current TV, and made us all care about global warming. Meanwhile, Tipper remains best known for co-founding the Parents Music Research Council, an organization that has spent the past 25 years trying to censor your music. With that in mind, we’ve made a mixtape featuring ten of Tipper’s least favorite bands. In our fantasy, Al will blast these songs in a (hybrid) convertible while cruising for a new mate.
Brian Alfred makes colorful paintings, cut-paper collages, and animated videos that explore the power, influence, and conflict portrayed in mass media.
Sampling images like a DJ uses tracks, Alfred digitally alters photographs of revolutionaries, visionaries, and sites of upheaval to construct a body of work that celebrates flatness, while subliminally promoting social change. From portraits of Al Gore to imagined views of Attica, Alfred projects a pared-down world of new possibilities.
Analyze Words is a new and super useful tool for determining other people’s personalities via their posts on Twitter. Developed by James W. Pennebaker, a University of Texas Professor of Psychology, along with his daughter Teal, Roger Booth and Chris Wilson, the program analyzes tweets based on not the “content words” but rather the “style words” — like articles and prepositions — to determine the mental state of the author.
Basically this means that you can plug in anyone’s Twitter handle — including your own — and watch it ranked in Emotional Style, Social Style and Thinking Style. We’ve been playing with this for hours. After the jump, check out some of our favorite tweet analyses of famous people.
In honor of National Beard Month (and Movember, though we’re focusing on actual beards — get your mustachioed fix here), men all over the US are growing out their facial hair. Since we can’t grow our collective beards on the internet, we are celebrating with our list of the fifteen scariest (and famous!) beards of all time — not that we’re pogonophobes! Oh no, more like geniophobes.
For your listening pleasure as you peruse, please download “Beard Lust” by Natalie Portman’s Shaved Head.
