Fathom this! In: Words spoken, echoes heard

The mystery of Kaspar Hauser

noemail@noemail.org (Ilya) — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 01:10:37 +0200

The mystery of Kaspar Hauser. An intriguing tale, found via a Quora thread on the most gripping tales of human history.

Visualizing The Networked City: Light painting WiFi

noemail@noemail.org (Ilya) — Tue, 01 Mar 2011 16:29:39 +0200

Visualizing The Networked City: Light painting WiFi.

The ethical implications of charitable giving

noemail@noemail.org (Ilya) — Thu, 11 Nov 2010 16:24:40 +0200

The ethical implications of charitable giving. Awesome illustration/animation accompanying philosopher Slavoj Zizek's thoughts.

Cockatoo Island at the 17th Sydney Biennale

noemail@noemail.org (Ilya) — Wed, 27 Oct 2010 08:49:05 +0200

Cockatoo Island at the 17th Sydney Biennale. Really amazing stuff!

Last Minutes with Oden

noemail@noemail.org (Ilya) — Mon, 25 Oct 2010 21:23:00 +0200

Last Minutes with Oden. A six-minute documentary.

Units of measurement

noemail@noemail.org (Ilya) — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 10:39:50 +0200

Units of measurement.

Tips for Better Ideas

noemail@noemail.org (Ilya) — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 08:49:22 +0200

Tips for Better Ideas. A neat little inspirational video.

Gel Videos: Ted Dewan

noemail@noemail.org (Ilya) — Wed, 20 May 2009 09:37:00 +0200

Gel Videos: Ted Dewan. "Cars drove dangerously fast on Ted's residential street in Oxford, England -- until he began installing activist art on the street. It brought the community together (even the mayor got on board), slowed the traffic, and improved the experience for everyone involved."

The forgotten tunnel under Brooklyn

noemail@noemail.org (Ilya) — Tue, 24 Feb 2009 21:59:49 +0200

A Diamond Below: “Unbeknownst to the thousands of people who walk and drive along the busy streets of downtown Brooklyn every day, they are treading on a 170 year old secret. At 17 feet high, 21 feet wide and 1,611 feet long, it is a big secret indeed, and one filled with greed, murder and corruption.” Yet another place to visit! Via Kuutio.

A room filled with dirt

noemail@noemail.org (Ilya) — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 20:26:03 +0200

I want to see this in person.

Newcomb's paradox

noemail@noemail.org (Ilya) — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 01:08:22 +0200

Newcomb’s paradox. A strange look at a hypothetical situation of whether or not to trust a “fortune teller”. Via Mikolas.

HS: Jos Suomi olisi suostunut syksyllä 1939…

noemail@noemail.org (Ilya) — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 21:20:37 +0200

Helsingin Sanomien Kuukausiliitteen arkistoista: Jos Suomi olisi suostunut syksyllä 1939…

Comeau's I am other people

noemail@noemail.org (Ilya) — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 12:06:16 +0200

I am other people is Joey Comeau’s new project. The first interviewee is Ryan North, creator of Dinosaur Comics.

Big Ideas (don’t get any)

noemail@noemail.org (Ilya) — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 21:21:32 +0200

Big Ideas (don’t get any). Radiohead as played by… well, watch it! Via Aleksi.

Jaw-dropping Photosynth demo

noemail@noemail.org (Ilya) — Fri, 07 Sep 2007 17:16:19 +0200

Jaw-dropping Photosynth demo. Video of Blaise Aguera y Arcas's TED presentation. Wow.

I like Emily's afro

noemail@noemail.org (Ilya) — Mon, 27 Aug 2007 19:32:26 +0200

Emily had an afro is Aric Allen’s poetry-slash-blog-thing. I like it.

Peculiarly Auxiliary Wisdom

noemail@noemail.org (Ilya) — Sun, 04 Dec 2005 01:50:47 +0200

Never being
a big reader of Jorn’s Robot Wisdom (yet knowing who he is
and respecting his work) I find myself
peculiarly fascinated by his Auxiliary Wisdom. So away
you and visit his excessories

Commodore's unsung history

noemail@noemail.org (Ilya) — Wed, 02 Nov 2005 04:37:45 +0200

The Spectacular Rise and Fall of Commodore is a fascinating read. Well, the first sample chapter is (pdf version also available). There’s also excerpts of chapters 12 and 19. Via Retromania.

Portrait of the Blogger still a great read

noemail@noemail.org (Ilya) — Fri, 28 Oct 2005 12:32:48 +0200

Julian Dibbell’s Portrait of the Blogger as a Young Man is over five years old, but it’s still a great read.

Paul Ford writes novel

noemail@noemail.org (Ilya) — Sun, 23 Oct 2005 19:15:28 +0200

And what a backstory there is to it: Paul Ford started writing a column under a fake persona, and scored a book deal. I’m buying the book today. I have not kept up with the author of a long-time favorite Website of mine.

Project Aardvark

noemail@noemail.org (Ilya) — Mon, 04 Jul 2005 17:37:12 +0200

I’ve enjoyed reading the Project Aardvark weblog. Fogcreek’s idea is great: four interns create a working, saleable software product in the course of one summer. Last Friday, they finally revealed their product.

Unimagineable

noemail@noemail.org (Ilya) — Fri, 20 May 2005 17:52:38 +0200

There’s something mesmerizing about this. He sure loves SNL and celebrities.

Robert Evans meets Andrew Blake

noemail@noemail.org (Ilya) — Wed, 18 May 2005 22:23:07 +0200

Robert Evans, the subject of the most stupefying bio I’ve ever read, meets the “Helmut Newton of porn,” Andrew Blake. A great read. Very Thompsonesque.

Jordan: New Spring

noemail@noemail.org (Ilya) — Thu, 28 Apr 2005 15:25:20 +0200

I can’t believe I’m admitting to reading Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time series. Let alone reading New Spring, a friggin’ prequel to the ten novels already published. Well, my name is Ilya, and I’m a fantasy reader. There, I’ve said it. Yes, I’m a fantasy reader, though I hope my reading list shows that I don’t read fantasy exclusively. In fact, about a year and a half ago, I found that I couldn’t stomach most fantasy novels. Ever since, I’ve half-joked that “real literature” has ruined me for fantasy. But back to Jordan. New Spring felt nicely familiar, like visiting Grandma’s. I can’t help it: I liked it. I am a little miffed, though, that Jordan is writing prequels instead finishing off the Wheel of Time series. I’d like to finish that and be over with it. There is only one fantasy series that I’d ever recommend non-fantasy junkies to read: George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire (the fourth book is still under progress).

Vonnegut: The Sirens of Titan

noemail@noemail.org (Ilya) — Thu, 28 Apr 2005 15:06:54 +0200

Unlike most Vonnegut novels, I actually had a hard time getting into The Sirens of Titan. Maybe it was because it is one of his early works, maybe because it was a British edition, which was set in a horrible Bodoni-style font. I managed to finish The Sirens (no feat at all, of course, I always finish the books I start), and it was okay. Not as good as Galapagos (a low book of Vonnegut’s — despite the deeply resonant ideas it revolved around), but better than Vonnegut’s early short stories collected in Welcome to the Monkey House.