musings from the sleep deprived

And here we go again with another week’s worth of fun reading…

• International border visible from space (nasa)
• Hilarious generic tech recruiter letter (blog)
• TWO player bomb defusing game. Lovely idea. (arstechnica)
• Math is hard, mmmm’kay? (nature)
• Fallout4 S.P.E.C.I.A.L. videos (youtube)
• I’m afraid I don’t have anything to say about this. (guardian)
• Elephant genetics! (discover)
• Gene patents (arstechnica)
• View the Milky Way in many wavelengths! (chromoscope)
• Android TV from nVidia (arstechnica)
• Vulnerabilities in bitcoin (motherboard)

This week’s links!

I should mention, though perhaps for some it goes without saying, that I don’t necessarily agree with all of the things I’m pointing to here. In fact, I’d go so far as to say some of them are just blatantly wrong. However, I point them out because they are interesting reading. Your own brain is going to have to reach its own conclusions about the veracity of the article, its source(s) and whether what they purport should influence your own thinking or opinions. I’m not an expert on (ok, most of) these topics. You may be. If you want heated debate, we can take that up over a beer. In the meantime, I’m just going to throw stuff out there for your amusement, and leave it up to you whether you elect to consume this fare or not. Enjoy…
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Ok, so this is awesome. Yeah, sure, we all get spam email all the time. This one, however, caught my eye for no good reason I can think of. Once I read it all the way through, I saved it for posterity’s sake. Also, this is probably only going to be funny to those who know of TrippyMUSH. Here is the email, with bits knocked out to protect … well, me, probably.

Greetings,

My name is xxxxxx xxxxxxx, and I would like to present you with a business opportunity that offers the potential for considerable earnings.

I work for a privately held manufacturing company, which currently purchases a specific product vital to its processing operations at a price significantly above the manufacturing cost. In my proposed business venture, you would act as a stand-in supplier, providing this key material while retaining the same profit margins. My role would be to introduce you to my company as the supplier and to obtain a contract between you and my employer.

I understand that your experience with TrippyMUSH Inc doesn’t directly relate to my field. However, this venture is more in line with your personal capabilities rather than your professional experience.

I would like to confirm your current phone number xxx-xxx-xxxx. Please send a return email to verify your contact number and to schedule the most convenient time to discuss these possibilities in detail. I look forward to speaking with you soon.

Kindest Regards,

Awesomesauce. Pure … awesomesauce. Ok, maybe its only funny to me. Who knows.

In the World of Warcraft, they have these non-combat pets that are cute and that obediently follow you wherever you may roam. I’ve been addicted to getting them for some time, even some of the harder to obtain ones, like Mr.Pinchy. Read more

Nope. Try again. Read more

So, I ordered posters from Despair, Inc for my team for the Holidays. This site is just great. However, I was not quite prepared for the email I received when they initially processed my order. I simply could not stop laughing. Decidedly without permission, I repost almost the entirety of that for your perusal below… Read more

So on quiet nights at work, when we do have them (maybe one a week), I try to catch up on links people have sent me, or poke around finding something interesting online. One recent such link was Clublife, the blog of a bouncer from a swanky NYC club. Read more

A gentleman approaches the White House gate one day, and tells the guard, “I’m here to see President Bush”. The guard replies, “I’m sorry, sir … but he no longer works here. He’s no longer President.” The man thanks him, and goes on his way.

The following day, the same man approaches the same guard, and once again asks to see President Bush. The guard, now a bit confused says “Sir, I’m sorry, but you can’t … he’s not the President anymore, and isn’t here”. Once again, the man thanks the guard, and goes on his way.

So on the third day, when the same man once again approaches the same guard again, the guard questions a bit more. When the man asks to see President Bush again, the guard says, “Look, I’m not sure what your problem is, but as I’ve told you the past few days, you can’t see him!”.

The man smiles, and quietly says, “Oh yes, I know … I just really like hearing it”.

The guard salutes the man, “See you tomorrow”.