That wayward Soyuz capsule ferrying crew from the International Space Station entered the atmosphere HATCH END FIRST burning off the radio antennas and pointing the heat shield and retro rockets in the wrong direction!

Holy crap!

Despite the harrowing entry, the capsule somehow did not incinerate on reentry (w00t!) but landed hundreds of miles off course with no working radios and had a very rough landing.

Fortunately, all three crewmembers, American Peggy Whitson, Korean Yi So-yeon, and Russian Yuri Malenchenko were safe.

But then there is this... (HT Rand Simberg)

The Russians chastised the crew for not radioing...(I refer you to the 'melted off antennas' bit) and....as a precaution to ensure that this sort of thing never happens again...

" "You know in Russia, there are certain bad omens about this sort of thing, but thank God that everything worked out successfully,'' he said. "Of course in the future, we will work somehow to ensure that the number of women will not surpass'the number of men.  "

Saydowhahuh?

So the problems have been identified as Peggy Whitson, who was the first female commander of the ISS and currently has the American record for number of cumulative hours in space and Yi So-yeon who is the first Korean in Space.


Oh good....I was worried they'd waste money on something silly like the attitude control system or GPS...but that was no doubt my cynical nature talking.





^{An accurate representation of what female astronauts reentering the atmosphere do not look like.}
      
.

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 09:11 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
Post contains 257 words, total size 2 kb.

Not much in the way of posting for a bit....but to celebrate the licensing of Gurren Laggan, here is a pic of Yoko to tide you over....

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 09:49 PM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
Post contains 29 words, total size 1 kb.

I'm really busy studying for exams.
I would hate to get expelled.

However, with that in mind,something has come up that requires comment.

Fortunately Pixy is doing a fine job of it, as is Matoko San.

I have not seen the film so I have little to add except to say that ID is pernicuiously, malignantly wrong. It is not merely stupid and wrong, it is corrosively antiscience.

Yes the evangelical atheists are vile and obnoxious and bigoted...how did the producers decide to get that point across? By making  jerkwads like Dawkins look good.

Congratulations...you've cunningly picked an issue (I'm talking about IDiocy of course) where they are unequivocally right....BEULLLER!!!???

The filmakers allegedly make a point about left leaning influence of grants and political correctness.
Congratulations ein Stein....you've attached yourself to an issue where you are utterly wrong.



This film plays to the worst stereotypes that the left spreads about the right, empowers the condescending jackasses  like Obama and Dawkins and  it  is  immorally anti-science.

I've got morons on my team.

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 09:35 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 173 words, total size 2 kb.

Just make sure you read the whole thing.

Oh and Mr. Cavett, you were indeed aptly named.

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 03:45 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 25 words, total size 1 kb.

more...

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 11:50 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
Post contains 381 words, total size 3 kb.

China has reportedly renamed the former Russian Carrier Varyag, * the Shi Lang.

Shi Lang was the Chinese Admiral who captured Taiwan.

More Chicom CV rumors here.


Varyag was purchased unfinished with the stated intention of turning it into a floating hotel/casino/ entertainment center....but 'somehow' ended up at a naval base painted in P.L.A.N. Grey with naval technicians swarming over her.

* I can't find a primary source on this.But this thread and the Wikipedia entry list Janes AtWFS 2008.
 

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 10:36 PM | Comments (12) | Add Comment
Post contains 86 words, total size 1 kb.

47 years ago a human being first entered Earth orbit.

In 8 years the human race went from one low furtive orbit to landing on another celestial body. The difference between the low orbits of Vostok and Mercury and what  was required to get to the moon was vast. The difference in energy between getting to the Moon and getting to Mars, Ceres, or any of the other worlds this side of Jupiter is actually quite small. The solar system was open planets and moons beckoned and the future seemed to have arrived!

Now, 47 years after one man wen where no one had ever gone before we have, instead of SIX FLAGS ON THE MOON...six flags...on the moon. surrounded by the footprints of the only twelve to walk on its surface.

47 years later we do send several people a year into space. They are confined to low earth orbit just as Gagarin was. there are plans to return, but it is pointed out that it will take more than a decade more to do what was done in 8 years from scratch 39 years ago.

  In 1968, Hollywood imagined the year 2001 to be one of casual space travel with huge moon cities, massive Space stations and the ability to send people as far afield as Jupiter. Given the rate of progress to that point this was seen as utterly reasonable. And yet....


The reason often given is that we have too many problems here.

That was the reason given by the bureaucrats of the Ming Dynasty when they decommissioned  Zheng Hu's treasure fleet  which had massively stimulated trade commerce and cultural exchange. The results of that unenlightened decision were rather unfortunate for the nation whose bureaucrats made it but it consolidated their power in the short span of their petty, venal lives so they no doubt thought it was a wise move.

A rather more eloquent set of refutations for this sad attempt at an argument can be found here.



 With that in mind, tonight we reject these visionless Mandarins as people all over the world celebrate the first instance of a human leaving out atmosphere and entering orbit.

  As an added bonus, he future has been long in coming, but its finally getting here.

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 08:43 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
Post contains 380 words, total size 3 kb.

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 11:18 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 7 words, total size 1 kb.

Though an expert on silver screen obscurity,  Pulpjunkie does not do anime reviews for the most part, and a hand injury has kept him from blogging for some time, but he recently E-mailed, to a mailing list I belong to, this overview of the upcoming shows and I've reprinted it with permission adding you-tubes of the OP's or promos where available.

April is one of the big premiere months for anime TV shows (January, July,
and October are the other 3). and this year is a doozy! Over 30 anime
shows begin this month. The first few fansubs are trickling out, and, as
expected, the harem shows are first. Still, I'll try to give some brief
reviews of first episodes as I watch them.

Browsing the "calendar" section over at anidb.net, I find the following:
8 sequel/returning shows: Yu-Gi-Oh 5D's; Kyou Kara Maou! 3rd series;
3XHolic Kei; Blue Dragon: The Seven Dragons of the Sky; Da Capo II Second Season; Code  Geass Lelouch of the Rebellion R2; Neo Angelique Abyss; and Hidamari Sketch x 365.

4 shows for children/families: Net Ghost Pipopa (Pokemon-esque); Onegai My Melody Kirara (Hello Kitty-esque); Uchi no 3 Shimai (family comedy); Chi's Sweet Home (something about a kitten); plus two more from the sequel list
(Yu-Gi-Oh and Blue Dragon). This sort of answers Ken's question to me from a couple of months ago regarding whether the little kids have any cartoons to watch over there. Surely there must be some other kids' shows on thatstarted earlier. A quick glance at AniDB's "schedule" section shows me that, yes the little kids are alright: They've got plenty of shows that
don't involve panty shots, improbable cleavage and bloody carnage. It
seems they're still watching  Chibi Maruko-chan, Doraemon, Pokemon, GeGeGe no Kitaro, Sgt. Frog, Crayon Shin-chan, and Pretty Cure plus shows about
cute little ninja, or talking food or something. they got it covered.

2 shoujou school romances: Itazura no Kiss and Special A.

7 scifi war/adventure shows: Allison to Lillia (orphanage pals hunt for
treasure while a war rages around them; Real Drive (more VR hijinks from
Masamune Shirow); Crystal Blaze (near(?) future private eye); Library Wars
(hi, Barb!); Blassreiter (mecha vs. demons); Kaiba (can something be retro
and avant garde at the same time?); and Macross Frontier, of course.

9 contemporary action shows: Kurenai; Zettai Karen Children (trio of
powerful ten-year-old epsers work for government agency; maybe should be
in the kids' section); Soul Eater (shinigami school action; so last year);
Nabari no Ou (ninja action);  Vampire Knight (shoujou vampire romance with guns); Monochrome Factor (Perfectly Ordinary Japanese Teenager chosen to fight shadow demons); Himitsu: the Revelation; Golgo 13 (...); Daughter of 20-Faces (teen girl is daughter of master criminal; based on an Edogawa Rampo character).

2 period action shows; Mugen no Juunin (ronin cursed with immortality
can't die until he slays 1000 evil men); Amatsuki (modern teen trapped in
virtual Edo).

What's left? A few magic girlfriend/harem show love comedies: To-Love-Ru
(alien princess); Kanokon (fox-girl); and Wagaya no Oinara-sama (another
fox-girl; are they this year's shinigami?). Kyouran Kazoku Nikki might fit
here, too. Need more info. Jonjou Romantica is a shounen ai series. Moving
along now... Druaga no To: the Aegis of Uruk is a fantasy adventure/comedy
(not sure about the comedy part; art looks serious; hoping for the best).

Which brings us finally to: Kamen no Maid Guy. Yep, Kamen no Maid Guy. A Perfectly Ordinary Japanese Teenager discovers she's going to inherit a
fortune when she turns 18. In the meantime, she's been assigned a pair of
bodyguard/maids (and I quote): "Fubuki, a young and beautiful maid, and
Kogarashi, a big burly maid guy with a mask." So there you have it.

Plus: Lupin III: Green Vs. Red TV special. Good times.

Any thoughts, sirs and ladies?
T

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 07:36 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 991 words, total size 10 kb.

For those who might be unclear on exactly what this is,  Yuri Night celebrates the anniversary of the launch of the first man in space, Yuri Gagarin. Not that...um... other Yuri. For those who will, therefore, be feeling terribly disappointed and cheated by tomorrow's post, Brickmuppet Blog helpfully provides (as a courtesy) this moment of reflection.

For those who are understandably offended by this  utterly uncharacteristic display of base, prurient, pandering we offer as compensation this bit of thoughtful commentary for the other demographic.



Remarkable editing there.... ( shudders)



Touching Yuri dialog was found on the interweb years ago. Pic is a capture from Kashimashi which I am very unlikely to ever watch.
Trek Vid is via a friend who does not wish to be named on a wingnut blog.

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 05:09 PM | Comments (5) | Add Comment
Post contains 136 words, total size 1 kb.

1 I liked Kashimasi, m'self.  It's... different.

Posted by: Wonderduck at Fri Apr 11 21:56:51 2008 (gwUM9)

2

That can't be a framegrab. That's gotta be fanart!

Is it really a framegrab?

Posted by: Steven Den Beste at Fri Apr 11 22:02:09 2008 (+rSRq)

3 I don't remember it from the show, but it's been a while since I last watched it, and I don't think I've seen the OVA, which gives a different ending to the show (basically replacing the last episode)...

Posted by: Wonderduck at Fri Apr 11 22:36:31 2008 (gwUM9)

4

 I would pass on the OVA if you liked the way the last episode ended. The OVA goes way out into left field.

Posted by: Bouff at Sat Apr 12 01:42:34 2008 (CsVE7)

5

Is it really a framegrab?

I dunno, I've never seen the show which I'm told pushed the bounds. It may be either.

Steven, this was of course, what I failed to pollute your comment section with. Regards your mad mad commenting theories, feel free to try them out here.

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at Sat Apr 12 05:56:11 2008 (L3yJX)

Hide Comments | Add Comment

...an Elephant painting.

Snopes says its real.

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 06:30 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 10 words, total size 1 kb.

 Eugene Volokh has a gobsmackingly horrific quote from a member of the Canadian Human Rights Commission.

"Freedom of Speech Is an American Concept, So I Don't Give It Any Value"

Check out the link for context...it really doesn't help, as she goes on to say that freedom of speech is not a Canadian value.....ummmm....

For those not up to speed on this pernicious panel of pompous pinheads, click here.  

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 05:53 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 75 words, total size 1 kb.

The arcane obtuse and unfathomable machinations that led to the current subprime lending debacle....Completely explained.

Nicely done.

HT: The Volokh Conspiracy

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 05:34 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 27 words, total size 1 kb.

Skip this post...it is an atrocity.

.




 Because some people did not listen, I've moved the horror below the fold for your protection.  Please, do not look below the fold.....
more...

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 08:12 PM | Comments (9) | Add Comment
Post contains 118 words, total size 2 kb.

1 That second picture is going to give me nightmares. Those are characters in a game? Good God...

Posted by: Steven Den Beste at Tue Apr 8 00:37:32 2008 (+rSRq)

2 He sent that pic to me a month or so ago, Steven... do you have ANY idea how hard it is to pluck your eyes out?

Posted by: Wonderduck at Tue Apr 8 01:20:08 2008 (Hrqgp)

3

Wow... There aren't words. Wait. Yes there are.

Zetsuboushita! Handicapped hentai has left me in despair!

(geez, imagine the google hits for that search string...)

 

You know, I think I'm beginning to develop a reputation for finding this stuff. It's not entirely undeserved, but I'm going to pass the blame for most of my depredations on to The Hostages.

Posted by: Will at Tue Apr 8 10:49:46 2008 (WnBa/)

4

If you visit some of the -chan picture boards, you'll sometimes find a category named "guro". Do not go there.

It turns out to be a contraction of gurossu from English "gross" (I'm pretty sure) and its the category where they put gross pictures: dead bodies, amputees, I won't say what else.

Something like ten years ago I saw a "guro" drawing that haunts me to this day. I really wish I hadn't seen it, and I won't describe it because just a description of it would be awful.

It would seem that there's a subculture in Japan, kind of the ultimate otaku, which likes this kind of thing. God knows why, though. So I can't say I'm totally surprised that someone's creating a dating game (I assume that's what it is) featuring amputees and otherwise deformed girls.

Posted by: Steven Den Beste at Tue Apr 8 13:59:21 2008 (+rSRq)

5

Perspective is important. The guro stuff is downright evil. This is head spinningly disturbing but doesn't strike me as anywhere near that.

OTOH, mentioning that the girl with the prosthetic legs is challenging because she is...fast... ...certainly makes one wonder about the direction the game goes.

On the upside the character sheet does warn about "gigolo play" which indicates that perhaps being a complete amoral bastard is not necessarily rewarded....The girls are, in most cases superficially off-putting and the premise is, on the face of it, undeniably creepy on a couple of levels (not just aesthetic ones), but I gather most of the females are supposed to have considerable depth of character and are quirky and interesting (except perhaps the blind girl...who is..er.. just "clichéd") and focusing on girls who are not conventional beauties is refreshing in a way.

But damn....

And that is about as in depth as I'm likely to go on this matter.."shudder".

The Murnauesque trek-vid was creepy too, but I laughed at that.

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at Tue Apr 8 21:07:37 2008 (j9nkb)

6 Well that was... interesting.  I'm not surprised though  there are quite a number of fetishests that find disabilities a turn on.  And yes I've run into them and yes they are creepy.

Posted by: Marina at Wed Apr 9 10:31:09 2008 (IofL6)

7 Comment#6  has creeped me out more than anything else in this whole thread.

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at Wed Apr 9 12:58:01 2008 (NsNzF)

8 That's why I never went alone to science fiction conventions.  The freaks leave you alone if you have someone with you.

Posted by: Marina at Thu Apr 10 13:31:05 2008 (Lt4Ge)

9 Google doesn't find anything containing the string 片輪少女, but goo.ne.jp does, and it all looks like fan art. Apparently the whole thing is based on a piece posted to 4chan (possibly this one, which is well-done and less disturbing), and some non-Japanese eroge fans decided to run with it and at least claim to be making a real game. At the moment, it's indistinguishable from a prank supported by a few artists from the deviantart crowd. -j

Posted by: J Greely at Fri Apr 11 16:55:14 2008 (2XtN5)

Hide Comments | Add Comment

I have just noticed that some posts are appearing in categories in which they do not belong. (Chun Li's birthday is not actually rocket science).

For anyone offended by the appearance of an anime review in a collection of science posts or a right wing political rant in the alternate energy category, rest assured Brickmuppet Blog is working to correct the issue ASAP.

We regret any offense or bruised sensibilities this may have caused.

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 10:22 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 76 words, total size 1 kb.

Brickmuppet Blog has mentioned the pitched battle between HMAS Sydney an Kormoran before and Commander Salamander some time ago did a fine post on this historic battle from a command perspective.

Now both wrecks have been found and they are being explored by the Finding Sydney Foundation. Here is a lengthy report on the ongoing examination of the Sydney wreck .

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 06:43 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 65 words, total size 1 kb.

A warm and beleated Brickmuppet cheer goes out to the Hardesty family for the birth of Claire Elizabeth Hardesty!



Stephen Hardesty is better known to bloggers as Buckethead (of the Ministry of Minor Perfidy).

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 05:55 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 40 words, total size 1 kb.

Before the prospect of sharks with FRICKING LAYYZERS on their heads became desireable, weapons designers had to make due with the technology at hand. In World War one that included things like this.....

Flaming Bayonet..... That’s right a flame throwing bayonet. It was called the "Flaming Bayonet, constructed and tested by the Army Chemical Service it was a unique weapon for it’s time. The idea was to launch a ten foot flame as you were about to close in with the enemy for a bayonet thrust.....

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 05:10 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
Post contains 101 words, total size 1 kb.

Loyd's of London warns of a peril that most of us just hadn't seen coming.

Lloyd's warns of a lack of natural disasters

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 04:48 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
Post contains 65 words, total size 1 kb.

Persepopolis, the autobiographical  graphic novel by Marjane Satrapi detailing her childhood in Iran in the years leading up to and during the revolution is now an animated film. The book is quite good and I'm looking forward to the movie. I'm glad to see they kept the look of the comic.

Here are some clips....




I'm pleasantly surprised that the film got made, but even more surprised to have found these .gifs on....er....4-chan of all places. 



more...

Posted by: The Brickmuppet at 10:09 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
Post contains 78 words, total size 1 kb.