April 12, 2015
BYOM
The 1916 version of Verne's 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, once thought lost, is available and in the public domain.
This is a remarkable film. It's the earliest surviving example of underwater motion picture photography (and may be the earliest ever). They couldn't build an underwater camera at the time and so used cameras on boats filming the underwater action via periscopes. I'll cut them a lot of slack on the blackface because, not only did they get Nemo's ethnicity and background largely right, he's a very sympathetic character with lots of melanin...in 1916.
Of course they do diverge a bit from the novel. This film works the sequel (Mysterious Island) into the story and unlike either book, the film is in addition to a sci-fi story, both a period piece and a melodrama.
You'll have to provide your own music, but it's probably worth 111 minutes of your time.
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Duck, Cover, Burrow
The Pentagon has pulled Cheyenne Mountain out of mothballs and has begun moving their command and control systems back into the cold war facility.
Admiral William Gortney, head of NORAD and Northern Command, said that 'because of the very nature of the way that Cheyenne Mountain's built, it's EMP-hardened.' 'And so, there's a lot of movement to put capability into Cheyenne Mountain and to be able to communicate in there,' Gortney told reporters.
'My primary concern was... are we going to have the space inside the mountain for everybody who wants to move in there, and I'm not at liberty to discuss who's moving in there,' he said.
The facility was mothballed back in 2006, because there was a time when a nuclear attack beyond an isolated terrorist device was considered unlikely.
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April 11, 2015
Log Horizon Ends
The last two episodes revolve around Shiroe gathering together a scratch force of people who are not comatose, several of whom we have not met before ('cause they are all that's left).
It seems that the communications tower in "Shibuya" is now the source of the narcolepsy-itis that is plaguing everybody. Specifically, it has been taken over by a swarm of sleep moths which take flight every night and spread moth dust, which is the source of the proble. Shiro notes ruefully that as soon as they had determined that the tower might be a key to returning everybody home, this situation pops up, which might well, necessitate them destroying the tower.
It also hints that fate...or someone, is just screwing with them.
Not to fear, Shiroe has a particularly cunning plan...
And so it ends...
The ending was as satisfying as possible given that they have apparently caught up to the source material, at least to the point that there is not enough for another season right now. The show left off at a perfectly good break point and the end certainly did not smack of Gainax.
As for the series overall, the production values on this show were quite cheap, occasionally to the point of distraction, but the story for the 50 episode run was astoundingly good throughout. The characterizations were excellent and the general tone and direction of the story were uncommonly upbeat despite a grim premise. This is a show about civics; people working together to improve their community and banding together in the face of danger.
One of the more enjoyable aspects of the show was that, in stark contrast to most others in the genre, it truly has an ensemble cast. Shiroe is generally held to be the lead, but the focus frequently cuts to the rest of the cast, whose adventures and quirks are vital to the story. Shiro can't do it by himself, and in fact is not even a major player in nearly half of the episodes. Even when it is clear that he is above average at certain aspects of video gaming he does't come off as a Gary Stu. Indeed, it is in the other characters that some of the best characterizations take place, e.g.Crusty and Lenessia are one of the better anime couples of recent years.
Another amusing bit was that there was actually some borderline "sci-fi" involved in this parade of whimsy..... If one has people that can do fireballs via sorcery, and one has the ability to make an iron pressure vessel and fill it with wate....BOILERS!
OK, so it's actually Spelljammer, but its nice to see that the characters are smart enough to figure this out. I don't think they are going to have too much of a problem getting to the moon.
Given the premise and "setting" the potential for this being a gratuitous fan service fest was quite high. That they refrained from that almost entirely was actually refreshing.
This show has a fractally silly premise that they went a long way towards justifying and despite a visibly low budget, its strengths were such that I enjoyed Log Horizon tremendously, beginning to end.
It is certainly to be hoped that they do another season eventually. With that in mind, we'll give Best Kunoichi the last word.
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April 05, 2015
Hiatus
Posting has been and will continue to be light due to holiday and family obligations, 2 research papers and a report.
Here is a 9 tailed fox to tide you over.
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Well This is Still One to Watch (UPDATED)
The Fate Stay Night remake returns following a three month hiatus. After the unexpected turn the show took in episode 12 and three months of anticipation it was, of course, unlikely that number 13 could live up to....
"Oh. Wow..."
I confess I did not see that coming.
13 was a thoroughly entertaining episode which had a couple of unexpected twists including more character development in 23 minutes than many shows have altogether.
I am enjoying this immensely...
...certainly more than these two are here.
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April 04, 2015
While We All Wait
.... with baited breath, to discover who amongst us will make the next misstep on the constantly shifting tightrope of acceptable discourse and get inducted into the Emmanuelle Goldstein society, we should not ignore the wackiness transpiring elsewhere.
Norway has...well...mislaid something....
Only six years ago, Norwegian politicians decided that Russia no longer posed a significant threat and that it was time to sell its top secret base called Olavsvern, which was hewn into a mountain and equipped with the most sophisticated electronics available. It’s located near the small town of Ramfjord near Norway’s border with Russia.
That's certainly...awkward.
**********
In other news the negotiations with Iran regarding its nuclear program has produced some tentative results.
None of Iran’s nuclear facilities — including the Fordow center buried under a mountain — will be closed. Not one of the country’s 19,000 centrifuges will be dismantled. Tehran’s existing stockpile of enriched uranium will be "reduced†but not necessarily shipped out of the country. In effect, Iran’s nuclear infrastructure will remain intact, though some of it will be mothballed for 10 years. When the accord lapses, the Islamic republic will instantly become a threshold nuclear state.
That from the bastion of reactionary rightwingery that is the Washington Post.
Actual footage of our crackerjack negotiating team negotiating.
Next Big Future looks at the numbers and notes that alarmist claims that Iran will be able to make 32 bombs a year are overblown. In fact the worlds largest state sponsor of terrorism will only be able to make 25 nuclear bombs a year.
**********
China seems to be building a naval base in Namibia.
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The Middle East continues to deteriorate.
The US is asking all Americans to leave Yemen...but won't provide an evacuation.
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Al Shabab has killed nearly 150 people at a university in Kenya. Neo has thoughts and links here.
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My State's bar association turns out to be a little bit evil.
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Finally, on a arguably less serious note, the President of Russia's Academy of Geopolitical Problems demonstrates why he does not run the Academy of Geological Problems...
"Geologists believe that the Yellowstone supervolcano could explode at any moment. There are signs of growing activity there. Therefore it suffices to push the relatively small, for example the impact of the munition megaton class to initiate an eruption. The consequences will be catastrophic for the United States - a country just disappears," he said.
Even multi-megaton nukes pale in sheer scale to geological processes. Besides, while the Yellowstone magma chamber is huge, it is currently about 85% solid. Now a 20 megaton nuke ( the largest the Russians have) would leave 800 foot deep crater, so there might be a tiny chance that several of them going off simultaneously might suddenly excavate enough material to relieve enough pressure to cause something to happen (besides a Russia ending retaliatory strike), but it would probably not be a VE-8 eruption. They'd likely be infinitesimally better off targeting Clear Lake, Newberry, Medicine Lakes or Long Valley and would be better served still by not being so silly.
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April 03, 2015
14 Hours to Go!
.
Saturday mornings are saved!
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April 01, 2015
Strange Things Happening Today for Some Reason
Unexpected things...
Fishy even...
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March 28, 2015
This is Interesting
This fan film is making the rounds and deservedly so.
Its animation appears to be largely the work of one guy who has published a short exposition on his techniques here.
The process looks to be very similar to what the late Monty Oum described as his team's method of producing RWBY. That show had a cast and crew of 10 for the first season and 15 for the second.
That's impressive, but remember that Oum reportedly did the first and second RWBY trailers by himself and this fellow Paul Johnson did the Tie Fighter short himself over a period of about two years.
The gatekeepers continue to stand guard unflinchingly, but their walls are now full of holes.
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What is This?
I can't even....
That didn't help at all.
Allow me to explain...
The issue is not that the fellow defected, it's the buried lede in the last sentence.
The US negotiating team are mainly there to speak on Iran’s behalf with other members of the 5+1 countries and convince them of a deal
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Rocinante: 1981-2015
Full disclosure: Strictly speaking, nobody actually died as such. For the vast majority of folks who are uninterested in the first world problems below the fold, here are 3 views of Sakurajima.
(I did not know that Volcanoes sounded like synthesizers!)
Note that pressing "MORE" will result in banality and not more 'splodies.
more...
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March 25, 2015
And Now, Some Words From Our Sponsors
I'm being distracted by three papers, a broken tooth, an oral presentation, a kidney stone, a blown head gasket and tests tomorrow and Friday which have combined to distract me from producing content and contributed to my decision to sell out and monetize the blog.
So here are some ads...
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March 18, 2015
Nothing to See Here
It seems that while we weren't looking, the Chinese agreed to provide Argentina with 5 offshore patrol vessels (actually in this case, small corvettes). The Argentines, for no reason whatsoever, we are sure, have decided to name them the Malvinas class.
This is part of a larger deal where the Argentines got debt forgiven, infrastructure and "stuff" in exchange for mineral wealth, corn and beef. The "stuff" includes several nuclear reactors in exchange for a Chinese spacecraft tracking station in Patagonia and other, undisclosed concessions.
Terra Del Fuego, Sri Lanka, Dominica, all those atolls in the South China Sea, the new Nicaraguan canal, and feelers along the Cape of Good Hope.
China has issues to be sure, but the Middle Kingdom also has the choke points covered.
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March 17, 2015
That Awkward Moment When....
Inquisitive Naga by Bubuzuke
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I Am Unsure
...if this is a Leprechaun or just a really big clover....
...but it was done by Silverbin and seemed topical.
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March 15, 2015
New Zealand
...has volcanoes, giant squid, tsunamis, colossal squid, earthquakes, sharks, mud pots and kiwi birds. So it makes sense that one needs good insurance there.
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March 14, 2015
A Question For My Readers
"And now, the REAL battle begins!"
I'm wondering if I was having problems with Crunchyroll's stream or if this episode of Log Horizon was really animated at about 4 fps?
more...
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The Day Was Saved
Astonishingly, the Village Inn was almost out of pies, but at 9:26 PM, we did our bit to save the world.
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March 13, 2015
An Argument Against Friggatriskaidekaphobia
18 minutes left to go and as of yet no disasters have yet befallen any of the staff here at Brickmuppet Blog since midnight.
So close...so close...18 minutes to safety....
Lest people grow complacent, it should be remembered that in a few minutes it will be International Pi day.
If one does not consume pie at exactly 3-14-15 9:26:54 then no one knows WHAT might happen!
UPDATE: John C. Wright speculates
more...
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March 12, 2015
Terry Pratchett 1948-2015
Sir Terry Pratchett, author of the Discworld series quietly passed away this morning, having fought a battle with early onset Alzheimers, which, in a manner of speaking, he won. You see, he succeeded in completing his last novel The Sheppherds Crown shortly before his passing. It will be published posthumously.
Pratchett leaves behind a vast body of work that has brought and will continue to bring joy to millions. He also had a fossil sea turtle named in his honor and a greenhouse full of carnivorous plants, because he was just that awesome a person.
A great man has passed, but in both his work and his life, he inspired many of the great people to come.
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