MeFi: Sturgeon! Dick! Asimov! Heinlein! DeCamp! Bradbury! Sheckley! Pohl!

zarq — Wed, 12 Jun 2013 20:16:35 GMT

The very first major science fiction series for adults on radio was Mutual Broadcasting System's 2000 Plus (1950-1952). An anthology program, 2000 Plus used all new material rather than adapting published stories. Just one month after its premiere, NBC Radio began airing Dimension X (1950-1951), which dramatized the written work of such young writers as Ray Bradbury, Robert Heinlein, Isaac Asimov, and Kurt Vonnegut. In 1955, NBC relaunched Dimension X as X Minus One (1955-1958), drawing from stories that had been published in the two most popular science fiction magazines at the time: Astounding and Galaxy. 17 of 30 episodes of 2000 Plus, all 50 episodes of Dimension X, and all 125 episodes of X Minus One are available for free download as individual mp3s from the Internet Archive.

The shows are also available in free zip file compilations:

Direct link to zip file: 2000 Plus
Download pages: Dimension X and X Minus One.

Ask MeFi: What are the most beautiful comics or graphic novels ever published?

mortaddams — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 23:15:31 GMT

I am interested in reading some visually dazzling comics or graphic novels. I would love to find examples that were made with beautifully painted panels, incorporated collages, or are otherwise interesting on a visual level. What do you recommend?

MeFi: The standard you walk past is the standard you accept.

EXISTENZ IS PAUSED — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 00:38:44 GMT

As an investigation is launched into men in the Australian Army circulating explicit and derogatory material about their female colleagues, Lieutenant General David Morrison, Chief of Army, delivers a searing rebuke to those who perpetuate or condone the harassment of women in the military.

MetaTalk: The Canonical Quidnunc

scrump — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 21:07:27 GMT

You all know you should vote #1 quidnunc kid. But do you know why?

In case you don't, we've assembled this helpful voter guide to Voting #1 quidnunc kid. You should vote #1 quidnunc kid because:

He would like to be the next Pope
Everyone will vote #1 quidnunc kid in their own time
He is much more non-American than abiezer
He will immediately put all his nephews to death
In twenty-twelve / He's our man // Replace the mods / Yes we can
He will work tirelessly so that MetaFilter achieves the adulation of ALL the oceans: Pacific, Atlantic, Indian - sorry, Native American - Arctic and Antarctic
If anyone plays "quidnunc" in scrabble or words with friends, he immediately manifest before them and belches out 7 blank tiles.
He will immediately ban all marriages which are not to him
Math says you should
A behind is a terrible thing to waste
Representative democracy may be a problem for you, and he can solve it
He's endorsed by ersatz
He will reform the educational system at MetaFilter
Everyone needs a hug. And a set of updated, appropriate maritime signals
He comes in five different flavors, according to Capt. Renault
The contest was rigged
He will definitely pooplefrizzz your jizzz
It's time we rejected MetaTalk as a therapeutic modality (because of SCIENCE)
He will put an end to the reign of the conversation-despising moderators FOREVER
We can't let the miniscule, clench-faced pettifarts who worship RULES win
He'd make a great number 2 to mathowie's number 1. More like 1.5, really. On second thought, it'd be better to just throw mathowie out and start over
Words can kill, and in fact have killed the quidnunc ~~kid~~ corpse
Capt. Renault is always willing to stroturf for him
Vampires. And musicals. Vampire musicals
You'd like to slap down a cortex or a pb with an ice-cold boxed one-liner
According to Capt. Renault (Q, MetaFilter), we need a hero
Moderator's Day is time to give back, by sacking the mods
bardophile must be sacrificed
He'd make a great Dark Lord of Mordor
quidnunc kid will return MeFi to the gold star standard and deliver us from the debasement of the fiat favorites
MetaFilter needs a new name
It's time for a new Time Lord who hates bow-ties and Rory
He's voting for jessamyn
No, he's voting for homunculus
The Metatalk Pick 'n' Mix Thread-o-Matic! says so
We'll all be better off
The mods are utter hypocrites
PEAK MITHRIL
Bumfuck needs new representation
Regulation is just another word for nothing left to ooze
He is an excellent edutor
He will put an end to pro-Pict fascism
Your metatalk comments deserve to appear in eighty-foot-high golden letters
It's time for the most ironic fisting you've ever experienced
You should never have to flag it and move on ever again. And God
There's no place for hyperbolic tautologies on MetaFilter
Field Marshall quidnunc has a nice ring to it
He is the 99%
The space octopi are coming and only one person can save us

MeFi: one weird trick to improve your internet experience

the man of twists and turns — Sat, 15 Jun 2013 16:27:21 GMT

Internet slideshows got you down? Deslide!*

Examples:
Cracked: "27 Insane (But True) Early Versions of Famous Characters": Original, Deslided
Salon: "Turmoil and tear gas in Istanbul's Gezi Park" Original, Deslided
Slate: "Vintage Typing Machines" Original, Deslided

The Pernicious Myth That Slideshows Drive Traffic
Secret Meeting Has 'Washington Post' Buzzing As paper struggles, big-name journalists meet with the paper's top business exec - "Accounts of the evening that are making the rounds suggest it was hardly comforting to their journalistic souls. Hills was said to have shocked with remarks that awards "don't matter," urged more traffic-driving slideshows over original Post photos"

*Offer not available on every site

Ask MeFi: Book Recommendations Wanted!

windykites — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 01:46:11 GMT

After rereading the Little House on the Prairie series, I want more books of a similar style! Particular specifications and a few more examples within. Note: Anne of Green Gables need not apply.

I want engrossing books that follow the daily lives, activities and social mores of women, especially if they are living in tough conditions (or having adventures!) I enjoy a clear, straightforward storytelling technique that focuses more on characters' activities and feelings and not so much flowery descriptions of the scenery (thus, no Anne).

I would prefer books with a female protagonist, in the third person, that are full of historical detail without bashing the reader over the head with the facts. I'm more interested in what the characters do than in complex, dramatic inter-personal politics or intrigues. Romance is fine in small doses but I'd rather it weren't the main focus.

I can handle long descriptive passages if they are skippable. They can be kid's books as long as they're novels and they aren't condescending. I'm also open to reading memoirs and autobiographies. I'm primarily looking for books set in the western world.

So, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, following the lives of poor women in the early 1900's, was one I really loved. Gone With the Wind, following Scarlett through the Civil War, was fascinating (long descriptions aside). Any others you can recommend would be great!

MeFi: "Always build people up. Never tear people down. Be kind."

zarq — Sun, 16 Jun 2013 03:52:36 GMT

'Loss is difficult at any time of life. It can be particularly difficult for teenagers, who are still navigating their way, sometimes clumsily, toward adulthood. They know they need help, but are sometimes reluctant to ask for it. And often, because of their youth, their loss may be the first death they have ever known.' For a year, a reporter from the Cincinnati Enquirer sat in on meetings of a grief group at Archbishop Moeller high school, for boys who had lost a parent... and learned The Rules of Grieving.

MeFi: "We perceive the world through metaphors"

the man of twists and turns — Sun, 16 Jun 2013 23:41:29 GMT

Why I Am No Longer A Skeptic

That's right: the nerds won, decades ago, and they're now as thoroughly established as any other part of the establishment. And while nerds a relatively new elite, they're overwhelmingly the same as the old: rich, white, male, and desperate to hang onto what they've got. And I have come to realise that skepticism, in their hands, is just another tool to secure and advance their privileged position, and beat down their inferiors. As a skeptic, I was not shoring up the revolutionary barricades: instead, I was cheering on the Tsar's cavalry.

Referenced in The Cult Of Bayes' Theorem

via Gerry Canavan

MeFi: It's New! Er!

DoctorFedora — Sat, 15 Jun 2013 09:24:33 GMT

MOOOOOOOM, I'M BOOOOOOORED Really? Didn't I just give you and your sister that thing that adds like 180 tracks to Mario Kart Wii? YEAH BUT SHE'S NOT AROUND AND MARIO KART REALLY BENEFITS FROM ANOTHER PLAYER Well, maybe I could play with you? COME ON MOM YOU'RE, LIKE, OLD OR SOMETHING So? What's your point? I WANT SOMETHING THAT'S JUST AS MUCH FUN BY MYSELF, BUT ALSO FOR WII, AND IDEALLY IT SHOULD ALSO HAVE OVER A HUNDRED LEVELS BECAUSE THAT PART IS ALWAYS IMPORTANT

Well... I actually had one more thing for you. I know your birthday isn't until the end of the summer, but maybe I should give you your present now so you get more time to enjoy it. Clear some space on that SD card, and break out your copy of New Super Mario Bros. Wii, because it's time to play Newer Super Mario Bros. Wii, a completely free new full-length fan-made Mario game that is arguably actually better than New Super Mario Bros. Wii U, and it won't cost you a cent. MOM WHY ARE YOU TALKING KIND OF LIKE A COMMERCIAL ALL OF A SUDDEN I just wanted you to feel like it's a brand new Mario game instead of just a little change to what you're used to. MOM, YOU'RE THE BEST MOM

For the skeptics in the audience, yes, this game is mind-blowingly well made. It scarcely even qualifies as a "hack" so much as a brand new Mario game that just happens to use a (heavily modified) New Super Mario Bros. Wii for its engine. New levels, new music, new enemies(!), an old and familiar power-up(!!), and even MARIO WORLD-STYLE BLOCK SWITCHES(!!!)

Happy birthday!

MeFi: You May Remember Me From...

oneswellfoop — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 09:47:35 GMT

The Troy McClure Credits Supercut (SLYTPHT*)
*Single Link You Tube Phil Hartman Tribute

if you didn't hear your favorite, this collection, while impressive, was NOT all-inclusive - for example, whenever Troy rattled off three titles, the videomaker only picked two - check this reference page for many others, including "Good-Time Slim, Uncle Doobie, and the Great 'Frisco Freak-Out", "The Contrabulous Fabtraption of Professor Horatio Hufnagel" and, of course, "Stop the Planet of the Apes: I Want To Get Off!" (but then they would have been too long to make tags out of)

Ask MeFi: What are some meals that are nearly all fruits & vegetables?

Deathalicious — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 06:27:28 GMT

The other day I made a meal that was nearly all vegetables -- sweet potatoes, roasted asparagus, and an apple, arugula, and feta salad. It was a great meal and I didn't even realize until I was eating it that it was basically all vegetables, rather than my normal routine of basing a meal around a starch (although the sweet potato does have a lot of carbs). I'm looking for more full-meal ideas where vegetables make up a lion's share of the meal.

One of the problems with the all-vegetable meal was I got a bit hungry an hour or so after I ate it. So suggestions on stretching out a meal like this to be more filling would be helpful. Also, for dietary reasons each of these meals has to have a fair amount of starchy carbs in it, so for example in this meal above it was the sweet potato. The goal is not to be low carb (although the goal *is* to be healthy), so potatoes and other starchy options (like roasted root vegetables) are fine.

The main goal is to find meals where all the components go together really well, where the combinations are exciting, tasty, and harmonious.

I am not vegetarian or vegan, so recipes which include eggs, cheese, dairy, and small amounts of meat are A-okay. Also recipes involving grains and legumes are just fine; the goal is just not to have "something over rice/pasta" or "main course" with salad on the side -- I want the veggies to be the main course.

I do love stews and know they really lend themselves to vegetable-rich meals, but as it's summer now I'm definitely more interested in dishes which have a lighter feel. Also, recommendations featuring seasonal vegetables (in the mid-Atlantic area) are especially welcome.

These recipes do not need to necessarily be simple or humble. I'm willing to stretch myself a bit or seek out unusual ingredients.

Ask MeFi: What do you wish you'd known when choosing your first apartment?

randomnity — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 20:26:36 GMT

At the end of the summer I'll be selecting and moving into my first apartment after living in a house with roommates for several years, and I'm looking to discover what things I don't know that I don't know.

As an example, a friend told me that her apartment gets extremely hot in the summer because it faces south, but she didn't realize it because she moved there in the winter. I'd never have thought to ask about something like that. I'd like to discover more things like this that I should be asking about when deciding on an apartment. I'm not looking for obvious things like location, price, size, etc., or things that are not possible to avoid like a surprise bedbug infestation. I'd like to hear about the random little things that made a surprising difference to your happiness (good or bad) in your new apartment.

What non-obvious or unexpected things did you discover after moving into a new apartment, that might have made you pick a different apartment?

MeFi: Skip James' Hard Time Killing Floor Blues

y2karl — Sun, 16 Jun 2013 03:32:51 GMT

...James is, of course, overshadowed by the most famous bluesman of them all: Robert Johnson... Few can resist the legend that he sold his soul to the devil, was poisoned by a jealous lover, and died a young genius's death... Skip James' mythos is less compact than Johnson's. James survived his misspent youth, and the story of his later years provides plenty more of the kind of misery that fueled his music. Where Johnson supposedly cut a single, grand deal with the devil—trading his soul for mastery of his form—Skip James seems to have struck deal after deal and never come out ahead. In a way, James' story is the truest story of the blues: He led an open wound of a life, and all he got for it was minor-league, post-mortem stardom.

Skip James' Hard Time Killing Floor Blues

See also Mississippi John Hurt & Skip James on WTBS-FM 1964

Skip James - Devil Got My Woman
Skip James - Worried Blues
Skip James - I'm So Glad

MeFi: I heard that everybody you know is more relevant than everybody I know

ardgedee — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 01:54:39 GMT

James Murphy of LCD Soundsystem talks about failure and about trying not to stifled by fear of it. (Referenced frequently in the interview: Losing My Edge)

MeFi: At the junction of Joyce and the War on Terror

From Bklyn — Sun, 16 Jun 2013 21:16:30 GMT

The first thing I did after I heard about the highly classified NSA PRISM program two years ago was set up a proxy server in Peshawar to email me passages from Joyce's Finnegans Wake.

Ask MeFi: Looking for well known, traditional, quality brands

Curiosity Delay — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 15:27:50 GMT

I'm looking for traditional brands that are associated with quality products, like Pendleton wool blankets.

The other day I decided to buy a wool blanket, and a simple Google search brought me to Pendleton's site, as well as Land's End. I looked at the latter first, as I'd heard of them (I'd never heard of Pendleton before), and found out that they were selling Pendleton blankets made specifically for Land's End. When I bought the blanket I told my sister and a friend, and they were both very approving of my purchase, and they both instantly knew what brand of wool blanket I had bought.
Are there other traditional, respected, heritage* brands that are famous for certain products? I'm mainly interested in companies that have been around for, let's say, over 50 years, and for products that everyone uses and has used for generations (wool blankets, general apparel, soaps, home goods, etc. - no electronics or fussy gadgets).

*I'm American, so I think "made in America" is meant to signify quality and better labor practices, but I'd be interested in hearing about "made in Canada," "made in the U.K.," "made in France," etc. products too. I like that Pendleton seems to have some sense of American heritage in its manufacturing ethos, and I'd be happy to find companies from other places that have that same kind of pride in their hometown/country.

Ask MeFi: the art of listening.

mykescipark — Sat, 15 Jun 2013 07:47:57 GMT

MeFites to whom this level of appreciation applies: What are your favorite, most arresting, entrancing, or otherwise awe-inspiring [field / ambient / nature / soundscape] recordings? I'm looking for more to enrich my ever-increasing collection of otherworldly sounds that are very much of this world.

...And by "ambient" I mean it in the literal sense. No synthesizers or studio-mediated sounds, please.

I particularly love natural drones, nautical sounds, the sounds of human inventions in natural environments, recordings which play upon one's depth perception or have a very location-aware sound about them (really putting the "field" in the recording).

To get started, here are some of my favorites:

Fog Horns

Bill Fontana, Landscape Sculpture with Fog Horns, 1981
Bill Fontana - Ohrbrücke / Soundbridge (Köln - San Francisco), 1987
James Lipsky, The Kewaunee Foghorn, 1972
Stephen Barncard - Foghorns of the Golden Gate, 2011
Sally Scobey - Holland Harbor Light Fog Horn, Holland, MI 1970

Ritual and Religion in the Landscape

Justin Bennett, The Mosques of Tanger
Pepet Zintle - Ancient ritual at night at the slopes of the Ganges, Varanasi
Pepet Zintle - Muslim calls for prayer and insects in a Western Java Jungle area, Indonesia

Sea Songs

Gene Flipse - Silver Bank Humpback Whale Chorus, February 12, 2013
Douglas Quin - Weddell Seals (Underwater)
Jean C. Roché - La baleine franche boréale 2
Josh Inport - Bearded seal trill in the Chukchi Sea, Alaskan Arctic

Weather

avfreq (Soundcloud user) - Thunderstorm T14b 11APR12
Ray Mansell - Thunderstorm, Monday, 25 June, 2012

Wind and Wires

Felix Blume, Aeolian Wind Harp Sounding in Elqui Valley of Chile, February 2012
Jurko Haituu, Singing Pipes at Åreskutan (hydrophonic recording)
Alan Lamb, Night Passage
Alan Lamb, Primal Image

Compilations & Miscellany

Bill Fontana, Field Recordings of Natural Sounds
R. Murray Schafer - The Vancouver Soundscape

I have also collected hundreds and hundreds of muezzin recordings from YouTube, SoundCloud, etc., so there are far too many of those to mention. But I always welcome more such recordings made for CD release (whether commercial, artistic, or anthropological in nature).

Your recommendations greatly appreciated!

Ask MeFi: How to be a writer

Enchanting Grasshopper — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 08:10:39 GMT

I want to start writing freelance. Not necessarily full-time, but I want to try it.

I've attempted it a few times over the years, but I don't know how to market myself, don't know what to write, don't know how to start making contacts. I've started contacting people on social media sites- I believe this is called "networking" but I'm really bad at it.

I am doing my Masters right now in a political science-related field. I am looking for full-time work, but times are a-changing, and after 7 years of floating around and being unable to find work in what I wanted to do (I wanted to be an editor/editorial assistant straight out of college/uni, but I couldn't find anything- how do people find jobs in that?? I know people get employed at publishing houses all the time, but I couldn't even get so much as an interview!), I've decided to try and be entrepreneurial in addition to looking for traditional work-a-9-to-5-and-take-home-a-paycheck kind of employment. I've done the obvious (Googled "how to start freelancing," checked out past AskMes) and while I've found a lot of advice, I still can't figure out what to *do.*I know that I'm a strong writer, researcher and that I can tailor my writing to different audiences. (I've taught children under the age of 3, essayed about historical human rights abuses, and come up with extremely raunchy and vulgar humour.) I also know that I suck at networking and hate talking myself up.

I concluded yesterday after one of my more fruitful Google searches that I need to make a website. I don't know what to call my it, I don't know what to put as the tagline. I write about social justice, human rights, gender, race , etc. I also write some pretty hilarious social/media commentary. I am willing to write about (nearly) anything. I'm willing to start for low/no pay to get noticed. Unfortunately, despite how (undeniably) hilarious and insightful I am, I am not creative. I've tried several times to start a blog. I have a lot of ideas that disappear as soon as I sit down to write a blog post. I have written guest posts on other people's blogs, and those have always been pretty well received, but it's different when I'm expected to come up with my own words every day.

I can't come up with a website name. I can't even think of a URL. (Should it just be my name? Should it be something related to the type of stuff I want to write about? Should it be cheeky? willwriteforfood.com?)

So, I know I'm asking a lot. How do I actually get started? What should I call my website? How do I become a writer?

MeFi: Instant Server

jenkinsEar — Sat, 15 Jun 2013 23:47:12 GMT

Click the button to get a virtual private server.

What's the catch?
The server gets destroyed after 35 minutes. You can pay to keep it longer.

When would I use this?
Among other reasons, perhaps:
You need another computer to test something quickly
You need to install and use a utility for one thing, and don't want to clutter your own environment
You need a vanilla environment to get something to build and run properly
You need linux but accidentally used windows

MeFi: "It's a mental illness"

anothermug — Wed, 19 Jun 2013 03:15:39 GMT

Russell Brand ends up surrounded by idiots on Morning Joe. Destroys them and they hardly know it. Pictures at 11.

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