More Random!

ARTLY THINGS

+ Gerard Way's talk at the School of Visual Arts - [media] [art] - Gerard Way, writer of the comic Umbrella Academy, speaks at his alma mater. While I haven't had the time to read all of UA, I am a genuine fan of this man. He is earnest and sincere, and he cares so much about everything he does. His discussion on creating because you have to, because you have a story to tell, hit me right in the chest

+ ProcessRecess: James Jean's Art Blog - [art] - Speaking of James Jean, a link to his art blog. So, so, so beautiful. (His actual website is, easily enough, JamesJean.com)


FOOD

+ Not Martha - bacon cups - [food] - There is nothing about this that I do not love. Imagine the possibilities!

I had an occasion calling for bacon themed food and my mind immediately turned towards the famed bacon mat. I needed something a little more single-serving though, so I decided to attempt bacon cups.

SCIENCE OF SOME SORT

+ Discovery Channel: I love the world - [science] [media] - This is one of the most charming commercials I've ever seen. The world is awesome! (As is the xkcd comic based off of it. And, in case anyone cares to know what I consider one of the most heartwrenching: Adopt Scifi.)

+ How Smart is the Octopus? - [Slate] [science] - I might be biased because I find aquatic life truly amazing, but this is such a cool article. I thoroughly recommend watching the clips linked in the first paragraph. Octopuses! How so cool, aquatic life? (I haven't had the chance to read Cephalopod consciousness: Behavioural evidence yet, but I totally will.)

So, is the octopus really all that smart? It depends on how you define intelligence. And if you've got a good definition, there are quite a few scientists who would love to hear it. Octopuses can learn, they can process complex information in their heads, and they can behave in equally complex ways. But it would be a mistake to try to give octopuses an IQ score. They are not intelligent in the way we are—not because they're dumb but because their behavior is the product of hundreds of millions of years of evolution under radically different conditions than the ones under which our own brains evolved.

RANDOM OTHER THINGS

+ Moving Apart - [fiction] - A beautiful tale of the continents. Highly, highly recommended. Clever and puntastic.

All the other continents said Antarctica was a frigid bitch, but Australia remembered the good old days. Once upon a time, there had been three of them: Australia, Antarctica and India. Antarctica had covered herself with forests and they’d huddled together for warmth, with Antarctica nestled in his Great Australian Bight (as he liked to call it).

+ Confessions of a Superhero: a documentary by Matt Ogens - [media] - I've only seen the trailer but it is intriguing.

CONFESSIONS OF A SUPERHERO is a feature length documentary that chronicles the lives of three mortal men and one woman who make their living working as superhero characters on Hollywood Boulevard. This deeply personal look into their daily routines reveals their hardships and triumphs as they pursue and achieve their own kind of fame. The Hulk sold his Super Nintendo for a bus ticket to LA; Wonder Woman was a mid-western homecoming queen; Batman struggles with his anger, while Superman’s psyche is consumed by the Man of Steel. Although the Walk of Fame is right beneath their feet, their own paths to stardom prove to be long, hard climbs.

Notes: I'm trying to figure out a more efficient way to organize my links, but so far with limited success. Hang in there, I'll figure it out!