Archives by Subject: Culture
10 Most Common Passwords
Naturally, "password" is at the top of the list. [link]
Posted in on May 08, 2007, 01:26 AM | Comments (0) | Permalink
Facebook and Grey's Anatomy
Facebook co-founder Dustin Moskovitz shows what happens to Facebook traffic when Grey's Anatomy comes on. You can even see the commercial breaks.
Reminds me of some similar graphs I saw Google speak at a NYU Recruiting event.
· Another Thursday Night at Facebook... [Facebook blog]
Posted in on March 07, 2007, 12:15 AM | Comments (0) | Permalink
"You should be sitting beside us at the table."
From President George Bush to New York Times Executive Editor Bill Keller:
The president said quite forcefully that this program was something he regarded as part of the crown jewels of our national security, and that if we exposed it, we would be at least in part responsible, or [should] feel ourselves responsible, if there was another attack on the U.S. I think what he said was, "When we were called up to explain to Congress why there was another attack, you should be sitting beside us at the table."
(The emphasis is mine.)
From the excellent PBS Frontline documentary series Newswar.
Posted in on February 25, 2007, 06:28 PM | Comments (0) | Permalink
L Magazine Knows Too Much
Most NYU stereotypes are pretty dumb -- and often inaccurate. But wait a minute! Maybe L Magazine is on to something here!
1 Phase I (Freshman Year) Fifth Avenue at Washington Square is a perfectly reasonable place for an 18-year-old from Beaver, Pennsylvania to get a sense of his societal standing in relation to the rest of New York, isn’t it?
Well, I lived on Washington Square West. And I'm not from Pennsylvania. But close enough.
2 Phase II (Senior Year) Having discovered that Greenwich Village no longer has any “bohemians,” our little hero convinces the ‘rents to help out with rent in Alphabet City, by which he means “pay it all.” Probably the coolest place he’ll ever live.
Okay, so not as accurate as above -- but I do live in Alphabet City. Oh L Magazine, tell me where I move to next?!?
3 Phase III (Age 23) At this point, as the territory known as “East Williamsburg” grows to include parts of Connecticut, our hero, weaned from the teat of parental generosity, learns all about “crazy” roomates and loft life.
No way am I moving to Connecticut.
· Whinge Migration: On the Residency Patterns of an NYU Student [L Magazine]
Posted in on February 20, 2007, 11:24 PM | Comments (0) | Permalink
Happy Belated Valentine's Day!
"An Arizona woman is under arrest, accused of tying up her lover on Valentine's Day in order to drink his blood...after tying him up, police said, she pulled out a knife and cut the man on the leg. She then told him she likes to drink blood and proceeded to drink from his leg, officials said.
...the victim managed to break free from his restraints and run from the bedroom. The woman then chased him with a pickax, police said."
· Woman Allegedly Ties Up Valentine, Drinks His Blood [NBC5]
Posted in on February 17, 2007, 03:40 PM | Comments (0) | Permalink
Disaster on the Set of Family Guy
I think I liked South Park's parody better, but this is pretty good.
Relevant:
· Back to His Roots: Diller's IAC Invests in Online Video [WSJ]
Posted in on February 14, 2007, 11:42 AM | Comments (0) | Permalink
Barack Obama's Facebook Gifts
So, lots of people are excited about the new Facebook virtual gifts.
Has anyone noticed how many gifts Barack Obama has received? Bars of soap, teddy bears, thongs, cupcakes, and more!
Posted in on February 14, 2007, 12:04 AM | Comments (0) | Permalink
Election Day!
"We got five machines -- one of them's got to work." Take that quote from an Ohio election official as your inspiration when you vote today. The Associated Press says electronic voting machines are causing headaches (and maybe stolen elections, whatever) all over the country. Some machines are just down all morning....
"I never thought I'd say this, but...can we get some help from a Web 2.0 company?
Really, right now I have more faith in a thumbs-up on Digg than in those Diebold touchscreen machines."
Posted in on November 07, 2006, 05:51 PM | Comments (0) | Permalink
Breaking News!
Another one of the reasons I'm cool is that I tivo Good Morning America, and watch it when I wake up, whenever that might be. This morning during the local news break the top local story was Bull on the Loose!
Am I the only one who finds this funny?
If you don't find it funny yet, the headline on their website is:
'Who let the Bull out? woof, woof, woof..'
Still not funny yet?
It happened in Newark, New Jersey!
Posted in on November 03, 2006, 12:10 PM | Comments (0) | Permalink
Ford's Executive Dining Room?
From an article in today's New York Times about the troubled Ford Motor Company:
In the executive dining room, the last of its kind at Detroit’s big automakers, waitresses take orders from a multicourse menu and bring silver finger bowls between the main course and dessert.
Uhh...
His company reported losses of $1.6 billion in North America last year and lost $1.2 billion worldwide in the first quarter this year.
Posted in on July 16, 2006, 09:53 PM | Comments (0) | Permalink
London Judge Hides Secret Message in "Da Vinci Code" Ruling
You couldn't make this stuff up:
Parts of London's legal community ground to a virtual halt Thursday with lawyers turning into aspiring code-breakers as they tried to decipher a hidden message inserted into "The Da Vinci Code" trial judgment.
With the revelation that Judge Peter Smith inserted a secret code of his own into the April 7 judgment that cleared "The Da Vinci Code" author Dan Brown in his copyright infringement case, lawyers have been hustling to solve the puzzle.
· 'Da Vinci' Judgement Code Puzzles Lawyers [ABC News via AP]
Posted in on April 29, 2006, 04:44 PM | Comments (0) | Permalink
Spring Break: From Austin to Pearlington
My hair still smells like wood smoke from the campfire I spent the previous two nights in front of. And that's just fine.
It will take my a while to organize my thoughts into anything resembling coherency, but first, some thoughts. I will never forget:
· Standing outside the shell of a house entirely devastated by Hurricane Katrina listening to all the Americorps volunteers belt out "Red Neck Woman." Somehow the locals preserved their marvelous karaoke system. Though I have to say that this woman [click for video] did a perfect impression of Macy Gray.
· Watching a small dog house sized shed burn as "Burning Down the House" blared from the sound system in Pearlington's Burning Man camp. Don't worry -- it was art.
· My first crawfish bake. They are delicious!
· Driving from New Orleans to Pearlington [click for video].
· Stumbling into an apparently weekly open mic night filled with locals expressing their views [click for video].
Be sure you visit my Pearlington photoset on Flickr.
One House at a Time
The whole reason I found myself in Pearlington was to visit my good friend Jake who is a coordinator on the ground for One House at a Time. I hope to make their website more dynamic and less boring sometime this week.
The Rest of Spring Break
I should also note that I had a mostly wonderful time in New Orleans [click for photos] and Austin [click for my few photos], but some things are more memorable than others. I'll fill you in on the happier parts of my spring break eventually.
Posted in on March 21, 2006, 12:16 AM | Comments (0) | Permalink
Breaking News
This just in: Celebrities under 21 go to clubs and other trendy places!!!!
Posted in on March 02, 2006, 01:13 PM | Comments (0) | Permalink
Persuasion vs. Intimidation
As some explained to me recently:
If someone has something you really want, intimidation will not work. If they were intimidated, they probably wouldn't have that thing. Instead, you need to persuade them: how can you make it work for both of you?
Posted in on January 10, 2006, 11:49 PM | Comments (0) | Permalink
Credit Card Roulette
If you're ever out to dinner with a bunch of people and feeling adventurous, you can always play credit card roulette when the check comes. Each person puts in their credit card, and you ask the waiter to choose one at random. Whoever win's pays for the entire check!
Posted in on January 10, 2006, 11:47 AM | Comments (0) | Permalink
Travelogue: Reflections on Hungarian Culture
The instant we arrived in Budapest's airport, two people came up to our group and asked if we needed a cab. They were pretty good salespeople, armed with tons selling points: cabs were cheaper than the airport buses for large groups, cabs were quicker, cabs took you directly to your place, these were especially cheap cabs, you can pay in Euros instead of the Hungarian Forints, etc.
Yet the cab ride proved interesting. Our cab driver, fluent in English, was very honest and open. Though I assumed it was obvious, he asked if we were American, and had a lot to say. He didn't like the globalization of America. He didn't like American films, American politics, American food, or American cars.
"You go to a movie theatre and there are 10 films, and 8 of them are American." He was adamant: Hungary has its own private market, and doesn't need American products.
Throughout all this, he was weaving the cab through traffic like a madmen. European traffic lights seem to flash the yellow light when the light is red to indicate that it's about to turn green, allowing the drivers to prepare to take off at full speed. If he hadn't had us as passengers, he told us, "there is only one rule... no crossing the cars." Or, in other words, no car accidents.
Posted in on November 08, 2005, 11:02 AM | Comments (0) | Permalink
Travelogue: Thoughts on Rome
My first month in Florence has unfortunately not consisted of much travel. I went on a day trip to Lucca, and last weekend was supposed to travel to Perugia, but that fell through. So, this weekend, I decided to go to Rome. I originally was going to travel and stay with some friends, but they had to cancel because they were sick. They also cancelled the hostel reservations.
But none of this deterred me, so at 11am on Friday I walked the five blocks to Florence’s Santa Maria Novella train station, without a place to stay, people to travel with, or even a map.
It just so happened that sitting across from me were two students from Pepperdine University in California that were studying abroad for the year in Germany. Unlike me, they have traveled extensively, and had decided just the night before to travel the many hours (somewhere around 13) to Rome on the train.
They, too, had no where to stay in Rome, and immediately upon entering Rome’s giant “Termini” (train station), someone with a nametag that said “Tourist Information” came up to us and asked if we were looking for a room. He then walked us several blocks to a hostel (or, as he called it, a “bed and breakfast”) that was only €23 for one night. (And for the record, the “breakfast” aspect of the hostel consisted of orange juice and a stale croissant.)
This was actually my first time in a hostel, so I wasn’t sure what to expect. We were placed in a room with six beds (including two bunk beds). Everything seemed okay to me (they even had maps for me!), so we paid our money, showed them our passports, and went to explore Rome.
I just followed the seasoned travelers, and we saw dozens of sites, one after another. I had little knowledge of what Rome had to offer, and some of the coolest things I saw were things I didn’t even know existed!
Unfortunately, I didn’t keep track of where we went, so using my map, I’ve tried to piece together photos, memories, and names.
A few highlights, thoughts, etc:
The Vatican
I’m actually going to be spending a lot more time here when I go back to Rome this weekend for a class field trip. Somehow, our professor has gained special access to a normally restricted portion of the Vatican Museum. Regardless, I spent Saturday morning in the area near the Vatican. The plaza near St. Peter's Basilica was beautiful. The lines for the Sistine Chapel and other major tourist destinations were much too long for me to wait in, especially since I'd be going back the following week. I was surprised by the large amount of advertising in the plaza.
I tried to enter the Vatican proper, but was denied entrance by the clown-like Swiss Guards. As I approached, he made some gesture resembling a salute. I obviously didn't know the correct response, and he told me I couldn't come in. It's also possible I wasn't let in because of the bag I was carrying. I'm going to try and figure out what I need to do to get in next week.
Monumento a Vittorio Emanuele II
This was one of the most incredible structures I've ever seen in my life. We first saw it while looking at the ruins of the Roman Forum, and it was one of the few buildings where we could go anywhere. It is difficult to communicate its size through words or photographs. It was apparently constructed between 1895 and 1911, in honor of King Victor Emmanuel II. It was heavily secured with Roman police, and every so often one would start blowing their whistle at someone doing something you weren't supposed to.
Fontana di Trevi
They say that you're supposed to supposed to throw a coin over your right shoulder, but I'm not sure how I could have pulled that off without hitting anyone! We were walking down a street, turned a corner, and all of the sudden, there it was.
One of the most shocking things was that as soon as you turned around, you saw a giant advertisement for a cell phone. I guess that's capitalism for you.
Changing of the Guard at the President's House
I saw a surprising amount of heavily armed authority figures throughout Rome. While standing outside of what later I learned was the President's house, I witnessed a changing of the guard. Like something out of a movie, a guy comes out and starts chanting instructions. I managed to capture some of it on video.
I go back to Rome next week, so I'll have lots more to say then!
· Rome Photoset [Flickr]
Posted in on October 02, 2005, 04:01 PM | Comments (0) | Permalink
Italians Love Receipts
I'm just back from Rome, where I had an incredible time and will post more on it soon. But in the interim, I feel the need to tell you: Italians love receipts.
Italians give you receipts for everything, and when I try to refuse them, they are suprised. When I was on the train and ordered a three Euro sandwich, they gave me a receipt. When I went to the 99 cent store to get a bottle of water, they gave me a receipt. What's even sillier is the receipts are often void of the important information... such as what you bought. They just give the name of the establishment, its address, and how much money you spent.
As if I need a reminder of how much money I'm spending.
Posted in on October 02, 2005, 07:04 AM | Comments (1) | Permalink
Gothamist Music Interviews... Ashlee Simpson?
Is this for real? Is the most recent "Gothamist Band Interview" really with lip-syncing pop sensation Ashlee Simpson?
Did she really answer a question like this?
Q: "You know you've made it when..." you feel proud of yourself for working hard and doing the best you could do
Come on, Dobkin!
(Though, in other Gothamist news, Gothamist LLC seems to have launched a corporate site.)
Posted in on September 27, 2005, 06:46 PM | Comments (0) | Permalink
In Florence, ATMs Close Sunday, Too
The guidebooks tell you that in Florence, many shops and businesses are closed Sundays. It's possible that's true for the ATMs ("bancomats") too!
I just spent 30 minutes trying to find a working ATM. Only the seventh ATM I visited was actually working.
Posted in on September 25, 2005, 09:11 AM | Comments (2) | Permalink
I'm an Amico Degli Uffizi!
One of the coolest things that NYU does for us here is give us these special blue cards. When combined with photo ID, it allows for unlimited and free admission to state museums (see the PDF below for the full list) -- and lets you cut the lines!
Today I annoyed a tour group when I walked up to their special line and just went in to the Galleria Dell'Accademia. They had made reservations and no doubt planned their trip far in advance. I just decided to walk the six blocks from where I'm living and check out the David.
· NYU Flyer on the Card [PDF file]
· Amici Degli Uffizi Website
Posted in on September 24, 2005, 01:23 PM | Comments (0) | Permalink
nineTnine Cent Invasion
One of the most suprising things I've seen in Florence is the "nineTnine Cent Paradise" shop less than a block from where I'm living. Everything there is, quite literally, 99 cents (in Euros, of course).
It actually makes for some pretty good deals -- 99 cent sodas, 99 cent binders, 99 cent packs of pens.
I don't think I've ever been in a 99 cent store in the United States, but I go to this one almost every day.
Posted in on September 14, 2005, 12:14 PM | Comments (0) | Permalink
What's In a Name?
Hopefully not that much.
I've always been awful at remembering names, but it's not often as embarrassing as it is now. Since arriving in Florence a little over ten days ago, I've met dozens and dozens of people. I've had trouble with almost all of their names.
Even the fifteen other people that I live with had to be patient for a few days until I finally figured out who they are. There are always those days when you pretend you know somebody else's name and you really don't. The key is to avoid embarrassment.
This problem continues to manifest itself on a daily basis. Plenty of people seem to know my name, yet I struggle to remember theirs. I’ve tried the same old suggestions: associate their name with an article of clothing, or use their name in a sentence out loud. No such luck.
So, if I forget your name, no hard feelings?
Posted in on September 13, 2005, 11:52 AM | Comments (0) | Permalink
New York Times Profiles Today's Rebellious Youth
In today's New York Times Styles section, the rebellious youth of 2005 are profiled:
"We hang out late because there's less people around, so we can do what we want," said Devin McKenna, 17, a high school senior, who was eating cake frosting from a can. He threw the frosting high into the black night sky, letting it splatter white onto the pavement.
"See? You think I could do that in the daytime?" he said. "I'd probably hit a car or a person, and then someone would throw a fit, and we'd be in trouble again."
Uhhhh...
· The Endless Night: Hanging Out in Cars With Boys, and Girls [New York Times]
Posted in on August 21, 2005, 02:00 PM | Permalink
