How Subtle is Wireless?

Pirate Broadband for Burma? - publius, Obsidian Wings

Considering the potential for pirate broadband transmitting, I think the Burma situation is a perfect opportunity to test it in field. I'm sure some aid agency could pull together a cadre of techheads and hackers to build a working, reproducible rig. Personally, I just like the idea of pirating broadband ala The Invisible Man.

Music to My Cosmic Ears

Mysterious Energy Burst Stuns Astronomers - Science Daily

This is the kind of science stuff that I love. Wonder if the radio burst can be played like music?

My Wires are all Tangled

Area Deep Within the Brain Found to Play Role in Sensory Perception - Science Daily

Synesthesias is a hobby interest of mine. It's all about the crosswiring of our sensory perceptions were certain letters and numbers have a particular color associated with them in the minds of those who have the mutation. It can also manifest where tastes and smells are presented to the brain in the form of visuals and sounds. The whole idea is that our sensory perceptions are affected as much by the originating sensory data as they are by the way the brain processes the information. Philosophically, the condition is tied to how much we can trust what we see and experience. It's utterly fascinating as the study of synesthesia could lead to a better understanding of extra-sensory perception (not in the paranomal junk science sense though).

The Aesthetics of Guerrilla Tagging

Guerrilla Artist Banksy Caught Up In eBay Scandal - Guardian

Now here's my problem with this type of scandal, even though it involves an artist who's MO is to generally remain anonymous while tagging various places in interesting ways. It's not so much that someone is attempting to profit off the artist's work, particularly since you can grab jpegs of the artwork just about anywhere. It's that what was for sale was originally intended for sale by the artist himself. There's a difference between someone who goes out and silk-screens a bunch of t-shirts and someone who takes from a limited print run of the work to sell at inflated prices. I like Banksy and I like the aesthetic he represents but there are legitimate differences between the kind of guerrilla art Banksy and those who copy him do and attempting to profit off of work that was produced by the artist himself, without his permission, without his knowledge and certainly without paying for the work originally. It's akin to stealing a comic from a comic store and attempting to sell it online yourself. It's not simply an issue of legality or morality but one of aesthetics.