Making it rain

Sneaky Swiss!

A company out of Switzerland called Meteo Systems has claimed that it is responsible for 52 unexpected storms in the Middle East. I don't know if I recall my lazy Sundays with the Discovery Channel accurately, but isn't the Earth's weather system a finely balanced network? Butterfly effects abound and global warming in the Arctic can bring about frigid winters in New England? Of all the supposed hubris and folly of man's attempts to control nature, making it rain in the desert seems to me a pretty dangerous proposition.

Promoting ourselves

A mere taste of our marketing powers. Tremble before it and kill yourselves!

Juche and International Trade

The Juche Tower in the background, overlooking self-reliant North Koreans.

Introduction:
The North Korean doctrine of Juche is, at its simplest, a call for self-reliance. It is used interchangeably in the DPRK as a rallying cry for workers, a justification for military actions, and an explanation of economic policies. Regardless of how it is bandied about, Juche is, at its core, the foundation of North Korean isolation. It is also the cornerstone of North Korean problems.

Feeding the Rich

Kim Jong il's private train.

The Chosun Ilbo reports on the luxury homes for North Korea's elite. Kim Jong il alone has 33 villas in the mountains and alone the beaches, all with manicured lawns and the occasional man-made lake. In addition, the batty old man owns 6 exclusive trains with as many as 19 private train stations, often located within his own compounds. Other high-ranking party officials enjoy similar luxuries. $150m USD is being spent on various luxury homes for Kim Jong un alone, both in Pyongyang and outside the city near hot springs.

The Tyler Cowen

1. Another year-end review of movies by revenue. It's nice to be able to trace the longevity of a movie in addition to just focusing on its opening week. (Although this throws into sharp relief how vital the opening week is in relation to everything else.) Via Cool Infographics.
2. We all are prey to the wild fluctuations in the speed of time, particularly as we get older. The New York Times has a nice article on it. "And emotional events — a breakup, a promotion, a transformative trip abroad — tend to be perceived as more recent than they actually are, by months or even years." Via The Browser. 
3. A Zinn-esque reminder about the dormant class wars. 
4. Homeland security is not making us safer. When does this cease to be a practical problem and become a metaphysical one? When do we throw up our hands, accept that life is full of risks, and relish in the moment? When do we start listening to Let's Go Crazy again?
5. North Korean restaurants now being reported on in Fast Company. 
6. Nice photos. Nice nice photos. 

Mario 64 Speed Run

An insane speed-run through Mario 64 on an emulator. I don't know what kind of crazy tricks these guys are pulling to make this happen but, for anyone who put in any substantial amount of time into Mario 64, this is nothing short of jaw-dropping...

Boxes: A Tale of Abstraction

After watching the beautiful first video from Information Is Beautiful (appropriately named, aren't they?), I can't help but throw another naive rallying cry out into the void for a shift along our production possibilities frontier from knives to butter. It all looks so simple! If that box is that big and this box is only this big, shouldn't we be able to move a little from that box to this box? Come on! They're just boxes!

The Tyler Cowen

1. Another inspiring Horatio Alger everyman. This one created IMDb. 
2. Beautiful photos of various monuments in various states of construction. The Rushmore picture is particularly unnerving as it feels like the faces are being excavated from the mountain rather than carved into it. Via Gizmodo.

Lift me up on arms of noise

Smile though your heart is aching. Or listen to rock and roll. When you need the redemptive power of music, I humbly submit the following for your consideration.

1. The Aye-Ayes: The Arms of Noise
2. Metric: Help I'm Alive
3. The Police: Synchronicity II
4. Sam Bisbee: Miracle Car
5. The Aye-Ayes: Don't Want to be Young
6. M83: Kim & Jessie
7. Queensryche: Walk in the Shadows
8. The Talking Heads: Naive Melody

Not, by any stretch of the imagination, a comprehensive list. Not even in any particular order.

The Tyler Cowen

1. Huh. Via Marginal Revolution.
2. Alexander Ovechkin's drought. Via The Browser.
3. Argentinian Dancing with the Stars is hilariously, shockingly, sexy. The sounds the announcer makes had me in stitches. (NOTE: This is not something you should watch in the office.)