The Tyler Cowen

1. More nuclear stuff. The comments are surprisingly good. 
2. And MORE nuclear stuff.
3. uhhh...whoa. 

The Tyler Cowen

1. Fun article from 38 North on Christopher Hill that packs a punch regardless of its levity. 
2. Wonderful video shot using GTA IV's engine. Via The Awesomer.
   
3. I normally hate glorifying gangsters but c'mon...

The Tyler Cowen

1. More great Portal 2 commercials.
2. Traveling is good for the soul. 
3. Few things better than a good Daily Show rant. (Even though this one seems oddly edited.)
4. Really interesting rant about Google from an ex-Googler. Via The Browser. 

Firefly: War Stories Review

Over the course of the past two months, Firefly has been an enjoyable, if uneven, treat. Its strengths clearly lie in its human characters and believable dialogue whereas, no less clearly, its weaknesses are in poor production values and an over-earnestness that occasionally borders on camp. It has been genuinely scary, funny, and touching over the course of the 9 episodes seen thus far. Even with this experience however, I was unprepared for how powerful the emotional core of War Stories is.

The Tyler Cowen

1. Funny recap of the Half Life story thus far.
   
2. Breaking down how hard it is to connect the Deepwater Horizon to the oil cap 5,000 feet below the ocean's surface. 
3. A not-so-rosy future for Libya.

Fractured Friday

The Tyler Cowen

Foreign Policy-heavy focus of today's links.

1. Wonderful article on Japan. 
2. Eye-opening article on Qaddafi. This sort of buck-the-trend thinking is one of the things I miss most about college, even if it has some serious soft spots. 
3. The demographic shift in global wealth by 2025 points to the importance of cities, particularly those from the developing world. It's a pretty dry article but successfully hammers home the point that investors and entrepreneurs should be paying better attention to these shifts. 
4. Short, compelling article on the imperial nature of Obama's presidency, at least in the last month. Are we witnessing the demise of American democracy as it really starts to crumble in earnest? And, if so, does it not speak to the failure of democratic government at large? Probably not but it's still scary. 

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New original posts coming, we promise. This past week has been a blur of coding and rocking. (To whet your appetite, how do you feel about more Firefly reviews, a video game review, and an editorial in defense of hipsters?) To hold you over, here's an incredibly relaxing time lapse video of a different sort of radiation.


The Aurora from Terje Sorgjerd on Vimeo.

The Tyler Cowen

Nuclear Power!

1. We should stop using nuclear power!
2. We should continue using nuclear power!
3. Disney and co. have some not-exactly-reassuring support of atomic power!
4. Some original writing from the first nuclear sub test in 1959!

Infographics!

1. Phenomenal infographic of 2011 in the Middle East. 
2. Hair infographic.

The Tyler Cowen

1. Couldn't have said it better myself. When will the world's policy-makers realize that nothing is done in a vacuum. Strategies must be crafted with an eye not only for the immediate impact but also the message it sends the other players. 
2. Excellent interview regarding the status of women in North Korea. 
3. Finally, an overview of the tangled mess of politics and diplomacy on the Korean peninsula. 
4. And, turning to the Middle East, a series of essays supporting and condemning the international intervention in Libya.