The Battle against the Coqui

Hawaii has a very serious coqui infestation. Not only the climate is perfect for the from that is a cultural icon in Puerto Rico, but also the people from Hawaii do not appreciate the frog's song. The fight is intensifying, as $300k has been approved for attacking the coquies, as well as a new weapon, hydrated lime, will be used.
I miss the song of the coqui.

Jurassic 5

Last night we went to the J5 concert. The MCs packed so much melody and energy. Whenever 2na was singing, the crowd went crazy. Although one of the DJs wasn't there, the other one spinned the whole show with the intensity of two, and never let us down.

Salsa, Sabor y Control

Salsa, Sabor y Control es un libro acerca de la historia, significado, sociología e influencia de la música tropical. Se enfoca en música de Puerto Rico, o de Nuyorricans, en particular, la salsa. Aunque el autor es un poco pedante y excesivo (trata en varios instantes de conectar movimientos musicales con la teoría de la relatividad de Einstein), es un excelente libro informativo si estas ligeramente interesado en aprender acerca de la salsa, en particular su historia y estructura.

more about geoducks

It seems that everyone's favorite bivalve makes great sushi. These North-West coast animals have found their way into Asian cuisine. According to my research, it has sweet flavor and a crunchy texture. A great deal of geoduck recipes can be found on the internet. Some like it stir-fried while others prefer to play with their food.
They are the official mascot of the Evergreen State College who have dedicated a song to Panopea abrupta .

Go, Geoducks go,
Stretch your necks when the tide
is low
Siphon high, squirt it out,
swivel all about,
let it all hang out.

Intelligent Design

kuro5hin has a very good essay that explains the main issues of the debate of Evolution vs Intelligent Design.

AWOL

Alcohol Without Liquid is the new, hangover-less way to get buzzed.

things i miss from videogames

The best video game console was the Super Nintendo. That was the console to offer the perfect balance between graphics and fun factor. I've compiled a list of things I miss from the good ol' 8 to 16 bits era.

ninjas
jatactactuuquet
2 buttons
pixelated enemies
ninjas
no internet connection
3 lives. 30 levels
16 bits
battery backup
ninjas
games named "super"

Bitchhacker

Check out this very entertaining IRC log of a hacker trying to hack someone.

-bitchchecker- tell me your network number man then you're dead
-Elch- yes exactly that's it: 127.0.0.1 I'm waiting for you great attack
-bitchchecker- in five minutes your hard drive is deleted
[...]
-Elch- I'm shivering thinking about such great Hack0rs like you
* bitchchecker (~java@euirc-61a2169c.dip.t-dialin.net) Quit (Ping timeout#)
[...]
* bitchchecker (~java@euirc-b5cd558e.dip.t-dialin.net) has joined #stopHipHop
-bitchchecker- dude be happy my pc crashed otherwise you'd be gone
-Elch- bitchchecker: Then try hacking me again... I still have the same IP: 127.0.0.1
-bitchchecker- buy buy elch
* bitchchecker (~java@euirc-b5cd558e.dip.t-dialin.net) Quit (Ping timeout#)
[...]
-bitchchecker- because your gay fire wall directed my turn off signal back to me
-bitchchecker- be a man turn that shit off
-Elch- cool, didn't know this was possible.
-bitchchecker- thn my virus destroys your pc man
[...]
-bitchchecker- elch man you're so stupid never give your ip on the internet
-bitchchecker- i'm already at c: 30 percent
* bitchchecker (~java@euirc-9ff3c180.dip.t-dialin.net) Quit (Ping timeout#)

Comments

Feel free to make comments to the posts in the blog. The few comments I have seen so far really add something interesting to the post, I would like to see more stuff like it.

geoduck or gweduck

I just discovered the most amazing animal EVER. It is called geoduck and is the largest burrowing clam in the world.
It is making me realize the important role that molluscs play in our everyday life. Incredible pictures can be found here, here and here.
There is a promising market for these things, they sell up to $30/lb!

Stuff in the yard

I have a nice backyard that is the favorite target of the people in the building next to me. It used to be also the target of the homeless guy that used to live on the other side of my fence. So far, things that I have found in the yard are:

-beer cans
-beer bottles
-cigarettes
-lighters
-cigarette boxes
-News papers
-Frisbee
-Human Excrement (wrapped in newspaper)
-A VCR

stuffed goat

I don't even want to think why goats are so popular for these practices, but according to the Straight Dope they are. This other place says they are high in proteins. Once again, I don't want to think where they get the protein from.
In case you are part of the 12.5% of the population, here are some others uses for a goat.

why i don't like star wars anymore

I saw Star Wars Revelations and got bored really fast, still I was amazed by its similarity to the Star Wars movies. It was only an excuse to have light saber battles and dog fights.

The story of the movie was really bad, but the production was good. It really felt like Star Wars.

The original Star Wars Trilogy was really great. At that time, it was hard to create a movie that defined a generation (now generations are defined each 4 or 5 years). It created an unequaled market of books, toys and paraphernalia.

However, this has stayed the same for nearly 20 years. There hasn't been anything new worth noting coming from the star wars universe. Episodes 1 and 2 were not that great and in my opinion they took part of the magic of the original trilogy. Now, as episode 3 is about to unveil, I am expecting more of the same. Throw some light saber battles and contact lenses to note Anakin's evilness. Star Wars Episode 3 will be the emperor's new clothes. Everyone will like it, but no one will know why.

The fact that any Star Wars product is a success without being really good is why I don't like Star Wars Anymore.

How to Win Friends & Influence People

A sorority girl was telling me about fraternities, sororities and their initiations. For example, in a frat in San Antonio, they would rent a U-Haul, put the newcomers in the back with a Keg of beer and make them drink the whole thing on their way to Austin. Once in Austin, they would leave them overnight locked inside the U-Haul; so these drunk kids had to puke, piss, crap and sleep in the U-Haul until someone went to pick them up in the morning.

To this I just said: "I have never met a group of people that were so cool that I would be willing to go through that to be part of their click."

Then, she proceeded to explain in a lot of detail some other, even more humiliating things. For example, in many sororities they give them condoms and make them have sex with guys from a fraternity to get the "good" jersey, as opposed to the lame one.
Finally, she explained all the evidence that she found that support the rumors that in a certain frat they make the new guys have sex with a goat. She said she called her boyfriend to see how the initiation was going; and he just made fun of the new kids. But, in the background, she heard a goat. The next day, she went to a bathroom, and found porn mags, open condoms and animal hair all over the place. That day they roasted a goat at the frat, and made only the new ones eat it.

To this I just said: "You dated a goat fucker."
I don't think she liked my remark.

The Physics Face

I have never understood the physics face. That is, the facial expression that people make when, after being asked what do I study, I reply "physics". It is pretty much like if I said "I am a Nazi". Their reaction has disbelief, fear and disgust all mixed together.

My friend, another physicist, was at a party, talking to this girl. English PhD, blah blah, whatever, talking talking she was. Then, she asks the question. "Physics", my friend says. She makes the physics face, and then says: "Physics? I'm sorry, I can't talk to you anymore." And left the party.

Doctor

My good friend defended his thesis yesterday, and got his PhD in physics. He had an impressive presentation, addressed all the questions correctly, even the ones from the dumb-ass professors asking stupid questions just because they didn't pay attention to the previous slide. I asked some professors, about half of the students that enter my program actually get a PhD.

It was very exciting to see one of my friends get one.

Political Spectrum Questionare

Here is a very interesting questionare to help you determine where do you lie in the political spectrum. Isolationist? Liberal? Realist? Neoconservative?

Owner of the Popemobile dies at age 84

Pope John Paul II, Longtime Owner Of Popemobile, Dead At 84

VATICAN CITY—Pope John Paul II, who owned the Popemobile for more than a quarter of a century, passed away last Saturday. "The Popemobile was known the world over," said Peter Egan, a writer for Road & Track. "A fine example of European craftsmanship, the hand-built, 4.3 litre, V-8 powered, pearl-gray vehicle was exceptionally well-loved, even more so after the bulletproof bubble was added in 1981 to safeguard its passengers against assassination attempts. During the time he owned the Popemobile, John Paul II visited more than 120 countries. He loved the open road." The specially altered Mercedes-Benz ML-series off-road vehicle has been maintained by papal staff since the pope fell ill in August 2004. The pope's will is expected to grant its use to either the next pope or John Paul II's young cousin Zbigniew.

As always, The Onion rocks.

Killer Instinct

I've done things that I'm ashamed of. I once kicked a stray cat. I once ate half a chocolate cake, while it was still warm out of the oven, with my hands, no utensils. My mom wasn't very happy. I once organized a fund to buy a chicken, tie a trash bag to its leg, and released it in my High School.

And I used to skip classes to go play Killer Instinct. I was so into that idiotic game, and its sequel. Cccccombo Breaker. Ultraaaa Combo. All those stupid game mechanics, what a piece of shit. I can't believe I really liked that game.

the special platinum limited extended edition remastered

The DVD industry has gone too far. I don't buy dvd's anymore for one simple reason, there will always be a better version.
I've seen this with numerous movies. Shrek , Life is Beautiful, The Nightmare Before Christmas, Saving Private Ryan and Star Wars are all movies that I love but I regret buying because there's already an "Even better version SPECIAL EDITION" of all of them. For some reason directors are never satisfied with their movies, there's always this thing they could never get right or this roll of tape that they didn't found good enough to include in the theater version.
George Lucas has made 5 different versions of the original trilogy. I wish that he finally decides when his "original vision" is met.
I also loved the first Matrix movie. It was great, an interesting concept, incredible technology and direction. And then those 2 brothers decide to kill such an incredible vision. The last thing I saw was an Ultimate Matrix Collection (The Matrix / Reloaded / Revolutions / Revisited / The Animatrix).
10 dvd's. TEN dvd's. Diez dvd's. Zehn dvd's. déka dvd's!!!
How can there be more special features than there is movie? I believe that "The making of... " of any movie must not be more complicated than the movie itself. At least VHS limited themselves to 15 extra minutes at the end of the movie.
This practice dissapoints faithful costumers that go and buy the movie as soon as it gets out because they are losing their money. Too bad that it took me 5 movies to understand this.
To avoid future dissapointments, I don't think I will ever buy more dvd's.

Mr. T and your mother

Thinking ahead, I decided to post this to help you get ready for mother's day, with time to spare. Just memorize the following:

M is for the moan, and the miserable groan
from the pain that She felt when I was born
O is for the oven with it's burnin' heat
where She stood makin' sure I had something to eat
T is for the time that She stayed up at night
and took my temperature when I wasn't feelin' right
H is for the hard earned money She spent
to keep clothes on my back and try to pay da' rent
E is every wrinkle I put on Her face
and every worry that I caused when I stayed out late
The last letter R is that She taught me Respect
and for the room up in Heaven that I know She'll get

Mr T's full video of Treat your Mother Right song is here!

So, remember, when you put down one mother, you put down mothers all over the world!
-Mr T

update I added the google video for your viewing pleasure.

Le Salaire de la peur

Le Salaire de la peur, also known as Wages of Fear, is a 1953 french thriller. European immigrants in Latin America are trapped, due to economic reasons, in a small town were an American company enslaves people to its oil drilling jobs. Work for them, or die of hunger. A fire in an oil field provides them with the much desired chance to escape: deliver nitroglycerin needed to create an explotion that will kill the fire, and in the process, make a lot of money. The catch is that the trucks have to go through the jungle, and don't have the proper equipment to protect the liquid explosive from going off due to road bumps. It starts slow, but once the trucks hit the road, it will keep you tense, on the edge of your seat, as if you would explode too if shaken.

How to pet a chicken remotely

A problem that has troubled mankind since the dawn of domestication of animals has been resolved! How to pet your chicken from a remote location. The incredible video is here!
With a combination of a mock-up chicken with sensors, a jacket for the poultry with vibrators and the magic of Poultry Internet, you can play with your chicken in the backyard system from your office system.

Epileptic Iguana

One of the iguanas my brother killed did not die of hunger, it died of lack of sun.
It looked almost dead, then mom put it under cold water, to try to wake it up. The iguana started shaking violently, convulsing, and then died. A friend of mine, who is a vet, explained to me that this happens when the iguanas don't have enough calcium, and it is related to not getting enought sun light.

why did the iguana crossed the road?

I am MASTER OF THE IGUANAS. When I was younger I said that I loved iguanas. My first iguana escaped when we changed it from its cage. I was a really sad kid for some days. My second one died because she refused to eat the one and a half week old cabbage I had left in its food plate. The other 2 also died in similar situations.
I believe that its due to the hot temperatures we are having these days, but the iguanas are crazy. You can see them trying to cross the streets (and not making it). That's really dangerous since I have seen people nearly crash to avoid killing them. Sometimes they just go running under the wheels of the vehicles. So, you should add 1 iguana to my list.
I don't do it on purpose, I really like those green reptiles. It's just that I found out that it's better to keep a respectful distance between them and I. Maybe this is the popular "Curse of the Magueyan Iguanas" that you get when an iguana bites your brother between the fingers.

y&j: character creation basics: final part.

9. SELECT EQUIPMENT
If you don’t use the equipment selected in the starting package you have to buy equipment. However, at start your character is considered to be pelao. You will have to take fiao from a nearby store. Inability to pay could get your character in problems, therefore taking fiao shouldn’t be considered as a first option.

10. RECORD COMBAT NUMBERS
Your saving throws and other stats are calculated based on character race, class, ability modifiers, feats, capacities and equipment. Fill in the character sheet as specified. Fill in the capacities with the required modifiers and be sure that you understand completely what each of these mean. Game time is not the time to understand how your character behaves.
Your Atangana Counter (AC) means how difficult it is to hurt your character in combat. This is calculated based on your armor, shield and pepa.
Each character has hit points (hp), representing how difficult he or she is to kill. Hit points are determined depending on your character class and Tosco.

11. FURTHER DETAILS
Now add whatever you want to add to your character. Determine his or her sex, alignment and other aspects you consider important. You don’t have to completely detail your character. With your YM’s permission you may change details as you play and get a better hang of your character.

Remote-controlled headless flies

This paper reports that the neurons of a fly are light sensitive. What would any mad scientist do with such a discovery? Chop the fly's head off, and use lasers to make it fly! Don't believe me? Check out this video. Or, for the bandwidth impaired, check out this sequence of still pictures.

The perfect weather to take a nap

The weather in Austin is perfect. So perfect, it makes me happy all the time, and not very productive. For any given reason, I end up leaving school, skipping classes, to go nap in the hammock. Life is good.

Today, a bird crapped on me while I was taking a nap in the hammock.

The Gamete against the Cell

Cell-phone users can be very inconsiderate. I always felt that they are thrilled by a new call, up to the point of sometimes being rude to the people in front of them. Well, here is the proof:

Fourteen percent of the world's cell phone users report that they have stopped in the middle of a sex act to answer a ringing wireless device [...] "People can't bear to miss a call," [...] "Everybody thinks the next call can be something really exciting. And getting so many calls proves social success," she said. "It fulfills a fundamental insecurity."

I'm not sure about the rest of the people, but in terms of cells, gametes should always be more important than phones.

Washer & Dryer

After months of hunting on craigs, we have succeded! We bought, picked up, and installed a stackable washer-dryer! Cheers!

The Princess Bride

How can anybody hate The Princess Bride? Action packed, funny, got some revenge and, yes, some kissing maybe, but it is not a kissing story.
If you want to know which character you are, check out this page. I'm Iñigo Montoya! You killed my father! Prepare to die!

La Ruta Extraterrestre

Endi reports:

Los grupos de avistamientos ufológicos se apuntaron un triunfo ayer cuando el alcalde de Lajas, Marcos “Turin” Irizarry Pagán, firmó una proclama que declara la carretera estatal PR-303 como la Ruta Extraterrestre.

In-fucking-credible. They are planning to change the name of a road to Extraterrestrial Road due to the many claimed sightings of UFOs. Puerto Rico is Macondo.

The Salt Lick

The Salt Lick is not a restaurant; is an event. Delicious ribs, brisket and sausage, topped with their increidible BBQ sauce, served family-style buffet. Since the place is BYOB, you can just go there, and spend hours eating, chatting, drinking.

The Power of Flan

It doesn't fail. The most powerful entity in the universe is Cheese Flan. Simple, delicious, it always works.

y&j: character creation basics part3

6. SELECT A TALENT
Each 1st level character gets a talent. Some talents are important for determining capacities. You may need to look ahead when choosing talents.

7. SELECT CAPACITY
Depending on your character class and Aguzamiento modifier you get certain quantity of Capacity points. Capacities are measured in ranks which are divided in class capacities and cross class capacities. Buying capacities is easier if you follow your character starting package. Once again you should not bother your YM with questions about which capacities better suit your character.
Some characteristics are exclusive of each other. For example, combing and rolos can't be both worn at the same time.
Capacities are described in later chapters.

8. REVIEW DESCRIPTION
Detail your character to better suit its personality. Remember, this is what other persons see.

Se7en (by stuffed animals)

If there is a movie that is easy to ruin, it is Se7en. If you haven't seen it yet, go watch it now, but don't read on. Don't read on. I warned you! Oh well. The final shocking scene of the movie, interpreted by stuffed animals, can be found here.

Around the World (Legal) Music

The Smithsonian has a service where you can sample and buy music from all over the world! You can search by location, or by instrument type. It's pretty cool!

fun with text to speech

So, there's this thing in the control panel that lets you write something and hear the computer say it. I've been playing with that lately. Some personal favorites of the course "Learn Spanish Talking English."

n l see John
Boy o s n r
Who and see 2 seek ago
Tell o boy ah in cruise tar
2 t n s l p p b n t s o

The famous mango tree

This is the most famous mango tree in Puerto Rico. I don't know why it is so famous, but k1000, who took the picture, swears it is some sort of national landmark.

Useless, but interesting

When something is useless, call it art. Here is a web site were the artist describes some of her interesting "performances". I include quotes from some of my favorites.

Trapped. April 2003. This performance was part of my thesis series and dealt with love. I baited 100 mousetraps with candy hearts and backed myself into a corner, and then unbaited them with my hands. This was one of the most physically demanding performances I have ever done and during it I was witness to my own psychological conditioning: after getting my hands caught a few times it was incredibly hard to move my hands towards the traps again. This was a year and a half ago and I still have a mousetrap complex.

More Than You Bargained For. February 2003. This was part of a Valentine's Day show called Touchy Feely. I dressed up all cute and carried a box that said "Buy My Love, 25 Cents." I asked people really nicely to buy my love, and when they did turned into their worst nightmare girlfriend - pathalogically jealous, demanding, insane. They didn't get rid of me until someone else bought me. I was shocked at how many people said "Wow, you remind me of my ex-girlfriend."

y&j: more character creation basics.

3. ASSIGN AND ADJUST YOUR ABILITY SCORES
Now that you know your character race and class you can select the ability scores that better suit your character. Your character main abilities are: Aguzamiento, Tosco, Jaiberia, Babilla, Pepa and Presentamiento.
Put high scores in abilities that better suit your class. A brief description of this step is included for each class. Also, abilities should be assigned to represent your character personally.
Enter these scores in the ability area of your character sheet.

4. REVIEW THE STARTING PACKAGE.
Each class has a basic starting package in its description. It presents your character with a balanced design. This serves as a guide to character development and should be looked upon. Feel free to change capacities and equipment as you want, however do not bother your Yucayeque Master with questions on what weapons to give to your character.

5. RECORD RACIAL AND CLASS FEATURES
Each class has certain features that make it special. Many of these are automatical, but many reflect the personality of the player character. Pay close attention to your decisions since they will affect how your character looks. Once a feature is set it shouldn’t be changed. This affects the other panas belief in the game and harms more than help the general well being.

The new trend

Join the new trend. Call me and tell me how pendejo I am.

The Man Who Saves the World

The Man Who Saves the World is also known as Turkish Star Wars. Script? Why do you need a script if you can just film meaningless trampoline fight scenes and then stick them together? This very low budget movie doesn't even know the meaning of editing. They randomly stuck together some badly edited scenes from A New Hope, put some fight scenes that make the Power Rangers look like Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, and somehow reveal a plot about Lord Vater trying to conquer/destroy the world with the power of human brains. Continuity? Bah! This is postmodernist! There is no need for continuity!

Cüneyt Arky'n: Begin to your famous whistle which no women can resist.
Aytekin Akkaya: [Whistles]
Cüneyt Arky'n: You whistle it wrong
Aytekin Akkaya: Why?
Cüneyt Arky'n: Skeletons came instead of woman

Funny as hell. Check out some clips in here.