Anyone that can explain this picture to me gets $2

First, let me share with you some music that others have shared with me. I have not posted music for a very long time and this is just completely different.

Gotta thank Fitch for this one. Some good real music with a little bit of synth to make it nice and cracky. Self titled album is really good.

Broken Bells – The High Road

Heres from Andrea (as usual) Black River Killer by Blitzen Trapper, natives of this here fine state. I’m a sucker for music with a good story.

Blitzen Trapper – Black River Killer

Here is a really cool art installation:

Check it out. That was 3 media types in one blog post, all having absolutely nothing to do with eachother. I love the internet.

The Fantastic Mr. Fox, a movie based on the Roald Dahl book of the same name, is a terrific movie starring some clever animals. In particular, the red fox is portrayed as a sly and ingenious thief. A thieving fox is a pretty common theme in literature and this movie made me curious if the red fox really does have a case of kleptomania as big as we give it credit for.

In many cultures, the fox has become a symbol of trickery and slyness. In traditional Japanese culture, the fox is a sacred animal. In the west, attitudes towards the animal tend to be less enthusiastic. Fox hunting was still a sport in the UK until just a few years ago, when it became illegal but obviously not stopped. Farmers in particular hate the animal. Most of this reputation probably comes from poultry farmers who’s livestock are particularly attractive meals for a fox. I found a great site with tips on how to keep foxes out of your chicken coop. Here are a few:

Make the entrance to a shed with sharp zig zags which only a chicken can manouver around. Bare in mind the length of a fox and fix angles of 180 degrees that a fox can’t contort his body to.

Hang human hair around the pen at six feet intervals. They don’t like the smell apparently. Use ladies tight’s or fine netting.

Urinate at regular intervals around the pen. This is you marking your territory. (Watch the stinging nettles – I found this out to my cost !!!)

THINK FOX.
How can I get in ?, how can I get out ?, Look for all possiblities.

Chickens are not the only things that foxes love to steal. It seems like the fox loves to take whatever it can get its mouth around. Foxes in urban environments have been known to steal everything from purses and cell phones to cameras and golf balls. I don’t think this strange behavior has any explanation but it makes for some extremely amusing youtube videos.

Instant classic: a fox that loves to steal golf balls off the course.

Here is a totally fearless fox:

Saved the best for last! You are not human if this video does not make you smile.

The fox is likeable because it has such an innate personality. They are just so cool, and this fox knows it:

What you eat is everything. Fluids, fluids, fluids. I’m injesting in so many fluids I take a bathrhoom break at least every hour. And I’m eating soup, a lot of it. If you can get the flow to a constant stream, thats even better. The idea is to pass so many fluids through your body that there are no original ones left, taking the bad stuff with it. Also, eat pretzels to replenish sodium. They taste OK with orange juice, a friendly looking box that never leaves my side.

Walk extremely slowly and drag your feet as if they had bricks tied to them. Moving like you are a zombie is the fastest way to get to health.

Bring your blanket with you everywhere.

Don’t actually tell anyone that you’re sick. Now I don’t mean start using their chapstic or licking their faces or something, just don’t make it obvious. You don’t help anyone by moaning and acting pathetic at work or at school. Believe me, the guy sitting next to you during that 2 hour networking final doesn’t want to know. In fact, by telling someone you are sick you make the chances of them getting sick worse. You make them stressed, which in turn lowers the ability of their immune system to ward off disease. Also, you make yourself sicker, because now you are a social outcast and feeling bad for yourself never helped anything. Instead what you should do when someone asks you how you are is say “fine” and stare at them with those dark, glassy, pained eyes until they get the idea.

Most medicines do not help! They only weaken your body’s ability to defend itself.  Take the easy way out often – get sick often.

Sleep a lot.

But trust me on the sunscreen…

Here is the trailer:

Heres to all that make the best out of life no matter how hard it might be!

Lets hope nothing like this happens.

Technically, the ConnectR is almost identical to it’s sibling Roomba, but with some communication gadgets stuck on top. Some of the added features include a 16x zoom video camera, high quality speakers and wireless connectivity. The robot allows remote control from both the “visitor” and the “guest” via keyboard or joystick. One of the features on the guest’s remote is a privacy mode, that once enabled, disables all communication capabilities of the robot – effectively shutting out the guest without warning. With all of these fancy capabilities, iRobot claims that piloting the ConnectR is just like being there in person.

The concept of a robot taking the place of anybody in any situation is disturbing to most people. There was unrest when industrial robots, basically metal arms, took the place of human workers in factories. Countless movies have been made about robots taking the place of people – none of them positive. The very idea of a machine taking the place of a person for a social purpose is pretty absurd. Now I’m sure that iRobot never intended for their product to seriously perform everything that it claims it can do (I hope) but we can at least have some fun playing with the idea.

First of all, the thing is connected to the internet. I would distrust this machine for the same reason I distrust voting machines – anything with a network cable plugged into its ass can be hacked. Chances are, something as crazy an idea as the ConnectR will be targeted extremely quickly. The kind of guys and gals that are into cracking security are going have a field day with this thing. Peeking in on someone’s personal interactions is just too irresistible a temptation for the voyeurs who potentially have the power to do so. Imagine if the ConnectR really was being used by a far away business man… to visit his lonely wife.

One of the more humorous uses advertised for the ConnectoR is pet sitting. Apparently you can keep check on your pets while you are away at work or on vacation. Yea right. How many dogs actually pay attention to TV? When you put the phone up to your dogs ear so it can listen to a family members voice, how often does it listen? Very little, if at all. The fact is dogs and cats can’t comprehend that the voice coming out of speakers belongs to a person, and wont respond to objects that don’t have a scent. I remember building a Lego robot car as a child that could be remote controlled by a joystick. It scared the crap out of my cat who ran away for a night or two. When I confronted my dog with my creation, she quickly attacked and destroyed the machine before I could save it. I can’t imagine the pooch reacting much differently to the ConnectR.

On the more serious side of things, I hope people don’t actually buy this thing and try to use it as a replacement for real human interaction. If they do, this behavior should be indicative of a deeper problem. Is having a job that pays enough to purchase ridiculous things like the ConnectR really worth keeping if you don’t even have time to spend with your own kids? I think not. If anything the the robot should be treated as nothing more than a really cool expensive toy. Maybe even a very pricey security system, but definitely not a babysitter.

For those of you interested in purchasing the ConnectR, you will have to wait. The product is not yet in consumer production. If you want, you can sign up for the “Pilot Program” which is basically a Beta test of the robot in order for iRobot to receive feedback. But please, if you do receive a ConnectR, don’t do anything that you would do with your wife, kids or pets.