The average person who uses the internet for a sensible part of their day has little understanding of what Net Neutrality is and why we need it. Burger King produced an ad that illustrates the concept of Net Neutrality using the Whopper. It's a bit strange.
That's the right idea, but they only showed the mess from the customer's side. There's also a problem of all the small websites you love, like Neatorama, who don't have the power or money to "negotiate" their way onto all the various ISP's tiers. It's only a matter of time before they all disappear under the crush of runaway capitalism, unless we get Net Neutrality restored soon. You could sign the petition mentioned in the video, or better yet you can call your representative in congress, or both. Or maybe you really want to pay more to get your Whopper first. -via Tastefully Offensive
Anyone who's ever been to the blog Bad Menu knows that problems in menu translation are common. That's because, while foot coverings can be shoes and a warm outer garment can be a coat no matter what the local language says, there are many differences in the foods we eat in different places with different languages. Local ingredients and traditional cooking methods aren't so easy to translate. And often what a dish has always been called doesn't really describe it to someone who is unfamiliar with it.
A related problem is that food names or terms often have positive associations in one culture, but nowhere else. Cubans love ropa vieja (a shredded beef dish whose name literally translates to “old clothes”), Mexicans enjoy tacos sudados (literally “sweaty tacos”), and Moroccans are all about roasted sheep head. In Croatia, bitter flavors are valued, while in many countries, calling a dish or drink bitter is an insult.
“Foods are frequently so culture-specific that it’s difficult to transfer the idea effectively,” says Jim Beason, a translator based in Strasbourg. “A bit like translating political satire from one country to the other—you understand the words, but your lack of cultural context means that it’s not funny at all.”
There are other problems, such as the French tendency to name a dish after its texture, while Americans want to know what's in it. Read about the many ways menu translations can go wrong, with plenty of examples, at Atlas Obscura. After you read it, you'll be craving some of that French custard with meringue and caramel sauce.
Back in 1983 computers were new and exciting technology that few people had in their homes and even fewer knew how to actually use, so not knowing how to use a computer in the 80s was forgivable.
Cut to the early 21st century, when a show called Computer Show appeared on the internet looking like it was made in the 80s, with a host who seems to be stuck in the 80s discussing modern computing.
Computer Show was created by the fine folks at Sandwich Video, so you know it's a quality product, and even though the show's host doesn't know much about computers he really wants to learn.
He's especially excited about a community site called Reddit, or more specifically the parts of Reddit full of color photos of people without pants.
Computer Show is a show for comedy enthusiasts, computer enthusiasts, or any combination of the two, but if you don't own a funnybone or a computer then it's probably not the show for you...and how are you reading this right now?!
Saffron is worth its weight in gold, and can cost up to $16 a gram. Fortunately, it doesn't take much to make food taste heavenly. The reason it's so expensive is because it's hard to grow, hard to harvest, and the yield from each plant is tiny. That plant is the flower Crocus sativus, and saffron must be harvested by hand from each bloom. It has quite a storied history.
Saffron is as old as time. Cleopatra was said to bathe in saffron-infused mare’s milk before seeing a suitor. “Saffron was used to dye the woolen bolero jackets worn by Minoan women; also in cosmetics, where it was mixed with red ochre, tallow, and beeswax to make lipstick,” says John O’Connell in The Book of Spice: From Anise to Zedoary. Medieval monks found that mixing a primitive glue of egg whites and saffron created a yellow glaze that could stand in for gold in the production of their manuscripts.
Cats love to chase mice, RC cars and Roombas, so it's only natural for them to go after anything that is zooming around in their line of sight, especially if it's small enough for them to catch and possibly chew on.
So when the curious kitty in this video saw a Hot Wheels car zooming around the track he had to spring into action.
But he probably would have been better off chasing a mouse, because that Hot Wheels car left him eating dust!
Those bears who care have been hogging the spotlight for decades because their nice and pleasant powers make people feel good, but the light must always be balanced out by the darkness and the good always comes with the bad, which is where the uncaring bears come in. Their powers are far less pleasant, and the humans they meet usually don't survive the encounter, so if you ever come across a cute little bear with dark colored fur sporting a scowl and a grim symbol on their tummy RUN!
Show the world what the lesser known uncaring bears look like by wearing this Death Bear t-shirt by Dooomcat, featuring a killer design that'll make your fellow fans die laughing!
Are you a professional illustrator or T-shirt designer? Let's chat! Sell your designs on the NeatoShop and get featured in front of tons of potential new fans on Neatorama!
For some time now, digital artists have been altering theatrical posters to more accurately reflect what a movie is about, in the vein of the Honest Trailers. The hit films that have just been nominated for Academy Awards came out throughout the year, and can be found in many places. Uproxx has compiled quite a few from College Humor and The Shiznit that are "brutally, hilariously honest," which means the biggest movies have two honest versions, funny in different ways. Check out 21 posters here.
It's good to have an artistic arsenal stocked with a wide range of genres, styles and color palettes when working as a concept artist, because you never know what the client is looking for so versatility is the key to success.
Sergey's digital paintings are all over the place, from action packed sci-fi scenes to cartoony comedy plates full of personality, but my favorites are the far out fantasy pieces because the vibrant palettes take my breath away.
For men who are completely confused by women who do not want to be treated as sexual objects at work, Rachel Parris explains what sexual harassment is and is not on the new satirical show The Mash Report. Although this was on British TV, it might be NSFW by American standards. While there is nothing graphic, the humor is adult-oriented.
That said, it is delightfully funny and savagely cutting at the same time. The way you treat women is not a minefield to negotiate -it's just common sense. And if there is any further confusion about a particular method of interacting with women, just ask your mother. If you don't feel comfortable asking your mother about it, then the woman you are thinking about approaching won't feel comfortable, either. -via Buzzfeed
People use smartphone apps to make their lives easier in many ways, from finding a nearby restaurant to taking notes to getting directions to their destination, but would you trust a smartphone app to help you avoid unwanted pregnancies?
The app 'Natural Cycles' promises to help prevent unwanted pregnancies and it's catching on in a big way in the UK and Europe, here's how it works:
‘Natural Cycles’—yet to attain FDA approval—was founded by husband-wife team Dr Raoul Scherwitzl and Dr Elina Berglund. It scans the body’s temperature during the menstrual cycle to identify if it is safe for the female user to engage in unprotected sex.
Days that are safe are marked in green on the app’s calendar. Otherwise, a red color warns the user to use protection. Last year, Engadget reported that a study conducted by the app revealed, “After testing 22,785 women throughout 224,563 menstrual cycles, the startup found the app provided 99 percent contraceptive effectiveness if used perfectly. If used ‘typically’, the app was 93 percent effective. The contraceptive pill, meanwhile, is 91 percent effective.”
Hundreds of trusting Swedish women used 'Natural Cycles' believing it would work as advertised, and yet in at least 37 cases the app failed and the users wound up pregnant.
Now the app is being reviewed by the Swedish Medical Products Agency, a regulatory agency for medical devices, but the creators of the app insist the amount of unwanted pregnancies is quite normal:
“To have 37 unwanted pregnancies out of the 668 mentioned in this study at Södersjukhuset means that 5.5 per cent of women who stated they used Natural Cycles also had an unwanted pregnancy. This is in line with what we communicate as the risk of unwanted pregnancy with typical use, and which is comparable to other types of contraception.”
“As our user base increases, so will the amount of unintended pregnancies coming from Natural Cycles app users, which is an inevitable reality.”
“Today there is a big trend for women to move away from hormonal contraception, and Natural Cycles can provide a helpful option for these women. We therefore expect, in fact, overall to decrease the unwanted pregnancy rates because we’re increasing contraceptive choice, and see that many of our users are women that have not used any type of contraception before.”
Here we have a look into the visual effects of the Guillermo del Toro film The Shape of Water. There's no voiceover explanation, just a peek at the layers of awesome digital art, including water, which is a real breakthrough for filmmakers. Oh yeah, and the creature that reminds one of the Black Lagoon. The downside is that after watching this, I feel as if I've seen the entire movie and there's no need to sit down for the feature length version. In other words, this is full of spoilers.
Furries are one of the most misunderstood and maligned groups in the world of geekdom, and even though people should know better than to think of Furries as mere sexual fetishists the stigma remains.
So, in an effort to demystify the world of the Furries, Cracked's Mark Hill attended Fur-Eh in Edmonton, Alberta, one of the largest Furry conventions in the world, and he made some interesting discoveries.
Mark discovered Furries are fans of anthropomorphic animal-themed visual media, and even though there are lots of people rockin' their amazing looking fursuits at Fur-Eh there were plenty of plain clothed fans too, because not all Furries are cosplayers.
He also found out that the Furry community goes off during Cons like Fur-Eh because they have very few chances to hang with their fellow Furries during the year so they make those Cons count by partying all night long.
The 1984 science fiction comedy Repo Man is nothing like what you would imply from the title. Emilio Estevez is indeed a repo man, but the plot revolves around a radioactive Chevy Malibu, possibly with extraterrestrials inside. Repo Man was a critical and box office hit, despite being produced on a shoestring budget.
10. It didn’t take any special effects to make the Chevy Malibu glow.
The car was covered with 3M reflective paint that cost about $600 per bucket. Hopefully it only took one to two buckets to cover it al.
8. The Malibu was stolen during filming.
This was a disaster because they only had the one car for the movie. They had to scramble and find another Chevy Malibu and by the time they started shooting again the first car was found.
There are few places around the world without a tradition of group drinking. The English "Cheers!" is a shortcut, a one-word toast. The same thing is done in many other countries in many other languages, although there are some variations on the tradition. You might notice that Russia has several such toasts. And some places that don't traditionally use a one-word toast still practice group drinking, so they've appropriated "Cheers!"
I learned about the Chinese "Gan Bei" many years ago. My boss told me it meant "Bottoms up!" implying that the glass should be drained. You should not assume that in the other languages. It's not a bad idea to ask about drinking etiquette in a place you aren't already familiar with. -via Laughing Squid
Molly Beans is a webcomic by Dan Sacharow that tells a continuing story, yet each comic can stand on its own. In the latest comic, we get bit of insight into Molly's idea of drive, work, and satisfaction. Can anything be rewarding if it's easy? Many of us consider the worthiness of our efforts, but rarely on this scale. I hope she enjoys whatever ice cream she decides on.
