Singapore crackdowns on foreign publications

The Singapore government says that it is a privilege, and not a right, for foreign newspapers to circulate in Singapore. So it decides to force foreign publications in Singapore to have a legal representative here and pay a deposit of S$200,000. This act has been condemmed by Reporters Without Borders. From Reporters Without Borders:

“The authorities are looking for effective ways, including fear of prosecution and heavy fines, to intimidate these publications into censoring themselves,” the worldwide press freedom organisation said. “This is the latest threat against the foreign media, which are the only means of reporting independently on political and economic events in the country since the local press is controlled by the government.”

The information, communications and arts ministry gave the monthly Far Eastern Economic Review until 11 September to comply with section 23 of the Newspapers and Printing Presses Act. The magazine has been registered as a foreign publication since it criticised the government’s domestic policy in 1987 but had an exemption from some legal requirements which has now been cancelled. It must have a legal representative in the country by the ministry’s deadline and pay a deposit of 200,000 Singapore dollars (100,000 euros). For other foreign publications, the International Herald Tribune, Time magazine, the Financial Times and Newsweek, have been ordered to do the same when their licences come up for renewal.

(Thanks Sir Thomas)

How to get banned from Digg

Digg users who try to add friends at a very quick rate may be banned from using the site. From rnbmd:

I got banned from Digg today. Apparently, I was adding friends at a rate of speed that raised "red flags" at Digg Headquarters. They thought I was using a bot or a script in order to add friends automatically. As far as I know, there are no bots that perform this function, and I do not have the technical ability to write a script to do so. I just used Firefox and an extension called Linky that lets you open multiple links at once...

According to the friendly staff at Digg Headquarters, I was adding friends at the rate of 1 per second using this ingenious method. I didn't think I was THAT fast!

Anyway, all of these shenanigans resulted in me getting banned (temporarily) from Digg. The staff of Digg, in all their benevolence, decided to reinstate me with a stern warning not to add friends so fast in the future.

(Thanks chocsaltyballs)

Astronomy quilts by Ann Hawwell

Ann Harwell has been sewing together little pieces of fabric for over forty years. You can tell by looking at her quilt gallery, that she is really, really very good. I especially like her astronomy quilts like this one of M42, the Orion Nebula, one of my favourite deep sky objects.

Astronomy drawings by Trouvelot

Étienne Léopold Trouvelot was an accomplished celestial artist back in the late 1800s. He produced 7000 astronomical drawings and published 50 scientific papers. You can view some of his beautiful drawings here. This picture on the left shows his drawing of sunspots. The details are astounding. Looking at his drawings reminds me of the time when I first started drawing the planets through my telescope.

(via Boing Boing)

Face Panels

Today on my photoblog Katoomba Syndrome: Face Panels

Everyone can look like Captain Jack Sparrow

I have to admit. Captain Jack Sparrow is so sexy.



But what makes him so sexy? His scruffy look? His bandana?

Let me tell you the secret to Captain Jack. It is his eyes!

That's right.

Now you too can look as sexy as Captain Jack Sparrow with one of these.

Come on fellas!

"WE ARE NOW SO SEXY AYE!"




Presenting (from left to right):

First row: Captain Miyagi, Captain Agagooga, Captain SillyCelly
Second row: Captain Kevin, Captain Kenny Sia, Captain Daryl Sng
Third row: Captain Xiaxue, Captain SassyJan, Captain Adri
Fourth row: Captain Brown, Captain Preetam, Captain IZ Reloaded

See, if your favourite bloggers can look as sexy as Captain Jack Sparrow, so can you.

There is hope!

Israel captures the wrong Nasrallah

Nasrallah is not a good surname to have if you're in Lebanon. Just ask this 14 year old boy with the surname Nasrallah. He recounts his ordeal when Israeli commandos raided his home and captured he and his dad. Apparently, they were looking for the wrong Nasrallah (Chief of Hezbollah). From Naharnet:

Mohammed was taken with his father Hassan Diab, 60, his brother Bilal, 28, the fiance of his sister Hassan al-Borgi, as well as neighbors Ahmad al-Awta, 60, and Mohammed Shakar, 50.

Escorted by a hundred soldiers, they walked for an hour and 20 minutes until they reached the helicopters which had landed in a field.

"All along the road, they were asking questions. They spoke fluent Arabic, some with an accent. They asked us if we were Hizbullah members, and if we were related to Nasrallah," Mohammed said.

The family name Nasrallah is common in Lebanon, both in Muslim and Christian communities.

But the Hizbullah chief is from the southern village of Bazourieh, and is not related to the Nasrallah family from the eastern Baalbeck region.

China corrects Chinglish signs

We in Singapore have our Singlish (Singapore English). In China, they have Chinglish and it's even on their bilingual signs in cities like Beijing. Now, the Beijing authorities want to correct these Chinglish signs because they confuse foreigners. From Shanghai Daily:

BEIJING has launched a campaign to correct its "Chinglish," or Chinese-style English, on bilingual signs as part of its make-over for the 2008 Olympic Games...

The regulation requires hotels to translate their names, service hours, room rates, and notices for guests into accurate English. They should also provide signs and menus in correct English.

"Chinglish" was once prevalent in the city's signs. For example, some hotels misuse "scatter" for "evacuate" in their emergency information. Tobacco shops still advertise the sale of "smoke" instead of cigarettes and the Park of Ethnic Minorities is identified as the "Racist Park." Drivers are warned of the hazards of a wet road with a sign that reads: "The slippery are very crafty."

And some of us think Singlish is bad.

How to make an eyetap

Here's how you can make your own eyetap (well, not really a fully functional eyetap) with a cheap keychain camera and a pair of old glasses. Now you can go out and capture those cherished moments while looking like a cyborg. Not sure if chicks would dig you wearing it though.

(Thanks GeekGod)

It's Flickr Time!

Clockr uses random number images from Flickr to display the current time. You can even click on a number to change the image or use the mouse wheel (while you click and hold) to cycle through the images.

(Thanks logoren)

HP inspired by Goatse

Goatse is everywhere - in ads, photos, logos, etc. Looks like HP too has also gone Goatse in its latest interactive online catalog for small and medium business.

(Thanks nothinghill)

Previously:
iGoatse, the new skin for your iPod
Tribute to Goatse
My first Goatse reaction