Here we go, here we go, here we go.

• China becomes world’s largest Internet population | U.S. | Reuters
  China has surpassed the United States to become the world’s largest Internet-using population, reaching 221 million by the end of February, state media said on Thursday.
  (tags: net)
• Slashdot | Russia To Build an Orbital Construction Plant
  “Russia plans to build an orbital plant for the production of spacecraft that are too big to build planetside, or are just too bulky to fire into orbit once built”
  (tags: space)
• High-tech armband puts your fingers in control – tech – 24 April 2008 – New Scientist Tech
  Microsoft researchers are developing an armband worn on the forearm that recognises finger movements by monitoring muscle activity. They have called it MUCI, which stands for muscle-computer interface.
  (tags: computing tech)
• Does the Earth’s magnetic field cause suicides? – health – 24 April 2008 – New Scientist
  found that the geomagnetism peaks matched up with peaks in the number of suicides in the northern Russian city of Kirovsk
  (tags: med weird)
• Welcome to Chirp!
  aggregator desktop app — looks better than most, needs a test drive
  (tags: web)

Tom Spurgeon does a spectacular number on the recent NYCC comics convention:

There’s a sickness at comics’ core that many may not recognize because for the first time since 1992 and maybe 1947 it comes from success, not deprivation. A lost sense of opportunity in New York is only the first sign of potential troubles to come. It’s like we’ve been given the keys to a wonderful car and delivered the down payment on a beautiful home and we’re still insistent on treating them like the beater and cabin loaned to us for the last two weeks of summer. Would anyone not in NYC miss the show were it gone tomorrow? If they threw the parties and canceled the convention, would they really be significantly less attended? Did any of what just happened matter to comics in the slightest?

I do one American comics convention a year, at most, and the last two have been so high-pressure that I spent next to no time on the convention floors…

A Japanese 14 year old has committed suicide by mixing common household cleaners, releasing fumes that made dozens of people sick.

There has been a spate of similar suicides since details of the technique were posted on the internet. At least 30,000 people in Japan have killed themselves every year since 1998, according to national statistics.

The unidentified girl in Konan City left a note on the bathroom door of her family’s flat saying "poison gas being produced", Japanese media said. About 90 neighbours went to hospital feeling ill, including the girl’s mother, who was out of the flat during the suicide but later returned.

Police said the teenager mixed detergent with a liquid cleanser to make hydrogen sulphide. The gas is colourless but smells like rotten eggs and is highly toxic, leading to suffocation or brain damage.

BBC NEWS | World | Asia-Pacific | Dozens hit by Japan ’suicide gas’

"brass, cut by hand, attached precariously to a jacket. just to see if i could."

At the end of a cold and stormy winter, the country has just 12 days of coal reserves at most power stations. Some provinces, including Hebei, bordering Beijing, have less than a week’s coal left. This is a record low, the state electricity regulatory commission revealed on Tuesday. China relies on burning coal for 70% of its electricity.

China down to 12 days of coal stocks – earth – 23 April 2008 – New Scientist Environment

(Obviously, it won’t come down to China going dark in 12 days. Remember, these posts are tagged as "research material," not "news.")

Faten Aggad discusses the practise in parts of Africa where journalists are extracting what is basically baksheesh in return for, you know, doing the job of reportage:

In the Republic of the Congo, I was told by the organisers of a civil society workshop that they were struggling to raise funds to pay journalists to cover their event. And the amounts were not insignificant, mind you. They ranged from US$30 to US$50 per journalist, which, for a poorly resourced organisation was difficult to find. Every journalist expected to be paid, with extras demanded for any camera crew.

I later found out that this pay-for-stories practice is widely accepted in the journalism profession in Senegal, Cameroon, Mali and Gabon, among other countries. I understand it happens in Anglophone Africa too, but my own experience of its pervasiveness is limited to French-speaking countries.

For those who don’t think this odd, these are full-time employed journalists already paid a salary by their media houses. Payments for covering particular events are in addition to their monthly pay checks.

Attempting to understand this unusual practice, I speculated that there may be a political angle, with the system designed to discourage smaller non-governmental organisations from forcing their issues onto the national agenda, especially where many news agencies are state-owned.

Israel has sentenced a soldier to 19 days in jail for uploading a photograph taken on his military base to the social networking website, Facebook. The Israeli military declined to comment on the nature of the image, but said the soldier was serving with an elite intelligence unit.

BBC NEWS | World | Middle East | Israeli jailed for Facebook photo

This was reported on Saturday. Wondering how the hell I missed it. Good catch, Jamais, thanks.

Chinese troops have been seen on the streets of Zimbabwe’s third largest city, Mutare, according to local witnesses. They were seen patrolling with Zimbabwean soldiers before and during Tuesday’s ill-fated general strike called by the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC).

Chinese troops are on the streets of Zimbabwean city, witnesses say – Africa, World – The Independent

(via Open the Future: Wednesday Topsight, April 23, 2008)

Published July 2008. Pre-order it from your local comics retailer now.

Only € 9.99 + P&P! By Dave Walsh, Barry Kavanagh, Damien DeBarra, Sue Walsh and others

Paperback: 144 pages

Publisher: Nonsuch Publishing (May 2008)

Launch Party: June 12th, Dice Bar Dublin 1800 hrs (that’s 6pm you landlubbers)

Published May 12 2008 – Preorder now!

Eleven years, three convictions, two deportations, ten thousand pints, six barring orders and a legion of leather-clad groupies later, Dave Walsh, Barry Kavanagh and Damien DeBarra (the cheap tarts that brought you Blather.net) bring you their latest labour of love: A Load of Blather: Unreal Reports from Ireland and Beyond, the first book that anyone has been nuts enough to let them publish…

When blather.net was spawned back in 1997, Dave Walsh, Damien DeBarra and Barry Kavanagh exhumed the lofty manifesto of the original Blather, founded in 1934 by Flann O’Brien. It would also be a “publication of the gutter” achieving “entirely new levels in everything which is contemptible, despicable and unspeakable in contemporary journalism”. Blather.net would have no principles, no honour, no shame. It would support the “fostering of graft and corruption in public life”, the “encouragement of humbug and hysteria”, and the “glorification of greed and gombeenism”. "

Over ten years later comes A Load of Blather, gathering together the best of the best reports on paranormal events, superstitions, mysterious happenings, conspiracy theories, the hordes of rampaging kangaroos in the Dublin hills, and the previously untold story of General Michael Collins’ forays into outer space. Look no further – this is Blather.

The Livejournal newsgathering community So Very Doomed has long been an excellent way to track the Grim Meathook Future, and this morning they have a collection of recent news stories relating to Food Doom:

The World Food Programme said yesterday that it has begun to cut the provision of school meals to some of the world’s poorest children as the global crisis over food prices worsens…

The first trailer for the feature Schrödinger’s Girl, a British independent science fiction movie, directed by Huw Bowen, starring Abigail Tarttelin, Damian Hayes and Al Convy. I run this here because 1) the director asked me nicely, and 2) he added that “Our line producer has fond-ish memories of being traumatised by you as a youth in a comic shop in Southend, by the way. I think you may have hurt him in the brain.” So obviously I have some things to make up for.

Interesting article on the hint of food rationing in America:

Major retailers in New York, in areas of New England, and on the West Coast are limiting purchases of flour, rice, and cooking oil as demand outstrips supply. There are also anecdotal reports that some consumers are hoarding grain stocks.

At a Costco Warehouse in Mountain View, Calif., yesterday, shoppers grew frustrated and occasionally uttered expletives as they searched in vain for the large sacks of rice they usually buy. “Where’s the rice?” an engineer from Palo Alto, Calif., Yajun Liu, said. “You should be able to buy something like rice. This is ridiculous.”

The bustling store in the heart of Silicon Valley usually sells four or five varieties of rice to a clientele largely of Asian immigrants, but only about half a pallet of Indian-grown Basmati rice was left in stock. A 20-pound bag was selling for $15.99.

A man posing as Darth Vader attacked a Star Wars fan who had founded a Jedi Church, a court has heard.

Arwel Wynne Hughes, 27, from Holyhead, Anglesey, admitted assaulting Barney Jones and cousin Michael with a metal crutch. They suffered minor injuries.

Hughes, who was drunk and dressed in a black bin bag, shouted "Darth Vader!"

BBC NEWS | Wales | North West Wales | Drunk Darth Vader’s Jedi assault

How did I miss that Wil’s music-podcasting?  Damn, I need to get another 4am together this week or next.  Episode X includes the Horrorpops and Big John Bates.

I think I need a "WTF" category tag. Received on Whitechapel today:

Greets Sir Warren Ellis and friends,

Eternal Elilsian and Experimental Recording Artist Ure Thrall hear, admonishing you Mr. Ellis for irresponsibly unleashing your mind blowing powers of synchronistic manifestation in my general direction. The following is announcement of another expected appearance of the TULPA of your infamous DOKTOR SLEEPLESS Persona on KPFA 94.1 FM’s No Other Radio Network (taking place during the 1st 1.5 hours of 4/23/08 (Pacific Time) as well as the first live DJ slot on this plane by the DOKTOR SLEEPLESS tulpa who will materialize at the RUBY ROOM (Located at 132 14th street in Downtown Oakland, CA.) from the 17th to the 22nd hour on 4/25/08, these entities having manifested as a direct result of your cosmic "Ellisian" reverberations.

WE pray you do not take offense at our humble attempts at bio-alchemical mimicry, rather we hope you will take it as the direct HOMAGE we intend it to be. BUT, if for some reason this is contrary to your intelligent design, well perhaps you shouldn’t go creating such HIGHLY RESONANT CHARACTERS for mass consumption In the 1st place, my friend…

Our dimension’s version of DOKTOR SLEEPLESS is quite formidable in his media manipulation prowess, and he has even managed to lasso that MUSLIMGAUZE track remixed by the JAPANESE RAPE DIVISION and hauled it into our dank little corner of the multiverse specifically to be played on the NO OTHER RADIO NETWORK with the kind permission of the show’s longtime host MR. HATE. We include it as a link
http://soundclick.com/share?songid=6482222
in this e-mail for your enjoyment.

DOKTOR SLEEPLESS can be heard AT ANY TIME via KPFA’s steaming internet radio broadcasts which you can access via the program links on NO OTHER RADIO’s myspace page at www.myspace.com/nootherradio

or type in wed. 4/23 at
http://www.kpfa.org/archives/
and look for the archived NO OTHER RADIO program in the 12:00 am time slot.

So we hope you will give a listen to determine whether we are doing the good DOKTOR justice with our interpretation. It seems to be garnering some interest!
And I will also be offering a free DOKTOR SLEEPLESS COMIC BOOK in an on-air promotion as well as handing out copies of DOKTOR SLEEPLESS comics to read at the club.

NOW bear in mind that WE will CERTAINLY BE MAKING IT CLEAR what the TRUE ORIGINS of DOKTOR SLEEPLESS are (Namely the nether regions of that wondrous imagination of yours, Sir Ellis). But we also want to BRING The good DOKTOR into OUR world so we can do our part to let everyone know that the FUTURE Is happening RIGHT F**KING NOW, baby!

Thanks for creating such a timely character to help inspire WE to get that message OUT!

Best of Dreams,
Ure Thrall
playing the role of DOKTOR SLEEPLESS on this plane with your kind permission…space age goggles and all (We’ll e-mail u pics!)

creator of the "Arabian Knightmares" CD on TESCO

www.diskorp.com

I am, of course, absolutely gobsmacked. The bastard’s gotten loose in the outside world.

Just received the following from HarperCollins Canada:

Thank you to all those who nominated a bookseller for the HarperCollins Handselling Award! All entries were astounding and deserving of recognition and praise. Managers: be sure to visit here for information on the next round of submissions. We sincerely thank those of you who worked so hard in support of HarperCollins titles.

We are pleased to announce that Chadwick Ginther—pictured with store manager David Lawrence (right) and sales rep Terry Toews (left)—from McNally Robinson Booksellers in Winnipeg is the winner of this season’s HarperCollins Handselling Award! For his support of Warren Ellis’s quirky and brilliant novel Crooked Little Vein, Chadwick was awarded $500 cash and McNally Robinson will receive $1000 co-op for its support of this season’s top handseller. Congratulations Chadwick, and thanks once again to all the other entrants!

STARLIT’s cover of "Modern Love" cracks me up. Wait for her to get to the chorus, a couple of minutes in.

• trajectory – Progressive Science Fiction Festival
  (tags: event sf)
• Internet Archive: Details: Brian Amsterdam Live Ambient Set 02-29-08 NYC
  ambient set performed by brian from the Werewolves live
  (tags: music mp3)
• An Anti Pragmatic-Manifesto by Mark Jarzombek | varnelis.net
  “I predict a new fascination with carelessness, a new tolerance for “whatever” in a “whatever generation” – an architecture that prides itself on neither history nor theory”
  (tags: manifesto)

Matt Jones and I insist that you Tenpole a rickroller — or, perhaps, swordroll them. Behold the greatest song in the history of the world to go “baDUMP ding-dong”:

(set with larger versions)

From today (Monday) until Friday, Matt Fraction, co-creator and author of CASANOVA and THE FIVE FISTS OF SCIENCE and writer of PUNISHER WAR JOURNAL, THE ORDER and the forthcoming INVINCIBLE IRON MAN (and co-writer of UNCANNY X-MEN & IMMORTAL IRON FIST) and one of my best friends in this business will be hanging out in this thread on my message board Whitechapel to take questions, jabber about baseball and bands I don’t like, and basically shoot the shit and talk about whatever he wants to talk about.

The world’s first cloned sniffer dogs have begun training in South Korea.

BBC NEWS | World | Asia-Pacific | S Korea trains sniffer-dog clones