Man Claims He is Allergic to Wi-Fi

A man living in Santa Fe, New Mexico claims that his neighbor’s wi-fi is making him sick. According to CNN, Arthur Firstenberg believes that since his neighbor moved in next door, he’s been experiencing a sickness and side effects so severe he’s had to go homeless entirely to escape the discomfort. Firstenberg cannot go to a hotel or motel, since they also use wi-fi, as well as a host of other illness-inducing electronics. Firstenberg claims that his sensitivities extend back decades.

So far, science has yet to determine if electromagnetic interference is a diagnosable condition. Research seems to indicate that it’s rather a psychiatric issue, and not a physical one. According to the article, a German study was unable to come up with any conclusive results:

The major study endpoint was the ability of the subjects to differentiate between real magnetic stimulation and a sham condition. There were no significant differences between groups in the thresholds, neither of detecting the real magnetic stimulus nor in motor response.

The comments on the CNN article, all 113 of them, run the gamut from supporters believing Firstenberg’s claims, while others cry skeptic claiming it’s all in his head. But how about you guys? Is this bunk or believable? I mean, I’ve got to say, I kind of feel bad for the guy next door with all the gadgets… that could well be any of us, what with our geek tendency to hoard electronics!

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TIE Fighter Helmet Will Make you Look Ridiculous

If you ever feel like going onboard a TIE fighter to terrorize your neighborhood, well now you can, thanks to this ridiculous-looking TIE Fighter Helmet. I’m not exactly sure if your neighbors will be terrorized though… they’ll probably just point their fingers at you while laughing their asses off at how stupid you look with that thing on top of your head.

[Via Great White Snark]


Newton’s apple moment among original documents now online

Everyone knows the story of how Isaac Newton came to develop his understanding of gravity, but now a contemporary account of the incident is available to read in its original form.

It’s part of a series of documents published by the Royal Society, a British scientific institution. Unlike most such projects, this involved publishing scans of the original documents in a format which allows the user to navigate them page by page, hence the project name “Turning the Pages”.

The documents include a 1752 manuscript of a biography of Newton by William Strukely. Describing the fateful moment he wrote:

“It was occasion’d by the fall of an apple, as he sat in contemplative mood. Why should that apple always descend perpendicularly to the ground, thought he to himself. Why should it not go sideways, or upwards? But constantly to the earth’s centre? Assuredly, the reason is, that the earth draws it. There must be a drawing power in matter.”

The collection also includes Henry James‘ notebook containing his drawings of fossils. Rather than the American novelist, this is the man who was among the most eccentric director generals of Ordnance Survey, Britain’s government-backed mapping company.

The highlight of the remaining documents, which include anatomical drawings and a letter from Thomas Paine (on, of all subjects, an iron bridge design) is the “fundamental constitutions of Carolina”. Developed largely by English philosopher John Locke, they called for the region — then under British control — to hold elections by secret ballot with votes extended to a wider range of landowners, measures which were comparatively radical at the time. The documents were never ratified, but the ideas influenced the eventual principles of North and South Caroline when they became states.

(And if you’re wondering, yes, that is where the Lost character got his name: many characters in the show take part or all of their name from noted philosophers, physicists and other historical figures.)

The project follows the Royal Society publishing the text of 60 notable articles from its journal Philosophical Transactions, including the invention of fingerprinting, the first electric battery, and Benjamin Franklin flying a kite in an attempt to harness lightning.

Born of Hope: An Amazing LOTR-Inspired Movie

Born of Hope is a 70-minute independent feature film inspired by the Lord of the Rings and produced by Actors at Work Productions in the UK.

This 70 minute original drama is set in the time before the War of the Ring and tells the story of the Dúnedain, the Rangers of the North, before the return of the King. Inspired by only a couple of paragraphs written by Tolkien in the appendices of the Lord of the Rings we follow Arathorn and Gilraen, the parents of Aragorn, from their first meeting through a turbulent time in their people’s history.

The movie is available in HD, so be sure to select the full screen option on the player below after hitting play.

Thanks to my french pal Korben for the great find!

How Tough Are NES Games?

Canadian gaming blogger Rinry showcases in this video the cruel experiment in which she subjected copies of the original NES game Super Mario Brothers/Duck Hunt to various forms of abuse, like being doused in alcohol, hit by a car, or dropped from the top of a parking garage. The verdict? NES cartridges are tough cookies to crack, and make those discs you’re putting into your next-gen consoles look like frail, wimpy things.

How many of you still have a NES? Does it still work? Do you think you’ll be able to say the same about your Xbox in 20 years?

Tekken 2010 Movie Trailer

Oh dear god, another year, another big screen adaptation of a fighting video game.

The year is 2039. World Wars have destroyed much of civilization as we know it. The remaining territories are no longer run by governments, but by corporations, the mightiest of which is Tekken. In order to keep the masses down, Tekken sponsors the Iron Fist Tournament in which fighters compete to the death for ultimate glory and receive a lifetime of stardom and wealth.

Now be prepared to cringe… this looks like it’s going to be bad… very, very bad.

[Via Slashfilm]

Geeks Give Back

In the past week, there have been a number of different fundraising efforts for disaster relief in Haiti, showcasing a global outpouring of generosity. One effort in particular caught my eye, however – the Livejournal community ontd_startrek (translation: oh no they didn’t), which managed to raise $15,000 in two days. Okay, so maybe it’s not exactly a serious fansite, boasting the tagline “Space: No Uglies” and featuring posts largely consisting of macros and capslock and fangirl worship of the GQMF team of Zachary Quinto and Chris Pine – but nothing wrong with that!  And there’s 7,300 people (judging from the number of members of the community) who love Star Trek in a big CAPSLOCK way who managed to channel that into doing some good. Of course, they did get some Twitter love from Mr. Quinto himself out of it. Also, apparently they were running a friendly contest with ontd_ai (American Idol), and it looks like the Trek fans creamed them. Live long and prosper, guys.