Mr. Rogers and Koko

Alright, despite this thing being in limbo, I simply had to share the video below. Mr. Rogers and a lovable communicative gorilla: need I say more?

Is There Anybody Out There?

Simple question: is this blog still worth my time?

When I started blogging, I know that more than a handful people checked out the site on a weekly basis. Since then, visits have steadily decreased. Although there are a couple of reliable readers, I'm wondering if it's time to move on.

Update -- If I do end up killing 2dollars27cents (which is a Ginsberg reference, by the way), my online adventures are far from over. I always envisioned this project as a dry run, and I'm starting to believe that my interests are more geared toward a collaborative project.

Brain Dump

Google Squared and Wolfram Alpha are inching toward the search engine of tomorrow.

Tazers don't always work as they are supposed to.

Do you know what happened 20 years ago today?

How broke is your state's unemployment fund? Propublica can help you find out.

A Biologist's Dream Destination

Socotora Island seems like it's worth a visit. I wonder how much airfare costs.

(link)

You've Just Won a Brand New Car (Company)!

Michael Moore rejoices at GM's bankruptcy. Worth a read.

Holland's Dwindling Prison Population

The Netherlands is facing a different kind of crisis: too few prisoners.

"During the 1990s the Netherlands faced a shortage of prison cells, but a decline in crime has since led to overcapacity in the prison system. The country now has capacity for 14,000 prisoners but only 12,000 detainees."

Doing some quick math, the incarceration rate in Holland is approximately seven hundredths of one percent. By comparison, the rate in the United States is over seven tenths of one percent. Here's more information on the US prison system. I wonder what Holland is doing differently?

(link via boingboing)

Paging Mr. Orwell

"Wisconsin police can attach GPS to cars to secretly track anybody’s movements without obtaining search warrants, an appeals court ruled Thursday."

(link)