MonthMay 2010

New William S. Burroughs cover illustrations by Owen Freeman

William S. Burroughs Soft Machine cover by Owen Freeman

More at Owen Freeman’s blog

(via burroughsmovie)

A Healthy Lifestyle May Not Affect Your Longevity

Centenarians
Photo by edwardyanquen / CC

SCIENTISTS have discovered the “Methuselah” genes whose lucky carriers have a much improved chance of living to 100 even if they indulge in an unhealthy lifestyle.

The genes appear to protect people against the effects of smoking and bad diet and can also delay the onset of age-related illnesses such as cancer and heart disease by up to three decades.

No single gene is a guaranteed fountain of youth. Instead, the secret of longevity probably lies in having the right “suite” of genes, according to new studies of centenarians and their families. Such combinations are extremely rare — only one person in 10,000 reaches the age of 100.

Found: genes that let you live to 100

(via Dangerous Meme)

Also, an active social life beyond one’s own family contributes to one’s longevity, happiness, and intelligence in later life.

Audio preview of Alan Moore’s new spoken word project

Unearthing

Pitchfork has a 3:22 minute preview of Moore’s latest work – Unearthing, a spoken word biography of Moore’s frequent collaborator (but otherwise unrelated) Steve Moore. The soundtrack is by Crook&Flail, and the album has guest appearances by Faith No More’s Mike Patton, Mogwai’s Stuart Braithwaite, Jesu’s Justin Broadrick, and Hella’s Zach Hill.

Pitchfork: Hear an Excerpt From Alan Moore’s Unearthing

You can pre-order it now from Lex Records

Genesis Breyer P-Orridge The Pandrogeny Project lecture

Genesis Breyer P-Orridge from Rija Munfar on Vimeo.

“The Pandrogeny Project lecture presented Monday May 12th at 70 North 6th st. Loft Space, Brooklyn, NY”

(via The Genesis p-orridge online archive)

RIP Martin Gardner

Martin Gardner

James Randi writes:

Martin Gardner has died. I have dreaded to type those words, and Martin would not have wanted to know that I’m so devastated at what I knew – day to day – had to happen very soon. I’m glad to report that his passing was painless and quick. That man was one of my giants, a very long-time friend of some 50 years or so. He was a delight, a very bright spot in my firmament, one to whom I could always turn to with a question or an idea, with any strange notion I could invent, and with any complaint or comment I could come up with.

I never had an angry word with Martin. Never. It was all laughs and smiles, all the best of everything.

James Randi: My World is a Little Bit Darker

Martin Gardner Wikipedia entry

(via Cole Tucker)

Philip K. Dick interview on French TV from 1977

Interview in French TV, 1977. Part 2, Part 3

Twincest: Gay porn’s hottest couple are twin brothers

Elijah and Milo Peters

Based on their YouTube channel, Elijah and Milo Peters just seem like your average, slightly awkward Czech teenage twins. They enjoy role-playing games and steak. They like frolicking around on the beach in their elaborately patterned underwear and taunting each other while bodybuilding. (“Hey you lazy-ee boy! Put some weight on eet!”) But the Peters twins aren’t quite as innocent as their goofy grins and adorable accents suggest.

Over the past few months, they have become two of the most controversial performers to hit the gay porn world in a very long time. That’s because they’re willing to break a taboo that, even in an industry that thrives on extremes, is too extreme for many: twin incest (or, more succinctly, twincest). While the concept of twin performers is not new to the gay porn world, the Peters twins are notable both because of the extent of their popularity and the things they are willing to do with each other on camera. They French kiss; they perform oral sex on each other; they have anal sex; and most shockingly of all, they do it in a tender and romantic way.

“My brother is my boyfriend, and I am his boyfriend,” says one of the twins during a phone call from Prague (Elijah and Milo sound so much alike on the phone it is impossible to tell which one is speaking). “He is my lifeblood, and he is my only love.” […]

It’s unclear if the story they are telling is true, or part of their marketing, but it is clear that they enjoy playing along. They also don’t seem remotely uncomfortable speaking about their peculiar sexual behavior.

Full Story: Salon: Gay porn’s most shocking taboo

(Thanks Gabbo!)

They also have a Twitter account.

Scientists Reach Milestone On Way To Artificial Life

yeast cells

Scientists are reporting that they have made a living cell from DNA that was originally synthesized in a lab. This isn’t quite a synthetic organism. But the result is an important, and some would say troubling, step on the road to creating life in the lab.

Craig Venter is the scientist behind the effort. Many scientists have strong opinions about Venter, but even his detractors will admit he’s a man who thinks big.

Venter and his team have been working to create a synthetic cell since 1995. The idea is to use the four chemical constituents of DNA — named A, T, C and G — to put together a synthetic genome. Then they would put that synthetic genome into a cell, and have it direct the cell as it grew and multiplied. Now they’ve succeeded.

NPR: Scientists Reach Milestone On Way To Artificial Life

Cards of Wu

The Ambassador

“A series of woodcuts in the form of divination cards. Click on thumbnails to enlarge.”

Cards of Wu

(via Aeris Morpheme.com)

Towards a Socially Conscientiousness Lifestyle Design Movement

Lifestyle Design

I’ve got a guest post up at Beyond Growth:

In his “The Lifestyle Design (un)Manifesto” Eric calls for the transformation of lifestyle design “into a collective of people who can influence the greater culture for a sustainable future.” Can lifestyle design be reformed into something more socially valuable? Put to work on the right problems, perhaps it can. But there are a few questions that we have to ask first.

Are the people behind the “lifestyle design movement” – that is to say, the people who are actually profiting from it – serious about solving real-world social, environmental, and economic problems? If all they’re interested in is cash and kicks, then there’s probably no point to this discussion. I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt, because I think there are at least a few among them who are earnest.

Beyond Growth: Towards a Socially Conscientiousness Lifestyle Design Movement

See also: My interview with Beyond Growth editors Duff McDuffee and Eric Schiller

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