Zombie Dogs

Nah, that's not the zombie dogs mentioned here. Just thought it's cool to have some blood-thirsty looking canine image here. SCIENTISTS have created eerie zombie dogs, reanimating the canines after several hours of clinical death in attempts to develop suspended animation for humans. US scientists have succeeded in reviving the dogs after three hours of clinical death, paving the way for trials on humans within years. Pittsburgh's Safar Centre for Resuscitation Research has developed a technique in which subject's veins are drained of blood and filled with an ice-cold salt solution. The animals are considered scientifically dead, as they stop breathing and have no heartbeat or brain activity. But three hours later, their blood is replaced and the zombie dogs are brought back to life with an electric shock. Plans to test the technique on humans should be realised within a year, according to the Safar Centre... The horror. Land of the freaking dead dogs.

This Is Batman

This is Batman. The one true Dark Knight who we(the post - 1987 Dark Knight Returns generation)have grown up with. And this movie simply blew me away, by shattering all expectations by actually lived up to its incredible hype. The single most mistreated and tweaked comic book character, who, due to the very same reason, became an pop culture icon, Batman, has spawned nine movies, three TV series, and thousands of comic books that transcends the border from noir detective, sci-fi opus, to melodramatic soap. Originally envisioned by creator Bob Kane in 1939, Batman was a grim and gritty vigilante who at times killed criminals at will. During World War Two, Batman team up with Superman to battle Facists and Imperialist. By 1950s, after the war, the villains became sci-fi monster from outer space, eliminating the original noirish tone altogether. Along came the infamous TV series that defined "Campy" in the 60s, starring Adam West as Batman and Burt Ward as "Holy @#%*" Robin, singlehandledly transforming the whole genre, including the Batman comic, to infinite silliness for what seems like forever(evidently seen from my previous entry). Until Neal Adams's brilliantly dark portrayal of the physique of Batman surfaces, giving us a hint of great things to come : The return of the one true Dark Knight, in 1987's epic "The Dark Knight Returns" by Frank Miller (now obscenely famous for Sin City), which, together with Alan Moore's much celebrated "Watchmen" teaches the world to the term, "Grim and Gritty", and influence the whole generations to come. Followed by Miller's Batman : Year One, we see no shortage of good Batman stories (at least, for most of the times) throughout the years, as good reads like "The Long Halloween" emerges. But unfortunately, that remained true only for the comics, as Tim Burton's much anticipated "Batman" opens in 1989. I know, I know, many, and boy do I mean many folks, love the flick, but I supposed quite a good lot of them would agree with me that by the time "Batman Returns" in 1992, penguins with rocket launcher flying around Gotham's skyline proved to be far too way out. But to all our surprise, just when we thought it couldn't get any worse, then came the third installment of the franchise, "Batman Forever", and followed by, the final nail to the coffin, "Batman and Robin", whose gloriously much-celebrated campism and stupidity kills the franchise. Batman suit with nipples. Yeah, right. So, we got the trilogy of Psychology Neurosis complete. First, it's Memento, with amnesia being the key, followed by Insomnia, and closed by Phobia, which is the integral center of Batman Begins. The origin of Batman has been recounted for numerous times. But never had it been given such depth. For the first time on screen, we have been brought back even before the murder of the Waynes took place. And yes, it matters. But there are more, we were also served with what happened after the tragedy. It had always been a case of only "then" and "now" for the previous incarnation of Batman. "Then" being the Waynes' murder, and "now" being Bruce Wayne in his prime, dishing out his Batman role in his most professional way. Which further add up to the campish, unrealism of the much-joked-of notion of a millionaire playboy, masquerading in the night as a vigilante dressing like a bat. By filling up the details, it all starts to make sense. As a kid, we have seen Superman making us believe that a man can really fly back in 1978, then as an adult, we were thrilled to spectacular comic book greatness watching Spider-Man swinging into action in your friendly neighbourhood New York City in 2002. Equally awe-inspiring as the above mentioned two classic scene, would be the Dark Knight, standing still on a rooftop, hovering above Gotham. It's that simple, but as I said, This Is Batman.

This Was Batman!?!

Poor Robin.

The Devil Made Him Did It

Nairobi - A cobbler suspected of sorcery was attacked and nearly lynched by outraged villagers in central Kenya on Tuesday after being caught having sex with a female sheep, witnesses and officials said. Joshua Kiplagat, 36, sustained a serious head wound when the sheep's owner threw a machete at him after finding him in flagrante delicto with a prize ewe in the Rift Valley district of Bomet, they said. He was then tied to a tree stump for five hours before being frogmarched naked with the violated ovine in tow to a police station where he confessed to several acts of bestiality that he blamed on the devil, they said. I was sent by the devil to do that," Kiplagat told the angry crowd which included several people who accused him of being a warlock and one disgusted woman who claimed to have seen him engaging in sex acts with a dog. "I saw this man mounting a dog two weeks ago at around seven in the evening and I was so surprised," said the woman, who gave her name as Leah. The bloodied shoe repairer adamantly denied allegations that he was a wizard and insisted that his affection for animals was limited to sheep. "I only made love to the ewe twice using two condoms but I never do it regularly," he said in his defence... What a devil.

Monkey Means Business

LONDON (AFP) - Three paintings by a chimpanzee named Congo were sold at auction in London to an American buyer for a total of 14,400 pounds (26,250 dollars, 21,610 euros), many times the estimated price... Monkey means business. Or madness.

Paranoia Down Under

Chinese defector Hao Feng Jun has provided further alleged evidence about the claims of surveillance and monitoring of Australian citizens and residents by China. Mr Hao told Lateline two weeks ago when he came into Australia on a tourist visa that he smuggled a computer file carrying hundreds of Chinese security documents that he had secretly downloaded from his police computer... ...A second Chinese defector, former diplomat Chen Yonglin, backs Mr Hao's claims. Mr Chen again maintained the existence of the Chinese 6-10 security office that defecting policeman, Mr Hao, had previously told Lateline he had worked for in China. "Yes, 6-10 Office was established in 1999 on June 10," Mr Chen said. "That was established to control the Falun Gong organisation and, in my view, to persecute Falun Gong practitioners." Mr Chen says it is common knowledge among Chinese officials, diplomats and consular offices that the 6-10 Office exists. "Every diplomat working in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs knows that existed, yes, 6-10," Mr Chen said. As unbelievable as it sounds, paranoia and suspense has definitely been kick into high gear down under.

Hell Awaits...

The Dante's Inferno Test has banished you to the Fifth Level of Hell! Here is how you matched up against all the levels: Level Score Purgatory (Repenting Believers) Very Low Level 1 - Limbo (Virtuous Non-Believers) Low Level 2 (Lustful) Moderate Level 3 (Gluttonous) Low Level 4 (Prodigal and Avaricious) Low Level 5 (Wrathful and Gloomy) Very High Level 6 - The City of Dis (Heretics) High Level 7 (Violent) Moderate Level 8- the Malebolge (Fraudulent, Malicious, Panderers) High Level 9 - Cocytus (Treacherous) Moderate Take the Dante's Inferno Test

Perry Bible Fellowship

Just one of the many briliant stuffs by Nicholas Gurewitch. Stuffs that convinced me that web comics do kickass.

Ghost In The Shell?

Repliee Q1 (at left in both pictures) appeared yesterday at the 2005 World Expo in Japan, where she gestured, blinked, spoke, and even appeared to breathe. Shown with co-creator Hiroshi Ishiguru of Osaka University, the android is partially covered in skinlike silicone. Q1 is powered by a nearby air compressor, and has 31 points of articulation in its upper body. Internal sensors allow the android to react "naturally." It can block an attempted slap, for example. But it's the little, "unconscious" movements that give the robot its eerie verisimilitude: the slight flutter of the eyelids, the subtle rising and falling of the chest, the constant, nearly imperceptible shifting so familiar to humans... ..."When a robot looks too much like the real thing, it's creepy," Hiroshi told the Associated Press. The future is here. I knew it. They gonna do it one day. An actual robot that breathes, talk and move like a real human does. (Well, not exactly, but you know what I mean.) Just so that we can wax lyrical all day long about the philosophy of the existential theories of the soul, Ghost In The Shell style.

Dragon Sabre Kills Again

SHANGHAI, China (AP) — An online gamer was sentenced to death after murdering a fellow player — in real life — in a dispute over a virtual weapon used in a fantasy game, a news report said Wednesday. Qiu Chengwei, 41, was found guilty of stabbing to death Zhu Caoyuan, a fellow player of a popular game called Legend of Mir III, the official Xinhua News Agency reported... Qiu confronted Zhu in February after learning that he sold the virtual weapon lent to him by Qiu. Qiu reported the loss of the Dragon Sabre to police but was told it wasn’t real property protected by the law. Prosecutors said Zhu promised to hand over the 7,200 yuan, the equivalent of about $870 US, that he received but Qiu grew impatient and attacked Zhu at his home, stabbing him repeatedly in the chest. Qiu surrendered to police and claimed he didn’t mean to kill Zhu. Anybody recalls the classic Wuxia novel "Heavenly Sword and Dragon Sabre" by Jin Yong, where the whole pugilistic society went on a killing spree while fighting for the infamous Dragon Sabre? Obviously, these major league geekazoids that reeks of extreme idioteque awesomeness does.

Watched Over No More

Paramount has stopped watching over The Watchmen as the company has officially pulled the plug on the film. According to Variety After two months of speculation, the studio pulled the plug on the action-adventure and put it into turnaroundturnaround over the weekend. Producers Larry Gordon and Lloyd Levin were taking the project, with British director Paul Greengrass ("The Bourne Supremacy") attached, out to other studios. Might be a blessing in disguise.

World Domination Begins Here

The World 0 - 616 Me Always on an away game, always kicking the home team's ass...

"Guy That Dresses Like A Bat, Clearly, Has Issues"

So said Bruce Wayne. In the upcoming "Batman Begins". Intriguing. The usual treats (trailers, downloads, etc) and a comprehensive comic gallery can be found at the official movie site.

Deep Throat Revealed

Deep Throat, the secret source whose insider guidance was vital to The Washington Post's groundbreaking coverage of the Watergate scandal, was a pillar of the FBI named W. Mark Felt, The Post confirmed yesterday. The Washington Post today confirmed that W. Mark Felt, a former number-two official at the FBI, was “Deep Throat,” the secretive source who provided information that helped unravel the Watergate scandal in the early 1970s and contributed to the resignation of president Richard M. Nixon. Their reporting helped bring about the resignation of President Richard Nixon in 1974. Felt is now 91, and living in Santa Rosa, California. Woodward and Bernstein had said they wouldn’t reveal the identity of “Deep Throat” until after his death. In a statement today, Woodward and Bernstein said, “W. Mark Felt was ‘Deep Throat’ and helped us immeasurably in our Watergate coverage. However, as the record shows, many other sources and officials assisted us and other reporters for the hundreds of stories that were written in The Washington Post about Watergate.” Bradlee, in an interview this afternoon, said that knowing that “Deep Throat” was a high-ranking FBI official helped him feel confident about the information that the paper was publishing about Watergate. He said that he knew the “positional identity” of “Deep Throat” as the Post was breaking its Watergate stories and that he learned his name within a couple of weeks after Nixon’s resignation. “The number-two guy at the FBI, that was a pretty good source…”