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“The codex is built for nonlinear reading — not the way a Web surfer does it, aimlessly questing from document to document, but the way a deep reader does it, navigating the network of internal connections that exists within a single rich document like a novel.”

– The Mechanic Muse — From Scroll to Screen - NYTimes.com

“I was out running errands today, walking through the city. I remembered, a mile away from home, that a screw had fallen out of my wife’s favorite eyeglasses over the weekend, and that she was waiting for me to fix them. Walking down a city street, I said, “Remind me to fix Amy’s glasses when I get home.” Half an hour later, within a few doors of our house, the reminder went off.”

“Excuse me, sir, would you mind taking our photo?”

– http://blog.pluckytree.org/2011/10/last-time-i-saw-steve-jobs.html

NPR’s top 100 science fiction books

And if you prefer a flowchart to guide you through this list:

http://www.sfsignal.com/archives/2011/09/flowchart-for-navigating-nprs-top-100-sff-books/

I honestly don’t know what the fuck is with these “beautiful” apps for iOS.

Here’s another one that’s getting raving reviews: it’s a simple task management app that focuses on cloud syncing, changing background pictures, being free etc.

But what’s the point in having all these things that makes an app “beatiful” if it’s so slow in loading a checklist with 20 (twenty ! not a thousand !) items ?

I must say I really wanted to like this app (nice developers from Germany: check!, free as in free beer: check! cross-platform compatibility: check!) but the fact that such a simple task is being handled like it’s DNA sequencing, that I can’t stand.

From a review of a soft-science book appeared recently on the New York Times:

Though the authors occasionally lapse into jargon (their barnacles cling to “substrate” until the animals die and their six-plate shells “become disarticulated”)

Substrate and disarticulated jargon? Maybe I’ve been away too long, but it seems to me that substrate and disarticulated are normal words that even a non-scientist can understand (or at least, grasp their meaning).

Last Thursday I arrived in the States, and I went through the usual US border immigration procedure. The agent, after careful examination of my passport with lots of Egyptian visa stamps, says:

• Been to Egypt a lot, ah ?

• Yes, a few times but it’s been more than a year since my last time.

• So you haven’t been there after the TERRORIST TAKEOVER ?

Aways enjoyed Google’s doodles. This one is dedicated to my beloved/hated country, so I thought to hold on to it and put it here.

INTERVIEWER

What kind of paper do you use, what kind of pen and ink?

CRUMB

Well, I use the old Strathmore vellum surface paper, which is the best paper you can get in the Western world for ink line drawing. It has a good, hard surface. I have it mailed from the New York Central Art Supply in New York. For a while I was using this old Strathmore paper from fifty years ago that some guy sent me, it had bad comic art on one side, hacked-out comic work from 1959, 1960, but the paper is superior to anything you can get now. It just holds the ink better. I ran out of that and now I use this new stuff that’s not quite as good.

First experiments with the Pinwide by Wanderlust. I used it for a few shots last weekend, tried to use it as a normal lens during a bike ride from Milano to Lecco along the river Adda. I soon realized that pinhole photography needs far more care and attention to get satisfying results (for other unsatisfying results see also this flickr set).

Anyway the Pinwide makes the GF-1 even smaller and since it’s just piece of plastic only a little bigger than a lens cap it’s very easy to take it everywhere – the only problem is that you need some sort of tripod to get stable shots even in full daylight.

“I felt a sense of relief at his unshaven face and scruffy clothes. I have rarely seen a more disreputable bunch.”

– Ed Hillary (the Everest guy) about Eric Shipton (another great mountaineer and explorer), as reported in the fantastic 2-part history of Everest written by Ed Webster (Alpinist issues 26-27).

“They don’t appear to enjoy what they’re doing. […] One does not ride, one trains.”

– Bike Snob, about road cyclists and triathletes.

Fivefingers training run:

“I am known for the legendary length of my blog posts and e-mails. This stems from the engineer’s mindset of exploring every possible nook and cranny of an argument to make sure one has not overlooked anything.”

– http://blog.tabini.ca/2011/04/writing-less-to-write-more/

“Bari nel nostro cuore” (Taken with instagram)