Augment THIS!

Google's "Project Glass" Augmented Vision Glasses

You may have seen the video from Google about their newest in-development hardware/software combo package called "Project Glass," which is basically computerized eye-wear that allows it's user to interface with everyday reality and their personal Google accounts.

As someone who has worn eyeglasses and/or contact lenses from a very young age, I find the concept both intriguing and frightening at the same time. It's bad enough that we have so many distractions on a fairly regularly basis as it is. Now imagine that everything you see is connected to the web.  Everyone you know; everything you read; everything you eat; everything you do... shared with everyone you know and everyone they know. Sort of a live-feed Facebook (or in this case, Google+).  In case you missed it earlier this spring, here's Google's video about the project:

Yikes! As much as I love the Internet and the connectivity it gives me to people literally all over the world, there's something decidedly Orwellian about Project Glass. I don't share everything I do online with everyone to whom I'm connected. Like most of you, I share only things of common interest with selected friends and family members. Just imagine sharing everything with everyone. No thanks.

Young filmmakers Erin May-raz and Daniel Lazo take it a step further and imagine a not-too-distant future in which everyone is connected by an implanted device called 'Sight' in their short film of the same name (via):

  Sight from Sight Systems on Vimeo.

Of all the possible futures Science Fiction can imagine, this may be one of the worst. Of course, using technology for personal gain is nothing new. But we have to draw the line, some where. And please don't lie to yourself - everyone has a secret they wouldn't want to share with anyone, let alone online, for all the world to see. The alternative? Unplug yourself. 

More, anon.
Prospero

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Okay - Which One of You Fooled the B*tch?

If you live in the Northeast today, these daffodils were a familiar sight to many of you. And you also know the "b*tch" in today's April Fools' Day post. It's Mother Nature, of course. And if you were around in the U.S. in the 1970's, you knew her from her string of commercials for Chiffon brand margarine. I don't know if Chiffon still exists of not. I haven't bought margarine since the 70's. Chiffon's motto/jingle was "If you think it's butter, but it's not, it's Chiffon!" My mother used to save the  plastic tubs after the oily goo was gone and re-purpose them as storage containers for left-overs. Green out of necessity? Tupperware was never cheap... You never knew what might be lurking in a Chiffon container in our fridge.

That's character actress Dena Deitrich as Mother Nature, Borden's face of Chiffon throughout the 70's, who somehow kept getting tricked into thinking Chiffon was butter. My Depression-child father grew up on margarine, which meant we did, too. It's repulsive sutff, really; waxy and tasteless -- in other words, nothing like butter whatsoever. Of  course, once I found out  that even flies won't eat the stuff, I never used it again.

Butter may be a little bad for you, but you know where it comes from and how (essentially) it is made. There was absolutely nothing natural about Chiffon (or any other margarine product) in the 70's. Made from hydrogenated oils, with artificial flavors, coloring and preservatives., they bore little resemblance to any real food, let alone butter. I cannot speak to today's versions, as I have not had them.

But that's not what this post is about. It's about Mother Nature run amok on April Fools' Day, snowing and raining then snowing more and then the sun came out and it rained with the sun out. It was a weird weather day, alright. Maybe the stupid bitch got fooled again. She's a stupid bitch.

There were some very funny things on the web, today. Ryan Seacrest had both his website and Twitter account hijacked by the Bronx Zoo Cobra. BoingBoing (among a few other sites) skewered the New York Times' by announcing a so-called "pay-wall" of their own.  Google, as usual, had some of the best ones. I really liked "Gmail Motion:"

And there was this one from last year, "Google Translate for Animals:"

I didn't get pranked today, but I heard this story about someone who was. An IT Technician sent a rather gullible person an email saying a new "voice activated feature" had been added to the copiers. For added measure, he printed up an official looking sign that read: "This copier has been upgraded and is now voice activated. The keypad for this copier has been deactivated. Please speak clearly; the copier will not respond if it cannot understand your request. Thank you. IT." Apparently the poor  thing stood at the copier saying "Print 10 copies" and "Print!" and "Print, please" and any variation she could think of, over-enunciating and getting very frustrated before another co-worker couldn't hold back and started laughing. I don't know what the woman's response to getting punked was. It seemed pretty harmlessly amusing to me. But then, I'm a jerk.

Any of you guys get punked; pranked; tricked; fooled; bamboozled; conned; played or otherwise abused today? Or did you punk; prank; trick; fool... etc., someone? Did you see or hear about an amazing punk; prank... yadda, yadda, yadda...? Your very own funny Uncle P wants you to share. Unburden yourself here. We won't judge... much.

Happy Weekend, especially to you folks who keep coming back to read the opinions of an aging gay pop culture geek. I have lots of cooking, eating and theatre coming up this weekend, so I'm off to do a few other things before bed tonight. A full report on tomorrow's dinner party, tomorrow night.

More, anon.

Prospero

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