Monday Miscellany!

Because I have so many tidbits and not enough for a coherent rant. Anyway....

• Arcanum Bestiarum, the book my wife illustrated, is now shipping! You can still order a copy here. The deluxe edition is apparently shipping later this month; all the better because it's sold out. Since the book is out, my wife is now selling prints from the book, starting with the Bee.


• Guess what the main topic of discussion was at last weekend's AIPAC conference. No, seriously, guess. You'll never guess! Wow, you're right, it's how to get Obama to start a war with Iran! How'd you guess?


• Swiss voters have, in effect, passed a maximum wage. Amen.


• The White House is pushing for a reversal on an FCC ban on cell phone unlocking, in response to a petition on their website. Whether the FCC reverses the ban is another matter.


• Could Heisenberg's Uncertainty Principle have a loophole? Apparently it does, if you know how to cheat on your measurements. Cool stuff!


• I'm ambivalent about the Columbia River Crossing, but shit like faking the numbers just before an important vote disturbs me. (In fairness, you can find information about proposed CRC alternatives here, with CRC's answers to some of them here.)


• Via Bruce Schneier comes word of scammers targeting porn customers in New Zealand. It's brilliant if you think about it.


• Have you ever wondered how much ammo you can check in your luggage?


• The iPod made MP3 players mainstream; the iPhone made smart phones mainstream. Could the iWatch make "smart watches" mainstream? (Yes, there is the Sony Smart Watch that basically works as a discrete interface to your Android phone via bluetooth. But I'm hoping for more, you know?)