A functional, homemade paraglider, pieced together from old fertilizer bags by a fellow named Cyril Mazibuko in South Africa. Link (Wired, via Afrigadget).
Privacy advocates and regulators are eyeing Google's collection of your personally identifying information for the purpose of targeting ads. Google responds that ads are a form of "information that is useful to consumers," and a form of speech. Link to analysis on Wired Threat Level blog.
At a recent conference in Seoul, experts gathered to discuss the fate of rare wildlife that call the biologically-rich DMZ their home. The Demilitarized Zone is the
250-kilometer-long, 4-kilometer-wide "no-man's land" which has divided North and South Korea since 1953. Link (Worldchanging).
The United Nations recently issued a Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. Four nations voted against it: US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand. Link (Immigration Outrage).
Bob Marley's family is not very happy about the fact that Universal Music Group has agreed to sell Marley ringtones to Verizon. Link (Wired Listening Post blog).
In Uganda, a different kind of mobile phone. Link (Afrigadget).
Japan's internet cafe homeless: "There are over 5,000 “internet café refugees” eking out a living at the bottom of the social strata, taking what temporary work they can and dossing down in 24-hour internet cafés in the absence of a home of their own." Link. (Futurismic via Bruce Sterling)
Genealogy of features on the iPhone. Everything new is old. Link (Core 77 blog, thanks Susannah).
Video: Mad turntablist skillz from "DJ Sara, 8 years old, and DJ Ryusei, 5 years old." Video Link. (thanks, Andrew Tonkin)
Maybe the Blue Man nursery school will teach mad skratch skillz like these little girls?
Dear Google,
Seeing mold all over the oranges is useful to me as a consumer too, but I'd prefer the oranges without the mold.
Trust me, I don't have to be told when coke introduces the new Coke Negative with -1 calorie.
DJ Sara needs to go on tour! Them some mad skillz.