vinyarb

Uranus is filled with diamonds

February 11, 2010 – 12:07 pm

Yup, before we go any further, let’s all say the title 5 times in quick succesion. Ok, cheap thrill’s over.

io9 reports that there could very well be a sea full of diamonds on Neptune and Uranus. Scientists have been studying their strange magnetic fields and high carbon makeup, and came to a hypothesis of diamond seas.

Not only are there seas of diamonds, as the atmospheric mix stabilises, chunks of solid diamond appeared on the surface, akin to floating sheets of ice. Imagine an iceberg of diamond!

Before you ladies go booking shuttle flights to these 2 exotic locales, I should warn you that the pressure (i assume affects gravity) at Neptune is about 11 million times that of Earth, not to mention slightly warm temperatures of up to 50,000 degrees.

But there’s nothing against hoping the Uranians won’t send cooled diamonds hurtling our way!

vinyarb |

Unbelievable |

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How do giraffes sleep?

February 11, 2010 – 12:00 pm

I’ve never really given much thought to this, but somehow, in trying to distract the mind from doing any meaningful work (then again, how meaningful is our work when we’re essentially trying to get people to purchase things they don’t really need?), really interesting questions can crop up, such as:

How do Giraffes sleep?

Yeah, I don’t know about you, but i’ve been totally absorbed in how the Na’vi have sex to really wonder how giraffes sleep.

But a quick google later, the answer is revealed.

Awkwardly is how they sleep.

Another interesting fact is that Giraffes have one of the shortest sleep requirements in mammals.
They sleep on an average of 2 hours a day, broken up in naps of between 5 – 20 minutes.

Oh, they also periodically doze off.

Cute, ain’t it?

vinyarb |

Random Musings |

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What can you do with one hand?

February 11, 2010 – 11:59 am

There aren’t many tv series chronicling the life in advertising. I can understand why. Who wants to watch a bunch of pompous pricks strutting around pitching taglines and creative ideas, only to throw out their prams when it gets rejected?

The chaos and deadlines that seem so important to an adman will not ring well with people holding real, impact-making jobs like doctors and road sweepers.

But i stumbled upon this tv series called “Trust Me”, a series that, due to the reason above, was cancelled after only 1 season. The ad agency, Rothman, Greene and Mohr (RGM) is a Chicago based agency that rivals the likes of DDB and BBDO.

In the first episode, they are seen pitching for a 75 million dollar telco account, Arc Mobile. And the CEO of Arc Mobile was taken by an insane off-the-cuff idea pitched by the newly promoted Creative Director, Mason. Topped up by a timely assist by his partner copywriter, Connor, with the tagline “What can you do with one hand?”

In the 2nd episode, the above tagline was tested in a focus group, and revealed to allude to masturbation. So here they go again, scrambling to come up with another tagline. Mason, in desperation, calls Connor for a quick suggestion as the CEO of Arc Mobile was holding on the line. Connor, in the deepest recesses of his mind, mid-thrust with a random woman, came up with the line “Do Thumbthing”

How fucking awesome is that?

First impression is that its a rather funny and interesting series. Too bad it got canned before i even heard about it. Truth is, I’d much rather watch Trust Me than Mad Men. Something about that era just bores me.

vinyarb |

Advertising & Marketing |

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Cigarettes in Plain Packs

February 11, 2010 – 11:57 am

The UK, in a bid to discourage smoking and reduce number of addicts from 8 to 4 million in 10 years, is considering banning the packaging of the cigarette packs.

This will mean cigarette packs will be in plain packets, with only the logo printed in plain text.

Food for thought: Will having them in plain packaging reduce smoking? Do smokers smoke because the pack of Marlboros has that perfect kerning?

Hmm… If that works, going by the same logic, we can ban packaging of condoms, so less people will buy condoms and more people will get pregnant!

Boom!

Aging population crisis solved!

You’re welcome.

Read the article here

vinyarb |

Random Musings |

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3D my life!

February 11, 2010 – 11:41 am

3D is really the bomb these days. Everyone’s going into 3D productions! Animated films jumped into the bandwagon with UP, Monsters v Aliens etc. Avatar single-handedly assured that all future epic sci-fi films be done not only in 3D, but also employing James Cameron’s revolutionary filming technology.

There’s also production of DVDs in 3D that come with the glasses.

And just this morning, the Barclays Premier League game between Arsenal and Man U (which arsenal annoyingly lost 3-1) were broadcast on selected Pubs in 3D.

That’s right, my friends. Picture a pub full of beer guzzling bestacled grunts. Scary, i know.

3D is entering our lives. Its inevitable. And its moving FAST!

Soon, we’ll all be sending emails, reading my blog, Im-ing, and even playing FARMVILLE! in 3D!

We’ll be wearing those heavy, nose bridge imprinting glasses on a permanent basis, because the technology will get so awesome that it will even be better than the 3D we take for granted in real life!

You’ll never wanna see your wife in regular 3D anymore!

I can’t wait to see myself pee in enhanced 3D!

Enhanced 3D! – Better than real life, and you look cool wearing the glasses too! (but so does everyone else)

vinyarb |

Random Musings |

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I couldn’t make this up even if i tried

February 11, 2010 – 11:40 am

I’m not sure of the authenticy of the following report, so take it with a larger pinch of salt, especially since the incident was supposed to have occured in 1988, yet there are surprisingly few facts floating around.

So, this girl apparently had no vagina, only a “shallow skin dimple was present below the external urethral meatus and between the labia minora”. Being 15, she was naturally curious about the birds and bees, and without sexual intercourse, the next best thing to experiment on was oral sex.

Unfortunately, while engaging in oral sex with her new boyfriend, she was caught out by her former boyfriend. Violence ensued, and she was stabbed in the abdomen.

The wound allowed the sperm to gain access to her reproductive organs, and 9 months later, miracle boy was born.

Told you. I couldn’t make this up even if I tried.

Full story at Discover Magazine.

vinyarb |

Juicy Scandals |

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Avatar

December 17, 2009 – 12:48 pm

When James Cameron takes more than a decade to realise his vision, you know its pure passion. And I’d say his passion definitely paid off in a big way. Countless millions have been poured for Cameron to develop special cameras for his revolutionary motion performance, whereby through his lens, he can literally see his actors interacting with a mocked up CG environment, instead of the environment being added on post-production.

And boy does it show.

The story takes place in the lush world of Pandora, one of a few moons orbiting Alpha Centauri A, 4.3 light years from Earth. Humans have discovered a substance called Unobtanium (get it? Very hard to obtain!), a valuable mineral that’s worth millions.

The bulk of this mineral sits under a village of natives called the Na’vi, blue humanoid beings living a primitive, yet spiritually enchanted life. They are very much aligned with the flora and fauna of the planet via a plug-and-play appendage you have to watch to believe.

Sam Worthington is Jake Sully, an ex-marine tasked to integrate himself with the Na’vi via an avatar, a genetically bred human-na’vi hybrid.

He does so, and learns the way of the Na’vi. Slowly but surely, he falls in love with the lifestyle and what they represent. It helps that he gets to shack up with the tribal chief’s daughter, Neytiri, too! Nothing like some alien love to wake the warrior within.

And even though he is but human, he decides to take up arms and fight for the Na’vi clan, culminating in a pulsating third act of Pandora mayhem.

The story in this film takes a slight backseat to the visual treat, which pummels your eyes from start to the climatic finale. Each creature seems to have an earthly equivalent (like horses, dogs, iguanas and erm, dragons), yet superbly designed and enchanting to watch. The attention to detail is impeccable. And for 2.5 hours, we’re truly transported to another world that is so believable it plays like a National Geographic special.

This definitely is a game-changer in the way CG worlds are realised.

A breathtaking spectacle, and a 2009 must-watch.

vinyarb |

Movie Reviews |

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