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So, is it an urban legend? Or not? Can you boil an egg or pop popcorn with cellphones?

It seems the verdict is out:

• Poppping Popcorn with Cellphones [via laughingsquid]
• urban legends via about.com
• Cell phones cook eggs, and your brain?

Trent Reznor/NIN does not give up.

They just released another free album, entitled “The Slip.”

You can download it over here: http://theslip.nin.com/, for free.

One of the most interesting things, is the mainstream use of BitTorrent as a distribution method (for all but the MP3 version). We really are entering into uncharted waters, both with distribution and revenue models. Despite other artists doing similar things, we’re seeing lots of permutations on the “free music” model lately.

Why all this legitimate free music all of a sudden, though? Do the concerts really make the artists that much money? Or, is it all just a fad (like Radiohead reported earlier this month? I really hope not. The retail store is on its way out of the music selling business - unless we start seeing digital kiosks real soon.

I hope that artists learn to make this digital world work for them, by charging for high quality versions and letting the fans decide what it’s worth. NIN isn’t accepting any money for “The Slip.” If I wanted to give them money, I couldn’t. That’s unfortunate.

I’m counting on mankind and music lovers around the world to be honest with themselves and the artists they like to hear. Call me an optimist. So, instead of buying another beer next weekend, and murdering your liver, go download GHOSTS I-IV, and pay for it, it’s worth it. Even if it is a wild foray into a very unique genre.

Update: I really am enjoying this album, almost as much as the previous instrumental album, GHOSTS I-IV.

My friend Jeff lives in Japan. He’s one of my best friends and I miss him every day. That’s besides the point: His MINI lives in a cave - 2nd level to be exact:

Our MINI is on the 2nd of 3 underground levels. There is a Peugeot on top, but nothing underneath. Not yet, anyways.

• Sakura, is what the Japanese call cherry blossom trees. Jeff has a gallery of his adventures during Sakura season over on his blog.
• Matt alerted me that the myth about the slow-boild frog, is false.
• 

  Zombie Strippers! [trailer] An advertisement on the back of the actually pretty good comic book release, Jenna Jameson’s Shadow Hunter (seriously, it’s not bad, maybe even good), advertised a non porn film, starring Jenna Jameson, titled Zombie Strippers!

• You can now find all of Daft Punk’s live sets all in one place.
• You Work For Them, the people who brought you “Black Sabbath”, have a really nice blog.
• Apple FINALLY updated the Airport Express to be 802.11n! No more dropped tunes!
• Some insane RC helicopter action:
  

A rich and hilarious take on the actual real life Wii Fit:

“With exciting titles like: roll the ball in the hole.” [via diveintomark

Weren’t video games supposed to be Matrix-esque by now, with jacks in the backs of our heads? All we’ve got is a plastic panel with sensors on it.

BTW: The music on this page, is super fresh. Just let it repeat… over and over again. ;)

• Dean’s back. A man, with witt and character to be reckoned.
• Joe has a nice set of Captioning Sucks! banners up on flickr.
• I can now create a google on top of google – if I wanted to. Related, “cloud computing” is really popping onto the radar.
• BMW 520d Beats a Prius in Efficiency:
  

  “…on a 545-mile London-Geneva run, when a diesel-powered BMW 5-series posted better MPG stats than a petrol-based Toyota Prius hybrid. The BMW 520d with a 2.0-liter diesel engine and regenerative braking posted an impressive 41.9 mpg - about 0.9 mpg better than a full hybrid Prius. The difference may not seem huge. But given that the Prius weighs about 500 lb less, BMW’s fuel economy lead was significant enough to raise new questions about which drivetrain technologies are more envir [via motoringfile]

• Japan sings Turkey’s national anthem:

There IS an ECHELON!

• What if? - A blog that doesn’t update anymore, sadly.
• Check out the Air Zoo - the most beautiful use of trash bags to date.

• Design Within Reach has some nifty doorbells that would go really well with some Neutra designed numbers.

  

• He writes on his hands and makes klein bottles. This TED video is a hoot.

• Apple Is Sued Over iMac Colors Claim

  The Cupertino-based company touts that ability on its Web site and other marketing material even though it knows iMac monitors can display only 262,144 true colors, according to the lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.

  Users are fooled into seeing many more colors because the monitors use technological tricks that involve showing many similar shades at high speeds to create the illusion of the desired shade, according to the lawsuit.

• Joe explains why sucks is a four letter word.
• Some amazing art by Andy Gillmore [via DDC]