#young innovator

[puzzler00m]

Did Tumblr collectively mature out of kin drama or did I just get too old to observe what 15-20 year olds are doing

[vacueye]

my old man tenth class ocs all together! + the girls are fightinggggg

[frommybookbook]

#6: The Lady in the Lake (1946)

I’ll be honest, the best part of this movie is Audrey Totter. There’s a reason she was one of the queens of B movies in the 1940s—she’s just incredible. She’s cold and calculating and absolutely gorgeous.

A lot of things about this movie are a little hard to judge because the cinematography is frankly just that distracting. Robert Montgomery invented first-person POV camera work for this movie and it’s a very impressive accomplishment. It also just takes over the whole thing.

The plot kind of follows the book, though it simplified the actual lake plot, which is kind of hilarious, and all of the romance between Marlowe and Adrienne Fromsett is completely made up.

Montgomery is a so-so Marlowe, he’s not the worst one to do it but he’s far from the best either. Again, I think a big part of that is that the cinematography keeps him so disconnected from the audience that you just don’t get to know him well and then his doing double-duty as the director kept him busy. The star of the film is really Totter, which is probably just as well.

Overall movie score: 3.5/5, mostly for Audrey Totter and the innovation in cinematography

Marlowe score: 3/5, Montgomery isn't bad, he just doesn't quite feel present; ironically his focus on the first-person POV made me feel detached from him as a character

Perry Mason score: 3/5, it's only Audrey Totter but she's just so incredible that she's worth 3 points all by herself

For a reminder of why I started this series and how I’m rating these movies, you can check out my master Marlowe post. I’ll be posting my reviews/rankings of the remaining Marlowe movies using the tag #Marlowe movies so if you’re interested, follow along!

[grison-in-space]

okay so I wanted to show @coffee-mage-sans-caffeine some terrible field Beagle stacks, so that they could see how uncomfortable the dogs look, and therefore I went hunting for field rabbit beagle kennels.

I turned up one pet "rare color" breeder and one that turned out to be a breed-specific article from a fucking content mill. Which: Gross. But the third one actually was a field rabbit-hunting beagle breeder, one who had the most good ol' boy [appreciative] blog description of his goals I've seen in a very long time:

Woodpont Beagles are a pack of dual-purpose (show and field bred) hunting hounds located in Southern Ohio, USA.  Some of our female lines now stretch back as many as 16 generations, spanning nearly 40 years.  Hounds from this kennel have been very successful in the past at field trials and shows, although the primary focus the past 20 years has been on pack work after cottontail rabbit or snowshoe hare. 

[...]

Feel free to contact us if this sounds like the type of hound for you.  Not everyone likes the same kind of beagle.  If your interest is field trials, or showing, you may want to keep looking.  If you want good, honest hounds for pack work or gunning, these just may suit you.  Puppies occasionally available.

Like, you know that is an old white man with the most rural of backgrounds and interests. His philosophy is fantastic, mind you, the dogs themselves are a blend of conformation and working beagle lines with the goal of maintaining the best of both worlds, if I wanted a beagle or to hunt rabbits I'd be on that man's doorstep in a heartbeat. I'm reading his stuff and I'm watching very carefully, and I see a post title and pre-emptively flinch:

Immediately what pops into my head is QAnon and hideous right-wing politics have invaded all kinds of circles over the years, and look I was starting to really like this guy, his opinions about working hounds are kickass, and oh no he's going to take time out of his day to make it clear he thinks people like me are scum--what does it read--oh no, oh no, what is it gonna say--

Things You Will Not See Here

Hounds with No Show Blood

Hounds with No Field Blood

Hounds in above ground kennels (i.e., raised on wire rather than being reared on the ground. always. no stacking kennels or god forbid runs.) ...

Yeah. Okay. I can live with this. It's a website straight out of 2013 (or 2003) rather than 2023. And oh, what a breath of fresh air the blog is!

[isfjmel-phleg]

I'm seeing a theme here, Baum...

The President [of France] touched a bell and gave an order to his servant. Then he turned to Rob and said, wonderingly: "You are a boy!" "That's true, Mr. President," was the answer; "but an American boy, you must remember. That makes a big difference, I assure you."

The Master Key, 1901

The Princess looked at her more closely. "Tell me," she resumed, "are you of royal blood?" "Better than that, ma'am," said Dorothy. "I came from Kansas."

Ozma of Oz, 1907

"Our father, the Revered and Resplendent Royal Ruler of the Blues, has made you our slave," asserted Indigo, with a yawn. "But he can't," objected [Trot]. "I'm some Royal an' Rapturous an' Ridic'lous myself, an' I won't allow any cheap Boolooroo to order me 'round." "Are you of royal birth?" asked Azure, seeming surprised. "Royal! Why, I'm an American, Snubnoses, and if there's anything royaler than an American I'd like to know what it is."

Sky Island, 1912

[jostoys]

Spring has Sprung, week 6: Creativity

Xander is a young inventor who also loves history, so he has been working hard on a time travel device. Not sure where (or when!) he hopes to go; I just hope he will be careful!

[t-u-i-t-c]

Shinobi 35: Kinji Enters the Yokai Labyrinth!

[cienie-isengardu]

Now that you've mentioned it more than once, the old Lin Kuei and the Umgadi have quite a few similarities and differences. What do you think they all are? Does Liu Kang not intervene because the Umgadi is in Outworld, so it's out of his jurisdiction?

Generally speaking, I think it all comes to Liu Kang’s own flawed sense of duty that blinds him to the questionable nature of Umgadi and even of his own version of Lin Kuei. Not saying that duty is not important or there is no honorable thing about pledging your own life to protect others or even the whole realm, but that should be a choice made by each person, not something forced upon children fed by someone else’s idea (tradition!) their life means little compared to people they are supposed to serve.

Lin Kuei in older timelines were an assassin clan that for ages abducted children to turn them into killers. In more modern times, the abduction happened less often as Lin Kuei had their own share of children born into clan and some people even joined their rank on their own (Smoke and Cyrax), but generally speaking, the nature of clan did not change overall:

Lin Kuei served those who paid the best

clan members were indoctrinated to blindly serve the Grandmaster that could - and would - kill them for failing a mission,

friendship, as personal bonds between warriors, was seen as weakness and forbidden

no one was allowed to leave the clan - and those who did were hunted down and either killed or forced into C.I. project

In Mythologies: Sub-Zero, the original Bi-Han was introduced as one of the most cunning Lin Kuei assassinations yet during mission he plainly admitted if he did not steal ordered thing, he would end dead, which shows that even successful warrior is always one step close to own death, either by dying on mission or as punishment for failure. 

Of course, Liu Kang’s version of Lin Kuei and Umgadi are far away from what the old Lin Kuei was at its core, at least as the source material showed so far. However there are still things that personally rub me the wrong way. Tanya and Li Mei’s official bios and intro dialogues are full of the worrying details about Umgadi, the Palace Guard protecting the Royal Family we are meant to root for and see as the good guys... Only to learn how fucked up is the whole system maintained for who knows how many generations.

Umgadi recruitment & their ties to biological family?

[Tanya’s BIO] Chosen as an infant from Outworld’s first-born daughters, Tanya was raised by the Umgadi’s priestesses. She’s never known her birth family.

or

[Li Mei’s BIO] As her parents’ firstborn daughter, Li Mei was claimed by the Umgadi, the warrior priestesses who guard Outworld’s royal family.

or

Scorpion: Your parents' identities were kept from you? Li Mei: To ensure my loyalties were only to the Umgadi. 

or

Raiden: It must be hard, not knowing your birth family. Tanya: My Umgadi sisters are all the family I need. 

or

Kenshi: "Umgadi come from all over Outworld?" Tanya: "All first-born females become postulants." 

or

Kitana: "It's time to gather the First Born." Tanya: "And train the next generation of Umgadi."

Their personal bonds, including romantic/sexual ones?

[Tanya's BIO] As an Umgadi, Tanya is sworn to piety and chastity. That is why her bond with Princess Mileena, were it known, would cause a scandal. By following her heart, Tanya risks not only her position but also her life.

or

Tanya: "The bond I share with your daughter --" Sindel: "Is forbidden to an Umgadi!" 

or

Sindel: "You, above all, must obey Umgadi rules." Tanya: "I must obey my heart, Empress." 

or

Ashrah: There is nothing evil about you and Tanya. Mileena: There is to those wedded to Umgadi tradition.

Leaving Umgadi?

[Li Mei's BIO] But it all fell apart when a terrible tragedy unfolded. Li Mei was blamed for this and In the aftermath, she did the unthinkable: she quit the Umgadi. Friendless and alone, Li Mei needed a new purpose. She joined Sun Do’s constables, the Outworld capital’s rough and tumble police force. Over time, she became their First Constable.

or

Raiden: I thought no one left the Umgadi. Li Mei: The circumstances left me no choice.

-> as the story and tie-in material proved, Li Mei was unfairly accused and was a victim of Umgadi Matrons intrigue. Her stepping down from the role of leader of Palace Guard makes sense, as death of the king on her duty is a valid reason for resignation (an act often considered honorable), but there is no implication that Li Mei even got a fair trial? Granted, she chose to leave Umgadi and was allowed to do so, which is much better than old Lin Kuei's harsh punishment by death, but also shows that Umgadi does not have many options once accused of failure or ostracized by her own “sisters” & Royal Family.

Umgadi training and growing up?

Sub Zero: "The Lin Kuei are trained from childhood." Tanya: "As are the Umgadi, Sub-Zero."

or

[Tanya's BIO] As she grew older and saw other initiates wash out, Tanya feared that she would share their fate. But that fear spurred success; after many attempts, Tanya passed her trials and became a full Umgadi.

-> and if parents’ identities are kept from the initiates, what happens to those who did not pass the trials? Were they allowed to come back to a family they did not know at all? Did Umgadi even keep any record from which family each little girl was taken? Li Mei, who left Umgadi is said to be friendless and alone, which suggests no ties to the outside world, be it biological family or other people.

-> also, Tanya succeed because of fear of becoming one of wash out. Not the blind faith in the rightness of the cause, but fear of failure.

And sure, Umgadi is way better than old version of Lin Kuei presented in various source material, but it still share some serious similarities, like taking away children's freedom to choose for themselves or considering personal relationship (friendship for Lin Kuei, ties to biological family or the sexual & romantic one for Umgadi) as forbidden, to ensure their blind loyalty to the Grandmaster or Royal Family. And this is just what we learned about Umgadi in the first game, the introduction to Liu Kang's new era and I won't lie, it took me out by surprise because the game itself presents Sindel and her Family as someone we should like, while Umgadi system cast a different light. And I do not have an idea if NRS did that on purpose or if the studio did not think enough about the implication both for Edenian society and Liu Kang. Especially with intro dialogue like this:

Geras: "The Umgadi was one of Liu Kang's best innovations." Tanya: "My order sprung from his mind?" 

And if Umgadi was one of Liu Kang's innovations - a system whose whole purpose is to protect the Royal Family at the expense of countless number of first-born daughters, then maybe Bi-Han's claims about Lin Kuei's enslavement shouldn't be treated as baseless either.

[ankylosaurusthesaurus]

that’s it i’m setting fire to the netflix building

[bandcampsnoop]

5/9/23.

Red Asphalt were a high school "straight edge" band in Southern California - San Clemente specifically. In my mind, they're notable because they're a piece of the musical journey of George Carpenter of The Clog. The Clog's 7" dominated my listening in 2019. Back then I mentioned how The Clog sounded like a cross between Ty Segall and Gorky's Zygotic Mynci.

Red Asphalt definitely has a similar feel. The cassette (mastered by Mikey Young) is a bit of auditory whiplash - going from sludgey screamo to lo-fi indie (think Pavement), to gentle picking. Really, this sounds like this could have been an early Flying Nun band (listen to "J2" - sounds like it could have been The Clean). Finally, I'll throw in The Urinals/100 Flowers as a Southern California reference point.

San Francisco based tape label Discontinuous Innovation just released this cassette in April 2023. The label has an impressive catalogue.

[1genofficial]

Get ready for Creativelo 2024: A celebration of innovation, sustainability, and student power!

The countdown to Creativelo Festival 2024 has begun! This year, 32 student teams from 12 universities are tackling global challenges with creativity, collaboration, and innovation.

Highlights: 🔹 Solar-Powered E-Bike Challenge: Students designing eco-friendly bikes to reduce carbon footprints. 🔹 SDG Campaigns: Flash mobs, grassroots efforts, and awareness drives for sustainability. 🔹 Grand Finale: Celebrate young innovators and their groundbreaking projects at the end of November.

This isn’t just a festival—it’s a movement showcasing the power of youth to create a sustainable future. Don’t miss it!

[sciencedayforpeaceanddev]

Producing actionable scientific knowledge and using it to advance the Sustainable Development Goals in alignment with human rights.

By 2033, the International Decade of Sciences for Sustainable Development, 2024-2033 by Producing actionable scientific knowledge and using it to advance the Sustainable Development Goals in alignment with human rights.

[natandacat]

Armand would love a little clarinet

[worldcitiesday]

Young people are true advocates of bolder steps and actions to tackle to climate crisis in our cities.

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 11 “to make cities inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable” identifies sustainable urbanization as one of the key priorities for global development. The adoption of the new Urban Agenda by the United Nations in 2016 has seen national and local governments around the world embark on a transformative path towards making SDG11 a reality.

[therugfurnish]

Top Carpet Manufacturers in India: Weaving Tradition and Innovation

Rug manufacturing is surely one of the esteemed arts from the country.Today, India is among the world's largest exporters of handmade rugs, its manufacturers marrying centuries-old craftsmanship with contemporary design to feed a global market.

Conventionally, rug-making has been associated with centers like Bhadohi, Mirzapur, Jaipur, and Kashmir. Each region has its typical style and weaving technique. For example, Kashmir is famous for its silk rugs of high quality, usually with flowing floral motifs, while Bhadohi is characterized by geometrical patterns in woolen rugs. These skills have been passed on from generation to generation, maintaining the heritage and authenticity of Indian rugs.

Blending in New Ideas in Rug Manufacturing

Even though Indian manufacturers give maximum importance to traditional ways of manufacturing rugs, innovation is found in order to be aligned with modern taste and global trends. This fusion of old and new is something that makes Indian rugs different in the international market. There is a rise in experiments with new materials, designs, and technologies for making rugs that are not only pleasing aesthetically but eco-friendly and durable.

Another significant innovation hitting the Indian rug industry is eco-friendly materials.handmade rugs india With people starting to become more aware of the deteriorating environment, most manufacturers have started going green either in natural dyes, organic wool, or recyclable materials for their production. This does not only reduce the environmental impact but also appeals to those consumers who want home decor that is sustainable.

From the design point of view, this has broken the mold of traditional patterns as Indian rug manufacturers include contemporary styles. Most modern Indian rugs boast an abstract design, minimalistic patterns, or a vivid color palette that appeals to the taste of a young, more design-conscious consumer. Meanwhile, there is an interesting trend that looks toward timelessness whereby traditional motifs are mixed with modern tastes. The result is timeless yet trendy rugs.

Top Indian Rug Manufacturers

A few Indian rug manufacturers have carved a niche for themselves among the top-rated names of the global market in terms of both quality and innovation. Companies such as Obeetee, Jaipur Rugs, and The Rug Republic are only a few to name that exude the blend of tradition with modernity.

Obeetee is amongst India's oldest and most reputed rug manufacturers, with its base in Mirzapur.Handmade Rugs Manufacturer Founded as early as 1920, it has had ample time to establish itself in the high-quality art of manufacturing rugs by hand. Very well known, Obeetee goes for traditional craftsmanship in weavings apart from including modern elements in its designing. The company is also at the vanguard in terms of sustainability, using eco-friendly materials and practices in production.

Innovation in Jaipur has become coupled with Jaipur Rugs, an Indian enterprise based out of Jaipur. Directly working with artisans in rural India, the company provides resources and support to skilled artisans who can create this art of beauty in handmade rugs. In addition, Jaipur Rugs is known for its contemporary designs and social impact initiatives that are undertaken to uplift and empower local communities.

Then there is the Panipat-based enterprise known as The Rug Republic, which is another major player in this field.Rugs manufacturers in india It specializes in modern, eco-friendly rugs manufactured from recycled materials. Innovative approaches to design and sustainability make The Rug Republic the favorite of consumers in search of stylish and environmentally conscious home décor options.

Conclusion

The success of rug manufacturing in India comes from the perfect balancing of tradition with innovation. While preserving ancient techniques, Indian rug manufacturers also use new materials, designs, and technologies to create products finding their place in the hearts of every consumer all over the world. As these manufacturers keep evolving, they are not only keeping the rich rug-making heritage of India alive but setting new standards for quality and creativity in the global market.