I think what he’s saying is that Valcent has created a system the extract vegetable oil from algae. Vegetable oil can be processed into biodiesel. It doesn’t get much more energy independent than a closed system that can continue to produce infinite amounts of oil! WHY AREN’T WE EXPLOITING THE ALGAE!!

The future is now. Of course, big oil will do its best to shut this down. And I imagine farmers will be pissed that their corn will be replaced with algae. Eventually, our broken economy will demand an energy efficient, cheap solution. We can stop importing oil and freaking grow our own!

Thanks to reader Mikey D for the find.

[Via Valcent]

Share This

Though Emma’s voice in my head is slightly older than the voice actor they chose, this is actually quite good. Whedon’s dialog works best when read out loud. I also love the subtle enhancements to the animation, the little wisps of hair, the undulating ocean, nice and subdued. Cassaday’s art doesn’t need any fiddling.

I know Crossgen was experimenting with this style of animated comics and if they were still around, I suspect they’d be at the forefront of this technique. So the question is, if Marvel does more of these animated comics and releases them for free to spread virally, aren’t they subverting their whole subscription online comics?

Hope they do more and I hope more companies do their own versions.

Share This

You may recall that earlier this month a certain Mark Simon declared that if something isn’t done soon, the federal government will declare all your arts are belong to them. He claimed that new legislation would automatically give orphan status to all unregistered works. Essentially, you would not own art or music or writing or anything that you create unless you paid mad cash to officially register it. Sounded like doom and gloom to me. I was ready to release the hounds and call for an all out assault on our representatives. However, at the time of Simon’s article, no legislation had been introduced.

It turns out that Mark Simon is partially right. The U.S. Copyright Office is indeed concerned about Orphan Works. Two bills were introduced in the House (H.R. 5889: To provide a limitation on judicial remedies in copyright infringement cases involving orphan works) and Senate (S. 2913: A bill to provide a limitation on judicial remedies in copyright infringement cases involving orphan works) on April 24, 2008 to address the Orphan Works question.

The text of the Senate version isn’t on GovTrack yet, but the House version is up. I’m going to attempt some short hand here so you don’t have to subject yourself to cryptic legalese.

Subsection (b) paragraph (1) subparagraph (A) sets limitations on remedies that an artist can claim if their work is infringed if the following criteria are met by the infringer (the dirty rat stealing you work):

• The infringer or someone acting on their behalf has conducted a reasonable documented search for the copyright owner and was unable to locate said owner;
• filed a Notice of Use with the Register of Copyrights before using the work;
• attributed the owner of the infringed work if the owner is known based on information obtained during the qualifying search;
• included a mark or symbol along with the use of the infringing work;

There’s some extra strength legal mumbo jumbo about the infringer consenting to the jurisdiction of the U.S. district court and something else that I don’t quite understand, but it has something to do with submitting the proper documentation.

If the conditions in Subsection (b) paragraph (1) subparagraph (A) are met, the courts may decide to asses monetary relief or injunctive relief to the original owner based on Subsection (c). Monetary relief forces the infringer to pay reasonable compensation to the original owner. Injunctive relief prevents or retrains the infringer from using the work. There are more details in that Subsection, but either way, the infringer must pay.

Okay, back to the conditions of eligibility. Subsection (b) paragraph (1) subparagraph (A) does not apply if the infringer fails to negotiate reasonable compensation with the original owner or if the infringer fails to pay reasonable compensation in a timely fashion.

Subsection (b) paragraph (2) outlines what a Reasonable Search would entail.

Wow, even the Cliff’s Notes are a bit difficult. Let’s see if we can break this down further.

If some rat bastard finds a work and wishes to use it, said rat bastard must first conduct a documented search for the original copyright owner. If said owner cannot be found, the rat bastard may use the work according after filing a Notice of Use with the Register of Copyrights. If the owner is found and the rat bastard is still intent on using the work, the rat bastard must attribute the work to the original owner and pay reasonable compensation for use.

Now, I’m no lawyer, so I could be missing something. But I don’t see anything in there that says anything about original works being orphans unless formally registered. Seems to me this puts the burden of proof of orphan status no on the artists claiming copyright bu on the rat bastards who want to use the work. That doesn’t mean the bill won’t change by the time it goes up for vote if it ever gets out of committee.

If I have this right, this bill would give us artists more leverage to prevent unauthorized use of our work. If the rat bastards use our work without bothering to figure out who created it in the first place, we now have a formalized process we can invoke to shut them down and get paid. Sounds like a good deal to me.

[Via GovTrack]

Share This

Nine to five getting you down? Feeling fenced in by oppressive cubicle walls? Then come work for Veidt Enterprises’ advertising division and command your future!

Okay, not really. Zack Snyder and YouTube are partnering up for the Watchmen “Veidt Enterprises Advertising Contest.”

40 young advertising execs will receive posters signed by Zack Snyder. The top five user favorites will received Canon’s HD Vixia HG10 camcorder to continue their advertising careers. Up to 20 of Zack’s favorites will receive $1000 and have a chance to get all big haired for a cameo in the movie itself.

If you weren’t subjected to advertising in the 80’s, here are two sample spots to give you some inspiration.

Contest ends June 2, 2008 so get to stepping!

[Via Watchmen]

Share This

I’ve been out for training the past two days and wasn’t able to get back to the blog last night. But the Gotham City Police Major Crimes Unit waits for no man! Reader Tyler Anderson was hot on the trail of one of Gotham’s dirty cops:

I received my e-mail from soon-to-be Commissioner Gordon about Operation Slipknot. I’m supposed to call the Gotham Intercontinental Hotel and try to convince the concierge to send me a package that has been sent to the hotel for one of the wanted cops. As I am just now receiving the e-mail at 1:49am Chicago time I will have to wait until tomorrow to call them and see what’s going on.

Here’s a link for you http://www.gpdmcu.com/operationslipknot/

If I’m killed in the line of duty, I request a viking funeral

Eight minutes later, I get another message from Tyler:

Holy Shit, no wonder it there was “no one available” at the hotel. In the 5 minutes it took for me to shoot you a line everyone had already been called and all intel taken. oh well. I’ll be sure to keep you up to speed. No cool package for me though

Wow! Seems like lots of citizens are tired of GCPD’s rampant corruption. Keep fighting the good fight, Tyler!

Share This

Powered armor is the only weapon we’ll have against the armies of pissed off robots SkyNet will launch at us from Japan when they’re tired of taking care of old people. Fortunately, the U.S. Army has contracted robotics firm Sarcos to develop the XOS exoskeleton. The XOS is made of lightweight aluminium and matches human movement with enhanced power and endurance.

The demo videos are a bit lame. I mean, who really cares if you can punch a speed bag when a Hunter Killer is decorating the walls with your guts, but I guess you have to start somewhere. I’m surprised the guy in the suit doesn’t haul off and smack those two jerks who keep stealing his ammo cases.

Right now the biggest stumbling block is coming up with a mobile power supply that can power the suit for extended periods of time. The U.S. military plans to take delivery of XOS early next year with intent of making a combat ready powered armor within eight years. 2016 is nine years before SkyNet takes over Japan. We’ll be ready for you, you overgrown tin can!

Thanks to reader Bonzai Rob for the link.

[Via BBC]

Share This

Over the weekend, many well meaning readers sent me Mark Simon’s article warning artists everywhere that if a new piece of orphaned works legislation is passed, we will lose the rights to our own work. He calls on all of us to write our Congressmen to stop this bill. So, being a responsible citizen for once, I decided to look for said bill. If I’m going to write my Congressman about a bill, I damn sure better have the bill number so he knows what I’m talking about. No legislation regarding orphan works has been introduced into the 2008 congressional session.

Huh?

So I decided to do some more digging to see if Simon’s claims hold merit.

Before we go any further, let’s define some terms so we know what we’re talking about here.

Works become orphaned when the original creator or copyright owner cannot be located. Orphan works can be used by anyone.

Currently, copyright protection is automatic for any work authored in fixed tangible medium (paper, tape, computer, etc.). Basically as soon as I draw something on a piece of paper or computer, that work is protected. Registration with the copyright office is optional.

Mark Simon alleges that new legislation will now make registration mandatory. But in a statement before the Judiciary Subcommittee on Courts, the Internet, and Intellectual Property, Register of Copyrights Marybeth Peters stated that:

In our study of the orphan works problem, the Office reviewed various suggestions from the copyright community. These included creating a new exception in Title 17, creating a government-managed compulsory license, and instituting a ceiling on available damages. We rejected all of these proposals in part for the same reasons: we did not wish to unduly prejudice the legitimate rights of a copyright owner by depriving him of the ability to assert infringement or hinder his ability to collect an award that reflects the true value of his work. We also rejected proposals that would have limited the benefit of orphan works legislation to certain categories of works or uses. Both commercial and noncommercial users made compelling cases; moreover, these parties often collaborate on projects and both need the benefit of the law. Likewise, we concluded that there were significant problems with respect to all categories of works: published, unpublished, foreign and U.S. works.

The Subcommittee did propose legislation in 2006 that would force users to document their searches for original copyright owners to prove a work’s orphan status:

On March 8, 2006, this Subcommittee held an oversight hearing on our Report, followed by a similar hearing in the Senate on April 6, 2006. On May 22, 2006, “The Orphan Works Act of 2006” was introduced in the House by former Chairman Lamar Smith. The bill included revisions to the Copyright Office’s original proposal and incorporated a number of changes that were designed to protect photographers and other visual artists in particular. These changes included a requirement that users document their searches, a definition of “reasonable compensation” (taken from the Office’s Report), and the availability of attorney’s fees under circumstances where a user fails to negotiate in good faith with an owner who has previously registered his work. That bill was later imbedded in H.R. 6052, “The Copyright Modernization Act of 2006.” The 109th Congress ended before the bill could be addressed.

The 2006 bill never made it out of committee. And no bill regarding orphaned works has since been introduced.

So now I’m confused. Not only does the Subcommittee not support mandatory registration, they also want to formalize the process by which people determine the orphan status of a work. Copyright is still automatic. And there’s no bill on the floor, in committee, or even in subcommittee. What the hell is Simon talking about?

There are others out on the interwebs who question Mark Simon’s incendiary article. Meredith Patterson outlines six misconceptions about orphan works. Kynn Bartlett investigates Mark Simon’s background and tries to figure out what Simon is talking about. And here’s Marybeth Peters’s full written statement in front of the Subcommittee as well as a link to the U.S. Copyright Office’s previous finding on Orphan Works. And thank you to the readers who brought all this mess to my attention.

Have no fear internets. As far as I can tell, our copyrights are safe!

For now…

Share This

Remember Arther C. Clarke’s first rule of prediction: When a distinguished but elderly scientist states that something is possible, he is almost certainly right. When he states that something is impossible, he is very probably wrong? New Scientist has compiled a list of 10 things people once believed scientifically impossible!

My favorite three on the list are force fields, invisibility, and teleportation. I really can’t wait for teleportation to become a standard mode of transport. Talk about energy independence. Don’t need no Hummer 2 if you can just beam around. Of course, the energy required to beam people safely will probably do little to stem oil consumption so we’d be screwed there. But it’d be freaking cool! Japan to watch Kamen Rider, France for snails, and Korea for zombie musical!

Thanks to Nelly for the tip.

[Via New Scientist]

Share This

Okay, not really. The title fulfills my April Fools’ quota of the day (I hate April Fools), but the rest of this is legit.

16-year-old Ryuki Omura was crowned Sunday as Japan’s first pen-spinning champion in a nationwide contest sponsored by the Pen Spinning Association Japan. Omura’s penjitsu (as I shall now and forever refer to the sport) was mightier than 16 other finalists chosen from 276 video entries.

Takara Tomy, who managed to keep Transformers alive and kicking in Japan while we forgot about them until recently, hopes to get in on the ground floor of penjitsu with its new Pen’z Gear line of specialty pens. They’re a bit longer and specially weighted for maximum jutsu.

For some truly amazing examples of this penjitsu, check out the PSAJ’s website. And look, I found an interview with the PSAJ on the YouTube (it’s in Japanese so someone is going to have to translate for us *cough* Pocky *cough*). My favorite bits are towards the end where they grab a high speed video camera to record the penjitsu action.

Congrats to Omura. I’m hoping to see more penjitsu state side. I’m willing to be we’ll be seeing lots of penjitsu this summer during the anime con season.

[Via Reuters]

Share This

Photoshop Express is a free, streamlined, online version of Adobe Photoshop. You can sign up for free and you can store up to 2Gigs of your photo goodness. It requires the Flash 9 plug-in which you’re probably running anyway and is, of course, cross platform compatible. You can create slide shows, share photos, embed photos in blogs and webpages, crop, rotate, color correct, shift hues, remove red eye, apply some basic effects, and do some other nifty things to your photos all online.

All very very cool and very web 2.0.

If you don’t use Photoshop for its intended purpose (you know, editing photos), Photoshop Express won’t be much use. No brush, no pen, no drawy. However, I imagine it will only be a matter of time before Adobe or someone else comes up with an online painting ap.

Give it a whirl. Share some photos. I think Adobe might be on the cusp of something big here.

[Via Photoshop Express]

Share This