Quite Interesting

In researching the amazing Stephen Fry, I've uncovered his new, amazing show: Qi

Have a look:

I Am Not A Scientist

And sometimes I wish I was a scientist. Oh well. I'm not ready to give up on the entertainment business just yet.

Anyway, I was hoping a science-minded person (Ryan? Justin?) could help explain genetics to me.

On the one hand, science eradicates the notion of 'race' with genetic data suggesting human populations are equally diverse. In other words, there's as much genetic variation in Asians as there are in Africans, Anglo-Saxons etc. That makes sense to me.

What I find somewhat incongruous, no doubt a result of my ignorance, is the fact that the dissimilarities between peoples - eyelids, noses, skin color - have a genetic basis which can become isolated in gene pools.

Now, my argument against racism usually amounts to "the gene pools are still accessible, and becoming more accessible, so the differences among populations are small and fluid. The use of 'race' as a categorizing technique is therefore ultimately pointless"

But what I'm trying to ask, is how is it that we can declare there is no such thing as a genetically based "race," yet the small differences we can identify between relatively isolated populations have a genetic basis?

What am I missing?

Google is Watching

Have you been to Google Maps recently? The technology is getting creepily impressive. How impressive? Well, if you know my address, you can google map it and LOOK INSIDE MY MAILBOX. (in case you're wondering, it's empty)

It's all thanks to the new feature "Street View." It doesn't work everywhere just yet, but it's getting there.

Want an up-close view of the door I walked through every day while interning at Paramount Studios? Just google map "748 N Gower St CA" and click street view (click and drag for a full 360 experience!).

Pretty mind blowing stuff.

Pain in the Neck

No, literally! I pulled a muscle in my neck yesterday and it still hurts like a bitch. And I have the sneaking suspicion that I will soon be catching the horrible cold that is making its way around the house. Meh. MEH I SAY!

El Hobbit-o

The Hollywood Reporter is...reporting...that my man Guillermo del Toro (Pan's Labyrinth) is in talks to direct a two-picture deal bringing The Hobbit to the silver screen. I think this is very good news.

True, del Toro's style is very similar to Peter Jackson, but I think there is enough dissimilarity to bring something new to the table. Besides, Peter Jackson and the Lord of the Rings films are way over-rated. You want to know Jackson's best film to date? It ain't any of that drab, pansy, Lord of the Crybabies crap.

It's a little film by the name of The Frighteners

Dragon Wars AKA D-Wars!

We rented and watched this atrocity of a movie called "Dragon Wars; D-War." Most of the special effects are impressive, but the acting, dialogue and story are so poor that it is actually quite hilarious. Check out these excellently bad clips below:



(Make sure to watch the scene from 1:45-2:45. So good! Also, pokemon lovers might want to keep an eye out for a Blastoise lookalike.)