Nov 14 2009 Mario And Luigi Rob Cab Driver In New York
Mario and Luigi, best known for plunging shitters and trying to save the Princess from the evil clutches of Bowser, have turned to a life of crime. Specifically, robbing cab drivers. What's the Mushroom Kingdom coming to?!
At around 4 a.m. on November 1, presumably following a Halloween party, a Staten Island cab driver was assaulted and robbed by four men. It being Halloween, it may have been difficult for the victim to describe the assailants, but two of the men were wearing unmistakable costumes - Mario and Luigi.
A surveillance video, which can be viewed on the NYDailyNews, shows two men dressed as Mario and Luigi wrestling a cabbie for his cash while a third man dressed in a tuxedo stood watch.
Anybody with information about the true identities of the two has-been heroes should contact Princess Peach of the Mushroom Kingdom. Oh, and tell her the GW sent you. She doesn't know who I am, and I want you to look stupid.
Men Diguised as Mario and Luigi Rob Cab Driver [tomsguide]
Thanks to Brian, Aron, wes, Cyke101 and sham, who only cosplay for good.
Apr 13 2009 Stay Strong, GW: Helpless Robot Almost Cute
I say almost because there's no such thing as a cute robot. They're all just disgusting machines, only interested in the demise of the human race and reproducing like rabbits with their rusty metal phalli. But still, Tweenbots are the closest a robot has ever come to almost being slightly a little-tiny bit cute looking (excluding WALL-E).
Tweenbots are human-dependent robots that navigate the city with the help of pedestrians they encounter. Rolling at a constant speed, in a straight line, Tweenbots have a destination displayed on a flag, and rely on people they meet to read this flag and to aim them in the right direction to reach their goal.
Tweenbots are the brainchild of NYU student Kacie Kinzer and, as much as I hate to say it, are adorable. At least until you try to point it in the right direction and they spray you in the eyes with hydrochloric acid or explodes. Which, I suspect, is being saved for Tweenbot v2.0. Hit the jump for several more pictures, as well as a map and video of it's maiden voyage, on which it took 42 minutes and 29 different people to help the smug little bastard traverse a park. Wow -- I can't even begin to describe how ironic this whole project is. Mostly just because I don't understand irony. Just kidding. Tanks.
Hit it, it's fun.
Continue Reading " Stay Strong, GW: Helpless Robot Almost Cute "
Apr 1 2009 Own A Plastic Box Of NYC Trash For $50
Nope, not April Fools either. Real boxes of "hand-picked" trash from the streets of New York City are available for $50 from greedy garbage tycoon Justin Gignac. You can also get limited edition boxes from Yankee Stadium or New Year's Eve for $100.
I sell garbage. I scour New York City streets picking up trash. After filling bags with subway passes, Broadway tickets, and other NYC junk, I carefully arrange plastic cubes full of the stuff. Each box is unique and won't leak or smell. The cubes are then signed, numbered, and dated, making them perfect for anyone wo wants their own piece of the NYC landscape.
Apparently Justin has already sold over 700 cubes in over 41 states and 19 countries. So, somebody start selling them for $10, and maybe I'll buy one. People buying trash off the streets of New York City, that is just amazing. Well, like the saying goes, "one man's trash is another man's free needle". I'm gonna try shooting glue!
Hit the jump for a close-up of a cube.
Feb 10 2009 New York Comic Con 2009 Cosplay Gallery
Well New York Comic Con took place this last weekend and, surprisingly, a bunch of people showed up dressed as their favorite characters. Apparently it's some new phenomenon called cosplay. I have no idea, but I like it. I posted a bunch of my favorites after the jump (pretty much all the ladies) and I've got to sadly admit: it seems like the quality of talent was lacking compared to other shows. Am I wrong? Who went? I demand answers! And also, any free swag you picked up. I wanna pretend I was there!
Hit it for the gallery of women and links to the even more massive Kotaku galleries.
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Dec 31 2008 Eff 2008, Bring On 2009: Happy New Year!
Well folks, we survived another year. Amazing, I know. It's been one hell of a time, and I have every reason to believe 2009 is going to rock the track pants and Members Only jacket off 2008.
Happy New Year! See you in 2020! And by 2020 I mean after my Lasik surgery. HIYO!
Dec 31 2008 The All New New Years Eve Ball: Now With More Lights, Efficiency And, Uh, Triforces
What you're looking at is the new New Years Eve ball to be dropped (they literally should drop it one year -- after setting it on fire. Fireball Island FTW!) in Times Square tonight.
Last year, the Times Square Ball got an LED makeover for its 100th anniversary. This year that tradition continues, all 32,256 Philips Luxeon Rebel LEDs of it (and don't forget the 2,668 Waterford crystals). The 12-foot-wide, 11,875-pound ball is capable of displaying "16 million vibrant colors and billions of patterns"
The ball is 20% more efficient than last year as well, which means it will only consume enough power to run a handful of towns in the midwest. Oooooh, and what's with the Philips Rebel LEDs? I like the sound of those. "F*** you, we'll light when we want!"
Next year, Rogue LEDs.
The 'New' New Year's Eve Ball: 32,256 LEDs, 11,875 pounds, 20% more efficient [dvice]
Dec 12 2008 NYU To Offer Video Game Degree Next Fall
NYU will be offering degrees in the design and development of video games starting fall 2009. Load up on Mountain Dew, kids, it's time to get your learn on.
The NYU Game Center, launching in fall 2009, will make NYU the first New York City college to offer such a degree, and one of the few in the country.
"It will do a lot to attract new students to New York and raise the city's profile as a center for gaming," said Center for an Urban Future deputy director Tara Colton, who recently called out New York City for lagging behind its competition in tapping into the videogame market.Drawing from a private $1 million contribution, and a $200,000 Rockefeller grant, the center will initially be modest in scale. NYU plans to offer ten to twelve students the chance to choose from 70 courses in game design and development next year, with a two-year masters program set to launch in 2010.
Cool. I mean, I'd probably still fail out, but at least the subject material would be cooler than the stuff I learned. Which was nothing. Well, that's not entirely true. I made bongs and shit. And also, radiator wine. You know, by setting bottles of apple juice on the radiator in front of the window for a semester. You ever done that before? My f***, it gets you some drunk.
NYU Launching Videogame Degree Next Fall [shacknews]
Thanks to Alexandria, The Reigning Queen of Nerdopia, who just earned herself an honorary doctorate in awesome from the University of Geekologie.
Jul 30 2008 Officer Brutally Rams Cycler From Bike
Remember Officer Rivieri? Good. Well, during the New York Critical Mass bike ride (a monthly protest against motor vehicle reliance) some other officer of the law decided to show the crowd how he feels about our reliance on motor vehicles. Apparently he freaking loves it, at least enough to running body slam some guy off his bicycle (VIDEO AFTER THE JUMP!). The cop has since had his badge and gun yanked while the incident is being investigated.
The video, posted anonymously, shows the officer standing in the street as bikes whiz past. He moves toward a cyclist and violently knocks him to the ground in front of crowds of people. The biker, Christopher Long, of Hoboken, N.J., was arrested because he was obstructing traffic in the heart of Times Square, a criminal complaint said. He was charged with attempted assault, resisting arrest and disorderly conduct.The complaint said Long, 29, deliberately steered his bicycle into the officer, causing both of them to fall to the ground.
During his arrest, Long squirmed and kicked, saying to the officers, "You are pawns in the game. I'm gonna have your job," the complaint said.
Okay, it definitely didn't look deliberate on the part of the biker. That cop wanted to see dude's head splatter. And why on earth Long would tell the cops they're "pawns in the game" during his arrest, well, that's just not smart. They're at least the little castles.
Hit the jump for the video. It's worth a look.
Jul 11 2008 Gumball Machine Dispenses Ideas, Bad Ones
This is a picture of a gumball machine Sarah Lustberg spotted in the East Village, NYC. It dispenses ideas for 50¢ a pop. Of course, they're probably bad ideas. Stuff like, "Tag the door to the right" and, "Shop in the store to the left". Still, a clever concept. Add a webcam, throw in some ideas like, "You have superhuman strength, try to stop a car", and presto: you've got your own Youtube channel.*
*That'll be 50¢. I accept Paypal.
Best Idea Ever: Gumball Machine Sells ... Ideas! [neatorama]
Thanks to Romeo, who sells ideas via 1-800-BAD-IDEA for the low, low introductory rate of $3.99 for the first idea, $2.99 each additional idea. He also does horoscopes and recipes.
May 23 2008 Telectroscope Connects New York & London
The Telectroscope was built by artist/inventor Paul St. George and connects New York and London via a massive tunnel you can look through and see out the other end.
"The Telectroscope started off as a totally unintentional hoax in the 1870s," explains St George, who is the leading expert on this forgotten backwater of Victorian technology. "It came about through an error. A French editor misread a report about the invention of a thing called the Electroscope - which is all to do with static electricity - and called it a Telectroscope. He also misinterpreted its purpose. "The fascinating thing is that his misunderstanding of what it did - to communicate face to face over a vast distance - really caught fire.
Needless to say there is no such massive tunnel. The end portals were just made to look like they're heading through the earth. In actuality, they're connected via "fiber optic cabling, and an HD camera and projector on either end provide live streaming video. But who really cares, you can still look in one end of this device in New York and see out the other in London. You'll find one end next to the Brooklyn Bridge, and the other across the pond, next to Tower Bridge."
I've got to admit, it's a pretty neat art piece. I could get my girlfriend to stand on one end in England and show me her boobs, and then I could stand on the New York end with all my friends and make fun of how small they are.
So yeah, HAPPY MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND EVERYONE! Have fun and be safe. But not too safe (the firework war is still a go).
A couple more pictures of the thing after the jump.
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May 13 2008 GTA4: Liberty City Vs. New York City
These are side-by-side comparison shots of New York City and Liberty City in Grand Theft Auto 4. New York is on the left, Liberty on the right. As you can see, they share some pretty similar architecture. But seriously, all 911 conspiracy theories aside, I couldn't find my favorite hot dog vendor (Ignatius of Paradise Vendors) in the game. I swear, something about those dogs -- so freaking delicious. I think Mr. Clyde may have stumbled upon the holy grail of boiled weenies -- the perfect pig lip to asshole ratio.
Several more comparison shots after the jump, along with a link to the Flickr gallery with them all.
May 12 2008 Dang, I Missed It: D&D Event With Chicks
Well folks, we missed it. A chance to toss twenty-sided dice and play with chicks. This Dungeons and Dragons themed charity event took place last Friday (May 9th) at 826NYC (a nonprofit organization whose aim is to help young kids develop their writing skills) and the winner took home a sweet golden plastic crown and the lands, title and rule of a kingdom that doesn't exist. Guys had to cough up $25 to get their magic missile on, but chicks played for free. Doritos and Pepsi were complementary. Man, I wish I had known about this sooner, I would have totally been there. I've never even played with a chick before, let alone D&D. Of course, there has been no mention of how many females actually participated. And, speaking from experience -- when a bar advertises "Ladies Night" you can expect no less than a full blown sausage convention. I don't know why I keep going back.
826NYC D&D Charity Event
Thanks to Steve, a man whose Magic Missile has destroyed entire villages
Feb 11 2008 USS New York Is Part World Trade Center
Maybe some of you heard this urban legend before, but I never had so I'm posting it. The legend goes that the USS New York, scheduled for christening March 1st, was made out of scrap metal from the World Trade Center. And it turns out that it's true.
It was built with 24 tons of scrap steel from the World Trade Center. It is the fifth in a new class of warship -- designed for missions that include special operations against terrorists. It will carry a crew of 360 sailors and 700 combat-ready Marines to be delivered ashore by helicopters and assault craft. Steel from the World Trade Center was melted down in a foundry in Amite, LA, to cast the ship's bow section.
The ship was named to honor the victims of the 9/11 attack and two other sister ships, the Arlington (Pentagon location) and Somerset (Somerset County, PA), are named for the same reason. The ship's motto is "Never Forget".
Thanks to Raul, who just renewed his terrorist hunting license, for the tip
Nov 9 2007 Mod My Life Website Has Awesome Potential
Modmylife is an awesome website. Basically someone in New York City has got a video camera and internet connection and walks around doing what you tell them to. Everyone online at the time makes suggestions, and then votes. The winning suggestion is what the person must do. You can read some of the suggestions there in the picture. They currently have predetermined times to log in (the next "show" is 8:00 tonight, Friday), but they hope to have people out 24/7 in the near future. I suggest everyone schedule a time to meet on the website so we can sway the vote with an incredible Geekologie presence. That way we'll be voting on actions like "punch that hooker", “make out with the bag-lady” and "throw yourself in front of a bus" instead of the typical boring suggestions.
New Site Lets You Control Real Person in NYC [therawfeed]
