Aside

Wired News by Cyrus Farivar If a Los Angeles-area scientist has his way, car chases may become as antiquated as horse-mounted cavalry. James Tatoian, chief executive of Eureka Aerospace in Pasadena, California, is developing a system that uses microwave energy to interfere with microchips inside cars. Once the chip is overloaded with excessive current, the car ceases to function, and will gradually decelerate on its own, he said. “If you put approximately 10 or 15 kilovolts per meter on a…

I figured that if I’m going to do radio, I need a serious fuck-off (aka “professional”) set of headphones. Also picked up a mic. If only I could figure out what mic cable will make it work with my MD. The dudes at B&H said I needed a transformer, and when I tried the one I got today, it didn’t fly. D’oh. I’ve tried it without. No dice. Once I get that working, then I can podcast from my bedroom.…

LA Times: Porn is suddenly sexy to a cable TV company once considered the industry prude. Adelphia Communications Corp. has quietly become the nation’s only leading cable operator to offer the most explicit category of hard-core porn. Come Friday, triple-X-rated programming will be available on cable for the first time in a major media market: Southern California. “People want it, so we are trying to provide it,” Adelphia spokeswoman Erica Stull said. “The more Xs, the more popular.” WashPost: He…

This guy is pretty awesome. Mooney, a 40-year-old community outreach and public affairs officer at BrooklynÕs ASA Institute of Business and Computer Technology, intends to singlehandedly row across the AtlanticÑfrom GorŽe (an island town that is part of the West African country of Senegal) to Bahia, Brazil, and then up through the Caribbean and along the U.S. East Coast to his home in New York. The 8,000-mile GorŽe ChallengeÑduring which Mooney will make short stops to deliver HIV awareness and…

Ed: The following is an assignment for my book writing class that is due tomorrow on the theme of “A Matter of Principle”. I just finished it. We’re supposed to practice writing narrative non-fiction. Comments always welcome. Heidi Hadsell is my maternal aunt. John Hadsell is my maternal grandfather. Farivar, Cyrus January 30, 2005 Prof. Freedman “A Matter of Principle” WC: 1264 Most days, Heidi would walk to school. Her house sat up on a hill, along the edge of…

Ok, just did my taxes online. I still think it’s cool that I’ve never paid a single bill or done my taxes using paper forms. I’ve paid electric bills, DSL bills, credit card bills, and my taxes all online. Now if only I could pay my rent electronically. Uncle Sam owes me : $5 I owe the Governator: $12 Net: – $7

Best story on Iraqi elections I’ve seen so far. LA Times: Since U.S. polling places in five states were announced this month, these fervent fans of democracy have become Seattle’s hometown heroes. More than 100 already have driven to Irvine once to register for Iraq’s out-of-country voting. By the time they return to Seattle, they will have logged nearly 4,800 miles in the pursuit of democracy. The co-founder of Seattle’s Iraqi Community Center, Qatrani spent days trying to persuade election…

The Wanderlust Geek is back! Check the new podcast at : www.wanderlustgeek.com

My Wired article can be read here.

Photo by: Sarmad Ali January 4, 2005 Cyrus on the Capitol Corridor, somewhere between Emeryville, Calif. and Sacramento, Calif., working on a piece for The New York Times.