I appreciate seeing actual footage of how to respond to a charging bear, Up to this point I've only heard various advice ranging from screaming/looking big to rolling into a ball. I seem to remember hearing that different types of bears require different responses, but at least a video is better than just relying on someone's word when dealing with a life and death situation.

For what it's worth ChaosEngine, KnivesOut's comments are pretty frustrating to read. One bad assumption after another, seeing things that are not there.

Anyhow, I also want to know if there are any good arguments for having an even male/female ratio in any profession. Is it possible that the best scientific community consists of an unequal distribution of the sexes? If so, wouldn't forcing an equilibrium be detrimental to scientific progress?

There's no question that social pressures and stereotypes are preventing great female minds from entering scientific professions. Professions should be gender neutral. Unfortunately, campaigns towards this end have no chance against what media teaches our youth every day.

Some details TYT failed to mention:

After each TED talk, the live audience rates the speech. This talk received mediocre marks according to the link messenger posted above. Apparently because the point he was making, however valid, was not made well and didn't introduce anything really novel.

Also, only certain TED talks are published. They have always been selective, choosing to publish only the best. This one did not qualify regardless of any politics involved.

EDIT: Also, he hired a PR firm to draw attention to situation, essentially handing the originating source a 'hot' story.

I somewhat agree, although I wouldn't mind a look that is less-than-realistic. The original had some unrealistic elements (explosions would look like skulls and the armor was somewhat cartoony. In fact, the opening video had a comic book style to some parts). However, the original was far darker and scarier than this version. That is what I most want them to adjust. Just look how well lit the scenes are. Maybe it's my poor memory, but I remember a much darker, almost claustrophobic feel.

I'm playing it either way though, it's been too long since I've had a good XCOM experience.

As for the quick-save comment. Well, I seem to remember loading a game would suck pretty bad on a 386, to the point where reloading was a judgement call each time.
>> ^xxovercastxx:

This looks a little more comical than I'd prefer. I loved the Lovecraftian style of TFTD and would have preferred to see more of it here.
Can't be as bad as Apocalypse, though. The Gamespot review nailed that when they said, "You'll feel as if you're waging war on the set of The Muppet Show." 15 years later and that quote is still the first thing I think of when I contemplate X-Com: Apocalypse.

Relevant:

"I truly respect and admire Gaga as an artist..." - From Weird Al's blog, which also describes the mixup when he tried getting Lady Gaga's approval for the parody.

Edit: Rats, I can't link apparently, must be because a probationary thing. The blog post is his 4/20/2011 Lady Gaga Update, for those of you who care.

Obviously the result of his work won't apply in areas outside of this one specific constrained system. However, I find the exercise admirable and worthwhile. The problem-solving techniques that he devised and practiced to achieve his goal may be applied to future, more practical projects. Sort of like working out story problems in math is generally a good thing.

Fun Fact: During the verse, the rhythm of the lyrics follows the Fibonacci sequence (forwards a little, then backwards, repeat). Gives more significance to the "spiral out" part at the end. I read this on Wikipedia a while ago, it cemented this as my favorite Tool song.

1 black
1 and
2 white are
3 all I see
5 in my infancy
8 red and yellow then came to be
5 reaching out to me
3 lets me see

This thing will meet the computing needs of just about all of my relatives. They are average people with average tech knowledge and ability. This is the market that will benefit from the iPad, and will make Apple lots of money.

At first I forgot that Apple is targeting the 'average' market, and almost threw a fit over the lack of a webcam. Then I remembered that the majority of computer users don't actually use webcams. I don't even use a webcam, I was just hoping for as many bells and whistles as possible, without thinking realistically.

The lack of Flash also made me do a doubletake. But after some thought, I realized that Flash is mostly used for three things on the web: video, games, and advertisement. We can scratch the need for advertisement. There are already tons of free games for the iPad. Video is going to be a problem at first, but as HTML5 gains traction it will become a non-issue. I'm not so sure Flash is such a dealbreaker.

No multitasking is a bit of a bummer, but not as bad as many think. On my iPhone, I can listen to music, browse the web, and receive push notifications when I receive an instant message. In a second or two I can go from reading a web page to typing a message to a friend. When I'm done, I can easily get back to my web page. It's by no means multitasking, but it's not terrible.

One overlooked benefit is the security aspect of the iPad. Right now I can think of one "virus" for the iPhone. It only effects jailbroken devices with default root passwords, and is only proof of concept. As it stands right now, the iPad may be one of the safest browsing devices out there. As the resident tech guy, again and again I have helped clean up family computers which were completely trashed due to malware and viruses. I don't see that being a problem with the iPad anytime soon. This gives me piece of mind, helps me rest easier knowing my family isn't at such risk.

Personally, I don't think I'll be getting one because I already have an iPhone and a nice desktop computer. When I go mobile, I'll be getting a nice laptop. However, I can easily see my parents using an iPad. My dad LOVES his iPod Touch, hardly uses his laptop anymore. This will be perfect for the many many people like my parents.

That happened in the courthouse in the city where I grew up, so I found it especially funny. I also found it amusing that most of the cops had similar physiques. But, cmon, they're located right between Chicago and Milwaukee. It's like the Superfans got badges.

P.S. One of my best friends is a cop in Chicago, so it's cool if I kid, right?