Here’s a news story and a half:
“A man who was shot by police after kidnapping two children and then shipped off to be cremated was found to be alive by funeral workers who heard him groan. Zhang Kailin, 36, was shot at point-blank range and fell to the ground from a five-storey window ledge after a tense two-hour standoff at a school in central Hebei province, the Beijing Daily Messenger said. He had taken two children hostage and demanded ransom before police moved in.”
Chinese Cop Shoots Kidnapper
You don’t get pictures like this is the media over hear very often. It makes you wonder to what extent what we see on the news is censored and whether or not this is a good thing always. The translation of the original Chinese article is really something else - they obviously have no qualms about it, and here I was thinking that China was still a communist country! For more info on the story see here.
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My aunt & uncle from London came to stay this weekend, we went out for a couple of short walks in nearby countryside and I managed to snap a couple of nice pictures of the local wildlife. Talking of local wildlife, I got bitten to death practically last night by a very bothersome mosquito which took a particular liking to my neck - I just hope it appreciated the fine vintage it was drinking!
When taking photos like this the most tricky part is being able to do so quick enough before the stupid things fly off. I think I rushed things a bit so a lot turned out to be blurred or out of focus but the beauty of being digital means there was no wastage 
We were very lucky with the weather, successfully managing to dodge a couple of torrential downpours which seem to have typified the climate of late.
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SecurityFocus is running an intriguing story today about possibly the first recorded instance of ‘cyber-terrorism’. Apparently Romanian cyber extortionists cracked the computer network at the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station twice last year, stealing valuable data and even allegedly holding them to ransom by threatening to shutdown their life support system! The FBI is being rather coy about the whole affair but independent investigations have revealed worrying picture of lax security - it all sounds like something out of the latest spy movie!
“The hacked computer controlled the life support systems for the South Pole Station that housed 50 scientists wintering over during the South Pole’s most dangerous season.” - Justice Department report.
In other news…
Seiko Epson Corp. (Japan) has unveiled a Bluetooth controlled micro-flyer robot which could be used in surveillance operations or for getting into tiny spaces during disaster rescue situations. It claims it has the smallest and lightest gyro-sensor in the world and also boasts a 32-bit microcontroller, a super-thin motor and even a low-quality digital camera! Currently it can fly for just three minutes at a time and controlling its flight is somewhat of a dark art but the company hopes to have a commercial model on the market some time in the next two or three years. You can see a video of it flying here.
I was unpacking a new Dell pc at work the other day and for some reason the warning logos made me chuckle:
Fig 1. Avoid strangling yourself.
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Although I’m not a big reader generally I do usually try to keep one book on the go at any given time. At the moment I’m reading ‘1984‘ by George Orwell, a book that I’ve been meaning to read for a long time, not only because of its classic status and timeless quality but also because it’s applicability to the current climate where questions of freedom are rife. The book, written in 1948, is set in the (then) future of 1984 when a large chunk of the world (know as Oceania) is ruled by a dictatorship headed up by an illusive ‘Big Brother’ (need I say any more!). To go into any more detail than this would mean a rather lengthy discussion which I don’t have time for right now but you can find some excellent synopses and articles on the web. Needless to say I’d definitely recommend it. If you like it then you might also like Brave New World by Aldous Huxley which has a similar feel and shares some of the same themes.
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Thought I might share this really rather wonderful card I received today - the picture on it of a group of nuns lighting up is priceless - definitely a forbidden sin if you ask me!
Published by Icon.
I’ve rather neglected my film reviews of late so heres a few short ones of stuff I’ve seen recently, in chronological order:
I, Robot - 7/10
I, Robot is a film that could have been so much better. It has what could be an excellent story line but suffers from poor direction and mediocre acting. Although the CG is excellent and the action scenes are pretty cool, as you would expect, it can’t make up for the fact that in the end you can’t take Will Smith seriously even though he tries his best! The main idea behind the film is that the 3 laws which robots must obey to provide a perfect “circle of protection” are flawed - I’m sure you can pretty much figure out the rest. Incredibly for once this is not an idea Hollywood has just magicked up but one which is actually grounded in reality and much research, but as you can imagine they don’t go into much detail! Overall it’s a fun film but I wouldn’t worry if you miss it!
Fahrenheit 9/11 - 9/10
There is little that I can say that can do this film/documentary justice - It’s powerful, moving and incredibly scary. Although much of the hype surrounding it has now passed you can’t help but wonder how Bush and his cronies have got away with so much that seems corrupt and downright evil. Michael Moore may be heavily biased and his reputation questionable, but his work is undeniable. This is one you have GOT to see for yourself, in the end its only your own opinion which counts.
Koma (Hong Kong) - 6/10
Koma is another film from Hong Kong which at first glance looks great. It’s got Angelica Lee in it from ‘The Eye‘ who, again, plays the main role and a host of other well known faces. The story revolves around a maniac who kidnaps people and steals their kidneys to be sold on the black market. The opening scene starts with such an incident and as you can imagine it’s a bit gruesome! Unfortunately from there on in I found it a bit boring and was tempted to turn it off on more than one occasion - the cinematography was very average and nothing really special. This combined with a pretty slow pace doesn’t make for great cinema and it’s not something I’m likely to watch again. This said it does redeem itself slightly with a couple of great plot twists.
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