Listen! The FreeSoundProject is an amazing bounty of sound. Stressed out? Spend a moment in an evening forest. Bored? Run for shelter from a thunderstorm. Tired? Meditate to the sound of the awesome Tibetan throat chant. Each sound comes with a cool graph of the waveform. I'd post some more but i have to go answer the phone .

How's Your Boy? (NewsFilter) Virginia Senator-elect Jim Webb recently declined to stand in a receiving line to meet President Bush. But President Bush sought him out. A testy exchange followed. A sign of things to come? more inside

Knowing me, knowing you... After years with only these guys to keep the faith, ABBA is set to open a museum in Stockholm. Australians -- book your flights now! [Flash-type links.][Keep exhibits away from open flame.]

Kofi Annan at Princeton. "Almost everyone in today’s world feels insecure, but not everyone feels insecure about the same thing... Probably the largest number would give priority to economic and social threats, including poverty, environmental degradation and infectious disease. Others might stress inter-State conflict; yet others internal conflict, including civil war. Many people – especially but not only in the developed world –- would now put terrorism at the top of their list... We need common global strategies to deal with all of them... The one area where there is a total lack of any common strategy is the one that may well present the greatest danger of all: the area of nuclear weapons."

AM FM not OK in UK Video may have killed the radio star, but the British communications regulators are considering killing AM and FM Radio. Somebody contact Elvis C. and Thomas D.

Vladimir Kramnik World Chess Champion releases enormous brain fart. (Ah, chess... The Immortal Game. Did you know that [t]here are some cultures, like the Taliban and when Khomeni ruled Iran, where chess in all its nuances is just too much for them, and they literally ban it. I think they understand intuitively that it's a sign of this complex, nuanced way of thinking.

Civil war declared in Iraq By NBC

The Queen Just saw Helen Mirren's superb turn as The Queen in the film of that name. I'm curious: how do those of you in the UK feel about this film, and its portrayal of the royals? more inside

International Breast Milk Project From their site: We are a non-profit organization which supports promotion of nursing, distribution of banked milk, and creation of breast milk banks in Africa. I stumbled upon the International Breast Milk Project this morning, as I was reading Putting Breast Milk to Good Use

Cigarettes: they're always a temptation, they're healthy, but they may cause deformity. more inside

Monkey Festival A banquet has been held for monkeys in the small Thai town of Lopburi. Hindu legend suggests that King Rama gave a monkey king ally fiefdom of the local area Warning: Media Player required....

Rumpology, also known as butt reading, more inside

Coleco 1980

Ancient Chinese sex advice What to do if your "jade stalk" won't rise? The White Girl has the answers. more inside

Curious Annual Gift George It's that time of year again, and I'm feeling particularly lazy and want to try to do all of my shopping for far-away relatives online. Gimme your favorite online shopping links! NOW! more inside

Landings photographed as long exposure shots by Branislav Kropilak. Highways to heaven, anyone? more inside

16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence "Sixteen days may, in the near-manic world of politics and media, seem a long time to expect people’s attention to one topic, but given the scale of the issue in hand, it is a relatively small demand – one we wish to make." [links preserved from original text] more inside

Maud Fontenoy, tough cookie. After rowing across the Atlantic solo, and then the Pacific last year, Maud is now doing something a little more 'sensible', by by putting down the oars and sailing around the world solo, southern hemisphere, against the prevailing winds. She's having regular contact every day with visitors to the Musee de la Marine in Paris, if you feel like having a chat before she rounds the Horn.

Dude

Making a Saint out of Peter - "In reaction to the runaway success of Marcion's Pauline Christianity, scribes in Rome concocted a sacred history to bolster their own claim to singular authority. Their chosen hero figure was Peter, 'first of the apostles.' Why did Rome need to make a saint out of Peter?"