“Eva Is Not Pregnant! I See Her Naked.”

Date 12/06/2008

[Images: Bauer Griffin]

This rumour is beyond boring now but the simple fact is until Eva Longoria is officially pregnant everyone is going speculate that she’s knocked up anyway so she may as well hurry up and do it so she can put us all out of our misery…. continue reading...

Lindsay Doing Some Work, Finally…

Date 12/06/2008

[Images: Bauer Griffin]

Remember how we told you some deluded schmuck had decided to give Lindsay Lohan an acting job? Well just l continue reading...

New Set Photos

I’m holding out on saying where I got these from until I figure out if it it is okay to post them. But enjoy, while you can…

P.S.- Emmy’s hair looks better than I originally thought!

Melissa Joan Hart shares new blog and photo

Melissa Joan Hart updated her MySpace blog on Wednesday evening with a short note. The 32-year-old actress is mom to Mason Walter, 2, and Braydon 'Brady' Hart, 8 weeks, with husband Mark Wilkerson of Course of Nature.

Hey all, I figured it was about time for an update about our crazy lives. We are adjusting nicely to being a family of four, although it is a tough job. It's about to get a lot tougher as Mark leaves on tour this week. I'm not sure I can handle two babies on my own, unlike my sis who is a super-mom!

I am off on a sort of tour as well. First to NY to do press for the potty training campaign for Pull-ups Training Pants and then off to Baton Rouge, LA to shoot a feature film all of June. It's a thriller called 9 Dead that my mother is producing with our company Hartbreak Films. After this film is wrapped, we will be heading off to an unknown destination to shoot a new ABC family movie I am producing about two people who fake a wedding to get the gifts. It's really funny and anyone that liked Holiday In Handcuffs is gonna love this one.

Wish us luck on our travels and say a prayer for Mark that he doesn't die from heartbreak from missing his boys too much!

Source: Melissa Joan Hart; Photos courtesy Melissa for use on The Celebrity Baby Blog, Inc.

Pic of Mason below.

Downpour, Second Avenue Fair

The damned heat is keeping me from shooting. Hot weather is about the only thing that keeps me from getting out. I get lethargic. Plus, my A/C is not great, so I don’t feel like doing much of anything in the house. I guess it’s about 100 degrees in NY, and about 85 in my apartment. I’m going to spring for a new Air Conditioner this year… real soon. Don’t know if the cat just picks up on my mood, or whether he’s hot also, but he’s just been sleeping all day.

If you’ve been following the blog for a while you’ll see that every summer my shooting slows down. It seems to be the only season that I’ve not been able to capture. It’s frustrating because I’ve got a head full of ideas right now, but all I can do is lie around and watch repeats of police dramas. The heats supposed to drop tomorrow night. All I’ve done the last two days is keep a piece of paper by my bed and write down ideas for shots.

I did a bit of research into Feininger and his “Big Bertha” lens which he used with a 4×5 camera. I figured out to get the same compression I’d need about a 1000mm lens. Not something that is going to rest comfortably atop the street walker. He built a platform to raise his camera to do the Lunchtime Fifth Avenue shot. Not real practical for me. And those lenses aren’t cheap - not just to do one or two shots. I’ll stick with wide angles stuff for now which I like better anyway.

* * *

Dave - I noticed your comments about Feininger’s Big Bertha lens. He used a 40″ lens on a 4×5 Graflex body. That’s only 8X (40/5=8), which is only about 178mm on a Canon 40D (22.2 x 8 = 178mm).

* * *

That’s true in terms of framing - but not in terms of telephoto compression. If he used a 40 inch lens then the compression effect is still going to be 1016mm. (Am I wrong!) I’ve been wrong before you know.

Another way of looking at it is that when I put a 20mm lens on the 40D, the crop factor makes the frame smaller than on a full-frame, the DOF qualities of the lens are still a 20mm lens. It’s just that you’re cropping out the edges.

9 June, 2008 (19:47) | black and white photography | 1 comment

Classical Guitar (Subway)

It’s a pleasure to have IS (image stabilization). This is the first time I got to play with it. Handheld at 1/20th of a second; 135mm. Well, I’ve got a pretty full range to have fun with, from my 20mm up to 300mm on the new lens. I ended up with the 70-300mm because I wanted IS but couldn’t afford it on the other lenses. So this isn’t an “L” lens, but it looks pretty sharp to me. You can lock the zoom in place at 70 and 300mm so it doesn’t “slip.” And for a lens that long, it’s pretty light and was sitting atop the contraption without a problem. Funny, how one thing leads to another. The string was something like this: montages, vertical montages, longer lens from high angle, image stabilization to see about using a longer focal length in low light…

12 June, 2008 (17:48) | Subway Performers, black and white photography | No comments

When Galaxies Collide'- 59 New Hubble Images Released

By Loretta Hidalgo Whitesides April 24, 2008 | 10:45:19 AMCategories: Space

To celebrate the 18th anniversary of the launch of Hubble, the Space Telescope Science Institute released 59 images of galaxies colliding. Rather than the staid and immutable image that galaxies have had in textbooks these images paint a remarkable picture of whirling, colliding, flirtatious galaxies that are crashing into each other or cozying up to produce new mega galaxies.

Although only one in a million of the galaxies closest to us are interacting, galaxies much further away (the light we are getting from them is billions of years old) are caught "in the act" more often. This is because there were more galactic collisions in the early universe, so looking farther away (which is also farther into the past) will increase your chances of seeing galaxies collide.

There is also a video that shows what might happen when our galaxy runs into our nearest galactic neighbor, Andromeda and runs through the stages that the the images represent.

The video release shows how of the 59 different images released today, some are galaxies about to collide, some are after their first collision and some are after they have already collided with each other once and are swinging around about to hit a second time. Some are in the same plane, some are at a 90 degree angle to each other. Since there are so many, we are able to piece together a time line of how these collisions (which can take place over a billion years) play out.

The Hubble is scheduled to be serviced by a Space Shuttle mission this August and is expected to keep producing its famous deep space images through 2013 when its replacement the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) is to launch. As wikipedia puts it:

The JWST will be far superior to Hubble for many astronomical research programs, but will only observe in infrared, so it will not replace Hubble's ability to observe in the visible and ultraviolet parts of the spectrum.

You can read more about the planned servicing mission here.

Cross cultural communication

I was walking across the street in Nuuk Greenland with a friend from Brooklyn NY. He was trying to talk to this very drunk guy who reverted to sign language, using one of the two hand signals that cross every cultural divide. The other is the OK sign, but what fun would that have been? We all cracked up including our new friend. It seems that Brooklyn boys and tough as nails Greenlanders have a similar sense of humor.

I should have just stayed in bed...

1. I would have started this post started earlier, but Jaz wanted to be held. You can't hold a big man cat and blog at the same time. I can hold him and play Scrabulous, but he'd rather I use my mouse-hand to scritch his ears.
2. Then I was helping some friends with blogging questions... and I lost track of time...
   
3. But let me tell you how the day started: I woke up late. Really late. Clearly, I'd forgotten to set the alarm last night. Usually when that happens, my coffee pot wakes me up (it's on a timer) - the gurgling and of course the smell of fresh brewed java wafting into the bedroom... but of course last night I forgot to fill it up and set the auto function. D'oh.
   
4. I blame my forgetfulness last night on the double-whammy of having a thunderstorm knock out my satellite dish just as the final four were brought before the Judges' Table on Top Chef, and then it coming back on just as Antonia was kicked to the curb and NOT Lisa!
   
5. Do they have curbs in Puerto Rico? They seem to have a lot of dead pigs. And pigeons in the kitchen of the governor's mansion, but curbs?
   
6. So, I'm rushing around to get down to work. Without coffee. Cue the ominous music...
   
7. I grab Isis and rush downstairs. To a locked door and an empty pocket. I forgot to grab my keys. Expletive deleted!!! And I'm so paranoid about forgetting my keys that I usually double-check BEFORE I lock the apartment door. Double D'oh and a big Damn. Well, I have a way to get in the back door of the store, so I was able to get in and open for business, at least. But Isis got away from me while trying to get into the back door, and she thought it was great fun to run up and down and up and down the stairs, with a cursing sweaty fat man chasing her.
8. I finally cornered her in the basement, snagged her up, and got her into the store. Had a customer right away, and then felt something wet on my hand - when I scooped up Isis, a claw must've dug into my wrist. I had blood dripping. So, now I have a lovely smear of dried blood on my work shirt, t-shirt, and pants.
   
9. Since I was sweaty, the band-aid didn't want to stick, so I turned on the Air Conditioning. Now the cold blast, in combination with everything else, has given me a headache.
   
10. I had to call Bessie to ask her to bring her extra key to my apartment over when she gets off of work. At least she got a good laugh out of it. And at least we had the foresight to swap keys.
11. So, to treat myself, I ordered Pizza Hut for lunch. I really like their new Ultimate Grill Pizza - chicken, steak, and a "green pepper medley" - but I have them delete the ham. The ham isn't grilled anyway, just ham, and it gives a weird flavor to the entire pizza. The only time I ever like ham on a pizza is when it's a ham & pineapple pizza. So now I get the Ultimate Grill Pizza minus the ham. If you like chunky toppings on a pizza, I recommend it.
12. Of course, I'm trying to read e-mail while eating pizza, and trying to keep Jaz from jumping up on the desk. Plop, there goes half the toppings of my hot pizza slice down the front of my shirt. So now along with blood stains at my left wrist-level, I have a big orange grease stain on the front of my shirt. And I'm locked out of the apartment, so I can't change clothes.
13. At least I have something to look forward to this evening. Oh Cody, you'd better not disappoint me after the day I've had!
    

I should have just stayed in bed...

http://morgenfiles.blogspot.com/2008/06/i-should-have-just-stayed-in-bed.html

1. Comedy Plus 2. CrAzY Working Mom 3. Jamie

4. Jannaverse 5. WillThink4Wine 6. maryt/theteach

7. You're next!

Under The Microscope Reveal

One thing about "Future Post" on Blogger -- you need to make sure you look at the right date on the calendar when future-dating your posts! I didn't realize until about ten pm last night that my Wordless Wednesday post had been up all day on Tuesday! D'oh!
The funny thing is, no one even called me on it!

Last week, lots of people had "watermelon" in their guess, for the antibiotic-resistant staph bacteria.
So this week I went searching for "watermelon under microscope" - let me just say that's not a search you want to conduct if your "safe search" is off on Google Images...
Anyway, couldn't find any pics of the flesh of a watermelon under the microscope, but I did find a fascinating post where a photographer took us into a watermelon blossom. Each picture in the series got closer inside, until the petals were under a microscope, and that was one of the images I used.
Here are a few more of this photographer's amazing images:

Photographs by Brian Johnston

Some linkies today for everyone, just for fun,
whether you did Wordless Wednesday this week or not:

Under The Microscope Reveal

http://morgenfiles.blogspot.com/2008/06/under-microscope-reveal.html

1. Captured By Gravity 2. empress bee (of the high sea) 3. maryt/theteach 4. Comedy Plus

5. Jannaverse 6. katherine. 7. Linda 8. mags

9. Claire 10. You're next!

cars

Most Recent

New Ferrari Dino spy photos

2 Apr, 2008 7 Comments

Ferrari fans rejoice, we have the first solid piece of evidence that Ferrari is working on a new Dino. These exclusive pictures show the first real prototype of the new car.

Disguised as it is, it doesn’t yet give away so much but a taste of what will become. What identifies the test car as the Dino is the engine sound, or lack thereof. It clearly doesn’t sound as sharp as a F430 for example.

The original Dino was built between 1968 and 1976, and its name honours the founder Enzo Ferrari’s son, Alfredino “Dino“ Ferrari, who died in 1956 at the age of 24 from a muscular dystrophy.

While the vintage Dinos were powered by a V6 behind the driver, the new one will be powered by a V8 with rumours suggesting power figures of around 400 bhp (300kW).

Ferrari is likely to start with a Coupe, and follow on with a Spider. There is a good chance that Pininfarina will do the design work with input from former Ferrari design boss Frank Stephenson, who now heads Fiat’s Centro Stile operation.

Ferrari insiders are currently estimating that nearly 4000 Dinos could be sold annually once the car gets the green light for production. 4000 extra Ferraris is a lot, nearly doubling Ferraris current global output, however given the car’s target audience, it might just work.

The other rumour is whether or not the car will actually be built by Ferrari. Some are suggesting the new Dino will be built at the Maserati factory in Modena.

The new Ferrari Dino should show its face before the end of the decade.

Photos copyright to Scoopy and used with permission for CarAdvice.com.au only.

Location: Home / Ferrari, spy photos, Car News / ...

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The "air car"

Zerolawn sent in this fun eBay find, the seller writes -

This car was built in 1985. Body is built with fiberglass and urethane composite making it very light. Entire body can be lifted off with 2 people for easy access to frame and all other parts. Powered by 400 cubic inch Chevy small block, driving through a 2 to 1 reduction drive to a six blade, 54" propeller. As the propeller tips approach mach 1, she is extremely loud. Anyone that has heard an airboat knows they are loud. This is no different , even though it is equipped with mufflers. I am putting in a reserve but may sell it even if reserve hasn't been met. I am a little leery on selling because of the sue happy society now adays. Please, only responsible people bid. The Jetstream is no more or less dangerous than an airplane, but that is a six blade prop back there an anything that goes through it will...... well you understand. This is a serious running vehicle and is not a toy! I have had a lot of fun with her. Scares the hell out of chickens and is a blast on a dirt road! Thanks for looking.

Larry's Environmental Issues Blog

New Car Runs on Compressed Air

French engineer Guy Negre has designed a car that runs on compressed air, produces no emissions on short trips, and can be refueled in three minutes flat.

Called the OneCAT (CAT stands for compressed air technology), the new compressed-air powered car is a lightweight five-seat vehicle that is expected to sell for about $5,000 when it hits the market. With the backing of Tata Motors, which just last month introduced the world’s cheapest car—the $2,500 Tata Nano subcompact—Negre plans to start selling the first models in India within a year.

If this sounds like the automotive equivalent of balloon power, you’re not far off. The compressed air is stored in carbon-fiber tanks that are built into the chassis. As the air is released, the pressure drives pistons that power the engine and move the car, and the pistons compress the air into a reservoir so that the process continues.

On short trips, the car runs on nothing but air. For longer trips, liquid fuel increases the vehicle’s range by heating and expanding the compressed air, which increases the pressure on the pistons. The OneCAT is designed to burn any liquid fuel and gets the equivalent of 120 miles per gallon when fuel is needed.

Negre’s vision of sustainable transportation extends beyond the vehicle itself. Although he partnered with Tata Motors in India, for the rest of the world his goal is to save emissions by persuading hundreds of investors to set up local factories to use 80 percent locally sourced materials. And to help keep the OneCAT affordable, he wants the factories to cut out the middle man and sell their cars directly to consumers.
_{Photo by Moteur Developpment International}

Sometimes, You Just Have To Break Your Own Rules

Fourth 'HSM' Won't Feature Its Entire Original Cast

Posted Jun 6th 2008 6:00PM by Nadine Cheung
Filed under: Movies

Sorry, guys. Although a fourth 'High School Musical' movie is in the works, you won't be seeing the same faces in the next installment of the series. "This is probably going to be the last one for a lot of the cast," Zac Efron told MTV. "It's graduation, a lot of us have to move on."

Zac who stars in the upcoming 'Seventeen Again,' says he's enjoyed his time at East High to the fullest. "It's kind of an honor to have ever been a part of it, so I'm thrilled just to have done it -- the fanbase that it created," he adds. "We're making a great third film and I think it's going to be a great legacy to leave for the Wildcats."

'High School Musical 3' will be in theaters later this year.

Zac Efron Photos

David Cook to Perform at Game Three of NBA Finals

Posted Jun 10th 2008 3:00PM by Nadine Cheung
Filed under: Music, Television, Sports

Do you miss your weekly dose of David Cook on 'American Idol'? Well, you can catch the 'AI' winner tonight as he performs the national anthem on TV before Game 3 of the NBA Finals.

David will be singing at the Staples Center in Los Angeles for the third match-up between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Boston Celtics, for which the Celtics lead the series two games to none. The game will be televised on ABC beginning at 8:30pm ET. Set your TiVos and don't snooze on David singing his heart out to America once again!

David Cook Photos

The Look of Jessica Alba

Posted Jun 10th 2008 7:00PM by Nadine Cheung
Filed under: Movies, Style

She's an A-list Hollywood actress, and in addition to her roles in 'The Fantastic Four' and 'The Love Guru,' Jessica Alba can now add star parent to her resume. See how this fashion forward mommy kept her look easy and chic all throughout her pregnancy in this Stylelist photo gallery.

Jessica's Look

The 100 Best Skate Photos on Flickr!