76: Slicing up a Menger Sponge

Episode 76 of the MetaFilter podcast was recorded earlier today, with Jessamyn, Josh, and me going on for about an hour and fifteen minutes, recapping the best things from December on the sites.

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Helpful Links

Podcast Feed
MeFi Podcast on iTunes
Direct mp3 download

MeFi Music
Brand new ukulelelele (backstory)

Nice MeFi Music Talk thread on the best forums for specific information on techniques, equipment, etc.

MeFi Projects
Tipster - what you should tip wherever you are

Spotmaps color averages for popular movies plotted per minute

Beyond Flavortown movie about the big MetaFilter meetup at Guy Fieri's place

For Great Justice of the Peace blog - Jessamyn's blog on becoming a justice of the peace

Archie's Recipes - a scanned grandpa's handwritten book

Light Amplification a blog of retro future images from the 1980s (also: Tenth Grade tech trends)

MetaFilter posts
MetaFilter best post contest results threads (winners for weeks 1, 2, 3, & 4)

Cabel's story of the Portland Basement

y2karl's Soul Train round-up of music videos

Nimona, an online comic

Replace all movie titles containing the word "heart" with "butt"

Little Piece of Heaven people posting photos of their bookshelves (photo of one arranged by color, data behind "My Ideal Bookshelf")

Pain don't hurt: the ultimate post about Roadhouse

Zelda II: the unsung sequel features the great story of beating Zelda II on one life

Cats!

What happens when you slice a Menger Sponge? (a 45 degree cut visualization)

Key & Peele best bits (East/West bowl skit)

An Amiga emulator in a browser

The Essential Guide to Dim Sum (cortex's flowchart)

Ask MetaFilter
Museums on the edge of crazy and brilliant features lots of oddball museums

What one book could give me a new useful superpower?

Give me non-fiction suggestions for good books (the lousy book Jessamyn hated)

What are some good TV Shows that overtook your life?

Help us get our food budget under control, what are some good recipes instead of eating out too much?

Bring me up to speed on current hip-hop, what are some good things I might have missed?

If you went from low self-esteem to high, how'd you do it?

How can I help my daughter feel good with her height?

MetaTalk Posts
MeFight Club raises money for charity and ends up at $5,500

A MeFi user was stuck in an elevator, seeking help, sort of got people to try and help but was ok in the end

BitterOldPunk loves you all

Lots of data graphs and charts about MetaFilter data

Chrysostom links the lyrics of "We Didn't Start The Fire" with dozens of old MetaFilter posts on those subjects

MeFi Jobs
Build a treehouse near Washington DC!

posted by mathowie to MeFi Podcast at 5:52 PM (59 comments total)

Just in time for the weekend!
posted by arcticseal at 6:24 PM on January 3

I was a big fan of the way you did the December contest, I just didn't have the time or attentional bandwidth in December to play along. I'd encourage you to try it again the same way -- it's just a new habit for people, since mods have been judges in the past, and it's a busy time, so I'd say even if the participation sorta seemed to underwhelm you, it was actually pretty good as a place to start. Certainly creative and fun.
posted by Miko at 8:18 PM on January 3 [1 favorite]

Regarding YouTube, there is an index for videos that have been linked in MeFi posts. However, it only lists the first vid in any post.
posted by zarq at 8:35 PM on January 3

Arcticseal also deserves massive amounts of credit for secret quonsar administration awesomeness!

(also: a shoutout in the podcast! whoa!)
posted by julen at 9:36 PM on January 3 [1 favorite]

The real important event of the Guy Fieri meetup was that The Whelk sent me a crown via traveling emissary BevosAngryGhost.
posted by shakespeherian at 9:37 PM on January 3 [1 favorite]

The transcript is open! Go nuts!
posted by Pronoiac at 10:26 PM on January 3 [1 favorite]

Who has six minutes to learn stuff? says the person in an hour and a half podcast...
posted by MartinWisse at 1:22 AM on January 4 [1 favorite]

Man, you guys sure fuckin' swear a fuckin' lot some fuckin' times.
posted by y2karl at 4:48 AM on January 4

(also: a fuckin' shoutout in the fuckin' podcast! shit! whoa!)
posted by y2karl at 5:42 AM on January 4

Yeah I think we'll be able to tweak the MeFite's Choice contest so it's smoother next time and distributes the work in a way that is clearer. I was really happy with how many people stepped up to offer gifts and/or just made great posts.

Yes, extra shoutouts to arcticseal: thank you!

six minutes to learn stuff?

It's sort of a joke since I've spent last year learning or trying to learn all of the European capitals as well as how to play the ukulele, but the internet's tendency to make me sit through a video instead of just offering me a FAQ to read continues to dismay me.

The Whelk sent me a crown

That should be your new profile photo for everything!
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 7:13 AM on January 4 [2 favorites]

So let it be written; so let it be done.
posted by shakespeherian at 7:25 AM on January 4 [2 favorites]

Thanks for busting that out on your own. It took all of my restraint not to drop a similar picture in yesterday's tiara thread.
posted by MCMikeNamara at 7:27 AM on January 4

I blame SpiffyRob.
posted by shakespeherian at 7:36 AM on January 4

You may call me Kingmaker.
posted by The Whelk at 8:42 AM on January 4

It definitely has a better ring than "Crown Buyer," or the wordier "Crown Buyer and Sender-Awayer," which might include a made up word.
posted by filthy light thief at 9:20 AM on January 4

I didn't buy that crown, I just had that crown, like one does.
posted by The Whelk at 9:26 AM on January 4 [1 favorite]

Your crowning achievement.
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 9:37 AM on January 4

Man, you guys sure fuckin' swear a fuckin' lot some fuckin' times.

I feel like I've been in an extra-sweary place the last month or two. REASON FOR THE SEASON.
posted by cortex (staff) at 10:00 AM on January 4

Sadly, while it's not spelled "rooftop"... it is pronounced that way. :'(
posted by rouftop at 10:07 AM on January 4

The one time my wife listened to a bit of the podcast (when our son's Death Star costume was mentioned) she commented on the amount of swearing. I think you guys need a podcast swear jar or something.

Thanks for featuring the uke and uke song. It's true that it didn't cost anything to build, though the bone for the nut and saddle was purchased (using money) a few years ago but anything that sits in my basement for that long before being used I count as free. I don't remember what it cost but it wasn't much. The broken guitar (a Kramer electric, just like EVH played!) provided the tuners. A lot of pot was smoked and a lot of teenage headbanging was done in the vicinity of those tuners. Not much actual music was played on them though. Until now.
posted by bondcliff at 10:26 AM on January 4 [1 favorite]

Man, you guys sure fuckin' swear a fuckin' lot some fuckin' times.

Yeah, it is sweary. I always have to play it really low at work because of that. I've hung out with jessamyn and cortex and don't feel like either of you are especially sweary in real life (maybe a "normal" amount, compared with my cohort); I can't speak to Matt's IRL swearing habits, but it seems like the tendency is either something about MeFi occupational culture, or just the specifics of an informal-podcast scenario, that seems to really bring it out.

It could also be that the rest of my world is just getting less and less sweary so it stands out more.
posted by Miko at 10:29 AM on January 4

I think the correct English pronunciation of Chrysostom is roughly "kri-ZOSS-tum." I mentally pronounce it the way cortex did, though, more like "KRI-sos-tom."
posted by Chrysostom at 10:47 AM on January 4

I also blame SpiffyRob.
posted by SpiffyRob at 10:49 AM on January 4

I think you should swear more. It's my favorite part of the podcasts.
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 10:53 AM on January 4

The Whelk sent me a crown.
posted by octobersurprise at 11:49 AM on January 4 [2 favorites]

That is exactly what happened.
posted by shakespeherian at 12:13 PM on January 4

Never stop swearing. I have been in bed for days with a cold and fever, and (as is my possibly creepy wont) I leave you guys podcasts on as company. Impeccable timing in other words!
posted by Iteki at 1:02 PM on January 4 [1 favorite]

I have been trying to dial down the swearing generally just because when it creeps into my real life accidentally it can be a problem. Maybe we should count all the swears in the already-transcribed podcasts (and this one once it's done) and make a MeFi donation to Mo Nickels' Wayword radio? A quarter a swear? cortex/mathowie, you in?
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 1:24 PM on January 4 [2 favorites]

Teacher says, everytime you say a sweary thing, IRFH's heart takes wing!
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 1:27 PM on January 4

I got a shout out from the mods! *swoons*

Signing on as a Quonsmas admin has been tremendous fun; I love how everyone is so enthusiastic about it! Definitely signing on for next year if julen and phunniemee will have me back.
posted by arcticseal at 3:34 PM on January 4

Oh man, I'm in but it'd be faster for me to just buy Mo a car.
posted by cortex (staff) at 3:43 PM on January 4 [1 favorite]

THIS IS WHY WE CAN'T HAVE NICE FUCKING THINGS!!!
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 3:45 PM on January 4

Yank Sing is AMAZING, FYI. The soup dumplings are completely sublime.
posted by poe at 4:35 PM on January 4

Have the mefites who've listened to the podcast already done it via the direct mp3 download? I don't see it up on iTunes yet. Is it stuck in an Apple metadata queue somewhere, or am I technologically challenged? (I usually notice the new podcast on my phone before I notice the Metatalk/Podcast thread, but maybe this is a normal time lag and it will show up tomorrow?)
posted by oh yeah! at 5:13 PM on January 4

Sorry about that, there was a problem publishing the post on my podcast service at first, and apparently it never updated the feed, so iTunes couldn't see the newest episode.

You should be able to see it in the next couple hours.
posted by mathowie (staff) at 6:27 PM on January 4

You should be able to see it in the next couple hours.

See it ? I could only hear it. Come on, I want to see the hot tub.
posted by y2karl at 9:01 PM on January 4

Yank Sing has a side door around the corner with a sign (think it says Yank Sing Too) and they serve mix 'n match lunch boxes to go for cheaper and just as tasty. I used to go there for lunch, oh, 3-4 times per week because I'm a glutton and can't stop I love it so much.
posted by iamkimiam at 5:35 AM on January 5

Oh, come on, R isn't that hard.
posted by madcaptenor at 9:55 AM on January 5

If someone can rig up a little script that will give me my swear count from the transcribed podcasts, I will make this donation (not EVERYONE'S swear count, just mine)
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 2:42 PM on January 7

Oh, hey, I completely forgot there's a separate subsite for this. I've just been hanging out in MeTa tapping my fingers on the bar and checking my watch.
posted by griphus at 3:05 PM on January 7

(also: a fuckin' shoutout in the fuckin' podcast! balls! shit! whoa! balls, again!)
posted by griphus at 3:09 PM on January 7

Cortex, it's okay to like Cats and Pink Floyd.
posted by paleyellowwithorange at 4:21 PM on January 7 [1 favorite]

No, it isn't.
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 4:56 PM on January 7

jessamyn, I can do that, I think. The transcripts are kept in text files on the server, which are greppable and stuff. But, we usually don't label the speakers after the 30-second boundaries. Can I just count the parts that come before those cutoffs?
posted by Pronoiac at 1:43 PM on January 8

Sure? I think so? Yes!
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 5:48 PM on January 8

Yeah, just a word-count on various f-bombs and other fancy curses would be good. I honestly don't even realize I'm swearing when we record them.
posted by mathowie (staff) at 10:21 PM on January 8

I have the swear count.

• jessamyn 118
• mathowie 115
• cortex 183
• unattributed 102

Some notes:

• My keywords were fuck, shit, damn, dammit, dick, bastard, and asshole.
• This is by linecount instead of by swearwords.

posted by Pronoiac at 5:00 PM on January 9 [1 favorite]

Those are per minute rates, though, right?
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 5:13 PM on January 9

Thank you! Do people really count damn as a swear? I have some learnin' to do.

I am rounding my total to $30 and have sent Mo Nickels' show some money.
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 5:17 PM on January 9 [1 favorite]

heh. I can't wait for the next podcast to see who catches hell for swearing first.
posted by bondcliff at 5:21 PM on January 9 [1 favorite]

Holy shit. I can't afford my mouth.
posted by cortex (staff) at 5:41 PM on January 9 [1 favorite]

This is by linecount instead of by swearwords.

Unfortunately, I can not now write the three word exclamation beginning Jesus H which I could write were I home.
posted by y2karl at 6:41 PM on January 9

My thoughts on swear words: "Goddamn" counts, though "dick" and "damn" might not. "Screw" might be okay, depending on the sense. "Jesus" is just all right with me, but is vulgar to some, along with "Christ."

If that last paragraph were in the transcript, the quick-and-dirty method I used would count all of those as one.

And I'm okay with the swearing. It fits the conversational tone, I think, and I don't listen to podcasts around other people anyway.

Oh yeah: If you want me to change the search criteria, let me know.
posted by Pronoiac at 7:27 PM on January 9

I will donate $50 to a charity of the mod's choosing if they will spend 60 seconds of the next podcast swearing continuously without repeating any terms. Has to be at least two mods. They can use the same term as part of different compounds, and they can each use the same term once, but otherwise, no duplicates. It is also okay if not all of the terms are flat out offensive, so long as they combine in a creative cascade of insult or vulgarity.

Why am I making such an offer? Because that's just the kind of asshole I am.
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 8:31 PM on January 9 [1 favorite]

Am I allowed to work off a script? Am I allowed to just play excerpts from a previous performance?
posted by cortex (staff) at 10:43 PM on January 9

Script, absolutely. That would encourage creativity. The previous recording is appreciated, but doesn't count.
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 10:51 PM on January 9

I think if we do this right and use only short swear words, we can get $50 from IRFH and only have to pay Mo Nickels like a buck!
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 7:25 AM on January 10

Am I allowed to work off a script ?

Only if it rhymes with appropriate musical accompaniment as though it were a cut from a Johnny Guitar Watson album in his funk period.
posted by y2karl at 9:09 AM on January 10

The transcript is finally complete!

Also I'm pretty sure I've typed at least an order of magnitude more swear words for these transcripts than in the rest of my life, not that I particularly mind it! I look forward to the results of IRFH's challenge next month, as long as the mods don't start debating the pronunciations of swear words in foreign languages culminating in Xhosan clicks.

although actually, that would be awesome enough to be worth the transcription nightmare, so go ahead!
posted by beryllium at 6:28 PM on January 10 [1 favorite]