David, Ray, Viga, Thaed and newcomer Breukelen Bell give you all they've got this evening.

Here are the topics:

--What dead stars do you miss and why?
--If you had a machine that would allow you to observe the daily lives of an alien race significantly more advanced than humans, what would you be most curious about in terms of problems they solved and interests that they pursue?
--Free speech for high school students?  Can kids express themselves out of school without repercussions?  Should they be able to?
--The Large Hadron Collider goes online 9/10
http://www.newscientist.com/channel/fundamentals/large-hadron-collider/dn14606
What do scientists hope to discover?  Why is this important?  Is there any danger.
--Should you go with your gut feeling?
http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn14615-why-you-should-go-with-your-gut-feeling.html?DCMP=ILC-hmts&nsref=news9_head_dn14615
--The world is now a happier place.  Agree or disagree?
http://www.newscientist.com/channel/being-human/mg19926714.100-why-the-world-is-a-happier-place.html?DCMP=ILC-arttsrhcol&nsref=specrt11_head_Happy%20planet

Sites where you can find more information about Viga and Thaed:

http://vigatheotagal.blogspot.com/
http://www.mentalinterface.net

Subscribe via iTunes.

Follow Thaed on Twitter
Email Thaed at thaed@cox.net

David and newcomer Alex and Thaed are the hosts tonight.

Here are the topics:

--A scientist let the fire department in to put out an air conditioner
and lost his home chem lab.
http://www.telegram.com/article/20080809/NEWS/808090323/1008/
Should this have had a different outcome?  Why or why not?
--A 24 hour curfew in the United States?
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080813/ap_on_re_us/arkansas_town_curfew
The ACLU has threatened to sue.  Does it matter?  Is this an effective
way to deal with crime and poverty?  If not, what should have
happened?
--According to this article, humans are biased toward the beautiful:
http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg19926694.600-humans-are-biased-towards-the-beautiful.html?DCMP=ILC-hmts&nsref=news6_head_mg19926694.600
Is this dampened by the internet where in theory, no one knows if
you're a dog?  Does beauty work its way into everything anyway?
Should something be done about it?
--New Media Expo, SXSW, podcamps, barcamps, PAX do all of these
conventions have any value?  Is social media in general overblown?
Who is making money?
--Blogger lawsuits.  What should bloggers be sensitive to in order to
avoid getting sued?

Sites where you can find more information about Thaed:

http://www.mentalinterface.net

Subscribe via iTunes.

Follow Thaed on Twitter
Email Thaed at thaed@cox.net

No show this weekend.  FNPL will return soon.

Tonight's show features Scott, Rym, Viga & Thaed.  Here are the topics:

1. Which is worse:  jealousy or greed?
2. Does being in control add happiness to your life?  There were some
nursing home studies involving patients who were able to care for a
plant and others who could control visits from interns doing the study
that indicated that having control is essential to happiness (and well
being)  So we should aspire to control and we should also give people
the power to control?
3. Now that I bought a Kindle, version 2 has been announced for the fall.
How about it?  Are you going to buy one?  Why or why not.
4. What are the top 5 things that every human being should do before he
or she dies?
5. (Rerun from Episode 13)  If you could meet any three celebrities
alive today, who would they be? What would you say to them? How would you like to meet? Over dinner? At an event? In your living room?

Sites where you can find more information about Scott, Rym, Viga and Thaed:

http://www.frontrowcrew.com
http://vigatheotagal.blogspot.com/
http://www.mentalinterface.net

Subscribe via iTunes.

Follow Thaed on Twitter
Email Thaed at thaed@cox.net

Lisa Bettany (www.mostlylisa.com) is our special guest!  Ray, Viga and Thaed are the regulars in the lineup.  Here are the topics:

--Esperanto related comments from the last show.

Does having children make you happy?  Not all of us have kids yet, but
this article (as found by Scott Rubin) seems pretty bleak.  What do
you think?

--According to this article, new software can quantify how many people
are at a given place by identifying the number of cell phones present
at a location by tying the information to GPS data.  Thus, if a person
wants to know where the crowd is on a given night, all he or she would
have to do is check online.  Is this good or bad?  What other things
could this technology be used for?

--Video editing.  What is the best software for editing video for
YouTube and home use?  Which hardware is best for editing videos?  Mac or PC  (yes, I want to go there).

--While I think this blogger might not have been serious, what do you
think about this concept of a Transhuman Olympics?  So long as
everyone knows what's going on, would people watch?  Is this
desirable?  Would it help science?

--Here's an article about scientists who were killed or seriously
injured in the line of duty.  Beyond the risks that everyone must face every day by virtue of getting out of bed, would you risk  terrible injury or death for your job?

--You have $5000.00 to spend.  You can't save it, you must spend it.
What do you buy?

--What are you reading this summer?  Plus, Ray creates an image in our minds.

Sites where you can find more information about Viga and Thaed:

http://vigatheotagal.blogspot.com/
http://www.mentalinterface.net

Subscribe via iTunes.

Follow Thaed on Twitter
Email Thaed at thaed@cox.net

Grammar Girl a.k.a Mignon Fogarty is our special guest!  Our regulars this show are Ray (who joins us midway) Scott, Rym and Thaed.  Check out Ms. Fogarty's new book: Grammar Girl's Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing.

Here are the topics:

--Nature v. Nurture objectively speaking. What dictates human behavior more?

--Klingon, Leet Speak, Nerdish and Esperanto. If we can agree what constitutes a language, are these languages? Should people bother trying to create artificial human languages? Is the goal of a universal lingua franca a meaningful goal? Why or why not?

--Shakespeare v. Marlowe v. everyone else.  Do you think Shakespeare was a real person? Do you think he stole from other playwrights? Which of the plays is your favorite and why?

--Oak Trees that grow as fast as bamboo; corn cobs full of gasoline. Think of at least two things that could be genetically engineered to make the world better if ethics were no obstacle.

Sites where you can find more information about Scott, Rym and Thaed:

http://www.frontrowcrew.com
http://www.mentalinterface.net

Subscribe via iTunes.

Email Thaed at thaed@cox.net
Follow Thaed on Twitter.

Tonight's panelists are Scott, Rym, Howard the Venture Capitalist and, of course, Thaed.  Here are the topics:

--What is the nature of sociometry?  How much does attractiveness play a role?  How does this translate to the internet?

--Dependency on oil will stop when:
a) we get a new president
b) the price of gasoline gets high enough
c) inevitably over time
d) it doesn't matter because an asteroid will hit the earth and kill us all.
e) other.

--In a world where information wants to be free, why are lawyers so expensive?

--With cable tv, FM and satellite radio, IP TV, podcasts and god knows what else fragmenting media, what does this media fragmentation mean for content providers and for media companies themselves?

--What will the effect of the pull back in the credit markets be on the private equity world?  Does it matter to consumers?

Sites where you can find more information about Scott, Rym and Thaed:

http://www.frontrowcrew.com
http://www.mentalinterface.net

Subscribe via iTunes.

Email Thaed at thaed@cox.net
Follow Thaed on Twitter.

Scott Johnson from Extra Life Radio and The Instance is our special guest tonight.  Our regular hosts are David, Viga and Thaed.  Here are the topics:

--Take a look at at this New Yorker article
Are the distinctions made between invention and creation valid?
--In Monday's WSJ, there is an article entitled: "The Digital Future of Books." With the advent of the Kindle, and really even the web itself, how many years does print media have before it disappears entirely. What other issues come into play here such as can people even tolerate longer reading nowadays?
--What web comics do you you read? How difficult is it today for an artist to create a successful web comic?
--There were some changes suggested recently concerning orphan copyright procedure. If you could could change the copyright and patent system in the U.S., what would you do to it?
--Given higher gas prices, isn't it time to do less traveling and more telecommuting? How much more can be done with telecommuting? Will more employers support it now? How high does gas have to go before more people see the value in virtual interaction? Are gas prices even a factor at all?
--Let's comment on this article on 5 things humans no longer need.
What are some other things that humans no longer need?
--Ask the Economist


Sites where you can find more information about Viga and Thaed:

http://vigatheotagal.blogspot.com/
http://www.mentalinterface.net

Subscribe via iTunes.

Follow Thaed on Twitter
Email Thaed at thaed@cox.net

Kirsten Sanford, a.k.a. Dr. Kiki is our special guest!  Our regular hosts tonight are David, Ray, Scott, Rym, Howard and Thaed.

Here are the topics:
1. Using multiple internet identities.  Is there a way to safely merge them
if you have a job where they care about what you do online?
2. What do you think about this article on The Great Filter Theory?
http://www.technologyreview.com/Infotech/20569/page1/
3. What is the most efficient way for a human being to absorb information: Video, audio or reading?
4. The Twitter revolution.  Penny Arcade covered it so it must be over,
right?  Are all the tweets just mayflies enjoying their one day or this an
enduring social phenomena?
5. What the hell happened to Ben Stein anyway?
6. How do you pass the time on airplanes?
7. Recently a guy in Pakistan used hypnosis instead of anethetic for surgery on his hand.  Is this fake?  Is hypnosis real?
8. Software Mnemonics.  What do you think about Evernote, Jott and Remember the Milk?

Sites where you can find more information about Scott, Rym and Thaed:

http://www.frontrowcrew.com
http://www.mentalinterface.net

Subscribe via iTunes.

Email Thaed at thaed@cox.net

We've been on hiatus but now we're back.  This episode was actually recorded a while ago.  Next week we hope to have a very special new show with an exciting guest (or guests).

This lost episode features David, Kyle, Hungry Joe, Neito and Thaed.

Here are the topics:

--Do we need libraries anymore?
--Should the cities surrounding the Great Lakes sell the water to other cities?  (7:10)
--Is Police Brutality increasing in the U.S.? (11:30)
--Is college a waste of time and money?  (22:30)
--Is Canada the land of pot smoking music pirates?!  (34:00)
--What technology in the future will have as much impact as computers?  (45:50)
--Ask the Economist  (54:45)


Subscribe via iTunes.

Email Thaed at thaed@cox.net