Category Archives: links

Amazon Rank

Amazon Rank

amazon rank
Function: verb
Inflected Form(s): amazon ranked

1. To censor and exclude on the basis of adult content in literature (except for Playboy, Penthouse, dogfighting and graphic novels depicting incest orgies).
2. To make changes based on inconsistent applications of standards, logic and common sense.

This is related to a firestorm of internet activity. The problem? Amazon.com decided to de-rank a whole host of GBLT books, and beyond that a whole bunch of erotica books. This de-ranking means these books won’t show up in searches or on best-seller lists.

See the following links for more information:

Smart Bitches, Trashy Books
Unfunny Business
Twitter #AmazonFail

MetaWriter

Open letters and articles:

Landale
Denver Examiner: Online Censorship? Amazon Strips Rankings of Gay and Lesbian Books
Luke Waterfield
On Amazon Failure, Meta-Trolls, and Bantown
Dear Author
The Petition
Church of the Customer
Gawker
AP
I heart digital life (German)
Thickculture
Jezebel

Cooking Links Collection

There are some incredibly good cooks out there and they’ve got information for the rest of us. Me, I’m a fairly good cook, but I have a limited menu. This is how I’ve gone about expanding my abilities.

Squawkfox has two excellent tutorials. One is How to Cook Quinoa the other is How to Soak Dried Beans.

Gluten-Free Girl has an excellent website and I can’t wait for her new cookbook. I don’t have celiac, but I like recipes and she has several fascinating reads: How to Make Gluten Free Gravy – which even has a video, Lemon-Pecan Biscotti, Gluten and Dairy-Free Banana Cream Pie, Ginger-Molassas Cupcakes, Gluten-Free Sugar Cookies, Gluten Free Buttermilk Biscuits, and a complete Gluten-Free Thanksgiving.

There’s a lovely Stuff Grape Leaves recipe from The Dinner Files. Wish I could eat it, but I’m allergic to grapes. (Weird allergy of the week that one.)

And last, but not least, in Honor of Pi Day, Adventures in Ethics and Science has a Violet Custard Pie that just fascinates me.

Princeton hosted a contest to find beautiful photos of science related photos.

In their words:

The resulting assembly of images presents a fascinating and beautiful cross section of the arts and sciences at Princeton. It celebrates the aesthetics of research and the ways in which science and art inform each other.

Go take a look here.

Steampunk Roundup – May

This is just generally cool Steampunk stuff. I find my self fascinated with the concept, while I’m still a hard sci-fier at heart. Well, it’s beautiful at the very least and growing by leaps and bounds. (Probably because more people understand Victorian technology than they do new technology.)

Clockwork Cufflinks (via Boing Boing)

How to make a Steampunk PC (via Boing Boing)

A steam-driven lathe, drill press, and more being auctioned off (via Boing Boing)

Boston Phoenix feature article on Steampunk.

Really cool food stuff

Some of the most realisitic looking chocolate sushi I’ve ever seen.

Punk Halloween cupcakes? Too cool.

How to build your own K-9 out of gingerbread!

Eible googlie-eyes. I see tremendous use for these.

The Battle of Pelennor Fields from LotR in candy!

Pac-Man cupcakes! (Unfortunately I think they use fondant.)

R2D2 as a cake.

Guiness cupcakes. *grins*

1Up mushrooms. (Wonder if they make you grow?)

Waltzing cupcakes (a really cute stop-motion movie).