adrian is rad

Here it is, a little late as always… (I should just say that I’ll post it on the 21st of every month instead of mid-month…maybe I’d be on time more often).

You can download the zip file with the following:
1. mp3s of the songs
2. liner notes
3. playlist files (iTunes txt file and an m3u file—I think the m3u file might actually be right this time)

(for the iTunes file, simply import all the songs to your library and then go to file->import and then select the song list. you should now have the 2007march playlist in your iTunes with all the songs in the correct order).

If you want to read the liner notes before downloading the whole thing, they’re here (first time as a google doc). This one includes a strange variety of music. I have a few indie pop/ rock songs (Benoit Pioulard, The One AM Radio, etc.), a couple field recordings of prison work songs and then a few South African songs, given that I spent much of February there.

Adrian’s March 2007 mix tape [zip file]

This’ll be up for a limited time (~1 week) before being moved to a password protected folder.

If you like the artists or songs, I suggest supporting them by buying their music, going to a show, buying merchandise from them or at least telling other people about them.

I should have all my posts written for me like this:

From: Randy X <x@x.com>
To: Dave X <x@x.com>,
Adrian X <a@ab.com>,
Andrew X <x@x.com>
date: Mar 21, 2007 2:35 PM
subject: Three things that if I were Adrian I would post to my blog….

… but I’m not Adrian and I don’t have a blog, so I’m just emailing them. And really, you 3 are the only ones who would care. It also constitutes a majority of the readership of Adrian’s blog.

Funny story about how kids see things (as seen from Daring Fireball)
http://www.newyorker.com/humor/2007/03
/26/070326sh_shouts_rich

Andy, you could do this!
http://www.coudal.com/pinsetter/
(also seen on DF – I’m bored, still at work, waiting for a friend for
coffee, and determined not to do work anymore because its after 5.)

And
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SO5JY1KKYZo
for the impatient, skip to around 1:20.
Again, reminded me of Andy, and his Wiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii.

Thanks, Randy!

There’s an interesting study on genetically modified mosquitos that can resist malaria. Malaria is serious business. Once you get it, you never get rid of it and if you don’t catch it early on, it can be fatal. I chose one of my charities based on the fact that they supported research into malaria in addition to HIV/ AIDs and other prominent medical problems in Africa. I’m worried about malaria every time I go to high risk areas.

I’d always thought that a solution to the malaria problem would come from the human medicine side of things. Of course getting rid of mosquitos helps the problem a lot too, but I’d never even considered that it might be possible to change the mosquitos themselves.

This story seemed cool, but worried me at first. I mean, couldn’t this just be a mongoose-introduced-into-Hawaii sort of situation? That’s the cool part of the findings, though. Feeding on non-malaria-infected hosts, these mosquitos replicated the same as normal mosquitos. On infected hosts, they have lower mortality and were more fertile.

I’d like to see follow up studies, of course, but this seems like one promising path.