Separating Fools From Money

The more I visit Las Vegas, the more I realize that it's no such much a city as a collection of very fine mesh sieves designed to separate visitors from their money as quickly and totally as possible. Exhibit A (at left) is a vending machine, just off the casino floor, that vends iPods (in both Touch and Nano flavors) Sony PSP game systems and games, and other electronics and electronics accessories.

I have to say, I like the creativity shown here. I haven't been to many other casinos yet, so I don't know if this is a common fixture, or if it was installed here at when the Hilton was still home to the coolest geek attraction in Vegas.

Zip Line Tourism

There's an interesting article over at BLDBLOG about zip lines - the cable "rides" made popular by outdoors camps such as Outward Bound. The writer describes a growing trend in which zip lines are used as thrill rides (whipping down a ski slope in the off-season at 50mph) as well as a means of getting up-close with the Autumn foliage in rural Pennsylvania.

Things really get interesting, though, when he imagines zip lines as a new way to see cities and monuments typically viewed only at tour-bus-level.

"In the same way that you can take, for instance, Entourage-themed bus tours of Los Angeles, you could take Spiderman-themed zip line tours of New York. "

link: Zip Line Tours Through City Space

Tai Shan, Sooperpanna

Oh my goodness:



"Sooperpanna Dr. Tai Shan Xiang-Tian Ph.D gives a friendly wave while dressed in his astronaut launch and entry suit. "

See the rest of the set here:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/45944933@N00/sets/72157604100340985/