BY ELIZABETH FIEND LIVING EDITOR Genetic engineering is a biological science that involves modifying plants, animals or any living cell on a genetic level using gene splicing and gene modification. Complex technology allows scientists to isolate DNA from a plant or animal, and also from tinier organisms like bacteria. The DNA is then cut and spliced and either removed from the original source or implanted into another organism. This allows alterations and direct manipulation of hereditary traits of either the original organism, or whichever new host organism into which the DNA has been implanted. OLD SCHOOL Hybridization, the old way […]
CINEMA: Vampire Weekend
SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE (2008, directed by Danny Boyle, 120 minutes, U.K.) TWILIGHT (2008, directed by Catherine Hardwicke, 122 minutes, U.S.) LET THE RIGHT ONE IN (2008, directed by Tomas Alfredson, 114 minutes, Sweden) BY DAN BUSKIRK, FILM CRITIC If the economic meltdown is herding us all into poverty the latest film by flashy Brit showman Danny Boyle assures us the experience will be a life-affirming character builder. In Slumdog Millionaire Dev Patel plays the title character Jamal, a slum-born orphan who sits in the hot seat a single question away from winning the Indian version of “Who Wants To Be A […]
HEAR YE: The Mural And The Mint
Now playing on Phawker Radio! Our record release show for our debut full length, “Private Pockets” (available below) will be this Friday, 11/21 at Johnny Brenda’s (Frankford and Girard). Also on the bill will be the internationally renowned Pig Iron Theatre Company, performing songs from their musicals. They will be followed by Gildon Works, a band with an intense sonic palate and psych tendencies. Accompanying our set will be dance performances by Nichole Canuso, Kate Watson-Wallace, Scott McPheters, Christy Lee and Meg Foley. Video amazingness by Jorge Cousineau. Doors at 8. $10, 21+ CLICK TO DOWNLOAD ALBUM
ARTSY: The Lonesome Death Of Amy Winehouse
ONTD: An artist is displaying in New York a statue in real size of the British singer Amy Winehouse fallen in the ground in a blood puddle, with a shot in the head. In the back, there’s a real size statue of the American writer William S. Burroughs with a rifle in his hand.The installation belongs to the Italian artist Marco Perego and is called “The only good rock star is a dead rock star”. It is on sale for about US$ 100,000 and started to be displayed last week in the Half Gallery, New York. Perego explains that the […]
WAR ON ERROR: Judge Orders Release Of Gitmo 5
GLENN GREENWALD: The five men ordered released today have been imprisoned in a cage by the Bush administration for 7 straight years without being charged with any crimes and without there being any credible evidence that they did anything wrong. If the members of Congress who voted for the Military Commissions Act had their way (see them here and here), or if the four Supreme Court Justice in the Boumediene minority had theirs, the Bush administration would nonetheless have been empowered to keep them encaged indefinitely, for the rest of their lives if desired, without ever having to charge them with any crime or […]
PAINT JOB: Rock Town Hall Gets A Fresh Coat
Hosted by our in-house rock expert Ed King, Rock Town Hall remains the place to take those volatile arguments about the majestic trivia of rock after your girlfriend gives you that disapproving ‘you promised‘ look. The new design makes it roomier than ever, plenty of room for throwing elbows. Come on by, take your shoes off, sit a spell.
NPR 4 THE DEF: Giving Public Radio Edge Since 2006
FRESH AIR Sean Penn stars in Gus Van Sant‘s new biopic Milk — the story of an out gay politician who inspired a community with his courage, and whose 1978 murder made headlines across the country. Screenwriter Dustin Lance Black says he was among those for whom Harvey Milk made a real difference. Born to Mormon parents, he grew up amid the military communities of San Antonio, Texas. He says Milk’s story, when he finally learned about it, helped him summon the courage to come out to his family and friends. “Texas kept me very quiet,” Black told the Bay […]
OPEN LETTER: Don’t Drain Pools, Soak The Rich
Dear Mayor Nutter: It was a pleasure bumping into you on [date redacted] at [my employer’s event, redacted]. I spoke to you briefly as you made your way through the room, and asked you how much it costs to keep a single pool open. You replied that the cost is about $50,000.00: that’s a grand total of $3.1 million dollars for the 62 pools slated to be closed. I explained that I am a grant writer, and that I would do some work with regard to funding. My preliminary research proved disappointing on one hand, and quite fruitful on the […]
Judge Dismisses Cop Beatdown On Graffiti Artist
INQUIRER: A Philadelphia municipal court judge dismissed charges today against two former police officers who were accused of assaulting a graffiti artist. David Vernitsky, 36, lost three teeth and suffered a broken jaw that had to be wired shut for five weeks. Judge Francis Cosgrove issued his decision without comment. At 12:30 a.m. on Aug. 26, 2007, Officers Sheldon Fitzgerald and Howard Hill III saw Vernitsky spray-painting graffiti on a wall near Fourth Street and Wyoming Avenue in Feltonville. When Vernitsky fled, the officers caught him, beat him, and threw him head-first into their patrol car, District Attorney Lynne Abraham […]
PAPERBOY: ‘Infamous Cookie Crumb Duster’ Edition
BY DAVE ALLEN Like time, news waits for no man. Keeping up with the funny papers has always been an all-day job, even in the pre-Internets era. These days, however, it’s a two-man job. That’s right, these days you need someone to do your reading for you, or risk falling hopelessly behind and, as a result, increasing your chances of dying lonely and somewhat bitter. That’s why every week, PAPERBOY does your alt-weekly reading for you. We pore over those time-consuming cover stories and give you the takeaway, suss out the cover art, warn you off the ink-wasters and steer […]
BIN WORRIED: Al Qaeda Calls Obama ‘House Negro’
NEW YORK TIMES: In a propaganda salvo by Al Qaeda aimed at undercutting the enthusiasm of Muslims worldwide about the American election, Osama bin Laden’s top deputy condemned President-elect Barack Obama as a “house Negro” who would continue a campaign against Islam that Al Qaeda’s leaders said was begun by President Bush. Appealing to the “weak and oppressed” around the world, the Qaeda deputy, Ayman al-Zawahri, said in a video released Wednesday that the “new face” of America only masked a “heart full of hate.” For years, the terrorist network sought to fuel anti-Americanism with prolific audio and video recordings […]
GAYDAR: How I Became The Alabama Slammer
BY AARON STELLA Welcome back ya’ll to another bold and beautiful edition GAYDAR! OK, down to business. Last time I told you how my family settled into our Alabama homestead. Now, I was never one for the bucolic pleasantries of rural living. Luckily, I would reside in Birmingham at the Alabama School of Fine Arts (ASFA, which suspiciously sounds like “ass fuck” — appropriately so, as you shall soon see). As I mentioned in the last edition, I had been accepted into ASFA. I applied as a vocalist and a pianist, but because I lack adequate sight-reading skills, they accepted […]
HEAR YE: Still Playing On Phawker Radio!
All this cool shit, STILL playing on Phawker Radio! Why, because we love you!