Do you know how Yahoo! looked like the first time it went online in 1996? How about finding out that a short history of Gmail’s interface? I couldn’t even remember how this website even looked like 3 years ago but it’s also there. Whatever your favorite URL is, even the most trivial like those best weight loss supplement websites, Archives.org (also known as the Internet Archive) literally has them on file.
Imagine millions of websites around the world and their ever-changing designs and content being recorded and saved for future viewing. This also includes texts, audio, moving objects and softwares. That’s really interesting to know that a group of people came together and formed Internet Archive in 1996 to protect all digital information from being annihilated the way libraries in the past were razed to the ground.
Those stunts made by Jake Gyllenhaal in the movie, Prince of Persia, were simply astonishing. Crawling up walls, jumping all over the place and running on rooftops…I have actually wondered if these were all done with wires. But it didn’t look like the actor nor his director faked them. It was as real as the bleep sound of those barcode scanners in the cinema snack counter.
Now, I’ve learned from a friend that this particular style of death-defying fast movement is called “parkour”. Parkour is a French word which means l’art du déplacement or the art of moving. It is a physical discipline of French origin with an objective of getting from one place to another using only the human body and the objects in the environment around you.
David Belle, the 37-year-old French guy who created parkour, was hired by Disney to train Jake for his role as Prince Dastan.
I heard the news yesterday as early as 12 noon. I actually wished I was home eating ice cream in the middle of the day, lounging away the afternoon sitting on those contemporary sofas you see on the catalogue and watching Lee DeWyze break down as Ryan Seacrest announced him as the new American Idol.
For millions who voted for Lee DeWyze, it was a beautiful day.
Personally, I think the paint sales guy deserves his new crown. It has been a slow rise to the top for Lee. And it was indeed an amazing journey for him. In fact, I am at peace whether Lee or Crystal wins. Both are equally talented and hardworking. Both deserve to own a record.
