Test scores, affirmative action, and actual potential, or while I might do very well on standardized tests, I'll never be as smart or as successful as many people who do not.

Mr W. finds a purpose (youtube, short film/commercial) more inside

Infomania: "Chewing up the week's media so we can regurgitate it, half-digested, into your mouth". (via metafilter) Second link has embedded video

Eurovision is coming, let the piss-taking begin. more inside

MIT Sketching: I don't know how useful this really is, but it sure is neat. (YouTube)

On-line Board Gaming: craving a little Carcasonne? Want to play Settlers of Catan, but you don't actually own a table to table-top board game on? Don't worry - everything really is online, including board games. more inside

Deep Thoughts, by Jack Handey. more inside

What Have The Unions Ever Done For Us? [via Sociological Images]

Flight of the Conchords, an HBO sitcom (also playing on BBC4) staring the comedy band of the same name (the fourth fifth most popular folk parody duo in NZ) as struggling musicians in New York City. And for all those of us without HBO (or a tv) - [NB: Most of the proceeding links are YouTube] more inside

I want epaulettes on my liberal uniform!

OMG I'm 13 again! [YouTube] Star Trek Bloopers, in all their dark, grainy glory. Cheesy, sometimes almost impossible to see, but still funny. And definitely much more inside

Curious George: music recommendations by genre: Is there a good site to ask real people for music recommendations, or might I pick the brains of monkeyfilter? I have been wanting to stretch out my listening lately, but I'm disatisfied with many of the usual community-music recommending sites. more inside

C for Cookie [YouTube]

No Béarla Manchán Magan travelled around Ireland speaking only Irish, recently recognised by the EU as an official working language, only to find incomprehension and occasionally hostility. Yu Ming could have told him as much. via metafilter, the last link is a charming short film.

Mortality and epidemiological methodology -- Most of us have heard of the 2004 Lancet study which had estimated mortality in Iraq following the start of the war; this has recently been updated with a new study (Full article in PDF). Following on the criticism and defence of the original study, This American Life dedicated most of a program, What's in a number? 2006 edition to talking about the study and the methodology (including an interview with one of the authors). (via homunculus, Wolof and the Monkeyfilter comment archives) more inside

"In other news: you can expect to see a few pictures leaked if you film your TV show right outside a newspaper office." more inside

Historical Fiction: How do medieval-themed restaurants get it [so] wrong? via Steve.

Guinevere Project cancelled - I don't know why, but something has happened to the British Rocket Group's project to send a probe to Mars.

Everyday. (youtube-video with sound) more inside

"We’re still open to the idea of a letter [to the editor], .... but we will not publish a letter that implies any sort of misbehavior by [our reporter] Ms. Flanagan." After the New Yorker published an article on P.K. Travers (the author of Mary Poppins), Victoria Lawson wrote to them pointing out how their reporter had relied heavily on her biography of Travers (and on documentaries based on that biography), and yet made almost no acknowledgement of that fact within her article. more inside