Month: November 2014
After the badass landing of the Philae Probe on a comet by the European Space Agency, scientists feel confident enough to start landing on flying space rocks more often. Specifically, NASA has contracted Deep Space Industries and Planetary Resources to begin work on flying missions that would scout asteroids and ultimately mine them as a for-profit business. Some […]
As the December 2nd release date approaches for the new Wu-Tang album, members have revealed in the press that they’re being paid on a hierarchical tier system based on their individual popularity. The recording of A Better Tomorrow was reportedly difficult, with members struggling to come together. Raekwon was often singled out as the biggest hurdle to a […]
Each year, the Independent Budget Office releases a data-driven report on the various ways New York City can save and raise money. In line with the changing attitude on weed, data for 2014 (PDF doc) includes a figure on how much can be raked in from from legalizing the recreational use of cannabis. According to […]
City officials recently announced that the conversion of NYC pay phones into Wi-Fi hotspots will start at the beginning of next year. But before you get excited by the promise of free public wi-fi, there’s a catch: The Verge reports that poorer neighborhoods will be getting the short end of the stick, at least at […]
Puma sneakers — once a hot, kill-for commodity inside the walls of Rikers — are now so bland that they’re the only footwear allowed into the jail from the outside world. Ratter writer Justine Sharrock chronicled the 180-degree shift in attitude, and presents some theories for how it happened. In the ’80s, Pumas were the […]
Vapor-based electronic cigarettes have become a ubiquitous item for people trying to quit, those who want to smoke indoors, and consumers simply hunting for what they believe to be a safer alternative. While the jury is still out on whether or not e-cigs are harmful to the body, they might be harmful to your computer. The […]
Akai Gurley, 28, was shot and killed by a rookie cop while descending the unlit staircase of East New York’s Pink Houses on November 20th. He was unarmed. According to Gurley’s female companion, Melissa Butler, the two residents decided to take the staircase after the elevator had taken too long to arrive. When the couple […]
ANIMAL’s feature Artist’s Notebook asks artists to show us their original “idea sketch” next to a finished artwork or project. This week’s notebook is from Andrew Birk, a multi-disciplinary artist who works out of Mexico City. Birk is co-director of No-Space, also located in Mexico City. For his notebook Birk has provided a poetic walk through of […]
Remember Rudy Giuliani, the former New York mayor who supported and expanded the controversial stop-and-frisk policy during his tenure? Well, he was invited to participate in a panel about the heightened racial tensions in Ferguson after that white cop killed an unarmed black teenager, and predictably, his comments on race angered a lot of people. […]
According to documents obtained by the Daily News, the New York City Department of Correction has erroneously released at least 23 inmates since 2009. Most were rearrested in a timely fashion, but at least one, Sidney Bannister, 44, has remained free since 2012. While the DOC noted that the number of errors equal less than half of […]
