A really interesting talk about using the psychology of game design, games and social networking, external rewards, and how games are going to be everywhere in the future.

http://www.sirlin.net/blog/2010/2/22/external-rewards-and-jesse-schells-amazing-lecture.html

Learn to Let Go: How Success Killed Duke Nukem
http://www.wired.com/magazine/2009/12/fail_duke_nukem/all/1

Phantom Menace Review
The best (and longest) movie review I’ve ever encountered.
http://www.slashfilm.com/2009/12/17/watch-this-70-minute-video-review-of-star-wars-the-phantom-menace/

Star Wars quotes in Japanese
http://nihonshock.com/2009/12/star-wars-quotes-in-japanese/

Can tongue surgery improve English-speaking ability?
http://www.japanprobe.com/2009/12/21/can-tongue-surgery-improve-english-speaking-ability/

Richard K Morgan on the Pointlessness of Arguing About Genres
http://www.richardkmorgan.com/article_soundfury.htm

Satan Takes Pokemon Seriously

Kim Peek, the original Rain Man, dies
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/us_and_americas/article6964730.ece

Using Menu Psychology to Entice Diners
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/23/dining/23menus.html?pagewanted=all

Robot Invasion YouTube Video from Uruguay leads to Hollywood contract
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/8417789.stm

HP Computers Are Racist

Yarn Bombing
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yarn_bombing

The 50 Most Interesting Articles on Wikipedia
http://copybot.wordpress.com/2009/04/07/the-50-most-interesting-articles-on-wikipedia/

A nice way to be remembered…
“This woman who had everything is dead because she wanted to have a slightly firmer ass”
Former Miss Argentina dies after plastic surgery
http://www.theage.com.au/lifestyle/wellbeing/former-miss-argentina-dies-after-plastic-surgery-20091201-k1ih.html

Book about extreme fashion subculture in The Congo
http://www.boingboing.net/2009/12/04/book-about-extreme-f.html

How a Web Design Goes Straight to Hell
http://theoatmeal.com/comics/design_hell

Smile Like You’re Dead Inside
http://smilelikeyouredeadinside.tumblr.com/

A Visit to a Steampunked Home
http://steampunkworkshop.com/visit-steampunked-home

Avatars Dressed in Klan Robes Usually Belong to Unpleasant People
http://kotaku.com/5414681/study-avatars-dressed-in-klan-robes-usually-belong-to-unpleasant-people

Man Beats World of Warcraft
http://www.theage.com.au/digital-life/games/man-beats-world-of-warcraft-20091204-k9ly.html

Faux Quasi-Centurion Neo-Feudal Merovingian Ultra-Hyborean Men of Yore Action Flicks
http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2009/dec/03/hollywood-classical-literature

The AV Club’s Best Books of the Decade
http://www.avclub.com/articles/the-best-books-of-the-00s,35774/1/

The AV Club’s Best Films of the Decade
http://www.avclub.com/articles/the-best-films-of-the-00s,35931/

Some fun cartoons and videos

xkcd – Love & Game Theory

Japanese Toilet Training Video (a new episode of Shimajiro)

Pacman Realises He’s Being Followed

Japan has the world’s largest pornography industry.  This extends to computer games.

No More Japanese Porn For You, Evil Foreigner

compare this to Australia, which has some of the strictest computer game censorship laws for any democratic country.

Web filters to censor video games

Some weird news

Stoned wallabies ‘make crop circles’ in Tasmania

Indian armed forces to put hot chilli in hand grenades