Steven Den Beste thinks we should keep an eye on this: China Puts Soldiers on North Korea Border.  Could this be the first step in a Chinese occupation of North Korea?  Not a terrible solution, when you think about it.

The IHT wonders Is Online Piracy Unstoppable?  My answer is yes.  "The recording industry's long-running battle against online music piracy has come to resemble one of those "whack-a-mole" arcade games."  Yep.  And... "Already, Hollywood is trying to curb the next frontier, film swapping.  The inevitable advance of technology will make reading on digital tablets more convenient than reading on paper, so the publishers of books, magazines and newspapers have their worries as well."  Yep.  Read it!

I often write as if the film industry is future toast, just as the music industry is past toast.  But as the Denver Post points out via Recording industry missteps the music people have been way dumber than the film people.  Not to say the film industry won't be toast anyway - I mean, free bits...

NYTimes: File-Sharing Battle Leaves Musicians Caught in Middle.  And pissed off.

So do you think Windows Media 9 will be the standard for HDTV?  Maybe....

A new way to distract yourself while coding - glancing.  I can't wait.  [ via Matt Webb ]

This is cool - a QTVR panorama of the i-move, a new car which has an integrated iPod holder.  Looks like a cute little car, too.

I've actually wondered - while struggling with my analog cassette adapter - why there aren't aftermarket adapters available...

The power of group thinking - the Mind World Map.  Shows how even loosely organized groups can collectively derive knowledge.  Excellent!  [ via Geoff Cohen ]

From space.com - Why Space?  The Ten Top Reasons.  Reason #1 "the lack of a space program could get us all killed.  I don't mean you or me or my wife or children.  I mean that homo sapiens as a species are actually endangered.  A well conceived space program may well be our only hope for long-term survival."  I agree 100%, but I think commercial development is a more promising avenue than federal funding.

Meanwhile, China Nears First Human Space Flight.  "If successful, the mission would make China only the third nation to launch humans into space, after Russia and the United States.  The first taikonaut in space will become a national hero.  The Chinese government believes the feat will be a source of great international prestige and also bring technological and industrial benefits."  (boldface mine.)  Despite what they say publicly, the Chinese are far less concerned with safety than the U.S., which will actually be a benefit.  Right now the U.S. program is stuck in reverse following the Challenger "disaster".

This is too stupid - a device which let's you make an un-distracted phone call.  As long as you have a warm pool handy.  I am not making this up...