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The following short segment from “Nova Science Now”, which is an amazing program btw, highlights a company that is exploring the idea of extending a thin sheet-like line from earth to outer space to use it as a basis for an elevator to cheaply transport people into space!! I honestly don’t see this happening, but it is entertaining to see great bright minds playing around with the idea.

This definitely is a wacky idea in my opinion. I mean come on, can you imagine planet earth orbiting in space with a big pipe extending out of it ? Even if such a thing could be built, how on earth will you maintain it and protect it from meteors and other space hazards ? How will you even make it stable ?! … i personally don’t think it will even be economically feasible to build and maintain such a link.

In totally unrelated news, and in contrast to that wacky idea, i think the following events can actually take place .. (but i hope they don’t ):

• Qwaider making a blog post *during* his wedding party: … yeah, who amongst us doesn’t believe this is possible…. i’d actually be surprised if he didn’t … heck, i’ll be surprised if he didn’t blog during his honeymoon :-).
• Two days after their marriage, Qwaider seriously tries to convince Maioush that she should migrate her blog to be hosted on Memories Documented (his blog) instead of WordPress: … he explains how his own private hosting can provide her with secure backups and strict anti-spam mechanisms (not to mention his perceived superiority of his blogging engine to everything that is readily available out there) … i say resist the temptations Maioush.
• KJ’s imaginary friend, Moogle, gets jealous of Qwaider’s marriage and decides to have his own imaginary friend: … (yes .. with KJ it is very well possible that an imaginary friend could get an imaginary friend). Unfortunately, Moogle’s imaginary friend runs off to get married as well … this will leave KJ perplexed for a few weeks… oh boy … god help us if that happens.

Qwaider .. sorry buddy, somebody had to pick on you because you’re getting married … and congratulations to you and Maioush again.

These videos are not new, but they are quite amazing !!! Here they are arranged in order of awesomeness.

This airplane was caught in “cross winds” so that is why it is drifting sideways:

This one has a severe case of cross winds and a bunch of other stuff:

This is just one risky / stupid takeoff

This one catches you by surprise:

Finally, this one is just plain stupid. He is asking for it

هههها فيديو عن جد نهفة

I read somewhere that one of the key success factors for online startups is engaging the users. This was the case for Flickr. When Flickr started, every new joining member would receive a personal welcome from the Flickr staff. This (along with other factors) created a stronger sense of community and belonging to that site, and was one of the elements of its success.

I think this is still true today. Anyone can whip up a web application in a matter of days, creating a differentiating experience is a bit more tricky and definitely needed. I think this is even more important for many of the Arabian online startups that are providing services that are essentially the same (or highly similar) to American and global ones. In this scenario, you definitely need an incentive to attract people to your application. You simply can not offer the same exact services, and nothing more, and yet expect people to flock to your app.

The folks at Ikbis seem to believe in this as well. So far they have launched a bunch of competitions (the Ramadan one, the airplane one, the singing one), and now, they have launched their own comedy/variety show (called Ground Zero). …. it’s not all sweet-&-dandy .. they have their issues but that’s another story

Anyway, Ground Zero is quick weekly show that has 3 segments: Doblage (Film Dubbing), Lost in Translation, and new movie releases. It is a quick weekly refresher from your hectic life, so go ahead, give it a try

Here are the 2 published episodes so far:

Many special programs are airing these days discussing the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the roots of this whole issue. The following is a spectacular mini documentary highlighting some of the events that took place at the beginning of this conflict (around 1947-1948). It includes old footage, as well as interviews with people who have witnessed (some even participated in) these events, both Arabs and Jews/Israelis. This video is short, presented in clear English, and very informative. Please watch.

Part 1

Part 2

The scene at the end was very moving. This video is actually the second part of a three part series that is available here.

Al-Jazeera English, I thank you from the bottom of my heart for making, and continuing to make, these amazing programs. I wish that someday you will be allowed on American cable.

P.S: I realize i have been talking about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict quite a bit lately, but you know, it is the time for remembrance. To my new readers, i would like to point out that i do also talk about other subjects and issues of (possibly) lesser value/importance.