Category: cool stuff

Snow Ski in the Desert

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Ski Dubai, the world’s largest indoor ski resort — boasting Alpine chalets, 400-meter ski runs, and 6,000 tons of artificial snow — opened for business in late 2005.

Ski Dubai is actually one of the more modest in a series of extraordinarily ambitious commercial projects undertaken by the Gulf state of Dubai, including the world’s tallest building, the world’s first underwater luxury hotel, and, believe it or not, an archipelago of man-made islands shaped like a map of the world. (While you’re at this site look at some of the other Dubai Developments)
No wonder Michael Jackson moved there.
Not content with merely topping the rest of the world, Dubai will actually best its own record in 2008, if all goes well, with the opening of the new world’s largest indoor ski resort, the 15 million-square-foot Sunny Mountain Ski Dome.

Don’t Fear the Bubble That Bursts

Don’t Fear the Bubble That Bursts – New York Times
So there is a good argument that society has a compelling interest in keeping house prices from getting too high. Reasonable prices allow young, middle-class families to buy a house without going into too much debt. They also let people live where they want.

Conversational Terrorism

Conversational Terrorism: How NOT to Talk!

First, we have the Ad Hominem Variants where you attack the person as a way to avoid truth, science, or logic which might otherwise prove you wrong. Next are the Sleight of Mind Fallacies, which act as “mental magic” to make sure the unwanted subject disappears. Then, we move on to Delay Tactics, which are subtle means to buy time when put on the spot. Then, the ever popular Question as Opportunity ploys, where any question can be deftly averted. Finally, we have the Cheap Shot Tactics and Irritants, which are basically “below the belt” punches.