Amplify blog

Brooklyn Decker

Thu, 29 Apr 2010 8:7:00 +0200

Brooklyn Decker, 22, was born in Middletown, Ohio, and raised in Charlotte, N.C. She was discovered at 16 in a mall and began her career as the face of Mauri Simone. She has been featured in Teen Vogue, GQ, Cosmopolitan, FHM and Glamour as well as in campaigns for Gap, Intimissimi and Victoria's Secret and in music videos for Jimmy Buffett and 3 Doors Down. This is Brooklyn's fifth Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue.

Ashley Greene

Thu, 29 Apr 2010 8:4:00 +0200

Set against the backdrop of the exotic Turks and Caicos landscape, Ashley Greene models the two new SoBe zero calorie flavors, Strawberry Dragonfruit and Cherimoya Punch. Wearing zero and showing zero inhibitions, these exclusive photos should not be missed. See Ashley in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue and check out more photos and videos on www.SoBe.com.

Clair Bidez

Thu, 29 Apr 2010 7:56:00 +0200

Clair Bidez is a 22 year-old professional snowboarder who hails from Minturn, Colorado. Bidez is sponsored by Nikita, LaCroix Water, Giro, Copper Mountain and US Snowboarding and has appeared in Transworld Snowboarding, Snowboarder, and Onboard. This is Clair's first Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue.

Abbey Clancy

Thu, 29 Apr 2010 7:56:00 +0200

Abbey Clancy, 23, was discovered on the UK television show Next Top Model. Born in Liverpool, Abbey has appeared in campaigns for Matalan, Pepsi Max and Lynx, and has also appeared in InStyle, GQ and GQ Style. This is Abbey's first Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue.

Bar Refaeli

Thu, 29 Apr 2010 7:49:00 +0200

Bar Refaeli, 24, began modeling as an eight-month-old in her native Israel. Bar would pester her mother to sign her up for photo shoots and commercials and only took a 3-year break while wearing braces. At 15, Bar signed with an agency and has appeared on the covers of Esquire, Elle, and Sports Illustrated's Swimsuit Issue. Bar has also been the face of Hurley and the Diddy cologne, I Am King.

They're made out of Meat

Wed, 28 Apr 2010 7:1:00 +0200

Great little fictional story by TERRY BISSON of the UNIVERSE, Science Fiction Writer.

"They're made out of meat."

"Meat?"

"Meat. They're made out of meat."

"Meat?"

"There's no doubt about it. We picked up several from different parts of the planet, took them aboard our recon vessels, and probed them all the way through. They're completely meat."

"That's impossible. What about the radio signals? The messages to the stars?"

"They use the radio waves to talk, but the signals don't come from them. The signals come from machines."

"So who made the machines? That's who we want to contact."

"They made the machines. That's what I'm trying to tell you. Meat made the machines."

"That's ridiculous. How can meat make a machine? You're asking me to believe in sentient meat."

"I'm not asking you, I'm telling you. These creatures are the only sentient race in that sector and they're made out of meat."

"Maybe they're like the orfolei. You know, a carbon-based intelligence that goes through a meat stage."

"Nope. They're born meat and they die meat. We studied them for several of their life spans, which didn't take long. Do you have any idea what's the life span of meat?"

"Spare me. Okay, maybe they're only part meat. You know, like the weddilei. A meat head with an electron plasma brain inside."

"Nope. We thought of that, since they do have meat heads, like the weddilei. But I told you, we probed them. They're meat all the way through."

"No brain?"

"Oh, there's a brain all right. It's just that the brain is made out of meat! That's what I've been trying to tell you."

"So ... what does the thinking?"

"You're not understanding, are you? You're refusing to deal with what I'm telling you. The brain does the thinking. The meat."

"Thinking meat! You're asking me to believe in thinking meat!"

"Yes, thinking meat! Conscious meat! Loving meat. Dreaming meat. The meat is the whole deal! Are you beginning to get the picture or do I have to start all over?"

"Omigod. You're serious then. They're made out of meat."

"Thank you. Finally. Yes. They are indeed made out of meat. And they've been trying to get in touch with us for almost a hundred of their years."

"Omigod. So what does this meat have in mind?"

"First it wants to talk to us. Then I imagine it wants to explore the Universe, contact other sentiences, swap ideas and information. The usual."

"We're supposed to talk to meat."

"That's the idea. That's the message they're sending out by radio. 'Hello. Anyone out there. Anybody home.' That sort of thing."

"They actually do talk, then. They use words, ideas, concepts?"
"Oh, yes. Except they do it with meat."

"I thought you just told me they used radio."

"They do, but what do you think is on the radio? Meat sounds. You know how when you slap or flap meat, it makes a noise? They talk by flapping their meat at each other. They can even sing by squirting air through their meat."

"Omigod. Singing meat. This is altogether too much. So what do you advise?"

"Officially or unofficially?"

"Both."

"Officially, we are required to contact, welcome and log in any and all sentient races or multibeings in this quadrant of the Universe, without prejudice, fear or favor. Unofficially, I advise that we erase the records and forget the whole thing."

"I was hoping you would say that."

"It seems harsh, but there is a limit. Do we really want to make contact with meat?"

"I agree one hundred percent. What's there to say? 'Hello, meat. How's it going?' But will this work? How many planets are we dealing with here?"

"Just one. They can travel to other planets in special meat containers, but they can't live on them. And being meat, they can only travel through C space. Which limits them to the speed of light and makes the possibility of their ever making contact pretty slim. Infinitesimal, in fact."

"So we just pretend there's no one home in the Universe."

"That's it."

"Cruel. But you said it yourself, who wants to meet meat? And the ones who have been aboard our vessels, the ones you probed? You're sure they won't remember?"

"They'll be considered crackpots if they do. We went into their heads and smoothed out their meat so that we're just a dream to them."

"A dream to meat! How strangely appropriate, that we should be meat's dream."

"And we marked the entire sector unoccupied."

"Good. Agreed, officially and unofficially. Case closed. Any others? Anyone interesting on that side of the galaxy?"

"Yes, a rather shy but sweet hydrogen core cluster intelligence in a class nine star in G445 zone. Was in contact two galactic rotations ago, wants to be friendly again."

"They always come around."

"And why not? Imagine how unbearably, how unutterably cold the Universe would be if one were all alone ..."

Desmond & The Tutus - Pictures

Thu, 22 Apr 2010 10:47:00 +0200

Thanks to everyone that came to the smokey little launch party for this video, and thanks to DJ Data Takashi, DJ Sassquatch, DJ Baggy Dogg and the future Mrs DJ Baggy Dogg, DJ No Face for rocking the party with the awesome musics.

If you are one of the sucker fools that missed the epic launch party a) sucks to be you, and b) don't freak out because the video's up on youtube obvs.

And the opening credits start here:

Director: Greg Rom
Director of Photography: Willie Nel
Assistant Director: Sandra Smit
Art Departmentor: Wendy Fredrickson
Art Department Assistant: Kennedy What's His Name
Stylist: Gabrielle De Gersigny
Producer: Alisha Ludick
Editor: Evy Katz

Map & Shoes Designer: Joh Del
Miniature Photography: Ross Garret

Crew: Khyle Smith, Matthew Jankes, Nadia Jankes, Toby Harris, Obrigado Gabriel

Awesomes: Gavin Jersky, Ross Drakes, Donovan Pugh, Katherine Joynt, Angie Batis

So from all of us at Desmond & The Tutus to all of you hard-working little so-and-sos at Humanoid - thank you from the bottom of our little Desmond hearts for a really great video.

And without further ado, we present to you "She Hangs the Pictures on the Wall".

The Rudimentals feat. Caitlin - Electric Violinist (Country Boy)

Thu, 22 Apr 2010 10:21:00 +0200

Cape Town Ska band The Rudimentals feat. Caitlin - Electric Violinist (Country Boy) at their pumping concert at the V&A Waterfront Amphitheatre.

The Rikkis Sessions 8 - The Kings of Vegas

Thu, 22 Apr 2010 10:14:00 +0200

Constantly flirting with elements of pop punk, swing and dirty rock. The Kings of Vegas are a young, fresh, alternative, rock band hailing from the South of Cape Town.

www.thekingsofvegas.com

Whackhead and Obama prank Malema

Fri, 9 Apr 2010 11:16:00 +0200

Whackhead Darren Simpson donned the guise of Barack Obama and pranked ANC activist Julius Malema and now we see the aftermath of that conversation within South Africa. What were the repercussions of that conversation...?