This is the tumblelog of Patrick Wang — consultant, entrepreneur, and graphic designer living in San Francisco.
You can email me at
or use this form to contact me.
White House Staff Secretary Lisa Brown explains why presidents use so many pens to sign legislation.
I had no idea that the White House has its own Vimeo channel. Regardless of your politic beliefs or opinions of the current Administration, there’s a wealth of great video in there.
My favorites are the ones that give a little insight into the inner workings, intricacies, and seemingly mundane things that often go unnoticed in the most powerful office in the world.
Here are some of them:
Mr. President Goes to Yellowstone
Drumline in the White House
Behind the Scenes of Presidential Advance Part 1, Part 2
The Marine Sentries
The Gingerbread White House
The Situation Room
The Cabinet
The First Lady Receives the White House Christmas Tree
President Obama Pardons White House Turkey
The Kitchen Garden
President Obama Looks Under Hood of No. 48 with Jimmie Johnson
Not enough DHARMA Initiative in your life? Max Pictures has created over a collection of over 30 different DHARMA Initiative labels for all manner of basic goods that you’d need to survive on a deserted island.
(via kottke.org)
Work compensation the Somali pirates way
This account of the compensation structure for Somali pirates is absolutely fascinating.
A basic piracy operation requires a minimum eight to twelve militia prepared to stay at sea for extended periods of time, in the hopes of hijacking a passing vessel. Each team requires a minimum of two attack skiffs, weapons, equipment, provisions, fuel and preferably a supply boat. The costs of the operation are usually borne by investors, some of whom may also be pirates.
To be eligible for employment as a pirate, a volunteer should already possess a firearm for use in the operation. For this ‘contribution’, he receives a ‘class A’ share of any profit. Pirates who provide a skiff or a heavier firearm, like an RPG or a general purpose machine gun, may be entitled to an additional A-share. The first pirate to board a vessel may also be entitled to an extra A-share.
At least 12 other volunteers are recruited as militiamen to provide protection on land of a ship is hijacked, In addition, each member of the pirate team may bring a partner or relative to be part of this land-based force. Militiamen must possess their own weapon, and receive a ‘class B’ share — usually a fixed amount equivalent to approximately US$15,000.
If a ship is successfully hijacked and brought to anchor, the pirates and the militiamen require food, drink, qaad, fresh clothes, cell phones, air time, etc. The captured crew must also be cared for. In most cases, these services are provided by one or more suppliers, who advance the costs in anticipation of reimbursement, with a significant margin of profit, when ransom is eventually paid.
When ransom is received, fixed costs are the first to be paid out. These are typically:
• Reimbursement of supplier(s)
• Financier(s) and/or investor(s): 30% of the ransom
• Local elders: 5 to 10 %of the ransom (anchoring rights)
• Class B shares (approx. $15,000 each): militiamen, interpreters etc.
The remaining sum — the profit — is divided between class-A shareholders.
It’s logical to assume that these modern-day pirates had some type of system for dividing the loot. But never did I imagine that it would be such a sophisticated two-tier compensation system that builds in risk, employee assets, investors, and overheard costs.
I could have a lot of fun with this edible gold food spray. When The Deli Garage starts selling it, they will also have an edible silver spray as well.
(via notcot.org)
The world’s most expensive smuggled contraband? At $5,000 per kilogram, it’s saffron.
Beerland rock club in Austin, TX keeps it real during SXSW.
(photo by ekai. via laughingsquid.com)
Justin Van Genderen’s series of “vintage” Star Wars travel posters are now available as prints.
Available in different sizes. $25.18 for the 15.5” x 24” size.
A sumo wrestling competition shot in time-lapse with a tilt-shift lens. It’s like watching a mysterious but wonderful claymation film. I would have appreciated a better choice in music.
(via laughingsquid.com)
Insightful in-depth article about how the sport and business of golf changed with the rise of Tiger Woods and how it all came crashing down with his fall from grace. (via themorningnews.org)
The husband-and-wife team of Kat and Mac at Pierrepont Hicks creates beautiful neckties and bows from classic fabrics. All the products are made in New York’s Garment District by old school craftsmen.
Prices vary depending on the fabric but range from $60-$85.
Wow, watch the video of the content-aware fill feature in the upcoming Adobe Photoshop CS5. If this really works as well in real life as shown, imagine the possibilities and time savings.
(via kottke.org)
Legendary type foundry Hoefler & Frere-Jones lists the four techniques for combining fonts.
Is there a way to know what fonts will work together? Building a palette is an intuitive process, but expanding a typographic duet to three, four, or even five voices can be daunting. Here are four tips for navigating the typographic ocean, all built around H&FJ’s Highly Scientific First Principle of Combining Fonts: keep one thing consistent, and let one thing vary.
Bookmark this now.
(via daringfireball.net)
“Take Ivy”, the classic 1965 photo manual of Ivy League Style is coming back in print. For decades it has been a collector’s item as a definitive snapshot of “trad” style and even now serves as a reference for devotees and designers.
142 pages, $25
