December 2009
Alter Ego: Peter and the Wolfie
Posted by GreenReaper on Tue 15 Dec 2009 - 00:00Part of Australian documentary Alter Ego offers an escapist view of a therian in Second Life.
Peter and the Wolfie uploaded by Shelley Matulick (from furrymedia post by Terra Wah).
Read more: Thoughts on the documentary from Wolfie, and cut footage featuring Rattus.
Parisian artists present furry exhibition
Posted by GreenReaper on Wed 16 Dec 2009 - 00:00Contemporary art museum Palais de Tokyo has put on an exhibition about furry fandom (translation and explanation) called "La Tanière" ("The Lair").
The artists, Alain della Negra and Kaori Kinoshita, presented a video based on furry avatars two years ago at a Second Life-oriented exhibition, "Second Night."
Initial reports suggest the depiction of the fandom is well-intentioned, but "not very accurate." However, French furry fan Timduru is working with the artists to include more authentic artwork and descriptions, and has organized a fursuiting visit for the 19th.
BBC furry article on UMA Recommended List
Posted by The Chained Wolf on Wed 16 Dec 2009 - 02:38Last month's online BBC article on furries has been listed on the Ursa Major Awards Recommended Anthropomorphics List.
"Who are the furries?" written by Denise Waterman on 13th November, has been posted on the list, the purposes of which are, "for fans who want to know what anthropomorphic movies, TV series, novels, etc. others found to be worth looking for", and, "to serve as a guide to which items were produced in 2009, to help fans determine what is eligible to nominate for the year’s Ursa Major Awards".
The article, listed in the "Best Anthropomorphic Other Literary Work" category, covers the main aspects of the fandom and features contributions from several members of the fandom including Fred Patten and FurteanTimes.com editor The Chained Wolf, as well as Kathy Gerbasi who has carried out several studies into the fandom.
The article was well received by most furries. Positive comments came from sites such as Fur Affinity. FurteanTimes.com, which was linked to the original article, experienced a 254% increase in web traffic from the previous week.
Some famous people also commented on the piece. Graham Linehan, the man behind hit sitcoms Father Ted and The IT Crowd wrote on his Twitter account that, "It's like staring into the sun. A sun made of geek. I can only read a bit of it at a time."
However, it is probably unlikely the article will win. No journalistic article has ever won an Ursa Major, and other more established figures are more likely to win.
Furries on Youtube
Posted by chance on Thu 17 Dec 2009 - 08:27
Many furries as of late, have reported being "Trolled" on the popular media site, youtube.com. While many furries are choosing to ignore comments left by trolls on their YT channels, as well as in video comments, and personal messages, some furries are taking a stand.
Many small groups have appeared across YouTube, all seemingly linked to one main group, the New*Furry*Military or the N*F*M. This leads to the questions, what happened to the OLD Furry Military, and why does the leader, MrDisambiguation, want to post this group all over the internet? What does he hope to gain? Perhaps he wants to be a famous fur? Or maybe he just wants to make a point.
I'll be keeping tabs on this subject until I dig up these and many other answers.
Funday PawPet Show moves to 6PM start in 2010
Posted by GreenReaper on Sat 19 Dec 2009 - 13:12
The Funday PawPet Show is to move to a 6PM Eastern start time, according to host Yappy Slyfox.
The move - forced by a change in work schedule - is expected to negatively impact European viewers, who benefited from a move from 7PM to 5PM in late 2007.
Radiolawn and Rapid T. Rabbit will no longer be broadcast before the main show, but the latter will still stream via MNN at 5:30PM Eastern on Fridays.
University of Alaska runs "furvey" on community aspects
Posted by GreenReaper on Sun 20 Dec 2009 - 00:00A group at the University of Alaska is running a survey of the furry community.
The online survey - led by Dr. Tim Lower and Eric Olson - appears to focus on the community aspects of being a furry, and seeks to establish the effect of participating on individuals (also a goal of prior surveys by Dr. Kathleen Gerbasi at Anthrocon).
Read more: Survey of the efficacy of furry subculture online/in-person support network
(Source: Another furry survey --- links, thoughts by rex)
Fuzzy friends can cost you
Posted by GreenReaper on Tue 22 Dec 2009 - 20:14Many of us have pets to keep us company - but the cost may surprise you, especially if you own a cat or rabbit. Even birds can be pricey, thanks to their long lives. And don't forget the cost of your time taking care of it.
Even if your companion is lucky enough not to require significant veterinary care, just buying food and bedding can cost more than the purchase price, even in the first year. The key message? Budget for that budgie!
See also: Talking heads discuss the science of saving
One man and his foxes
Posted by GreenReaper on Mon 28 Dec 2009 - 05:04
What can change the nature of a fox? Such was the question posed by Dmitry K. Belyaev, a Russian scientist whose work dated back to the time of Stalin.
Belyaev was a strong proponent of evolution - a distinctly unfashionable theory in early 1950s Russia - and thought he could select for the genetic traits leading to tameness. Taking 130 of the tamest foxes from a fur farm, he set to work, excluding those biting a gloved hand from breeding.
It turns out reproducing the domestication of dogs in another species isn't that hard . . .