The Null Device

A New York artist has created a wearable anti-surveillance outfit with a provocatively Middle-Eastern appearance:

The design of the headdress borrows from Islamic and Hindu fashion to comment on the racial profiling of Arab and Arab-looking citizens that occurred post-9/11. The design of the headdress is thus a contradiction: while its goal is to hide the wearer, it makes the wearer a target of heightened surveillance.

The laser tikka (forehead ornament) is attached to a hooded vest and reflective shawl. The laser is activated by pressing a button on the left shoulder of the vest. When pointed directly into a camera lens, the laser creates a burst of light masking the wearers face. The wearer can also use the reflective cloth to cover the face and head. The aluminized material protects her/him by reflecting any infrared radiation and also disguises the wearer by visually reflecting the surroundings, rendering the wearers identity anonymous.

Of course, in jurisdictions where shoot-to-kill policies apply, one wears this at one's own risk.

I wonder how long until the CCTV camera-zapping technology is integrated into thug hoodies or Burberry-print baseball caps?

Speaking of hoodies, someone is now making them for iPods; perfect for your 50 Cent/Lady Sovereign MP3 collection.

(via Gizmodo) ¶ art dissent middle east privacy protest surveillance 0

A report from Taiwan:

The other day, I was in this fancy Italian/French restaurant (where I had Escargot, but that's another story) and so they had fancy English under the usual Chinese names. They're pretty accurate, until I read about desserts. Under the Chinese for cheesecake, was the English word, "Wikipedia".

¶ amusing china chinglish culture language taiwan translation wikipedia 0