Editor’s Note: This entry is currently being worked on, feel free to request editorship

Overview

The 2014 Laos AN 74 Disaster was an airplane related disaster referring to a Antonov AN 74 military type of airplane that crashed in northern Laos on May 17th 2014, taking the lives of 17 people, including the mayor of the country’s capitol city, Vientiane

Background

The Ukrainian built an Antonov An-74 that was carrying several top officials of the country to a 55th anniversary of the second division of the Lao’s People Army, the plane had lifted off from Vientiane to it’s destination at Xieng Khouang Airport

At around 6:15, 6:30, or 7:00 am local time on May 17th 2014, the airplane crashed into Nadee, Xiang Khouang. 2,000 meters from it’s destination, it has since been marked the second deadliest accident in Laos history, 20 people were believed to be on board and the cause of the crash is unknown

Notable Developments

Soon after the crash, #PrayForLaos was one of the many trends on Twitter
The ceremony was cancelled, and the loss of the two most powerful people in the security apparatus was considered a big blow in the communist party for power, and it was reported only three passengers survived the crash

News Reaction

The crash had became the subject for many news sites and channels, including NBC and New York Daily News
Lao national television also showed pictures of the mangled wreckage

Related Disaster

In October 2013, A Lao Airlines ATR-72 had crashed due to a heavy storm while approaching Pakse Airport, all passengers on board died, and it was ranked the deadliest Lao accident

Search Interest

W.I.P

External References

W.I.P

About :

Full Name: Theodore Peter James K Taptiklis

Date Of Birth: December 16th 1984

Birthplace: Oxford, England

Theo was born in Oxford, England on the 16th December 1984, to Jane (née Martin) and Philip Taptiklis, and is the youngest of five children. Theo is of Greek, Scottish and Kiwi (New Zealand) descent.

He studied Philosophy at Nottingham University and trained at Bristol Old Vic Theatre school.

He was named a “Star of Tomorrow” in 2009 by industry magazine Screen International.

Early Life And Education :

James was born in Oxford, Oxfordshire, the son of Jane (née Martin) and Philip Taptiklis.His paternal grandfather was Greek (he moved from the Peloponnese to New Zealand). His other ancestry is English and Scottish.The youngest of five children, Theo has two brothers and two sisters. He attended Aylesbury Grammar School and went on to earn his undergraduate degree in philosophy from the University of Nottingham. He trained at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School.

Acting Career :

James made his television debut in A Passionate Woman, starring opposite Billie Piper. He played Turkish diplomat Kemal Pamuk in an episode of the first season of Downton Abbey. James starred in Bedlam, playing the lead role of Jed Harper. He appeared in the 2012 adaptation of John Braine’s Room at the Top,as “Jack Wales”.

His film credits include You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger and The Domino Effect. James was cast in Stranger while still in his final year at drama school. His most notable role is of James, an obnoxious night club rep in The Inbetweeners Movie. In 2011, James was chosen to play the character as David in the fourth installment of Underworld: Awakening, released in 2012, opposite Kate Beckingsale. In 2012 he appeared in ITV’s Case Sensitive starring Olivia Williams and Darren Boyd, and was named a “Star of Tomorrow” in 2009 by Screen International.

James played the lead role, Tobias “Four” Eaton, in the film adaptation of Veronica Roth’s best-selling book, Divergent. Among his upcoming film projects, he will star alongside Amber Heard, Billy Bob Thornton and Jim Sturgess in the film adaptation of London Fields (2014), and in the indie drama Franny (2014) alongside Richard Gere and Dakota Fanning.

James will reprise his role as Tobias “Four” Eaton in the sequels to Divergent, in Insurgent in March 2015, and Allegiant in March 2016. Shailene Woodley will also reprise her role as Beatrice “Tris” Prior, the main character and James’ love interest in the films. Filming for Insurgent will start in May 2014.

Music :
Outside his acting career, James was the singer and guitarist of the London-based band Shere Khan. On 21 November 2012 the band announced on their Facebook page that they were no longer actively playing as a band and that members would be pursuing other musical endeavors.

Facts:

Plays the harmonica , piano and guitar.

Had to learn some Parkour and Russian for Underworld, as well as training with knives and whips.

Enjoys free diving and scuba diving. At his best, he could get to 18meters (free diving).

Is a talented beatboxer.

Loves Cheetos.

His star sign is Sagittarius.

Born in Oxford, but grew up in High Wycombe.

Grandfather is Greek, Mother is Scottish and Father is from New Zealand.

Has been in various bands (Shere Khan and Makora to name two. Listen here.)

Fan of Indiana Jones and Harrison Ford.

Has 2 brothers and 2 sisters.

Spent time with the NYPD as research for the role of Walter Clark in Golden Boy.

Trained at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School.

If he wasn’t an actor he’d most likely be a musician.

His dream concert would be Jimi Hendrix.

Studied Philosophy at Nottingham University.

If his role requires an American accent, he keeps it throughout filming, rather than jumping between British and American.

Has previously worked as a bartender and lifeguard. He even worked for the NHS where he went to the homes of the recently deceased, and cleaned up bodily fluids left behind.

Is good at boxing.

His inspirational figures are his Mother and Father.

His favourite item from craft services is tea. – “It’s in the blood.”

Prefers Star Wars to Star Trek.

One of his favourite parts in Divergent is the Ferris Wheel scene.

Was at the Bristol Old Vic at the same time as Antonia Thomas (Actress-Misfits). They starred in the production ‘Monsoon Nights’ together.

Quotes :

“Don’t never think that you haven’t got anything to learn.”

“Yippee Ki Yay Mother Buttcheeks.”

“It’s in the blood” [about Tea]

“I play a small Chihuahua. Four because I have four feet.” [About Divergent, playing Four.]

“But I’m still just a lanky dork. Ironically learning to box doesn’t make you any tougher, it just makes you realise that if you actually got into a real fight you’d probably get your arse kicked.”

“A fan base is kind of fun and exciting. It means people are invested emotionally. But, and everyone probably says this – you can’t buy into the hype because then you’re f***ed. Also, I’m a big believer of it’s not something till it’s something. You know? There’s no guarantee of anything.” [About Divergent fans]

Songs:
Straight Up – Shere Khan
Can’t Complain-Shere Khan
Skin-Shere Khan
Dust-Shere Khan
Footsteps-Shere Khan
No Sense-Shere Khan

Filmography

Movies:

Year/Title Role Genre
2014 Franny Luke
2014 London Fields Guy Clinch Thriller
2014 Divergent Tobias Eaton Action/ Sci-Fi
(Four)
2012 The Domino Effect Dinner Party Drama
Guest

2012 Underworld Awakening David Horror/ Action
2011 The Inbetweeners Movie James Comedy
2010 You Will Meet A Talk Ray Comedy
Dark Stranger
2010 Red Tails Unknown Action
2008 Monsoon Nights Rory Short
(Short Film)

Tv-Show

Year/ Title Role Episodes
2013 Golden Boy Walter Clark 13 (S1)
2012 Case Sensitive Aidan Harper 1 (TOHL)
(TOHL)
2012 Room At The Top Jack Wales 2
2011 Bedlam Jed Harper 6 (S1)
2010 Downtown Abbey Kemal Pamuk 1 (S1,E3)
2010 Passionate Woman Alexander "Craze " 2
Crazenovski
PhotoShoots
Vogue (2013)
Bello (2013)

About

The Monogatari Series is a series of Japanese Romance/Supernatural light novels written novelist Nisio Isin. Ever since the series creation, it has garnered a significant online following, in particular around the anime adaptation, which is produced by Shaft.

Premise

The Monogatari Series revolves around Koyomi Araragi, a high school student who’s almost human after briefly becoming a vampire. The story begins when Koyomi meets the reclusive Hitagi Senjōgahara, a girl who has an unusual problem due an affliction with an oddity. After discovering about her secret, Koyomi decides to help her. As the series progresses Koyomi finds himself involved with other girls, each afflicted by different “oddities” such as the ghost of a little girl named Mayoi Hachikuji, his underclassman Suruga Kanbaru, Nadeko Sengoku, a friend of his sisters, his classmate Tsubasa Hanekawa and his own younger sisters Karen and Tsukihi.

History

The Monogatari Series originally started out as a series of short stories, written by Nisio Isin for Mephisto magazine, which first started circulation on August 10, 2005. Then, in 2006, the previously published stories of Bakemonogatari, along with some new ones, were compiled into the first two volumes of the series. Since then, there has been a total of 17 novels based on the franchise, spanning a total of 3 sagas. An anime adaptation, created by anime studio Shaft, also began airing between July 3 and September 25, 2009, animating the Bakemonogatari. As of May, 2014, there has been an adaptation of the Nisemonogatari arc, which aired between January 7 and March 17, 2012, a 4 episode adaptation of Nekomonogatari (Kuro) which aired on December 31, 2012, a second season which aired between July 6, and December 28, 2013, as well as an upcoming 4 episode adaptation of Hanamonogatari, which will air on August 16, 2014, as well as an anime movie based on Kizumonogatari, with the aim to animate the entire series. As well as this, there has also been a number of Video game and Audio Dramas produced, based on the series.

Reception

Overall, the Monogatari franchise has received positive reception. In the 2009 issue of Takarajimasha’s light novel guide book Kono Light Novel ga Sugoi!, the light novel series ranked sixth, later going on to rank second the following year. The anime adaptation also garnered much positive reception, winning the Users’ Special Award in the 2nd annual DEG Japan Awards^[1]. The series also garnered a positive critical reception, with Anime News Network reviewer Theron Martin, on the topic of the original anime adaptation, stating that the series is “visually and verbally ambitious”^[2].

Online Relevance

In North America, the Monogatari franchise is licensed by Aniplex of America, with the second season available for streaming on Crunchyroll^[3]. The series has gained a large online following on many sites, including on Tumblr^[4], Reddit^[5], 4chan’s /a/ (Anime and Manga) board^[6], Fanpop^[7], My Anime List^[8], and DeviantART^[9]. There are numerous sites that provide episodic information about the series, such as the Monogatari wiki^[10], TV Tropes^[11] and Anime News Network^[12]. In addition, the Monogatari Facebook page also has over 15,000 likes^[13].

Fandom

The Monogatari series has spawned a significant online fanbase since it’s creation, which has created much fanart and fanfiction. On the Japanese fanart site Pixiv, there are over 23,000 images tagged under “化物語”^[14], as well as over 6,000 videos on the video sharing website Nico Nico Douga^[15]. On DeviantART, there are also over 8,000 images tagged related to the series^[15].

Related Memes

Renai Circulation

Renai Circulation (Japanese: 恋愛サーキュレーション; lit. Love Circulation) refers to a series of Anime Opening Parodies based around the fourth opening theme of the original Bakemonogatari anime. Although the opening theme was only used for one episode, the song grew in popularity online, spawning many parodies.

Platinum Disco

Platinum Disco (Japanese: 白金ディスコ, Purachina Disco) refers to a series of Anime Opening Parodies based around the opening to the Nisemonogatari iteration of the anime. The song grew in popularity on the Japanese video sharing service Nico Nico Douga, spawning many parodies.

Shaft Head Tilt

Shaft Head Tilt (Japanese: シャフト角度, Shafuto Kakudo; abbr. シャフ度, Shafudo; lit. “Shaft Angle”), refers to a pose that often appears on anime franchises produced by the studio Shaft. The first instance of this posing which caught the attention of many anime viewers is the head tilt by Hitagi Senjougahara, during the original Bakemonogatari series, and has since spawned many parodies.

Search Interest

External References

[w.i.p. CAUSE I FEEEEEEEEL, I CANALWAYSWORK ON ENTRIESFORYOOOOOOOU. It’ll be done when it’s done, something’s popped up so I’ll have to finish it later. Also, Psycho-Pass happens to be my new favourite anime of all time~]

About

Psycho Pass is a 2012 anime series created by Production IG, and written by Gen Urobuchi, also known for his work on the Puella Magi Madoka Magica series. Since it’s original airing, the series has garnered much popularity online, spawning a significant fandom.

Premise

The Psycho-Pass series takes place in the year 2113, where a new system named ‘the Sybil System’ is used in order to run a ‘Psycho-Pass’, where a person’s mental stability and probability to commit a crime (named ‘Crime Coefficient’) is measured using a scan of the brain. If an individual’s Crime Coefficient goes past the recommended limit, then the individual is then arrested in order to avoid a crime being committed, whether they have actually committed one or not. The main plot follows the detective Akane Tsunemori, a new detective to the division, who hunts for criminals along with a group of ‘enforcers’, a group of criminals who have been given permission to assist the police department, who use special guns known as ‘Dominators’, which are designed to only fire at those with high Crime Coefficients. After finding out that a criminal by the name of Shogo Makishima is responsible for a number of recent crimes, the group sets out to stop him, with Tsunemori soon finding out the truth behind the system along the way.

History

Psycho-Pass originally started out as an anime series which aired between October 12, 2012 and March 22, 2013, and was created by Production IG, and written by Gen Urobuchi. A remake of the first season, edited down into 11 1 hour episodes, will also begin airing in summer 2014, with a second season starting in fall of the same year. A film adaptation is also set to air in winter 2015. A manga adaptation, titled Inspector Akane Tsunemori, also began circulation on November 2, 2012, and is still ongoing. A light novel adaptation was also created, and produced two novels, which were released on February 4 and April 4, 2013.

Reception

Psycho-Pass has overall received positive reception from critics.

Online Relevance

Fandom

Related Memes

Cause I Feel

Hyper Oats

Spooky Boogie

Search Interest

External References

W.i.p feel free to request editroship

About

The Rubik’s cube is a 3D combination puzzle toy, made of plastic. Originally, it was called Magic cube and it was created by the hungarian professor and sculptor Ernő Rubik^[1].

History

In 1974 professor Ernő Rubik, who was also a sculptor^[2], created a special cube to help the students understand the 3-Dimensional mechanics. However it was not successful, but during the cube’s testing he realized, the cube is ideal puzzle and after this he claimed a patent which he got in 1977, later, he came in contact with the german-hungarian businessman Tibor Laczi, who’s company started to mass producting this puzzle in 1980. In the same year it won the special award of the German Game of the Year as the best puzzle^[3].

For the Rubik’s Cube’s 40th anniversary, Google have featured a Google Doodle with a variant of the cube showing all-white tiles and the colors of the Google logo in the shapes of each letter spanning two of its sides. When clicked on, the doodle enlarges and features an interactive version of the cube that the user can control and attempt to solve.

Fandom

W.i.p

Variants

W.i.p

Search interests

External references

^[1]Wikipedia – Rubik’s cube

^[2]Wikipedia – Ernő Rubik

^[3]Wikipedia – Spiel des Jahres

About

Modern Family is an American sitcom about a multi-generational extended family broken up into three nuclear families: a father and his new wife and young children, his grown son’s family and his grown daughter’s family. Premiering in 2009, it quickly gained critical acclaim, earning multiple Emmys, and being praised for featuring a diverse cast.

Premise

Modern Family follows the lives of the Pritchett-Dunphy families. As the show opens, the patriarch, Jay Pritchett (Ed O’Neil) has recently married a young Columbian woman, Gloria (Sofía Vergara) who has a elementary school aged son Manny (Rico Rodriguez). Jay’s son Mitchell (Jesse Tyler Ferguson) and his partner Cameron (Eric Stonestreet) have just adopted a daughter, Lily (originally Ella Hiller and Jaden Hiller, Aubrey Anderson-Emmons after 2011), from Vietnam. Jay’s daughter Claire (Julie Bowen) and her husband Phil Dunphy (Ty Burrell) have three children: Haley (Sarah Hyland), Alex (Ariel Winter) and Luke (Nolan Gould). Each episode tackles a different thread that brings them together, from the mundane, like the children having school projects, to major events like a graduation.

History

Modern Family^[1] premiered September 23rd, 2009, on ABC. As of May 2014, it has aired a total of 119 episodes over the course of five seasons.On May 8th, the show was renewed^[2] for a sixth season set to premiere in fall 2014.

Reception

Modern Family earned a rating of 8.7 on IMDB and a score of 87 on Metacritic.^[3] It won one Golden Globe for Best Television Series (Comedy or Musical) and 18 Primetime Emmy Awards. The show also enjoys a very high viewership. The series premiere brought in over 12.6 million viewers^[4] and its most recent fifth season premiere brought in over 11.6 million viewers.^[5]

Online Presence

As of May 2014, the official Modern Family Facebook page^[6] has gained over likes and its Twitter account^[7] has gained over 650,000 followers. Its Instagram account^[8] has over 5,000 followers. Hulu subscribers can watch all five seasons online.

Fandom

In addition to its branded social media presence, there are several fan run sites for the show such as modern-family.tv^[14] and the Modern Family Fanpop page.^[15] There are also multiple Tumblr blogs dedicated to the show such as fuckyeahmodernfamily^[11] and modernfamilys.^[12] Fans on Tumblr tag their content with the title of the show^[10] or #MOFY^[9]. As of May 2014, there are over 13,000 entries tagged Modern Family on DeviantArt.^[13]

Online History

Book Cover Mistake

On August 14th, 2014, TV Guide^[16] reported that a very conservative Christian preacher named Doug Sehorne had published an e-book titled Bible Principles of Child Discipline, and had used a picture of Modern Family’s Dunphy family for the cover.

The same day Sehorne published a message on his Facebook page (show below, since deleted)^[17] in which he explains his ignorance in the show’s content, saying he had not owned a TV in 35 years.

Several sites reported on the cover mistake such as The Huffington Post^[18] and Gawker.^[19]

Marriage Certificate

On May 12th, 2014, Modern Family stars Jesse Tyler Ferguson and Eric Stonestreet appeared on morning talk show Good Morning America to announce the show would be paying the cost of all New York marriage certificates issued that day. The announcement was made to celebrate the marriage of their characters, Cameron and Mitchell on the show’s season five finale scheduled to air on May 21st, 2014. Several sites featured the promotion including

External References

About

Soylent is a food substitute made by software engineer Rob Rhinehart, who aimed to make a liquid drink containing all known human nutritional needs. The mixture contains maltodextrin, rice protein, oat flour, canola oil, fish oil and variety of raw chemical powders. The name “Soylent” is inspired by the 1973 dystopian science fiction film Soylent Green, in which the majority of the human population survives on processed food rations that are revealed to be made out of human corpses.

Origin

On February 13th, 2013, Rhinehart published an article on his personal blog titled “How I Stopped Eating Food,”^[1] which described how he concocted a liquid shake comprised of various substances to meet a human’s daily nutritional requirements. Naming the drink “Soylent,” Rhinehart experimented by eating nothing but the food substitute for an entire month, making various alterations to the drink based on new discoveries.

Spread

On February 17th, Rhinehart launched the website Soylent.me,^[8] which featured links to his blog posts about the food substitute and a signup form for a Soylent news email list.

On February 21st, 2013, Rhinehart’s blog post was submitted by Redditor duncangeere to the /r/WTF^[2] subreddit, where it gained upwards of 630 upvotes and 110 comments prior to being archived. On March 13th, Vice^[4] published an interview with Rhinehart, in which he discussed how he created the food substitute and lauded its health and economic benefits. On March 25th, the DNews YouTube channel uploaded an interview with Rhinehart with host Anthony Carboni (shown below).

In May, Rhinehart launched a campaign for Soylent on the crowdfunding site Crowdtilt,^[7] earning over $3 million of the $100,000 goal upon completion. On October 21st, the tech news blog Tech Crunch^[5] reported that Rhinehart has closed $1.5 million in see funding to launch Soylent as a food substitute company. On November 12th, Vice’s Motherboard blog published a follow-up video in which staff writer Brian Merchant attempts to live off Soylent for 30 days (shown below). Within six months, the video gathered more than 895,000 views and 5,000 comments.

On November 15th, Rhinehart participated in an “ask me anything” post in the /r/IAmA^[3] subreddit, where he discussed how the product was named and his plans to deliver Soylent to people in the third world. In May 2014, the first 30,000 units of Soylent were shipped to customers in the United States.^[6] That month, the Soylent.me site was redesigned to include pages for purchasing the product and information regarding the food substitute.

Search Interest

External References

About

ASPCA Commercial Parodies refers to videos parodying advertisements for the animal rights charity organization ASPCA (American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals). Because the ads feature images of abused animals they have a reputation for making those who see them extremely emotional. The parodies often spoof an ad featuring singer Sarah McLachlan whose melancholy song “Angel” plays in the background.

Origin

Sarah McLachlan’s ASPCA ad was first uploaded to YouTube on October 3rd, 2006, by user ragefc^[1]. As of May 2014, the video has gained over 1.5 million views.

Spread

On February 14th, 2011, YouTube user Ibish Comedy^[3] uploaded a video titled “Depressing ASPCA Commercial,” which features a PSA for those who are too sad because of McLachlan’s ad. As of May 2014, the video has gained over 55,000 views. On March 12th, 2012, Funny or Die^[2] posted a video titled “Charlize’s ASPCA Spokesperson Audition Tape,” which featured actress Charlize Theron “auditioning” to replace McLachlan by making a less somber ad. As of May 2014, the video has gained over 320,000 views.

Mclachlan herself parodied the ASPCA ads in a 2014 Superbowl commercial for AUDI which featured McLachlan showing support for the fictional “Doberhuahua” while playing the guitar. The video was first uploaded to YouTube by user Creative News^[4]. The commercial was covered by several websites including The Huffington Post^[5] and PopCrush.^[6] As of May 2014, the video has gained over 1,000 views. On April 24, 2014, YouTuber Phillip Henry^[7] uploaded a video titled “gAySPCA: An ASPCA Parody,” which featured the song from the original ad over a call to help insecure gay men dependant on likes on their selfies. As of May 2014, the video has gained over 89,000 views.

Search Interest

External References

Overview

Maya Angelou was an award-winning American author, poet and actress best known for her series of autobiographies, including the critically acclaimed I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings and other literary contributions to the civil rights movement. In late May 2014, Angelou passed away at her home in Winston-Salem, North Carolina at the age of 86.

Background

Maya Angelou^[1] died on May 28th, 2014, in her home in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Her death was confirmed by the town’s mayor’s office and her literary agent that morning. Angelou sent out her final tweet^[3] on May 23rd, and in less than a week it gained over 50,000 retweets and over 30,000 favorites.

Writing Career

Over the course of her literary career spanning over four decades, Angelou won dozens of awards and nominations^[2], including a National Book Award nomination and a Coretta Scott King Honor for her first autobiography I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings in 1970 and a Pulitzer nomination for her poetry collection Just Give Me a Cool Drink of Water ‘fore I Diiie in 1972. Angelou was chosen as the Inaugural Poet for the inauguration ceremony of President Bill Clinton in 1993. She also received numerous awards in the fields outside of literature, including over 30 honorary doctoral degrees, three Grammy Awards for Best Spoken Word or Non-Musical Album in 1993, 1995, and 2002 and a Tony nomination for Best Featured Actress in a Play in 1974

Notable Developments

Online Reaction

Shortly after the news of her death broke, Angelou’s friends and fans took to Twitter to express their sadness over her passing, including a long list of celebrities and politicians who shared some of her most memorable quotes in remembrance of the poet. In less than 24 hours, the hashtag #MayaAngelou^[4] was tweeted out over 160,000 times, and the keyword “Maya Angelou” was searched more than 2 million times on Google.

Angelou’s Quotes

Many websites remembered Angelou’s passing by publishing collections of inspirational quotes attributed to the author, including BuzzFeed’s^[5][6]“12 Must-See Video Clips Of Maya Angelou” and “21 Life-Changing Tweets From Maya Angelou,” Mother Jones’^[7]“7 Pieces of Timeless Wisdom From Maya Angelou,” the Huffington Post’s^[8]“9 Inspiring Maya Angelou Poems You Can Read Online” and Mashable’s^[10]“10 Maya Angelou Quotes That Will Lift You Up,” among many others.^[9][11]

Search Interest

External References

About

Sabu is the pseudonym used by Hector Xavier Monsegur, an American computer hacker best known for co-founding the Internet hacktivist group LulzSec. Following his arrest in June 2011, Monsegur became an informant for the FBI and played an instrumental role in identifying a number of fellow hackers suspected of involvement in Lulzsec and other hacktivist campaigns.

History

HB Gary

According to USA Today,^[7] Sabu may have been involved in the February 2011 attacks against the intel consultancy HBGary in retaliation against CEO Aaron Barr’s attempts to sell lists of the identities of members of Anonymous to his clients.

LulzSec Formation

The earliest known hack attributed to LulzSec occured on May 5th, 2011, when the Fox Broadcasting Company’s database for applicants in the television talent show X Factor were compromised. That month, LulzSec successfully orchestrated additional high profile hacks, including a breach of several Sony databases and the defacement of the PBS homepage.

Identity Exposed

On March 21st, 2011, the now-defunct website Backtrace Security posted a PDF document listing the claimed identities of nearly 80 members of the hacktivist collective Anonymous, which included Hector Monsegur as Sabu. Later that same day, Monsegur created the @anonymousSabu Twitter feed to “clear some things up” in response to the leak. The original PDF document was subsequently removed from the site at the request of the United States FBI.^[2]

hai! I go by the name of Sabu these days. I made this account to clear some things up, especially after the leaks by #backtraceinsecurity.

— The Real Sabu (@anonymouSabu) March 22, 2011

Sentencing

On May 27th, 2014, Monsegur was set free after being given “time served” for what chief judge Loretta Preska referred to as "“extraordinary cooperation” as an informant for the FBI. In a sentencing memorandum,^[8] it was revealed that Monsegur had assisted the convictions of eight of his peers in both LulzSec and Anonymous, including Jeremy Hammond, Ryan Cleary, Mustafa Al-Bassam (a.k.a. T-Flow), Darren Martyn, Donncha O’Cearbhaill, Ryan Ackroyd (a.k.a. Kayla) and Jake Davis (a.k.a. Topiary). That day, The Guardian published an article about the sentencing, which included a statement from a “spokesperson for Anonymous” condemning the FBI and Monsegur:

“Monsegur is, first and foremost, a criminal; the FBI’s cyber crime task force are his co-conspirators. While operating under their supervision, Monsegur committed numerous felonies which should in no way be excused due to his protected informant status. The FBI continues to use captured informants, who commit egregious crimes in pursuit of reduced sentences, for the sole purpose of creating ‘examples’ to frighten the public. They do this with the hope of pacifying online dissent and snuffing out journalistic investigations into the US government’s misconduct.”

Arrest

On June 7th, 2011, Monsegur was arrested by Federal agents and immediately became an informant. In August, he plead guilty to 12 counts of conspiracy to attack computers. On June 25th, a Pastebin^[3] page was created which claimed that Sabu was a Puerto Rican man named Hector Xavier Monsegur.

New Scientist Interview

On July 4th, 2011, the science news site NewScientist^[6] published an interview with Sabu, in which he claimed to have become a hacktivist at the age of 16 and that he joined Anonymous in 2010 after being outraged over the arrest of Wikileaks founder Julian Assange.

Reddit AMA

On September 23rd, 2011, Sabu began answering questions via Twitter from an “ask me anything” request post on the /r/IAmA^[4] subreddit. In the comment section, Redditor yorabbits asked Sabu “What advice would you give new hackers?” to which he replied to be wary of friends who would “try to take you down if they have to.”

Reputation

Sabu has been criticized by hacktivists for his work as an informant with the FBI, having been involved in identifying several suspected members of both LulzSec and Anonymous.

Informant Status Revealed

On March 6th, 2012, court documents were released in a case against four men in Britain and Ireland charged with computer crimes, which identified Sabu as informant Hector Xavier Monsegur.^[5] That day, writer Barrett Brown tweeted that his apartment had been raided by the FBI earlier in the morning, adding “Sabu is a traitor.”

My apartment was raided this morning by the FBI. Feds also came to another residence where I actually was. Sabu is a traitor. #Anonymous

— Barrett Brown (@BarrettBrownLOL) March 6, 2012

Also on May 6th, the @YourAnonNews Twitter feed recommended that followers block the @anonymouSabu Twitter account.

We all know that anonymouSabu</a> is now controlled by feds. We have blocked the account and we suggest you do as well. <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23BlockAnonymouSabu&amp;src=hash">#BlockAnonymouSabu</a></p>&mdash; Anonymous (YourAnonNews) March 6, 2012

Portrayal in House of Cards

In the second season of the American political drama series House of Cards, a character named Gavin Orsay (played by Jimmi Simpson) is introduced as a former hacktivist-turned-informant recruited by the F.B.I to entrap the investigative journalist Lucas Goodwin and prevent him from uncovering the crimes of the show’s protagonist character Vice President Frank Underwood. Since the premiere of the second season, the character’s story arc has drawn a lot of comparison to the fate of Monsegur since his arrest in June 2011, during which he contributed to the prosecution and conviction of eight of his co-conspirators, including the FBI’s most wanted cyber-criminal Jeremy Hammond and Anonymous-affiliated journalist Barret Brown.

Personal Life

According to an article in The New York Times,^[9] Sabu was born Hector Monsegur in 1983. In 1997, his father and sister Iris were arrested for selling heroin and were both sentenced to seven years in prison. Monsegur subsequently went to live with his grandmother in a Lower East Side housing project in New York City. Following his grandmother’s death, neighbors claimed Monsegur became more disruptive and “partied all night.”

Search Interest

External References

Overview

#SkinFor1D is an online hoax purported as a hashtag campaign urging fans of the British boy band One Direction to share nude photographs of themselves on Twitter in support of the band members Zayn Malik and Louis Tomlinson, following the leak of a video showing them smoking cannabis during a trip to Peru.

Background

On May 27th, 2014, The Daily Mail^[1] posted a video clip showing One Direction bandmates Zayn Malik and Louis Tomlinson smoking what appears to be a marijuana cigarette while riding a cab during their trip to Peru in April (shown below).

On the following day, the account @CaitlinPrauge was created, which promoted the hashtag #Nudefor1d along with a photograph of a nude woman.^[4] Less than 30 minutes later, @CaitlinPrauge tweeted that the new hashtag would be “#SkinFor1D” since the previous hashtag was not working.

umm apparently, twittr wnt let nudefor1d work those haters! the new hashtag is #SkinFor1D

— Caitlin Prauge (@CaitlinPrauge) May 28, 2014

Precursor

This hashtag prank can be seen as a direct successor to #CuttingForBieber, an online hoax and Twitter hashtag campaign launched by members of 4chan to spread a rumor that fans of Justin Bieber were cutting themselves in response to photographs of the singer allegedly smoking marijuana leaked in January 2013.

Notable Developments

On Twitter

Over the course of the next hour, several newly-created Twitter accounts began posting nude photographs of young women accompanied by the hashtag #SkinFor1D.^[5][6][7][8] Other Twitter users reacted by posting tweets discouraging the hashtag.

"#SkinFor1D" to those who actually posted nudes pic.twitter.com/IcqeppPrJP

— Pablo Franke (@pablofranke) May 28, 2014

According to the Twitter analytics site Topsy,^[2] #skinfor1d was tweeted over 110,000 times within the first 48 hours.

#WearAsManyClothesAsYouCanAtOnceFor1D

Also on May 28th, One Direction band member Liam Payne reacted by introducing the hashtags #WearAsManyClothesAsYouCanAtOnceFor1D and #wearahoodyfor1d, challenging One Direction fans to layer as many items of clothing as possible, take a picture and tweet it out. Immediately after, Payne added that fans should “keep the pg rating.”

Today is such a weird day why don't we do a #wearahoodyfor1d or a #WearAsManyClothesAsYouCanAtOnceFor1D

— Liam Payne (@Real_Liam_Payne) May 28, 2014

Right everybody concert time let's try and keep the pg rating lol for Christ sake somebody help me restore sanity

— Liam Payne (@Real_Liam_Payne) May 28, 2014

In less than 24 hours the tweet gained over 100,000 retweets and over 100,000 favorites. In less than 4 hours the hashtag #wearahoodyfor1d^[14] was tweeted out over 160,000 times and the hashtag #WearAsManyClothesAsYouCanAtOnceFor1D^[15] was tweeted out over 170,000 times.

News Media Coverage

Also on May 28th, the Daily Dot^[3] published an article about the hoax, noting that the hashtag had briefly become a worldwide trending topic. In the comings days, the Twitter prank was reported on by several pop culture news sites, including Smosh,^[9] UnrealityTV,^[10] Cambio^[11] and Perez Hilton.^[12]

Search Interest

External References

About

Overly Upset Optimus Prime (also known as “Kneeling Prime”) is an image macro featuring a poster of the character Optimus Prime in the upcoming Science Fiction Movie “Transformers: Age of Extinction”. The meme involves things that are in Disgust, Disappointment, Anger, Joy, Excitement & Humor.

Origin

On May 12, 2014, a day before the release of the second theatrical trailer of the movie. TFW2005 members ILikeSoundwave & SilverOptimus reported news on the site from an Article on USA Today featuring Three new Stills for the Movie. One Includes of a Poster that has Optimus Prime Kneeling on the Ground. Within minutes & hours since the news, Fans across the site had made Image Marcos of the poster featuring Captions based on what if Prime was Doing and/or Saying.^[1]

Spread

[Researching]

Notable Examples

Search Interest

[Researching]

External References

Overview

@HiddenCash Scavenger Hunt is an ongoing treasure hunt for envelopes of cash planted across the city of San Francisco, California, which began on May 23rd, 2014. The clues to the locations of the hidden envelopes are announced via @HiddenCash, the event’s official Twitter account run by an anonymous millionaire who describes the game as a “social experiment for good.”

Background

The event was launched by an anonymous millionaire based in San Francisco, who describes himself as a real-estate magnate in the age range of 35 to 45 and says he started the hunt as a “way to give back to society after making millions in the city’s real estate market.” On May 23rd, 2014, the Twitter account HiddenCash^[1] issued the first clue with a photograph of a small vegetable garden located on Page and Octavia Streets in the Hayes Valley.

The Twitter account, whose user is based in San Francisco, described the hunt in its Twitter bio:

“☼ An anonymous social experiment for good ☼ Real Cash hidden around SF & beyond. Find the $ – share tweetphoto + tag @hiddencash”

In less than one week, the account has gained over 260,000 followers.

Notable Developments

On the same day the Twitter account sent out it first tweet, The Bold Italic^[4] published an article titled “$100 Bills Dropped Around SF By Anonymous Real Estate Magnate.” The article explained the person behind @HiddenCash had contacted them that morning to explain the scavenger hunt. When The Bold Italic questioned him, he gave a them a little information about his background, explaining he is a wealthy real estate agent from the San Francisco area. He went on to explain his motivation for holding the scavenger hunt, saying:

On the same day as the launch of @HiddenCash on Twitter, The Bold Italic^[4] reported on the scavenger hunt in an article titled “$100 Bills Dropped Around SF By Anonymous Real Estate Magnate,” citing an anonymous tip it had received via e-mail from someone who claims to be a wealthy real estate agent looking to give back to the community:

“I’ve made millions of dollars the last few years, more than I ever imagined, and yet many friends of mine, and people who work for me, cannot afford to buy a modest home in the Bay Area. This has caused me quite a bit of reflection. I am determined to give away some of the money I make, and in addition to charity, to do it in fun, creative ways like this.”

News Media Coverage

In the following days, the citywide scavenger hunt was covered by several local news stations^[5][9] and the Daily Mail,^[3] and by May 28th, the story had reached major U.S. news outlets and internet culture news, including BuzzFeed,^[6] The Washington Post^[7] and CNN.^[8] Following that boom in media coverage on May 28th, the account gained 100,000 new followers^[2] in 24 hours.

Expansion

On May 25th, HiddenCash tweeted that he would drop money in Los Angeles the following weekend, and on May 27th, he tweeted he would drop money in San Jose on May 28th. He tweeted clues for four drops in San Jose on May 28th, and posted the clue for his first drop in Los Angeles on May 29th.

Notable Examples

Search Interest

External References

About

“Fuck Her Right in the Pussy” is an obscene quote that gained much notoriety online after it was widely thought to have been said by a videobombing prankster during the live broadcast of a local news report in Cincinnati, Ohio. The stunt was eventually debunked as a viral hoax campaign orchestrated by filmmaker John Cain after a third video purported as a newscast blooper was posted to Reddit in May 2014.

Origin

On January 4th, 2014, Cincinnati-based filmmaker John Cain uploaded a video titled “Reporter fired for remarks about missing woman on LIVE TV” which shows a reporter for a FOX-affiliated local news station making inappropriate remarks on camera, including the line “I’ll fuck her right in the pussy.”

On January 7th, Cain’s video was highlighted by Ray William Johnson in an episode titled “Things That Kill,” giving further boost to its virality on YouTube. As of late May 2014, the video has garnered nearly 2 million views.

Spread

On February 13th, 2014, YouTuber John Cain uploaded a second video titled “Reporter interrupted during live broadcast,” which begins with a reporter for the Cincinnati news station WLWT-5 describing a train derailment, before he is suddenly interrupted by a mustached man in a black hoodie and sunglasses who grabs the microphone and yells “Fuck her right in the pussy!” (shown below). In the first four months, the video gained over 2.4 million views and 1,100 comments.

On the following day, Redditor AmIDoingThisRight29 submitted the video to the /r/youtubehaiku^[1] subreddit, where it gained over 750 upvotes and 30 comments in three months. On April 7th, 2014, Tumblr user magnificentshibe^[3] posted an audio file of the 2008 hip hop song “Paper Planes” by M.I.A. combined with a clip of the “Fuck her right in the pussy” quote. Within two months, the post garnered more than 49,000 notes.

On May 19th, 2014, Liveleak user cainpro uploaded a video titled “Man trolls news crew on Live TV,” featuring another news report in which the same man is interviewed by a reporter and says “I was sitting on my front porch, grabbed a beer and fuck her right in the pussy” (shown below). In two weeks, the video gathered over 990,000 views and 1,200 comments. On the same day, Redditor dragonsky submitted the video to the /r/videos^[8] subreddit, where it garnered upwards of 24,750 upvotes and 1,200 comments.

In the comments section of the post, Redditor Ryan0617 claimed the videos had been faked and linked to a blog post^[2] by video maker John Cain stating that he planned to make several viral videos in 2014. Following Ryan0617’s comment, both Gawker[6] and Mediate^[7] published articles about the hoax videos, noting that Cain had begun selling “Fuck Her Right in the Pussy” T-shirts (shown below).

On May 22nd, Instagram^[4] user mrgiveyogirlback posted a joke in which a screenshot of the “Fuck her right in the pussy” man is used to respond to a father asking “What are your intentions with my daughter?” (shown below). The same day, Tumblr user dylansmole^[5] reblogged the Instagram post, receiving over 109,000 notes in the first week.

Search Interest

External References

About

Lebron Stephenson Blowing in LeBron James’ Ear is a photoshop meme based on a close-up footage of the Indiana Pacers shooting guard trying to taunt the Miami Heat forward by breathing into his ear during the fifth game of the NBA Eastern Conference finals.

Origin

During Game 5 of the NBA Eastern Conference finals between the Indiana Pacers and the Miami Heat on May 28th, 2014, Indiana Pacers’ Lance Stephenson was caught on camera bending down next to his opponent Lebron James and gently blowing air into his left ear, to which the Miami Heat forward reacted by shaking his head in disapproval (shown below).

Immediately after the game, the sports blog Terez Owens tweeted a photoshopped screen capture of Stephenson blowing smoke rings.

#LanceStephenson be like #INDvsMIApic.twitter.com/ELXKrS7Pvp

— Terez Owens (@TerezOwens) May 29, 2014

Spread

Also on May 28th, 2014, ESPN SportsNation shared two photoshopped parodies of Stephens blowing on a birthday cake and a toy windmill via Instagram^[2] (shown below). In less than 24 hours, the post received more than 8,800 likes.

That evening, Redditor _DukeSilver posted an animated GIF of the incident to the /r/funny^[1] subreddit, where it gained over 5,900 upvotes and 160 comments in the first 24 hours (shown below, left). In the comments section, Redditor MisterOMinous submitted a photoshopped picture of Stephenson blowing into a NES video game cartridge (shown below, right).

On the following day, SBNation’s NBA-specific Twitter account^[4] posted a photoshopped parody of Stephenson drinking a sundae ice cream from a straw with the cast of the popular sitcom television series Friends. In the first six hours, the tweet accumulated upwards of 1,000 retweets and 450 favorites. Also on May 29th, The Daily Dot^[3] highlighted several notable examples from the photoshop series.

SB Nation user JL_Reports has the best Lance Stephenson photoshop yet. http://t.co/aqINlHl5Ifpic.twitter.com/5KAeGPs6PK

— SB Nation NBA (@SBNationNBA) May 29, 2014

Notable Examples

Search Interest

Not available.

External References

Editor’s Note: This entry is currently being worked on, feel free to request editorship

About

Action 52 is a unlicensed multicart video game that was made by Active Enterprises and was released for the NES in 1991 and the Genesis in 1993^[1] that contains 52 games in one cartridge, the game was panned by several critics for the poor controls and several glitches

History

The concept of the game was developed when the creator saw his son playing an illegal product from Taiwan with 40 games in it, the creator decided to make a legal version of a product exactly like that

Reception

The game was a commercial failure and was panned by critics due to the poor controls and massive amount of glitches that are in the games, even with 2 of them often not starting and breaking the game

Angry Video Game Nerd

In 2010, The Angry Video Game Nerd uploaded a review of the game, panning the game for the poor controls and amount of glitches as well

Original Boxed NES Prototype Cartridge

In August 2012, one of the original developers of the game surprised the gaming community with a very rare original boxed NES prototype cartridge of the game that contained Action 52 and Cheetahman posters and artwork, it was auctioned on eBay at the price of $97,000

Planned SNES Release

A version of the game was planned to be released on the SNES, but it was cancelled for unknown reasons, most likely for how poorly the NES and Genesis versions did

Search Interest

External References

About

Summary Bug is a single topic blog featuring odd instances of plot summaries for various films and TV shows available on Netflix that are drawn from two different text sources due to a glitch in the streaming application. More specifically, the bug combines the first four lines of a title synopsis with the last line taken from another title, often yielding an absurd and genre-bending premise for a story that has yet to be written.

Origin

On May 17th, 2014, Washington-based developer Bob Lannon launched @SummaryBug^[1], a Netflix-themed novelty Twitter account devoted to spotting and highlighting a variety of grammatical errors or incoherencies found in the synopses of the available titles as a result of a software glitch. In less than a week of its launch, @SummaryBug reached more than 4,000 followers.

Spread

External References

Editor’s Note: This entry is currently being worked on, feel free to request editorship

About

He-Man and the Masters of the Universe is an 1980’s cartoon was been produced by Filmation based on Mattel’s successful toy line Masters of the Universe ^[1].

History

[wip]

Reception

[wip]

Related Memes

HEYYEYAAEYAAAEYAEYAA/He-Man Sings

He-Man Sings is a nickname for a 2005 animated video titled “Fabulous Secret Powers” in which the fictional superhero character He-Man was sings a rendition of the 1993 4 Non Blondes hit “What’s Up?” It has since been reuploaded to YouTube numerous times and can also be found remixed and mashed up into other videos across the web. It can also be found on Synchtube as a trolling technique.

Search Interest

External References

About

Phrosties are brightly-colored, sugary alcoholic slushie-style beverages sold in New York City through an Instagram -based delivery service. In late May 2014, the service shut down under legal pressure from New York’s State Liquor Authority, which in turn quickly gave rise to D.I.Y recipes of the sugary alcoholic beverage on the web.

History

In June 2013,^[2] the Instagram account Phrosties^[1] was created. This was the only presence, web or otherwise, for the drink business. In order to be able to order a Phrostie, users had to be approved to follow the account. Once an Instagram user was approved to follow the account, they gained access to phone numbers assigned to each New York City borough. Users then would text the appropriate number, and a delivery man^[4] would come to their location with a cooler of Phrosties of a variety of flavors priced at $10 each. As of early May 2014, the Instagram had gained over 12,000 followers.

Investigation

In a press conference held on May 26th, 2014, New York Senator Charles Schumer^[10] expressed an interest in regulating and possibly shutting down the Phrosties Instagram, saying:

“A few weeks ago, I talked about powdered alcohol. I’m making an effort to prevent that from being sold. I would like to see the same thing happen to these ‘sloshies’ ” if they’re not regulated."

The same day Phrosties deleted its Instagram account,^[11] resurrecting it the following day with all but two of its images removed. Also that day CBS^[12] reported New York’s State Liquor Authority was investigating the business.

Reception

On April 28th, 2014, Swimmingly^[5] published an article titled “We Ordered Illegal Alcoholic Slushies and (Barely) Lived to Tell the Tale.” The article described Phrosties as tasty and very strong, saying:

“Overall, the experience is like college in a bottle. The drinks were as frosty (phrosty?) as one would hope. And again, they were very, very strong.

On May 15th, Bedford and Bowery published an article titled “The Verdict on Phrosties: ‘Try This Psycho Juice While It Is Still Legal’,” and on May 20th, Grub Hub published an article titled “Phrosties: The Only Way to Get Phucked Up This Summer.”

While most reviews praised the taste and how quickly the drinks can get someone intoxicated, on May 27th, Bright Young Things^[9] published an article titled “Taste Test: Phrosties,” which features a negative review:

“It was very, very not good. Actually, it might be good if you think this would be a solid idea: imagine placing cherry cough syrup, Popov vodka, a coconut air freshener and sadness into a blender with some ice. Does that sound good? If so, you will enjoy your Phrosty experience. If not, you will not enjoy your Phrosty experience, because it is exactly like that.”

DIY Recipes

After the Phrosties Instagram account was shut down after being brought under investigation by the New York State’s Liquor Authority, several sites published their own recipes to make Phrosties at home. On May 28th, Refinary29^[6] published a guide titled “DIY Your Own Boozy Slushies.” The next day Buzzfeed^[7] published a pictorial guide and The Daily Dot^[8] published a guide explained through Vines.

Search Interest

External References

About

“Kiiiihara-kuuuuuuuuun!!” (Japanese: 木ィィィ原くゥゥゥゥゥゥゥゥン!!) is a famous utterance by Accelerator, one of the main characters in a Japanese light novel A Certain Magical Index. Shortly after an episode in the TV anime aired in February 2011, his maddish utterances and laugh became to a popular subject for MAD videos on the Japanese video sharing service Nico Nico Douga (NND).

Origin

“Kiiiihara-kuuuuuuuuun!!” is not a transcript from the anime but an actual line in the Academy City Invasion arc of the novels. The scene where Accelerator provokes Amata Kihara^[1], an antagonist in this arc, with this maddish utterance appears on the 9th chapter in the arc included in the 13th volume of the novel released in April 2007. Meanwhile in the TV anime series, other Accelerator’s shouts in the battles with Kihara are also called as this line among viewers. The first footage for those “Kiiiihara” utterances is a trailer for the 2nd season which was published in August 2010 (shown below, left). Then, it appeared in 19th-22nd episodes aired on February to March 2011 (shown below, right).

Spread

Accelerator has been a popular subject for fan creations and parodies on NND^[2] and pixiv^[3] since before, and those mainly closed up his madness and lolicon nature, sometimes dubbed as “Accelolita” (アクセロリータ), which is derived from his relationship with Last Order^[4]. In addition to this, this catchphrase joined onto the bandwagon by a MAD video utilizing "What Kind of Tree Is This Tree?", a famous song for TV adverts running over decades. This video was uploaded to NND on February 28th, 2011^[5] and had been watched more than 1 million times within its first week. Nowadays “Kiiiihara-kuuuuuuuuun!!” is the most essential vocal resource for the video parodies for that dark hero.^[6]

Notable Examples

Niconico とっとこクソ野郎Niconico アクセラレータのパーフェクトさんした教室
Left: An Opening Theme Song for Hamtaro | Right: Cirno’s Perfect Mass Class
Niconico きィはらふァンくらぶ【とある魔術の禁書目録】Niconico クソ魔女せろり
Left: Vocaloid Song “1, 2 Fanclub” | Right: Ojamajo Carnival!!

Search Interest

External References

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