Friday Five – Signs Stolen, Digitized, and Turtled

June 1, 2012 —

Turtle crossing signs will soon be installed in Maine to keep drivers vigilant. (Via roadtrafficsigns.com)

Maine installing turtle crossing road signs Motorists in Maine will soon have explicit orders to look out for some of the slower members of the animal kingdom. New turtle crossing road signs are set to be placed on roadsides in three towns in the southern portion of the state as a way to keep drivers alert during a critical turtle nesting period. The Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife hopes that the signs will encourage drivers to drive more slowly and keep an especially watchful eye in order to protect the shelled reptiles, namely Spotted and Blanding’s turtles, which are both protected under the state’s Endangered Species Act.

New parking signs are a key element of Park New Haven’s rebranding.

New Haven Parking Authority adopts new name, new plan to make city experience ‘more pleasant’ The New Haven Parking Authority has changed its name to “Park New Haven” in a move to reform the parking system in the Connecticut city. The parking authority has been running a profit for the past five years and is using that extra funding to recreate itself – in addition to the new name, the Authority has added new parking signs and given its employees new uniforms. This rebranding has come at a rather coincidental time, as parking meter hours were recently extended to 9 p.m., which will likely push more people to the Park New Haven’s facilities.

Hackers frequently reprogram digital traffic signs. This (aptly crooked) instance, from outside of Denver in March 2011, warned drivers of an impending zombie apocalypse. (via CBS Denver)

Road Sign Hacked, Warn of Dalek Invasion Pranksters recently reprogrammed a road construction sign outside of Boulder, Colorado, to read, “WARNING DALEKS AHEAD,” a reference to an extermination-oriented race of mutants in British television show “Doctor Who.” It is unclear how the scofflaws managed to display the message – in some cases, as in the above “CAUTION! ZOMBIES! AHEAD!!!”, the sign’s control box was left unlocked, giving the hackers easy access, but the circumstances around the Dalek warning are far more mysterious. Let’s just chalk it up to time-travelling doctors.

Signs that indicate surveillance one of a few effective theft deterrents. (Via MySecuritySign.com)

Campaign signs disappearing before Iowa primary arrives Campaign sign theft continues to frustrate authorities in Sioux City, Iowa, where the theft of a sheriff candidate’s signs are “the worst they could recall.” During election season, many campaign signs are stolen, but there isn’t usually this much sign stealing until “the time of school homecoming celebrations.” Similarly, major league baseball players continue to be frustrated by another kind of sign stealing. Last July, New York Yankees manager Joe Girardi accused the Toronto Blue Jays of stealing signs, letting their hitters know what type of pitch was coming. After Wednesday night’s game, Baltimore Orioles pitcher Jason Hammel, who gave up four home runs to the Blue Jays, echoed Girardi’s sentiments, noting, “I don’t think you can take swings like that not knowing they’re coming.”

This billboard in Utica, Michigan, is soon to be home to a piece of digital art

Utica billboard to display digital works of art A digital billboard in Utica, Michigan, that has been acquired by an artsy nonprofit will shuffle through a series of artworks in the month of June. The Billboard Art Project, the nonprofit responsible for the initiative, has acquired billboards in a number of cities throughout the nation as a means of “encouraging the exploration of digital billboards as a new artistic medium.” The Project also prides itself on its inclusion of the work of any interested artist.

– T. Caruso