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Archive: OTHER >please note: some links may no longer be active.
Dawkins and dad My father, a retired philosophy professor, is a voracious, and highly critical reader. Books line the walls of both of his apartments, and he has multiple copies of many classics (some feature different translations, others were "bargains", etc.). He is so well-read, in fact, that I rarely presume to give him books. That background may help you to imagine my surprise when he became very excited about a book that I had taken with me during a recent trip to Buenos Aires. The book was The Selfish Gene, by the famous biologist Richard Dawkins. My father, with whom I was travelling, quickly usurped the book, and I took great pleasure in listening to his daily, superlative-laden comments. I can't express how rare it is for him to be so complimentary of a contemporary writer! I haven't had a chance to finish the book yet (dad's a slow reader), but the parts that I did read were highly thought provoking. There is a very interesting review of the (30 year-old!) book by Professor Steven Pinker at the Times (UK) online. I'd recommend reading it, as the author does an excellent job explaining why it's such an important, and influential work. Who knows? It may even motivate you to find a copy. From the review: I AM A COGNITIVE SCIENTIST, someone who studies the nature of intelligence and the workings of the mind. Yet one of my most profound scientific influences has been Richard Dawkins, an evolutionary biologist. The influence runs deeper than the fact that the mind is a product of the brain and the brain a product of evolution; such an influence could apply to someone who studies any organ of any organism. The significance of Dawkins’s ideas, for me and many others, runs to his characterisation of the very nature of life and to a theme that runs throughout his writings: the possibility of deep commonalities between life and mind. Dawkins’s ideas repay close reflection and re-examination, not because he is a guru issuing enigmatic pronouncements for others to ponder, but because he continually engages the deepest problems in biology, problems that continue to challenge our understanding. (thanks to Abbas at 3quarksdaily)
The Academy Awards: platform for desperation I don't recall having ever watched more than a snippet or two of previous Academy Awards shows. For some reason, though, I decided to watch most of last night's edition, and what I found most striking about the production was the palpable desperation which permeated the efforts (some of which were half-hearted) of various hosts to remind the viewers that there is absolutely no substitute for the experience of seeing a film at a movie theater. I was struck by those efforts for a couple of reasons. First, I couldn't help but make a connection with a similar "up is down" marketing approach used by the current Administration. In other words, when a spokesperson for the Administration makes a strained point, the exact opposite is usually true. For example, when some general is trotted out to inform the public that things are going "very, very well" in Iraq (as was recently the case), any listener, even those who are not very well-informed, can reasonably infer that things are going very, very badly. And that is precisely the case in this instance. The fact that The Academy chose to force feed their over-the-top message to viewers last night underscores that the old model is already doomed! Relatively speaking, no luxury item has ever been as accessible to Americans as wide screen, high definition televisions. They are already remarkably cheap, and, very much like computers, will continue to become cheaper, while the quality improves. So the idea that the public is going to return to movie theaters in droves because they are reminded of huge screens and multiple speakers is a greater fantasy than most of the stories which are illuminated on those screens: It ain't going to happen. What we apparently have, in essence, is an industry in denial. And rather than putting their energies toward creative solutions to their inexorably changing business model, they choose to flail on their marquee broadcast in a pathetic, and what will certainly be an unsuccessful attempt to reverse an irreversible trend. I think I might just take a little extra pleasure in viewing a DVD at home this evening. A DVD of an interesting foreign film which is not accessible in any theaters; a DVD which arrived painlessly–and inexpensively–in my mailbox thanks to Netflix; and a DVD which I will enjoy in the comfort and quiet of my own home, on a system which is more than good enough to eliminate any pangs of theater envy which might once have been evident.
Quotes
It occurred to me that since starting this blog about one year ago, I've posted very few simple, one line quotes. And this despite the fact that, thanks to the internet, I come across good examples on a fairly regular basis. So, I've decided to slip one in now and then. And given the unfortunate (though richly deserved) reputation which the U.S. has created through it's recent misadventures around the world, I thought that it might be useful to begin with a quote which will serve to remind those naysayers that the standards of American culture remain, well, pretty much the same: "A completely magical blend of enchanting scents and flavors, with a hint of cupcakes." –Britney Spears on her new fragrance "Fantasy Britney Spears"
Interested in sports? How about Malcolm Gladwell? Either way, you're likely to find a recent exchange between ESPN writer Bill Simmons and Gladwell to be interesting. Here's a glimpse: Gladwell: This is actually a question I'm obsessed with: Why don't people work hard when it's in their best interest to do so? Why does Eddy Curry come to camp every year overweight? The (short) answer is that it's really risky to work hard, because then if you fail you can no longer say that you failed because you didn't work hard. It's a form of self-protection. I swear that's why Mickelson has that almost absurdly calm demeanor. If he loses, he can always say: Well, I could have practiced more, and maybe next year I will and I'll win then. When Tiger loses, what does he tell himself? He worked as hard as he possibly could. He prepared like no one else in the game and he still lost. That has to be devastating, and dealing with that kind of conclusion takes a very special and rare kind of resilience. Most of the psychological research on this is focused on why some kids don't study for tests -- which is a much more serious version of the same problem. If you get drunk the night before an exam instead of studying and you fail, then the problem is that you got drunk. If you do study and you fail, the problem is that you're stupid -- and stupid, for a student, is a death sentence. The point is that it is far more psychologically dangerous and difficult to prepare for a task than not to prepare. People think that Tiger is tougher than Mickelson because he works harder. Wrong: Tiger is tougher than Mickelson and because of that he works harder. Read the full exchange at ESPN Ah, yes. Part II Simmons: Can you explain in one paragraph why you're against Vegas? Gladwell: Where to start? You get there. You can't get a cab. Last time I waited 30 minutes in line at the airport. You get to your hotel, you wait another 45 minutes to check in. It's 120 degrees outside, and inside it's 45 degrees and all you can think about is there's about to be a epidemic of Legionnaires Disease. The food is terrible. Everyone loses money -- everyone. The amount of plastic surgery is terrifying. There are large packs of enormous, glassy-eyed people in stretch pants, pulling the levers on slot machines. (By the way, greatest and most under-appreciated gambling story ever: William Bennett, he of one best seller after another lecturing Americans on moral values and virtue and the bankruptcy of our culture, turns out not only to be a degenerate gambler, but a gambler who only played the slots. The slots! Had he been a great poker player -- even a decent poker player -- I'm in his corner. But the slots?) I digress. Back to Vegas: Why would I want to see Celine Dion, ever (and I'm Canadian)? Or white mutant tigers? Or the Village People? Or Tony Orlando and Dawn? I have more fun walking to the laundromat from my apartment in New York than I do in Vegas. Here's the link to part two of the interview
Motorola? Yes, Motorola is responsible for this exceptionally cool ad! It's a bit slow to load, so be patient. (requires Quicktime) Thanks to Ventilate
Sinking?
An excellent German video advert (requires Quicktime), courtesy of Sadly, No!
32,000 major parts, 750,000 rivets, 23 miles of wiring Every time I have flown long distances in recent years, I have confirmed my preference for the newer Airbus designs to those of Boeing. Airbus has also built the world's largest passenger plane, the A380, and it is a remarkable technological achievement.
The Guardian has an excellent, comprehensive article on the history and building of the plane. When the A380 finally goes into service at the end of this year, it will carry about 550 people, making it the largest passenger aircraft ever to take to the skies. It is not the largest aircraft ever built (the Russian Antonov, a freighter, holds that honour), but at up to 35% greater capacity, it can claim to represent as titanic a revolution in commercial flying as Boeing's jumbo - the 747-400 - was 36 years ago. Partly because of the unique challenges of its size (73m in length, the equivalent of seven London Routemasters queued nose to tail, and with a wingspan of 79.8m) and partly because of demands from airlines that planes should be quieter, less polluting and above all cheaper to fly per passenger, it has not been enough simply to tinker with designs for previous aircraft. Airbus went back to the drawing board and designed the A380 from scratch, which means it is also as major a technological achievement as Concorde. Being manufactured at 16 different European sites, however, using the skills of 1,500 suppliers in 30 countries, this singular aeroplane demands a level of international cooperation that the Concorde project did not even hint at. Read the full article here
Customized search engines
Setting the double entendre aside, Rollyo is developing a very interesting concept.
Need a unique conversation piece? This cave bear skeleton is up for auction at Christie's in early March (Estimate 8,000 - 12,000 British pounds). It's approximately 50,000 years old!
Learn more at Christie's
A (squirrelly) break from politics Mathew Baldwin is behind the often amusing Defective Yeti blog. His young son, whom he calls The Squirrelly, is sometimes featured in his posts. And while the latter does not feature prominently in this particular one, it's worth a read. Here's the first bit: A man walks up to a cashier. He wants to purchase something embarrassing: porn, say, or hemorrhoid medication. He has a few other items, too, but it's unclear as to whether he really wants to buy them or if they are just a beard for the shameful merchandise. He has a plan: when the cashier picks up the copy of "Car & Driver" to reveal the three-pack of "mango flavored" condoms, he will feign surprise and say "whoa, how did those get there? Well, I don't feel like returning them, so go ahead and charge me -- I guess I'll buy them ..." But then, as the teller rings up the items, disaster strikes. For some reason the bar code on the product fails to scan correctly. The teller gets on the intercom system and says, "I'm going to need a price check for the jumbo pack of Tink'L Trapp'R brand adult undergarments ..." Read the rest here
I knew that snakes could eat big creatures, but...
a kangaroo? View the full, astounding sequence here
The danger of religion Richard Dawkins, author of a number of interesting books including The Selfish Gene, has made a documentary on religion for BBC called The Root of All Evil?. Dawkins was interviewed by Simon Mayo on a recent BBC radio broadcast. Simon Mayo– Richard Dawkins– Listen to the full broadcast here
Air travel and climate change Apparently air travel damages the environment far more than alternative methods of travel, including automobiles. To illustrate the point, one transatlantic flight for a family of four creates more CO2 than that family generates domestically in an entire year (details here). Here's an article in The Guardian written by a man who, along with his family, has not been on an airplane in 17 years. (Thanks to treehugger.com)
Garlic Twist
Another cool tool from Kevin Kelly's excellent site of the same name
The most expensive cities in the world 1 Oslo New York is now 27th on the list Read the full article at The Guardian
Fast-track to football (soccer) hooliganism If it weren't so scary, it might be cute.
Terrific cat pictures
View more at Soulsister's Flickr account
"...you see it scrawled on walls!" No Academy Awards as far as I know, but a classic nevertheless.
And, believe it or not, here's a link to a NY Times review!
"moare equalle" It does seem that we are bombarded with an increasing number of lists at the end of each year. Many are either irritating, or a waste of time, but the BBC has created a list of "100 things we didn't know this time last year", which, while not always true (strictly speaking), is actually somewhat interesting and amusing. My favorites include: 19. The = sign was invented by 16th Century Welsh mathematician Robert Recorde, who was fed up with writing "is equal to" in his equations. He chose the two lines because "noe 2 thynges can be moare equalle". 75. Each successive monarch faces in a different direction on British coins. 86. Hecklers are so-called because of militant textile workers in Dundee. 92. You are 176 times more likely to be murdered than to win the [British] National Lottery. 99. The Japanese word "chokuegambo" describes the wish that there were more designer-brand shops on a given street. Read the full list here
$100m of taxpayers money Coffee, and 3 Quarks Daily I had the pleasure recently of joining a small group of very interesting people for dinner. They were all artistically inclined and politically engaged, and I am delighted to have made some new friends. The evening was hosted by the principle Editor of the excellent, erudite group blog called 3Quarks Daily. If you haven't yet visited the blog, I encourage you to do so. Here's a direct link to an interesting recent post on the sociology of Coffee. 3 Quarks Daily home page
Shit be COLLATED. I have very fond memories of the National Lampoon. It really was, during its prime, a funny, pungent, well-written magazine which excelled in parody. The Onion, the popular online parody news source, has captured much of the Lampoon's spirit with often excellent and funny writing. Take, for example, the current "report" from Herbert Kornfeld. According to his profile, "Kornfeld writes about workplace issues for The Onion. He works as the Accounts Receivable Supervisor at Midstate Office Supply, the state's oldest wholesaler and retailer of office supplies and business machines." This particular report is entitled "Human-Resources Bitches Be Makin' Me Take Vacation Days" Read the report at theonion.com
A pet peeve I find it to be highly irritating–and mind-boggling–that so many television stations, including those from which I expect better, insist on using intrusive advertising during programs. As I hold some networks to higher standards, I felt compelled to write to IFC recently about this practice. To Whom It May Concern, I am writing to express my view of your network's insistence on superimposing your logo during films (this evening during At Close Range, for example). I frankly find it both astonishingly stupid, and ironic that you choose to use this crude, intrusive marketing technique. I characterize the approach as stupid because you not only spoil the viewer's experience with the distracting logo, but it often has the opposite of the intended effect. I, and many of the people I know who are attracted to independent film and programming, actually choose to watch your network less and less as a result of this practice. The practice is ironic in part because of the unintended negative consequence of the approach, but also because your network, which fashions itself "independent" (if not quirky), is behaving like the quintessential corporate sheep, following the lead of the major networks (and others) which are desperate to shore up their ratings. Here's a small clue: HBO is not only extremely successful because of superior programming, but also because they have the brains not to insult their viewers with intrusive advertising. Wake up.
OK, I'll admit it. When I was a rambunctious teenager, I did occasionally engage in mischievious behavior. I was usually drawn into such activities by a particular cohort who shall remain nameless (Rick Mortenson), but that's neither here nor there. I bring this up because I stumbled across an amusing account of such behavior, an account which will delight any of us who, at one time or another, enjoyed such activities. Thanks to Steve Krodman. There was a time when I considered studying aerospace engineering, but my natural inclination to Play With Dangerous Substances won out, and I ended up as a chemical engineer instead. People who meet me are sometimes surprised to discover my engineering background. My twisted personality doesn’t mesh well with the popular conception of Engineering People. Seems like I better fit the mold of Drooling Psychopath, or Failed Comedian. There’s no question that, compared to the others of my “Dirty Dozen” chemical engineering section, I was a little…different. I hung out with the stoner History and Political Science majors, for the most part – not so much with my fellow E-Quad Nerd Squad colleagues. But this is not to say that the Engineering Types were not a Fun Group. Witnesseth: (snip) And then there was our Ballistics Lab. From the chemical supply room, we got hold of about thirty feet of stout rubber tubing and an oversized funnel. We then repaired to that part of the campus known as the “New-New Quad” – so named because it had supplanted what had previously been called the “New Quad” as the most recently-built set of dormitories. (That quad, of course, was now called the “Old-New Quad.”) The New-New Quad consisted of a series of three-story dormitory buildings, sheathed in dark brown brick and beige concrete, with wrought-iron decorative railings at the roofline. It was to that roofline we repaired, because those decorative railings now had a sinister purpose. They were to serve as the anchors for our Infernal Ballistic Device. By attaching the rubber tubing to the funnel and thence to the railings, we were able to construct a Gigantic Slingshot, a slingshot whose enormous draw, coupled with our four-story height advantage, allowed us to project force (in the form of huge water balloons) to great distances. The tricky part was filling the balloons up just the right amount. They needed to be slack enough to withstand the incredible G-forces of the launch, yet full enough to disintegrate on impact to deliver a Thoroughly Moistening Payload. One sunny May morning in 1971, we inaugurated our Ballistics Lab by firing a water balloon 150 yards, drenching an unsuspecting gaggle of Chemistry Nerds. So unexpected was the arrival of the Moist Payload in their midst that they never thought to look up at the top of that distant dormitory building, where a handful of mischief-makers was hooting and high-fiving one another. We were able to launch about ten of those damn things before the imminent arrival of the University proctors caused us to scatter like roaches in a suddenly-lit kitchen. Barely had time to disassemble the Infernal Device and ditch the evidence. That warm spring afternoon’s activity was as close as I ever came to being an aerospace engineer. What fun we could have had in ROTC. I understand they actually studied ballistics there...
Yes, they are nice to pat. More amusement from Squirrelly's dad. (Note: dad is "Me", and mom is "The Queen") Friend: What was The Squirrelly's first word? Me: "Kitty." The Queen: "Mama." M: [To Queen] Well, really he started saying "kitty" first. Q: [To friend] It was "mama." M: [To Queen] I mean, yes, he made "mm mm" sounds before he said kitty, but, you know, in order to officially be considered a word they have to say it three times in the appropriate context, so -- Q: [To me, accompanied by The Look] His first word was "mama." M: Well, but I ... I, um ... uhh ... {pause} Q: [To friend] It was "mama." And that, ladies and gentlemen, is how facts are made. And the following comment left by a reader: My first word was kitty, too - "tisty," actually - but I think that's only reasonable considering that there were three of them all meandering around at my eye level. My mother did dream while she was pregnant that the doctor delivered her of a little gray kitten instead of a baby, though - so it may just be fate at work here. Did it affect me? I have three. And a foster cat, too, for now. I don't fault the Squirrely on this count - they're there in the field of vision, they're interesting to observe, they're nice to pat - all reasons it would pop up as a first word, and an easily enunciated and clearly intelligible first word at that. A fine choice. Posted by: Jocelyn on December 4, 2005 09:39 PM Read the full post here
George Best Those of you who have travelled outside of the U.S. have a sense of just how remarkably popular football (soccer) is around the world. George Best, a brilliantly talented, though self-destructive Irishman, was one of the best to have played the game. Best's story is, on balance, a sad one, culminating in his recent death at the age of 59. His candor was legendary, and he produced some memorable quotes. “I spent most of my money on booze, birds and fast cars,” he said once, “and the rest I just squandered.” "If I'd been ugly," said George, "you'd never have heard of Pele." You can read a nice obituary at The Guardian website
Find the worm!
A very clever, appropriately frenetic, interactive game. The creators at studio aka are a talented bunch, and they have other interesting short films on their site. studioaka.co.uk (films require the Shockwave plug-in and/or Quicktime)
Technical analysis based on magazine page count. Richard Giles comes up with an interesting connection between the page count of Wired magazine and the Nasdaq exchange.
Read the full post at The Gadget Show on thepodcastnetwork.com
Chris Harding is a funny and talented cartoonist. I've linked to the "sundry" page of his site. Also try the "animation" page, and especially the "Make Mine Shoebox" feature. Take a look at his site
More other? click here! •••
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