Feb
8
“Top 15 Manipulated Photographs”
Top 15 Manipulated Photographs - Listverse
sysrick
archived links sysrick's bookmarks
“Kim Stanley Robinson I thought you might be interested in this video from a recent Kim Stanley Robinson talk in which he describes life in the present as a science fiction novel we all collaborate on. This is an excerpt from a pair of talks he gave at the Duke in January; the entirety of the other talk is available here. Here’s a transcript of the first part of the video:”
Kim Stanley Robinson
RT @Astro_Nicholas: Disappointed by the scrub, but got a really good night’s sleep. We’re go for tanking, and - pending weather - anoth …
Feb
7
“Strange Days” does three things that will make it a cult film. It creates a convincing future landscape; it populates it with a hero who comes out of the noir tradition and is flawed and complex rather than simply heroic, and it provides a vocabulary. Look for “tapehead,” “jacking in” and the movie’s spin on “playback” to appear in the vernacular. At the same time, depending more on mood and character than logic, the movie backs into an ending that is completely implausible. The police commissioner’s sudden appearance on the scene is miraculous. And Bigelow begins a riot and then forgets about it, segueing into a New Year’s Eve celebration as if you can turn off anarchy like water from a tap. What stays from the movie are not the transient plot problems, however, but the overall impact. This is the first movie about virtual reality to deal in a challenging way with the implications of the technology. It’s fascinating the way Bigelow is able to suggest so much of VR’s impact (and dangers) within a movie - a form of VR that’s a century old. As the character Faith observes: “One of the ways movies are still better than playback - the music comes up, and you know it’s over.”
Strange Days :: rogerebert.com :: Reviews
“What I love about Kasparov’s algorithm — “Weak human + machine + better process was superior to a strong computer alone and … superior to a strong human + machine + inferior process” — is that it suggests serious rewards accrue to those who figure out the best way to use thought-enhancing software. (Or rather, those who figure out a way that’s best for them; people always use tools in slightly different, idiosyncratic ways.) The process matters as much as the software itself. How often do you check it? When do you trust the help it’s offering, and when do you ignore it?”
collision detection: Garry Kasparov, cyborg
“Did I holler with joy across cyberspace, back when Adm. Mike Mullen became Chairman of the Joint Chiefs? People said, “Calm down David, it’s not the Second Coming!” But I felt it was damn close to a kind of salvation.”
Contrary Brin: The Admiral as Hero
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Santa Fe Institute economist: one in four Americans is employed to guard the wealth of the rich
By Cory Doctorow at 10:45 PM February 5, 2010
Here’s a fascinating profile on radical Santa Fe Institute economist Samuel Bowles, an empiricist who says his research doesn’t support the Chicago School efficient marketplace hypothesis. Instead, Bowles argues that the wealth inequality created by strict market economics creates inefficiencies because society has to devote so much effort to stopping the poor from expropriating the rich. He calls this “guard labor” and says that one in four Americans is employed to in the sector — labor that could otherwise be used to increase the nation’s wealth and progress.
” Santa Fe Institute economist: one in four Americans is employed to guard the wealth of the rich Boing Boing
“I’ve talked before about how some of the best stuff happens once the cameras stop rolling and I’d have to say that once we were done shooting the meal scene with Bill Murray for Monday’s Hudson Valley show, what happened next was one of those times: He had to be in New York pretty quickly. I was headed home. Producer Tom Vitale had a rented SUV parked outside for just that situation and the three of us piled into the car, Tom at the wheel, me riding shotgun, Bill in the back.”
Tony’s Travel Journal
“Thoughts on Eating at Walt Disney World
We recently returned from a few well deserved days at Disney World and this morning I was pondering the food selection available to Disney guests. My conclusion is that the food at Disney World is great.*” Alton Brown and Good Eats: Thoughts on Eating at Walt Disney World
We recently returned from a few well deserved days at Disney World and this morning I was pondering the food selection available to Disney guests. My conclusion is that the food at Disney World is great.*” Alton Brown and Good Eats: Thoughts on Eating at Walt Disney World
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