Useless Infotainment at 11:00

I think a lot about news these days.  Not "The News," but news: the way we consume it, the way it's presented, the way it's filtered and edited, the way much of it is actually ignored by the people who are supposed to report it and the public who is supposed to pay attention to it.  Mostly, I lament that news has become just another "product" to be consumed and that you can pick the news you wish to believe, as if you could pick and choose your own version of what's real.

The late Daniel Patrick Moynihan said, “Everyone is entitled to his own opinion, but not his own facts.”  When did we start to think that what we believe is more significant than what is really going on around us?

I believe it was Edward R. Murrow who once said that news is what rich and powerful people don't want you to know about.  How much of today's news passes that test?

      He also said, “If we were to do the Second Coming of Christ in color for a full hour, there would be a considerable number of stations which would decline to carry it on the grounds that a Western or a quiz show would be more profitable.”


This gives you some insight into where I'm going with this post and why I fear for our democracy and nation.  I used to work in news, as an editor, that's why I feel the way I do.  Chris Lee still does and he has some opinions about what happened to get us to this sad state.  Read and weep.


http://radar.oreilly.com/2010/01/when-it-comes-to-news-why-wont.html

Moog Modular V 2.5

I remember the first time I encountered a Moog Synthesizer: Switched-On Bach. I was all of 14-years-old and absolutely captivated. All those knobs and patch cords. And then there were the sounds that it made. To an adolescent boy growing up in the mid-late ’60s whose hero was Mr. Spock, it was like a futuristic dream come true—my own musical version of the Starship Enterprise and for only a few thousand dollars. The Last Whole Earth Catalog even featured a review of it by Wendy Carlos herself!

Then I learned how much a few thousand dollars actually was. I tinkered with resisters and capacitors, transistors and chokes, but I couldn’t do anything like that. But this is what led me inexorably to a career in music and recording. Well, and the Beatles helped, too. Flash forward 41 years and many synthesizers, guitars and amps later, I still could not seem to afford that big gleaming Moog dream.

Then a company called Arturia released a virtual software version of my childhood Holy Grail, the Moog Modular V. And there were nine—count ’em, nine!—oscillators. Filters, envelope generators. A fixed filter bank. A sample and hold module. A bank of configurable mixers. And with enough computer firepower, I could finally make the sounds I’d heard Wendy Carlos make. The software even has stereo chorus and delay lines, a very neat addition to the package to fatten up your sound without having to use any outboard effects. And did I mention polyphony? Yes, unlike its hardware predecessor, the Moog Modular V offers up to 32 voices, if you have the processor power to deliver them.

I’ve been using this powerful, flexible piece of software for almost four years now and I have to admit that it does almost everything I ever wanted a music synthesizer to do. It does things the hardware version couldn’t even do. My only complaint is latency (delay). I would never use it live, but then again I haven’t been playing live these days, and if I did, I’d probably sample off the sounds I want to use and do it that way. The software can be used stand alone or as a plugin, for Mac or Windows OS.

Arturia Moog Modular V2.5 Software Synthesizer

$190

Available from Amazon

Software by Arturia

Here are two audio samples:  http://www.kk.org/cooltools/moogmv1.mp3
http://www.kk.org/cooltools/moogmv6.mp3

Five Dangerous Things You Should Let Your Kids Do

The title says it all.  We are depriving our kids of very fundamental learning experiences that past generations enjoyed abundantly and took for granted.  All in the name of an ever increasing and irrational desire for safety and security that cannot be had.  This is to make ourselves (adults) feel better.

I have two children.  One is grown and married, the other finishing high school.  Both had the benefits of lessons such as these because I grew up with a pocket knife, shot off rockets, used firearms and played with electricity and fire.

Do I sound like a dangerous individual?  Not compared to Gever Tulley, founder of the Tinkering School.  Below is a link to Gever's TED talk, "5 dangerous things you should let your kids do" and below that, a link to the Tinkering School.  Have fun.




http://www.tinkeringschool.com/blog/2005/about/

Gas Giants Could Be A Girl's Best Friend

Since I'm off in space, I might as well add this very interesting bit about the planets Neptune and Uranus.  Both might have oceans of liquid diamonds littered with diamond "iceburgs."  Are you sure you want to book a trip for you and the wife on Spaceship Two?  It could lead to a much longer vacation to pick up some sparklies.

http://news.discovery.com/space/diamond-oceans-jupiter-uranus.html

Is That A Black Hole In Your Pocket Or Are You Just A Suck-Up?

Mmm, Black Holes.  Not the most exotic things in the universe, but pretty close.  Ever wondered what these enigmatic things are and how they work?  Here's a really neat flash animation of just what it means to be a Black Hole.

http://www.thinktechnologies.com/portfolio/demos/Blackhole.html

As an added bonus, I'm including this link to UCLA astronomer Andrea Ghez's TED talk showing proof that the center of our galaxy, The Milky Way, is powered by a Supermassive Black Hole.  Have fun, but don't get caught too close to the event horizon.

http://www.ted.com/talks/andrea_ghez_the_hunt_for_a_supermassive_black_hole.html

Taylor Mali Tells Us What Teachers Make

I teach. Sometimes, people ask me what I make. Taylor Mali puts it well. One thing I would add, though, is "I make the future."

http://www.ted.com/talks/taylor_mali_what_teachers_make.html

Quantum Computer Simulates Hydrogen Molecule

Until now quantum computing has mostly been an unattainable dream.  Digital computers tend to approximate things when faced complex physical problems, by using mathematical shortcuts,

Not quantum computers.  Their results are exactly the same as nature.  This article from Science News reports on the world's first elementary quantum computing device.

http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/55537/title/Quantum_computer_simulates_hydrogen_molecule_just__right

Perplexus

I just completed this wonderful 3D labyrinth game.  I spent about three hours over three days doing it and was it ever fun.  This is a great, fun tool that teaches students patience, perseverance, concentration, spatial awareness, planning ahead. All skills that will serve them well in their futures. I found it on Kevin Kelly's Cool Tools and I have to say that the $25 was very well spent.  Not only do students learn from it, but teachers can also use it to assess cognition, dimensional awareness skills, coordination.

Here's a link to the history of Perplexus.

http://www.santarosa.edu/~mmcginni/superplexus/history/history.htm

It has 100 stations that you have to negotiate.  Some are difficult topsy-turvy turns. Some double back on themselves. It's definately all-ages.  It's like a 3D video game without the electronics.




Available from Amazon and other toys stores.  Target is supposed to have them soon.  One caveat: get the Playsmart one, not the Buksi.  The Buksi model has the Buksi Logo raised on the top and bottom of the clear plastic hemispheres and this can distort your view during critical stages of play.  Have fun!

Some Animals Are More Equal Than Others

Yesterday the High Court ruled that corporations are people under the law.  Below is an edited version of comments I made on a friends Facebook page sharing my concerns about this ruling.

Now corporations have more rights than human beings. In addition to the rights granted by the High Court in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, they have the right to be immortal. All they have to do is survive. And they do, at all costs to everyone and everything that is not them.

I once argued that corporations should not have the same rights as a person to a corporate lawyer, who walked away when I got the better of him. I'm sure that by doing so, he thought that he had won the argument.  

Here's a truly terrifying notion: If corporations are finally and completely considered to be "persons" under this ruling, that means they can be murdered. What if, through any action taken by an individual, group or corporation, a corporation is put out of business (is murdered)?

Does that mean that it's possible that the "murderer" can be brought to justice? Sentenced to life imprisonment? The dealth penalty? I am not making a joke here. Can't we see Scalia, Thomas, and Alito especially, being favorably disposed to such an interpretation?

Stay tuned Keep those passports ready. As if any other nation will be willing then to take us.

The Hero's Journey

Recently I posted my thoughts on the film "Avatar." In it, I made reference to "The Hero's Journey," as outlined by Joseph Campbell.  I thought it might be useful, for those of you not familiar with his work, for me to post a link to a web page that spells out the steps in the journey.  Note that most, but not all, are included in the movie.

http://www.mcli.dist.maricopa.edu/smc/journey/ref/summary.html

Everybody's Money

Wonder where the money goes?  Do you ever puzzle about the ratios of food/shelter/transportation/entertainment in your hometown and how you stack up?

Here's a great little calculator from Bundle.com.  All you do is put in your zipcode (or anyone else's, if you're nosy) and up pops the ratios of those variables for your (or their) town.

http://bundle.com/everybodysmoney#/agdata_bbViz_getCatSpendData/U.S./0/0/0/0/200910/100_101_102_103_104_105

On Gospel, Abba and the Death of the Record: an Audience with Brian Eno

The work of Brian Eno has always fascinated me.  From the early days of Roxy Music through his collaborations with Robert Fripp and role as Producer for The Talking Heads, U2, Bowie, to his wonderful music application  for the iPhone and iTouch, Bloom, Eno has always been someone whose thinking process has been greatly admired and emulated.  Today's posts reference his work.  The link below goes to an interview he gave recently about his work and how he goes about it.

If you are interested in an unique and thoughtful way of looking at things, spend a few minutes in the mind of Brian Eno.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2010/jan/17/brian-eno-interview-paul-morley

Oblique Strategies.

One of my absolute favorite things that Eno did (along with the late artist Peter Schmidt) is to create the Oblique Strategies oracle card set.  I've found these very useful in removing blockages in my own creative process.  Each card contains a phrase or cryptic remark which can be used to break a deadlock or dilemma situation.  As the box says, "over one hundred worthwhile dilemmas."

As Eno says himself, "These cards evolved from our separate working procedures. It was one of the many cases during the friendship that he [Peter Schmidt] and I where we arrived at a working position at almost exactly the same time and almost in exactly the same words. There were times when we hadn't seen each other for a few months at a time sometimes, and upon remeeting or exchanging letters, we would find that we were in the same intellectual position - which was quite different from the one we'd been in prior to that.

"The Oblique Strategies evolved from me being in a number of working situations when the panic of the situation - particularly in studios - tended to make me quickly forget that there were others ways of working and that there were tangential ways of attacking problems that were in many senses more interesting than the direct head-on approach."

Below is a link to an online version.  There are also downloadable versions available.

http://stoney.sb.org/eno/oblique.html

MLK

Today we remember the life and work of one of our true giants, the Reverend Martin Luther King.  Nothing I can do, say or write can have any significance next to this.

Be back tomorrow.

How To Be A Good Listener...Even If You're Deaf

The world's only full time percussionist, Evelyn Glennie, teaches us how to listen.  The lesson is all the more profound because she is profoundly deaf.  I love her work and have followed her for the better part of a decade.  I've seen her perform and attended her master classes and once enjoyed the great privilege of a conversation with her.  All I can say is that we all can learn a great deal from her. 
http://www.ted.com/talks/evelyn_glennie_shows_how_to_listen.html

Avatar - The Hero's Journey

Just got back from Avatar and I thought I'd weigh-in.  I'm going to take a lot of flak for this, but...amazing to look at.  Exquisitely and perfectly beautiful.  Best 3D I've ever seen.  Here comes the bad part.  Hackneyed theme and plot.  One dimensional characters and a two dimensional (still flat) hero.  Great voice performances (especially CCH Pounder, a personal favorite, as the heroine, Neytiri's, mother).

My favorite performance?  Stephen Lang as the villian.  Single minded, ruthless and driven.  I hated him. Which is the mark of an excellent actor.  I enjoyed the movie immensely.  If you can ignore the politics (which I can) you're in for a great time.

One really cool thing about Avatar.  One might ask why I enjoyed a movie with one dimensional characters and a thin story.  Well, it wasn't just the eye candy.  My wife and I are big fans of the Mythologist Joseph Campbell (The Power of Myth, The Hero With a Thousand Faces) and one of his most famous books is "The Hero's Journey."

The book talks about cross-cultural hero stories, where an ordinary person encounters extraordinary circumstances and rises to the challenge to becomes an extraordinary person; a hero. Think Luke Skywalker and Harry Potter.  The one great thing about this film and the reason so many are raving about is that it is a Hero's Journey writ large...very large.  Go see it.  Enjoy.

Tobacco's Plea -No Big US Payments

What will they want next...a Federal Bailout?

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100116/ap_on_bi_ge/us_tobacco_case

Arctic Permafrost Leaking Methane at Record Levels

This article, which Scientific American posted on its twitter feed, should alarm us all. No matter what the cause, this is one of the serious indicators. Read. Take note.

The statement that concerns me most is, "The new study follows repeated warnings that even modest levels of global warming could trigger huge increases in methane release from permafrost."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/jan/14/arctic-permafrost-methane

Samson Go-Mic

I've been an audio engineer for more than 35 years, and I'm always on the lookout for useful new tools. Microphones are a particular obsession; I probably own a dozen high-quality models. For a long time I’d wanted a nice USB mic that delivers high-quality audio recordings, yet has a very small footprint. The Samson Go Mic fits the bill for me. There are several other mics that do the same job, but they’re more expensive and larger/heavier.

This mic is pretty small, and it clamps to the top of the screen of your laptop with its integral clamp. It also comes with a USB cable and stores neatly away in the included zippered pouch. It’s plug and play for both Mac and Windows. The best features? It has a 1/8-inch headphone output on the side for zero-latency (no delay) monitoring and both cardioid and omnidirectional patterns. The cardioid pattern rejects sound from the back and sides. The omnidirectional pattern picks up equally well from all sides. The cardioid pattern would be best for a person doing a podcast. This mic records in mono, so the omnidirectional pattern would work well when you need to record an interview across a table (one person on each side) or multiple sources from different directions and have them all heard well in the resulting recording.

I bought two: one for our daughter, who’s been using it for Skype, and one for myself. I've been using mine with a netbook to record music rehearsals. While it isn’t a U87, it gets the job done well. I'm also looking forward to using it to record a podcast series I've been planning.

Jeff Bragg

PS. If you'd like to hear what this mic sounds like, I've recorded the review above.  Just click on the link below.

http://www.kk.org/cooltools/GoMic.mp3

Techno Utopian Fail

Those who know me well, know that I am a technology AND foreign/international policy geek. Here's article that illustrates why the internet (and any other tech whizzbang toy) does nothing to make our world a more democratic place.

http://www.thenational.ae/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20091231/REVIEW/701019830/1008/review