Monday, January 31, 2005

Weird and Unusual Wikipedia Articles

This is why I love Wikipedia. You'd never find this kind of stuff in any so called "real" encyclopedias.

Link

Sunday, January 30, 2005

A charmingly antiquated video of Steve Jobs introducing the original Macintosh in 1984

"Never trust a computer you can't lift!" Link

Saturday, January 29, 2005

It's Funny Because it's True


You know, it's interesting that despite all the differences in London's municipal system compared to New York's, it appears that London's public transportation system has a suckage level thats right on-par with New York City's MTA.

Listen to the song "London Underground" by Adaption (Not Safe For Work)

If you're in NY, simply replace every mention of London Underground with Metropolitan Transportation Authority, and you have a spot-on musical commentary that accurately reflects the feelings many of us are having towards the MTA these days.

Friday, January 28, 2005

...And he Really Means it This Time


"As Slow As Possible", one of the many compositions by the late experimental composer John Cage, originally written in 1985 as a 20 minute piece for piano, is currently in the very first stage of it's longest performance ever. The concert began in 2001, the first sound was produced in February 2003. The final note won't be heard until 2639.

From the ASLSP site, translated from German:

"In 1985 ASLSP was created as a version for the piano but in 1987 John Cage changed it for the organ at the suggestion of the organist Gerd Zacher. 10 years after that, in 1997, on a symposium for organs in Trossingen, the question how one can understand „as slow as possible” and how one should perform the piece came up. Organists, musicologists, organbuilding workers, theologians and philosophers talk about the technical, the aesthetic and the philosophical aspects that can meet the title and the piece. The question of how to realise the opus leads to the conclusion that „as slow as possible” can be thought and played indefinetly – at least as long as the life of an organ is and also as long as peace and creativity in the following generations exists."

Link to official website


The thought of this at first makes me feel more than a bit pessimistic. But it also gives me an equal sense of optimism just knowing that there are people in this world that are forward thinking enough to even consider putting on such an IMMENSE thing like this with the intention of it being completed.

Whether its successful or not, I think this is a brilliant project that I'm sure John Cage would approve of.

Thursday, January 27, 2005

Saturn and several of its moons


Amazing stuff.

More images from the Cassini-Huygens mission here

Wednesday, January 26, 2005

Lewis Carroll's Scrapbook

Bjork's insane Triumph of a Heart video directed by Spike Jones

What do you believe is true even though you have no way of proving it?