Satoshi Kon Short

This is a short piece by Japanese animator Satoshi Kon; known for his unique -and many times bizarre- visuals:



Also look at the opining scene of his feature film, Paprika: Here. Same animation quality, though you won’t understand what’s going on if you haven’t seen the film.

Wall-E's Real!

Wall-E Spotted in LA! from Blink on Vimeo.

Return of Jet-Man

Awhile ago I posted about Jet Man; well, I’m glad to say that he’s still flying, but he now goes by the name of “FusionMan."

“Swiss professional pilot Yves Rossy, the world's first man to fly with fitted jet fuel powered wings strapped to his back, flies during his first official demonstration above Bex over the Swiss Alps on Wednesday. Rossy, who calls himself 'FusionMan,' was realeased from a plane at an altitude of 8,000 feet, before he completed several loops.”

On Burma

This makes me unbelievably mad:

Burma Killed by Tyranny

I don’t know what’s worse, those who try to exploit Burma for their own gain; the leadership and oppressive statism that led to so many being hurt and killed, or the Americans who fail to recognize the blatantly obvious: that free nations never experience such loss of life from natural disasters.

Like Making? Watch Iron Man.

Sure, Iron Man is sometimes at odds with Newtonian physics, but any Maker can still enjoy watching Tony Stark put together the Mach 1:

Fake Making is a time-tested, enjoyable movie experience; I cite the treehouse form Earnest Scared Stupid, the Plane in Radio Flyer, the other Plane in The Flight of the Phoenix, the even better Treehouse in The Swiss Family Robinson; and dozens of others.

There are some very good engineers in the movie world (though they do cheat, being fictional and all.)

Digital Human Analogue

Right now, before a bridge or a building or an aircraft is built, it goes through a rigorous series of computer tests, that simulate stress in a thousand different ways. This simulation technology has not only resulted in vastly safer engineering in all aspects of life; but has sped up the process from pre-production to completion. So why not start applying this same technology to the human body?

A fully analogue digital human would have literally tens-of-thousands of applications; most notably, it would speed up medical testing, treatments, and pharmaceutical research. That means more drugs that are much safer in less time. A digital human could test a new drugs effectiveness, as well as long term effects, all within a matter of minutes. The digital human could be programmed to be giving random assortments of drugs, millions every second (while the computer reads its effects); new drugs can be developed, not by careful research, but by billions of simulations and trial and error (all of which happens, of course, in a small amount of time) until it reaches a desired outcome; it’s a somewhat un-eloquent solution to health problems, but it might prove effective.

This is not all it could be used for. Medical students can get advanced training without having to meet real patients; safety of new vehicles can be tested with a lot more accuracy; forensic science (which is now investing in animation) can improve greatly; even video games will benefit. The applications are endless.

But this technology has major roadblocks ahead of it: most notably, the lack of knowledge*. Complicated computer simulations are only as good as the knowledge one has of what it is simulating; for years now, scientists and programmers have attempted to create a digital analogue for climate; but none have shown any real success in predicting real whether; the variables are too great and our understanding too small. Quite simple, we don’t understand enough to create a digital analogue of the human body.

But we don’t need to start by creating a full digital human body; a better approach might be to build up to it. Start by simulating something in a limited environment. For instance, algae cultures; and move on from there.

Or you can start more broadly; computer systems are many times better at larger trends then small interactions, working big, and then becoming smaller might be the best way to go. A working digital liver could be created which replicates the functions (imperfectly) of a real liver, as more knowledge is gained, it can be expanded and become more complex, until it is a reasonable analogue.

It would take a great deal of trail and error; and some hardcore research, to make this technology come to fruition. This technology, once under develop, would need to improve with time (it could actually be developed in conjuncture with research as to how the body works). Though take comfort that this technology is very plausible; in fact, it’s likely, it’s just a matter of when.

I have looked online, and there are few people talking about this technology and even less working on it. I managed to find this paper, which is an outline as to why it is beneficial, though it is un-sourced and not very helpful.

Whoever develops this stands to benefit from it greatly, not just financially, but by living in a world where medical and engineering technology are accelerated. I hope, for the sake of vastly better technologies, some smart people begin to work seriously on this massive undertaking within the foreseeable future.

*Even if you solve the major problem of limited knowledge; there are still many problems one has to overcome. Processing power is too limited right now; even large computer would have a hard time computing the reactions within a single human cell (millions upon millions of replicating DNA building blocks interacting, for instance) In a human body with over a trillion cells, all affecting each other, that’s an indescribable amount of information. Though compute power is increasing rapidly, so this is not a major problem.

Communication between the people developing the digital human and the researchers and doctors might be a problem as well.

It will also be unclear, in the early stages of development, weather one has truly created an analogue; or if it behaves in such a way that the ‘inputs’ and ‘outputs’ produce the same results in certain ways as the real thing.

But all these problems pale in comparison too the first and biggest one.

Speculations on Identity (Which are More Likely to Confuse Then Inform)

What constitutes Identity?

Science has yet to come up with an answer; but philosophy (and practicality) can’t wait for it to find one. We usually define “identity” as a collection of things: A person’s actions, private thoughts, physical appearance, sense of life, genetics, philosophy, emotions and attitudes, tastes, and a million other things.

But all these are open to change; If I am horribly burned in an car accident (changing my appearance) I don’t cease to become me; in the same sense, if I think the ideas of the Communist partly are persuasive, and radically change my views, I am still me. Our concept of Identity also constitutes change; each element of identity is interchangeable with a different element. I have radically changed from my five-year-old self in nearly every category; but we don’t consider five-year-old Ryan and modern Ryan as different people (though we would if they existed in the same time and space.)

Identity doesn’t even have to be unique; if I was cloned in such a way that the new me was an exact replica of me in every way that I exist right now, it wouldn’t be long before we grant Ryan number two an individual identity.

Perhaps it’s simpler to think of identity as a center of focus. I am me because nobody but me can be experiencing this body, through these eyes, with this mind in the same way at the same time. In this-almost Buddhist- sense; “Identity” and even “Consciousness” are merely the center in which events, sensations, ‘elements’ of identity, and perception swirl. This too has its pitfalls; as it treats something we all experience, the current concept of an ego, as something non-existent, an illusion created by complex interactions of matter and energy.

This raises more questions; most notably: does 'consciousness' require 'identity' (or self-awareness.) The obvious answer is “yes”; a thought requires a thinker; though Buddhist and Materialists say “no.” Of course, if they where right, why would nature create the ‘illusion’ of identity (which, in some part, can be observed even in animals.) Is it some kind of byproduct, or does it serve a purpose? And if it is an illusion, and not needed, why haven’t we encountered and identity-less consciousness (or would we be able to tell if somebody lacked an ego?)

I think, one of the reasons people find the concept of the soul so comforting, is it gives an easy answer to the idea of identity; we are our souls, everything else is window-dressing.

I know I would find somewhat comforting. This question is more personal then most mysteries; we experience ourselves everyday, without knowing what those ‘self’s’ really are; we think, without quite knowing what thought or ‘intelligence’ or ‘consciences’ is; we are using our minds to discover just what the mind is (a tool trying to figure out how it works and what it is.)

These are wonderfully bizarre and brain-twisting questions and conundrums; and, rather then representing a lack of knowledge, are actually a testament to just how much we’ve evolved.

DeviantArt

DeviantArt is a site where anybody can post their work; and sell it if they want. Right now, you can go on this site and post a painting, a doodle, a picture, a poem or short story, or you can post a blank white box and call it “reflections on nothingness.”

Because of this, most of the work on DeviantArt is not great. But there are some great talents working there, like Robert Tracey. Plus, when searching for work it is usually listed by most popular, which usually means the best work comes up first.

A lot of the work is anime and sci-fi inspired; which is not a bad thing, the site just has a certain audience. This site is just plain fun; it’s a great way to look at art, promote yourself, and even make a little money (like Quent Cordair, this will remain on my links list.)

Here are a couple samples:

Catch-Me, by Night-Fate

Ship, by ~Pa-le

Quent Cordair Fine Art

As a person who loves art-and somewhat of an artist myself- I can appreciate the style and work that went into a piece. I enjoy seeing talent, being happily jealous of it. So whenever I need a pick-me-up, I tend to go the talented folks at Quent Cordair Fine Art, which is a gallery devoted to Romantic Realism: which attempts to portray abstract principles through a realistic style.

While I don’t share all of the philosophical underpinnings of the studio; there is some great talent there; in fact, I can barley recall a piece of work on their site I didn't enjoy looking at (for this reason, it will stay permanently on my links to the right.)

I would post some of my favorite works here for you to see, but I don’t know the proper laws and etiquette for doing so. In any case; the site itself is a better place to view images.

The Dos Equis Guy

This is sort of random, but I kind of like these commercials (which is weird, because I’m not a drinker); without further ado, here is The Most Interesting Man in the World:



And here is the Most Interesting Man on:

Mixed Nuts
Packages
and....
Careers

Who was Herodotus?

Herodotus was the world first known Historian, he wrote The Histories, a collection of stories and facts form the ancient world, and some extras.

“In the Histories, he describes the expansion of the Achaemenid empire under its kings Cyrus the Great, Cambyses and Darius the Great, culminating in king Xerxes' expedition in 480 BCE against the Greeks, which met with disaster in the naval engagement at Salamis and the battles at Plataea and Mycale. Herodotus' remarkable book also contains ethnographic descriptions of the peoples that the Persians have conquered, fairy tales, gossip, legends, and a very humanitarian morale.” [Quoted from here]

While much of what he wrote has been confirmed by archeological evidence and other sources; the truth of much of it is still in question. In any case; Herodotus is one of the most important sources of knowledge we have on that time period.

Natural Wonders

here are some impressive photos:

Accelerating Paleontology

I’ve been a big fan of Michael Anissimv’s blog, Accelerating Future, for awhile now. His site (mostly devoted to various futurism issues) is incredibly fascinating. I don’t always agree with what he says, but he’s always interesting. The blog is updated so often, it is practically a news reel for "transhuminist" culture.

Well, he’s created a new blog, Arthropleura, which is dedicated to an interest that we both share: paleontology.

I highly suggest anybody with even passing interest of natural history check it out.

He has also inspired me to create a couple blog about my own specific interests; namely, THE NATURALIST, which is devoted to all things natural history (though I tend to lean more towards an interest in Geology then anything else) and Herodotus Reborn; which is devoted to human history. I already have a couple blogs for Art, Making, and Travel.

China’s #1

China has been out-polluting us for some time now; but here’s a twist, they are actually celebrating that fact.

Check it out: Here.

In America, pollution peaked in the 70’s, and though you would never hear this from an environmentalist; we are doing quite well, and getting better; property rights and prosperity have resulted in a cleaner America.

I’m afraid, that if China stays at its current statist level, that pollution in that region will never go away. Maybe in the future; when the Chinese have created enough wealth to confidently feed their children and light their homes, they will turn their attention toward pollution (as we have.)

Microsoft Surface

This has to be one of the coolest gadgets to come out in recent years; in fact, it looks a lot like the cool table from the sci-fi movie, The Island:

Here’s a video: