Perpetuity?

Perpetuity? is a digital image that questions the directionality of time and the inevitability of cultural friction using the interplay of historical perceptions of space and time. The lack of perspective is the same as in early cave paintings and medieval divine art, periods which percieved time as non-sequential. The geometric perfection of light in the scene (done using modern computational tools) borrows from Rennaissance to pre-modern artists' rigid adherence to Euclidean space and linear time. Finally, the warped geometry represents the change of thought within science and art in the late 19th century toward curved space and its intimate relationship with time. In the image, multiple implied time dimensions (movement of the sun, translation and warping of the geometry) leave no clue to their future progression and add layers of complexity to even the modern perception of space and time. The weaving together with light of space, time, detail, and emptiness invite careful contemplation of the component interactions.

mark.technolope.org/image/

Building the real Iron Man

The topic of robots is a continuing theme in the class discussions. Whether in the future robots will be fighting our wars, joining our labor force or even becoming our spouses. Well I came across an interesting article about some new technology that could make us, humans, robots. Thus far we have only spoke to the topic as though robots are their own being, but what if in the near future robots are everyday people that can put on a suit and become a robot? In the article “Building the Real Iron Man” they discuss a suit named XOS Exoskeleton which uses takes the human movements and strengths and then mimics and amplifies them in machine form.

 

http://www.popsci.com/scitech/article/2008-04/building-real-iron-man

 

My thoughts on this Exoskeleton are mixed, I feel that this could be a great advancement for all of mankind, but I also feel that this may be changing the human identity to much. I see tremendous benefits to the use of the Exoskeleton. Along with the obvious benefits of moving heavy objects and handling of goods, I feel that this could benefit us in times of crisis. After Hurricane Katrina swept through Louisiana the humanitarian aid was slow, to say the least. What if we could have put these suits on and cleared the streets of houses by hand, we could have blocked the broken levies briefly by hand, and we could’ve helped victims trapped under debris by hand. The benefits to this technology are endless, but there could also be some drawbacks.

I feel that this could almost be an evolutionary step. If this suit get put into full blown production then what stopping everyone from buying it. People everywhere would have these suits and they would never take them off; once you buy a car you don’t go back to a horse and carriage. So I see this as a possible evolutionary change that could change the human race profoundly.

Living off the grid

Just watched a video about trying to live off the grid. Interesting to see what it takes to become free of the "system". I found it interesting thought i would share with everyone else

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-7740441619915152822&q=off+the+grid&ei=Cmc3SK-dKJSe_AHRsMTVAw

Are miracles real?

the question posed is do miracles really happen? what is a miracle really? Is there only one type? Must one be religious? Who do they happen to?

Well to me there are two kinds of miracles, there are the miracles of "life" and then there are the "divine" miracles. 

The miracle that i call the miracle of "life" happenes on a daily bassis, actually by the minute even by the second. I consider the birth of a child a miracle. For two people to come together and create another living being, is something that completely amazes me. The fact that a man and a woman hold to power to grant life is nothing short of the miracle of life.

What i consider to be the second form of a miracle is the divine miracle. I was going to sit here and type that i dont really feel this miracles happens, but i just took a break and went on CNN and there was a story about a woman having the plugs pulled on her and then she woke up and asked for the nurse[see link]. Right now im at a loss of thoughts, i dont know if this is a miracle or if this is just a scientific anomaly? Does the divine really occur, or is this some even that is played up to make it seem as though theres more then there really is?

http://www.newsnet5.com/health/16363548/detail.html

Celts advance to conference finals

Celts advance to conference finals

Bostonian

AIA was in Boston this weekend so the city was flooded with people from coast to coast; including a former boss of mine from LA. I went and met with her and gave her the grand tour of Boston since this was here first time to the east coast. Walking the city with her and seeing all the other members of AIA walking I noticed how different the cultures were from the different parts of the country. For example she was amazed how how the buildings were situated on the sites and how they played off one another. Boston is a dense city, especially compared to that of LA which is very spread out. The ornamentation of buildings and the diversity also was something that she was not used to. She said that the buildings are all mixed in with one another, there is no system to which style goes where. Buildings new and old modern or classical would be touching one another and influencing one perception of both buildings. As the day went on we meandered through half the city walking from the fens down the charles to Copley and the commons. The entire time walking she was making observations which she found strange and that seemed perfectly normal to me. She was asking about the randomness of the streets and how there are no grids or how the roads angle and turn. Also, Boston is very much a walkers city so she was dumbfounded at how many people actually walked [and walked wherever they wanted]. I found it very comical when she was asking why people were not waiting for the crossing signs and why people were not crossing in the cross walks; people in most other parts of the country only cross in the designated areas and they only go when the lights say they can. So my Saturday was spent being a tour guide to the great and new appreciated city of Boston. She learned many things about the ways of life in the northeast and i got a good laugh at things that she found strange.