Talking of chemical modification, I've been running on unending supply of caffeine for the whole day. Believe me when I tell you light cold medicine combined with binge drinking coffee is not good for your health, mental or otherwise. Although the job I had to do today was certainly helped by the spike I got from caffeine, this is not something I want to repeat every single day. Thank god I have the whole day off tomorrow (actually, it's today since the time's a little after two in the AM).
I had to do bunch of deviation analysis for my experiment, and write up reports on the findings. The job was finished only moments ago. I personally like my job. A measly City College student handling real experiments and possibly looking at the bright future of scholarships in better places and PhD options, what I have is certainly better than what most people get to experience in life I think. The hardship of the experience themselves doesn't really matter, so long as I can devote myself to the future I can believe in one little thing at a time. A world that can finally step away from the nauseatingly pedestrian vision of the future, a world where individuals will finally be able to pursue their own visions of what the world should be regardless of social/cultural/physical restrictions. A world where being treated like a human being is an obvious and inalienable right rather than luxury that must be earned.
When I was in high school I practically gave up on life. I didn't submit college applications, and didn't even take SATs. I only did those things in a spur of the moment in about a week's time, and by then the only college accepting application was the CUNY. Even after getting into the CUNY the experience was horrible to say the least. In all honesty, for anyone of even average intellectual disposition the hardest part of being in a CUNY college is being in a CUNY college, for many of the people and environment one must constantly encounter in CUNY never fails to remind you of what a failure you are. The crushing feeling of having no worthwhile future to avail myself of, that is a disease many people of this age seem to suffer from, knowingly or not.
Times have passed, and now I am a promising student of science (if I say so myself). So am I free from that feeling of despair? Day after day of mean spirited drudgeries filled with things I could not possibly care about, or even approve of? No I am not free. Even now I must devote myself wholly to my endeavor, strive to hone my skills and the acuity of my mind or risk the return of the nihilistic tendencies. Should it ever happen I will turn what little I've achieved to nothingness by my own hands. For some inexplicable reason I tend to be very good at those sort of things.
The world is innately separate from the humanity. It is a motif that shows up again and again throughout the human history, embedded in fairy tales and streaks of madness. Along with the multilayered syndrome is the similarly ever present motif of metamorphosis, embedded in both the darker and lighter side of the human psyche, the quintessential archetype that instigates the self. Perhaps science and technology is the bridge in the gap between the world and humanity. Perhaps that is why I am so obsessed with the physical study of artificial life and physical origins of the consciousness.
Monday, March 31, 2008
Chemical body modification
Americans (and the modern civilization in general) had been dependent on medications since the discovery of penicillin, but recently the level of chemical commitment began to take a whole new perspective. Modification of the baseline intellectual ability through chemical agents that goes beyond simple nutrient control is something I suspect to be relatively widespread and will continue to seep into the general populace as the medications become more sophisticated and effective. The effectiveness of the medication can be surprising when controlled and monitored carefully. I can concentrate on a single task for around ten to fourteen hours at one time, depending on my condition. With proper chemical aid I can theoretically pull through twelve to twenty hours, again dependent on my prior psychological and physical condition.
It would be unrealistic to simply discredit the effectiveness of the chemical aid in intellectual pursuits when its benefits are so clear. The fields of academic studies are one of the rare fields of human endeavor that allows necessities of individual desire and social niceties to be as one, and as such any chance at improvement on one's ability provides an irresistible allure that goes beyond the simple need to perform. I believe how this new addiction to chemical augmentation plays out and how the society deals with it in coming times will be representative of how the society and the individual will fair once the genetic and cybernetic augmentation for human beings become economic reality. There are some cautious optimism as to the possible changes the coming era of affordable chemical augmentation might in fact benefit the humanity at large, and even serve as a catalyst for a different human age. In this era where people are becoming increasingly aware of ramifications of technology (or at least becoming increasingly polarized by the awareness) on future course of humanity, such predictions take on profound foliage different from similar futurist predictions of the old.
If there is one thing I am worried about, it is our lack of knowledge on the processes of the development of human consciousness. Will learning without requisite control of one's physio-chemical facilities pose unwanted side-effects on the learner? Will we end up with an enitre civilization of people who knows things they can't possibly hope to utilize? I'd count on the complex natures of innate human greed and pride to act as counter to such outcome. I for one cannot wait for the day that would finally allow my body to catch upto the place sight of my mind sees.
It would be unrealistic to simply discredit the effectiveness of the chemical aid in intellectual pursuits when its benefits are so clear. The fields of academic studies are one of the rare fields of human endeavor that allows necessities of individual desire and social niceties to be as one, and as such any chance at improvement on one's ability provides an irresistible allure that goes beyond the simple need to perform. I believe how this new addiction to chemical augmentation plays out and how the society deals with it in coming times will be representative of how the society and the individual will fair once the genetic and cybernetic augmentation for human beings become economic reality. There are some cautious optimism as to the possible changes the coming era of affordable chemical augmentation might in fact benefit the humanity at large, and even serve as a catalyst for a different human age. In this era where people are becoming increasingly aware of ramifications of technology (or at least becoming increasingly polarized by the awareness) on future course of humanity, such predictions take on profound foliage different from similar futurist predictions of the old.
If there is one thing I am worried about, it is our lack of knowledge on the processes of the development of human consciousness. Will learning without requisite control of one's physio-chemical facilities pose unwanted side-effects on the learner? Will we end up with an enitre civilization of people who knows things they can't possibly hope to utilize? I'd count on the complex natures of innate human greed and pride to act as counter to such outcome. I for one cannot wait for the day that would finally allow my body to catch upto the place sight of my mind sees.
Sunday, March 30, 2008
Decisions
I've finally decided to pick up computer graphics. Nothing fancy, just something I can do in my spare time.
Now I have to make a decision between 3d and 2d... I've had some previous experience with drawing on paper, though I've never really tried anything on computer, so I guess I'll be novice regardless of what I choose. At the moment I'm leaning toward 3d, in that it can be utilized for both animation and mesh-exporting for integration to different apps. The fact that I can get some student version of Maya (3ds max is kind of hard to find at discount) for free is also a big plus. The only thing that's actually making me reconsider is how complex 3d design applications are. If I wanted to sketch using tablet I'd simply be able to sketch away while 3d design suites will require some extensive education/computing power, which is something I can't quite afford right now.
Aesthetically, 3D medium provides much more technical variety compared to the conventional 2D medium. Just look at some of the work here.
In my heart, I know I'll adapt faster to two dimensional arts, but still, wow. Just imagining what would be possible in three dimensional design program with its photorealistic lights and textures bring chills to my bones.
Of course, the biggest reason for hesitation is the amount of work I can get done while learning to cg...
Now I have to make a decision between 3d and 2d... I've had some previous experience with drawing on paper, though I've never really tried anything on computer, so I guess I'll be novice regardless of what I choose. At the moment I'm leaning toward 3d, in that it can be utilized for both animation and mesh-exporting for integration to different apps. The fact that I can get some student version of Maya (3ds max is kind of hard to find at discount) for free is also a big plus. The only thing that's actually making me reconsider is how complex 3d design applications are. If I wanted to sketch using tablet I'd simply be able to sketch away while 3d design suites will require some extensive education/computing power, which is something I can't quite afford right now.
Aesthetically, 3D medium provides much more technical variety compared to the conventional 2D medium. Just look at some of the work here.
In my heart, I know I'll adapt faster to two dimensional arts, but still, wow. Just imagining what would be possible in three dimensional design program with its photorealistic lights and textures bring chills to my bones.
Of course, the biggest reason for hesitation is the amount of work I can get done while learning to cg...
Saturday, March 29, 2008
Community project
I've posted this on my other blog too. I think this might be an interesting read for some of you.
There is a semi-community project to simulate human brain using spare computing cycle in the works.
The members of the projects seem to be looking at eventual commercialization of what they achieve using this project. I assume that it might turn off some of the more devoted advocates of GNU philosophy among us, but I still think this is project is interesting enough to devote some of my unused cpu cycles to the cause… Since, well, what’s the point of letting the spare computer time go to waste? Right?
Science is fundamentally specialist and will never be able to achieve the kind of 2.0-everyone pitch in- status afforded by larger community web services today. However, the systems such as BOINC (the system used for the simulation project as well as a number of other worthy, non-commercial projects) gives us a glimpse of what ‘open-science’ in the future might be like, in that it allows concentration of necessary energy and resources to make the research come to fruition, not through any large scale departmental bureaucracy but through a sort of grassroots recycle programs of the commonly wasted byproducts of our civilization. Indeed, I’d refer to it as making full use of the machinery of the human civilization itself.
I’d like to urge anyone even passively interested to visit the BOINC website and participate in a project of your choosing. They have a number of projects in progress and the list is likely to grow in the future. Who knows, our little contribution might make the future a bit more interesting place to live.
Friday, March 28, 2008
Long day
Like indicated in the title, it had been a long day for me. I had to go out at around eight in the morning and came back about two hours ago, so that's twelve in the night. For almost all that time I had to work, reading, writing, and calibrating... Basically tearing my hair out to squeez out every ounce of imagination I can spare in a day. At least I'm close to doing something I truly believe in. That makes it all worth it I guess. I just hope my dream wasn't so darn far away.
During the evening I went to a little cafe in the town for some food. It was during the happy hour, and guess what, a glass of chianti and a plate of gouda cheese for four dollars. Not too shabby considering that practically every non-junk food is overpriced in the city's night scene. That's about all I ate for the whole day I think. Maybe I'll go back to that place next week.
My brain's too haywired to write properly right now. Guess it's time to rest a bit.
(the ever present motif of metamorphosis and the Jungian obsession with archetypes and masks come to mind. Why are these ideas so omnipresent to a physics student?)
During the evening I went to a little cafe in the town for some food. It was during the happy hour, and guess what, a glass of chianti and a plate of gouda cheese for four dollars. Not too shabby considering that practically every non-junk food is overpriced in the city's night scene. That's about all I ate for the whole day I think. Maybe I'll go back to that place next week.
My brain's too haywired to write properly right now. Guess it's time to rest a bit.
(the ever present motif of metamorphosis and the Jungian obsession with archetypes and masks come to mind. Why are these ideas so omnipresent to a physics student?)
Thursday, March 27, 2008
Universal knowledge
Something I wrote a little while ago on my blog. Error ridden and juvenile, maybe. But there might be a few things worth salvaging.
There is an interesting notion behind some of the more network oriented mathematical researches these days, regarding possible existence of universal characteristic available to all network centric systems regardless of their physical implementation. For some odd reason I find myself coming back to such thought often in recent years, though I’m not really sure why I would pay any more attention to this fascinating subject than say, chaos in life-like system. Regardless of the reason, if I can’t help but to think about the subject I might as well do a little musing.
How about if I apply the methods of the network-link based thinking to a bit of epistemology? The structure of the human knowledge is fundamentally network oriented in that knowledge rarely if ever come without direct reason taking the form of knowledge. In order to broaden one’s knowledge one must know something first, and from there on the individual case of knowledge is built up, one thing leading to the other and the other depending on the truth of another knowledge which plays out in complex web of positive and negative feedback like any other decent complex system in nature. What if there is a certain characteristic that the structure of knowledge must take through the virtue of taking the mathematical form of complex network? What if it is possible to arrive at previously ignored possibilities of the world simply by searching for certain structural phenomena within the knowledge network itself instead of going through every single link within the network like we do right now? Even more, what if there is a pattern that all valid structure of knowledge must follow? What if there is a way to ‘know’ the structure of the knowledge itself without being aware of all the individual components forming the knowledge network?
If there is any valid point in this musing, the implications would be quite interesting. The impact such theory of knowledge would have on the nature of artificial intelligence/life studies and natural complex systems research would be most interesting, and quite a few educators would have something to think about. They might finally begin to treat learning as a development of interface to the universal structure of knowledge instead of some twisted weeding out process to erudite the gifted (which is a process most obvious in poorer schools of the inner city area, with richer private schools taking a bit more ‘democratic’ approach, strangely enough).
All this is nothing more than talk, of course. At the moment there is no way to support such claim of universal network-centric structure of knowledge in any academic detail. There are a few interesting historical cues that might suggest in thinking such a thing, like the prevalence of the Jungian collective unconscious in many forms throughout the history, or some of the things believed by Rudolf Steiner’s Anthroposophy movement, though both are not quite rigorous enough to lend credit to a full fledged academic research of scientific nature.
Regardless of the truth of such complex system based dispositions, mathematical phenomena seem to be getting ever closer to the structure of the real world. Maybe it is a sign of the future to come.
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
From the metropolitan museum of art
I had a bit of time today, so I stopped by the Met. I'm actually writing this in the museum using my laptop. It seems that they finally resumed their service of free wifi connection to museum patrons. Quite wonderful stuff. If anyone's visiting the museum I'd suggest bringing wifi enabled laptop and make full use of the facilities provided. Oh, and please remember that backpacks are prohibited within the museum gallery. Messenger bags and such are still alright though.
I must praise the museum authority on their fine decisions. Not only is the entrance based on 'recommended' system, they also provide internet service and library service for the public. This is how museums should be.
I must praise the museum authority on their fine decisions. Not only is the entrance based on 'recommended' system, they also provide internet service and library service for the public. This is how museums should be.
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Another busy busy day, and a question.
Another day reading and calibrating experiments and whatnot, the usual. The project I'm doing is coming along nicely, despite some unexpected setbacks. They had to fire a technician, and organized bunch of backups I had lying around. I might be able to finally get back to writing stuff around the net regularly! (just maybe)
Anyway, a little question popped into my mind a moment ago. Is there any documented difference in biological feature of a brain prior to and after 'knowing' something? We can babble about the philosophical aspects of knowledge over a life time and get nowhere. But since knowledge is a phenomenon happening upon real physical body, with supposedly observable consequences, there must be some outstanding physiological difference pertaining to the state of knowing something... Some kind of neural pathway formation? Network transfiguration? If there is an observable difference, will my brain be able to discern between the categories of knowledge? Knowledge of Greek arts in cabinet A, and knowledge of physics in cabinet B.... Somehow I find that notion unlikely, and by extension, the brain might as well be indiscriminate about the differentiation between processor and the data being processed... Both would be one and the same, unlike current architecture of most (all?) computers in use today.
If knowledge manifests itself as a pattern or some kind of change within the configuration of the physical brain, what's stopping us from contemplating the possibility of instant knowledge gathering/transfer... Maybe even memories and personality. I might as well rewrite someone else's brain with my own brain data, in effect creating identical clone of myself with completely different genotype.
But what do I know? I'm but a humble student of physics, with no particular knowledge on biology or computers.
Anyway, a little question popped into my mind a moment ago. Is there any documented difference in biological feature of a brain prior to and after 'knowing' something? We can babble about the philosophical aspects of knowledge over a life time and get nowhere. But since knowledge is a phenomenon happening upon real physical body, with supposedly observable consequences, there must be some outstanding physiological difference pertaining to the state of knowing something... Some kind of neural pathway formation? Network transfiguration? If there is an observable difference, will my brain be able to discern between the categories of knowledge? Knowledge of Greek arts in cabinet A, and knowledge of physics in cabinet B.... Somehow I find that notion unlikely, and by extension, the brain might as well be indiscriminate about the differentiation between processor and the data being processed... Both would be one and the same, unlike current architecture of most (all?) computers in use today.
If knowledge manifests itself as a pattern or some kind of change within the configuration of the physical brain, what's stopping us from contemplating the possibility of instant knowledge gathering/transfer... Maybe even memories and personality. I might as well rewrite someone else's brain with my own brain data, in effect creating identical clone of myself with completely different genotype.
But what do I know? I'm but a humble student of physics, with no particular knowledge on biology or computers.
Monday, March 24, 2008
Found a decent site
I found a decent site on things of NYC while looking for some cheap eateries in the city.
It's a photoblog over on the blogger dot com service, and includes many other sights around the city aside from restaurants. Lots of pictures, lots of interesting places to go and eat/rest/etc.
http://newyorkdailyphoto.blogspot.com/
It's a photoblog over on the blogger dot com service, and includes many other sights around the city aside from restaurants. Lots of pictures, lots of interesting places to go and eat/rest/etc.
http://newyorkdailyphoto.blogspot.com/
Saturday, March 22, 2008
Door light
When I'm in my room I find it difficult to keep my door closed when I open the blind to the balcony. In the morning the sunlight practically pours in through the window, unfiltered by the stains on the window and pigeon nests on the balcony. When the door to my room, which is on the direct opposite side of the room from the window, is closed, the sun light feels as if they are bouncing around the typical New York whitewashed walls blinding my eyes, and strangely enough, deafening my ears. When I open the door at least some of the sun light spreads out into the cramped dining room giving me some room to breathe.
The light is, so hard to bear sometimes. Maybe its just my nerve.
Right now both the blind and the door are open. It isn't particularly sunny right now though. There are layers of cloud outside, in hue of pale blue mixed with juxtapositions of gray... Peaceful, cold, almost holy, if only for a split moment.
The light is, so hard to bear sometimes. Maybe its just my nerve.
Right now both the blind and the door are open. It isn't particularly sunny right now though. There are layers of cloud outside, in hue of pale blue mixed with juxtapositions of gray... Peaceful, cold, almost holy, if only for a split moment.
Friday, March 21, 2008
Human network again
The idea of the human network and its relation to the concept of the human zeitgeist and making of the history/civilization is becoming more and more interesting to me. I might even consider getting some professional instruction regarding the issue. Manipulation of the genetic network by dividing the systems into segments of ready-made codes might change the physical aspect of the being, but manipulation of the human civilization on its full scale by changing certain aspects of the concurrent human network within the civilization would mean creation of directionality in minds of generation after generations of human beings, with some room for error correction and even evolution of sorts.
This idea reminds me of the Hitchhiker's guide to the Galaxy. The Earth was supposed to be a computer for finding out the question to the answer to the life, universe, and everything (the famous 42). Maybe it is possible to design human future on some level by manipulating the human network on large scales, ensuring that certain trait will be passed down and actively sought after by certain segment of the humanity and the human civilization at all times. The repercussion and the magnitude of such program would be enough to call it crafting of destiny, at least as close as we can get to such an act.
I am fully aware that individual characteristics of the complex systems and networks influence the behavior of the whole network/system in unpredictable fashion. Even so, there is a gut feeling that certain traits must be shared equally among systems of similar complexity regardless of its scale and superficial execution. Although I have quite enough to do already, this question, or rather, these questions are just too interesting to pass up... Choices choices.
This idea reminds me of the Hitchhiker's guide to the Galaxy. The Earth was supposed to be a computer for finding out the question to the answer to the life, universe, and everything (the famous 42). Maybe it is possible to design human future on some level by manipulating the human network on large scales, ensuring that certain trait will be passed down and actively sought after by certain segment of the humanity and the human civilization at all times. The repercussion and the magnitude of such program would be enough to call it crafting of destiny, at least as close as we can get to such an act.
I am fully aware that individual characteristics of the complex systems and networks influence the behavior of the whole network/system in unpredictable fashion. Even so, there is a gut feeling that certain traits must be shared equally among systems of similar complexity regardless of its scale and superficial execution. Although I have quite enough to do already, this question, or rather, these questions are just too interesting to pass up... Choices choices.
Monday, March 17, 2008
In recent days
I'm beginning to feel more agitated, becoming somewhat unstable at slightest of provocation. I guess the initial liveliness is wearing off quickly as the time passes. I wonder how I might be able to continue on my charade.
I must focus all my energy and thoughts to my job simply to make ends meet but all the nothings surrounding me doesn't seem to be able to let me go in peace. What kills me is not how there is a bothersome burden to carry around but how I must waste my time and energy agonizing over it, the time and energy better spent on pursuing my studies.
Speaking of my studies, it isn't going so well either. Although there are a few things that are becoming clear with further study, they remain at more or less at the level of general outline, and the progress had been slow. The added stress I get from the garbage I must live with doesn't really make matters easy either.
The real problem at the academic side would be the amount of field I have to cover and be proficient in relatively short time I have, ranging from economics to advanced mathematics and biochemistry.
All I can do for now is to hang on, and take things easy.
I must focus all my energy and thoughts to my job simply to make ends meet but all the nothings surrounding me doesn't seem to be able to let me go in peace. What kills me is not how there is a bothersome burden to carry around but how I must waste my time and energy agonizing over it, the time and energy better spent on pursuing my studies.
Speaking of my studies, it isn't going so well either. Although there are a few things that are becoming clear with further study, they remain at more or less at the level of general outline, and the progress had been slow. The added stress I get from the garbage I must live with doesn't really make matters easy either.
The real problem at the academic side would be the amount of field I have to cover and be proficient in relatively short time I have, ranging from economics to advanced mathematics and biochemistry.
All I can do for now is to hang on, and take things easy.
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Melody
I couldn't keep my word before. It turns out that I somehow got tired and fell asleep, and the next day was a little hectic to think of writing here.
I love fantasies. I'm not talking about those things with swords and dragons etc. I'm talking about the things of the mind. The created worlds that are beautiful and limitless in its scope. It might be a world of rampant genetic engineering, or a celtic world alive with etched monoliths resonating with forgotten histories and mysterious life. Hieratic mumblings in Lovecraftian libraries as the sun sets in the orange sky, I can almost feel the cool yet moist air of the forests, and hear the flapping of the wings of the birds. And I just don't know what to do with it. Should I write it? Should I draw it? Should I read book after book perfecting the vision of the strange worlds in my mind?
Frankly, I'm doing all of them with no satisfying result. I possess no great talent in any of such things, thought they aren't anything too terrible either... But that's not the real problem. the real problem is, that no matter how much time I spend in perfecting the vision of the strange worlds in my mind, no matter how much I focus and research in order to make those worlds truly feel real in my own head, they are still fantasies. I cannot satisfy myself clearly knowing that all I think of will fade away to nothing no matter how I strive to perfect those vision in my head. The realization drives me to constantly seek the little strands of reality capable of making my visions come true. Indeed, that is the reason why I went into the field of science in the first place.
Yet even as I study deeper and deeper into the depths of my chosen field in science, it is not enough. I have no doubt that most of what I am capable of thinking will be possible sooner or later through the means and technology provided by advance of science, if the person wielding it has appropriate motivation and desire to do so. It is only that I am growing increasingly sure that I will not be around to see most, if any of my visions come into being in this world we share.
Maybe this is a predicament that concerns all people around my age. I just don't know what to do about it. Maybe I should learn to live this life in happiness, but my happiness concerns fulfillment of my desires, which is to give my visions a fruition in this world. Satisfying myself by choosing any other path would be simple defeat, an excuse I give to myself to make up for my lack of ability. At times like this I hope the technological singularity espoused by many of the transhumanists come true...
I love fantasies. I'm not talking about those things with swords and dragons etc. I'm talking about the things of the mind. The created worlds that are beautiful and limitless in its scope. It might be a world of rampant genetic engineering, or a celtic world alive with etched monoliths resonating with forgotten histories and mysterious life. Hieratic mumblings in Lovecraftian libraries as the sun sets in the orange sky, I can almost feel the cool yet moist air of the forests, and hear the flapping of the wings of the birds. And I just don't know what to do with it. Should I write it? Should I draw it? Should I read book after book perfecting the vision of the strange worlds in my mind?
Frankly, I'm doing all of them with no satisfying result. I possess no great talent in any of such things, thought they aren't anything too terrible either... But that's not the real problem. the real problem is, that no matter how much time I spend in perfecting the vision of the strange worlds in my mind, no matter how much I focus and research in order to make those worlds truly feel real in my own head, they are still fantasies. I cannot satisfy myself clearly knowing that all I think of will fade away to nothing no matter how I strive to perfect those vision in my head. The realization drives me to constantly seek the little strands of reality capable of making my visions come true. Indeed, that is the reason why I went into the field of science in the first place.
Yet even as I study deeper and deeper into the depths of my chosen field in science, it is not enough. I have no doubt that most of what I am capable of thinking will be possible sooner or later through the means and technology provided by advance of science, if the person wielding it has appropriate motivation and desire to do so. It is only that I am growing increasingly sure that I will not be around to see most, if any of my visions come into being in this world we share.
Maybe this is a predicament that concerns all people around my age. I just don't know what to do about it. Maybe I should learn to live this life in happiness, but my happiness concerns fulfillment of my desires, which is to give my visions a fruition in this world. Satisfying myself by choosing any other path would be simple defeat, an excuse I give to myself to make up for my lack of ability. At times like this I hope the technological singularity espoused by many of the transhumanists come true...
Monday, March 10, 2008
Ugh. Can't sleep again.
I just can't seem to be able to fall asleep these days. I wonder why. Is it a stress from my masters thesis assesment coming up around the corner? But I strangely don't think of such things at all to consider it as a cause of my sudden lose of appetite for sleep.
The best thing I can do at times like this is to read and write without stopping, about variety of nothings and mutterings of no significant value or insight. Just random noise of mind coming out through the keyboard and terminal in front of me.
What to do what to do. I'll write something else a minute or two later.
The best thing I can do at times like this is to read and write without stopping, about variety of nothings and mutterings of no significant value or insight. Just random noise of mind coming out through the keyboard and terminal in front of me.
What to do what to do. I'll write something else a minute or two later.
Scribe Fire
I'm testing out the scribe fire firefox built-in weblogging client. It's a real shame that livejournal support on this thing is somewhat shaky, although I've yet to notice any real problem yet. I would certainly love to have a decent offline weblogging client I can use on the go.
The scribe fire seem to have some speed issues when the computer is slowed down. This is far worse than the performance crawl I experienced while writing in the LochJournal client (actually there wasn't such a thing as a performance crawl during my use of LochJournal...). I'm seeing letters forming on screen a slight delay after I've actually typed them on the keyboard, which doesn't really matter I guess, but still limits the addon's usefulness as a on-the-go weblogging client.... Of course, to be fair I must mention that I have about 10 or so tabs heavy with video streaming and flash contents open all at once. Oh well, c'est la vie.
The scribe fire seem to have some speed issues when the computer is slowed down. This is far worse than the performance crawl I experienced while writing in the LochJournal client (actually there wasn't such a thing as a performance crawl during my use of LochJournal...). I'm seeing letters forming on screen a slight delay after I've actually typed them on the keyboard, which doesn't really matter I guess, but still limits the addon's usefulness as a on-the-go weblogging client.... Of course, to be fair I must mention that I have about 10 or so tabs heavy with video streaming and flash contents open all at once. Oh well, c'est la vie.
Idleness
Today is the day of restful idleness for me. Waking up late without much if anything to do. Of course, I'm still waiting on the results of the test that might determine my future for years to come, but the results aren't likely to arrive today, and I've done all I can about it already, so I'm not really thinking very hard about that stuff.
The sky is bright blue, and while the tress outside are still naked in shades of brown and gray, I can hear the birds sing outside my window, the kind I haven't heard of during the winter. Perhaps it is already spring. The sun is surely bright enough. I like having my floors naked, its wooden form stripped for all the world to see. For the life of me I can't understand why anyone would smother their own house with carpets, prone to infestation and endless waves of dust. When I open all the windows and sit on the cool wooden floor I feel as if I'm in a temple, a place for silent contemplation, and just listening to winds cross the edges of my ears, making strangely comforting, vacuous sound.
When I was young I would be jumping in joy in days like this. But the uncertainties of future brought on by adulthood doesn't really let me indulge in simple joys like I used to. I'm afraid that I'm getting old, older.
The sky is bright blue, and while the tress outside are still naked in shades of brown and gray, I can hear the birds sing outside my window, the kind I haven't heard of during the winter. Perhaps it is already spring. The sun is surely bright enough. I like having my floors naked, its wooden form stripped for all the world to see. For the life of me I can't understand why anyone would smother their own house with carpets, prone to infestation and endless waves of dust. When I open all the windows and sit on the cool wooden floor I feel as if I'm in a temple, a place for silent contemplation, and just listening to winds cross the edges of my ears, making strangely comforting, vacuous sound.
When I was young I would be jumping in joy in days like this. But the uncertainties of future brought on by adulthood doesn't really let me indulge in simple joys like I used to. I'm afraid that I'm getting old, older.
Sunday, March 9, 2008
The human networks
I've been thinking and writing about the whole steampunk and tranhumanism 'movement' (if it can be called as such) all over the net. Though they were nothing more than novelty writings, jumbled things that came straight out of my mind without much introspect, I think I'm beginning to see some underlying pattern here. I do not particularly believe in attitude or belief of any particular cultural movement like the steampunk or the transhumanism. As someone dedicated to the study of sciences the ideas of transhumanism does appeal to me, but I still think appeal alone doesn't make for a sound prediction of the future, and the St. John's apocalypse-like images espoused by some of the more enthusiastic believers of the transhumanism thinking doesn't really help either.
What I am really interested in, is the shape of the world that is beginning to emerge underneath all the superficial beliefs and cliques of various social/cultural movement. A human network that is being accelerated and consolidated into an emergent and concrete form by the technology of near instantaneous connection between individual members of the humanity, which seem to form the backbone of the majority of the changes that make up what we call the 'modern age.' It's really just a thought, nothing eloquent and lucid enough to be a theory... Perhaps this is merely adaptation of the mathematical theory of networks and links in the fashion of Barbarasi to the perspective of social theory... But something doesn't sound quite right to refer to it as such.
Formation and linking of human beings to ideas, the belief and search for the method to change/control the world through variety of means, linking which leads to a form of phase shift, the compounding between the idea and the human being... A history is a fundamentally human story... If linking between ideas and human beings, ideas and ideas, human beings to human beings is viable and displays emergent characteristics so common in their physical equivalents, the term zeitgeist begins to take more significant meaning in the structure of the world.
How would I be able to form the ideas into a coherent structure befitting that of an actual theory...
What I am really interested in, is the shape of the world that is beginning to emerge underneath all the superficial beliefs and cliques of various social/cultural movement. A human network that is being accelerated and consolidated into an emergent and concrete form by the technology of near instantaneous connection between individual members of the humanity, which seem to form the backbone of the majority of the changes that make up what we call the 'modern age.' It's really just a thought, nothing eloquent and lucid enough to be a theory... Perhaps this is merely adaptation of the mathematical theory of networks and links in the fashion of Barbarasi to the perspective of social theory... But something doesn't sound quite right to refer to it as such.
Formation and linking of human beings to ideas, the belief and search for the method to change/control the world through variety of means, linking which leads to a form of phase shift, the compounding between the idea and the human being... A history is a fundamentally human story... If linking between ideas and human beings, ideas and ideas, human beings to human beings is viable and displays emergent characteristics so common in their physical equivalents, the term zeitgeist begins to take more significant meaning in the structure of the world.
How would I be able to form the ideas into a coherent structure befitting that of an actual theory...
Saturday, March 8, 2008
Steampunk
I'd love to do a decent write up on the genre/culture/movement of steampunk someday, so I thought I might as well do some jotting down on livejournal, to be later cleaned off and combined into a real write-up.
The primary trait of steampunk-related world view that stands out most of all is the opening of possibilities. In a way it would be possible to consider steampunk as a reaction against the previous era of popularized digital cyberpunk, where the population became introverted in self-imposed blurring of the boundaries between the real and the virtual. Instead of wondering around in clearly imperfect landscapes, steampunkers are attempting to create in reality what the incomplete practice of the virtual reality haven't been able to execute, on the accounts of both the technology and economy.
Simply put, steampunk is the movement of people who refuses to draw their dreams in ephemeral numbers and abstractions, instead opting to create the vision in the reality, using the pieces of the reality already here. The very idea of the linkage between the world and the human mind is at the heart of the attraction of the steampunk, the belief that what you dream in your heart will be able to come true without substitutions of the virtual reality. In that way, steampunk is intimately linked with the artscience movement and biohackery, both of which are results of the post-industrial modern age, where things and ideas are both designed to be mass-produced and malleable to the extent that they act as components to the whim of the wielder regardless of the original intention of the things and ideas themselves.
The analysis of the steampunk on many levels seem to be representative of the modern zeitgeist. Something is happening on global scale under the surface of the superficial events and advances of the world that is redefining the relationship between the humanity and the world, the relationship between the body and the mind...
More or less a confusing jumble I thought up in a few minutes, but it'll still prove to be a suitable introduction in understanding of the steampunk culture and all its requisite/resulting cultural and scientific significance in this world. I must also note that what I've written so far is more on the lines of pertaining to the promises of the steampunk, not what it is at this moment in time.
The primary trait of steampunk-related world view that stands out most of all is the opening of possibilities. In a way it would be possible to consider steampunk as a reaction against the previous era of popularized digital cyberpunk, where the population became introverted in self-imposed blurring of the boundaries between the real and the virtual. Instead of wondering around in clearly imperfect landscapes, steampunkers are attempting to create in reality what the incomplete practice of the virtual reality haven't been able to execute, on the accounts of both the technology and economy.
Simply put, steampunk is the movement of people who refuses to draw their dreams in ephemeral numbers and abstractions, instead opting to create the vision in the reality, using the pieces of the reality already here. The very idea of the linkage between the world and the human mind is at the heart of the attraction of the steampunk, the belief that what you dream in your heart will be able to come true without substitutions of the virtual reality. In that way, steampunk is intimately linked with the artscience movement and biohackery, both of which are results of the post-industrial modern age, where things and ideas are both designed to be mass-produced and malleable to the extent that they act as components to the whim of the wielder regardless of the original intention of the things and ideas themselves.
The analysis of the steampunk on many levels seem to be representative of the modern zeitgeist. Something is happening on global scale under the surface of the superficial events and advances of the world that is redefining the relationship between the humanity and the world, the relationship between the body and the mind...
More or less a confusing jumble I thought up in a few minutes, but it'll still prove to be a suitable introduction in understanding of the steampunk culture and all its requisite/resulting cultural and scientific significance in this world. I must also note that what I've written so far is more on the lines of pertaining to the promises of the steampunk, not what it is at this moment in time.
Monday, March 3, 2008
Changing settings
I reverted my account back to the basic account. While having the extra benefits of the upper level accounts were nice, I was hardly using them anyway, and the advertisement was getting on my nerves somewhat.
It seems that I prefer simple things on my blog. Nothing fancy, nothing flashy, just simple monotone colors and writings. Not even pictures are necessary, and if I really want something moving or colorful I find it much better to link to it or embed it within the blog page itself. The cell-phone SMS support is something I'd miss, but then again, I never used it (only planned to).
I've been watching the anime series Monster, based on the manga of the same name created by Naoki Urasawa. He is possibly the greatest manga creator of our age. I've already read through the entirety of the Monster manga series and his other major work the 20th century boys (which isn't complete yet), and I have yet to find a single flaw within any of them. Beautiful art, tight storyline, deep introspection into the depth of the author's and the reader's souls characterize his works. Despite the depth his manga never come off as preachy or pretentious as some of the 'deep' manga out there, instead opting for identifiable, normal characters with normal traits, each with a gentle understanding of life that goes beyond the preset notions of what life should be.
My study on plasma is coming on nicely. I might be able to see something interesting in a few days.
It seems that I prefer simple things on my blog. Nothing fancy, nothing flashy, just simple monotone colors and writings. Not even pictures are necessary, and if I really want something moving or colorful I find it much better to link to it or embed it within the blog page itself. The cell-phone SMS support is something I'd miss, but then again, I never used it (only planned to).
I've been watching the anime series Monster, based on the manga of the same name created by Naoki Urasawa. He is possibly the greatest manga creator of our age. I've already read through the entirety of the Monster manga series and his other major work the 20th century boys (which isn't complete yet), and I have yet to find a single flaw within any of them. Beautiful art, tight storyline, deep introspection into the depth of the author's and the reader's souls characterize his works. Despite the depth his manga never come off as preachy or pretentious as some of the 'deep' manga out there, instead opting for identifiable, normal characters with normal traits, each with a gentle understanding of life that goes beyond the preset notions of what life should be.
My study on plasma is coming on nicely. I might be able to see something interesting in a few days.
Sunday, March 2, 2008
Typing and writing
There is a strange difference between writing things by hand and typing things by hand. When I'm writing, I feel as if I'm drawing using limited set of symbols in order to convey or record meaning, while when I'm typing I feel as if I'm playing an instrument on a set of scale.
The difference is pronounced when i don't know what to write about. When I am writing on paper I can scrape by, writing more and more until I can draw some distinct frame of thought in my mind. But when I'm typing, I frequently get stuck, and I make bunch of mistakes (of both thought and mechanics) that I usually wouldn't make when I am writing on paper.
The mechanics of the brain doesn't seem to have multiple dedicated physiology for each action it is capable of doing. Rather, brain seem to be running on a single physiology capable of running multiple actions using a single function, through a mechanism of replication. So when I am typing, it might be that the part people use in playing an instrument is actually being diverted for the action of typing, and when I'm writing things by hand, the part of brain dedicated to the act of drawing might be diverted to the act of writing. Would it be going to far to suppose that even the part of the brains dedicated to the act of playing instrument and drawing that I described as being diverted are actually replications of a single, simpler action? A sort of fractal branching that resembles each other while being capable of generating unique novel landscapes....
The difference is pronounced when i don't know what to write about. When I am writing on paper I can scrape by, writing more and more until I can draw some distinct frame of thought in my mind. But when I'm typing, I frequently get stuck, and I make bunch of mistakes (of both thought and mechanics) that I usually wouldn't make when I am writing on paper.
The mechanics of the brain doesn't seem to have multiple dedicated physiology for each action it is capable of doing. Rather, brain seem to be running on a single physiology capable of running multiple actions using a single function, through a mechanism of replication. So when I am typing, it might be that the part people use in playing an instrument is actually being diverted for the action of typing, and when I'm writing things by hand, the part of brain dedicated to the act of drawing might be diverted to the act of writing. Would it be going to far to suppose that even the part of the brains dedicated to the act of playing instrument and drawing that I described as being diverted are actually replications of a single, simpler action? A sort of fractal branching that resembles each other while being capable of generating unique novel landscapes....
Squeak
I've been pondering between learning squeak and python. Python seem to be very capable and widely used, so it has a lot of decent prebuilt and free libraries and decent tutorials. On the other hand, squeak, which is an implementation of the smalltalk language, seem to be more elegant on the fundamental level despite its relatively paltry community (no offense here, the quantity doesn't represent quality) and smaller third party support (which is evident in the fact that I had a relatively hard time trying to find a decent artificial life or physics related introductory tutorial of the language/IDE, while I practically ran into one of those every five seconds while browsing for python resources). Most programmers would recommend python to me... The problem is that I myself am not a programmer. I don't need to earn a living programming, and I'm (usually) not under a tight deadline and limitations on what I can and can't do with a programming language. In that light, squeak, with its integration to graphic environment for quick visual prototyping (for swarm simulation for example) is very attractive... Yet should I ever consider the possibility of doing hevay duty programming for artificial life or mathematical simulation purposes I'm not quite sure if squeak can handle it as easily as an equivalent python implementation.... Choices choices.
Strangely enough though, I'm finding python itself to be a lot more easier to understand compared to squeak. Maybe it had to do with how I first started my programming experience with C/C++. I can already write a simple mathematical simulation program for elemental fractal simulation, while I'm still a bit confused between all the three button mouse schemes and menu items in squeak. While I can write something in python however, I had quite a trouble making a graphical output of the fractal algorithm, which I believe would be a lot simpler in squeak once I get past all the menus and button confusions (seeing that a simple swarm simulation algorithm and graphic output in squeak takes about 15 minutes to implement... Which is not quite the case for python, although I might be simply because of my lack of skill in the art of programming).
Again, I am quite lost, and don't know what to do. Both the python and the squeak language seem to have some nice things going for them... To be honest, I'm leaning toward squeak, but its unfamiliar interface is putting me off somewhat, and the uncertainty in what I can do with the language in the future doesn't really help things either.
Well, I guess I should be glad that I at least narrowed down my choice to one of the two programming language/environment. I was wondering between half a dozen languages before this.
Strangely enough though, I'm finding python itself to be a lot more easier to understand compared to squeak. Maybe it had to do with how I first started my programming experience with C/C++. I can already write a simple mathematical simulation program for elemental fractal simulation, while I'm still a bit confused between all the three button mouse schemes and menu items in squeak. While I can write something in python however, I had quite a trouble making a graphical output of the fractal algorithm, which I believe would be a lot simpler in squeak once I get past all the menus and button confusions (seeing that a simple swarm simulation algorithm and graphic output in squeak takes about 15 minutes to implement... Which is not quite the case for python, although I might be simply because of my lack of skill in the art of programming).
Again, I am quite lost, and don't know what to do. Both the python and the squeak language seem to have some nice things going for them... To be honest, I'm leaning toward squeak, but its unfamiliar interface is putting me off somewhat, and the uncertainty in what I can do with the language in the future doesn't really help things either.
Well, I guess I should be glad that I at least narrowed down my choice to one of the two programming language/environment. I was wondering between half a dozen languages before this.
Saturday, March 1, 2008
Transhumanism, and the network of the world.
The term transhumanism is thrown around a lot these days. It's almost as if it is fast becoming a whole generational movement instead of a novelty philosophy catering to a limited cadre of technophiles. The true attraction of the movement I believe, is the real possibility that many things currently considered impossible might become possible in the future, not through any institutional reform but through a technological revolution capable of suiting individual tastes and goals. In many ways the movement of transhumanism is intensely political yet at the same time as politically neutral as it can be.
It seems transhumanism is about increasing the capacity to do things on the individual level without regards to a unified direction. After getting the ability you want using technological means, you can be a hardcore communist or a hardcore libertarian. The movement of the transhumanism itself doesn't dictate what its proponents should do after becoming 'transhuman', and the only political ideal directly associated with the philosophy of transhumanism is the one necessary in making it come true, free and unrestricted access to technology and information. It can be said that the transhumanism and the theory of singularity so many people attribute to the movement of transhumanism is like deus ex machina come to life, the proverbial genie of the lamp given flesh in human adaptation of technology. However, it should be noted that the post-cyberpunk transhumanism ideals aren't quite as clean and wish-wash as some of its predecessors of the enlightenment and industrial revolution, instead opting to put its faith in the very opening of the possibilities themselves rather than what those possibilities can ultimately achieve, and I dare say that it is this new way of thinking that defines the current generation's zeitgeist regardless of geological locale or technical proficiency. Propagation of systems of thought through generational sentiments instead of any strict governmental or academic structure (that might even go beyond regional and cultural taboo), a sort of social-blogging approach to the propagation and practice of systems of thought. Yet in this case, the physical entity of the net is not a necessity. Instead, majority of the network-forming, linking and subsequent emergent behavior results from interactions between people and ideas, the technical infrastructure only acting as a catalyst for already present elements in precipitating metamorphosis.
As the idea of physical distance becomes fuddled in the future and virtual density of the human population increases, the idea and practice of the net-less networking built into all conscious life forms in the innate interaction between life forms themselves and the life and idea-structures will become more and more profound, its effects more and more pronounced, perhaps enough to truly dictate the course of human history, and perhaps, even human beliefs.
It seems transhumanism is about increasing the capacity to do things on the individual level without regards to a unified direction. After getting the ability you want using technological means, you can be a hardcore communist or a hardcore libertarian. The movement of the transhumanism itself doesn't dictate what its proponents should do after becoming 'transhuman', and the only political ideal directly associated with the philosophy of transhumanism is the one necessary in making it come true, free and unrestricted access to technology and information. It can be said that the transhumanism and the theory of singularity so many people attribute to the movement of transhumanism is like deus ex machina come to life, the proverbial genie of the lamp given flesh in human adaptation of technology. However, it should be noted that the post-cyberpunk transhumanism ideals aren't quite as clean and wish-wash as some of its predecessors of the enlightenment and industrial revolution, instead opting to put its faith in the very opening of the possibilities themselves rather than what those possibilities can ultimately achieve, and I dare say that it is this new way of thinking that defines the current generation's zeitgeist regardless of geological locale or technical proficiency. Propagation of systems of thought through generational sentiments instead of any strict governmental or academic structure (that might even go beyond regional and cultural taboo), a sort of social-blogging approach to the propagation and practice of systems of thought. Yet in this case, the physical entity of the net is not a necessity. Instead, majority of the network-forming, linking and subsequent emergent behavior results from interactions between people and ideas, the technical infrastructure only acting as a catalyst for already present elements in precipitating metamorphosis.
As the idea of physical distance becomes fuddled in the future and virtual density of the human population increases, the idea and practice of the net-less networking built into all conscious life forms in the innate interaction between life forms themselves and the life and idea-structures will become more and more profound, its effects more and more pronounced, perhaps enough to truly dictate the course of human history, and perhaps, even human beliefs.
It's been a while
Wow. I can't believe it's been 5 days since I've uploaded something on livejournal. My life had been a little hectic lately, lot of excited air around the lab. I might not be able to make it this week either. I'll be updating my wordpress journal a it more often though.
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