Science, Music and Different Worlds
Mar. 14th, 2011 01:09 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
tcpipAttended the Graeme Clark Oration on Wednesday night, Victoria's most important lecture in the life sciences. Last year was Dr. Craig Venter; this year was Professor Terrence Sejnowski speaking on "The Computational Brain", specifically on the development of mathematical algorithms that mimic certain neurological abilities (e.g., speech acquisition, screening sound, focussed vision). It led me to engage in jotting down a few notes for the Unitarian Philosophy Forum. This weeks also saw an interesting discussion on whether alien fossils have or have not been discovered. Finally, I am listed as a speaker for the Humanity Plus conference in June on the topic "More Human Than Human: The Computation of Moral Reasoning".
Whilst on the topic of alien lifeforms went to the Hawkwind concert on Saturday night, a damn fine night. My review of a few paragraphs is available on Rocknerd. Later this week will go to see Leftfield. On related musical and dancing threads, Senator Mary Jo Fisher is an idiot; it is astounding that this is what constitutes a public representative in this country.
Sunday ran another session of Young Gods, with the unusual combination of Inuit and Tibetan myths. Afterwards spent time with Brendan E., where we watched more of the excellent series The Walking Dead, following by Ultramarine, based on the Warhammer 40K universe; it managed to capture the dominant themes (violence, paranoia, integrity etc) very well. Without a doubt I will have to include an article on said game-world for the next issue of RPG Review which is based around 'different worlds'.
Whilst on the topic of alien lifeforms went to the Hawkwind concert on Saturday night, a damn fine night. My review of a few paragraphs is available on Rocknerd. Later this week will go to see Leftfield. On related musical and dancing threads, Senator Mary Jo Fisher is an idiot; it is astounding that this is what constitutes a public representative in this country.
Sunday ran another session of Young Gods, with the unusual combination of Inuit and Tibetan myths. Afterwards spent time with Brendan E., where we watched more of the excellent series The Walking Dead, following by Ultramarine, based on the Warhammer 40K universe; it managed to capture the dominant themes (violence, paranoia, integrity etc) very well. Without a doubt I will have to include an article on said game-world for the next issue of RPG Review which is based around 'different worlds'.
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Date: 2011-03-14 10:45 am (UTC)no subject
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Date: 2011-03-15 08:42 pm (UTC)I'll give Hanson credit for two things. Firstly being responsible for the catch-phrase "please explain" which will outlive the speaker and secondly for recognising that Howard took her policies and pandered to the racist right.
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Date: 2011-03-14 12:04 pm (UTC)Did the discussion reach a consensus on whether alien fossils have been discovered or not? (If I were inclined to gamble, I would bet not. Do I lose?)
Hawkwind?!! You attended a Hawkwind concert?! How outstanding! I used to listen to that band on vinyl albums.
Re: the amazing performance of SA Liberal Senator Mary Jo Fisher, Wow! We-e-ell, first off, I rather liked her performance art (which makes me an idiot too I suppose); second I think she made some good points but diluted rather than underscoring her message by sticking so consistently to her chosen themes and metaphors; however, even in that, I feel she had a point (though one likely ignored by the government she is criticizing.) What I mostly derived was that no matter how it's dressed up and outwardly changes (first left, then right) it all just stays the same. I am presuming she is pro-progress, since that is what liberal means or used to, in the U.S. That she argues against a given tax, or at minimum calling things for what they are, then that is what I think of as a Conservative position. However, her concluding criticism that it will be "all pain and no gain" resonates well for many within the U.S. and around the globe since that is what we "huddled masses" endure without collective bargaining and more genuinely representative democracy.
The Old idea was, I believe, that statesmen would both vote the will of their constituencies, as well as voting more wisely than the constituencies when circumstances called for that kind of moral valor. The ancient and therefore newer Idea seems to be that money itself is the highest value, living for the moment in such a way as leaves little to nothing for the future, which I think is irresponsible unless one is living in a hospice.
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Date: 2011-03-15 06:13 am (UTC)Senator Fisher did have a point of sorts, but it was something that could be delivered in one minute and without an interpretative dance routine. What I find very peculiar is that contemporary society is actually quite politically savvy and better educated - this being so, why are our politicians treat us so simplistically?
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