Here is something you do not see every day. It
is a robot that plays music in relation to what human musicians
are playing.
Shimon, engineer Guy Hoffman’s robot musician, does not play
programmed music, it improvises in ensembles with human players,
communicating with a expressive head and favoring musical ideas
that are unlikely to be chosen by humans, so as to lead the
performance in genuinely novel directions.
The robot combines computational modeling of music perception,
interaction, and improvisation, with the capacity to produce
melodic acoustic responses in physical and visual manners.
Shimon has performed with human musicians in dozens of concerts
and festivals from DLD in Munich Germany, the US Science
Festival in Washington DC, the Bumbershoot Festival in Seattle
WA, and Google IO in San Francisco. Georgia Tech Center for
Music Technology is Shimon’s patron.
Here is a three minute example of the pleasant outcome. LINK
Feb 24, 2017
Wordology, Roughshod
We see this word in the expression "to run/ride roughshod" over somebody or something, meaning to tyrannize or treat harshly.
It came about as a way to describe the 17th century version of snow tires. A "rough-shod" horse had its shoes attached with protruding nail heads in order to get a better grip on slippery roads. It was great for keeping the horse on its feet, but not so great for anyone the horse might step on.
It came about as a way to describe the 17th century version of snow tires. A "rough-shod" horse had its shoes attached with protruding nail heads in order to get a better grip on slippery roads. It was great for keeping the horse on its feet, but not so great for anyone the horse might step on.
Feb 19, 2017
Happy Friday
Smiles are like honey, sweet to the soul, and health to the
bones.
I always share sweet smiles, especially on a Happy Friday!
I always share sweet smiles, especially on a Happy Friday!
Gravity Myth
Many
believe there is no gravity in space. Astronauts appear weightless
in space, so there is an assumption that space is a place with
zero gravity. That assumption carries no weight.
There is less gravity in space, but the idea that there is none is factually incorrect. There is gravity on Earth, on the moon, and on the sun. It all around us. The reason why space allows humans to be weightless is because they are gravitating toward the Earth at the same rate as their ships.
There is less gravity in space, but the idea that there is none is factually incorrect. There is gravity on Earth, on the moon, and on the sun. It all around us. The reason why space allows humans to be weightless is because they are gravitating toward the Earth at the same rate as their ships.
Coffee Grounds Uses
Coffee grounds serve a dual purpose
when it comes to cleaning pots and pans. Grounds attract and
absorb grease and oil, making them an ideal candidate, with dish
soap for removing excess grease from a pan.
Coffee
attracts worms and their presence means a healthy garden. Also,
the acidity in the grounds keeps snails and slugs away. The
grounds alter the pH level of soil, which can result in new
colors for flowers.
Sprinkling grounds over wood before setting a fire can stop ashes from flying around.
After rinsing your hands, scrub them with used grounds, and then wash to remove the smell of garlic or fish from them. The grounds exfoliate your skin and remove dead tissue, which is where much of the smell resides.
Coffee grounds as a skin scrub can help revitalize your face and reduce cellulite.
Put a bowl of grounds in the back of the fridge, and another in the freezer. Some people argue that raw grounds work as the best deodorizer, while others claim used grounds are best. Try a half-and-half mixture.
Sprinkling grounds over wood before setting a fire can stop ashes from flying around.
After rinsing your hands, scrub them with used grounds, and then wash to remove the smell of garlic or fish from them. The grounds exfoliate your skin and remove dead tissue, which is where much of the smell resides.
Coffee grounds as a skin scrub can help revitalize your face and reduce cellulite.
Put a bowl of grounds in the back of the fridge, and another in the freezer. Some people argue that raw grounds work as the best deodorizer, while others claim used grounds are best. Try a half-and-half mixture.
Millennials overtake Baby Boomers
It finally happened,
Millennials are now America’s largest generation according to
population estimates from the US Census Bureau. Millennials,
those ages 18-34 in 2015, now number 75.4 million, surpassing
the 74.9 million Baby Boomers, ages 51-69. Generation X, ages
35-50 in 2015 is projected to pass the Boomers in population by
2028.
The Millennial generation continues to grow as young immigrants expand its ranks. Boomers, whose generation was defined by the boom in US births following World War II are older and their numbers shrinking as their number of deaths exceeds the number of older immigrants arriving in the country. With immigration adding more numbers to its group than any other, the Millennial population is projected to peak in 2036 at 81.1 million.
Pew Research Center established that the oldest Millennial was born in 1981 and the youngest Millennial was born in 1997.
The Millennial generation continues to grow as young immigrants expand its ranks. Boomers, whose generation was defined by the boom in US births following World War II are older and their numbers shrinking as their number of deaths exceeds the number of older immigrants arriving in the country. With immigration adding more numbers to its group than any other, the Millennial population is projected to peak in 2036 at 81.1 million.
Pew Research Center established that the oldest Millennial was born in 1981 and the youngest Millennial was born in 1997.
Unseen World
A friend of mine, John Mascitti passed
along this great Ted Talk. Fast and slow motion from the minute
to the enormous. Seven minutes of wonder. LINK
Amethyst
It is a
semiprecious stone and is the traditional birthstone for
February. http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/amethyst
1250-1300; Latin amethystus, Greek améthystos not intoxicating, not intoxicated (so called from a belief that it prevented drunkenness)
The ancient Greeks wore amethyst and made drinking vessels decorated with it in the belief that it would prevent intoxication. It is one of several forms of quartz.
1250-1300; Latin amethystus, Greek améthystos not intoxicating, not intoxicated (so called from a belief that it prevented drunkenness)
The ancient Greeks wore amethyst and made drinking vessels decorated with it in the belief that it would prevent intoxication. It is one of several forms of quartz.
Wordology, Nasothek
A
collection of noses is a Nasothek.
Classical statues tend to lose their noses, and during the 19th century museums would commonly replace them with “restoration” noses, to preserve the appearance of the original sculpture.
During the 20th century some museums changed philosophies and “de-restored” their collections, thinking it better to present each piece in its authentic state. This created a excess of noses, and some museums collect these into displays of their own. I make no claims about which one might resemble mine.
Incidentally, Gutzon Borglum, who also sculpted Mount Rushmore, sculpted the Capitol bust of Abraham Lincoln - with just one ear. He believed that the dualities of Lincoln’s personality (hard as rock, soft as velvet) were reflected in the opposite sides of his face, with the right strong and masculine, the left soft and feminine. Borglum said of Lincoln’s face, “You see half-smile, half-sadness; half anger, half-forgiveness; half-determination, half-pause; a mixture of expression that drew accurately the middle course he would follow.” If you look at the left side, you do not see an ear. Borglum explained that he purposely omitted the ear because he wished attention to be drawn to the stronger right side of the face.
Classical statues tend to lose their noses, and during the 19th century museums would commonly replace them with “restoration” noses, to preserve the appearance of the original sculpture.
During the 20th century some museums changed philosophies and “de-restored” their collections, thinking it better to present each piece in its authentic state. This created a excess of noses, and some museums collect these into displays of their own. I make no claims about which one might resemble mine.
Incidentally, Gutzon Borglum, who also sculpted Mount Rushmore, sculpted the Capitol bust of Abraham Lincoln - with just one ear. He believed that the dualities of Lincoln’s personality (hard as rock, soft as velvet) were reflected in the opposite sides of his face, with the right strong and masculine, the left soft and feminine. Borglum said of Lincoln’s face, “You see half-smile, half-sadness; half anger, half-forgiveness; half-determination, half-pause; a mixture of expression that drew accurately the middle course he would follow.” If you look at the left side, you do not see an ear. Borglum explained that he purposely omitted the ear because he wished attention to be drawn to the stronger right side of the face.
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