Blogs

Technocalyps - transhumansism 3 part documentary

Technocalyps is a three-part documentary by Frank Theys on the idea of transhumanism

the documentary can be downloaded at greylodge.org, and they describe the parts as :

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Part 1: Transhuman
Part 1 gives an overview of recent technological developments (biogenetics, artificial intelligence, robotics, implants, nanotechnology,…) and prognoses made by leading scientists about the impact of these developments in the near future.

Part 2: Preparing for the Singularity
In this part advocates and opponents of a transhuman future are weighed against each other; prognoses are done when we can expect the transhuman revolution and how people are preparing for it already now.

Part 3: The Metaphysics of Technology

Marcus Westbury - links

Marcus Westbury - questions / research

Marcus is looking for some long lead articles about his upcoming tv show. I offered to post something here then have had limited net accesss (excuses!). so some research on him. he's already all over the net!!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marcus_Westbury
Marcus Westbury
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Marcus Westbury

Born 1974
Australia
Residence Australia
Nationality Australian
Marcus Westbury (b. 1974) is an Australian festival director, writer and media maker. He is currently based in Melbourne, Australia where he created the three part TV series Not Quite Art for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation screened during October-November 2007.

Contents [hide]
1 Biography
1.1 Arts and Festivals
1.2 Media Projects
2 Other
3 Media Coverage
4 External links

[edit] Biography

Jon Rose on History of Listening to Australian Music (ABC podcast)

came across this ABC Radio National podcast via the clan analogue list : Jon Rose: Listening to history - proposals for reclaiming the practice of music

(info from Radio National site)
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Each year, someone involved in music in Australia is invited to give the Peggy Glanville-Hicks Address. Peggy Glanville-Hicks was an Australian composer, most prolific in the 1950s. And this lecture, in her name and spirit, is intended to 'challenge the status quo and raise issues of importance in new music'.

Jon Rose is the most recent of these lecturers. For over thirty years, he's been at the sharp end of experimental and improvised music-making in Australia—playing fences for example.

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Speak Beats- 21st Century Visualised Triphop

Four of Melbourne's finest purveyors of lush sounds ranging from smooth liquid triphop, dub and sample based beat landscapes to squelchy, 8-bit glitch unite to deliver a night of synaesthetic delight for your auditory and visual pleasure. V.J. accompaniment by Shower Screens (Gertrude Projection Festival) and Siadatz (Uber Lingua) will be augmenting the multimedia experience of fresh local producers of organic electronic music, White Minus Red, Ionic, Editer and Paranym.

White Minus Red combine elements of triphop, dub and jazz, live instrumentation with Ableton powered technology and soulful vocals. Fronted by Sarah McDonald (ex Symbiosis, Bois et Charbon), with Liam O'Connell (Agency Dub Collective, 30B), Ben Ganley (Agency Dub Collective), Jon Hopkins (Agency Dub Collective, Malicine) and Leigh Hegg (OffBeat@Horse Bazaar, Plankton), White Minus Red have graced many a festival stage (Falls, Renaissance, Folk Rhythm + Life, Sustainable Living Festival) and are ones to watch.

Expat Novacastrian duo, Ionic have been getting many a party started since relocating to Melbourne with their unique and tasty blend of sample based, beat laden electronica, as well as gracing venues, galleries and festivals (Gertrude Projection Festival, Icicles and Raindrops). To follow up their latest release, Prototype 2.0, the Ionic lads, Stu and Div are in the process of recording a new album, so keep your ears open.

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Writing postcards by the pool in KL

writing postcards by the pool in KL - listening to the Cuban musicians playing the guitar & drums whilst the sun sets and the city bustles below.

July? 2008

Video thumbnail. Click to play
Click To Play

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Super Massive EP Launch

Sydney alterna-pop/electro/rock band Super Massive celebrate the launch of their debut, self-titled EP with a show and party at Candy's Apartment, 22 Bayswater Rd, Kings Cross, on Friday 11th July. 8pm - 11:30pm. The theme is "Key Party"... dress sexy!

Christa Hughes (from Machine Gun Fellatio & Circus Oz) will perform in main support, singing new and old material accompanied by Leonie Cohen on keyboards, and sultry singer Vanessa Hunter opens the night with her duo Hunter Lloyd, singing torchsong set to drum machine and bass.

Super Massive will then hit the stage to perform their set of alternative-pop songs set to slamming, funky, electro/rock dance grooves, described recently by industry tip mag The Music Network in a Hit Pick prediction as "..a provocative sound that's more infectious than the plague....".

There's a lucky door prize of a dirty night for two at The Blacket Hotel, with breakfast and parking thrown in - All you have to do is put your name in the key bowl upon arrival to win.

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Invitation to Craftspider Social Network for Australian and New Zealand Crafters

Hi there, I'd like to invite you to our exciting new social network at
Craft Spider (http://craft.craftspider.com)!!

We plan on building this network up rapidly to be a fantastic and fun
place to meet other crafters and to communicate with new and existing
customers!

Not only can you now build a detailed profile for your organisation, but
also join and start user groups on any topic you wish! We also have
forums, and the ability to upload and share as many photos as you want
about your work, or perhaps just items that inspire you!

We also have free classifieds so you can buy and sell treasures! You
also get a blog.. plus we have a global calendar where you can promote
events to everyone such as classes, your next sale or trade fair!

You can choose to make your groups public or private (by invitation
only), so its a great fun way to communicate with customers too. Also as
people sign up you can make new friends and invite them to your groups.

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SPOOL

NEW COLLABORATIVE WORK

SOUND/ Jerome Noetinger (Rives, France)
VISUALS/ Liz Racz (Melbourne)

It's 3.14 a.m. In darkness, the audience armed with torches gather to experience the outcome of residency collaboration between visual artist Liz Racz and Jerome Noetinger, an internationally recognised improviser using electroacoustic devices.

The artists' work is connected across distance by the idea of erasure; sounds being erased from tape by magnets and images rendered by being erased from the blackened walls.

Noetinger was a guest of the Melbourne International Biennale of Exploratory Music and the Liquid Architecture Festival. The collaboration with Racz being conducted by email, letters and photographs of sketches will extend her practice of ‘memorable large dark works’ (Penny Webb, The Age, 17 August, 2007).

LUPA/ art: A new space in Northcote hosting collaborative residencies with happy cross-disciplinary outcomes.

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Dennis Potter

today I've been watching interviews with Dennis Potter, a British playwright who's work was mostly broadcast on British televison in 1960s through to 1990s up until his death in 1994. Chris Case had sent an email to the TechGnosis mail list which put me onto them.

first I watched his last interview with Melvyn Bragg in 1994.

there are multiple parts to this interview
part1 : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y_tAK0pIuAQ
part2 : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v1gn7AmjP28
part3 : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zqucPVCwSe8

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first of squarey's arms



080620081165, originally uploaded by AliaK.

one of Squarey's arm - I finally worked out how to knit in the round using 3 double point needles. so Amelie's toy squarey is almost finished! one more arm + 2 legs + a face to go. whew, it's only been knitted in almost 2 years and 6 countries - Australia, New Zealand, UK, Israel, Turkey, India. I almost thought she'd be a teenager before I finished it..

I think this could be used to make fingers for gloves too

08/06/2008

080620081165

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this is what squarey looks like when he's finished - it's a Jess Hutchison (Jess Hutch) pattern from her book "Unusual Toys For You to Knit and Enjoy"
the below picture is Jess' squarey. the one I'm making has yellow instead of green (and there's a few more imperfections but I'm sure he'll still look cute) I'll post pictures when I've finished him

http://www.flickr.com/photos/jesshutch/51386088

http://www.jesshutch.com/2005/10/booklette.html

http://www.flickr.com/groups/99032870@N00/pool is a Jess Hutch flickr pool which has other examples of her patterns that others have knitted

if only I wasn't allergic to wool - itchy!!

08/06/2008 update : ok I've finished all the pieces - just need to sew him up and add the stuffing and sew his face
I'll move his arms down to the stripes position like in the pattern - not like in the photo below

he's finished!

Amelie's knitted toy - Squarey - he's been knitted in 6 countries over 2 years. he's a Jess Hutch pattern
finished 04/10/2008

Amelie's knitted toy - Squarey - he's been knitted in 6 countries over 2 years - Australia, New Zealand, India, Israel, UK, Turkey. I almost thought he was going to be a 21st present for Amelie! Amelie is my friend's little girl - I found out she was pregnant whilst overseas, so started knitting a toy whilst my friend was pregnant - before I knew whether she was a girl or a boy. my friend chose the colours - she wouldn’t tell any of us whether she was having a girl or a boy. I finished Squarey just before meeting Amelie for the first time after I’d moved back home. she calls him “Mr Square”

he's a Jess Hutch pattern : Squarey from "Unusual Toys for You to Knit and Enjoy" - by Jess Hutchison
finished 04/10/2008




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Kristian Thomas' "Kristian Thomas inanace child"

wow, Kristain Thomas' "Kristian Thomas inanace child" song is gorgeous - so lush and haunting. it's on his myspace page & is even downloadable

http://www.users.on.net/~mumfords is his website

http://www.users.on.net/~mumfords/industree/industree-indexv3_1.htm is the IndusTREE website
Kristian used to run events / projects under the PSP name.

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Humanity is NOT a virus - by zzz33333 (youtube)

zzz33333's video on Humanity is NOT a virus - complete with The Matrix (movie) references :)

and the links he posts in another video @ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eB0PNQlc5OU

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READ THIS!

Ishmael and others by Daniel Quinn

READ ISHMAEL

ISHMAEL BY DANIEL QUINN

EVERYONE READ ISHMAEL!

Endgame and others by Derrick Jensen
Against Civilization and others by John Zerzan
The Tao Te Ching by Lao-Tse
White Noise by Don Delillo
Demian by Hermann Hesse
In the Absence of the Sacred by Jerry Mander
WATCH THIS NOW:

http://www.archive.org/details/PhilosopherSeed-DerrickJensenEndgamePartO...

PART 2:

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Homesick - by Eshkol Nevo


my quick review of Homesick - by Eshkol Nevo

I bought this book as I was looking for a book in English (as I can't read Hebrew) about every day people living in Israel since I've been visiting Israel. I wanted to get more of a feel for the people and their lives. plus I've been feeling homesick for my own country and home. many of the places and things mentioned in the book were very familiar to me since my stay here and the characters seem like friends now. at first I found it hard to work out who was speaking as all the characters say "I" - they are each telling their own story in first person throughout the book. once I got used to this the characters grew on me. I loved the simple details mentioned in the book about everyday life and I have a mental picture about them living their lives now. I'll be keeping an eye out for more books by the author as I really enjoyed this one and recommend it to anyone who would like to read about life in Israel (ie not the media-portrayed view of Israel)

Def Wish Cast on Big Brother

there's been a small debate on Stealth boards about pioneering Australian hip hop band Def Wish Cast appearing on TV on Big Brother. here's my feelings on it.

yeah I think BB is cringeworthy. and DWC is giving *them* cred.
tv is the same - actually worse in some places - around the world - which would you rather watch? I think thinking DWC is cringeworthy for going on tv just shows how low our music-on-tv standards are. we should be pushing for a better class / std of music to be heard by the Aus masses. not bagging the bands for getting out there. is this the music glass-ceiling attitude that Australians seem to have? DWC *are* Aus hiphop - they couldn't change that if they tried - as Lo_D says I don't think their cred is in question at all. why can't we make the quality of Aus commercial music better by supporting the 'underground' bands/artists and giving them airplay in commercial arena. we can't escape the commercial music as it's played everywhere, so why not hear something good on airwaves/tv/shopping centres /wherever. I think it's win-win for everyone and helps lift the standards all-round. I'm ok with sharing underground bands with more people.

/edit maybe it's tall poppy not glass ceiling. I've forgotten my english phrases

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IL

a friend asked me how I like israel and if I keep up with the politics there. I haven't written much about my stay here apart from some notes & thoughts in my notepads, so this is just a quick reply to remember / trigger some memories. (scattered / stream of consciousness thoughts warning! some things might need fact checking too - I'd have to look up old notes)

and this is a link to 'most of the hebrew that I know list on live-vicariously-through-joni blog I came across whilst searching for the spelling of ta'im (tasty) the other night. this list is more words than I know, but I do know quite a few of them!

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