Street Performers

I saw these two perform in the middle of Washington Square Park!  one was playing on a traditional drum set, while the other was playing on a paint bucket. 
As a drummer, I was immediately impressed by their skill!  They were perfectly in sync, each one following the other, almost in unison!

So, by now you're probably asking, "What's this have to do with anything"?  Well, I've decided to do this little project that explores the difficult world of busking (performing music in public places).

I have already incorporated a survey form on this blog.  It would be a big help if you completed it so I can get a bit of insight on the public opinion of buskers.

Thanks for your help!

CLASS ENTRY 1 (Part 2)

Radiolab - What Does Technology Want?- Post a short response to this(about one paragraph) to your digital sketchbook.

This podcast discusses the evolution of technology.  It is an interesting discussion of how technology advances, whether or not it advances on its own, and whether or not it's advance should be likened to biological evolution.  

One interesting concept that they tackle is the idea of preparing for new technology.  There is no way to tell what we will need in the future or what we will build to answer that need.  However, it is our duty to prepare for it, and to invent different kinds of thinking to comprehend the known universe in ways that evolution cannot prepare us for. 


The main thing I find challenging here is the idea that technology can be compared to biology.  In some ways, there are slight similarities, but the one thing that every religion, cult, belief, scientific thought, and opinion can agree on is that life is unpredictable.  We may be able to predict what MIGHT appear in the future, but we can't predict what WILL appear.  Some might say that technology is the same way, but the truth is, there are several people who are indeed predicting what path technology will take.  

CLASS ENTRY 1

1.  What was your first memory of the internet?

My first memory of the internet was when I was seven years old.  We had an old Gateway PC, running Windows 95.  My Dad was looking up a few things (e-mail mainly), and he showed me how to set up an AOL account.  He also signed me up for a few interesting newsletters, and introduced me to internet games.  It wasn't until much later that I used it for school research and video streaming (video streaming being a very new concept at the time).

2.  What is your favorite book, painting, story, movie, or otherwise about a high-tech future?

Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson.  It introduced the concept of the internet years before it was mainstream.  It introduced a world where the creation of this super-immersive cyber-world, or "Metaverse", caused the decline of the US, paving the way for corporations to take over.  It's a fun, hyper-active story that combines Science Fiction, Computer Programming, and Sumerian Mythology!

3.  What do you like about the internet?

I love how the internet enables you to obtain vast amounts of information from the comfort of your own home.  It brings the world closer.

4.  What do you not like about the internet?

I don't like how the internet seems to be in the process of being taken over my corporate interests.

5.  What is your favorite interaction that uses technology? 

 That would definitely be this laptop.  It's a notepad, a tv, a DVR, a typewriter, and a videophone all in one, and it is so simple to use.

6.  What is your favorite interaction that does not use technology?

Sound.  I mean general sound, the sound you hear every day when you walk down the street or tap your pencil on your desk.  As a percussionist (i.e., drummer), I seem to find a song take shape in nearly every sound I hear.

7.  What does the internet look like? 

This