Tools in the brain-attic
Posted on December 29th, 2009
True to my geek nature, I’ve always identified more with intellectual protagonists than with the physically powerful. Hollywood seems to prefer the “mad scientist” flavor of smart guy, with either an antisocial or self-absorbed. It seems the stereotypical genius must have such a rich mental world that they prefer it to reality, or are at least easily distracted by the goings-on of their own thoughts.
I want my heroes to be role models, though, and my own path to self-actualization calls for more focus and application than expansion of knowledge or practice of reason. Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes is remembered fondly as a disciplined wielder of thought.
Guy Ritchie managed to preserve that essence in Sherlock Holmes. Maybe credit is due to Robert Downey Jr., since Tony Stark is a similar hero genius. Regardless, it’s a pleasure to see the practiced employment of intelligence glorified in public entertainment (if not politics).
Tags: geek, review
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Kindle
Posted on November 19th, 2007
My completely unwarranted review of Amazon’s new Kindle e-book reader, without touching one:
The eink screen’s light gray colouring looks ideal, and a bright white would certainly cause eyestrain. But what’s with the white casing? It appears distracting, like reading a paperback in a frame that covers the margins in bright white.
The keyboard is entirely too prominent, considering how unimportant it is to the reading experience. It leaves the impression the device considers searching and purchasing as primary use cases, rather than browsing and… reading.
Nonetheless, I’m excited about a future the ebooking. Sign me up for a next-gen Kindle that’s all screen.
Tags: asides, review, technology
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Violence, sex, heroism, treachery, revenge
Posted on March 9th, 2007
My microreview of 300: This is why God gave us Hollywood.
Tags: movie, personal, review
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Daily Bookmarks
Posted on February 9th, 2007
Links bookmarked on 2007-02-09
- Yahoo Pipes
Great UI for the rules engine, like a cross between Automator and Quartz Composer - Italian made Oxygen Lepton Electric Moped
Lepton dealer
Tags: community, ev, framework, integration, links, review, scooter, shopping, webservice
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Sinaisky in St. Louis
Posted on January 27th, 2007
Just some brief observations from tonight’s performance of the SLSO:
Tchaikovsky’s Romeo and Juliet has been made cliché, so it’s a little difficult to get involved with. But Vassily Sinaisky, the guest conductor, was so enthusiastically animated and the entirety of the strings were so dead-on that this performance was surprisingly fun.
The Playbill had be ready to be fascinated by Witold Lutoslawkski’s Dance Preludes and Walter Piston’s Clarinet Concerto, but they both just bored me so that my mind wandered. Scott Andrews drew amazing range and fluidity from the clarinet, but that just wasn’t enough.
The real discovery of the night is Dmitry Shostakovich’s first Symphony. It was engaging, passionate, and full or energy. If anything, it got a bit over-the-top and seemed like the composer was showing off, but the musicians handled it with aplomb and left me hungry for more. I’ll be seeking out more from Shostakovich during my next music binge.
Tags: music, review, stlouis
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