BBC News: Formula ’secret of perfect voice’
Researchers say they have worked out a mathematical formula to find the perfect human voice.
Interesting article – make sure to listen the male and female computer voices. They sounds very posh – and a bit gay to me.
I am wondering if the "perfect voice" is as much a "trend" as are certain looks?
Yeah, I know it’s an American thing to do this. Yeah, I know it’s awkward for a president to do this. Yeah, I know that he still hasn’t visited a single funeral of a fallen American Soldier – but hey – at least he gave up Golf to show solidarity with the families who lost someone in the war …
No, I am not kidding.
It is amazing how little physical contact of modern lifestyle has – and how it is supposed to happen only between "special people". Parents can cuddle their kids and visa versa. The same is true for lovers and couples. And you can give any old granny a hug.
For the rest of us a handshake and maybe a clap on the shoulder is the maximum of exchange – apart from a fist fight.
Even giving a friend a hug seems awkward too many people these days. We are becoming more and more mental being – with no personal physical culture apart from having sex.
Instead we pay wellness professional to touch us nicely, give us massages and caress our bodies. So it’s ok to let strangers touch us for money, while we are uncomfortable to touch our friends and see each other naked in a sauna?
Our biggest organ is the skin – and we should use it. Touching can be non-sexual, friendly and uplifting. We should use touch more often as a nonverbal form of communication and "feel" into the other person instead on just relying on mental forms of expression.
You can learn a lot about a person by touching him/her – and how he or she touches you. So open that channel and let’s touch …
Spiegel Online: Spying Scandal Widens at Deutsche Telekom
The German Telekom never had a very good reputation – but it just went totally downhill. Since the year 2000 this huge corporate monsters has monitored thousands of phone calls of managers and journalists. They even placed a mole in a German magazine to find out what journalists knew about other dirty tricks of the Telekom.
Plus Telekom tracked the movement of journalists via cell phone data.
It once again proves the point that modern telecommunication providers should not be left alone – or better say – without a watchdog. These companies have way too much power and information to be left alone with it.
Data protection is a modern human right – and should be taken MUCH MUCH MUCH more seriously. Most people don’t care or understand the issues.
But companies like Deutsche Telekom can track, listen in and read every mail, phone call, text message or web site you visited via their services. Even when you NOT use their services – a lot of phone and internet traffic runs via their routers and data nodes – so they can eavesdrop even when you are not their client.
The same is true for so many other giants like Vodaphone, AT&T, Comcast and NT&T etc.
I love paper – and I love building stuff with paper. Cubeecraft has a great selection of paper models for your pleasure. This is highly recommended for anyone working in a cubicle or having kids. It’s a lot of fun.
You simply download the pattern and print it on a A4 / letter sized piece of paper. Grab your scissors and start the fun. Each model on the site is rated for it’s complexity to build. What a great service – thanks you Cubeecraft!
More? www.cubeecraft.com
Firefox is currently the best browser available. I do love Opera, but FF with all it’s extensions and themes simply beats my former favorite.
Recently the first release candidate has been … uh … released and it’s a winner. I had no crashes or annoying bug while using this RC1 candidate. I won’t say it’s safe to install – but if you feel brave or simply want a faster and better browser than FF2 NOW – than go ahead an install it.
As usual RC or Beta software should only be used by developers and people who need it or want to fuck up their system. For the rest: they have to wait a few more weeks before the new version is ready – but in this case waiting is good, because several very popular extensions are not yet for FF version 3.0.
The ugly and poor guys only chance to get the girl is to be "funny". I haven’t figured out why, but humor and charm seems the best weapon against the wealth and higher social status of male competitors.
I am wondering why the female psyche is so vulnerable humor?
Does humor have an evolutionary advantage?
Click image to see more sand.
Picasso always amuses me. He has such a wonderful way to look at the world and reduce it to it’s bare essentials. The head – just a tiny thing with a few holes. A stretched arm to provide comfort. A small dune (?) and two more female hills. Sand and skin are almost the same on the beach.
I love it.
Summer, sunshine, sunburns …
It’s amazing how much chemicals we spill each year to avoid the effects of soaring sunlight on our skins. And how much more we waste on treating sunburns.
Why not simply move OUT of the sunlight to avoid damage to your precious pale office complexion? Or pre-roast yourself before dragging your sorry ass into the sun? Going from pale cavemen to roasted super model in just 14 days is not recommended.
Ah, they don’t make movie posters like that anymore – and it’s a good thing too, because that means they don’t make stupid movies like that anymore too.
I love the style – first employed by the new Avantgarde and many Soviet propaganda posters. Today’s artists are way to focused on "photoshopping" all elements of an image into perfection – so the poster would look like one seamless piece of art. But I like the collage style and emphasis on different objects.
It’s not Miss Liberty who awaits you in the United States of America – it’s someone from Homeland Security waiting to take your prints and a nice snapshot of your terrorist face.
Welcome to America!
Many spiritual disciplines teach you first how to focus yourself. Total concentration, total awareness, totally in the moment. Unless your are a 100% present – how can you work on 100% transcending yourself?
Unless you arrive in the here and now – you can’t enjoy and live in the here and now.
Another great scene from the Dude … with the Jesus, Vietnam and Danny!
Click image for a stronger woman.
Another brilliant Mapplethorpe moment – with all the power, beauty and grace almost all his snaps posses. For me it’s also a perfect expression of the 80’s – and a new feminine strength showing in art that is neither weak nor overdone.
Where to get it? www.personalfirewall.comodo.com
What is it? A free excellent firewall.
Why do I want to use it? The built-in Windows firewall doesn’t deserve it’s name and is more like Swiss Cheese. Comodo is currently the BEST firewall – and it’s free. (Here is a long list of benefits – but it’s very techie)
What does it do? Protects you from intruders from the Internet and checks if any nasty programs try to "call home" from your machine.
Who should use it? Every Windows XP user who still uses the built-in firewall.
How complicated is it to use? Download and install is pretty easy – under five minutes. The software will bug you with some question while you are using it WHICH IS A GOOD thing, because you should know what certain programs are doing, so you can protect yourself. It is a bit unnerving for beginners, but once you told Comodo which programs you use on a regular basis and trust the amount of security questions is considerably reduced.
He was not a savior. He was not chosen by some God. He was not supernatural.
He was a human like you – and his most important message to you is that you also have the Buddha nature. Enlightenment is within you and does not require religion or Buddha to show you the way.
Oh honey – just wait till the kids are gone – then I’ll get a divorce and party my brains out.
The possibilities of women have changed tremendously in the last 60 years.
Overall women have benefited the most from the sexual revolution and the new equality. Men lost their traditional "advantages" based on their gender – and they are less adaptable and flexible when it comes to our modern work environment and it’s "softer" requirements like team play, flexibility, communication, learning and emotional intelligence.
But women have also suffered from the new form of social fabric: they are now biggest number of single parents – responsible for raising and funding our kids.
People between 35 and 45 are the most populous group in many western countries. (Click image to pop the pyramid.)
In recent decades the good old population pyramid has basically flipped 180° – and now we have more mature and old people in western societies than we have young ones. We are becoming grey societies. (By the way: you can get population pyramids for many countries here)
So the fortysomethings are the biggest group in the population right now.
Plus the longer life expectancy, single lifestyle and overall youth cult have made the fortysomethings the new players in town: they have money, they are still horny and active. And their grown up egos are much more neurotic and hungry for self gratification.
The most active consumer group here are mature women. Many of them now are shedding their kids, because they are grown up now. So they want to "party extra hard" and make up for all the time they were dedicated mothers and wives.
Plus the modern western cities are more streamlined for the new single lifestyle – and they are the majority now. Families used to "rule" the cities – but that has changed during the 90’s. It’s now single all the way – or better "serial monogamizers" (people who hop from one fast relationship to the next one).
So our cities are a huge playground for the mature ladies.
Does this pop video make me look old?
The beauty and fashion industry has long discovered this rich and often desperate clientele: the cream for the skin at forty, the pill for the rotten brain at forty, etc.
The message here is: you are still adorable, but you need a tune up. Albeit an expensive one.
Behind all this is the ugly face of infertility. All primary "beauty" spots – red lips, beautiful hair, smooth skin, wide eyes – are signs of health and therefore fertility. A good looking women is most of all a fertile women.
Forty is the Magic Age – the last call for babies. But it is also the age of a new form of competition: you are fading out of the beauty competition – you are no longer the hottest chick in town, you already show some defects and there is fresher meat on sale.
Our society has just developed a "mature concept" for beauty and sexuality, but overall we do not appreciate the beauty and wisdom of older ladies as they are. We only have "Venus" measurement: either you are a young fertile love goddess or you are not.
Our definition what’s hot or not is still deeply ingrained in our biological code: only healthy breeding material is sexy.
Mature Bitches rule the Suburbs!
That brings us to the overall sexualization of age. Since Viagra was released the pressure was on – there was no longer an excuse for guys not too perform – so the ladies also had to joining the gray swingers club.
But the sexualization of mature women goes further: TV series like "Sex in the City" and "Desperate Housewives" are both part of the wider "MILF" syndrome (MILF = Mothers I’d like to fuck).
This is a new sex trend as well media frenzy: mature hot looking women who are oversexed and fuck anything that moves – plus the additional drama this behavior causes. Usually the before mentioned attributes are reserved for males. These MILFs know no taboos, they know no limits. They are the perfect sex partners.
So modern life restarts at 40 and a gray society needs to tell itself it’s still capable and interesting. It’s a mutual lie and effort to push the boundaries of age and dissolve old limits and taboos.
In a way it’s almost like the sexual egos of mature women are fighting against the menopause: "Look I still can get semen, I am still adorable! And with Science I am gonna kick your ass Mother Nature!"
Pregnant at 40+ and loving it!
In the past women past the magic age of 40 were left alone, because they were heading straight for their menopause and were therefore uninteresting as breeding material. Just wait a few more years and these women are great grandmother material.
But thanks to science, overall better health and life expectancy breeding for women after 40 is now pretty normal. And many young women prefer postpone babies longer and longer, so 35+ mothers are becoming the norm in western societies instead or rare exceptions.
And breeding can now be outsourced to a "working womb" if necessary. All you need to do is freeze your eggs in the right age and "seed" them if you are ready and rich enough to have your own kids.
So science has helped to beat the biological clock in some aspects and women can now have babies – apart from the very popular game of international adoption – in almost any age.
Guardian: Pregnancy among over-40s reaches ‘record high’
Let’s celebrate mature female consumerism and neurotic obsessions with the perfect wedding!
Conclusions?
In some way mature women are now doing the same what mature guys have been doing for ages: get out and have some fun with younger flesh. The TV shows are mostly about the usual "Relationship Porn" we love to watch (and stuff like Big Brother is the ultimate Social Porn anyway).
But the big picture is more complex: our aging societies are trying to cope with age and longevity. Behind all the modern media hype are serious questions: How do we live our lives NOT as passive grandmothers and grandfathers?
Most western people won’t have kids or grandkids when they cross the 40’s. There will be no families to fall back on – and often not even relationships – so we need new ways to socialize, form relationships on every level and "grow".
Why wait for death when you are just 40 – when your life expectancy is beyond 80? This is just the middle of your life Darling!
The old pensioner is gone – the next generation of "oldies" will be more demanding, self centered and active. Science will try to keep them "awake" and active much longer. And since our population pyramid is so skewed we need mature people to work longer and harder.
That is why the old cliches about mature women (and men) are under attack and are currently reformulated (even on trivial levels): It’s ok to have fun beyond 40, it’s ok to fuck beyond 40 and it’s probably necessary to have kids beyond 40.
That is why our societies needs to be open minded and explore about new "phases" in our lives: start a new life with 40 or a family. Since we all will last beyond the age of 70 or 80 it’s important to allow ourselves to have many "phases" in one life – and not being condemned to one "path" one has chosen in her or his twenties or thirties.
It is amazing how much "stuff" modern soldiers carry around with them – apart from their most basic instruments and clothing.
Body Armor plus huge amounts or high tech equipment.
Sometimes when I watch videos from Afghanistan and Iraq – where heavy western soldiers "crawl" beside lightly equipped Afghan or Iraqi troops – I wonder if this just makes "our" boys bigger targets?
BBC News: WWF urges Brazil biofuel projects
Brazil has been on the forefront of the biofuel revolution. But once again it shows that industrial production of anything we humans need always causes some problems.
Overall the Brazilian’s experience with sugar cane has been VERY good. But they have to watch out to keep nature’s balance, water supply and bio diversity to make this a long term success.
But in that respect I have more confidence in Brazil that I have for example in the US obsession with Corn and making Ethanol from it. What a stupid idea – since corn produces a LOT LESS fuel than sugar cane.
Congratulations to NASA and their Phoenix mission – it’s a great success! I am looking forward to many more breath taking images like this one (check out the small BBC slide show here).
PS: Look at the sky – we should rename Mars into Pinko. 
*Thanks to Edosan for sending me this one*
Need to make some money with religious devotionalia? Then buy Fred’s Holy Toaster Stamper – and a book on "How to sell stuff on eBay". Don’t miss all the other great stuff from Fred!
*Thanks to Jason for another great tip*
Click image for more channels.
I love Maestros Friedlander’s art. He is such a great observer and social commentator at the same time.
This modern view is know to any traveling business men and woman. Your lousy hotel room and a TV. Nothing else. I like that there is a kid on TV – suggesting the far away family and being away from your loved ones.
Today we would see a notebook with a webcam – talking to your family or watching crappy clips on YouTube.
Got 90 minutes to kill?
Watch some British Humor "Trigger Happy". They play nasty tricks to unsuspecting people with their weird humor and hidden cameras.
*Thanks to Edosan for some more fun in my life*
BBC News: Vast cracks appear in Arctic ice
It’s melting and melting and melting. I wonder when we start to RALLY do something about climate change? When New Orleans is an underwater museum or Venice a diver’s Disney Land?
When the whole US campaign started is very happy to Madame Clinton running for office. Here we have someone – I thought – who really has experience and the balls to get back at the Republicans.
A few months later Hillary has made almost every mistake she could have avoided. For a pro she was terribly naive and unfocused. Plus she has a huge amount of debt.
All she has archived is to prove almost all of her critics right and paint herself as a "greedy political bitch from hell".
Too bad.
But what’s even worse is that the Democrats are once again keen to kill themselves over internal politics instead of focusing on McCain. So I am afraid that we will have a third Bush term if the DEMs don’t sobber up.
The dream of the Jetpack is an old one – just strap enough power to a human’s back and he will fly. Yves Rossy – a longtime pilot and madman – decided to take the dream into the 21st century and built his own cool jetpack.
He sacred a lot of cows, when he screamed through the Swiss alps.
He might be a great dreamer on one side – but I like his pacifist approach on the other. The military asked him to deliver a prototype – which he promptly refused. It’s made for fun only.
Good man!
After several weeks of hectic travels I am back home and recharging my batteries. Weather was terrible this week – so was my concentration and creativity. I felt like buying a sauna and living inside it forever. Today the sunshine is back after a week or rain and storms.
And I had some time and energy to restart my blog. I removed some stuff from the sidebar and some scripts in the background. I hope the blogs loads faster now?
Happy Sunday dear reader!
Click image for more calories.
I just love this painting. It’s such a perfect homage to many old masters and their "boring" still life’s – and it’s such a perfect commentary about our modern times.
Maestro Ligare has painted several images in the same setup, but I like this one best.
More? www.davidligare.com and Wikipedia entry
This is the real thing! From the product description:
Plays "SpongeBob SquarePants Theme" at the end of temperature taking.
So when you hear music in your ass Spongebob is ready to tell you your temperature. Isn’t merchandise a wonderful thing!
Pat Robertson would have loved this – Spongebob is for the Gays.
Photoshop and a great operator can greatly improve your career, even when you are already old and wrinkled. Hotness is no longer in the eye of the beholder, but based on the right image manipulation.
I love the mind behind these great designs. Make sure to explore the whole Glennz Blog for more brilliant designs – or simply buy one you like on his site or check out his huge portfolio of T-shirts on threadless.
Another one of my teenage idols bites the dust: Robert Asprin – a great Fantasy writer died May 22nd 2008. Too bad no magic – which he liked so much – can resurrect him.
I loved his highly amusing Myth series as much as Thieves World. His imagination and humor was a great inspiration for me.
Bye Robert – see you in a better place.
A nice series of wallpapers by Hybridworks from Japan. Make sure also to check page 2 for more yummy illustrations.
Now I am hungry.
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1. Click player below to start the music. 2. Click the image to dive into the art. 3. Study for eight minutes this great piece of art and all the drama. |
Maestro Bouguereau has painted a lot of crap – mostly woman more or less dressed. But he also had many great moments, full of drama, insight and pure bliss.
"Homer and his guide" is one such moment. It shows the dignity and vulnerability of the great (blind) author – and the aggression and hate he faces from dogs and enemies (in the background). The scene plays on Mount Ida – and Homer is protected and guided by the goat herder Glaucus. Notice the lyra on Homers back – his instrument as a poet – and his firm posture – like nothing in the world can shake him. The boy seems more afraid than he is – he holds – rather nervously – a big stone in his hand.
It’s also a great scene about compassion and following your path, even when you need outside help and you are despised by others.
The moment is taken from a tale about Homer – as Homer himself seems to be only a fictional character. So the creator of some of the greatest Greek myths – the Iliad and the Odyssey – turns out to be a myth himself.
Ah springtime – finally I can grab my picnic basket and visit mother nature and her many yummy daughters for a yummy picnic.
Jason has sent me this amazing article about the varieties of cotton and how we are once again losing bio diversity thanks to greed.
Like white breed or white sugar people simple want they goods "clean" and in a virgin-like colour. But brown bread like brown sugar is usually much better or at least equal to the white – often bleached – industrial stuff …
As as 41 year old fart I have to come to accept that any action movie is made for my opposite age of 14. But even at that age one must be bored by all the endless repetitions and lack of any story line?!
It seems to me that today’s eternal heroes are a bunch of idiots and "boys" instead of real heroes. The essence of the (male) hero is that a boy transcends his childhood, faces pain and humiliation – to finally accept responsibility and face "evil" on his journey to manhood.
Modern day heroes always seem stuck in the boyzone forever. Iron Man sucks as much as so many comic movies before this disaster. Go and watch something else.
Plus: as much as I like Robert Downey Jr. he always seems to play the same character just in different settings. I like his trickster qualities, but I am bored by the endless typecasting of his producers. But from what I have gathered from interviews he seems to like that kind of crap – and even loves the idea of another Iron Man. The eternal kid playing the hero … indeed …
