some thoughts on digitization

What happens when we digitize something? Whether audio, imagery, or anything else, the process always involves taking samples and then essentially abstracting from the samples into something a computer can comprehend-- data. The more samples per amount of information coming into the digitizer, the higher resolution will be. The more specific the digitizer is when choosing a value for any given sample, the higher the “bit depth” will be. If the resolution and bit depth are high enough, this abstract data can be use to create something apparently a lot like the original. For example, a digital scanner takes a number of color and brightness samples from an image and assigns values for these samples. We can imagine a bunch of dots and for each dot the scanner assigns a color off of a color swatch. The more dots, the higher the resolution, the more colors on the swatch, the greater the bit depth. But while we may keep increasing the fidelity of our digitizer, it will never store all the richness of the original. This is because it is not possible to provide a value data to the basic “atom” or structural basis for the object. What would this value be in terms of? On the other hand if there is no basic atom, then the resolution and bit depth would have to be infinite. Ok, so what? Well I think language works in largely the same way as a digital technology. We have an experience and we process it in a number of ways, one of them is linguistically. Language consists of a number of words which are the various color swatches. The more words we use to describe a given experiential “space,” the greater the resolution. The more words at our disposal and the better our word choices are, the higher the bit depth of our expressions are. Language suffers from the same basic fallibility as a music CD. It can only capture so much of an experience. We can use it to the max with skill and practice, we can push its boundaries with poetry, but it will never square up exactly with what it describes. It has been said that all language is metaphor, and I am liable to agree. Of course language is more than a simple digitizer. It is much richer, and capable of fantasy and obfuscation. Perhaps it is better likened to a digital scanner and Photoshop. No, not enough, language is self defined and unto itself (“la langue”). Words are defined in terms of other words in some kind of circular way. Data is in terms of more basic data. There is much here to puzzle over, but I think the analogy being drawn here has something to say. All this talk of digital makes it hard not to mention the analog. But I find that much harder to comprehend. I think perhaps all language is digital, and analog communication is something else… translatable, storable, but somehow not comprehendible in a logical sense without conversion to one digital-linguistic form or another. I’d like to find a book on this topic.

fiscal frost

the woods are lovely dark and deep, but I have student loans. fuck.

I was a christian pop star

country church.bmp made by a coworker

WTF!?

why haven't you --yes you-- sent me a picture to put in my pics of peeps section? Consider this your clarion call. The link is here.

Mario Brothers - Part IV - presented by Newgrounds.com. Highly recommended if you have the bandwidth and are a gargantuan dork. This is part four of five.

something in the way he moves

The Gay Referee

guest commentator on the Italian Hostage Crisis

This from a discussion we were having about this article via email. "I see the insurgents as attempting to influence and mobilize the Italian population, through coercion, to act on their behalf, just as many American war-protestors did by sporting the Viet Cong Flag and identifying with the communist forces of Ho Chi Minh, and actively protesting the war. Of course most probably protested in opposition to war, and not because of an affinity for communism. It was the protestors that eventually ended the war, and not military defeat. We killed 60 of them for each one of our guys killed, 3 million versus 50,000. Even the Tet Offensive was a military success, with only a few successes on the part of the VC, including the televised and brief takeover of the U.S. embassy. I think the insurgents know there best ally are domestic protestors and anti-war sentiment, to accelerate the erosion of resolve, and speed up the inevitable departure of Coalition troops. It may work, it may back fire. Either way, I am convinced that we have lost the War in Iraq, and now are trying to jockey for an honorable exit, and a mitigated failure. We don't have the moral absolutism to act as creatively and ruthlessly as the enemy, nor the resolve or interest to see democracy planted in Iraq, and nurtured with the rich soil of American blood. Maybe the San Francisco bumper stickers are becoming more right: Iraq is Arabic for Vietnam. I am just pissed that I bought into their war, and am conflicted about what are our current moral responsibilities to the Iraqi people, including those that don't have a voice." -ben

dick jokes

"As Cheney told CNN, he has been 100 percent heart attack free since ascending to the vice presidency. He added, 'In fact, rather than giving me stress, being vice president has actually fueled my blackened soul, allowing me to gorge vampire-like on the bloody nectar of unlimited power.' I'm sorry that should have read 'I never felt better.'" —Jon Stewart, on Dick Cheney's insistence that he is the picture of health "President Bush played golf yesterday and I understand Vice President Dick Cheney also got in a couple of strokes." —Jay Leno My dick is so big, I can fuck a volcanoe. -- I found this on the net

Civil War

"We soldiers of all nations who lie killed Ask little: that you never, in our name, Dare claim we died that men might be fulfilled. The earth should vomit us, against that shame. We died; is that enough? Many died well, Of both sides; most of us died senselessly. Ask soldiers who outlived us; they may tell How many soldiers died to make men slaves, or free. We died. None knew, few tried to guess, just why. No one knows now, on either side of the grave. If you insist you know, by all means try, That being your trade, to make the knowledge save. But never use, now as your honor sorrow, Our murdered days to garnish your tomorrow." -James Agee

seiklus is a great little game anyone can enjoy. I highly reccomend it. I love the graphics and music. Inspiring, simple stuff.

I updated the links section, and I made an archive link under more jb.com from which you can access the complete archive

JAPAN: Hostages released into storm of criticism Ben turned me on to this story, which highlights a stark difference between Japanese culture and, say, American culture. The Japanese hostages in Iraq were at the center of a firestorm of criticism: "While the three were in captivity, they and their kin drew sharp public criticism in Japan, having put themselves in harm's way after being warned to steer clear of Iraq. They were castigated for causing trouble and a fair amount of grief for the government." Don't be different, don't cause your government any grief, get in line or get off our island!

"There's dick jokes on the way, please relax. People are goin', "this guy better have some good dick jokes, I'll tell you that honey. This guys better have a big long purple vain dick joke to pull himself out of this comedy hole." Throw down the big purple veined dick and I crawl out of it -- and that's gonna be the joke."

too late, too superficial, too poorly written, too tired, too many excuses

Want nothing and you shall want for nothing vs. if you want something hard to get, you need to want it real fucking bad, or you won't get it. What do I want? I want a beautiful life. I want to squeeze out the most beautiful stuff from the one part of the universe I can control, myself. I want to get the most out of myself. I also would like to leave the world better off, but right at this moment that seems kind of naïve. I'd like to pick up on the good and beautiful things others have done and contribute for the next person to be inspired by. I also want to have fun. TenementRock- You're writing about the attainment of a goal, which may mean ignoring fears about the future or over-conceptualizing or fantasizing and instead just DOING. In that sense you are here now and the conflict is resolved. "The greatest journey begins with a single step." But if you are consumed by the desire to attain a goal, instead of experiencing this shit right here and accepting what is, you are not of the moment. Take the example of me eating dinner. I have a goal in mind, the next bite, and so of course I know just what to do. The problem is the cycle is ongoing. Doing and accepting are not the same, and in some sense are opposed. We always want more. When do we get to just be happy with ourselves and our lives? I have a quantity of material goods that most humans who have lived would kill for. I have better friends than I could ask for, a pretty damn awesome family, a girl in love with me, and a restaurant I like. So what's the problem? So I achieve fame and fortune to get the good shit. Is that really going to do the trick? Hell no. That validation is temporary and needs to be experienced over and over so that we know we haven't "lost it." This is part of the reason why the worst time to become rich or famous is when you are young. I’m getting off topic. Point is, one has to believe in one's goal as a religion, and it is a false god. Personally I see a few options for myself: - Philanthropy - Mystical/meditative practice - "Giving in" to the family project - Adventuring, exploring, traveling, "world learning" - Theorizing, reading, talking, "book learning," - Writing about the whole experience of it all These are obviously not mutually exclusive and all sound good, but probably false gods in every direction… turtles all the way. And once you know, you can’t convince yourself otherwise. Or if I could I wouldn’t want to. All this is FAR too much for 1:30 on a Tuesday from my office computer. I need to sleep a few hours for another marathon tomorrow.

"Those who are successful never look towards the ground for their next step, but towards the horizon." --Unknown "We are shut up in schools and college recitation rooms for ten or fifteen years, and come out at last with a bellyful of words and do not know a thing." --Ralph Waldo Emerson

"If you have to keep reminding yourself of a thing, perhaps it isn't so." --Christopher Murley

nice photo Jason

Daoism vs. the mind’s ability to shape reality.

I’ve been reading a book by alan watts called the wisdom of insecurity. In it he makes a great point that the religious apologists have missed: being better off with a religion does not make its dogmas true, and it cannot make an unbeliever believe. The scientific mind may be beset with existentially energized neuroses, but that does not mean such a mind is misguided. Watts is writing about security, and I think he is heading toward mystic revelations. he is Alan Watts after all. He has already warned not to try to “fix the flux.” That is, don’t try to control the world or guarantee pleasure for yourself in the future because you’ll miss out on the now… forever. Personal example... how many times have I eaten a meal, always thinking about the next bite, or worrying about if I will be hungry when the meal is over. When the next bite comes I am now thinking about the next bite, and so on. Soon the meal is gone and I never really enjoyed it. He reminds me of another issue that is probably more present in my mind: success. I believe it is the case that in order to do something truly awesome, one must be totally dedicated it despite all else. Nobody breaks ground listening to other people’s advice, or doing whatever happened to be convenient. If you want to move to America, and you tell yourself that if the opportunity arises and you are in a good financial situation you will take it as long as your relationships are in order, you have a home for your dog, the airline has a morning flight, etc… YOU WILL NOT GET THERE. And moving to America is no big whoop really, many millions have done it. This law of dedication is quadruply powerful with something truly difficult to achieve or something previously untried. So how do these “laws” relate? Doing something worthwhile (surely an admirable goal in this fucked up world) requires a pigheaded all-consuming white hot burning desire and passion to DO IT. You must be obstinate, it must ALREADY BE, and it WILL BE. On the other hand, to experience your full humanity you must go with the flow, and not fixate on the future (or the past). No answers here, got no time for ‘em now, but please comment and stick around, when I find out something interesting, I’ll let you know.

imadork

Do you remember Unfinshe? I think im getting there: She's A Pop Song She walks in three part harmony, and smiles in open chords. I think I've got the rhythm, if I only had the words. Sweet as a refrain, that won't leave my head. I'd suffer one thousand ads, to hear that song again.

guy barely avoids train

GET BROADBAND

PDB page 1 PDB page 2

The O'Franken Factor

the livejournal image streamer I was telling you about

when you click here, remember these images may be VERY fucked up and you should think twice before browsing at work.

Phantom's Adult Fanfic Archive

pornographic-y transformers stories nuff said... I think not "Prime groaned a bit as the warm liquid helped to loosen the tension in his knotted muscle cables. He rubbed the cleansing rag over his solid chest and sighed. Usually he just took a brisk tepid shower once every week or two, when Earth's particulate built up in his systems, but every now and then a leisurely warm shower was very nice. Alita was right, he should indulge himself more often. Relishing the sensations, he slipped the rag a bit lower, running it over his grillwork in even circular strokes. A flutter ran down his belly and he shivered deliciously, enjoying the sensations his body was giving him." Is anything as interesting or as pathetic as humanity?

a poll

ok, im taking a poll. You see i've found this amazing thing. there is a large site called livejournal where people do something like blogging. I actually hosted jibblog there for a while but it was creepy. Anyway, some people made some PHP code that automatically displays images being uploaded to livejournal by the thousands of freaky users. So I've been looking at this thing and it's AMAZING. A lot of salt of the teenage earth look at me stuff, and a lot of just plain disturbing stuff, and I'm wondering if you guys would like me to post some highlights? Post a comment if you feel one way or another. Remember, the stuff may be disturbing or take a while to load... of course I COULD just put up a link to the site that displays what's being uploaded. the choice is yours

some coworkers found out about the blog. called me a narcissist. I'll show them! Here is a picture of me tacking a pciture of myself and I'm putting it on my blog HA! Can you name this bathroom?

here you go bitches. I actually, by chance, brought 6 rolls of film to be developed today. 1 was bad and two needed to go off-site, but I got some back. These were the kinda rolls that are so old you have no clue what is on them. What a pleasant suprise.

i tried to find some passover sillyness, but this was all I managed:

happy easter

i know the europe thing doesn't really fit the theme, but its pretty comedy

Japanese See-Thru Skirts

The Current Rage in Japan.

Joint Operations: Typhoon Rising | EBgames.com

Joint Operations: Typhoon Rising | EBgames.com also "i need you back" by ben kweller is AMAZING. rocking me.

me on a friday night home from work at 1:10am and it feels like im getting off early. FUCK

me, Ben, California Joe -- You know where, 2002.

is this not the saddest picture ever. I'm not gonna tell you where it's from but I'm just saying. I think I'd be cool to do rolls of film of pictures like this.

Guns and Dope Party

Guns and Dope Party: "A free people ought not only to be armed and disciplined, but they should have sufficient arms and ammunition to maintain a status of independence from any who might attempt to abuse them, which would include their own government. --George Washington"

When Play Money Becomes Real

Wired News: When Play Money Becomes Real

-SNIP- I took the picture that WAS here this morning, and this afternoon it bugs

from anarchy to apathy

Anti-globalisation It's kinda like Bill Hicks' "people who hate people" party. Of COURSE they can't get organized, they're anarchists. "Can't nowbody round here see, we got anarchy and this is what happens." That was said by Miller.

nader4prez.bmp arnie.bmp

poem petite

I'm rock, not electronica. No technics, please, some hamonica. I've left malibu, and gone looking for you. Fuck friends from my hood, (Santa Monica).

typhoon rising even more

The demo was updated over the weekend and it kicks some ass. If you have the hardware download it! (PC w/video card and good graphics card) www.fileplanet.com

BartCop's most recent rants...

BartCop's most recent rants: "'President Bush, spending a long weekend on his Texas ranch, gave no ground, and several aides said he will not change his mind on letting Rice testify.' --AP, March 29, 2004, Attribution 'Today I have informed the 9-11 Commission that Kinda Sleazy Rice, will provide public testimony.' --Dubya, Statement to the Press, March 30, 2004, Attribution "

Wart Hog - Flash Game

Wart Hog this is fun for everyone, but especially halo fans.

Cannot find Weapons of Mass Destruction

not a broken link