Triphop's Universe

Pixel*Esc

2011-10-16T17:20:00.000-07:00

Back in January of this year, after six years of writing this blog, I put the blog behind me. When I started six years ago, I wanted an outlet for all the things that I was thinking about. Over the years, the blog became my online notebook where I posted those things that interested me.

I have always wanted to go beyond what this blog became. I wanted to expand on it. Toward the end, I had wanted to go back to writing longer posts in the way that this blog got its start. But I didn't have the time to to long form writing and still make the blog posts consistent.

So I had the idea of starting over. Create a blog that would be more collaborative, with multiple writers posting about things they were interested in. Now after almost ten months of talking about that idea, it now has its beginning.

The new blog is called Pixel*Esc. It is a collaborative blog between myself and my good friend and collaborator Patricia Fraser. It is being produced under our Inquiry Project banner. The blog will continue on the tradition for Triphop's Universe. We will be bringing you things related to the arts. Consider it the little place you escape to on this vast Internet.

I will keep this blog up as its own record. This blog has truly been my journal of ideas and interests. One day I hope to comb through all of my posts to discover things anew for myself. I hope you will follow Pixel*Esc to wherever it will go. Patricia and I have just opened another fresh notebook to write in. I can tell that it will be a whole lot of fun.

Blockhead — The Music Scene

2011-01-22T15:47:00.000-08:00

It's Saturday. You don't have to be at work. How about tripping out on a music video?

Tron Posters

2011-01-22T00:17:00.000-08:00

I guess I am still on Tron, because I love these posters by Eric Tan. The posters were produced by Mondo. It looks like they are all gone, but no matter. I can still admire them from afar.

True Romance

2011-01-21T18:15:00.000-08:00

Tank Tankuro

2011-01-21T14:42:00.000-08:00

Here's a book I am going to keep my eyes out for—Gajo Sakamoto's manga Tank Tankuro from Presspop. The cover and slipcase are designed by none other than Chris Ware. via Fantagraphics

Pantone Chip Cookies

2011-01-20T16:39:00.000-08:00

These have to be the most delicious Pantone chips you will ever lay your eyes on. Today design*sponge posted images of Kim Neil's savory creations. They look so appetizing I had to repost. Kim is a a freelance designer and illustrator. She used Royal icing to mix out the colors. She even made the metallic ones. Kim wrote on her blog that she made these as gifts for her clients. Lucky clients indeed.

Tame Impala — Half Full Glass of Wine

2011-01-17T18:02:00.000-08:00

My friend Amy sent me a message this morning about this year's Coachella. Along with it came a link to a forum thread with videos of bands that have been confirmed for the line up. I have never heard of this band, but I'm really into this video. I just love the aesthetic of it. Also, I do kind of dig the song.

Grizzly Bear — Ready, Able

2011-01-17T10:33:00.000-08:00

I went to see Blue Valentine yesterday, and it had music by Grizzly Bear. I love this band, but I have to admit I haven't listened to them in awhile. Also, if you haven't seen Blue Valentine, go see it. It's a little sad, but it's a really good movie. It's a story about falling in love as much as it is about falling out of love. I love Michelle Williams, and I think she's really good in it. And so was Ryan Gosling.

Tron: Legacy Buzz Lightyear

2011-01-13T15:54:00.000-08:00

Yeah, I am into this. Tron: Legacy Buzz Lightyear by iamclu on Deviantart.

Starbucks Rebranding

2011-01-08T09:08:00.000-08:00

Starbucks recently unveiled its rebranded identity. The new logo will be lauched in the Spring to celebrate its 40th anniversary. Starbucks chose to emphasize its iconic mermaid in its identity, striping away the company's name, as well as the wraparound green band. According to Starbuck's senior creative manager, they decided to enhance the form of the Siren, "smoothing her hair, refining her facial features, weighting the scales on her tail to bring the focus to her face"

From the start, we wanted to recognize and honor the important equities of the iconic Starbucks logo. So we broke down the four main parts of the mark – color, shape, typeface and the Siren. After hundreds of explorations, we found the answer in simplicity. Removing the words from the mark, bringing in the green, and taking the Siren out of her ring. For forty years she’s represented coffee, and now she is the star.

It's interesting to look at the evolution of the Siren, from her 16th Century root to her current incarnation. Once the logo is implemented in the Spring, it would be interesting to see how it will play out for the company.

Happy New Year

2010-12-31T09:51:00.000-08:00

Often times when it reaches the end of the year, I like to reflect on the year that was. Most people will do this, but for me I do it partly because my birthday arrives immediately after the New Year. 2010 has been a pretty good year, with many amazing opportunities. But as I move into my 34th year on this Earth, there are things yet accomplished that I must now tend to.

I am looking forward to 2011. I have not made any New Year resolutions aside from one. What I have, however, are plans for this coming year. Things that I need to get done. Sometimes life tends to get in the way of one's plan. Hopefully, I will be sticking to my guns, and in one year's time—when we arrive at this moment once again—I would like to be able to say that I have checked those things off the list.

I also hope that 2011 will also be a year of new friendships, with many new relationships to forge. And I also hope it will be a year to strengthen the old ones that I have. There is nothing more important to me than the people that I care about and love. 2011 will be the year that I will make sure to remind them of that.

I hope everyone have a wonderful New Year. I think John Lennon's Imagine is a nice song to remind us what our world can be if that's the way we want it to be. Happy 2011.

No-one Ever Really Dies

2010-12-28T19:34:00.000-08:00

The evening could be spiraling downwards... until Williams decides to take control. Lowering himself from his seat, he slips towards the suddenly-attentive-once-more crowd and eases into the scrum. His minder accompanies him, but Haley and Hugo remain seated, clearly knowing their roles: this crowd has eyes for one N*E*R*D* and one N*E*R*D* only.

What follows is akin to the most super-hip royal walkabout you could ever hope to witness. Simultaneously self-effacing and yet the centre of everybody's attention, Williams melts into the throng, sweetly glad-handing every soul he meets. The first girl he encounters is so awestruck her vocal chords appear to have gone AWOL, but Williams takes up the conversational slack, whispering into her ear before moving on, leaving her grinning delightedly and dementedly.

Over the next 30 minutes, he works the room like a natural, a consummate politician reminiscent of Bill Clinton at his peak. Every single person gets his full laser attention, is engaged with unfailing courtesy, before Williams shakes hands, gives a small bow and leaves them flushed, flustered and hungry for more, It's a master class in charm and empathy: one woman even removes her Alexander McQueen chiffon skull scarf and drapes it around his shoulders. Williams thanks her reverently and glides on.

—from Neptune Rising by Ian Gittins in Man About Town

Annie Wu

2010-12-28T12:29:00.000-08:00

Annie Wu is an illustrator and designer from Baltimore. I came to Annie through a single image posted on the Drawn! blog. It was an image of a couple of stylishly dressed Starfleet women. As a Star Trek fan, I was immediately drawn to her illustration. That led me onto her website and Flickr photostream. I further responded to her work. I then decided to contact Annie to see if she would like to have a conversation with me for a write-up on this blog.

She graciously agreed to an interview.

Over the course of the past week, we ended up exchanging emails back and forth. I was greatly appreciative of Annie’s quick responses to my questions.

I can definitely see how, given the right circumstances, this interview could have easily been further expanded. However, I was sure to let Annie know early on that I had wanted it to be brief. What I wanted was to find out more about her. I allowed the conversation to grow organically, sending additional questions in response to her responses.

You can visit Annie’s website and Flickr to view more of her work. She also keeps a very nice blog that will keep you abreast on what’s currently going on with her.

Can you tell me a bit about your background?

I was born in Florida, and by the time high school was over, I had quite enough of the sunlight and the mouse ears and the suburbs, so I moved to Baltimore for school. I'm honestly still not entirely sure how I ended up at the Maryland Institute College of Art, but I studied there for four years and left with a BFA in Illustration. I'm sticking around this city for a little while longer, though the siren call of NYC still rings in my head.

I can understand the lure of New York City. But it's interesting that you're in Baltimore. I was there at the beginning of the year for an exhibition. I had no perceptions of the city at all before I went, especially since I have never even seen The Wire. I feel that people's perceptions of the place, though, do come from that show. So this is what I would like to ask you: What's your perspective on the city and the creative community there?

Baltimore is very eccentric, and it can change very dramatically from street to street, neighborhood to neighborhood. So even after five years, I still don't know it as well as I think I should. Does anyone really base their perceptions of Baltimore solely on The Wire, though? Coloring an entire city with whatever crime show happens to be associated with it is dangerous territory... After watching a few episodes of Law & Order: SVU, anyone who doesn't hate their genitalia would probably never want to visit NYC. That said, I do occasionally tell people that living here is equal parts The Wire, John Waters's films and Ace of Cakes, just to confuse them.

As for the creative community... There's a good air of enthusiasm. Maybe this is just tinted by what I've seen from within the art school bubble, but I feel like Baltimore is especially great for those who are interested in collectives or collaborating to make stuff happen.

You know, I was also going to mention John Waters, but I would never have thought of Ace of Cakes. Maybe because I'm not really familiar with that show. I do think, though, that people will generally stereotype a place they have never been based on something they have seen on television or cinema. I mean, I live in Orange County, and how many people's perceptions of this place are based on The O.C., or Laguna Beach, or Real Housewives? Sometimes when I want to mention Orange County, I will jokingly say "The O.C." even though I don't know anyone who calls it that.

But that leads me to this question, and it's a subject that my peers and I talk about a lot. What influences does Place — living in Baltimore — have on your work, if any? I mean, obviously you work for clients, but do you think your way of working and the resulting work would somehow be different if you were living in New York? I'm asking this because I do think that certain places are more conducive to the creative endeavor than others. Perhaps it's the community or the energy that you draw from the place.

I don't believe living in Baltimore or New York would change my process or resulting work in any jarring way just because it's Baltimore or New York.

For me, location affects work indirectly. Not feeling sufficiently inspired, comfortable or in-tune with your surroundings... It's kind of like not having the right tools or facilities, y'know? You're always going to be a little off and not fully focused and maybe even a little miserable, because you don't have what you need to do your best. Personally, I like Baltimore, but I would benefit from NYC's faster pace and energy, so it makes sense to consider a move.

How did you get into illustration and design?

I don't know how I ended up in illustration and design. And yes, I realize this only perpetuates the sense that I have no control over my own life. I've been drawing for as long as I can remember (it was welcomed and encouraged by my teachers, friends, and family) and my fascination with design was just something that kicked in when I accidentally stumbled across Photoshop in the seventh grade. Then, aside from some financial things to consider, art school was the obvious choice after graduation. Everything has happened somewhat organically, I guess.

I guess this is as good of a place as any to start talking about your work. Who are your influences? Let's firstly talk about the ones that you had during your formative years as a student, and maybe then the ones that still influence you now as a professional.

I had phases, like a lot of students. During the transition from high school to college, I went through a huge street art thing and was obsessed with people like Banksy. So I would find excuses to make... if I remember this correctly... things like hand-cut, slightly larger than life-size crucifix stencils. It wasn't really right for me, so that whole phase is kind of ridiculous and hilarious to me now, but it was important to explore. I think this was followed by an exhausting obsession with Aubrey Beardsley, sprinkled with some lowbrow/pop surrealism for good measure.

The majority of my other influences have lasted longer though, including Robert McGinnis (pulp in general), Gian Lorenzo Bernini, Jamie Hewlett, Gustav Klimt, the guys behind The Venture Bros... It's all very scatterbrained because I'm interested in a lot of things. I mean, if I really wanted to push it, I could even say something like Monty Python is still a big influence to me (even though an untouched airbrushing set in my studio suggests otherwise).

How long ago did you graduate? Obviously you must have already started working professionally. What have your experiences with working for clients been like?

I graduated in May of 2010, so... about seven months ago? My experience with clients has been pretty good. I've been very lucky. Anything negative wasn't so horrible that I couldn't just chalk it up to a lesson and move on.

Can you talk a bit about your working process? How do you go from a client's directive to the finished illustration or design?

In most cases, I whip up some sketches or thumbnails, get approval, go to pencils, get approval, and then ink and color the final thing. Every once in a while, I have a client who lets me go straight to finals or near-finals and then if they have any tweaks they want me to make, I take care of those pretty quickly.

How much of your work is digital?

Usually, I ink over my pencils on paper, scan the line-art in and then clean up and color through Photoshop. I guess only about half the process is digital, though I feel like most of my time is spent in Photoshop.

Do you think that you would ever switch completely to digital? I have a friend that I sometimes go out sketching with, and he and I have recently been discussing the Cintiq. He's been trying to get one, and he's saying that from talking to people who are using it that the tablet can really change your behavior. I have had a regular Wacom tablet for a very long time, but I still find that it's difficult for me to draw straight on it. It's the reason why I haven't gone completely digital when it comes to drawings.

Oh, man. It blows my mind when someone can work digitally from start to finish.

I own a regular tablet, but I've worked on a Cintiq before. It's two really different experiences, and I definitely find it easier to do fully digital drawing on the latter (you probably would too). I imagine I'll end up getting a Cintiq in the future... I'm sure it'll lead to sketching and thumbnailing digitally more often, but it's hard for me to say [if] I'll ever switch over for penciling and inking. While it's very convenient and produces clean work, I still lose a lot of the line quality that I get with pen and ink. And there's something about the feel of the steel nib-drawn lines on toothy paper that I enjoy.

You mentioned that you are an insomniac. Do you have a specific time of day when you feel more energized to work? I sometimes am also an insomniac, but I tend to be up pretty early. However, I find that I can only seriously start doing anything around 11 A.M.

Strangely, I still haven't found that magic block of time. It's more a matter of slowly working until I enter the right headspace and I'm not compelled to stop until my eyes give out. Sometimes it happens during typical business hours, sometimes it happens from 5PM to 4AM. It's hard to predict or plan.

What is your relationship to fashion? I'm picking it up in your illustrations. Also I saw you mentioned something about a fashion thesis.

I follow a few fashion bloggers, and I occasionally check out some runway stuff. Fashion really interests me, but that scene is so huge, it's impossible for me to follow religiously. Mainly, I just know what I like and enjoy taking the time to detail my characters accordingly.

The fashion-related illustrations I did for thesis were almost purely an excuse to really focus on figures, clothing and style rather than story and context. I guess it's that Jamie Hewlett type of thing where you just keep putting stuff on the characters... I do that in my sketchbooks a lot, because it comes easily to me, so when there's an opportunity to spend time making refined versions of whatever I do anyway, I jump on it. I was also working on a portrait-based thesis at the same time, so it was nice to have something light and different to work on when not staring at reference photos for hours on end.

Fashion is something that I'm definitely interested in as well. You're right that it's so big it's impossible to keep up. I have this friend who's currently in the fashion design program at Otis, and sometimes she and I will get together and discuss the work that she has to do for her classes. I personally am very drawn to fashion illustrations, or illustrators who embrace fashion in their work. One of my favorite comic book artists, Paul Pope, is very drawn to fashion. He used to talk about it all the time in the editorials of his comics. In fact, I believe that he has even done work for clients like Diesel and GQ.

Since you have been working professionally, have you ever had the chance to do pure fashion illustrations, or fashion-related assignments, for clients? If not, is that something that you would like to do?

Oh, yeah, Paul Pope's fantastic with that. He and James Jean came to Baltimore a few years back and I got to hear them talk about their work. At the time, Paul Pope was working out a line with DKNY and James Jean was doing that huge project with Prada, and I was in awe that these guys could so seamlessly (oh-ho-ho) incorporate their style into the fashion world and still do all the "typical" illustration work too.

I've done a character design assignment as well as an online project with ELLE that involved clothing characters with existing fashions, but I've never gotten straight-up fashion illustrations. I'd definitely like to do some in the future, though.

Obviously you have said that you have been allowing things to grow very organically. But is there something that you would like to end up doing? A certain type of work that you would like to plan on doing in the future, or maybe certain assignments that you would like to do?

A lot of things come to mind. There's no "ultimate" job or assignment for me; I just want to do everything. Someday, I'd like to illustrate my own writing (most likely in comic form) and hopefully contribute to the animation industry... Then there's fashion and film and theatre and on and on. Not to mention the sad, crazy list of people I'd like to work with in some capacity. Many of those people are comedians, musicians, and others not directly tied to the visual arts, so it'll be interesting to see if and how I find a way to worm into their creative lives. It's going to be anxiety-inducing/great.

The NON

2010-12-25T16:06:00.000-08:00

I was going through a fashion blog when I came across this image. For whatever reason, it struck a chord with me. It comes from the Alchemia Mysteria SS 2011 menswear collection from The NON.

Merry Christmas

2010-12-25T09:17:00.001-08:00

Dave McKean on Celluloid

2010-12-23T19:49:00.000-08:00

There are so many comics about violence. I’m not entertained or amused by violence, and I’d rather not have it in my life. Sex, on the other hand, is something the vast majority of us enjoy, yet it rarely seems to be the subject of comics. Pornography is usually bland, repetitive and ugly, and, at most, ‘does the job’. I always wanted to make a book that is pornographic, but is also, I hope, beautiful, and mysterious, and engages the mind.

L'Edition Spéciale

2010-12-20T20:09:00.000-08:00

Daft Punk "Derezzed"

2010-12-20T20:04:00.000-08:00

Vintage Shell Project Cards

2010-12-19T21:04:00.000-08:00

Reimagined Star Wars Posters

2010-12-19T20:46:00.000-08:00

Wired posted up these images of stunning Star Wars posters redesigned by the British poster artist Olly Moss. The designs were done for the collectible art house Mondo. The screenprints will go on sale on Monday for $50 each. You can read more about these posters on Wired.

Margaret Atwood

2010-12-18T15:57:00.000-08:00

From the December/ January issue of The Progressive:

The ancestor of science fiction is H. G. Wells with books like The Time Machine and The War of the Worlds. Those books involved things that are very unlikely to happen or are actually impossible, but they are ways of exploring possibilities and human nature and the way people react to certain things. And if you go to another planet, you get to build the whole society and you can draw blueprints and have fun with talking vegetation and other such things.

The lineage of speculative fiction traces back to Jules Verne, who wrote about things that he could see coming to pass that were possible on the Earth--this wasn't about outer space or space invasions--but things that we could actually do.

There were a lot of utopias in the nineteenth century, wonderful societies that we might possibly construct. Those went pretty much out of fashion after World War I. And almost immediately one of the utopias that people were trying to construct, namely the Soviet Union, threw out a writer called Zamyatin who wrote a seminal book called We, which contains the seeds of Orwell and Huxley. Writers started doing dystopias after we saw the effects of trying to build utopias that required, unfortunately, the elimination of a lot of people before you could get to the perfect point, which never arrived.

Watchmen

2010-12-18T15:02:00.000-08:00

The comic book artist Jason did a post on his blog recently about the movie adaptation of Watchmen. He was talking about how the title sequence seemed to have been the only part of the movie where the director Zack Snyder showed real imagination. I decided to revisit the sequence to see what Jason was talking about since I have not seen Watchmen since it was in the theaters.

I think the re-imaging of history within the world of Watchmen, coupling with the Bob Dylan soundtrack, created the perfect set-up for the main storyline. I will have to go back and revisit the movie as a whole. It has also been quite a long time since I have read the Alan Moore/ Dave Gibbons graphic novels. I remember being quite impressed by the way the story was told. I will have to pick it up again to see if it holds up to the memory that I have of it in my mind.

Naturally Grown Typography

2010-12-14T11:34:00.000-08:00

There is a really nice set on Flickr of letterforms made from naturally grown materials. They were created as part of a workshop at the 2010 Into the Woods conference that was held by AIGA Seattle. These letters make me think back to my time in Holland working on the Bio-tag project for Finishing School.

Batman: Under the Red Hood

2010-12-12T12:17:00.000-08:00

I was watching Batman: Under the Red Hood on Netflix when its title sequence caught my attention. It's an incredibly polished title sequence for an animated film. The sequence really gives you the feel of Gotham City. However, I feel that it's very atypical of title sequences for an animated piece.

Under the Red Hood features the voices of Jensen Ackles (Red Hood) and Neil Patrick Harris (Nightwing). The story follows Batman as he tries to figure out who this new foe that has arrived onto the streets of Gotham, using The Joker's old alias, really is. The animated film has a grittier feel that we have come to expect of the Dark Knight.

Inked

2010-12-05T20:04:00.000-08:00

Finishing School did a shoot Saturday in our green screen studio set inside of the Orange County Museum of Art. We had a tattoo artist on hand, and I took this shot of Brian getting inked.

Sannah Kvist

2010-12-05T19:51:00.000-08:00

I wish I can make photographs like Sannah Kvist. There's this tenderness in her work that I really love. I have been following her work for maybe a couple of years, and every time I see new photographs it's always a joy. You can visit her website here, as well as her Flickr page. She's also active on Tumblr.

Tree

2010-12-05T19:30:00.000-08:00

I noticed that one of the trees in front of my place was covered with yellow leaves. I thought the color was so beautiful I had to snap a picture.

Friday Soundtrack: Esthero "That Girl"

2010-11-19T10:36:00.000-08:00

Uncovering Schizophrenia

2010-11-12T12:38:00.000-08:00

Boing Boing contributor Cory Doctorow has a post about an article on the Discover website that talks about scientists who are trying to uncover the causes of schizophrenia:

Schizophrenia is usually diagnosed between the ages of 15 and 25, but the person who becomes schizophrenic is sometimes recalled to have been different as a child or a toddler—more forgetful or shy or clumsy. Studies of family videos confirm this. Even more puzzling is the so-called birth-month effect: People born in winter or early spring are more likely than others to become schizophrenic later in life. It is a small increase, just 5 to 8 percent, but it is remarkably consistent, showing up in 250 studies. That same pattern is seen in people with bipolar disorder or multiple sclerosis.

“The birth-month effect is one of the most clearly established facts about schizophrenia,” says Fuller Torrey, director of the Stanley Medical Research Institute in Chevy Chase, Maryland. “It’s difficult to explain by genes, and it’s certainly difficult to explain by bad mothers.”

The facts of schizophrenia are so peculiar, in fact, that they have led Torrey and a growing number of other scientists to abandon the traditional explanations of the disease and embrace a startling alternative. Schizophrenia, they say, does not begin as a psychological disease. Schizophrenia begins with an infection.

The idea has sparked skepticism, but after decades of hunting, Torrey and his colleagues think they have finally found the infectious agent. You might call it an insanity virus. If Torrey is right, the culprit that triggers a lifetime of hallucinations—that tore apart the lives of writer Jack Kerouac, mathematician John Nash, and millions of others—is a virus that all of us carry in our bodies. “Some people laugh about the infection hypothesis,” says Urs Meyer, a neuroimmunologist at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich. “But the impact that it has on researchers is much, much, much more than it was five years ago. And my prediction would be that it will gain even more impact in the future.”

...

A simple neurological exam showed Torrey that schizophrenics suffered from more than just mental disturbances. They often had trouble doing standard inebriation tests, like walking a straight line heel to toe. If Torrey simultaneously touched their face and hand while their eyes were closed, they often did not register being touched in two places. Schizophrenics also showed signs of inflammation in their infection-fighting white blood cells. “If you look at the blood of people with schizophrenia,” Torrey says, “there are too many odd-looking lymphocytes, the kind that you find in mononucleosis.” And when he performed CAT scans on pairs of identical twins with and without the disease—including Steven and David Elmore—he saw that schizophrenics’ brains had less tissue and larger fluid-filled ventricles.

Subsequent studies confirmed those oddities. Many schizophrenics show chronic inflammation and lose brain tissue over time, and these changes correlate with the severity of their symptoms. These things “convinced me that this is a brain disease,” Torrey says, “not a psychological problem.”
By the 1980s he began working with Robert Yolken, an infectious-diseases specialist at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, to search for a pathogen that could account for these symptoms. The two researchers found that schizophrenics often carried antibodies for toxoplasma, a parasite spread by house cats; Epstein-Barr virus, which causes mononucleosis; and cytomegalovirus. These people had clearly been exposed to those infectious agents at some point, but Torrey and Yolken never found the pathogens themselves in the patients’ bodies. The infection always seemed to have happened years before.

Torrey wondered if the moment of infection might in fact have occurred during early childhood. If schizophrenia was sparked by a disease that was more common during winter and early spring, that could explain the birth-month effect. “The psychiatrists thought I was psychotic myself,” Torrey says. “Some of them still do.”

...

By the time Perron made his discovery, Torrey and Yolken had spent about 15 years looking for a pathogen that causes schizophrenia. They found lots of antibodies but never the bug itself. Then Håkan Karlsson, who was a postdoctoral fellow in Yolken’s lab, became interested in studies showing that retroviruses sometimes triggered psychosis in AIDS patients. The team wondered if other retroviruses might cause these symptoms in separate diseases such as schizophrenia. So they used an experiment, similar to Perron’s, that would detect any retrovirus (by finding sequences encoding reverse transcriptase enzyme)—even if it was one that had never been catalogued before. In 2001 they nabbed a possible culprit. It turned out to be HERV-W.

Several other studies have since found similar active elements of HERV-W in the blood or brain fluids of people with schizophrenia. One, published by Perron in 2008, found HERV-W in the blood of 49 percent of people with schizophrenia, compared with just 4 percent of healthy people. “The more HERV-W they had,” Perron says, “the more inflammation they had.” He now sees HERV-W as key to understanding many cases of both MS and schizophrenia. “I’ve been doubting for so many years,” he says. “I’m convinced now.”

...

Through this research, a rough account is emerging of how HERV-W could trigger diseases like schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and MS. Although the body works hard to keep its ERVs under tight control, infections around the time of birth destabilize this tense standoff. Scribbled onto the marker board in Yolken’s office is a list of infections that are now known to awaken HERV-W—including herpes, toxoplasma, cytomegalovirus, and a dozen others. The HERV-W viruses that pour into the newborn’s blood and brain fluid during these infections contain proteins that may enrage the infant immune system. White blood cells vomit forth inflammatory molecules called cytokines, attracting more immune cells like riot police to a prison break. The scene turns toxic.

In one experiment, Perron isolated HERV-W virus from people with MS and injected it into mice. The mice became clumsy, then paralyzed, then died of brain hemorrhages. But if Perron depleted the mice of immune cells known as T cells, the animals survived their encounter with HERV-W. It was an extreme experiment, but to Perron it made an important point. Whether people develop MS or schizophrenia may depend on how their immune system responds to HERV-W, he says. In MS the immune system directly attacks and kills brain cells, causing paralysis. In schizophrenia it may be that inflammation damages neurons indirectly by overstimulating them. “The neuron is discharging neurotransmitters, being excited by these inflammatory signals,” Perron says. “This is when you develop hallucinations, delusions, paranoia, and hyper-suicidal tendencies.”

The first, pivotal infection by toxoplasmosis or influenza (and subsequent flaring up of HERV-W) might happen shortly before or after birth. That would explain the birth-month effect: Flu infections happen more often in winter. The initial infection could then set off a lifelong pattern in which later infections reawaken HERV-W, causing more inflammation and eventually symptoms. This process explains why schizophrenics gradually lose brain tissue. It explains why the disease waxes and wanes like a chronic infection. And it could explain why some schizophrenics suffer their first psychosis after a mysterious, monolike illness.

Metamorphosis

2010-11-12T11:07:00.000-08:00

San Pedro

2010-11-11T16:48:00.000-08:00

This was taken last Sunday when I went to Angels Gate Cultural Center for the To Live and Die in L.A. show. I really hate this time of year, because the evenings just seem so long. But if the sunsets are always this beautiful, I am all for it.

Rock'n'Roll Posters

2010-11-11T16:28:00.000-08:00

Designer Rodrigo Müller has a very nice set on Flickr of posters inspired by songs. Müller is a designer based in Brazil. His works are very minimal. On his website, he writes, "I incline for minimalism in my works, passing the desired message using the least elements possible and keeping the graphic pieces clean and easy to understand." These posters were done for the Make Something Cool Everyday Flickr group.

Dear...

2010-11-10T08:41:00.000-08:00

I am not sure why I am writing to you now. To be honest, I have barely thought of you since I got here. But suddenly, after all this time, I feel there is something to say, and if I don't quickly write it down, my head will burst. It doesn't matter if you read it. It doesn't matter if I send it—assuming it could be done. Perhaps it comes down to this. I am writing to you because you know nothing. Because you are far away from me and know nothing.

To Live and Draw in L.A.

2010-11-09T19:29:00.000-08:00

This past Sunday I had the chance to go check out To Live and Draw in L.A., Angels Gate Cultural Center Visual Arts Director Marshall Astor's final curatorial effort before leaving the center. The show features a range of artists as they interprets the concept of drawing. The show will be up until January 8, 2011. You can view the entire set of the show on my Flickr page.

To Live and Draw in L.A. brings together a diverse group of artists in the most fundamental of mediums. Featuring loose interpretations of the concept of drawing that include performance, site-specific action and video and more traditional methods from twenty-seven artists.

Featuring works by: Edith Abeyta, Rochelle Botello, Carol Es, Finishing School, McLean Fahnestock, Jocelyn Foye, Jeff Foye, John Michael Gill, Bean Gilsdorf, Dan Gilsdorf, Betsy Lohrer Hall, Darren Hostetter, Michele Hubacek, Eric Johnson, Nicholas Klemek, Sojung Kwon, Elana Mann, Christine Nguyen, John O'Brien, Ric Rowland, Yong Sin, S. Ian Song, Macha Suzuki, Matthew Thomas, Devon Tsuno, Gordon Winiemko, Meeson Pae Yang.

Paul Auster

2010-11-08T17:36:00.000-08:00

It’s through stories that we struggle to make sense of the world. This is what keeps me going—the justification for spending my life locked up in a little room, putting words on paper.

Wishery

2010-11-06T12:41:00.000-07:00

Between Bears

2010-11-03T10:12:00.000-07:00

Re:Cycle—Bike Culture in Southern California @ UCR Sweeney Art Gallery

2010-10-09T09:43:00.000-07:00

Re:Cycle—Bike Culture in Southern California
UCR Sweeney Gallery
October 07, 2010 - December 31, 2010

Exploring the effects of bikes on art and culture, includes customized bikes, bike designs, and artist projects that use the bicycle and human-powered machines as both metaphors and realizations for restructuring human habitats. In the past few years, bicycle activists, advocates, and aficionados have proven to be vociferous in their desire for reimagining the urban landscape in the U.S. It is a reflection of a shifting value system that looks towards alternate means of transportation, the promotion of healthy lifestyles, and a cultural shift from consumption to sustainability.

View the entire Flickr set

Summercamp's Project Project: Fall Residency I @ Cypress College Gallery

2010-10-08T10:10:00.000-07:00

Summercamp is a home in the neighborhood in El Sereno, Los Angeles designed and built by Al Kaelin in 1950. The homemade modern house, full of pass-throughs and secret spaces, currently functions as an artist live/work space and hosts Project Project, Founded by Fatima Hoang, Elonda Billera, and Janice Gomez, Project Project showcases exhibitions, performances, lectures, workshops, screenings and events by activating multiple parts of the property – installing works in the sloping backyard, projecting videos on the living room ceiling, and showcasing musical performances in the old goat pen.

For Fall Residency I, the eight artists, Chelsea Dean, Falcon Eddy, Corinne Kamiya , Justin Michelle, Gina Osterloh, Julie Schustack, Christian Tedeschi, and Bari Ziperstein will propel this energy by building an interpretation of Summercamp’s Project Project inside the gallery; pulling from past exhibitions, honing the history of the house, and making it mobile. Dealing with the themes of home in transition, function into entropy, connectedness and resourcefulness – the on-site collaboration will be an active part of the process and a learning experience for Cypress College exhibition design students who will assist in the construction, events, and docent tours of the show.

Installed works in the gallery span from densely textured architectural photographs, a miniature kitchen in a fruit fly trap and sets inspired by pass-throughs to a large scale tape installation. Each laying the foundation for open collaborative interaction with works such as a fully functional staircase made from salvaged wood which can double as bleachers to watch Falcon Eddy’s performance. Trying to make sense of movement and memory, Corinne Kamiya will be featured in Guestroom. In Kamiya’s 1 inch = 1mm scale living room, she creates a portable safety among the chaos of change.

Visit the Cypress College Gallery website for more info.

Bill Watterson

2010-10-02T17:44:00.000-07:00

On Calvin & Hobbes:

I just tried to write honestly, and I tried to make this little world fun to look at, so people would take the time to read it. That was the full extent of my concern. You mix a bunch of ingredients, and once in a great while, chemistry happens. I can't explain why the strip caught on the way it did, and I don't think I could ever duplicate it. A lot of things have to go right all at once.

They Might Be Giants "We Live In a Dump"

2010-10-02T17:33:00.000-07:00

Mad Women Posters

2010-09-24T15:34:00.000-07:00

If you know me, you know that I do not mince words when it comes to expressing my love for the show Mad Men. One of the things I have been really enjoying this season is how they seem to be putting a lot more emphasis on the main female characters in the company. This is why I love these Mad Women posters by the designer Christina Perry. Christina has a really nice portfolio of graphic design work. Head over to her website to check them out.

Friday Soundtrack: Thavius Beck "To Make Manifest"

2010-09-17T15:14:00.000-07:00

Welcome To San Pedro

2010-09-11T17:21:00.000-07:00

Conversations

2010-09-11T10:40:00.000-07:00

GLAMFA 2010

2010-09-06T21:01:00.000-07:00

My friend and I went to check out the Greater Los Angeles MFA show at Cal State Long Beach yesterday. I think we have been going since the first edition. I thought there were interesting work this year. I remembered not being completely impressed by last year's edition.

I have more photos of the show in a Flickr set. Head there for the full set of images.

Resist Shaking A Polaroid Picture

2010-09-06T19:25:00.000-07:00

Minilogue "Animals"

2010-08-22T16:52:00.000-07:00

Faithless "Tweak Your Nipple"

2010-08-22T13:31:00.000-07:00

This music video is epic.

Is Fatboy Slim a DJ?

2010-08-14T19:38:00.001-07:00

Friday Soundtrack: Katy's Mix

2010-08-13T19:50:00.000-07:00

A couple of years ago for my thirty-first birthday, a former friend of mine gave me a mixtape as a present. Named after her, the mix has been on my iPod all this time. However, I haven't listened to this mix since then. Until, of course, this week when I saw it on my iPod and got curious about what was in it. I had a very vague recollection of the songs she had selected. After listening to the mix, I have to say that she did a bang up job of selecting these songs. It's a great mix. So for this week's Friday Soundtrack, I thought I would give you the list of the songs in this Katy's Mix. Let me know if you agree with me.

Here are the songs in the exact order:

Everybody Plays A Fool — Main Ingredient
Heart Of Gold — Neil Young
Daniel — Elton John
Take It To The Limit — Eagles
She's Gone — Hall & Oats
The Boys Are Back In Town —Thin Lizzy
Dancing Queen — ABBA
Copacabana — Barry Manilow
Heart Of Glass — Blondie
What A Fool Believes — Doobie Brothers
Anyway You Want It — Journey
Who's Crying Now — Journey
Our Lips Are Sealed — The Go Go's
Don't Stop Believin' — Journey
Young Turks — Rod Steward
Hungry Like A Wolf — Duran Duran
Come Dancing — The Kinks
Beat It — Michael Jackson
Sussudio — Phil Collins

OC Fair

2010-08-10T16:37:00.000-07:00

Kurt Vonnegut

2010-08-08T13:45:00.000-07:00

Don't use semicolons. They stand for absolutely nothing. They are transvestite, hermaphrodites. They are just a way of showing off. To show that you have been to college.

Hug Thailand and Let Thailand Hug You

2010-08-07T21:20:00.000-07:00

Recently, the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) launched a campaign called "Hug Thailand", aimed at motivating its citizens to resume domestic travels after the recent political turmoils. Developed by Leo Burnett Thailand, the campaign uses the idea of hugging as "a metaphor of encouragement for Thais to cherish and heal the country through resuming their domestic travels. The genuine, relaxing tone and manner of the campaign is intended to put smiles back on people's faces." According to Keeratie Chaimoungkalo, Executive Director of Leo Burnett Thailand, "The idea is that, whatever that has happened, Thailand is always there to 'comfort' us and it is only us that can 'comfort' the country."

Vintage Children's Books

2010-08-07T17:07:00.000-07:00

Calsidyrose's Flickr stream has a large collection of scans from vintage children's books. There's something really charming about the illustrations in these books. These got me thinking about those Big Golden Books. When I was hitting the comic book conventions circuit a lot more years ago, I used to see them available for sale. I haven't seen any at the booths at Comic-con. But then again I don't think Comic-con is the convention you would go to find collectibles like that.

Girl

2010-08-07T15:47:00.000-07:00

After Effects was taking so long to render I was able to sketch this out. Sometimes I wish I have the time to draw more. I have a couple of short comic book scripts that's getting thrown around. I sure hope I can find time to illustrate them soon.

Republica "Ready To Go"

2010-08-03T16:48:00.000-07:00

Glüko & Lennon

2010-07-29T10:25:00.000-07:00

I just love this pilot by the Buenos Aires production company L'Orange Gutan. I particularly love the character designs and the illustration style of the animation.

Glüko & Lennon is about the psychedelic adventures of two best friends.

Glüko is like your imaginary friend becoming real. He´s a powerful, shape-shifting giant. However, like your real best friend, he´s shy and lazy.

Lennon is like you, an ordinary kid who has extraordinary adventures, always seeking for new experiences, only he´s purple.

Together, they explore this surreal world they live in and along the way they´ll make friends with all kinds of unique creatures. They always end up finding absolutely ridiculous solutions to the most nonsensical problems.

85ºC Cafe

2010-07-29T00:15:00.000-07:00

The design for this takeout box from 85ºC Cafe really caught my eyes. I don't know much about the company aside from the fact that it's a chain from Taiwan and that there's a location here in Irvine, CA.

85ºC Cafe is a cafe and bakery specializing in coffee, cakes, and breads. We use premium Guatemalan coffee beans and serve the freshest gourmet baked goods. Each cup of coffee is brewed individually with grounded beans. All of our chefs have worked in five-star hotels and have created each cake to uphold high culinary standards at affordable prices.

The first 85ºC Cafe opened in Bao-Ping, Taipei in July 2004. The cafe set extraordinary records serving more than 2,300 cups of coffee to nearly 2,000 guests every day. Within one and a half years, 85ºC Cafe expanded to 137 shops throughout Taiwan, creating a new trend in the food industry. Each cafe serves coffee, tea, cakes, and breads, and offers a comfortable atmosphere for everyone to relax and enjoy a meal or snack at any time of day. Come watch our chefs prepare your food in our open kitchen or choose your favorite cake from our display.

The Duel

2010-07-28T15:39:00.000-07:00

This video contains one crazy duel between a flamethrower and a fire extinguisher. All done in slow motion.

Fink

2010-07-28T11:11:00.000-07:00

Fink is a production company based in Paris, France. For their rebranding, they created this beautiful video that takes you on a journey through the city. I think the use of the flower pedals gives the video a nice, poetic feel.

Jim Woodring's Giant Steel Dip Pen and Penholder Project

2010-07-23T13:15:00.000-07:00

The Seattle-based comic book artist Jim Woodring is currently seeking funding to realize the construction of a giant steel dip pen and penholder for a public demonstration of the device.

The dip pen is a bit of fetish item for me (as it is for many pen users). The pen is extremely difficult to master but ultimately allows for an extraordinary degree of expression. The well-constructed pen and ink drawing is a monument to perseverance, requiring tremendous patience and control. I am thrilled by the challenge of creating such drawings in public and introducing new audiences to the allure of the medium. The pen (nib) itself will be approximately 16 inches long, made of steel and fully functional. The holder will be six feet long and made of wood with a metal sleeve insert to hold the pen. Nib and holder will resemble as closely as possible the actual implements on which they are based.
Once the pen and penholder are built I will train myself to ink with it; and once I've done that, I will arrange at least two public performances in which I will use the pen to ink large graphite drawings on 3' x 5' sheets of bristol.

The money raised will go towards the engineering and manufacture of the steel nib; the creation of the pen holder, which will be hand turned and lacquered with a cork wrapping and metal insert with spring retainer; the supplies to create the public drawings (ink, paper, graphite, eraser, and); and the creation of the drawing table itself.

I can definitely relate to Woodring's sentiment. I was given a dip pen and a bottle of ink at around the age of three or four from my father, because I was exhibiting artistic interests. In elementary school, parts of the school days were spent practicing our penmanship, using those dip pens. I can still remember all the accidents of tipped over ink bottles that destroyed an entire afternoon's effort of doing homework. To this day I continue to use the dip pen. As a matter of fact, I still count the penholder that my father had originally gave me as one of the items in my toolbox.

Friday Soundtrack: Tristan Perich - 1-bit Symphony

2010-07-23T10:04:00.000-07:00

Supreme Team "Step Up"

2010-07-22T21:36:00.000-07:00

This is a really nice music video for the Korean hip hop duo Supreme Team. The concept for the video was based on illustrations from 70's Korean national textbooks.

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

2010-07-22T20:08:00.001-07:00

via kottke

Bill Murray

2010-07-22T19:51:00.000-07:00

From Dan Fierman's interview with Bill Murray in GQ:

But you asked how you get the comic pitch. Well, obviously a lot of it is rhythm. And as often as not, it's the surprising rhythm. In life and in movies, you can usually guess what someone is going to say—you can actually hear it—before they say it. But if you undercut that just a little, it can make you fall off your chair. It's small and simple like that. You're always trying to get your distractions out of the way and be as calm as you can be, and emotion will just drive the machine. It will go through the machine without being interrupted, and it comes out in a rhythm that's naturally funny. And that funny rhythm is either humorous or touching. It can be either one. But it's always a surprise. I really don't know what's going to come out of my mouth.

Andy Council

2010-07-22T11:20:00.000-07:00

Andy Council's unique style straddles the worlds of Street Art and illustration. Andy was trained in the traditional techniques of animation and drawing, becoming influenced by Miyazaki and Geoff Darrow amongst others. Urban landscapes and the history of graffiti in Bristol, U.K. has had a big influence on his work, as has his fascination with urban myths and beasts. Andy's creations include bizarrely intricate collections of creatures, from rabbits made of tanks to dinosaurs mobilized by streets and landmarks.

Waiting For Superman

2010-07-21T23:01:00.000-07:00

Cours Toujours

2010-07-21T22:46:00.000-07:00

Takayo Akiyama

2010-07-19T10:36:00.000-07:00

Takayo Akiyama is an illustrator working in London. Aside from illustrations, she also does fashion textiles and t-shirt designs. Takayo graduated from Musashino Art School in Tokyo and went on to complete her MA at Central Saint Martins in London. She is currently illustrating the third volume of her graphic novel Daisy et Violet, the story of the Siamese twins Daisy and Violet who work at a pub in monster world. It will be published in France by Editions Cambourakis.

Mugo

2010-07-18T18:21:00.000-07:00

Mugo is a line of limited edition designer MP3 player and USB flash drive. For their Artist Series 1, Feed the Beast let artists Julie West, Shin Tanaka, Tougui, and Yup come up with the designs for their product line.

"Mugo brings function to collectible toys by seamlessly integrating an MP3 player and USB data storage to this palm-size platform toy. Designer Aaron Atchison of Feed the Beast created Mugo to be clean, simple and stylish. So simple in fact that it doesn't require any cables or software and works on both Mac and PC. The flash memory drive can hold up to 500 MP3 songs or 2GB of data storage."

Each Mugo has a SRP of $59.99. They also have D.I.Y. blanks in white and black. Those are available at $49.99.

Downtown

2010-07-15T16:34:00.000-07:00

I needed a break so I decided to do some sketching. This is my attempt at drawing downtown Los Angeles. Every time I drive on the 10 freeway and see the skyline, I would think of how much I would love to just get out of the car and really look at it. This sketch is based on a photo I found on Flickr.

Futurama Cupcakes

2010-07-15T10:48:00.000-07:00

I think these Futurama cupcakes by Unicorn Magic Baking Company are so great! They look scrumptious and very cute. Zoidberg has never looked more delicious. I have not been able to watch the new season at all due to the fact that I do not have television at the moment. Maybe I should download the episodes on iTunes. Hmmm.

Streetlight Manifesto "Would You Be Impressed?"

2010-07-14T21:48:00.000-07:00

I have never heard of this band, but a friend of mine got invited to go see them tomorrow night so I decided to check them out. I actually like this song, and I am very much into this video. I think you will enjoy it. I promise some blood.

Flutter to Flame

2010-07-14T19:10:00.000-07:00

I love this new screenprint by Jordan Crane. Head over to his website and pick one up. I am pretty sure I will get one myself.

Billie Jean by Aloe Blacc & The Grand Scheme

2010-07-12T20:57:00.000-07:00

This is an amazing cover of Billie Jean. Enjoy!

via BOOOOOOOM!

California Gurls

2010-07-12T16:23:00.000-07:00

I'm quite embarrass to admit that I'm kind of into Katy Perry's songs right now. Her seriously infectious new single has been giving me earworms. And not to mention the fact that it is way too danceable. Besides, Candyland as the setting for her video? And Snoop Dogg? How can I not be into this? So perfectly marketed.

RIP Harvey Pekar

2010-07-12T14:17:00.000-07:00

Harvey Pekar changed my life when I was 16. At that point I was already an avid comic book reader. I had grown up on manga and anime since the age of 2. As a matter of fact, I learned how to read by reading the Doraemon collections.

Reading manga had taught me that comics can be wide ranging. When I arrived to the States in 1988, however, I completely stopped reading comics. Those bands of superheroes and their stories didn't appealed to me very much. At that time, it was also incredibly difficult to get a hold of the mangas that I was reading in Thailand. It was even difficult to get the Thai editions from the Thai bookstore in Hollywood. But my enthusiasm for comics never waned. I did eventually read The Incredible Hulk, Silver Surfer, and Superman.

By the time I discovered Harvey Pekar and American Splendor at the age of 16, I had already branched out into reading the black and white independent comics of the 90's. Even then, the comics I was reading were genre stories. The thing about Pekar's comics that struck a chord with me was the fact that he wrote about the most mundane and ordinary things. When I discovered the collection of the American Splendor comics at the library across from my high school, I couldn't, at first, fully grasped its importance. But as I began reading the stories, I became engrossed in the life of this ordinary Cleveland residence.

Reading the story about Pekar finding finding another Harvey Pekar listed in the phone book was the life changing moment. I could not believe the simplicity of it. Not only in the subject matter, but also the execution of the graphics by Robert Crumb. I knew that there were great possibilities with sequential art, but up until that point, I had no idea how far it could go.

Pekar's genius lies in his ability to find poetry in everyday existence. I think this will be his legacy. Thank you, Harvey Pekar for not only changed the way I looked at comics, but for allowing me to recognize that there are many great stories to be found in my own every day existence.

Lo-Bat

2010-07-12T13:07:00.000-07:00

Lo-Bat does chiptune music. This is a video of his performance from Blip Festival 2007. All of his songs are released under the Creative Commons License, which means you can head over to his website and download them for your enjoyment.

Struck and White

2010-07-12T10:19:00.000-07:00

From The Elements of Style:

If those who have studied the art of writing are in accord on any one point, it is on this: the surest way to arouse and hold attention of the reader is by being specific, definite, and concrete. The greatest writers—Homer, Dante, Shakespeare—are effective largely because they deal in particulars and report details that matter. Their words call up pictures.

If experiences of Walter Mitty, of Dick Diver, of Rabbit Angstrom have seems for the moment real to countless reader, if in reading Faulkner we have almost the sense of inhabiting Yoknapatawpha County during the decline of the South, it is because the details used are definite, the terms concrete. It is not that every detail is given—that would be impossible, as well as to no purpose—but that all the significant details are given, and with such accuracy and vigor that the reader, in imagination, can project himself into the scene

Ori Toor - Animal Collective "Lion in a Coma"

2010-07-11T21:13:00.000-07:00

The History of Nikola Tesla - A Short Story

2010-07-11T18:28:00.000-07:00

We All Scream

2010-07-09T19:38:00.000-07:00

Bunny Gunner is celebrating their 3rd anniversary, and they are doing an ice cream themed art show. The above is my little contribution. Opening is this Saturday. Information can be found below:

Saturday July 10th, 6pm - 11pm.
At Bunny Gunner
266 W. 2nd St.
Pomona, CA 91766

Singha

2010-07-09T19:22:00.000-07:00

Vannevar Bush on Photography

2010-07-08T14:54:00.000-07:00

From "As We May Think", published in the July 1945 issue of The Atlantic magazine:

Certainly progress in photography is not going to stop. Faster material and lenses, more automatic cameras, finer-grained sensitive compounds to allow an extension of the minicamera idea, are all imminent. Let us project this trend ahead to a logical, if not inevitable, outcome. The camera hound of the future wears on his forehead a lump a little larger than a walnut. It takes pictures 3 millimeters square, later to be projected or enlarged, which after all involves only a factor of 10 beyond present practice. The lens is of universal focus, down to any distance accommodated by the unaided eye, simply because it is of short focal length. There is a built-in photocell on the walnut such as we now have on at least one camera, which automatically adjusts exposure for a wide range of illumination. There is film in the walnut for a hundred exposures, and the spring for operating its shutter and shifting its film is wound once for all when the film clip is inserted. It produces its result in full color. It may well be stereoscopic, and record with two spaced glass eyes, for striking improvements in stereoscopic technique are just around the corner.

The cord which trips its shutter may reach down a man's sleeve within easy reach of his fingers. A quick squeeze, and the picture is taken. On a pair of ordinary glasses is a square of fine lines near the top of one lens, where it is out of the way of ordinary vision. When an object appears in that square, it is lined up for its picture. As the scientist of the future moves about the laboratory or the field, every time he looks at something worthy of the record, he trips the shutter and in it goes, without even an audible click. Is this all fantastic? The only fantastic thing about it is the idea of making as many pictures as would result from its use.

Will there be dry photography? It is already here in two forms. When Brady made his Civil War pictures, the plate had to be wet at the time of exposure. Now it has to be wet during development instead. In the future perhaps it need not be wetted at all. There have long been films impregnated with diazo dyes which form a picture without development, so that it is already there as soon as the camera has been operated. An exposure to ammonia gas destroys the unexposed dye, and the picture can then be taken out into the light and examined. The process is now slow, but someone may speed it up, and it has no grain difficulties such as now keep photographic researchers busy. Often it would be advantageous to be able to snap the camera and to look at the picture immediately.

Danger!

2010-07-06T16:38:00.000-07:00

Finger Painting on the iPad

2010-07-06T06:46:00.000-07:00

Yet another incredible finger painting demonstration using the Brushes app available for the iPhone and iPad.

via Drawn!

Crises of Capitalism

2010-07-05T12:48:00.000-07:00

via Boing Boing

The Shack

2010-07-05T09:24:00.000-07:00

On RadioShack's failure to evolve:

We all know what happens to organisms that can't adapt. Just this morning I was feeding my dinosaur, thinking, "Gee, maybe I'll grab a Dodo-bird burger later."

via Wired Magazine

What a Wonderful World

2010-07-05T00:45:00.000-07:00

This is pretty much my current worldview in general. I mean, this is want you want, no?

Tokyo Song

2010-05-02T12:55:00.001-07:00

Stephen King

2010-05-01T22:16:00.000-07:00

I'm currently reading Stephen King's On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft. The book came up today when I got together with some friends to go sketch classic cars at the Nethercutt Museum in Sylmar, CA. We were talking about writing comic book scripts in particular, and one of the guys (who has had stories published in the comic book anthology Flight) mentioned how he pretty much picks this book up to read once a year. I'm still going through the first part of the book, which contains anecdotes from King's childhood. There are many great ones. This is one I particularly liked:

In the late 1950's, a literary agent and compulsive science fiction memorabilia collector named Forrest J. Ackerman changed the lives of thousands of kids -- I was one of them -- when he began editing a magazine called Famous Monters of Filmland. Ask anyone who has been associated with the fantasy-horror-science fiction genres in the last thirty years about this magazine, and you'll get a laugh, a flash of the eyes, and a stream of bright memories -- I practically guarantee it.

Around 1960's, Forry (who sometimes referred to himself as "the Ackermonster") spun off the short-lived but interesting Spacemen, a magazine which covered science fiction films. In 1960, I sent a story to Spacemen. It was, as well as I can remember, the first story I ever submitted for publication. I don't recall the title, but I was still in the Ro-man phase of my development, and this particular tale undoubtedly owed a great deal to the killer ape with the goldfish bowl on his head.

My story was rejected, but Forry kept it. (Forry keeps everything, which anyone who has ever toured his house -- the Ackermansion -- will tell you.) About twenty years later, while I was signing autographs at a Los Angeles bookstore, Forry turned up in line ... with my story, singled-spaced and typed with the long-vanished Royal typewriter my mom gave me for Christmas the year I was eleven. He wanted me to sign it to him, and I guess I did, although the whole encounter was so surreal I can't be completely sure. Talk about ghosts. Man, oh man.

Opus 46

2010-04-30T20:31:00.000-07:00

This sentence should not be read by more than one person at the same time.

Burger King

2010-04-28T19:36:00.000-07:00

Snap, Crackle, Pop

2010-04-28T19:34:00.000-07:00

Kitty

2010-04-03T20:00:00.000-07:00

Soviet computer animation was made in 1968. A group of russian physicists and mathematicians with N.Konstantinov in the head of it created mathematic model of the cat and its moving and realized this model in the program for the computer "BESM-4". Computer printed hundreds of frames on the paper using alphabet symbols and then they were converted to the cinefilm.

found at today and tomorrow

KORG iELECTRIBE for iPad

2010-04-03T19:02:00.001-07:00

Navigators - My Place

2010-04-03T18:56:00.001-07:00

Friday Soundtrack: Rakim - The Seventh Seal

2010-04-02T21:57:00.000-07:00

Peeps Show

2010-04-02T17:04:00.000-07:00

The Washington Post has a slideshow of the entries from their fourth annual Washington Post Peeps Diorama Contest up. It's pretty sweet. You should check it out.

(Any puns in this post are all intentional by the way.)