BACKUP 2021-05-31 QPORIT XR NEDWSROOM QPORIT.BLOGSPOT.COM
QPORIT XR
THE XR NEWSROOM
EXTENDED REALITY
TECHNOLOGY, CULTURE, ISSUES
Quick Previews Of Random Interesting Things
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2021-05-29 (SAT MAY 29, 2021)
THE 2022 BUDGET
- proposed by President Biden is ambitious.
- Here is the official description:
***
2021-05-28 (FRI MAY 28, 2021)
THERE IS A SERIOUS VOLCANIC ERUPTION IN THE CONGO.
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2021-05-28 (FRI MAY 28, 2021)
THE CREATION OF A BIPARTISAN COMMISSION
- to investigate the events of Jan 6 was blocked by Republican Senators.
- The "events", on the face of it, appeared to be an attempt to overthrow the legitimately elected government of the US.
- Trying to prevent an investigation should be taken as an admission of guilt by Republicans.
- Although the bipartisan commission was blocked, the investigation of the events should proceed in closed and open hearings by relevant committees of the House and Senate.
- The Republicans are engaged in a partisan attempt to suppress the votes of Democratic leaning voters across the country.
- This is profoundly anti-democratic and anti-American.
- Attempts by Republicans to seize power in the country by violence and suppression of democracy must be stopped.
- Legislation to preserve democracy in the United States of America is essential, urgent, and needed now.
- The Republicans can not block the truth or destroy democracy if the House and Senate act now.
- Committee hearings should begin as soon as possible.
***
2021-05-27 (THU MAY
27, 2021)
XR - EQUALITY, THEATER
THE
PUBLIC THEATER
- has
a new plan for diversity, inclusion, equality and "cultural
transformation"
- Here's
the plan:
- https://publictheater.org/news-items/anti-racism--cultural-transformation-plan/anti-racism--cultural-transformation-plan
- As
a possible model for other institutions it has a lot to be recommended.
- Nevertheless,
I have a few thoughts about some items in the plan, and some not in the
plan, that I believe should be taken into account.
- Conspicuous in
the plan is this phrase:
- "In
order to create a more humane and inclusive workplace, we have pledged
to have all staff of The Public make a standardized living wage (based
on New York’s cost of living) by 2023".
- No!
Except for volunteers, ALL staff should have a living wage NOW.
- The
plan seems to emphasize diversity and equality with "BIPOC" ("BIPOC"
is an acronym for Black, Indigenous, and People Of Color.) and
language diversity with English and Spanish.
- The
long history of American oppression of the BIPOC ecosystem and peoples,
requires a special effort both for a redress of the past history and
for prevention of new offences (for example, police violence,
and new attempts at voter suppression).
- The
best solutions need to avoid echoes of “separate but equal” and
should embrace support for diversity and equality for all.
- There are many factors that contribute to diversity:
- One is gender.
- One
is age. There are more people than ever active over the age
of (pick any number greater than 60). And there are
more ideas than ever from young people in High School and younger. (How
many 5th grade classes depend upon a student rather than staff for
helping with computers and new technology? Teens
are getting big audiences on Social Media sites. They should have
exposure to theater, and could have much to contribute.)
- One
is $$$. People without money need more than a lottery or a
long line for free access to summer theater --- for example, an
opportunity to create culturally. People with money also have a lot to
contribute beside money.
- One
is language. There are more languages spoken in New York
than English and Spanish. The "plan" is presented in English
and Spanish. The top three languages in New York are: English, Spanish,
and Chinese Mandarin, with smaller numbers speaking Russian, Italian,
French, Korean, and some speaking Yiddish, Hindi, and various Arabic,
Asian, and African languages.
- In
the spirit of an oxymoron, English is, of course, the lingua franca of
the US. A unifying language is important. And... it is the
heritage of the Shakespearean background of the Public.
- One
is nationality. At a time when we are emerging from
several years of xenophobia, with particular recent attacks on Chinese
residents and people, and with stress on the system of immigration, The
Public could well be a beacon for casting a light on the whole world.
New York is a city with a substantial BIPOC, international, and
immigrant population.
- The plan seems to be largely about restructuring the staff to be more centrally BIPOC. The mission statement is more general:
- ...we
in the theater also have our own specific challenges. As the tellers of
stories and the makers of images, we must strive to center those our
country has marginalized, to tell truths our culture has suppressed, and
to create the narratives that allow us to imagine a more just and
inclusive nation. We know that art always reflects the conditions under
which it was made, so we must also look inward and ensure that our own
structure, processes, and behaviors reflect the world we are striving to
bring into being.
- The
Public Theater has, since its inception, been a place to bring great
theater, both historical and new creations, to the New York
public.
- There
is a long history in the US of saying one thing, but doing another: in
the Declaration of Independence we have the stirring words:
- We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men
are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain
unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit
of happiness.
- Note:
Written by Thomas Jefferson, we have to remember that when he said
"men", he did not mean women. In fact, he also did not mean
all men - just people of property or professions, and not
slaves. (Jefferson was a slave owner, as was George Washington. And
what the Declaration said about Indigenous People is horrifying.) We
need to do NOT WHAT THEY DID, BUT WHAT THEY SAID, what the words TRUTH,
EQUALITY, LIFE, and LIBERTY mean today.
- I
hope that in the plan for restructuring, The Public will look to
the spirit of the Declaration (as we read it
today) and to the spirit of The Public's heritage: To create
and present, to all NY, great theater that upholds and defends the
principle that ALL people are EQUAL, with a RIGHT to LIFE, LIBERTY and
the PURSUIT of HAPPINESS.
- In
taking the broad view of diversity, inclusion, equality and
"cultural transformation" in its mission and operations, The
Public can best support the New York public, and the goals of the
BIPOC community in particular.
***
2021-05-26 (WED MAY 26, 2021)
AMAZON BOUGHT MGM
- This provides a large library, including the James Bond franchise, and it boosts the ability of Amazon Prime Video to create new content.
- The distribution of movies through computer streaming as an extremely important channel has resulted in a recent shift of the movie industry.
- Disney has begun streaming directly to consumers.
- Disney, over the years, has added a number of content producers to it's production pipeline, including Pixar for animation and Lucas Films (with Star Wars).
- Then they added FOX to diversify their library
- Then they began streaming.
- Netflix has begun producing their own movies, rather than relying on other studios to provide content.
- Verizon acquired content providers and tried to go into the content development business, but discovered they could not and sold AOL, Yahoo and other media properties.
- ATT acquired Warner (which itself had once upon tried to combine with AOL, then unloaded that) and tried to go into the content development business, but discovered they could not and sold Warner to Discover.
- SONY, a while ago, in another era, did a tech-media integration, buying Columbia Pictures. SONY is now linking loosely to Netflix.
- Paramount is part of the CBS-Viacom family.
- NBC is part of the Comcast family, now trying ad-based streaming with Peacock.
- Apple is trying to create their own studio.
- There are very few US movie studios remaining "independent".
2021-05-25 (TUE MAY 25, 2021)
THE TRUMP ORGANIZATION
- criminal investigation in NY is now being escalated, with the creation of a Grand Jury.
***
2021-05-23 (SUN MAY 23, 2021)
FACTS
- FACTS are what actually happens.
- It does not matter whether anybody understands it, knows about it, lies about, describes it accurately, or anything else...
- It happened.
- If a tree falls in the forest, it happened, even if no-one is there.
- Facts happen, but most facts are not easily or completely known.
- The clearest facts are those that directly impact our senses.
- It is a fact that I saw a pretty flower today.
- There is a clear process in law and in science for determining our best knowledge of "facts".
- In law, a trial before a (fair!) jury or judge determines what are the "facts".
- In science, the ability to repeat an experiment, and to rule out other interpretations of the experiment determines the "facts".
- Our ability to make good decisions depends on knowing the facts.
- Since the underlying facts are not usually known, the "facts" as determined by the legal, scientific, or other clear, fair and accurate process is the way we can best determine the basis on which to make our decisions.
FICTION
- FICTION is the way we use words and stories and pictures and even mathematics to understand the facts.
- Scientific "theories" are just ways we try to understand the facts we have available to plumb a deeper truth about the underlying facts.
- A theory suggests how to use mathematics to take measurements of the current state, then calculate what the measurements would be as the result of an experiment.
- If the measurements of the result is what we expect, we can continue to explore the "predictions" of the theory.
- If the result is different from what we expect, then we have to adjust the theory.
- Theories are not facts. They are stories or fictions that tell us what facts we can use to make decisions.
- Looking out the window at flowers provides clear facts about the world: We see pretty flowers!
- But the underlying facts are more complicated.
- Everything we see, we see because photons of particular frequencies come to our eyes and are interpreted by our brain.
- We can not see the electrons and protons of the flowers.
- First, they are too small.
- They also have spin 1/2, and photons can directly "see" only objects with integral spin.
- We also can not see the infrared or ultraviolet photons coming from the flowers, because our eyes do not capture photons of those frequencies and the brain does not react to them.
- So it is a fact that we see pretty flowers, but it is a fiction that allows us to see the flowers and know that there is more going on, that we can ignore(!) while we enjoy the view.
FAKES
- FAKES are evil: they are deliberate or careless ways to make us believe that something that did not happen, did happen.
- They are attempts to get us to use as "facts" things that did not happen.
- They are evil because we make decisions based on what we believe are facts.
- When we act on the basis of assertions of what happened, that are not facts, we make bad decisions:
- Bad decisions -- like attending political rallies in close proximity to others without wearing masks during a pandemic which spreads when people are in close proximity without wearing masks -- can cause lives to be ruined and lives to be lost.
2021-05-22 (SAT MAY 22, 2021)
IMMERSIVE INTERACTIVE FICTION and fakes IRL
- Creating immersive interactive fiction and embedding it in real life (IRL) has always been an exciting challenge for content developers.
- A famous example is Orson Welles' radio version of War of the Worlds, which terrified many and caused havoc in 1938.
- It was, by the way, a Halloween broadcast.
- Wikipedia describes some of the reaction to the broadcast, whose significance lay partly in the fact that this Martian invasion was an unstated metaphor for the possibility of a genuine invasion IRL by Nazi Germany.
- Although it was fiction, and performing a horror story may seem like a game, it may be harmless, as Welles' himself said, "Until it ceases to be a game."
- There were attempts made by the police and others, in the middle of the broadcast, to provide additional assurances to the public (beyond the one's that had already been made in the show) that this was a fictional, dramatic story and not real.
- It is not clear how much that made any difference.
- I do not know what laws if any were enacted, following this show, to prevent fictional stories from being presented to the public as if they were true.
- However, lies or fictions without disclaimers, (FAKES) used to generate revenue may rise to the level of illegal fraud, and when used for political purposes as in the rise of the Nazi party to power, they can be dangerous to the entire world.
- The conspiracies promoted by QAnon, and the narrative that Trump actually won the election, are clearly elaborate fictions using real people as the characters in a fanciful story. But, when promoted as truth, they stop being fiction and become FAKES. (See story above.)
- Even Ted Cruz, while trying to gain advantage by not denouncing the storyline that Biden was not properly elected, did not claim this storyline was true, he just claimed he was supporting the people who actually believed the fiction (as if in 1938 he had recommended that the US mobilize against the possibility of Martians, rather than saying the broadcaster should remind the audience it was fiction).
- Four lines of defense again possible real life harm from these storylines could be.
- The obvious: denouncing the lies as lies.
- The criminal: checking whether the story was promoted as truth to raise money fraudulently.
- The creative: reminding the world that the narrative is a fictional horror story, using real people, places, and things as characters, and the fantasies should not be allowed to interfere with the actual real world.
- The constitutional: Democracy always depends on the ability of the voters to make informed judgements based on accurate information, and it depends on a functional system of justice. For capitalism and commerce to function without corruption also requires truth.
- There are well defined methods of determining the truth in both science and the law.
- There need to be national laws or even a constitutional amendment requiring truth in Government, in Politics, and in Commerce, with severe and immediate remedies for violations.
- Fictions are OK, even beneficial, as long they are understood to be fiction.
- FAKES are evil.
2021-05-18 (TUE MAY 18, 2021)
THE TRUMP ORGANIZATION
- civil investigation in NY is now a criminal investigation, according to Rachel Maddow of MSNBC, a few minutes ago, reporting on a story first broken by CNN.
2021-05-018 (TUE MAY 18, 2021)
GOOGLE I/O
- began today with a keynote by Sundar Pichai.
- Most of the event featured progress in applications of AI to photos, voice, text, new styling in the new Android 12, and maps.
- One exciting new device was teased at the end.
- Google is developing "StarLine", a teleconferencing system which
- uses live volumetric video and distance capture to create the feed,
- uses advanced compression technology to transmit the signal live,
- and uses a large lightfield screen to display a lifelike 3D image (with no headset).
- Google invested heavily, years ago, in Magic Leap, whose mission at the outset was to create a lightfield HMD.
- I wonder whether this screen is the large size version of what Magic Leap never produced in headset dimensions.
- Speculating: The idea (behind showing 3D this way on a large screen without an HMD) may be that the lightfield presents - to each eye - the image that that eye would see if a real person were sitting at the position of the virtual image.
- This would be a little like a lenticular 3D screen, but a better way of sending more realistic images with less artifacts to each eye.
2021-05-017 (MON MAY 17, 2021)
STREAMING MEDIA
- continues to consolidate and re-organize.
- AT & T sells Warner Media to a new company to be run by Discovery.
- The sale is expected to close in mid 2022.
- It will be owned with roughly with 70% belonging to AT&T and 30% by Discovery.
- It may have a new name.
- It will be run by Discovery CEO David Zaslav.
- Jason Kilar will remain, at least temporarily, the head of Warner.
- HBO Max is included in the sale.
- The news division of Warner is included.
- The games division may not be fully included.
- Verizon, only recently, sold its media division, including AOL & Yahoo
- See the NEWSROOM, below for May 3, 2021.
- Currently, the major streaming media companies are Netflix, followed by Disney+.
- They are all being challenged by startup streaming plays from tech companies, including Apple, YouTube, and Amazon Prime Video.
- But it's not easy: A startup attempt targeting mobile devices, called QUIBI, recently failed.
- Smaller streaming efforts, like Peacock & CBS, may struggle to find a secure place.
- More challenge to linear video streaming is coming from interactive content, including, especially, games.
2021-05-07 (FRI MAY 7, 2021)
ERIC ROHMER
- was one of the most enjoyable filmmakers of the French New Wave of the late 1960's, and after.
- He was an editor of Cahiers du Cinema, one of history's most important film magazines.
- Among his best known films here are Pauline a la plage (Pauline at the Beach), Claire's Knee, Love in the Afternoon, Ma nuit chez Maud (My Night at Maud's) and La Collectionneuse.
- Many of his films deal in a light hearted way with young men and women, and how they relate to each other in love, or not quite.
- He made a series of four "Tales" set in Summer, Fall, Winter and Spring, which are being shown currently online by Montclair Film.
- https://montclairfilm.org/
- (By the way, tonight, May 7, Montclair Film is having a fundraising event hosted by Evelyn and Stephen Colbert. The URL above has all the information.)
- A Tale of Summer stars a young Melvil Poupaud, best known here for Angelina Jolie's By The Sea, where he played the man in the couple that lived in the room next door.
- I had the opportunity to interview Melvil when he visited New York during the Rendez-Vous with French Films at Lincoln Center with a film called The Great Game, a (French style) political thriller.
- In the interview, Melvil also talks about making the Tale of Summer with Rohmer, and working with Angelina Jolie.
- The interview can be watched on YouTube at:
- I filmed the interview in 3D. If you have a headset like the OCULUS QUEST, you can enjoy the interview in 3D by going to YouTube VR in the headset, and searching for QPORIT MELVIL POUPAUD GREAT GAME.
2021-05-05 (WED MAY 5, 2021)
A FEDERAL JUDGE
- severely criticized statements made by Barr, former head of the Justice Department.
- Here's an excerpt:
- "And of even greater importance to this decision, the affidavits are so inconsistent with evidence in the record, they are not worthy of credence. The review of the unredacted document in camera reveals that the suspicions voiced by the judge in EPIC and the plaintiff here were well-founded, andtThe agency’s redactions and incomplete explanations obfuscate the true purpose of the memorandum, and the excised portions belie the notion that it fell to the Attorney General to make a prosecution decision or that any such decision was on the table at any time.:
- Here's the whole "memorandom opinion":
2021-05-05 (WED MAY 5, 2021)
OBSTRUCTION
- is McConnel's strategy for making the US a better place:
- According to the WSJ:
- "McConnell Says ‘100%’ of His Focus Is on Blocking Biden Agenda"
- This makes clear that for Republicans in the Senate
- O is for Obstruction
- In the House, Republicans are challenging Liz Cheney, and repeating the lie that the election was stolen by Democrats (even after Jan 6 proved that the former President was trying to steal the election with violence).
- This makes clear that for Republicans in the House
- L is for Lies.
- The Republican Tax Bill, under the former President, gave more than a TRILLION DOLLARS to rich people.
- This makes clear that for Republicans in office
- G is for Greed.
- Republicans in states run by Republicans all over the country are passing legislation to make it harder for Blacks, minority groups and poorer people to vote.
- This makes clear that for Republican office holders
- P is for Prejudice.
- Once upon a time, GOP stood for the "Grand Old Party",
- Lincoln freed the slaves.
- Eisenhower defeated the fascists, then built the Interstate road system.
- Now Republican officeholders no longer belong to the GOP.
- The new party for Republican officeholders is GLOP
- Greed
- Lies
- Obstruction
- Prejudice.
- The assault on the people of the United States by the party of GLOP is serious.
- They persist in lies about the vaccine and masks that will kill Americans.
- They persist in lies about the election that threaten democracy.
- They persist in obstructing necessary legislation.
- (Then with gleeful hypocrisy lie by taking credit for it!!!)
- GLOP is not normal democratic policy debate. It is a serious assault on the health and essential democratic spirit of the US.
2021-05-04 (TUE MAY 4, 2021)
CONAN O'BRIEN
- will be leaving TBS in later June.
- Some time later, he will be hosting a "Variety" show on HBO Max.
2021-05-04 (TUE MAY 4, 2021)
HOSTING by NETWORK SOLUTIONS (as of 3 PM)
- has been down for some time now!
2021-05-03 (MON MAY 3, 2021)
AOL & YAHOO!
- Verizon consolidated AOL and YAHOO! into "Oath", then "Verizon Media"...
- But ... then later sold off HuffPost, and closed other media projects, including BUILD (a video interview series) some time ago.
- Now Verizon is selling Verizon Media, including all of AOL and Yahoo! along with brands like with Engadget and TechCrunch to Apollo Global Management.
- Apollo Global Management is an "asset management" company. It is not clear if they have had any previous media management experience.
- The new media company will be called just Yahoo, and will be run by Guru Gowrappan who had been leading Verizon Media.
- Update 5/4/2021 -- In an interview on CNBC, Apollo suggested that they are particularly interested in the base of users of AOL & YAHOO, and monetizing the "assets" not so much by ads, as by financial information and processing services; the notions of serving "crypto", and providing "Robinhood" like features were teased.
- Once upon a time, AOL and Yahoo! were the most important Internet new media companies.
- But they have been unable to adapt to the changing fortunes of the business cycles, or to the changing landscape and possibilities of technology as fast, or as nimbly, or as profitably, as their competition.
- Verizon Media
- Apollo Global Management
- The Deal
2021-05-03 (MON MAY 3, 2021)
BILL AND MELINDA GATES
- are divorcing after almost 30 years of marriage, three children, and creating one of the world's most important philanthropic organizations.
- Bill Gates, the creator of Microsoft, is one of the world's richest people with about $125 billion dollars.
- (Currently, Jeff Bezos, even after a multi-billion dollar divorce is the world's richest man with close to $200 billion dollars.)
- Because Bill Gates controls so much money and, with Melinda, is so important to international philanthropy, this divorce has public as well as private consequences.
2021-05-02 (SUN MAY 2, 2021)
JOSHUA BELL, WYNTON MARSALIS, SHARON ISBIN, STEVEN ISSERLIS
- and Colin Davin all performed to support music education at the Thurnauer School of Music online Gift of Music Gala Benefit today.
- The Gift of Music Gala supports the scholarship fund, allowing students to learn music at the school, regardless of their financial situation.
- Joseph Polisi, President Emeritus and Chief China Officer of the Juilliard School, and the author of The Artist as Citizen was honored for his distinguished contributions to music and the arts.
- The program also celebrated the 80th birthday of Founding Director Dorothy Kaplan Roffman (who switched from in-person to virtual operations from one day to the next in March 2020, and after more than 30+ years, working 25 / 8, continues to lead the school).
- The Thurnauer School of Music
- Rob Kapilow and Bruce Adolphe contributed musical compositions; and all the musicians, including Francisco Nunez, leader of the Young People's Chorus of New York. spoke about the importance of music education.
- Artist Harvey Edwards created an image honoring Joseph Polisi and his worldwide influence on music and the arts.
- All the musical participants had participated in earlier in-person Gift of Music Galas where they had interacted directly and personally with the students at the Thurnauer school.
- Additionally, Steven Isserlis and Colin Davin participated in mash-ups with the students this year that, along with many other performances by Thurnauer students, were included in the program.
- The event began with a performance of Feel Good, by the Thurnauer Student Chorus; it included a great performance on the trumpet and a stirring tribute to Joseph Polisi by Wynton Marsalis; a brilliant classical guitar duet by Sharon Isbin and Colin Davin; and it concluded with a beautiful transcription of a Chopin Nocturne by Joshua Bell.
- Rob Kapilow, Francisco Nunez, and Program Host, Elliott Forrest, presented a preview of a major project at the Thurnauer School:
- Inspired by Faith Ringgold's children's book We Came To America, Rob is writing a score for chorus in a project that intends to inspire more people to lend their stories, poetry and art about their own -- and their family's -- coming to America.
- The Gala is available to be watched for the next month online.
- Contributions for the Gala scholarship fund are always welcome.
- Joseph Polisi received a signed, original copy of Harvey Edward's image.
- A limited number of copies of the image, celebrating the worldwide scope of music, were created.
- A numbered copy of the image is currently being offered at auction by the Thurnauer school until May 16. The first bid was for $3,000.
2021-04-30 (FRI APR 30, 2021)
RANSOMWARE
- is a serious and growing problem.
- The "Institute for Security and Technology" has released a study.
- Here is the presentation of their report:
- Here is the report:
- Here is the home page for the Institute:
2021-04-28 (WED APR 28, 2021)
WORLDWIDE 150,000,000+
2021-04-27 (SUN APR 27, 2021)
DANIEL KAMINSKY - A CYBERSECURITY PIONEER
died at the age of 42.
In an obituary story in the NYT
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/27/technology/daniel-kaminsky-dead.html
he is quoted as saying,
“The internet was designed to move pictures of cats. We are very good at moving pictures of cats.” But, he added: “We didn’t think you’d be moving trillions of dollars onto this. What are we going to do? And here’s the answer: Some of us got to go out and fix it.”
In the 1980's and 1990's when the Internet was being developed security, of the kind we now obviously need, was deliberately and consciously omitted from the priorities of the hardware and software structure of the Internet and Internet commerce.
It is time now to rethink the entire networking structure to allow what should be allowed (including freedom, innovation, efficiency, truth...) and prevent what should be prevented (including malware, crime, lies, terrorism...).
2021-04-25 (SUN APR 25, 2021)
THE ACADEMY AWARDS: APRIL 25
NOMADLAND was the big winner (as it had been at the Golden Globes as well). It took home the Oscars for Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Actress.
It was a different kind of show this year. It seemed more personal and more real. In many ways it was more intimate than previous shows. I did not miss the big production numbers. They've almost never worked. I did miss the jokes at the beginning. Starting with the screenplay awards provided rather boring speeches -- you'd think screenwriters could write better thankyous. And once they knew that one nominee for Best Actor was going to be a no-show, ending with the Best Actor award instead of Best Pictures was a risky bet. And (unlike a movie script) they lost the bet. Anthony Hopkins won, for THE FATHER. He wasn't there, and that was kind of a downbeat way to end the show.
The Memoriam seemed particularly sad this year.
Jon Batiste, who does such a brilliant job on the Late Show, won the Oscar for the score of SOUL.
All in all, congratulations to the winners!
See the link below: after the list of winners and nominees, where you can stream (some of) the nominated films
https://qporit.blogspot.com/2021/03/the-93rd-academy-awards-2021-sunday.html
- Best Picture nominees:
- "The Father"
- "Judas and the Black Messiah"
- "Mank" (Most nominations)
- "Minari"
- "Nomadland" (Big winner at the Golden Globes)
- "Promising Young Woman"
- "Sound of Metal"
- "The Trial of the Chicago 7″
- Chadwick Boseman was nominated posthumously
- as Best Actor in a Leading Role
- for "Ma Rainey's Black Bottom".
- Chloe Zhao, Golden Globe winner for "Nomadland", was a nominee for Best Director.
- "Mank" had the largest number of nominations, with ten
- for Best Film, Supporting Actress and Actor, Director, Cinematography, Score, and four craft nominations.
- To see how the 2020 films fared in the Golden Globes:
- Here's where you can stream (some of) the nominated films:
- NETFLIX
- Mank
- The Trial of the Chicago 7
- Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
- The White Tiger
- Over the Moon
- Crip Camp
- AMAZON
- The Sound of Metal
- Borat Subsequent Moviefilm
- One Night at Miami
- Promising Young Woman
- DISNEY +
- Onward
- Soul
- Mulan
- The One and Only Ivan
- HULU
- Nomadland
- The United States Vs. Billie Holiday
- APPLE
- Wolfwalkers
- Greyhound
- Other films may be available for purchase or rent on streaming services. A few films are available currently in some theaters, but not for home streaming.
2021-04-23 (FRI APR 23, 2021)
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, WILL!!!
RIP, William Shakespeare 1564-1616
- William Shakespeare died on this day in 1616.
- He was baptized on April 26, 1564.
- It was customary to be baptized three days after birth; therefore it is believed that he was born on April 23.
O wonder!
How many goodly creatures are there here!
How beauteous mankind is! O brave new world,
That has such people in’t!
(Miranda, The Tempest, Act 5, Scene 1)
We are such stuff as dreams are made on, and our little life is rounded with a sleep.
(Prospero, The Tempest, Act 4, Scene 1)
How beauteous mankind is! O brave new world,
That has such people in’t!
(Miranda, The Tempest, Act 5, Scene 1)
We are such stuff as dreams are made on, and our little life is rounded with a sleep.
(Prospero, The Tempest, Act 4, Scene 1)
Sonnet 65...
2021-04-20 (TUE APR 20, 2021)
GUILTY!
- 9 minutes of incontrovertible evidence of indefensible action is sufficient to convict a white police office of murdering a helpless black man.
- Sentencing?
- Other officers that facilitated the murder?
- Other killings of black humans by policemen?
2021-04-20 (TUE APR 20, 2021)
APPLE'S "SPRING LOADED" EVENT
- brings "Apple Silicon" M1 to more computers
- improves
- video and photographic cameras
- HDR displays
- audio
- Apple TV
- "Find MY" with airtags;
- increases the color choices for hardware;
- puts 5G on iPads.
- This represents an implementation of the exponential growth in the power of digital technology.
- There were neither fundamental changes in Apple hardware or software, nor new categories of devices.
- The style and quality of the production level for Apple events online is stunning!
- https://www.apple.com/apple-events/event-stream/
- https://www.apple.com/newsroom/
2021-04-19 (MON APR 19, 2021)
NASA COMPLETES THE FIRST FLIGHT ON ANOTHER PLANET!
- The helicopter Ingenuity, taken to Mars in the Perseverance Rover Project, has successfully made its first flight!
- This is also the first flight (at least the first made by Earthen humans) on another planet.
- Here is a video about the flight.
- A video of the flight itself begins at about 22:35
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JM_2hmdRnfQ
- Science and technology, including physics, astronomy, aeronautics, optics, electromagnetic transmissions, computers, and other digital and analog tools have clearly eXtended our Reality (XR) with this mission.
2021-04-17 (SAT APR 17, 2021)
WORLDWIDE DAILY NEW CASES OF COVID-19 REACHES A NEW HIGH
- More than 843,450 new cases world-wide were reported in one day.
- This is higher than the previous peak recorded in January.
- Yesterday, India had the highest number of new cases, with 233,943.
- The US was second.
US DAILY NEW CASES OF COVID-19 GROWING
- More than 82,000 new cases of COVID-19 were reported yesterday in the US
- with more than 850 deaths.
- Largest number of new cases yesterday
- 9,850 Michigan
- 7,296 Florida
- 6,736 New York
- 5,547 Pennsylvania
- 4,381 New Jersey
- 3,866 Illinois
- 3.030 Texas
- 2,904 California
- With
- so many new cases
- less than half the country vaccinated
- new strains that are more contagious
- it is crazy for governors to
- remove restrictions on masks
- remove restrictions on indoor dining
- remove restrictions on crowd events like
- sports
- concerts
- film and theater.
- Every life matters.
- GET VACCINATED; WEAR A MASK; AVOID CROWDS; AVOID TRAVEL
- The life you save may be your own
- or a grandparent
- or a parent
- or a child
- or a spouse
- or a friend
- or a stranger.
2021-04-16 (FRI APR 16, 2021)
KANDAO 12K x 12K 3D 360 VR OBSIDIAN PRO CINEMATIC CAMERA
- Kandao has introduced a new professional camera,
- leapfrogging, in many ways, available cameras, editors and HMD's
- variable focus
- variable exposure
- 3x coverage for better stitiching
- up to 16TB / 100 min in camera storage.
- multiple mics
- stability features
- ethernet & wireless connections
- starting at US $ 24,499
- https://www.kandaovr.com/Obsidian-Pro/
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wI3C2k-JxG8
2021-04-16 (FRI APR 16, 2021)
THE TRIBECA FILM FESTIVAL- June 9 -20, 2021
- has announced that Lin-Manuel Miranda and Jon M Chu's film
- IN THE HEIGHTS
- will be the opening night film.
- https://tribecafilm.com/
2021-04-12 (MON APR 12, 2021)
THE REAL TIME CONFERENCE (RTC) - April 26-28, 2021
- is a 3 Day round-the clock conference on technology that supports Real Time processing, events, and more, such as...
- theater, live broadcasting, autonomous vehicles, photo-realistic avatars, holographic projection, virtual production, design, 3D-Commerce, neural rendering, e-sports and more...
- The theme is "The Rise of the Metaverse!"
- Among the topics, speakers and companies participating are...
- UnReal Engine, MetaHumans and other digital humans
- Digital Domain
- Social remote connections
- XR and Live Broadcast Shows
- Storytelling in real time across platforms
- LED Video wall
- Volumetric VR
- NVIDIA
- NASA
- and more...
- I attended the last RTC and it was excellent!
- Here's the link:
- https://realtimeconference.com/program-april-2021/
A HISTORY OF THE TERM EXTENDED REALITY (XR)
2021-04-08 (THU APR 8, 2021)
INSIDE
- will be holding an event all about NFT's today!
PRESIDENT BIDEN
- will be holding an event today on guns.
- Here's the plan:
VACCINATIONS
- in the US are going very well.
- However, cases, hospitalizations and deaths are RISING not FALLING.
- We are NOT yet at "herd immunity".
- The effect of viral mutations is not well known.
- It is PREMATURE to allow maskless crowds.
- New York and New Jersey are among the worst hotspots currently.
- In the rest of the world, Brazil is doing extremely badly, with almost 4,000 deaths in one day.
THE HP OMNICEPT - DEVELOPER EDITION
- a big brother of the HP Reverb G2 has been announced.
- It contains many sensors that can be exploited to understand the state of the user.
- This may point to a more powerful Avatar meeting space, or Avatar theater.
- Or a frightening level of surveillance of VR users.
- Trailer:
2021-04-05 (MON APR 5, 2021)
NASA
- has been taking high resolution photographs of the sun (in many wavelengths and less than a second apart) for a decade.
- Different wavelengths emphasize features of particular temperatures, and particular atoms and molecules.
- NASA has combined a collection and selection of the photos into an hour long timelapse video of the sun's behavior over ten years.
2021-04-03 (SAT APR 3, 2021)
2021-04-02 (FRI APR 2, 2021)
TODAY IS GOOD FRIDAY. SUNDAY IS EASTER.
- There is an incident at the Capitol.
- A car rams into a barrier.
- One policeman and the driver are killed. One policeman is injured.
- MS scores a $22 Billion contract for Mixed Reality, with the Army.
- This is a huge commercial success for Mixed Reality.
- President Biden proposes a badly needed multi-trillion dollar infrastructure project
- to repair years and years of neglect
- to build for the future.
- The American Jobs Plan:
- The Trial of a policeman for murdering a handcuffed man by pressing his knee on the man's neck for almost ten minutes, while other policeman prevented bystanders from aiding the victim, is ongoing.
- The long awaited FRIENDS reunion to be shot next week.
- (They'll be as themselves, not in character, except possibly/sort-of for a script reading.)
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0lX2OrEX9wU
2021-04-01 (THU APR 1, 2021)
TODAY IS NOT APRIL FOOL'S DAY.
- April fools.
2021-03-30 (TUE MAR 30, 2021)
FROM SNL
2021-03-29 (MON MAR 29, 2021)
SOME HEADLINES (and some comments):
- Dr. Birx said on CNN that deaths after the Spring of 2020 could have been "mitigated" if the Trump Administration, (and the panel She was on) had used what had been learned in the Spring surge.
- The Justice Department should look into whether there was criminal negligence (or corruption or other crimes) in the actions of Trump, his administration, and any others, in their handling of the epidemic.
- Congress should hold hearings on the former administration's actions in 2020. Is new legislation needed to prevent a repeat of the negligence and incompetence that lead to the deaths, illness and financial upheavals of COVID-19?
- https://www.cnn.com/videos/health/2021/03/27/fauci-birx-covid-war-gupta-intv-sot-vpx.cnn/video/playlists/coronavirus/
- Meanwhile... As hospitalizations rise, with more contagious and more lethal variations emerging, the current director of the CDC fears "doom" from another wave, with people partying, traveling, gathering in large groups without masks and without social distancing, before the country is much more fully vaccinated.
- The trial of Derek Chauvin for killing George Floyd has begun.
- Many people, including police, watched as he was killed.
- There must be national laws requiring policemen to intervene when another policeman is behaving dangerously and improperly.
- There must be national training and monitoring of police.
- Police are absolutely necessary.
- Most policemen are heroes.
- They must all be the people we can trust to help us -- every single one of us and every single one of them -- in an emergency.
- The cargo vessel that was blocking the Suez Canal has been freed.
- Technology is changing exponentially.
- The supply chain is a world wide interconnected support system.
- The world is too complicated and intertwined for nationalism to be good for anyone.
- Counting has begun for the quest to unionize Amazon warehouses.
- Technology is changing exponentially.
- Unions must be a force for flexibility and progress, not for a status quo, as they fight for the health and compensation of workers.
- It is not acceptable for companies and owners to become wealthy at the expense of their workers, their customers, their suppliers the environment, the public and others.
- The government must adjudicate a fair balance for capitalism to thrive.
- Microsoft has issued an interesting report on trends and the state of work as we begin to enter a hybrid work environment.
2021-03-27 (SAT MAR 27, 2021)
GEORGE SEGAL (FEB 13, 1934 — MAR 23, 2021)
- I did not know George Segal well.
- He did say 6 words to me.
- I was on a movie set as a journalist, one of my first times ever.
- He was playing a junkie, potentially dangerous.
- I was standing on the side, watching.
- As the the camera was about to roll, he came strait toward me and said, quietly but menacingly, "You're in my line of sight."
2021-03-26 (FRI MAR 26, 2021)
VOTER SUPPRESSION LAWS
- More accurately, "black, minority, financially hard-pressed, and non-GOP voter suppression laws", in GOP run states appear to be clearly unconstitutional:
- Amendment XV Section 1:
- The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.
- These "laws" abridge the ability of black and minority citizens to vote.
- Amendment XXIV Section 1:
- The right of citizens of the United States to vote in any primary or other election for President or Vice President for electors for President or Vice President, or for Senator or Representative in Congress, shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or any State by reason of failure to pay any poll tax or other tax.
- Making it more expensive to vote is a poll tax.
MARK BLUM (MAY 14, 1950 — MARCH 25, 2020)
- a gentle, caring, thoughtful actor, director and teacher was one of the first tragic victims of COVID-19.
- He played the "union rep" in Mozart in the Jungle; (he was also active in the real SAG); he appeared in Playwrights Horizons' Gus and Al for which he won and Emmy, and on Broadway in Neil Simon's Lost in Yonkers, among many credits, and he taught at HB Studio.
- His wife is sponsoring a scholarship at HB Studio, where he taught, and contributions are possible on a GOFUNDME campaign:
- https://charity.gofundme.com/o/en/campaign/hbstudionyc-mark-blum-scholarship-fund
- There is a gallery of photos there, too.
- I met him when I did a story, including a video interview, about an OOB production of a French play, translated into English and performed by two of his students, which he directed.
- Note: the actress, Constance Labbe, has recently been cast as the new lead of Balthazar, a popular French TV drama.
- Here is the video of the interview:
PRESIDENT BIDEN
- Gave an intelligent, thoughtful, caring, knowledgeable discussion of current issues and problems, and how his administration is addressing them in order of their priorities for the United States.
- He continued to explain that his notion of bi-partisanship involves serving the interests of all Americans, not letting the GOP obstruct progress.
- He is particularly angry at GOP attempts around the country to obstruct the ability (and right!) of voters to cast their votes.
- He called these efforts un-American and "sick!".
CONGRESSIONAL HEARINGS ON MISINFORMATION ON SOCIAL MEDIA
- did not seem helpful at all.
- The Questioners seemed interested only in promoting themselves and their policies.
- The expert witnesses, CEO's of Facebook, Google, and Twitter, were rarely given any opportunity to actually answer any questions.
- Most questions were of the following sort:
- You did something terrible. "When did you stop? Answer Yes or No."
- It is hard to see how this format for Congressional investigations (5 min per long winded person) can accomplish anything.
- The target was how to revise section 230, which provides protection from liability for Internet Companies.
- Here is the full 230:
- Here are two of the critical paragraphs:
- (1)Treatment of publisher or speaker
No provider or user of an interactive computer service shall be treated as the publisher or speaker of any information provided by another information content provider.
(2)Civil liabilityNo provider or user of an interactive computer service shall be held liable on account of—
2021-03-24 (WED MAR 24, 2021)
IMMIGRATION
- Vice President Harris has been given the task of sorting out the issues of dealing with the large wave of immigrants arriving at the border.
- If she does well, she is very likely to be the next President, and the first female President.
- Immigration has always been a source of contention in the US, despite its importance, and the fact that almost all of us in the US are only a few generations away from an immigrant ancestor.
- While many new waves of immigrants were opposed by previous waves of immigrants, in fact immigration has always been a very important part of the US economy.
- Immigration is an essential source of seasonal workers, entrepreneurs, workers in jobs inadequately staffed by residents, and many other positions.
- Immigrant workers are so important that some immigrants were even brought here against their will (and made slaves).
- Originally, in fact, at the very birth of the US, the problem was that there were not enough immigrants:
- From the Declaration of Independence:
- "The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world. ...
- (Fact #7): He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither..."
2021-03-23 (TUE MAR 23, 2021)
8 + 10 = 2 MANY
- Eight people killed in Georgia.
- Ten people killed in Colorado.
- Second Amendment:
- A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.
- The killers did not belong to a "well regulated Militia".
- "Militia's" involved in the Jan 6 attack on democracy were not well regulated.
- It is time to enforce the 2nd Amendment and regulate Militia's well, preventing any rogues from committing offenses and killing again.
2021-03-22 (MON MAR 22, 2021)
29 VOLCANOES (at least) ARE CURRENTLY ERUPTING
- including
- Mt Etna in Italy
- Mt Kilauea in Hawaii
- Klyuchevskoy in Kamchatka, Siberia
- Sangay and Reventador in Ecuador
- Sakrajima in Kyushu, Japan
- Fagradalsfjall in Iceland.
- according to
- Several volcanoes have plumes that may extend into flight patterns for aircraft.
2021-03-21 (SUN MAR 21, 2021)
SPRING
- Today is the first full day of of Spring.
- The Vernal Equinox (when the sun "crossed" the equator going North) occurred at 5:37 AM EST yesterday.
2021-03-20 (SAT MAR 20, 2021)
SPRING BREAK
- at Miami Beach has become so crowded that the Mayor has declared an emergency and ordered a curfew and shut the bridges that lead to the beach.
THE LEGACY
- of efforts by the GOP and the previous president (and Putin? -- see the story from 3/16 below) to downplay the seriousness of the virus and promote distrust of Biden continues to result in unsafe behavior (as in the story above), and aversion to vaccination, resulting in more illness:
- Cases and hospitalizations have been rising.
- New mutations are spreading.
- Until most of the population of the US is vaccinated (against all mutations) and cases start dropping (and cases in the rest of world are controlled, so it does not spread back to the US!)
- WEARING MASKS
- SOCIAL DISTANCING
- GOOD VENTILATION
- HAND WASHING
- ARE ESSENTIAL
- Currently
- WORLD: 123.4 Million cases; 2.7 Million deaths and growing
- US: 30.5 Million cases; 555 Thousand deaths and growing.
2021-03-17 (WED MAR 17, 2021)
2021-03-16 (TUE MAR 16, 2021)
THE OFFICE OF THE DIRECTOR OF NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE (ODNI)
- Has issued an unclassified summary of classified intelligence entitled:
- Domestic Violent Extremism Poses Heightened Threat in 2021:
- https://www.dni.gov/files/ODNI/documents/assessments/UnclassSummaryofDVEAssessment-17MAR21.pdf
- One sentence, in particular, stands out:
- Newer sociopolitical developments—such as narratives of fraud in the recent general election, the emboldening impact of the violent breach of the US Capitol, conditions related to the COVID-19 pandemic, and conspiracy theories promoting violence—will almost certainly spur some DVEs to try to engage in violence this year.
- The report also explicitly calls out Russian attempts to promote disinformation, and calls out those in politics and the media who have echoed and amplified the Russian disinformation campaign (The GOP and Fox Media would be examples).
- Editorial note: Clearly, for prominent current or former elected officials, or news media, to promote false statements, or to directly or indirectly condone violence, is completely irresponsible, and seriously dangerous.
- Lies are the foundation of autocracy and corruption. Truth is the guardian of democracy.
2021-03-15 (MON MAR 15, 2021)
THE ACADEMY AWARDS: APRIL 25
- Best Picture nominees:
- "The Father"
- "Judas and the Black Messiah"
- "Mank" (Most nominations)
- "Minari"
- "Nomadland" (Big winner at the Golden Globes)
- "Promising Young Woman"
- "Sound of Metal"
- "The Trial of the Chicago 7″
- Chadwick Boseman was nominated posthumously
- as Best Actor in a Leading Role
- for "Ma Rainey's Black Bottom".
- Chloe Zhao, Golden Globe winner for "Nomadland", was a nominee for Best Director.
- "Mank" had the largest number of nominations, with ten
- for Best Film, Supporting Actress and Actor, Director, Cinematography, Score, and four craft nominations.
- Here's the complete list of nominees:
- Here's where you can stream (some of) the nominated films:
- NETFLIX
- Mank
- The Trial of the Chicago 7
- Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
- The White Tiger
- Over the Moon
- Crip Camp
- AMAZON
- The Sound of Metal
- Borat Subsequent Moviefilm
- One Night at Miami
- Promising Young Woman
- DISNEY +
- Onward
- Soul
- Mulan
- The One and Only Ivan
- HULU
- Nomadland
- The United States Vs. Billie Holiday
- APPLE
- Wolfwalkers
- Greyhound
- Other films may be available for purchase or rent on streaming services. A few films are available currently in some theaters, but not for home streaming.
2021-03-14 (SUN MAR 14, 2021)
- PI ~ 3.14 OR MARCH 14!
- PI day is a day to celebrate all things:
- mathematical
- scientific
- truthful
- futuristic
- XR
- and cultural too!
- PI is an irrational number, the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter, and approximately equal to 3.14159265...
- a rational number is the ratio of one integer to another, such as 13/7.
- an irrational number cannot be expressed as the ratio of two integers; it can be expressed (approximated) as a decimal of an unlimited number of essentially random digits.
2021-03-12 (FRI MAR 12, 2021)
JULY 4 -- SMALL OUTDOOR BARBECUES?
JUNE -- ENOUGH VACCINE AVAILABLE FOR EVERYONE?
MAY 1 -- ALL ADULTS ELIGIBLE FOR A VACCINE?
- These are hopeful dates, offered by President Biden in a Prime Time address.
- The July 4 date depends on the cooperation of the virus and all Americans.
- If the virus mutates to resist the vaccines, the date may not hold.
- If Americans violate CDC recommendations with respect to wearing masks and social distancing, then we could see another spike in the spring and summer, instead of a decline in illness.
- Currently the number of new cases and new deaths each day is too high.
- The number of deaths is over 1,500 a day, and roughly constant.
- The number of new cases is over 60,000 a day and may even be rising.
- The number of hospitalized patients seems to be dropping.
- New York and New Jersey have a large number of new cases.
THE LATEST NFT AUCTION OF A JPG
- SOLD FOR
- $69,346,250. (SIC)
- AT CHRISTIES AUCTION HOUSE.
- Christies revealed today that the purchaser was "Metakovan", the pseudonym for the financier of "Metapurse" a "NFT Production House".
- The auction was paid for with Etherium cryptocurrency.
- Here is the Christies' announcement:
2021-03-11 (THU MAR 11, 2021)
THE AMERICAN RESCUE PLAN ACT OF 2021
also known as the COVID-19 RELIEF BILL
- was signed into law today by President Biden.
- It is a sweeping measure that provides
- direct support for financially struggling Americans
- support for the infrastructure to fight COVID
- support for challenges to economic stability
- including help for governmental units.
- The law passed with NO GOP votes.
- (Editorial note: The shocking irresponsibility of the GOP, including the former president; including challenges to the election culminating in an armed attack against the government of the US aided and supported by the GOP and the former president; and including the disastrous no-mask and relaxed no-congregating policies of GOP governors and the former president; continuing now with NO support from the Congressional GOP for this critical law, is a disgrace and an attack on American health, democracy, and values.)
- Here is the complete (628 page) bill.
- President Biden will give a Prime-Time address tonight at 8 PM.
2021-03-11 (THU MAR 11, 2021)
2020-03-11 (WED MAR 11, 2020)
ONE
YEAR AGO:
The World Health Organization (WHO) declared
COVID-19 a global pandemic.
NYC schools shut down the following Monday.
TODAY:
WORLD:
Cases: 119,045,095
Deaths: 2,639,708
US:
Cases: 29,909,175
Deaths:
543,277
THE LATEST NFT AUCTION OF A JPG
- SOLD FOR
- $69,346,250. (SIC)
- AT CHRISTIES AUCTION HOUSE.
- Here's the tweet:
- . 's 'The First 5000 Days', the 1st purely digital NFT based artwork offered by a major auction house has sold for $69,346,250, positioning him among the top three most valuable living artists. Major Thanks to + . More details to be released shortly
- (A question: How much will the NFT of that tweet sell for???)
- Here's the official press release:
- https://www.christies.com/about-us/press-archive/details?PressReleaseID=9966&lid=1
2021-03-10 (WED MAR 10, 2021)
THE AMERICAN RESCUE PLAN ACT OF 2021
also known as the COVID-19 RELIEF BILL
- Passed in the House today!
- Passed in the Senate on March 6, 2021.
- Will become law within a few days as President Biden signs the bill.
- Here is the complete (628 page) bill.
2021-03-09 (TUE MAR 9, 2021)
FROM BOBBY TO BETH
- Today is Bobby Fischer's birthday.
- He was the most interesting American chess player in the last hundred years or so, and probably the best chess player ever, up until the time he lived.
- As he, himself, said though, he learned from the earlier players.
- He was haunted and frustrated by the difficulty of earning money as a chess player at that time (~ 1958 - 1870's and after),
- and upset that the Russian players at the time were supported by the government, and working together to help each other.
- It was a time of paranoia, and conspiracy ideas, and he became increasingly disturbed and fearful of Russian "cheating" that would affect his play in championship matches; and he also had a dose of anti-semitism.
- Neither did his anti-semitism prevent him from having Jewish friends, nor did his anti-Russian feelings prevent him from a very friendly relation with Boris Spassky, the Russian World Champion that he defeated for the World Chess Championship.
- His demons did, however, coalesce when he held a match in Yugoslavia in violation of US sanctions, resulting in charges from the US that prompted rather despicable outbursts from him, and prevented him from ever returning to this country.
- Now, Beth Harmon, of Queen's Gambit, has resulted in a burst of popularity of chess in the US, with an apparent rise in interest among girls.
- And several chess players have begun to make serious money playing chess live on Twitch.
- Queen's Gambit is a terrific series on Netflix. It is set roughly in the period when Bobby Fischer was active, and reflects (somewhat mildly) the feeling American players had at the time of the Russians.
- Spoiler alert: skip this next sentence if you have not watched the Queens' Gambit yet:
- In fact, the last episode in the series does reflect something quite like what happened in the sixth game of the World Championship Match between Fischer and Spassky.(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dv52uwNfFZg)
- Many of the games featured in the series are actually real, historical games, and even the current World Chess Champion, Magnus Carlson, has watched the series and has published analyses of the games.
- The story telling, and especially the character of Beth Harmon and the performance by Anya Taylor Joy (and Isla Johnston as the young Beth) are terrific.
Here's Bobby Fischer on TV with Johnny Carson. Both at their best.
2021-03-07 (SUN MAR 7, 2021)
THE NATIONAL SECURITY COMMISSION on AI (NSCAI)
- has published its final report describing the urgency of developing US capabilities in AI as a matter of National Security.
- It has proposed billions of dollars of expenditures to improve the ways that the US is creating and managing AI.
- The Report is the result of two years of study.
- It is 756 pages long.
- The Commission is chaired by Eric Schmidt, former CEO and Chairman of Google.
- Most members of the Commission have experience in the military, government or big tech.
- Four of the fifteen members of the Commission are female.
- One of the female members appears to be the only black or non-white member.
- In a discussion of the report on "GPS" with Fareed Zakaria on CNN, Eric Schmidt said that China is the country whose developing work in AI (and 5G) is most likely to pose a potential future threat to the US in the next five to ten years.
- There will be an event next week from a different organization to discuss AI and government services:
- Here is the full 756 page report:
- Editorial note: For any study of XR Technology and Public Policy, AI must be part of the discussion.
- This study is an essential contribution, but it is only part of the picture.
- The study does consider issues like privacy.
- The study takes a very broad view of the initiatives that must be undertaken.
- How AI is deployed however, is also very important.
- As this report's focus is "National Security" and its Commission membership is essentially tied closely to the military-industrial-governmental complex, there may be a need for contributions from the small business, non-military, non-governmental, independent, public, arts & cultural, multiracial, multi-economic segments of the public.
- AI affects everybody
- (which I think may be a point made in the study which, Schmidt suggested on CNN, predicts AI to be a 50 TRILLION dollar part of the economy within ten years).
- As Facebook suggested once, in a second-day Keynote on F8, every choice of data -- or choice of algorithm used to analyze data for AI -- is political.
2021-03-06 (SAT MAR 6, 2021)
THE COVID RELIEF BILL
- passed the Senate by a vote of 50-49.
- all Democrats voted for the bill
- all Republicans voted against it except
- Dan Sullivan who was absent, attending a funeral in Alaska.
- The House must now pass the bill, because it was amended in the Senate.
- Passage by early next week seems certain.
2021-03-05 (FRI MAR 5, 2021)
KINGS OF LEON
- a rock band
- is releasing (and promoting) a new album with an NFT auction on OpenSea.
- An NFT (non-fungible token) is like a "certificate of authenticity" certified by being inscribed in the records of a blockchain.
- A blockchain is a system of storing information with the information distributed around the internet, with metadata available to prove the identity of the stored information, and the information itself protected by encryption and a password.
- More information is available at
- We will be following cryptocurrency, NFTs and other applications, possibilities, and hazards of blockchains, as this field develops, so
- PLEASE FOLLOW US, TO GET THE LATEST INFORMATION!
- a professor, author, advocate of strong antitrust enforcement, and frequent critic of big big big tech companies and their business practices, has joined Biden's National Economic Council as a Special Assistant.
2021-03-02 (TUE MAR 2, 2021)
XR - MIXED REALITY
MICROSOFT
- introduced MS MESH, an expanded set of tools for Mixed Reality, at MS IGNITE, one of several tech conferences MS holds each year.
- Here's a description:
- https://news.microsoft.com/innovation-stories/microsoft-mesh/
- Some of the most significant features of this technology are that:
- It is a social space -- people can join from different places
- They can share 3D VR objects that have been imported and work on them together.
- People can join as avatars or (to some extent now, and better later) as holographic characters -- such as volumetric video live streamed images.
- With MR devices like the HoloLens, holographic participants do not block their faces completely (as current VR headsets like QUEST do).
- Virtual spaces are persistent: You can leave them, return, and they will still be there.
- Because this is Mixed Reality, virtual spaces can also be fixed in real space, and tied
- to the location of real places - like an ad or a picture on the side of a building, or
- to real things like a logo on a handbag, or a truck.
- The Mesh works with a variety of HMD's and a variety of MR software (and more are coming).
- We will be reporting in much more detail soon on MS MESH.
- PLEASE FOLLOW US, TO GET THE LATEST INFORMATION!
2021-02-28 (SUN FEB 28, 2021)
- Tonight. NBC 8 PM
- Hosted by Tina Fey & Amy Poehler
- UPDATE: All the nominees & winners:
- https://qporit.blogspot.com/2021/02/golden-globes-2021-motion-pictures-best.html
2021-02-15 (MON FEB 15, 2021)
- Here's a link to Washington's Farewell Address, below:
- Washington, of course, was the first President, who established the tradition, unbroken for over 200 years until Trump's attempted coup, of a peaceful transition of power from the outgoing President to the Incoming President.
- https://qporit.blogspot.com/2021/02/george-washingtons-farewell-address.html
An excerpt from the Address:
The basis of our political systems is the right of the people to make and to alter their constitutions of government. But the Constitution which at any time exists, till changed by an explicit and authentic act of the whole people, is sacredly obligatory upon all. The very idea of the power and the right of the people to establish government presupposes the duty of every individual to obey the established government.
All obstructions to the execution of the laws, all combinations and associations, under whatever plausible character, with the real design to direct, control, counteract, or awe the regular deliberation and action of the constituted authorities, are destructive of this fundamental principle, and of fatal tendency. They serve to organize faction, to give it an artificial and extraordinary force; to put, in the place of the delegated will of the nation the will of a party, often a small but artful and enterprising minority of the community; and, according to the alternate triumphs of different parties, to make the public administration the mirror of the ill-concerted and incongruous projects of faction, rather than the organ of consistent and wholesome plans digested by common counsels and modified by mutual interests.
However combinations or associations of the above description may now and then answer popular ends, they are likely, in the course of time and things, to become potent engines, by which cunning, ambitious, and unprincipled men will be enabled to subvert the power of the people and to usurp for themselves the reins of government, destroying afterwards the very engines which have lifted them to unjust dominion.
G. Washington
September 19, 1796
2021-02-14 (SUN FEB 14, 2021)
- Here's a sonnet from WS... To celebrate!:
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n4FRae1XRkI
2021-02-13 (SAT FEB 13, 2021)
TRUMP
- was acquitted of the Impeachment charge of Inciting Insurrection.
- Neither Trump's counsel, nor Mitch McConnell, speaking for himself and presumably many of those who joined him in voting to acquit, disputed the basic facts, nor did they condone them.
- They used the "off-ramp" of procedural and jurisdictional issues to defend their vote.
- Although assumed to be a "defender of the Senate" and the Constitution, MM voted to acquit despite the binding vote in the Senate declaring the process of Impeaching the President and trying him after he leaves office to be Constitutional, and the fact that the assault was a direct attack on the Congress, its Constitutional duties and its members.
- I suspect that MM hopes for support from both Trumpers (he voted to acquit) and anti-Trumpers (he expressed outrage). He will discover the opposite. Trump hates partial supporters. Supporters of democracy think him a hypocrite toadie.
- The experience of Trump shows that US democracy needs stronger guardrails against an autocratic President (or a runaway Congress, or a seriously out-of-touch Supreme Court).
For "unity" to be possible, non-extremist Republicans need to be convinced en-masse that the election was fair: the count is accurate, and that Trump knowingly lied (or is dangerously delusional).
Pelosi has called for study and hearings; Cruz called for a study of the election; McConnell called for a criminal investigation. There should be hearings, criminal investigations when needed, and a study of the election, and of all the major issues facing the country, looking squarely both at what needs to be done in the future and what Trump did during these last years. There should be a new look at the Mueller Investigation and what Mueller could not do because of restraints on his investigation.
2021-02-12 (FRI FEB 12, 2021)
COUNSEL FOR TRUMP
- have argued that Trump's speech on Jan 6, and in tweets before and after show that Trump was telling his supporters that he wanted peaceful demonstrations, and an election that is fair to all sides.
In my opinion that is like arguing that Marc Antony's appearance before the crowd in Shakespeare's Julius Caesar was in support of Brutus and the assassins.
Antony did say, Brutus is an honourable man. He did say, Brutus said 'Caesar was ambitious.'
He did say, I rather choose
To wrong the dead, to wrong myself and you,Than I will wrong such honourable men.
...
I must not read it;
It is not meet you know how Caesar loved you.
You are not wood, you are not stones, but men;
And, being men, bearing the will of Caesar,
It will inflame you, it will make you mad:
It is not meet you know how Caesar loved you.
You are not wood, you are not stones, but men;
And, being men, bearing the will of Caesar,
It will inflame you, it will make you mad:
So, "clearly," Antony is trying to calm the mob: not reading the will which would inflame them; praising the assassins as honourable men. So he is not inciting the mob, he is on the side of calm deliberation of the acts of honourable men.
Here's the whole text -
A section of Shakespeare's Julius Caesar: Act III Scene II
Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears;First Citizen
I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him.
The evil that men do lives after them;
The good is oft interred with their bones;
So let it be with Caesar. The noble Brutus
Hath told you Caesar was ambitious:
If it were so, it was a grievous fault,
And grievously hath Caesar answer'd it.
Here, under leave of Brutus and the rest--
For Brutus is an honourable man;
So are they all, all honourable men--
Come I to speak in Caesar's funeral.
He was my friend, faithful and just to me:
But Brutus says he was ambitious;
And Brutus is an honourable man.
He hath brought many captives home to Rome
Whose ransoms did the general coffers fill:
Did this in Caesar seem ambitious?
When that the poor have cried, Caesar hath wept:
Ambition should be made of sterner stuff:
Yet Brutus says he was ambitious;
And Brutus is an honourable man.
You all did see that on the Lupercal
I thrice presented him a kingly crown,
Which he did thrice refuse: was this ambition?
Yet Brutus says he was ambitious;
And, sure, he is an honourable man.
I speak not to disprove what Brutus spoke,
But here I am to speak what I do know.
You all did love him once, not without cause:
What cause withholds you then, to mourn for him?
O judgment! thou art fled to brutish beasts,
And men have lost their reason. Bear with me;
My heart is in the coffin there with Caesar,
And I must pause till it come back to me.
Methinks there is much reason in his sayings.Second Citizen
If thou consider rightly of the matter,Third Citizen
Caesar has had great wrong.
Has he, masters?Fourth Citizen
I fear there will a worse come in his place.
Mark'd ye his words? He would not take the crown;First Citizen
Therefore 'tis certain he was not ambitious.
If it be found so, some will dear abide it.Second Citizen
Poor soul! his eyes are red as fire with weeping.Third Citizen
There's not a nobler man in Rome than Antony.Fourth Citizen
Now mark him, he begins again to speak.ANTONY
But yesterday the word of Caesar mightFourth Citizen
Have stood against the world; now lies he there.
And none so poor to do him reverence.
O masters, if I were disposed to stir
Your hearts and minds to mutiny and rage,
I should do Brutus wrong, and Cassius wrong,
Who, you all know, are honourable men:
I will not do them wrong; I rather choose
To wrong the dead, to wrong myself and you,
Than I will wrong such honourable men.
But here's a parchment with the seal of Caesar;
I found it in his closet, 'tis his will:
Let but the commons hear this testament--
Which, pardon me, I do not mean to read--
And they would go and kiss dead Caesar's wounds
And dip their napkins in his sacred blood,
Yea, beg a hair of him for memory,
And, dying, mention it within their wills,
Bequeathing it as a rich legacy
Unto their issue.
We'll hear the will: read it, Mark Antony.All
The will, the will! we will hear Caesar's will.ANTONY
Have patience, gentle friends, I must not read it;Fourth Citizen
It is not meet you know how Caesar loved you.
You are not wood, you are not stones, but men;
And, being men, bearing the will of Caesar,
It will inflame you, it will make you mad:
'Tis good you know not that you are his heirs;
For, if you should, O, what would come of it!
Read the will; we'll hear it, Antony;ANTONY
You shall read us the will, Caesar's will.
Will you be patient? will you stay awhile?Fourth Citizen
I have o'ershot myself to tell you of it:
I fear I wrong the honourable men
Whose daggers have stabb'd Caesar; I do fear it.
They were traitors: honourable men!All
The will! the testament!Second Citizen
They were villains, murderers: the will! read the will.ANTONY
You will compel me, then, to read the will?
2021-02-10 (WED FEB 10, 2021)
THE IMPEACHMENT MANAGERS
- have given a compelling exposition on how Trump spent months promoting his lie that the election was stolen, and his meme, "Stop the Steal" in order to steal the election, himself;
- and when all else failed, he incited the violent groups he had been cultivating to storm the Capitol in a last ditch attempt to delay or prevent the certification of Biden.
- It was an attack on democracy:
When the President lies
Democracy dies.
GAMESTOP: FACTS, FAKES, FICTION, & REAL LIFE
- Chatter on Reddit has apparently been the factor sending the stock price of several stocks, notably GAMESTOP, soaring amidst wild volatility.
- Chatter on social media sites, some public, some secretive, helped fuel the January 6 assault on the Capitol with false narratives that the election was "stolen".
- Years ago, Orson Welles' radio production of "War of the Worlds", presented as if news commentators were actually describing a real invasion of Earth, terrified many who believed it was real (at least until the commercial break).
- FACTS are what happens - whether you know about it or not.
- FICTION is the stories we tell, sometimes to understand facts, sometimes to imagine what would happen if something was a fact.
- FAKES are statements or media designed to convince people that something is a fact, when it is not a fact, and they know it is not a fact.
- FICTION and FAKES influence how we react to our experience.
- FICTION prepares us to act wisely. FAKES prepare us to act badly.
- We need to know and understand FACTS in order to make good decisions about real life.
- Although Orson Welles knew he was doing a fictional story, and said so at the beginning of the broadcast, people who missed that notice were affected in Real Life.
- (Orson Welles, by the way, later made a movie called, "F for Fake".)
- The Internet has proven to be a very efficient method of spreading FAKES.
- People who believed the narrative that the election was stolen were the victims of a FAKE. Those who promoted (or continue to promote) the FAKE were (are) deliberately generating bad consequences in Real Life.
- The motives and story behind the chatter on buying and selling stocks like GAMESTOP are not known, but IF people think they are getting good information, and they are actually being fed FAKES, it could have very serious $$ consequences for some people in Real Life.
2021-01-27 (WED JAN 27, 2021)
HOMELAND SECURITY
- has issued a nation-wide alert:
- "The Acting Secretary of Homeland Security has issued a National Terrorism Advisory System (NTAS) Bulletin due to
- a heightened threat environment across the United States,
- which DHS believes will persist in the weeks following the successful Presidential Inauguration.
- Information suggests that some ideologically-motivated violent extremists with objections to the exercise of governmental authority and the presidential transition,
- as well as other perceived grievances fueled by false narratives,
- could continue to mobilize to incite or commit violence. "
- Link:
- https://www.dhs.gov/sites/default/files/ntas/alerts/21_0127_ntas-bulletin.pdf
2021-01-21 (THU JAN 21, 2021)
ON THE FIRST DAY
- President Biden
- Rejoined the World Health Organization (WHO) and is sending Dr. Fauci to the next meeting as head of the US Delegation.
- Rejoined the Paris Climate Accord.
- Directed non-citizens to be included in the census.
- Changed immigration policies, creating a path to citizenship for many immigrants.
- Ended restrictions on travel from "Muslim" countries.
- Canceled the "1776 Commission" and changed some regulatory procedures.
- Halted construction of the "border wall".
- Had a genuine, old-fashioned Press Briefing, handled by the new Press Secretary.
- Vice-President Harris
- Presided over the Senate for the first time.
- Swore in three new Senators.
- Thereby making the Senate 50-50, and with her tie-breaking vote making the Democrats the majority party in the Senate.
- That made Senator Schumer the Majority Leader, able to set the agenda and schedule for the Senate.
2021-01-20
WED JAN 20, 2021
12:01 PM
PRESIDENT JOSEPH R BIDEN
PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN ADMINISTRATION INFORMATION
- Here's the official site for all the information about Biden's choices for staff and government positions:
2021-01-14 (THU JAN 14, 2021)
IT'S JUST TWO WEEKS! HERE'S A RECAP
- 01 FRI - HAPPY NEW YEAR'S DAY!
- 02 SAT - President Trump calls the Secretary of State in Georgia and pressures him to "find" enough votes to to flip the state from Biden to Trump.
- 03 SUN - The recording of Trump's call is released to the public.
- 04 MON - Biden, Harris, Trump and others campaign in Georgia before the Senate runoff election.
- 05 TUE - Runoff election in Georgia. Very close, but both Democratic candidates win. The Senate will be 50R - 50D. With Kamala Harris breaking the tie, the Democrats will narrowly hold control of the Senate.
- 06 WED - As a joint session of Congress is counting the electoral votes a mob, incited by a Trump speech falsely claiming the election was stolen and asking them to "fight" and march to Congress, overwhelms the police and storms through Congress.
- At least 5 people die
- One is a female rioter trying to break in.
- One is a policeman murdered by someone in the crowd.
- There are cries of "Hang Pence".
- There are anti-semitic and white power extremist slogans worn on people's clothing.
- American flags are used as weapons.
- Trump calls the rioters "patriots" and says he "loves" them.
- Trump does nothing for hours to stop the rioters.
- Congresspeople are ushered to safe rooms in the building.
- Some Republican congressmen refuse to wear masks
- Subsequently, several Congresspeople develop COVID .
- After several hours, police reinforcements arise and expel the rioters.
- 06 WED - After the rioters are expelled, BIDEN and Harris are certified by Congress as the President-Elect and Vice-President Elect.
- A large group of Republican Congresspeople and a small group of Senators try to postpone the certification with specious denials of the validity of Biden's election.
- 07 THU - As more and more information about the riot is revealed, the seriousness of the attack, the amount of deliberate planning that went into it, and the danger the Congresspeople faced becomes more and more evident.
- 08 FRI - Senator Lindsey Graham, who expressed (mild) displeasure with the President and an acceptance of the result of the election is accosted by an angry mob at the airport.
- 09 SAT - The House drafts an Article of Impeachment for "Incitement of Insurrection".
- 11 MON - THE CORONAVIRUS
- has caused more than 90 million cases world-wide;
- has caused more than 1.9 million deaths world-wide;
- has caused more than 22 million cases in the US;
- has caused more than 383 thousand deaths in the US;
- is getting worse.
- 12 TUE - The House considers an Article of Impeachment,'
- 13 WED - Donald J Trump is impeached for Incitement of Insurrection.
- He is the only President to be impeached twice.
- 10 Republicans join the Democrats in passing the resolution of impeachment
- 14 THU - President-Elect Biden proposes an expansive stimulus and relief bill as millions remain unemployed, and unemployment filings are increasing.
- Meanwhile, the stock market is doing well.
2021-01-06 (WED JAN 6, 2021)
COUNTING! THE CONSTITUTION: from ARTICLE II SECTION 1
- "The President of the Senate shall, in the Presence of the Senate and House of Representatives, open all the Certificates, and the Votes shall then be counted. The Person having the greatest Number of Votes shall be the President"
- The Congress is not given the opportunity here in the Constitution to change the vote.
- The President of the United States in the last few days
- Cajoled, bullied, pressured, and tried to convince the Secretary of State in Georgia to change the vote count, citing "rumors" but no evidence to invalidate the election of the Biden electors.
- Has been trying, according to reports, to invalidate the electoral college victory of Biden when the vote is counted in Congress, with action from Pence (the President of the Senate) and other Congresspersons and Senators.
- Attempts by anyone, including a sitting President, to change election returns, or to circumvent the Constitution to change the results of a Presidential election, should be treated as an attempted coup and an attack on the United States, its Constitution, and on democracy itself.
- In the case of a President, it would be a violation of the Constitutional Oath to "faithfully execute the office of President of the United States" and to "protect and defend the Constitution of the United States".
- It should be treated seriously,
- with consequences for anyone who participated in the attempted coup;
- with legislation or constitutional changes to prevent any future similar attempt from even being contemplated.
2021-01-05 (TUE JAN 5, 2021)
KENOSHA
- No charges were filed against any police officers in the shooting of Jacob Blake.
- This once again re-emphasizes the necessity of appropriate and stricter national standards for the use of guns, deadly force, no-knock warrants, and other tactics and violence by police on civilians, including easier prosecution and a wide range of measures to deter these tragedies.
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