#however whats shown in this map precisely is not its true end

[psalidodont]

'' The world as we know it, The deadlands. From cold, frozen and unforgiving oceans, thick, humid and overgrown marshlands, and a scorching field of death in the down under... the deadlands are foul, wretched and teeming with dangers amongst the woods, lurking for their merciless prey. A tough place that only breeds tougher nightmares. Home to a plethora of horrifying, monstrous dragons, of all kinds that rule the skies and oceans... towering amongst other beasts, casting their shadow as they fly and burning whatever comes across their path to let their presence be known. The further one travels across the unruly waves will only meet its fate at the world's end. A veil of thick ocean fog, followed by the sound of rushing water and a drop off, down to a insignificant petty death.... nobody truly lives to see what's beyond the gates of hell.''

[pcttrailsidereader]

The Ever-Changing Length of the PCT

The most recent edition of the PCT's "Trail Dirt" tackled the mystery of the PCT length . . . it has been a topic that has been a curiosity also explored on this website -- https://pcttrailsidereader.com/post/618834872879939586/it-looks-authoritative-and-permanent-but-the The midpoint looks so official but as this article explains, the length of the trail is constantly changing . . . hence moving the midpoint. However, the marker stays put.

Easy, 2,650 Miles, right? Well… not quite.

By Galen Keily

The question of the PCT’s length comes up often, with guidebooks, phone apps, and other sources across the internet offering varying figures. In recent years, PCTA has come a long way in better tracking and calculating distance. While we regularly reference the rounded figure of 2,650 miles as shorthand for the trail’s length, our current best estimate places it at approximately 2655.8 miles. It’s complicated because the length actually varies year by year, and homing in on highly accurate mileage for a trail that spans thousands of miles can pose significant challenges. We know that trail mileage matters a lot to PCT trail users. Read on to discover some of the complexities involved in determining the true length of the PCT.

Northern Terminus, Photo by: Ryan Weidert

It Moves!

Sometimes, the trail gains a mile or two, or sometimes, the trail shaves off miles (you’re welcome thru-hikers!) You might be thinking… how does this happen, isn’t the trail already on the ground? While true, PCTA, alongside managing agencies and dedicated trail crews, continually refines and optimizes the trail’s route. These efforts range from minor adjustments to larger-scale relocation projects aimed at enhancing the overall trail experience. For instance, routine maintenance often involves realigning sections of the trail to improve sustainability, such as adding switchbacks or adjusting trail tread within the existing corridor. These alterations might end up making the trail a bit longer or shorter, typically on the order of hundreds of feet. Pretty small potatoes when looking at a trail that crosses thousands of miles. Other times, the PCT undergoes bigger relocation projects based on a process called Optimal Location Reviews (OLR). These relocations can be significant and can take years to complete. These projects aim to relocate the PCT to a location better suited to providing a natural setting, scenic beauty, and safe public access, among other things. As a result of these projects, the trail’s length may fluctuate by several miles. But they also end up making the trail safer and more enjoyable for all.

The Sierra Buttes Relocation – Old decommissioned PCT shown in dashed black line, current PCT in maroon.

What’s so hard about miles?

Calculating distance across such a large geographic extent is challenging. Even minor inaccuracies that are repeated hundreds of thousands of times compound errors, resulting in significant discrepancies in overall mileage. For example, if each point in our PCT dataset were off by 1ft, the margin of error would be over 200 miles. Additionally, the translation from a three-dimensional Earth to a two-dimensional map necessitates “projecting” data in GIS (Graphical Informational System) software, which can introduce different types of accuracy loss. However, advancements in technology offer us promising avenues for improvement, such as using LiDAR (laser scans of the earth) to more precisely capture and map changes to the trail.

A little bit about the data

PCTA’s current iteration of PCT mapping data is built upon data that was donated to the organization from the Halfmile Project. You may have heard of Halfmile, he and his team are kind of a big deal. The resulting data from this project’s multi-year effort was the best, most accurate data for the PCT of its time. Volunteers in the project mapped thousands of miles of trail with survey-grade custom and commercial GPS units and spent tremendous amounts of time analyzing, processing, and curating the results.

Halfmile, using his iPhone to control the Long Distance Geo Logger. The blue GPS unit is in the lower black side pocket of his pack. You can see coiled cable right above it.

Building on this legacy, PCTA now builds upon that same highly accurate data from Halfmile, revised to account for re-routes and trail reconstruction that have happened since PCTA assumed control of the data. We maintain our PCT Centerline (the line data for the trail’s location) and Mile Markers (points every tenth or half mile), with new versions released on an annual basis, usually in January. The data is displayed on our Interactive Map and made available on our PCT Data webpage, freely available for download in a variety of formats. By fostering an environment of transparency and accessibility, we empower trail users, app developers, and agency partners alike to utilize this standardized dataset, facilitating seamless communication and navigation along the trail.

Graceland takes an emotional moment at the Northern Terminus after an adventure of a lifetime. Photo by: James Townsend

Conclusions

As we continue to monitor changes, refine our modeling of the PCT, and offer it to users in new ways, we realize that our data remains imperfect. Digitally representing the complexities of the natural world always is. Despite this, the Association’s renewed prioritization of data management, built upon the invaluable foundation set by the Halfmile project, marks significant progress in this work. We recognize that our path toward data accuracy is ongoing and that we’re by no means at the finish line (approx. 2,655.8 ), but we’re always improving, collaborating, and working to celebrate the intricacies of the PCT in this unique aspect of our work.

Author: Galen Keily

[okageshadowkingfannovel]

Book 1: Chapter 14

“Greetings, I am the fortune teller!”

Ari jumps at the sudden, loud voice that accosts him as he takes a first timid step into the Gulp tavern. He’s so distracted by the strange high-pitched sound that at first, he doesn’t quite register what’s being said. If you took a rat and told it to do chores for the next four hours, the sound of its whining and complaining would probably come close to sounding like this voice.

“Huh?”

“There’s a reason I can’t reveal my name. But ‘Love Fortune Teller Number 1’ Is what most people call me.”

Ari’s eyes finally land on the speaker. An extremely short - woman? He thinks it’s a woman anyway - wearing a muted purple dress with black and yellow stripes along the hem. The weirdest element though is a curious sack-like mask with jagged eye and mouth holes that covers the woman’s face.

“Love Fortune Teller Number 1 seems a little … different.”

“My boy, just one look at the crystal and I’ll identify exactly who loves you the most!” At this moment, she reaches into a pocket and slips out a huge crystal ball, seemingly filled with smoke.

“Am I in the right place?”

He looks around to be sure. It’s not a place he visits much, but Ari’s been in enough times to fetch his father to know what it should look like. Even midday, the place is fairly low-lit. Moody oil lamps cast a warm orange glow that goes perfectly with amber colored beverages in clear glasses. Immediately before the door there’s the bar. A grouchy looking woman, the bartender, stands behind it, eying Ari and ‘Love Fortune Teller Number 1’ with skepticism. This is the right place.

“Oh, are you not interested?” Love Fortune Teller Number 1 asks, wiggling stubby fingers over the crystal ball. “What a sad thing - a young man not invested in his love life.”

“Um, no, that’s not …”

“Great! Here we go!”

Love Fortune Teller Number 1 intensifies her finger wiggles, passing her crazed digits over the crystal’s surface.

“Hey! Hey! Hey!” she starts in a strikingly un-majestic way, “Show me, my crystal ball! Show me the one with whom this boy’s life is entwined … hmmm … yes, yes! Ah, it’s coming to me through the fogs of the beyond. Yes, yes.”

“Uh … ma’am, I really have to go-”

“Whoa!”

“What?”

“A childhood friend! Let’s see. Begins with a J. Jodie … Janice …”

“Julia?”

“That’s the one! Yes, her love for you … it shines through the fog … though it sometimes gets obscured by the confusions, the frantic ups and downs of adolescence.”

“I see.”

“Despair not, boy! Do not give up hope!”

“Oi! Love Fortune Teller Number 1! Leave the kid alone,” the bartender suddenly yells.

“Despair not,” continues Love Fortune Teller Number 1, as if nothing just happened, “people inevitably change … as does the love between them.”

Ari stands there for a moment, the words weighing heavy on him with their surprising insight.

“Go home, lady! You’re drunk!”

The fortune teller finally whips towards the bar, and nearly tips over like an unbalanced top.

“I am not drunk! I’ve only had a few! I’m saving love lives here!”

The bartender says nothing, but emphatically points towards the door.

“Fine. Young man, come see me should you ever need some clarity on matters of the heart. I’ll be at the Parm Inn … probably sleeping.”

With that, the little masked fortune teller drops the crystal ball back into her pocket and makes her way tipsily out the door.

“Sheesh!” exclaims the bartender, “she’s been doing that all day. I know we’ve been closed for a long while, but people need to pace themselves. It’s the middle of the day!”

Ari just nods, mildly distracted by the fact that this makes two people now who’ve told him that his childhood friend, Julia, has been harboring a major crush for him.

“Anyway, what can I do for you, hun? Your dad hasn’t been in if that’s why you’re here.”

“No. Uh … actually, I was wondering if anyone … I mean, have you heard anything about a …” Ari feels obligated to lower his voice to a conspiratorial whisper. “… a map of evil kings?”

The bartender stares at him for a minute, but then turns and nods her head towards the other side of the bar. “That one’s been going on and on about it since we reopened.”

Ari follows her gesture and finds …

“Is that the ringmaster?”

Further into the bar, the oil lamps give way to sunlight leaking in through two small arched windows set high in the wall. Most of the tables sit empty, waiting for the late evening when drinking heavily is a bit more socially acceptable. However, at one table tucked away in the corner, there sits the rotund figure of the circus ringmaster. His mustache, his wide empty eyes, and his tall top hat are unmistakable. The bartender nods, but then sighs with disdain.

“Once he starts to drink, he really gets drunk. Don’t know what to do with him.”

The rotund man shifts to readjust his seating and then dramatically tilts his head back to put away another drink. The sound of a deep, guttural burp crosses the bar. Ari grimaces.

“Thanks, ma’am.”

Forcing the disgust from his expression, Ari makes his way to the far off table. When he finds his place just behind the ringmaster’s shoulder, the smell of sweat, peanuts, and stale popcorn hits him one hundred fold and he has to painfully stifle a gagging cough.

“Stupid troopers,” mumbles the ringmaster to himself, “ugh, leaving without me …”

Another burp punctuates his lament.

“So this is the lowlife who’s spreading that swill!”

Suddenly, Stan pops up out of the floor.

“Hey you! I hear you’ve been spreading tall tales that there’s more than one Evil King!”

The ringmaster jumps and spins round in his seat.

“What?! … o-oh … you’re that kid … the one I saw the other night, with the shadow.”

“Yeah,” Ari confirms.

“Now that I got a good look,” he says, getting up from his chair and stumbling closer to Ari, “you’ve got an interesting shadow with ya there.”

“Interesting?! Agghh, fine! Whatever! Just know this, fat man - if you speak of this ‘Map o’ Evil Kings’ rubbish again, I may just shut that mouth of yours permanently!”

“Oh?” replies the ringmaster with a hiccup, “you want it? Sure thing.”

He reaches into his waistcoat and retrieves a tattered, crease patterned sheet of parchment the color of over steeped tea. Ari takes it gingerly.

“Lately, they’ve been saying a fearful Evil King’s shown up in Madril. I swear, it’s true. Ha ha ha, it’s funny really. So, what are you going to do about it, Shadow Evil King?”

The words make time stand still. Ari stares at the ringmaster, re-evaluating the man behind the polka-dotted waistcoat and the peanut smell. Even the village elder thought Stan was just some weird magic trick, but the ringmaster … he knows?

“Shadow Evil King?” repeats Ari dumbfounded.

“Curses,” spits Stan, “you’re more than just some drunk mortal, aren’t you? who are you?!”

“Ugh, I think I’m gonna barf …”

Ari scrambles back a step.

“Heh heh, too much fun last night.”

“Answer me!”  barks King Stan.

But the ringmaster pays him no mind and falls back into his chair.

“Barkeep, give me 10 minutes and then bring over another bottle, would ya?”

“Not today, ringmaster! I’m cutting you off. You’ve got 5 seconds to get out of my bar and back over to the Parm Inn.”

Feeling that his interrogation of the ringmaster has decidedly come to an end, Ari moves back towards the tavern entrance before he can get caught in the bartender’s last nerve.

“Hey boy, wait! Why don’t we take a look at that map.”

“Oh, right.”

Ari almost forgot about the limp piece of paper still clutched in his fingers. He looks around, notices the bartender irritably making her way over to the unbudged ringmaster, and decides to slip over to the opposite end of the tavern. He turns up the flame in one of the oil lamps and holds the map up to catch the orange light.

The map has been folded and unfolded in a variety of different ways, each leaving a sharp hill or valley in its memory. All the world is there, rising and falling with the abundance of crinkles and creases. Ari’s eyes immediately fall on his home country, a shape like a dribbled glob of gravy. Around its edges are nameless squiggles and lines representing only God knows what. But to the north in the gravy glob country, there is Tenel, shown by a tiny little dot.

“Eh? What’s this? 1 … 2 … There are more Evil Kings than myself?”

Scanning his eyes over the expanse, Ari notices the other, more unusual map markings. Little black crowns are stamped all across the world. One blocks the dot labeled Madrid to Tenel’s southeast and another covers Rishero, a place further south that Ari’s never heard of before. But not just towns, they cover all over, haphazardly, without rhyme or reason.

Ari can’t help but notice that no such black crown appears in Tenel.

“On top of that, where’s my crown?! I’m not even on this stupid map! James! James! Where are you?!”

In the next moment, a glowing white portal blossoms up from the floor, spitting wind and mist into Ari’s face. James slowly emerges from the mist, but backwards, facing away from his master.

“Like the setting sun … the glistening moon …”

The evil butler spins around, seeming startled by the change in scenery. He quickly recovers and genuflects.

“Oh, Master! How might I serve?”

“James!” Stan barks, flailing about in classic Stan fashion, “straiten this out, will you? Am I not the one and only Evil King? The successor of the great Evil King Gohma? Who are these other Evil Kings?!”

“Hmmmmmm,” muses James as he gazes upon the map, “well, Master, I will tell you. These others are impostors. Encroachers. Evil Kings only in name.”

“Fake Evil Kings?” asks Ari.

“Precisely. While you were inside the bottle, my Master, they must have stolen your powers, and then went about claiming to be Evil Kings. That must be it!”

“You got all that just by looking at the map?”

James shrugs. “How else could such a thing be? There is only one Evil King and that is my Master.”

“Hmmmmm, I see. I knew something was wrong. These Tenel villagers called me - me - my dark majesty, a … ‘nice guy!’”

“Well, you did get that one lady’s hat out of the tree …”

“Shuddup! Naturally, if my power were at its peak, they would have wept and groveled before me. Yes! That must be it! So it was all the doing of these usurpers! These self-proclaimed Evil Kings were stealing my power!”

“How did they-”

“There is just one thing to do! Slave, you know what that is, don’t you?!”

“Uh …”

“Master!” James exclaims excitedly, “Of course! Of course!”

“Indeed! We’re going to take out all of those phony Evil Kings and get back all of my dark powers!”

“Oh … uh …”

“Then, the whole world will tremble and kneel before me as they rightfully should! Slave, let’s do this! An expedition of conquest!”

“But, um, K-King Stan … uh … Julia … girl …”

“You have nerve, slave! I may not have my full power, but you disobey me and a three hour tickling torture will be waiting for you!”

“Tickling?”

“Master,” James intervenes, “if I may, the teenage girl, Julia, has a bit of a crush on your slave.”

Ari stares at James. Even the evil butler knows?!

“For a kid as uncool as you,” James continues, “this could be your last chance for romance. That’s what you’re thinking, isn’t it?”

“… well, I wouldn’t have put it quite like that …”

“Touching …” Stan says flatly, “But you’re my slave. You are stuck with me! Ha ha ha! Enough of this romantic rot! We must pack for the journey! To your house! Come on, Slave!”

“But …”

“Oh, that ‘Map o’ Evil Kings.’ How infuriating! Don’t lose that, Slave. It should keep us on the trail of those upstart impostors!”

Before Ari can cough up any more half-formed protests, Stan slips back down into the floor and James bows himself back into the whirling portal. He is left alone with the crushing defeat of having lost love before it could even begin. Feelings of uncoolness settle over him.

Chapter 1 • Chapter 2 • Chapter 3 • Chapter 4 • Chapter 5 • Chapter 6 • Chapter 7 • Chapter 8 • Chapter 9 • Chapter 10 • Chapter 11 • Chapter 12 • Chapter 13 • Chapter 14 • Chapter 15 • Chapter 16 - Finale

NOTE: Okage Shadow King is owned by Sony Computer Entertainment and Zener Works. This novelization is purely a fan-work and the writer claims no ownership over the characters, general plot line(s), etc.

[docholligay]

Talismans: In The Beginning, There was Goodbye

Hello all! This “episode” of Talismans is sponsored by the fantastic @katrani, and is actually the very beginning of the retelling. I hope you enjoy it, and don’t be shy to comment and tell me if you do! All of the Talismans AU is here. 

There is a saying, that one must be cruel to be kind. Michiru had never experienced this before, in her life. It had been her experience that people were generally cruel to be cruel, and chose the guise of other things that they might look less the serpent, and more a paragon of virtue, rather the act of polishing and faceting the stone one might sling at a sparrow. 

No, Michiru Kaioh did not believe in being cruel to be kind, however long the saying might have gone on. 

And then the dreams began. 

They were soldiers, she and Haruka, and she had ever been aware that to be a soldier in service of the moon brought forth great danger. They had been conscripted into service from their first breath, and would likely suffer it to their last, and all of this was expected to be tolerated, and even relished, in the light of duty. 

Michiru tolerated what she tolerated, for the love of Haruka, the one gift the moon had ever given her. 

She was beautiful. Most people gave her a strange look when she said such things, looking at Haruka’s short hair, the roll of a men’s sleeve up her forearm, the oxfords on her feet, as if she was only deserving of the words one might use to describe a truck. They never saw her for what she was, but just some sort of pale imitation of a man. But Michiru knew, that she was beautiful, and Haruka smiled and blushed when she said it. 

Michiru relished in the soft brush of her blonde bangs against her brow, the way Michiru’s own teal hair looked crossing the buttermilk of her slim shoulders, the rolling grey of her eyes from dark to light, in patches as if lit by the sun. Oh, how could anyone use a word other than beautiful for Haruka? For her desire to love and be loved?

That shoulder, speckled with blood. Those eyes, terrified. Sweat at that tender brow with the struggle to breathe. 

The dreams. She and Haruka were seeking, had been seeking for some time, the Talismans. Brought together, they would awaken the Princess they were meant to protect. The Talismans were held on earth the same way their powers had been: Locked inside a human, waiting to be released. Someone with a pure a loyal heart, the prophecy had said, will bear the Talisman, and free the Princess. A hero. 

Only Michiru could find her. 

Michiru had a gift, so it was called, whether or not Michiru agreed, that had been bestowed upon her, one not open to all the Senshi. The Sight. She and Rei were the very definition of separate but equal in this measure. Rei’s visions burned with hot immediacy, and they were almost always true. They happened in an instant, with little time to prepare, and this frustrated Rei, the blaring of a car horn moments before it strikes. 

Michiru did not know how to tell her what it was to have one’s visions be limited, to be in the distance, to watch the possibilities laid out like poker hands and see them change in the next shuffle of the Fates. They were the shadows of things that may be only, and so Michiru noted them, but rarely did she allow them to make her shiver, however cruel they might be. The next hand could come up a winner. Her visions were waves, and fate was the sea, and she could only ride them with all the power of a sailor against a storm. 

But the dreams, oh the dreams, in their horrid repetition. 

It was always Michiru who found the Talismans, and it was always in that grey cathedral, and Haruka always tried to save her. Eudial always shot. Haruka always took it. 

Haruka always died. 

She had seen the hands flip and change, the dialogue move, the timing and the weather and every other possible thing, but those points remained true. 

Michiru would find the Talisman, and Haruka would die saving her. These things were unshakable. This was the truth of the world, and that slender and silver scissor of the Fates whispered through the dark, waiting to cut at the only thing Michiru had ever truly wanted. Had ever truly loved. 

She refused, and turned her own small boat on the waves. 

If Haruka would die defending her, she would simply have to not defend her. The answer was simple, and fate might have thought it could not be so, but even that ocean of fate could never have met a creature as cold and as ruthless as Michiru. 

She was a diamond, hard and clean, cut and shaped from childhood until she sparkled. Haruka was a soft thing, a chocolate filled with some sweet filling, hard at first but easily broken. Michiru could do it in an instant. 

The subject of their respective births had been the great struggle of their relationship from the first time they had brushed hands. Michiru was a Kaioh on one side and a Cayard on the other, powerful and high born and continental, polished to a high shine and perfectly aware of each small necessity of formal manners, educated to within an inch of her life, a perfect art piece. 

Haruka had all the charms of a stray kitten with a tattered ear, and Michiru had brought her home and shown her love with all the enthusiasm of a child, and much like a child with a kitten, had not cared what her parents had to say over the matter. But say they often did, and they had quite injured Haruka’s feelings more than once, and more than once Michiru had reassured her that though she was born to that world, she had no interest in marrying into it. 

Haruka had always smiled when Michiru implied they might marry, whatever her fears were. 

It is always helpful, to know the fear. 

And so, knowing all of the things outlined above, Michiru Kaioh had settled down to an afternoon cup of tea, and told Haruka, quite placidly, that their relationship was herewith dissolved. 

“This can’t have come as a terrible surprise to you.” 

A sob broke from Haruka’s throat, and she hated herself for it immediately. She choked the next one back, and the tear twisted its way around her neck, suffocating her, as Michiru sat dispassionately in front of her, stirring her tea. 

“Haruka,” She set down the small silver spoon, “It was never my intention to wound you.” 

“What did I do?” She took a shuddering breath and bit down on the edge of her tongue, the bright salt of blood the taste of failure in her mouth. “What didn’t I--” 

“It is not remotely so simple as all of that,” she placed her hand on Haruka’s, “We are of two wholly separate worlds. That it lasted as long as it did is a true wonder.” 

Haruka pulled at her hair, pacing by the table, then swooped in and grasped Michiru’s hand in both of hers, eyes wide. “I can do it, Michiru. I’ll learn art and books and manners and everything, I already learned how to dance, I can be taught Michiru, I really can, you’ll see, I--” 

“Haruka.” Her face softened a moment, and then the vision broke upon her again, the same  way it had night after night, getting closer and closer, lines and timing changing but the end result always the same. 

She will sacrifice herself to save me. She will die on a cold stone floor for my wicked, spoilt life. Because she loves me. 

She was cold, and she was heartless, a creature completely without sentiment, and that was what she was meant to be, and it was what she needed Haruka to believe that she was. She would find enough support in the beliefs of others, Michiru knew. Michiru would kill the warmth inside of herself and leave only the barren, bright tundra upon which nothing would grow. Her will was stronger than her weakness. She was born to this coldness. She would cultivate it easily. 

She took a deep breath, and felt the ice cold chill of her exhale freeze and glitter upon her lips, an elegant and lifeless diamond lace.  

Her voice snapped, sharp as an icicle, as she drew back her hand. “That is entirely impossible, and you’re well aware of that. You will never, not in your wildest dreams, ever be like us. We are entirely different species of human being. Haruka, I don’t mean to be cruel,” she lied, “But I am exhausted by the weight of tolerating you, really, I simply can’t persist in this any longer.” 

“But Michiru,” Haruka backed up, running a hand through her hair, no doubt remembering every beautiful moment they had together in this last year, as if she could bring it all back again, if she could only find it on a map, only drag herself to it, only find where she had taken the wrong road, “Michiru, I love you,” She looked at Michiru, pleading, “You, you love me. You love me.” 

Michiru glanced up at Haruka, and the flashes came again, Haruka struggling for breath, her lips trying to form the words she could not say, her eyes frightened and desperate. Michiru held her close, tried to comfort her, the terrible sound of Haruka’s chest heaving from the shot that was meant for her echoing deep into her mind. 

No. She would defy the Fates, no matter the cost.

She closed her eyes in what she hoped looked like disgust, and sighed heavily. “I think this is where I should say goodbye.” She drew herself to her feet, as Haruka fought back every tear she truly wanted to give, and told her she would send for her things. She hoped Haruka would take it as a desire to leave her company immediately, rather than a desire not to see Haruka in such pain, and straightened her back as she took up her purse and headed toward the door. 

She reached for the doorknob, and there was the loud bang of Haruka’s fist against unyielding plaster. Michiru turned to it with a look of flat affect. 

She raised her chin. “This childishness is precisely what I’m speaking of, really Haruka.” She hoped it sounded condescending. “I’ve notified Mina, as our leader, to come ensure your safety, I’ve no wish to see you injured over such a trifling thing.”

“Some--” Haruka cradled her hand to her chest  and sniffled, glaring up at Michiru. “I hate you.” 

Michiru nodded. “I think that’s for the best.” 

Yes, her heart whispered, it is. You are cruel to her to save her life. You are cruel to be kind, Michiru. 

She closed the door behind her, and heard another sob break from Haruka through the window. Minako would not let her injure herself too horribly. She was a responsible leader in that way, however Michiru found her personally wanting, and so her call had been wise. 

Michiru clipped on down the street, pushing every hope that she had found love and belonging and joy down, covering it in Haruka’s blood and struggle and death, reminding her that no matter how, Michiru was always meant to be a work of art, hanging behind glass, alone. 

Some visions never changed, no matter how the cards shuffled, and Michiru was always meant to walk this world as she did this street, with no one at her side. 

There was no such thing as being cruel to be kind, the Fates had taught her, but there was such a thing as necessary cruelty. 

Michiru had been taught what was necessary from the time she was a child, and applied it. 

[judgestarling]

From Pinky DNA through “Creative” Accounting to a Denisovan Portrait on Instagram

I first saw the picture and the headline in New Scientist “First glimpse of what a Denisovan could have looked like.” The purported Denisovan was drawn by an Israeli artist called Maayan Harel. My first thought was that a Denisovan skull has at last been discovered and that the picture represents a reconstruction of the individual associated with that skull. I was wrong. The entire repertoire of Denisovan bones still consists of one small finger bone and three broken teeth. NBC News put it best “First portrait of extinct Denisovan human relative created from pinky bone.” 

A Denisovan reconstruction by Maayan Harel 

The entire story started in 2014 with a paper by Gokhman et al. in Science, in which the DNA methylation maps of Neanderthals and Denisovans was reconstructed by assuming that unmethylated cytosines decay in time to uracils while methylated cytosines decay to thymines and that it is possible to distinguish pre-mortem thymines from post-mortem thymines.  

I have no qualms so far with this method except that the authors should have remembered in subsequent studies that their estimates on the positions of methylated cytosines are not without error.  

Five years later in a 2019 paper by Gokhman et al. in Cell, the 2014 methylation maps were used to reconstruct Denisovan anatomy. From pinky finger DNA to Identikit portrait in a few easy steps. 

Their method is based on linking patterns of DNA hypermethylation to phenotypes. As test cases, they used human methylation maps against Neanderthal and chimpanzee methylation maps to reconstructed the known anatomies of chimps and Neanderthals. They assumed that the precision (the fraction of true predictions from the total number of predictions) and sensitivity (how many known morphological traits could be predicted on the basis of methylation) of the reconstruction would be the same for their prediction of the unknown Denisovan anatomy.

As summarized in the abstract, the results were very impressive “We tested performance by reconstructing Neanderthal and chimpanzee skeletal morphologies and obtained >85% precision in identifying divergent traits.” Wow!

The authors were, in fact, so confident with their results that they commisioned an artist to paint the reconstructed Denisovan face. This portrait, which ended on the cover of Cell, has since migrated to Instagram and the popular press.

At this point I decided to look at the estimates of sensitivity and precision. Let me first state that the entire work of Gokhman et al. (2019) is based on several assumptions concerning estimation error.

1. The Denisovan methylation map was estimated without error. 2. The Neanderthal methylation map was estimated without error 3. The precision and sensitivity of reconstructing the unknown morphology of Denisovans is identical to the precision and sensitivity of reconstructing the known morphologies of chimpanzees and Neanderthal.

However, what really got my goat, was the manner in which the “>85% accuracy” was obtained.

“In order to estimate the performance of our approach, we applied it to two groups for which we have extensive skeletal information: the Neanderthal and the chimpanzee. For each group, we evaluated two measures of performance: precision, defined as the fraction of true predictions from the total number of predictions, and true positive rate, or sensitivity, defined as the fraction of all known divergent traits that we correctly predicted.

Focusing first on the Neanderthal, we predicted 64 skeletal traits where Neanderthals are expected to differ from modern humans. We defined a prediction to be correct if the trait was previously shown to be divergent between Neanderthal and modern-human skeletons. Out of our 64 predictions, 53 are indeed known to be divergent between Neanderthals and modern humans, giving a precision of 82.8%. Of the 53 correctly predicted traits, 33 passed all three unidirectionality filters and were thus assigned a direction of change as well. Out of these 33 traits, we correctly predicted the direction of 29, giving a precision of 87.9%.”

What? This is a dirty trick. The 29 correctly predicted traits should be divided by 64 (the number of predicted skeletal traits) not by 33. Thus, the precision is 45.3%.

The same dirty trick of accounting was used to calculate sensitivity.

“To assess the sensitivity of our approach, which measures how many of the known Neanderthal traits we are able to detect using DNA methylation, we analyzed the aforementioned list of traits and examined how many of them were predicted by our method. We identified 62 of the 75 divergent traits, giving a sensitivity of 82.7%. Of the 62 correctly predicted divergent traits, we could assign a direction of change to 46. We correctly predicted the direction of 36 out of these 46 traits, giving a sensitivity of 78.3%.”

Again, WTF? The correctly calculated sensitivity is 36/75 or 48%. 

With at most a 45% precision value, and at most a 48% sensitivity value, it takes a lot of chutzpah to draw the face of a Denisovan. 

In Hebrew, there is an expression “מצוץ מן האצבע,” which describes a made-up fabrication or fiction with no basis in reality. The literal translation is something like “sucked out of a finger.” The etymology of this expression has not been elucidated, but its origin may be with the habit of babies to suck their fingers when they are hungry in the mistaken belief that milk may flow into their mouths. 

Well, the Denisovan portrait on the cover of Cell was literally sucked out of a pinky.

The Denisovan portrait on the cover of Cell was sucked out of a partial pinky bone 

References

Gokhman D, Lavi E, Prüfer K, Fraga MF, Riancho JA, Kelso J, Pääbo S, Meshorer E, Carmel L. 2014. Reconstructing the DNA methylation maps of the Neandertal and the Denisovan. Science 344:523-527.

Gokhman D, Mishol N, de Manuel M, de Juan D, Shuqrun J, Meshorer E, Marques-Bonet T, Rak Y, Carmel L. 2019. Reconstructing Denisovan anatomy using DNA methylation maps. Cell 179:180-192.

[killianmesmalls]

I’m going to add onto an earlier post by @captregina​ discussing the idea that Wish Killian abandoned Alice, though I won’t hijack it as my thoughts are my own and all responses to the below should be responses to me and me alone. So, before I get started, this is likely going to get long and, I agree, likely uses some things that can be labeled as “headcanon” as it is not explicitly, 100% said in the show. However, there are some instances in canon that I believe are meant to be deduced based on our understandings of the character or seeing point A and point C and therefore having an idea of what point B should be. Under the cut for more (and, apologies to mobile users because Tumblr can’t figure its BS out <3)

To make this easier to breakdown, I’m going to go from what we understand about each character, then to the chronological order of their interactions together that we see. 

Killian Jones

We as viewers of seasons 2-6 are supposed to understand—and are given multiple mentions of this throughout season 7—that both versions of Killian share exactly the same history up until around the point of the curse. Now, the precise moment is up for debate, but those few days to weeks are not necessary at this point. We know he was born to Alice (headcanoned with others as Ailis, but I digress) and Brennan Jones, is the younger brother of Liam Jones, and was in relationship with Milah. Both versions lost their mother, were abandoned by their father, were raised as indentured servants on a merchant ship, bought their freedom through Liam’s sacrifice to Hades, went into the Royal Navy, lost Liam, joined piracy, met Milah, lost Milah, sought revenge, and killed their father in an attempt to get it. If you’d like to debate any of the above, we certainly can, but I do feel rather comfortable in my stance. 

We also at this point have an understanding of who this person is. He would sacrifice his life for two things: love and revenge. He’s self-sacrificing for those he cares about, and has repeatedly put himself in harm’s way for them. Now, this is the point where I can offer those who dislike s2-6 Killian to argue the above points, but I do feel that is another debate entirely and either we’d be forced to agree to disagree or it would otherwise be a very short discussion.

The only true argument I can see to the above is his abandonment of Baelfire, which has been agreed upon by many as his most regretted moment in the show. There is a lot to say about Hookfire, but I do think that both versions of Killian instantly regretted this decision and would vow to never commit such a betrayal again. 

Alice, however, is not Baelfire. Sure, Bae was Milah’s son and someone Killian very much cared for, but there are some key differences here. 1) Alice came after Bae and after what likely was something he’d vow to never repeat. 2) While Bae was Milah’s son, he was also Rumple’s son, and the whole 2x04 incident was still very much a sore subject to Killian by the time they ran into each other. 3) Bae wasn’t an infant, wasn’t alone, wasn’t at risk of immediate death, and could be reasoned to take care of himself. Though the experiences between Bae and Alice are not unrelated, they are also almost polar opposites, and what he did to Bae should not be used as strong evidence for what he would do to Alice. 

It is also this point where I’d like to mention to anyone who likes season 2-6 Killian and, for some reason, doesn’t like season 7 Killian that they were at the core the same person, and if you readily believe and love the fact that the person he is at his core is willing to sacrifice everything for a budding romantic relationship, why would this character also not be willing to sacrifice everything for an established familial one? You may not like the storyline of season 7 and this particular version of the character, which is your prerogative, but to believe this version would readily abandon his own child without exhausting every effort to get back to her strongly suggests that perhaps you do not understand the heart of the character. Killian Jones in any reality would do absolutely anything and everything for those he loves most. 

Alice Jones

Even I am guilty of describing Alice of being pure sunshine, rainbows, cupcakes and all things perfect. I mean, she is, but she’s also these things because of her imperfections. She’s impulsive, often naive, and does have a slight hint of her father’s temper. 

Which means, if she has imperfections, the very least she is capable of is responding in a human way rather than being Disney-princess level of compassionate and merciful. Again, human responses are not to be seen as flaws so much as we have this idea in our heads sometimes that, if a character is flawless, then that is equitable with being incessantly forgiving. 

Alice is capable of anger, sarcasm, and frustration (see 7x04 and her introduction to Rumple, 7x13 when she says “you promised me” to her father, 7x14 with Robin, to name a few). It is also then not a difficult leap to imagine that she is capable of holding onto these feelings should the underlying issues not be resolved, say for instance her feelings toward abandonment with her mother both as Tilly and as Alice.

However, her actions toward Killian across the board show a complete lack of anger or resentment. Their interactions are never those of an abandoned child and a neglectful parent. We know, as stated above, that she is capable of these feelings and freely expresses her thoughts without a filter. If at any point she truly felt abandoned by Killian, I have no doubt she would have been shown to show negative, albeit understandable, emotions toward him. 

Chronology

First, as he says in 7x07 when he decides to give up his entire life as he knows it and stay with Alice, “Abandoning people isn’t my thing.” Barring Bae (as discussed above), this has been shown to be the case. While we cannot use any of S2-6 Killian’s actions to back up this assessment, they are still at their core the same person, and have both shown that they are willing to sacrifice everything for those they care about. 

And, in this timeline, the only person left to care about is Alice. 

Most of us know the story now: he gives up his ship, life of piracy, revenge, and potentially even all the contacts he has in order to raise this newborn he was tricked into having. He is shown to harbor no resentment, merely full love and responsibility for this child. 

While I do wish we had been given more glimpses into their lives in those almost 11 years from her birth to his being poisoned, I do think they believe they have given us enough clues to discern the kind of relationship they had and the kind of life they lived in that time. 

The question then becomes what he did in that time between being poisoned and seeing Alice again in 7x08. As Gothel said in 7x13, the poison will corrupt his heart every time he gets near her. We see in 7x22 that this corruption not only means immediate pain, but long-term damage and deterioration, eventually resulting in death. Now, this is where this is somewhere between maybe implied and maybe headcanon: Killian had slightly aged in the almost eleven years between Alice’s conception and when he was poisoned. The rate at which he went from “silver fox” Killian to “Old Hook” is astounding. 

True, very little is said about the time between his being poisoned and when he met Storybrooke Killian and Emma in 7x02. We do know from 7x16 that he had hoped to barter a valuable map for a cure for his poisoned heart, and in 7x02 we know he roamed the realms seeking true love because he knew true love’s kiss was a potential cure. It is heavily implied Killian made many, many attempts at reuniting with Alice, and we see the extent of his deterioration as a result with Old Hook. That is not a man that simply looked up at the tower where his distressed child was yelling for him just after he was poisoned and decided to call it a day. That is a man that repeatedly tried to find a cure or gauge how close he could be to her, his heart getting increasingly ���corrupted” and, as a result, his body aging at an exponential pace. 

When they reunite briefly in 7x08, as stated above, her reaction to him is not that of a child that feels abandoned. She’s happy, hopeful, and full of adoration for her father. Had he fully given up, I have no doubt that some of the frustration we have seen Alice show before would have been on full display here. We know from 7x19 and 7x20 that she’s capable of showing anger toward a parent that left. At no point is Killian the receiving party. 

Of course, we know their bittersweet reunion in 7x08 was again to end in heartbreak thanks to Drizella’s lie and Killian’s still-poisoned heart. Still, in 7x08 and 7x14, we know she repeatedly tries to find a cure, and we know his whole reason for joining with Regina and Henry was to have help in finding a cure, himself, though they consistently come up empty-handed. 

Regardless, she still desires to see him, especially on her birthday, and though she doesn’t make herself known, her, “You look happy, Papa,” and subsequent sad smile show that, again, she harbors no bad feelings for him. It bears reminding that, at this point, the writers have revealed the cause of his poisoned heart, and in the previous episode, no less. If they’re going to write her feeling abandoned, this is the episode to do it in. Instead, throughout this episode, she is shown only to miss him deeply and have great reverence for him, telling Robin some advice he used to give her about how “all the best people are mad.” Furthermore, she doesn’t distance herself from him by calling him by the more formal, often-used “Father” but rather keeps to calling him “Papa”. 

In addition to knowing she looked out for him, it is established in 7x18 that he looks out for her. In spite of his poisoned heart, he gets as close as he can, keeps an eye out for her, and passes letters to her through the help of Robin (which I totally think was a matchmaking tactic, but...that’s a tangent that will end up being another 1000 words). We see very clearly that he’s willing to look after her even though she’s an adult with a budding relationship and a house to call her own, attempting to keep as much contact with her as possible. Why, then, are we supposed to believe he would abandon her as a lonely 10-year-old? He has the same problem in 7x18 as he does in 7x13: the poisoned heart. He’s willing to be as close to her as possible now that she’s an adult, therefore I truly believe he would have done absolutely everything to be close to her when she was just a child. 

When the curse breaks, again we see absolutely no resentment or feelings of abandonment. She loves him, and he doesn’t hesitate to risk his life and endure agonizing pain for her more than once. No second thought, no regard for himself, just him supporting her and wanting nothing more than to keep her safe and happy. 

So, while you may not be a fan of their story, saying he willingly left her immediately after his heart was poisoned is both ignoring him as a character and ignoring evidence to the contrary. 

[lomuduce-blog]

The Do's and Don'ts of Vietnam

https://sv.ivisa.com/vietnam-e-visa

Vietnam Secrets That No One Else Knows About

A number of the Vietnam War facts you believe you know aren't facts whatsoever.  The United States military is easily the most well-funded and well-equipped armed force on the planet.  It is called the American War in Vietnam.

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The Vietnam War proved to be a long and gruesome battle with a large cost accumulated on each side, with regard to human fatalities.   The attack also rendered the airport unusable for the remainder of evacuation, meaning the remainder of the evacuation effort would need to be staged from the embassy compound itself.  `White soldiers won't shower or sleep in the very same barracks as African-Americans.

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Realizing, obviously, that every soldier had their very own special song which helped bring them home.  However, in reality, there are quite specific, concrete explanations for why the U.S. lost the War.  It's essential to note that any treatment plan for PTSD in Vietnam veterans ought to take account of not only the psychological impact, but the physical element of the disorder. What is Really Happening with Vietnam

The hotter Vietnamese womenhave a good deal of standards and they're going to focus on your game.  The most striking parallel between the 2 wars is the disastrous outcomes of the adoption of the incorrect set of metrics for success.  Possessing a blindly optimistic view worsens your odds of survival.

Additionally, the nation is committed to continuing its global financial integration.  As noted, there's a large number of unique approaches so you and your physician can get the methods which work best for you.  My client is among the leading suppliers of quality ladies-wear to a worldwide market for at least 25 decades. Ok, I Think I Understand Vietnam, Now Tell Me About Vietnam!

If any return is because of an error on the seller's part, you will obtain a complete refund.  That was the start of the end.  Rome was not built daily.

[newstfionline]

Rewriting Life

By Adam Piore, MIT Technology Review, November 30, 2017

It’s the Monday morning following the opening weekend of the movie Blade Runner 2049, and Eric C. Leuthardt is standing in the center of a floodlit operating room clad in scrubs and a mask, hunched over an unconscious patient.

“I thought he was human, but I wasn’t sure,” Leuthardt says to the surgical resident standing next to him, as he draws a line on the area of the patient’s shaved scalp where he intends to make his initial incisions for brain surgery. “Did you think he was a replicant?”

“I definitely thought he was a replicant,” the resident responds, using the movie’s term for the eerily realistic-looking bioengineered androids.

“What I think is so interesting is that the future is always flying cars,” Leuthardt says, handing the resident his Sharpie and picking up a scalpel. “They captured the dystopian component: they talk about biology, the replicants. But they missed big chunks of the future. Where were the neural prosthetics?”

It’s a topic that Leuthardt, a 44-year-old scientist and brain surgeon, has spent a lot of time imagining. In addition to his duties as a neurosurgeon at Washington University in St. Louis, he has published two novels and written an award-winning play aimed at “preparing society for the changes ahead.” In his first novel, a techno-thriller called RedDevil 4, 90 percent of human beings have elected to get computer hardware implanted directly into their brains. This allows a seamless connection between people and computers, and a wide array of sensory experiences without leaving home. Leuthardt believes that in the next several decades such implants will be like plastic surgery or tattoos, undertaken with hardly a second thought.

“I cut people open for a job,” he notes. “So it’s not hard to imagine.”

But Leuthardt has done far more than just imagine this future. He specializes in operating on patients with intractable epilepsy, all of whom must spend several days before their main surgery with electrodes implanted on their cortex as computers aggregate information about the neural firing patterns that precede their seizures. During this period, they are confined to a hospital bed and are often extremely bored. About 15 years ago, Leuthardt had an epiphany: why not recruit them to serve as experimental subjects? It would both ease their tedium and help bring his dreams closer to reality.

Leuthardt began designing tasks for them to do. Then he analyzed their brain signals to see what he might learn about how the brain encodes our thoughts and intentions, and how such signals might be used to control external devices. Was the data he had access to sufficiently robust to describe intended movement? Could he listen in on a person’s internal verbal monologues? Is it possible to decode cognition itself?

Though the answers to some of these questions were far from conclusive, they were encouraging. Encouraging enough to instill in Leuthardt the certitude of a true believer--one who might sound like a crackpot, were he not a brain surgeon who deals in the life-and-death realm of the operating room, where there is no room for hubris or delusion. Leuthardt knows better than most that brain surgery is dangerous, scary, and difficult for the patient. But his understanding of the brain has also given him a clear-eyed view of its inherent limitations--and the potential of technology to help overcome them. Once the rest of the world understands the promise, he insists--and once the technologies progress--the human race will do what it has always done. It will evolve. This time with the help of chips implanted in our heads.

“A true fluid neural integration is going to happen,” Leuthardt says. “It’s just a matter of when. If it’s 10 or 100 years in the grand scheme of things, it’s a material development in the course of human history.”

Leuthardt is by no means the only one with exotic ambitions for what are known as brain-computer interfaces. Last March Elon Musk, a founder of Tesla and SpaceX, launched Neuralink, a venture aiming to create devices that facilitate mind-machine melds. Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg has expressed similar dreams, and last spring his company revealed that it has 60 engineers working on building interfaces that would let you type using just your mind. Bryan Johnson, the founder of the online payment system Braintree, is using his fortune to fund Kernel, a company that aims to develop neuroprosthetics he hopes will eventually boost intelligence, memory, and more.

These plans, however, are all in their early phases and have been shrouded in secrecy, making it hard to assess how much progress has been made--or whether the goals are even remotely realistic. The challenges of brain-computer interfaces are myriad. The kinds of devices that people like Musk and Zuckerberg are talking about won’t just require better hardware to facilitate seamless mechanical connection and communication between silicon computers and the messy gray matter of the human brain. They’ll also have to have sufficient computational power to make sense out of the mass of data produced at any given moment as many of the brain’s nearly 100 billion neurons fire. One other thing: we still don’t know the code the brain uses. We will have to, in other words, learn how to read people’s minds.

But Leuthardt, for one, expects he will live to see it. “At the pace at which technology changes, it’s not inconceivable to think that in a 20-year time frame everything in a cell phone could be put into a grain of rice,” he says. “That could be put into your head in a minimally invasive way, and would be able to perform the computations necessary to be a really effective brain-computer interface.”

Scientists have long known that the firing of our neurons is what allows us to move, feel, and think. But breaking the code by which neurons talk to each other and the rest of the body--developing the capacity to actually listen in and make sense of precisely how it is that brain cells allow us to function--has long stood as one of neuroscience’s most daunting tasks.

In the early 1980s, an engineer named Apostolos Georgopoulos, at Johns Hopkins, paved the way for the current revolution in brain-computer interfaces. Georgopoulos identified neurons in the higher-level processing areas of the motor cortex that fired prior to specific kinds of movement--such as a flick of the wrist to the right, or a downward thrust with the arm. What made Georgopoulos’s discovery so important was that you could record these signals and use them to predict the direction and intensity of the movements. Some of these neuronal firing patterns guided the behavior of scores of lower-level neurons working together to move the individual muscles and, ultimately, a limb.

Using arrays of dozens of electrodes to track these high-level signals, Georgopoulos demonstrated that he could predict not just which way a monkey would move a joystick in three-dimensional space, but even the velocity of the movement and how it would change over time.

Within a few years of testing, Leuthardt’s patients had shown the capacity to play Space Invaders simply by thinking.

It was, it seemed clear, precisely the kind of data one might use to give a paralyzed patient mind control over a prosthetic device. Which is the task that one of Georgopoulos’s protégés, Andrew Schwartz, took on in the 1990s. By the late 1990s Schwartz, who is currently a neurobiologist at the University of Pittsburgh, had implanted electrodes in the brains of monkeys and begun to demonstrate that it was indeed possible to train them to control robotic limbs just by thinking.

Leuthardt, in St. Louis to do a neurosurgery residency at Washington University in 1999, was inspired by such work: when he needed to decide how to spend a mandated year-long research break, he knew exactly what he wanted to focus on. Schwartz’s initial success had convinced Leuthardt that science fiction was on the verge of becoming reality. Scientists were finally taking the first tentative steps toward the melding of man and machine. Leuthardt wanted to be part of the coming revolution.

He thought he might devote his year to studying the problem of scarring in mice: over time, the single electrodes that Schwartz and others implanted as part of this work caused inflammatory reactions, or ended up sheathed in brain cells and immobilized. But when Leuthardt and his advisor sat down to map out a plan, the two came up with a better idea. Why not see if they might be able to use a different brain recording technique altogether?

“We were like, ‘Hey, we’ve got humans with electrodes in them all the time!’” Leuthardt says. “Why don’t we just do some experiments with them?”

Georgopoulos and Schwartz had collected their data using a technique that relies on microelectrodes next to the cell membranes of individual neurons to detect voltage changes. The electrodes Leuthardt used, which are implanted before surgery in epilepsy patients, were far larger and were placed on the surface of the cortex, under the scalp, on strips of plastic, where they recorded the signals emanating from hundred of thousands of neurons at the same time. To install them, Leuthardt performed an initial operation in which he removed the top of the skull, cut through the dura (the brain’s outermost membrane), and placed the electrodes directly on top of the brain. Then he connected them to wires that snaked out of the patient’s head in a bundle and plugged into machinery that could analyze the brain signals.

Such electrodes had been used successfully for decades to identify the exact origin in the brain of an epilepsy patient’s intractable seizures. After the initial surgery, the patient stops taking anti-seizure medication, which will eventually prompt an epileptic episode--and the data about its physical source helps doctors like Leuthardt decide which section of the brain to resect in order to forestall future episodes.

But many were skeptical that the electrodes would yield enough information to control a prosthetic. To help find out, Leuthardt recruited Gerwin Schalk, a computer scientist at the Wadsworth Center, a public-health laboratory of the New York State Department of Health. Progress was swift. Within a few years of testing, Leuthardt’s patients had shown the capacity to play Space Invaders--moving a virtual spaceship left and right--simply by thinking. Then they moved a cursor in three-dimensional space on a screen.

In 2006, after a speech on this work at a conference, Schalk was approached by Elmar Schmeisser, a program manager at the U.S. Army Research Office. Schmeisser had in mind something far more complex. He wanted to find out if it was possible to decode “imagined speech”--words not vocalized, but simply spoken silently in one’s mind. Schmeisser, also a science fiction fan, had long dreamed of creating a “thought helmet” that could detect a soldier’s imagined speech and transmit it wirelessly to a fellow soldier’s earpiece.

Leuthardt recruited 12 bedridden epilepsy patients, confined to their rooms and bored as they waited to have seizures, and presented each one with 36 words that had a relatively simple consonant-vowel-consonant structure, such as “bet,” “bat,” “beat,” and “boot.” He asked the patients to say the words out loud and then to simply imagine saying them--conveying the instructions visually (written on a computer screen), with no audio, and again vocally, with no video, to make sure that he could identify incoming sensory signals in the brain. Then he shipped the data to Schalk for analysis.

Schalk’s software relies on pattern recognition algorithms--his programs can be trained to recognize the activation patterns of groups of neurons associated with a given task or thought. With a minimum of 50 to 200 electrodes, each one producing 1,000 readings per second, the programs must churn through a dizzying number of variables. The more electrodes and the smaller the population of neurons per electrode, the better the chance of detecting meaningful patterns--if sufficient computing power can be brought to bear to sort out irrelevant noise.

“The more resolution the better, but at the minimum it’s about 50,000 numbers a second,” Schalk says. “You have to extract the one thing you are really interested in. That’s not so straightforward.”

At the top of the list of things to do is preparing humanity for what’s coming.

Schalk’s results, however, were surprisingly robust. As one might expect, when Leuthardt’s subjects vocalized a word, the data indicated activity in the areas of the motor cortex associated with the muscles that produce speech. The auditory cortex, and an area in its vicinity long believed to be associated with speech processing, were also active at the exact same moments. Remarkably, there were similar yet slightly different activation patterns even when the subjects only imagined the words silently.

Schalk, Leuthardt, and others involved in the project believe they have found the little voice that we hear in our mind when we imagine speaking. The system has never been perfect: after years of effort and refinements to his algorithms, Schalk’s program guesses correctly 45 percent of the time. But rather than attempt to push those numbers higher (they expect performance to improve with better sensors), Schalk and Leuthardt have focused on decoding increasingly complex components of speech.

In recent years, Schalk has continued to extend the findings on real and imagined speech (he can tell whether a subject is imagining speaking Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech or Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address). Leuthardt, meanwhile, has attempted to push on into the next realm: identifying the way the brain encodes intellectual concepts across different regions.

The data on that effort is not published yet, “but the honest truth is we’re still trying to make sense of it,” Leuthardt says. His lab, he acknowledges, may be approaching the limits of what’s possible using current technologies.

“The moment we got early evidence that we could decode intentions,” Leuthardt says, “I knew it was on.”

Soon after obtaining those results, Leuthardt took seven days off to write, visualize the future, and think about both short- and long-term goals. At the top of the list of things to do, he decided, was preparing humanity for what’s coming, a job that is still very much in progress.

With sufficient funding, Leuthardt insists, reclining in a chair in his office after performing surgery, he could already create a prosthetic implant for a general market that would allow someone to use a computer and control a cursor in three-dimensional space. Users could also do things like turn lights on and off, or turn heat up and down, using their thoughts alone. They might even be able to experience artificially induced tactile sensations and access some rudimentary means of turning imagined speech into text. “With current technology, I could make an implant--but how many people are going to want that now?” he says. “I think it’s very important to take practical, short interval steps to get people moved along the pathway toward this road of the long-term vision.”

To that end, Leuthardt founded NeuroLutions, a company aimed at demonstrating that there is a market, even today, for rudimentary devices that link mind and machine--and at beginning to use the technology to help people. NeuroLutions has raised several million so far, and a noninvasive brain interface for stroke victims who have lost function on one side is currently in human trials.

The device consists of brain-monitoring electrodes that sit on the scalp and are attached to an arm orthosis; it can detect a neural signature for intended movement before the signal reaches the motor area of the brain. The neural signals are on the opposite side of the brain from the area usually destroyed by the stroke--and thus are usually spared any damage. By detecting them, amplifying them, and using them to control a device that moves the paralyzed limb, Leuthardt has found, he can actually help a patient regain independent control over the limb, far faster and more effectively than is possible with any approach currently on the market. Importantly, the device can be used without brain surgery.

Though the technology is decidedly modest compared with Leuthardt’s grand designs for the future, he believes this is an area where he can meaningfully transform people’s lives right now. There are about 700,000 new stroke patients in the U.S. each year, and the most common motor impairment is a paralyzed hand. Finding a way to help more of them regain function--and demonstrating that he can do it faster and more effectively--would not only demonstrate the power of brain-computer interfaces but meet a huge medical need.

Leuthardt is so eager for the world to share his passion for the technology’s potentially transformative effects that he has also sought to engage the public through art. In addition to writing his novels and play, he is working on a podcast and YouTube series with a fellow neurosurgeon, in which the two discuss technology and philosophy over coffee and doughnuts.

In Leuthardt’s first book, RedDevil 4, one character uses his “cortical prosthetic” to experience hiking the Himalayas while sitting on his couch. Another, a police detective, confers telepathically with a colleague about how to question a murder suspect standing right in front of them. Every character has instant access to all the knowledge in the world’s libraries--can access it as quickly as a person can think any spontaneous thought. No one ever has to be alone, and our bodies no longer limit us. On the flip side, everyone’s brain is vulnerable to computer viruses that can turn people into psychopaths.

Leuthardt acknowledges that at present, we still lack the power to record and stimulate the number of neurons it would take to replicate these visions. But he claims his conversations with some Silicon Valley investors have only fueled his optimism that we’re on the brink of an innovation explosion.

Schalk says it’s “very, very obvious” that in the next five to 10 years some form of brain-computer interface will be used to rehabilitate victims of strokes, spinal cord injuries, chronic pain, and other disorders. But he compares the current recording techniques to the IBM computers of the 1960s, saying that they are now “archaic.” For the technology to reach its true long-term potential, he believes, a new sort of brain-scanning technology will be needed--something that can read far more neurons at once.

“What you really want is to be able to listen to the brain and talk to the brain in a way that the brain cannot distinguish from the way it communicates internally, and we can’t do that right now,” Schalk says. “We really don’t know how to do it at this point. But it’s also obvious to me that it is going to happen. And if and when that happens, our lives are going to change, and our lives are going to change in a way that is completely unprecedented.”

At the very least, says Leuthardt, the buzz emanating from Silicon Valley has generated “real excitement and real thinking about brain-computer interfaces being a practical reality.” That, he says, is “something we haven’t seen before.” And though he acknowledges that if this turns out to be hype it could “set the field back a decade or two,” nothing, he believes, will stop us from reaching the ultimate goal: a technology that will allow us to transcend the cognitive and physical limitations previous generations of humankind have taken for granted.

“It’s going to happen,” he insists. “This has the potential to alter the evolutionary direction of the human race.”

[peakwealth]

The Year 2019 (3)

__________________________

No longer à propos, or a case of Russian hubris?

THE WHEELS ARE COMING OFF

1. Belonging, as I do, to that dubious demographic commonly dismissed as "white men of a certain age", I hesitate to pontificate about matters beyond my knowledge or control. I would, however, like to point to a basic observation, gleaned over many years spent traveling around the world. It is the importance of cautious government, based if not on consensus, then on compromise and fairness, the kind of well-intentioned stewardship of the common good that usually results from democratic institutions grounded in civil society and led by smart, decent people.

Easier said than done. It is precisely this kind of government which is in decline today, sacrificed to the unrelenting demands of the market economy (the plutocratic order) or the short-term need for reelection; or highjacked by thieving despots of one kind or another; or trashed by the emissaries of an alienated electorate consumed with anger and crazed by social media. Or a mixture of all of the above.

As ever, there are many contenders for the top spot in culpable mis-governance, starting with the usual suspects (Donald, Vladimir, Boris, Jair, Recep, Rodrigo, Mohamed, Narendra, Viktor, Benyamin ...) and continuing with those dimmer lights who have failed to become household names, their best efforts notwithstanding. But all is not lost. Many cracks have appeared in the edifice of authoritarianism in the year gone by, from Khartoum to Santiago de Chile to Hong Kong to Haiti to Algeria with many places in between. If the list is getting longer it is because so many people are determined to confront despotic regimes, even at great personal risk: arbitrary arrest, punishment without crime and often without recourse.

In Turkey, president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan lost control of Istanbul while Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban lost Budapest to the opposition. They may look like minor opposition victories, but they served to remind everyone that elections still serve a purpose and that civil society hasn't been wiped off the map.

Not all of the street revolts are comparable in purpose or legitimacy, nor can their violence be condoned. Hong Kong is not Barcelona, Beirut is not Moscow, yet the popular anger directed at the political class has many similarities. The regular weekend clashes in Hong Kong follow the pattern set by the gilets jaunes in France. They keep everyone on edge while allowing regular life to go on during the week.

Hong Kong's revolt seems particularly significant and quite possibly the shape of things to come as societies, even those as strikingly well organized and successful as Hong Kong, suddenly start to fray at the edges for one reason or another. It could be political frustration or migration or drought or the foreseeable effects of climate change on such things as food supply or energy prices.

The anger is not just rising from the so-called precariat that has emerged in the new century, but also from an assertive middle class that cannot be easily intimidated. The pushback can take unexpected directions, like the rapid decline in alcohol consumption in Russia (read: early deaths related to vodka). It reveals a shift towards reason and away from strongman politics and populism. Vladimir, take note.

In the United Kingdom, Brexit degenerated into a daily political 'shitshow', live from the House of Commons. It turned into a tragedy of historical dimensions. The central idea of Brexit, to take back control, was about more than trade deals and national prerogatives. It revealed a longing for reconquista and tribalism, for the restoration of of white Christian supremacy. It rejected the very idea of coexistence of different people within a single, shared political space. Of all the populist mutinies, Brexit was perhaps the most pathetic manifestation of the sunset powers of the West pulling back from the world they created. The drawbridges were being raised, in super-cosmopolitan London of all places.

2. In the days when the American presidency was still thought of as serious business, Vice-President Al Gore, a visionary by today's standards, wrote that "the age of print begat the Age of Reason which begat the age of democracy"(*). As the dust settles on the printed word and the Age of Reason is being mocked, the question is what the digital age and the internet begat. Brexit? Donald Trump?

Two years ago, The Economist came to the conclusion that Trump still had 'no grasp of what it means to be president'. Things have not improved. It has been a terrifying year in many ways. Trump's incoherence worsened, ranging from his dislike of French wine (though he doesn't drink), to the status of the Kurds as America's allies in Iraq (they weren't part of the allied landings during WW II). He truly went off the deep end in 2019, causing havoc in ever wider concentric circles around the world, particularly in the Middle East. Trump went nuts, day after day, sometimes bewildering and sometimes just full of hostility. His brutality went on to legitimize others with hostile agendas.

Both Donald Trump and Boris Johnson have shown a disconcerting willingness to skirt around their countries' constitutions, toying with the idea of putting themselves above the law if that were the manifest wish of their electorates.

That they (and other malevolent populists) should enjoy such stubborn support from a large constituency can be explained (maybe) in any number of ways. Surely the harsh ideology of the Reagan-Thatcher era has proved deeply corrosive to Western societies, as has the internet which has loosened social inhibitions and encouraged the proliferation of hatred, envy and disinformation.

But the rapid regression in Western thinking also has a clear point of origin in the events of 9/11/2001, the defining catastrophy of the 20th century so far. The symbolism and significance of those attacks remain strangely underestimated and, in the USA, widely ignored. But then the Americans never understood, or pretended not to understand, what happened to them on that morning and why. The strategic mistakes made in Iraq and Afghanistan after 9/11 continue today in America's support for Saudi Arabia, the very country that has for decades funded and organized the spread of extremist Islamism across the world. For a Western government to choose sides in the conflict between Shia and Sunni Islam is an act of (mis)calculated insanity.

The principal outcome of 9/11 was anxiety across the western world. Which, it must be presumed, was the whole idea behind the attack, to unsettle the West to its core. While this insecurity has contributed to the rise of populism and the unfocused rage against 'others', it also points to deeper stresses in society. This is likely to get worse as more of us become convinced that the extinction rebellion is for real and environmental collapse is no longer in the distant future, but approaching quickly.

A new polarization is taking shape, between those who accept, though not yet very clearly, that climate change requires an unprecedented and painful shift in economic direction, never mind the details, and those who remain convinced it is a distopian end-time cult, not very different from the ones that have gone before. Or that, even it were all horribly true, nothing much could be done about it.

Canada's latest general election, in October, clearly showed opinion moving in that direction, a split between conservative voters beholden to the status quo (read: the supremacy of business, including oil and gas) and those who have become convinced we are facing environmental ruin.

Whichever side one takes, it would be foolhardy to think that everything will turn out fine as long as we act sustainably and stop eating meat or cheese and grow kale on the roof and stop flying around for no good purpose and switch to solar power. The problem already appears to be beyond our control.

_______________________________________________________

(*) 

The Assault on Reason, Al Gore, The Penguin Press, 2007

[itsworn]

Holley’s Sniper EFI For C2 and C3 Corvettes

With the technology we have today from Holley, it’s so easy to get into drop-in electronic fuel injection … and without breaking a sweat. You can quite literally pull your Quadra-Jet or Holley equipped C2 or C3 Corvette into the garage on a Friday and be back on the road Sunday with Holley’s Sniper EFI drop-in carburetor replacement system.

Holley’s new Sniper EFI master kit for C2 and C3 Corvettes is a specific fuel system economically priced so you can have all the benefits of EFI and still have money to finish or upgrade the rest of your Vette project, and we’re about to prove this with our 1968 small-block Corvette.

The Holley Sniper EFI master kit is the most complete EFI fuel system on the market because Holley provides you with everything to completely plumb your fuel system, including 20 feet of 3/8-inch EFI-rated hose, inline fuel pump, post and pre fuel filters, return bulkhead, and all of the necessary fittings and hardware. The Sniper EFI puts an end to cold start issues like we experience with carburetors. Hesitation, vapor lock, flooding … gone. Hop in, twist the key and start driving. It’s that simple.

We’re beginning our Holley Sniper EFI fuel system installation with a Holley fuel tank, which will accommodate virtually any electronic fuel-injection system. A 255-lph in-tank fuel pump, which we’ll use instead of the inline pump in the Sniper EFI kit, and a fuel level sender are included with the tank. Just add your existing filler neck and it’ll be ready to go. Although we’ve opted for Holley’s Sniper EFI system, you can use this tank for just about any EFI system, including factory GM electronic fuel injection. Vette

  Sniper EFI Master Kit Features

Bolt-on carburetor replacement (designed to fit single and dual carburetor manifolds)

Throttle body mounted ECU (with no extra boxes to mount), self contained

Supports up to 650 hp (four-injector version) or 1,250 hp (eight-injector version)

Four-wire vehicle connection (battery +, battery -, switched ignition and rpm)

Includes complete fuel system consisting of 20 feet of 3/8-inch Vapor Guard fuel hose, fuel pump (PN 12-920), filters, necessary hardware and bulkhead fitting to return fuel to the tank

Integrated fuel pressure regulator

Integrated ignition timing control and coil driver

Color touch screen for setup and gauge views

Calibration Wizard (answer a few questions about your engine and it creates the base map, then starts tuning on its own). No laptop or tune shop required

Self-tuning ECU means you don’t have to be a computer/tuning wiz to have EFI

The included wideband oxygen sensor provides real time Fuel Map Learn

  This 1968 Corvette fuel tank, 18-gallon capacity, has been sitting around for more than three decades. We’re not only going to replace it; we’re going to go with one of Holley’s new EFI-style fuel tanks engineered to work with the Holley Sniper EFI system.

What’s better than a stock fuel tank when you’re converting to electronic fuel injection? The Holley EFI fuel tank for C3 Corvettes (PN 19-148) and the slightly different tank for C2 Corvettes (PN 19-147) make it easy to get into EFI in a weekend. These tanks enable you to jump right into EFI without modifications because they accommodate EFI without cutting or welding. This is true bolt-on EFI performance in a box.

These provisions adapted to the stock-style Corvette fuel tank are what make going to EFI easy. The stock tank has the fuel sending unit installed through the bottom of the tank. With Holley’s EFI tank, all fuel access is through the top like this without the risk of fuel spillage should you have to service the fuel system. The fuel filler opening is to the left, with the fuel sending unit and EFI pump to the right.

This is the fully adjustable fuel sending unit, along with all of the appropriate gaskets.

Here’s the lay of the gaskets Holley has provided for the fuel tank.

Because Holley provides a fully adjustable fuel sending unit for the fuel gauge, the tank depth needs to be measured first in order to set up the sending unit float adjustment.

Because Holley provides a fully adjustable fuel sending unit for the fuel gauge, the tank depth needs to be measured first in order to set up the sending unit float adjustment.

The fuel sending unit works on the principle of resistance of current flow to ground. When there’s low resistance the float is at its highest point (full tank), the gauge reads full. By contrast, when the float is at the bottom of its travel, we have high resistance to ground and the gauge reads empty. Using an ohmmeter, you can check resistance to ground to determine proper float adjustment. In this image, the float is at its highest point with low resistance to ground and high current flow … a full tank.

The Holley fuel sending unit slips in through the top as shown here. Check gasket security and snug this guy up.

Now to the fuel pump, pickup, and return lines. Because this is a universal fuel pump, it has to be modified for the tank in which it is being installed. The pickup line is measured and cut to the tank’s depth minus the length of the fuel pump, with filter sock installed.

The return line should be cut to where it doesn’t cause aeration at the pump pickup, which can cause pump cavitation and air in the fuel. If you have a returnless system, you won’t have to sweat this step.

The electric fuel pump assembly is inserted into the top of the tank as shown.

The pump is seated in the top of the tank and secured with the Holley-provided fasteners.

We’re removing the fuel filler neck from the stock tank at this time to send it out for re-plating.

Do you like our re-plated fuel filler neck? We have installed the neck with a new gasket and fasteners. The devil is in the details. We could have cleaned this neck up with abrasives and reinstalled. However, with plating, corrosion becomes less likely and the darned thing looks pretty good.

Our Holley EFI tank is good to go with all of its connections in place. There are three fuel connections: fuel under pressure, fuel return, and vent.

Most Corvette gas filler neck boots deteriorate over time. It is time to replace ours. The Corvette Central gas filler neck boot (PN 363075) is the correct thickness, angle, and material with the flat edge and rib per original equipment. It also has the drain hole for the overflow hose. If you examine our Corvette Central gas filler neck boot, it delivers a perfect fit.

Here’s the completed Holley fuel tank ready for installation. We’ve got to get power to the electric fuel pump and fuel sending unit. The fuel pump must have a solid ground to ensure proper operation. Erratic operation indicates a poor ground.

With our Holley/Corvette Central fuel tank installed, we’re ready to tackle the rest of the Holley fuel system. You can hard line your C2/C3 Corvette fuel system, which is suggested or go with flexible braided stainless steel hoses … both of which are available from the Earl’s Division at Holley. What you get from Holley is turnkey products all in one stop.

Holley’s Sniper EFI throttle body carburetor replacement system comes in one convenient box for easy weekend installation. You cannot imagine how easy this system is to install and use. What’s more, you can hide it beneath your Corvette’s air cleaner and few will be the wiser that you have Holley fuel injection. At a glance, it looks like a carburetor for the purist who wants to look pure.

Holley’s Sniper EFI from another angle. Top this guy with an air cleaner and it’s challenging to tell it isn’t a carburetor. It does so much more than a carburetor. Because it is electronic and offers precise fuel/air metering, your Chevrolet V-8 starts every time the same way. No goosing the throttle or having to mess with a choke adjustment. The Sniper EFI is self-learning. It learns your driving patterns and your engine’s idiosyncrasies. Once you have driven a few miles, the Sniper EFI adapts to your driving style and your engine.

Here’s the Holley Sniper EFI system on our 350 Chevrolet at Westech Performance on the dyno. It is remarkable what this system can do and in short order. Tell it what you have and Holley’s Sniper EFI can handle the rest.

  Sources:

Corvette Central

(800) 345-4122

www.corvettecentral.com

Holley

(866) 464-6553

www.holley.com

Hot Rods by Dean

(623) 581-1932

www.hotrodsbydean.com

Photography by Brian Brennan

The post Holley’s Sniper EFI For C2 and C3 Corvettes appeared first on Hot Rod Network.

from Hot Rod Network http://www.hotrod.com/articles/holleys-sniper-efi-c2-c3-corvettes/ via IFTTT

[s5078305-blog]

Part 2...

Jean Baudrillard: Simulacra and Simulation

Jean Baudrillard was a French sociologist, philosopher and cultural theorists. He is most famous for his work on post-structuralism, early post modernism and his ideas help shaping the idea of hyperreality. In his book Simulacra and Simulation (1981) he talks about the idea of us living in the age of simulation. In our postmodern culture society, we are servant to maps, symbols and models, making us lose all contact with the real world outside of the map. We wouldn’t be able to distinguish from the what is real and what is simulated, the map becomes what’s real "The territory no longer precedes the map, nor does it survive it. It is nevertheless the map that precedes the territory—precession of simulacra—that engenders the territory" ("The Precession of Simulacra" 1). He stated when it comes to postmodern simulation and simulacra, “It is no longer a question of imitation, nor duplication, nor even parody. It is a question of substituting the signs of the real for the real” ("The Precession of Simulacra" 2). We have lost all ability to make of the distinction between nature and artifice.

Image from https://baudrillardstudies.com/baudrillard-scrapbook/

Photo by Richard Avedon

jean Baudrillard and The Matrix  

The matrix is about a computer hacker Thomas Anderson, learns about the true nature of his reality and the role he plays in the war against it’s controllers. (Kenneth Chisholm). In one the scenes of the movie Thomas picks up a book: Jean Baudrillard’s Simulacra and simulation. The inclusion of the book holds great meaning as the movie takes a lot of influence from his idea of hyperreality, and hyperreal. Thomas learns about him living in a hyperreality, a simulation- everything he knew wasn’t really real. The Matrx itself is used as a virtual realty medium to illustrate the concept of hyperreal. The Matrx is an illusion created by the AI for a purpose.

image from https://mikesyear2uni.wordpress.com/2013/11/08/authenticity-baudrillard-wilde-and-benjamin/

A shot from a scene in The Matrx

Hyperreality

‘Hyperreality’ was coined by Baudrillard, meaning a social reality in which a reality is created or simulated from models of reality that is generated from ideas. (Robinson, 2012). Our reality gets simulated and heightened and which causes us to be in a hyperreality. With technology like AR and VR and the growing MR, we can now truly enter a simulated world at any moment, with apps, game or headset.  

image from Google images

The headset: 2018

New developments of apps for the VR, has added to the real life real to the headset. Now you can watch YouTube with the YouTube VR, receive messages, meditate, check emails, watch Netflix. Interact with other user’s avatars, communicating through the headset in a game called VR chat.  

A man named Jack Wilmot did an experiment where he ‘lived’ in a VR headset for a week. He always made sure to have a headset on, blacking out his windows blocking the outside world, switching headsets for different activities. On his experience he says “...this headset allows anyone to create their own environment”.  If you’re feeling stressed, you can switch to being submerged into a natural environment. “Everything is in the headset”. With the incorporate of everyday activity in the Virtual world, our generation can spend more time in a simulated reality than our actual reality. His experiment shows how we could live a sustainable life in the simulacra that is the headset as it still allows us to function normally.  

Video from Youtube - I spent a week in a VR headset, here’s what happened

Will VR replace real life?  

According to Jean Baudrillard’s theory, reality is a simulacra. He argues in the age of media we already are living in a virtual reality. His theories stand correct precisely in today’s society. I believe that there are and always have been simulants in the world that proved the experience of a hyperreality. From natural things outside of our control, like our brain hallucinating to meditation. To more man-made simulants like books, movies, social media, Disneyland.  

And now AR, VR and MR.  

A fair critic of Jean Baudrillar was from N. Katherine Hayles in her book ‘The Borders of madness’, she argues  

“Every existing simulation has boundaries that distinguish it from the surrounding environment. Disneyland sports a fence, dense hedges, and acres of parking lots. Virtual reality environments are limited by the length of the cables attaching the body apparatus to the computer.”  (1991)

This is true. We have the option to disconnect.  

But what if the technology develops to perfection, and it give us everything we need in it’s virtual world?  

And we truly are not capable of distinguishing VR from realty.  

AR vs and MR are ‘escapes from reality’, but what if they become reality?

Image from https://uploadvr.com/high-end-vr-future/

Imagine …in the distant future...

A SONY super high-tech headset that lets you experience anything you want. And it feels real. Life like.

- It takes away all your worries  

- Brings all pleasure  

Once you plug in, you won’t know that you’re plugged in.  

Would you plug in?  

This idea is based on Robert Nozick 1974 book: Anarchy, State, and Utopia. Where he proposes the experience machine. He stated “Suppose there were an experience machine that would give you any experience that you desired... All the time you would be floating in a tank, with electrodes attached to your brain.” …A VR headset... Nozick assumes that most people would not plug in.  

With the advancements in today’s technology, the machine isn’t hard to imagine for the distant future...  

Most people would argue that we would be able to plug in and out (if there was that option) like the stimuli from video games. But with the game being able to give you every desire, returning to the ‘real world’ where you can’t be given everything you want, could cause a feeling of sadness - would people be able to control and self-discipline to not spend to not plug in once and never plug back out. What if all their friends and family are already plugged in too?

Why wouldn’t you plug in?  

There are some issues with posing this question, one being that it’s a big generalization to make, even with all the pleasures that would be provided inside the headset, we wouldn’t be able to truly experience it because we wouldn’t be able to feel it. The virtual experiences that we would have can only be replicated to a certain extent. Playing in the world cup and scoring the winning goal is an experience that cannot be replicated because of the emotions.  

Another issue is assuming that we would pick the pleasure offered to us over the issues the real-life experience of the real world. Maybe it we would miss the feeling of living, that again cannot be replicated.  

The influence of social media

I think VR technology has the capability to cause a societal shift. If the technology was developed enough to offer us a better reality to our own. It is capable of a causing a shift. However, I don’t believe that it could cause it alone. Social media would play a big part. Social media is new age technology, but it would play its own sperate part.  

Social media has taken over our world. It is inescapable in my generation, generation Z. My generation live our lives on social media, people post about every detail of their lives everyday on a platform such as Twitter, Instagram, Facebook... but they only show us what they want us to see, social media allows you to have no filter and use filters at the same time. People can present their best image to you and you won’t be able to tell the difference. This is problematic as it could lead to depression and anxiety. There are inconclusive research on weather social media is a direct cause of depression and anxiety, but it does seems to be a cause. The chair of the psychology department at Stanford University, Anthony Wagner states “... our media use behavior is actually altering our cognition and underlying neurological function or neurobiological processes? The answer is we have no idea.” (Resnick, 2019)  

Although, we don’t know if the official cause, our obsession with it does play a major part in the cause of depression and anxiety. According to experts “almost 20% of people with social media accounts cannot go more than three hours without checking them” (Fader, 2018). It is not hard to miss the amount of people walking around with their heads in their phones, we’ve all been guilty of doing it. But (for the most part) my generation are able to distinguish from social media and real life. But what about the generation after us?  

Children are using social media just as much as adults are causing growing concerns on its effects on their development. “One of the biggest differences in...current teenagers and young adults... is that they spend much less time connecting with their peers in person and more time connecting ...through social media.’ Recent studies show that teenagers and young adult who spend the most time on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram and other platforms “...were shown to have a substantially (from 13 to 66 percent) higher rate of reported depression than those who spent the least time” (Miller, 2017).  

I think Social media has become too problematic itself, with people not having the consciousness to distinguish reality from the simulation of reality that is social media. Social media is a hyperreality.  

To conclude, I think that the in this moment in time the technology isn’t powerful enough to cause a societal shift, but with the rate in which it is enhancing, it isn’t so wacky to think that one day AR, VR and MR replace reality, therefore changing our cultural and societal values. Technology (and social media) could be the main deciding determinism for the shift.   

[alexandriatilleyphotography]

Role as a Curator

When researching, I was curious to find out the role of a curator, which I found on the Tate website, describing the role as;

The ‘somebody else’ who is usually primarily responsible for how and where a work of art is shown is the curator. The curator selects a work for exhibition and makes decisions about the context within which it will be displayed. This requires sensitivity to the interests and intentions of the artist. The curator also needs to ensure that the work is displayed in such a way that it is accessible and meaningful to the public.  Furthermore, curators working within a museum environment, have an added responsibility to their institution. It is their role, along with conservators and art technicians, to delineate a comprehensive and accurate record of the artwork for the future.

The Curator and the Artist Artists working with less traditional forms of art - including video and installation are increasingly realising the importance of providing detailed information to curators to ensure that aspects such as size, placement, and technical specifications for works of installation art, are understood. This provides curators planning an installation with parameters within which to work, helping to ensure that there is consistency to the installation each time it is shown.

However, while some artists are very precise about how the work is realised in the gallery, providing detailed instructions for the layout of the work, other artists specify their work more loosely, leaving it to the custodians of the work to be sensitive to what is important to its realisation. In earlier discussion on this site relating to the preservation of installation art an analogy to the performance of musical works was made. With musical works there is no one answer as to the role of the performer, different composers and musical traditions allow for different degrees of interpretation, and the same is true of artists’ installations. One could argue that the role of those installing the piece is to present "the work" accurately and the role of interpretation is to endeavour to understand what that means for any given “work”. In interviewing artists you find a variety of views. Some artists want to limit the influence of those installing the work and others directly invite the involvement of installation staff.

Tate Curator Jessica Morgan makes the point that the context of a display will also affect the curator's approach. She makes a distinction between the approach taken to curating exhibitions and the approach taken to curating the work as part of a Collection. ‘As a collecting institution, the curator takes a different approach to a curated exhibition – where somehow the curator has more license with how to present the work…the work is chosen for a particular reason, or to fit a particular concept.’ - Interview with Jessica Morgan by Pip Laurenson, 2005 In installing any work of art, a curator is very aware of how it will be seen or experienced by the viewer.  They aim to ensure that the viewer's response to the work is as useful, inspiring and enjoyable as possible.  Non-traditional art forms such as installation and time-based media, are often perceived of as less accessible to many people, so the curator is faced with an added challenge of overcoming an audience's possible unfamiliarity with the medium. Interpretative tools such as display and catalogue texts and audio guides play an important role in informing the viewer, but the actual installation of the work, impacts immediately on how the work is experienced.

The duration of a work of time-based media, and the artist's approach to its content will obviously affect how it is installed. With many video or audio works, it is not necessary to watch all of the film or listen to the full length of a soundtrack in order to 'experience' the work. With Mapping the Studio II, its sameness is part of its point, and the audience can come and go as the day unfolds. Thus the gallery has to be a room which is easily accessible and sufficiently informal to welcome the presence of the viewer and allow them to feel comfortable about entering and exiting the space. Whether to provide seating – and the type of seating selected will also affect how a viewer experiences a work of art. The inclusion of seating in an installation encourages the viewer to linger and spend more time in the gallery.

Maintaining a flow through an exhibition if possible, and ensuring that a video work does not feel cut off from other works on display, is something that Jessica Morgan has suggested is important. In an interview with Pip Laurenson she discusses her dislike of 'black box' spaces for showing video and film. These can be defined as pitch black rooms, with a door or curtain enclosing the space.

‘I am very interested with video installation in trying to avoid these black box situations, because, particularly in a museum…there are many reasons why it doesn’t work. They are dead end situations where people don’t want to enter the work; the obstruction of total darkness which one has in these environments is unwelcoming; and I’m not sure if many of the artists who are making this work, Nauman included, really think of the work in this way either. They think of themselves as multi-media artists, they are not exclusively video artists in that sense and certainly not cinema film artists, so why try and create that type of environment for the piece? But, more importantly, the flow through the museum is very important and to try not to create this separate, entirely other type of experience in terms of darkness and seating and so on is desirable…to create a good looking and good feeling environment.’

Overall reading this article has given me great insight into the role as a curator, giving me an understanding of the roles, the skills and how to be a successful as curating.  This also gives me a better understanding of the relationship between the artist and the curator, and how they work together to create a successful exhibition.  

[afishtrap]

The conventional narrative of the recovery of Ptolemy’s Geography and its impact on early modern European mapmaking does not adequately explain the design and content of those maps produced during the Renaissance that originated from or operated primarily within religious contexts. Renaissance maps with religious content inherited many important features from their medieval prototypes, but in other ways they differed significantly from these prototypes; they cannot simply be dismissed as curious residues of a vanished tradition. Put somewhat differently, the history of maps with religious messages or content is not always indexed or illuminated by the conventions of modern historical periodization; the persistent assumption that mappaemundi are essentially medieval and Ptolemaic maps are essentially Renaissance results in a false and misleading dichotomy. This dichotomy is being corrected by the more complex picture of cartography now emerging about the transitional period from 1300 to 1460.

David Woodward, ed. The History of Cartography, Volume 3: Cartography in the European Renaissance. University of Chicago Press: 2007.

Hartmann Schedel’s world map in the Liber chronicarum (Nuremberg chronicle, 1493) is also transitional; it ornaments a Ptolemaic map with depictions of biblical figures Shem, Ham, and Japheth and Pliny’s monstrous races (fig. 11.1). Fra Mauro’s famous mappamundi of 1459–60, located in the Biblioteca Nazionale Marciana in Venice, offers a complex conglomeration of traditional techniques and meanings, many of them more related to the Ebstorf and Hereford world maps than to Ptolemaic cartography. Such mappaemundi that were universal or encyclopedic in content displayed a plethora of information that signed the unfolding of the divine plan from the beginning to the end of time. In other words, their content (and that of their Renaissance successors) consisted mainly of historiated or descriptive narratives—that is, chorographies—not mathematically plotted locations of geographical features and human settlements. In these chorographies, events and figures from widely varying historical periods (and from the ahistorical world of myth) are juxtaposed on a map in such a way that time can no longer be distinguished from space but is contained within it.3

It is noteworthy that this distinction between chorography and geography and the techniques associated with them actually originate in Ptolemy’s Geography.4 While knowledge of Ptolemy’s conception of geography and his mapmaking techniques all but disappeared in Western Europe during the medieval period, his conception of chorography lived on, albeit transformed almost beyond recognition by Christian conceptions of providential history elaborated in monastic and scholastic exegetical traditions. An influential example of such exegeses is Roger Bacon’s “Opus maius,” completed in 1267.

[...]

These multiple readings grew out of accumulated confrontations with the richness and mystery of the two “books” revealed by God to man—scripture and nature. For Bacon, as for his predecessors and heirs, these two books were symbiotically bound; they necessitated, informed, and completed each other. Introducing his catalog of medieval tropes associated with these two books, the great student of medieval exegesis Henri de Lubac observed, “Scripture is like the world”; scripture was “a deep forest with innumerable branches,” “a deep sky,” and “an immense ocean where one voyages on full sails forever.” Writing of creation, Alain of Lille said that everything in it was like a “book or a picture in which we see ourselves.” Hugh of Saint Victor said that the whole sensible world was like “a book written by the finger of God”; his confrère, Richard of Saint Victor, observed that all the beings that make it up are like figura, invented not by human ingenuity, but instituted by the divine will in order to manifest and in some way sign its hidden attributes.9

[...]

For Bacon it was manifest that cartography was ultimately a derivative of astronomy: “The places of the world can only be known through astronomy, so first of all we must learn their longitudes and latitudes. . . . For by observing these [coordinates], we realize by the information of our senses that the things of this world are in a state of flux, a statement true not only of material subjects, but of morals as well. We ought also to understand from the study of astronomy what planets rule human affairs, and in what regions, since all parts of the world are powerfully altered by them.”12 The creator of the heavens was the ultimate craftsman, God. Bacon says that this cannot be understood without a picture of the earth. He then gives an extended descriptio (what the Greeks would have called an ekphrasis) of a mappamundi that presents in words most of the information depicted on encyclopedic world maps. At least one mappamundi, roughly contemporaneous with the “Opus maius,” represented this sort of descriptio by substituting a list of place-names for the usual icons. Here Bacon makes the same point about the mappamundi he made in regard to studying the map of the Holy Land: “The literal sense [of scripture] too demands an understanding of the world’s geography; by deducing from it, through appropriate parallels and comparisons with material things, we may extract the spiritual meaning. This is the right sort of exegesis of scripture, as I have shown in my previous example.”13

What Bacon is doing in this section of book four refers to techniques associated with a tradition that Esmeijer has called “visual exegesis,” that is, “a kind of exposition of Holy Scripture in which the customary rôles of word and image have been reversed, so that the representation or programme provides the Scriptural exegesis in very compressed picture-form, and the text itself is either completely omitted or else limited to explanatory inscriptions, tituli, or a very short commentary.”14 Such representations or programs could be designed in such a way that they operated on multiple levels; in other words, they offered pictorial exegeses that paralleled modes of exposition developed in written commentaries on scripture. In some representations, specific texts and images could be closely bound; others were complex tapestries of words and images that sometimes required the presence of objects such as altars to complete their meanings.15

[...]

The tradition may provide a means of organizing and unlocking the meanings of other sorts of maps that conventional histories of Renaissance cartography have tended to ignore until fairly recently. For example, there has been no comprehensive study of the relationship of cartography to the Protestant and Catholic reform movements of early modern Europe. However, there are indicators that such a study might well prove fruitful. Maps began to appear in Bibles in the 1520s, coinciding with Martin Luther’s break with the Roman Catholic Church. According to the important work of Delano-Smith and Ingram, these maps are found in Bibles printed in regions of Europe where Protestant reform movements flourished— Germany, England, Switzerland, and the Low Countries. None of the Bibles printed contemporaneously in Spain or Italy contained maps. These findings led Delano-Smith and Ingram to conclude that “the history of maps in Bibles is part of the history of the Reformation. Bibles that contain maps are overwhelmingly Protestant editions, or, in the case of the half-dozen Latin Bibles and even fewer Paris-printed and polyglot Bibles, were published by printers known to have had reformist sympathies or to have been willing to print reformist literature. Catholic interest in Bible maps seems not to have developed until the last quarter of the century.”23 The maps printed in Protestant Bibles can be associated with reformed modes of visual exegesis—especially, it seems, with the Protestant emphasis on the primacy of the literal or historical reading of the Bible.

On the title page of his 1549 edition of the New Testament, one of the earliest to be illustrated with maps, the English Protestant printer Reyner Wolfe followed in the footsteps of Bacon and d’Ailly, announcing: “And because that the knowledge of Cosmographie is very necessary, so that he that lacketh the same, can neither wel rede the Byble, nor yet prophane Historiographers, nor the New Testament. For the Evangelistes do describe the iourneies of Christ. S. Luke in the Actes describeth the preachyng & iourneis of the Apostles, and specially of St. Peter and Paull. Therfore if a man be not seen in Cosmographie, he shall be constrained to skippe ouer many notable thinges which otherwyse shoulde do him no lytle pleasures.”24 Delano-Smith and Ingram point out that “to ‘wel rede the Byble’ in Wolfe’s sense means more than merely locating text references on a map. In the caption to the map of the Eastern Mediterranean, the printer explains the map’s dividers and scale of miles as a means of learning something about Saint Paul rather than about measurement: ‘by the distance of the myles, thou maiest easyly perceaue what peynfull trauayle saynt Paule toke in preachyng the woorde of God through the Regions of Asia, Affrica, and Europa.’ The emphasis is on the Apostle’s evangelical effort, not on geographic facts.”25

Wolfe’s point is not that the maps must be accurate, that is, literal, in a cartographic sense, but that they represent to the reader the true or historical meaning of scripture, in this case the Pauline missions. However, reformers such as Philipp Melanchthon and possibly Luther (and their printers) did apparently associate the precision of Ptolemaic grids with exegesis. In a letter dated 6 March 1522, Melanchthon sought to acquire a Ptolemaic map (or a “Roman” map, as he called it) of the Holy Land to illustrate Luther’s forthcoming translation of the New Testament.26

[autumnknight17-gone]

Okay

(A/N: I think this was just supposed to be a what if Maggie hadn't shown up on Alex's doorstep in 2.08) Alexandra Danvers knows the effect of her actions, she's too smart not to. She's far, far too familiar with the term disastrous consequences. She's felt it, known it, lived it and fuck, at some point in her life she became it. Alexandra Danvers knows the effect of her actions, she's got the map outlined in her head on which dominos will fall when she ticks off a piece. She knows which pieces will die and what block they'll die in when she starts the game. She knows the casualties before they happen because she's studied far too hard to make sure there are none. But no casualties in war is unrealistic, bordering on naive, so she just learns what they will be and what she needs to say goodbye to. She's careful, methodical and precise in her plans. She thinks every single scenario through. Down to the last innocuous detail. What could happen at any given time because she can't afford to lose something she's not ready to say goodbye to. Or someone she's not ready to say goodbye to. So when she makes a mistake, she's surprised, surprised because she's more careful than that. Surprised because she should have known better. Surprised because she missed something and Alexandra Danvers misses nothing. She's too familiar with loss to experience it again and when she does she's surprised. Because she's promised never again. It feels like deja vu, honestly. It feels like routine, the fact is she's surprised but not unfamiliar with the territory. She thought she had read Maggie right, she thought Maggie wanted her back but she didn't and Maggie didn't. Alex would scream and cry, if she could. When she was a teenager she always used to, whenever something would upset her she would go to the yard behind her school and just let it all out, she didn't care if anyone saw her, saw Alexandra Danvers, star student, most popular girl in highschool crying and screaming like a toddler. It didn't matter. But she's older now and she understands what someone seeing her would mean, so she just nods her head and smiles all the way through swallowing a shot full of liquor, her pride and her heart. It tears her throat apart to keep it silent but she does and if it hurts her bad enough to make it feel like the world she fought for is ending, she doesn't show it. She walks away from Maggie the same way she walks away from a murder crime scene, her head pulled high, shoulders squared, face impassive, pretending she wasn't affected by the tragedy that had just happened. They don't talk for 3 weeks straight after that, even then it's just a phone call, the wound is still tender and the flesh of her heart is still bruised but she manages to say Maggie's name without trembling so there's that. She goes to Kara's apartment that night and stays over for two days straight because she doesn't want to be alone just yet and Kara doesn't pry because Kara of all people knows pain and she gets the need to keep your mouth shut about it because explaining just makes you remember. There's a routine they've come up with for days like these, where heartbreak is so prominent you can taste sadness in the air like its oxygen and tears come easier than breathing. Like always with the Danvers sisters they close themselves off, one licking their wounds and drying their eyes and the other handing bandages and handkerchiefs. Like always with the Danvers sisters one of them is crying so hard they can't breathe whilst the other stays strong enough to be unshaken by grief. Like always with the Danvers sisters they crumple in on theirselves like paper with a hidden message only they can share. They'll only unfold when they're ready to read it out loud to the class. Like always with the Danvers sisters the incident is looked over and then forgotten. It just takes a little longer on this one. Takes a little more time to heal than usual. Because now Kara isn't the one in pain, it's Alex and Alex's heart isn't as flexible towards pain as Kara's is because through all this time of hers on this world she's just ignored it in favour of focusing on Kara's side but now that she's decided to read into them, try and notice them instead of over looking them like song titles in an overplayed album it's suddenly more prominent. Her sadness isn't muted anymore, quite the opposite, right now it seems like the loudest thing in the universe. It's a month later when Alex feels back to normal, she's lived without Maggie before, she can do it again. But it's different now because Maggie is that one wave that disrupts the equilibrium she'd carefully crafted to fit her life, she changes everything. Suddenly Alex can't laugh without thinking about how she'd be laughing too and every time someone knocks on her door she expects brown hair and brown eyes, someone impossible waiting to say hi. She thinks she's delusional when Maggie shows up two weeks later at her door step, thinks "/Maybe I've finally snapped./" But Maggie doesn't kiss her the way she's always imagined she would if the detective ever did show up. She just pushes past Alex to walk into her apartment like she owns the place and to be honest, if Maggie asked for the deed Alex probably wouldn't be able to resist. Even so, Alex doesn't say anything. Maggie finally turns around and Alex blurts out before she can stop herself "What are you doing here?" It's rude and crass and everything Eliza taught her not to be "We have a case," Maggie states, as though the fact is obvious "/Really/ now? I've yet to be informed by my superiors,"Alex says, and suddenly there it is, the cold unflinchingly professional tone Alex only brought out when her signature cold shoulder was called for. "Well your superiors don't talk to NCPD. You're my only contact at the DEO and you're not answering your phone." It's a pointed jab. A doctor piercing the needle in just the right place for a reaction. A pressure point mostly and Alex has to take a breath not to rise up to the bait "What is it this time?" She asks as she turns and walks further into the apartment "Homicide? Genocide? Mass murder? Hate crime?" She continues, all the questions filled with cynical undertone. However serious she was about solving these crimes and imprisoning the guilty, she was tired of all the gore and violence. It's all suddenly become a part of an exhausting, disgusting routine. "Kidnapping," Maggie says with a small frown that Alex refuses to acknowledge is cute "Why is this /our/ case then? Shouldn't the normal justice system be handling that?" Alex asks "Because it's a little girl, only /just/ registered after the Alien Amnesty Act. Why are you asking me this? If what they tell me is true, Supergirl fought to get the DEO on this case," Alex's eyes widen involuntarily "She did /what/?" Maggie looks puzzled at the confusion "The Government wants to prove that we, the NCPD can handle alien related affairs by ourselves but Supergirl caught wind of it, confronted the officials who were handing us the case and dropped your name to try and get on their good side," Alex hummed, the tiny noise somehow sounding disbelieving "They never told you this, did they? You saw this all happen, didn't you?" Alex asked, turning to look at Maggie. "Yes." Is the simple, one-worded answer and Alex knows she won't elaborate anymore, Alex can't guess why she's lying but talking to Maggie is hard, and yet confronting Maggie is even harder so she lets sleeping dogs lie. "Let me get ready," Alex says, and Maggie looks her up and down, long and thorough with her observation "You mean you're /not/ going out looking like this?" Alex is wearing pajamas and her hair is nowhere near as tamed and neat as it usually is and the bags under her eyes are probably big enough for a trip around the world. She doesn't look her best and she knows it. The words-they're teasing and playful, suddenly less serious than they were just a few moments ago. It's diversion, Maggie's way of saying "I don't want to talk about it" so Alex respects it, respects her and shakes her head in amusement "I was just going to get my gun, phone and wallet. I mean, I look so good with the 'woke up like this' vibe," Alex says sarcastically. Maggie smiles "Yeah, you do," and that's how Alex knows, -they're not okay, nowhere /near/ it, but they will be. One day, they will be.

[cedarrrun]

Try these yoga and meditation practices, digital detox tips, and more for overcoming mental blocks, enhancing focus, and awakening your imagination.

Here’s the fantasy: You step into your sacred workspace on a peaceful morning just before dawn, fully rested and ready for your uninterrupted date with the muse. You pick up your pen or paintbrush or guitar pick with optimism, and the words or lines or notes come rushing from your subconscious as creative inspiration flows through you like water.

The reality: If you’re lucky, you get a few good sentences down on the page, pick the colors that speak to you, or nail the first two measures of a new song. And then… nothing. Your smartphone pings, and you reach for it instinctively. Before you know it, you’re scrolling. The coffee you poured is cold. You’re hungry. Your cat is hungry. You should probably shower. Did you even brush your teeth yet?

The truth is, no matter how many times you start, stop, and start again, your creativity is never dependent on how much you produce in an hour, a day, or even a decade. Ingenuity and imagination are defining characteristics of the human experience. We are all creators, whether that creativity manifests traditionally as great works of art or discovery—or as quieter moments and expressions of imagination and inventiveness. We simply need to give ourselves permission to create and establish practices that help us find the time and the confidence to do so. Your yoga mat is a good place to start. Your practice will help you get out of your thinking, judging, procrastinating mind and into your body, where you can begin to move stuck energy and awaken the muse within.

See also The Ultimate Sequence to Work Through Your 7 Chakras

THE ART OF SELF-STUDY

Although creativity is often defined as a process that generates something novel and original, any creative endeavor requires us to cultivate a strong and sincere relationship with ourselves before we can begin to express any of that outwardly. According to psychologist Abraham Maslow, creativeness (his preferred term) is a necessary component of self-awareness and self-actualization. In The True Secret of Writing, author Natalie Goldberg writes, “underneath everything we long to know ourselves.” The ancient yogis say that’s precisely why we practice—to uncover the truths that lie beneath our judgments and fears. 

Yoga gives us the discipline (tapas) we need to keep showing up, even when we’ve hit a roadblock; the opportunity to examine the obstacles that get in the way of knowing our true Self (svadhyaya, or self-study); and the ability to let things unfold as they are meant to (Ishvara pranidhana).

GETTING INTO THE BODY

Nailing a Forearm Balance isn’t the most difficult element of a physical asana practice. No, it’s calming the so-called monkey mind and establishing a sense of contentment in Child’s Pose or surrender in Savasana. Navigating the emotional disease and discomfort that may arise when you’re in a posture and coming into stillness can provide the foundation for finding repose and acceptance when struggling through the not-so-Instagrammable creative block.

When you’re stuck, get on your mat, even if you aren’t in the mood. Feel your feet on the ground and begin to move, letting go of the need to do the pose perfectly. After a while, you may even find yourself in “the zone” or in “flow,” a space described by Hungarian-American psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi as a state of consciousness and total immersion in the moment, where all external sensory stimulation melts away. This renewed focus will propagate a greater appreciation for whatever it is that you’re doing. Afterward, you may emerge feeling more confident and energized.

WAKING UP THE MIND

Almost every person has an editor on their shoulder, scolding, tsking, and offering unsolicited advice. Learning to approach creative practice as ritual, much like you do other meditation or mindfulness practices, will give you plenty of tools to hush the critic and move past any creative resistance.

Opening your newly discovered toolbox, you’ll first find conscious breathing. Each full inhalation is an opportunity to create space, while each exhalation is an opportunity to explore that expansion. Breathing sends fresh oxygen to the brain, filling the control center of our bodily vessel with life-force energy to improve overall function, boost cellular activity, and wake us up.

See also Find Calm and Boost Your Immunity with These 9 Yogic Breathing Exercises

Next, you might find boredom. When your brain has all that life-force energy at its disposal, it’s awake and ready to create. In order to do that, however, it needs to be left to its own devices. Let your mind drift off into space. It may sound counterintuitive, but if necessity is the mother of invention, then boredom is the mother of creativity. In a 2019 study published by the London School of Economics Business Review, researchers Guihyun Park, Beng-Chong Lim, and Hui Si Oh found that boredom has a unique effect on creativity. Their research found that when people are bogged down with a mindless task, they encourage their brains to explore new patterns of thinking and problem-solving. This is similar to what happens when we sit quietly in contemplative inquiry—we’re embracing boredom.

Which leads us to meditation. Research shows that people who practiced both yoga and meditation have elevated levels of alpha brain waves, which boost creative thinking. Studies have shown participants’ brain waves became “rhythmic and orderly” as their minds settled into the practice. The solution for busting through a creative block, then, is simple: Move your body, free your mind from distraction, and the rest will follow. That doesn’t mean that doing some Sun Salutations will automatically invoke the muse. But yoga and meditation, as rituals, can help us find steadiness and stimulate the senses—not unlike keeping a gratitude journal or strolling around your neighborhood sans phone. It’s the disconnection and subsequent tapping in that work wonders for the creative process.

See also Start Your Day With This Energizing Morning Practice

Daily Ritual: Early Morning Freewriting

Do this exercise without expectation or the desire to achieve a certain outcome or goal.

No matter what your creative calling is, freewriting can help you loosen the grip of insecurity and get into the flow before your mind yields to the more pressing matters of the day. Wake up 10 minutes earlier than you normally would, grab your journal, and begin writing while still in bed. Write whatever comes to mind without worrying about whether it makes sense. Try this every day for at least a week, and notice whether the path to your creativity changes. Are you able to relax into the rhythm of your process at the end of the week more easily? Does inspiration come from new sources? It might be interesting to read over what you’ve written to see what surfaced—any surprises or insights into your creative process? If so, be sure to reread what you wrote to reflect on what helped get you there.

Weekly Ritual: A Creativity-Boosting Yoga Sequence

One of the biggest hurdles we face when creating—or practicing yoga—is learning how to get out of our own way and plug into the flow of the present moment. Whenever we’re lacking imagination, we can always come to the mat to move energy around and distill the chatter.

For a sequence that taps into the source energy of creativity, rousing the sacral chakra (svadhisthana) to channel the muse, try this asana practice for creativity. The poses in this sequence  also stimulate the throat chakra (visuddha) to hone authentic self-expression, open the heart chakra (anahata) to rekindle the flames of passion, activate the crown chakra (sahasrara) to awaken us to higher insight, and energize the solar plexus chakra (manipura) to increase motivation and confidence.

Monthly Ritual: Vision Boarding

A vision board physically identifies what it is you seek and acts as an intuitive road map to get you there, harnessing the powers of manifestation and the law of attraction. Olympic athletes use imagery and visualization techniques to focus in on what they aim to accomplish. These techniques help activate their senses in such a way that imagining their desired outcome gives them a greater chance of achieving them. Neuroscientific studies have proven the effectiveness of this approach.

On your own or with friends, gather a stack of magazines, photographs, and printouts, along with scissors and glue. Choose images that inspire you and align with your goals—what you wish to magnetize into your life. Cut out phrases or letters to string together your own affirmations or mantras, especially if you have limiting beliefs (think money, work, or your abilities). There is no wrong way to make a vision board, as long as you’re giving yourself permission to express your dreams in physical form. This is a great monthly manifestation exercise—particularly near a new moon, a moment that’s ripe for intention-setting. You can choose to make a new vision board each month or continue adding to what you’ve begun. This is your opportunity to flex your creative muscles and make something with your hands—if your inner artist is inspired, you'll know you're on the right track.

See also The Intention-Activating Power of a Daily Ritual

Ongoing Ritual: Media Detox

The addictive 24-hour news cycle can inhibit your imagination’s ability to flourish. Consider what may be blocking you: listening to the radio or podcasts on your commute, scrolling through news feeds, or using the TV for background noise. Create parameters around screen time and audio disruptions by designating technology-free hours.

Then pay close attention to the moments when you feel compelled to fill the void with noise or other stimulation. Is being alone with your thoughts uncomfortable? Take note of those feelings without judgment—and then watch how your mind begins to replace them. Keep a note-book nearby, and write down the random thoughts that float to the surface. Try drawing a picture or coloring to fight off the urge. Over time, notice how your creative process transforms in the absence of outside distraction.

See also 7 Ways to Disconnect from Tech—& Joyfully Do Nothing

The Yoga Almanac by Lisette Cheresson and Andrea Rice

Sections of this piece appear in The Yoga Almanac, March 2020, New Harbinger Publications. Reprinted with permission: New Harbinger Publications, Inc. © 2020 Lisette Cheresson & Andrea Rice

Additional reporting by Linda Sparrowe.

[krisiunicornio]

Try these yoga and meditation practices, digital detox tips, and more for overcoming mental blocks, enhancing focus, and awakening your imagination.

Here’s the fantasy: You step into your sacred workspace on a peaceful morning just before dawn, fully rested and ready for your uninterrupted date with the muse. You pick up your pen or paintbrush or guitar pick with optimism, and the words or lines or notes come rushing from your subconscious as creative inspiration flows through you like water.

The reality: If you’re lucky, you get a few good sentences down on the page, pick the colors that speak to you, or nail the first two measures of a new song. And then… nothing. Your smartphone pings, and you reach for it instinctively. Before you know it, you’re scrolling. The coffee you poured is cold. You’re hungry. Your cat is hungry. You should probably shower. Did you even brush your teeth yet?

The truth is, no matter how many times you start, stop, and start again, your creativity is never dependent on how much you produce in an hour, a day, or even a decade. Ingenuity and imagination are defining characteristics of the human experience. We are all creators, whether that creativity manifests traditionally as great works of art or discovery—or as quieter moments and expressions of imagination and inventiveness. We simply need to give ourselves permission to create and establish practices that help us find the time and the confidence to do so. Your yoga mat is a good place to start. Your practice will help you get out of your thinking, judging, procrastinating mind and into your body, where you can begin to move stuck energy and awaken the muse within.

See also The Ultimate Sequence to Work Through Your 7 Chakras

THE ART OF SELF-STUDY

Although creativity is often defined as a process that generates something novel and original, any creative endeavor requires us to cultivate a strong and sincere relationship with ourselves before we can begin to express any of that outwardly. According to psychologist Abraham Maslow, creativeness (his preferred term) is a necessary component of self-awareness and self-actualization. In The True Secret of Writing, author Natalie Goldberg writes, “underneath everything we long to know ourselves.” The ancient yogis say that’s precisely why we practice—to uncover the truths that lie beneath our judgments and fears. 

Yoga gives us the discipline (tapas) we need to keep showing up, even when we’ve hit a roadblock; the opportunity to examine the obstacles that get in the way of knowing our true Self (svadhyaya, or self-study); and the ability to let things unfold as they are meant to (Ishvara pranidhana).

GETTING INTO THE BODY

Nailing a Forearm Balance isn’t the most difficult element of a physical asana practice. No, it’s calming the so-called monkey mind and establishing a sense of contentment in Child’s Pose or surrender in Savasana. Navigating the emotional disease and discomfort that may arise when you’re in a posture and coming into stillness can provide the foundation for finding repose and acceptance when struggling through the not-so-Instagrammable creative block.

When you’re stuck, get on your mat, even if you aren’t in the mood. Feel your feet on the ground and begin to move, letting go of the need to do the pose perfectly. After a while, you may even find yourself in “the zone” or in “flow,” a space described by Hungarian-American psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi as a state of consciousness and total immersion in the moment, where all external sensory stimulation melts away. This renewed focus will propagate a greater appreciation for whatever it is that you’re doing. Afterward, you may emerge feeling more confident and energized.

WAKING UP THE MIND

Almost every person has an editor on their shoulder, scolding, tsking, and offering unsolicited advice. Learning to approach creative practice as ritual, much like you do other meditation or mindfulness practices, will give you plenty of tools to hush the critic and move past any creative resistance.

Opening your newly discovered toolbox, you’ll first find conscious breathing. Each full inhalation is an opportunity to create space, while each exhalation is an opportunity to explore that expansion. Breathing sends fresh oxygen to the brain, filling the control center of our bodily vessel with life-force energy to improve overall function, boost cellular activity, and wake us up.

See also Find Calm and Boost Your Immunity with These 9 Yogic Breathing Exercises

Next, you might find boredom. When your brain has all that life-force energy at its disposal, it’s awake and ready to create. In order to do that, however, it needs to be left to its own devices. Let your mind drift off into space. It may sound counterintuitive, but if necessity is the mother of invention, then boredom is the mother of creativity. In a 2019 study published by the London School of Economics Business Review, researchers Guihyun Park, Beng-Chong Lim, and Hui Si Oh found that boredom has a unique effect on creativity. Their research found that when people are bogged down with a mindless task, they encourage their brains to explore new patterns of thinking and problem-solving. This is similar to what happens when we sit quietly in contemplative inquiry—we’re embracing boredom.

Which leads us to meditation. Research shows that people who practiced both yoga and meditation have elevated levels of alpha brain waves, which boost creative thinking. Studies have shown participants’ brain waves became “rhythmic and orderly” as their minds settled into the practice. The solution for busting through a creative block, then, is simple: Move your body, free your mind from distraction, and the rest will follow. That doesn’t mean that doing some Sun Salutations will automatically invoke the muse. But yoga and meditation, as rituals, can help us find steadiness and stimulate the senses—not unlike keeping a gratitude journal or strolling around your neighborhood sans phone. It’s the disconnection and subsequent tapping in that work wonders for the creative process.

See also Start Your Day With This Energizing Morning Practice

Daily Ritual: Early Morning Freewriting

Do this exercise without expectation or the desire to achieve a certain outcome or goal.

No matter what your creative calling is, freewriting can help you loosen the grip of insecurity and get into the flow before your mind yields to the more pressing matters of the day. Wake up 10 minutes earlier than you normally would, grab your journal, and begin writing while still in bed. Write whatever comes to mind without worrying about whether it makes sense. Try this every day for at least a week, and notice whether the path to your creativity changes. Are you able to relax into the rhythm of your process at the end of the week more easily? Does inspiration come from new sources? It might be interesting to read over what you’ve written to see what surfaced—any surprises or insights into your creative process? If so, be sure to reread what you wrote to reflect on what helped get you there.

Weekly Ritual: A Creativity-Boosting Yoga Sequence

One of the biggest hurdles we face when creating—or practicing yoga—is learning how to get out of our own way and plug into the flow of the present moment. Whenever we’re lacking imagination, we can always come to the mat to move energy around and distill the chatter.

For a sequence that taps into the source energy of creativity, rousing the sacral chakra (svadhisthana) to channel the muse, try this asana practice for creativity. The poses in this sequence  also stimulate the throat chakra (visuddha) to hone authentic self-expression, open the heart chakra (anahata) to rekindle the flames of passion, activate the crown chakra (sahasrara) to awaken us to higher insight, and energize the solar plexus chakra (manipura) to increase motivation and confidence.

Monthly Ritual: Vision Boarding

A vision board physically identifies what it is you seek and acts as an intuitive road map to get you there, harnessing the powers of manifestation and the law of attraction. Olympic athletes use imagery and visualization techniques to focus in on what they aim to accomplish. These techniques help activate their senses in such a way that imagining their desired outcome gives them a greater chance of achieving them. Neuroscientific studies have proven the effectiveness of this approach.

On your own or with friends, gather a stack of magazines, photographs, and printouts, along with scissors and glue. Choose images that inspire you and align with your goals—what you wish to magnetize into your life. Cut out phrases or letters to string together your own affirmations or mantras, especially if you have limiting beliefs (think money, work, or your abilities). There is no wrong way to make a vision board, as long as you’re giving yourself permission to express your dreams in physical form. This is a great monthly manifestation exercise—particularly near a new moon, a moment that’s ripe for intention-setting. You can choose to make a new vision board each month or continue adding to what you’ve begun. This is your opportunity to flex your creative muscles and make something with your hands—if your inner artist is inspired, you'll know you're on the right track.

See also The Intention-Activating Power of a Daily Ritual

Ongoing Ritual: Media Detox

The addictive 24-hour news cycle can inhibit your imagination’s ability to flourish. Consider what may be blocking you: listening to the radio or podcasts on your commute, scrolling through news feeds, or using the TV for background noise. Create parameters around screen time and audio disruptions by designating technology-free hours.

Then pay close attention to the moments when you feel compelled to fill the void with noise or other stimulation. Is being alone with your thoughts uncomfortable? Take note of those feelings without judgment—and then watch how your mind begins to replace them. Keep a note-book nearby, and write down the random thoughts that float to the surface. Try drawing a picture or coloring to fight off the urge. Over time, notice how your creative process transforms in the absence of outside distraction.

See also 7 Ways to Disconnect from Tech—& Joyfully Do Nothing

The Yoga Almanac by Lisette Cheresson and Andrea Rice

Sections of this piece appear in The Yoga Almanac, March 2020, New Harbinger Publications. Reprinted with permission: New Harbinger Publications, Inc. © 2020 Lisette Cheresson & Andrea Rice

Additional reporting by Linda Sparrowe.