Monday, April 18
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If Ray Kurzweil has his way, we’ll need to start Crisis Mapping this thing right away.
Monday, April 180
If Ray Kurzweil has his way, we’ll need to start Crisis Mapping this thing right away.
I’ve spent quite a bit of time in San Francisco lately. It’s an amazing city.
Back in the mid-90′s I started a company with several friends called IRdg (Intergalactic Research and Development Group). One of the other company founders was a guy named Mike. I hadn’t seen Mike in many years and recently re-connected with him in San Francisco during the Random Hacks of Kindness event I helped organize. I also found out that he had recently moved out of the city proper because of the “homeless problem”.
Mind you, Mike was a guy who lived out of his car when he first moved to California, and is one of the most unassuming people I know…so to hear him talk about leaving the city because of the “homeless problem?”…well, it was a bit of a surprise. He underscored his point as he led 12 or so of the RHoK SF hackers on an impromptu Sunday afternoon field trip down 6th street near Mission, passing block after block of impoverished, homeless and street people. I never felt threatened, but this wasn’t something I had experienced before.
California (and San Francisco, in particular), has been lauded for their progressive social programs. It certainly seems they are overwhelmed with this issue. According to the SF Chronicle: “The city spends $200 million a year trying to get homeless people off the streets and into a better way of life – but over 20 years, the problem has only gotten worse.
The more able of the homeless find their way into shelters, counseling and housing programs. But the most chronically indigent, called the hard core, steadfastly refuse most help and stay outside. These 3,000 to 5,000 homeless at the very bottom are the most visible, and they give the city its dubious distinction of having what many call the worst homeless problem in the country.” The SF Gate has much more on the subject: San Francisco Homeless.
Orlando has had its share of challenges with homelessness. Anyone who lives or works downtown knows it’s an ongoing issue. If you can track it down, the Orlando-made documentary film, “My Father’s Son” is an excellent look at the sometimes complex reasons why some people prefer to live on the edges of “modern society” rather than be a part of it (the soundtrack includes music from several well-known Orlando bands).
I met Mark Horvath (@hardlynormal) last year at the 140 Characters conference. Mark used to be homeless, and now he brings attention to the issue through his site Invisible People:
Absent father, separated from his mother at an early age, unstable moods, unstable interpersonal relationships, dysfunctional experiences of self and others, dissociative episodes, difficulty controlling his anger, drastic shifts in identity….
Infantile illusions of omnipotence.
Sound like someone you know?
It affects 2 percent of adults (mostly young women).
It’s called borderline personality disorder, and Dr. Gupta says Vader has it: What is Darth Vader’s diagnosis? – Paging Dr. Gupta – CNN.com Blogs.
David Brang of the department of psychology at the University of California, San Diego asked 183 students to visualize the months of the year and construct this representation on a computer screen.
Four months later the students were shown a blank screen and asked to select a position for each of the months. They were prompted with a cue month – a randomly selected month placed as a dot in the location where the student had originally placed it.
Uncannily, four of the 183 students were found to be time-space synaesthetes when they placed their months in a distinct spatial array – such as a circle – that was consistent over the trials.
Time Lords discovered in California – life – 01 April 2010 – New Scientist.
Female water striders don’t like the bad boys and they don’t even have to reach the age of 30 before they wise up about choices in males.
Water striders are those insects commonly seen skittering hurriedly across the surface of streams but when it comes to romance, male water striders who played it cool mated with more females than did groups of aggressive males, according to a study led by Omar Tonsi Eldakar of the University of Arizona’s Arizona Research Laboratories.
Previous studies have found that more sexually aggressive males are the most successful at reproducing, said Eldakar, now a postdoctoral research associate in UA’s Center for Insect Science, but in the previous studies he says the females were not able to leave areas populated by sexually aggressive males.
By simulating a more natural situation, the current study showed that female water striders moved away from areas where they were being harassed by males. The females preferred to hang out in locations where the males did not pursue females relentlessly.
Tomorrow is the anniversary of the Jonestown mass suicide. For no apparent reason (other than morbid curiosity), I was looking at the Wikipedia entry for this and ended up looking at other cases of mass suicides, which then led me to an entry on mass hysteria.
That’s when I saw something called…I kid you not…”Penis Panic.”
In Philip K. Dick’s novel, “Do Andriods Dream of Electric Sheep” (the book on which the film “Blade Runner” was based), technology has advanced to the point that humans can build very realistic-looking (and acting) synthetic animals and androids. Some of the androids escape and walk among the human population undetected, which is against the law. The main character, Rick Deckard, is a bounty hunter who is charged with hunting down rogue androids and, um, “retiring” them.
In the novel, the latest and greatest androids are practically indistinguishable from humans in any way. No white-blooded Data-skin R2-D2 droids here, Deckard is a one-man death panel and has to ensure they are NOT humans before he can, gulp, “retire” them. Which leads the book to explores the issue: What does it mean to be human? It drills to the very core of human thoughts, emotions, religion and morality.
Unlike humans, the androids possess no empathic sense. They have no emotions at all, and some are not even aware they’re NOT human. This makes for some interesting reading, which is probably one reason why Philip K. Dick’s writings were the basis of Blade Runner, Total Recall, Minority Report, Paycheck and many other films. He’s got the steak and the sizzle.
So how do you tell if someone has no empathy? You have them watch something like this and you watch them very carefully for empathetic reactions:
If they didn’t start crying, they’re most likely a robot.
Desiderata (Latin meaning “desired things”)
by Max Ehrman
Go placidly amid the noise and haste,
and remember what peace there may be in silence.
As far as possible, without surrender, be on good terms with all persons.
Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others,
even to the dull and ignorant; they too have their story.
Avoid loud and aggressive persons, they are vexations to the spirit.
If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain and bitter,
for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.
Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.
Keep interested in your own career, however humble;
it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.
Exercise caution in your business affairs,
for the world is full of trickery.
But let this not blind you to what virtue there is;
many persons strive for high ideals,
and everywhere life is full of heroism.
Be yourself. Especially do not feign affection.
Neither be cynical about love;
for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment
it is as perennial as the grass.
Take kindly the counsel of the years,
gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.
But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings.
Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.
Beyond a wholesome discipline, be gentle with yourself.
You are a child of the universe no less than the trees and the stars;
you have a right to be here. And whether or not it is clear to you,
no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.
Therefore be at peace with God, whatever you conceive Him to be.
And whatever your labors and aspirations,
in the noisy confusion of life, keep peace with your soul.
With all its sham, drudgery and broken dreams,
it is still a beautiful world.
Be cheerful. Strive to be happy.
Approximate Illustration
I just want to say FOR THE RECORD, that I didn’t buy this book. A certain Pirate Fembot left it at my house while she is out sailing the high seas. The book is called The Game and it’s about picking up chicks and is a prime example of why this particular Pirate Fembot is a menace. Fortunately she never reads my blog so I can say whatever I want about her and she’ll never even notice.
Amazingly, this girl is like 10x smarter than everyone around her. That’s partly because she’s a heartless robot. But it’s also partly because she spends her time reading bestselling non-fiction books on the secrets of pickup artists. For six months this book has been sitting in my living room and I’ve only picked it up long enough to wipe under it.
Until today.
Before today I’d never even heard of Neil Strauss. I’d never heard of his book, “The Game” (despite its apparent new home in my living room).
So today I started reading it. And it’s got some really good info in it.
Stuff you would never ever want a crafty Pirate Fembot to know.
I’ve always loved performing magic. I’ve never been particularly impressed with the big Vegas illusion kind of magic…I like the Harry Anderson street magic. Cons, Coins, Cards…pocket magic. I never have given it nearly as much practice at it takes to be good. But I’ve read a magic book or two.
The Game is kinda presented like a magic book. It’s very matter-of-fact, it has diagrams, and terms like selecting a target (or a mark). But instead of dealing with how to make people think you just read their mind, it’s about the practicality of meeting people….specifically girls.
How you present yourself, how you speak, the clothes you wear…all the things that actually make up “YOU”…are dealt with. As are, the things you say, how much you listen, what to listen for, and some actual tricks…ahem…techniques to achieve your goals with members of the opposite sex….whatever they may be. Maybe you’re looking to get laid, maybe you’re just looking for someone to hang out with…whatever.
None of this information, whatsoever, will help me solve this Pirate Fembot issue. If she knows all the stuff in this book, she’s probably already been reverse using it on me.
Wait…I’m just assuming she read it. Maybe she just wants me to THINK she’s read it? BLARG! This is the kind of trickery that Pirate Fembots are known for! They trick you and then they steal your booty.
Why? Because that’s why Pirate Fembots do.
She’s out there, men. Beware.
