“I tend to agree with Felix Salmon’s verdict that Bitcoin would be better off if it had been “designed to be used primarily as a payments mechanism, rather than as a store of value and a unit of speculation.” (The 21-million-coin limit seems like the most obvious flaw in this regard.) But I also know that nobody really knows what the right currency for this networked, globalized age will be. It’ll take experimentation, trial and error, and the occasional financial bubble to get us there.”

Building a Better Bitcoin - Justin Fox - Harvard Business Review
Soundings: A Contemporary Score August 10–November 3, 2013 MoMA’s first major exhibition of sound art presents work by 16 of the most innovative contemporary artists working with sound. While these artists approach sound from a variety of disciplinary angles—the visual arts, architecture, performance, computer programming, and music—they share an interest in working with, rather than against or independent of, material realities and environments. These artistic responses range from architectural interventions, to visualizations of otherwise inaudible sound, to an exploration of how sound ricochets within a gallery, to a range of field recordings—including echolocating bats, abandoned buildings in Chernobyl, 59 bells in New York City, and a sugar factory in Taiwan. The diversity of these works reflects a complex and nuanced field. Yet the exhibition posits something specific: that how we listen determines what we hear. Indeed, the works provoke and evoke—both in the maker and the museumgoer—modes of active listening, and a heightened relationship between interior and exterior space. At a time when personal listening devices and tailored playlists have become ubiquitous, shared aural spaces are increasingly rare. Many of the artists in the exhibition aim for such realities, and the sound they create is decidedly social, immersing visitors and connecting them in space. In many of the works, links are drawn between disparate topographies and subjects, giving rise to new understanding and experiences. The artists in the exhibition are Luke Fowler (Scottish, b. 1978), Toshiya Tsunoda (Japanese, b. 1964), Marco Fusinato (Australian, b. 1964), Richard Garet (Uruguayan, b. 1972), Florian Hecker (German, b. 1975), Christine Sun Kim (American, b. 1980), Jacob Kirkegaard (Danish, b. 1975), Haroon Mirza (British, b. 1977), Carsten Nicolai (German, b. 1965), Camille Norment (American, b. 1970), Tristan Perich (American, b. 1982), Susan Philipsz (Scottish, b. 1965), Sergei Tcherepnin (American, b. 1981), Hong-Kai Wang (Taiwanese, b. 1971), Jana Winderen (Norwegian, b. 1965), and Stephen Vitiello (American, b. 1964). (via MoMA | Soundings: A Contemporary Score)

Soundings: A Contemporary Score

August 10–November 3, 2013

MoMA’s first major exhibition of sound art presents work by 16 of the most innovative contemporary artists working with sound. While these artists approach sound from a variety of disciplinary angles—the visual arts, architecture, performance, computer programming, and music—they share an interest in working with, rather than against or independent of, material realities and environments. These artistic responses range from architectural interventions, to visualizations of otherwise inaudible sound, to an exploration of how sound ricochets within a gallery, to a range of field recordings—including echolocating bats, abandoned buildings in Chernobyl, 59 bells in New York City, and a sugar factory in Taiwan.

The diversity of these works reflects a complex and nuanced field. Yet the exhibition posits something specific: that how we listen determines what we hear. Indeed, the works provoke and evoke—both in the maker and the museumgoer—modes of active listening, and a heightened relationship between interior and exterior space. At a time when personal listening devices and tailored playlists have become ubiquitous, shared aural spaces are increasingly rare. Many of the artists in the exhibition aim for such realities, and the sound they create is decidedly social, immersing visitors and connecting them in space. In many of the works, links are drawn between disparate topographies and subjects, giving rise to new understanding and experiences.

The artists in the exhibition are Luke Fowler (Scottish, b. 1978), Toshiya Tsunoda (Japanese, b. 1964), Marco Fusinato (Australian, b. 1964), Richard Garet (Uruguayan, b. 1972), Florian Hecker (German, b. 1975), Christine Sun Kim (American, b. 1980), Jacob Kirkegaard (Danish, b. 1975), Haroon Mirza (British, b. 1977), Carsten Nicolai (German, b. 1965), Camille Norment (American, b. 1970), Tristan Perich (American, b. 1982), Susan Philipsz (Scottish, b. 1965), Sergei Tcherepnin (American, b. 1981), Hong-Kai Wang (Taiwanese, b. 1971), Jana Winderen (Norwegian, b. 1965), and Stephen Vitiello (American, b. 1964). (via MoMA | Soundings: A Contemporary Score)

“A unique public-private partnership that joined gut-level police acumen with advanced computer algorithms is proceeding toward two goals that rarely coincide: The policing system is making New York safer and it will also make money for the city, which is marketing it to other jurisdictions. Buyers would pay to access the software (at least several million dollars and more depending on the size of the jurisdiction and whether specifications have to be customized). New York City will receive 30 percent of the gross revenues from the sale of the system and access to any innovations developed for new customers. The revenue will be directed to counterterrorism and crime prevention programs.”

The Domain Surveillance System is New York’s economic incentive for extraterritorial crime precognition.

New York City’s Police Surveillance Technology Could Bring In Money - NYTimes.com

A few days ago, the value of all the bitcoins in the world blew past $1 billion for the first time ever. That’s an impressive achievement, for a purely virtual currency backed by no central bank or other authority. It’s also temporary: we’re in the middle of a bitcoin bubble right now, and it’s only a matter of time before the bubble bursts. There are a couple of reasons why the bubble is sure to burst. The first is just that it’s a bubble, and any chart which looks like the one at the top of this post is bound to end in tears at some point. But there’s a deeper reason, too — which is that bitcoins are an uncomfortable combination of commodity and currency. The commodity value of bitcoins is rooted in their currency value, but the more of a commodity they become, the less useful they are as a currency. Still, it’s worth taking a look behind the bitcoin bubble, because there are fascinating implications for anybody who cares about payments, or currencies, or trust. (via The Bitcoin Bubble and the Future of Currency — Money & Banking — Medium) High-res

A few days ago, the value of all the bitcoins in the world blew past $1 billion for the first time ever. That’s an impressive achievement, for a purely virtual currency backed by no central bank or other authority. It’s also temporary: we’re in the middle of a bitcoin bubble right now, and it’s only a matter of time before the bubble bursts.

There are a couple of reasons why the bubble is sure to burst. The first is just that it’s a bubble, and any chart which looks like the one at the top of this post is bound to end in tears at some point. But there’s a deeper reason, too — which is that bitcoins are an uncomfortable combination of commodity and currency. The commodity value of bitcoins is rooted in their currency value, but the more of a commodity they become, the less useful they are as a currency.

Still, it’s worth taking a look behind the bitcoin bubble, because there are fascinating implications for anybody who cares about payments, or currencies, or trust.

(via The Bitcoin Bubble and the Future of Currency — Money & Banking — Medium)

The Trojan Bar is a transportable big wooden box with the dimensions of 180x73x118 cm that reveals at a certain moment, with mechanisms, lights and shelves which expand to provide full functionality as a micro-bar, more exactly as a Bar in the bar, or bar in the restaurant. The Trojan Bar comes from a commission of the Finnish chef Antto Melasniemi in the frame of GMBH.fi to design a kind of transportable element to put into restaurants or bars, temporary or permanent, providing a kind of parasite alternative to the context in which is embedded. This “Barschrank” intend to be a kind of silent box, like the Trojan horse, which in a certain relevant moment unfolds to act as a bar. (via Marti Guixe - guixe.com - PROJECTS | The Trojan Bar)

The Trojan Bar is a transportable big wooden box with the dimensions of 180x73x118 cm that reveals at a certain moment, with mechanisms, lights and shelves which expand to provide full functionality as a micro-bar, more exactly as a Bar in the bar, or bar in the restaurant. The Trojan Bar comes from a commission of the Finnish chef Antto Melasniemi in the frame of GMBH.fi to design a kind of transportable element to put into restaurants or bars, temporary or permanent, providing a kind of parasite alternative to the context in which is embedded. This “Barschrank” intend to be a kind of silent box, like the Trojan horse, which in a certain relevant moment unfolds to act as a bar. (via Marti Guixe - guixe.com - PROJECTS | The Trojan Bar)

If two junior Navy officers have their way, the warships of the future will be floating factories that create everything from food to robots and spare parts — all thanks to 3-D printers. Shipyards will use them on a vast scale. And when the ships need more raw materials, they’ll link up with “biomining” ships that harvest raw materials from the sea. That’s the concept, at least, from Navy lieutenants Scott Cheney-Peters and Matthew Hipple. Writing inProceedings, the influential journal of the U.S. Naval Institute, the pair write that the growth of 3-D printing machines could change almost everything about how the Navy builds stuff “through the design and construction of ships, submarines, aircraft, and everything carried on board.” On a smaller scale, they write that 3-D printers could change the way the Navy handles logistics and the way it produces tools, components and supplies for its ships. At its most radical, they envision a Navy that integrates 3-D printing into everything, including shipyards that use the machines to construct ships, and “biomining” harvesters that suck magnesium from the sea for use in electronics. Other concepts include putting 3-D printers on hospital ships for printing medical tools and replacement limbs. Need Ships? Try a 3-D Printed Navy High-res

If two junior Navy officers have their way, the warships of the future will be floating factories that create everything from food to robots and spare parts — all thanks to 3-D printers. Shipyards will use them on a vast scale. And when the ships need more raw materials, they’ll link up with “biomining” ships that harvest raw materials from the sea.

That’s the concept, at least, from Navy lieutenants Scott Cheney-Peters and Matthew Hipple. Writing inProceedings, the influential journal of the U.S. Naval Institute, the pair write that the growth of 3-D printing machines could change almost everything about how the Navy builds stuff “through the design and construction of ships, submarines, aircraft, and everything carried on board.”

On a smaller scale, they write that 3-D printers could change the way the Navy handles logistics and the way it produces tools, components and supplies for its ships. At its most radical, they envision a Navy that integrates 3-D printing into everything, including shipyards that use the machines to construct ships, and “biomining” harvesters that suck magnesium from the sea for use in electronics. Other concepts include putting 3-D printers on hospital ships for printing medical tools and replacement limbs.

Need Ships? Try a 3-D Printed Navy

thedreadexhibition: Electrosensitivity: is technology killing us? Is modern life making us ill? Yes, say those who suffer from electrosensitivity. Are they cranks, or should we all be throwing away our mobile phones? Tim is trying to escape atmospheric manmade radiation caused by Wi-Fi, phone signals, radio, even TV screens and fluorescent bulbs. It’s a hopeless task, he admits: “It’s so hard to get away from, and it’s taken a toll on my life.” I offer to put my phone outside the room and he happily accepts, firmly closing the door. He explains the phone would have kept searching for a signal. “And because it wouldn’t find one, it would keep ramping up.” With the tinfoil inside his cage, the signal would hurtle around the room like a panicked bird. (via Electrosensitivity: is technology killing us? | Society | The Guardian) One for Warren Ellis and Sarah van Sonsbeeck: “Tim is trying to escape atmospheric manmade radiation caused by Wi-Fi, phone signals, radio, even TV screens and fluorescent bulbs. It’s a hopeless task, he admits: “It’s so hard to get away from, and it’s taken a toll on my life.” I offer to put my phone outside the room and he happily accepts, firmly closing the door. He explains the phone would have kept searching for a signal. “And because it wouldn’t find one, it would keep ramping up.” With the tinfoil inside his cage, the signal would hurtle around the room like a panicked bird.”

thedreadexhibition:

Electrosensitivity: is technology killing us?

Is modern life making us ill? Yes, say those who suffer from electrosensitivity. Are they cranks, or should we all be throwing away our mobile phones?

Tim is trying to escape atmospheric manmade radiation caused by Wi-Fi, phone signals, radio, even TV screens and fluorescent bulbs. It’s a hopeless task, he admits: “It’s so hard to get away from, and it’s taken a toll on my life.” I offer to put my phone outside the room and he happily accepts, firmly closing the door. He explains the phone would have kept searching for a signal. “And because it wouldn’t find one, it would keep ramping up.” With the tinfoil inside his cage, the signal would hurtle around the room like a panicked bird.

(via Electrosensitivity: is technology killing us? | Society | The Guardian)

One for Warren Ellis and Sarah van Sonsbeeck: “Tim is trying to escape atmospheric manmade radiation caused by Wi-Fi, phone signals, radio, even TV screens and fluorescent bulbs. It’s a hopeless task, he admits: “It’s so hard to get away from, and it’s taken a toll on my life.” I offer to put my phone outside the room and he happily accepts, firmly closing the door. He explains the phone would have kept searching for a signal. “And because it wouldn’t find one, it would keep ramping up.” With the tinfoil inside his cage, the signal would hurtle around the room like a panicked bird.”

Track

SAVE THE TANK Bruce Odland Interview for SoundCloud

soundcloud:

Save The Tank | Bruce Odland

The Tank is an acoustic marvel: a 60 feet tall, 30 feet wide, rusted steel water tank in the middle of the dirt hills outside Rangely, Colorado. Its reverberation is longer and richer than the Taj Mahal or the Great Pyramid. But it’s on the edge of decay. And SoundClouder Bruce Odland wants to save it.

Bruce has launched a Kickstarter campaign to preserve The Tank so that it can be enjoyed by sound lovers for years to come. Learn more and help him reach his fundraising goal.

Only 37 hours left and almost there: Save the Tank is at 97.25% of its $42,000 goal.

Scientists at Stanford University today announced they have created a new type of transistor, the most basic part of a computer (and almost all other modern electronics), that is made entirely using genetic material, and works inside of living bacteria. The new biological transistor is actually better than its inorganic counterpart in some ways, according to the researchers, who say their device will be able to help build fully functioning computers within the cells of living organisms — plants and animals alike — in the future. Their full findings appear today in the journal Science. (via Scientists develop biological transistor that can command living cells | The Verge) High-res

Scientists at Stanford University today announced they have created a new type of transistor, the most basic part of a computer (and almost all other modern electronics), that is made entirely using genetic material, and works inside of living bacteria. The new biological transistor is actually better than its inorganic counterpart in some ways, according to the researchers, who say their device will be able to help build fully functioning computers within the cells of living organisms — plants and animals alike — in the future. Their full findings appear today in the journal Science.

(via Scientists develop biological transistor that can command living cells | The Verge)