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Posted: Saturday, September 29, 2007

Top x Lists do NOT = Good


I have become dissolutioned with Top x lists, 90% of the time they are bad. Reasons for Top x lists sucking can be that the lists are common sense, hard to put into practise, unoriginal or just a gimmick to get you to read an article. An example of a Top x List which does NOT suck is this Top 50 list I came across via digg:

The Top 50 Dystopian Movies Of All Time.

Nineteen Eighty Four

Reading this list made me realise that this is my favourite genre of movie, movies set in a dystopian future. Here is a description from the article about what the Dystopian genre encompasses.
Massive dehumanization, totalitarian government, rampant disease, post-apocalyptic terrains, cyber-genetic technologies, societal chaos and widespread urban violence are some of the common themes in dystopian films which bravely examine the ominous shadow cast by future.

A dystopia is a fictional society that is the antithesis or complete opposite of a utopia, an ideal world with a perfect social, political and technological infrastructure. A world without chaos, strife or hunger. A world where the individual potential and freedom is celebrated and brought to the forefront.

In contrast, the dystopian world is undesirable with poverty and unequal domination by specific individuals over others. Dystopian films often construct a fictional universe and set it in a background which features scenarios such as dehumanizing technological advancements, man-made disasters or class-based revolutions.


This is so the type of film I love.
Here are the films in the list which I already LOVE along with the number they came in at.

  • 48. Starship Troopers (1997)

  • 45. Idiocracy (2006)

  • 41. Soylent Green (1973)

  • 39. Nineteen Eighty-Four (1984)

  • 29. Total Recall (1990)

  • 26. Fahrenheit 451 (1966)

  • 19. RoboCop (1987)

  • 18. Battle Royale (2000)

  • 7. The Matrix (1999)

  • 5. Blade Runner (1982)

  • 2. A Clockwork Orange (1971)


All other films in the list which look like they might be good I have written down and will watch.

Here are some announcements. I think I will devote a section of my home page to announcements like these.

  • Season 4 of The Office (U.S.) has started

    I watched the first episode today and It was sooooooo good, so damn funny, one of my favourites so far.

  • Season 2 of Heroes has started

    If you didn't know already, Heroes - Season 2 has started.

  • Website which records the software you use :)

    Wakoopa is like last.fm but for programs. Kind of a cool idea perhaps. I signed up today, here is my profile: http://wakoopa.com/n8kowald

  • Homebrew for Nintendo DS Lite


    I found out tonight through my friend Craig that you can "homebrew" (so to speak) your Nintendo DS Lite. Details and Purchasing Info here: http://www.amazon.co.uk/R4-DS-2Gb-Micro-Card/dp/B000RWSE5Y.
    It works out to be about $100AUD for the homebrew card plus a 2gb mini sd card which is used to put all your games onto. $80 with the 1gb mini sd card. I am so getting this next pay, if they ship to AUS that is. :) Thanks Craig!



Thoughts
- I have not laughed at a cleverly worded album title in ages, I think that cleverly worded album titles are not clever or funny anymore. I wince every time I see one nowadays.

- I really hate those sales people who stand out the front of the Myer centre foodcourt/level 1 escalators. They make me feel very uncomfortable. Hello sir, do you have a moment? Ughhhhh. I put them in the same category as drunk aboriginal men who approach you then ask for $2 for a bus ticket. I am going to buy a few single trips for the next time I get approached by one of these gentlemen. He will ask, I will reach for my wallet and tell him I can do him one better and will hand him a bus ticket. Imagine his elation when he finds out that he does not have to change in my money for a ticket but can have a ticket straight away. We will both walk away happy.

- I am not often approached by these types of sales people because I do not fit the profile of someone who will likely appreciate being stopped and offered a "very competitive rate on a credit card".
I was thinking the other day that my days of being treated differently have come to a halt. Let me explain this in more detail.
I first started working at the age of 15. I was working at Coles Supermarket as a checkout operator. I was an awkward teenager and was treated accordingly by my co-workers and customers, not in a bad way or in a derogatory sense, just did not get the respect that say an "adult" received. One year later as I developed from a boy into more of a man (hah) I noticed that all the older ladies at work started treating me better. They wanted my opinion, they looked at me respectfully, they got me to help them lift things or do "manly tasks". I remember this period distinctly. I liked it. This is the sort of thing I mean when I say my days of being treated differently have come to a halt.
From about 22 - now (24 & 3/4) I have not been treated any differently. I hardly ever get "carded" anymore. It seems I am taken as a responsible adult by people I come in contact with, which is great.
I was thinking the other day as I felt uneasy walking past one of these sales people that maybe when I am about 30 and dress more like an adult and look like I have a mortgage and 2 children, then I will be approached by these types of people. I wonder what else will change? I know that to a certain extent you are treated according to how old you look and can't wait to see how differently I will get treated the older I get.


Pictures that have made me Laugh Recently







I am feeling tired now so will stop typing.


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Posted by Nathan Kowald @ 7:36 PM

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Posted: Saturday, September 22, 2007

Humans Are Wired To Notice Faces In Things


Human beings are wired to notice faces in things.

Humans are especially wired to notice other human faces. Developmental psychology research demonstrates that normal babies orient preferentially to human faces over other types of stimulus. Neuropsychology research demonstrates that there is a special module of the brain dedicated to face recognition. - http://www.humanfactors.com/downloads/nov03.asp

Nearly all humans find human faces engaging. It seems to be wired into us. Babies can recognize faces practically from birth. In fact, faces seem to have co-evolved with our interest in them; the face is the body's billboard. So all other things being equal, a painting with faces in it will interest people more than one without. - http://www.paulgraham.com/goodart.html


I came across a blog, "Faces in Places" this morning which is generated from a Flickr group where users can submit their photos of "faces found in everyday places". Some are lame but the good ones make up for it.

Here are some examples from "Faces in Places".


This one is my favourite






Jewelery Monster

Faces in Places
RSS Feed
Flickr Group

When I went to TAFE I remember my lecturer telling us that cars grills/backs of cars are usually designed to look like smiling faces as this is subconsciously preferred by humans. Some cars of the 50's were shaped to look like the voluptuous curves of a beautiful woman. I was so excited when I found this out, I had seen cars all my life, why had I not picked up on this. Cool.

Some examples:







A blog post about car grills being designed this way: http://members.aol.com/nonverbal2/vegrille.htm

This will probably be the only time I post pictures of cars on my blog.

I always notice faces in things, whenever I play that making symbols and squiggles into pictures game I'd estimate that around 75% of the time I would make the lines and squiggles into a face.

I also feel the need to give ordinary items personality by adding a face to them. Some examples of things I have "Faced" in the past.


"Sippy" my water bottle


My stapler


My Bacon & Eggs #1


My Bacon & Eggs #2


Here are some cool sidewalk art faces.









Taken from here: http://www0.fotolog.com/all_photos.html?user=6emeia


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Posted by Nathan Kowald @ 8:05 AM

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