Category: Uncategorized

Some people say that technology and art
Are like oil and water — but that’s not very smart
They are much more like oil and vinegar I’d say
When you combine them in just the right way
And that is the point of this little ballad:
It takes many ingredients to make a good salad

The first time somebody invents something, there is no existing body of knowledge about it. Which means there is no way to be efficient, cut corners, learn from the mistakes of others.

So the first of anything — the first automobile, the first 3D printer, the first laser printer, the first machine to record music — is necessarily overbuilt. It is generally quite expensive, probably very heavy, may use exotic materials that are not easily sourced, and just all around impractical.

If you look at the first example of anything newly invented, you might think that it could never catch on. There are so many things about it that are impractical, that could not be mass produced, that might even be dangerous to consumers.

But the point is that it now exists. It’s not just a conjecture, it’s a reality. And people can start trying it out, taking it for a spin.

And if that invention turns out to do something that the world wants, lots of other folks will come along who will make it a lot cheaper and lighter, find a way to use more common materials, and get it ready for market.

So if you have an idea for invention, don’t try to make it market ready all in one go. Just build the damn thing.

Today I typed   Harris economic plan   into Google, and the first hit was her actual economic plan. You can click here to see it.

I read it, cover to cover, in one sitting, and I really enjoyed reading it. The document covers many issues, including reducing taxes for workers, lowering inflation, making it more affordable to buy a house, support for child care, reducing the cost of groceries, lowering the costs of healthcare and prescription drugs, helping small businesses, reducing energy costs, and lowering costs for retirees.

In each case she proposes a plan that is sensible, logical, well thought out, clearly described and appropriate to the problem. I found it very refreshing to read something so well articulated and reality based.

You should read it, and decide for yourself.

Today Meta unveiled project Orion, the research version of next generation mixed reality glasses. And I am very happy with what I saw.

For the first time, somebody is showing a prototype that at least approximates a reasonable version of an everyday mixed reality future. The graphics display has well over twice the area of Snap Spectacles. The linear pixel density is about half that of a Quest 3 (very impressive, all things considered), and the neural wristband means you can do hand gestures even if your hand is by your side. And it even has gaze tracking!

I know that Orion is far from being a commercial product, but this is a real existence proof that all of that capability can indeed be packed in a glasses-like form factor. I am feeling hopeful about this.

And Orion happens to be my favorite constellation. So there’s that. 🙂

When the former guy gave a speech in Pennsylvania yesterday, he told the women in the crowd that “You will be protected, and I will be your protector.” Something about this seemed familiar.

Then I remembered why. There is a point in Nabokov’s novel Lolita where Humbert Humbert says “I intended, with the most fervent force and foresight, to protect the purity of that twelve-year-old child.”

This is the familiar logic used by all abusers everywhere. The person who wants to take away your freedom tells you that he is the only person who can protect you.

As Mae West once said, “Every man I meet wants to protect me. I can’t figure out what from.”

There are stretches of my day when there is really nothing to do except wait around. This happens at the Post Office, or when I’m waiting in line at the pharmacy to pick up a prescription, or just standing on a subway platform waiting for the A train.

Recently I have gotten into the habit of using those opportunities to memorize stuff. I will load something on my phone, maybe a favorite poem, or the lyrics to a song I like, or some particularly awesome speech from a Shakespeare play.

And then I will practice silently, aiming to get the words exactly right, going through the work in question until I can say it perfectly without looking at my phone. And for any given poem or speech or lyric, I will continue doing that for a few days afterward just to make sure I’ve got it nailed down.

I can’t say with certainty that this is the best possible use of my time. But it has turned out to be an extremely pleasant little hobby.

Maybe it’s really none of my biz
But I’m unnerved by a thing Wikipedia does
While you’re living it always describes you with “is”
When you die the word suddenly changes to “was”

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

A canonical technology from the Star Trek universe is the Holodeck. You and I walk into a room together, and we are suddenly somewhere else.

A key point here is that we are physically together. It is only the room around us that changes.

A canonical technology in the Star Wars universe is the Jedi Council. You and I are having an immersive face to face meeting, and yet we are actually far away from each other, perhaps many millions of miles apart.

A key point here is that we are not physically together. There is an illusion that we are in the same room, but in fact we are not.

In a sense this gets to a core difference between the two universes. Star Wars is largely about having the power to transcend the laws of reality. Star Trek is largely about hanging out together.

Paul Williams, who turns 84 today, is one of my favorite songwriters. His lyrics are deceptively simple, sometimes nearly childlike, but his songs invariably get to the heart of the human condition. Forthwith, one of my favorite lyrics (and there are so many to choose from!):

Why are there so many songs about rainbows
And what’s on the other side?
Rainbows are visions, but only illusions,
And rainbows have nothing to hide.
So we’ve been told and some choose to believe it
I know they’re wrong, wait and see.
Someday we’ll find it, the rainbow connection,
The lovers, the dreamers and me.