geek aesthetic

Red Rabbit

2009-06-24T15:09:00.008-04:00

This is a very creative animation with a sweet story line. And it has a large rabbit in it. Of course I love it.

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A man lives alone in a small apartment. The little contact he had with other people has dropped to zero since the rabbit appeared. Every attempt to get the rabbit out of his apartment has failed and since he is not sure whether or not pets are allowed in the building, he does not let anybody enter his apartment.

Yeah - That's why I eat chocolate

2009-04-06T16:08:00.000-04:00

Powerline Flyers

2009-03-18T11:49:00.009-04:00

I have always loved the image of birds on power lines. Something about the combination of nature making use of an ugly human-kind creation is

one of life's beautifully mundane moments.

This video created by Wes Johnson is oh so lovely. **sigh**

Rushmore in the Company of Thieves

2009-03-18T11:20:00.008-04:00

A band after my own heart.

The talented The Company of Thieves has created a catchy song titled "Oscar Wilde", but what makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside is the video for it. They have recreated scenes from Wes Anderson's movie Rushmore, which just happens to be my all time favourite movie. Check it out and feel the love.

Mastocytosis

2009-03-13T16:15:00.004-04:00

geek aesthetic is proud to announce that they will be working on the design and development of the new Mastocytosis Society of Canada website. We are happy to help get awareness and information out to the world about this rare, but growing disease.

Mastocytosis ("mass-toe-sigh-toe-sis") is the abnormal growth of mast cells in the body (usually the skin). Mast cells are part of the immune system. The most common form of mastocytosis is when mast cells accumulate on the skin, causing reddish brown spots or bumps. In rare cases, mastocytosis can affect other parts of the body, such as the stomach, the intestines and the bone marrow.

Human Surveillance Machine

2009-03-12T17:20:00.012-04:00

Rob Spence, a Toronto documentary filmmaker, is developing a prosthetic eye with an embedded video camera. This camera replaces his missing eye, which was removed after being damaged in a childhood shotgun accident.

He hopes to secretly record people for a film on the rise of global surveillance.

The documentary is called Eye Borg.

Happy 175th Birthday Toronto!

2009-03-05T23:21:00.009-05:00

Toronto in 1856,
north up York St. to Osgoode Hall

Check out a wonderful blog about the history and now of Toronto.
(And thanks for the links!)

A great flickr set of Toronto then & now's.

A nice flickr pool of photos around Toronto.

Heritage Toronto.

Mini-knits, circus tumbler and a space dog

2009-03-05T19:06:00.019-05:00

Coraline is a stop-motion animated picture directed by Henry Selick, (Nightmare before Christmas and James and the Giant Peach). The story is based on Neil Gaiman’s popular book. The 3d movie is astounding. Nothing in this movie was overlooked. I wouldn't even know where to begin to describe the experience - you'll have to go see it.

Of course, I have been "geeking-out" on all the making-ofs...

One amazing thing I discovered was the world of tiny knits created by Althea Crome at "Bug-Knits" in Bloomington, Indiana. Using sewing needles as knitting needles, the smallest sweater ever knit for a motion picture was Coraline's star-studded piece. Watch the mini-doc.

Have fun exploring their website. You'll find video interviews, giveaways, things to make (including a pattern for a life-size version of Coraline's star sweater). A fun read is Bobinsky the Tumbler's blog.

What I also find interesting is that the name of the production company involved with Coraline is Laika. This is also the name of the first acknowledged living creature (an abandoned Moscow dog) to have orbited space.

Addiction Warning

2009-03-04T11:18:00.006-05:00

There's an itty bitty flash game on the internet called Bubble Spinner. What you think will be be simple: aiming for bubble bursts on a rotating playing field - but it will drive you mad. Do not play this game. I repeat, do not play this game, as you will become addicted. It will get you under it's spell with hypnotic music, "boops" and "swooshes".

Hours of your life will be forever lost.

You've been warned.

Enjoy!

Photography Love

2009-03-02T20:12:00.005-05:00

Get a daily dose of beautiful imagery from Toronto-based photographer Sam Javanrouh.

He's got a great eye.

Hello, little miracle

2009-02-27T17:40:00.001-05:00

Oldest word and whistling orangutans

2009-02-27T12:36:00.006-05:00

University of Reading scientists have discovered that "I , we, who" and the numbers "1, 2" and "3" are amongst the oldest words, not only in English, but across all Indo-European languages. And surprisingly, the ones heading to extinction? "dirty, squeeze, bad, because, guts, push (verb), smell (verb), stab, stick (noun), turn (verb) and wipe"

Bonnie, a 30 year old orangutan, had taught herself to whistle after imitating a caretaker. She has shown her roommate Indah how to whistle too. Scientists say her ability has implications on the evolution of speech. Learn more at the Great Ape Trust.

6 degrees of separation-#1

2009-02-25T11:39:00.011-05:00

One thing I love about the world wide web is the "6 degrees of separation" path it leads me down. I google something, come across something else, follow that, find another interest, all the while commenting to myself, "I like that!...Oh I love that!...Oh that is a great song!...I wonder what happened to that!"

Yes, every thought in my brain ends with an exclamation mark!

TODAY'S 6 DEGREES OF SEPARATION JOURNEY:

CRAFTZINE
A blog dedicated to crafty ideas. There are some ridiculously ugly items you can find free patterns for, but there is also some beautiful handmade ideas. I discovered arigumi (knitted japanese stuffed animals) here and have since got a best friend making me wonderfully cute creatures (she has the talent - I, just the appreciation for)

PANTALINE- Provisioners of America's Finest Plural Clothing
From Craftzine, I linked to a ridiculously funny site about "Plural Clothing". I want to order the "couch dress".

MCSWEENEY'S
The Pantalaine website that gave me such a laugh, was created by the one and only McSweeney's. The literary journal was started in 1998, edited by Dave Eggers, publishes some of the world's most talented writers. And not only is the writing drool-worthy, so is the design of the the McSweeney's magazine. **sigh true love** . Also some great stuff in the McSweeney's Store.

DAVE EGGERS
Editor of the brilliant McSweeney's, as well as author of one of my favourite books "A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius". AHWOSG: focuses on the author's struggle to raise his younger brother in San Francisco following the sudden deaths of their parents. The book is a bestseller and was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for General Non-Fiction.

"THE BALLAD OF TIMOTHY MCSWEENEY"
A song done by They Might be Giants". I love this band since they created one of my all time favourite happy songs: "Birdhouse in your Soul"

BIRDHOUSES
I have numerous bird houses in our little city backyard (ok, 13 right now). I love birds and I love this modern bird house at Make Blog (which is a sub-set of the Craftzine blog)

List Mania

2009-02-24T11:13:00.007-05:00

I am always making lists. I love trivia. Therefore I love List Universe. List Universe is a site updated daily, full of top ten lists, covering every kind of subject matter from UFO hoaxes to 10 amazing paintings on feathers. Started by Jamie Frater in 2007, another fan of lists and trivia. The comments are pretty hilarious (and there's a list for that too!)

Flying 100 years ago

2009-02-23T11:32:00.006-05:00

I have a slight fear of flying, partly due to not understanding how (for example - a Boeing 747-400 that weighs about 393,000 pounds), can even get off the ground. As many times as I read about how an airplane "works", the technology still baffles me enough to cause a fear of the unknown. But I have an appreciation of the history of air flight and am amazed that it's been only about 100 years that humankind started getting off the ground. Wow.

"I believe that it will be possible in a very few years for a person to take his dinner in New York at seven or eight o'clock in the evening and eat his breakfast in Ireland or England the following morning."
- ALEXANDER GRAHAM BELL, 1896

Former Canadian astronaut Bjarni Tryggvason declared "mission accomplished" after successfully taking off a modern version of the famed Silver Dart airplane.

The Silver Dart (named for its silvery-coloured wings) was a ground-breaking, skin and bones aircraft, that first flew 100 years ago on Feb. 23, 1909. First flown in Baddeck, N.S., led by famed inventor Alexander Graham Bell, the crew was anxious to fly or fail, but either way making Canadian history.

The Wright Brothers had launched the era of controlled, powered flight in late 1903 at Kitty Hawk, N.C.

Blame Ringo

2009-02-20T12:23:00.010-05:00

Not sure if this video really qualifies as "smart & beautiful" or it's just here because of my fascination with the Beatles. It's a fun idea by the band "Blame Ringo". The band had to change it's name from "Goodnight Vienna" since they were threatened legal action by Ringo Starr, as it was the title of his fourth studio album.

Come on Ringo, that's a little ridiculous.

The song is "Garble Arch" which the first single from their from the album, "Lucky Number 9". The video records a day in the life of Abbey Road.

Spare Change

2009-02-19T18:23:00.009-05:00

A gentleman panhandler. One of the pioneers of Canadian animation. Oscar nominee. Poor beggar. An artist unable to create. God observing the world. Fallen angel. Arrogant. Shy. Broken. Not destroyed.
- FROM THE NFB WEBSITE

As fan of animation and the artists, I was thrilled when I accidently discovered an amazing story about a brilliant Canadian talent. His name is Ryan Larkin. There were two parts on the DVD about Larkin. The first, an Academy Award winning animation tribute titled "Ryan" by another talented Canadian Chris Landreth. Although incredibly realistic and detailed, "Ryan" was created and animated without the use of live action footage, rotoscoping or motion capture...but instead from an original, personal, hand animated three-dimensional world which Landreth calls 'psychological realism'.

The second film was a documentary titled "Alter Egos". We find out from Director Laurence Green, that Larkin produced some of the most influential animated films of his time, including 1969's "Walking", which was nominated for an Oscar (but lost to "It's Tough to Be a Bird" by Walt Disney). Ryan was living every artist's worst nightmare - having lost his ability to create and succumbing to addiction, he panhandles on the streets to make ends meet.

After the success of Chris Landreth's animated film, it encouraged Larkin to start drawing again. He started on a film titled "Spare Change" about his life panhandling in Montreal. Sadly, he passed away in Feb. 2007 from lung cancer at age 63, not having finished the film.

I found out from a very nice friend of Larkin, Laurie of the band Chiwawa, that "Spare Change" will be in theatres soon, as well as airing on CBC and Bravo later in the year. I am anxious to see it as part of the Canadian Music Week, March 14 at the NFB Theatre.

Eyeballing

2009-02-18T11:13:00.005-05:00

Whenever I am designing something or making something hands-on, and I often "eyeball" it first. After making my "guesstimation" as to where things should hang, line up, balance or where it just feels "right", I check my accuracy, and more often than not, it is pretty darn close to "bang-on". I get a little mundane thrill from that.

Now you can check out your own "eyeballing" accuracy and get your own mundane thrills from an online game created by an Ontario carpenter. You get three chances at seven geometric tasks: bisecting angles, making parallelograms, and finding the midpoints of triangles, circles, and lines.

Warning: Slightly addictive.

Now, check YOUR "eyeballing" accuracy.

Nixie Tube Clock

2009-02-17T10:35:00.015-05:00

I have a brilliant headboard being built by the creative Graeme Marrs. While I anxiously wait for it to materialize, I have been searching for the perfect clock to compliment the design. I came across this clock and was fascinated with the technology history and it's "simplistic and modernist" looks.

Passionate creator Peter Jensen.

From the site: HISTORY OF THE NIXIE TUBE
Nixie tubes were originally developed in 1952 by the Haydu brothers for the Burroughs Corporation as the precursor to the computer monitor. The name "Numerical Indicator experimental: NIX-i" was first a working acronym belonging to the Burroughs company but became the common name for these readouts. From the early 1950's to the 1970's Nixie tubes were the dominant display service. Later they were supplanted by LED displays and are quite rare today! They found their way into everything from test equipment over early computers to aerospace and submarines or the display of the New York stock exchange. While LED's are technically more advanced, their aesthetics leave something to be desired. A Nixie's digits consist of ten thin metal electrodes that are individually formed and can easily incorporate uneven curves and skew lines. The only technical flaw is based on the fact that the digits are stacked in front of each other; this causes tiny gaps where they are shadowed by the digits in front of it. Ironically, they were hardly used as clock displays. Over recent years their popularity has increased dramatically due to their unusual appearance and historical value. In essence they are like miniature neon signs with a warm, comforting orange/violet glow. Nixie clocks have become very popular as a way to bring these devices 'out of the dark'.

If I had a brain for electronics: Nixie Tube Clock DIY Kits.
Build your own for $99!

Can your latte do this?

2009-02-12T14:30:00.000-05:00

Not sure if latte art really qualifies as "smart" but I do like the mundane and ephemeral aesthetic. Now when you pay $5.00 for a latte, it might make it worth the price paid.

Video of a "latte artist" at work.

One of the most beautiful ephemeral artists - Andy Goldsworthy

1928 film masterpiece

2009-02-11T12:01:00.000-05:00

I recently had the opportunity to see: THE PASSION OF JOAN OF ARC at Cinematheque Ontario. It is a beautifully shot silent film produced in France in 1928, directed by Carl Theodor Dreyer and stars Renée Jeanne Falconetti. Toronto got a piano accompaniment, whilst Winnipeg, Manitoba enjoyed 48 musicians and 44 singers performing "Voices of Light": an oratorio by contemporary American composer Richard Einhorn. While I enjoyed the piano version, I was jealous of Winnipeg's orchestra and voice accompaniment. I wish Toronto would organize more events like that.

The film is based on the trial records of Joan of Arc. What especially stood out was the film's camera-work and emphasis on the actors' facial features that were purposely without makeup. The newly developed panchromatic film captured the actors expressions beautifully. Renée Jeanne Falconetti's portrayal of Joan is widely considered one of the most astonishing performances ever committed to film, and became her final cinematic role. Dreyer's method of directing his actors, pushed Falconetti to emotional collapse.

A masterpiece found! The original version of the film was lost for decades after a fire destroyed the master negative. Dreyer himself attempted to reassemble a version from out-takes and surviving prints, but he died, sadly believing his original cut was lost forever. In one of the most important discoveries in cinema history, a virtually complete print of Dreyer's original version was found in 1981 in a janitor's closet of an Oslo mental institution. This version is now available on DVD (and on the big screen, if you are so lucky)

And the ball was square

2009-02-11T11:25:00.000-05:00

My family loved Pong and played our console endessly. Now we can celebrate the 40th anniversary of the first video game with the The Pong museum. The museum officially opened on January 27, 2009 to commemorate the anniversary of the video ping-pong.

The earliest form of an electronic ping-pong game dates back as a game played on an oscilloscope, by William A. Higinbotham at the Brookhaven National Laboratory in 1958. His game was titled "Tennis For Two".

In 1966, Ralph Baer, an employee of defense contractor Sanders Associates came up with the concept of a "television gaming apparatus." This device included both a chase game and a video tennis game, and could be attached to a normal television set.

Check out the great video of Bill Harrison and Ralph Baer demonstrating the thrilling new game. And I love the screen-saver clock.

"I can never thank Ralph enough for what he gave to me and everyone else."
- Steve Wozniak, co-founder Apple Computers

Couch travel

2009-02-09T10:58:00.000-05:00

It seems I haven't been away from my desk or couch at all this winter, but my mind sure wanders a lot. My mom and I "traveled" around the world this weekend visiting relatives, friends and the Eiffel tower in Paris (as well as the mini version on the Vegas strip) all with Google Earth. I haven't played with this program in awhile and was ecstatic to the see the new "3D views" of places.

They also have started diving into the oceans. Fascinating explorations with marine experts including National Geographic and and BBC. I can't wait to swim through some shipwrecks.

And if that's not enought, you also can do virtual tours including detailed examinations of artwork at the Prado Museum in Madrid. You can examine 14 masterpieces in the most minute detail. Beautiful. The google earth technology continues to blows my mind.

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Another fun way to "travel" online, is back in time. The Travel Film Archive is a collection of travelogues and educational and industrial films that show the world the way it was between 1900 and 1970. I love seeing life moving at a different pace. An amazing collection to explore.

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Gallery of super-high resolution satellite images. GeoEye. Spectacular views.

I Can Read Movies

2009-02-04T13:19:00.000-05:00

I am in love with this "I Can Read Movies" series by Mitch Ansara (aka Spacesick). The Toledo-based artist has taken 21 films and imagined what their '60s novelization covers may have looked like, right down to the scratched surfaces and bent corners. He perfectly captures the idea of the films and the Saul Bass aesthetic of the '60s, that relied on visuals over language to deliver the message.

Her Morning Elegance

2009-02-02T18:34:00.000-05:00

A beautiful and smart music video.

A simple idea, but the effort and patience this video took is phenomenal. Appropriate for the lyrics and movement of the music.

The gorgeous melodic song is called "Her Morning Elegance" which was written and produced by Oren Lavie, from his album "The Opposite Side of the Sea" in 2008, which he released on his own label. This video, as co-director, is his first venture into the moving pictures.

Yuval and Merav Nathan – Co-directors / animation
Are a pair of Israeli directors/creators, husband and wife. They each bring their own special background and skills and together they create a unique style that combines photography, design, 3d animation, stop motion and 2d compositing. More beautiful work at One Wing Fly.

Eyal Landesman - Photographer
Eyal is a leading Israeli photographer who is renowned for his work in the worlds of theatre and dance. The video was shot all stills in Eyal’s studio in Tel-Aviv. More work of Eyal on his website.

Wow facts:
- The video was shot all stills.
- Roughly 3225 still photos for the entire video, using one camera, hanging from the ceiling for the main body of the movie. - It took 4 weeks before shooting to create an animated computer generated storyboard for the video, with 3d dummies for the characters.
- It took only 2 days of shooting for the live actors on set to re-create the 3.5 minutes computer sequence, frame by frame.

Proud of my pup

2009-01-30T18:10:00.001-05:00

While one of my hound dogs didn't actually make it to star in a new series of commercials for Autohound (online car sales), she did make some barks and howls and whines for the voice-over! Pretty great success for a former foster dog that came to us 20lbs underweight and crazy. Now she's a perfect 55lbs, happy as can be, and still a little crazy (but I wouldn't have her any other way). Baaaarrrroooo!!!! That's her on the right and Louie, the star of the commercials, on the left.

She came to us from a wonderful organization called Project Jessie who works with Animal Alliance.

Check out the spots on YouTube:
- Online Beef
- Greyhound Racing
- Surfing

Interesting but useless fact: When governments called dogs to war in World War 2, they would take pretty much every dog that was volunteered - except for bassett hounds.

Do you or don't you Sudoku?

2009-01-29T12:19:00.000-05:00

Sweet, sweet Sudoku, oh how I love you.

I have found with family and friends, people either love Sudoku or they have tried it and hate it. In seems there are no in-betweeners. It has a long, interesting history of development that spans across continents, starting in the 18th century.

Sudoku: "Su" means number in Japanese."Doku" refers to the single place on the puzzle board that each number can fit into. It also connotes someone who is single. Can be described as "Solitaire with numbers."

- Name is Japanese but origins are actually European and American; a true hybrid creation
- 18th century Swiss mathematician Leonhard Euler apparently developed the concept of "Latin Squares" (numbers appeared once in a guide, across and up and down).
- Late 70's, US Dell Magazines published "Number Place" puzzles using Euler's concept with a 9 by 9 square grid. It continued to be developed by an independent puzzle maker, Howard Garnes
- Mid '80's, Maki Kaji, president of Nikoli Inc (Japanese giant puzzle company) urged company to publish a refined version renamed as "Sudoku"- it became a huge hit in Japan
- Two decades later, it was picked up by the London Times, due in efforts by Wayne Gould, a retired Hong Kong judge originally from New Zealand who discovered the puzzle in 1997
- Gould spent many years developing a computer program to generate them
- Fall of 2004, The Times to started publishing Gould's puzzles
- The first game was published on November 12, 2004. Within a few months, other British newspapers began publishing their own.
- Summer 2005, major US newspapers started carrying the puzzle.

Need to "geek out" more?
Read the source: History of Sudoku.
Interview with Maki Kaji and what he is working on now.
18th century swiss mathematician Leonard Euler.

UPDATE: Now you can win a home by completing a Sudoku game!

The world's only immortal creature?

2009-01-29T12:11:00.000-05:00

Jellyfish usually die after propagating but Turritopsis Nutricula reverts to a sexually immature stage after reaching adulthood and is capable of rejuvenating itself. The 4-5mm diameter creature, technically known as a hydrozoan (a class of very small, predatory animals which can be solitary or colonial and which mostly live in saltwater) is the only known animal that is capable of reverting to its juvenile polyp state. Theoretically, this cycle can repeat indefinitely, rendering it potentially immortal.

"Geek out" more on the Turritopsis Nutricula.

Neurotic sci folk for neurotic sci folk

2009-01-29T11:03:00.000-05:00

Laura Barrett, a Toronto native, went to university to study physics and math, but everything changed after she bought a kalimba (an type of plucked idiophone: one of human-kinds oldest instruments, originating from Africa) on eBay. After learning to play, she did a cover of Weird Al Yankovic's parody of Nirvana's Smells like Teen Spirit. The Toronto show, and the story behind it, became local legend.

Her original song, Robot Ponies, is about a little girl's robotic toys under the Christmas tree, continues her geeky, whimsical style. Her thoughtful lyrics play out her magical stories. Music to appease the geeky soul.

Play a thumb piano for yourself.

Pretty Loaded

2009-01-27T17:32:00.000-05:00

Pretty Loaded is a gorgeous site (created and curated by Big Spaceship) demonstrating a love of the website preloader. As one watches this seemingly infinite loop, we actually begin to appreciate the creativity as a vanishing art form instead of something to we used to bemoan.

Self Control Freak

2009-01-26T19:26:00.000-05:00

The Self Control Freak allows you to control the actions and reactions of Olivier Otten, a Dutch Designer, with your mouse moves. What a fun and clever set of interactive videos. I feel especially sadistic dunking his head when he's wearing a "design sucks" shirt.

Trippy nature

2009-01-25T14:33:00.001-05:00

The aurora borealis (the northern lights) had scientists baffled of its phenomenon for centuries. In 2008, scientists used NASA satellites 70,000 kilometers above earth to capture this beauty. They found that the green lights are actually pent-up electric currents racing across the ionosphere (caused by massive eruptions of magnetic energy set off when charged particles from the sun collide with the atmosphere).

The International Year of Astronomy 2009 is a global celebration of astronomy and its contributions to society and culture, stimulating worldwide interest not only in astronomy, but in science in general, with a particular slant towards young people.

Now we can appreciate the unparalleled beauty, in the warmth of our homes: check out the time lapsed videos on Astronomy North

I wish I could see this on a big screen tv.

Happy 25th Mac!

2009-01-23T11:54:00.000-05:00

On January 24th, Apple and it's fans will be celebrating the 25th anniversary of the first Mac. In it's beige case with an indentation for handle to carry, a 9 inch black and white monitor, keyboard and something called a "mouse", it was love at first start-up. Who could resist a cute little computer that smiled at you?

And who designed the original smiley icons?

Enjoy the infamous and much awarded Ridley Scott commercial that introduced it to the world: 1984.

Ojingogo

2009-01-22T13:30:00.000-05:00

oh-JING-aw-go. Ojingaw (오징어) is the Korean for “squid”. The “go” at the end is just for fun.

I picked up this little book the other day. Everything about it is beautiful: from the paper, printing, design, illustrations and storylines. The artist is Montrealer Matthew Forsythe, who has had Ojingogo as a web comic since 2004. Quirky, thoughtful, sweet, funny with a little dark humour. Who could ask for more?

FROM THE BOOK: Exuding simplicity in design and marrative, Ojingogo is an illustrated dreamscape about a girl, a squid and the creatures and calamities they experience together. Drawing from Forsythe's Korean influsences, Ojingogo tosses aside traditional narrative in favour of creating its own world, language and rules in whihc anybody can find a home of their own.

"Geek out" more on Matthew here.

PUBLISHER: Drawn & Quarterly has become one of the most influential art and literary comics publishers in North America, if not the whole world.

Check out the Drawn & Quarterly website for more beautiful stuff.

Honest Threads

2009-01-22T13:04:00.000-05:00

Set up in the eccentric Honest Ed’s store, the acclaimed Toronto artist Iris Häussler presents Honest Threads. Garments were lent by ordinary Torontonians as well as local celebrities, each item holding a personal story revealing a glimpse of the many threads that weave our identity over time. Visitors are able to borrow the garments for a few days and wear them, experiencing both literally and psychologically what it is like to “walk in someone else’s shoes.”

What an amazing collaborative idea between artist and the GTA. And I think in the best location possible. I can't wait to experience this. I wonder whose outfit I will choose....

More about the exhibition here.

Google: The Meaning Behind the Name

2009-01-21T18:26:00.000-05:00

I was at a name generation brainstorm gathering the other night and it got me thinking about popular company names that seem out of the norm. Of course Google came top to mind. So what's the thinking behind it anyway? Well it turns out to be a very smart concept...

A googol is the large number 10¹⁰⁰, that is, the digit 1 followed by one hundred zeros (in decimal representation). The term was coined in 1938 by Milton Sirotta (1929-1980), nephew of American mathematician Edward Kasner. Milton was nine years old at the time. Kasner popularized the concept in his book Mathematics and the Imagination (1940). (From Wikipedia)

Google wanted to use Googol, but was told that they could not use this name due to copyright issues, so they purposely decided to misspell it, resulting in google (which I think is "nicer looking" and easier to remember anyhoo).

JUST IN CASE YOU WERE WONDERING: In the past 12 months, Google doubled its staff, tinkered with its search engine to speed up results, and now answers more queries than Microsoft and Yahoo combined.

IN THE NEWS: How much energy does a google search take? (It has nothing to do with boiling water for your tea)

Beautiful Data

2009-01-21T12:41:00.000-05:00

Using a fascinating technology brought to us by IBM called Many Eyes, text from Barack Obama's inaugural address (top) as it compares to George W. Bush's words (bottom) in a dazzling visual data image. Size is based on the most-used meaningful words in each address.

About Many Eyes (from their website): Many Eyes is a bet on the power of human visual intelligence to find patterns. Our goal is to "democratize" visualization and to enable a new social kind of data analysis. The lab was created in 2004 by Martin Wattenberg, whose life goal is to turn numbers into pictures.

Who knew data could be so visually stunning? **sigh** That's an example of a geek aesthetic in it's finest form.

Check it out or make your own.

Real Life is Rubbish

2009-01-20T11:29:00.001-05:00

The artist team of Tim Noble and Sue Webster, are among the most celebrated of their generation of British artists. They make the most extraordinary out of the most humble materials. Creating romantic images of hope out of darkness and debris. Their shadow sculptures are complimented by light sculptures made from the cheap crystal bulbs of fairground signs.

See more of their work here.

The Ampersand

2009-01-19T14:38:00.000-05:00

We at geek aesthetic love the ampersand. There's just something fun and pretty about it. In case you've never read the history, enjoy the Wiki version.

Wikipedia: Ampersand

Smart and beautiful word: schadenfreude

2009-01-19T12:38:00.000-05:00

Enjoyment obtained from the troubles of others.

Pronunciation: shä-d^ən-ˌfroi-de
Function: noun
Usage: often capitalized
From German, from Schaden DAMAGE + Freude JOY
1895

The story behind the story

2009-01-19T11:59:00.000-05:00

F. Scott Fitzgerald (September 24, 1896 – December 21, 1940) is considered one of the twentieth century's greatest American writers. He finished four novels (including The Great Gatsby) and various short stories, including The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. And in case you've been living under a rock, it is also a brilliant and beautiful movie of 2008 starring Brad Pitt and directed by David Fincher (of Se7en and Fight Club fame).

Read the inspirational short story here.

Useless but interesting fact: Few attended Fitzgerald's funeral, but one attendee Dorthy Parker (American writer and poet, best known for her wisecracks), quipped "the poor son of a bitch", which is a line from Jay Gatsby's funeral in Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby.

Bye bye Mirvish Books

2009-01-16T15:26:00.000-05:00

I'm sad to find out one of Toronto's oldest and most beloved independent bookstores, David Mirvish Books, is closing after 30 years in the business. The best collection of books on visual art, architecture, photography and film. TO will miss you.

"She is much better looking than this"

2009-01-15T14:53:00.000-05:00

I love vintage photography and I especially love photos that give you an itty-bitty glimpse into someone's life with a caption written on the back.

Written on the back:
This isn't very good - was taken very early this past summer - 8 years old & she is much better looking than this.

Happy 60th Birthday to the modern computer

2009-01-15T13:58:00.000-05:00

Look how far we've come Baby!

Sixty years ago, "The Small Scale Experimental Machine" or "Baby" was born in a lab in Manchester. Filling a room, the first modern PC carried out different tasks using just 128 bytes of memory. It's first accomplishment was determining the highest factor of number, on June 21, 1948. Visit a working replica of Baby at the Museum of Science and Industry in Manchester.

Video of Baby

Give your Mac or PC a hug today.

And get better soon Mr. Jobs!

Mysteries of the Mind

2009-01-14T14:09:00.000-05:00

TVO has a fascinating series on the mysteries of the mind this week: from brilliant to broken. Steven Wiltshire is featured tonight as an autistic man who draws from an encyclopaedic memory based on a single experience.

I will use author and neurologist Oliver Sacks words, as it best describes my own feelings:
"The combination of great abilities with great disabilities presents an extraordinary (and, in human terms, poignant) paradox and problem - how can such opposites live side by side? There is a strong tendency to see these as organically related - to see the gifts of the autistic (and about 10% of these are so gifted) as stemming directly from their failures and deficits - their narrow 'hyperfocused' attention, and their supposed inability to process visual information, to pass from precepts to concepts, so that, in the visual realm, for example, it has been said that they merely 'see' what is there..."

Lots of great mind games: TVO: Mysteries of the Mind

The world of Stephen Wiltshire

READ THIS BRILLIANT BOOK: Oliver Sacks, has devoted an essay to Stephen in his book "An Anthropologist On Mars" (Picador 1995)

The good life

2009-01-14T14:04:00.000-05:00

Life is better as a hound dog, on days that are -20 degrees celsius.

MADE

2009-01-13T16:08:00.000-05:00

The showroom of MADE is a destination of all things beautiful. A Canadian resource of modern design from industrial designers, artists, crafts people and the like. You have to check it out: 867A Dundas Street West, Toronto, Ontario
MADE website

The Class (Entre les Murs)

2009-01-13T13:23:00.000-05:00

I was thrilled to attend the advance screening of Laurent Cantet's latest film "The Class". The screenplay was inspired by François Bégaudeau's 2006 novel of the same name. François Bégaudeau is credited as co-writer of the screenplay and also stars in the film as the literature teacher. Of course it is another brilliant film from Cantet, but what strikes me the most is the untrained actors playing the students. They are absolutely amazing. I had to remind myself this was not a documentary but actual kids playing the parts. Cantet captured the world of a Paris inner-school through subtle emotional tugs which is refreshing against of the obvious teacher/student narratives so popular in American movies.

One of many awards won: Palme d'Or at 2008 Cannes Film Festival

The Class official website

Useless but interesting geek fact: Novelist and untrained actor François Bégaudeau was a member of the 1990s punk rock group Zabriskie Pont.

The Wrong Trousers

2009-01-12T15:30:00.000-05:00

So young and they've already defined cool.

Watch them performing Video Killed the Radio Star

Smart and Beautiful Word: Syncope

2009-01-12T15:23:00.000-05:00

Rep't this word o'er and o'er and o'er again. It gets cooler every time you say it, but can make you a little dizzy.

SYNCOPE (pronounced SIN-koe-pee or sing-kuh-pee)
–noun

1.	Grammar. the contraction of a word by omitting one or more sounds from the middle, as in the reduction of never to ne'er.

2.	Pathology. brief loss of consciousness associated with transient cerebral anemia, as in heart block, sudden lowering of the blood pressure, etc.; fainting.

Greek origins.

Objectified

2009-01-12T15:14:00.000-05:00

I love documentaries. I love Helvetica as a font and as a feature length documentary film. Therefore, I must love Gary Huswitt. Now he has a new film out? I am more excited than a dog finding a two day old ham sandwich behind a pine tree.

From the website: Objectified is a feature-length independent documentary about industrial design. It’s a look at the creativity at work behind everything from toothbrushes to tech gadgets. It’s about the people who re-examine, re-evaluate and re-invent our manufactured environment on a daily basis. It’s about personal expression, identity, consumerism, and sustainability. It’s about our relationship to mass-produced objects and, by extension, the people who design them.

Official Objectified Film website here.

The Charles Taylor Prize

2009-01-12T14:54:00.000-05:00

I am so thrilled for my good friend Elizabeth’s nomination for the Charles Taylor prize. She is a brilliant person and deserves this honour for all her hard work and dedication.

Sugar: A Bittersweet History, has been short-listed for THE CHARLES TAYLOR PRIZE for Literary Non-Fiction. The prize will be awarded to the author whose book best combines a superb command of the English language, an elegance of style, and a subtlety of thought and perception. The prize consists of $25,000 and $2,000 for each of the runners up.

Jury Citation: This panoramic narrative vividly evokes the pleasure and the extraordinary suffering wrought by the desire for sugar from the Middle Ages to the present. The author, whose great-great-grandfather was a bit-player in the colonial sugar industry, shows how Europe’s addiction to sweetness contributed to the formation of global empires, the enslavement of entire peoples, the creation of diasporas, and the destruction of the environment. The result is a consummate work of synthesis that powerfully reveals how past inequities continue to resonate in the present.

For more information: The Charles Taylor Prize