23.11.05
bookmarks
superhuman intelligence is inevitable, as is the end of the human era:
The Singularity
by Vernor Vinge. interesting. houellebecq also talks about the imminent obsolescence of the human race (by entities with a higher developed capacity for happiness and sexual pleasure, natch) at the end of 'atomised', his most best book.
Voices from The Hellmouth
Slashdot column (?) a few days after Columbine. By Jon Katz. touching. The title is a tribute to Joss Whedon's understanding of the high school environment. (Uh? -> Buffy writer, the hellmouth located in Sunnydale High is where most of Buff's enemies creep out from)
Caring for Your Introvert
by Jonathan Rauch. essential reading. Linked from Neal Stephenson's site. He is the author of slightly overlong, overwritten cryptography tech-thriller 'the cryptonomicon' that i didn't get around to finishing back in april or something. i wonder how many novels i could have read in the time taken to browse this much internet..
Jason Salavon has made a lot of art created by averaging colors and brightness over large populations of pictures. 100 Special Moments is deliciously cynical. Playboy centerfolds averaged over an entire decade are anatomically as well as sociologically intriguing. He does some other cool stuff too. I once saw a print of British prime ministers churchill to blair superimposed but i think that was by someone else.
