Archive for May, 2007
May 30, 2007 at 9:11 pm · Filed under General
Doctor Who seems to have plenty going for it, given its fan base, but I’d like to offer up two complaints about the show. Special K will no doubt disagree with the sentiment in this post, but I’m going to run with it anyway and see what happens. In my wildest dreams, I’ll get comments as awesome as the ones I got in response to my myspace diatribe. (seriously, myspace fans. the internet is a large place. time to find something better!)
- Complaint #1: Very frequent use of countdown timers. I realize that nothing quite gets urgency(!!!) across like a digital timer, but this seems like a method that may be employed a bit too much, even for a series about a ‘time lord.’ How long can we watch an episode, pretending that the timer is accurate, and that the events taking place actually require the advertised amount of time? Perhaps some alternative cinematography would be in order — what about having a split-screen and display the clock constantly to better way to heighten anxiety in the viewers? Or perhaps an anti-aliased-stock-ticker-lookalike-timer that sits at the bottom of the screen. A time score-card of sorts.
- Complaint #2: Too many sound effects. In general (and this is something I feel I can comment on as an expert) there is a very low signal to noise ratio when it comes to dialog vs. noise (shrieking, explosions, drama-inducing music, and other miscellaneous sound effects).
May 23, 2007 at 10:53 pm · Filed under General
thanks, lj, for the botany of desire. i just got into the chapter “desire: intoxication” and it reminded me very much of what i remarked on in my first year post college. I’ll probably quote the passage directly when i get back in front of the book, but in essence, it talked about the importance of being able to forget everyday things. forgetting may be as important as remembering. fingers crossed i can remember those things i want to and forget the rest.
fun times in seattle. brice’s bike is sexy, sean has the right handle bars and the beginning of a fine wood shop, eirin, so thoughtful and easy to hang out with. thanks for the dinner, the chauffeuring, the hike, putting up with the nacho jokes, the lack of plans, etc.
May 3, 2007 at 10:56 pm · Filed under General
Grown ravens are already so skillful at interpreting the behavior of other animals they usually get most of the prey. Up to 90 percent of the slain animal goes to the black-feathered nags. “So far, ravens have been grossly underestimated as carrion consumers,” says Thomas Bugnyar. “They don’t just grab the leftovers: They get almost everything.”
Those poor wolves, not getting enough to eat! Another part of the article mentions the possibility that wolves have been forced to hunt in packs because of the pressure put on them by the ravens. A healthy relationship, then. Who would have thought that intelligence could cause an animal to be really, really annoying? (they pester the wolves mercilessly after a kill, waiting until they can safely gorge themselves.)
