Play with Emotion!

One of the things I miss the most about high school is band.  Going in every day and forgetting everything else.  All the stress of life was gone for that short period.  To be fair, beating things with sticks helped too (percussion).  So why was music so important?  Why is it still so important?  What made band great?


The People
We'll start at the top.  Mr. Babb is awesome.  Having him for a teacher was a great honor.  I definitely miss him.
My friends.  Playing music is a wonderful experience, more so when you can do it with people you care about.  You are allowed to have more fun with it.  Perhaps "allowed" is the wrong word.  It is certainly easier to have more fun with it.  Especially in Jazz Band.  But either way, it means something I'll never forget.

The Music
Mr. Babb was great at picking music for us to play.  The pieces were diverse in style and emotion.  Ranging from "I Wonder As I Wander" to a pre-motion picture version of Lord of the Rings (which I still listen to today) to music from the game Halo.  It turned out that songs you wouldn't necessarily listen to by choice were always fun to play.

The History
Though sometimes hard to stay awake for, I always enjoyed music history.  There's something about knowing the roots of music and how styles developed that makes you feel like a part of it, even if you didn't produce any new music.  It makes you feel good when watching game shows too.

The Emotion
Music is not about the notes on the page, it's about the emotion behind the notes.  Play with emotion.  The music sounds a lot better that way.  For example, a guitar player sounds much better when he or she is alone, or...for the shy ones at least...  It allows the player a freer range of emotion.  They will do things they would never do in front of people.  They won't be afraid to put all of themselves into their music.  I'm sure this is true for players of other instruments as well, but I can really only speak about guitar players.  Actually, I can really only speak for myself, but hey, I really don't care if my blog is academically sound.  Have trouble playing in front of people?  Close your eyes.  You can be with you and yourself and your emotions are free to flow...mostly.

So, go play something.  Don't play an instrument?  Sing.  Can't sing?  Sing more.  Hate singing?  Listen to music (try something instrumental, listen to the emotion).  Don't like music?  The Fraggle judges you...

A glimpse at the future of technology

I have been looking into new technology and research and just wanted to talk a little about a few of the things I found.


UV Protected Clothing


NC State University researchers have been doing research on coating clothing fibers with conductive materials.  They used the same material that is used on computer chips.  NCSU textile engineering researcher Chris Oldham says that while doing this research, they discovered that they could potentially use this same method to put UV protection in fabrics.  The concept is really amazing and could easily lead to many other advances in technology.

Full Story


IBM Researching Computers That Can Potentially Equal the Human Brain


Sounds pretty far out there, doesn't it?  Having a computer that can mimic the human brain sounds a little too much like science fiction but it is closer than we thought.  IBM released chips that are supposed to mimic the human brain.  The project leader, Dharmendra Modha, had already completed work on an algorithm that maps the cortical and sub-cortical connections called BlueMatter.  Mapping the brain is an amazing achievement anyway, but creating a chip that can operate in a similar matter is awesome.

IBM Chips
BlueMatter


Kryptonian Computers


Remember watching the Superman movies or Smallville and seeing the crystals that stored information from Krypton?  Well guess what, they're real.  Perhaps not exactly in the same manner, but still pretty cool.  Researchers found that they could use lasers to write information on a molecular level.  The best part?  Unaffected by water!  And well, the geek factor.  Anyway, it's after 3am and these you should read for yourself.

Glass Memory
Crystal Computers



Other fun readings:
"Race Track" Memory
Quantum Computers

A new way to help third world countries?

I read an article on CNN about a man choosing to sell solar light bulbs instead of giving them away.  He wanted them to be used in third world countries but he had seen how ineffective non-profits can be in such circumstances.  After doing some research, he came to the conclusion that becoming a business and selling these lights was more beneficial to the third world countries he wanted to give them to.

Check it out:

http://www.cnn.com/2011/TECH/innovation/08/14/solar.light.bulbs/index.html?hpt=te_bn9

"Minority Report"

I am now living in Raleigh and I am enrolled full-time as a graduate student and NCSU!


So, for the first time ever, I am in the minority.  In my first class, Software Engineering, I am one of ten Caucasians in the room.  Indians make up the majority with Asians close behind.  It's a fun experience.  It feels kind of weird looking down a hallway and realizing you are the only white person there.  Go diversity!  The only problem I have?  Accents.  It will take a while to get used to them because everyone's accent is just a little bit different.  I look forward to the different views that will arise.  So far it is a nice change of pace from predominately white Burnsville.


See you Space Cowboy...