tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post117046700117160496..comments2024-03-28T23:20:56.388-07:00Comments on CONTRARY BRIN: Challenges (computer graphic trailers!) and other kinds...David Brinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14465315130418506525noreply@blogger.comBlogger38125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-8083427189613282652007-04-21T18:48:00.000-07:002007-04-21T18:48:00.000-07:00Problem with Sundiver is that any trailer made for...Problem with Sundiver is that any trailer made for it will be confused with this:<BR/><BR/>http://www.sunshinedna.com/<BR/><BR/>I was so excited when I heard about this movie, and so disappointed when I found out it wasn't based on Brin's book.<BR/><BR/>I find this contest personally amusing. As a teenager I choreographed a long space battle in my head based on Startide Rising and a techno rendition of O Fortuna. I haven't worked with computer graphics in a decade, but damn, I might just have to get into this.lenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18263354289603443499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-1170943630687016472007-02-08T06:07:00.000-08:002007-02-08T06:07:00.000-08:00Is GreenPeace a shill for the people who give them...<B>Is GreenPeace a shill for the people who give them money? Or are they expressing their honest opinions, with which some people agree and so decide to contribute?</B><BR/><BR/>A perfectly reasonable question if one is ignorant of the sources of Greenpeace's funding. As I suggested above, any instance where someone makes a living off of advocacy is an occaision for inquiring into how their sources of funding might effect their arguments/positions. In the case of Greenpeace, if it can be demonstrated that they receive significant funding from some entity with a financial stake in attacking the whaling industry, that would certainly be worthy of scrutiny.<BR/><BR/>However, I think you're misconstruing the point of the post in question. I think it fairly clear that the issue raised was more of an ideological critique than one of presumed malfeasance. The crux being that certain self styled "Libertarians" who attack the concentration of power in government in the name of freedom have absolutely no concern about the similar concentration of power in the hands of non-governmental collectives such as corporations.<BR/><BR/>Now, whatever else may be said about the dangers of government power and authority, it's clear that entities that are subject to public accountability via the franchise pose a different level of danger than those which are not. Attacking centers of democraticly accountable power while turning a blind eye to, or actively enabling, private, autonomous and essentially unaccountable concentrations of power is a position which automatically raises questions about the actual agenda being pursued.<BR/><BR/>I rather think that this was Odinseye2k's point. In which case your criticism was tangential and not particularly germain to the issue raised.W.B. Reeveshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11501942097348818813noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-1170921489358689722007-02-07T23:58:00.000-08:002007-02-07T23:58:00.000-08:00WB Reeves:Nope - I read that. Is GreenPeace a shi...WB Reeves:<BR/><BR/>Nope - I read that. <BR/><BR/>Is GreenPeace a shill for the people who give them money? Or are they expressing their honest opinions, with which some people agree and so decide to contribute?<BR/><BR/>If an idea gains the financial support of "big oil" - and I'd agree that "big oil" is financially biased - does that automatically mean that the purveyors of an idea are dishonest propagandists?<BR/><BR/>It is possible to be honestly wrong - or dishonestly correct.<BR/><BR/>If the Competitive Enterprise Institute was set up by Exxon or others of that sort, yes, they deserve the title "shills", even if the individuals involved are sincere. <BR/><BR/>If the individuals formed CEI in order to get big oil's money, yes they're dishonest shills.<BR/><BR/>But 'Odin' didn't show either of those to be the case - he merely argued that they must be corrupt, by association.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-1170797733233612812007-02-06T13:35:00.000-08:002007-02-06T13:35:00.000-08:00After reviewing the Eon Challenge still images, I'...After reviewing the Eon Challenge still images, I've chosen the following as my favorites.<BR/><BR/>1 Marek Okon (page 4)<BR/>2 or 3 Arseniy Chebynkin (page 1)<BR/>2 or 3 Mark Goldsworthy (page 4)<BR/>4 Bjorn Norberg (page 1)<BR/>5 William Craig (page 7)<BR/><BR/>Haven't had time to review many of the trailers yet, but I liked the one that didn't make the dead line, that DB linked to, better than the other few that I have watched so far.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-1170771893184597092007-02-06T06:24:00.000-08:002007-02-06T06:24:00.000-08:00First thing that came to mind for me was "Startide...First thing that came to mind for me was "Startide Rising." Go figure. Then again water effects are pretty tough in CGI, but it also provide several environments to work from that can be, effectively, enclosed environments. Such as the interiors of ships (with many species to work with for visuals), space (enclosed by that sphere of space... i.e. not much to deal with in terms of perspective or much in the way of background filler), and underwater scenes (water surface can be tough to work with effectively, but underwater it's easy to limit perspective with general haze.) Not to mention plenty of action sequences of quite a few varieties to fill a trailer with. <BR/><BR/>Then again I haven't had a good look at the EON trailers yet, so maybe the current work is looking a lot better than I'm expecting and those concerns aren't nearly as relevant.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-1170770508534556122007-02-06T06:01:00.000-08:002007-02-06T06:01:00.000-08:00We have votes for Sundiver and The Uplift War...I'...We have votes for Sundiver and The Uplift War...<BR/>I'll vote for Startide Rising. A spaceship full of dolphins...<BR/>OR<BR/>a trilogy of Sundiver, Startide Rising and The Uplift War...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-1170765457872129292007-02-06T04:37:00.000-08:002007-02-06T04:37:00.000-08:00I also vote for "The Uplift War." So many possible...I also vote for "The Uplift War." So many possible stunning visuals, the mind boggles.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-1170762095593950252007-02-06T03:41:00.000-08:002007-02-06T03:41:00.000-08:00My vote would be for 'The Uplift War'.My vote would be for 'The Uplift War'.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-1170747167829807942007-02-05T23:32:00.000-08:002007-02-05T23:32:00.000-08:00I cast a second vote for The Practice Effect. The...I cast a second vote for The Practice Effect. The Sahara Tech bot would look good. I say this as someone who plans to enter.<BR/><BR/>There's also a lot of potential in the Fractal World.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-1170746624747820642007-02-05T23:23:00.000-08:002007-02-05T23:23:00.000-08:00"Yeah, because no one could really be for smaller,...<B>"Yeah, because no one could really be for smaller, less stupid, less intrusive government, and also question global warming.<BR/><BR/>Obviously they're only in it for the corporate payoff."</B><BR/><BR/>Begging your pardon twinbeam but you evidently neglected to read the following portion of the referenced comment:<BR/><BR/><B>"Now, for my punchline. The above website is a project of the Competitive Enterprise Institute, known especially well-known for their attempts to squash climate science under a thick pile of fertilizer."</B><BR/><BR/>Now it's clear from this that Odinseye2k isn't making the sweeping generalization that you imply. He is talking about a group of paid propagandists who are pursuing a dual course of attacking government while simultaneously attacking climate science, apparently in the interest of "competitive enterprise." It is hardly out of line to recognize these facts. Neither is it out of line to ponder the influence that a regular paycheck might exercise over the views expressed. <BR/><BR/>Contra your jibe, this is a highly specific instance of bought and paid for opinion, not grounds for a generalized indictment of everyone who holds such opinions. You do yourself and the debate a disservice by pretending otherwise.W.B. Reeveshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11501942097348818813noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-1170742152462897142007-02-05T22:09:00.000-08:002007-02-05T22:09:00.000-08:00OdinsEye2k: "Yes! Suspicion of Authority preached ...OdinsEye2k: "Yes! Suspicion of Authority preached by shills for authority"<BR/><BR/>Yeah, because no one could really be for smaller, less stupid, less intrusive government, and also question global warming. <BR/><BR/>Obviously they're only in it for the corporate payoff.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-1170734292418706632007-02-05T19:58:00.000-08:002007-02-05T19:58:00.000-08:00Looks like today, *I* get to make the amazing and ...Looks like today, *I* get to make the amazing and heart-stopping find.<BR/><BR/>Viola:<BR/><BR/>http://www.bureaucrash.com/<BR/><BR/>At first, it looks like it could be a DailyKos project or some group of anti-war hippies. But take a closer look. This must be the most masterful judo use of the Suspicion of Authority I have ever seen!<BR/><BR/>They sell pithy Big Brother T-Shirts and like to YouTube. But, notice how quickly commenters veer into free-market worship and the oppression of the state through (gasp!) Progressive Taxation! And a breathless discusison of Hilliary Clinton as a Communist (funny, I thought of her as a corporatist, myself).<BR/><BR/>Now, for my punchline. The above website is a project of the Competitive Enterprise Institute, known especially well-known for their attempts to squash climate science under a thick pile of fertilizer.<BR/><BR/>Yes! Suspicion of Authority preached by shills for authority. Kids - the Borg are adapting. Someone is figuring out this Internet thing.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-1170730494932374702007-02-05T18:54:00.000-08:002007-02-05T18:54:00.000-08:00Freeman captures the essence that the romantics of...Freeman captures the essence that the romantics of left and right want desperately for us to forget. That the Enlightenment became a highly militant and rebellious worldview. <BR/><BR/>Modernism is part of a general uprising against the lords and shamans and bards and clerics who not only suppressed us, but took our women so that we would all be descended from them and share their nasty inclinations... and then chanted and bullied us into repeating incantations about how GOOD it all was.<BR/><BR/>We need that prediction and statement registry more than ever. As they retreat, they will suddenly proclaim: "We NEVER said there was no climate change!" and "Anyone who mentions income disparity is practicing the politics of envy and class war!<BR/><BR/>Now, as cracks appear about to shatter the neocon alliance, and even fundamentalists talk about "creation tending" to address global warming... and after Bush has spoken of disparity and CEO cheating in a speech at Wall Street... you WILL hear these proclamations, from the same folks who cy out that they were "with Martin Luther King, all the way."<BR/><BR/>They must not be allowed.<BR/><BR/>Blake, thanks for the link to that marvelous Mooney/Sokal editorial! Zowee! I will post about that at top-level very soon. <BR/><BR/>I do believe that Sokal is one of the most level-headed and clear-thinking spokesmen for modernity around. Everything he writes seems to have a marvelous efficiency of prose that I envy. He disarms the predictable charges than frantic-romantics will hurl, before they can even prepare to hurl them.David Brinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14465315130418506525noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-1170729178630287622007-02-05T18:32:00.000-08:002007-02-05T18:32:00.000-08:00Off topic: could we have a change of background c...Off topic: could we have a change of background color please ?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-1170717704189836532007-02-05T15:21:00.000-08:002007-02-05T15:21:00.000-08:00W.B. Reeves notes:"Their notion of free enterprise...W.B. Reeves notes:<BR/>"Their notion of free enterprise capitalism is one that extends no further than a Disneyfied image of a mythologized Mainstreet." <BR/><BR/>And science is a meek little thing that 'knows its place.'<BR/><BR/>Heh. Heh-heh. Tee-hee. <I>Of course.</I> <BR/><BR/>The redstate reactionaries would embed science and academia with ideological gatekeepers, like the 24 year old college-dropout that Bush assigned to micromanage press releases at NASA. They'll listen, enraptured, to the pompous sophistry of scolds like Michael Crichton. They'd say it's to promote Sound Science (as in, "sounds good to us!") but really, it is intended to prevent more Efrits like global warming and evolution from getting out of the bottle.<BR/><BR/>The reactionaries, they know. They know . . .<BR/><BR/><I>". . . that science is a conspiracy of brains against ignorance, that science is a revenge of victims against oppressors, that science is a territory of freedom and friendship in the midst of tyranny and hatred."</I><BR/>--Freeman DysonAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-1170701458790458812007-02-05T10:50:00.000-08:002007-02-05T10:50:00.000-08:00On the CG question, I love the idea of Sundiver. ...On the CG question, I love the idea of Sundiver. However (and this may seem weird to everyone) what popped into my head first was Practice Effect. Watching onscreen as a pile of roped together junk gets practiced into a flying machine would be awesome. Also, I would think that some neat subtle things could be done as well. Now, I'm not advocating a full length film or anything, but for a CG short trailer there are some intriguing possibilies.ocpearsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14729220145626859918noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-1170691737432959522007-02-05T08:08:00.000-08:002007-02-05T08:08:00.000-08:00"Still, I think you misread the reactionary. He is...<B>"Still, I think you misread the reactionary. He is, in fact, willing to go only so far in defense of property and corporations. The EXTREME right is deeply suspicious of both."</B><BR/><BR/>A fair point. One of the many ironies of our social history is that reactionary and extreme Rightwing movements begin by selling themselves as defenders of the status quo, including traditional property relations, and having once achieved power showing no hesitation in trampling on and/or destroying same. This phenomenon parallels the Left extreme that calls for the liberation of humanity only to wind up constructing centralized, regimented systems that make a mockery of human freedom and agency.<BR/><BR/>The common thread being, I think, a belief that all difficulties, threats and problems may be overcome by the utilization of unlimited power and coercive force. Such belief is a natural consequence of ideologies based on idealized abstractions rather than material outcomes. If reality is too messy to conform with our elegant theories the solution is to force the square peg into the round hole.<BR/><BR/>The current alignment of a large percentage of Christian Fundamentalist and Evangelicals with the Right is a good illustration of such mulish incoherence. Social conservatism longs to turn back the clock to the halcyon days of yore when men were patriarchs, women were servants and baby machines and the closet door was firmly shut. At the same time it allies itself with the bogus corporate model of "free enterprise". One needn't be a rocket scientist to recognize that such "free enterprise", as practiced in corporate America, is a primary engine of precisely the sort of social change that they abhor. Their notion of free enterprise capitalism is one that extends no further than a Disneyfied image of a mythologized Mainstreet. Thus you have defenders of the small town, rural idyll populating the same political formation as the partisans of Wallmart.<BR/><BR/>Actual capitalism, as we know, is no defender of "traditional values." Markets are amoral and go where the money is. Along the way they destroy or transform every institution or custom they encounter. As one 19th century commentator described it "All that is solid melts into air." <BR/><BR/>Viewed in this light the remarkable thing about the current crack up of the Right wing coalition, that hodge podge of Corporatists, pseudo-Libertarians and religious fanatics, is that it was so long in coming.<BR/><BR/>Thanks for the link. I'm looking forward to reading your piece.W.B. Reeveshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11501942097348818813noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-1170690472534308142007-02-05T07:47:00.000-08:002007-02-05T07:47:00.000-08:00I hadn't read all of that Reactionary's catechism ...I hadn't read all of that Reactionary's catechism last time but went and did now, and wow. There's maybe two or three things in it that are true, then there's several things so general as to be useless, but the majority of it is just flat out wrong. It's a good illustration of why Red State is often called Bizarro World.<BR/><BR/>Sundiver would make a good CG trailer probably, most of it involves inside the ship down by the sun.<BR/><BR/>There've been some encouraging steps with evangelicals getting at least a little involved in the environment, most of what I know about that I've picked up over at <A HREF="http://slacktivist.typepad.com" REL="nofollow">Slacktivist</A>. I'm not expecting too too much from them though, but even a little bit helps. And there's a lot of the fundamentalist evangelicals out there who simply don't care, because they figure the Rapture will be soon and Jesus'll show up to blow up the world and make a new one, so why bother keeping this one clean? (I guess they missed the lines about "stewardship" in their "literal" reading of the Bible.)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-1170684242851208532007-02-05T06:04:00.000-08:002007-02-05T06:04:00.000-08:00Earth could make a rockin' mini-series. There may...<I>Earth</I> could make a rockin' mini-series. There may be too much good stuff in there to fit it all into a two-hour film (although such squeezage could lead to a very rich background texture). It just seems a very <I>cinematic</I> novel: big visuals, vivid emotions, a ticking clock until a monster eats the world.<BR/><BR/><A HREF="http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-op-mooney4feb04,0,7924177.story?coll=la-opinion-rightrail" REL="nofollow">Chris Mooney and Alan Sokal</A> have a good op-ed in the <I>Los Angeles Times.</I>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-1170662328633030472007-02-04T23:58:00.000-08:002007-02-04T23:58:00.000-08:00Rob Perkins said...Oh, come on.Gotta be Sundiver. ...Rob Perkins said...<BR/><B>Oh, come on.<BR/>Gotta be Sundiver. Images of the Vanilla Needle, the aliens of the Five Galaxies, and the sunships themselves, particularly of a ball of ice plummeting *out* of the sun...</B><BR/><BR/><BR/>You can add to that the scenes where the Jacob slips into bullet time (over a decade before Keanu Reeves!...)<BR/><BR/><BR/>-- MattAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-1170656526979399032007-02-04T22:22:00.000-08:002007-02-04T22:22:00.000-08:00...OK Just re-read the attendance list (duh!)...OK Just re-read the attendance list (duh!)Tony Fiskhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14578160528746657971noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-1170655572213769632007-02-04T22:06:00.000-08:002007-02-04T22:06:00.000-08:00Well, it's all dreams when you get down to it. I h...Well, it's all dreams when you get down to it. I happen to have read 'Earth' most recently and still have a lot of the imagery it evoked. It's a fair point that folk have made about film adapability, though.<BR/><BR/>Speaking of dreams and visions, have you anything to do with this 'Uplift Academy' that Jamais Cascio's been talking about recently (specifically the '<A HREF="http://www.openthefuture.com/2007/01/good_ancestors_and_heading_sou.html" REL="nofollow">good ancestor workshop</A>')?Tony Fiskhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14578160528746657971noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-1170651793275586292007-02-04T21:03:00.000-08:002007-02-04T21:03:00.000-08:00WB... Actually the one left-right parameter that I...WB... Actually the one left-right parameter that I consider to be usefully relevant and consistent is attitude toward private property.<BR/><BR/>In fact, I describe a way to use this in a better political mapping, in a cheme that I think you’ll find interesting and less tendentious than most such efforts. See:<BR/>http://www.reformthelp.org/marketing/positioning/models.php<BR/><BR/>Still, I think you misread the reactionary. He is, in fact, willing to go only so far in defense of property and corporations. The EXTREME right is deeply suspicious of both.<BR/><BR/>Floyd thanks for the Eon feedback! I am tempted by:<BR/>1) if it is to be a movie trailer like EON -- SUNDIVER <BR/><BR/>2) if it is to be the next step... an ANIMATED STORYBOARD OF A SCREENPLAY -- then KILN PEOPLE<BR/><BR/>Yes, EARTH is a dream. The director of SPACED INVADERS was once the hot guy in town and planned to make EARTH his debut in “big/grownup” film making... but alas torched his career with a money loser. Ooog. A miniseries would do it. Save the world!<BR/><BR/><BR/>Yup, Stefan, you are right, I keep confusing CP Snow with CS Lewis! Why do I DO that!!!!David Brinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14465315130418506525noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-1170637478385563232007-02-04T17:04:00.000-08:002007-02-04T17:04:00.000-08:00Speaking of HBO: If George R. R. Martin can get an...Speaking of HBO: If George R. R. Martin can get an HBO series - not just a miniseries, a full, multi-season series - then maybe, if it does well, they'll be willing to try other projects, as well.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-1170636606248386762007-02-04T16:50:00.000-08:002007-02-04T16:50:00.000-08:00RE scientists and art and the Two Cultures:A great...RE scientists and art and the Two Cultures:<BR/><BR/>A great book exploring this topic is <I>The Existential Pleasures of Engineering</I> by Samuel C. Florman.<BR/><BR/><A HREF="http://www.amazon.com/Existential-Pleasures-Engineering-Thomas-Dunne/dp/0312141041" REL="nofollow">Amazon Link</A><BR/><BR/>DB writes:<BR/><BR/>"I have long marveled at the asymetry in CP Snow's so-called "two cultures" dichotomy (in which he maintained that the arts and sciences could not ever understand each other)."<BR/><BR/>HUH? Snow <I>laments</I> the split and suggests common ground can and must be found.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com