tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2557653546475168082024-03-12T19:57:17.511-07:00We Alone on EarthMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05279969393617122722noreply@blogger.comBlogger319125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-255765354647516808.post-49582726672816054182013-06-17T16:00:00.000-07:002013-06-17T16:04:36.301-07:00The Right to Be ForgottenThe recent revelations of a set of massive and longstanding NSA surveillance programs have prompted blizzard of accusations, defenses, and recriminations from across the political spectrum, PRISM and related programs have been called everything from “all the infrastructure a tyrant could need” to a vital component of national security, while leaker Edward Snowden has been called everything Michael BFhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16757274897589421838noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-255765354647516808.post-22701660580219718892013-06-17T12:12:00.000-07:002020-10-17T10:58:53.423-07:00Mouseover Sorry, your browser does not support canvas. function feedback(){var N=512;var N2=N/2;var feedbackcanvas=document.getElementById('feedbackcanvas');feedbackcanvas.width=N;feedbackcanvas.height=N;var ctx=feedbackcanvas.getContext('2d');var imageData=ctx.getImageData(0,0,N,N);var colormap=new Uint32Array(256);for(var i=0;i<256;i++){var hue=6.0*i/256;var r=0;var g=0;var b=0;var C=250;if(hue<1){r+=CMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05279969393617122722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-255765354647516808.post-34216894572758019592013-05-17T11:01:00.000-07:002013-05-17T11:01:08.734-07:00Rationally Designed Complex, Hierarchical Microarchitectures
( thought this was pretty awesome )Mhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05279969393617122722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-255765354647516808.post-16623057095849798492013-05-16T03:35:00.003-07:002013-06-17T16:04:20.657-07:00Google's Mad Scientist IslandGoogle's I/O 2013 conference was yesterday, and the tech journalistic consensus is trickling in. In terms of specific product launches, there's nothing with the "wow" factor of last year's Google Glass, but according Lance Ulhoff , "Google’s worldview is finally coming into focus. The tenuous threads that connect these dozens of different applications and services are strengthening and graduallyMichael BFhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16757274897589421838noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-255765354647516808.post-33313375171197888302013-04-25T02:01:00.004-07:002013-04-25T05:59:36.834-07:00The Transhumanist Program
Hava Tirosh-Samuelson’s recent
volume on transhumanism opens with the statement of purpose “This anthology
takes transhumanism seriously not because it is a significant social movement,
which it is not, but because the transhumanist vision compels us to think about
ourselves in light of current technological and scientific advances and to
reflect on the society in which we wish to live.” I Michael BFhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12619149949698327462noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-255765354647516808.post-17400704020927122672013-03-20T08:50:00.000-07:002013-03-20T08:52:33.000-07:00Generating Vivid Geometric Hallucinations using Flicker Phosphenes with the “Neurolyzer Table” SaikoLED, a Cambridge MA based open-source and open-hardware lighting company, modified their "Neurolyzer" display table prototype to induce flicker phosphene geometric visual hallucinations. I contributed a brief writeup on one of the neurological theories of how such hallucinations arise, which is included in their post (draft mirrored on dropbox). Shown to the left is their Neurolyzer display Mhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05279969393617122722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-255765354647516808.post-73242399244559442902013-03-19T21:23:00.000-07:002019-12-13T05:05:15.920-08:00Design note: "Charlieplexing" LED matrices: Pin savings of Charlieplexing, easy assembly of multiplexed LED modules.
Charlieplexing ( named after Charlie Allen ) is a great way to save pins on a microcontroller. Since each pin can be either high, low, or off ( 'high impedance' ), and LEDs conduct in only one direction, one can place two LEDs for for each unique pair of microcontroller pins. This also works with other devices, like buttons, but you can only place one for each pair of pins since they conduct inMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05279969393617122722noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-255765354647516808.post-69332691204177055362013-03-05T09:33:00.001-08:002013-03-05T09:37:37.823-08:00EMERGE 2013 Retrospective
The past weekend saw EMERGE
2013 at ASU. The theme was “The
Future of Truth”, and there was a level of carnival creativity rarely seen in
the rather stolid world of academia; there were dancers, full body 3D scanners,
philosophy in public, and similar insanity.
A full accounting of the speeches and events that went on
at EMERGE is beyond me, but I’d like to note a few highlights. Brad
Michael BFhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16757274897589421838noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-255765354647516808.post-43652766075206629342013-03-04T18:17:00.000-08:002013-03-04T18:17:54.291-08:00inthecontinuum on tumblr: many trippy images
... and the author routinely provides Mathematica source for rendering. I recommend itMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05279969393617122722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-255765354647516808.post-47783224411246939692013-02-06T16:22:00.000-08:002019-12-14T19:06:33.155-08:00DIY TinyMarquee: an Attiny24 based scrolling marqueeThis project uses charlieplexing and software serial to push the capabilities of the AtTiny24. The source code and design files are up on a github repository.
Other DIY LED marquee projects may be of interest, including a large one hand-routed on protoboard, one made from Christmas lights, a network enabled display, one using ping-pong balls, and one implemented in the rear window of a car.
Mhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05279969393617122722noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-255765354647516808.post-61193667424118187172013-01-29T14:37:00.001-08:002013-02-07T09:10:29.957-08:00Three Faces of Transhumanism
Transhumanism is, broadly speaking, a philosophical and
technological program that advances the position that technology should be used
to enhance human mental and physical capabilities, both on an individual and
species-wide basis. This is a contentious position. Critics of transhumanism
have argued that it violates the divine order of the
universe, degrades
the human spirit, introduces
Michael BFhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16757274897589421838noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-255765354647516808.post-81001251548124067592013-01-09T03:17:00.003-08:002013-01-09T12:44:22.647-08:00Stephen Hawking and Networks in Disability Research
(photo via Wired, NASA, Flickr)
Stephen Hawking’s birthday was yesterday, January 8th. Hawking is certainly the most famous scientist with disabilities alive today, and arguably the most celebrated person with disabilities in history. With his motorized wheelchair and electronic voicebox, he is an iconic figure.
Wired has a fascinating article on Dr. Hawking, how Michael BFhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16757274897589421838noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-255765354647516808.post-48813055021930430422012-12-20T14:45:00.003-08:002013-02-07T09:11:11.953-08:00To See More Clearly
A few days ago, Evan Selinger wrote an article on Augmented-Reality
Racism which has been (unfortunately) gaining some traction around the web.
I say ‘unfortunately’, because Evan is a sharp and insightful thinker who can
translate dense philosophical ideas into nuanced and popular forms (see his
July article on The
Philosophy of the Technology of the Gun for a great example), and
Michael BFhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16757274897589421838noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-255765354647516808.post-2088723551579437222012-12-06T15:18:00.000-08:002012-12-06T15:23:23.443-08:00PLoS: 10 Rules for Scientific Open Source Software
Image: Greg Emmerich
This weeks's PLoS Computational Biology includes a nice article outlining best practices for openness in scientific code. In short, the article argues that open sourcing research code increases impact and is needed for reproducibility, and that simply releasing source code is insufficient: failure to maintain the project rapidly leads to obsolescence. Building a community Mhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05279969393617122722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-255765354647516808.post-60121024118538677452012-11-29T22:19:00.000-08:002012-11-29T23:13:20.894-08:00Thinkering Tomorrows -Playing the FuturePreviously on this blog, I critiqued
Science Fiction Prototyping, and talked about how
role-playing games work. Today, I’d like to bring those two themes together
to talk the design of my scenario planning role-playing game, Thinkering
Tomorrow. The goal here, in the words of
Brian David Johnson, is to help
people change the future by changing the stories they tell about the future.
ToMichael BFhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12619149949698327462noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-255765354647516808.post-22194460674610481332012-11-16T20:39:00.001-08:002013-02-07T09:17:03.998-08:00Hipster Churchillism and Operation Pillar of Defense
When I flipped open my news websites on Thursday and saw
that Israel
had taken out a Hamas commander and posted the video on YouTube, my
reaction could be best summed up as “Oh god, not again.” Shocking as it might
be to people who know me; I actually don’t like war.
I study it because things that kill people matter; because I’m a citizen of a
country that enthusiastically turns to the militaryMichael BFhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12619149949698327462noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-255765354647516808.post-61392291535108731402012-11-01T16:11:00.000-07:002013-02-07T09:13:39.960-08:00Book Reviews: The Submerged State and the Righteous Mind
The Submerged State:How Invisible Government Policies Undermine American Democracy
by Suzanne Mettler
And
The Righteous Mind:Why Good People are Divided by Politics and Religion
by Jonathan Haidt
It doesn't take a pundit to know that American politics are
screwed up beyond measure. Congress is stuck in gridlock, the economy is
stalled, elections are decided by culture war attack Michael BFhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12619149949698327462noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-255765354647516808.post-44552189531017815072012-10-25T17:10:00.001-07:002012-10-25T17:10:21.953-07:00What is Open Access? PhD Comics explains.
Courtesy of PhD Comnics. Mhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05279969393617122722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-255765354647516808.post-17952486339211609202012-10-22T21:10:00.000-07:002013-02-07T09:14:35.719-08:00Something something election blog something
The last Presidential debate just finished, and it turns
out that I haven’t written anything about the election all year. It’s been hard
to find enough substance to meet my standards. I loved the three ring circus
that was the GOP primary (Herman Cain, any questions?), but we
all knew Romney was the inevitable nominee despite himself. The state of the
race to 270 Electoral College votes, and Michael BFhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16757274897589421838noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-255765354647516808.post-59903234827668697692012-10-19T18:09:00.000-07:002012-12-29T08:39:44.217-08:00Terror, Strategy, and Living Under Drones
Drones and the future of warfare are perennial interest
of mine. My previous
writing on drones was from the perspective of American politics and
military strategy. In brief, I argued that
the armed drone has proceeded in concert with bureaucratic institutions of the ‘kill
list’, from the context of democratic governance is dangerous because the
institutions involved are free of Michael BFhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16757274897589421838noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-255765354647516808.post-13465821205823528072012-10-07T12:34:00.001-07:002012-10-07T12:34:40.367-07:00Science Fiction, Seriously.
Recently, ASU launched the new Center for Science and the Imagination to use
science fiction in serious ways. Things like CSI are literally unbelievable;
they could only happen at ASU, and it’s why I’m a grad student here. I’m look
forward to working with the new center, and I have some ideas.
In the words of the center’s director, Ed Finn:
Our mission is to foster creative and
Michael BFhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16757274897589421838noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-255765354647516808.post-4844226102325195162012-09-19T17:24:00.000-07:002012-09-19T20:34:13.878-07:00Theories of Everything
(( This figure comes from a document on arXiv, which is not peer reviewed. Documents on arXiv should be viewed as "entertainment only, any any resemblance to real science or mathematics, living or dead, is purely coincidental" until the documents have been vetted by the community. That said, this flowchart of formal systems amuses me. I also find the notion that the existence of a mathematicalMhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05279969393617122722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-255765354647516808.post-88930190670992082892012-09-18T06:13:00.001-07:002012-09-18T06:13:57.658-07:00Science! (Acoustic Levitation)
from Argonne national laboratory.Mhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05279969393617122722noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-255765354647516808.post-53827108850140224982012-09-09T19:51:00.002-07:002013-02-07T09:15:20.410-08:00Feeling OrganicThe New York Times has had a series of articles recently that touch on one of my sore points, the idea that organic food is somehow better for you and the planet than conventional agriculture. This is problematic, because A) it simply isn't supported by the evidence and B) it replaces critical thinking about food policy.
First, from September 3rd, 2012.
"[Stanford University Scientists] Michael BFhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16757274897589421838noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-255765354647516808.post-35824200165594229372012-09-03T00:38:00.000-07:002013-02-07T09:15:58.214-08:00Unrestricted Warfare: A ReviewStrategy is not an American strength. Strategic plans are written to serve the interests of political parties and the election cycle, factions within the Pentagon and military industrial complex seeking billions of dollars for next-gen weapons system, or at best a small group of dissident colonels seeking promotion or post-retirement sinecures. Everybody has an agenda, and almost nobody is Michael BFhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16757274897589421838noreply@blogger.com0