Monthly Archives: February 2021

books: William Gibson flashes of excellence

Posted on 2021-02-27 by skierpage

Early William Gibson is so white-hot, not just the fantastic Sprawl series (Neuromancer, Count Zero, Mona Lisa Overdrive) but also his short stories, adaptations, and explorations. My 30-year-old web page captures all his output back then, including the rarities. It’s … Continue reading →

Posted in books | Leave a comment

Would aliens understand human music?

Posted on 2021-02-21 by skierpage

Listening to YouTube videos in which people get OpenAI Jukebox to continue songs, one is struck by how weird some of its flights of fancy are. Someone wondered what aliens would make of its attempts to make human music: imagine … Continue reading →

Posted in music | Leave a comment

eco: energy storage is hard, gravity storage as a game

Posted on 2021-02-18 by skierpage

How much energy does it take to raise 1 tonne 100 meters into the air (the height of a 23 story building)
⟶ 1 tonne * gravity * 100 meters = 0.27240694 kWh… 1/4 of a kWh doesn’t look like the path to riches! Continue reading →

Posted in eco | Leave a comment

music: Trevor Horn gigantism

Posted on 2021-02-17 by skierpage

Bruce Forest, the creator of this everything-and-the-kitchen-sink remix of Grace Jones’ “Slave to the Rhythm” above, provided entertaining background in a Facebook comment on one of Trevor Horn’s magna opera/Mount Everest: What do you get if you combine 2 years … Continue reading →

Posted in music | 1 Comment