In lieu of improvising a world-changing five-page midterm paper on Johann Lukas von Hildebrandt, I've spent my evening running perpendicular to the task at hand. I've been lurking on my message boards, playing hangman, watching the Food Network, etc. etc. I've even started my final essay for the same course (which will be beautiful and candid, for sure).
In my tired hunt for distractions, and upset by the lack of options available for my hangman fix, my hunt through the internet has taken me to WordNet, Princeton's database of the English language. Now I'm excited; I put my paper away and started scribbling out some pre-gaming code that would begin to process through the database. I'd like to tinker with a few ideas regarding natural language processing at some point, though I suspect it won't happen for some time. So my evening was spent playing with words and playing hangman.
The paper never got finished.
Thursday, October 20, 2011
Thursday, May 19, 2011
To Any Ready Reader
My primary source of output will be on tumblr henceforth. The interface is more enjoyable and the mode of output readily fits with my ramblings.
http://antiscias.tumblr.com
I'll still be on here from time to time to post my longer segments. There will always be a link through from my tumblr though.
http://antiscias.tumblr.com
I'll still be on here from time to time to post my longer segments. There will always be a link through from my tumblr though.
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
Between Pontiac and Detroit
I'm a little comfortable here; that is, I am a little comfortable in Auburn Hills, Michigan. Aside from the coastal mentality I'm used to (i.e.: pedestrian lanes, general accommodation in passing each other), I could see myself enjoying the strip mall mindset of the rust belt. That's what is bred here, right? I am somewhere between the old monoliths of the automobile monikers, and they were certainly built on the necessity of the vehicle.
Being conscious of the different industrial revolutions through which these regions came of age, it's easy to see why it is a two mile walk to be anywhere. New England became a global giant during the age of boating, and likewise again in the era of rail; from these growth spurts sprouted the metropolitan coast and the savory pockets of a distinct culture found in rail towns. Michigan however, was born from the ashes of these eras; it became the fertile plant moist and alive on the idea of sprawl; it characterizes how the last seven generations have known America.
I really think the problem with suburban sprawl is an issue of perspective. People are not as inclined to walk, and I think it's that these destinations people are actually willing to go to are too far away. What happens then? you can't really feel sprawl unless you walk through it, and sprawl begets cars which beget sprawl.
Admittedly, I enjoy walking, but it doesn't seem to be the norm. It's a little over a mile's walk to Trader Joe's (do I get hipster cred for buying organic?), and the path takes one by a number of beautiful watershed protected areas. It seems and is nice, but cutting through the middle of these supple young trees and streams is a highway. At some point, someone had come through this region, likely densely wooded and lush, and made the decision to tear down a forest for a quarter-mile strip plaza and highway to border the already-20-mile radius of the Detroit metropolitan area. We've made progress in recent years to return beautiful things to Earth, but we've only stunted the acceleration thus far.
My prescription for all of this is, like all things, to get outside and meditate on a walk. Some things in this world are unmanageable by any standard, but the things we can change are staring us in the face. I am guilty of contributing to the destruction of Earth, and I share that guilt with everyone else, but I don't want to be here for the ship to sink.
Being conscious of the different industrial revolutions through which these regions came of age, it's easy to see why it is a two mile walk to be anywhere. New England became a global giant during the age of boating, and likewise again in the era of rail; from these growth spurts sprouted the metropolitan coast and the savory pockets of a distinct culture found in rail towns. Michigan however, was born from the ashes of these eras; it became the fertile plant moist and alive on the idea of sprawl; it characterizes how the last seven generations have known America.
I really think the problem with suburban sprawl is an issue of perspective. People are not as inclined to walk, and I think it's that these destinations people are actually willing to go to are too far away. What happens then? you can't really feel sprawl unless you walk through it, and sprawl begets cars which beget sprawl.
Admittedly, I enjoy walking, but it doesn't seem to be the norm. It's a little over a mile's walk to Trader Joe's (do I get hipster cred for buying organic?), and the path takes one by a number of beautiful watershed protected areas. It seems and is nice, but cutting through the middle of these supple young trees and streams is a highway. At some point, someone had come through this region, likely densely wooded and lush, and made the decision to tear down a forest for a quarter-mile strip plaza and highway to border the already-20-mile radius of the Detroit metropolitan area. We've made progress in recent years to return beautiful things to Earth, but we've only stunted the acceleration thus far.
My prescription for all of this is, like all things, to get outside and meditate on a walk. Some things in this world are unmanageable by any standard, but the things we can change are staring us in the face. I am guilty of contributing to the destruction of Earth, and I share that guilt with everyone else, but I don't want to be here for the ship to sink.
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