Best Albums of 2007, So Far

Or rather that I have listened to so far. I haven't been able to listen to as much new music as I used to.

Modest Mouse - We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank









Arcade Fire - Neon Bible









Bloc Party - A Weekend In The City









2007 is turning out to be a good year. More to come later, I have plenty to listen to...

A Fine Line...

Is this man a genius? Well, that's hard to say. I love Quentin Tarintino's movies, as do many, but let's face it, they are esoteric at best, not every one's cup of tea, (but he couldn't care less) and border line crazy. As is the man himself. Just look at the picture, or the fact that he plays rapist #1 in Robert Rodriguez's half of Grindhouse - Planet Terror. These movies look awesome, but that's for another day. The simple fact is that he is a brilliant and creative writer, but Quentin Tarintino is also a bit of a nut. I would love to talk to him, just to see what the hell he would talk about. I mean, the sky's the limit. He is obviously an intelligent guy, and could converse with anyone...and that's what intrigues/scares me. There would be no subject no matter how high brow or degrading he would shy away from. His mind is, well, I say it's probably a scary place, not that most of ours aren't, but he would take the cake. He is a big, intimidating guy, and just looks scary/creepy. The kind of guy who would walk into a party that everyone is scared of, yet interested in. How cool is that? I hope he keeps making the movies he does, because they are unique, engaging and challenge the general status-quo of Hollywood films. Which is not something most people are doing these days. He appreciates what makes movies great and tries to make them entertaining, after all that's the point isn't is? He makes movies he loves, and that's what makes him great. He loves his work, and it shows. So, I say good job, and thank you very much sir for your body of work. We owe you.

Man vs. Robot

So, this all started the other night when I was watching hockey and the referee got in the way of the puck, it bounced right to Maple Leaf's forward Boyd Deveraux and he promptly scored into a wide open net. My questions further arose after witnessing the completely bogus job our referee did in our intramural game today. My point is, if I have one- it'd be a first - that Aaron and Dave suggested they have robots to cover sports events instead of human beings. And this got me thinking about many aspects of our society. Would we be better served by letting machines do our work for us? Well, no, not in my opinion. As smart as robots may be, its because we tell them to be. They can't make decisions for themselves, and their capacity is very limited. I know, they show more intelligence then many humans, and can be entertaining - just watch Futurama - but the fact is that machines cannot replace human beings in certain situations. People are far more capable in most situations than machines, and I think that we need to remember that. I know AI is up and coming, but it will never replace a loved one, or a friend. At least I hope not...

Random Thoughts...

Things I was thinking of when I should have been paying attention in class...

1. Sens will make a good run for the cup.
2. The Simpsons movie better be good or the series will loose all credibility
3. The Simpsons were the best show ever in their prime - so clever, what the hell happened?
4. Women are far to complicated...Yes I'm stating the obvious
5. Men will do whatever it takes to get a pretty woman
6. I'm far to shy to approach these women
7. Facebook is creepy for sure
8. How long does gum keep its flavour?
9. What ever happened to that Ken Jennings guy?
10. Spiderman 3...need I say more
11. 300 was Awesome
12. I graduate in a month...damn, time to get a life
13. Do we really have to grow up?
14. Growing up beats dying...
15. I haven't made a blog post in a while...is my life that boring?
16. Where is Lee...haven't seen him in a while...
17. Baseball season is way to long...162 games?
18. Marvel Comics rules
19. Hockey is better than anything
20. I'm to tired to think straight
21. Education is never a waste of time, no matter what
22. Sleep is key - this is for you Aaron
23. Enough of this...

Banana Hammock!

Brodie check this out. Awwww yeah.
A real Banana Hammock.


A shout out to all the Scrubs fans. You know what I'm talking about. Hey-oh.

(No need to comment on how sad this post may seem. Keep it to yourself jerk.)

iCockroach

So I haven't contributed anything in awhile. I was going to write something on why it is great that Firefox 2.0 has a built-in spell check, but it was more of a rant on how the Internet has absolutely degraded people's spelling and grammar skillz...yo. I eventually found something worthwhile.

I am currently doing my final year engineering project. I basically have to build a robot that will get through a maze by itself. So recently I was searching the Internet to get ideas on what sort of control other people have used for their robots. Well the most ingenious method I found, or at least the most entertaining, is this:

"Cockroach Controlled Mobile Robot" is an experimental mechanism that uses a living Madagascan hissing cockroach atop a modified trackball to control a three-wheeled robot. If the cockroach moves left, the robot moves left. Infrared sensors also provide navigation feedback to the cockroach, striving to create a pseudo-intelligent system with the cockroach as the CPU.
Brilliant. I just need to get one of those guys. More info, photos, and videos on the website here.

Think for yourself...sort of...

I recently watched the movie Thank You For Smoking (A very interesting Film) and it got me thinking. What kind of responsibility do we have to one another to protect ourselves from dangers like alcohol, smoking, firearms and countless other dangers that surround us everyday. Where is the moral line in this debate. What facts can we trust, who do we listen to, can we think for ourselves in this situation? Do parents who smoke have an obligation to keep their house smoke free for their kids? Most people say yes, but not everyone. Are parents who drink hypocritical if they berate their kids with the dangers of alcohol? Well, not necessarily. These are all personal choices and for the most part people realize the dangers of these products. But that doesn't stop people from smoking, the tobacco companies from advertising, or new kids from starting up. I don't know why people continue to make this decision after all the obvious problems that can arise, but it is nonetheless their decision. The smoke free by-laws such as the ones in Ontario and Quebec help to protect people from second hand smoke and seem to send a clear message about the dangers of these products, but the appeal of these products still allow these companies to survive. Why are cigarettes cool? Why is booze seen as sexy? Well, I don't know. I don't think many people do. But the fact is it is a personal decision and while it is not one the majority of people make, people seem to enjoy smoking. Though I have no idea why. Drinking is the same. I enjoy the odd drink, but the excess consumption of this has so many down sides that we may never know all the damage it can cause. These arguments aside, these are personal decisions, and as bias as this may sound....make the right one. Please.

A Level Playing Field

I know that at least some of our readers are sports fan so this one is for you guys. I want to talk about the tremendous job the NHL has done at creating a league that has so much parody, and where anybody can win on any night. The unpredictability of the NHL has become the envy of other sporting leagues where teams can throw money at the problem and buy a winning team. This seems to apply mostly to baseball and soccer, but not has much in recent years, at least in baseball, as the Yankees haven't won in years, though Boston spent a small fortune for their pennant. European teams spend money on soccer player like drunken sailor and David Beckham's 50 Million a year deal with the MLS's LA Galaxy is well...I don't really know how to describe it without profanity, so we'll leave it at this. DUMB. Anyway, if you look at the NHL this year, especially the Eastern conference the race for playoff spots will come right down to the wire, sadly the western conference race is now all about playoff positioning as Colorado and Edmonton are to far back of Minnesota and Calgary to make a push. Carolina is in danger of missing the playoffs and this would mark the first time that the two teams who played for the cup last year didn't even make the playoffs the following year. This shows incredible depth of talent spread across the league. Sure teams that have been successful for a while like New Jersey (Martin Brodeur is the main reason, should be MVP), Ottawa, Detroit, Dallas and San Jose are all making strides but teams like Buffalo, Nashville and Atlanta have made great strides in recent years and will make strong playoff pushes, though I'm not sure how far they will go, Buffalo will make a run, but Nashville and Atlanta are young, and lack playoff experience and Atlanta lacks any real Canadian leadership, so they wont go to far (Yeah I said it). But that's for another day. The league is healthier than its been in years and while the League would like to see big market US teams like the Rangers, Kings and Blackhawks do better than they are, there is still so much excitement around the game that its future is looking bright for once, they are on solid footing. And anyone of the playoff teams could win the cup.

Who do you think will win the cup?