Bitcoin And Ether Mining In Guizhou, China

Cyberpunk Street by Yoshimitszu

AR Spatial Audio Recorder

Another smart AR experiment from Zach Lieberman proving Augmented Reality is an interesting creative platform: this one visualizes audio as it is recording and plays back as you follow the path both forwards and backwards:

A post shared by zach lieberman (@zach.lieberman) on Sep 6, 2017 at 5:55am PDT

Quick test recording audio in space and playing back – (video has audio !) #openframeworks 

Link

Asinas II

Kinetic sculpture by Jennifer Townley is an iteration of a previous piece from 2015 yet still visually complex and mesmerizing:

‘Asinas II’ is the successor of the original sculpture 'Asinas’, showing the same concept and overall appearance but a different shape for the white “wing” parts.

The various angles and curves of the individual parts create an elaborated unity when joined together on the shaft. The two “wings” formed by these seventy-seven parts are able to slide through each other and rotate in opposite direction at a slightly different speed. This results in a movement that appears to be far more complex, existing of multiple layers, where repetitive shapes seem to be moving within oneanother.

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‘Overwatch’ fan Chris Guyot created adorable, minimalist animations of the game’s heroes

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Readings from «Scientific American» (ca. 1950): Computers and Computation, With Introductions by Robert R. Fenichel and Joseph Weizenbaum, W. H. Freeman and Company, San Francisco, 1971

How does cashless society work?

If there is one post to this tumblr I want to see reblogged like crazy, it’s this one.

So how would a cashless society work? This is, IMHO, one of the most important questions to ask when discussing Star Trek in general. 

Roddenberry had a vision which continues to motivate and inspire people today, because it envisioned humanity so far beyond its time. It allowed the show to craft an ideal. Something that may never be completely achieved, but that should be strived for continually. Providing not a roadmap, but a light to follow. 

Social issues are incredibly important, and are not to be understated when discussing this specific topic- they are the fundamental ideals within the Star Trek universe. But close behind this is the concept of economic enlightenment. In fact, I would argue they are fundamentally one in the same. In order for us to find love among all of us, without any hate or envy or fear, we need to find means of providing for everyone, so that everyone can be given the same opportunities to choose how they live their lives. 

One aspect of this Roddenberry version of a fair and enlightened global society would be one with no cash. 

But How Does That Work?

How, can anything work without cash? Or to clarify, money? I don’t believe it could right now, but in the future, if certain issues were solved, we could be well on our way. Here are three aspects of our society that will need to be addressed or achieved before we would even be close:

1. There needs to be a movement to Post-Scarcity

People need to have easy access to homes, health, and the basic comforts that money currently is required to attain. 

There’s a lot of talk about a “post-scarcity” economy. With 3d-printers, efficient production, and global access to information we are already moving towards this. But one big hurdle in this issue is energy. Until we find a means of providing nearly limitless energy to the entire planet, a post-scarcity society will be very hard to maintain. (Cold fusion is an exciting potential leap forward)

2. Automation for the dangerous jobs and Universal Basic Income

We need robots to do the repetitive and dangerous jobs people shouldn’t do or just don’t want to do. The more these jobs are taken up by robots, the more there will be a need for a Universal Basic Income. The general concept is this: companies that produce goods while removing jobs from the market will need to pay tax on the robots that were once paying jobs. The money will then be given to the citizens as a dividend. This will eventually be the foundation for providing a universal live-able distribution of resources to everyone. 

3. Debt needs to be reversed 

The final issue is debt will need to be removed from society. This is arguably the hardest to understand and I imagine even harder to implement. Our current understanding of economics runs on debt. Person A gives money to Person B so that person B can make more money and give back that money (plus interest) to person A. The problem is this seems to allow the money to be consolidated into large pools. Currently the top 8 richest people in the world hold more wealth than the bottom half. 

We need a way to believe in a society that can work in reverse. A society where we pay it forward, rather than pay it back. This is where I haven’t fully understood the ideas being proposed. But one thing is certain, those in the top 1% will need to provide for those in need for this to ever work. There needs to be a rational, if not spiritual enlightenment among the richest in the world that we need to all have a place in society. A place unburdened by overwhelming fiscal obligation. When people don’t owe money, they can make the choices that benefit themselves and the rest of us at the same time. Rather than the choice that just makes them money.

I honestly think this is the biggest hurdle out of all of them. Because while the other issues can be solved with technological and political progress, this one truly requires a global enlightenment. Yes things like bitcoin and ethereum might help, but this is a bigger problem than just banking access and credit.

*Takes Deep Breath*

So that’s one take on Roddenberry’s vision of a cashless society. It’s something I truly hope comes to fruition.  A world where people are secure in knowing they have access to healthcare, a home, and the ability to pursue their passion. A world where all its people are freed to be their best self. Where creativity and science and kindness have priority. Orchestras could play in the park for free. Artists could make paintings of anything for anyone they wish. Scientists can spend their time inventing what they believe will help the planet the most. And we can finally get to the business of exploring the stars. 

Standard Beaverette Light Armoured Car MkI/II

Built by the Standard Motor Company at the order of Lord Beaverbrook, the then Minister of Aircraft Production, the Car Armoured Light Standard or ‘Beaverette’ was intended as a stopgap measure to help with airfield and local defence. Essentially built onto the chassis of Standard’s pre-war commercial models it had thin riveted steel armour, backed by 3-inch oak reinforcement planks, to its front and sides, the MkII added all around armour but remained open topped. 

The Beaverette was typically armed with either a Bren light machine gun or a Boys anti-tank rifle and was crewed by three men - driver, observer, gunner. Weighing two tonnes the vehicle could reputedly reach up to 60mph, however, given its weight this seems optimistic. The weight of the armour was said to quickly fatigue the chassis and suspension. 

Side view of some Beaverette MkII’s (source)

They were never cleared for foreign service and spent the war helping to train crews and patrolling the British Isles with regular army units (including the The Reconnaissance Corps and Royal Armoured Corp), the RAF Regiment and the Home Guard. Principally, the Beaverette was a stopgap measure, similar to the Armadillo, to supplement Universal Carriers when following the evacuation of Dunkirk the British Army was desperately in need of vehicles.

The Beaverette provided a propaganda boost with many photographs and newsreels filmed of them in action patrolling, this helped to boost civilian morale and prove Britain was not defenceless and that British ingenuity would help turn the tide. Later MkIII and MkIV Beaverette’s added roofs and turrets but remained in limited defensive service. 

Sources:

Images: 1 2 3 4 5

Standard Beaverette, Tank Encyclopedia, (source)

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Say what you want about the animation, but they did add a lot of little cute details in the romances. 

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