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The Octave Illusion
Figure 1 shows the pattern that produces this illusion. Two tones which are spaced an octave apart are alternated repeatedly. The identical sequence is played to both ears simultaneously, except that when the right ear receives the high tone the left ear receives the low tone, and vice versa.
Despite its simplicity, this pattern is almost never heard correctly, and instead produces a number of illusions. Many people hear a single tone which switches from ear to ear, while its pitch simultaneously shifts back and forth between high and low. So it seems as though one ear is receiving the pattern 'high tone - silence - high tone - silence' while at the same time the other ear is receiving the pattern 'silence - low tone - silence - low tone'. Even more strangely, when the earphone positions are reversed many people hear the same thing: The tone that had appeared in the right ear still appears in the right ear, and the tone that had appeared in the left ear still appears in the left ear.
The octave illusion has another surprising property - righthanders and lefthanders tend to hear this pattern in different ways. Righthanders tend to hear the high tone on the right and the low tone on the left, regardless of how the earphones are positioned. Yet lefthanders vary considerably in terms of where the high and low tones appear to be coming from. Moreover, the tendency to hear the high tone on the right and the low tone on the left is stronger among people with only righthanders in their family than among those with a lefthanded parent or sibling.
Hyperreality
"The secret affinity between gambling and the desert: the intensity of gambling reinforced by the presence of the desert surrounding the town. The air-conditioned freshness of the gaming rooms, as opposed to the radiant heat outside. The challenge of all the artificial lights to the violence of the sun rays. Night of gambling sunlit on all sides; the glittering darkness of these rooms in the middle of the desert. Gambling itself is a desert form, inhuman, uncultured, initiatory, a challenge to the natural economy of value, a crazed activity on the fringes of exchange. But it also has a strict limit and stops abruptly; its boundaries are exact, its passion knows no confusion. Neither the desert nor gambling are open areas; their spaces are finite and concentric, increasing in intensity toward the interior, toward a central point, be it the spirit of gambling or the heart of the desert - a privileged, immemorial space, where things lose their shadow, where money loses its value, and where the extreme rarity of traces of what signals to us there leads men to seek the instantaneity of wealth." - Baudrillard on Las Vegas
From Wikipedia
The Antisocial Club
Alan Pasqua - The Antisocial Club
I just picked up this CD and I'm lovin' it! Great mix of live improvisation and groovin' beats. At times it is a bit too polished for my tastes (I like it raw!), but overall, it's an excellent album and definitely worth checking out, especially if you're a fan of fusion jazz. I tend to keep some distance from fusion in my work, especially the '80s-style fusion-rock-world-jazz that has become so prominent. Nonetheless, I can appreciate rippin' fusion solos as much as the next guy, and this CD definitely has some of those. The performances are top-notch, songs have a good amount of momentum and overall the album is a keeper.
Link
Labels: jazz review
Fengchia Night Market
YouTube - Fengchia Night Market
Labels: video
My Life, by Jeff Emtman
If you like the work displayed here, be sure to check out Jeff's deviantART page.
Labels: photography, video
Snowboarding Video
Snow || Full mix
Here's an edited version:
Snow || Shorter edit
Labels: video
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Increase the Dosage
Featuring guest performances by Matthew Garrison and Seamus Blake, Increase the Dosage is a distinct blend of electronic music and modern jazz.
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