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Mashups

I was thinking about mashups earlier today…

A mashup is a song that is actually all samples of many other, usually famous, songs. The point of a mashup is to constantly change the song but to make it sound smooth and natural. It’s really music A.D.D., you hear a clip of a song, and before you can get sick of it, theres a new song. The most notable artist of mashups is Girl Talk.

Now, the question is how legal, or rather, how ethical do you think mashups are?
Should they be allowed? If so, should each sold song give a tiny cut to every sampled artist?

Think about it…

Digital Media

We’re so used to optical media like CD’s and DVD’s (including Blu-ray) as being a cheap, disposable form of media.

Flash memory is becoming cheaper and cheaper almost daily.
Do you think that flash will ever surpass optical media in cheap disposability?
At that point, we would be able to distribute music and movies on a much more reliable and consistent format.

No need to worry about scratches, easily broken drives due to many moving parts, and truly large size.
Flash memory has become tiny, to the point that a CD looks almost archaic.

So, the question is, will flash be the memory to dominate them all?

Random Facts, part 2

Someone told me I couldn’t keep a blog going for 2 months.
Well, Today makes 2 months!
And, coincidentally, 20th post. So here they are- the rest of the random facts.

11. A US dime has 118 ridges around its edge.
12. On average, a person falls asleep in seven minutes.
13. The average person types 56% of characters on the left hand.
14. The only fish that can blink with both eyes is a shark.
15. There are less people than chicken on earth.
16. Ironically, the Speaker of the House is not allowed to speak in England.
17. The longest 1-syllable word in is “screeched” (in the English language).
18. An American flag flies over the Parliament building on a Canadian two dollar bill.
19. In the movie “Pulp Fiction,” all of the clocks are stuck on 4:20.
20. Orange, silver, and purple can not be rhymed with anything in the English language.

Random Facts, part 1

In preparation for the 20th blog post I decided I’ll post 20 random facts.

You’ll get the second half on the two month anniversary of this blog!

1. A regulation golf ball has 336 dimples.
2. The longest word that can be typed with only the left hand is stewardesses.
3. Tigers have striped skin, not just striped fur.
4. In most advertisements, the time displayed on a watch is 10:10.
5. Al Capone’s business card said he was a used furniture dealer.
6. A dragonfly has a life span of 24 hours.
7. It’s impossible to sneeze with your eyes open.
8. The microwave was invented after a researcher walked by a radar tube and a chocolate bar melted in his pocket.
9. A cat has 32 muscles in each ear.
10. An ostrich’s eye is bigger than its brain.

Water Cleanliness

Did you know that filtered tap water in major cities in the US is actually found to be cleaner as well as more regulated than expensive (overpriced) bottled water?

It’s true! Well, to an extent…. For the most part, it’s true up to the point it reaches your house. If your pipes are dirty with contaminants from the copper or whatever pipes you have, then you have a problem.

Also, keep in mind I said filtered tap water. You need to pass it through one of those Britas or PURs or any of those types of home filters. This relates to the above. The water can pick up contaminants on the way to your cup. Additionally, the water department adds chlorine to kill bacteria that could be picked up on the way.
These filters should get rid of a lot.

Yes, with all these facts I just told you, filtered tap water is still considered better than bottled water.
So, ask yourself, what’s going on with that bottled water of yours?

Red Cups

What do you think of when you see a red cup?

I’m not talking about a red mug. You know exactly what I mean – those famous (or rather infamous) plastic red cups. Commonly known to provide shelter for cheap beer, these cups are a staple in the lives of young Americans.

Think to yourself- when you see a red cup – what do you actually see?
Perhaps a great night and maybe even met someone awesome.
Maybe a terrible night that made you reconsider red cups altogether.

Whatever it is, red cups affect the youth of America and leave memories for the rest of their lives.
What other cups do you know of that have such a massive effect?

Space Conservation

Looking at my bedroom, I have a dresser with a compact-fridge on top of it, a small TV on top of that, and a fan on top of the TV. Oh and the Wii Sensor bar is around the TV-Fan connection.

It’s ridiculous.

Not that I did this and might have all my stuff broken in an earthquake…(ok maybe that too)…but that I must pile all this stuff on top of each other in order to make this tiny room livable.
We all need room for activities…and piling is the way to go about it.

I guess I feel like my room is a mini version of Japan.
Only not as safe. I do have some earthquake-proofing like packing tape to hold the massive fan to the TV.
We’ll see how that holds…

Music

Our society relies on technology. Look at this blog – hah.

But are we so obsessed with technology that we have to make our singers sound like computers?
Listen at the newest songs of popular artists like Kanye West and Britney Spears.
They take voice fixing a step too far. They don’t even sound human anymore.
Every song in the top 10 or even top 40 pop/hip-hop has some sort of voice overly-changed.

C’mon America!

Movies

Why are movies so ridiculously expensive?

The other day I went to go see a movie at the local theater.
$13.50 for an adult ticket! No student tickets. No child tickets. Seniors $10.50.
And to top it off- infants: $13.50!!!

Since when are infants the same price as adults and more expensive than seniors?
Our economy is in the dump. Who can afford spending $14 on a movie?

Then they wonder why piracy is rampant…
For the price of 1-2 movie tickets, anyone can get a high-speed internet connection and access unlimited movies.

Hey Big Movie/Big Entertainment
Lower your prices and piracy will decrease too.

Freedom

Freedom. One word. Moderate in length. Extreme in meaning.

What does freedom mean to the average person?

Well, as an American citizen, freedom to me might be completely different than to someone living in the highest populated nation, China.

Freedom of speech.
Does that really exist? We aren’t really free to say anything. I am able to say more things that a man in China. But there’s still a lot I can’t say in the US without finding myself in trouble with the law.

Of course, this is done to protect the majority. But how far do we go?

Think about it…