“Among those making the 2006 list are the first building that will rise at the site of the former World Trade Center complex, a musical stage version of ‘The Lord of the Rings’ and a skywalk that will allow tourists to walk out over the Grand Canyon.
Tag: 01.16.06
Book Critics Circle Award Finalists
Joan Didion, William T. Vollmann and John Updike were among the finalists announced Saturday for the National Book Critics Circle Awards. The fiction nominees included Vollmann’s “Europe Central,” E.L. Doctorow’s “The March” and Mary Gaitskill’s “Veronica.” Two British releases also were nominated: Kazuo Ishiguro’s “Never Let Me Go” and Andrea Levy’s “Small Island.”
Psst… The Computer’s Listening
Speech recognition programs aren’t just for recognizing words anymore. They work behind the scenes to analyze the emotional tone of a caller, assist operators, and sort through audio files…
LA Opera Expands
Los Angeles Opera continues to expand. Next season the company will present 10 productions and 70 performances. “The aggregate number of performances, including the two recitals, is up from 61 in the current season, for an increase of nearly 25%. The total of 10 productions compares with eight this season.”
The Serial Killer Movie Canadians Aren’t Demanding
A movie about infamous Canadian serial killers Karla Homolka and Paul Bernardo is released this week, but movie theatres aren’t exactly clamoring to show it. Only 100 prints have been made, and so far only 60 copies have been booked.
Arundhati Roy Rejects Award
Novelist Arundhati Roy has turned down a national award from India’s academy of letters because she opposes the government’s policies.
Mitchell: US Public Television Is Broken
Outgoing PBS president Pat Mitchell says that “the United States must fundamentally rethink the value of public broadcasting, because the cash-strapped service is now inhibited from taking programming risks or sticking with worthwhile shows. ‘Public broadcasting has got to have more resources. This is what I said on day one. I’ll say it on my exit’.”
Warning – Your Digital Rights Are Threatened
Britain’s National Consumer Council warns that corporate entertainment digital security measures are eroding consumers’ rights. “Consumers face security risks to their equipment, limitations on their use of products, poor information when purchasing products and unfair contract terms.”
The Computer That Can Predict Hits
“The computer can go out on the internet and read a bunch of weblogs and record reviews and get a grasp on trends and buzz and hype and that sort of thing. At the same time, it also can listen to the music – do some signal processing to figure out stuff like dominant key and pitch and rhythm and structure. For record company executives, this raises the tantalising possibility of knowing in advance whether their latest pop act will hit the charts at a strong position. Hit prediction is possible.
Should Ottawa Orchestra Shed Itself Of Unprofessional Zukerman?
Is it time for Ottawa’s National Arts Centre Orchestra to part ways with music director Pinchas Zukerman, who ditched the orchestra in mid-season? “At his best, Zukerman’s a wonderful violinist. We’ve occasionally heard him at his best, too, but, just as often, he just seems to phone in his performance, apparently bored by the music or the audience.”