“The computer is electronic cocaine for many people. Our brains are wired for finding immediate reward. With technology, novelty is the reward. You essentially become addicted to novelty.”
Tag: 06.19.12
A Brief History Of Espresso Machines (And Their Fanciful Designs)
“In the 19th century, coffee was a huge business in Europe with cafes flourishing across the continent. But coffee brewing was a slow process … Seeing an opportunity, inventors across Europe began to explore ways of using steam machines to reduce brewing time – this was, after all, the age of steam.”
Why Does Every Public Service Need To Be Run Like A Business? (This Path Ruin)
“The constant denigration of government and public service, coupled with the often unjustified veneration of business, has led to a world where successful capitalists are privileged in all discussions. In an earlier time, we understood that the values and priorities of the market weren’t universally applicable; of course you wouldn’t run a university like a business. It has different goals, serves different constituencies, and more important, has a broad obligation to serve the public.”
Why Are Humans So Curious?
“From the perspective of evolution this appears to be something of a mystery. We associate evolution with ‘survival-of-the-fittest’ traits that support the essentials of day-to-day survival and reproduction. So why did we evolve to waste so much time? Shouldn’t evolution have selected for a species which was – you know – a bit more focussed?”
Matisse’s Illustrations For Joyce’s Ulysses (Get Your Copy For $30,000!)
“In 1935, American publisher George Macey offered the great Henri Matisse $5,000 to create as many etchings as this budget would afford for a special illustrated edition of Ulysses. … [It’s] a glorious leather-bound tome with 22-karat gold accents, gilt edges, moire fabric endsheets … The Matisse drawings inside it, of course, are the most priceless of its offerings – the best thing since Salvador Dalí’s little-known Alice in Wonderland illustrations.”
Why The Met Opera Gave James Levine A Big Pay Boost
“James Levine, the Metropolitan Opera’s music director, earned $2.1 million in 2010, up 39 percent from a year earlier and more than the compensation of the general manager, Peter Gelb, according to the Met’s 2010- 2011 tax return.”
The Year Of Gatsby
“As the Broadway hit ‘Gatz,’ an inventive eight-hour show during which the entire novel is read aloud on stage, moves to London this month; as buzz builds for a new movie version starring Leonardo DiCaprio set for release this year; and as economists such as Paul Krugman appropriate the novel’s title to hammer home their beliefs about income inequality, one thing, at least, is very clear: This is the Year of Gatsby.”
Orange County “Battle Of The Dance” Closes After Failing To Find Audience
“Investors sunk more than $10 million into a long-abandoned Toys R Us store near Disneyland, transforming the 40,000-square-foot building into a lavish venue that seats 950 people. According to Gelabert, “Battle of the Dance” employed 200, including more than 40 dancers as well as musicians, magicians, comedians, acrobats and other artists.”
New Study Shows How Listeners Evolve Popular Music
“In a new study, a computer program shows how listeners drive music to evolve in a certain way. Although the resulting strains are hardly Don Giovanni, the finding shows how users’ tastes exert their own kind of natural selection, nudging tunes to evolve out of noise.”
Art Experts Getting Wary About Authentication
“As spectacular sums flow through the art market and an expert verdict can make or destroy a fortune, several high-profile legal cases have pushed scholars to censor themselves for fear of becoming entangled in lawsuits.”