A few days ago I posted about "Weird Al" Yankovic makng the first single from his upcoming "Straight Outta Lynwood" album available as a free download on his Myspace page. That file of "Don't Download This Song" was 92 kbps in rate. Well not many people may know this but in the past few days Al has also put up DontDownloadThisSong.com and there's a much higher-quality version of the song (at 160 kbps) available for download there. I recommend getting it from that site if you must download it (even though the song implores you NOT to download it at all :-)
Friday, August 25, 2006
Thursday, August 24, 2006
It's the Return of the Spinning Head!
Here's a real blast from the past that I found tucked away on a seldom-used hard drive tonight...
I made that all the way back in 1998! Remember how a long time ago when we didn't have blogs or Myspace, how we made our own personal homepages? Yeah, a bygone era to be sure. Well when "Weird" Ed and I were roomies at Elon, I had him help me make this graphic for my homepage. So I sat in his office chair while he operated my standard film camera mounted on a tripod. I faced the camera, he snapped off a pic, and while keeping my head straight I rotated 1/8th the way around. He took another pic, I rotated, and so forth. Then I got the film developed and scanned all the photos (with the scanner in the computer lab at school), took the files home and did some editing with Paint Shop Pro, then assembled them together with GIF Construction Set. All of this was using Windows 3.1 except for the scanning which was done on a Win 95 machine. I then stuck it on my homepage (which was called "Chris Knight's Virtual Surreality" at the time). It came out pretty good, I think. It definitely made people laugh when they saw it. Anyways, it's a bit of graphic fun I had back in the day and I thought that if anyone is curious about what a 360-degree look at my head was like in 1998, that it'd be fun to post here for old time's sake.
I made that all the way back in 1998! Remember how a long time ago when we didn't have blogs or Myspace, how we made our own personal homepages? Yeah, a bygone era to be sure. Well when "Weird" Ed and I were roomies at Elon, I had him help me make this graphic for my homepage. So I sat in his office chair while he operated my standard film camera mounted on a tripod. I faced the camera, he snapped off a pic, and while keeping my head straight I rotated 1/8th the way around. He took another pic, I rotated, and so forth. Then I got the film developed and scanned all the photos (with the scanner in the computer lab at school), took the files home and did some editing with Paint Shop Pro, then assembled them together with GIF Construction Set. All of this was using Windows 3.1 except for the scanning which was done on a Win 95 machine. I then stuck it on my homepage (which was called "Chris Knight's Virtual Surreality" at the time). It came out pretty good, I think. It definitely made people laugh when they saw it. Anyways, it's a bit of graphic fun I had back in the day and I thought that if anyone is curious about what a 360-degree look at my head was like in 1998, that it'd be fun to post here for old time's sake.
Making a contribution to the Knight for School Board 2006 campaign
I'm now three weeks into my campaign for school board. And if you would like to help out in any way, I would certainly appreciate the support. Just saying "good luck" or sending a prayer this way would help plenty. But I would certainly also appreciate any monetary support that could come this way.
So if you've read my campaign website or you know enough about me already that you feel I would be of great service on the Rockingham County Board of Education, I'm asking you to consider making a financial contribution to this campaign. There are two ways you can do this from this blog: directly online via PayPal, or mail-in a check along with some required information.
PLEASE READ THE FOLLOWING:
Personal checks and checks from PACs registered with the state of North Carolina ONLY are accepted. By state law we cannot accept corporate contributions. Contributions are limited to no more than $4,000. Anonymous contributions are prohibited. State law requires that the name, address, phone number, occupation title and employer's name be recorded from each contributor. Contributions are not tax deductible.
OPTION A: ONLINE CONTRIBUTION
There are two steps to making an online contribution.
1. Send an e-mail to knightforboard@gmail.com with "Contribution" in the subject line. In the body of the e-mail you must provide the following information:OPTION B: MAIL-IN CONTRIBUTIONName
Address (street, city, state, zip)
Phone Number (including area code)
Occupation/Job Title
Employer
Contribution Amount2. After sending the e-mail you may then hit the button below that will take you to a secure page on PayPal from which you can make a contribution with a major credit card or checking account.
There are two steps toward making a mail-in contribution.
1. Send a written/printed page with the following required information:As I said, any support at all - even just wishing me good luck and Godspeed - would be appreciated. But if you find it possible to make a financial contribution, I would be especially thankful. By the way, no sensitive financial information will be shared with anyone. I am only required to make a record of name, address, phone, employer information etc.Name
Address (street, city, state, zip)
Phone Number (including area code)
Occupation/Job Title
Employer
Contribution Amount2. Mail the page with the information, along with your check contribution, to the following address:
Chris Knight
1516 Sherwood Drive Apt. B
Reidsville NC 27320
Chad gives it a "tri"
A few weeks ago my life-long friend Chad (who you might remember for his stunning portrayal of George Lucas in Forcery) did something he's never done before: competed in a triathlon. That's when you swim a distance, then bike a long way and then run the rest of the race. Chad's a veteran of two full-blown marathons already and several half-marathons, and he was one of the best swimmers on our team in high school and he bikes to work sometimes... so the man was way up to the challenge of the triathlon. Read his blow-by-blow report, including a bunch of great action photos. Congratulations on a good race Chad!Testing, pay no attention
P.S. the above photo is that of Vinnie Lunesta, the accountant at WGSR-Star 39 (the TV station I work at). This was from the evening Lunesta went on Monday Night Live and explained how the show had given away more than $400,000 in prizes.
(I'm using the "beta" version of the new Blogger stuff... I had to test this with something :-P )
Tuesday, August 22, 2006
A hearty hello to everyone from the TAPS Forum!
The past few days or so my blog's meter has been going crazy with hits, and yesterday I found out why: I'm getting a LOT of visitors from the TAPS Forum! Some of you might remember my post last October about the best ghost photographs ever taken. Well the good folks on the TAPS (The Atlantic Paranormal Society, the same outfit you see on Sci-Fi Channel's Ghost Hunters) boards found that article and made a thread out of it on their board. How much traffic are they sending this way? About three-four times the normal flow :-) I peeked my head in to check 'em out and I was mighty impressed with the camaraderie over there, so I registered on the board and sent them a hello there. Anyways, they're a good crew and I wanted to commemorate their being here, so... hey guys! :-)
Monday, August 21, 2006
I was the first fan ever to listen to Weird Al's new song!!
Well like I wrote about this afternoon, a few minutes ago "Weird Al" Yankovic posted the first single from his new album Straight Outta Lynwood on on his Myspace page. And ironically it's titled "Don't Download This Song". It's HILARIOUS!! And wonder of wonders: I was the very first fan to post on Al's Myspace page that I was listening to it!! Don't believe it? Here's the link to where's it at on his comments page (must be logged-in to Myspace to see it). It's the entry dated Aug 21, 2006 5:59 PM where I say '"Don't Download This Song" listening now!!!' Is that cool or what? :-)
Joe Rosenthal passes away: WWII photographer shot most famous image of the war
On February 23rd, 1945, after four days of fighting on the Pacific island of Iwo Jima, United States Marines from the 28th Regiment of the Fifth Division took the high ground on Mount Suribachi. There had been a flag-raising atop the hill earlier that day but it was then taken down because it was thought too small. A short while later six servicemen began raising a much larger flag. As they lifted the staff Joe Rosenthal, a photographer with the Associated Press who had been attached to the American forces as a field correspondent, snapped the following photograph:
It's being reported this afternoon that Joe Rosenthal has died at the age of 94. His photo of the raising of the flag atop Suribachi on Iwo Jima will forever be regarded as the most well-known image ever taken during the long conflict of World War II.
TONIGHT: First single from new Weird Al CD will be ANOTHER free download!
It was announced about two weeks ago that tonight "Weird Al" Yankovic will release the first single from his new upcoming album Straight Outta Lynwood on his official Myspace page. The upload is scheduled for 6 p.m. Pacific/9 p.m. Eastern and yes, it will be another free MP3 download like he did with "You're Pitiful" a few months ago. No idea which song from the CD this is going to be but rumor is that this might be "White and Nerdy": Weird Al's parody of Chamillionaire's "Ridin'". My guess is that it might be one of his new originals and that it'll be a style parody (his "Wanna B Ur Lover" from his last album Poodle Hat was a dead-on Prince-style spoof and was one of the most risque things Al's ever done). But there's also supposed to be parodies of Green Day, Usher, R. Kelly and Taylor Hicks on this thing, so I guess anything's possible tonight. I'll make an update to this post later on tonight after I've had a chance to listen to the new song.
UPDATE 10:14 PM EST: I've listened to "Don't Download This Song" probably a dozen times now since it appeared online a little over an hour ago and it just keeps getting funnier and funnier! I would say it's definitely a style parody along the lines of "We Are The World": it's not hard at all envisioning dozens of recording artists getting together and singing this. So go be a hypocrite and download "Don't Download This Song" from Al's Myspace page. Do it. Do it now now now!!
And the news just keeps getting better: the video for "Don't Download This Song" is going to premiere on Yahoo! Music Videos two days from now!
Oh yeah, and I wound up being the very first fan to listen to the song and comment about it on Al's Myspace page, too :-)
Campaign issues: The theory of "Intelligent Design"
On the website for my school board campaign there's a page called "Qualities and Qualifications". Up 'til earlier today on the part where I talk about being a Christian - which I believe anyone who's considering voting for me should bear in mind before they cast their ballot - there was a brief blurb about "intelligent design" theory. I had written this:
"... I have issues with the teaching of "intelligent design" in the public schools. If anyone wonders about why that is, write me an e-mail and I'll explain as best I know how."I removed that small bit earlier today, because I had started to feel like it didn't really adequately address my beliefs well at all. Well, earlier this evening (okay, it's past midnight as I write this right now so this'll be late yesterday) a gentleman wrote me and asked for some elaboration. I gave it to him, as best I knew how. And it sort of confirmed something that had been growing in my mind all day long: that I should provide more about my beliefs on "intelligent design" (i.e. teaching the theory of creationism per the Judeo-Christian model in public schools) on my website.
Well, there's a brief (for me anyway) capsule synopsis of my stance on intelligent design on the Issues page of the site. But just for sake of further clarity, I thought it might be a good idea to post the entirety of what I wrote this gentleman here on my blog, and invite any questions of comments about it from my readers (all three or four of them :-)
That said, here it goes...
My beliefs on teaching "Intelligent Design" in public schoolsOkay, if I write anymore I'll risk once again being referred to as a "wordy wordy monkey". Feel free to discuss or write me or whatever :-)I believe that God created the world. As a Christian, as someone who's studied science for most of my life, as a historian who's made biblical history a major part of my personal research, and for a lot of reasons I hold to the Judeo-Christian belief that we are not here by accident. I believe we are here for a purpose. And that purpose is established by Someone higher and greater than we are.
Now, about "intelligent design". Which I've pretty much stated that I *do* believe in an intelligent design to the universe already...
If we are to teach intelligent design in the science classroom, we should also be prepared to teach evolution as well, because each of them, in the strictest scientific definition of the term, is considered a theory. You and I believe that God established this world... but that's not something that is absolutely testable and verifiable by scientific experimentation. Neither for that matter is evolution (and I would be the first to point out in a science class that an increasing number of scientists are now saying that Darwin's theory of evolution is a very bad theory according to everything we now know about biology and genetics). Both "intelligent design" and "evolution" are ideas that must be accepted by faith on the part of the individual. And that's not something that we can or even should attempt to use the powers of the temporal realm in forcing another person into accepting: he or she must choose for himself, or herself, what it is they believe about how it is we came about.
I do not believe in the slightest bit that evolution is the answer to how we got here. In fact, it takes *more* faith to hold to the evolutionary model of things than it does for the creation model. But in terms of what materials we have with which to observe and make quantifiable measurements from, neither are concepts that we can either prove or disprove. Again, both come down to being things held by faith. Thus, if we are to discuss "intelligent design" (which I have no personal belief against) as a theory in the classroom, we should also be ready to discuss evolution as a theory also. And any other theory that someone might hold to (including panspermia, as much as I've always thought that was the most ridiculous theory ever postulated).
So how do we teach how it is that we got here, from both the physical and biological perspectives? The short answer is: we don't. And we don't pretend to have an answer for that either. What we *can* do as educators is admit to our students that there are several theories regarding how existence came to be and how we are where we are today. In that context, a teacher absolutely *CAN* discuss his/her personal beliefs on the subject, including if he/she believes in intelligent design (as a matter of fact, every teacher I had in a science class who did discuss his/her personal beliefs admitted that they *did* believe in creationism). If the opportunity arose in the classroom, I would certainly admit that I believe that there is a created structure to the universe that was put in place by God.
Here is the root of my personal problem with "intelligent design" in the classroom. It's not really about the theory at all, because I am a creationist. But it's how it has come to be used and pursued in many jurisdictions across the country. Instead of being something to be promoted as a legitimate theory in opposition of evolution for the students to consider, it has become a weapon to be wielded against those whose beliefs deviate from that of the Judeo-Christian mindset. All too often, the battles fought in our school systems are not about giving our students the best education possible, but rather they are about coming to possess a power over those students. As a Christian, I believe that using "intelligent design" in this context can do nothing other than corrupt unto self-destruction the testimony we are called to have of Christ. Having power over others - in the slightest bit - is not what we are called to do as ambassadors of Christ in this world. So I think in some ways how intelligent design is used has become something of a trap that diminishes us and our mission here.
We are here to convince those outside of Christ by virtue of our character and our humility. Lacking the desire for temporal power is something that markedly separates us from the rest of the world. Having that kind of peace without feeling we must possess power to keep it is something that all too many people in this world are craving in their own lives.
That is why I am suspicious of the promotion of "intelligent design" in our classrooms. Not because I disagree with the theory (as I've said, I do believe in creationism). But far more so, I fear what can and has been done with this theory in the name of God, but in reality has been for the glory of mere men.
This is something I've thought long and hard about, in the event that were to I win election to school board. I can not be a board member and proclaim that my beliefs in creationism are something that must be adhered to by the students of Rockingham County without question, because that would just be me serving my own interests. But I can be a presence on the board suggesting that in teaching science, if we absolutely must discuss the origins of existence then we *should* present "intelligent design" as as theory as viable as evolution.
It's complicated, I know. And what I've shared with you probably isn't half of my complete thoughts on the subect. In coming to my conclusions I really have sought to honor God and present Him as best I can possibly witness for Him to a very secular world.
But in a nutshell: it would be best not to speculate on how we got here, because we can't go back and observe how that came to be. Science can only show us how to observe the here and now. If discusson compels it, intelligent design should be presented but we also must accept that evolution can and will be presented also. We can admit to what we believe in regarding the subject but it's not given to us to compel our students to believe likewise. Rather we should do what we can to encourage them to come to their own beliefs on the subject... even if the answers for those questions can only be found in spirituality. And if we are to present intelligent design in the classroom, we - and I mean the Christians who would be given such authority - must resist the temptation to use it according to our will and understanding, rather than God's.
Sunday, August 20, 2006
Plight of the Bumblebee: the 'bots in TRANSFORMERS announced
Back in May I posted my list of which Autobots and Decepticons should be in the live-action Transformers movie due out next July. Well this past Friday the writers of the movie did an online "press conference". And considering that they're making some departures from "old school" Generation 1 Transformers, the Autobots and Decepticons we'll be seeing are pretty close to what I'd called for. From the Autobots we'll be getting Optimus Prime (who'll be sporting some HIDEOUS flame decals on his truck form), Bumblebee (depicted in robot form at left), Jazz, Ratchet, and Ironhide. The Decepticons will be represented by Megatron, Starscream, Brawl, Bonecrusher, Barricade, Scorponok, Frenzy, and Blackout. A lot of fans are outraged that Soundwave will not be one of the Decepticons, but I can sort of understand it: when the first Transformers came out in 1984, Soundwave was one of the most popular Decepticons... but he transformed into a tape deck. How many times do you see someone carrying around a tape deck anymore as opposed to a CD player or an iPod? Actually, there's an idea: Ravage or Rumble could turn into an MP3 player. And sorry all of you who were hoping we'd see a "gestalt" robot like Devastator: although Bonerusher has traditionally been a Constructicon, there's no mention of the five other 'Cons with which he combines to form the massive robot with.But who knows: maybe if sequels are made we'll get to see a lot more Autobots and Decepticons. Maybe one of them will be Grimlock so his fanbase (who are some of the scariest Transformers fans I've ever known) will be happy. And I'd love to see Astrotrain or Blitzwing, if nothing else than to see how a robot that transforms into two vehicles translates on-screen.
"Take me out to the ballgame..."
This past Friday night Lisa and I did something that I haven't done in over twenty years: we went to a real live baseball game. It was the Greensboro Grasshoppers at home in First Horizon Park against the Lexington Legends.
And we had a really darned good time! The staff at the park really went all-out to give the eight-thousand-some in attendance some lively entertainment. One of the highlights of the night was the newest addition to the Grasshoppers team: Miss Babe Ruth, an 8-month old black Labrador Retriever who just start work as the team's "bat girl": she's trained to pick up the bats that the Grasshoppers use. After the game she ran through all four bases and then, ummmm... provided some other "entertainment" (well she's just a puppy after all :-P ) After the Grashoppers beat the Legends 9-3, there was a fireworks show launched from deep center field... and one of the better shows that I've seen at that. I ate two hot dogs with plenty of mustard while we were there and the food is pretty delicious too. It's all enough to make me wish I'd gone to a Grasshoppers game already in the two years that they've been playing in Greensboro. I'm really looking forward to going again sometime.
Wednesday, August 16, 2006
Once again, sensationalism overwhelms in Ramsey case
It was about 5 this afternoon that we got word at the station that there had finally been an arrest in the JonBenet Ramsey murder case. We wound up going to breaking news around 5:30 and that's practically all that was talked about for the next 45 minutes.
I guess maybe local interest (I'm writing from north-central North Carolina in case anyone's ever wondered where I am geographically) in the Ramsey case has something to do with the Short family murders, which happened four years ago this week. To this day, the killer of nine-year old Jennifer Short has not been found and there seem to be very few leads in the case. JonBenet Ramsey was murdered almost ten years ago... so I guess there is kind of a hope in these parts that if there has been a substantial break in that case after so long, that we might see justice meted out somewhere along the line on whoever it is that killed Jennifer and her two parents. I can pretty well understand that.
But I've never understood the sensationalism that has surrounded the Ramsey case from the very beginning. It's something that I've always believed has hampered the legitimate investigation into the crime. It doesn't matter who her parents were or that she was a beauty contestant, or anything else like that. At the risk of coming across as sounding cold and callous: this was just another murder case. And it should have been approached as any other murder case is supposed to be: with solemnity and seriousness of mind. But from day one this has been like chum thrown to the sharks of a headline-hungry media. It's been treated like a daytime soap-opera storyline far too much. And it's something that no doubt has prevented this case from making any significant progress until today's developments.
This isn't the first time this has happened by far. We saw it happen in the O.J. Simpson case over ten years ago. In our grandparents' day it was the Lindbergh kidnapping case of 1932: to this day there is grave questioning as to whether Bruno Hauptmann really went to the electric chair a guilty man. If cooler heads had prevailed among the press - and fame-happy prosecutors - the real murderers might actually have been found in the course of due process. But that didn't happen... or was allowed to happen at all.
So I'm glad that, apparently, there may have been a real break in the Ramsey case and a prime suspect has been found. We might have finally taken a major step toward seeing JonBenet's killer brought to justice. I just can't help but think that it could have come an awful lot sooner than now. And I wonder now just what the press is going to do this time now that it's got a second wind.
This week's sign that the Apocalypse is upon us...
I want a Mac.
That is the very first time in my life that I've found myself lusting after one of Apple's computers. And after going so long calling them "Macin-craps" too. But, it's true: I would love to have a Mac computer.
Now, I am and always will be, I guess, a Windows user. Ever since Windows 3.1 well over ten years ago. For me, it's just plain fun to get into the guts of Windows and tinker with stuff, the way we used to edit AUTOEXEC.BAT and CONFIG.SYS files in old-school MS-DOS. And it's just too practical for me to stick with Windows anyway. It's what I know how to use the most.
But in spite of all that, at long last... I'd love to own a Mac. Because as good as Windows is, there are some things that Mac can do just as well. And I'll now admit, maybe even better.
What finally did it for me is Garageband, a Mac program that lets even music-illiterate types like me make some pretty astounding audio tracks. We have Garageband loaded on a G5 Mac at our TV station and I'm really impressed with it. So much so that for the past few weeks I've been trying my darndest to find a Windows equivalent that does the same thing.
But alas... there isn't one.
And Macs also run Final Cut Pro, which I'm amazed at what some of the other guys at the station can do with this software package. When I was putting Forcery together I used Adobe Premiere Pro 1.5 for the editing and After Effects 6.5 for all the visual effects. If I'd been working on a Mac loaded with Final Cut Pro, I could have streamlined the entire process so much more smoothly.
I'm starting to seriously consider eventually getting a Mac, because if I'm going to pursue filmmaking any more it might be well worth getting a multimedia platform as well-suited to so many production tasks as the Mac is. I can see where it would make a huge impact on my work.
If my friend Deborah ever reads this she's going to be laughing her head off, because she's long been telling me how good Macs are... and I've finally come to believe her.
So that might be something I'll be looking into getting in the not too distant future. And I'm sure it will work just fine alongside my Windows XP machines, or Vista if Microsoft ever gets that piece of bloatware off the ground. That's one thing I've always admired about Macs though: they don't have the excess baggage that every new iteration of Windows seems to bring with it. Sometimes less is more.
Okay, I've made my confession. Now it's time for me to go to work and do penance at the iMac that holds all of our station's TV commercials :-P
Tuesday, August 15, 2006
50,000
A few minutes ago I went to this blog to check on something and noticed the meter...
Monday, August 14, 2006
U.S. government sends Blade Runners to look for Replicants at Knoxville airport
Don't you just hate it when real life starts to imitate the movie Blade Runner too much?
Here's the story from the Wall Street Journal:
Which Travelers Have 'Hostile Intent'? Biometric Device May Have the AnswerHow is this not the Voight-Kampff test from Blade Runner?! Here's the user's end of the machine:
By JONATHAN KARP and LAURA MECKLER
August 14, 2006At airport security checkpoints in Knoxville, Tenn. this summer, scores of departing passengers were chosen to step behind a curtain, sit in a metallic oval booth and don headphones.
With one hand inserted into a sensor that monitors physical responses, the travelers used the other hand to answer questions on a touch screen about their plans. A machine measured biometric responses -- blood pressure, pulse and sweat levels -- that then were analyzed by software. The idea was to ferret out U.S. officials who were carrying out carefully constructed but make-believe terrorist missions.
The trial of the Israeli-developed system represents an effort by the U.S. Transportation Security Administration to determine whether technology can spot passengers who have "hostile intent." In effect, the screening system attempts to mechanize Israel's vaunted airport-security process by using algorithms, artificial-intelligence software and polygraph principles.
Neither the TSA nor Suspect Detection Systems Ltd., the Israeli company, will discuss the Knoxville trial, whose primary goal was to uncover the designated bad guys, not to identify threats among real travelers. They won't even say what questions were asked of travelers, though the system is generally designed to measure physical responses to hot-button questions like "Are you planning to immigrate illegally?" or "Are you smuggling drugs."
(snip)
The Voight-Kampff is a polygraph-like machine used by the LAPD's Blade Runner units to assist in the testing of an individual to see if he or she is a replicant. It measures bodily functions such as respiration, "blush response", heart rate and eye movement in response to emotionally provocative questions. In the film two replicants take the test: Leon (played by Brion James) and Rachael (played by Sean Young). In Blade Runner, Deckard tells Tyrell that it usually takes 20 to 30 cross-referenced questions to distinguish a replicant. With Rachael it takes more than a hundred.There's no word yet on how many "skinjobs" have been nabbed in Knoxville so far.Description from the original 1982 Blade Runner presskit:
"A very advanced form of lie detector that measures contractions of the iris muscle and the presence of invisible airborne particles emitted from the body. The bellows were designed for the latter function and give the machine the menacing air of a sinister insect. The VK is used primarily by Blade Runners to determine if a suspect is truly human by measuring the degree of his empathic response through carefully worded questions and statements."
Peter the YouTuber gaining a devoted following
A few days ago I posted a YouTube video featuring a 70-ish man making some "geriatric gripes and grumbles". Well in the past week or so since that first video, which he titled "first try", Peter - aka "geriatric1927" - has gained a massive following especially from the younger crowd that dominates YouTube. He's now posted eight videos of himself so far. He talks about growing up before World War II, entering the British armed forces as a radar mechanic, meeting and marrying his wife, his lifelong love of motorcycles, the passion for blues music that he shares with his audience... he's definitely one of a kind in the world of Web 2.0. Here's one news story I found about him and here's yet another. I'm highly recommending checking this guy out if you haven't already.
