David / DTC 355 Multimedia Authoring

Citizen University, started by former Obama speechwriter and UW professor Eric Liu, seeks to re-engage people in what it means to be a citizen. Civic Saturday's are normally held quarterly. The latest one was held virtually; check it out ! Take the oath. The Sworn Again American oath helps us remember what it means to live like a citizen. Learn more at https://citizenuniversity.us/

Ignite Seattle is a quarterly event featuring lightening talks (< 5 minutes each). It's a fantastic way to learn about things you never knew existed, and honestly a wonderful way to weather a COVID-19 quarantine. Complete playlist from  Ignite 41 is here.

 Peace. Triptych variations. 2020.

This cover by Al Jarreau strongly reminds me of Reggie Watts. I'd really like to know if Reggie was influenced by him. I can't see how he couldn't be. I love how Jarreau introduces the song, both verbally and musically, and I can see this as another possible influence on Reggie. On a similar note, Dutch rock band Focus released Hocus Pocus in 1970, which showcases similar verbal gymnastics.

This Axios article  talks about human rights vis-à-vis technology and artificial intelligence. "Uncanny Valley: Being Human in the Age of AI," which confronts exhibition goers with powerful images of data monetization, algorithmic bias and the loss of humanity, opens this week at the de Young Museum in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park. Trevor Paglen's "They Took the Faces from the Accused and the Dead" consists of hundreds of faces used to train an artificial intelligence engine, all without any of the subjects' consent. "What we are looking at here is dirty data," curator Claudia Schmuckli said.

Today I learned about Rockbox , a free firmware replacement for 'obsolete' mp3 players. You can even run Doom or Wolfenstein 3D! This is a perfect way to upcycle and repurpose these old devices you no longer use.

Today I learned about the Jefferson Bible , which Thomas Jefferson created by literally cutting and pasting (with a razor and glue) the moral teachings of the Bible. ( PDF ) From Wikipedia: The religious views of Thomas Jefferson diverged widely from the traditional Christianity of his era. Throughout his life, Jefferson was intensely interested in theology, religious studies, and morality. Jefferson was most comfortable with Deism, rational religion, and Unitarianism. Consistent with his naturalistic outlook and intent, most supernatural events are not included in Jefferson's heavily edited compilation. Even when this took some rather careful cutting with scissors or razor, Jefferson managed to maintain Jesus' role as a great moral teacher, not as a shaman or faith healer.  "I have performed this operation for my own use, by cutting verse by verse out of the printed book, and arranging the matter which is evidently his, and which is as easily distinguishable as...