Pierre Matter - BioMechanical Art

(seen on BoingBoing.net)

I saw the amazing work by sculptor Pierre Matter, which I thought as a whole was pretty awesome. as a biomechanical fusion of industrial elements and organic form, it is similar in style to 'Aliens' designer H.R. Giger, but unique and fascinating in its own right. A couple of my favorite examples are below, click to go to its page:

Pierre Matter Opera Gallery

"Birth" - Pierre Matter

"Le Poisson Oeil" - Pierre Matter

Perceptive Pixel: Touchscreen Tech

Everytime I see demos of touchscreen technology like this, it makes me mad that I don't have an Apple iTablet computer in my hands.

Sure, they have custom "MacTablets" out, but it's just a modified Mac Powerbook w/ a touchscreen. So, it doesn't have Apple's proprietary gesture & interface tech that the new iPhones will have.

Anyway, these big interactive touchscreens in the video create a universe of possibilities in creative fields, business, communication, & technology. I can imagine using it like a futuristic digital canvas to paint in Photoshop. Things like this make me feel like I'm actually living in the 21st Century.

Click To Play

Mayan Priests Fight Bush's "Evil Spirits"

"Miro El Diablo!!!"

I am fascinated with ancient cultures in general, but the Mayan people are especially amazing to learn about. The art, astronomy, & engineering they developed in the jungles of Central America continue to amaze people today. Indigenous Mayan shamans are still practicing their traditional religion, but in a more peaceful form than the state-sanctioned priesthood that existed when the Spanish arrived.

"Mayan Priests Purify Site After Bush Visit"

"That a person like (Bush),
with the persecution of our migrant brothers in the United States,
with the wars he has provoked, is going to walk in our sacred lands,
is an offense for the Mayan people and their culture,"

It takes alot to be considered evil by people whose spiritual leaders once ripped the hearts out of living people to maintain political control of the population...

A Special Message from the Reagans

(seen on BoingBoing)

The spectres of Ronald and Nancy Reagan have done a complete 180° from when I was a kid - their newest campaign is...

"Just Say Yes!"

Don't believe it?
Click the "Freaky First Family" graphic I made below...

The Complex Reality of Climate Change

...which I will simplify.

Basically, nobody knows what the hell is going on.

All people can really do with events on a scale of a planetary or cosmic nature is to simply observe. I think the "Global Warming" movement is a little misguided, though the general intention is positive. The problem is there is the broader reality of 'climate change' which involves possibilities that are beyond the realm of human control, and therefore much more frightening.

• "Earth's Magnetic Field Reversals"

• "Cosmic Rays May be Causing Global Warming"

• "Wikipedia - Climate Cycle"

The human situation on this planet is so fragile, yet we are here against all odds. You can't help but feel a sense of awe when you consider the unimaginable scale of reality.

"10 False Flags That Changed the World"

Sometimes there's conspiracy theory... and sometimes there's plain ol' conspiracy. I came across the link below and thought it was a good collection of shady scenarios that ultimately effected the world in a significant way. All we can do as individual people is examine the evidence from as many sources as possible and try to understand different situations in as objectively as possible. The problem we run into is the inability to remove ourselves from this husk of skin and bone to gain a wider perspective that isn't hindered by mental illusions of national, religious, or political identities.

I'm a complete skeptic in many ways. To me, the idea of Ultimate Truth is an abstract fantasy, so I ultimately doubt all information and analyses to some degree. I guess it's my familiarity w/ Photoshop & other technology that prevents me from completely believing any digital or other media that I see. Everything may be an illusion, but that doesn't mean we can't try to see as much of the rabbit hole as possible...

"10 False Flags That Changed the World"

Insane TV Preacher

This video is a personal favorite of mine, and proves that crackheads finding religion can be really wacky.
Some viewer calls in a demon voice claiming he's Satan. Another guy says the host is really just holding a Yellow Pages phone book & not a Bible. The sheer ridiculousness of this dude's whole show is a riot.
The ponytail alone is enough to make your head spin.

College Humor - "Insane Preacher"
Google Video - "One Man Show-Insane Preacher"

"You f*cking nincum-f*cking-poop!"

Neo-Mickey & Flower of Life Pattern

In my last post, I pointed out the Flower of Life patterns I spotted carved on an ancient coffin found in the recently announced "Tomb of Jesus". Well, I found yet another recognizable use of the distinctive pattern, in a completely different context. Instead of being associated with the ancient world's most well-known religious figure, this time it is associated with the modern world's most well-known pop culture figure - Mickey Mouse! In this case however, it is Neo-Mickey, a whimsical re-imagining of everyone's favorite rodent.

Even in this graphic, it seems there's a subtle, perhaps unconscious, reference to the union of polarities that the Flower of Life symbol has represented throughout history. Like I said about the number 23, it is amazing how the brain finds patterns and connections in such random things.

Flower of Life Design in "Tomb of Jesus"

I am fortunate as a designer to work on different types of creative projects. The published game I created, "Da Vinci's Challenge," is something special because, for me, it really is 'classic' in every sense. When I was designing the game as a student back in 2000, the thing that fascinated me the most was the sense of history and universality of the symbolic pattern of circles called the Flower of Life. It is a recurring visual device in that art of cultures spanning the globe; India, Egypt, Japan, Spain, and even in the studies of Leonardo da Vinci - hence the title of the game!

Despite being familiar with the widespread use of the Flower of Life patterns, I was in for a bit of a surprise tonight. I clicked on a news article about the discovery of the supposed tomb of Jesus and his family that is the basis of a documentary by James Cameron. This is obviously highly controversial & it is already getting crazy coverage.

In most articles I've seen, there's also photos of stone coffins & one in particular that they are claiming belonged to a 'Mary'. The decorative carvings form the "Seed of Life" - a simpler design that forms the center 'seed' of the Flower of Life pattern. In fact, the Seed of Life flower-in-a-circle design is in the center of the art on the Da Vinci's Challenge game box.

Of course, the claimed connection between the tomb & the Bible characters might just be a load of crap. Regardless, the decorated coffin is an interesting example of the use of the Flower of Life pattern in the sacred art of ancient cultures.

Here's a close-up of the carved ossuary from New Zealand Herald :The homepage for the documentary on Discover.com has the carved design peeking out from the bottom corner:The story, with the Mary ossuary, has already made a stir on Google News:

The Number 23

In a weird coincidence (only for me) the Jim Carrey movie "The Number 23" comes out tomorrow - on my birthday - February 23. In the film, his character becomes obsessed with the mysterious workings of this number in a book that seems to be about his own life.

Of course, numbers are simply an abstract tool that can be used describe and relate anything in the realm of human experience. The "mystical" connections and coincidences that people find when they manipulate numbers are just that, arbitrary connections formed in the human mind. If you fixate on any number or letter, guess what? You'll see it everywhere and swear there must be a deeper relationship there! Just like Jim Carrey is doing now in real life.

I'm posting this today, since tomorrow I'll hopefully be busy seeing the movie and celebrating another year of life in this wild & wacky world. Anyway, more on the amazing number 23...

Wikipedia: 23

Fusion Anomaly: 23

23: How Weird is That?

The Insanity of Nuking Iran

"Iran Must Get Ready to Repel a Nuclear Attack"

This analysis I read last month by a Russian general is a sobering look at the situation in the Middle East. I don't know what kind of miracle can stop this madness, since everything in the article is happening as stated. Between the naval buildup in the Persian Gulf and the sudden barrage of "It's Iran's fault!" stories in the news, it looks like deja vú all over again. The most frightening reality is that the U.S. and Israel policy-makers do not want peace in the region. They want power & empire, which means destroying all opposition, which means creating widespread chaos:

"This will solve the problem of completely destabilizing the region, a task of major importance for the US and especially for Israel. The war in Iraq was just one element in a series of steps in the process of regional destabilization."

I metioned the lust for power, which goes along with the main reason for every war - greed and lust of money:

"...what matters to the Americans is not how big the shock is, but how high are the revenues of their military-industrial complex."


Here's another article worth reading, an interview with M.I.T. Professor Noam Chomsky:

"On Iran, Iraq, the Democrats and Climate Change"

George W. Bush Saves a Baby

...the only way he knows how.

This is another "Meet the Press" parody that jabs the ridiculous lengths that delusional hero-worshippers will go to defend the Worst President Ever.

The sad thing is that it seems 30% of this country really would find a way to rationalize Dubya eating a baby on live TV.

click to watch

Meet the Press for Idiots

Conan's the man!
Here's a funny, yet oh so true, little segment...

"Meet the Press" for Idiots

Hummer O2 Conceptual Design

HUMMER O2 CONCEPT DESIGN

The imagination is the most powerful tool that humans have, and I'm a firm believer that anything man can visualize will eventually be acheived. Time and time again, thoughts that have seemed completely impractical or physically impossible become reality.

Once fantastic ideas like levitation, invisibility, teleportation are being visualized into reality.

We are entering a era of human history where anything that can be imagined can be created physically or digitally in some form. This conceptual, creative novelty is a human resource that is thankfully reaching heights beyond anything in known human history, despite the ever-present chaos in the world. Even though Hummer is traditionally known for it's complete gas-guzzling disregard for moderation and modesty, their concept of the Hummer O2 deserves credit, if nothing else except for the amazing combo of cool, tech, & organic factors.

HUMMER O2 CONCEPT DESIGN

The Bible - Revised (again)

The Eternal, Unchanging, Everlasting, Sacred, Immutable Word of G-D

....has been changed....
.....for the thousandth time in history.

"German Bible Goes Politically Correct"

NO, THERE IS NO CONTRADICTION!!!!!!

Amen.

(seen on WRH.com)

Bleeding the Country

...and I'm not talking about Iraq - that's more like dismemberment.

Unfortunately, the country that is getting slowly bled is the United States.
When half of our taxes are already used for the goal of state-sanctioned death and destruction, it's pretty horrifying for any rational person to see the War Monkey & his gang making proposals like this:

"US President George Bush has proposed deep cuts
to federal health care, education, and transportation programs,
searching for new money to pay for increasingly costly
defence programs and the war in Iraq."

So Dick N' Dubya have their sights on Tehran, Congress is waiting for more Republicans to wake the hell up and help stop the madmen in the White House, and we taxpayers are throwing money to the wind everyday we are occupying Iraq.

Maybe this guy has the right idea...

"Ed and Elaine Brown were convicted last month of plotting to conceal their income and avoid paying federal income tax for years. They argued the tax is illegitimate and no one is required to pay it. They said they would pay their taxes if the government shows them a law that allows labor to be taxed."

Of course, if anyone were to stage a tax revolt or a protest action like the Boston Tea Party they would be considered a terrorist, as the British overlords considered Thomas Paine and Samuel Adams to be. (Here's an idea: The Houston Oil Party, dump barrels of oil into the Gulf! Just Kidding!(?))

Killers of Comedy

I've been a Howard Stern fan since I was in middle school, when I would listen to his show on the bus in the morning in my Walkman. Me and my younger brother used to watch his Channel 9 TV show on a crappy black & white TV I had in my room, since my mom wouldn't let us watch it.

Since he has moved to Sirius, alot of people I know have signed up for satellite radio... mostly because of Howard's show. It is unbelievable how funny the show is, and alot of it is because of the crazy personalities on the air. One of my brothers got us tickets to see the Killers of Comedy show that came to the Broadway Theater in Pitman, a stand-up comedy show that includes a half dozen comedians and personalities who appear on Howard's show. It was funny as hell and I got some pictures with a few of the guys who performed. Below the photos is the graphic I made for the shirt that I wore, featuring possibly the best guest in the history of Howard's (or anyone's) show - Beetlejuice.

(Click on Photos to Enlarge)

• Me with Jim Florentine, voice of the retarded puppet Special Ed from the show Crank Yankers. His act was really good & he was cool about letting me snap some photos.

• Beetlejuice, Jim Florentine making an obscene gesture, Me.

• Me w/ the Reverend Bob Levy. His act was hysterical, too. He was trying to sell shirts at the merchandise table after the show, saying "Buy some shirts, I need an eight-ball." and "I need money for hookers."As I was getting the pictures, he dropped a shirt that we picked up & he didn't notice. Sorry for not contributing to your cokewhore fund, Bob! At one point during his act, he was asking the audience what kind of porn they liked. Nobody was saying anything, so I yelled "Blue Iris!" and he started laughing and telling dirty old lady jokes. Funny stuff.

The Beetlejuice graphic I made for the shirt I wore to the show:

Touchscreen Tech & the iTablet

Man, this guy is sooo right on the money...

"What has Apple got in store for us next?"

The thing that got me really hyped up over the announcement of the iPhone is the inevitable use of the touchscreen interface in a full-scale tablet Mac. This is the computer I've wanted ever since my family got it's first Windows 3.0/DOS piece of garbage computer, way back when.

C'mon Apple, you're killing me!!!

History of Religion Map

This is a neat animation showing the geographic domains of religion over time since the formation of the oldest of the world's major religions, Hinduism.

Animations like this really give the impression of institutions like religion or empire as being an amoeba-like phenomenon that almost has a collective mind of its own... moving, expanding, devouring each other, learning and adapting to the changing situation.

History of Religion

The Universe: Infinities Upon Infinites

Been there, done that... Been there, done that... Been there, done that...

It's very interesting to compare the "discoveries" of current science and their amazing analogs throughout ancient history, whether in philosophy or technology.

"No Big Bang?
Endless Universe Made Possible by New Model"

"Lord Vishnu is said to rest in the coils of Ananta,
the great serpent of Infinity,
while he waits for the universe to recreate itself."

Leprehcaun Sighting in Mobile, Alabama

This video is one of my all-time favorites & always cracks me up when I watch it. This neighborhood is only half as crazy as people who see Jesus in a frying pan. There are more great quotes in this segment than most news shows get in a month. The Eazy-E clone at the end should be careful, though...

Leprechaun in Mobile, Alabama

"I wanna know where da gold at.
I want da gold... gim me da gold!"

Video Treasure Trove

I came across this extensive list of links to awesome Google videos that could occupy me for weeks on end.

MIND EXPANDING VIDEO LIST

There are documentaries & lectures by visionaries such as Terence McKenna, Alex Grey, Alan Watts, and many more. Videos about Mysteries, Consiousness, Alternative Science, & Conspiracies! There are also music videos from the Doors, Bob Marley, Tool, etc....

It pisses me off that I'll never be able to watch all these great videos in their entirety, but the fact that such an interesting collection can be electronically compiled and shared around the world is pretty astonishing.

Psychedelic Science

Visual Variety

(seen on boingboing.net)
We are living in a golden age of communication. The experimentation of new media and messages is exciting to watch. Click to view a cool video transient moving images created with water:

Jeep Waterfall

I'm a visual person, so the more there is to look at, the better. However, the amount of visual information shoved in our faces is sometimes completely ridiculous, like in the crazy Times Square, NYC. This webpage tries to chronicle every ad in the commercial advertising supernova in the heart of Manhattan. It makes me wonder if we will ever hit a wall of novelty.

Hanuman Cries

It appears that a statue of the Hindu monkey god, Hanuman,
has been seen shedding tears in a temple in India.
(Doesn't he know that Monkey Buddha's aren't supposed to cry?)

The only explanation I can think of is that Lord Hanuman saw an advance copy of this year's State of the Union speech.

"Who's cryin' like a bitch now?!?"

Mystery of Picasso

Pablo Picasso was undeniably one of the greatest artists in history because of his technical skill, his innovations in technique & media, and the synthesis of modern & ancient sensibilities. I can't say that I 'like' all of his work, but all of it fascinates me.

It's tempting to try to understand the specific idea of cubism in intellectual terms, as in a definition like "the representation of multiple physical & experiential dimensions in a 2D space." However, this is simply an act of assigning ape-grunts to a sensory experience, which can sometimes create a filter of pre-conceived notions.

Watching this time-lapse video of one of Picasso's paintings from 1955 has intrigued and mystified me even more. We can define techniques and styles all you want, but art at its core is the use of creative energy in any manifest way. This movie highlights the essence of art as a process of sublime creation. It's really cool to slide through video and watch the painting morph...

The Mystery of Picasso

Top Villains of 2006

No connection to the previous post, of course...

(You have to be a real bastard to be
25 times more unpopular than the Devil.)

from Crooks & Liars

Finally, something Dubya can claim to be #1 at!

The Anti-Christ Archetype

• "Divides the world and creates war without end"

• "Refers to war as peace, death as a solution for justice,
and serving the wealthy as a means of helping the poor."

• "Attempts to win supporters, and will silence anyone or make enemies of any country who refuses to approve of him."

• "A leader who deceives many people."

• "They will follow in his battles that he will declare, boldly and without humility, are for a purpose which is untrue."

• "Many nations will recognize that he is evil, but his own people will be inclined to believe his deceptions.
This is because the people who follow him will lose the ability to discern between the truth and the lie."

• "A popular figure among those who are deceived by him"

• "Professes to be a man of God, who is himself a Christian."

• "He could be a high-ranking political leader, who will initially do very good, popular things, which will win him many followers.

• "In the end, however, he is supposed to get increasingly totalitarian and elicit more and more sacrifices from his followers until eventually his evil ways become known, and the era of 'trials and tribulations' begins."

http://www.prca.org/pamphlets/pamphlet_3.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antichrist
http://www.webster-dictionary.org/definition/Antichrist

------------------------------------------------------
"I just want you to know that, when we talk about war, we're really talking about peace." -George W. Bush
------------------------------------------------------
"A tyrant must put on the appearance of uncommon devotion to religion. Subjects are less apprehensive of illegal treatment from a ruler whom they consider God-fearing and pious." -Aristotle
------------------------------------------------------
"I’m not scared of Osama bin Laden or Saddam Hussein. They can never hurt America in any fundamental way. As Teddy Roosevelt said, American democracy will never be destroyed by outside enemies – but it can be destroyed by the malefactors of great wealth who subtly rob and undermine it from within. And I see that process happening today." -Robert Kennedy, Jr.
------------------------------------------------------
"God gave the savior to the German people. We have faith, deep and unshakeable faith, that he was sent to us by God to save Germany." - Hermann Goering, speaking of Adolf Hitler

"The majority of Americans didn't vote for him. Why is he there? I tell you this morning that he's in the White House because God put him there for a time such as this." - Lt Gen William Boykin, speaking of G. W. Bush
------------------------------------------------------
"The greatest purveyor of violence on earth is my own government." -- Martin Luther King, Jr.
------------------------------------------------------
"The Americans are forcing even their friends into becoming their enemies. It is curious that the Americans, who calculate so carefully on the possibilities of military victory, do not realize that, in the process, they are incurring deep psychological and political defeat. The image of America will never again be the image of revolution, freedom and democracy - but the image of violence and militarism." - Vietnamese Buddhist leader
------------------------------------------------------
"An evil man sows strife." --Proverbs 16:28
------------------------------------------------------

"Ye shall know them by their fruits." -Matt 7:16

This website is pretty crazy, too:
http://www.bushislord.com

http://www.whatreallyhappened.com/illuswarprayer
(Mark Twain's bitterly *sarcastic* "War Prayer")
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A809-2004Nov20.html
(War & Iraqi Children)
http://www.thefourreasons.org/victimsofwar.htm
(Our tax dollars at work)

New Year "i-nspiration"

I haven't posted anything in about a month due to overall laziness, the holidays, and the various good & bad B.S. that life tends to produce.

However, today I have been inspired by the introduction of a creation that is one of those things (usually made by Apple) that is a perfect blend of simplicity, utility, and aesthetic beauty. One of my heroes Steve Jobs presented the iPhone today and this thing is... how do I put it eloquently,.... f*@&ing awesome.

Now all Apple has to do is release an iTablet and I will proclaim Apple the greatest company in the Universe.

www.apple.com/iphone/

I'm staring into the face of the future.

DaVinci's Challenge @ 3Amoebas.com

My company 3Amoebas, Inc. finally has a website up. It is also the official homepage of "DaVinci's Challenge". There is alot of info & links that I've been archiving here on my blog, but now there is an permanent product page for the DaVinci's Challenge games. I think it turned out pretty cool, and I'm looking forward to adding the licensed game "24: Countdown" I developed and other projects coming down the pipeline.

3amoebas.com

Knucklebones: DaVinci's Challenge Review

The January issue of Knucklebones game magazine has a positive review of the DaVinci's Challenge game. It's still hard to wrap my head around the fact that something I created can be enjoyed by so many people.

Click on the image
to enlarge

Mexico Still Protesting Elections

Unlike the mainstream media, I've been following the news of ongoing Mexican protests over their Presidential elections (which were ultimately decided by a court... how novel!) They have determination & persistence that seems frighteningly absent from the American population.

I wonder what level of criminality would be required to cause Americans to rise up in the same way. (Certainly not rigged presidential elections.)

Protesters turn Mexican University
into Stronghold in Oaxaca Rebellion

I'm still convinced my Mom started this when we were in Mexico's Riviera Maya this summer. Our driver to the airport, who was a Mayan, was talking with us about their government and my Mom told him "they got to get together and speak out." Thet took her advice and then some!

The End of the Beginning

Wow, I have to say I'm kind of stunned at the lack of major election chaos, which seemed almost inevitable. The level of frustration and desire for change was just to great for Diebold to fuck with, I guess.
As smooth as the process seems only a couple days after the vote, I've become a complete skeptic under the rule of the War Monkey and always anticipate the worst-case scenario. There are people making alot of money from war and chaos... and people who profit from death and misery obviously have no scruples.

Rummy's out... one Horseman down, three to go!

This election has resulted in a silent sigh of relief from most of the country and, perhaps moreso, from the world. The level of awareness and connectivity, even in a propaganda-ridden and commercialized society such as ours, is pretty impressive and is a testament to human intelligence and spirit. However, citizens need to be diligent regardless who's in charge. In fact, the Democrats will be held up to harsher scrutiny because of the high expectations for drastic change. I can't see how they could possibly do worse than the goons, criminals, and lackeys who made up the Republican Congress & House we've had under Dubya.

GOP Scandal Scorecard
Warning - it's a long one!

Worst Video Game Names

As a game and toy designer, I know that one of the biggest concerns about developing any product is the name. That's why the titles on this list of the Worst Video Game Names just blows my mind.
How could anyone approve a game for kids called "Sticky Balls" or "Nuts & Milk"?

My favorite (since the word 'Dude' is used nonstop between me & my brothers)...

BAD DUDES VS. DRAGON NINJA!

"Hey Dudes!" - Big Paul aka Dad

The "Democratic Threat"

I saw some guy on CNN claiming to represent religious conservatives or the Republican party or something, trying to warn about the danger of Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi's "socialist" agenda if the Democrats win majorities in Congress. I'm an Independent voter since I claim allegiance to nothing but myself and the human race, but I think supporting the Republican Party today makes no sense unless you're wealthy, a lobbyist, or Satan. Even the supposed "Republican base," Evangelical Christians, have no business supporting these goons because they're just getting lip service from power-hungry politicians who think they are "nuts."

I don't know how even so-called conservative people could find these Democratic goals to be a threatening agenda. Compared to the discord, corruption, and obscene budget & military mis-management that have been the result of Republican rule, these ideas should sound like the qualities of an American utopia.

Pelosi Says She Would Drain GOP 'Swamp'

• Put new rules in place to "break the link between lobbyists and legislation." (I'm sold already!)

• Raise the minimum wage to $7.25 an hour

• Cut the interest rate on student loans in half.

• Allow the government to negotiate directly with the pharmaceutical companies for lower drug prices for Medicare patients.

Wow, what a horrible, horrible set of left-wing socialist priorities!!! They actually help people, instead of destroying the country for the benefit of corporate and special interests! Imagine that!

If these four points ever had the possibility of being carried out, it would be with a Democratic Congress. Hopefully overwhelming public opinion makes another rigged election too obvious to carry out in November. I'm not holding my breath, though.

Earth After Humans Are Gone

This chart shows, if humankind disappeared right now, how long it would take for various artifacts of our presence to also disappear. By far, the most permanent of our marks is that of nuclear waste and debris. For example, the depleted uranium weapons we are using in warfare are completely irresponsible and idiotic. Here is an article on NewScientist.com that spells it out a little more.

One of the first things to be rendered useless would be the very words that I am typing now... along with the rest of the Internet!

(click to enlarge)

Life Inside a Cell

One of the entries for the Visualization Challenge I just posted about was this awesome 3D animation by Harvard's Molecular Biology program of the processes that go on at the microscopic level & beyond. The otherworldly detail and the strange structures of the microcosmic world make this an almost psychedelic trip into "Inner Space". Although it's not completely accurate in terms of scale and appearances, creations like this make it easier to appreciate the intricacy and complexity of our universe. Click to watch.

Life Inside a Cell

2006 Visualization Challenge

The growing power of computers and the sheer number of artists, scientists, & programmers emerging every day is expanding the knowledge and creative vision of the human race at a unimaginable pace. We are creating new ways of thinking, new realities, which the collective consciousness of mankind continues to assimilate and synthesize into a greater vision of our world.

Science Magazine awards such vision with their yearly Visualization Challenge. All of these entries are unique and thought-provoking. The human being is a novelty-producing entity, and these endeavors are truly mind-expanding attempts to see the world in a new, informative way.

2006 Visualization Challenge Winners

Lightning Strikes!

This has to be one of the wildest photos I've ever seen. This lightening bolt threw the photographer six feet in the air! Read the story from the UK Daily Mail. You don't mess around with Mother Nature.

click to enlarge

Imperial History of Middle East

(seen at infosthetics.com)

This is a fascinating animation showing the various kingdoms & empires that have dominated the Middle East & the Mediterranean through time. Dynamic visual presentations like this can provide as much understanding as hundreds of pages of written history. (Click below for link.)

Maps of War: Imperial History

The U.S. vs. John Lennon

I haven't heard anything about this documentary "The U.S. vs. John Lennon" but it looks pretty cool from the trailer. The only problem with being such a powerful voice for peace and freedom is that it makes you a visible target for the forces of violence and oppression.

Some great quotes from the trailer:

"Our society is run by insane people for insane objectives, but I'm liable to be put away as insane for expressing them." - John Lennon

"Lennon represented Life, and Mr. Nixon & Mr. Bush represented Death."