Vintage Monkey Valentine

I saw this excellent Monkey valentine card on The Chive:

The Beatles on The Ed Sullivan Show

50 years ago, The Beatles came to America & performed on the Ed Sullivan Show on February 9, 1964.

This was an event that truly made music history & has influenced people ever since, whether they know it or not. From an early age, my Dad, Big Paul, impressed upon me the greatness of The Beatles & their music. Half a century after he saw this live on TV, with so many millions of other people, I was with my Dad watching The Beatles Grammy special tonight.  It was an excellent tribute to this legendary band.

It's clear that this 1st appearance of The Fab Four in America defined the baby boomer generation, almost as much as the Moon landing or any other event. They not only changed the musical landscape of the time, but also had a huge effect on pop culture in general. They would go on, in their relatively short career, to break all kinds of ground in creative & technical artistry.

Anyone with any music knowledge recognizes The Beatles as the greatest band of all time. Their impact on the world cannot be overstated, and their genius will be apparent for as long as their music endures. 

YouTube:

The Beatles

Here is a video of all their legendary appearances on the Ed Sullivan show:

It's hard to pick out favorites among The Beatles many great songs, but here are a couple of mine:

"In My Life"

"Within You, Without You"

Chimpnology

I'm going from the sublime... right into the absurd.

I saw this completely crazy monkey video on BoingBoing, by the master of surreal animation- Cyriak Harris.

Check out his website full of more crazy creations:

CYRIAK

Jesus the Buddha

I saw this interesting image on waterpeoplenotgrass.tumblr, a fusion of East & Western religious art.

It uses the face & sacred heart of Jesus Christ combined with the iconography of Tibetan Buddhism, which includes the sacred lotus.

Siddartha Guatama (Buddha) supposedly lived about 500 years before Yeshua bin Yusuf (Jesus), and there is some speculation that Jesus was familiar with The Buddha's teachings. Both of these religious traditions embody the practice of enlightened spiritual values.

The World Before the Internet

I sometimes get into a debate with my parents about the idea that there used to be "the good old days"- where the world was a better place when they were kids.

They don't seem to realize that things were just as horrible back then, if not more so! They just weren't aware of this fact because they were kids at the time, & had no idea of the problems in the world.

The Monkey Buddha Archives:

The World Was Always Awful

When people ask me what time period I'd like to live in, I always answer, "Right now!" I feel like life for the average person is much better than it has ever been, thanks to science & technology.

There is still endless misery & suffering on this planet. However, the existence of tools like computers & the Internet have completely transformed the world. When I think back to life as a kid, instead of feeling nostalgia, I realize how much of a pain in the ass it was to learn & do things that are now instantaneously accessible.

This is a funny cartoon that sums up how I feel about the days before digital technology & communication:

"The World Before The Internet 

& Other Frightening Tales"

Sacred Geometry & The Flower of Life

The Flower of Life is a symbol that is the basis for the strategy game I created, "Da Vinci's Challenge". This harmonious design is created through a regular repetition of circles. The circle has always been known as a symbol of perfection, completeness, and unity.
 
This is an extremely well-done graphic. It's a clear, extremely concise primer for the patterns found in nature, known as 'sacred geometry'. These forms & concepts are the closest thing we have to a blueprint for reality.

Image by Frederic Bartl
http://www.fredericbartl.de/godsmath/

I was also reading this article below, that talks about some of the basic concepts behind the ancient study of sacred geometry.

Waking Times:

How Can Sacred Geometry Help You?

"Flower of Life"- Phone Wallpapers

The Flower of Life is an ancient symbol made of repeating circles.

The Monkey Buddha Archive:

The Flower of Life

It is part of a school of thought known as "Sacred Geometry," which is the study of patterns found in nature. These universal patterns & forms have been applied throughout history- to art, architecture, & spiritual contemplation.

I used the Flower of Life as the basis for the strategy game I created, "Da Vinci's Challenge". It is a beautiful design that contains many timeless mysteries.

Official Facebook Page:

"Da Vinci's Challenge"

When I got my amazing iPhone, I created these hi-tech silver wallpapers with the symbol. The glowing version is for the 'lock' screen, & the version with the glow turned off is for the regular background. I figured I'd post them here, for anyone who'd like to use them as backgrounds for their cell phones.

Click the images for a version to download:

 

Recently, I also made this black version to switch it up a little.

Timeline of the Far Future

 I saw this mind-boggling infographic on the Imaginary Foundation blog. It charts predictions of geological & cosmological events that will occur long after human beings no longer exist.

BBC:
Timeline of the Far Future

In my game review of Mass Effect, I questioned if any kind of intelligence or information could possibly survive millions of years- or, even more improbably, billions of years.

One of humanity's most durable creations to date is Mt. Rushmore, but even these giant carvings in the granite mountain will erode after 7 million years.

Will human beings, in their present form, even exist that far into the future?... The likely answer is "No".

We are just a brief flash in eternity.  

 
The human mind can barely think on these time scales,
but it is humbling & helps open our mind to the vast reality we inhabit:

click to enlarge:

Illustration by Alfonso Elola

I came across some striking illustrations that really caught my eye.

The artist, Alfonso Elola, has created digital illustrations that pop off the screen.
His use of lighting and shadow gives the 2-D images an almost sculptural quality.

Check out his work on his online portfolios:

• ArtStation •

• Behance •

Wild Monkey & Dog Chase

Saw this totally random & crazy pic on The Chive.

How could I possibly resist posting a rodeo monkey that's riding a dog, & furiously chasing a goat?

Uncle Floyd at the Broadway Theater

This weekend I got to see some quality entertainment.
On Friday I went to the World Cafe Live in Philly, to see a former classmate of mine perform with his band, A Fistful of Sugar. There were a few other really good bands in the lineup & it was a fun night.

On Saturday, I went to the Broadway Theater in Pitman to see a true New Jersey legend- Floyd Vivino, aka "Uncle Floyd".

Uncle Floyd Radio Show

Awhile back, I posted an homage to this fun-spirited entertainer, who was a childhood inspiration of mine:

 The Monkey Buddha Archives:

Tribute to Uncle Floyd

When I was in elementary school, I remember watching his local access TV show every week.
It was a talk show mixed with music performances, comedy skits, puppets, & other craziness. The wacky humor & his tacky plaid outfits totally captivated me when I was a kid, despite the ridiculously low-budget production. Behind his desk, he would hang up drawings that people sent in, so my Mom mailed him a couple pictures I drew of him & his puppet Oogie.

Later on, I think I was in middle school, he had a different show called "Uncle Floyd's New Jersey". My whole family got into this show, because it was so awkwardly funny & different. Uncle Floyd was THE originator of 'Reality TV'. He would basically just walk into random businesses in North Jersey. Then, he'd talk to customers & the workers, try to get free food, and just generally be hilarious. Even the Uncle Floyd's NJ theme song was absurd & funny.

Anyway, my awesome Mom got me tickets for a show at the nearby Broadway Theater. Uncle Floyd was performing with Dennis & Judi, who are apparently morning radio show hosts, with opening comedian Steve Trevelise. The headliners were Dennis & Judi, who came on in the middle. They were entertaining, but when Uncle Floyd came on, he brought down the house. He's a very funny & talented professional entertainer, who's still one-of-a-kind.

During his set, Uncle Floyd would switch between doing some stand-up bits & sitting down at the keyboard to play some songs. He's got an old-school way about him, but he was throwing in some blue humor without resorting to foul language or overly raunchy jokes.

Unfortunately, he had to play an electric keyboard for his music bits. The theater didn't have a proper piano for him to play, which would have been much better for someone with such an encyclopedic knowledge of old time melodies & Italian songs.

There was no chance to meet the performers afterward, but I'd still like to meet him someday. Maybe I'll have to book him for one of my birthdays so I can meet him in person...

Here are some photos I took at the show:

The Evolution of Cruelty

I just posted about humans being fearsome creatures, & the idea of Earth being a planetary zoo observed by more advanced beings.

This graphic sums up the harsh irony of mankind's often cruel & indifferent treatment of life, especially those most like us. It's sad that we put other people in cages, but it's even sadder that we imprison innocent animals who have no understanding of why we humans are doing this to them. Unfortunately, Life is a brutal process & we are products of this continual violent struggle.

We live in an age of increasing compassion & intelligence, but also one of increasing suffering.
These are not mutually exclusive properties of the world, and many seemingly contradictory situations can exist simultaneously.

All we can do on an individual level is try to personally avoid causing suffering to other beings, regardless of their level of sentience.

Danger: Humans

After my last post, questioning the role of humans in the cosmos, I saw this funny video addressing how we might appear to extraterrestrial beings.

The title says it all - "Danger: Humans"

I personally think Earth could be like a zoo- where we are being continually observed by more advanced species. Humans are fumbling around trying to get off-planet with our primitive rocket technology, while other, more intelligent, life may be zipping around us or even existing in other dimensions.

If I were part of a galactic civilization looking on mankind, I wouldn't want the crazy human race going anywhere, either.

Game Review: Mass Effect

 
Mass Effect is not just a deeply-engaging game...
It's not just a sci-fi masterpiece, either...

It is both those things... but most importantly, it's an eye-opening commentary on the fundamental questions of existence:

• Is there other Life in the universe, sentient or otherwise?
• What happens when interplanetary species begin to contact each other?
• What is humanity's place in the cosmic order?
• Is it possible for ANY form of intelligence, or information, to survive the incomprehensibly vast cycles of cosmological time, on the scale of billions of years?

I've always been a Star Wars fan & generally like science fiction stories. I believe they help map the future of humanity, while helping us understand our place in the larger scheme of things. Mass Effect deserves the many positive reviews it has received. It is an immersive exploration of these ideas, throughout the vast galaxy waiting for us once we become interstellar travelers.

Usually a game of this scope would take more than a month for me to play. Over the holidays I got to put in some marathon sessions, to finish it by the new year. I completed most of the side missions & explored alot of the game, so the total time was a little over 50 hours. Like many of the best video games, it was a better time investment as any engrossing book or TV series. The story raised issues & thoughts that will now be bouncing around in my brain permanently.

Mass Effect is a 3rd person role-playing (RPG) shooter. You create your own version of the main character, Commander Shepard, as a male or female. From the start, you want to pick a persona to guide the choices & interactions the character will make throughout the game. I decided to follow my own personality, as if it were really me in the role.

There is a morality 'scale' that gives you either 'Paragon' or 'Renegade' points, depending on how you react to situations. I decided to generally follow the Paragon path, since I'm not a negative person & I wanted to make decisions that felt natural. Although it is very cool to have this level of character interactivity, I unfortunately take forever to go through the dialog options. It's a bit of cheating, but I found myself looking up the consequences of different decisions online, so I could decide how I wanted the story to proceed. This greatly added to my overall time playing the game.

On a related note, the one complaint I have about the game is the very large amount of dialog. I was playing the game for a little bit over my brother's house while he was doing stuff. He'd walk through & it was early in the game, where you have to interact with alot of characters. He asked me "Is that all you do in this game is talk?!?" I know it is a role-playing game so it's kind of necessary, & I initiated non-essential conversations because there is alot of information in the story that can be learned. Luckily, as the game goes on there's more action & awesome battles to make up for the RPG parts...

The game takes place in the year 2183. Mankind has discovered ruins on Mars, from an ancient civilization. This lost race of beings, known as the Protheans, left ruins & technology all over the galaxy after their mysterious extinction 50,000 years ago. Other alien races have also found relics from the Protheans, that have led to their rapid technological advancement. Finding the remnants of this ancient culture has led to the discovery of faster-than-light travel by humans & other species, resulting in the formation of a galactic community. The center of galactic civilization is a massive space station, known as The Citadel:

Despite its hi-tech look, The Citadel is actually an ancient structure, also thought to have been originally built by the Protheans. Now, it is the home of millions of beings, from many different areas of the known galaxy.

Humanity is the most recent addition to the races on The Citadel & is still trying to prove itself as worthy of inclusion to the more elite aspects of galactic society, like membership on The Council. This is a ruling body that consists of members of several different races, overseeing galactic affairs.

Early on in the game, Commander Shepard's heroism results in the honor of being named the first human "Spectre"- an elite commando who is not bound by galactic military protocol. Shepard's mission is to track down another Spectre, named Saren, who has gone rogue and is conspiring with alien A.I. to overtake the galaxy.

Commander Shepard is given his own ship to carry out his quest- an advanced stealth frigate, The Normandy. This is the base of operations for Shepard & his crew. In the center of the ship, there is a Galaxy Map that is used to choose what star system The Normandy will visit, to carry out the latest missions.

You start out with an overview of the galaxy, then you can zoom in & out of the various levels: Galaxy <-> Star cluster <-> Star system <-> Planet.

This map gives you a good sense of the vastness of interstellar space. Here's video showing navigation between star systems:

In each system, there are several planets you can remotely scan for resources or artifacts. There is usually one planet in each star system that you can actually land on, to carry out a main mission or side quest.

These planets all have different environments, and makes you realize the potentially infinite diversity of worlds that exist throughout the cosmos. Some of the planets' environments are really stunning, where you can see large moons, unusual star formations, or falling meteors in the alien skies. These unique planetary maps really give you the sense of exploring extraterrestrial worlds.

You land on each planet inside a 6-wheeled rover, called the Mako. This vehicle has a cannon & missiles for combat, but most of the time you are driving over the strange landscapes of the worlds you are visiting. You can also get out of the Mako & go on foot with the 2 characters you pick for your squad. The map of each planet is fairly large, with plenty of area to explore for scattered hidden items. Driving over these large areas can get little tedious, despite the amazing environments. I started to wonder why Shepard & his team would be driving a relatively slow wheeled vehicle. Wouldn't they have anti-gravity technology, for some kind of flying scout ship??? This was my only other minor complaint about the game, but I still enjoyed exploring the many different planets in the Mako.

The game's 3rd person combat is very fun & action-packed. A great thing about this game is the effective system of upgrades to weapons and "biotic" powers- which allow you to do things like levitate enemies or create a 'singularity' that rips apart anything near it. Unlike some other games I've reviewed, you have alot of awesome abilities fairly early on. You pick 2 members from your team to join you for each mission, so you can combine teams with different combat or biotic power attributes.

As the game progresses, your character continues gaining even better gear & enhanced powers. I never felt like my character was lacking for proper enhancements. This makes the game much more fun, in my opinion, since you feel like you're properly leveled-up & ready to kick ass at all times.

There's also a major, mind-bending twist to the story that sets up the sequels.

*Some slight spoilers here-
As the story of the game continues, you find out that The Citadel & the Mass Relays allowing superluminal travel were NOT created by the Protheans. They merely found & utilized this technology, like the various races in the current galactic community.

The truth is that this network of space stations & relays, used by the galactic community, are actually a cosmic trap!

Every 50,000 years, a giant fleet of hybrid synthetic-organic sentient starships, called The Reapers, emerge out of the dark space at the edges of the galaxy. They destroy all advanced organic life, then retreat back into the void. Many millenia later, when another interstellar civilization develops, another activation signal is sent to them & the cycle of destruction begins again.

The Citadel is actually a giant portal that The Reapers use to pour through & immediately destroy the heart of galactic civilization! From there, they spread out & eradicate all intelligent life on the various star systems, taking centuries if needed. They turn organic beings into a genetic 'paste' that they incorporate into their own being, as a sort of evolution. The reasons for this cyclical genocide are still mysterious, but there is speculation that this grim process has been going on for millions of years, at least.

I look forward to playing the other Mass Effect games & experiencing more of this awe-inspiring series.

Mass Effect is a truly epic game, in the scope of it's storytelling & depth of game play. It is a sci-fi classic that serves as a virtual experience of mankind's destiny among the stars.

I would highly recommend it to anyone who is interested in space, sci-fi, or just an amazing story about the future of humanity.

• The Monkey Buddha's official rating: 9.25

The Flower of Life: Pattern of Creation

It's a New Year! It's a time where we mark a new beginning.

The circular 'Flower of Life' was a metaphorical symbol for Creation & Genesis in ancient cultures.

\When I chose to use it as a basis for the game "Da Vinci's Challenge," I realized it was more than just a cool design for a game board. The seemingly simple pattern of circles has many deep symbolic meanings, which have been contemplated & studied throughout human history.

Monkey Buddha Archives:
Da Vinci's Challenge

 
Here is the geometric construction of the circular Flower of Life symbol, compared with the formation of galaxies and embryonic cells.

The Flower of Life contains mysteries that span time & space, from the microscopic to the cosmic levels.


Graphic seen on:
Awakening Our Truth

"Da Vinci's Challenge 3000" by Paul Micarelli

I'm ending the year 2013 with a look to the future...

There is a likelihood that the strategy game I created, "Da Vinci's Challenge," could be back on the market next year.

The game has an ancient theme, due to the long history of the Flower of Life symbol featured on the game board.
Despite this classic heritage, maybe one day it will be made into a sleek, high-tech version... by laser wielding robots!

That's the scenario I was imagining when making this addition to my 3D art gallery:  

3D Art by Paul Micarelli

From 3D Art by Paul Micarelli

"Da Vinci's Challenge 3000"

Fractal Snowflake Zoom

If there was one subject that I'd have to say is essential to understanding the reality we experience, it would be- Fractals.

The  Monkey Buddha Archives:

Fractals

Fractal geometry is the closest conceptual model we have to the recursive & endlessly detailed structure of our world.

This is a hypnotic animation I saw on Oerbital, of a particular fractal edge known as a Koch Snowflake.

Like all fractal animations, it's basically a 2.5 dimensional image- a flat picture, but with virtual "depth" that can be zoomed in & out in infinite, self-similar detail:

Super-Brained Monkey

I saw this on fusion anomalog & it cracked me up.

This already-intelligent monkey's 'super brain' has produced an Evolution Accelerator:

Christmas Craziness 2013

It's Christmas time, marking the ending of yet another year.
Time to celebrate the rest of 2013!

Here's some funny Holiday goodies I've come across recently...

The magic of Photoshop is far superior to the magic of Christmas:

Speaking of "magic", some interesting thoughts about the origins of Christmas

Inhabitat:

Santa and the 'Shrooms: 

The Real Story Behind the "Design" of Christmas

The horrifying reason that Santa has a beard:

Never forget to fight the annual Fox News-sponsored "War on Christmas™"

Finally, a moving rendition of "Silent Night":

Lord Hanuman Demands Equal Representation!

This is pretty funny-

After a monument featuring the 10 Commandments was placed on Oklahoma's state capitol grounds, Satan worshipers & also Hindu devotees of the monkey-god Hanuman are now petitioning to have their faiths represented, too.

Raw Story:

Hindus join Satanists demanding 

equal placement on Oklahoma capitol grounds

This is what happens in America when you try to impose your religious ideology onto the rest of the public...

Every other religious group will (rightly) demand equal recognition under the law. This is not a Christian nation, despite the endless arguments from people who confuse their religious tradition with civic law. America is a country of secular government, but was founded on religious freedom & tolerance for all beliefs.

You can worship any damn thing you please - Jesus, Satan, Hanuman, The Flying Spaghetti Monster, etc. Just don't impose your reality tunnel on the rest of us.

Game Review: "Deus Ex- Human Revolution"

I recently finished "Deus Ex: Human Revolution". The concept & story was interesting enough to make it worthwhile for me, but in my opinion the actual game play could have been much better.

Deus Ex takes place in the near future, 2027, where humans are physically merging with machines to an unprecedented degree. People with cybernetic augmentations are called "Augs," and they have abilities that are unavailable to natural humans.

As a result of the inevitable socio-political tensions that arise from one group having an advantage over another, an anti-augmentation movement forms, called "Purity First".

Far from being a mindless waste of time, games like this can actually offer powerful commentary on ethical issues like human augmentation & the role of technology in our evolution. These are emerging problems that are already in the news, and we are going to have to deal with very soon.

NOVA:

Sensor-Laden Prosthetic Hand

Gives Wearer a Sense of Touch

Gizmodo:

World's First Fully Bionic, 

Mind-Controlled Leg Goes for a Walk

io9:

The First Person in the World 

to Become a Government-recognized Cyborg

New Scientist:

Cyborg tissue is half living cells, half electronics

Deus Ex is a 1st-person RPG shooter, so it has role-playing elements for the character interactions. Although I like the idea of influencing the story through the player's decisions, it was a little too much talking for my tastes. I've recently started the Mass Effect series, which also features alot of narrative and decision-making elements. It is much more seamless in that game experience, though. My main problem with that kind of interactivity is that I sit there trying to think of all the possible outcomes for any given choice of dialogue. Pondering these choices, combined with taking my time to look at all the visual elements, results in this kind of game taking me forever to play!

 
The setting of this game features futuristic locations such as Hengsha (Shanghai), where an upper metropolis level called "The Pangu" towers over the lower city. There is a predictable class division that results from this physical separation of the population.

Although the sci-fi look of the game is cool, the amber color that dominates most of the environments makes everything feel very bland & monotone overall. The city areas are much more open & engaging than the levels that are indoor corridors. The last level is an anti-climatic Arctic base that is mostly hallways. The enemies and firefights are pretty intense in those close quarters, though.

The main character is Adam Jensen, a security officer who got injured in a terrorist ambush. When he came out of his coma, he was augmented with military-grade cybernetic enhancements. He was given these implants & prosthetics by his employer, the biotech company Sarif Industries.

The character of Jensen is basically a clone of Neo from The Matrix- from his look to his voice. It's not too annoying, just not very original. He has all kinds of awesome powers to upgrade throughout the game resulting from his cyber-enhancements. He can increase his physical abilities, such as jumping over 9 ft. high, lifting heavy objects, and sprinting faster. There are also many sensory upgrades like being able to see through walls, targeting improvements, and stealth capabilities like cloaking.

My biggest criticism is one that applies to many games- even ones I really enjoy, like Assassin's Creed. By the time you have your character anywhere near to being fully leveled up... the game is over!!! Deus Ex has all these awesome augmented abilities for your character, but most of them aren't unlocked until the final chapters. Just as you are getting to enjoy these kick-ass superpowers, you realize there's not much game time left to use them.

Overall, it's a good game whose thought-provoking content & ideas about the future of humanity held my attention more than the mediocre game play or its spotty action.

• The Monkey Buddha's official rating: 7.5

Flying Dream

Last weekend, I took a nice afternoon nap, & had a dream where I was flying.

The Monkey Buddha Archives:

"Dreams"

Luckily, I've trained myself to remember my dreams. I've experienced 'dream flight' several times before, & each time it's like riding a bike. It feels a little weird at first, as you get used to mentally propelling yourself off the ground. Then, you can go higher & faster until you're soaring into the atmosphere.. if you can handle it.

This dream took place at my parents' house. There was a BBQ in the backyard, with a lot of family & friends there. I suddenly realized that I was in a dream & able to fly. I was showing the kids how I was hovering by propelling invisible energy out of my hands, like Iron Man. Then,

I started flying up at the tops of the trees around the house. I was baffled, though, because nobody there seemed too impressed that I was doing this amazing feat! I decided to leave the party, so I started flying away really fast, straight through the trees in the woods... & that's the last thing I remember.


*On a related note, I was reading a Reddit post about the idea that your mind is processing crazy scenarios all throughout your sleep, but the dreams that you remember are basically quickly compiled in the process of waking up.

Welcome to the Internet

If you are new to the The Internet, have no fear!

Your helpful guide to surfing the Virtual Universe has arrived...

Click to begin your journey

"Welcome to the Internet,

Please Follow Me."

'Evolution' Shadow Sculpture

On io9, I saw this video of a 3D sculpture that can be rotated to form different shadows.

The artist is J. V. Muntean & this particular shadow sculpture, Evolution 1, can be rotated three ways to show the development of man from an ape-like creature.

These ingenious constructions can be seen as a metaphor- for the idea that the changing forms we see in the world around us are only slices of higher-dimensional space. 

Like Plato's "Allegory of the Cave", our senses can't directly perceive these higher forms. We only experience the "shadows" they project into our awareness in 3D space.

Funny Monkey Photo Gallery

I can't resist a gallery of funny monkey pics, This one is from The Chive:

Funny Monkey Photo Gallery

Pleasing the Client

As a professional designer, I've learned that the most important thing is to give the client what they want. Luckily, most of the clients I've dealt with have enough experience & good taste to make decent design decisions.

Sometimes, the client's requests can clash with the artist's vision for a design. One of the challenges of graphic art is to incorporate everything requested, while making it all look good.

I've also learned NOT to show concepts that I really hate as an option- because that will inevitably be the one that is chosen!

I can definitely relate to this comic strip by Jesie Castro, showing the danger of trying to use reverse psychology in the design process. I saw it posted on the hilarious website Clients from Hell:

Also relevant:

The Oatmeal:

How a Web Design Goes Straight to Hell

Hubble Image: Messier 15 Star Cluster

Recently, Hubble Telescope added another image to it's amazing collection. This is the Messier 15 star cluster, one of the densest areas of stellar bodies yet discovered.

Looking into this photo of millions of stars, that are billions of years old, is like gazing directly into infinity...

spacetelescope.org:

New Hubble Image 

of Star Cluster Messier 15

Obey: Consume

'Tis the Season!

 click to enlarge

"Pristine" by Paul Micarelli

I've added another image to my online gallery of 3D art: 

3D Art by Paul Micarelli

This scene shows a crystal-clear sky temple, containing a pristine gold relic in the shape of a star tetrahedron.  

This is a sacred geometric figure- a 3D version of the religious symbol known as the "Star of David" or the "Seal of Solomon".

From 3D Art by Paul Micarelli

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights

Ultimately ALL 'laws' & 'rights' are just figments of the collective imagination- fluid and subject to interpretation. 

They serve as abstract guides in the never-ending balance between individual freedom & social order.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights was recognized by the United Nations in 1948. It is a set of ideals that most people would agree we should strive toward.

This excellent illustration of these moral guidelines was featured on Zen Pencils:

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights

(click to enlarge)

The Unlikely Threat of Buddhist Terrorism

My friend posted this Onion article on Facebook & I thought it was pretty funny.

It demonstrates why there aren't many Buddhist extremist groups engaging in terrorism.

Being more of a philosophy of the mind than a religious ideology, Buddhism tends to involve giving up the the attachment to ideas & opinions which usually lead to a sense of of moral certitude.

Also, "unleashing peace & tranquility" would not be very effective at scaring people into accepting your political agenda.

The Onion:

Buddhist Extremist Cell 

Vows To Unleash Tranquility On West

Excerpt From Buddhist Extremist Video Threat

This is almost as absurd as the portrayal of The Mandarin as a fake terrorist in Iron Man 3...

The Oscar Paradox

When I was a kid, I watched Sesame Street all the time. My favorite character from the show is still the grumpy green monster that lives in a trash can- Oscar the Grouch.

On this isn't happiness, I saw these funny instructions from Oscar on learning to be miserable. It's like a Grouch version of a Zen koan, a paradox or unsolvable riddle.

They are from a kid's book & record set called "How to be a Grouch". It's an entertaining look into the life of a Grouch, like Oscar.

The Meaning of Life by Alan Watts

Alan Watts was one of the people responsible for bringing Eastern thought, such as Zen Buddhism, to Western culture.

His book, self-referentially titled, "The Book: On the Taboo Against Knowing Who You Are," was one that profoundly expanded my worldview when I read it in college.

Since then, I have listened to many of his lectures & talks online.

I recently found this excellent quote that really does cut to the reality of our situation.

There is NO inherent or external "meaning" or "purpose" to Life. Any significance we give to our existence comes from the judgement of our own mind. This is not a nihilistic view. It's simply a recognition of the fact that we inhabit infinity.

"The meaning of Life is just to be alive.

It is so plain and obvious and so simple.

And yet, everybody rushes around in a great panic

as if it were necessary to achieve something 

beyond themselves."

3 Media Monkeys

This version of 'The 3 Wise Monkeys' has been updated for our modern media environment, including monkey bloggers-  

"Hear All Evil, See All Evil, Post All Evil".

I like this version better because I prefer the freedom to experience & observe ALL things, regardless of their perceived moral value.

Minimalist Movie Posters

On BoingBoing, I saw this really cool set of minimalist movie posters. They all shared a common template below, which was used to convey the themes of various films.

Classic Movie Posters 

by Michal Krasnopolski

 

Of course, I love the Star Wars ones, but there are other great solutions to this self-imposed design problem.

 

 Star Wars: Return of the Jedi

Superman

Alien

"Psychedelic Symbiosis"

I've added another image to my gallery of 3D art that I've been posting online:

3D Art by Paul Micarelli

This is an observation of the similarity between the mycelia of fungi and the physical connection of brain cells.

This branching connectivity is a feature that is inherent at all scales of reality.

From 3D Art by Paul Micarelli

"Psychedelic Symbiosis"