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General Discussion / International Calls
« on: September 08, 2013, 04:54:10 pm »
Anyone know of a cheap web service for making international calls? Been doing a lot of business in Europe, and Skype is too expensive per minute.
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General Discussion / Small Vayden Tour -- Possible Meetup?
« on: November 13, 2012, 01:58:39 pm »
I'll be on the road for a few dates starting this Thursday.
11/15 Rockbar Inc. - Scottsdale, AZ
11/16 Hooligans - Albuquerque, NM
11/17 Marquis Theater - Denver, CO
11/19 Liquid - Boise, ID
11/20 The Alley - Sparks, NV
There's also a possible, yet unlikely show in Vegas on the 21st. Lemme know if anyone will be coming out. After the 15th, I'd recommend contacting me on facebook.
Many more shows to come next year.
11/15 Rockbar Inc. - Scottsdale, AZ
11/16 Hooligans - Albuquerque, NM
11/17 Marquis Theater - Denver, CO
11/19 Liquid - Boise, ID
11/20 The Alley - Sparks, NV
There's also a possible, yet unlikely show in Vegas on the 21st. Lemme know if anyone will be coming out. After the 15th, I'd recommend contacting me on facebook.
Many more shows to come next year.
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General Discussion / A Quantum Mind - The Penrose-Hameroff model
« on: May 14, 2012, 01:46:24 am »
"Consciousness is a mystery, and the association of consciousness with matter is even more mysterious."
Possibly like other members of this community, I've long been interested in how a particular collection of matter and energy combine to create awareness. While attempts to describe the human brain in relation to computers helped me understand some basic principles of the human brain, it fundamentally lacked in the field I was most interested: awareness, which modern computers clearly do not possess. Though without any other explanation, I felt forced to accept the idea that awareness is just a self-illusion, a product of very complex interactions of neurological systems exclusively within the brain, extending far beyond the capacity of modern computers.
Unknown to myself at the time, the discovery of quantum computing inspired dozens of brain models based upon quantum computational principles. Among them, the most elaborate is the Penrose-Hameroff model.
This model has its flaws; Penrose states that his ideas on the nature of consciousness are speculative, and his thesis is considered erroneous by experts in the fields of philosophy, computer science, and robotics. Even more criticized was Hameroff's model of how the brain could function in such a quantum arrangement (more info here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orch-OR).
Though there is still much debate and research on the subject. According to this same wiki article,
Even though I am skeptical of a quantum mind until further developments in research can prove otherwise, I find the idea very interesting.
I'm curious to hear the thoughts of those here interested in physics, as well as neuroscience (Rule), on the subject of the association of consciousness with matter.
Possibly like other members of this community, I've long been interested in how a particular collection of matter and energy combine to create awareness. While attempts to describe the human brain in relation to computers helped me understand some basic principles of the human brain, it fundamentally lacked in the field I was most interested: awareness, which modern computers clearly do not possess. Though without any other explanation, I felt forced to accept the idea that awareness is just a self-illusion, a product of very complex interactions of neurological systems exclusively within the brain, extending far beyond the capacity of modern computers.
Unknown to myself at the time, the discovery of quantum computing inspired dozens of brain models based upon quantum computational principles. Among them, the most elaborate is the Penrose-Hameroff model.
Quote
Gödel's theorem is central to this theory. In 1931, Gödel proved that any theory capable of expressing elementary arithmetic cannot be both consistent and complete. Further to that, for any consistent formal theory that proves certain basic arithmetic truths there is an arithmetical statement that is true, but not provable in theory.
The theorem is not in itself controversial, but what Penrose developed from it is. In his first book on consciousness, The Emperor's New Mind (1989), Penrose argued that the theorem showed that the brain had the ability to go beyond what could be achieved by axioms or formal systems. He argued that this meant that the brain had some additional function that was not based on algorithms (a system of calculations), whereas a computer is driven solely by algorithms. Penrose asserted that the brain could perform functions that no computer could perform. He called this type of processing non-computable.
Penrose went on to consider what it was in the human brain that was not driven by algorithms. Given the algorithm-based nature of most of physics, he decided that the random choice of position etc. that occurs when a quantum wave collapses into a particle was the only possibility for a non-computable process. However, Penrose admitted that the randomness of the wave function collapse, although free from algorithms, is not a basis for any useful form of human understanding.
Penrose now proposed a second form of wave function collapse that could apply where quanta did not interact with the environment, but might collapse on their own accord. He suggests that each quantum superposition has its own piece of spacetime curvature, and when these become separated by more than the Planck length of 10−35 metres, they become unstable and collapse. Penrose called this form of collapse objective reduction.
Penrose suggested that objective reduction represented neither randomness nor the algorithm based processing of most physics, but instead a non-computable influence embedded in the fundamental level of spacetime geometry from which mathematical understanding and, by later extension of the theory, consciousness derived.
This model has its flaws; Penrose states that his ideas on the nature of consciousness are speculative, and his thesis is considered erroneous by experts in the fields of philosophy, computer science, and robotics. Even more criticized was Hameroff's model of how the brain could function in such a quantum arrangement (more info here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orch-OR).
Though there is still much debate and research on the subject. According to this same wiki article,
Quote
In the last decade, some researchers who are sympathetic to Penrose's ideas have proposed an alternative scheme for quantum processing in microtubules based on the interaction of tubulin tails with microtubule-associated proteins, motor proteins and presynaptic scaffold proteins.
Even though I am skeptical of a quantum mind until further developments in research can prove otherwise, I find the idea very interesting.
I'm curious to hear the thoughts of those here interested in physics, as well as neuroscience (Rule), on the subject of the association of consciousness with matter.
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General Discussion / Secure Web Download Token System
« on: January 30, 2012, 05:59:06 pm »
What's up dudes?
I'm looking to set up a secure download token system on our website by tonight for distributing a DVD download. Basically, tonight we will send to all the pre-orders, a download token embedded in a hyperlink that will only allow to download the DVD once. If they need to download it again, then they press a button that generates and emails them a new download token. The goal is to try and minimize sharing of this content until the physical release date in March.
Does anyone know much about this subject, ie do they have packages for this, or will I need to program it from scratch, and if so, which language is most ideal for me to program this in, and (@iago) what steps would I have to take to prevent vulnerabilities?
I'm looking to set up a secure download token system on our website by tonight for distributing a DVD download. Basically, tonight we will send to all the pre-orders, a download token embedded in a hyperlink that will only allow to download the DVD once. If they need to download it again, then they press a button that generates and emails them a new download token. The goal is to try and minimize sharing of this content until the physical release date in March.
Does anyone know much about this subject, ie do they have packages for this, or will I need to program it from scratch, and if so, which language is most ideal for me to program this in, and (@iago) what steps would I have to take to prevent vulnerabilities?
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General Discussion / <obligatory-new-year's-resolutions-thread>
« on: December 29, 2011, 06:30:55 pm »
I'm still considering mine, but figured I'd start the thread anyways.
I feel like I succeeded in following through with my last year's resolutions.
I feel like I succeeded in following through with my last year's resolutions.
Quote
release and tour on a new album.
base my self-worth less on other people's perception of me, and more upon my responsiveness to the moment.
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General Discussion / @Rule: Bach's Cello Suites
« on: December 29, 2011, 03:55:35 pm »
Do you know of a definitive recording of Bach's Cello Suites, similar to Glenn Gould being the definitive performer of the Goldberg Variations?
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General Discussion / SD Card Data Recovery
« on: November 14, 2011, 08:42:37 pm »
So a filmmaker buddy of mine accidentally formatted an SD card with his Canon 60D. On this card he had around 29GB of important footage that he hadn't backed up. From what I hear, SD card recovery is similar to any other recovery in the sense that when formatted, only the partition tables are overwritten and the actual data is left intact. luckily, my friend hadn't written any files onto the card after formatting.
So I ran a deep scan with the lovely program Recuva, and after an hour, it found all 29GB of 416 deleted jpg's, mov's and tif's. I recovered all of the files onto a separate external hard drive. The file sizes all seemed appropriate, and the image files worked 100%.
But none of the video files are able to be read by any video media program. VLC crashes, Final Cut imports a few minutes of "empty" video files filled with white noise, and none of my converting programs are able to load and convert the file to another format. The name of the files don't have any illegal characters in them that may confuse the media programs.
I'm in the process of using another program named Data LifeSaver to do a similar deep scan recovery process and hoping to have better success. I'll post an update on this soon.
Does anyone have any other ideas? Does anyone know much about paying for a professional data recovery service? As I said, the footage is of critical importance.
So I ran a deep scan with the lovely program Recuva, and after an hour, it found all 29GB of 416 deleted jpg's, mov's and tif's. I recovered all of the files onto a separate external hard drive. The file sizes all seemed appropriate, and the image files worked 100%.
But none of the video files are able to be read by any video media program. VLC crashes, Final Cut imports a few minutes of "empty" video files filled with white noise, and none of my converting programs are able to load and convert the file to another format. The name of the files don't have any illegal characters in them that may confuse the media programs.
I'm in the process of using another program named Data LifeSaver to do a similar deep scan recovery process and hoping to have better success. I'll post an update on this soon.
Does anyone have any other ideas? Does anyone know much about paying for a professional data recovery service? As I said, the footage is of critical importance.
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Entertainment District / Memo
« on: September 16, 2011, 01:26:24 pm »
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iM2j1Cewhac
I love playing music with these guys. this is one of my favorites from our new album. what you see is what you hear.
I love playing music with these guys. this is one of my favorites from our new album. what you see is what you hear.
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General Discussion / The Best Investment You Can Make
« on: June 29, 2011, 10:05:45 pm »
http://blogs.hbr.org/haque/2011/06/the_best_investment_you_can_ma.html
I found this to be an interesting read.
Quote
It's the burning question many of you have been hurling at me recently: "So instead of idly waiting around for the so-called mysteriously reluctant non-recovering recovery, what should we do to survive this never-ending raging crisis?"
Here's a tiny suggestion. The "best" investment you can make isn't gold. It's the people you love, the dreams you have, and living a life that matters.
Now, some among you will probably roll your eyes and snicker: "Hey, bro, want fries with that hopelessly naive idealism?"
But you're probably willing to entertain the idea that maybe the great systems of human organization, whether political, social, or economic, aren't creating a meaningful prosperity as well as they could. And cynicism's the surest path to mediocrity.
So allow me to explain.
I found this to be an interesting read.
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Entertainment District / My Parents Winning the Lottery
« on: April 19, 2011, 02:54:53 am »
http://youtu.be/fz63V3IPUY0
Check out my these voice messages I woke up to yesterday morning! My parents won the $56 million powerball jackpot!
Check out my these voice messages I woke up to yesterday morning! My parents won the $56 million powerball jackpot!
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Entertainment District / dubstep?!
« on: February 01, 2011, 06:13:14 am »
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nw-YjVp_ibQ
serious shit a little after a minute.
Quote
Sounds like a Transformer raping a dinosaur...
serious shit a little after a minute.
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General Discussion / Flux Thruster Atom Pulsar Electrical Venturi Space Time Implosion Field Gene...
« on: December 29, 2010, 02:46:07 am »
...rator Coil
Featured on TED Talks:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c1hLzQPio_8
Do the big math heads here have anything to say about this?
Featured on TED Talks:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c1hLzQPio_8
Do the big math heads here have anything to say about this?