Inmate Central

Inmate Central, where civil and family-friendly discourse about off-audio topics (other than religion and politics) is welcome.

Return to Inmate Central

Message Sort: Post Order or Asylum Reverse Threaded

... and in TODAY's "We really are getting old" news:

71.192.138.56
Posted on April 25, 2017 at 05:54:17
mhardy6647
Audiophile

Posts: 16019
Location: New England
Joined: October 12, 1999
Contributor
  Since: October 23, 2016
 Robert M. Pirsig has died.

Pirsig was a semi-big deal for a little while.
I have a weird memory of his book "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance", because it was required reading in one of my college courses -- Molecular and Cellular Biology Lab.
Srsly.
The professor responsible for that course was a piece of work.

At this late date, I really only remember one thing from Pirsig's book -- I thought his little essay on why instruction manuals are always so bad was pretty insightful.

all the best,
mrh

 

Hide full thread outline!
    ...
RE: ... and in TODAY's "We really are getting old" news:, posted on April 25, 2017 at 07:18:14
FenderLover
 Man, we are getting old! That book spawn a lot of the unbridled enthusiasm and positive vibes of that era. Things that desperately missing in today's cynical society.

8^)

 

RE: ... and in TODAY's "We really are getting old" news:, posted on April 25, 2017 at 07:37:40
Inmate51
 Don't even get me started. "The Greening of America" and some other forgettable book (something about the military-industrial whatever) were required reading for a class I took. Can't remember the class title, either - it was that useless, but required for "electives" (that right there is an oxymoron!). What a waste of my time! I could've been studying something important!

And, there was another "elective" (again, forgettable), where we had to write an essay on something or other. I wrote an essay on alternative fundamentals/foundations for life on other worlds - instead of being carbon-based, they could be based on some other chemistry which worked on their world. I got a 'D'. Now, the whole freaking scientific "community" is talking about that possibility. Suffice it to say that the instructor was not a thinker.

Ok, done ranting for now.

You kids get off my lawn!

:)

 

RE: ... and in TODAY's "We really are getting old" news:, posted on April 25, 2017 at 08:17:14
Orchardist
Audiophile

Posts: 830
Location: NH
Joined: April 6, 2003
 Inside every cynical person, there is a disappointed idealist
George Carlin

 

RE: ... and in TODAY's "We really are getting old" news:, posted on April 25, 2017 at 08:32:49
SpotcheckBilly12345
 And I got stuck with "Silent Spring" back in the day. Actually failed a course 'cause I disputed some of the conclusions that the prof claimed were carved in stone. HA!

Cheers,
SB

 

RE: ... and in TODAY's "We really are getting old" news:, posted on April 25, 2017 at 08:32:52
Steve O
Audiophile

Posts: 12383
Location: SE MI
Joined: September 6, 2001
 I read it much later in life as recreation and not a requirement and found it interesting and entertaining. Guess motivation can be a factor in enjoyment.

A lot of it struck me as a covert treatise on the concept of "quality". I found it a bit disjointed at times which added challenge but overall it left positive impression. Might dig it out and give it a re-read.

 

RE: ... and in TODAY's "We really are getting old" news:, posted on April 25, 2017 at 10:48:13
fredtr
Audiophile

Posts: 1987
Location: Phoenix
Joined: January 4, 2005
 I liked it when I read it. One of the other engineering managers kept a dog eared copy in his desk, read from it to his employees when he though it appropriate. One of his favourites was stuckness:

"What you're up against is the great unknown, the void of all Western thought. You need some ideas, some hypotheses. Traditional scientific method, unfortunately, has never quite gotten around to say exactly where to pick up more of these hypotheses. Traditional scientific method has always been at the very best, 20-20 hindsight. It's good for seeing where you've been. It's good for testing the truth of what you think you know, but it can't tell you where you ought to go, unless where you ought to go is a continuation of where you were going in the past. Creativity, originality, inventiveness, intuition, imagination - "unstuckness", in other words - are completely outside its domain."

 

silicon :-), posted on April 25, 2017 at 11:34:11
mhardy6647
Audiophile

Posts: 16019
Location: New England
Joined: October 12, 1999
Contributor
  Since: October 23, 2016

Silicon,of course, can essentially substitute for carbon in the generation of polymers.

That territory, you may recall, was mined (pun oh so intended) by the original "Star Trek" series. ;-)

-- and think of the mammae that the silcon-based life forms' females could have.

:-)

all the best,
mrh

 

Wouldn't they use carbon based polymers for strategic "augmentation"?, posted on April 25, 2017 at 13:06:01
Steve O
Audiophile

Posts: 12383
Location: SE MI
Joined: September 6, 2001

 

It was a difficult read, posted on April 25, 2017 at 13:33:42
Sondek
Audiophile

Posts: 9632
Location: Fort Worth
Joined: May 17, 2000
Contributor
  Since: April 5, 2002
 Have to admit it was a very difficult read for me. I enjoyed the book, even found much of it enlightening, but his writing style drove me up a wall. Verbose is the word, I think. My wife, the English major, who would devour five or six books a week in assigned reading in college, never finished Zen. Same reasons why I had trouble with it. She tried to read it for pleasure based on my recco, but threw in the towel and gave up.

 

It was lambasted by some, as I recall, for being Intro. Philosophy --, posted on April 25, 2017 at 15:12:25
mhardy6647
Audiophile

Posts: 16019
Location: New England
Joined: October 12, 1999
Contributor
  Since: October 23, 2016
 with a lot of added fluff.

all the best,
mrh

 

;-) , posted on April 25, 2017 at 15:14:10
mhardy6647
Audiophile

Posts: 16019
Location: New England
Joined: October 12, 1999
Contributor
  Since: October 23, 2016
 My goal was to slyly, subtly imply that, being silicon(e) already, they'd be "naturally enhanced".

Otherwise, yeah, you're right, and for the same reason 'we' use silicone.

:-)

(and I am going to RESIST the TEMPTATION to attach an illustrative image)

all the best,
mrh

 

Page processed in 0.030 seconds.

[ Top Top of Page ] [ Contact Us ] [ Support/Wish List ] [ Copyright © 2024, Audio Asylum, all rights reserved ]
[ General ] [ Speakers ] [ Tubes ] [ Vinyl ] [ Digital ] [ Hi-Rez ] [ Video Asylum ] [ Cables ] [ Tweaks/DIY ] [ Music ] [ Films ]