Science, art and humans.

Agent Dale Cooper, in Twin Peaks, stated: "Diane, when two events happen simultaneously, pertaining to the same object of inquiry, we must always pay STRICT attention!"

Last day I received an email from a German friend of mine. It was the bearer of good news. My friend, a future Engineer, was telling me that his last important school project was finish and it will be soon holidays for him. He included his project as an attachment and I found myself surprised looking at the planes that he drew for it. It is art and science…maybe more science for him…but more art for me. I decided then to include one of his planes here to serve for the artistic purposes of it.

Last day I discover the blog of jz and she was pondering in one of her entries about architecture and cult of personality. Her fortuitous mention of Peter Greenaway brought to my mind the movie The belly of an architect and therefore the architecture of Étienne-Louis Boullée: (the following from Wikipedia)

“It was as a teacher and theorist at the École Nationale des Ponts et Chaussées between 1778 and 1788 that he made his biggest impact, developing a distinctive abstract geometric style inspired by Classical forms. It was characterised by the removal of all unnecessary ornamentation, inflating pure forms to a huge scale and repeating elements such as columns in huge ranges. He promoted the idea of making architecture expressive of its purpose (a doctrine that he termed architecture parlante, "talking architecture"). His style was most notably exemplified in his proposal for a cenotaph for the English scientist Isaac Newton, which would have taken the form of a sphere 150 m (500 ft) high embedded in a circular base topped with cypress trees. This was, however, never built.”

And then I thought…how funny! Science and knowledge can become art, art can become a philosophy and a doctrine, and these two can become a cult of personality…for example, the personality of Isaac Newton, a scientist and man of knowledge…Is there here a cycle? Is there here something right or something wrong? Or there is just something tremendously human.

Neon lights, a nobel prize
The mirror speaks, the reflection lies
You don't have to follow me
Only you can set me free
I sell the things you need to be
I'm the smiling face on your t.v.
I'm the cult of personality
I exploit you still you love me

You gave me fortune
You gave me fame
You gave me power in your god's name
I'm every person you need to be
I'm the cult of personality

Cult Of Personality (Living Colour)

Secret Underground Bristol

A bit of "Secret Underground Bristol"

"The entrance to the grotto is a Gothic façade built into the side of a hill. It looks innocuos enough, but passing through it is unnerving. From the civilised world of trim lawns and afternoon tea, you are suddenly plunged into a pagan underworld.

"Everything is bathed in the eerie greenglow of moss-laden skylights, and echoes to the crash of water. The cavern is gloomy and glistening at the same time -encrusted with thousands of shells, conches, crystals, fossils and corals like the cave of some eccentric water god. You turn instinctively left, towards the sound of water- and there he is. Far away, it seems, at the top of a narrow cleft,lounges a marble deity. From the urn at his right hand, water cascades downover the rocks, singing through the sells, and tumbles into a deep pool at your feet. As your eyes grow accustomed to the light, you see that the grotto has other strange occupants..."

"Why Thomas Goldney III spent so much time and money on his grotto,and what he did in it, are far from clear...He certainly developed a taste for the exotic if his library -which included a 'Life of Mahomet' and 'TheArabian Nights'- is anything to go by. Perhaps, after all, Goldney built his Aladdin's Cave primarily for himself, and whenever respectable Quakerdom became too stifling, he escaped underground into a romantic dream world.Who knows?"


Goldney Grotto: Goldney Hall, which is now a University Hall of Residence,holds occasional Open Days in spring and summer, when you can see the grounds and grotto. You will find detais on their website:www.goldneyhall.com

El albur

Robado textualmente de Chilangabanda


Se dice que el surgimiento del albur nace con la mezcla de la cultura Náhuatl y Española ya que ambas tienen sus antecedentes de picardía. Por una parte existe el caso de los cantos Nahuas que se cantaban en las cortes de los emperadores aztecas. Dice la leyenda que una nación recientemente sometida al imperio de Tenochtitlán compuso un canto mofándose del emperador en el que se hacía referencia a la incapacidad del monarca Tenochca para “conquistarla”, aludiendo a nación recientemente conquistada. Sin embargo, el canto revelaba que a quien no podía conquistar el emperador azteca era a una mujer anciana.


Se dice que al escuchar este canto el emperador se carcajeó tanto que hizo miembro de su corte al cantor que declamó. El canto en cuestión era uno de tantos poemas (o cantos, por que literalmente se cantaban) que era conocidos en tiempos prehispánicos como cuecuechcuicatl (cantos de cosquilleo o picarescos) y que eran de naturaleza sexual (cabe mencionar que los aztecas tenían muy finos poemas eróticos). Esto quiere decir que los aztecas ya conocían el doble sentido y el inuendo sexual. Es más, conocían hasta la mentada de madre, a la cual denominaban como “nantenehua”, que quiere decir, literalmente, mencionar a la madre.

Niqitoa ni Nezahualcoyotl

Nahuatl
Niquitoa
Niqitoa ni Nezahualcoyotl: ¿Cuix oc nelli nemohua in tlalticpac? An nochipa tlalticpac: zan achica ya nican. Tel ca chalchihuitl no xamani, no teocuitlatl in tlapani, no quetzalli poztequi. An nochipa tlalticpac: zan achica ye nican.

Español
Yo lo pregunto
Yo Nezahualcóyotl lo pregunto: ¿Acaso deveras se vive con raíz en la tierra?
No para siempre en la tierra: sólo un poco aquí.
Aunque sea de jade se quiebra, aunque sea de oro se rompe,
aunque sea plumaje de quetzal se desgarra.
No para siempre en la tierra: sólo un poco aquí.

English

I ask

I Nezahualcoyotl ask: Do we really live with roots in the earth?
Not forever on the earth: Only a moment here.
Although made of Jade, it cracks, although made of gold, it breaks,
although it's plumage of Quetzal, it is torn apart.
Not forever on earth: Only a moment here.

Calvinball

I had the most exciting beginning of the day today! In the last month I have had trouble getting to bed and therefore waking up early. But this morning I needed to get to work early so I had to do something. Battling against my duvet and the alarm clock I had an epiphany: Let’s play Calvinball!

For those of you that know it, Calvinball is the best game ever! Especially for a procrastinator and game-seeker like me, he he!

I am sorry I cannot explain here the rules of the game (but feel free to visit the links above!) Everything started with the rule “Get ready to leave and prepare something to take for breakfast in the office in 10 minutes”. In between I passed an exercising zone so I had to do 20 push-ups. There was a corollary zone that demanded squeezing a ball 5 times while running to the kitchen ha ha! That started to be fun, specially when my housemate, without knowing about the game, set up the next rule!

Follow me in the bike!!! Wow!! That was exciting as my house mate is one of those bikers who likes to squeeze in the traffic whenever he can.

Now let’s see what new rules and zones the rest of the day have for us!!!