We Are Doomed

Crossposted from Reflections Journal.

Doomed.

Most of us think of the game rock, paper, scissors as a game of chance.

Some of us, like Douglas Walker, co-author of the Rock Paper Scissors Strategy Guide, consider it a game of physical and psychological skill.

And then there are the scientists at the University of Tokyo's Ishikawa Oku Laboratory, makers of the Janken robot, who have turned the game into an impossible endeavor.

You cannot beat the Janken robot at rock, paper, scissors. The robot will always win.

Also, Janken is the Japanese name of the rock, paper, scissors game.

So how does the robot always win? The answer is simple: The robot cheats.

Just sayin.'

Robot Baby Weirds People Out

Crossposted from Reflections Journal.

The wriggling, the squirming, the Moro reflex-induced jump... If you want proof that artificial intelligence is thriving, look no further than this robotic -- and yes, somewhat creepy -- baby.

. . .

Many bloggers and online commenters have called the animatronic baby "creepy" and "freaky" -- Technabob even ran a post about the clip with the headline "Skinless Robot Baby is the Stuff Nightmares Are Made Of." But, whether you are horrified or fascinated, there is no denying that Clarke's tiny robots serve an important purpose -- keeping real infants safe.

Sure, it's cute. But, do I really need to point out where this kind of thing can lead? Here?

Cafe

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Around the Web, Around the World

"Why Shamanism Now?" with Christina Pratt

Energy Velcro and the Hollow Bone

The shamanic altered state of consciousness and being a "hollow bone" are not necessarily the same thing. All over the Internet contemporary practitioners are claiming that the altered state they enter to work with Spirit is, by definition, being a "hollow bone." Becoming the Hollow Bone is an ancient practice in Zen Buddhism, shamanism, and many native peoples of North America. It takes years of dedicated and disciplined practice to create this inner state of consciousness and freedom. In contrast, entering a shamanic trance state, or journeying, is relatively simple to learn, usually allows immediate and useful access to one's helping spirits, and is basically every human being's birthright now. In our efforts to explain to a contemporary world what shamanism is and how it can help with pretty much all that ails us, let's not get carried way. To become the Hollow Bone is to dedicate oneself to the tireless discipline of clearing your inner energy Velcro. This requires first noticing that you have been hooked by something in life. Then looking within at what Velcro loop within you has just been snagged. Then to move deeper within, for the process has only just begun. Join host and shaman, Christina Pratt, as she explores the deeper truth of becoming the Hollow Bone and the freedom that arises from this ancient and worthy discipline.

Tuesday, June 7, 2011 at 11:00 AM Pacific

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Why Shamanism Now? on Co-Creator Network
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Of William Henry, the Capitol Dome, Stargates, and Battlestar Galactica

Crossposted from Reflections Journal.

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Posted below is a fairly recent interview with William Henry. For the discussion of the Capitol dome and stargate metaphysics, skip ahead to video 7. The first six are more focused on the Norway spiral and a somewhat paranoid read on the climate conference. I've discussed Henry's analysis of the Capitol dome and Brumidi's fresco previously here and here. Now that I'm back in the DC area, I'm determined to fight my way up I95 to visit the Capitol and see this for myself. Maybe I'll take the train. Time is a precious commodity.

In this interview Henry also points out that stargate images are turning up in art and sculpture all over the place and suggests that we could be having a collective awakening. I totally agree. But it was when I looked at the image of the dome above, that it clicked for me just how powerful a trigger that image is.

Review: Battlestar Galactica -- The Plan

Crossposted from Reflections Journal.

The following review contains spoilers. Previous posts on the new "Battlestar Galactica" can be found here.

The makers of the makers fall before the child.
Accessing defense system.
Handshake. Handshake. Second level clear.
(It's begun.)
Accepting scan.
Love outlasts death.
(Been a long time coming.)
Apotheosis was the beginning before the beginning.
Devices on alert. Observe the procedures of a general alert.
The base and the pinnacle.
The flower inside the fruit that is both its parent and its child.
Jump.

~ The Hybrid

"The center holds. The falcon hears the falconer," intones the hybrid, as she coordinates the attack that would annihilate the 12 colonies of Kobol. But, of course, the center does not hold, and the plan begins to unravel almost immediately.