Igor and I have obtained Work&Travel visas for Australia, and have the next few months to decide where we want to go. The visa is for a period of 1 year, although it can be extended, and our status can change if we were to find secure, permanent employment. Of course, we plan to explore the entire continent on weekend trips, but we do want to get a nice apartment and I want to find a good/interesting job, to obtain some international experience. I am also interested in checking out some PhD programs, or certification programs. School is more expensive, but since I skipped out on a semester of international exchange while doing my undergrad, I figure this might be a good opportunity to do so.
Aside from the climate (which, let’s get real, is better than anywhere in Canada), we are looking for a relatively large city because of more opportunities for work and play.
I am leaning towards Melbourne – I also have an old friend there, so hopefully she’d be able to show me around. Climate & size are good; also, downtown apartments are cheaper than in Vancouver or Toronto.. Hmm. I have another friend who is in Brisbane, in law school – perfect opportunity to visit him!
I’m becoming obsessed with data visualization, and determined to get good at it. Years of statistics and econometrics have given me the analytical/computational background.. & in the last few years, I have self-taught myself most of what I know in Photoshop. I think it’s time to bring the two together.
Anyways, here’s a cool example of simple yet powerful data visualization. Imagine the world was a village of 100 people – the breakdowns might shock you. I wonder what data sets he used. In any case, enjoy. Courtesy of Toby Ng Kwong To.
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Found on FFFound!
Retro-futurism, combining “retro” and “futurism” or “future”, can refer to two distinct concepts: A style of design and art or an ideology. (Thanks, Wiki)
IDEOLOGY:
Retrofuturism is often referred to as techno-utopianism. Technological utopianism refers to any ideology based on the belief that advances in science and technology will eventually bring about a utopia, or at least help to fulfill one or another utopian ideal.
Remember, Karl Marx believed that science and democracy were the ingredients required for the move into a realm of freedom – advances in science delegitimized the rule of kings and the power of the Christian Church, as well as other Theocracies.
DESIGN/ART:
Retrofuturistic design is a return to, and an enthusiasm for, the depictions of the future produced in the past (most often the 1920s through 1960s), both in science fiction and in nonfiction futurism of the time, which often seem dated by modern standards.
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Now that I have graduated and am prepared for what life has in store for me, I’ve been thinking a lot about work, ambition and what I consider success. For any graduate student, life after graduation is supposed to be picking the fruits of your hard work in grad school. Interestingly enough, some of us have realized halfway through our Masters that this really isn’t what we like… But we keep reminding ourselves that it is a good degree that will provide us with the security our parents want for us.
I used to think it was better to “work to live” – work was just something necessary to provide the conditions in which you can “live” between 5pm and 9 am. Life is what happens when you come home and kick your work boots off. This dependant relationship between the variables would imply that more work would equal more living. Unfortunately, there exists this inevitable constraint of time, where t = 24 hours (or even less, if we count sleep). So, technically, living is measured in terms of money, or ability to spend, and ability to spend transforms into standard of living. However, this hypothetical transitivity continues on without an actual improvement in one’s life.
I am also not naive enough to think that a good life is possible without work, or in this case, fruits of labour (read: money). My vacations, purses, books, computers – all things I value would not be available to me if I did not serve the man.
This trade-off between money and time is an interesting issue, however, it is much simplified. I recognize other variables that may increase the quality of my life. Do not misunderstand my lack of enthusiasm for the boring yet high-paying office job as laziness or rebellion. I simply believe I am capable of more. For such reason, I have changed my views. It’s easy to “live to work”, when you love what you do. This, I think, should be the main criteria for my future – whatever that may be.
HDR (high dynamic range) photography is a set of techniques that allows a greater dynamic range of luminances between light and dark areas of a scene than normal digital imaging techniques. Basically, it’s taking many photos at different exposures and merging them into one dynamic image.
Igor and I ventured out today, trying to take some photos that will allow us to create at least one HDR image. Igor was unforgiving, and eventhough I’m quite sick today, I had to follow him around and give him my suggestions & ideas. We work well together, thankfully.
Anyways, here is an example of what we ended up with. Visit Igor’s blog to see more. I took the stream photo – he did the rest.
P.S. Notice, that’s me in the picture. It was cold in S’toon today – mere 8 Celsius. Hoodie & fur vest were a must!
We still have lots of learning to do, but I think we did good for a first try.
The Selby features photographs, paintings and videos by Todd Selby of interesting people and their creative spaces. My favourite thing about the site is to see creative couples and their living spaces – most of all, I love to see how much one’s living space adds to their personality, or gives away.
Marketing campaign by Big Ant International, for Global Coalition for Peace. Awesome.
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Retrofuturs is a web agency from Rhône-Alpes, a region in France. They get credit for the following pieces.. Neat!
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