DeLaWho? DeLaWhat? DeLaWhere?

Let me applaud the first three white house reporters who hounded Bush with fair questions following his 12 minute must-see-TV debacle. It still amazes me to hear how poorly he expresses his ideas through commonly used communication tool often referred to as coherent speech. He was befuddled, bewildered, and blindsided by many of the questions and failed to answer most if not all of the questions which he was asked. He even went back to the days of the '04 debates, snapping "hey let me say something...!" All in all, it was what is was...and my depressed roommate didnt get to watch his favorite show on TV...the OC (this is the same kid who still watches Full House and swears to me that it is a good show). Since we were watching FOX (for the OC), I found it convientient that they cut off their coverage of the following press conference to broadcast, two people that are really worried about saving money and how they are going to deal with a social security system that will "run out" of money within the next 30 years or so....oh yes, the Simple Life's Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie. All hail the Chiefs...presidentas hilton and richie.

from Hip Hop Blogs and Engadget

the Numark iPod DJ Mixer. While I myself own a set of turntables and as a "DJ", I will always be a purist when it comes to vinyl. But, this iPod mixer is just soooo good looking.

Not too many details on this yet, but a pic of the prototype unit surfaced (above) and was too good not to pass on. Word has it that Numark aims to put out a consumer model in the next couple of months, retailing in the $250-350 range, to be followed with a pro DJ version with pitch control and other goodies required by the pro mobile DJ. Both versions will feature the dual iPod dock with crossfaders and transport controls. The other word on the street (tentative, hearsay, take with a grain of salt, yadda yadda) is that Numark is teaming up with Apple to cook up some products. Mobile music-makers, keep thy ears to the ground…via Engadget

As you can probably see, I have added another sidebar to the template...if there are any problems that you run into with the blog's template please let me know (leave a comment) so i can hopefully correct it. Thanks

Check out these updated photo albums on my Flickr Photo Album
Talib Kweli and Jean Grae in concert at Denison
& Geology Trip to North Carolina



Above: Jean Grae's red-tinted silhouette from the Kweli and Grae Concert.

I am currently reading Brian Fagan's "The Little Ice Age" which discusses the volatile and unpredictable climatic conditions that occurred from 1300-1850. The large amount of climatic variability shaped the way civilization developed. In the past 150 years or so, we have been experiencing a warming trend...partially due to human activity....

Study Shows Antarctic Glaciers Shrinking
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Apr 21, 2:23 PM (ET)

By EMMA ROSS

LONDON (AP) - The first comprehensive survey of glaciers on the Antarctic peninsula has shown that the rivers of ice are shrinking, mostly because of warming of the local climate.

It is unclear, however, whether the increased temperature causing the shrinkage is a natural regional effect or a result of human-influenced global warming, said the scientists who conducted the study, published this week in the journal Science.

Researchers from the British Antarctic Survey and the U.S. Geological Survey analyzed more than 2,000 aerial photographs dating from 1940 and over 100 satellite images from the 1960s onwards.

They calculated that 87 percent of the 244 glaciers going out to sea from the peninsula have retreated over the last 50 years and that the pace of shrinkage has accelerated over the last decade. Until now, scientists were uncertain whether the glaciers were growing or melting.

"Fifty years ago, most of the glaciers we look at were slowly growing in length but since then this pattern has reversed. In the last five years the majority were actually shrinking rapidly," said the study's leader, Alison Cook of the British Antarctic Survey. "However, 32 glaciers go against the trend and are showing minor advance. Had we not studied such a large number of glaciers we may have missed the overall pattern."

The Antarctic peninsula is a small segment of the Antarctic continent, located at the South Pole, and the behavior of the ice on the peninsula is not necessarily a reflection of what's going on elsewhere in Antarctica, said another of the investigators, David Vaughan of the British Antarctic Survey.

Temperatures seem to be much warmer there than on the rest of the continent.

Evidence from the main Antarctic ice sheet is mixed, with some areas of the continent showing shrinkage and others showing thickening.

Ice shrinkage has also been documented in Alaska and the North Pole.

Scientists worry about the melting of the ice sheets because the extra water may increase sea levels, which in turn could mean more flooding damage to coastal areas during storms.

Sea levels have risen by 10 centimeters to 20 centimeters over the last 100 years and experts predict it could rise by a meter over the next 100 years. However, the study was not able to tell whether the shrinkage is having a meaningful impact on sea levels.

It is also unclear whether changes in the larger ice sheet in Antarctica are contributing to sea level rise, Vaughan said.

"This is another piece in the jigsaw that tells us how climate change is affecting the planet. It may not be a significant piece, but there's a million-piece jigsaw out there to be filled in ... and this is one piece in it," Vaughan said.

Is the title of Pete Rock's compilation of instrumentals that did not make it (for one reason or another) onto the Pete's most recent album "Soul Survivor II". Pete Rock is one of the most innovative producers in hip-hop since his early days with CL Smooth in early 90's. He is a true hip-hop icon.

When Pete's vintage grooves start playing, they take you over and send you into another world. Drawing a lot from elements of jazz as well as R&B and Soul, Pete Rock has created another masterpiece. He proves he is still one of the most ingenious hip-hop producers with "You Remind Me" in which he samples Al Green's "Let's Stay Together". The style in which he chopped and reconstructed this classic soul song is pure genius. He sends the sample through a serious filter and subtly phases the original song's string arragements. The beat is simply intoxicating. The drums on this track also hit hard and the harsh hi-hats add level of depth to the track. Other highlights of Surviving Elements include Hip 2 Hip, Midnight and You, Placebo, Glowing, (Pimp) Strut, and Hop, Skip & Jump. I highly recommend giving Surviving Elements a listen.

I have a favor to ask...recently one of the songs that I produced has been climbing the charts on Soundclick. To get a little more exposure, would you jsut check in and and give "Ohh" a listen on my Soundclick page.

I am continually amazed by the whole Martha "sichiation", I learned tonight that two of her magazines won at the National Magazine Awards. And you'd never guess how many awards those magazines have received from the same organization in previous years....a whopping zero. The big goose egg....the legend of martha's stay in the penitentiary continues to grow. from yahoo news

Martha Stewart takes awards under house arrest

Wed Apr 13, 5:17 PM ET

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Two Martha Stewart magazines won their first National Magazine awards on Tuesday, even as the lifestyle trendsetter remained under house arrest.



Stewart, convicted last year of lying to investigators over a suspicious stock sale, is allowed 48 hours out of her home each week for work-related events and accepted the awards at a ceremony at the Waldorf-Astoria hotel in Manhattan.

"My deepest appreciation to the ... judges and to all of you in this industry who have honored us today," Stewart said.

The style guru who built Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia Inc. on tips for gracious living is under house arrest following a five-month prison term.

Martha Stewart Weddings won in the general excellence category for magazines with circulation of 250,000 to 500,000. Another of Stewart's magazines, Kids: Fun Stuff To Do Together, won for best magazine design.

Stewart's flagship magazine, Martha Stewart Living, has previously won three National Magazine Awards. The latest honor comes as she attempts to rebuild her business, which suffered declining circulation and revenues while she was jailed.

The Atlantic Monthly won for fiction writing -- an ironic accolade since the glossy, which once published Ernest Hemingway and other literary greats, plans to drop fiction from its pages except for an August fiction issue.

The New Yorker magazine, published by Conde Nast Publications Inc., was the biggest winner, taking home five awards after receiving 10 nominations.

The New Yorker was the only title to win multiple awards, collecting honors for reporting, public interest, profile writing, reviews and criticism, and for general excellence at a magazine with circulation of 1 million to 2 million.

The New Yorker has now won 44 awards, more than any other outlet since the awards began in 1966.

Vanity Fair, another title from privately held Conde Nast, was nominated for seven awards but won none.

Glamour magazine, from Conde Nast, won one of the most coveted awards -- general excellence at a magazine with circulation of more than 2 million.

Esquire, published by Hearst Magazines, took home the feature writing award.

The National Magazine Awards are sponsored by the American Society of Magazine Editors and the Columbia University graduate school of journalism.

A couple of weeks ago, one of my geology professors (who was once a hardcore deadhead), turned me on to this website eTree.org. Here's their self-description.

"Welcome to etree.org, the award-winning leader in lossless digital audio distribution on the Internet! We are a community committed to providing the highest quality live concerts in a lossless, downloadable format.

You can find nearly every band that allows taping in the jambands community on etree.org, including Phish, The Grateful Dead, The Seth Yacovone Band, String Cheese Incident, The Slip, Medeski, Martin & Wood, Umphrey's McGee, The Big Wu, Amfibian and The New Deal."

It is an amazing resource for downloading live shows. You find the selection of their live shows (downloadable artists are bolded) on the Database and the required software for conversion to WAV files on the Software Page. I myself just downloaded some Robert Randolph and the Family Band as well as Charlie Hunter. I just downloaded the software for conversion so I will be rolling audio bliss in just a few minutes. Aaaah

I understand that this maybe a question that doesnt haunt many others, but it pains me to see that I only have 2.7 MB of space left on my 20 GB iPod. With new music entering the Ivan music cycle, choices must be made and entire albums must be doomed to living only on the PC. It is just so hard...why must you torture me like this iPod....whyyyyyyyyyyyy?

On Wednesday, 20 people (including myself) from Denison University’s Geology and Geography (or DUGG) Department , piled into three Ford F-350 white vans and headed down to North Carolina at mind-blowing slow rates of speed due to a Van, that we, the inhabitants of Van Gogh, later known as Van Damme (the most bad-ass van known to man) dubbed Van Slow. After traveling through West Virginia and Virginia, we finally wandered to a hotel in Western NC for the night. The next morning, we set out for Pilot Mountain, which is composed of quartzite (metamorphosed sandstone and in this case represents a beach environment). After a brief stop at Pilot Mountain, we began our trek down to the Outer Banks. Before reaching the relatively young geologic formation that is the Outer Banks, we stopped at a State Park to take a look at a transgressive (rise in sea level) sequence represented in the exposure of a bank. We then traveled down to the Outer Banks and dropped off our stuff at the Caribe Inn. The Caribe Inn, the motel with a little bit of character, was quite unique. After a night on the beach, we retired to our rooms to rest up for the upcoming days of geology. On Friday, we explored the southern most reaches of the Outer Banks. We saw the variety of environments that are present on such a barrier island like the dunes, inlets, marshes, tidal “streams” and so on and so forth. On Saturday, we left the Caribe Inn at 5 am and headed off to OI, NC. After cruising around the island, two of the three vans missed the ferry to Hatteras. So, Van Damme and Van Nawhite sat in the line for the ferry in heavy rain and winds with nothing to do. With skills in kung fu and turning lighted letters, both vans managed to scrounge up a little fun sending some of their occupants into puddles for delightful prizes as well as deploying occupant’s odd skills in imitating a Raptor (the dino) for a wave of attacks concentrated on Van Nawhite’s hood. When the ferry arrived, we cut through 60 mph gusts of wind in order to make it to Hatteras. When on the northern most barrier islands, we visited the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse and the Killdevil Hills. After jumping off the sides of the dunes of the Killdevil Hills, we began our trek back to Denison stopping in Durham for the night and completing our trip on Sunday. It was quite a trip.