A few inaccuracies (The Prestige was a Christopher Nolan movie, not Tery gilliam) but the branding web-letter Reveries (Cool News)
tesla time
Nikola Tesla, a scientist and inventor who died friendless and penniless almost 70 years ago, is re-emerging as "geek god"of "hip techies," reports Daniel Michaels in the Wall Street Journal (1/14/10). Tesla, as you might recall, "achieved fame and fortune in the 1880s for figuring out how to make alternating current (AC) work on a grand scale ... He created the first major hydroelectric dam, at Niagara Falls ... His inventions helped Guglielmo Marconi develop radio." Tesla started out working for Thomas Edison, but "quit in a spat over pay" and the two became rivals -- with Edison advocating direct current (DC) versus Tesla's AC.
Tesla eventually sold his AC patents to George Westinghouse for lots of money, but "burned through much of his fortune testing radio transmissions." He also "stumbled upon -- but didn't pursue -- lasers and X-rays, years before their recognized discoveries ... He sketched out robots and a death ray he hoped would end all wars." But while Edison racked up some 1,093 patents in his lifetime, "Tesla left few completed blueprints." All of this has created a certain "geek mystique" about Tesla among some, like director Terry Gilliam, who sees him as "more of an artist than a scientist in some strange way."
In 2006, David Bowie played Tesla in a Gilliam film, "The Prestige," and 1984, was featured in an OMD song called "Tesla Girls." Today, his name brands an electric roadster (link) and is being used for a videogame "character who could understand alien spaceships." Edison, meanwhile, is maybe less "current" (sorry) these days, with his phonograph and motion-picture camera "becoming historical curios," and even the incandescent bulb losing favor to compact fluorescents. OMD's Andy McCluskey calls Tesla "a romantic 'failure' figure," and says, "I can't imagine writing a song about Edison ... too boringly rich, entrepreneurial and successful!"
Sunday, January 24, 2010
Sunday, January 17, 2010
Remembering Marcus
"No one remember, old Marcus Garvey" sang Burning Spear in the 70s, but of course, that's not totally true. Here's a sampling form Wikipedia of Garvey memoria arpund the world
Jamaica
A marker in front of the house of his birth at 32 Market Street, St. Ann's Bay, Jamaica.[38]
A statue on the grounds of St. Ann's Bay Parish Library.
A secondary school in his name in St. Ann' Bay.
A major highway in his name in Kingston.
A bust in Apex Park in Kingston.
Likeness on the Jamaican 50 cent coin, 20 dollar coin and 25 cent coin.
A building in his name housing the Jamaican Ministry of Foreign Affairs located in New Kingston.
A Marcus Garvey statue at National Heroes Park in Kingston, JA.
The album "Marcus Garvey" and "Garvey's Ghost" (a dub version of the "Marcus Garvey" album) by reggae legend Burning Spear.
A deejay version (Jamaican rap) by reggae legend Big Youth, based on an instrumental mix of the original Burning Spear recording "Marcus Garvey".
A cover version of Burning Spear's "Marcus Garvey" recorded by reggae singer Spectacular (as Burning Spectacular) was released in 2002 on a 12" vinyl record on the Jamaican label Human Race Records. Produced by Bruno Blum, it features an original recording of a live Marcus Garvey speech in which several key slogans of the Rastafari movement founded in the 1930s can be heard. The flip side includes another recording by Big Youth of the "Marcus Garvey" composition mentioned right above.
In the Bob Marley song "so much things to say" Marley sings "I'll never forget, no way. They crucify Jesus Christ, I'll never forget, no way. They sold Marcus Garvey for rice".
Reggae band The Gladiators recorded the song "Marcus Garvey Time", proclaiming him as a prophet with lyrics like, "Every thing he has said has come to pass".
Deejay/Producer Mikey Dread acknowledges him as an inspiration and calls him a national hero on the 1982 track "In Memory (Jacob, Marcus & Marley)".
[edit]Trinidad
A statue on Harris Promenade, San Fernando
[edit]United States of America
Park in his name and a New York Public Library branch dedicated to him in New York City's Harlem.
A major street in his name in the historically Black Brooklyn neighbourhood of Bedford Stuyvesant in New York City.
Marcus Garvey elementary school in the historically Black Brooklyn neighbourhood of Bedford Stuyvesant in New York City call P.S.44.
The Universal Hip Hop Parade held annually in Brooklyn on the Saturday before his birthday to carry on his use of popular culture as a tool of empowerment and to encourage the growth of Black institutions.
A park in his name in the Tenderloin District of San Francisco, California.
A Marcus Garvey Cultural Center, University of Northern Colorado, Greeley, Colorado.
A secondary school in Trenton, New Jersey.
A Community Center and Senior Housing Community in the Roxbury neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts.
Marcus Garvey school. A K through 8 grade private school in Los Angeles, California.
Marcus Garvey school. A Pre-K through 8 grade public magnet in math and science in Chicago, Illinois.
Marcus Books stores are named after him in San Francisco and Oakland.
Record producer, CEO, clothing designer, actor, and rapper Sean John Combs's clothing line Sean John released a pair of denim jeans whose style is named 'Garvey' after Marcus Garvey.
Boston indie band Piebald wrote a song titled "If Marcus Garvey Dies, Then Marcus Garvey Lives" for their 1999 release "If It Weren't For Venetian Blinds, It Would Be Curtains for us All"
Ska band Hepcat recorded the song "Marcus Garvey" on their album Scientific.
Sinéad O'Connor's reggae album, released in 2008, has a track named "Marcus Garvey"
[edit]Canada
Marcus Garvey Centre for Unity in Edmonton, Alberta [39]
Marcus Garvey day festival held yearly on 17 August in Toronto (North York), Ontario [40]
United Negro Improvement Association Hall located in Glace Bay, Nova Scotia
[edit]Africa
A major street in his name in Nairobi, Kenya.
A street named after him in Enugu, Nigeria.
A neighborhood bearing his name in the township of Khayelitsha, Cape Town, South Africa.
[edit]United Kingdom
A small park in his name in Hammersmith, London, England.
Marcus Garvey Centre in Lenton, Nottingham, England.
A Marcus Garvey Library inside the Tottenham Green Leisure Centre building in North London, England.
Marcus Garvey Road in Brixton, London.
Blue plaque at 53, Talgarth Road, Hammersmith, London, England:
GARVEY, Marcus (1887-1940) Pan-Africanist Leader, lived and died here, 53 Talgarth Road, W14. [Hammersmith and Fulham 2005]
Marcus garvey statue in Willesden green Library, Brent, London England
Jamaica
A marker in front of the house of his birth at 32 Market Street, St. Ann's Bay, Jamaica.[38]
A statue on the grounds of St. Ann's Bay Parish Library.
A secondary school in his name in St. Ann' Bay.
A major highway in his name in Kingston.
A bust in Apex Park in Kingston.
Likeness on the Jamaican 50 cent coin, 20 dollar coin and 25 cent coin.
A building in his name housing the Jamaican Ministry of Foreign Affairs located in New Kingston.
A Marcus Garvey statue at National Heroes Park in Kingston, JA.
The album "Marcus Garvey" and "Garvey's Ghost" (a dub version of the "Marcus Garvey" album) by reggae legend Burning Spear.
A deejay version (Jamaican rap) by reggae legend Big Youth, based on an instrumental mix of the original Burning Spear recording "Marcus Garvey".
A cover version of Burning Spear's "Marcus Garvey" recorded by reggae singer Spectacular (as Burning Spectacular) was released in 2002 on a 12" vinyl record on the Jamaican label Human Race Records. Produced by Bruno Blum, it features an original recording of a live Marcus Garvey speech in which several key slogans of the Rastafari movement founded in the 1930s can be heard. The flip side includes another recording by Big Youth of the "Marcus Garvey" composition mentioned right above.
In the Bob Marley song "so much things to say" Marley sings "I'll never forget, no way. They crucify Jesus Christ, I'll never forget, no way. They sold Marcus Garvey for rice".
Reggae band The Gladiators recorded the song "Marcus Garvey Time", proclaiming him as a prophet with lyrics like, "Every thing he has said has come to pass".
Deejay/Producer Mikey Dread acknowledges him as an inspiration and calls him a national hero on the 1982 track "In Memory (Jacob, Marcus & Marley)".
[edit]Trinidad
A statue on Harris Promenade, San Fernando
[edit]United States of America
Park in his name and a New York Public Library branch dedicated to him in New York City's Harlem.
A major street in his name in the historically Black Brooklyn neighbourhood of Bedford Stuyvesant in New York City.
Marcus Garvey elementary school in the historically Black Brooklyn neighbourhood of Bedford Stuyvesant in New York City call P.S.44.
The Universal Hip Hop Parade held annually in Brooklyn on the Saturday before his birthday to carry on his use of popular culture as a tool of empowerment and to encourage the growth of Black institutions.
A park in his name in the Tenderloin District of San Francisco, California.
A Marcus Garvey Cultural Center, University of Northern Colorado, Greeley, Colorado.
A secondary school in Trenton, New Jersey.
A Community Center and Senior Housing Community in the Roxbury neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts.
Marcus Garvey school. A K through 8 grade private school in Los Angeles, California.
Marcus Garvey school. A Pre-K through 8 grade public magnet in math and science in Chicago, Illinois.
Marcus Books stores are named after him in San Francisco and Oakland.
Record producer, CEO, clothing designer, actor, and rapper Sean John Combs's clothing line Sean John released a pair of denim jeans whose style is named 'Garvey' after Marcus Garvey.
Boston indie band Piebald wrote a song titled "If Marcus Garvey Dies, Then Marcus Garvey Lives" for their 1999 release "If It Weren't For Venetian Blinds, It Would Be Curtains for us All"
Ska band Hepcat recorded the song "Marcus Garvey" on their album Scientific.
Sinéad O'Connor's reggae album, released in 2008, has a track named "Marcus Garvey"
[edit]Canada
Marcus Garvey Centre for Unity in Edmonton, Alberta [39]
Marcus Garvey day festival held yearly on 17 August in Toronto (North York), Ontario [40]
United Negro Improvement Association Hall located in Glace Bay, Nova Scotia
[edit]Africa
A major street in his name in Nairobi, Kenya.
A street named after him in Enugu, Nigeria.
A neighborhood bearing his name in the township of Khayelitsha, Cape Town, South Africa.
[edit]United Kingdom
A small park in his name in Hammersmith, London, England.
Marcus Garvey Centre in Lenton, Nottingham, England.
A Marcus Garvey Library inside the Tottenham Green Leisure Centre building in North London, England.
Marcus Garvey Road in Brixton, London.
Blue plaque at 53, Talgarth Road, Hammersmith, London, England:
GARVEY, Marcus (1887-1940) Pan-Africanist Leader, lived and died here, 53 Talgarth Road, W14. [Hammersmith and Fulham 2005]
Marcus garvey statue in Willesden green Library, Brent, London England
Back on track
Resume our posts in completion of the Tesla-Garvey novel with an interesting amazon.com comment on John O' Neill's "Prodigal Genius" :
Tesla's mother could repeat, without error or omission, thousands of verses of the national poetry of her country. Tesla shared her retentive memory. He had another ability that he only revealed to his mother. If Tesla thought of an object, it would appear before him exhibiting the appearance of solidity and massiveness. He used this ability to visualize the solution to creating the first alternating current generator.
The first time Tesla's ability to visualize helped him in his quest to develop an alternating current generator, occurred when he suggested to a college professor that alternating current would solve some of the problems with a piece of electrical equipment that could be used either to generate electricity or if supplied energy could operate as a motor. As his professor demonstrated the machine, the solution to the problem came to Tesla in such a vivid, illuminating flash of understanding that he knew his visualization contained the correct and practical answer. He saw both the equipment operating without the problems and doing so efficiently, however, he could not see the essential details of how this could be accomplished.
In Feb of 1882, Tesla took a walk in the city of Budapest with a former classmate. While a glorious sunset overspread the sky, Tesla engaged in one of his favorite hobbies-reciting poetry. The setting sun reminded Tesla of some of Goethe's beautiful lines:
The glow retreats, done is the day of toil;
It yonder hastes, new fields of life exploring;
Ah, that no wing can lift me from the soil,
Upon its track to follow, follow soaring...
Suddenly, Tesla snapped into a rigid pose as if he had fallen into a trance. "Watch me!" he said, "Watch me reverse it!"
Tesla's friend said, "I see nothing, are you ill?"
"You do not understand," said Tesla, "It is my alternating-current motor I am talking about. Can't you see it right here in front of me, running almost silently? It is the rotating magnetic field that does it. See how the magnetic field rotates and drags the armature around with it? Isn't it beautiful? I have solved the problem."
Tesla now had an electrical system utilizing alternating current, which was much more flexible and vastly more efficient than the direct-current system then being used. But now Tesla had another problem, convincing the rest of the world that his alternating-current power system was simpler, flexible and freed electricity to be sent long distances. The direct-current systems being used at that time were not able to send electricity long distances without major problems. The fact that our power system today uses alternating-current shows that Tesla was finally successful. The book, Prodigal Genius, provides all the fascinating details of this story
Tesla's mother could repeat, without error or omission, thousands of verses of the national poetry of her country. Tesla shared her retentive memory. He had another ability that he only revealed to his mother. If Tesla thought of an object, it would appear before him exhibiting the appearance of solidity and massiveness. He used this ability to visualize the solution to creating the first alternating current generator.
The first time Tesla's ability to visualize helped him in his quest to develop an alternating current generator, occurred when he suggested to a college professor that alternating current would solve some of the problems with a piece of electrical equipment that could be used either to generate electricity or if supplied energy could operate as a motor. As his professor demonstrated the machine, the solution to the problem came to Tesla in such a vivid, illuminating flash of understanding that he knew his visualization contained the correct and practical answer. He saw both the equipment operating without the problems and doing so efficiently, however, he could not see the essential details of how this could be accomplished.
In Feb of 1882, Tesla took a walk in the city of Budapest with a former classmate. While a glorious sunset overspread the sky, Tesla engaged in one of his favorite hobbies-reciting poetry. The setting sun reminded Tesla of some of Goethe's beautiful lines:
The glow retreats, done is the day of toil;
It yonder hastes, new fields of life exploring;
Ah, that no wing can lift me from the soil,
Upon its track to follow, follow soaring...
Suddenly, Tesla snapped into a rigid pose as if he had fallen into a trance. "Watch me!" he said, "Watch me reverse it!"
Tesla's friend said, "I see nothing, are you ill?"
"You do not understand," said Tesla, "It is my alternating-current motor I am talking about. Can't you see it right here in front of me, running almost silently? It is the rotating magnetic field that does it. See how the magnetic field rotates and drags the armature around with it? Isn't it beautiful? I have solved the problem."
Tesla now had an electrical system utilizing alternating current, which was much more flexible and vastly more efficient than the direct-current system then being used. But now Tesla had another problem, convincing the rest of the world that his alternating-current power system was simpler, flexible and freed electricity to be sent long distances. The direct-current systems being used at that time were not able to send electricity long distances without major problems. The fact that our power system today uses alternating-current shows that Tesla was finally successful. The book, Prodigal Genius, provides all the fascinating details of this story
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