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grand-theft-carbohydrates · 3 months

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On my eleventh birthday, Prime Minister Lu gave me the most incredible miniature city. It was a replica of Xianyang's main square, sculpted from clay and so faithfully painted that every red door and thatched roof was rendered in breath-taking detail. It came with its own enormous, custom-built table, spanning one zhang and five chi in total. The model was clearly meant to be a display item, but I loathed to show it to anyone, not even the other princes. I kept it in my room, and none of the other servants were allowed to dust it, except for Zhao Gao.

The best part was the buildings were not glued down. They could be moved around like the pieces on a chessboard. I would spend entire afternoons gently picking each one up and weighing them in my hands. I imagined this was similar to what Pangu felt when he opened the heavens and split the earth. I had always wondered why a giant wouldn't go rampaging across the countryside, levelling mountains and stomping towns into splinters just for the thrill of it. No one would have been able to stop him, after all. Now that I had a taste of that power, I felt intensely protective. No harm was allowed to come to Little Xianyang. I accidentally dropped the townhall once and burst into tears over it. Zhao Gao eventually fixed it with some flour paste, and you could barely see the cracks, but it still left me heartbroken.

This city was perfect. So absolutely perfect. Except for one small thing: there were no people! What good was an empty, uninhabited shell? I didn't want to be the king of silent walls and deserted streets. I wanted my city to be alive and busy, filled with bustling crowds, rumbling wheels, braying animals and the smell of smoke and food.

That became my new project: populating table-top square. After deliberating the matter with Zhao Gao, we raided the kitchens and returned with several bowls of beans. I had them all arranged according to shape, colour and size. Red kidney beans for the soldiers, black dragon-eyes for the gentry, blue mung beans for the scholars, and white soybeans for the common folk. It was so satisfying to spoon them into the streets and watch them wobble around, almost as if they had a mind of their own. I would have preferred to have more accurate representations of people with unique faces and clothes, but not even Nuwa could create those details on such a small scale. In any case, the beans made up for it by being so numerous and colourful. If I squinted my eyes, I could almost believe I was looking at a crowd from far away.

The city became a small window into the outside world. An escape I desperately craved. I had been in Qin for over a year, but I was rarely allowed to leave the palace. For once, the Prime Minister and King were in perfect agreement over something. The Crown Prince was not supposed to mingle with the common masses. In an ironic turn of events, I had less freedom in Qin than I did in Zhao, where I was surrounded by enemies who wanted me dead. I could count on one hand the number of times I was allowed to have an outing. How I treasured those bright little moments, preserved so clearly in my mind’s eye like an insect trapped in amber. It's strange to think that since then I’ve become the most well-travel man in the Empire. Perhaps the whole world. I’ve summited the highest peaks and visited each of the four seas. Yet the sight of all those wonders could not match the same thrill I felt as a boy, riding for a whole sichen in a stuffy carriage to travel across the city to visit Grand-Uncle Soandso and Second-Cousin Whatshisname.

The trips gave me so much inspiration. If I saw a fault somewhere, I would try to come up with ways to improve it. Once, when we were crossing the East Marketplace, it suddenly dawned on me that the roads were always heavily congested. I drew up the curtains and poked my head outside, much to the dismay of Zhao Gao.

"Your Highness!"

"Oh, hush, I just want to see what's going on."

"Please lower the curtain, Highness, it isn't proper."

I rolled my eyes. He could be such an old biddy sometimes, especially with that high-pitched, girly voice. Half the fun was teasing him. "I am the crown prince. Who’s to tell me what is or isn't proper?"

Zhao Gao glanced anxiously at my mother’s carriage behind us. "My Prince, I beg you. Even if you don't get into trouble, l will!"

Groaning in annoyance, I dropped the curtain and peeked out the side instead. "There! Happy now?"

Zhao Gao was not happy but wisely decided to cut his losses. He was only a eunuch, no matter how well-liked, and my patience with him only went so far.

I squinted out across the sea of heads and horses. It was apparent that the streets were badly designed. There were not enough walkways, and everyone was forced into the same exit and entry points. I spent the remainder of the journey pondering the problem, my mind churning as madly as the clogs in my mother’s loom when it was producing a great length of silk. The minute my carriage stopped at the palace, I was off like a loose arrow with Zhao Gao's long-suffering voice echoing in my ears, "My Prince, please don't run!"

I spent the rest of the evening bustling around my model city, jotting down calculations on my handkerchief. First I measured the streets with my thumb and forefinger. Next I put all the buildings together and measured their total area. To my delight, I saw that the numbers worked out. I could fit a new street, I just needed to be clever about it. That was one of the caveats I’d set for myself. I couldn't get rid of any of the houses-- where would my citizens live, otherwise? Nor could I encroach on any of the neighbouring areas, or shrink the marketplace. With those goals in mind, I got to work widening the throughfare and reorganized the buildings. Zhao Gao knelt beside me, silently grinding ink and occasionally interjecting helpfully; “you forgot to carry the one, My Prince.”

By the time I finished the sky was dark and the lamps had been lit, though I had not noticed the servants coming in. Grinning from ear to ear, I stepped away from the table in order to admire my work in its entirety. What had once been a column of numbers had been transformed into reality. I cleared my throat and announced in the grand voice I’d been practicing, "I decree this new marketplace open!" With that, the little bean people rolled happily into the new streets, cheering for their clever king.

Notes: there's something so deliciously ironic about making ying zheng an idealistic child who dreams of improving his citizens lives with grand infrastructure projects vs what he actually ends up doing.

"What good was an empty, uninhabited shell? I didn't want to be the king of silent walls and deserted streets."

aw don't cry buddy. maybe one day the archeologists will crack Mt Li open and you won't be alone anymore.

Green and blue were referred to by the same word 'qing' 青. The “blue” beans he is talking about are actually green mung beans.

Pangu—a primordial giant who created the world.

Nuwa—a goddess who created the first humans from clay.

Dragon eyes – transliteration of longan, the fruit was first recorded in the Han dynasty, but could plausibly have existed during the Qin.

#got writers block from chu han so i wrote this. bomb apple tea.#qin shi huang #the grandmaster of public infrastructure #my writing #things i discovered about myself; writing from the POV of a mad tyrant is easy. writing from the POV of someone who loves maths is hard.

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layzeal · 9 months

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so i was thinking back to some discussions on the watchtowers jgy built and whole "was there some insidious motivation?" "was it money laundering?" etc etc but imho these questions are not only unfounded but also neglect one point it was actually brought up in the book about them: "why weren't there any watchtowers near yi city?"

#basically it's not ''the government is installing mind control in 5g towers''#but ''why isn't the government installing internet access in places that need it the most''#and ofc the answer in the novel is that yi city was xue yang's playground and jgy was allowing it #to test the reconstructed yin tiger tally away from public view #sometimes the government isn't actuvely DOING something and that's the problem #you need to look in what they are neglecting and why #''were the watchtowers evil?'' nah man they were fine and very important and functional #so functional in fact that they couldn't build one near yi city or it would have exposed them #this was inspired by the ''grandmaster of public infrastructure'' tweet that makes me chuckle all the time #modao #lace speaks #mdzs

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school56df · 2 months

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Sports Latest Articles, Blog & News Sports injuries: prevention and treatment

Sports embody a widespread spectrum of human pastime, blending athleticism, strategy, competition, and our right into a tapestry that captivates tens of millions global. Sports injuries: prevention and treatment . From the thundering roar of stadiums full of enthusiasts to the solitary awareness of athletes training in quiet gyms, sports hold a completely unique location in our lifestyle and collective imagination.

At its center, sports are a party of the human body's abilities. Whether it is the explosive power of a sprinter launching off the blocks, the grace of a gymnast defying gravity on the balance beam, or the precision of a golfer sinking a putt, each recreation showcases distinctive components of physical prowess. Athletes spend countless hours honing their competencies, pushing their bodies to the bounds of endurance and power.

Yet, past physicality, sports are also approximately approach and mind. Think of the tricky maneuvers of a football team orchestrating a play, the tactical brilliance of a chess grandmaster plotting moves at the board, or the split-second selections of a basketball point defend riding to the ring. In these moments, the mind will become as vital as the frame, with method, anticipation, and brief thinking separating champions from contenders.

Moreover, sports are a replicate reflecting society's values, aspirations, and demanding situations. They transcend mere enjoyment, regularly becoming arenas wherein social problems play out. From Jackie Robinson breaking baseball's colour barrier to Colin Kaepernick taking a knee towards racial injustice, athletes and sports have historically been at the vanguard of social trade, amplifying voices and catalyzing actions.

The worldwide appeal of sports activities can't be overstated. From the fervent football fandom in South America to the obsession with cricket in South Asia, sports activities have a unique capacity to unite humans across cultures and continents. They provide a commonplace language that transcends linguistic and cultural boundaries, fostering connections and expertise among diverse communities.

In addition to their cultural importance, sports are large commercial enterprise. The sports industry contains a huge variety of sectors, from professional leagues and teams to broadcasting rights, sponsorships, and vending. The economic effect of sports is huge, using billions of greenbacks in sales and creating millions of jobs global. Beyond the financial aspects, sports activities also make contributions to tourism, infrastructure improvement, and concrete regeneration.

One of the most compelling aspects of sports is their capacity to inspire. Athletes frequently emerge as symbols of resilience, determination, and perseverance. Their testimonies of overcoming adversity—from injury comebacks to non-public setbacks—are woven into the material of sports mythology. These narratives resonate deeply with enthusiasts, providing wish and motivation both on and stale the field.

Sports additionally have the energy to evoke extreme emotions. The thrill of victory and the anguish of defeat are emotions experienced not only via athletes but also by fanatics invested of their success. Whether it is the ecstasy of a last-minute intention or the heartbreak of a overlooked opportunity, these emotional roller coasters create unforgettable moments etched into carrying records.

Furthermore, sports have evolved substantially through the years, adapting to technological advancements, converting societal norms, and transferring target market preferences. Innovations which includes video overview systems in officiating, wearable technology for overall performance analysis, and digital reality schooling simulations have revolutionized how sports activities are played, coached, and skilled.

Another side of sports is their role in selling health and health. Participation in sports and bodily hobby is related to numerous health benefits, inclusive of improved cardiovascular fitness, more desirable intellectual well-being, and reduced chance of chronic sicknesses which includes diabetes and obesity. Sports encourage people of all ages to guide active existence, fostering a subculture of well-being and vitality.

At the same time, sports are not without their controversies and demanding situations. Issues including doping scandals, healthy-fixing allegations, and the commercialization of athletes improve ethical questions and call for cautious attention. Balancing the integrity of sports with business pastimes and competitive pressures stays an ongoing issue for stakeholders throughout the sports activities industry.

Looking beforehand, the future of sports promises continued innovation and transformation. Healthy pre-workout and post-workout meals emerging technologies which includes synthetic intelligence, digital reality, and augmented truth are poised to reshape how sports are performed, fed on, and experienced. These improvements preserve the capability to enhance schooling methodologies, elevate fan engagement, and extend the worldwide attain of sports.

#Sports injuries: prevention and treatment #Healthy pre-workout and post-workout meals

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libertineangel · 4 years

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Here's some headcanons on the Councils of the Empire, Elder or otherwise

Because we really don't seem to know much beyond mentions and scraps of information.

The only people with an automatic right to attend all Councils are the Emperor and the Imperial Battlemage, though the former also has the power to grant anyone they choose right of attendance; nevertheless they may not necessarily be officially recognised as a member and the Council in question holds a vote of approval (this power is not often exercised; one notable example is the Eternal Champion).

It is uncommon for all entitled Council members to sit at any one time, though they are always invited generally a member only attends when the subjects at hand are likely to be relevant to their interests, or when their invitation makes specific request of their presence. If a member is unable to attend but does not wish to be left out of proceedings, they are entitled to send a representative; Legion personnel in particular often send an aide-de-camp in their stead.

The Elder Council meets every six months with the others meeting annually; any member can however call a meeting between these, subject to a vote. The Emperor can unilaterally call a meeting of any Council at any time, as can some others in other Councils detailed below.

The Legionary Council

This Council is exclusively concerned with the orders and logistics of the Imperial military. The Grand Marshall and Grand Admiral can call a meeting unilaterally, though this is usually only done at the outbreak of war. Members include:

The Grand Marshall of the Legion

The Grand Admiral of the Navy

The Marshalls in command of the Imperial forces in each province

The head of the Imperial Knights, whatever rank they may hold at the time (I have more headcanons related to them here)

The Armsmen's Council

This Council meets to discuss general matters pertaining to war, conflict and material threats across Tamriel. Members include:

The Grand Marshall of the Legion

The Grand Admiral of the Navy

The head of the Imperial Knights

The Master of the Fighters Guild

A representative of the knightly orders of Hammerfell, which follow their own codes and determine who represents them with their own system

The Harbinger of the Companions

The Grandmaster of House Redoran (they are invited but almost never take their seat, opposing Imperial integration)

The Mages' Council

This Council meets to discuss happenings beyond the mundane world, the movements and threats of other planes. Members include:

The Arch-Mage of the Mages' Guild

The Arch-Mage of the College of Winterhold

The Archmagister of the Crystal Tower

The Arch-Mage of the Magical Academies of High Rock

The Grandmaster of House Telvanni (again, their disdain for the Empire leaves this seat forever vacant)

The Master of the Psijic Order (depending on the Emperor's disposition toward them, and they rarely take their seat regardless)

The Elder Council

This Council is the largest, responsible for much of the day-to-day running of the Empire and the passing of new laws. Members include:

The High Chancellor, its leader

The Grand Marshall of the Legion

The head of the Imperial Knights

The rulers of each Province

The Master Of Law, head of the Imperial legal & justice system

The Master of the Treasury, whose domain includes not only managing the Empire's finances but keeping its census records

The Master of Works, responsible for maintaining the Empire's infrastructure and public works (planning of roads & shipping channels, establishment of markets, arenas etc.)

The Arch-Primate of the Imperial Cult

Council Members Without Purview, seats initially created for scholars, sages and other such figures whose wisdom would benefit the Council but who held no formal office; it did not take long, however, for them to be taken by whoever could convince the rest of the Council to vote for them, through bribery and promises of favours or through blackmail & intimidation

#tes #the elder scrolls #headcanon #elder council #the ruby throne

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sciencespies · 4 years

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The Dangers of Space, Military Rivals and Other New Books to Read

https://sciencespies.com/nature/the-dangers-of-space-military-rivals-and-other-new-books-to-read/

The Dangers of Space, Military Rivals and Other New Books to Read

Reading astrophysicist Paul M. Sutter’s latest book, How to Die in Space, will surely help any adult erase regrets they may have about their failed childhood dream of becoming an astronaut. As the SUNY Stony Brook professor observes, outer space—populated by such threats as black holes, acid rain, asteroids, planetary nebulae and magnetic fields—is, to put it frankly, “nasty.”

The latest installment in our “Books of the Week” series, which launched in late March to support authors whose works have been overshadowed amid the COVID-19 pandemic, details the many ways one might meet their demise in space, six notorious military rivalries, the Italian Renaissance’s dark undertones, the history of swimming and the culinary implications of so-called “wild foods.” Past coverage has highlighted books including Karen Gray Houston’s exploration of her family’s civil right’s legacy, St. Louis’ racist history, James Madison’s black family, and modern conservatism’s roots in the antebellum South and post-Civil War westward expansion.

Representing the fields of history, science, arts and culture, innovation, and travel, selections represent texts that piqued our curiosity with their new approaches to oft-discussed topics, elevation of overlooked stories and artful prose. We’ve linked to Amazon for your convenience, but be sure to check with your local bookstore to see if it supports social distancing-appropriate delivery or pickup measures, too.

How to Die in Space: A Journey Through Dangerous Astrophysical Phenomena by Paul M. Sutter

Despite its macabre title, How to Die in Space is a surprisingly lighthearted read. Adopting what Kirkus describes as an “informal, humorous persona,” Sutter—host of popular podcast “Ask a Spaceman!”—guides his audience through the cosmos’ deadliest phenomena, from Jupiter’s dense atmosphere to radiation, solar flares and exploding stars, which he deems “slumbering dragon[s], just waiting for the chance to awaken and begin breathing flame.”

The book also dedicates ample space to speculative threats, including dark matter, extraterrestrial life, wormholes and “other relics of the ancient universe.”

How to Die in Space’s description emphasizes that while “the universe may be beautiful, … it’s [also] treacherous.” Still, Sutter’s musings cover more than simply doom and gloom: As the scientist writes in the text’s closing chapters, “It’s really an excuse to talk about all the wonderful physics happening in the cosmos. … There is so much to learn, and we need to study it as closely and intimately as possible.”

Gods of War: History’s Greatest Military Rivals by James Lacey and Williamson Murray

Following the release of their 2013 bestseller, Moment of Battle: The Twenty Clashes That Changed the World, journalist James Lacey and historian Williamson Murray started brainstorming topics to explore in future books. Eventually, the pair landed on the premise of rivals, defined in Gods of War’s introduction as “military geniuses who … fought a general of equal caliber”—or, in the cases of World War II commanders Erwin Rommel, Bernard Law Montgomery and George Patton, multiple generals.

Bookended by essays on war’s “changing character” and the role of military genius in modern warfare, the six case studies read like a Who’s Who of global history. Representing the ancient world are Hannibal and Scipio (the latter of whom the authors describe as “the better strategic thinker”) and Caesar and Pompey. Crusader kings Richard I and Saladin; Napoleon Bonaparte and Battle of Waterloo victor Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington; Union Army commander Ulysses S. Grant and Confederate officer Robert E. Lee round out the list of 13 featured men.

Lacey and Murray liken their approach to chess strategy. “There is only so much you can learn by playing someone inferior to you or by revisiting the games of neophytes,” the duo writes. “There is, however, much to absorb, think about, and learn from studying games that [pit] one grandmaster against another.”

The Beauty and the Terror: The Italian Renaissance and the Rise of the West by Catherine Fletcher

As alluded to by its title, Catherine Fletcher’s latest book juxtaposes seemingly discordant aspects of the Italian Renaissance: its aesthetic brilliance and, in the words of fellow historian Simon Sebag Montefiore, the “filth and thuggery, slavery, sex, slaughter and skullduggery behind [this] exquisite art.” Framed as an alternative history of the much-explored period of creative rebirth, The Beauty and the Terror contextualizes the Italian Renaissance within the framework of European colonialism, widespread warfare and religious reform. Rather than focusing solely on such artistic geniuses as Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo and Botticelli, Fletcher lends a voice to the women writers, Jewish merchants, mercenaries, prostitutes, farmers and array of average citizens who also called the Italian peninsula’s competing city-states home.

The “lived reality” of 15th- and 16th-century Italy involved far more violence, uncertainty and devastation than widely believed, argues Fletcher. Forces beyond its residents’ control—a series of wars, the rise of the Ottoman Empire, the advent of the Protestant Reformation—shaped their lives yet have been largely overshadowed by what their greatest minds left behind.

“We revere Leonardo da Vinci for his art but few now appreciate his ingenious designs for weaponry,” notes the book’s description. “We know the Mona Lisa for her smile but not that she was married to a slave-trader. We visit Florence to see Michelangelo’s David but hear nothing of the massacre that forced the republic’s surrender.”

Splash!: 10,000 Years of Swimming by Howard Means

In lieu of visiting a swimming pool this summer, consider diving into Howard Means’ absorbing exploration of aquatic recreation and exercise. As the journalist writes in Splash!’s prologue, paddling, floating or wading through water can be a transformative experience: “The near weightlessness of swimming is the closest most of us will ever get to zero-gravity space travel. The terror of being submerged is the nearest some of us ever come to sheer hell.”

The earliest evidence of swimming dates to some 10,000 years ago, when Neolithic people living in what is now southwest Egypt painted individuals performing the breaststroke or doggy paddle on the walls of the Cave of Swimmers. Swimming endured throughout the classical period, with ancient texts including the Bible, Homer’s Odyssey, the Epic of Gilgamesh and the Chinese Book of Odes all containing references to the practice.

The advent of the medieval era—with its rising “prudery” and insularity, as well as its lack of sanitation and efficient infrastructure—quickly brought this “golden age” of swimming to an end; in Europe, at least, “swimming slipped into the dark for a full millennium,” writes Means.

During the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries, swimming was more closely associated with witchcraft than leisure. The practice only regained popularity during the Enlightenment period, when such prominent figures as Benjamin Franklin and Lord Byron reminded the public of its merits. By 1896, swimming had regained enough popularity to warrant its inclusion in the first modern Olympic Games.

Feasting Wild: In Search of the Last Untamed Food by Gina Rae La Cerva

Part memoir, part travelogue and part culinary adventure, Feasting Wild examines “humans’ relationship to wild food and the disappearing places and animals that provide it,” according to Publishers Weekly. Broadly defined as fare foraged, hunted or caught in the wild, the “untamed” foods detailed in geographer and anthropologist Gina Rae La Cerva’s debut book hail from such diverse locales as Scandinavia, Poland, Borneo, the Democratic Republic of Congo, New Mexico and Maine. Once “associated with poverty and subsistence,” writes La Cerva, wild foods including broad-leaved garlic, bushmeat, sea buckthorn flowers and moose meat are now viewed as luxuries, reserved for five-star restaurants that cater to an elite clientele.

La Cerva argues that this shift in perception stems from the onslaught of “settler-colonialism,” which used the dichotomy of wild versus tame to “justify violent appetites and the domination of unfamiliar cultures and places.” Within a few centuries, she adds, “the world [had] traded wild edibles at home for exotic domesticates from abroad.”

The flipside of this “fetishization of need” is the standardization of humans’ diets. As wild places across the world vanish, so, too, do undomesticated or uncultivated plant and animal species. Preserving wild foods—and the knowledge imparted by the women who have historically collected and cooked them—is therefore “fundamentally about recovering our common heritage,” writes La Cerva. “The urgency of the environmental crisis is precisely why we must slow down, take time, [and] become complicated in our actions.”

#Nature

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blackp0pularmusic · 2 years

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Environmental racism is rooted in our society in ways we do not think they are. Since our respective environments are so normal to us, we don't often take a closer look at the history of infrastructure to see what was designed for who. Urban planning is done intentionally to either create or discourage community, often planning was done intentionally to separate minority communities and create a greater quality of living for white and elite populations.

An example local to me is the work of Robert Moses. He built much of the infrastructure of NYC, long island, and the surrounding areas in the 1960s. Moses favored highways over public transit, and low-density suburbs over dense and walkable communities. Favoring highways and suburbs made cars a requirement to have community, and ostracized those who relied solely on public transit. He built highways, parkways, bridges, projects, and parks which all displaced thousands of families.

The most notoriously discriminatory construction of Moses' is the Cross Bronx Expressway. The expressway sliced through seven miles of the Bronx- dividing neighborhoods, and evicting thousands of families. It divides the North and South Bronx, negatively effects low income communities in the South Bronx, and to this day experiences many severe traffic issues. It was designed with the intention of connecting the Throggs Neck bridge, Connecticut, and Westchester to the Bronx and Yankee Stadium. It has been speculated that Moses intentionally made the build cut through the neighborhood of Tremont, and that low-income families would not have been displaced or isolated from the greater Bronx community. After much community uproar and protest, the developers still went through with the project.

A counter-example would be one of the rare unapproved projects of Moses': the Lower Manhattan Expressway (LOMEX). The idea for a highway cutting through downtown Manhattan was proposed around the same time as the Cross Bronx Expressway was (~1940). However, this project was never approved due to community uproar and protest. The circumstances of this build were no different than those of the Cross Bronx Expressway, the only difference was the race and ethnicity of those protesting and those who would be displaced. The Greenwich Village area of NYC is predominantly wealthy and white, and the Tremont area of NYC is predominantly low-income, Puerto Rican, and black.

Hip-hop was born in the Bronx, and in the other African-diasporic neighborhoods of New York. Remy Ma, Grandmaster Flash, Afrika Baambaataa, and DJ Kool Herc are all from the South Bronx. Each of these artists grew up in neighborhoods that became poorer by the building of the Cross Bronx Expressway. This is important information when we consider the story of DJ Kool Herc (the DJ who is credited with inventing hip-hop and the "break"). He began playing hip-hop from his apartment building (1520 Sedgwick Avenue, a low-income apartment building located directly on the Expressway) for his little sister to get back-to-school money. He continued to throw parties for the apartment building and greater community, most who were displaced by the expressway.

Preview attachment IMG_3035.jpg (Links to an external site.)

Demolition of high-density housing for construction of the Cross Bronx Expressway

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Current map of Cross Bronx Expressway

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Proposed plans for the Lower Manhattan Expressway

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DJ Kool Herc and others at 1520 Sedgwick Avenue)

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DJ Kool Herc, present day

https://www.baruch.cuny.edu/nycdata/infrastructure/robert_moses_legacy.html (Links to an external site.)

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-07-09/robert-moses-and-his-racist-parkway-explained (Links to an external site.)

https://www.nytimes.com/2002/09/20/nyregion/hell-on-wheels-and-nerves-if-ever-there-was-a-mean-street-it-s-the-cross-bronx.html (Links to an external site.)

https://www.blackpast.org/african-american-history/campbell-clive-dj-kool-herc-1955/ (Links to an external site.)

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architectuul · 7 years

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FOMA 8: Built Projects That Inspired

Many music genres have been associated with a place, either a city or a region, like trip-hop with Bristol, techno with Detroit, fado with Lisbon, hippie with San Francisco Bay, but fewer have to specific built projects. Our eighth FOMA edition curated by Fani Kostourou, looks at five urban housing cases, which despite being architecturally overlooked, they are worth being celebrated for the development and enhancement of a musical heritage.

A housing estate of mind; iconic graffiti of Park Hill estate in Sheffield (2001).

They are not necessarily remarkable in their architecture or everyday reality; nevertheless, each of them has inspired and nurtured the emergence of a music genre. I argue that their architectural and urban design influenced the relationship of the musicians with the neighborhood, the city and the society, pushing them to discover new ways to react, challenge the norms and express themselves. My objective is to demonstrate a tacit connection between the tangible and intangible aspects of our built heritage.

Third show of Aborto Elétrico in Brasilia. | Source via Enrockada

Such connection can be found between Colina Velha Building and Brazilian punk rock music. Colina is a housing complex at the University of Brasilia designed by João de Gama Filguéiras Lima in 1962. It is a massive concrete building characterized by the sophisticated use of prefabricated elements [1]. Between the 1970s and 1980s, its spacious apartments accommodated meetings of Turma da Colina, a movement of young Brazilian bands like Aborto Elétrico, which revolutionized Brazilian punk rock.

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The social and spatial aspects of the life in Brasilia – the utopic, elegant, but monumental and monotonous city where the band members hailed from – and the state of Brazil after the end of the military dictatorship, strongly influenced the movement and the themes of the songs. These ranged from melancholic, political, and socially polemic subjects about drugs, war, nuclear plants, the state, military, and police, to topics of love, family and soul.

Excerpt of lyrics from Perfeição – Legião Urbana (1993)

The story was that Aborto Elétrico stopped rehearsing at Colina soon after their first show, marking the beginning of the end for the Turma da Colina movement. Nevertheless, their legacy lived on through the subsequently formed and very successful bands, Legião Urbana and Capital Inicial. Colina building first provided shelter for a youth that was struggling to express itself within the cold vast urban setting of the federal capital. The disentanglement and alienation constituted a common theme in both the music and the architecture.

Excerpt of lyrics from Anuncio de Refrigerante – Capital Inicial (2005); Recent recording | Translation by the author

At the same time punk rock was being born in Brasilia, hip-hop culture was incubated under the roof of the 1520 Sedgwick Avenue in South Bronx, New York. The building has been officially recognized as the birthplace of hip-hop. Jamaican American resident Clive Campbell–aka DJ Kool Herc was the first to introduce hip-hop music. In the early 1970s, Herc and his sister started hosting house parties in Sedgwick’s recreation room. At the time, Bronx was struggling with street gangs, disco’s popularity was fading, and the radio was searching for a new audience [2]. This is why block parties quickly turned into popular gigs, and moved out to public spaces. For the local young minorities, hip-hop was an alternative to the violent gang culture, a way to be heard expend their pent-up energy and a chance to generate income.

DJ Kool Herc sets up for the legendary block party at 1520 Sedgwick Avenue, Bronx, NY. 11th August 1973 | Source via Urban Ubiquity

In the book How to Rap Immortal Technique explains the role of parties in old school hip-hop: "Hip-hop was born in an era of social turmoil and real economically miserable conditions for the black and Latino people [..] in the same way that slaves used to sing songs on a plantation". While at the beginning songs were about party related subjects, slowly the lyrical focus shifted on social issues, like life difficulties in decayed housing projects, so that hip-hop became, in the words of T.I. rapper: “a reflection of the environment that the artist had to endure before he made it to where he was. [..] if you want to change the content of the music, change the environment of the artist”.

Excerpt from the lyrics The Message – Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five (1982)

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After a lengthy period of neglect and shady dealings, the building was finally saved from the real estate market, the new owners sought to work with the tenants to renovate it and safeguard its importance. This was the result of a collective effort by locals including Herc, groups like the Tenants and Neighbors Association, and politicians like Senator Schumer. So that the 1520 Sedgwick, "an otherwise unremarkable high-rise just north of the Cross Bronx Expressway and hard along the Major Deegan Expressway” was not only “the Bethlehem of Hip-Hop culture”, but also “the emblem of New York’s affordable housing crisis”.

Scene from La Haine film by Mathieu Kassovitz in the Cité de La Noé in Chanteloup-les-Vignes, France (1995) | Source via Film Grab

Nearly ten years after the birth of hip-hop in Bronx, rap arrived in France, demonstrating a different lyrical content concerned with issues of racism, integration, diaspora and ethnic diversity. The social and political situation of the early 1980s nurtured the establishment of a music culture that got enthusiastically embraced by the marginalized young minorities of a disturbed postcolonial French society. Key moment for its rise in popularity was the film La Haine by Mathieu Kassovitz in the mid 1990s where rap associated itself with the identity of young immigrants in the Parisian banlieues [3], further linking hip-hop to spatial concepts like ghetto and mass housing.

One of these post-war mass housing projects was the cité du Val-Fourré, an ideal neighborhood for workers of the automobile industry in Mantes-la-Jolie. In the west periphery of Paris this neighborhood offered nothing but housing, leading to a mono functional and segregated area, devoid of any real urban stimuli, that soon became a notorious ghetto of marginalization, poverty, violence, drug dealing, and street gang rivalry.

Excerpt of lyrics from 78 – Expression Direkt ft. Big Red (1998) | Translation by the author

The situation motivated young immigrants to become involved in rap music as a way to express their anger and attract attention; a desire to be heard and taken seriously. French rapper Mokobe asserted: "We were rebels. We made music to speak about our daily lives, about people like us, and to defend their cause." At the same time, songs reflected a strong sense of belonging to the working class cités and their brotherhood.

Excerpt of lyrics from Mon esprit part en couilles – Expression Direkt (1995) | Translation by the author

The media attention Val-Fourré attracted had it included in a mega redevelopment programme in 2003 run by the Agence Nationale de Renovation Urbaine (Anru), which enhanced local activities and services. Land use diversity, however, may not ensure social mixing and integration, as the IAM band sang in 1997, “the elected officials carry out refurbishment to reassure, but it's always the same shit, behind the last layer of painting”.

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Same applies to the Crossways estate, another post war marginalized residential project in East London, now rebranded as Bow Cross area. Thirty years after Herc’s parties, East London gave birth to a different music genre. What was South Bronx to hip-hop, was East London to grime, particularly the Crossways estate in the Bow area of Tower Hamlets borough. Wiley “the godfather of grime” affirms, the music genre comes all from Bow.

British rappers Dizzee Rascal and Wiley relax by the Crossways estate in Bethnal Green, London (2002) | Photo David Tonge/Getty Images

Grime is a hybrid of garage, drum and bass, hip-hop, and dance music characterized by machine-like, media and city sounds [4]. Dan Hancox argues there is a certain brutalist quality to grime as a genre: “Like the architecture, it’s very stripped down”. Urban at its very core, grime’s commentary is preoccupied with two subjects: the contemporary grim lives of the young, black, male MCs in the impoverished London council estates, and the sound of the future city that they always dreamed of– when looking at the nearby Canary Wharf. Their lyrics are playful, hedonistic, at times affectionate and aggressive, nostalgic and rebellious, yet dark and violent. For they describe what young sought to reclaim, their right to a city that was ignoring them. "Coming from where I come from, you didn't feel a part of London," Dizzee told to the BBC London.

Excerpt of lyrics from Love this town – Dizzee Rascal ft. Teddy Sky (2013)

Grime also emerged at a time that governmental policies initiated the demolition/refurbishment of council estates to regenerate some of UK’s most vulnerable areas like Bow. Crossways was in poor condition, half-abandoned, occupied by homeless people, unpopular with residents and vulnerable to antisocial behaviors. Recent refurbishment, though, forced out the former “working-class Londoners who might listen to, or indeed make grime”.

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This may not be the future of the 3000 Viviendas project, an area built between 1976-77 in the southern periphery of Seville, to rehouse low-income people from post-disaster areas, precarious settlements, other urban quarters and the countryside [5], the majority of which were gypsies. The project is centrally located in Poligono Sur, which gets geographically and socially isolated due to surrounding motorways and railway lines that act as physical boundaries. The spatial segregation combined with the social uniformity and a lack of public services and other infrastructure led the project into decay and extensive informalization. Issues of drugs, illiteracy, unemployment, delinquency, and functional and physical deterioration of the built environment came along, giving it the name of vertical shantytown.

It was this area that got associated with the origins of new flamenco in the 1970s ought to young and talented gitanos expelled from Triana in the late 1960s; notably the Amador brothers and their group Pata Negra. The group revived the traditional flamenco [6] by fusing it with elements of rock and blues, creating the art of blueslería. Similar to the traditional one, new flamenco was influenced by the hybrid identity and culture of Romani people [7]. For the residents of 3000 Viviendas, the music was not only a means to express their everyday life and feelings, but also a mechanism to reverse the downhill of degradation, give visibility to and breathe new life into the neighborhood. The songs’ lyrics often revolved around topics of diaspora, displacement and marginalization as well as passion and affection for the neighborhood.

Excerpt of lyrics from El Rock del Cayetano – Pata Negra (1988) | Translation by the author

Excerpt of lyrics from Yo Me Quedo en Sevilla – Pata Negra (1987) | Translation by the author

This affection is best depicted through the example of Alala documentary. The movie shows how flamenco is used to educate and inspire young locals, allowing them to envision a better future for their neighborhood. Here, music empowers the community to stay and feel for the area, generate opportunities and transform itself and its space through a bottom-up process.

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[1] Czajkowski, J. in Emanuel (ed) (2016) “Contemporary Architects” p. 250 [2] Toop, D. (2000) “Rap Attack 3: African Rap to Global Hip Hop”. London: Serpent’s Tail. [3] Higbee, W. (2007) “Mathieu Kassovitz”. Manchester University Press. [4] De Jong, A. Schuilenburg, M.(2006) Mediapolis: Popular Culture and the City. [5] Torres Gutiérrez, F. J. (2011) “El territorio de los desheredados. Asentamientos chabolistas y experiencias recientes de erradicación en Sevilla”. Hábitat y Sociedad (3), pp. 67- 90. [6] On November 16, 2010, UNESCO declared flamenco one of the Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity. [7] Hayes, M. H. (2009) “Flamenco: Conflicting Histories of the Dance”. McFarland Books. pp. 31–37.

#FOMA 8: by Fani Kostourou

Fani Kostourou is an architect and urban designer. She studied architecture at the National Technical University of Athens (NTUA), and holds a MAS in Urban Design from ETH Zürich and an MRes in Spatial Design: Architecture and Cities from The Bartlett, UCL London. Fani’s design work has featured in publications such as Minha Casa, Nossa Cidade: Innovating Mass Housing for Social Change in Brazil (Ruby Press, 2014) and group exhibitions at the Museum of Modern Art in New York (2014-15), Columbia GSAPP’s Studio-X in Rio (2013), Museu de Arte do Rio (2014), X São Paulo Biennale (2013) and 15th Venice Architecture Biennale (2016) among others. Fani is currently an EPSRC-funded doctoral student at The Bartlett School of Architecture, Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (UK), and Postgraduate Teaching Assistant at The Bartlett School of Architecture, and Development Planning Unit, UCL. Recently and as part of her studio teaching, she has co-edited two publications on Emerging Design Research (The Bartlett 2015, 2017). Her activities also include project consultancy, graphic design, writing and editing. In April 2017, Fani joined the MIT Department of Architecture and Computation as a visiting PhD researcher.

#forgotten masterpieces #foma

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grand-theft-carbohydrates · 4 months

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chinese is such a fake-sounding language. why does "practising demonic cultivation" sound identical to "fixing the railway"??????? ever since i saw that clip of xiao zhan my life has not known peace. i cannot unhear it. god i finally understand all the Grandmaster of Public Infrastructure jokes. WWX is just a misunderstood young man who dreams about efficient public transportation. they will learn the ways of highspeed rail, by force if need be.

#mdzs #grandmaster of public infrastructure

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districofcolumbiaprelawland-blog · 4 years

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Police Brutality, Racism, And Ignorance: The Importance of Political Rap

By Graham Payne-Reichert, American University Class of 2022

June 1, 2020

In 2018 rap music surpassed rock and roll as the most listened to genre of music in the world [1]. However, rap is far more than a music genre. From its inception, rap has been an indispensable political tool for historically disenfranchised, ignored communities to communicate their experiences to a mainstream audience. This is mainly done through a subgenre of rap, political rap, which “follows the model of uniting African Americans through music by discussing issues relevant to the Black community and providing information about injustices community members face” [2]. Before diving into the various issues that rap historically deals with, it may be useful to examine the first political rap song, as the messages in this song remain prevalent in political rap to this date.

Rap music was primarily created in the Bronx during the 1970s, which is where the first political rap song comes from. In 1982, Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five released an incredibly poignant start to the political rap subgenre: “The Message” [3]. This song became the first widely disseminated example of rappers using their platform to speak out against injustice in their communities. The rapperstalk about widespread drug addiction, decrepit infrastructure, abysmal public education, and people forced to resort to crime to feed their families due to a lack of job opportunities [ibid]. Overall, this song serves as a harsh rebuke to the supposed universality of the “American Dream.” To them, the dream is just that: a dream.

The conditions of the Bronx during the 70s were horrific. Pictures taken during this time look more like post-war Europe than an American city. The racially motivated practice of redlining ran rampant during this decade, and the Bronx lost one fifth of its population [4]. Furthermore, there were fires destroying homes of thousands, some of which were believed to have been started by the landlords themselves, who were desperate for cash [ibid]. “The Message” offered the first glimpse into these conditions from those living there, ideally instilling a sense of empathy and support from those unaware of the true nature of living in the Bronx.

Taking a lesson from Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five, rappers began using their voices to illustrate how they truly feel, and what it is truly like living in their communities. Again, the topics in political rap are very much the same today as they were in 1982. For starters, rappers have a history of detailing the horrors of police brutality that their communities are faced with on a daily basis. Perhaps the most famous example of this is N.W.A’s song “F*ck Tha Police” [5]. Released in 1988, the song offers a no-holds-barred portrayal regarding the practices of the Los Angeles Police Department, which has more than enough scandals of police brutality. To reiterate, political rap provides a unique opportunity for community members to speak directly to the public about the realities of their experiences. Police brutality is still rapped about today, unfortunately illustrating the fact that it still exists on such a grand scale. Following the release of his 2015 album To Pimp A Butterfly, Kendrick Lamar’s song “Alright” has become a rallying cry for the Black Lives Matter movement [6]. Despite an optimistic tone that the Black community will prevail, the song notes that the police “wanna kill [Black people] dead in the street, for sure”. [ibid]. This song responds, in chief, to the murder of Travyon Martin, which Lamar deals with later in the album in greater depth.

Furthermore, rappers are still grappling with the ever-present issue of racism. Nearly every politically charged rap song reacts to racism in some way. For a recent example, one could look at J. Cole’s song “Neighbors,” in which he tells the story of his white neighbors calling the police on his house because they thought he was selling drugs [7]. Following a heavily armed police raid on his home, they found nothing but the harsh reality of a racist society. J. Cole tries to explain that his neighbors likely thought he was selling drugs because the “only time they see [Black people is] on the news in chains” [ibid]. This is undoubtedly reflecting the media’s stereotypical depiction of Black people, contributing to racist views of his community. Another example that deals with the systemic nature of racism in America comes from Freddie Gibbs’ album Bandana, on a track called “Flat Tummy Tea” [8]. Stating that “crackers came to Africa/ ravaged, raffled and rummaged me/ America was the name of they f*ckin company,” Gibbs clearly comments on the slave trade being the start of a shameful history of systemic racism. To him, this racism has manifested itself in the form of mass incarceration, stating that “incarceration my destination” [ibid]. Lastly, one of the most poignant songs on the nature of racism in today’s America comes from Mos Def and Q-Tip on their song titled “Mr. N*gga.” This song’s name itself speaks to the message of the song. Mos Def feels that, despite being incredibly famous and successful, perhaps the embodiment of the American Dream, he is still judged for his skin color. The song details various times he was stereotyped by law enforcement, shoppers, stewardesses, and everything in between. This song is clearly challenging people to check their biases and change their behavior, as well as a reflection on the systemic nature of racism.

Rap music is an indispensable tool for neglected communities. Rather than relying on mainstream media to represent their interests, rappers have decided to take matters into their own hands and bring their struggles to light. Rap often gets criticized for its explicit lyrical content, but by doing this critics ignore a rich, pointed commentary on social injustices they know nothing about. If you are not familiar with rap, or are interested in learning more about what rappers have to say on various social, legal, and political issues, I implore you to take time and listen to rappers from different cities, decades, and age groups. A quick Google search of “political rappers” will give you more rap than you likely have time for, but understanding the messages in these songs are crucial to understanding ones’ privilege, biases, and ignorance on a range of topics.

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[1] Lynch, John. "For the First Time in History, Hip-hop Has Surpassed Rock to Become the Most Popular Music Genre, According to Nielsen." Business Insider, 4 Jan. 2018, www.businessinsider.com/hip-hop-passes-rock-most-popular-music-genre-nielsen-2018-1.

[2] Lakeyta Monique). Pulse of the People Political Rap Music and Black Politics / Lakeyta M. Bonnette. University of Pennsylvania Press, 2015.

[3] Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five. “The Message.” The Message, Sugar Hill, 1982

[4] Ricciulli, Valeria. "In the 1970s, the Bronx Was Burning, but Some Residents Were Rebuilding." Curbed NY, 3 May 2019, ny.curbed.com/2019/5/3/18525908/south-bronx-fires-decade-of-fire-vivian-vazquez-documentary.

[5] N.W.A. “F*ck Tha Police.” Straight Outta Compton, Priority Records, 1988, Track Two.)

[6] Lamar, Kendrick “Alright.” To Pimp a Butterfly, Top Dawg Entertainment, 2015, Track 7

[7] Cole, Jermaine, “Neighbors.” 4 Your Eyez Only, Interscope Records, 2017, Track 6

[8] Gibbs, Freddie, “Flat Tummy Tea.” Bandana, RCA Records, 2019, Track 8

[9] Bey, Yasiin, “Mr. N*gga.” Black on Both Sides, Priority Records, 1999, Track 15

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batexamin · 7 years

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Interesting Facts about Tamil Nadu

Tamilnadu General Knowledge (GK) Questions and Answers 2018

Brief Introduction about Tamil Nadu: About Tamil Nadu – The State of Tamil Nadu lies in the southern most part of India. Its official and widely spoken language is Tamil. There are 32 districts present in Tamil Nadu. Chennai formerly known as Madras is the Capital City of Tamil Nadu. Also, Chennai is the largest city of the state. Motto of the State is ‘Truth alone Triumph’. Agriculture is the main occupation of the people. This state is the largest producer of banana , turmeric , tapioca and second largest producer of Mango , Coconut and ground nut.

Interesting Facts about Tamil Nadu

Government of Tamil Nadu: Governor – Banwari Lal Purohit Chief Minister – Edappadi K. Palaniswami High Court – Madras High Court

12 Interesting, Unknown, and Fun Facts About Tamil Nadu

State Symbols : Dance – Bharathanatiyam Animal – Niligiri Tahr Bird – Emerald Dove Tree – Palm Tree Flower – Gloriosa Lily Sport – Kabbadi

6 Interesting Facts You Should Know About Tamil

Wildlife sanctuaries: Grizzled Squirrel Wildlife Sanctuary Indira Gandhi Wildlife Sanctuary Kalakaadu Mudanthurai Wildlife Sanctuary Mudumalai Wildlife Sanctuary Kanyakumari Wildlife Sanctuary Sathyamangalam Wildlife Sanctuary National Parks: Indira Gandhi National Park Mudumalai National Park Mukurthi National Park Gulf of Mannar Marine National Park Guindy National Park Kodaikanal Wildlife Sanctuary Biosphere Reserves: The Gulf of Mannar Biosphere Reserve Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve Agasthiyamalai Biosphere Reserve World Heritage Sites in Tamil Nadu: Brihdeeswarar Temple at Thanjavur Gangaikonda Cholapuram Temple at Jayakondam Airavateswara Temple at Darasuram Monuments of Mahabalipuram at Chennai Rivers and Dams: Aliyar Dam – Aliyar River Amaravathi Dam – Amaravati River Bhavanisagar Dam – Bhavani River Grand Anicut Dam (Kallanai) – Cauvery River Mettur Dam – Cauvery River Sathanur Dam – Pennaiyaru River Pechiparai Dam – Kodayar River Mukkadal Dam – Vambaru River Vaigai Dam – Vaigai River Famous Places in Tamil Nadu: Marina Beach, world’s second largest beach is located in Chennai the capital of Tamil Nadu. Meenakshi Amman Temple is a Hindu temple located on the southern bank of the Vaigai River in the temple city of Madurai. It was on the list of top 30 nominees for the “New Seven Wonders of the World”. Kanyakumari beach has its own importance were Bay of Bengal, Arabian sea and Indian ocean meets. Vivekananda Rock Memorial, Gandhi Museum, Thanjavur Temple are other famous places. Famous Dances: Bharat Natyan is the popular traditional dance of the state. Kolattam, Karagam, and Mayilattam are famous folk dances. Famous Personalities in Tamil Nadu: Dr. APJ. Abdul Kalam, 11th President of India was born and raised in Tamil Nadu. Sir C.V Raman was a known Indian Physicist, won Nobel prize in Physics. The Great Indian Mathematician Srinivasa Ramanujan who made significant contributions to mathematical analysis, number theory, and continued fractions was born in Erode,Tamil Nadu. M.S. Subbulakshmi was a famous carnatic vocalist belongs to Tamil Nadu. She was the first musician to be awarded the Bharat Ratna, India’s highest civilian honour. Viswanathan Anand origin of Tamil Nadu, is an Indian chess Grandmaster and former World Chess Champion. Venkatraman Ramakrishnan is an Indian structural biologist, who won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry MS Swaminathan, Father of Green Revolution in India, belonged to Tamil Nadu. AR Rahman or the Mozart of Madras, the Academy Award Winner, is also from Tamil Nadu. Nuclear Power Stations: Madras Atomic Power Station, Kalpakkam. Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant, Kudankulam Thermal Power Stations: Neyveli Thermal Power Station, Cuddalore. Mettur Thermal Power Station, Salem. Ennore Thermal Power Station, Chennai. Other Facts Major Ports – Madras & Tuticorin Tirukkural, which was written nearly two millennia ago portrays a universal outlook. Tamil is the first Indian Language to attain Classical Language Status Tamil Nadu is often referred to as ‘a land of temples’ and Tamils are proud of the religious traditions and follow them strictly. The World’s First Granite Temple is the Brihadeswara temple at Tanjavur in Tamil Nadu. The M. A. Chidambaram Stadium or Chepauk Stadium is a cricket stadium in Chennai. The stadium was established in 1916 and it the oldest continuously used cricket stadium in the country.

TamilNadu General Knowledge Questions and Answers

We have compiled some important frequently asked questions related to Tamilnadu GK with Answers 1. Which Chief minister have been appointed maximum number of times ? (A) M Karunanidhi (B) M G Ramachandran (C) J Jayalalithaa (D) C Raja gopalachari (Ans : A) 2. Tamilnadu Capital City Chennai is formerly known as ? (A) Madras (B) Chennapur (C) Chennapatti (D) None of these (Ans : A) 3. What is the area of Tamil Nadu? (A) 50,215 sq. mi. (B) 77,857 sq. mi. (C) 36,523 sq. mi. (D) 28,412 sq. mi. (Ans : A) 4. Total Number of Districts of Tamilnadu state ? (A) 34 (B) 32 (C) 28 (D) 30 (Ans : B) 5. Number of International Airports in Tamilnadu ? (A) 3 (B) 5 (C) 4 (D) 2 (Ans : C) 6. Which water body is to the east of Tamil Nadu? (A) Gulf of Kutch (B) Bay of Bengal (C) Gulf of Cambay (D) Arabian Sea (Ans : B) 7. Which state is to the west of Tamil Nadu? (A) Orissa (B) Kerala (C) Maharashtra (D) Nagaland (Ans : B) 8. Which ocean is to the south of Tamil Nadu? (A) Atlantic (B) Pacific (C) Indian (D) Antarctic (Ans : C) 9. Which strait separates Tamil Nadu from Sri Lanka? (A) Cook (B) Torres (C) Davis (D) Palk (Ans : D)

Tamilnadu General Knowledge (GK) Questions and Answers 2018

10. How was Tamil Nadu formerly known? (A) Madras (B) Ootacamund (C) Golconda (D) Vanga (Ans : A) 11. Which is the southernmost point of Tamil Nadu? (A) Blair Point (B) Cape Horn (C) Castle Point (D) Cape Comorin (Ans : D) 12. Which is the highest point in Tamil Nadu? (A) Kudremukh (B) Pachmarhi (C) Doda Betta (D) Guru Peak (Ans : C) 13. Which party came to power in Tamil Nadu in 1967? (A) CPI (B) TDP (C) PWP (D) DMK (Ans : D) 14. Who was Tamil Nadu’s first non-Congress chief minister? (A) C. Rajagopalachari (B) M. Karunanidhi (C) C. Annadurai (D) K. Kamaraj (Ans : C) 15. What is the state fruit of Tamilnadu ? (A) Banana (B) Mango (C) Guava (D) jackfruit (Ans : D)

TNPSC - General Knowledge Today

16. Mid day meal scheme in Tamilnadu was Introduced by Which former Chief minister ? (A) K Kamraj (B) M G Ramachandran (C) M Karunanidhi (D) None of these (Ans : A) 17. The DANIDA-TNAHCP initiative of Tamil nadu is related to which among the following sectors? (A) Infrastructure (B) Health (C) Education (D) Industry (Ans : B) 18. Total number of Loksabha Constituencies in Tamilnadu ? (A) 42 (B) 25 (C) 36 (D) 39 (Ans : D) 19. In how many zones, the Greater Chennai Police Commissionerate has been divided in Tamil Nadu? (A) Three (B) Four (C) Five (D) Six (Ans : B) 20. In which of the following district Indira Gandhi wild life sanctuary & national park is located ? (A) Dharmapuri district (B) Coimbatore district (C) Karur (D) Theni (Ans : B) 21. From the following Which Public sector bank headquarters is located in Tamilnadu state ? (A) Bank of Baroda (B) Canara bank (C) Union bank of India (D) Indian Overseas bank (Ans : B) 22. In which year, name Chennai from Madras was officially changed ? (A) 1993 (B) 1995 (C) 1997 (D) 1998 (Ans : B) 23. In which year, Madras State was renamed as Tamilnadu? (A) 1960 (B) 1963 (C) 1969 (D) 1972 (Ans : C) 24. What is the name of seat of Corporation of Chennai? (A) Chelmsford Building (B) Ripon Building (C) Cornwallis Building (D) Dalhousie Building (Ans : B) 25. Vijayalaya Chola established Which of the following as new capital ? (A) Madurai (B) Thanjavur (C) Krishnagiri (D) Tiruchi (Ans : B) 26. Koodal is old name of Which city ? (A) Tiruppur (B) Tirunelveli (C) Madurai (D) None of these (Ans : C)

Tamilnadu General Knowledge-Current Affairs-Tamil Nadu State GK

27. Which City is largest Knitwear exporter ? (A) Salem (B) Coimbatore (C) Andipatti (D) Tirupur (Ans : C) 28. From the following Which city is called “Manchestar of South India ” ? (A) Coimbatore (B) Chennai (C) Tirunelveli (D) Namakkal (Ans : A) 29. Which of the following state is North to Tamilnadu ? (A) Kerala (B) Karnataka (C) Andhra pradesh (D) None of these (Ans : C) 30. What is the Rank of Tamilnadu among Indian states by area ? (A) 14 (B) 3 (C) 9 (D) 11 (Ans : D) 31. Yercaud hill station is located in Which district ? (A) Tiruchirappalli (B) Salem (C) Erode (D) Tirunelveli (Ans : B) 32. Theni distict is split from Which district in 1997 ? (A) Madurai (B) Coimbatore (C) Tiruchirappalli (D) None of these (Ans : A) 33. In 1956 there are...................number of districts in Tamilnadu ? (A) 19 (B) 20 (C) 24 (D) 13 (Ans : D) 34. Whose nickname is “Mango of Salem” ? (A) K Kamaraj (B) PT Rajan (C) C Raja gopalachari (D) M Karunanidhi (Ans : C) 35. In which year Madras state was renamed as Tamilnadu ? (A) 1952 (B) 1962 (C) 1966 (D) 1969 (Ans : D) 36. “Amma Unavagam” scheme provides? (A) Subsidized fertilizers at low prices (B) Free Purified Water for families (C) Subsidized food at low prices (D) Free meals for pilgrims at Temples (Ans : C) 37. Who amongst the following is acknowledged as “king Maker” ? (A) M Karunanidhi (B) K Kamraj (C) C Rajagopalachari (D) None of these (Ans : B) 38. In Which year AIADMK party is founded ? (A) 1967 (B) 1974 (C) 1971 (D) 1972 (Ans : D) 39. Who is the founder of AIADMK ? (A) C Annadurai (B) M G Ramachandran (C) J Jayalalithaa (D) None of these (Ans : B)

Tamilnadu GK Quiz & Current Affairs 2018

40.Which of the following dam is built on Kaveri river ? (A) Mettur dam (B) Dudhawa dam (C) Almatti dam (D) Mullaperiyar dam (Ans : A) Read the full article

#12Interesting #5FactsAboutTamilNaduWeBetYouDidn'tKnow #6InterestingFactsYouShouldKnowAboutTamil #andFunFactsAboutTamilNadu #InterestingFactsaboutTamilNadu #TamilnaduGeneralKnowledge(GK)QuestionsandAnswers2018 #TamilnaduGeneralKnowledge-CurrentAffairs-TamilNaduStateGK #TamilnaduGKQuiz&CurrentAffairs2018 #TNPSC-GeneralKnowledgeToday #Unknown

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djgblogger-blog · 7 years

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How artificial intelligence will transform higher education

http://bit.ly/2vDi747

As AI surpasses human abilities in Go and poker – two decades after Deep Blue trounced chess grandmaster Garry Kasparov – it is seeping into our lives in ever more profound ways. It affects the way we search the web, receive medical advice and whether we receive finance from our banks.

The most innovative AI breakthroughs, and the companies that promote them – such as DeepMind, Magic Pony, Aysadi, Wolfram Alpha and Improbable – have their origins in universities. Now AI will transform universities.

We believe AI is a new scientific infrastructure for research and learning that universities will need to embrace and lead, otherwise they will become increasingly irrelevant and eventually redundant.

Through their own brilliant discoveries, universities have sown the seeds of their own disruption. How they respond to this AI revolution will profoundly reshape science, innovation, education – and society itself.

Deep Mind was created by three scientists, two of whom met while working at University College London. Demis Hassabis, one of Deep Mind’s founders, who has a PhD in cognitive neuroscience from UCL and has undertaken postdoctoral studies at MIT and Harvard, is one of many scientists convinced that AI and machine learning will improve the process of scientific discovery.

It is already eight years since scientists at the University of Aberystwyth created a robotic system that carried out an entire scientific process on its own: formulating hypotheses, designing and running experiments, analysing data, and deciding which experiments to run next.

Complex data sets

Applied in science, AI can autonomously create hypotheses, find unanticipated connections, and reduce the cost of gaining insights and the ability to be predictive.

AI is being used by publishers such as Reed Elsevier for automating systematic academic literature reviews, and can be used for checking plagiarism and misuse of statistics. Machine learning can potentially flag unethical behaviour in research projects prior to their publication.

AI can combine ideas across scientific boundaries. There are strong academic pressures to deepen intelligence within particular fields of knowledge, and machine learning helps facilitate the collision of different ideas, joining the dots of problems that need collaboration between disciplines.

As AI gets more powerful, it will not only combine knowledge and data as instructed, but will search for combinations autonomously. It can also assist collaboration between universities and external parties, such as between medical research and clinical practice in the health sector.

The implications of AI for university research extend beyond science and technology.

Philosophical questions

In a world where so many activities and decisions that were once undertaken by people will be replaced or augmented by machines, profound philosophical questions arise about what it means to be human. Computing pioneer Douglas Engelbert – whose inventions include the mouse, windows and cross-file editing – saw this in 1962 when he wrote of “augmenting human intellect”.

Expertise in fields such as psychology and ethics will need to be applied to thinking about how people can more rewardingly work alongside intelligent machines and systems.

Research is needed into the consequences of AI on the levels and quality of employment and the implications, for example, for public policy and management.

When it comes to AI in teaching and learning, many of the more routine academic tasks (and least rewarding for lecturers), such as grading assignments, can be automated. Chatbots, intelligent agents using natural language, are being developed by universities such as the Technical University of Berlin; these will answer questions from students to help plan their course of studies.

Virtual assistants can tutor and guide more personalized learning. As part of its Open Learning Initiative (OLI), Carnegie Mellon University has been working on AI-based cognitive tutors for a number of years. It found that its OLI statistics course, run with minimal instructor contact, resulted in comparable learning outcomes for students with fewer hours of study. In one course at the Georgia Institute of Technology, students could not tell the difference between feedback from a human being and a bot.

Global classroom

Mixed reality and computer vision can provide a high-fidelity, immersive environment to stimulate interest and understanding. Simulations and games technology encourage student engagement and enhance learning in ways that are more intuitive and adaptive. They can also engage students in co-developing knowledge, involving them more in university research activities. The technologies also allow people outside of the university and from across the globe to participate in scientific discovery through global classrooms and participative projects such as Galaxy Zoo.

As well as improving the quality of education, AI can make courses available to many more people. Previously access to education was limited by the size of the classroom. With developments such as Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) over the last five years, tens of thousands of people can learn about a wide range of university subjects.

It still remains the case, however, that much advanced learning, and its assessment, requires personal and subjective attention that cannot be automated. Technology has ‘flipped the classroom’, forcing universities to think about where we can add real value – such as personalised tuition, and more time with hands-on research, rather than traditional lectures.

Monitoring performance

University administrative processes will benefit from utilising AI on the vast amounts of data they produce during their research and teaching activities. This can be used to monitor performance against their missions, be it in research, education or promotion of diversity, and can be produced frequently to assist more responsive management. It can enhance the quality of performance league tables, which are often based on data with substantial time lags. It can allow faster and more efficient applicant selection.

AI allows the tracking of individual student performance, and universities such as Georgia State and Arizona State are using it to predict marks and indicate when interventions are needed to allow students to reach their full potential and prevent them from dropping out.

Such data analytics of students and staff raises weighty questions about how to respect privacy and confidentiality, that require judicious codes of practice.

The blockchain is being used to record grades and qualifications of students and staff in an immediately available and incorruptible format, helping prevent unethical behaviour, and could be combined with AI to provide new insights into student and career progression.

Universities will need to be attuned to the new opportunities AI produces for supporting multidisciplinarity. In research this will require creating new academic departments and jobs, with particular demands for data scientists. Curricula will need to be responsive, educating the scientists and technologists who are creating and using AI, and preparing students in fields as diverse as medicine, accounting, law and architecture, whose future work and careers will depend on how successfully they ally their skills with the capabilities of machines.

New curricula should allow for the unpredictable path of AI’s development, and should be based on deep understanding, not on the immediate demands of companies.

Addressing the consequences

Universities are the drivers of disruptive technological change, like AI and automation. It is the duty of universities to reflect on their broader social role, and create opportunities that will make society resilient to this disruption.

We must address the consequences of technological unemployment, and universities can help provide skills and opportunities for people whose jobs have been adversely affected.

There is stiff competition for people skilled in the development and use of AI, and universities see many of their talented staff attracted to work in the private sector. One of the most pressing AI challenges for universities is the need for them to develop better employment conditions and career opportunities to retain and incentivize their own AI workers. They need to create workplaces that are flexible, agile and responsive to interactions with external sources of ideas, and are open to the mixing of careers as people move between universities and business.

The fourth industrial revolution is profoundly affecting all elements of contemporary societies and economies. Unlike the previous revolutions, where the structure and organization of universities were relatively unaffected, the combinations of technologies in AI is likely to shake them to their core. The very concept of ‘deep learning’, central to progress in AI, clearly impinges on the purpose of universities, and may create new competition for them.

If done right, AI can augment and empower what universities already do; but continuing their missions of research, teaching and external engagement will require fundamental reassessment and transformation. Are universities up to the task?

This article was originally posted on the World Economic Forum. Click here to view the original.

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