This is a cool site I found on the web, filled with tons of flash apps done by Andre Michelle. I am particularly interested in the music ones. I love all the new electronic instruments out there being developed on touch-screen mobile platforms.
Here is one of my favorites:
“The particles have their own note value, while the wheels affect their octave. Drag them all to alter the melody.”
tonewheels
Of course we need to include a sorting algorithm in this list, but why Merge Sort? Why not any of the other comparison based sorting algorithms all of which run in O(nlogn)? The reason is that Merge Sort is probably the most simplest implementation of a “divide and conquer” algorithm out there. The Merge Sort recurrence is also very common in other problems, so you can’t really avoid it. The simplicity is very attractive, it is in my opinion far easier to teach a novice Merge Sort rather than Quick Sort or any other contemporaries.
Dijkstra’s Algorithm is used to solve the “shortest path” path problem on a graph without negative weights. The number of applications where such a solution is needed is endless. No matter if your dealing with complex network routing or simply trying to navigate to a desired destination the solution is the same. With the constant evolution of the internet I can only see Dijkstra’s Algorithm becoming more and more important.
Very simple with numberless applications. These two algorithms are used to solve many standard graph related problems very efficiently. Some of the most common uses are:
The FFT is an efficient algorithm for computing a discrete Fourier transformation and its inverse. This is invaluable to data compression, whether through sound(mp3) or image(jpeg) we have all used the benefits of this algorithm. Unfortunately not enough people understand how it works, so study up on your primitive roots of unity, take some time to learn it and you will see the true beauty of this algorithm.
RSA was a great step for public key encryption and been built into many security protocols. RSA is still very secure with sufficiently long keys. With the advent of quantum computers, factoring becomes a polynomial time task so RSA begins to fall apart, but it is still very relevant and a great breakthrough none the less.
fitter, happier, more productive,
comfortable,
not drinking too much,
regular exercise at the gym
(3 days a week),
getting on better with your associate employee contemporaries,
at ease,
eating well
(no more microwave dinners and saturated fats),
a patient better driver,
a safer car
(baby smiling in back seat),
sleeping well
(no bad dreams),
no paranoia,
careful to all animals
(never washing spiders down the plughole),
keep in contact with old friends
(enjoy a drink now and then),
will frequently check credit at (moral) bank (hole in the wall),
favors for favors,
fond but not in love,
charity standing orders,
on Sundays ring road supermarket
(no killing moths or putting boiling water on the ants),
car wash
(also on Sundays),
no longer afraid of the dark or midday shadows
nothing so ridiculously teenage and desperate,
nothing so childish – at a better pace,
slower and more calculated,
no chance of escape,
now self-employed,
concerned (but powerless),
an empowered and informed member of society
(pragmatism not idealism),
will not cry in public,
less chance of illness,
tires that grip in the wet
(shot of baby strapped in back seat),
a good memory,
still cries at a good film,
still kisses with saliva,
no longer empty and frantic like a cat tied to a stick,
that’s driven into frozen winter shit
(the ability to laugh at weakness),
calm,
fitter,
healthier and more productive
a pig in a cage on antibiotics.
off air.
Amazing song. Amazing Video. When I first heard the song and saw the promo videos I didn’t expect anything like this but I am very impressed. I think this video is proof that Lasse Hoile is the perfect person for the art direction of SW/Porcupine Tree.
Battlefield Heroes is a new free-to-play game put out by EA as part of their very successful Battlefield franchise. It differs in the sense that it is cartoony and full of humor. You control your character in third person and has leveling and skill training mechanics similar to RPG’s. The bottom line is that the game was made to be very accessible and fun; little or no learning-curve, non-demanding computer specs, and more depth then most free games include.
The game is currently in a closed beta state, slowly releasing beta keys to registered users. I recently received mine and gave the game a try and was very pleasantly surprised. The game played very smoothly and the team based objectives were very well done. It’s in the same vein as Battlefield: Bad Company in the sense that it is a team oriented game that hands out points based on assists, capturing points, and healing teammates rather then relying on a simple kill/death ratio.
Check it out here.
This is probably just wishful thinking given the evidence isn’t very strong, but I am intrigued none the less. Even though blizzard has a lot going on with their current titles I think its a good idea to bring some fresh ideas in. Maybe they are deciding to continue there domination of the industry and finally edge into the FPS market.
Full story here.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 13, 2009
New York, NY:
Progressive metal veterans DREAM THEATER have announced BLACK CLOUDS & SILVER LININGS as the title of their tenth studio album. The band commenced work on the album – their second for Roadrunner Records, following up 2007’s Systematic Chaos — in October of last year. Roadrunner will release the record on June 23. In addition to the standard version CD, the album will also be available on vinyl LP, as well as a 3-disc Special Edition CD that will include the full album, a CD of instrumental mixes of the album and a CD of six cover songs, the titles of which will be revealed at a later date. Six weeks prior to the June 23 street date, Roadrunner will release one cover song per week through digital retailers. Drummer Mike Portnoy and guitarist John Petrucci are once again at the helm as producers, while Paul Northfield mixed the record. The band will embark on a world tour in support of the album beginning in Europe throughout June which will be followed by the second edition of the band’s PROGRESSIVE NATION tour featuring Zappa Plays Zappa, Pain Of Salvation and Beardfish throughout North America in July/August. A video for the first single, “A Rite of Passage” will be shot in late March.
The track listing for BLACK CLOUDS & SILVER LININGS is as follows:
1. A Nightmare to Remember
2. A Rite of Passage
3. Wither
4. The Shattered Fortress
5. The Best of Times
6. The Count of Tuscany
Holy Crap. Can’t Wait.
Here are a couple of my favourite albums which I was blown away by the first time I heard them. It was (in many ways) the inspiration I got from these albums which helped me become the kind of guitar player and songwriter I am today.
These albums are listed by date of release.
In the Court of the Crimson King – 1969 – King Crimson
Led Zeppelin II – 1969 – Led Zeppelin
Harvest – 1972 – Neil Young
Wish You Were Here – 1975 – Pink Floyd
Permanent Waves – 1980 – Rush
Master of Puppets – 1986 – Metallica
Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness – 1995 – Smashing Pumpkins
OK Computer – 1997 – Radiohead
Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes from a Memory – 1999 – Dream Theater
Fear of a Blank Planet – 2007 – Porcupine Tree
Here is an extremely simple periodic table that I came across while surfing the web. Now I’m sure that you could find a more complete and ultimately better table and really my interests do not include chemistry and I rarely find myself in need of a periodic table of elements. The main reason I am posting this is because I have a soft spot for plain-text websites which are defiantly retro. Just take a look at the source, you won’t see too many <tr> or <td> tags.
under a glass moon 