Taufiq Zainal

"Thinking about your potential mortality isn’t very constructive"

Thu, 16 May 2013 20:55:00 +0800

“Thinking about your potential mortality isn’t very constructive”

- Bill Gates, in his interview on 60 Minutes, where he talked about his lifelong friend and rival, the late Apple co-founder Steve Jobs, among other things.

My Medical Choice

Thu, 16 May 2013 20:30:50 +0800

My Medical Choice:

Angelina Jolie, for The New York Times:

We often speak of “Mommy’s mommy,” and I find myself trying to explain the illness that took her away from us. They have asked if the same could happen to me. I have always told them not to worry, but the truth is I carry a “faulty” gene, BRCA1, which sharply increases my risk of developing breast cancer and ovarian cancer.

I commend Angelina Jolie for being frank, and opening a conversation on women’s health, especially on a subject that’s very close to my heart, breast cancer.

Co.Create: Earlier this month, Disney debuted a new look for...

Thu, 16 May 2013 19:55:12 +0800

Co.Create:

Earlier this month, Disney debuted a new look for the heroine Merida from the movie Brave to mark her introduction into their “princess” line of products. Known for her pluck and self-sufficiency (she doesn’t need a stinking prince to save her), the original animation of Merida was slimmed down, glammed up, and her trademark bow and arrow were removed in favor of a sassy, low slung belt.

Thanks Disney, for sending the wrong message to young girls, that they must conform to a narrow definition of beauty to be a “princess”. This goes completely against what the character stood for in the movie. Merida was a strong, confident, self-rescuing princess ready to set off on her next adventure with her bow at the ready. She was a princess who looked like a real girl, complete with the imperfections that all people have. I am truly disappointed at you, Disney.

Why you should scrap that ladder climbing plan and go backpacking around the world, instead

Thu, 16 May 2013 19:09:15 +0800

Why you should scrap that ladder climbing plan and go backpacking around the world, instead:

Fast Company:

My point in telling you these stories is this: Anything is possible. You can create the life you’ve always wanted to, if you believe it to be true. Your twenties will be the best years of your life. Your thirties will be the best years of your life. Your forties will be the best years of your life. All of your years will be the best years of your life if you decide they will and design your life accordingly.

Screw all of the triangulated data of what is and is not possible for your life. Instead, get out there and figure out the life that resonates most with you.

It’s your choice. So choose wisely.

I have friends who’ve taken a year or two off uni to travel, and I’m always fascinated by the stories and experiences they’ve shared with me. They say travel is the only thing you buy that makes you richer. My mum went backpacking all over Europe after graduating from university, and it’s something I’m looking forward to do in the near future.

Institut Polaire - City Walls and Empires My communication and...

Thu, 16 May 2013 18:48:00 +0800

Institut Polaire - City Walls and Empires

My communication and media studies lecturer played this music video in his final lecture last week, and it has been stuck on repeat ever since. Apparently one of the band’s members was a former student of his.

My thoughts on Google’s I/O Keynote

Thu, 16 May 2013 18:38:00 +0800

There was a lot covered today at Google’s three-hour long I/O developers conference keynote, but here are some of my thoughts on just some of the products and services announced:

Google Play Music All Access - Google’s new music subscription service. Not interested, as I’m already subscribed to Spotify. It’s also US and Android only for now.

Google Play Game Services - Google’s answer to Apple’s Game Center. It works across platforms, so developers can implement it on iOS and the web, so that’s a plus.

Google Play for Education - Google’s take on Apple’s domination in education. Malaysia has already jumped in on the bandwagon, adopting it for 10 million students, teachers and parents, and deploying Chromebooks to primary and secondary schools nationwide.

Galaxy S4 with stock Andriod - The one thing that’s been steering me away from buying an Andriod phone is all the crap, bloatware and custom skins that every OEM seem to love to clog into their devices. Google has had it’s own Nexus range of devices for a while now, but the S4 finally brings LTE and “cutting-edge specs”, with good software and timely updates, into the mix.

Hangouts - Previously under the Google+ banner, it’s now a dedicated messaging app for iOS, Android, Chrome, and Gmail (combining Google’s various messaging solutions like Google Talk and Google+ Messenger into one). Group video chats (the “old” Hangouts) is also built in. Add standard text and voice calls in the future, and I think it could easily become the one messaging app to rule them all.

Google+ - The stream got a makeover, which (to me) looks a hell of a lot like Pinterest. Its photo galleries now have Auto Enhance features, and a new tool called “Auto Awesome”, which creates new images from the kinds of photos you take, and “Auto Highlight”, which chooses the best photos to show off, out of everything you’ve uploaded. Pretty cool, but I don’t have a Google+ account (this may change very soon though - See Hangouts).

Voice Search in Chrome - Just say “Ok Google”, and your question to search. No keystrokes or screen taps. Cool feature, but I don’t use Chrome.

Google Maps - Redesigned from the ground up for both desktops and mobile applications. It’s full-screen and vector based, and integrates information layers from Google Earth, to 3D imagery and indoor maps, right down to Street View. Directions, street navigation and personalised POIs have also been improved. I use Google Maps on a daily basis, and the preview looks amazing.

Of course this isn’t everything that was covered during the keynote, just some of the things that I picked up on and thought were interesting.

This video from the folks at Epipheo illustrates the kind of...

Sat, 11 May 2013 23:40:31 +0800

This video from the folks at Epipheo illustrates the kind of long-term effects the frenetic pace of the web can have on our minds.

The Verge: Dances with atoms: IBM researchers create a short...

Thu, 02 May 2013 17:33:30 +0800

The Verge:

Dances with atoms: IBM researchers create a short film using only microscopic particles

A group of IBM researchers took a break from studying atomic data storage to work on something a bit more lighthearted: a stop motion movie made entirely out of atoms. The film, aptly named A Boy and His Atom, was created by arranging atoms with a scanning tunneling microscope and then capturing the arrangement as an image, magnified to over 100 million times its actual size. The final result is a brief 242-frame film that shows a charming story of a boy dancing and playing with an atom. Before its debut today, IBM even had the Guinness World Records verify the short as the “world’s smallest movie.”

They’re moving individual atoms to create an animation. Mind blown.

As seen in the UWA Science Library ground floor men’s...

Wed, 01 May 2013 17:48:00 +0800

As seen in the UWA Science Library ground floor men’s toilet:

Here I sit all broken hearted
Came to shit but only farted :(

I feel your pain.

Brief Candle is an endurance performance work by Perth artist...

Sat, 27 Apr 2013 21:44:31 +0800

Brief Candle is an endurance performance work by Perth artist and current UWA Art History honours student Alex Wolman.

“It involves him entering a space in a taped-up strait-jacket and then attempting to rip his way out of it, while at the same time screaming as violently as possible. Once he has freed himself from the jacket, the screaming does not stop, as it initially should seem to, but continues for another agonising forty minutes; his voice becoming hoarser and fainter. During this time he coughs up blood and phlegm, and at moments, wretches brutally. He eventually collapses to the floor, effecting a complete capitulation and degeneration of his body. Taking its title from a famous passage in William Shakespeare’s Macbeth, Brief Candle is a reflection on the potentials and limitations of simply being alive.”

You can view the entire fifty-one minute performance art on video on the artist’s Vimeo page (I advise viewer discretion, it can be quite confronting for some people). It is also currently on display at the Perth Institute of Contemporary Art’s Hatched: National Graduate Show 2013 exhibition until the 9th of June.

instagram: Australia and New Zealand Observe Anzac Day In...

Thu, 25 Apr 2013 20:03:35 +0800

instagram.com/p/YgrifTyRao/#jasmea88

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instagram:

Australia and New Zealand Observe Anzac Day

In Australia and New Zealand, April 25th marks Anzac Day, a day set aside to honor veterans and remember those who lost their lives during military conflicts and peacekeeping expeditions.

The date of Anzac Day, which takes its name from the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC), falls on the anniversary of the first major ANZAC conflict. During the First World War, troops took on the Ottoman Empire in an attempt to clear the way to the Black Sea for Allied navies. The reports of heavy casualties had a profoundly sobering impact on the Australian and New Zealand mindset.

Now, Anzac Day commemorates those who fought in all conflicts and is observed by holding parades and events, such as the Dawn Ceremony at the Hobart Cenotaph in Perth, spending quality time with family veterans and baking Anzac biscuits.

For more photos from Anzac Day, check out the #anzacday hashtag.

Lest we forget.

As seen in the UWA Science Library ground floor men’s...

Wed, 24 Apr 2013 00:07:00 +0800

As seen in the UWA Science Library ground floor men’s toilet:

Some people come here to sit and think;
Some people come here to shit and stink.
But I come here to scratch my balls,
and read the bullshit on the walls.

The Daily Show’s very funny John Oliver interviews former...

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 21:08:00 +0800

The Daily Show’s very funny John Oliver interviews former Australian Prime Minister John Howard on his effective 1996 sweeping gun reforms, to counter gun lobbyist Philip Van Cleave’s claims (and unfathomable logic) that gun control does not, and will never work. Whoop-dee-fucking-doo!

Some of Alex MacLean’s aerial photography work from his...

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 19:16:19 +0800

Dinghies Clustered Around Dock - Duxbury, Massachusetts

Parking Lot Markings - Taunton, Massachusetts

Floating Daisy Docks - Chicago, Illinois

Some of Alex MacLean’s aerial photography work from his Going series.

thevoicesproject: Growing up, coming out and learning to speak...

Sun, 21 Apr 2013 18:50:19 +0800

thevoicesproject:

Growing up, coming out and learning to speak THE LANGUAGE OF LOVE.

17 year old Charlie is struggling to find the words to be true to himself…and his best friend, in this beautiful new short exploring first love & coming out from The Voices Project.

This excellent monologue was written and performed by 17-year-old Kim Ho, under the mentorship of leading Australian playwright Tommy Murphy, and filmmaker Laura Scrivano, as part of The Voices Project from the Australian Theatre for Young People.

Without a doubt, one of the best shorts I’ve seen, ever.

Audio

Sat, 20 Apr 2013 17:30:27 +0800

thecreatorsproject: Because you’ve always wanted emoji...

Sat, 20 Apr 2013 17:05:01 +0800

thecreatorsproject:

Because you’ve always wanted emoji wallpaper.

theparisreview: A sly French literacy campaign wins...

Sat, 20 Apr 2013 17:03:49 +0800

theparisreview:

A sly French literacy campaign wins international plaudits. (Look again: that’s it right there!)

For more of this morning’s round up, click here.

jamisonhartley: fuckperth: wyldeboye: Image One: my...

Sat, 20 Apr 2013 16:58:40 +0800

jamisonhartley:

fuckperth:

wyldeboye:

Image One: my prediction for Prosh 2014

Image Two: what was published Disgusting.

I can’t believe the young folk at the University of WA, on the Guild as well, have allowed this type of base humour. The editor of Prosh is a FUCKHEAD. And whoever wrote the articles, whoever sat there and giggled to themselves that this would be the ‘bestest most funniest’ thing as they wrote it? I hope you have your right to a degree at UWA revoked.

I wonder how many people saw this before it was published and decided to say nothing. Or worse, how many thought it hilarious?

Wait is this legit? Like a thing that actually got published?! Can someone explain this to me?

Yes, this was published in this year’s edition of the Prosh newspaper. As a UWA student myself, I am deeply disappointed and disgusted by the Guild’s careless and thoughtless publication of offensive stereotypes of this country’s First Peoples.

The Indigenous Communities Education & Awareness Foundation, one of the four benefactors of Prosh this year, has since refused any of the money raised, and has also rejected any continuing association with the UWA Student Guild.

The UWA Student Guild has also come out to apologise “unreservedly for the distress”.

Rachel’s Funny Girl broadway audition reminded me of why I...

Fri, 19 Apr 2013 17:58:46 +0800

Rachel’s Funny Girl broadway audition reminded me of why I watch (and still watch) Glee. Singing a Glee classic: Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believin’”, she imagines the original New Directions backing and supporting her, as her trademark confidence and ease center stage is on full display. Even after four seasons and countless replays, I still love this song and it feels just as energised as it did during the Glee pilot. Keep on dreaming. Keep on believing.