NIDA

II was raised in the Western Suburbs, with both my parents working, I soon found myself working as well afterschool in my adolescent years. At school I excelled at most of my subjects and gainedentry into university to study Software Engineering at UNSW. At university, I was involved in creating a comedy sketchrevue on campus, with a computing and engineering theme. Being directly involved in the show, directing, acting,designing, writing, construction, and tech work, I developed a love for popular theatre. I then taught myself how touse design tools, and film editing to make little shorts, and special effects videos, mainly choreographed kung fuaction sequences. I was also approachedby various coop groups to design sets for musicals, plays, dance shows, and alot of experimental theatre around Sydney.
My creativity is driven by showing audiences, both thespian and general public alike, something new, fresh, and innovative.Something they haven't seen before. Being technically minded, I believe there can be so much more done in terms of showingaudiences live effects, to enhance on stage action. Like magicians and the circus, using technology, and tricks to showa story with alot more "magic" of the theatre.

Very interested in building custom control systems for lights,sound, AV, and set electrics. To enhance live performance, and give this new generation of people who have been broughtup with the marvels of computers and the internet, to have interaction, and something "cool" happen in a artistic, andtechnically brilliant way. Does this mean there should be a new type of technically driven theatre? Is TV, and live musicthe pinnacle of this? When film and TV immortalizes scenes and distributes it cheaply and possibly makes a profit.

I am here at NIDA to basically learn how to learn how things are built, learn carpentry and steel work. So I can become a better set designer, so I can see things through from the bottom up, to be economical with materials and time. I believeI'm economically shrewed, and have the passion drive and ingeniuity to make something

Where am I now? I would say I am enjoying being here at NIDA alot, techniques, and the cross course education is great. Meeting alot of very talented staff members and all who have the respect and mentality for working in the arts. Although I do feel that there is something missing, a real cohesion of the student body, there is no interactions between the respective courses, and it feels like there is a sense of self proprietary that exists with individuals above that of a community level. Being very involved on main campus across the road, I find it quite sad as extroverted, and seemingly socially artistic people do have a veneer of snobbery. It almost feels like high school again, which is quite sad in my regard.

Other than that, Tony is a great teacher, and I have a lot of respect for Nic Day and how he is running the production crafts of the Play Production program, which I find to be the most exciting part to my day, to slave away at something you love doing, working to entertain people.

Student Nutrition

-Nutritionist

-"Metabolism" funky catchword now used by marketing.

-Simple definition
-DIgestion

-Increased levels of amino acids and glucose

-Glucose is food for your brain. Rice Pasta Cerela
-Everyone has different energy needs

-Exercise will increase your body mass which means your metabolism goes up
-Fats have most energy per gram

-Water and alcohol gives you alot of energy
-The infamous food pyramid is replaced by the food PIE!
-Recommended served 5 serves of vegetables of today

-Multivitamids do not work it is the actual composition of the vegetable

-Recommended intake is 1/2 cup cooked, and 1 cup salad.

-2 pieces of Fruit per day
-Great source of carbs is Bread and cereals
-609 serves a day, a serve is 2 slices of bread, 1 bread roll, 1 cup of cooked pasta, 40g of cereal etc.
-Calcium is needed. Fortified Soy
-Daily FoodsBreadMilkMeatFruitVegies and LentilsUse olive Oil
-Garlic Capsules
-Buy Frozen Vegies

-Buy meat and bulk freeze

-CAnned Fish

-No Frills Milk

-Large yogurt Tubs

-Staples: on special, tomatoes, pasta/rice

-PLAN YOUR COOKING

An Inconvienient Movie?

-WHat is fact and fiction?
-Al Goreism
-How politically motivated is Al Gore in this?
-How much does he want to show how humanistic he is?
-How much bitterness does Al Gore show?
-Good people who are in politics from both sides, and need moral imperative to make changes that effect the history of humanity
-Earth Rise, 18 months, modern environmental movement has begun.
-Most commonly photographed picture in human history
-Grade school teacher story, did the contienents fit together, science advisor in the current administration?
-Reflecting the scientific theory of that time.
"What gets us into tourble is what we don't know, it's what we know for sure that just aint so."
-"The earth is so big, we can't effect it at all.
-Atmosphere is very thin, thin like a coat of varnish.
-Not because of foriegners
-Roger Revelle, first person to propose the CO2 emissions connected to temperatures
-Designed th experiment in 1957-Middle of the Pacific, area that was remote
-First hearings of global warming in congress-1994 went to the senate
-Carbon Tax-Kyoto 1997
-Real impact of the photos of the glaciers and
-40% of people take their drink water from the Himalayan water
-Ice glacier, medievil warming period
-Temperature is directly related to CO2-300 Parts permillion. of CO2
-Not political issue
-This is more of a moral issue
-Is this story compelling enough to make thishurrica a moral issue
-Al Gore's story of his son, personal story to make more people relate to his cause
-Trivial and insignificant, is that what we are in the greater scheme of things?
-We are the first species with the technological capapabilities to change their environment,
-Cheat inevitability of death
-Man's intelligence got him out of the caves, what abou now?
-Jeatwave that killed 35,000 people/
-India went into 50 degrees
-ALl these high temperature records
-Increase in hurricaines-Record for Typhoons
-Temp increases, mosture increases, and gets larger and stronger
-Infrastructure still pays respects to the lecturers
-Americanism, how in the world can this happen in america?
-So arrogant, and really stuck up
The Era of Procrastination is coming to a close, in turn we are entering a period of consequences
-Undecided presidency
-The amount of frustration what Algore is trying to say
-America is still by far the worst contributor to that problem
-Connections to deadly species-SARS-Avian Flu-West Nile Virus
-Coral Reefs are bleeching-Canary in the Coal Mine
-Fear Makes people react quickly, and controls our society.

Judaism

-Belief in one God, central foundation in Judaism
-Many different beliefs in the god.
-Lots of Debate in synagouges.
-Not putting God in any shape or form
-Presence and Being beyond what we can understand-Contract between Jews and God, given the Tora from Mt Sinai.
-First 5 Books of the Old Testament
-Genesis Exodus Duetronomy Numbers Lev?
-Thou shall not kill
-Talmud, the oral tradition and interpretation of the understanding of the law
-Written down and almost incomprehensible
-2 Divisions
-Orthodox
-Reform, Progressive, Liberal
-Reform = Talmud is debatable
-Orthodox = Talmud is from God, with the Tora
-Talmud, has capital punishment-Not observing the Sabbath
-Rebellious Son, death by stoning
-Impossible to be carried out, because of impossible criteria
-Reform: No differences between male and female
-Sabbath = Friday Night till Saturday Night
-Judaism Day = Night to night.
-Othodox, male and females are seperated
-613 Commandments in the Tora
-Fringes on the Prayer Shoal
-Egyptian Exodus revolves around the laws and rules
-TaNaCH
-Torah, Nakim (Phophets), Writings
-Written in a Bibilical Hebrew
-Written without Vowels, TOrah has no vowels
-Prayer, the word Rabbi needs Teacher
-Prayer Quorum is 10 people, 10 adults
-Adults = Older than 13, rite of passage called a Bar Mitsvah
-Tradionally pray 3 times a day
//Dietary Laws
-Jews don't eat pork
-Can only only eat meat, cloven hoof, chew their own cud.
-Fish that Have skin and Scales, Calamari, oysters, Lobsters
-Shark is out, Swordfish
-Birds, emu isn't okay, too close to ostrich
-Slash to the catroid artery
-Kosher = Blood is all drained
-Organic Free Range
-No mixing milk and Blood
-No Coffee after eating meat
-8 Candle Sticks, called the Manora, oil lasting for 8 days with reviving
-Hunnaka is small holiday, Macabies

History of the Mardi Gras in Sydney.

Homosexual rights/liberation movemtn
-Founded in 1970 by Campaign Against Moral Persecution
-Radicals form Sydney Gay Liberation in 1972
-S.G.L morphs into campus student groups and eventually GSG
What did CAMP do?
-Law reform and changing social attitudes
-Made submissions to Inquiries putting the homosexual rights case
-Lobbid Governments for law change
-Public speaking at Lion's Clubs etc-Phone counseling service
-Demonstrations, pickets etc.
-Publication of Journal and Books.
Q: How much history is there of homosexualism in history? Greeks? Now?
CAMP vs Gay Lib, different.
-Womens revolution, social utopia.
Gay Pride Week 1973
-Great Stumble forward.
-Police Attacked
Marches were blocked, and police tried to stop.
-Communist Party went on front.
-What happened after 1973?
-Religious gay groups formed
-AUS gay rights mobilsation and National Homosexual Confrences
-Setting up of action groups
-socialist homosexuals, law reforms and teachers
-Core of 1973 veterans agitate and organize for the next 5 years
-Lesbians set up and organize womens centres rape crisis centres. 1978
-Activists meet to plan 4th National Confrerence + Anti
-FOL campaign
-A call from San Francisco for solidarity activities
-March and forum
-A night time "mardi gras"
-Acitivists and non-political gays mobilised
-Anti Radical reaction
Mardi Gras = Major changes
-Large increase in gay action groups
-Access to Wran Government
-Scrapping of Summary Offences Act
-Gay politics change -> male, mobilising oridnary homosexuals, links with left organisation & alienation of lesbians-CAMP turns back on activism-"Oppression" -> "Discrimination"-"Liberation" -> "rights"-"Movement" -> "Community"
-My acceptance of the homosexual sexuality only came into light at university, what is accepted as a joke?Or not?
-I often question my sexuality, it's quite common as my personality more closer to a feminine archetype. But it is normal behaviour to question this. Why is it okay to question it now? Because it just is.
-When sexual preference, I retain adamant that I am not homosexual, which is nice to know too!

Amnesty International

-In this lecture we have a representative from amnesty international speaking to us about origin,
what they do their principals and the basic operational proceedures, and with a little role playing,
an issue they deal with.

-David Hicks, this is before the trial of David Hicks and he hasn't been charged.

-Awareness of the australian government to do something about an Australian.

-Compensation? Suing the Australian court the new terrorism bill the stops personal liberties,

Intelligence: Human,Artificial & Alien

Peter Slezak
School of History and Pholosophy of Science
University of New South Wales

Arguments evidence and reasoning.
How irrational are we?
What do we do understand about the mind and what we dont?

What is Intelligence?

//The Cognitive Revolution
Book: The Mind New Science: Howard Gardner 1984
Noam Chomsky, Linguist well respected western academic.

//Extra Terrestrials
Probability 1?
Why there must be intelligent life in the universe.

SETI Program

Voyager 2, 1977
Strange signs

Drake Equation
Is it right?

SETI: Probabiliyu 0?
-How many independent events n?
-What probabilities?
-Consider 100 events at 1/100 chance each
-p=1/10^200

-What is love? A whole set of chemical reactions in your head? A signal that you are ready to mate,
a inate reaction, realisation of mortality, that promotes procreation? And survival or the species?

-Natural Selection, there is no other scientific theory that is true.

-In the lecture, there was a huge clash between scientific reasoning, mathemathics and logic vs
alternative intangible beliefs.

-Can we afford to believe what we will? Why does it matter to anyone else? The issue of global
warming this has immediate fact on our personal wellbeing and survival as a race?

-Everything we do in this world, is just a little blue pixel, a dot in the greater universe, an
insignificant speck in the greater scheme of things, if that is what a higher power would have
planned for us.

-Are we as a civilisation, able to survive our inevitiable own self destruction? Or even destruction,
due to natural causes? Meteorite anyone?

-Interesting that people are converted or mind opend on the one lecture.

-He was quite harsh on the alternative people.
-Changed his stance mid way, why have his children.
-More of an entertainer than a philosopher?
-Science is as much a belief system as a relgion is.

-What is faith? Is it blind, is it a wildcard that fills all our inexplainable facts?

Aboriginal Activism

Aboriginal Studies.

Today's talk was a quick video presentation from Chicka Dixon who is an old Aboriginal Activist
from the 60s. He kept referring to "the struggle" which is the fight for Rights and Equality for the Indigenous peoples of Australia. He was one of the few who first set up the "Tent Embassy" on the lawn in front of the Parliament house in London. His dismissal of the process of Reconcilation the "I'm sorry campaign".

1000+ people walked acrosss the harbour bridge to make the Prime Minister say sorry, but then a couple of weeks later 1000s of people voted for Pauline Hanson and the One Nation Party, into house of government.

"Queenslanders are the most racist people in Australia."

He is bringing the fight on white mans terms. Educating the people, being a realist, and working the capitalist machine.

Questions, doesn't he think that the fact that the symbolic apology from the prime minister would give people the inspiration to fight harder a series of chain events that would occur to make it more positive for Aboriginal Rights?

In the end he is right about the struggling situation that the Aboriginal people are in. If as
a community they are able to pull themselves out a hole they will recieve some credibility, as it
will be a prime example for people still believing in stereotypes such as these.

My thoughts on Aboriginal situation.

Having spent quite some time with the local Eora, and Wiradjuri tribe folk during my previous university years, I met alot of people from linguistic conferences from Rural Australia.

I felt that there was still this proprogated angst against white australia for the sins of the past.
Which granted is valid we did basically massacred, and assimulated their people and culture, for at least 100 years of our history.

For everyday Australians, most of us understand the tradgic and unfortunate circumstances in which our country was founded upon, but we can't understand how we can bear the responsibility for the past?

Our millions of migrants, and first generation Australians from all over the world, can not how we can individually be responsible for the decisions of the past. would there be an issue at all if today, there wasn't any Aboriginal issues?

Will we bear the responsibilities by financial compensation through the federal government through taxes. Is this fair, as we live in our current state because of the past that we went through?

The American Japanese people, during World War II were put into concentration camps, and as 1st, 2nd and 3rd generation Americans they were still detained and their constitutional rights were taken from them. Years after the war, they lodged a case against the American government and won this compensation.

Reasons why the Prime Minister John Howard has NOT to say sorry.
1. Cost to the Australian People
2. Liberal Party conservative party
3. Legal Proceedures

Our current administration is now more concerned with the following.
-Streamlining work place relations laws.
-Streamlining the Australian economy.
-Good Economy, complacent people, awareness.

Does our complacency make us apathetic to this "Sorry" issue?

Test Post

Hello World

This is my first test post of what is to be my journal entry for a subject at nida called General Studies. Here I'll be catching up on my last 8 weeks of thoughts of lectures quote.

Issues explored will include Drug Use, Politics, Sexuality, Race, and Religion together with Science and Technology ... following each forum, write your responses, ideas and questions concerning the topic of the week ... Write about whether you agree or disagree with the points of view expressed making sure you substantiate your opinions with relevant arguments.

So there you have it. Over the next couple of days I'll be hoping to update
you with all the lectures that we've had so far, and post some thoughts on the
whole thing.