mneme

A lot of study and philosophical musing goes into the definition and broader significance of what is a parasitic and viral form of shorthand--the internet meme. Many examples are very humourous, and though maybe imitation sometimes lacks depth--it is that very ability to suggest or germinate a whole idea from just a particle thereof. The term transmits ideas in the same way as genes propagate life, ancestry and evolution and is the smallest, discrete unit of lingual intelligibility, outside of art. Here is a blank, pinwheel background as a template to make up your own. Furthermore, Grammar Angel (who could possibly help with my translations) admonishes that Spell-Check is not a substitute for functional literacy: "aloud" is not the same as "allowed," despite the number of times it appears in postings.  What would your meme say?

Akademiker und Wissenschaftler haben sich bei viral, stichwortartigen Internet Meme sehr viele Gedanken gemacht. Zahlreichen Beispielen sind humorvoll--zugänglich, obwohl offenbar oberflächliches. Diese Fähigkeit wird derjenige Kraft (parasitisch und viral) ermittelt, zu stellen eine vollständige Idee aus ein Pünktchen unter. Meme vermitteln die Ideen, und werden auf die gleiche Weise wie teilt die Gene (als kleinste übersetzbare Einheit erkennt) das Leben, die Herkunft und die Nachkommen mit. Nur bei Kunst ist ein kleinerer Teilchen möglich. Hier ist eine Vorlage, um deine eigenen Meme zu gestalten. Vielleicht kann mein Grammatik Engel auch helfen, meine Übersetzungen zu steigern.  Was hältst du davon?

artful dodger

There has been a rash of headlines from all over the United States, disturbing yet fascinating, about metal thieves poaching copper and other scrap from all sources, without discrimination or regard for safety or cost to the public. There have been multiple reports of gangs dismantling rail road tracks causing trains to derail, stripping utility poles, antique fittings and fixtures or unthreading the copper condensing tubing from air-conditioning units. To replace this old infrastructure will certainly be expensive, not even beginning to consider the hardships individuals and municipalities are facing to find support systems taken for granted have been pulled out from underneath them. These crimes are desperate, with gold and silver already priced out of the market for most--and melting pennies is not a productive activity since the copper content of cents has been replaced with zinc, and the US Secret Service, as part of its original task to prevent counterfeiting and protect the money supply's integrity, have made it illegal to deface bills and coins. I wonder what the composition of these gangs are: a pick-pocket band of Dickensian street urchins, a swarm of nano-sized robots picking things clean like termites or a plague of locusts, copper hungry Vogons, or a mad-scientist trying to build a Voltron. I wonder what this junkyard trend forebodes for the economy.

Amerikanischen Metalldiebe sind in jüngster Zeit in die Schlagzeilen geraten. Ohne Rücksicht auf die Gefahr oder öffentlichen Preis, abwerben die Bande aus allen Quellen: Bahngleise, Leitungsmasten, antik Einbau, oder Rohre vom Klimaanlagen. Das Ersetzen dieser Infrastruktur wird teuer sein, und Gemeinschaften leiden den Verlust des Unterstützungs-systemen. Diese Verbrechen sind verzweifelt versuchte. Gold und Silber halten für die meisten Leute zu kostspielig, und das Schmelzen von Pennies für Kupfer geht auch nicht--denn das Hauptmetall Zink ist. In der ursprünglichen Tagesordnung sollten die US Geheimdienst der Geldmenge wahrnehmen. Es ist strafbar, Geld zu ändern oder zerstören. Wer sind die Mitglieder dieser Rotten? Taschendiebe aus der Zeit von Charles Dickens, schwärmenden Nanotechnologie, Metall-hungrig außerirdischen Leben, oder ein verrückte Wissenschaftler mit einem grossen Projekt? Ich muss mich fragen, was genau diese Schrottplatz Entwicklung für die Wirtschaft bedeutet.

PET project or post-consumer comment

The big ideas blog, the Big Think, features an article about a new concept, inclusive grocery store scheduled to open soon in Austin, Texas that will be among the first of its kind—mainstream and not a farmers’ market or cooperative, to sell a range of products without packaging. Shoppers would be encouraged to bring in their own containers and top off however much of whatever product they need. Moreover, produce, in addition to loosing that wasteful veil of packaging, would only be offered in season and promote local sources. Even in places with fully-ingrained recycling programmes, it is shocking how much packaging goes immediately after purchase to separate bins and how quickly it accumulates. I think it lessens environmental impact and any and every effort is important, but there are more consequences, I think, to reduction on the outset. Recycling is noble but it’s prohibitively expensive to reincarnate a bit of plastic wrap back into a new bit of plastic wrap and instead there’s some devolution. Another really shocking thing, aside from all the decorations that go on to throw-away card-board boxes and drinks containers, is that statutory scheme of deposits on bottles (Pfand). The bottles are not cleaned, even the glass ones, and re-issued sparkly new but are shredded and shipped away for processing like everything else. Driving around ones trash to return it to the place of purchase probably negates any net gain. I hope this idea of a food-filling station, where one not only brings one’s own bag, takes off internationally.

In die große Ideen Blog, Big Think, findet sich ein Artikel über eine neue Lebensmittelgeschäft in Texas, verpackungsfrei Ware anbieten für Verbraucher. Einkäufer werden ermutigt, um ihre eigenen Behälter zu verwenden. Wie an einer Tankstelle, sie können sich damit füllen, was sie brauchen. Neben die Verringerung der Verpackungen, fördert das Lebensmittel den Gebrauch Produkten der Saison und lokal angebauten Nahrungsmitteln. Trotz fester Wiederverwertungsprogramme gibt es viel Verschwendung. Das Recycling ist wichtig, aber die Verminderung hat mehr Wirkung. Recyclingmaterialien sich einer Abbau unterzieht, und Kunststoff-Mehrwegflaschen (oder einer aus Glas) sind nicht wiedergeboren bei Rücklauf. Pfand macht Flasche brandneu nicht, und der Extratransport verneint wahrscheinlich jeden Streben. Ich hoffe, dass diese Vorstellung startet durch, und Einkäufer werden mehr wiederverwenden als nur ihre Tragtaschen.

galvanized

Score another point for Science. Researchers and smithies from the University of Minnesota, according to Popular Science, have developed an alloy (Ni45Co5Mn40Sn10, Nickel, Cobalt, Manganese and Tin) that has both magnetic and ferroelectric properties—maybe something like a piezoelectric element in a cigarette lighter but do see the excellent primer and video of the magnet in action in the magazine—which has the ability to convert heat directly into electricity. When warmed, the alloy oscillates between physical phases actually turning it from something nonconductive into something highly magnetized. Personally, I can recall being a bit disappointed to learn how nuclear reactors work—that they are glorious cathedrals of steam, that the nuclear energy source is just a means of heating up water to turn a turbine, the same for the massive solar collectors in the Spanish desert or solar panels that provide hot water. These things are certainly accomplishments but the bother does not result—at least to my mind, in something as keen and imaginative as producing electricity directly through what is generally a by-product. There are plenty of heat sources that could be contenders, from the recently reviled and outlawed incandescent light bulb, to the heat from automotive exhaust and combustion—hybrid cars could capture the heat generated when running off of gasoline to recharge an empty battery—smoke-stacks, factories and cooling towers could recycle the heat and put it in the supply as well

quadragesimal

Today is the feast of Corpus Christi, which is rather a unique holiday, as it does not mark a specific event but rather a thanksgiving for the sacrament of communion. In Germany, recognized as a national holiday, it is called Fronleichnam--which does not mean "happy corpse," like the German words sound but rather it comes from Middle German vrône lîcham--des Herren Leib (The Lord's body)--and that sounds to me reflective of the origins of the holiday with a nunnery in Belgium that rallied the Pope to add this singular feast to the liturgical calendar. Fronleichnam, with the village streets paved with petals and a last sunny day off after a long and quick succession of them, also makes me think of Robert Schumann's "Happy Farmer" (Der Fröhlicher Landmann) which is probably most recognizable as the leitmotif from the opening scenes of the Wizard of Oz on Aunt Em's farm--a little jaunty but relaxed and diligent, like the churches using their best monstrance (Monstranz) and silver on this day.

Also, not being a day meant to commemorate a specific event, the holiday does not roll with the cycle of forty (like the forty days of Noah's Flood, the forty days of Lent corresponding to Jesus' time in the wilderness, the Ascension forty days after Resurrection, forty days of mourning, etc). Corpus Christi is fifty days after Easter. No one is quite sure why the number forty is a recurring value or a seemingly significant digit--perhaps, some theorize, it represents a generation (in years), the term of human pregnancy (in weeks), or the apparent motion of Venus in the skies, transcribing a pentagram and returning to its original position after that same generation.

zeugma

As the spectre of default and more financial straits loom for Greece, Germany has undertaken some demanding roles (EN/DE), though commensurate with their overall economic influence, to rescue Greece and the European common currency.  

Of course, it is the Greeks who too have a vested interest in getting their portfolio in order and ensuring future livelihoods, and this begs the question whether they really want to be yoked with the liabilities (zeugma = yoke) of being a dues-paying member of the European Union. Argentina defaulted a decade ago and recovered quickly and now thrive: Argentina uncoupled their currency from the US dollar but maybe that is not quite the same as a country quitting the euro. Greek bureaucracy was probably no more bloated or corrupt than anyone else's, but they did a poor job of collecting taxes. It does not seem things ought to be this gloomy, making hoi polloi take to the streets in protest--although what deal the government accepts should be closely watched and the people make sure it is in their favour. Germany is also relying on the kindness of angel investors (Privatgläubiger, private believers) to buy and hold Greek bonds on a voluntary basis, knowing the risk but potentially realizing big profits once stability has returned. Individual pensioners can apparently also take a gamble with their retirement funds, if they choose.

Involving private investment is necessary and smart move on the part of Germany--however, the tables could still turn on everyone. Another avenue to pursue, I think, might lie in rallying and educating the general public. A lot of solidarity emerged for Egypt and the Arab Spring, and although the Greeks are not suffering like their compatriots in the Middle East and North Africa, there is potential for injustice and for the crisis to spread. Surely there could be an educational campaign on the part of EU governments to show consumers what choices they can make to help Greece--or Ireland or Portugal or Spain or Italy. I don't know if one can buy a Greek-made automobile as easily as going to a Greek restaurant, but there's surely something useful that could be done and presented as an option--even berthing ones money in a Greek credit harbor overnight might make a difference. Whether skeptical of the euro and the EU or not, everyone too has a vested interest in helping keep one's neighbours and partners afloat and thriving.

englischer garten or alpengeist

The revelation that Chinese designers and architects were covertly taking measurements of the exemplary Austrian village of Hallstatt to recreate it as a pure tourist attraction in Guangdong province, to the much to the chagrin of many surprised residents, has been circulating for a while. I thought it was just amusing at first, thinking of the earlier, imperfect Chinese copies of a German town, a typical English village from the Cotswolds and even a Disney-esque fun park that came out a bit scruffy looking--or all the sometimes tacky and bordering on cultural stereotype installations put up in Western theme parks, casinos and in restaurants. A whole village, faithfully reproduced or like Bizarro World, however, is a bit unsettling--especially the shells of churches. Maybe imitation is a finer form of flattery and this attention will be good for tourism on both sides of the world, but I think having one's homeland cloned is karmic retribution for entertaining the sale of its mountain peaks. Though such a locale would have been prime real estate for a mad scientist's secret lair or a diabolical organization's headquarters, I don't think the buyer of such vanity property would have had that.

Es ist eine erstaunliche Enthüllung, dass chinesischer Ingenieure haben die vollkommen österreichischen Hallstatt gemessen und analysiert zwecks das Dorf in Guangdong Provinz als Tourismusbetrieb wieder herzustellen. Das ist ältere News aber viele Bewohner sind erschüttert. Das kommt mir komisch vor--gegenüber die dort (früheren) chinesische Nachbauten von anderen europäischen Städten und sogar von Disney Land oder die Abendlands Version von Kulturbegriffe wie im Spielbanken, Erlebnisparks und Restaurants. Das Kopieren eines kompletten Dorfes--originalgetreu oder unvollkommen) ist jedoch mehr störend. Was bedeutet es nun, wenn gibt eine Nachgebildung von eine Kirche? Vielleicht wird diese Nachahmung für den Tourismus an beiden Seiten der Welt gut sein--aber denke ich, dass die Klonierung von Heimat ist Karmagesetz gegen den versuchte Verkauf des ihre Berggipfel ausgeben. Allerdings wäre an einem solchen Ort es optimal, bei geheime Hauptquartier für verrückter Wissenschaftler aufzubauen. Ich denke nicht, dass der schließliche Käufer--oder Österreich--zustimmen würde.

agent 99 or jumping to conclusions

I suppose that this piece of news is highly speculative, since otherwise the secret agents would not be doing a very good job of guarding their tricks of the trade, but I thought it was interesting to hear how seeding search-engine criteria (auto-complete, auto de fey, or whatever suggestions or recommendations are called) could be a method for passing coded messages among spies. It is sort of like those numbers stations on short-wave radio, whose poetic, sibylline utterances were never quite explained—nor totally went silent. I get annoyed sometimes the way search engines try to finish my sentences, although many times Computer knows already what I am going to ask. It would be opportune, I think, to tailor some obscure domain, like the affiliates of major internet players in Tuvalu or Nauru, and skew what those residents, from a marketing point of view, are looking for. Maybe also a translating-service could be coaxed in the same way. At least espionage may be able to exploit the more pedestrian or bizarre buzz on the internet.
Diese Nachrichten scheinen hoch spekulativ, aber ich fand es interessant dennoch: Spione hat andere Betriebs-geheimnesse, aber unter diesen gibt automatische Vervollständigung vielleicht als Verfahren zur Kommunikation. Ähnlich würden das auch die Zahlensender bei Kurzwellenfunknetzen. Die poetisches Prophezeiungen wurden auch nie erklärt, und noch da sind. Es stört mich ein bisschen wenn Suchmaschinen zu vollenden Sie meine Sätze versucht, aber manchmal Computer ist richtig. Das Ändern eines undurchsichtigen Suchdienstes konnte günstig sein: wie exotische Filialen mit exotischer Suchanfragen. Vielleicht konnte derselbe für Übersetzen-Dienstleistungen auch getan warden. Immerhin kann Spionage den normalen und fremden Verkehr im Internet ausnutzen.