IC Forum Archive

the drunken samurai · Posts: 4645

oh,btw deuce,DM said hi.

DeusJester · Posts: 1388

Tell him Hi back, I guess. He has my Google talk name, the ingrateful bastard wants to say hi he could at least do it himself. *sniff*

Psiga · Posts: 3990

DeusJester wrote:

Rya, I think you'd probably benefit the most, out of anyone here, of going to a bar somewhere, getting absolutely shitfaced, and hitting on every girl in a 300 foot radius while barely able to stand. If nothing else, just to say that you did.

Dude, bear in mind that bars and clubs in Germany tend to be populated by 14 and 15 year olds, since the drinking age is lower. It's not going to fix anything -- it's more likely to inspire him to do the things that we all hope he doesn't do. Inebriation + roricon + room full of teenieboppers = ;_;

As for doing the Beavis & Butthead of video games... We hardly talked about games, really. Only toward the end when we started talking about WoW and Diablo 3 rumors -- he was almost entirely sober by that point. Most of our conversation was about the real-life social quality of IC members compared to most internet communities, various horrible family stories, experiments in inebriation, nuances of weight gain, working in the field of journalism for money, the JFK assassination, unintentionally painting the walls with your own blood, and so forth. We did geek out a bit and talk about how ludicrous AES carts are when compared to Hu Cards, though.

the drunken samurai · Posts: 4645

aight.

i told everyone on DPS how you were drunk,and they laughed,then DM told me to tell you hi.

so there you go.

DeusJester · Posts: 1388

Psiga wrote:

DeusJester wrote:

Rya, I think you'd probably benefit the most, out of anyone here, of going to a bar somewhere, getting absolutely shitfaced, and hitting on every girl in a 300 foot radius while barely able to stand. If nothing else, just to say that you did.

Dude, bear in mind that bars and clubs in Germany tend to be populated by 14 and 15 year olds, since the drinking age is lower. It's not going to fix anything -- it's more likely to inspire him to do the things that we all hope he doesn't do. Inebriation + roricon + room full of teenieboppers = ;_;

Well I...Hmm.

Damn.

Psiga · Posts: 3990

Fucking insanity, dude.

DeusJester · Posts: 1388

Psiga wrote:

Fucking insanity, dude.

You need to see then sideways, too. They're like two inches thick. It's madness. And then you've got your HuCards, which are almost exactly the same size as a credit card.

Isfet · Posts: 510

this is definitely an interesting phenomenon, i think. a few weeks back i talked to DJ on googletalk for a really extended amount of time. and he was drinking then, too. it was definitely a lot of fun though.

if anything, the IC meetup should be a damn good time.

Rud13 · Posts: 3277

FortNinety wrote:

Daddy drank.

A day doesn't go by that I don't do the math.

dhex · Posts: 2963

Psiga · Posts: 3990

I haven't seen anyone do biofeedback properly, as far as I'm concerned.

What we need: Simple EEG unit to read brainwaves, with a brainwave entrainment device, connected to a USB port. Have them piped to a piece of software that gives you dynamic exercises.

Example 1: Software reads your EEG, and uses the entrainment function to lower your brainwaves to Alpha. If you begin to lose the entrainment, it would recognize this, and hover at just one step lower than your current plateau rate until you achieve entrainment again, then continue working you down.

Example 2: It would entrain you to an Alpha state (as in example 1), then it would turn off the entrainment and just show you your EEG on a real-time scale. Your goal is to stay in Alpha for as long as possible.

Example 3: It would entrain you to an Alpha state (as in example 1), turn off the entrainment to just show the guage (as in example 2), and then it would give you a specific goal to reach, such as raising your brainwave state to a target between your starting Beta rate and the Alpha rate that it just led you to.

Example 4: Only give you a live EEG guage and have you try to reach a target of bringing yourself down from Beta to Alpha without entrainment.

The purpose is to be able to recognize what your brainwave state is at any given moment throughout the day, and then be able to guide yourself up or down accordingly, without the hardware.

Most Americans approach meditation as only 'relax and clear mind', which is just the first step to actually doing the brainwave work.

As for hypnosis: Yeah, there is a large population among hypnotists who say that self-induction is the best way to do it. I'm just not sure if DJ's in a place where he'd be ready to self-induce. I, for one, haven't pulled it off yet. But I've only tried about twice, so there's that.

dhex · Posts: 2963

Psiga · Posts: 3990

dhex wrote:

that sounds reasonable; most of the biofeedback marketing material (if we can call such things marketing in any modern sense) makes many of the claims to the points you mention above, but i have my doubts about them.

Yeah, frankly, I am not looking forward to spending time or money on other people's devices. I am 97.8% sure that I could build better stuff from scratch in the same amount of time and money that it'd take to look at the ten year old "COMPATIBLE WITH WINDOWS 3.11" dreck that people are still selling for $800.

The field currently has no visionary, or brilliant/relevant example of success.

Furthermore, highly experienced meditators have learned how to raise their brainwaves higher than people ever go in our modernized cultures. We top out around 20Hz in our day-to-day activities, but yogic meditators can go up into the 30s, 40s, 50, and 60s. I have read -- from an unverifiable source -- that people go up into the 60s as they are initiating out-of-body experiences. I need to experiment with that specifically.

So, again, no current visionary, and no brilliant/relevant example of success.

Persona-sama · Posts: 1145

This whole process - sitting down and trying to mentally relax yourself to a point where you can start focusing only on your brainwaves - seems kind of fruitless. Could it be used in a more useful way, say for prepping yourself before a heavy task? Like, getting in the zone before you're on the field?

I mainly see meditation as a way for self-cleansing or relaxing or something from that point of view because of the way Americans seem to advertise it. Is there a useful purpose behind it is what I'm basically trying to ask.

Psiga · Posts: 3990

Yeah, the idea is that you should be able to use meditation to bring your brain into a place where you can easily get 'in the zone', or into a self-hypnotic trance, or into an out-of-body experience, or into a state of rest that makes your body rejuvenate itself, or into a nearly-comatose state which allows you to be operated on (supposedly) even more effectively than anesthesia.

Persona-sama · Posts: 1145

Dhex, can you talk more about this "semiotics?"
I'm curious as to what it is and Wikipedia isn't really giving me a clear idea.

Also, this thread totally belongs in the General Forum.

Psiga · Posts: 3990

Yeah, maybe I'll move it or something.

Persona-sama · Posts: 1145

Wait for dhex to explain and then move it so that no one gets confused!

Psiga · Posts: 3990

I am saying 'maybe' in only the most vague, non-committal way.

dhex · Posts: 2963

persona-lona-rama-lama-ding-dong:

semiotics is, broadly, the study of symbol sets and their created meanings. in real life, this is largely confined to literature critic types. umberto eco is probably the most readable and well-known in this set of writers; roland barthes is not a complete fuckface in this regard as well.

"sign" in this case is a bit of encoded information; a symbol, logo, icon, action, analogy, encapsulation, etc.
"signifier" is the physical/tangible/manipulated part of the sign.
"signified" is the concept behind the signifier.

my version: a large part of human interaction is symbolic warfare. much of it is verbally violent but otherwise benign (all claims to cyber-bullying and -raping aside for a moment). part of that symbolic strife is an even more deliberate, if still semi-conscious, semiotic warfare.

my favorite example is a history i read a long while back about the islamic invasion of india in the 11th century. the invading muslim forces overtook a large shivite temple and, being horrified at the giant stone phallus at the center of the temple*, smashed it to bits and used the stone to create a walkway to the mosque that was built over the now-smushed temple.

they did this not for lack of material but to make a specific point of cultural warfare and a literal and more permanent sign of defeat above and beyond destroying a former holy site belonging to their enemy; the feet of the believers were forever able, in their understanding, to tred - and therefore dirty, sully and make unclean in perpetuity - upon this graven idol from a fallen, heathen gang of uncircumcized dogs.

*to be fair, they were horrified - or at least put on a show of it - by everyone they met, either due to the looseness of their women or the gravenness of their idols or atheisticness of their religion.

psiga: every spend any serious length of time with someone who got hardcore into kundalini? (by hardcore i mean wearing the funny turban hat hardcore). they all seem to have wigged the fuck out; part of that is a leftover of their symbol set, if only because the wigginess is fairly uniform.

Persona-sama · Posts: 1145

kundalinis
wigginess is fairly uniform

Also:

Psiga wrote:

I am saying 'maybe' in only the most vague, non-committal way.

...LIKE HOW YOU TREAT YOUR CHILDREN?

Rya.Reisender · Posts: 985

I won't drink anyways, don't worry.
I can control myself pretty well.

Besides I have a gf now and don't plan to betray her.

Also if you just want me to have sex with older women then just send me an older one that has sex with me for free.

Persona-sama · Posts: 1145

Did you meet her online, Rya?

Do you see her in real life, Rya?

Is she legal in America, Rya?

Rya.Reisender · Posts: 985

Yes.

Well on photos yes and we phone every day at least 5 hours and plan to meet soon.

No.

Persona-sama · Posts: 1145

There's only six words I can say, Rya:

Success will make a paak sound.

dhex · Posts: 2963

jesus fucking christ.

the internet is deadly.

DeusJester · Posts: 1388

This is now officially the best thread on the internet.

Psiga · Posts: 3990

dhex wrote:

psiga: every spend any serious length of time with someone who got hardcore into kundalini? (by hardcore i mean wearing the funny turban hat hardcore). they all seem to have wigged the fuck out; part of that is a leftover of their symbol set, if only because the wigginess is fairly uniform.

I haven't personally spent time around those types, but I know what you're talking about, and have seen it from a distance a number of times.

It kinda reminds me of the look that Scientologists have, but even more intense. A more actively smoldering fire, evoking the thought of: "Is this person going to snap my neck while leering off into infinity?"

extralife · Posts: 3316

I will occasionally drink alone if I don't feel like thinking anymore. I'm far too self-aware; sometimes I just want to shut the fuck up before I wear myself out. Alcohol will help with that.

finnagain · Posts: 181

dhex wrote:

persona-lona-rama-lama-ding-dong:

semiotics is, broadly, the study of symbol sets and their created meanings. in real life, this is largely confined to literature critic types. umberto eco is probably the most readable and well-known in this set of writers; roland barthes is not a complete fuckface in this regard as well.

"sign" in this case is a bit of encoded information; a symbol, logo, icon, action, analogy, encapsulation, etc.
"signifier" is the physical/tangible/manipulated part of the sign.
"signified" is the concept behind the signifier.

my version: a large part of human interaction is symbolic warfare. much of it is verbally violent but otherwise benign (all claims to cyber-bullying and -raping aside for a moment). part of that symbolic strife is an even more deliberate, if still semi-conscious, semiotic warfare.
.

I now feel like I threw 500 dollars away, because I took a course on literary theory (almost all our time was spent on Umberto Eco), and not once did I hear a definition as reasonable and conscise as that.

finnagain · Posts: 181

DeusJester wrote:

This is now officially the best thread on the internet.

Somebody needs to hand out awards for threads this amazing. Someone should get a MacArther grant, here.

Drinking or other drug use has a variety of pros and cons -- but you wouldn't know it, following typical American journalism about the "meth epidemic," "meth mouth," and a variety of other scientific hogwash that no one cares enough to actually fact-check.

Anyway, the whole issue is a personal thing. Edmund Wilson was the greatest literary critic of his generation, despite being perhaps the drunkest man on earth during that period.

Plus, my favorite book of all time, "Gravity's Rainbow," was pretty clearly written by a man zonked out of his mind.

the drunken samurai · Posts: 4645

when the hell was this taken out the axe?

and why?

Psiga · Posts: 3990

I took it out of the Axe, just to ensure that it didn't get automatically culled. I was going to let it drift away into the depths of the General Board, for posterity's sake. But then people started responding to it again. So, damn.

Lestrade · Posts: 817

Mister Toups wrote:

I don't know if I'll ever understand people who drink alone.

Also I started playing Halo on heroic and JESUS FUCK is it hard.

Toups, I'll drink with you. Or you can drink with me. Or watch me drink. Or whatever. RUM N COKE!!!!

Lestrade · Posts: 817

DeusJester wrote:

This is now officially the best thread on the internet.

HERE HERE!!!!!!

(Or HEAR HEAR, or whatever.)

Westacular · Posts: 571

DeusJester wrote:

Maybe I'm just an immature 4 year old at heart. Oh well!

Fixed.

Also, your avatar (POSSIBLY INTENTIONALLY?) looks like a pair of legs and, uhh, grass of the field.

This thread is cool. I should check out some of the software. I think I'm ... fairly good at knowing my brainwave state already. This seems like a worthwhile hobby. Thanks, Psiga!

chazumaru* · Posts: 480

Psiga wrote:

I took it out of the Axe, just to ensure that it didn't get automatically culled. I was going to let it drift away into the depths of the General Board, for posterity's sake. But then people started responding to it again. So, damn.

Why don't you lock it then?

Psiga · Posts: 3990

Maybe I will. But I say "maybe" in only the most vague, non-committal way.

Mister Toups · Posts: 4943

Persona-sama wrote:

Success will make a paak sound.

Oh my God.

If Rya gets laid before I do...

Fuck. I need to find some pussy, pronto.

George · Posts: 1656

I don't think rape counts as "getting laid" though. And I don't really care if it's legal over there, because I think we have a pretty reasonable set of statuatory rape laws over here.

But yeah - being a virgin isn't great. But it doesn't bother me as much as I thought it would, either. I don't really understand people who spend all their time bitching about how women don't understand them, whereas I just assume that sooner or later I'll meet a girl who is very compatible with me. It also helps that I acknowledge that I'm not at my physical peak and am getting in better shape, because I'm a (very contently) shallow person and potential girlfriends probably will be too.

Quick Shot II Turbo · Posts: 468

dhex wrote:

"sign" in this case is a bit of encoded information; a symbol, logo, icon, action, analogy, encapsulation, etc.
"signifier" is the physical/tangible/manipulated part of the sign.
"signified" is the concept behind the signifier.

The sad part about semiotics is that a rather easily understandable definition such as this is actually completely wrong in any kind of academic discourse on semiotics because words such as 'signifier' and 'signified' have been defined in differing ways by a plethora of authors and schools of semiotics.

But I'm just mentioning this, not disproving your interepretation because it's a damn good one. Just don't dig too deeply into theoretical semiotics, because it's a very elaborate mess.

(a partially burned out student of semiotics)

newave · Posts: 616

FortNinety wrote:

DeusJester & Psiga: IC's very own Beavis & Butthead.

I was gonna suggest that those two, or two other IC guys should film themselves as they make witty comments about video games that they are watching. But then again, that might not be so interesting (guess it depends on the folks I suppose).

At E3 this year maybe...i gots the video camera....IC E3 vidcast zomg?

Rud13 · Posts: 3277

newave wrote:

FortNinety wrote:

DeusJester & Psiga: IC's very own Beavis & Butthead.

I was gonna suggest that those two, or two other IC guys should film themselves as they make witty comments about video games that they are watching. But then again, that might not be so interesting (guess it depends on the folks I suppose).

At E3 this year maybe...i gots the video camera....IC E3 vidcast zomg?

Toups and I totally did this. Pezon, Brock and myself could totally do it too.

Rya.Reisender · Posts: 985

Wtf.

First of all I'm not a virgin anymore since I was 18.

Second rape is illegal over here too, but having sex with a younger girl on her free own will isn't. Note the difference.

Toups: Don't worry, I study applied computer science and I think 50% of the students there are still a virgin. I even know a 25 year old girl that is still a virgin. I wonder how she managed not getting raped.

Edit: Okay fixed a grammar error, I'm 21 okay.

Kappuru · Posts: 492

Rya.Reisender wrote:

Wtf.

First of all I'm not a virgin anymore since I'm 18.

wonder how she managed not getting raped.

first off, congratulations. once you've had sex you realize how not a big deal it is.
second of all..
rya, rya, rya. and i thought you liked anime.

obviously the answer is kung fu.

either that, or she's ugly.

Rya.Reisender · Posts: 985

Very weird for me it was the opposite.

Before I had sex I never really wanted it until my gf on that day seduced me... I liked it so much that I wanted it everyday like 3 times ever since.

Hmhm, well I'm not normal anyways.

extralife · Posts: 3316

Maybe we should stop talking about who's been raped and who hasn't?

Rya.Reisender · Posts: 985

We didn't even start yet.

DeusJester · Posts: 1388

Call me nuts, but I don't want to fucking know.