CD: Reggae Arabesque

Masterful Uds and Reggae

from World Music Central - Links: Indian Music

Diaspora's captivating style on Reggae Arabesque is a combination of musical styles I've never heard before: Arabic music with reggae. The group is formed by Jamaican, Italian, and French musicians. Using powerful reggae beats and vocals, the arrangements and melodies are clearly Arabic. Reggae Arabesque's intention is to widen the African roots of reggae to Sudan, Egypt and beyond through the use of Arabic scales and instruments such as the darbuka and 'ud, together with the violin. To order the CD check www.myspace.com/diasporamusicuk.

Egyptian musician Moddathir Abdoul Wafa is one of the finest performers of the 'ud. Spanish label Nesma Music recorded Toola in Cairo. Even though Wafa uses a traditional Cairo-style orchestra, his creative ud technique and string ensemble...

CD: Dub Qawwali - Gaudi + Nusrat

Dead Can Dub

from World Music Central - Links: Indian Music

Gaudi + Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan

Dub Qawwali (Six Degrees 657036 1137-2, 2007)

Pakistan's late Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan may have specialized in the ecstasy-inducing Sufi devotional style known as qawwali, but he had one of those incredible voices that also gave a supernatural lift to movie soundtracks, such albums as his classic Mustt Mustt and his collaborations with Peter Gabriel, Michael Brook and Eddie Vedder. There's no telling ...

All things can be found in PI?

3.14159265itwasthebestoftimesitwastheworstofti...

from MetaFilter by TimeTravelSpeed

Ever wondered if and where a specific set of numbers could be found in pi? Maybe you'd like to know where your birthday is? Or maybe just something funny. [prev. here, here]
Psh, that's child's play. Old news. If you wanna be hip and play with the big boys and girls, you're gonna have to think bigger [previously]. Since computer files are simply numbers, then, in theory,
images, audio, video, even wikipedia articles all exist in pi. In fact, all existing data in the universe must be somewhere in pi since it is an infinite, non-repeating sequence of numbers which appear with equal probability (so the theory goes).

Some have suggested this is a useful file compression/encryption mechanism. Some have to see a doctor after hearing about it. And some just find its implications amusing.

Too bad
it's all bunk. But don't lose hope, there may be alternatives. My solution to the debate? -- f*ck it, let's just call it 3.

I was surprised by the number of references to this all-things-in-pi concept throughout MeFi, but there was no post explicitly on the subject. I tried to give credit where it was due. Enjoy!

Chimps outperform humans at memory task

Chimps outperform humans at memory task

from New Scientist - Latest Headlines

A new study is the first time chimpanzees – and young ones, at that – have outperformed humans at a cognitive task