+ What effects do the inputs into our imagination have on our ability to maintain a grasp on reality?

+ As far as our minds are concerned, there are infinite sources of valuable information and infinite possible worthwhile tasks. Sheltering yourself from the torrent of information allows a false sense of completeness, but once you open yourself to that stream, you must come to terms with severe personal limitation, and this is easier said than done.
The number of scholarships, conferences, projects, etc. that come through my inbox is staggering, but I must resist the urge to spread myself too thing. I think this is a problem in my academic program--people trying to do too many things. I'm going to stick with a few things that I see as having high value, develop them to the end, and then soberly pick new tasks (again, easier said than done).

+ I like the idea of building a framework for analytically evaluating the effectiveness of urban design in creating public space. I had recommendations to read The Social Life of Small Urban Spaces and the Social Logic of Space. I wonder how many architects are willing to accept such lines of thinking?

I believe there is a weakness in the modern mind, and by modern I mean anything post renaissance. It is the resolution of action into two binary categories: those that are prescribed through rational principles, and those that are merely a matter of preference. So, for example, if I can't 'prove' my point in some discursive way, then I am merely stating my 'opinion', which carries no more weight than the opinion of any other person.
Obviously, I think this is false. I think a third option exists, which is a faculty capable of development that renders judgment and provides insight, and which is just as valid as rational principles, yet cannot be explained by them. Aristotle articulated it beautifully and called it φρόνησις, transliterated as "phronesis". Translators have used the words 'prudence' or 'practical wisdom' for φρόνησις, but I think they miss the mark. This faculty is something more than these things. Consider this analogy--jurisprudence:a judge::φρόνησις:a human in the capacity of a moral being. That makes more sense to me.
How would we know who has a more developed φρόνησις? Again, it's difficult to provide a calculus, but that doesn't undermine its reality. How would we be able to tell the difference between George Bush and Cato, both of whom used their "gut", or some equivalent concept, to justify their decisions? This is simply a matter of cultivation. The cultivated person will be able to tell that one is garbage and the other isn't.
This will be a tangent, but it makes me think of the demands we place on understanding. There is an expectation that a person should be able to string together a series of words and communicate any understanding--I think this is false. So, for example, if someone says, "tell me what makes the Odyssey a great book", it is an inherently impossible request, yet I firmly believe that the Odyssey is a great book. I think the request is absurd because a string of words attempting to convey the greatness will fail; in order to understand the greatness, you must read the work itself, many times preferably, contemplate it (not just think about it), talk about it, imagine it, and turn it over many different ways in your mind, and then one day, maybe prompted by a certain event, the whole thing explodes into color, and then you realize why it was great.

New posts coming soon.

A message to all post-modern social scientist types: not everything in the world "intersects". Though it might make the world more boring, there are simply some things that are just unrelated.

I took a trip down to the Baltimore/DC area this weekend. Friday I went to Ben and Ada's in Baltimore. Saturday I went with Ben to DC, and we met up with Will, checked out his dad's studio, played frisbee by the National Cathedral, got dinner, and then talked philosophy for a while. Sunday I went to croquet in Annapolis and saw a bunch of old friends--Mark, Christian, Marie, Chris Harris, and several others. It was a good time, and it was refreshing to leave Cambridge for a few days.

First of all, earlier in the week I had a day that Dan might find praise-worthy: it started around 9PM on Monday night when I was working on my climate change and agriculture report for the research team. I finished working at 7AM, slept for an hour, got up, ate breakfast, showered, went to statistics class from 9-10:30, attended my research team meeting from 10:30-12:30, searched for GIS data from 12:30-1:30, ate from 1:30 to 1:50, sent a fax, went to studio from 2-5 during which we hashed out our performance criteria for our site typologies and infrastructure technologies and assigned roles for the book production, met with my GIS team from 5-6:50 to work on our project, ate from 6:50-7:00, attended my responsive cities design seminar from 7:00-9:00, answered e-mails from 9:00-10:00, did some reading, and went to bed at midnight. So that was 27 hours of straight, intense work, interrupted only by an hour of sleep, an hour and a half total for 3 meals, and a bit of travel and hygiene time.
Today was less crazy, but still intense. I went to statistics, wrote some e-mails, searched for more GIS data, met with my research advisor, called some people in to get more data, had studio from 2-5, went to an international conflict resolution training from 5-6:30, went to a research team meeting from 6:30-8:30, and I've been answering e-mails and preparing for tomorrow since then.

Today Shiva and I got lunch at Galleria Umberto and coffee afterward at a place in the North End, went over to the MFA and spent most of the afternoon there, walked to the Prudential Center via the Christian Science Monitor Plaza, went back, had dinner, and watched the Office.
The MFA was a pleasure to visit. The collection wasn't massive, but it was arranged beautifully, and the exhibit aids were tasteful and actually interesting, which is rare. The North End was also a lot of fun to visit. I want to go back and walk around more when the weather is nicer.
Tomorrow is a work day.

I worked a bit in the morning, went to a meeting for the Japan studio, met with Amber about the Co-Lab Op-Ed piece, set up my new external HD, continued working, and then went to Dante with Shiva. It's restaurant week right now in Boston, so they had a prix fix dinner menu tonight, which was great.
I'm taking another day to do work on Saturday. Tomorrow will be a day off, and Sunday may be as well.

Today I filed my taxes, filled out my FAFSA, and did other miscellaneous administrative tasks. The pace is more moderate now that we are on Spring Break, and I'm trying to strike a good balance between work and rest for the week. Tomorrow I'm planning to relax. I might go to the Boston MFA or the MIT Museum.

It's important to be optimistic and maintain a good attitude, no matter how grim the outlook is, no matter how ridiculous the situation you find yourself in, and no matter how sad your circumstances seem. It's easy to throw your hands up and mock assignments that seem absurdly beyond the realm of feasibility, but I think the personal stretching that such assignments entail is excellent for growth.
I worked on my landscape planning homework with Anna, went shopping, ate dinner with Shiva, and finished up several administrative tasks. The snow outside is lovely.

I went to my R training session, got breakfast with Shiva, worked on the coal spreadsheet, met with Amber about wrapping up the coal project, got my hair cut, continued work on the spreadsheet, went to the department happy hour briefly, ate dinner, continued working on the spreadsheet yet again, checked my e-mail, did some admin, shortly I'll go to a party, and later I'll try to read a little in The Swamp.
It was good to start my weekend with discipline. Normally a let things slide on Friday, but I was on point today. I'm really pushing to be able to take off Sunday, which means that I need to get a lot done tomorrow. I think it'll be possible.

I've been jumping into a lot of new software lately, and I think my tolerance for uncertainty and mess is rapidly rising, which is good. In the last week or two I've used Illustrator, Indesign, Rhino, Endnote, and R all for the first time, happily with good results. I'm starting to care less about getting things perfect right up front, an attitude that I've struggled with for a long time and one that inhibits learning.

I've been neglecting the blog. Here's an update:

This morning I ran into two people from Australia outside of our inn, and we all had breakfast together. Later Runo and I went to Ginkaku-Ji Temple, Tetsugaku-no-michi, and Kinkaku-Ji temple. After dinner (donburi) I went to an Onsen and met a local guy from Kyoto. Afterward I met up with Runo again and went back to the inn.
The temples were beautiful--it's amazing how much effort they invest into keeping the grounds. I saw an employee lightly scraping the branches of a bush with a wire brush. If you had to do that for every branch of every tree there, it would take you weeks. They had a team of guys working the grounds.
The first one was elegant and enjoyable to see. They were both set against the mountains, and the paths started up the inclines but stopped, gesturing to the woods beyond. The second location was just as beautiful and more ethereal--it looked like a solid gold pagoda floating on a lake. The only problem was that it was packed with people, literally, hundreds of tourists taking pictures constantly and kids screaming in the background. It limited the serenity of the experience.
Tetsugaku-no-michi (philosophers path) was incredible, and there weren't any tourists there. It's a trail next to a river which is set in the middle of a residential neighborhood. Even in the winter it was gorgeous; I can't imagine how beautiful it would look in the spring, summer, or fall. It was easily one of the most beautiful places I've ever been, and again, this was during the ugliest time of the year. Growing up near there would provide such a rich source of imagination.
For dinner we went to this random café near the onsen and both got donburi. Mine was with avocado, tomato, and egg. It was one of the better things I've had here.
The best part of the day was the onsen. There were indoor baths, which were cool, but the better area was outside, with the rocks and trees rising up next to the tubs. A cascade of fresh water fell off the rocks into the cold pool, and people were drinking it, so I joined in, and it was super refreshing.

Prior days: since it's been so long since I've posted, I have a lot to summarize and I might repeat myself from earlier since I can't remember what I've said and what I haven't said:

* They have these things here called "manga kissa", which is a version of an internet café. The set up is mind-blowing. You buy a ticket at the vending machine for the amount of time you want (Japanese love vending machines), and then you select the type of booth you want. There are some with recliners, some with cots, but they all have computers. Then you are invited to get a drink (they're free and unlimited, and by drink I mean coffee, tea, or soft-drink), and then they show you to your booth. It's sort of like a cubicle with a really comfortable chair and in a peaceful environment. Outside the cubicle are rows upon rows of manga. The only sounds are the clacking of keys from neighboring cubicles and the boiling of water, which you can use for instant ramen. There's even a shower there. Apparently people use them as hotels all the time. So basically it's a combination of a hotel, library, newsstand, and coffee shop all at the same time.

* I went out for karaoke with my classmates and the crew from Sekisui house in Tokyo, and we had a blast. It was sort of awkward at first, but Kuzu started us off with the theme from Totoro, then the drinks came, and it just got better and better. It seemed like we were there for at least 2 hours singing. Afterward we hung out at the hotel, and people that shall not be named got a little out of hand, including ties on heads and crazy back rubs.

* The last night in Tokyo was one of the best nights I've had in a long time. Everyone, including some people from prof. Shun's Venice trip, went to a restaurant in Shibuya, ate several rounds of appetizer-type food, and enjoyed unlimited drinks for 2 hours. Right before the cut-off our table wanted to get more sake, so we put in another order with the waitress. She asked how many we wanted, thinking we'd say 1, maybe 2, and someone shouted out 5, and they actually brought it, so hell yeah. I had some fried prawn and anchovies in addition to the normal meal. They were good, but as with all the fish I've had on this trip, I won't feel deprived when I go back to total vegetarianism. After we were done, we took cabs back to Akasaka, went to another bar, and then headed home. That night I invited many people to Philadelphia, including our cab driver.

* I finally got to go to Akihabara after dreaming of that place since middle school. It was cool, but if it weren't for its sentimental status, it wouldn't be a big deal. One of the weirder things there was this 5 story building entirely dedicated to manga, but 2 of the 5 were for "womens' manga", and another 1 of the 5 was for a "cosplay kissa". Womens' manga was like a cartoon porno version of the trashy romance novels they sell in grocery stores, and the cosplay kissa was a café where the waitresses dress up like animé characters, which in our case meant girls in French maid outfits and cat ears. It was kind of weird. Unfortunately they wouldn't let us take pictures, and Kazu told me people have been arrested for taking voyeur-style pictures there.

* I learned about tanuki, one of the top 5 coolest things about Japan. They are forest creatures that are a cross between a raccoon and a dog. In myth, the males can enlarge their testicles to fill a room the size of 8 tatami mats and crush its victims. Classical Japanese art also depicts tanukis sleeping on their balls and bashing people with them. Another ability they supposedly have is the ability to turn into humans. Speaking about their balls again, they are said to be made of gold, and businesses often have tanuki statues outside the entrance (and yes, the statues have giant balls on them). Aside from the myths, they actually exist in real life and there's a Youtube video with some random guy that tried to domesticate one.

* The studio started out well and apparently the people from Sekisui House were pleased, so thumbs up all around. We basically did site visits and mini-studios capped by a mid-review and a final review. I'm psyched to get back and continue working on it.

* We got to go to the Sekisui House office in Tokyo, and it was pretty insane. Corporate hierarchy is rigid and formality is strict. Decisions take a long time to be made, and most things are accompanied by symbolic rituals. There was one really old guy, who seemed like a high ranking member of the company, that just sat around cracking up during the meeting. He was awesome. We each gave an introduction and had it translated, and he'd laugh both during the English part and for the Japanese translation. After the presentations and introductions, they had a lovely reception for us in a building that looked like a British mansion. The food was top notch and the company was great. The laughing elder was present and in fine form. He told me a long story in broken English, and at one point he stopped abruptly to laugh wildly, followed by an equally abrupt departure. I kind of wish I was that guy.

* The Shinkansen was cool, though getting from Akasaka to the train platform involved long subway tunnel walks, confusing transfers, and just a generally confusing experience. The countryside between Tokyo and Kyoto is lush and dramatic. We passed mountains (including Mt. Fuji), the ocean, fields, and towns. Backpacking this country in the summer with some knowledge of the language would be such a treat.

* Kyoto seems cool so far. Right off the bat we got lost near the inn, and the hospitality people showed us was amazing. We asked a random guy where the inn was, and even though he didn't know, he said he'd walk with us until we found it. He took us into a residential area and asked this lady getting on her bike. She said she didn't know and rolled away. Next he asked this old lady, and she stood there trying to think of whether or not she'd heard of it. Then, the lady on the bike came back and said she had just found it and gave us directions over there. Next, the original guy walked us over there, and we finally found it. The amazing thing was that everyone in the neighborhood came out and seemed so eager to help us.

* Urban design/architecture wise, Kyoto is interesting. Compared to Tokyo, the buildings are smaller, the streets are smaller, and it's mostly dark, even on the main streets. At first it comes off as looking dingy and anti-climatic. But then, you start to notice these brilliant interior spaces in the blocks and in random spots, and the whole thing comes alive. The philosophers walk was amazingly beautiful, as were the temples. The people are very accommodating and friendly, and the food and culture seems excellent. Overall, so far, I'm just as impressed with Kyoto as I am with Tokyo.

I had breakfast with Buck, Pam, and Morgan, went to the studio, got bento boxes for lunch, visited Tama, went back, got off at Chofu with Eirini and Kristal, walked with them all over the place including Shinjuku, Harajuku, and Shiboya, and then came back home.
Japan is invigorating. Tokyo on the whole feels tremendously modern, efficient, sanitary, safe, and tidy. Even the homeless, who are seemingly rare and out of sight, live in perfectly maintained boxes with a hole cut out carefully for them to get in and out. They had their clothes stacked neatly beside the box, and they were sitting in the box eating noodles with chopsticks. People walk around with facemasks, both because of concern for getting sick and also out of respect for others if they themselves are already sick.
Presentation is a really big deal. Even small things, like candies, are wrapped and labeled with colorful graphics. This morning I got a sandwich, which came in a cardboard stand, wrapped meticulously in plastic, placed in an attractive bag, and then sealed with a sticker. The environmentalist in me cringes, but another part of me is pleased by these demonstrations of aesthetic sensibility.
Transactions, even small ones, are treated as special. Hostesses bow and thank you when you pay at a restaurant.
Visually, the cityscape is bright and intense, especially Shinjuku and Shiboya. Stores are overwhelming and bright, almost blindingly so. We went into some insane department stores that were 4, 5, or 6 stories high, seemingly had everything, and were overloaded with visuals and cheery.
I played Pachinko in one parlor and some random arcade games elsewhere. The locals kicked my ass on both games, though I'm out of the loop on that stuff, so whatever. It's true about manga--it's extremely common.
Food-wise, my bento at lunch had shrimp, and it was delicious. I got a random happy apple drink from one of the countless vending machines, and it was pretty good. For dinner we went to one of the conveyer belt restaurants and got sushi a la carte. I've wanted to go to one of those for years, and it was a dream to finally make it happen. It's a brilliant concept, because as the food passes, you both get to see it before committing to ordering it, and you also feel like you already have ordered it if you're tempted (i.e., you'll be more inclined to just snatch it if it's in front of you, so it makes sense from a business point of view).
There seems to be significant efforts to create private conditions in public spaces. For example, on the subway, people put in headphones and close their eyes. Few people speak, other than us loud, barbaric Americans. Also, in this bar we went to, each table had a booth that was separated by screens and curtains. You could hear other people but not really see them.

First day in Japan, and it's pretty awesome so far. The airport and transit systems are clean and efficient. I appreciate that. The ride from Narita to Tokyo was interesting. It seemed like a slowly densifying sprawl as we approached Tokyo, without a center and without any sense of overall composition. In one sense the scene was depressing. There was metal, concrete, grey skies, and very little greenery. Despite this, it strangely felt inviting or comfortable to me.
In the city proper, the strands and textures stacked so tightly together makes for a mind-blowing experience. There are nooks and crannies everywhere, stacked every which way, and the buildings switch styles dramatically. There are alleys galore, and restaurants and shops that open out onto the street. It looks like it would be impossible to eat at every restaurant during one's life, even if you never left Tokyo and ate at a different place every night.
Once I checked in, I walked over to the presentation from our client. I get super lost while I was heading over, and it just got worse when I tried to take the subway to save time. It's like taking the information load of being a student at MIT and splashing that all over the physical world in a blinding spectacle of LCDs, signs, crazy graphics, etc. and it makes it hard to get a handle on what's going on. I think I paid way too much for my subway ride, but whatever.
The meeting went well and the project is interesting. Our hosts brought out snacks and Japanese beer after we finished, and we talked and sat around for a while. Later I ate some sushi at a random hole in the wall, and it was quite good. I decided that I'll eat fish while I'm here, just as I did that one time in Baltimore.

It snowed briefly last night, but then it switched to rain. Shame...I'm eager to see my first snowstorm of the season.
Today I did work and handled administrative tasks. Based on Shiva's recommendation, I tried the spicy basil noodle dish at Thai Café, and it was actually really good! I had tried something else there before and it sucked, but this one is a winner.
I continued my workout streak. Three days doesn't seem like a lot, but at the end of last semester I was probably working out once a week, if that, so if I can keep this up, it'll be great.
I installed Office 2008 after getting fed up with little bugs that seem to be all over OpenOffice. I like the interface, and so far I haven't noticed any problems. I'm doing a lot of spreadsheet work for my research, and OO kept causing problems, so I'm hoping this will be better.
I'm wondering about whether I should generally try to acquire music in digital or physical form from this point forward. Pros of digital: cheaper, quicker to acquire, nothing to lug around when you move, and better for the environment / pros of CDs: beautiful physical object, decoration for a room. My pros for CDs might sound weak, but I think they're important. I enjoy entering a room with a robust and varied CD collection on a shelf. It's a pleasure to physically scan the labels, pull one out, admire the book, read liner notes, and hold an actual object in your hands. I want to get Arvo Part's Tabula Rasa album, but I don't know which format to get it in. Thoughts?

I continued research today, spending the morning writing a report for a conference call later in the day. The call itself went well and I have a good sense of where I'm going with the work over the next few days. Later I worked out, and in general, I followed a healthy routine.
While walking home, I asked Shiva a question that I had been pondering in my research, and we talked about it for the duration of the walk, which was maybe 15 minutes. By the end, a solution had emerged from the conversation. The amazing thing is how powerful even a few minutes of focused dialogue about a topic can be. Of course, St. John's demonstrated this to me repeatedly, but it's easy to forget at MIT. It seems we get inundated with information and have to respond relatively quickly to it and produce some output. Contemplation is an activity that is non-existent on a day-to-day basis. This is a serious problem and one that I will try to address this semester by pacing myself better and trying to zone out distractions. Sometimes sitting and "staring" at a problem, metaphorically speaking, causes a solution to present itself, but it takes time, and at first the problem may seem impossible.
Along these lines, I reinstated my habit of listening to electronica while doing sustained, productive mental work. I got into this while I was doing architecture, and it's a great way to zone out and evoke a mood ideal for intellectual activity. Oooo, but just now I switched over to Arvo Part and it is lovely...

I worked on research today, exercised, got coffee with Shiva, and had a conference call. The pleasure of drinking coffee has been greater than normal lately, and my hypothesis is that I am enjoying it more because I am rested and mentally restored, so I already feel good, and I can feel the positive effects of coffee without the noise of fatigue, pain, or other distractions/distortions. Anyway, it has been a pleasure to have a cup over the last few days.
The work is going well, and I'm moving ahead at a nice pace. It's fulfilling to work on one project in a sustained way over a long period of time. I'm also learning a lot about coal, economics, chemistry, energy in general, ecology, and human health. It's a win-win all around.
Among my strategies to maintain a higher level of health for the semester is the strategy of reading and dealing with all new e-mails on a daily basis. At the end of the day my new mail tally should be zero. I seem to average 20-40 per day and the count quickly spirals out of control if I let it slip.
I worried that I might have a hard time working out with the snow on the ground, but it was actually easier than in Media, where the ground is frozen but there's no snow. The reason is that the snow provides some padding, like grass, which allows me to do Samson Stretches (an exercise that requires kneeling and placing weight on the knees).
I read an interesting article from the Boston Globe about psychological studies on cities vs nature. It claimed that urban stimuli are detrimental to the ability to focus and control oneself, while nature restores this capacity. Parks apparently mitigate this effect, and the best parks in this regard are the ones with the most biodiversity. It's interesting to me that urban diversity dulls the mind while biological diversity stimulates the mind. Maybe the researchers are on to something, but I find that the impact of urban phenomena on me depends on the nature of the phenomena and the design of the systems and context in which it happens.
For example, as an anecdote, once I was walking over the Market Street bridge toward Center City in Philadelphia, and to my left I saw a Regional Rail elevated beyond JFK boulevard, a USX freight train passing under the bridge next to the Schuylkill Banks Trail, a plane flying overhead, cars flowing all around me, pedestrians walking in both directions on both sides of the bridge, and a skateboarder skating on a metal curb lip. Above all this was the glimmering lights of the city sky scrapers, to my sides were the lit stone and metal bridges over the river, and below was the river itself, shimmering in the lights and quaking in the wind. This scene struck me as so marvelous with all of its motion, complexity, and to me, sublimity, that I was inspired, felt invigorated, and set my mind to work when I got home. To be fair, the study seems to admit that although they think urban environments dull certain aspects of the brain, they have a superior claim on spurring innovation and creativity through the same diversity and intermingling of people.

I came back today--I took Amtrak to get back up here. It was tough leaving as always, but I'm ready to get started again. The train ride itself was pleasant. I worked on my research for the duration of the trip. There are a few things I notice on that train ride that are striking: 1) the modernist high rise housing right before you leave the boundaries of NYC, on Erskine Place in the Bronx. They're so classic. They could be the textbook entry for American Modernist High-Rise Housing. 2) Norwalk and New London CT. I love old port/industrial cities like that, with the brick factories, narrow streets, and waterfront areas. 3) the building which I assume is the city hall for Providence. It's amazing--that building alone made me ponder what it would be like to live in Providence.
Of course, go Eagles! That was great. Later I did laundry, unpacked, and went grocery shopping. I talked to Drew, who I haven't talked to in a while. It was nice to get caught up and cool to hear he might be in the area soon.

I got up early without much hesitation, got ready, ate a nutritious breakfast, and started working on my coal research. I went until 12:45, at which point I stopped to nap. Up until then, I had been fighting sleep, despite already having had a cup of coffee. On the one hand, I felt like it would be a waste of time to continue to struggle with tiredness and that it would be better to nap ASAP and then get back into my work refreshed; on the other hand, I wondered if I'd actually be able to keep my nap short and get back out of bed. I decided to nap, and I was not able to get back out of bed when my alarm went off. I think this experience settles my personal debate about naps: I should avoid them at all costs unless it's an absolute emergency, like those times during the semester when I basically had to choose between literally passing out, or taking a controlled nap in the library. In general, I'm going to push through the best that I can (for whatever reason, I don't handle naps well. I feel horrible if I wake up before my body wants to, and I've tried the 20-30 minute thing, and it doesn't work).
Despite that, I still got my planned 10 hours of work complete, worked out, checked my e-mails, and made my budget for the coming month. The workout was tough, but my body handled it surprisingly well. It was cold though...Anyway, the work was productive and it felt good to focus and be industrious again. I think I've allowed myself adequate rest time for the vacation, so now I can start again, and make sure to maintain a sustainable routine so I don't burn out again.