Slate V, Born Into A World It Never Made

Slate V — that's vee, not “5” they emphasize — is launching a new website, which they say is…

…an ordered universe of video, in which all the content has the irreverent wit, sharp intelligence, and counterintuitive insights that have been the hallmarks of Slate the magazine for the past 11 years…we want Slate V to occupy that sweet spot between CNN and YouTube.

Counterintuitive insights? That sweet spot between CNN and YouTube?

Well, I like Hitchens. Is Hitch doing videos?

Personally I feel Jolly Days fills the counterintuitive sweet spot between The Harvard Review of Philosophy and Howard the Duck.

35,000 Years Ago

The origins of art and the origins of what could be defined as that which is distinctly human are so intertwined as to be indistinguishable. This article, about a find that appears to be the earliest known ivory carving, created 35,000 years ago, reveals a sophistication in early humans that is not only very modern, it affirms the connective tissue for all that is human — the throbbing creative spirit we all share as a common ancestry.

The figure of the woolly mammoth is tiny, measuring just 3.7 cm long and weighing a mere 7.5 grams, and displays skilfully detailed carvings. It is unique in its slim form, pointed tail, powerful legs and dynamically arched trunk. It is decorated with six short incisions, and the soles of the pachyderm's feet show a crosshatch pattern. The miniature lion is 5.6 cm long, has a extended torso and outstretched neck. It is decorated with approximately 30 finely incised crosses on its spine.

The geological context of the discoveries and radiocarbon dating indicate that the figurines belong to the Aurignacian culture, which refers to an area of southern France and is associated with the arrival of the first modern humans in Europe. Multiple radiocarbon dates from sediment in the Vogelherd Cave yielded ages between 30,000 and 36,000 years ago, the University of Tübingen reports. Some methods give an even older date.

Philip Roth

This Philip Roth interview is a fascinating study of a mature artist. Roth is a thoughtful, withheld individual. Over the years he has become comfortable if not expansive with Terry Gross — he appears to feel about as at ease as he can when being interviewed.

Haven't read Roth's book Everyman which is the subject of the interview; always had the reservation that Roth's style didn't have the excitement great writing should have. Roth's writing sometimes seems utilitarian — the feel for and love of language you sense in great writing was lacking. But no question Roth is a serious, inventive, interesting artist. If Roth's work lacks the large flourish and sensual swing of much great contemporary art, his work does have a precise clarity and simplicity which allows the reader easy entry.

Roth was right about one thing: each time you begin a work you are an amateur; you have to learn all over again how to do it.

Speaking of Fresh Air, Maureen Corrigan, their book critic, is a real gem. Her love of books and strong feelings about literature are a model of fine criticism — you want to read the books for which she expresses enthusiasm. Her standards seem sensible, grounded — no ideological axe to grind, open to fresh approaches but not made tipsy at the mere sight of the new. Her chatty down to earth speaking voice and nuanced, sophisticated sensibility are a great combination.

The Power of Art

PBS began airing a series on art tonight. The Power of Art first tackles Van Gogh, a great spirit who most likely struggled with more physical maladies than epilepsy alone, but managed to produce a fantastic body of work, a victory of the heart. But PBS, with all its New Age affectations, can only go so far with their cultural offerings — they are clueless about how to present material of value about painting, or culture in general. PBS is good with animal shows. The very smugness PBS has about their superiority to the popular culture betrays itself in this show as they attempt (and fail at) the same sensationalistic hollowness mainstream TV long ago mastered.

This first part of the series accrues to a disjointed embarrassment. A putative examination of Van Gogh, The Power of Art almost from the start disconnects from its subject, as a frenetic confused director and overwrought editor tries to charge it with a fake energy. It is like a commercial for sneakers. The truth is, the filmmakers never trusted the audience — or understood the power of art.

How the fine writer Simon Schama got involved with this lost in space project is beyond me.

Opera Idol

This story shown on the Nightly News really does evoke the emotion these end-of-show filler segments aspire to but often lack.

Paul Potts on the UK Idol, who was described as a car phone salesman, sings out; the yearning, baggy human spirit, overflowing.

Here it is at youtube

The Sopranos Fini

On Nightline David Chase said his mother was pretty much like Livia, Tony Soprano's monster mom. Chase said, “Nothing was ever enough for her.”

(Spoiler alert: don't read further if you haven't seen the last episode yet.)

Now that the series has come to a close it seems Chase's anger at the expectations placed on the Sopranos has been informed by that same resentment he felt towards his mother. I'm not going to do anything more Chase seems to be saying. It is just a TV show and this will have to be enough.

You would think with the family name that the Sopranos would have all been singing to the Feds at the end, even though Tony whacked someone who had gone into witness protection for doing just that. The hypocrisy of Tony's code of honor would then have completed one possible karmic circle.

Alternatively, since Chase rejects the neatly wrapped package of most TV plotting, as the family left the restaurant Tony could have been the victim of a random street crime perpetrated by young kids. As Tony slumped on the street, Carmela would be heard calling Tony's name with a last ominous shot of a steely Meadow. The outcome of the assault on Tony could be left ambiguous (future movies) but Meadow might feel called to service. Meadow could take over the family business, like The Godfather's Michael Corleone, borne back, ceaselessly, into the family's heart of darkness.

New Stuff

Just updated PaintedMatter's Storefront.

Click here to see (off site).

Freeman Dyson

In this interview you can hear a gentle brilliant soul speculating on the great issues of life. Freeman Dyson's sense of the mystery of things and the self-organizing principle that seems a part of what he describes as a universal mind, are only a few of the ideas discussed. Dyson describes his speculations as poetry, distinct from his scientific work, but still like science, stabs at the truth; he describes science as a meadow surrounded by a dark forest of mystery — the unknown. Dyson allows intuition its due, his sense of the inherent meaning of things is a foundation of his nature. Although the interview examines the complex relationship of religion and science, it also is about scientist as artist.

The wonderful interviewer, Robert Wright, is what Charlie Rose should be.

Mind At Play

Here is a great discussion at a site I just discovered that will probably destroy media discussion shows eventually. So much smarter and more personal and free ranging — rough edges and all, this is a great idea.

The linked wonderful discussion is between John Horgan (Stevens Center for Science Writings, JohnHorgan.org, etc.) and David Chalmers (Australian National University's Center for Consciousness, The Conscious Mind, etc.) Horgan is the mind-anchor, Chalmers the dreamer-wizard.

In one section The Matrix is discussed as an exploration of the neural code as software that, in the movie, had been cracked and used against humans.

Chalmers: “All morality is based in consciousness.”