Smiley turns 25
September 19, 2007
Carnegie Mellon University professor Scott E. Fahlman claims to be the first to use the infamous 
“smiley face,” at 11:44 a.m. on September 19, 1982.
He posted the emoticon (emotional icon) to an online bulletin board during a discussion about the limits of online humor. I sometimes think emoticons are mostly a crutch to avoid the necessity of writing clearly. I suppose in this age of unthinking instant communication they are necessary to avoid online mayhem, but I try to avoid writing anything that demands Mr. Smiley to bail me out.
Dave, :-p (So there!)
Holy Land by Satellite
September 16, 2007
At the back of my NET Bible, Reader’s Edition are 16 pages of incredible images of the Holy Land like the sample image that follows. The satellite imagery is courtesy of Rohr Productions Ltd., and it makes quite a story.
This is the first time that satellite imagery has been used in a study Bible to illustrate the Holy Land. These images are as detailed as photographs, yet as exact as conventional maps. They allow you to see all the geographical features in truly photo-realistic detail, and to place the biblical events in their proper geographical context.The color was derived from a single pass of the U.S. LandSat 5 satellite, which crossed the area early one crystal-clear, cloudless morning in January. The imagery, therefore, reflects the true look of the Holy Land on one particular day, despite the differences in each area
In April, 1997, I traveled to Israel on a tour sponsored by Ligonier Ministries. Our guide (who we were careful to call our “professor” to keep him out of trouble with the Israeli tour guides) was a researcher and Fuller Seminary graduate named Jim Martin who studied at Hebrew University In Jerusalem. I made copious notes as we walked the land from Dan to Elat.
But back to the images. Here are some technical details about how they were produced.
With LandSat 5 data, each picture element (pixel) covers 30 meters on the ground. This “resolution” has been increased 900% by combining it with black and white data from the French SPOT satellite, in which each pixel covers only 10 meters. This involved merging the LandSat and SPOT imagery, so that each set of nine SPOT pixels was superimposed exactly over the corresponding one LandSat pixel, over a distance of 250 miles. This merged data set was then “draped” over a 3-D relief model of the terrain, which was derived from highly accurate contour data, with exact positioning of every hilltop and river valley. Finally, special computer software was developed to process the whole database simultaneously in three dimensions. Only then was it possible to select the best viewpoints from which to illustrate every part of the Holy Land.
Aren’t you impressed? I surely am.
Dave, still re-living that memorable tour,
God loves movies
September 13, 2007
“Like hell He does!” was my instant reaction.
I was minding my own business, curled up with the latest Modern Reformation, when I was jarred by the title “God Loves Movies.” The article, which turned out to be very lively reading, purports to show that modernist Christianity has neglected to understand how very important visual imagery, drama, and storytelling are to God. How the author got his interview wasn’t revealed.
The author is one Brian Godawa, “…screenwriter for the award-winning feature film ‘To End All Wars,’ and author of ‘Hollywood Worldviews: Watching Films with Wisdom and Discernment.’ ” He cites The Lord of the Rings and The Passion of the Christ as examples of how a visual medium creates a “spiritual gut experience” for the viewer. Indeed.
And then there are dreams and visions: God’s form of television and movies. Joseph’s dreams of fat and skinny zombie cows, Ezekial’s Close Encounters with spinning wheels, Nebuchadnezzar’s Terminator statue, as well as other visions given to dozens of Old and New Testament saints are all stunning high-definition, Dolby Sensurround feasts for the senses as well as spirit. God loves movies. He produced a lot of them.
You can imagine the examples Godawa finds in The Book of Revelation, which he calls “a theatrical orgy of visual imagery, produced, written, and directed by Jesus Christ.”
I don’t know what to think of this article that contradicts so many of my shibboleths. Do not the mental images produced by lucid writing have so much more impact on the senses? Why spend several hours in a theater seat having your senses pounded when a few minutes with a book in hand creates a better image - with more understanding? Why suffer hearing loss from blaring theater sound when an hour at a concert is so much more uplifting?
I guess I have always resented the way movies and TV try to play mind games with me. When it comes to what I subject my mind to, I’m definitely pro-choice. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.
Dave, which he always was a stubborn cuss.
