Apple has released an upgraded iTunes 7.2, and the two big features new in this version are iTunes Plus, where one can download higher-quality, DRM-free music, and iTunes U, a new section on iTS where lectures and talks from prestigious educational institutions can be downloaded.
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05/31/2007
05/30/2007
05/29/2007
How to say "Happy birthday!" and mean it
Last week two of my acquaintances had their birthday. On both occasions I failed to say to them "Happy birthday!" It was just a matter of sending a short note; why should it be so hard? What does it take for this communicative act to be successful?
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05/25/2007
05/24/2007
Meaning of the meaninglessness (Ecclesiastes)
Last night I changed my "mental reading plan" on a whim, and decided to read Ecclesiastes in the Old Testament. I read it this evening.
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05/23/2007
05/22/2007
"These spots mean measles."
A significant number of Japanese schools and universities are forced to close due to the outbreak of measles. Infected by philosophy, however, I am reminded by the word "measle" not the disease but the famous example of natural meaning that Grice uses (See his 1957 article "Meaning").
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05/21/2007
non-noのTVCMは何を伝えているのか
といっても、田中美保がなぜ、どのようにカワイイかを述べようというのではなくて（無論それも可能だけど）、今オンエアーされているnon-noのCM（音量注意）に関して少し不思議に思ったことを書き留めるだけです。
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Summer. Voice. Thinking.
What is it to love? To pay attention, to yourself as well as to others around you. How simple, yet how difficult. It was Victor Hugo who said "Aimer, c'est agir." Now I would put the verb in reflexive: "Aimer, c'est s'agir."
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05/18/2007
結婚は人間の喜びと幸せの限界…？
従兄弟のR君がこの春にめでたく結婚したわけですが、式とパーティの様子（僕はアメリカにいたので出席できませんでしたが）を今iPhotoでフォトブックにまとめています。半分仕事、半分家族サービスという感じ。
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05/17/2007
2nd On-line Philosophy Conference
The Second Annual On-line Philosophy Conference is going on here. Anybody can participate in this exciting enterprise, without paying any traveling expenses or register fee (this type of virtual meeting on the Internet may be the norm in near future).
I watched the first week's keynote address by Ernest Sosa (Rutgers New Brunswick; he gave a talk on a similar topic at UVa two years ago, if I remember correctly), and am now reading the paper by Meredith Williams (Johns Hopkins), on Wittgenstein's critique of Fregean theory. Next week I'll try to look at the piece by Jonathan Dancy (UT Austin).
Sosa's Keynote address is videocast. Check it out and have a taste of what it's like to be at a philosophy conference.
I watched the first week's keynote address by Ernest Sosa (Rutgers New Brunswick; he gave a talk on a similar topic at UVa two years ago, if I remember correctly), and am now reading the paper by Meredith Williams (Johns Hopkins), on Wittgenstein's critique of Fregean theory. Next week I'll try to look at the piece by Jonathan Dancy (UT Austin).
Sosa's Keynote address is videocast. Check it out and have a taste of what it's like to be at a philosophy conference.
05/16/2007
音を聴くこと、音楽を聴くこと
僕は最近までクラシックの声楽というのがどうにも苦手で、歌曲を聴きはじめたのも大学に入ってからのことですし、宗教曲を含めた合唱曲の分野はまったく未開拓なのですが、最近エリック・ウィテカー（Eric Whitacre）というアメリカの若い現代作曲家を知りました。
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05/15/2007
Update : Prose "Speech given at the Inkstone reception"
Here:
Speech given at the Inkstone reception (opens in a new window)
Inkstone, a student-run organization at UVa that publishes a yearly magazine containing literary works and articles related to Asian American issues, accepted two of my poems for the 2007 issue. They invited me to give a brief speech and read a poem at their reception.
The speech is presented here almost verbatim. At the reception, I gave this speech, and read one of the poems accepted, entitled "Interpretations of Silence." I spoke hogwash, as does the poem, and I'm sure people thought: "What is this guy talking about?"
Speech given at the Inkstone reception (opens in a new window)
Inkstone, a student-run organization at UVa that publishes a yearly magazine containing literary works and articles related to Asian American issues, accepted two of my poems for the 2007 issue. They invited me to give a brief speech and read a poem at their reception.
The speech is presented here almost verbatim. At the reception, I gave this speech, and read one of the poems accepted, entitled "Interpretations of Silence." I spoke hogwash, as does the poem, and I'm sure people thought: "What is this guy talking about?"
05/10/2007
捨てる紙あれば疲労ばかりあり
今ちょうど朝の三時をまわったところで、あと７時間半ほどで、夏休みの間荷物を預かってもらう倉庫の業者さんがくるのですが、さっきようやく本が大体片付いてきたかな、という進行状況（笑泣）。
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