[Read the rest of Food, sights, and culture in Rome, Venice, and Athens (2,507 more words)...]

Tyson at March 7th Senate hearing

Takeaway quote:

At what cost? The spending portfolio of the United States currently allocates fifty times as much money to social programs and education than it does to NASA. The 2008 bank bailout of $750 billion was greater than all the money NASA had received in its half-century history; two years’ U.S. military spending exceeds it as well. Right now, NASA’s annual budget is half a penny on your tax dollar. For twice that—a penny on a dollar—we can transform the country from a sullen, dispirited nation, weary of economic struggle, to one where it has reclaimed its 20th century birthright to dream of tomorrow.

[Read the rest of Neil deGrasse Tyson’s testimony for space exploration (Senate hearing videos and documents) (1,137 more words)...]

********* Adele – 21

********* Tori Amos – Night of Hunters (The Sin Palabras instrumental is exactly the same, just without words. Just as good to hear it this way.)

********* Foster the People – Torches

********* Metric – Fantasies

********* Parachute Musical – Kill It Cut It Down

******** Wilco – The Whole Love

******** MUTEMATH – Odd Soul

******** Florence + The Machine – Ceremonials

******** Justice – Audio, Video, Disco

******** Little Dragon – Ritual Union

******** King Creosote and Jon Hopkins – Diamond Mine

******** Paul Simon – So Beautiful or So What

******* Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross – The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

I feel like I should enjoy Fleet Foxes and Youth Lagoon more, but they just haven’t grabbed me (yet).

Part 1 (March 11, 2011)
Part 2 (July 26, 2011)

Headshot for Project 365

[Read the rest of Photo Project 365 (252 more words)...]

1. Skrillex (9/2-11/12, *Skream Benga, Nero, et al)
2. Portishead (10/1-10/27)
3. Cymbals Eat Guitars (9/20-10/27)
4. Wilco (9/13-10/5)
5. Battles (10/1-11/1)
6. Kanye West and Jay-Z (10/29-12/18)
7. Feist (10/29-12/6)
8. Beirut (9/21-11/13)
9. Das Racist (9/12-11/7)
10. EMA (10/7-10/30)
11. Blink-182/My Chemical Romance (Now-10/8, *Manchester Orchestra, Matt & Kim)
12. Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks (9/20-10/20)
13. The Rapture (9/22-10/21)
14. Odd Future (9/28-11/8)
15. Grouplove (Now-10/26)
16. Foo Fighters (9/14-11/6)
17. St. Vincent (10/2-11/4)
18. Neon Indian (9/15-10/21)
19. Girls (9/14-10/9)
20. Tiesto (9/15-10/8)
21. Blitzen Trapper / Dawes (10/7-11/15)
22. SBTRKT (10/25-11/5)
23. Death Cab for Cutie (9/30-10/22)
24. Yuck (9/22-10/14)
25. Arctic Monkeys (9/23-10/18)
26. Washed Out (9/13-10/17)
27. Deadmau5 (Now-11/5)
28. Foster the People (9/13-10/20)
29. Cults (9/3-10/12)
30. Gwar (10/18-11/27)

* Worthy opening acts (in my opinion).

- 35 Sonnets (1918, public domain)

I ran across Fernando Pessoa’s work less than a year ago while browsing the biography section of the library. The Penguin Classic’s cover photo of The Book of Disquiet drew me in, but I wasn’t prepared for the two minds of Pessoa contained within. Arguably Lisbon’s most beloved writer of all time, he invented the term “heteronym” as a way to write as an imaginary character (ultimately creating over 70 of them in his lifetime), each having his own style and voice. But aside from this unique aspect of Pessoa’s writing, the concepts he explores are what strike me most. I typically do not grasp the cadence and meaning of popular poetry; it’s a relief to read someone like Pessoa who uses simple language to describe the thoughts that pour out of him, literally as ink on paper.

******* Robyn – Robyn

********* Derik LaRon – Crash Radio ¹

********* Loscil – Endless Falls

******** Pretty Lights – Filling Up The City Skies

******** Britney Spears – Femme Fatale

******* Manchester Orchestra – Simple Math

******* Maroon 5 – Hands All Over

********* Danger Mouse & Daniele Luppi – Rome

********* Dada – Live: Official Bootleg, Vol. 1

******** Two Door Cinema Club – Tourist History

********* Tyler James – It Took The Fire (w/ review)

******** Alexandre Desplat – The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

******** Various Artists – Ghostly Swim

********* Daft Punk – Tron: Legacy

¹ Derik is not on Rate Your Music (yet), but you can follow him and his music on Twitter.

Related: A few album ratings – Part 1