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the universal
this afternoon, a flickr friend pointed me to an interesting project wherein the 'recently uploaded' images provided to flickr are parsed for public flags and geographic meta-data, then dynamicaly mapped across the planet. really, a rather seamless integration of a few independent technology streams.
we all love a clever hack; i can honestly say that this might be my favorite discovery in a lifetime of searching for clever hacks...
i sit now, listening to 'the universal,' from a band in england. i sip coffee pressed from beans in guatemala, roasted in portland, from a cup that was made in china, captivated by a display designed in cupertino. <...> i contemplate humanity.
(yes, this sounds pompous, self absorbed--gauche even--but spend 15 minutes in this trance, and try to come up with a better description. really.)
the world spins below: somehow both wholly indifferent, yet improbably compassionate. it sends postcards. snapshots. preciously private, profoundly public. glimpses of life behind closed doors. moments that I might not share, would not know, if i lived next door. even if i was there...
maybe even if i was god.