The Misconception: Music with mass appeal rises to the top of the charts.

The Truth: The music which becomes the most popular year to year is the result of random chance being influenced by social cues.

Every decade, you look back on the music you used to think was awesome and the clothes you used to wear in public and think, “What a dumbass.”

Some of it will stand the test of time, but most of it will fall from grace and return to its original form – crap.

How does this happen? Why do you keep doing this? Where to fads come from?

Lucky for you, researchers at Columbia University and Princeton figured out the answers to these questions.

Duncan Watts and Matthew Salganik created a fake music Web site where people could download and rate new songs from unknown artists. After a few weeks, they reset the experiment, brought in new people and did it all over again.

In the end, 13,000 people participated, and with each group some songs ended up being very popular, and some didn’t.

The crazy thing is, the songs which made it to the top of the charts were different with each run of the experiment with the exception of a handful which turned out to be popular no matter what.

They then did another round of experiments where they would take the songs a previous group said were crap and give them fake high ratings before letting people listen to them. This time around, those songs ended up at the top of the charts, with the exception of the truly awesome ones and the truly crappy ones, which still moved up or down based on their merit.

So, it turns out, if a song is simply mediocre, the success of the song is based on the self-fulfilling prophecy effect. (If people think there is going to be a shortage of gas they run out and buy a lot of it, which causes the shortage. If they think a song is popular, they buy it, which makes it popular.)

If a song is actually awesome and enough people hear it, it will be successful. If it sucks, same thing. But, if it is just somewhere in the middle, people will decide whether or not to like it based on the opinions of others.

After about 10 years, you get your objectivity back, and you look back on what used to be popular and realize it was never all that great and you are not so smart.

Links:

Scientists are working on an algorithm which predicts movie popularity

The study and other like it

A study on how pop music began

Another blog I’d found from eons ago had a few fantastic updates in it.  Soon I’ll be posting some others that relate to Hunter Thompson from that blog, and I plan to work on them a bit to update the info, making one big entry about his death (I had originally posted three blogs regarding his death within the following days. This one was written four years ago:

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The thing I don’t understand about people is the effect that another person has on them. I’m almost twenty six and I haven’t really even figured out how interactions between people really work. There’s some situations that I walk away from and think to myself what just happened? I’d like to take a year off of work and study reactions and counter-reactions in people, if only to wonder why everyone continuously messes up everyone else in a large and or small scale. Wars, Fights, Confusion, Firings, Molestation, Talking, Women, everything.

Everything revolves around a reaction and a counter-reaction in conversation form, or even glances, depending on the situation. I’m more prone to think that the popularity of someone is more dependant upon their reactions to things than what they look like, or who they’re friends with (consequently, a bevvy of good reactions to someone else could constitute why people are friends).

So how would people figure out to right wrongs? How would reactions get into a fixed state where there are no misunderstandings? It wouldn’t happen. People are too fixated on things that they like and dislike, which is where conversation starts, and reactions become the basis on how the conversation goes. I like this, you hate it. We both hate this, you like that. This food sucks, that girl’s cute.

I won’t even enter the area of religion, politics, or racism, mostly because the whole idea of those three being the brunt of everything that’s bad about reactions that counter-turns itself into something much larger kind of makes me say “Huh?”

Maybe, of course I’m thinking about this way too much, which is probably a reaction to the caffeine I’ve been inhaling today. In this case, writing this is the counter-reaction, and I haven’t even gotten into the science of Nuclear Reactions et al. Hm.

According the The Times, Brittany Murphy passed away this morning in LA, aged just 32. Brittany has reportedly died from a full cardiac arrest. I’m sure more details will follow sooner rather than later. A sad year for celebrity deaths this year.

Cx

SO! As many people know already, Jess, Hannah and I are going to the work Christmas Party dressed as the oh-so-lovely ladies from cult teen move, CLUELESS. Jess is going as Amber, Hannah is Cher and I’m going as Tai played originally by Brittany Murphy. We had planned this well over a week ago.

I was watching Clueless clips online this afternoon, then found a site that streamed the entire film. The streaming stopped working at 63 minutes, so while the film was loading, I logged into Twitter. I saw Brittany Murphy was trending – MASSIVE COINCIDENCE anyway no? Then found she was trending as ‘Brittany Murphy RIP’. Absolutely mental. Brittany died this morning in LA after a full cardiac arrest. She was aged 32.

We will indeed still be going to the party as the Clueless girls and I will endeavour to wear black knee high socks in tribute to the young actress, Brittany Murphy.

Thoughts?

Cx

Lady GaGa Voted “Woman Of The Year”
(12/18/09 2:06 PM)

LOS ANGELES, California – After an incredible year, Lady GaGa topped the list of MTV’s “Women of the Year” for 2009.

GaGa was EVERYWHERE this year, from the top of the Billboard charts to award shows to Gossip Girl and, of course, on X17online!

Kudos to GaGa for being voted top Woman of the Year over at MTV.

The rest of the list was rounded out by:

from X17.

Britney Spears was at 6 and Beyoncé at 4. The great, genius, moral Snookie was no where to be found in the top ten, or even hundred. Maybe they’ll vote Tiger Woods as man of the year. Gator Aid, Nike, AT&T and Gillette and his oh so beautiful model-wife seemed to think he really deserved it, for many years. Don’t you love the moral judgment of liberals?

Tohoshinki Japan Fanmeeting tour which was scheduled in January next year had been canceled, however the group popularity in Japan seems to remain.

According to Sankei Sports Japan on the 18th, ever since Tohoshinki becomes the face of healthy drink ‘Oronamic C’ commercial, the product campaign website has been flooded by numerous of Japan fans. The campaign is planning to give away a set of extra large posters and customized phone straps to 5000 chosen applicants, and once it’s announced, the number of people accessed the website increased about 4-5 times that almost caused the server to crash.

Tohoshinki will make appearance on the 30th at TBS’ ‘The 51st Japan Record Award’ and on the 31st at NHK’s ‘The 60th NHK Uta Gassen’ which are included as prestigious Japan New Year events. The title track of their new single ‘Break Out’ which will be released on January 29th is going to be theme song for NHK’s drama ‘Tomehane, Suzusato Koukou Syodobu’. While on February 17th, the group’s Japan first Best Album which includes their hits such as ‘Purple Line’ and ‘Jumun – MIROTIC’ is expected to release.

source: sportsseoul
trans: sharingyoochun.net
shared by: sharingyoochun.net + dbsknights + dtl

My name is Elizabeth Ann (last name omitted for privacy reasons). The name is fairly common for women in my generation and the generation before mine. It is still popular today; Elizabeth is usually in the top 20 most popular baby names every year.   I was never completely fond of my name because of its popularity.  I used to tell people that I was named after Queen Elizabeth. However that was not true.

My parents named me Elizabeth Ann for two reasons. The first reason was because of their meanings. The origin of Elizabeth is Hebrew and it means God is my oath (this is what I found when I did a quick baby name search just now, but my parents told me something slightly different.  They said house of God or house of prayer). Whenever you have an “EL” in a name there is usually God in the meaning.  And they chose Ann for my middle name because it means grace. The second reason is because these names are found in the Bible. Elizabeth was the mother of John the Baptist. Her story is found in the first chapter of Luke. Ann is a derivative of Hannah. Hannah’s story can be found in the first chapter of 1 Samuel.

There are many nicknames for Elizabeth.  There is Eliza, Liz, Lizzy, Beth, Betsy, Libby, Buffy, and my personal favorite Betty.  I have been called Elizabeth, Beth Ann, Liz, Lizzy, Beef, Bethany, BethieBeth and Beth.  Out of all of these I despise Liz and Lizzy. Only two people are allowed to call me Liz and no one else.  One uncle refers to me as Beth Ann. One Uncle refers to me as Elizabeth. But everyone else just calls me Beth.   I started referring to myself in the past couple of years as Betty, but that is mostly on the internet.  I have always liked Betty as a nickname for Elizabeth and I figured if I wanted to be called Betty in my old age I would have to start referring to myself as Betty. Yes, I do realize that BettyBeth is pretty much the same as calling me, ElizabethElizabeth.  I like Beth too.  My parents have called me Beth my entire life, it is more my name than Elizabeth. It is not very common. Most people with the name Elizabeth are Liz.  However I do see that changing especially in Hollywood.

Growing up I never remember any main characters named Beth or secondary characters named Beth. There might have been like a background character referred to as Beth but they never returned to the show. I am speaking generally, not referring to any particular show.  In the recent past there has been the movie “I Love You Beth Cooper”.  There is another movie coming out with the Veronica Mars chick where the main character’s name is Beth.  I even saw someone named Beth that directed an episode of “30 Rock”. I think it’s great that the name Beth is becoming more mainstream, but all of these “Beths” are blonde (not sure about the director of the “30 Rock” episode though).  We need some brunette Beth’s out there. Unfortunately if it becomes too popular I am going to have to find a new nickname.

While Barack Obama won the democratic primary for presdient….and went on to get the job…..a strange thing has happend….Hillary Clinton has found redemption from the nations ‘news-watching’ public.…she currently leads the President in the Clarus Poll and a recent Gallop poll…..

The former First Lady and New York State Senator ran one the worst first half season presidential primary campaigns (which cost her the nomination), but has found that people respect her trademark hard work ethos and her traveling all over the planet for her country and her boss…but,  to be fair to the president…. she has excaped the poll robbing problems Obama has been saddled with…..Healthcare, The Economy and Wall Street bailouts…..

While not in the drivers seat…and tired from being on the road more than the president (image that?) she must smile to herself when she see’s Obama taking shoots from the right…and the left….he, he, he

You know…..if she keeps this up she could run????………..

466

“Thus the metric system did not really catch on in the States, unless you count the increasing popularity of the nine-millimeter bullet.” – Dave Barry

User-friendliness is the key

To make a system mainstream it must be popular in patronage and should be a major tourist magnet. Popularity should be the single focus and all issues should be judged accordingly.   Public transport systems all over the world struggle.  Many networks, even in cities with high density and tram tradition, depend on heavy government subsidy to survive.  Australia does not have high density nor can it be called a tram homeland.  Any tram system, traditional or dynamic capacity, for it to avoid the deficit trap, must achieve not medium but high patronage .  Marginally viable systems can be supported by governments and patronage propped up by subsidised fares.  Sooner or later however the enthusiasms of tax payers and various governments vanes and the system settles on a lower level.

Only genuine, market driven high patronage is true viability.  In best case it can even achieve independent profitability for the operator. If achieved without or with only little government subsidy, it is sustainable, avoids the drain on the public purse and avoids taxpayer’s anger.  Morever, only a profitable system will imbue the rest of the economy. Lukewarm or propaganda driven popularity on the other hand is not sustainable.  Worse, sooner or later it promotes dullness, a known poison for tourism.

This leaves the question of how to make the system popular; how to genetate and maintain high patronage?

The answer is short: user-friendliness.

I was recently thinking about George Clooney. For the past few years he seems to have been in a movie almost every year that has been hailed by critics as “one of the best movies of the year.” I write that facetiously as my wife and I often joke about this type of shameless marketing. Nonetheless, he is now getting praise for his performance in Up in the Air, a film being hailed with platitudes like being “one of the best movies of the year.” If you don’t believe me, just check out the reviews on Rotten Tomatoes.

George Clooney in his latest critically loved film, Up in the Air.

I haven’t seen the movie so I don’t really know if it’s deserving of the praise. What I find interesting though is that there hasn’t seem to have been an actor in a long time who is approaching a sort of Tom Hanks-like popularity for both a substantial portion of the population and film buffs alike. If you don’t remember the Tom Hanks era of movie dominance, you are probably pretty young.

Is George Clooney the new Tom Hanks? I’m starting to wonder if that’s the case. Now I know that some readers are going to say that being in critically-adored movies doesn’t constitute popularity. That might be true. But when the famous actors of today come to mind who do you think of? Who is most on your mind?

Brad Pitt? Maybe, but he’s not really a versatile enough actor in my opinion to have as strong of a case and following.  I also think (perhaps incorrectly) that he has not been in as many critically praised movies. What’s odd is that Brad Pitt and George Clooney have been in so many movies together recently that you almost have to wonder if they are competing with each other to be America’s favorite (or at least film critics’ favorite).

But then there’s Will Smith. He has also been in a lot of popular blockbusters and has attempted some serious movies. He might be more popular than Clooney at this point in time among the overall public, but his choices in non-blockbuster films have been lackluster. He doesn’t seem to have as many film critics drooling over him as does Clooney.

For whatever reason Denzel Washington doesn’t really seem to generate the buzz he used to, and so I don’t think we should really consider him.  Although I should mention that a recent online poll suggests that for 3 years in a row he has been “America’s favorite movie star.” It’s an online poll so we have to take it as pretty unrepresentative I think. I never hear about Denzel’s movies much anymore either. Maybe he just isn’t as willing to promote them as much as other actors are or critics have decided he just doesn’t impress them much anymore.

Probably the chief competitor I can think of is Johnny Depp. He might be the most popular actor of all today (even knocking off Will Smith) with a combination of independent favorites and commercial films, but the Pirates of the Caribbean movies were so debatable as spectacles of entertainment that his reputation seems somewhat tarnished by the polarity of opinion those movies inspired. I actually liked the second movie, but the first and third were pretty dull for me.

So what do you think? Is George Clooney just really good at choosing which films to be in? Is there something about his acting that makes him special? Why do critics seem to like him and his movies so much? Are there any actors I have forgotten who are major challengers to his critical popularity?

Ed Wood, Jr.

Edward Davis Wood, Jr. (October 10, 1924 – December 10, 1978), better known as Ed Wood, was an American screenwriter, director, producer, actor, author, and editor, who often performed many of these functions simultaneously. In the 1950s, Wood made a run of cheap and poorly produced genre films, now humorously celebrated for their technical errors, unsophisticated special effects, large amounts of ill-fitting stock footage, idiosyncratic dialogue, eccentric casts and outlandish plot elements, although his flair for showmanship gave his projects at least a modicum of critical success.

Wood’s popularity waned soon after his biggest ‘name’ star, Béla Lugosi, died. He was able to salvage a saleable feature from Lugosi’s last moments on film, but his career declined thereafter. Toward the end of his life, Wood made pornographic movies and wrote pulp crime, horror, and sex novels. His posthumous fame began two years after his death, when he was awarded a Golden Turkey Award as Worst Director of All Time. The lack of conventional filmmaking ability in his work has earned Wood and his films a considerable cult following.

Following the publication of Rudolph Grey’s biography Nightmare of Ecstasy: The Life and Art of Edward D. Wood, Jr. (1992), Wood’s life and work have undergone a public rehabilitation of sorts, with new light shed on his evident zeal and honest love of movies and movie production. Tim Burton’s biopic of the director’s life, Ed Wood, earned two Academy Awards.

Trivia:

Reportedly went into battle during his stint in the marines wearing a red bra and panties under his uniform.

One of Mr. Wood’s pseudonyms (Akdov Telmig) is vodka gimlet spelled backwards…

At the time of his death, the industry newspaper, Variety, failed to run his obituary.

A surviving non-fiction manuscript, supposedly written by Wood, about working in Hollywood was published as “Hollywood Rat Race” in December 1998.

The continued interest in Wood led to two of his steamy adult paperbacks being reset and republished. They included “Death of a Transvestite” (1967, aka “Let Me Die in Drag”) republished in 1995 and 1999, and “Killer in Drag” (1965) that was republished in 1999.

Wood served in the U.S. Marine Corps during World War II and took part in the storming of the beaches at Tarawa.

His first wife, Norma McCarty, kicked him out of their house on their wedding night when she discovered he was wearing women’s underwear. The marriage was never consummated, serving as grounds for an annulment less than six months later.

Upon returning to the US following WWII, he briefly attended Northwestern University in Chicago before joining a travelling carnival (he started out as the Geek, biting the heads off of live chickens, before becoming the Half Man, Half Woman).

Enlisted in the US Marine Corps in May of 1942. His claims to wearing women’s underwear in battle never seem to distract him from his duty: In addition to taking part in combat in the Marshall Islands and Naumea, he also survived the bloody battle for Tarawa. By all accounts he was a fierce combat soldier. During the invasion he had most of his front teeth knocked out in hand-to-hand combat with a Japanese soldier. Wood later served in a G-2 (intelligence) unit in the South Pacific, until he was machine-gunned up one of his legs which then became gangrenous. He served out the remainder of his time as an office typist, and was honorably discharged in 1944. He was decorated with the Silver and Bronze Stars, two Purple Hearts, and Sharpshooter’s Medal. By all accounts, Wood was an exemplary combat soldier.

Born October 10th, the same day that his idol Orson Welles died many years later.

Is portrayed by Johnny Depp in Ed Wood (1994)

Four of his films have been lampooned on the television series “Mystery Science Theater 3000″ (1988): The Unearthly (1957), Bride of the Monster (1955), The Violent Years (1956) and The Sinister Urge (1960). MST’s producers considered including Plan 9 from Outer Space (1959), but found it had too much dialog for the show’s format, and that it would make too obvious a target, stating that “Everyone’s made fun of ‘Plan 9 From Outer Space’.” Series regular and head writer Michael J. Nelson would, however, go on to do an audio commentary for a 2006 DVD release.

One of his regular cast members was Lyle Talbot, who also played Commissioner Gordon in one of the first Batman serials. The biopic of Ed Wood was directed by Tim Burton, who also directed two Batman films.

Executor of B-actor Kenne Duncan’s estate. Duncan and Wood were good friends and long time drinking buddies. Wood held Duncan’s (a BYOB event) wake at the pool of his apartment building and invited guests to give their recollections of his friend on the diving board.

Noted actor George Zucco, whose career had hit the skids and trying to recover from a recent stroke, approached Wood about working for him in 1953. Zucco literally begged him for work, but Wood had nothing in the casting stage at the time.

Hired Lyle Talbot and Bela Lugosi at the nadir of their careers. Both actors would be paid off daily in cash, not necessarily by their demands (although Lugosi was often insistent due to his heroin habit). Wood habitually paid off everyone, cast and crew, in cash. In the last few years of his life this habit led to him being rolled stumbling out of liquor stores in the seedy neighborhood he lived in.

Profiled in Tom Weaver’ book “It Came from Weaver Five” (McFarland & Co., 1996).

For much of his life, John Calvin had two close friends — Farel and Viret. Farel was very hot-headed and out-spoken, while Viret was of very mild temperament, an instinctive peace-keeper. Farel often came to Geneva and stayed at Calvin’s home, where, sometimes with Viret, the friends would have long talks about theology and current events over a glass. Calvin delighted in the company of his zealous friend. Nevertheless, as time went on he came to see that Farel’s inflexible nature made him a doughty defender but a limited propagator of the gospel. He often sent his own discourses and letters to Viret, whose job was to moderate his language. Calvin himself had been more hot-headed as a young man, and he worked to curb his own tongue.

After Farel inappropriately denounced a prominent woman in Geneva from the pulpit, which turned her whole family against him, Calvin wrote him a remarkable letter:

“When you have Satan to combat, and you fight under Christ’s banner, he who puts on your armor and draws you into battle will give you the victory. But…we only earnestly desire that insofar as your duty permits you will accommodate yourself more to the people. There are, as you know, two kinds of popularity: the one, when we seek favor from motives of ambition and the desire of pleasing; the other, when, by fairness and moderation, we gain their esteem so as to make them teachable by us. You must forgive us if we deal rather freely with you…You are aware how much we love and revere you…We desire that in those remarkable endowments which the Lord has conferred upon you, no spot or blemish may be found for the malevolent to find fault with, or even to carp at.”

Here Calvin draws an extremely important distinction. There are two very different motivations for adapting and accommodating our message to the sensibilities of a group of people. The first motive is ‘ambition’ — we do it for our sake, for our own glory and approval. The other reason we may accommodate people is for their sake, so that we can gradually win their trust until they become open to the truth they need so much. The first motive will so control us that we will never offend people. The second motive will help us choose our battles and not offend people unnecessarily. The Farels of the world cannot see any such distinction — they believe any effort to be judicious and prudent is a cowardly ’sell-out’. But Calvin wisely recognized that his friend’s constant, intemperate denunciations often stemmed not from a selfless courage, but rather from the opposite — pride. He wrote of Farel to Viret saying, “He cannot bear with patience those who do not comply with his wishes.”

There’s a reason for gaining people’s esteem that is not vain-glorious, and, at the same time, there’s a motivation for boldly speaking the truth — that is vain-glorious.

The letters of Calvin and the information for this came from the great new biography by Bruce Gordon, Calvin (Yale, 2009) pp.150-152.

Written by Rev. Tim Keller of Redeemer Presbyterian Church

As any teenager will tell you, popularity is a fickle thing. Wikipedia defines this as the elusive quality of being well-liked; well-known; or in demand.

Not just a concern for teenagers – life is all about reaching for unattainable goals, being seen as ‘one of the best’ – and this is no different in the blogosphere. As a result, many bloggers have taken to offering tips on how to ‘become more well-known, more quoted, and more linked to’. In other words, more popular.

So you’ve registered a blog, you have funky ideas… but how do you build an audience that will keep coming back for more? Popular local blogger, Laurian Clemence (A.K.A Peas on Toast), states the following: “I think just from my experience, it’s all about how you write – not what you write about. A good example of this would be a very popular blog called ‘The Most Boring Blog In the World.’ The blogger writes two to five lines each day on inanimate objects – it’s true genius.” Peas adds that it’s important to engage and interact with an audience – replying to their comments, asking them questions, and making some posts interactive should get the ball rolling.

Good advice. Also keep in mind that while content is key, blogs that look good and are designed nicely also attract readers. Any blog with content that is controversial; pushes the envelope slightly; feeds drama; or is on a personal level, is generally popular as it is entertaining and creates a diversion from ordinary life.

Post your ways of increasing blog readership below.

As you can see from the above picture, on the fifth of this month my website had a HUGE jump in views. But not only that, my magic site also had a very large jump in page views. Whaaa? Did I suddenly become popular or something? Or did my fifteen minutes of fame happen two days ago while I drifted unaware?