“The basic Goal of Data Engineering, is to transfer the burden of the mundane from man to machine” – by a famous McGill professor back in 1982 in an introductory course on Computer Architecture.

Technology is the practical application of our determination to expand beyond our physical limitations, defy any preset fate, and control our destiny.

Technology is not good, or bad. How we use it depends on what we want to accomplish, our inherent strengths and…weaknesses.

Ωραιάνθη Παναγκάρου - blue note Athens, foto by Toni

With technology comes a certain beauty, a certain harmony. No wonder the first computer programmer, was a lovely woman, and the daughter of one of the greatest romantic poets of all time. 

The   projection of human falacies, complexes and fears through technology will lead to ugliness and destruction.  

Technology will provide the tools that will allow the artist to be “the creator of beautiful things “.

We can forgive a man for making a useful things as long as he does not admire it. The only excuse for making a useless thing is that one admires it intensely.

All art is quite useless - Oscar Wilde

Led Zeppelin Ohio 1975 doin' Rock'n Roll - foto Chantal "on my neck"

Scientists as back as the 1800s predicted that the emissions brought about by the industrial age will eventually lead to the greenhouse effect. Surely a species intelligent enough to predict the future consequences of the dawning of  a new age will eventually be able to use that same prowess to resolve this aftermath and forge the way ahead for a better world, Copenhagen or no Copenhagen.

I guess the real challenge for humanity is to first of all come to terms with itself. The rest is just simple application of principles.

Finally, there ain’t nothing like a British Accent to make that ol’ Rock, Roll

Enjoy your holidays;see y’all in the New Year.

The butterfly effect is a metaphor in chaos theory suggesting that even the smallest change in initial conditions can produce large variations in long term behavior.   The phrase literally refers to the idea that a flap of a butterfly’s wings can create tiny changes in the atmosphere that may ultimately alter the path of a tornado, prevent it altogether, or create one.  I’m a big believer in this kind of thinking, that the smallest actions taken (or not taken) can hugely alter the course of your life and the lives of other people, many whom you will never know.

It might seem then that chaos theory and the idea of destiny couldn’t be more different notions.  But that’s where I think the work of a higher power comes in.  God reveals himself to be omnipotent (all powerful), omniscient (all knowing), and omnipresent (always present everywhere).  I’ve always had this idea that in the afterlife God will reveal these powers to us by showing us all of the different ways our lives could have gone and how each interaction we’ve had impacted our own lives, the lives of people we’d never meet, and the world we live in.  It would happen in the kind of supernatural way where God would, in just a few moments, play in our minds millions of hours of imagery and detail and we’d understand the intricate design of it all and it would hit us in the way where you suddenly understand the power of God and how the orchestration of all of these interactions is just so above us.  I think it would hit us so hard, overloading our emotions and we would just fall down and weep, trying to comprehend the wisdom and power of God.

Bamboo Colour II by Marjolijn Van Ginkel

When I try to envision this, an image always comes to my mind not unlike the above piece by Marjolijn Van Ginkel.  The act of receiving all of this data in just second I think if viewed by a third party watching someone receive this information would look a bit like the above piece of art with threads of consciousness and paths of our lives represented by colorful lines and how their paths intersect and interact with each other, the lines moving at incredibly fast speeds.

I think this is such a powerful concept to me because it’s the idea that while chaos might drive our circumstances in ways that we will never know, there’s a power in the universe so great that the millions of different branches of outcomes that could occur each second are supervised and under control, that perhaps there’s a balance between chaos and destiny that we will never really understand in this world.  Just a thought.

In a role that looks likely to eclipse fellow rocker Steven Adler’s appearance in slasher comedy ‘Dahmer vs. Gacy’ erstwhile Black Label Society/Ozzy axeman Zakk Wylde plays Uncle Jed to title charcter Bones White in late-80s set coming-of-age flick ‘`Bones.’

The movie,  the writing and directorial debut of Frank Pestarino, is described as a “heart-breaking…story [about] four teens growing up in 1989 blue-collar New York” and a bond that ties them together for life. Hmmm. Like…finding a dead body?!

swimming pools, movie stars....

And then there’s the cast. Wylde notwithstanding it consists of a bunch of still unknown but rapidly climbing actors such as 13-year old Jimmy Bennett (‘Bones White’), most recently — and geekily — seen as ‘Young James T. Kirk’ in ‘Star Trek’ and Toe Thompson in Robert Rodriguez’ ‘Shorts.’

Melissa Ordway (‘17 Again’) plays ‘Samantha Reeves.’ Jonna Walsh (‘Couple’s Retreat’) is Samantha’s little sis, ‘Kelly Reeves.’ Jesse James plays ‘Derrick Scott’ in this movie. At 20-years old  his resume already stretches back as far as ‘Walker, Texas Ranger,’ ‘As Good As It Gets,’ and ’Gods and Monsters,’ making stops in ”Blow’ and ‘The Butterfly Effect’ along the way. 

Perhaps most Geektastic of all, however, is the casting of Donnie Most, sorry Don Most, as ‘Mr. Reeves,’ the girls’ father. Most remains most famous for  his role as ‘Ralph Malph’ in ’Happy Days,’ but was also in early 80s series ‘Dungeons & Dragons,’ the late 80s’ ‘Teen Wolf’ animated series, and had one- or two-off appearances in ‘Baywatch,’ ‘Star Trek: Voyager,’ and as the voice of ‘The White Rabbit’ in ‘Sabrina the Teenage Witch.’

I’m not privvy to the plot at all, but the general premise and a cast consisting of a very unlikely musician crossover, a bunch of legit up-and-comers, and a Tarantino-style resurrection move, smell to me like either a classic-in-the-making or an unmitigated disaster.

Mr. Pestarino, it is now largely down to you.

the butterfly effect by melaikick

inspiration… nope… not quantum mechanics, not chance or destiny either… and no i’m not into metamorphosis stuff. si melaikick pa din ako… just more girly, hahaha. have you ever seen a butterfly on water? when it lands it causes these nice ripples on the water and to me …it’s kind of beautiful…

meron kasi kaming malaking dram ng tubig dati sa bahay namin, you know, the metal ones that are used to catch rain water… and we have this garden with lots of lilies and a humongous imelda rose bush so madaming visitor na butterflies. ewan ko… i just sort of remembered it. kaya ayan! thanks to sudds for the brushes! instead of using a color palette, why not use rainbow colors… o baka nasobrahan lang ako ng pag-stay dito sa bahay ko? rainbow colors kasi yung walls ko. baket ba… saka swerte naman ang polka dots…

i do hope you enjoyed my art. i guess the yellow butterfly’s most noticeable… hope you can see the other ones!

yun lang.

♥ melai

Who Among the Angels?

Dear Mother, for you the rainbow has ended

And what you thought was gold, was only the beam of light from your own heart

Playing over the broken surfaces of unsaid things, unfinished stories

You have walked this beach for a thousand years, looking abck only at the solitary line of footprints woven like a dark thread over the sea’s dark edge

Everything you have said to the bright empty sky comes back to you, on the wind and the murmuring tide

 Who Among the Angels has not looked down and wept with you, as you pulled on the bright threads of what you feared would never come undone?

Nothing can change this, nothing, nothing, nothing can change this, nothing

 But as for you my little one, in that cold jagged moment when all things suddenly stopped, did you notice the star as it broke from the high constellation and fell towards you until it filled your night?

As its soft light washed over you, gathered you up, who can say when your frail heart went under, surrounded by the thunder of His wings

Did your eyes open like flowers, swimming into the bright depths of His burning gaze as He bore you ever higher to where the rainbow starts?

 Who has not rejoiced with you, looking on as you become like gold, pure gold in the furnace of His heart?

Here, a story has begun in which nothing can hurt you, nothing

Nothing can hurt you, nothing

Nothing can hurt you, nothing

Nothing

Nothing

Who Among the Angels? Steve Scott – The Butterfly Effect 

Va recomandam “The butterfly effect” 1 si 3. De ce 1 si 3? Pentru ca 2 e foarte plictisitor, iar 1 si 3 au reusit sa ne tina in suspans si mie una, sa imi intre la sufletel. Plus ca anumite secvente mi-au facut pielea ca la gaina

Cred ca fiecare din noi isi doreste sa schimbe ceva din trecut. Eu am invatat ca trebuie sa facem in prezent astfel incat pe viitor sa nu regretam nimic. Sper sa va placa.

Desde que vi la pelicula “The Butterfly Effect” (El efecto mariposa) me enamoré completamente de Ashton Kutcher…
Acá les dejo una foto que estoy…digamos…con él

Esa foto me la hizo una amiga, esta increible!

Z.Beksinski

L’articolo di Ivan Quaroni, apparso in Lobodilattice n. 102,  che presento oggi, si conclude con una domanda che faccio riaffiorare  in apertura:

- Dove sono dunque le famigerate barriere tra Oriente e Occidente? -

E’ con questa chiave che invito alla lettura.

*

Tratto da: THE BUTTERFLY EFFECT – La Rubrica di Ivan Quaroni, N.03: *IL SEGNO E L’ORIENTE*

“L’agglomerato frusciante d’una lingua sconosciuta costituisce una deliziosa protezione, avviluppa lo straniero (per poco che il paese non gli sia ostile) in una pellicola sonora che trattiene alle soglie delle sue orecchie tutte le inflessioni della lingua materna: l’origine, regionale o sociale di chi parla, il suo livello di cultura, d’intelligenza, di gusto, l’immagine attraverso cui si costituisce come persona e che vi chiede di riconoscere.”
(Roland Barthes – L’Impero dei segni)

Il segno è l’atto di una mente ordinatrice, consapevole della propria esistenza e perciò in grado di generare un’auto-rappresentazione. In ordine di tempo succede al suono, che formula la prima espressione vocale. Prima è il verbo (logos), poi il simbolo che lo designa – preceduto da ere di rappresentazione zoomorfa e antropomorfa. Tutta l’umanità, dalle Grotte di Lescaux all’Action Painting di Pollock, si esprime attraverso segni, grafemi, pittogrammi, infine parole. Segno è il vibrante colare della pasta vegetale sulle pareti delle grotte, appena illuminate dall’estatica danza della fiamma delle torce. Ma anche il casuale dripping di vernice sulla tela, nel tempo in cui la civiltà si addensa intorno al caos delle aree urbane. La nostra esistenza, dall’alba della prima origine, si connette intimamente alla presenza di segni. Il famoso mondo “come foresta di simboli “. Se ci fermiamo un attimo a riflettere, vediamo il nostro cervello saturo vomitare milioni di grafemi, miriadi di segnali accumulati in millenni. Molti sono espressivi, altri no. Roland Barthes ha inventato un Giappone immaginario, non geopolitico, per descrivere l’universo linguistico dell’estraneità. Ognuno di noi porta l’estraneità nel proprio serbatoio interiore, divenendo talvolta incapace di leggere persino le lettere della propria lingua madre.

Vi sarà capitato di scorgere un’insegna luminosa in lontananza, quella di un cartello pubblicitario o di un Motel lungo una tangenziale e di leggere un significato affatto diverso da quello reale. Per uno strano fenomeno di dislessia visiva, lo straniero che è in noi prende il sopravvento: legge parole che non ci sono, le assembla secondo logiche oscure, con la smania ipnotica di una sibilla che consulta l’oracolo. Insomma, legge in modo diverso. I segni sono aprioristici, precedono il gesto del tracciarli o dell’interpretarli. Jung sarebbe d’accordo.. . forse anche Platone.

L’arte conosce due tipi di segni: quelli che significano e quelli che non significano. La calligrafia, ossia la bella scrittura, percorre il duplice binario della grazia estetica e del significato che per suo tramite è veicolato. Gli esempi sono molteplici: i codici miniati dell’Occidente cristiano medievale, la calligrafia Zen e quella arabo-islamica. Segni e simboli che rimandano alle altezze delle più disparate spiritualità, che aprono un varco nella via della Gnosi e della mistica.

Vi è qualcosa di più elevato di un’arte al servizio dell’evoluzione interiore?

L’Occidente, dimenticata per lungo tempo la malia della calligrafia, ha finito per subire il fascino della scrittura Zen riscoprendo, così, la gioia del segno tracciato con mano rapida e sicura, del gesto secco e pre-razionale dei calligrafi giapponesi. Il cardiogramma intelligente di Alechinsky, gli ideogrammi di Franz Kline, la non figurazione psichica di Mathieu, gli alphabets di Michaux e l’automatismo di Hartung, nell’intento di liberare la pittura dalla gabbia della rappresentazione – figurativa o astratta che sia – si sono appropriati della grammatica estranea del buddismo Zen, tralasciandone però i precetti spirituali. I segni vengono stravolti, reinventati. Nasce un tipo di segno nuovo: quello che non dice altro che se stesso, ed esprime la dimensione pre-razionale dell’immagine. Gli artisti giapponesi ne rimangono scioccati, osservano gli occidentali stravolgere la loro tradizione calligrafica e giocare come bambini dispettosi con alfabeti che non conoscono. L’invidia di questa libertà fa nascere formazioni artistiche come il Gruppo Gutai, che trasforma il segno in gesto, azione e performance. Il significato diventa atto. Ma questo non è Zen?

Meno popolare della calligrafia zen e forse non troppo propagandata dai pittori orientalisti europei, l’arte calligrafica islamica continua indisturbata la sua gloriosa tradizione. Per secoli le scritture corsive e cufiche dei calligrafi musulmani restano una delle principali forme d’arte dell’Islam. I versetti del Corano sono scritti e riscritti in forme sempre nuove, soprattutto la Basmala, che apre la preghiera ricorrente. La calligrafia diviene addirittura una forma di rappresentazione figurativa. Con versi coranici si compongono figure di animali, personaggi, piante e ogni altro oggetto di rappresentazione. Non è vero che l’arte islamica è aniconica.

La calligrafia islamica comunica un triplice messaggio: quello del significato (il versetto coranico, l’hadit del profeta Maometto o il verso di una poesia mistica), quello del significante (lo stile cufico, quello corsivo o altro ancora) e quello della figura (la forma composta dalla scrittura, che può essere una nave, un cammello, un sufi in meditazione, una mela o qualsiasi altra cosa). In questo senso il valore segnico della calligrafia araba si trova agli antipodi rispetto alle sperimentazioni dell’arte informale occidentale: qui un segno pazientemente meditato, una sovrabbondante ipertestualità, là un segno istintivo, un’assenza totale di (pre)meditazione. Ancora oggi quest’arte antica si rinnova mantenendo intatti i presupposti di partenza, come nella calligrafia di Lassad Methoui che talvolta sembra confinare con le tag della cultura hip hop.

Un capitolo a parte della storia dell’arte è quello dell’arabesco – che è pure segno -, della decorazione a intrecci geometrici o fitomorfi che in Occidente ha il suo corrispettivo nelle grottesche di derivazione romana imperiale. I motivi geometrici, composti dalla ripetizione di figure semplici, intrecciate o sovrapposte, sono impiegati soprattutto nella produzione tessile (tappeti e tessuti) e in quella ceramica. Oltre ai tralci vegetali e ai motivi zoomorfi, anche la calligrafia viene impiegata per comporre arabeschi. Le cause di sviluppo di questo tipo di arte sono molteplici: il portato delle popolazioni nomadi con il loro gusto per un’arte astratta e decorativa e la proibizione di raffigurare l’immagine divina e umana all’interno delle moschee, la meraviglia dei fulgidi esempi di decorazione greco-romano-bizantina, ripresi poi dalle espressioni artistiche delle popolazioni turche. La storia dell’arabesco ha una sua circolarità: parte dall’arte classica per raggiungere quell’islamica e ritorna in Occidente influenzando molta arte romanica, gotica e rinascimentale. Per il tramite della Spagna islamizzata, dei commerci di Venezia con l’Oriente e dei semi saraceni lasciati nel Regno delle due Sicilie, l’Europa intera, dalle Fiandre in giù, riceve costanti stimoli dalla cultura musulmana. Mentre il pensiero speculativo islamico permea con i suoi trattati di astrologia, medicina e matematica il mondo delle Scienze e delle Lettere, il piacere per i ricchi tessuti d’Oriente si diffonde presso le corti. Oreficerie, tessuti e tappeti continuano ad affluire. I nomi dei tessuti rimarranno nel vocabolario tessile europeo: la mussolina (da Mossul), il baldacchino (da Baghdad), il damaschino (da Damasco), il drappo d’Antiochia, il siglaton e il taffetà (prodotti in Iran), il camocato (che dalla Cina raggiunge la Francia attraverso la Persia e Cipro), il maramato, i dabicki d’Egitto, i veli alessandrini ecc…

Dove sono dunque le famigerate barriere tra Oriente e Occidente?

Ivan Quaroni

* *

le immagini scelte a corredo dell’articolo non sono le medesime scelte da Ivan Quaroni  e sono tratte, tra quelle della vasta produzione di Z.Beksisnki, trovandole tutte butterfly effect anch’esse.

http://www.belvederegallery.com/Bex/index.htm#13

.

L’articolo è apparso in

lobodilattice il 11/10/2009 e su gentile concessione della redazione riproposto in Cartesensibili

Riferimenti:

The butterfly effect 03, di Ivan Quaroni
“Il Segno e L’Oriente”
pubblicato in :

http://lobodilattice.com/node/5367

http://www.lobodilattice.com/butterflyeffect

Lá pelos anos de 1955 os cientistas acreditavam que a temperatura de um local poderia ser prevista e  calculada como sendo uma constante O trabalho do meteorologista se limitava a determinar os valores das constantes  a, b, c … e os elementos climáticos que multiplicam as constantes.

Um cientista chamado Edward Norton Lorenz não estava muito satisfeito com os resultados, a observação de Lorenz foi que a linearidade perfeita fazia com que cada variável sempre assumisse os mesmos valores apresentados no ciclo anterior, concluindo que as equações deveriam apresentar soluções não periódicas.

Lorenz criou um modelo de previsão com o objetivo de reproduzir o movimento das correntes de ar na atmosfera, mas o baixo investimento nos equipamentos obrigava o cientista a arredondar as casas decimais, ou seja, não computava os valores exatos obtidos, Ainda assim era possível traçar gráficos das condições climáticas e da atmosfera.

No final da década de 50, Lorenz decidiu repetir alguns cálculos em seu modelo. Para isto parou sua simulação computacional, anotou uma linha de números que havia sido apresentada tempos antes e digitou-a, fazendo com que o programa rodasse novamente.

O cientista notou que primeiramente os números do impresso comportavam-se de forma semelhante à simulação anterior, dias após surgiam pequenas diferenças, depois diferenças cada vez maiores até que, semanas depois, as características climáticas eram totalmente diferentes das características da simulação anterior.

Por que isto ocorreu? A conclusão do cientista foi de que os números digitados não eram exatamente os mesmos; estavam arredondados! Esta pequena diferença, embora irrisória no início, foi de maneira tão incisiva se avolumando até que mudasse totalmente o resultado final. A isto denominamos caos.

Lorenz não responde à pergunta mas argumenta que:

a) se um simples bater de asas de uma borboleta pode ocasionar um tornado, então todos os bateres anteriores e posteriores de suas asas, e ainda mais, as atividades de outras inúmeras criaturas também o poderão;

b) se um simples bater de asas de uma borboleta pode ocasionar um tornado que, de outra forma, não teria acontecido, igualmente pode evitar um tornado que poderia ser formado sem sua influência.

O que Lorenz queria dizer é que insignificantes fatores podem amplificar-se temporalmente de forma a mudar radicalmente um estado. Assim, a previsão do tempo a longo prazo continua a ser algo inalcançável, pelo fato de que nossas observações são deficientes e os arredondamentos que utilizamos, inevitáveis.

A conclusão é de que o mundo não é linear e dificilmente a mesma coisa aconteça duas vezes, ou que sempre ocorram as mesmas coisas todos os dias. A vida e o mundo não são previsíveis e algo que nós façamos por minimo que seja, pode afetar outras pessoas ou o ambiente de outros lugares em que nós nem imaginamos e que esse fator não precisa afetar exatamente no momento do ato mas sim demorar horas, dias, meses, anos… como mostra o filme Efeito Borboleta e suas continuações.

I have noticed a spate of articles in the media of late on “mean girls”; commentators have been quick to highlight, and to almost revel, in tales of adolescent girls who bully others.

I work face to face with hundreds of teenage girls from right across Australia and New Zealand each week. What do I see? Is bullying and bitchiness as rampant in our classrooms as the media would have us believe?

Planet Girl can be a place filled with cliques, secrets, passive aggressive exchanges and tears. Much has already been written about the ugly side of teen girl friendships. And let’s face it; it is easy to be negative about teen girl world for it can be a political, intense place. Unlike the boys who often get physical and then forget and forgive their differences, girls do tend to ostracize their enemies and use words as weapons and this can be far more scarring and damaging long term. Many women I speak to in my seminars for parents still vividly recall the pain of being teased by other girls. And still feel guilt over the times they teased other girls.

Girls may also be bullied one minute, and the bully the next as they jostle for position with the social hierarchy. In the years I spent as a teacher and in student welfare roles, I witnessed some truly devastating episodes of girl bullying. I have seen girls’ lives made literally miserable by their peers.

Often the reasons behind this victimization are bewildering. A girl I met in my work with Enlighten sat scribbling furiously on her feedback form for me after the workshop. And as she left the room she held me – for a long time. When she left I read her comments, they included this poignant insight into the devastating effect the other girls at her school had had on her:

“I learnt today that I am beautiful and I’m not ugly because they (the other girls at my school) might say I am, I’m not what people may say I am. I can imagine, I can love, I am beautiful, I also have purpose…”

When I asked her teachers what this girl’s experience of school was like, they told me that ever since High School began she had been tormented – pushed down stairs, spat on, ignored. Why? The other girls all thought her ears stuck out.

This type of mean girl behaviour must be taken seriously by the adults who witness it and action must be taken. The ABC’s Life Matters recently broadcast an interesting program which explored ways in which parents and schools could deal with bullying and help girls develop positive relationships – it is well worth a listen.

Left unchecked, girl hostility can escalate and become a systematic campaign of verbal, and physical, violence. Experts point to a new gang-like mentality among schoolgirls where a popular “queen bee” uses friends to bully or hurt to cement her position of power. The term “Barbie Bitches,” a term to describe gangs of girls who believe they are beautiful, popular and have the right to intimidate those deemed less worthy, has became a frightening new part of our vernacular.

Yet despite all the politics and the potential for drama, I also find that the friendships between teen girls can be breathtakingly beautiful and authentic. And it is this positive, healing side to female friendships (a side that the media so often ignores) that I really want to further explore and celebrate this week.

Many girls deeply love their friends and their peer relationships provide a sense of belonging and acceptance that is sadly sometimes missing for them at home, where family members may seem to be time poor and over-scheduled.

I love the way girls giggle together, the way they play with each other’s hair and cuddle, the way they can be so fiercely loyal and protective of each other. When I ask girls who really knows them, understands them and loves them, the vast majority will tell me it is their friends who make them feel these essential emotions.

A part of my research for my book The Butterfly Effect, I asked girls to share with me what they love about their female friends. I thought I’d share just some of their responses with you here now too:

“They understand mostly where I am coming from. They know when I am grumpy or upset how to deal with this. Although when stuff goes wrong it is horrible they are always willing to listen.” Ali 16

“How there is no pressure to ‘act up’ or to impress them. They accept me for who I am, not what I try and be.” Elizabeth 15

“They deal with the same problems as me. In conversations we often have moments when we realise how similar our issues are, and how much of a strong helping force we can be to each other.” Anon 15

“I love the confidence of my friends, the way they always strive for something higher; whether it be in school or socially and the way I know that they actually care about me and would always support me.” Haley 15

“I love the fact that they are all different from each other and from me. They respect who I am and my choices. I trust them with my life and can’t live without them.” Amanda 15

” I love how they don’t see me on the outside, and how they love me because of who I am. I can ask them for advice knowing that their advice will actually help me.” Julia 16

“I love how we can let go of our egos with each other, we can be stupid and silly but at the same know that there are always one or two of us who are mature ‘big sisters’ who have our backs.” Yan 16

“Being able to talk about private stuff I like the most. I have a guy friend who I tell my problems or difficulties to, but my girl friends, they also go through periods, shaving, cramps, bad hair days, etc. and it is nice to have them there to talk to. I also like not having to impress them, with boy friends there is always the ‘urge’ to impress them, with my girl friends it’s just us, and it’s fun.” Katie 17

“Female friends are great as you can never run out of things to talk about. I love being able to share everything about intimacy, body issues, etc and not being judged.” Abigail 17

“What I love about my friends is how they are always there for me no matter what and there to cheer me up if I’m feeling down. They are always fun to be around and make school all the better having them with me. Also they would never judge me on something and will always encourage me.” Montana 13

“I love my female friends because I can talk about anything with them. We can talk about things that I would never bring up with my mum.” Aimee 15

“Something that I love about my female friends is that no matter what you can always talk to them and even when you are smiling they always know when something is wrong. Basically without them there would be no way that I could live.” Carly 16

“Things I love about my friends is the happiness they can bring to you. A strong friendship can make you feel like you’re floating, even in your darkest times.” Laura 14

“I love all my girlfriends with all of my heart. They are easy to talk to and give great advice back. They help me go on the right path and not wrong. They are the soul of my body.” Courtney 14

How heartwarming. Female friendships are so valuable, and are so highly valued by teen girls - and by us older girls too! I’d love to hear just what your girlfriends mean to you, and how your female friendships have brought you love, light and laughter.

Let’s not ignore the problems that do exist, or turn a blind eye to bad behaviour. But let’s also unpack what works, and celebrate the many healthy relationships too.

I was really interested in the findings of a recent study conducted by Janet Hyde, a University of Wisconsin-Madison Professor of Psychology, and Janet Mertz, a UW-Madison Professor of Oncology, on girls and mathematics. They analysed studies from around the world on mathematics performance along with gender inequality as measured by the World Economic Forum’s Gender Gap Index. Their conclusion? Girls do understand mathematics, but we don’t want them to.

Their research showed that the widely held belief that most women aren’t hard-wired for careers in science and technology is erroneous. Rather, the researchers provide several possible cultural factors keeping females from excelling in maths, including classroom dynamics in which teachers pay more attention to boys, while failing to nurture even mathematically gifted girls. In addition, they found stereotypes may drive guidance counsellors and others to discourage girls from taking engineering courses. The lack of female role models in maths-intensive careers was also identified as a possible reason why girls may steer clear of these paths.

I confess that I once said to my daughter when she was struggling with maths, “You’re just like your Mummy. We both love reading and writing but find maths and science tough.” Way to go, Danni. What kind of message was I sending Teyah? The same message Mattel’s Barbie gave girls when she spoke her first words in 1992: “Math class is tough!” How limiting. Throughout history there have been accomplished women across all fields of learning. We need to take every opportunity to remind our daughters of the many women who have achieved academically.

The following websites may be worth encouraging your budding maths star to explore:

Girlstart - American site created to empower girls to excel in mathematics, science and technology. They have an interesting blog and a related website where girls can complete maths-based puzzles, etc.

Nerd Girls - American site celebrating smart-girl individuality. Their beliefs: “Brains are beautiful. Geek is Chic. Smart is sexy. Not either/or.”

An extensive list of general maths sites is also offered at the South Australian Department of Education and Children’s Services site: http://www.millnthps.sa.edu.au/websites/mathematics/general_maths.htm

Even the simplest empowering messages we give girls can have a lasting effect on them. Fifteen years ago, Rachel, who is now a grown woman, was in a class I taught at high school. She recently emailed me to share the following: “I still remember the first thing I noticed when I walked into your classroom in Year 10: a sticker on the top of the board that said ‘Girls can be engineers too.’ Yours was one of the few classrooms where I believed that I could achieve something.”

I’d love to hear how you have been encouraging girls to move beyond all sorts of limiting stereotypes.

Someone had the chance but didn’t take it
They threw it all away
Someone had the chance but didn’t make it
for they thought it wouldn’t pay

We never know the choices
which we will have to make
Some of them seem insignificant
too minuscule to take

Some seem so important
that they seem to shout at you
make this choice or be forever damned
in all the things you do

Mostly though, our choices
fall somewhere in between
These are the ones which shape us
who we’ll be and what we’ve been

Every day is full of them
and its impossible to say
which direction a choice takes
In the grander scheme of play

But if the Butterfly in China
Can effect a Hurricane in Brazil
With the simple flapping of its wings
or by simply lying still

Then such is the significance
of every choice we make
there is nothing thats insignificant
in the decisions that we take

We may never see the consequences
of a harsh or thoughtless word
for that word may root in someone else
far across the world

Were you the creator of Columbine?
Did a word set off Dunblane?
Did a thoughtless remark spark Hungerford?
Could a word save the Spanish train?

These are all deep questions
and the answers never found
But in what we choose and what we say
makes their impact come around

None of this may seem important
Whats it all to do with you?
For we can’t guard every single word
or even all the things we do

We may say were not responsible
If some child dies in Kent
The bounds of the responsibility
lie far beyond our words intent

But if we think about it
act not in anger nor in haste
then we can make a better world
with words of understanding and of grace

If we think back on our lives
and the choices that we made
and see how they affected us
in every hue and shade

Then think of how we made others feel
those of us we knew
From our words or our decisions
Love or hatred grew

So seek the words of understanding
let your emotions avoid the rage
speak your truth with firm deportment
as you turn each daily page

Conflict seeks out Conflict
Peace and Love seek out their same
The choice is clear to all of us
The World stems from how we behave.

Rod Macfarlane

Like the rest of the world, I was sickened by the death earlier this year of Neda Agha-Soltan, a young woman shot in the protests that followed the dubious election result in Iran. The 26-year-old university student was with her singing teacher at the time of her death. In Iran, women are forbidden to sing publicly, so already we know that Neda was a courageous woman. Because her name means “voice” in Farsi, soon after the mobile phone camera footage of her death was shared around the world, people began calling her “the voice of Iran.”

For Neda’s life not to have been lived and lost in vain, we should begin thinking of her as the voice of women everywhere.

She was described by her fiancé and family as a woman who didn’t have much interest in politics, so her death is less about the election controversy and more a sign of women’s enduring strength and determination to stand up for what is right – no matter the repression and intimidation they face.

Even before Neda’s senseless death, I had been struck by the number of women, especially young women, who were brave enough to take to the streets in the Tehran protests. During the election campaign, Mousavi — the man the protestors believe was the true winner of the election - made a promise that he would get rid of laws discriminating against women, so it’s no wonder women have protested in record numbers. And there is an awful lot at stake for women in Iran. We’re talking about demands for basic rights that we in the West take for granted, like marital and financial equality — but we’re also talking about demands for an end to practices that seem simply bizarre and archaic to us: polygamy, the stoning of women and harassment by morality police who can punish women just for wearing fingernail polish.

This picture of a woman taking part in a silent protest in Tehran a couple of days before Neda’s death is far more radical than most of us in the West might at first realise. No, the two-finger gesture isn’t an insult in Iran like it can be here. What’s outrageous is that her head covering is loose, she’s wearing makeup . . . and those fingernails she’s holding up in a victory sign? Oh, they’ve definitely been manicured. This is an ordinary woman, but this is also a brave woman.

In Iran and some other parts of the world, expressing feminist ideals can be literally a matter of life and death, while in Australia and the rest of the Western world, ‘feminism’ has almost become the new f-word, a word not to be spoken in polite company. I’ve heard too many conversations about gender start out ‘I’m not a feminist, but . . .’

Perhaps the women who came before us did such a good job of fighting for equality and respect that girls and young women here feel that there is little left to complain about. When our daughters grow up they will have the right to vote; they will inherit laws against gender discrimination and sexual harassment, and laws protecting a woman’s right to keep her job after having a baby. Believing that the work of feminism is complete, perhaps many young women feel that it is just an embarrassing throwback, a social dinosaur.

But the courage and strength of the women taking to the streets in Tehran should give us all pause for thought. Our reality here in the industrialised West is not the reality of all women. In too many parts of the world, women and girls are oppressed. Too many girls can’t get the same education as their brothers; they become child laborers’ or child brides. In Haiti, says Amnesty International, the large number of girls who can’t afford schooling either go without an education or enter into exploitive relationships with men so they can pay the fees. In South Africa, women are especially at risk of HIV infection due to the high levels of sexual violence they face, and women in many countries lack protection from sexual assault, domestic violence and sex traffickers. In countries such as Iran and China, women who stand up for basic human rights are harassed or end up in prison.

Our sisters in other parts of the world are risking their lives to speak out, in the hope that their daughters will one day enjoy equal rights. When all this is still going on, how can we say that the time for feminism has passed?

The inequality women are battling against in Iran serves as a reminder of how far we’ve come in Australia and the debt we owe the feminists who struggled on our behalf.

The courage and strength we’ve seen on the streets of Tehran in recent weeks are like a challenge to us: will we take a moment to remember that these women’s struggle was once our struggle? Will we give them our support and do whatever we can to help their cause?

And finally, the protestors’ actions are an inspiration. Though we may have forgotten or overlooked it, the spirit of these women is within us all: a passion for justice and equality, a sense of self-respect and dignity, deep concern for the girls and women of the future, and a fighting spirit that won’t quit till fairness prevails.

Imagine what we could do if we tapped into these qualities. Imagine the world our daughters could create if we nurtured these qualities in them. For let’s not forget that even though it may seem that the major battles have been fought and won for women here, inequities still exist between the genders. Women’s pay in Australia still lags way behind men’s; we are still massively underrepresented at the upper levels of business; and on average the greatest burden of housework continues to fall to us no matter how hard we work outside the home. Meanwhile, too many girls and women will wake up tomorrow planning to starve themselves; too many will feel overly critical when they look in the mirror; too many will experience sexual or domestic violence.

There is still work to be done — here and across the globe — and I salute the women who are fighting the good fight today.

There are a great number of organisations to get involved with that help women around the globe achieve the rights we all deserve, including:

Amnesty International researches, exposes and fights human rights violations worldwide. Check out their website for ways to take action against injustice.

Mahboba’s Promise is an Australian aid organisation that helps women and children in Afghanistan, which has the highest proportion of widows and orphans in the world and is one of the poorest countries. Amnesty International has noted that women living in poverty suffer the greatest human rights challenges. It is worth noting that this charity was established by Mahboba Rawi, her book outlining her motivation for doing this is a fascinating read and is also published by Random House

Women for Women International helps rebuild the lives of women survivors of war in countries such as Iraq, Nigeria, Rwanda and the Sudan. In war, women’s rights are often one of the first casualties.

Soroptimist International is an organisation of women in management and the professions working to advance the status and equal rights of women around the world.

The UN’s Say NO to Violence Against Women campaign, for which Nicole Kidman is a spokeswoman, is a global movement demanding that governments make it a priority to end violence against women.

Many girls I work with tell me they are stressed – really stressed. They feel exhausted and overwhelmed. They have headaches, trouble sleeping, chronically tight muscles, fatigue and lack of appetite or weight gain, which are recognised signs of stress.

Why do our young women feel such debilitating pressure?

I believe many teen girls are suffering from the Supergirl epidemic. They feel they must be smart, popular, thin and attractive, all while displaying a Paris Hiltonesque worldliness. American writer Courtney Martin in her book Perfect Girls, Starving Daughters sums up the modern girl’s dilemma this way:

We have the ultimate goal of effortless perfectionism.

The reality is that striving for perfection is actually unachievable, let alone exhausting.

Many girls desperately fear making mistakes, believing they cannot let down their guard for even one moment. The interviews I did with girls as part of the research for my book, The Butterfly Effect, gave me valuable insight:

I worry so much about getting things wrong in class. What will people think of me if I do? If I don’t know something, I pretend I do so the teacher won’t think less of me.

Everyone thinks I am such a great student and that learning comes easily to me — and I do get good marks, but I feel sick sometimes thinking about how long I will need to keep up this effort for.  — Joanne, 14

The worst thing about being a teen girl is people condemning you when you fall when, in fact, you only just tripped and learned something. — Yan, 16

If I make a mistake I want to cry. I hate that I am a big failure. But you can’t let anyone know you feel like that so you just shrug it off and go, ‘whatever’. But I replay my mistakes over and over in my head later. — Lucy, 15

The message we need to send our girls is that while they can do anything, they do not have to do it all at once, nor do they have to get it right every time.

We can serve as positive role models by refusing to buy into the hype that we need to be “Yummy Mummies” who can do it all. This may mean letting our own guard down and setting aside our perfectionist tendencies. Amelia Toffoli, the Principal at St Brigid’s College Lesmurdie, one of Enlighten’s West Australian client schools, offers this great advice:

A mother should share personal failures as well as successes and explain to her daughter what she may have learnt from mistakes. It gives daughters hope that they too can move on from a poor choice.

Another angle is to create opportunities for girls to engage in exploration and self-discovery, and pursue activities that make them feel good – even if they won’t result immediately in a concrete reward such as good marks or acclaim.  In a May 2009 article on teen girls and perfectionism, a teacher in the United States, Jamie Donohoe, shared his favorite assignment that he gives his English students: to fulfill a small secret dream, something the student always wanted to do but never dared to for fear of failure or embarrassment. I love this!

Perhaps it’s a sign of the times that Enlighten Education’s Chill Out workshops are increasingly popular with schools. We involve girls in practical, fun techniques that can help alleviate the physical symptoms of stress. For instance, positive visualisation helps girls develop new, more positive self-talk so they can respond calmly and optimistically to life’s inevitable challenges and setbacks. This is something we perhaps all could benefit from. We cannot always control the events that we experience, but we can control how we respond.

Do you know of any other good ideas for helping girls move beyond perfectionism?

Most dolls for little girls are nowadays designed to represent teenage girls or women. One exception is Mattel’s My Scene, Growing Up Glam doll, which depicts a tween, a girl aged 8–12 years. She is dressed in lacy stockings, short skirt, diamanté belt and midriff top. Her accessories? A teddy bear and schoolbooks.

Twist the screw on her back – oh, how symbolic! –her abdomen stretches. It’s gruesome to watch. She looks as though she is being stretched by a medieval torture device. And hey presto, now she’s a ‘curvy, cool teen’. But wait, you say, all that has really changed is that her stomach has stretched to make her appear taller.

How telling. It seems that in Mattel land there is no difference between an 8-year-old girl and an 18-year-old one. Nor should the clothes they wear differ. The only things that change once she has stretched before our very eyes into a ‘curvy, cool teen’ are her accessories. She trades in her schoolbooks and teddy bear for a full make-up kit, complete with false eyelashes – ‘Whoa, her make-up changes!’ – and some glossy fashion magazines. Flat shoes are out; it’s all about stilettos now. Out, too, with cute hair clips and in with designer sunnies.

Where do I begin in explaining why I think this type of doll is so toxic for our daughters?

‘Curvy.’ This is not a word we used to associate with little girls or even with girls in their early teens. Yet look around. We now live in a culture that tells our young girls that being hot, thin, sexy – and useless – is way cool.

For the good of our girls, women and for our society generally, it is time to take stock. Teen girls are increasingly being portrayed in a highly sexualised way and even their younger sisters are being encouraged to be sexy. Are we really all okay with that?

Many people – including leading experts in education, health and psychology – have serious concerns that the current cultural climate imposes pressure on girls to be too sexy, too soon.

We aren’t talking about the healthy development of sexuality here. It is perfectly normal for children as they grow and develop to explore their sexuality; and there is nothing wrong with providing children with age-appropriate information and education about sex.

What is wrong is when a child has sexuality inappropriately imposed on them. This is known by experts as ‘sexualisation’. When a child displays a more adult sexuality, ‘it is often imposed upon them rather than chosen by them’, according to the American Psychological Association (APA). In their definition of ‘sexualisation’, the APA also includes when a person’s value comes only from their sexual appeal; their sexiness is judged according to a narrow ideal of physical attractiveness; or they are sexually objectified, that is, seen simply as an object for others’ sexual use.

These elements can all be seen, to varying degrees, in the influences young girls are growing up with. A large body of research shows that exposure to sexualised imagery is linked to children experiencing increased anxiety, depression, low self-esteem, body-image problems, eating disorders and self-harm. The APA set up a task force on the sexualisation of girls; it reported that sexualisation has a negative effect on girls’ ‘cognitive functioning, physical and mental health, sexuality and beliefs’. The Australian Psychological Society is so concerned about this issue that it has released guidelines for parents regarding the early sexualisation of children.

The vile Growing Up Glam tween-to-teen doll is certainly not exceptional in promoting a sexy look. Even good old Barbie, who has previously been portrayed as a teacher, astronaut and even as a US presidential candidate, is now doused in glitter, wears micro-miniskirts and has been given the obligatory party-girl accessories. Mattel’s Bling Bling Bikini doll comes with bikini, stilettos, thick make-up, optional bling bling spa and what looks to me like a pina colada cocktail as an accessory.

Bratz dolls are still in the top ten bestseller list at Christmas. Sportz Bratz declares that ‘It is not how you play the game, it’s how hot you look when you win.’ Even baby dolls are given the sexed-up treatment. The Baby Bratz range features toddlers wearing G-string-style nappies, fish-nets, leather micro-minis and chain belts. These baby dolls have moved way beyond prams: they come complete with Harley-Davidson motorbikes.

Does it really matter? Yes. It really does. Childhood plus the adult world of fish-nets, booze, and grown-up confidence and attitude makes for a dangerous combination.

It would be too simplistic to argue that it is dolls alone that are damaging our daughters, yet when we buy these toys for our girls we are buying into an insidious trend to steal the innocence of childhood. Girls mature physically and emotionally more rapidly than boys and also tend to be more quickly immersed in popular culture; therefore, their childhood is already particularly brief. Why are we allowing their little-girl time to be even more rapidly eroded?

And if it is okay to buy a lingerie-clad Baby Bratz reclining on a revolving bed under a disco light, just what is off limits for our girls?

These questions, and more, were discussed in a recent interview I did as part of The Conversation Hour with Jon Faine, ABC Radio Interview Melbourne. His other guest was author Melinda Tnakrad Reist who has also has a book being that has been published this month ‘Getting real – challenging the sexualisation of girls’. The Podcast is well worth listening to and can be accessed below:

Podcast – The Conversation Hour with Jon Faine, ABC Radio Melbourne – 31/8/09

http://www.abc.net.au/local/audio/2009/08/31/2672012.htm?site=melbourne

Love for you to join in the conversation and comment on any of the points raised in the above interview!

Dannielle Miller is a major innovator and expert in the field of education and student welfare. She was responsible for the curriculum, staffing and quality of learning of the English faculty of a dual campus high school. As Students at Risk Coordinator for high schools in Western Sydney, she advised the Federal Government on funding for support programs for students at risk of dropping out.

The immensely successful Lighthouse Project was Dannielle’s brainchild. It pairs at-risk students with workplace mentors, helping them develop employment skills and discover the real-world relevance of what they learn at school. Another of her innovations was an accredited Higher School Certificate (HSC) course in service learning that she developed. The curriculum nurtures students’ entrepreneurial skills while involving them in meaningful community volunteer work.

Concerned about the struggles she saw countless high school girls go through with body image and self-esteem, in 2003 Dannielle co-founded Enlighten Education, which provides girls with training and support to stand up to limiting media and social messages.

In 2009, the Australian newspaper named Dannielle Australia’s number one Emerging Leader in Learning. She works with thousands of girls across Australia and New Zealand each year and makes regular media appearances to advise on teen issues. Author of teen parenting book, The Butterfly Effect (Random House Australia, September 2009), she is also an avid blogger (http://enlighteneducation.edublogs.org). She is featured in education journals, her articles have appeared in The Sydney Morning Herald, and she is a popular speaker at youth and education conferences and forums.

The Butterfly Effect — 2004

IMDB score: 7.8 out of 10

Rotten Tomatoes score: 33 out of 100

Metacritic score: 30 out of 100

“The Butterfly Effect” blew my mind when I first saw it my freshman year of college. A series of escalating tragedies and shocking imagery centered on a novel portrayal of time travel, even Ashton Kutcher’s overblown acting couldn’t ruin the impact the film had on me.

How awkward is the conversation where you tell a girl she used to go to college but is now doing tricks because you messed with time travel.

The film stared Kutcher as Evan, a young man who discovers he has the ability to mentally time travel, transporting his brain into younger versions of his body. Using this newfound ability, Evan attempts to play God, changing the past in hopes of a better future. As time travel logic dictates, though, Evan’s attempts at fudging around with time travel lead to disastrous results.

A life-long fan of time travel movies, I was taken in by the film’s unflinching portrayal of reality gone amuck due to muddling around with the time-space continuum. The depiction of random acts of pet arson, pedophilia, child-on-child violence and sitcom star paraplegia in a mainstream film shocked me enough that I instantly respected the movie.

Watching the movie again five years later, tough, I’m disappointed to find that the film did not age well.

What was shocking back then, unfortunately now comes off as kind of silly. Viewing the film with my nitpickers firmly attached, I was distracted by huge plot holes and disparities in film logic.

Time travel films are made and broken by their adherence to the rules they set forth in depicting time travel. I don’t care if you’re traveling back in time via glowing balls, sucking vortexes or Victorian steampunk machines, if you set a rule in your film regarding time travel you had better stick to it.

Time travel movies such as “The Butterfly Effect” can teach us a lot about life and keeping promises. Much like time travel movies can hit a brick wall if they don’t stick to their proverbial guns, an unsteady grasp on our own principals can lead us into a path as perilous as depicted in the film. Without strong morals and an ability to stand behind them, you too may find yourself minus a couple of arms and wheelchair bound because you thought it would be fun to blow up a mailbox with a stick of dynamite.

The other thing I learned from re-watching “The Butterfly Effect” was that while you should always stick to your principals, you don’t necessarily need to stick to your race.

When the filmmakers needed a Hispanic to play a gangbanging religious prisoner in “The Butterfly Effect” did they turn to any number of talented working Latino actors?

No, they hired Kevin Durand, a Caucasian Canadian, slapped some tanning solution on his skin and told him to don a borderline offensive accent.

And you know what? It worked.

Kevin Durand, a man of a thousand races.

Recipe for a vato: wife beater, beanie and mustache.

When I first saw the film five years ago, I had no idea that “Carlos,” Ashton Kutcher’s prison cellmate wasn’t really a Hispanic. Durand did a mighty fine job of adopting another race.

So remember, stick to your guns but don’t be afraid to slap on some blackface if you’ve always really wanted to be a brother.

AUGUST 29th :: The Butterfly Effect VIP & PIV Fundraiser Party

Happy Birthday 2 Me!  I am blessed to be on earth celebrating another day of Life.  Despite my most recent temper tantrums to my spiritually wise mentors,  I have found myself so amazingly and unsuspectedly lifted up and inspired by the daily habit of lifting up others.  In my weary age of … okay so i’m exaggerating .. whose counting anyway .. I have accidentally ended up wiser than I would have predicted by this time.  YES, meanwhile back at the ranch, despite my raving protests, my Life seems to be being pruned of all insanity.   Uh oh, somehow I seem to be veering towards the sane and .. well this is odd considering I am a full blown creative who basks in a bit of creative insanity A gal pal said to me last why not “do both” as in use your left and right brain and .. well I am considering.  SO now back to the COCOON.  For the last few months I have opted to live by my lonesome, usually I have housemate, in order to stew and brew in the true essence of me.  Little did I know that intuitive decision would be a gateway to a new life.   A gateway to Reliance.  This new life which is really just another twenty four hour day where I get to practice a living faith that moves mountains by exercising the Muse to create, connect, and respect the gifts so freely given me.  A new voice has emerged,  though at first a little whiny, just like a new born screaming at the top of her lungs as her awareness opens to the fact that she is no longer in the womb.  The womb, the cocoon, my apartment same difference,  I’m awakening with a Joy for the entirety of my journey thus far on planet Earth.  My soul keeps reminding me she is bigger than my body and that if I want a bit of Heaven all I have to do is ask .. bodly.  SO I’m asking.  And I’m So grateful to be at the mercy of God within.  I am excited to begin this journey of listening in.  Just when the caterpillar thought the world was ending she transformed into a Butterfly.  I can tell the cocooning period ends today!  Happy Birthday Butterfly ME   SO Saturday’s Fundraiser is doubling as a celebration of My and Michael Jackson’s Birthday.   Come celebrate with us the releasing of of a few Butterflies!