Off The Grid

Just a note to say its unlikely I will blog over the next 2 weeks - too much going on - including my 40th birthday,

Peace xx
Sal

Avaaz: TPP

Please take a minute to sign the Avaaz campaign against TPP. They state that there are only four days left to make an impact on the drafting of the agreement in this round of the negotiations and are urging everyone to get involved, they write:

To all the governments negotiating the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement:

As concerned global citizens, we call on you to make the TPP process transparent and accountable to all, and to reject any plans that limit our governments' power to regulate in the public interest. The TPP is a threat to democracy, undermining national sovereignty, workers' rights, environmental protections and Internet freedom. We urge you to reject this corporate takeover.

You can access the campaign here:
Avaaz, 4 Days to Stop the Corporate Death Star (12 September 2012) < http://www.avaaz.org/en/stop_the_corporate_death_star/?bTXNdcb&v=17858 >  at 13 September 2012

NPR: The Composer of 'Strange Fruit'

Check out this great article/podcast on the composer of the Billie Holiday song 'Strange Fruit' from NPR. A very interesting man with an interesting background.

NPR, The Strange Story Of The Man Behind 'Strange Fruit' (6 September 2012) < http://www.npr.org/2012/09/05/158933012/the-strange-story-of-the-man-behind-strange-fruit > at 12 September 2012

Audio: http://www.npr.org/player/v2/mediaPlayer.html?action=1&t=1&islist=false&id=158933012&m=160588917  at 12 September 2012

Streaming Music: Hard to Make a Profit

Just came across this interesting post from Statista and a story that covers the same topic from Digital Music News. The chart below demonstrates that streaming services are making a net loss and that overall, despite their revenue, there remains significant financial pressure that could threaten their viability long term. This does not look like a good picture, especially for Spotify, who has incurred an increasing loss over the past few years:



You will find more statistics at Statista

Further Reading
Statista, Will Music Streaming Ever Be Profitable? (29 August 2012) < http://www.statista.com/markets/14/topic/111/music-audio/chart/577/will-music-streaming-ever-be-profitable/ > at 10 September 2012

Digital Music News, I Took One Look at This Graph. And Suddenly Lost Hope for Streaming Music... (5 September 2012) < http://www.digitalmusicnews.com/permalink/2012/120905streaming > at 10 September 2012   

Mimi and Eunice

Mimi and Eunice: http://www.mimiandeunice.com

Freemuse: World Conference on Artistic Freedom of Expression

Freemuse write on their blog that they are hosting a conference coming up later in the year called ‘All That is Banned is Desired’ – the World Conference on Artistic Freedom of Expression at the Oslo Opera House on 25-26 October 2012. The conference is also being organised by the Fritt Ord Foundation. It concerns creative people who have faced censorship, imprisonment or even abduction. Artists including Burmese comedian and film maker, Zarganar, visual artist Larissa Sansour and playwright Gurpreet Kaur and others that will talk about their experiences and struggle for freedom of artistic expression.

You can find out more about the conference on the Freemuse website.

Further Reading
Freemuse, Adam Fischer joins the World Conference in Oslo (29 August 2012) < http://artsfreedom.org/?p=2598 >  at 4 September 2012

CDs

Statistics I discussed recently from the Australian Council for the Arts note that digital sales in Australia are set to out do CD sales this year. Interestingly I have been reading a book by an Australian scientist this week (just for a bit of fun) called Great Myth Conceptions in which Dr Karl Kruszelnicki talks about the myth that emerged when CDs were first released, that CDs they were indestructible. Of course we all know that they are sensitive to heat, dust and scratches and that indeed they are far from indestructible.

He does, however, give a very informative run down on how CDs work:

"A compact disc is a 1.2mm-thick disc of transparent polycarbonate (as used in bullet proof glass), with a diameter of about 12 cm. It stores the information in a five-kilometer-long spiral of raised rectangular bumps on the surface. These bumps are about 0.5 microns wide (about 100 times smaller than the thickness of a human hair) and one-eight of a micron high... Because it is virtually impossible to see tiny transparent bumps on a transparent disc a thin layer of metal (usually aluminum, although gold and silver have been used) is laid on top of the polycarbonate. This shiny metal reflects the laser beam, so that it can read the little bumps."

Further Reading
Dr Karl Kruszelnicki, Great Myth Conceptions (2008) http://www.amazon.com/Great-Myth-Conceptions-Temptations-Series/dp/8172237308/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1346751440&sr=8-1&keywords=great+myth+conceptions