How to Spy on Ryan (Moulton): Inception

Monday, July 19, 2010

Inception

The movie is great. Go see it. What I'm about to write will be entirely spoiler free.

Inception will leave you distrusting your own perceptions in the manner of Descartes's Demon, more so than The Matrix ever did. It does this I think because the experience of the characters in the movie entering and leaving dreams is so similar to our experience entering and leaving the movie. "Waking up" from a good movie is a very similar feeling to waking up from a dream.

When we talk about "suspending disbelief," it isn't supposed to be something you do, but rather something that happens automatically if the movie succeeds in drawing you in. When dreaming, we tolerate wild violations of physics and causality without it ever decreasing our emotional involvement. The objective of a good movie is to tap into that level of credulity, and it wouldn't surprise me if someone discovered that the same pathways in our brains are involved.

When Christopher Nolan was writing the dialogue about how addictive it is to be an architect of dreams, he must have been really talking about is how addictive it is to be an architect of shared dreams: movies.

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Things I Support

No matter your political beliefs, if you value freedom you can support this group. They are dogmatically consistent in their support of personal freedom, even when it conflicts with public opinion and common sense. They ask the questions that should be asked. As such, I support them even when I disagree with their position on any particular issue. They are as essential to the functioning of our society as the media.

It's unfortunate that the political issues surrounding the Boy Scouts of America have overshadowed the rest of what it does. It is responsible for more of my values and character than any other influence, and remains a fantastic organization. On the issue of permitting Gays and Atheists to be members, I consider myself part of the loyal opposition. As an Atheist myself and an Eagle Scout, I will support and participate in the organization so long as it will accept my support and participation.

The Nature Conservancy takes a unique approach to protecting wildlife. Their primary methodology is to simply take the money you donate and use it to buy land. Political progress is one election away from reversal, but the progress of the Nature Conservancy is as permanent as property rights.

A microfinance charity with a personal twist, Kiva matches lenders in the developed world with people whose lives could be substantially and permanently improved with a small loan. The loans are interest free, but you get your money back at the end of the term and improve someone's life in the process.

Freedom of speech is the most essential right. All others spring from it. In the US, we protect speech, even reprehensible hateful speech, more thoroughly than any other nation on earth. Many people aren't nearly so lucky.

The Medical Art Company
Award winning medical and scientific illustration, located in Cincinnati, OH.

Carriage House Farm
They provide fresh local produce, honey, and horse stabling to the greater Cincinnati area. If you are interested in the workings of a farm, keeping bees, the politics of local food and family owned farms, or just what produce will be available at the next market, check out the frequently updated blog.

This game is definitely the most fun I've had online, and I also worked on it! Imagine Starcraft where each unit is controlled by a human and you'll be pretty close to imagining this game.

It's heartwarming that an organization that believes in bringing all knowledge to everyone just by creating the tools to allow everyone to volunteer is actually succeeding at it.

College a cappella represent!

The original Rankmaniac

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