I give you the space butterfly.
This was taken by the Hubble telescope. It is believed to dwarf Rex Harrison’s Giant Lunar Moth.
For collectors, the problem is not the size of the net, but the speed of the insect. This particular specimen of lepidoptera racing at over 600,000 mph from a dying star.
Pardon me I saw Iron Butterfly open for the Jefferson Airplane at the Aragon Ballroom in Chicago. It must have been the same tour.
Because 3:30 in the afternoon isn’t too early for a dry Martini… Paul Desmond plays Poor Butterfly.
Gyges:
I agree that there is something that differentiates a good competent musician/singer from the greats. It could be as simple as a longer tendon in your fingers to a differently shaped vocal cord.
But someone with great talent must work hard, there are brilliant bus drivers.
Iron Butterfly opened for Jefferson Airplane at McFarlin Auditorium on the SMU campus. It was the first rock concert I attended. I was 14, wore a polyester pantsuit, and smelled reefer for the first time. Almost forty years later, someone gave us tickets to Hippiefest at Nokia Theater where we saw I.B. and even approached the stage afterward. My kid got the keyboard player’s autograph.
Tiger Swallowtails are the main lepidoptera attraction around here these days.
Here’s my butterfly selection:
Byron,
In the end, beauty is a personal thing.
I quick quibble about choosing to be a great singer: You choose to be a musician, you don’t choose to be a great one. Playing music (and singing) is hard work, I’ve spend countless hours practicing. Right now I’m about 2-3 hours a day, plus gigs or rehearsals, but I was up to 8 hours a day in college. It didn’t do a thing to increase my innate talent, just helped me utilize it. I’ll never be a great classical musician (although I am proficient), and I’ll probably never become one of the “greats” in jazz, but it wasn’t because I didn’t choose to be.
I think a much more important (and answerable) question than “which is more beautiful?” is “why are they like that?”
A mildly interesting (the subject matter is good, but the writing itself is a little lacking) book on the role of music in humanities development is “Beethoven’s Anvil.” It explores music and dance as a tool for social interaction, and actually deals with some of the physiological aspects of listening to music and dancing. I’ve been told “Effortless Mastery” is an great book dealing with performing from the performers’ standpoint, but haven’t read it myself.
Gyges:
no it is not, there are many unhappy Christians. We all have our place in the scheme of things.
Leontyne Price singing is every bit as wondrous, in my mind anyway, as the space butterfly and that is my point to TJ.
In fact the space butterfly cannot do other than what it does, Ms. Price had a choice to become a great voice. Which is the more beautiful, the one that is because it has to be or the one that is because of shear will?
I could not think of a more appropriate song to play. By you guess Iron Butterfly.
Byron,
If it’s from Youtube, just copy and paste the link into your comment. If embedding is enabled on the Youtube end of things it will appear in your comment, if not it will just show up as a link.
I see your space butterfly and give you Madam Butterfly:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WwkMxz2nEdc&feature=channel
TJ:
is this woman small and insignificant?
Byron,
I like myself. I just happen to realize that if I didn’t exist, the universe would still go on. As a matter of fact it makes me all the more grateful for my existence because I realize that there’s no good reason for me to be.
I’m small and insignificant. If that’s what it takes for me to exist, then I’m happy to be small and insignificant.
Religion isn’t always a necessity for a happy life.
how do you post video on this site?
I have a zillion butterflies going through my back yard. My lady plants flowers to attract them, as well as hummingbirds.
The butterflies are an absolutely incredible migratory species that travel distances would would not expect them to ever be able to travel.
You know, we of the human species must become space butterflies, as a species.
At first I thought it was incredible that a law professor would appreciate the space butterfly.
But then, lawyers are one of the professions that should advocate for taking care of this planet for as long as it takes.
As long as it takes us to get out of our larva stage and into at least the chrysalis stage, eager and waiting to fly, after having learned to be cosmic adults HERE!
We have so very far to go!
http://blogdredd.blogspot.com/2009/09/compromise-and-settle-on-moon.html
TJ Colatrella:
“and you’ll realize how small and insignificant and temporary we are and how we’ve turned Eden into a place of misery, degradation suffering, fear, anxiety, needless death and dread for no real reason..but our own will and self loathing..”
Well what do you expect from small and insignificant beings? With that type of description why wouldnt we be self loathing?
And what is wrong with the will? God dosent like it when we dont do what He wants us to do?
I give you Omega Centauri.
http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/hubble/multimedia/ero/ero_omega_centauri.html
BOB,Esq:
Here you go:
Hubble’s latest, greatest views revealed
NASA declares ‘mission accomplished’ with dazzling new images
Slideshow.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32757086/ns/technology_and_science-space/?GT1=43001
How’s a whale eye grab you (Yo, ho, ho):
http://athensboy.files.wordpress.com/2009/05/hubble_image_whales_eye.jpg
The Universe is a life factory, that is it’s design and purpose the more you learn of it the more this become clear, we are stardust the universe is in us and we are in it…
Whenever these petty issues mankind creates due to his lack of integrity and wisdom and clarity get the better of you, take some time to realize the incredible wonder you are a part of, and you’ll realize how small and insignificant and temporary we are and how we’ve turned Eden into a place of misery, degradation suffering, fear, anxiety, needless death and dread for no real reason..but our own will and self loathing..
The Universe will end due to it’s expansion and the power of dark energy over powering that of gravity, but we will be long gone and forgotten for billions and billions of years before that eventually happens..
See what I mean..?
You give me the space butterfly?
Not to look a gift-[butterfly] in the mouth, but how does one run a title search on a space butterfly?
BIL,
Sorry to not see you here, hacker need something to do too.
This image is great.
This is beautiful. Might I also suggest looking at Eta Carniae.
Just Google the image. Similar stellar event.
Regulars,
This will be my last post from work for the next 48 hours. We have a hacker issue that requires immediate attention and surprise surprise they got in using one of the two Windows machines we keep for customer convenience (rat bastards). So I’ll be busy and I may get online tonight, but it may be the weekend. I know you will all keep on fighting the good fight in my absence.
I’ll be back ASAP.