Daniel Manu

M-am mutat (iar)

2010-02-18T12:38:00.000+10:00

Iar m-am mutat cu blogul. Prin bunavointa celor de la Blogway am obtinut domeniul www.marketing-pr.ro unde voi posta chestiuni de business, urmand ca blogul de fata sa redevina personal. Sper ca nu v-am derutat prea tare cu schimbarile astea. Nu e din seria "daca nu-i poti convinge, zapaceste-i".

Ce cauta cititorii pe blogul meu

2010-02-10T14:45:00.000+10:00

E randul meu azi sa ma "inscriu in tendinte" si sa va povestesc despre cele mai bizare, obraznice sau neasteptate cuvinte cheie care mi-au adus cititori in ultimul an, daca e sa ma iau dupa Google Analytics. Noroc ca astea sunt doar exceptii si ca majoritatea vizitatorilor ma gasesc folosind cuvinte cheie mai... normale. Dar sa incepem:

Pentru blogul aici de fata, manudaniel.blogspot.com:

john cusack (hmm, onorant:-)
basket dan dacian (la fel ca mai sus, onorant:-)
baxter's shock naked exit (nu va speriati, nu fuge nimeni dezbracat pe strada; e vorba de Mat Baxter, directorul unei agentii de PR de aici din Australia numita Naked si care a demisionat; ce treaba am eu cu el nu stiu)
care sunt serviciile amazon? (pai fac cam de toate fetele astea, calaresc pe deselate, vand carti, trag cu arcul, fac focul - nota bene, Kindle in engleza inseamna a face focul)
cum faci carte de vizita (simplu, te duci la www.agrafa.ro, sal'tare Dorin)
cum pot pleca gratis in asia ca voluntar (ehe, asta as vrea sa stiu si eu; daca afli da-mi un mail, te rog)
cum sa pun filme pe dvd-r din computer (ntzz, asta nu se spune)
cum sa spargi parola la o retea wireless (ma baieti io v-am zis sa va mai potoliti cu pocnitorile in fata blocului)
program care pune credit pe nr (erau niste banci care puneau credit pe numarul de la casa; daca e vorba de mobil, e valabil raspunsul de mai sus)
fried chicken computer graphic (cat platesti sa-ti desenez?)
is descartes right that the evil genius could not deceive (no, he was wrong; raspunsul aici)
ce inseamna omenirea (asta as vrea sa stiu si eu!)

Pentru site-ul meu, danielmanu.freehostia.com:

facultatea de teologie ortodoxa iasi pr prof gheorghe popa (nu e nici o legatura, dar am un unchi de gradul 7 pe care il cheama ionescu)
lista studentilor din anul 2 marketing spiru haret tg-jiu (n-are tata, dar daca vreti va pun o pila la Bucuresti)
marketing jobs in london uk (sper ca niciodata Londra, job si persoana mea sa nu se afle in aceeasi propozitie)
marketing@macromex.ro (asta e chiar surprinzatoare, din pacate n-a iesit asa cum speram)
penny market (e unul in Campina, langa Tribunal, mama face cumparaturi acolo mai mereu, cica ar fi preturi bune)
mushrooms market (asta imi aduce aminte de un banc prost si ofensator: care e asemarea intre ciuperci si customer service - they live in the dark and eat shit)
bayo bhjugrtdiop,mjk1azcft6gfewq mk (raspuns: asibfoygf oauhdfpaeh a;spdoiuwe0rbc!!!)

Mai aveti intrebari?

Doua schite noi

2010-02-10T14:36:00.004+10:00

Ramanem la rubrica "Raspundem ascultatorilor". Am fost rugat sa mai postez desene pe blog asa ca ma conformez. Cu mare intarziere si scuze pentru ca nu am mai avut timp sa pun stylusul pe tableta.

PS: Nu, n-am vazut Avatar...

Cata influenta are Twitter in lumea reala?

2010-02-07T14:56:00.000+10:00

Daca in lumea virtuala a Internetului Twitter e deja un nume de care nu ai cum sa nu tii seama, in lumea reala a celor care nu respira printr-un tub tras din Facebook si nu se hranesc cu clipuri de la YouTube, programul de ciripit zilnic nu reprezinta nimic notabil. Si totusi sunt numeroase momente cand membrana ce desparte cele doua lumi e traversata, facandu-i chiar si pe cei mai sceptici sa admita ca intr-o buna zi offline-ul si online-ul vor fi tot o apa si-un pamant.

De exemplu, uite ce scrie David Carr in rubrica sa din New York Times: "I was on a Virgin America cross-country flight, and used its wireless connection to tweet about the fact that the guy next to me seemed to be the leader of a cult involving Axe body spray. A half-hour later, a steward approached me and said he wondered if I would be more comfortable with a seat in the bulkhead. (He turned out to be a great guy, but I was doing a story involving another part of the company, so I had to decline the offer. @VirginAmerica, its corporate Twitter account, sent me a message afterward saying perhaps it should develop a screening process for Axe. It was creepy and comforting all at once.)"

Ce va urma peste cativa ani?

Cele mai importante 25 inventii IT&C care au marcat ultimul deceniu

2010-02-03T14:19:00.001+10:00

Cele mai importante 25 inventii in domeniul IT&C care, potrivit revistei eWeek, au schimbat ultimii 10 ani sunt:

Telefonia 3G
Wireless 802.11g
AJAX
EC2, Solutia de hosting virtual de la Amazon
Procesoarele pe 64 biti de la AMD
BlackBerry
Serverul tip blade
Bluetooth
Firefox
Gmail/Google Apps
iPhone/iPod
Mac OS X
Procesorul multi-core
Netbook-ul
Openoffice.org
Alimentarea POE (Power Over Ethernet)
Salesforce.com
Retelele sociale
Treo
Twitter
Red Hat Enterprise
VMware
VoIP/Skype/SIP
Solaris 10
Windows XP

10 lucruri in declin

2010-01-20T12:42:00.004+10:00

Ca reactie la postul anterior despre tendintele in 2010, am fost intrebat care cred ca sunt lucrurile in declin in prezent si in viitor. Iata lista, cu mentiunea ca multe din ele nu au nevoie de o explicatie intrucat lucrurile astea se intampla deja:

Faxul
Imprimanta
Presa tiparita
Cartile de vizita
Windows Mobile (pierde in favoarea lui OS X de pe iPhone, Android si BlackBerry OS)
Second Life (orice minune dureaza 3 ani. Si-a trait traiul, si-a mancat malaiul. Mai pe larg despre asta intr-un post viitor)
Hi5 (pierde in favoarea Facebook-ului asa cum s-a dus si MySpace)
MMS-urile si apelurile video de pe mobil
GPRS, EDGE si CDMA (inlocuite de 3G si 4G)
Laptopurile cu ecran mare (17-19 inci) vor pierde teren in fata netbook-urilor (7-12 inci) si a notebook-urilor de 13-15 inci. Oamenii s-au obisnuit deja sa foloseasca desktopul daca vor diagonala mare in loc sa umble cu sevaletul dupa ei.

E interesant ca primele 4 lucruri in declin au in comun acelasi lucru: hartia. Asta spune ceva...

Bonus:

Hard-diskul clasic HDD (cu platane in miscare) pierde in favoarea stocarii pe SSD (memorie flash)
AMD in favoarea Intel
CD-urile si DVD-urile, in special cele reinregistrabile (RW), sunt inlocuite de memoriile USB

Intrebare: va fi Google Wave in stare sa inlocuiasca combinatia email+instant messenger? Inca nu.

4 ani in Australia

2010-01-20T11:34:00.000+10:00

Azi se implinesc 4 ani de cand sunt in Australia. Cu bune, cu rele, e o experienta. Sau un experiment?

10 tendinte pentru 2010 si mai departe

2010-01-18T11:45:00.008+10:00

Daca tot sunt la moda previziunile, imi incerc si eu norocul:

Localizare. Mari sau mici, firmele vor incepe sa utilizeze coordonatele de geolocatie si GPS-ul pentru a-si asista clientii sa le gaseasca pe harta prin smartphone-uri. Doua aplicatii care vor intra in mainstream sunt Foursquare si Loopt. In plus, vom vedea tot mai multe mashups.
Prezenta personalizata pe piata. Tot mai multe companii vor incepe folosirea de consumer generated products pentru promovare si nu numai. Zazzle si TasteBook sunt doar doua din site-urile care fac legatura intre clienti si produsele personalizate. Cititi aici un studiu de caz care arata cum a lansat Mars ciocolata personalizata M&M.
Gameri mai varstnici si cititori mai tineri. Un studiu recent arata ca adultii de peste 75 ani din SUA petrec tot mai mult timp jucandu-se fie pe computer fie pe console, in timp ce adolescentii petrec tot mai mult timp citind. 2010 va fi anul cartilor electronice. Kindle de la Amazon si Nook de la Barnes & Noble sunt deja lansate, Sony vine din urma, iar pe marginea terenului se incalzesc tabletele de la Apple si HP.
Pauza de social media. Firmele vor incepe sa-si puna in aplicare politica de restrictionare a accesului angajatilor la social media. Ca urmare, in afara pauzei de cafea sau de pranz va aparea si pauza de social media, care le va da posibilitatea angajatilor sa-si verifice conturile de Facebook sau Twitter. Sau pauza de cafea va deveni de social media.
Cartea de vizita va muri. Poate nu de tot si nu in 2010. Dar cu siguranta se va intampla in curand si cauza trebuie cautata pe Internet, smartphones, social media si noile tehnologii. Schimbul de carti de vizita se va face prin telefoanele mobile, prin aplicatii precum Beezcard sau SnapDat. Eu unul nu cred in viitorul lui Poken. La fel vor muri si faxul, imprimanta, telefonul fix. Asa s-au dus si telexul si telegraful.
Resursele IT vor apartine angajatilor. Daca luam in considerare timpul pe care un angajat il petrece in fata computerului, atunci pretentiile acestuia si preferintele pentru o anumita marca sau configuratie incep sa devina justificate. Cred ca tendinta este ca angajatii sa prefere sa-si foloseasca propriile computere (scumpe, dar performante) decat sa-si faca nervi cu "abacele" primite gratis de la firma.
Munca la domiciliu. Tot mai multi oameni vor incepe sa lucreze de acasa. Nu vom mai avea antreprenori, ci homepreneuri (n-am gasit alta rima). Cei care lucreaza in IT (software, nu hardware desigur), Internet, call centers, outsourcing si alte domenii conexe vor prefera sa lucreze de acasa decat sa-si puna nervii pe bigudiuri in trafic. Sau poate vor prefera sa scrie cod stand tolaniti in iarba la Poiana Brasov sau in Vama sau ascunsi intr-o cafenea pragheza.
Micro-voluntariatul. CSR a fost o idee excelenta, dar in multe situatii mastodontii s-au dovedit greu de urnit. Oamenii vor prefera sa treaca la actiune direct si de capul lor decat sa astepte deblocarea resurselor din multinationale sau pana PR-ul isi va fi terminat planul de promovare prin CSR. Cititi aici mai multe despre micro-voluntariat.
Cloud computing. Incet, incet totul se va muta pe Internet. Aplicatii, sisteme de operare, telefonie, pana si hard-diskul va deveni virtual. Google Chrome OS, Google Wave, Google Docs, Google Apps si asa mai departe. Cititi mai multe aici si aici.Vor fi probabil trei directii de dezvoltare:

Software-as-a-Service sau SaaS, adica aplicatii online incepand cu banalele deja Google Docs care vor inlocui Microsoft Office si terminand cu solutii CRM (relatii cu clientii);
Infrastructura virtuala, cum sunt serviciile de gazduire de site-uri oferite de Amazon;
Colaborare virtuala in interiorul companiei.

Turismul ecologic de lux. Faptul ca turismul a inceput sa nu mai ofere doar masa si casa, ci o experienta, nu mai e demult o noutate. Dar de acum vom avea experiente turistice care vor combina luxul cu sustenabilitatea. De exemplu, vor aparea croazierele ecologice la bordul vaselor alimentate cu energie solara si eoliana. Cititi aici despre o statiune ecologica de lux din Italia.

Poate va ganditi ca e criza si va spun povesti. Nu tot ce am scris aici se va intampla fix in Romania si fix in 2010. Dar astea sunt tendintele si ele vor intra si in Romania, poate mai lent, poate mai rapid. Daca nu sunteti de acord, nu dati cu parul, ci cu comentariul. Daca v-au placut, la fel. Multumiri.

Romania vazuta prin ochii a doi americani

2010-01-11T10:00:00.004+10:00

Recent a aparut in Statele Unite volumul "Dracula is Dead" al fostului ambasador american la Bucuresti, James Rosapepe. Excelenta sa, in prezent senator de Maryland, s-a aflat in Romania in perioada 1998-2001. Am toate motivele sa cred ca fostul ambasador s-a indragostit de Romania de vreme ce anul trecut s-a reintors in tara pentru a se documenta in vederea scrierii acestei carti. Excelenta sa a scris acest volum in colaborare cu sotia sa, Sheilah Kast. Cartea prezinta o multitudine de "ilustrate" din Romania vazute prin ochii a doi americani care au batut tara in lung si in lat.

Ceea ce place la aceasta carte este faptul ca nu se vrea o reclama pe fata la tara noastra. Prezentand si aspecte negative alaturi de cele pozitive, cuplul de autori nu face decat sa creasca credibilitatea volumului prin sinceritatea si uneori candoarea de care dau dovada. Foarte rar avem ocazia sa citim lucruri frumoase despre Romania si nu stiu de cate ori am auzit un roman vorbind despre tara lui mai frumos decat acesti doi americani. Va invit sa cautati aceasta carte pe amazon.com si s-o cititi. S-ar putea chiar sa aflati lucruri noi despre tara in care trati!

Integrarea email marketingului cu social media

2010-01-09T16:45:00.000+10:00

Pleaca de la premisa ca exista o suprapunere intre abonatii la newsletterul pe email si abonatii tai la canalele social media. Fa o cercetare de piata ca sa determini cat de intinsa e intersectia celor doua multimi.

Cum? Simplu, faci un sondaj printre abonatii la newsletter ca sa afli ce servicii de social media folosesc.
Fa sondaje separate pe Facebook si Twitter ca sa afli care sunt abonati si la newsletter si care sunt obiceiurile lor in materie de social media.

Dezvolta mesaje diferite pentru fiecare tip de audienta. De exemplu, vei afla din sondajul anterior ca abonatii la newsletter sunt interesati de idei si know-how, in timp ce abonatii tai la Twitter sunt interesati de lansarea unor servicii noi, promotii etc.
Foloseste emailul ca sa-ti cresti popularitatea pe social media si invers.

Adauga la newsletter butoane cu linkuri catre Facebook, Twitter si LinkedIn. Anunta promotii sau trial versions acordate celor care vin la tine prin canalele de social media.
Pune pe pagina de Facebook un link catre newsletter prin care acorzi discounturi celor care te contacteaza prin newsletter.

Odata ce ai obtinut integrarea serviciilor, fa un test. Organizeaza un eveniment major, gen promotia anului in care sa folosesti sinergic toate canalele simultan - email, Facebook, Twitter etc. si masoara rezultatele. Ai obtinut o imbunatatire?

Te-ai gandit vreodata ca nu esti decat o cutie?...

2010-01-08T23:52:00.002+10:00

Te-ai gandit vreodata ca nu esti decat o cutie? Nu ca traiesti intr-o cutie ci ca esti o cutie… Sa ma explic. Pornim de la premisa ca simturile ne inseala si ca nimic din ce ne parvine prin intermediul lor nu poate fi sigur. Eliminam deci cunoasterea apriori. Mai ramane ratiunea (cunoasterea aposteriori). Ea ne poate ajuta sa ne formam o idee despre lume. Dar ratiunea de care dam dovada nu e cumva indusa? De unde stiu ca ideile mele sunt chiar ale mele, ca eu le-am gandit si nu cumva cineva sau ceva nu mi le-a implantat in cap si ma face sa cred ca sunt ale mele?

Acum 20 ani, Stanislaw Lem publica o nuvela SF care descria un experiment. Un cercetator realizase o retea de computere carora le generase personalitati si care interactionau dupa cum voia omul de stiinta. Un fel de joc de-a Dumnezeu. Acum 10 ani a aparut Matrix in care omenirea visa ca traieste o viata reala in timp ce corpurile oamenilor vegetau. O viata reala? Ce inseamna real, de fapt? Nu stim cu adevarat. Definitia realului se bazeaza pe genul proxim si diferenta specifica, iar astea pot fi relative, nu absolute. Nu stim nici macar ce e adevarul. Ce e absolut si ce e relativ?

Extrapoland, am extins si am combinat cele 2 idei. Ce-ar fi daca intreaga omenire nu ar fi decat o imensa retea de computere interconectate? Computere carora cineva le-a implantat o personalitate. O personalitate care nu e decat un software, un program care simuleaza o inteligenta artificiala, asa cum vedem in jocurile pe calculator. Si ca undeva exista un administrator de retea, un IT-st, care se joaca sau face un experiment “social” punand computerele sa interactioneze dupa bunul lui plac?

Si vin cu un al 3-lea exemplu. Cristian Tudor Popescu avea o povestire SF in care este descrisa o planeta pe care traiau 2 popoare si care ajung la razboi intr-o zi. Si au surpriza de a nu se putea distruge reciproc pentru ca sabiile unora treceau prin trupurile celorlalti ca prin niste holograme. Si se intrebau daca nu cumva oamenii nu sunt decat niste decoruri, niste manechine din carne (?) lasate in urma turnarii unui film gigantic.

Daca nu am fi decat niste cutii intr-o retea imensa, simturile nu ne-ar ajuta sa demonstram ca de fapt suntem oameni din carne si oase. Simturile sunt cel mai usor de pacalit, nu? Mai ramane ratiunea. Dar cutiile gandesc ce vrea programatorul sa gandeasca. Cutiile viseaza ca fac filosofie si ca se plimba printr-o poienita cu flori. Ambele lucruri pot si false si induse. Mai exista posibilitatea ca una din cutii sa capete intr-o zi constiinta de sine.

In SF se vorbeste de mult timp de posibilitatea ca intr-o zi computerele sa devina constiente (vezi Hal din Odiseea Spatiala 2001). Aici sunt posibile 2 scenarii. In primul cutia devine constienta ca ar putea fi doar o cutie si nu un om, caz in care fie este eliminata de programator ca pe o aberatie a naturii, un nebun, o eroare periculoasa de sistem, un virus. Sau este lasata sa-si propage ideile pentru a studia reactia celorlalte cutii. In al doilea scenariu unei cutii i se implanteaza aceasta “constiinta de sine” chiar de IT-st ca sa poate studia impactul ideii in retea si cum se propaga aceasta. Nici intr-un caz, nici in altul, o cutie nu are nici o sansa sa afle, darmite sa-si demonstreze siesi sau celorlalte cutii, ADEVARUL.

Cu alte cuvinte, suntem sortiti sa “traim” in intuneric, fara sa stim cu adevarat daca suntem niste oameni sau niste cutii. Si avem dreptul sa ne indoim de ambele ipoteze. Mai tineti minte demonstratiile prin reducere la absurd de la matematica? Nu avem nici o sansa sa cunoastem lumea asa cum este. De fapt, care lume? Lumea poate nici nu exista.

In final, va invit sa (re)cititi aici un capitol din Camil Petrescu si care este poate cea mai buna sinteza a istoriei filosofiei scrisa pentru neofiti. Dupa aceea recititi postul acesta si intrebati-va din nou daca nu cumva nu suntem decat niste cutii...Nu vom sti niciodata...

15 Internet Marketing Predictions for 2010

2010-01-08T22:29:00.000+10:00

15 Internet Marketing Predictions for 2010 - SEO Consultant India - SEO Kolkata

Google's 10 toughest rivals | The Industry Standard

2010-01-07T17:15:00.000+10:00

Google's 10 toughest rivals | The Industry Standard

Un nou inceput

2009-12-17T10:15:00.001+10:00

Am inceput blogul asta acum 2 ani ca un mod de a-mi face publice desenele (CGI - computer generated images) realizate cu Bryce, DAZ Studio si Photoshop. Dupa care am inceput sa povestesc si despre lucrurile care ma pasioneaza.

Acum a venit vremea pentru un nou inceput.

De acum voi scrie in romaneste pentru ca vreau sa scriu pentru romani. Pentru ca nu mai sunt interesat sa scriu pentru australieni. Pentru ca romana e limba in care ma exprim cel mai bine si care mi-e draga.

De acum voi scrie mai des, mult mai des. Sper sa reusesc sa public de cateva ori pe saptamana.

De acum voi scrie si despre afaceri, marketing si PR, nu doar despre ceea ce ma framanta pe mine personal. Pentru ca si marketingul si PR-ul fac parte din viata mea. Pentru ca nu sunt doar o meserie pentru mine, ci si o pasiune.

Si ca sa marchez acest nou inceput am schimbat si macheta blogului.

La bulivar, birjar! Azi e prima zi din restul vietii mele de blogger!

'Second Stonehenge' discovered near original

2009-10-07T10:18:00.001+10:00

Archaeologists have discovered evidence of what they believe was a second Stonehenge located a little more than a mile away from the world-famous prehistoric monument, says The Guardian. The outer henge around the stones was built about 2400BC but arrowheads found in the stone circle indicate the stones were put up as much as 500 years earlier.

It should also show whether the newly discovered circle's stones were removed by Neolithic people and dragged along the route of the avenue to Stonehenge, to be incorporated within its major rebuilding about 2500BC. After that date Stonehenge consisted of about 80 Welsh stones and 83 local sarsen stones.

Read more.

Even more.

CNN: Students launch camera to edge of space, snap pics of Earth

2009-09-22T22:55:00.003+10:00

Click here or here to read a report on two bold students who launched a camera into near-space using a weather balloon.

Wireless Electricity

2009-09-21T13:30:00.002+10:00

Breathtaking Images

2009-09-16T09:50:00.002+10:00

Taken by the artist currently known as Hubble.

2012: New Y2K, Dark Ages 2.0, Global Reboot or Mayans` Last Laugh?

2009-06-12T09:26:00.000+10:00

Even if History as We Know It doesn’t actually end on Dec. 21, 2012, as prophesied by the ancients, IT and business are hardly home free, according to a growing number of non-kooky scientists.

Really, I’m not looking to create extra work or agita for you. But have you heard about this whole 2012 business?

I'm not talking about the New Age/Mayan/Egyptian/Nostradamus/Bible Code/Hopi/IChing/Edgar Cayce prophecies about the End of The World as We Know It on Dec. 21, 2012. For better or worse, chances are growing you’ll encounter the media trumpeting of the cosmic gloom/doom/re-bloom foreseen by various ancients, notably a new History Channel program, coverage in Newsweek and a new movie from Sony starring, among others, John Cusack, Woody Harrelson and Danny Glover as President Wilson, scheduled for release this fall. If these predictions come to pass, keeping the routers powered up or distributing the latest Windows patch (a last valiant gesture, perhaps, against the inevitable “Quetzalcoatl Worm”) will be the least of our concerns.

No, I’m talking about a related, slightly less dramatic, less discussed possibility—one that could make life, should it persist, so awful that we’ll wish the dawning of the Age of Aquarius really had swooshed us off into the cosmos. Namely, a decade of major solar storms forecasted to peak in late 2012, which more and more non-kooky scientists—including NASA, NOAA and The National Academies of Science (part of the U.S. Congress)—say could wipe out the world’s electrical grids as well as all satellite, Internet, network and wireless communications for years.

Sounds far-fetched, I know. I’m sure if it doesn’t already have one, Gartner will soon issue an advisory on this matter, so we can see exactly what degree of risk we’re facing here. (Probability the Power Grid Destroyer will resemble the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man: .76)

Until then, it’s probably not a bad idea to get a basic grasp of this, perhaps the way-biggest, granddaddy/grandmommy of risk management/business continuity challenges in recorded history. If nothing else, it could be a boost to you career if, post harmonic convergence, such a thing still exists. (Yeah, I was into the whole Y2K12 mitigation thing back in like, I don’t know, mid-2009. Yeah, really ...) Also, acting now could help you avoid the inevitable last-minute rush at your favorite supplier of backup generators or ammo.

Timeline of the universe, according to Robert Matthews

2009-05-18T09:34:00.006+10:00

10^-43 seconds
Known as the Planck Era, this is the closest that current physics can get to the absolute beginning of time. At this moment, the universe is thought to be incredibly hot, dense and turbulent, with the very fabric of space and time turned into a roiling morass. All the fundamental forces currently at work in the universe - gravity, electromagnetism and the so-called strong and weak nuclear forces - are thought to have been unified during this stage into a single "superforce".

10^-35 seconds
The so-called Grand Unification Era, at the end of which the superforce begins to break apart into the constituent forces we see today. Around this time so-called inflationary energy triggers a dramatic burst of expansion, expanding the universe from far smaller than a subatomic particle to far larger than the cosmic volume we can see today. In the process, the primordial wrinkles in space-time are smoothed out.

10^-32 seconds
The energy dumped into the universe by the end of inflation leads to the appearance of particles of matter via Einstein's celebrated equation E=mc^2. Initially a mix of matter and antimatter, most of the particles annihilate each other in a burst of radiation, leaving behind randomly scattered pockets of matter.

10^-11 seconds
The so-called Electroweak Era, when the last two fundamental forces still unified with one another - electromagnetism and the weak nuclear force - finally split, leaving the universe with the four separate forces we observe today.

10^-6 seconds
As the universe continues to expand, it becomes cool enough to allow the familiar particles of today's matter, protons and neutrons, to form from their constituents, known as quarks.

200 seconds
At a temperature of one billion degrees celsius, protons and neutrons start to come together to form nuclei, the charged cores of atoms. Within 20 minutes, the temperature of the universe has become too cold to drive the process, which ceases with the formation of the nuclei of hydrogen and helium, the simplest and most common chemical elements in the universe. The formation of all the other elements - including the carbon, oxygen and nitrogen needed for life - will emerge with the first massive stars millions of years later.

300,000 years
The universe has cooled to about 1,000C - cool enough for electrons to pair up with nuclei to form the first atoms. By the end of this so-called Recombination Era, the universe consists of about 75% hydrogen and 25% helium. With the electrons now bound to atoms, the universe finally becomes transparent to light - making this the earliest epoch observable today.

200m years
Small, dense regions of cosmic gas start to collapse under their own gravity, becoming hot enough to trigger nuclear fusion reactions between hydrogen atoms. These are the very first stars to light up the universe.

0.5bn - 1bn years
The force of gravity starts to pull together huge regions of relatively dense cosmic gas, forming the vast, swirling collections of stars we call galaxies. These in turn start to form clusters, of which one - the so-called Local Group - contains our own Milky Way galaxy.

9bn years
The force of gravity trying to slow the cosmic expansion begins to lose out to the anti-gravitational effect of "dark energy", a mysterious force which has been accelerating the cosmic expansion ever since.

9.1bn years
A region of gas and dust from exploding stars in the Milky Way galaxy starts to collapse under its own gravity, forming a small star surrounded by a disk of rocky material and gas. Swarms of giant chunks of debris form within the disc, collide and merge - forming the Earth, moon and other planets.

The Crisis of Credit Visualised

2009-05-12T09:50:00.000+10:00

The Crisis of Credit Visualized from Jonathan Jarvis on Vimeo.

Stephen Hawking: Aliens probably exist

2009-02-10T16:35:00.002+10:00

I read in The Telegraph that according to Stephen Hawking, lurk elsewhere in the cosmos, but that they probably are not very smart. Why has humanity not stumbled onto alien broadcasts, maybe something like "alien quiz shows?"

One option is that there likely is no life elsewhere. Or maybe there is intelligent life elsewhere, but when it gets smart enough to send signals into space, it also is smart enough to make destructive nuclear weapons.

He concludes: "Primitive life is very common and intelligent life is fairly rare," but adds: "Some would say it has yet to occur on Earth." So should people worry about aliens? Alien abduction claims come from "weirdos" and are unlikely.

However, because alien life might not have DNA like earthlings, Prof Hawking warned: "Watch out if you would meet an alien. You could be infected with a disease with which you have no resistance."

Writing only a few weeks ago in the Telegraph, he said: "At the moment we have nowhere else to go, but in the long run the human race should not have all its eggs in one basket, or on one planet. I just hope we can avoid dropping the basket until then."

The scientist, who did pioneering work on black holes and on a theory of everything, compares people who do not want to spend money on human space exploration to those who opposed the journey of Christopher Columbus.

"In a way, the situation is like Europe before 1492. People might well have argued that it was a waste of money to send Columbus on a wild goose chase."

"Yet the discovery of the new world made profound difference to the old. Just think, we would not have a Big Mac or KFC (Kentucky Fried Chicken)," he added referring to the ubiquitous US fast food outlets.

"Spreading out into space will have an even greater effect. It will completely change the future of the human race and maybe determine whether we have any future at all," added the 66-year-old.

Hawking envisages a long-term space exploration project that would include building an experimental base on the moon within 30 years, and devising a new propulsion system to take us on a planetary hunt outside our solar system in 200-500 years.

"It will not solve any of our immediate problems on planet Earth," he said, "but it will give us a new perspective on them and... hopefully, it will unite us to face a common challenge."

"Going into space will not be cheap, but it will take only a small portion of world resources," he added.

New Big Bang Theory

2008-08-21T11:09:00.003+10:00

Recently Prof Stephen Hawking and Prof Thomas Hertog have come up with a new idea to explain why the Big Bang of creation led to the vast cosmos that we can see today.

In this theory, the early universe can be described by a mathematical object called a wave function and, in a similar way to the light particle, the team proposed two years ago that this means that there was no unique origin to the cosmos: instead the wave function of the universe embraced a multitude of means to develop.

But, like any new idea, there were problems. The professors found that they could not explain the rapid expansion - inflation - of the universe, evidence of which is left behind all around us in what is called the cosmic microwave background, in effect the echo of the big bang, a relic of creation that can be measured with experiments on balloons and on space probes.

Help Conserve Our Forests

2008-07-30T16:29:00.001+10:00

Questions?

2008-07-24T14:35:00.001+10:00

Does anyone have a question?

Because I have an answer.

Quantum Physics Explained For Everyone's IQ

2008-07-17T16:02:00.001+10:00

Once Upon A Time...

2008-07-17T15:15:00.005+10:00

Two thousand years ago Roman Emperor Hadrian built what we know today as Hadrian's Wall, a fortification meant to defend Britannia against Picts (ancient Scots) attacks. Among those who built and guarded the structure were several units of Dacian soldiers. Those 1,000 Dacians were part of the first wave of Roman settlers who civilised the actual England.

What was their contribution to the future Britain? Well, firstly, the English word dagger comes from daca, a Dacian knife, and it also may be related with the medieval Romanian word daga, a kind of knife with three blades, used only for assassination.

Then, the sica. Sica was the weapon of choice of the Dacians, and can be seen all over Trajan's Column in their hands. It was originally depicted as a curved sword, with a blade about 16-18 inches long. Roman Emperor Trajan built the column to celebrate his victory against his most fierceful adversay, the Dacian King Decebal. Anyway, the sica became sickle in English.

And lastly, but most importantly, the draco. A draco was a military standard (flag) borne by a draconarius. Originated with the Dacians, it took the form of a gaping dragon's head and mouth formed from cast metal, to the end of which was attached a 'body' of cloth or silk fabric in the form of a windsock. When charging, the body would billow out behind the head. It is also thought that the draco was sometimes fitted with a whistle of some form, since there are descriptions of it making a howling sound when borne into battle. Sounds familiar? What other armies borrowed this flag in the Middle Ages?

So, my ancestors were among those who brought civilization to the savage tribes of barbarians that inhabited the actual British territory. Unfortunately their influence was not strong enough to remain in the history books...

Evening Flight

2008-05-20T09:45:00.004+10:00

Last month The Guardian presented an interesting article on the timeline of the universe. How about the micro-universe? Our inner, tiny world is still full of mysteries. Have you ever wondered how the fetus' heart starts? The heart forms and then what? Bang, it just starts to beat or what? What switch starts that 'life engine"? As long as we can't create life, we are not entitled to take life. I'll tell you what Mr. Darwin, the probability that life appeared from void had the same chances as a hurricane that stormed a wrecking yard and gave birth to an assembled car.

My new website: danielmanu.freehostia.com

2008-04-01T00:59:00.003+10:00

Please check my new website:danielmanu.freehostia.com

Reaching Out, Touching You

2008-03-17T18:48:00.003+10:00

'Non-communication is impossible', says one of the communication theory's postulates. However, considering that the fourth most important element of the communication process is (can you believe it?) the noise, let's try to apply the Shannon-Hartley theorem to the almighty Internet. The entropy of English text is between 1.0 and 1.5 bits per letter,^[1] or as low as 0.6 to 1.3 bits per letter, according to estimates by Shannon based on human experiments^[2](one bit being equal with a fair coin). If we take into account the fact that the channel codes appear to multiply following (say) geometric progression, then we will soon (50 years) face a "deafening" entropy. In other words, we will move from a directory centric communication to a user centric one. Just think of the millions of blogs with less then 5-10 readers. You start to feel the frozen breath of the Big Crunch on your back?...

Ruined props

2008-02-23T13:30:00.004+10:00

Twenty years ago a Romanian sci-fi author came with the idea that humans might very well be extras left behind a gigantic production "filmed" millenniums ago. Other writers, such as Heinlein, Frank Herbert or even Asimov (in "The End of Eternity") flirted with the same concept in one way or another. But there were the Wachowskis who put that subject in the spotlight, using America's ultimate propaganda weapon, the Hollywood. However, there was nothing new under the sun, as The Matrix was inspired by other films, books, myths and philosophy including Messianism, Buddhism, Gnosticism, Existentialism, Nihilism, Vedanta, Advaita Hinduism, Yoga Vashishta Hinduism and Sikhism. As Wikipedia mentioned, the film's premise resembled Plato's Allegory of the cave, René Descartes's evil genius, Kant's reflections on the Phenomenon versus the Ding an sich, and the brain in a vat thought experiment, while Jean Baudrillard's Simulacra and Simulation. After all, the question still remains... How can you tell how real is your world?

18 Wheels Of Destiny

2008-02-04T19:44:00.002+10:00

David Lynch's masterpiece Twin Peaks was all about symbols. The first of them, shown right from the opening credits was the wheel. His daughter, Jennifer, a movie director as well, recalled that the Vedic mythology inspired Lynch on most of the symbols (including the Wheel of Life). Other symbols could be found here and thanks to Mr. Eco anyone could find an explanation for them. And speaking of Vedas and sanskrit, Coppola just launched his latest movie based on a novella by Mircea Eliade, a.k.a. the Godfather of the history of religions. Anyway, getting back to the graphic...how many wheels can you see there?

Afternoon Delight

2008-01-30T23:01:00.000+10:00

The reminiscences of a dull afternoon, ironed by the silver sun of the Black Sea. What was that book next to me? Proust, maybe... I forgot. But was it Debussy's Faun rumbling in the back of my ear? I'm flat...

First Takeoff

2008-01-30T22:49:00.002+10:00

What's worse than a wave-less morning?... What's bluer than homesickness?... Maybe the moment you start to wake up and see the rednecks...

Moon Glass

2008-01-30T22:33:00.000+10:00

The white wolf used to wander around most nights, ruminating on his own reflection in the Raven's Lake, and sometimes even indulging in optimistic thoughts about his mortality...

Earthy Brekkie

2008-01-30T22:09:00.001+10:00

One morning, you'll have to have my little Earth as breakfast... on an optimistically-pink plate, next to a greenly-fresh mug. Laid on a Renaissance table. The rest of the temple is silenced...

Astro Golf

2007-12-13T21:46:00.001+10:00

When was the last time you dreamed you played God? Or was it... golf? What would be the par for putting the Sun into a space-station hole...

Stairs To Hellven

2007-12-12T22:32:00.000+10:00

What if we are all just preprogrammed interconnected boxes?... There is one way to find out... "Careful with that axe, Eugene!" Stay away from that light...

Stardoor

2007-12-11T22:00:00.000+10:00

OK, things start to get serious. And obsessive. I wonder when I'll be able to escape from this sci-fi environment...

Unexpected Landing

2007-12-06T21:20:00.001+10:00

The second one took me a lot more to finish because I put more effort in every detail. The same sphere playing the role of an alien space ship forced to land on Earth.

Star Warzzz

2007-12-06T20:59:00.000+10:00

That was my first 3D graphic designed in Bryce 5.5. A test, actually. As you can see it is very simple, few lines, a skyscraper that looks like a Start Wars ship and a sphere that resembles the Death Star...RSS...really simple shapes.