In anticipation – or just sheer and utter impatience — for the Doctor Who Christmas Special on December 25th (or course), and finally catching up on the mid-season finale with the final appearances of Amy Pond and Rory (still shaking; heck of a moving episode), I wanted to share some of my favorite Doctor Who memes. But PractitioNERD, what the heck is Dr. Who? Well, first it’s “Doctor” Who, not “Dr.”
Anyway, Doctor Who is a British science fiction television series that aired from 1963 to 1989, before being revived for its contemporary run in 2005. The show chronicles the adventures of a nameless time-travelling, physically regenerating (as 11 actors has portrayed the main character) humanoid alien simply referred to as “The Doctor”. He is believed to be the last remaining survivor of a species known as “The Time Lords.” In each episode, The Doctor, along with different human companions, travel through time and space aboard a ship called the TARDIS (which stands for “Time And Relative Dimension In Space”), which appears to regular people as a vintage blue police box. Due to the near-50-year history of the show, Doctor Who has gathered a cult following, and in 2006, the show was designated as television’s longest running science fiction series by the Guinness Book of World Records.
**singing**
“I’m standing in the rain, just standing in the rain, without a coat or umbrella, and I’m still bone-dry….”.
Anyway, the London Barbican Arts Center has recently opened this very impressive new installation that allows visitors to walk right into a room simulating a rain storm, and still NOT GET WET. The creators of the oh-so-cleverly titled “Rain Room,” art studio Random International, use a set of 3D cameras to detect the positions of the people within the space, then turns each of its individual rain streams on or off accordingly. The entire exhibit area covers over 1,000 square feet and uses nearly 220 gallons of water per minute, but allows the total supply of water to be quickly filtered and re-circulated through the system.
Even though the top-billed main event at SummerSlam 1992 from Wembley Stadium in London, England saw then-WWF Champion “Macho Man” Randy Savage defend the title against The Ultimate Warrior, the other main event (and last match of the show) was the Intercontinental Championship match between then-champion Bret “The Hitman” Hart and “The British Bulldog” Davey Boy Smith — gee, I wonder WHO the fan favorite for this match was….. –. Hart and Smith were brothers-in-law in real-life, as Smith was married to Diana Hart, Bret’s sister. On WWF television broadcasts leading up to their match at SummerSlam, several interviews with Diana and her mother Helen Hart portrayed an image that the family was being torn apart due to the upcoming match. An example included Bruce Hart publicly supporting Smith, while Owen Hart sided with his older brother, Bret. Diana stated that she did not know who she wanted to win the match or side with because she had close ties to both men, but she would finally state that she hoped neither wrestler would get seriously injured. Prior to the match, Smith was hospitalized with a legitimate staph infection (not “kayfabe,” or “written as a storyline”), and despite health concerns, he decided to work the match as planned. After an excellent back-and-forth match, it ended with Smith countering Hart’s sunset flip pin attempt, ultimately pinning Hart to win the Intercontinental Championship. After the match, Hart initially refused to shake Smith’s hand, but would later change his mind and hugged Smith as well as Diana Hart, who was celebrating with her husband as the show came to a close. Check out the match in its entirety after the break, and you’ll see just how the talent held the Intercontinental Championship in high-regard and respect at the time — as it was nick-named the “Work Horse” title by Triple H –, just (but not only) by having a match for that title main event a pay-per-view. Read the rest of this entry
On this week’s edition of The PractitioNERD discusses:
1) This Musical Olympic Structure Looks Like Superman’s Fortress of Solitude (http://goo.gl/3RLB4)
2) D-Generation X Reunites on Last Night’s 1000th Episode of Monday Night RAW!! (http://goo.gl/cxQ9f)
3) Presenting the $99 Vizio Co-Star Google TV set-top box; Pre-Order NOW! (http://goo.gl/1qTQX)
4) Takeshi’s Challenge is SOOO CHALLENGING; Probably Made by Satan… (http://goo.gl/UGyZC)
…and the Question of the Week!!
However, this building also looks like bloody shards of glass, as possibly Gulliver himself my have died after he fell directly on top of it. Also, this makes this the fourth building erected for the 2012 Summer Olympic Games in London that has been covered on The PractitioNERD (exhibits A, B, & C). The Coca-Cola Beatbox, designed by Asif Khan and Pernilla Ohrstedt, is a crystalline structure that is more than meets the eye (like Optimus Prime), as it can be played like a musical instrument. Read the rest of this entry
Despite a faulty camera, a day of lost work, and computer issues, here is the debut episode of “The PractitioNERD Show.” After a brief introduction to myself and the blog, I’ll discuss :
1) Architecture
~Fundraiser to publish a book about London’s Art Deco architecture (http://goo.gl/d81G6)
~A beautiful Brazilian bungalow getaway house (http://goo.gl/PRiam)
2) Technology/Gadgets
~A CPU fan/heatsink combo (http://goo.gl/WPTV6)
~A DIY HDTV Antenna (http://goo.gl/z2IB4)
3) Video Games
~Mega Man’s 25th Anniversary soundtrack collection (http://goo.gl/BMph2)
~The Legend of Zelda baby nursery (http://goo.gl/LdbWq)
4) Professional Wrestling
~Booker T wins the WCW Title in 2000 (http://goo.gl/hCjpj)
~Daniel Bryan wrestling in the Texas Wrestling Alliance in 2000 (http://goo.gl/keCVG)
PLUS, the QUESTION OF THE WEEK!!
The architectural style of Art Deco is an eclectic artistic and design style (ranging from art to architecture, jewelry, fashion, etc.) that began in Paris in the 1920s, and flourished internationally throughout the 1930s and well into the World War II era. It represents a built visible expression of the period’s enthusiasm and splendor between World Wars 1 and 2. In London, buildings of this era that were inspired by the Art Deco style reflected the refinement, progress and boldness that describe the modern, big-city metropolis age. Even now, many of these Art Deco buildings have yet to lose their spirit and interest, however (like many buildings) they are not properly documented. Thankfully, that is all about to change…should the funding be enough. Read the rest of this entry
And now…the long awaited “Part 3″ of my “coverage” of works of architecture being erected for the upcoming 2012 Olympic Summer Games that start next month in London. First I covered the nomadic basketball arena, second was the natatorium, and now I’ll be covering the London Olympic Shooting Venue. This building will accommodate the 10, 25 and 50 m Sport Shooting events for the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, and after the Summer Games have concluded, the three temporary and mobile buildings will be dismantled (a’la the basketball arena before mentioned) and rebuilt in Glasgow for the 2014 Commonwealth Games. Read the rest of this entry
Nike has announced the the 2012 iteration of Team USA’s basketball jerseys for the Olympic Games in London would be made of 96% recycled polyester, making them the lightest jerseys Nike ever made. Additionally, the shorts will be 100% recycled polyester and only weight 5 ounces. Nike verifies that each jersey is made from 22 recycled plastic bottles to create the breathable polyester fabric the jerseys are made of. Pretty snazzy-looking, don’t you think? It may be more successful than the NBA experiment with the synthetic basketball.
[Thanks to Nike via Twitter "@NikeBasketball" & the press release]
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| Classical Music, Popular Music, and VIDJA GAEMS!!! OH HECK YEAH!!!! |
The London Philharmonic Orchestra is one of the major orchestras of the United Kingdom and is renowned around the world. Ever since 1932, the group has played the classics of Back, Mozart, Beethoven, the later ventured out to popular music of Led Zeppelin, The Who, and Oasis, and now, after sporadic performances of the genre in the past, they have a concert completely dedicated to video game music.
During the Vision Sound Music festival that took place at the Southbank Centre in London, the world famous LPO put on a concert of a special nature, as its playlist consisted of music from video games. The concert was titled “Video Game Heroes,” and it features a collection of music from classic and modern games. As it turns out, the LPO’s conductor of this particular concert, Andrew Skeet, is very fond of video games and music in gaming in general.
LPO’s “Video Game Heroes” concert actually took place this past Saturday on September 2nd, however an album is in the works, and it should be released sometime this Fall. Below is some footage from that concert with the LPO performing the theme from “The Legend of Zelda,” as well as the setlist. If you want more additional information about the special concert, check out Andrew Skeet’s blog.
I suppose you can call this “Part II” of my Architectural Series of buildings erected for the 2012 Summer Olympic Games in London. I had an earlier post about the recyclable arena almost two months ago. I will say this though: I cannot guarantee a “Part III;” which kind of sucks because I’m a sucker for a trilogy.
Oh well, this is the Olympic Aquatic Center designed by Zaha Hadid Architects, the next London Olympic structure to be completed. This building will house all of the swimming events (including diving and water polo), and will house approximately 17,500 spectators.
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| Now that’s a heck of a view…. |
The Olympic Aquatic Center is an aluminium-clad-steel-roofed building measuring around 525 feet long and 295 feet wide, a space-age ceiling, and an aerated ceiling over the training pool that casts interesting reflections on the water below. There are three concrete columns that support the 3,000 ton overhead structure, a double curvature parabolic structure resembling a wave, 850,000 tiles surface the all of the pools, changing facilities and floors. Plus, there are a group of concrete towers that include three meter springboards and diving platforms that were formed and cast on site. The building is also eco-friendly, as the excess pool water is designed to be channeled from the pool to the facility’s bathrooms, where it will be recycled as toilet water.
I suppose that after the natatorium used in China for the 2008 Summer Olympic Games, the whole “design-your-arena-to-look-inflatable” thing is taking off pretty well with Olympic facilities. Also, I’m not sure if there are bags or bins large enough to stuff this baby into for recyclables pick-up day during the week. Hmmm…
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Experienced Architectural Intern & Adjunct Professor (in San Antonio & Chicago)
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