Wednesday, October 9, 2019
Progress Report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 2
Progress Report - Essay Example In 2008 December, the technology was finalized and made available to the public in 2009. The Samsung SCH-r900 was the first phone to utilize the LTE technology. The information in the sources is very important because it shows how LTE technology has evolved. This is because the LTE technology proved successful in that it offers an uplink of about mbit/s and downlink peak rate of about 300 Mbit/s. The transmission latency is as less as 5ms in the radio access network. Additionally, the engineers of LTE technology looked towards creation of a technology that would provide much faster speeds based on simple network architecture. The engineers also wanted a technology with much lower transfer latency as compared to 3G architecture. This in turn would reduce packet latency, more responsive user experience The IP based system was not effective since it was not compatible with 2G and 3G networks but the LTE technology aimed to address such problems. The LTE technology would introduce flexible radio planning and high spectral efficiency. Verizon wireless firm was the first U.S firm to deploy the LTE technology. The LTE and 4G technologies offer speeds faster than 3G technology; they have ability to share more network resources. However, LTE technology is faster than 4G, which uses Wimax and HSPA+ technologies in data transfer. LTE technology work in an evolved mode in that a device such as Smartphone connects to a 3G station with increased or higher processing power which enables it to transmit and receive data to and from the device over different channels within a spectral band. It is clear that the innovators of the technology found it vital for a connection to be created between the evolved node and evolved packet core (EPC). The EPC processes and sends and receives the data to and from the devices Most people and businesses prefer using LTE technology because it offers a high speed browsing, cloud computing, and fast download of photos,
Tuesday, October 8, 2019
Legal Status of Marihuana in the USA Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words
Legal Status of Marihuana in the USA - Essay Example Several decades of prohibition of marijuana proves that its illegal status does not work, so the state should legalize drugs and instead teach people to use them responsibly and properly. Â Legal status of marihuana will benefit the society and the state as it will solve the problem of criminal responsibility and black market operations. Medical marijuana is a point to consider. Some states have legalized medical use of marijuana and do not penalize patients who have a doctor's recommendation. These states are.Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, California, Hawaii, Maine, Washington, Nevada, Oregon, and Maryland. In the case of marijuana, especially of smoked marijuana, the scientific difficulties are compounded by the fact that the substance has a recognizable psychoactive effect (Belio 2007). A herbal mixture similar in taste and aroma to marijuana might not produce the psychoactive effect and make many of those who are test subjects reasonably sure they are not receiving actual marijuana, which could skew perceptions and the results of any test. On the other hand, the main problem is that politicians and moralists speak about two opposite issues: medical use of marijuana and its legal status. ... Â Marijuana smoke does contain many of the same harmful substances as tobacco smoke does, including known carcinogens, and there a laboratory and cellular research indicating that marijuana can cause cellular damage and disorders (Nadelmann, 2004. Medical Marijuana 2007). Â Legal status of medical marijuana will benefit the government and allows to collect taxes, control black market, and illegal operations. Crop production uncertainties are just one perturbing factor in gauging the number of illegal drugs being produced. Medical marijuana will create the certain problem for society and the state. The main problem is that marijuana policy does not only affect marijuana users, but also the rest of society. Criminalizing marijuana use, on the one hand, can lead to higher costs of law enforcement and a black market while decriminalizing could lead to public disturbance caused by unwanted marijuana use in public. Similar to alcohol and other illicit drugs, prohibition does not work and does young from its usage (Nadelmann, 2004). It is possible to oppose these arguments stating that legal status of marijuana will worsen the problem of drug addiction and give free access to the wide target audience to marijuana. Fines, cautions, probation, exemption from punishment and counseling are favored by most justice systems. It is important to keep in mind that cannabis policies at all levels of government could affect the prevalence of cannabis use and the related social consequences. While this is the case for the cocaine and heroin market, the cannabis market is not associated with violence (Belio 2007). Â
Sunday, October 6, 2019
Ways of Motivating Workforce and Its Benefits to a Company Essay - 1
Ways of Motivating Workforce and Its Benefits to a Company - Essay Example Even so, in today’s working environment, many millions of employees are not motivated. Many of them face varied challenges in the workplace because of a poor management system. Others work in the poor health environment where there is lack of protective clothes, lack of adequate skills and working for long hours. Therefore, as the market gets more competitive, companies have now changed and designed job in a way that can enable the company to achieve a competitive advantage. Thesis: Although many managers rely on money as a way of motivation, there is need to create a positive working environment, develop labor force skills, and recognize the right behaviors of employees in order to increase the organization performance level. Many managers nowadays rely on money as the only means of motivating employees. However, there are varied ways through which managers can motivate employees in order to achieve a competitive business performance in the global market. One way through whic h managers can motivate their employees is through developing labor force skills vital for better and increased productivity. This is through offering effective training programs and recruiting employees with potential skills to perform a certain job. Cuny (2000, p. 71) asserts that successful leaders should understand the need for employees training programs and they should also recruit people with effective skills vital for performing a certain job. Career opportunities should be taken as significant as money, which employees make in the business. Thus, there is need effective training in order to develop labor force the vital skills for business benefits. Deloitte is one of the companies that are listed among the top 100 companies. This company offer and recruit employees with effective skills, as well as, have an individual development plan for meeting the needs of employees.Â
Saturday, October 5, 2019
Photosynthesis and Cellular Respiration Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words
Photosynthesis and Cellular Respiration - Essay Example Phylogenetic analysis of Mg-tetrapyrrole biosynthesis genes reveals that anoxygenic photosynthetic processes became evident in primitive organisms like certain bacteria before the oxygenic variety in other organisms like cyanobacteria (Xiong and Bauer, 2002). Joint analyses of the pigment genes and reaction centers have yielded stronger evidence to this effect (Xiong and Bauer, 2002). At the time when photosynthesis became a rudimentary process for energy storage in arcane organisms cellular respiration was still to evolve and the energy release mechanism for utilizing the photosynthetic stored energy used processes that sourced their electrons from suppliers other water (Todar, Undated). Later, genetic transfer mechanisms between endosymbiotic bacteria, their closest living relatives being the proteobacteria, and their pre-eukaryotic cellular hosts inducted cell organelles like mitochondria and chloroplasts (Simpson et al, 2002) into the pre-eukaryotic system and cellular respiratio n became possible. Some time during the endosymbiotic processes there was gene transfer from the bacteria to the pre-eukarytic cells whereby the bacterial genome was reduced and much of the remaining genetic materials got encoded in the cellular nucleus while, locally, some of the bacterial genetic materials were encoded within the organelle, mitochondrion or otherwise, to form localized DNA entirely associated with organelle function (Chihade et al, 2000). While the induction of the mitochondria into the pre-eukaryotic cells to produce the eukaryotic system shall be dealt with later in the paper a short comparison by organisms will now be made of photosynthesis and cellular respiration processes. Comparison: The following table will be used to compare and contrast photosynthesis and cellular respiration in the species of euglenoids that have primitive plastids (Borza et al, 2005). Euglenoids are either autotrophs, photosynthetic with chlorophyll a and b chloroplasts, or heterotrophs with parasitic or absorptive nutrition. Some of them also have motile mechanisms like flagella or cilia. It is notable that euglenoids with plastids acquired them through secondary endosymbiosis and, thus, the plastids are not as developed as those of more evolutionary advanced species (Borza et al, 2005). It is also notable that euglenoids with plastids also use absorptive nutrition, absorbing organic matter from their environs, as supplementary dietary processes. Though they may be photosynthetic they can respire both aerobically and anaerobically (Hoffmeister et al, 2004). Anaerobically, these organisms store energy in the form of fatty acids (waxes) that are broken down when oxygen becomes available more plentifully (Hoffmeister et al, 2004). This makes these organisms so interesting. It is notable that both photosynthesis and cellular respiration in euglenoids with chloroplasts are still not fully understood (Hoffmeister et al, 2004; Lonergan and Sargent, 1979). Nevertheless, these processes have been simplistically compared and contrasted in the following table. Photosynthesis Cellular Respiration Organism Euglena gracilis Euglena gracilis Energy Source Sunlight Chemical energy in sugars (anaerobic) and sugars/fatty acids
Friday, October 4, 2019
Knowledge is generated through the interaction of critical and Essay - 1
Knowledge is generated through the interaction of critical and creative thinking. Evaluate this statement in two areas of knowledge - Essay Example Knowledge management is an important part of life, and without knowledge it is difficult for an individual to survive in this world of such cut throat competition. Individuals constantly need to strive for knowledge and also need to understand the different ways of attaining knowledge and also the different areas of knowledge. In my opinion, the statement â€Å"Knowledge is generated through the interaction of critical and creative thinking†is a true statement. Critical thinking can be defined as giving a reflective statement by assessing the thoughts and efforts of other individuals or processes. Critical thinking allows one to think from many perspectives and then arrive at a conclusion. When one is in the phase of thinking critically, many new types of knowledge may be experienced by the individual in justifying their critical thoughts and opinions. Critical thinking can be applied to all disciplines of knowledge areas. The disciplines can be science, math and even history. All areas need critical reviews and evaluations to be conducted for justifications. Critical thinking can be a challenging task and it can prove to be a strong learning experience for the individuals. Science has many new inventions and innovations that have been invented for the use of mankind. With each new invention, there is a history as to how the product or service came into being (Preece, 310). If we take the example of Newton, he invented the science of physics. He invented the law of motion and other such laws in the field of physics. Such knowledge was invented through observation, critical thinking and investigation of events that were unfolding in front of him. This is the way how individuals learn new knowledge and come upon new inventions. The process of critical thinking consists of understanding the assumptions that are associated with any situation or statement, then the arguments present need to be reviewed and
Thursday, October 3, 2019
The Image of the Cyborg as it Appears in Metropolis and Blade Runner Essay Example for Free
The Image of the Cyborg as it Appears in Metropolis and Blade Runner Essay The appearance of the â€Å"cyborg†in science-fiction cinema began with the emergence of the dystopian science-fiction film both events started with Fritz Lang’s silent film â€Å"Metropolis,†released in 1927 in Weimar Republic Germany, just before the rise of Adolf Hitler and the Nazi party. Lang’s film, made as political allegory, shocked audiences with its complex plot, special effects, and political and religious themes. â€Å"Lang described Metropolis as a battle between modern science and the occult a kind of romantic fatalism that became the directors trademark in later works–[] scene after scene depicting a mechanized world gone madwhich influenced countless other filmmakers. †(Roberts 33)             Among these filmmakers was Ridley Scott, whose 1982 film Blade Runner (based on Philip K. Dick’s novel â€Å"Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?) stands as an accomplished descendent of Lang’s pioneering work. While neither film features traditional cyborgs (which are beings created from a synthesis of biological and robotic components) each film features the concept of technologically engineered, sentient life, which closely resembles human life, as a central symbol for the exploration of spiritual and moral themes.            Central to Lang’s dystopian vision is a â€Å"mechanized world gone mad,†personified by the creation of a robotic double for the film’s heroine, a Christian leader named Maria, who is opposed by an evil scientist, Rotwang. The opposition of science and religion indicated by the character’s conflict demonstrates Lang’s intention to use themes which inject modern concerns (robotics and science) into the ages-old debates that had historically been associated with religion and philosophy. Lang’s vision is of a robotic construction of artificial life, whereas Ridley Scott, in Blade Runner used genetically engineered â€Å"replicants†as an example of artificially created life. The image of the â€Å"cyborg†is, for Lang, part-human and part-The Image of the Cyborg as it Appears in Metropolis and Blade Runner                         Page -2- mechanized, a mechanical recreation of human form; for Ridley Scott, â€Å"replicants†are the image of the cyborg, being genetically altered, genetically specified humans designed by a corporation. For both film-makers, the image of the â€Å"cyborg†resulted in an image of evil and danger for humanity.             The very inclusion of modern technologies, or technologies which are closely extrapolated from existing technologies, presents a deviation from the hitherto prevailing â€Å"classical†visions of the Church. â€Å"Dystopia is very much part of the late twentieth-and early twenty-first-century mindset. We see it in films and adverts that dwell on dank futuristic images from a world where the last vestiges of individualism are slowly being expunged and machinery is our enemy.†(Mourby)            The enemy in â€Å"Metropolis,†as personified by Rotwang’s â€Å"evil†robotic doppleganger, presents a new hazard in the modern landscape: if human beings can create sentient life, what are the repercussions of this god-like power and for what purposes will this power be unleashed? The mission of Rotwang’s creation is to vilify and destroy the saintly Maria and in doing so, obfuscate her vision and her message of self-liberation to the oppressed laborers of Metropolis. Rotang aims to â€Å"ruin Maria by creating a robot in her imagea mechanical evil twinto deliver false testimony.†(Roberts 33)            Lang’s use of the robot as a symbol of oppression and of deception marks his prosecution of the film’s religious allegory: the robot facsimile of Maria is intended as an ironic variation of the Creation myth, the Biblical notion of the creation of Adam and Eve. Rotwang functions as an inversion of God the Creator, and as Man the Creator â€Å"his main evil act is creating a false robot copy of a Christian leader, Maria. In other words, he gets his minion to pass as a Christian. He The Image of the Cyborg as it Appears in Metropolis and Blade Runner  -creates the robot to foment riots which will lead to the dictatorship of the master of Metropolis†(Tratner). In â€Å"Metropolis†the robot looks and appears as human, though it is actually a mechanical construction; in Ridley Scott’s later film â€Å"Blade Runner†the replicants are indistinguishable from human beings without a sophisticated series of psychological and neurological tests.            The concept of robotics functions, for Lang, as a direct inquiry into the moral bearing of humanity and what significance human ethics play as the role of technology expands in society. If robots can be constructed so cleverly, so efficiently that they can â€Å"pass†for humans in society, then what societal consequences arise from this technology? In â€Å"Metropolis†the robot is envisioned as a minion of perverse human will; its likeness to humanity presents a special problem of evil int hat the robot, programed with foul intentions, can walk among humanity undetected for what it really is as in the (particularly Hebrew) legends of the golem. However, the robot in â€Å"Metropolis,†while being similar to the golem myth, is a distinctly modern conception and one which carried the ancient Biblical connotations of Creation Myth and the human will to power, which in both traditional Christian terms and in the context of the film â€Å"Metropolis†is portrayed as â€Å"sinful.†           Lang’s strategy, as revealed in â€Å"Metropolis,†is to contrast the human will-to-power as illustrated by the mad scientist, Rotwang’s, efforts to gain the power of Creation, with the human will-to-individuality and liberty, which is portrayed via the workers’ struggle and Maria’s spiritual vision. In the end, Joh and Rotwang’s scheme â€Å" backfires as the socialites debauch and the workers revolt, unleashing a flood that nearly drowns a horde of innocent children. In the end, Freder and Maria prevail, reconciling Joh with the workers with the slogan, The mediator The Image of the Cyborg as it Appears in Metropolis and Blade Runner between brain and hands must be the heart. (Roberts 33)            Lang’s ground-breaking film influenced untold subsequent film-makers and artists in all mediums; among them, Ridley Scott, whose dystopian science-fiction film â€Å"Blade Runner†incurs much debt to Lang for not only the visual and thematic ideas of â€Å"Blade Runner,†but for- the film’s central theme of genetically engineered human life-forms, which, like Lang’s treatment of robotics in â€Å"Metropolis,†comprises a symbol for ethical and religious themes.            Scott’s genetically engineered life-forms are called â€Å"replicants†and, as such, they are dissimilar from Lang’s robot in that replicants are biological, rather than mechanical, beings with physical, emotional, and mental characteristics selected and engineered by human scientists. The central premise of the story is that a number of the replicants, having discovered that they were engineered to have only 3 year life spans, escape from their assignments in the off-world colonies and become renegades on earth in search of their creators, in search of life-extension.            While Lang’s film asked â€Å"What would happen if man could create a perfect robotic likeness of man and program it to do malevolent things?†Scott’s film asks â€Å"What moral decisions would artificially engineered beings make once they realized they were alive?†The resulting narrative, with its dystopian overtones, presents a variation on the Biblical Satan-as-God’s-Enemy. Satan, being the most glorious of God’s angels, rebels against his Creator, God, because of his great pride. In â€Å"Blade Runner†the replicant, Roy, is received by his creator Tyrell as the â€Å"prodigal son;†he then proceeds to murder his creator, Tyrell, because of his existential angst, being a mortal creature with merely his subjective experience in three years as â€Å"eternity.†           Scott’s take on the â€Å"man against machines†paradigm is a near-future vison for humanity, severed from superstition or magic (where there are traces of occultism in â€Å"Metropolis†) and The Image of the Cyborg as it Appears in Metropolis and Blade Runner lodged firmly within the capitalistic, technology-driven society that is our modern experience. The idea of hostile machines seems all-too-familiar and in fact plays a central thematic role in mid-to-late twentieth century American medai: this innovation might result in  the creation of machines that would one day prove intelligent enough to attack us, an idea that lies behind such classic dystopian films as Metropolis, Bladerunner and the Terminator trilogy. (Mourby)            â€Å"Blade Runner’s†replicants evolve the notion of apocalypse as being human engineered, rather than as the will of God. Humanity will bring about its own apocalypse, and part of this apocalypse are the replicants themselves, a symbol, not of man (or Satan’s) vanity, but of his greed. For Scott capitalism and greed take the place of â€Å"evil†and â€Å"sin†in Biblical reference. Where previously men had imagined: â€Å"The end would occur when the Divine Being had finally had enough of us and it would all be pretty nasty for all except those who had managed to get on the right side of him†man must now manage (by Scott’s reckoning) to throw â€Å"off its glum medieval certainties†and dare, like Lang, to speculate â€Å" about what life might hold in store for us long term.†(Mourby)            For both film-makers, the image of the cyborg, robot, or replicant offered a glimpse into the negative capacities of technology and scientific knowledge. Because in each case, the â€Å"cyborgs†closely resemble human beings, the image of the artificially created life-form is viewed as both negative and dangerous to humanity. The lesson of the images seems to be that the act of the Creation of life, though possible for humanity, is better left to God or Nature than to mankind. Works Cited Mourby, Adrian. Dystopia: Who Needs It? Adrian Mourby Shows That the Nightmare Scenario Can Be Both Dire Warning and Escapist Fantasy. History Today Dec. 2003: 16+. Roberts, Rex. Auld Lang Syne: A Restored Print of the Silent Classic Metropolis Includes Footage Not Seen since 1927. Insight on the News 5 Aug. 2002: 33. Tratner, Michael. Lovers, Filmmakers, and Nazis: Fritz Langs Last Two Movies as Autobiography. Biography 29.1 (2006): 86+.
A Post Rock Analysis Media Essay
A Post Rock Analysis Media Essay In the year of 1994 highly acclaimed music critic Simon Reynolds was embraced for fabricating the term Post-Rock in the popular modern music magazine The Wire. He defined the term post rock as using rock instrumentation for non-rock purposes and using guitars and facilitators of timbre and textures rather than riffs and power chords. From this moment onwards the genre began to expand with the immersion of various Post Rock artists slightly differing in style. In the remainder of this essay, I aim to explain what the complex genre of Post Rock is, how it began, how it developed and most importantly, what sets it aside from traditional rock and roll. With the emergence of countless pop artists at the start of the 1990s such as Rick Astley and Mariah Carey many journalists and critics alike labelled the 90s as the death of rock and roll. However the introduction of Post Rock seemed re-invent rock music in a totally different form. Post rock was something totally different and was seen as a breath of fresh air to the music industry. Everyone knows that numerous groups of musicians struggle to find a suitable vocalist, and this was one of the main reasons for the beginning of post rock. Post rock is largely instrumental with any included vocals normally being sample and effect based. In this genre freedom is basically unlimited; this is why many post rock acts sound very different in style. For instance Don Caballero and Tortoise who were seen as founders of the post rock movement bare very little similarities. The main idea behind post rock was to totally ignore traditional musical structures and concentrate on throwing various creative ideas to produce a piece rather than a track. Due to the total dis-regard of verses and choruss, the motif of each piece will normally build up over the duration, normally reaching a climatic stage at the end. Post rock artists admittedly took a lot of influence from the velvet underground and their implementation of the musical technique; dronology. Dronology is the use of repeated sounds or notes. Post rock uses an extensive range of instruments, stretching from traditional rock and roll instruments, to brass to a diverse sweep of electronic instruments and samples. Post-Rock is probably dependent on the effects that are implemented on nearly every instrument, basically making a guitar sound nothing like a guitar. Post Rock has changed throughout its current 20 year timeline, as its believed we have endured 3 waves of post rock material. However, from the very beginning of the post-rock movement nearly all artists follow The DIY conception. This means that artists will have not contracts or sponsorship from famous and corporate labels. A majority of their work is produced and distributed by the band themselves with the help of other post rock bands. The belief of the DIY conception is that if music becomes accessible to expensive labels the artists will be stripped of their creativity and freedom. During the lifespan of the post-rock genre we have been spiked with 3 waves. The first wave of this genre included acts such as Slint, Tortoise and Talk Talk. These artists are seen as being architects of the genre that gave post rock the foundations to grow further. However, not entirely post rock; this was the start of the genre. The Album entitled Spiderland by Slint is seen as many as the birth of post rock. Released in 1991 this album contained various features that were unheard of in traditional rock music. Such as, no singing vocals, all vocals being spoken similar to a narrator building up a story as the song continued. Drummers working with totally irregular time signatures and basing all their beats and fills on the snare and tom drums, totally abandoning the use of cymbals. Guitarists creating tones rather than riffs, and also implementing of the technique howling feedback. Many bands took influence from this album, including post rock mainstays, Mogwai. Another essential post rock release was à gà ¦tis byrjun in 1999 by Icelandic band Sigur Ros. This album help shaped the genre as it showed listeners that post rock could branch off into other genres, as this album was seen as being ambient post rock. Sigur Ros produced this effect with various musical techniques. The main technique they used was playing guitars and bass guitars with a bow rather than plucking on strumming. This technique helped produce a very atmospheric effect which added to the overall ambient sound. The band continued the idea of minimal vocals when they produced theyre own gibberish language entitled Volenska. This is an Icelandinc take on the old jazz technique that was dubbed scat singing. Sigur Ros are seen as being definers in the second wave of post rock. Soon after à gà ¦tis byrjun came the release of Lift Yr. Skinny Fists like antennas to heaven by Canadian artists Godspeed You! Black Emperor. This album as seen by many fans and critics alike as the most definitive post rock release to date. This album combines various musical concepts such as chamber music, minimalism, drone and of course crescendos. As well as covering a lot of concepts, it also covers many genres such as rock, ambience, jazz and classical. Following Post-Rock trends the album has no tracks as such, but 4 pieces which last a total of one hour and twenty minutes, these pieces are named movements. Also, as before, no vocals except one movement which uses sampled inserts. The start of the 3rd wave of Post Rock was started with the album Mirrored By Battles. The bands consists of Ex-Members from other post rock groups such as Don Caballero, who helped pioneer the genre. Mirrored started to using a lot of math rock as well as post rock in this album, it is also described by many as having a weird alien sound. Along with Mogwai, Battles were one of the first to start doing this. Battles re-invented post rock to some extent with new techniques such as the introduction of beatboxing. However they also continued other post rock trends such as effect driven vocals which sound like gibberish. Scottish band Mogwai have cemented themselves as principal artists within post rock genre due to the release of 6 well received studio albums. Mogwai have been vital in the development of the genre as they have influenced bands as far a field as China as Chinese post rock Wang Wen claim to be influenced by them. American rapper/singer/songwriter Jared Evans also claims to be influenced by the Scottish post rock mainstays. Although Mogwai are in theory a post rock band, they branch off into other genres such as math rock, shoegazing, art rock and even metal. This showed us that post rock could take various paths and this helped development the genre as it heightened up and coming bands ideas. The bands influences mainly come from punk. Bands such as Fugazi, Sonic Youth and the MC5 are said to be among the bands main influences, and of course like many other bands of this genre, they were influenced by Slint. Their tracks are normally long instrumental pieces focusing on guitar and mel odic basslines with heavy breakdowns with metal properties. Due to metal properties the band has, they have a heavy usage of effects, with distortion and overdrive taking centre stage. Mogwai were another band the follow the DIY conception rule within the post rock genre by having their first album signed by independent record label Chemikal Underground in Glasgow, Scotland in 1997. Lyrics are a real comfort to some people. I guess they like to sing along and when they cant do that with us they get a bit upset. This line by Stuart Braithwaite, the guitarist of Mogwai. The line does a good job of explaining the acquired taste of Mogwai and Post-Rock in general. This is why Post-Rock was stuck in the underground bracket for sometime. Another band who has had great critical acclaim within the genre is Godspeed You! Black Emperor. The band from Canada influenced by Tortoise and Slint have released 5 albums since 1994. Even tough the band has 9 solid members; they have had as many as 20 members on the stage at once. The band use various techniques and concepts such as drone, minimalism, chamber music, music concrete and sampling. Also the band totally dis-regards any vocals except sampled inserts. As said before, the band have undertaken many changes, covering genres such as post rock, experimental rock, ambient, jazz and traditional rock. Once again the band follows the DIY conception as they produce theyre albums through a small independent record label in Montreal, Quebec. Perhaps the most important articles regarding the genre was the description of the band Bark Psychosis where the term was first properly coined. Simon Reynolds described Post Rock as using rock instrumentation for non rock purposes using guitars as facilitators of timbre and textures rather than riffs and power chords. Simon further expanded on the term stating that perhaps the really provocative area for future development liesà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ in cyborg rock; not the wholehearted embrace of technos methodology but some kind of interface between real time, hand on playing and the use of digital effects and enhancement. This description helped drive the genre forward as other artists started being labelled Post-Rock and listeners started understanding what the music was. It describes the balance of electronic effects to hands on traditionally rock instruments. Even today, some original post rock albums from the early 90s are still receiving sparkling reviews. From a review in 2010 from music website Sputnik Music, Spiderland by Slint is said as being classic and received a 5/5 rating. The journalist continued to explain You can ask me to explain why I love it, or why it works, or the situational context in which it was created. Just dont ask me how they did it. Please, just listen. This shows that original Post-Rock artists will continue to have a positive affect on those who are listening to it from the first time, and who dont quite understand it yet. There are various sources online which help with the understanding of the complex genre. Such as www.postrocking.org which is a post rock radio streaming website, which lets up and coming artists submit their tracks. It also contains a popular forum where fans can share their views. Also killwhat.com which is French fanzine company which cover and cater for post rock fans. One main entity of post rock bands is that to grab media attention, they usually have strange band or album names. For Example Godpseed You! Black Emperor and their album Lift Yr Skinny Fists like Antennas to Heaven. Other examples of this are bands such as ILiKETRAiNS Meanwhile Back in Communist Russiaà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦.. and I Love You But Ive Chosen Darkness. The list is endless. The strange and abnormal band names partially tie in with the unique and somewhat strange sounding music they produce. I have included 3 Audio files with the essay. The first track being Nosferatu Man. This shows what the birth of post rock was like and how it was essential. It also shows how vocals were in a narrator style and how the time signatures were irregular and ever changing, as the song switches from 5/4 to 6/4 to 4/4. The track also gives a decent idea of the howling guitar sound used by the band. The next track is Christmas Steps by Mogwai. This track pinpoints and shows the soothing melodic side of post rock and also the steady build up to the more aggressive and distorted crescendos. This giving a good insight to what the development and definition of post rock sounds like and how even genres such as heavy metal can have an influence. It also considered a post rock piece as it lasts 10 minutes. The last track is Atlas by Battles. This shows the current state of post rock and how it differs. It lets us hear how effects are implemented more to create an Alien Sound Also how post rock can branch into other genres and while still keeping traditionally ideas such as gibberish vocals, build up sequences, crescendos, tom based drumming and longer track times at seven minutes long. Battles are a good example of keeping traditional ideas but bringing new ideas to the table. Overall, Post Rock is a creative genre which gives artists unlimited freedom. Pioneered by Slint, Defined by Mogwai and evolved by Battles, it seems that its a really complex genre thats tough understand, but it definitely is genre you have to appreciate due to the creativity it requires and its uniqueness. Post rock is still evolving and new artists are still peddling out year after year with many bands producing new styles and techniques. However the roots of Post rock constructed by Slint and Tortoise are still evidently rooted within the music.
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