fitzroyalty

The spaceman is my favourite busker in Melbourne. He must be an engineering or electronics nut – his synths and tools all seem home made and he is intimately familiar with every function of them – and the sounds he creates are silly, funny, moving and eloquent. He is the future and he has come to save us from idol banality. Thanks for the electronica Major Tom!

This academic paper suggests that there is a positive correlation between the ‘buzz’ about a film in the blogosphere and its success at the box office. This got me thinking about what else buzz metrics could be referenced against. Given my recent play in the Hollywood Stock Exchange, where my shares in Maggie Gyllenhaal have risen sharply, I wonder what the relationship is between the buzz about her online and her value in the HSX.

Here’s the data. The top graph is a Blogpulse graph illustrating the buzz about Maggie in the blogosphere over the past 3 months. The bottom graph illustrates her value in HSX over the same time period.

I have been spending time with some artist friends this week. One let me photograph her sketchbook. She fingerprinted herself and filled pages with it. We talked about the creative process, and how an artist needs to continue exploring an idea and testing it until it breaks. Only then does the idea transform into what can become the work. I consider myself a writer, though I have done more as an editor; I like being a photographer but am purely an amateur. Artists who create something from nothing are amazing people!

The 2006 Australian MotoGP is coming up soon, and I’m very excited. It’s one of my favourite events, and I love riding to Phillip Island to watch the race each year. Last year I was there to see Valentino Rossi win another title for Yamaha. This year, the championship is much closer and more unpredictable. Who will win?