Author: Jeff Milner

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Thinking About Teaching

About a week ago when I was in Medicine Hat visiting my family I went over to an old Pronghorn teammate’s place to see how he is settling into teaching at my old high school.

He mentioned that the principal couldn’t find anyone qualified to teach the drafting/design class that they used to offer when I went there. It got me (once again) pondering the idea that perhaps I would enjoy teaching New Media at the high school level. I really enjoyed teaching the New Media Movie Making Camps a couple of years ago. I would be a very good teacher and I’d really enjoy it. I figured that since I already have B.F.A. getting the B.ED wouldn’t take THAT much more time. So, I looked into it.

What I learned irks me, but it does explain why there are so few qualified New Media people going into education. The Faculty of Education at the U of L only gives its B.F.A. students three choices for a combined degree:

  • B.F.A. (Art)/B.Ed.
  • B.F.A. (Dramatic Arts)/B.Ed.
  • B.Mus./B.Ed.

Notice the conspicuous absence of B.F.A. (New Media). The U of C and U of A seem to have similar options. Now don’t get me wrong. I don’t think it’s entirely absurd that they don’t offer it, after all New Media is still pretty new, however, I hope that the principals of schools within the region make it known to the ATA and local universities about the need for such a program. It would be nice to know they are at least thinking about it.

As for me, without drastically changing the world first, in order to be able to teach New Media I’ve got to go back and take at least two more semesters of Art before I could even start on the year and a half of classes and practicums that I would need for the B.Ed. It seems like a long haul with a giant debt attached to it.

I haven’t yet decided if it’s completely out of the question.

Update: I went back to school, and in the time since I’ve finished, the U of L now offers a B.Ed. New Media degree.

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The Stroop Effect

The Stroop Effect, named after J. Ridley Stroop who published the effect in 1935, is a demonstration of interference in the reaction time of a task. For example, when a word signifying a colour such as “red” is printed in blue a reader’s reaction time processing the word’s colour, leads to slower test reaction times and an increase in mistakes.

Try out one of my favourite demonstrations of this effect by saying the colours of the words below:

(For example if the word “blue” is printed in green, you would say the word green)

 red   blue  orange  yellow  purple  green  blue  yellow  red  blue  orange  purple  yellow  green  blue  red  green  orange  purple
 yellow  orange  red  green  blue  green  red  green  blue  yellow  orange  purple  green  blue  yellow  red  orange  purple  green

If naming the first group of colours is easier and quicker than the second, then your performance exhibits the Stroop effect.

The Stroop effect illustrates important principles about how the brain works, particularly for mental tasks involving attention, automatic processing, and response selection. It also can be used to examine the subtle effects of adverse conditions on the brain, such as lack of sleep, fatigue, or the effects of high altitudes.

The coloured word test above is only one kind kind of automatic processing that can be studied.

Check out Harvard University’s site in which they continually collects data with their Implicit Association Tests, many of which have fascinating social and political implications.

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In the Boston Globe

An article in the Boston Globe published today highlighted my backmasking page.

Remember that guy in high school who was always trying to tell you about the satanic messages hidden in “Stairway to Heaven” by Led Zeppelin (below) if you played it backward? Turns out he was right. Or so says Jeff Milner, a graphic designer from Alberta, Canada, who has not only posted snippets of the song, and several others, in reverse, but also transcribed the alleged backward lyrics. His findings: “If there’s a bustle in your hedgerow don’t be alarmed now, it’s just a spring clean for the May queen” translates to “Oh here’s to my sweet Satan. The one whose little path would make me sad, whose power is Satan.” The message is surprisingly clear on “Stairway,” but less so on songs like “Baby One More Time.”

See the full article.

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Grass Fire

A grass fire near Lethbridge’s English Oaks subdivision broke out around 4:45pm yesterday. When firefighters arrived, vinyl siding on the southern-most home was warping under the heat of flames that were about seven metres from the residence. Firefighters ran their hoses through the inside of one of the homes nearby to put down the blaze.

Grass Fire

The southern-most residence was the only home with direct fire damage.

Here is a set of my photos from the scene.

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Elephant Self Portrait

This elephant is simply incredible! I wonder if he came up with the design himself or if he was taught it and that’s all he does. Either way, WOW.


[Elephant Painting – YouTube]

This particular “artist” appears to be an elephant called Hong who lives at the Maetaman Elephant Camp in Chiang Mai, Thailand. An article about Hong published on The Asian Elephant Art & Conservation Project (AEACP) website notes:

Two years ago, Hong began painting with her mahout, Noi Rakchang, and has steadily developed her skills. After learning how to paint flowers, she moved on to more advanced paintings. She now has two specialties. One is an elephant holding flowers with her trunk, and the other is the Thai flag. An elephant with so much control and dexterity is capable of amazing work. Just for clarification, with these realistic figural works, the elephant is still the only one making the marks on the paper but the paintings are learned series of brushstrokes not Hong painting a still life on her own.

We are sure that as Hong continues to investigate her artistic side, her paintings will become even more beautiful.

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Richard Hortness is Going to the Olympics!

Richard HortnessI found out yesterday that my former teammate (and old roommate), Richard Hortness, is going to China for the 2008 Olympics. He placed third in prelims with a personal best time of 49.42 in the 100 metre freestyle and his fifth place finish in finals makes him one of the five swimmers who will make up the Canadian Mens 4 x 100 freestyle relay team.

Technically, Richard is the alternate, but will likely swim preliminary heats at Beijing.

Today he will be trying to win or come second in the 50 free. If he comes second and makes the FINA A time standard he will also compete in that event in Beijing.

Congratulations Richard, and good luck today!

Medicine Hat News Article Scan

Update: Richard won the 50 Free this afternoon too! Way to go Richard; good luck in Beijing.

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Canadian Olympic Trials

Vicki ChuggMy friends Vicki Chugg, and Richard Hortness are in Montreal this week swimming in the Canadian Olympic Trials. You can watch CBC’s coverage of the meet today and tomorrow (check your local listings). Good luck Vicki and Richard!

Pictured above: Vicki Chugg at a Canada West Swim Meet

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Reverse Speech on WireTap

Lately I’ve been enjoying the Wiretap with Jonathan Goldstein podcast (official podcast). Today I listened to the November 25, 2007 episode: The New Josh, in which host Jonathan Goldstein interviews David John Oates, the world leader in Reverse Speech studies.

I’ve never been a believer in Freudian slips or subconscious communication, but it’s interesting to listen to Mr. Oates speculate that these kinds of behaviour happen all the time. It’s true that reverse speech sounds like a foreign language and can often even sound like English, but it would take an awful lot of research to convince me his results are anything more than a combination of coincidence and wishful thinking—nevertheless, listen to the interview and form your own opinion.