Today I was listening to the radio on my way to PT and was reminded by the dj that Prince Charles and Camilla are in Philadelphia this weekend. He wondered how the royals would deal with the chilly weather we have had this week. His exact comment was, "This is cold for us, but I wonder how they're going to deal with it," implying that they would not be able to tolerate the sharp sting in the air, given that they come from TROPICAL ENGLAND.
Seriously? Does this guy not know where the country is located? I mean, they are having an unseasonably warmer than usual winter in the UK, I'll give him that, but we're talking about a country that is not that far from ours, nor is it located that differently in a distance-from-the-equator type of way. Tell me if I'm wrong, but I think this guy's concern is undue.
BUT, speaking of the radio, and speaking of music, I was introduced to a very cool thing today that you should be concerned about. Not concerned - interested. Check out Pandora Internet Radio. Created by Tim Westergren and the team at the Music Genome Project, which attempts, as the page explains, to create the most comprehensive analysis of music ever. By breaking music down into "genes," they allow you to find the types of music you enjoy because you are able to compare and contrast due to the fact that you now have the comparable terms to use. It's like rating something that you can't get your hands around - which cloud is prettier than another? It's seems subjective - unless you set parameters for "prettiness" like cloud size, number of rounded edges, density, etc. Then you can rate it and compare it. I feel like that's what they've done here.
At the Pandora site, you can type in an artist you enjoy, and the site will not only play that music for you, but also other comparable artists. For instance, on my Norah Jones Station, it has introduced me to Nina Nastasia. As you can see by clicking on the link, it gives you a sample, lists key features of the song that is playing (i.e., acoustic rock instrumentation, acoustic rhythm piano, acoustic sonority, major key tonality, acoustic rhythm guitars) and lists more similar songs.
You can listen for free by creating an account - you can also test it out before you do that. In addition, you can listen for $3 a month without the ads that accompany the free account. For people like me, who not only have no radio reception at work, but also don't really have a venue to learn about new music, it's a great service. Enjoy!
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