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It’s not so much that I’m connected as addicted.

It's not so much that I'm connected as addicted.
It’s not so much that I’m connected as addicted.

When it comes to information, I like it to come in firehose form, because I have excellent filters. Here’s a note that you might find is true for yourself too. Meanwhile, information addiction is a real thing, and you may find the following useful:

‘Contemporary theories of reinforcement learning are rooted in the dopaminergic reward system.  Dopamine neurons in parts of the midbrain, such as the ventral tegmental area and substantia nigra pars compacta, play a vital role in the expectation of reward. Most of what is known about these neurons comes from electrode recording experiments with rhesus monkeys. Not surprisingly, these neurons respond to primitive rewards, such as food and water. They signal a monkey’s expectation of rewards, but what was not known until now is whether these same neurons might also signal expectation of information. To test for this preference for information, which is a cognitive reward, a new paradigm needed to be put in place. Ethan Bromberg-Martin and Okihide Hikosaka, both at the National Eye Institute, developed a brilliant behavioral task that opened the door.’

from “The Chemistry of Information Addiction – Scientific American” at https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/are-we-addicted-to-inform/ curated by lemasney creative. Feel free to share.
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A monogram for Dan Wadlinger #cc #design #typography #inkscape #dw

A monogram for Dan Wadlinger #cc #design #typography #inkscape #dw
A monogram for Dan Wadlinger #cc #design #typography #inkscape #dw

I’ve received a strong response of interest (maybe jealousy?) in the “friend monograms” sketches, and I’m saying right here that if you ask for one, I’ll make every effort to make you one, or in this case, 12. I think letterforms and their relationship are art. I got a lot of help from fontographers on these, but the kerning, custom nodes, placement and relationship, etc., is mine. Thanks for asking, Dan! That’s what this project is all about.

 

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Just Ask (Just Task)

Just ask (Just Task) by John LeMasney via lemasney.com
Just Ask (Just Task)

So this came out of a recent discussion with one of my oldest friends, Roch. He’s a great artist, and one of my lifelong inspirations. This sketch celebrates just one example of why I love him as a friend and mentor. He told me a few years back about an art project in which the focus was on a single phrase that could be taken in more then one way, but could also potentially be seen as a way of life.

As I understand it, Roch’s idea, “Just (t)ask”, is a play on words that indicates that as long as the thing you’re asking for is just (reasonable, not hurtful, helpful, etc.) I’m more than willing to consider helping you to do it. Just ask, just say the words, help me to understand that you want to do this thing, and let’s do it. Together.

Much love, Roch, and thanks for the inspiration for all the time I’ve known you.

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A portrait of Yoda the dog

Yoda
A portrait of Yoda the dog

So this is an answer to Erika Bredahl’s picture submission of her dog Yoda. After bitmap tracing the image a few times to get some various levels of shadow and detail, I overlapped the paths and colored them using the eyedropper tool and a vidcap of Yoda from ESB. I then used another vidcap of Yoda in the Swamp scene, took it into the GIMP and used the stamp tool to remove Yoda, then brought the resulting image into Inkscape and bitmap traced it, then gave it some blur.

‘Yoda (/ˈjoʊdə/) is a fictional character in the Star Wars universe, first appearing in the 1980 film The Empire Strikes Back. He is a small, green humanoid alien who is powerful with the Force. In his first appearance in the original trilogy, Yoda is described as the Jedi master of Obi-Wan Kenobi and subsequently trains Luke Skywalker to use the Force. The character reappears in Return of the Jedi where he reveals his age to be 900. Yoda has become iconic in popular culture due to his distinct pattern of speech and role as an old, wise mentor. In the prequel trilogy, set a generation before the original trilogy, Yoda is among the most powerful members of the Jedi Order and a general of clone troopers during the Clone Wars. He also trains all Jedi children, before they are assigned a Jedi master. Yoda appears again in the sequel trilogy, advising an older Luke and empowering Rey to face a revived Emperor Palpatine, along with other past Jedi.’

from “Yoda – Wikipedia” at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yoda curated by lemasney creative. Feel free to share.
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Libraries and Transliteracy cc-by lemasney #logo #Inkscape #libraries #design #typography

Libraries and Transliteracy cc-by lemasney #logo #Inkscape #libraries #design #typography
Libraries and Transliteracy cc-by lemasney #logo #Inkscape #libraries #design #typography

So @annavan (Scoyoc), a friend in the NJ Library Land circle, simultaneously made me aware of a logo contest for Libraries and Transliteracy and called me out (in the best possible way). She tweeted

“It’s Contest Time! Libraries and Transliteracy Needs a Logo! https://librariesandtransliteracy.wordpress.com/2010/07/15/its-contest-time-libraries-and-transliteracy-needs-a-logo/ [hmmm… wonder what @lemasney would come up with]”

I love design challenges, Libraries, and Anna, so this one was a no brainer. So the first thing I did was make sure I had a clear understanding of transliteracy and how it related to libraries, and so I did some research, starting but not ending with the ubiquitous Wikipedia entry, which gave me a good start, defining Transliteracy as:

“Transliteracy is The ability to read, write and interact across a range of platforms, tools and media from signing and orality through handwriting, print, TV, radio and film, to digital social networks. (PART 2007) The modern meaning of the term combines literacy with the prefix trans-, which means “across; through”, so a transliterate person is one who is literate across multiple media.” from Transliteracy – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia at Sun Jul 18 2010 14:12:31 GMT-0400 (EST) on https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transliteracy

A few other sources extended, reinforced and clarified the definition. Thanks for the nudge, Anna, and I hope my answer gets to the finals!

If you like this image, please share it. If you use it, please attribute me, and thanks! (cc-by lemasney)

lemasney, design, open source, creative commons, cc-by, typography, poster, InkscapeGIMP

If you like this design, please consider looking at my Graphic Design Portfolio, Presentations Portfolio, or upcoming Public Workshops or Classes. Let’s do something great together!

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206 of 365 is Sam playing on a huge amplifier

Sam Pinola playing on a huge amplifier
Sam Pinola playing on a huge amplifier

This is the result of a short collaboration between Sam Pinola and I during a recent visit to his house. We sat together and brought in images and discussed techniques and revised and played, and this is what we came up with. Thanks for the help, Sam!