What's this about?
Dear friends and those still unknown: I turned sixty in the fall of 2022. As a computer scientist, I love structuring all kinds of things. My own life is no exception. I've been imagining for a long time that it can be divided just fine into decades like this:
- Decade: Being a child
- Decade: Growing up and learning
- Decade: Studying and getting involved
- Decade: Researching and Finding There was a lot to find: my partner, my calling, problems and solutions, my path in life.
- Decade: Raising and working
- Decade: Working and raising
The question arises as to what headings I would give to the next two entries to be expected. After over forty years of software development, which are hidden behind Studying, Researching and Working, I would like to get more creative in the winter of my life. So I plan like this:
- Decade: Creating and Letting goBy that I mean: letting go of loved ones, reacting more calmly, leaving things out when writing and allowing mistakes there (hard change of attitude for a programmer).
- Decade: Being old
(Pay attention to the bracket “Being a child … Being old”. Software developers are very picky with closing brackets.)
Behind “Create” there are projects that have been on my mind for a long time and that I want to present on these websites one by one. For example, I would like to explore the intersection between programming and making music, or between simulating complex systems, physics and art. I also have in mind a new form of opinion formation via Internet. So I still have a lot planned, but I want to take a decade to do it.
But wait, the first year is already over... That's right. The first thing I did was live my dream of writing a utopian novel (in German, though). It's called All An! (see main menu) and will initially appear as a three-part e-book, later also as a complete printed book.The first part Umschwung is already available on Amazon.
I choose the path of self-publishing, which, however, means that I have to do the advertising myself. And this requires – you guessed it – a web presence, ideally with a blog, because the readership might want to get to know the author and his motives. And voilà: Under the “Blog” menu item you will find articles on topics and questions that are important to me and my projects. First under the categories Life, Smart, Writing, Music, Politics and Programming.
Over the past centuries we have subdivided our planet, our knowledge and our everyday world more and more with seemingly great success. But with the associated transgression of planetary and human boundaries, these “chunks” are now falling on our feet. Writing the novel and posts for this blog give me an opportunity to put some of these chunks (topics, questions and states of affairs) together into something new in a hopefully original way.
In doing so, I'm mimicking one of my literary heroes, agent Donald Hogan from John Brunner's science fiction Stand on Zanzibar. As a so-called synthesist, Hogan has the gift of discovering the hidden connections that will influence the course of history. More about this in blog post Synthesists. Rock group Rush so brilliantly translates our preference to divide and separate into music and lyrics in the song Subdivisions. By the way, they deliver one of the most famous synthesizer intros in rock history. A great sythesis of social conditions, partly realized by the synthesis of new sounds. Just an example of the things and connections that interest me. And not to forget: the sciences. What do physics, sociology and software engineering actually know about understanding and building complex systems?
So have fun browsing, not to say snooping around. This word comes to mind because of the cat-video I just uploaded, which of course shouldn't be missing.
Projects and blog should grow slowly. So please sign up for my newsletter using the link in the main menu. Every few months I'll send one to keep in touch.