Audible Tuesdays: Midterm Rush

Today's a quick post on No Blues, the fourth studio album from the Walesian (Walesish?/Walesites??) alternative rock group Los Campesinos!. The album comes out next week on October 29, but you can stream it today on Pitchfork Advance. 

Through one listen, the album definitely is a slight departure from their past works that have a much more unbridled and distorted sound. To the dismay of Nate Winter, the xylophone is not as much of an integral feature of most tracks, but there is still a strong synth background throughout the album. Their debut album, "Hold On Now, Youngster" was a blur of energetic vocals, raucous choruses, and pop extravagance. 

Here is their video for "Romance is Boring" from their second album. 

Something You Should Already Know by Now: 

I recently was directed to this gem. It is from an old Pearl Jam concert in which they played a medley of Jimi Hendrix's "Little Wing" and Funkadelic's "Maggot Brain" with great success. It made my day at least...Enjoy

The Bengals are the AFC's #2 Seed!...Wait What?

Bengals defeat Lions at the buzzer 27-24:

It seems that Marvin Lewis and Co. are trying their best to make Cincinnati fans forget about the messy demise of their beloved Reds. At this rate, it might actually work.

Throughout Sunday's game, the Bengals battled with a team that many pundits called a "mirror image" of their own makeup: a young team built through the draft; a strong, violent defensive line; a rising QB-WR duo; and two tormented teams trying to rise to the top against their traditionally successful rivals (for the Lions, the Packers and the Bears; for the Bengals, the Steelers and Ravens).

What followed was truly a great football game that featured a bit of everything, and showed why each of these fanbases should be excited for the future. The Bengals struck first on an 82-yard play action touchdown pass from Andy Dalton to AJ Green. They would eventually take a 21-10 lead in the third quarter following two more beautiful Dalton touchdowns to Marvin Jones and Tyler Eifert.

But, as every Bengals fan knows, no win comes easy. Detroit responded with two touchdown passes to superstar Calvin Johnson, including a 50-yard bomb that Johnson caught over three Cincinnati defenders. Just like that, it was tied up 24-24 with 12:00 to go in the final quarter.

Sweep the leg Mikey 

After each team traded possessions, Andy Dalton and the offense got the ball at their own 49-yard line with 26 seconds left and one timeout left (because God forbid the Bengals ever save their timeouts for the end of the game). Dalton made two quick passes to Dane Sanzenbacher and Gio Bernard (GIO!!) and set up Mike Nugent's game-winning 54-yard field goal as time expired. It was Nugent's second game-winning kick in as many weeks.

Things of Note: 

1. Andy Dalton: 24-of-34, 372 yards, 3 touchdowns, 0 interceptions, 92.8 QBR
To be quite honest, my opinion of this guy wavers almost every week. When he looks good, the Bengals can beat any team in the NFL, but when he looks bad it really is a struggle to find ways to score. Dalton was divine this week, and his willingness to throw into tight windows and to trust his receivers has allowed for a suddenly diverse offensive array to develop. His toss to Marvin Jones was of the highest caliber, and the offensive line gave him enough time to read through his progressions, resulting in only one sack against Detroit's tough line. If there was anything to pick apart, it would be that he threw short of AJ Green on a few routes that could have resulted in big gains.

Marvin's beautiful catch on Andy's second TD pass

Regardless, by the end of Sunday, Andy had defeated Ben Roethlisberger, Aaron Rodgers, Tom Brady, and Matt Stafford en route to leading the Bengals to a 5-2 record. Dalton connected with seven different Bengals receivers on the day.

2. The Tragedy of Leon Hall/ The NFL:
Although the term is often bandied around, Leon Hall has been the consummate professional in his seven NFL seasons. Following the departure of former CB Jonathan Joseph, Hall has mentored an absurdly young array of NFL castoffs, busts, and rookies in the secondary. In 2011, Hall injured his left Achilles tendon and missed most of the season. On Sunday, Hall seemed to be keeping step for step with Calvin Johnson until he fell while defending Johnson on an endzone fade route. He immediately grabbed his ankle, and it didn't take long for fans and teammates to assume the worst. As confirmed today, Hall will miss the rest of the 2013 season with a tear to his right Achilles. It will now be up for Adam Jones, Terrance Newman, Dre Kirkpatrick, and Taylor Mays to somehow make up for his absence. The secondary will need to step up after allowing Detroit to convert on 13 of 19 third downs. 

No Caption Needed

Newman said after the game, "It's just tough. He's one of the best in the league, you know? So to have one of the best corners in the league go down? It's tough. Especially when he's your brother. We all spend a lot of time together. It just sucks." 

Hall was not the only sad story of the NFL this week. Several teams may be missing key players for the rest of the season including Reggie Wayne, Brian Cushing, Doug Martin, Sam Bradford, Jay Cutler, and Jermichael Finley, among others. 

3. Super Special Teams: 
Typically the history of the Bungles have left Cincinnati fans to expect a different type of "special" out of their kicking and punting teams (sorry, I had to). However, Nugent's kick wasn't the only highlight of the week. Late in the second quarter, Carlos Dunlap leaped to block a David Akers field goal attempt and gave the ball back to Cincinnati. Those three points would obviously prove to be key to the win. Kevin Huber also made some great punts to help the Bengals win the late battle for field position.

4. Other things
--Jermaine Gresham had a really rough day out there, with a few offensive penalties and some really dumb decisions on the field.

Yo dude, you're pretty good...You too dude..

--The defense kept quick RB Reggie Bush from finding huge holes in the field and making any big plays. Bush still managed 94 yards of total offense but he was far from being the explosive playmaker that he had been leading into Sunday.

--Matt Stafford also missed a few open receivers throughout the game, but unlike Dalton, Stafford overthrew his. Lesson: Just throw the ball to Megatron

--With losses by Baltimore (3-4) and Cleveland (3-4), the Bengals (5-2) currently lead the AFC North by two games. Because of their tiebreakers against New England (5-2) and Indianapolis (5-2), Cincinnati would be the #2 Seed in the AFC Playoffs if the season ended today...so there's that.

--Green finished with 6 receptions for 155 yards and one touchdown while Johnson caught 9 balls for 155 yards and two touchdowns. Pretty outstanding performances by the two best receivers in football.

Coming Up Next: 
The Bengals now come home to face the New York Jets (4-3). The Jets have had Cincinnati's number in the past, but hopefully the defense feasts on rookie QB Geno Smith.

Lets put baseball season behind us (I heard the World Series was being cancelled this year, right?) and put some hope behind the Bengals. Fear the tiger.

WhoDey,

Albert

Science Saturday: The Future is Near

Is Elon Musk Bruce Wayne? 
No, he doesn't sacrifice himself every night to rid the streets of scum and villainy, but he's pretty damn close. If you don't already know who Elon Musk is then fasten your seatbelt and prepare for this knowledge drop. Do you think Isaac Newton was the most badass scientist of the 1700's (if not all-time)? Do you think Bill Gates was badass in the 90's? Steve Jobs in the 2000's?

Well Elon Musk is the guy for the 2010's. So what has he done so far? Well he started off with founding PayPal, which he ended up selling for $1.5 billion to Ebay. Now he heads multiple projects, including involvement in R&D and engineering of Tesla Motor, SolarCity, Hyperloop, and most important for this feature SpaceX, but more on that later.

Been waiting real long to get that batman reference in. 

Breakthrough of the Week

Elon Musk's futuristic Grasshopper space rocket makes its highest jump. 

What's the Purpose?

Since the space shuttle program was shut down in 2011 the duty of transporting goods and astronauts into space has been delegated to the private sector. Elon Musk's answer? SpaceX and the Falcon9/Dragon spacecraft as well as the rocket in the video above, the Grasshopper. The Falcon9/Dragon are really just modern improvements on the classic rocket design so what makes the Grasshopper so special? Well if you watched the video you noticed that the rocket took off, stopped in mid air, and landed safely back on the platform - and no the video is not fake, ask anyone who lives near the launch base in Waco, TX. 

As you would expect from any private sector venture, this projects main concern is the cost of sending goods, including people, into space. The most expensive part of this process? Rocket technology as it stands is one-and-done, in that they use it once and then it is ejected into the Atlantic Ocean lost forever. The Grasshopper allows for re-use, so the cost of launching stuff into orbit becomes  dramatically cheaper since they'll only need to refuel the rocket each launch as opposed to rebuilding a new rocket each time. Makes sense, right? Keep in mind that a rocket is just a controlled explosion - enough explosives to propel something into space. Just for reference the Grasshopper was able to reach a height taller than the Sears Building in Chicago and then reach the launching pad safely. 

What does this Imply?

Again, costs. Believe it or not "the space revolution" that we are supposedly in has actually stalled since the end of the Cold War. What this means is a potential boom in the space industry. With cheaper launch costs, companies could send probes to asteroids to collect data and samples for mining, some companies could open inflatable (or modular) space hotels, and perhaps even the cost of getting people into space would be cheaper (some optimists are saying $2000/trip?!?!?!). Although imagine if, instead of NASA sending up a group every 2-3 months, imagine a group of astronauts from some private group going up every week.... woah.

Other Reasons Elon Musk is a BAMF.

Elon Musk founded Tesla Motors in 2003. They design, manufacture, and sell all-electric vehicles and electrical vehicle parts including building an entire infrastructure for their brand. Tesla is all over the news, all the time. Tesla this. Tesla That . I want one for xmas (my mom reads this blog). On top of Tesla, Musk wants to build a James Bond submarine car. 

Musk plans to build a hyperloop that can get someone from LA to SanFran in 30 minutes, and it costs significantly less than the proposed bullet train to be built in California 

Long live Elon Musk,

Nate

Audible Tuesdays:

So it's been a little while. Midterms, Cincinnati Reds, Crying, Bargaining, Depression, Dusty Baker, etc. Anyways, welcome to Audible Tuesdays and today I'll be reviewing four rock albums by some veteran performers. All are available on Spotify, or, you know, you could just find a way to own them without listening to commercials or paying...but I'd have no idea how to do that..

New Albums/Tracks Worth a Listen: 

--of Montreal, lousy With Sylvianbriar (8/10)
Kevin Barnes' 12th album with the of Montreal collective is one of the best listens of the fall. In recent years, Barnes has recorded and mixed most of his tracks alone, adding heavy vocal layering and trippy instrumentation. Instead, lousy features a number of prominent 60's rock influences, most notably Bob Dylan, to create a much more melodically organized album than previous released like Skeletal Lamping (although, I loved that album too).

Top Tracks: Fugitive Air ; Triumph of Disintegration ; Belle Glade Missionaries

--Albert Hammond Jr., AHJ (6/10)
The best named Stroke (no bias or anything) kicked a nasty heroin habit and put out a 4-song EP with Julian Casablancas' record label. If you've been waiting for something closer to This is It from the Strokes, this is likely the closest you are going to get.

Top Tracks: St. Justice (I swore it was Vampire Weekend on the first listen); Rude Customer

--Cage the Elephant, Melophobia (5.5/10)
I've been on this Kentucky-bred bandwagon for a long time and I'll be the first to admit this isn't their best work, but I think Cage is heading down the right path. Melophobia means "fear of music", no not the fear of Carmelo Anthony shooting 35-times a game (sorry, I'm just really excited for the NBA to start). With slight influences from Modest Mouse's Isaac Brock, lead singer Matthew Schultz creates a darker album and expands the horizons of what just started as a hard-drinking rock band.

Top Tracks: Come a Little Closer ; Cigarette Daydreams ;
It's Just Forever (ft. Allison Mosshart of the Kills) ; Halo

--Kings of Leon, Mechanical Bull (6.5/10)
After the miserably arduous affair that was Come Around Sundown, numerous show cancellations, and on-and-off rumors of rehab from these southern rockers, there finally may be some hope for the Kings to put out albums in their older age. The angst, sex, and raw instrumentation of their early recordings isn't coming back, but that doesn't mean they cannot find a new groove in a semi-Tom Petty way. The lyrics don't make too much sense as usual (actually, as usual its mostly about sex), but that's not why you came to the party in the first place. Enjoy.

Top Tracks: Supersoaker ; Rock City ; Family Tree

Old Track You Should Know Already: 

Queen

All Dead, All Dead

News of the World (1977)

Let's see how often I can keep these going,

Peace

Albert

Science Saturday: Water on Mars?? Warning: chemistry.

Breakthrough of the Week
Curiosity Rover Makes Big Water Discovery in Mars Dirt, a 'Wow Moment'

What Exactly is Going On?
The fact that there is water on Mars is really old news amongst the inner circles of scientists. There are numerous signs that have led us to hold this belief: there are ice caps on the north and south pole of mars, numerous river delta formations have been photographed on the surface of mars, and there are compounds on the surface of mars that can only be formed in the presence of water. Of course these are only observations from afar, and one of the missions of the Mars Curiosity Rover is to get a concrete analysis of the martian soil, including detection of water and methane (I'll save methane for another SS edition). If you've ever taken chemistry in college, you know how mass spectrometry works. If not, just know that the rover zaps a sample of soil with a badass laser and then determines what the soil is composed of by what is evaporated from it.

What did they Find?

Water!!!! Well, like I said, this comes at no surprise. Specifically, they found the Martian soil to consist of 2% water. Okay, so? Well for reference deserts on Earth average around 5% water. Species in the cacti family thrive at 10% water, but can survive as low as 1%. So hypothetically a cactus from Earth could survive in martian soil. However... this certainly does not mean that it can survive in the Martian atmosphere. Mars is strikingly similar to Earth: it's days last 24.5 hours, experience volcanic activity, and even are tipped on their axis at pretty congruent angles. But Mars is freezing, it's atmospheric pressure is about 1/3 of Earth's, and the atmosphere is very thin so there's little protection from solar radiation. In fact, if you recall from high school chemistry class the atmospheric pressure and temperature lineup so that water reaches its triple point on the surface of mars, meaning that it is boiling, freezing, and condensing all at the same time... woah. 

What are the Implications of this Discovery?

A Martian colony is the future of the human race, and may determine whether our species survives at all. In 1969 when we first landed on the moon an internal study was conducted at NASA to determine how long it would take us to get to the Mars. The study found that if we were diligent with our efforts we would have a Martian colony by 1980, if we were lazy we would be there by 1990.... well here we are. Of course that study was conducted during the cold war, when NASA's budget represented 4% of the total US budget. That number now stands at 4/10 of 1%, or .004 of the total budget. But I digress. One of the biggest hurdles we face concerning space travel is transporting raw goods into space - it costs $10,000 to take 1 lb. of goods into space so a gallon of water in space costs $80,000 (and that's just talking about low-Earth orbit). There have been all sorts of solutions proposed to help solve this problem, such as the space elevator, but the real solution is to simply have the goods waiting for us at our destination - which is why this amount of water on Mars is good news for Earth and a future Mars colony. 

Other News on Mars

-Methane, a strong indicator of life, has not yet been detected on Mars, making it highly unlikely that there are currently any living microbes on Mars.... but HOPE REMAINS

 

-New studies suggest that life on Earth actually originated on Mars.

-Sick of Earth? You can volunteer to be a part of a one-way mission to Mars!

Love,

Nate

Science Saturday: Because who doesn't love dinosaurs?

Breakthrough of the Week
Dinosaur Feathers Have Been Found in Ancient Amber, Spared no Expense.

On a side note, congratulations to all Dumb & Dumber fans!

Why is this significant?
Straight out of Jurassic Park, another big step towards understanding dinosaurs has happened through the studying of fossilized amber. Interestingly enough, the amber wasn't dug up from the ground (at least not recently) but rather the samples came from museum archives. The answer was hiding under our noses the whole time! Now, for our generation this might not be that big of a deal. In fact, when Jurassic Park came out in 1993 (fucking 20 years ago fml) the debate over the genetic fate of dinosaurs was already leaning towards the fact that dinosaurs evolved into modern day birds, not lizards.

Keep in mind that the world Dinosaur itself means "giant lizard". But can you blame scientists of the 19th and 20th centuries for thinking this way? Tales of dragons and giant lizards have littered just about every separate cultural mythology of the human race. The great part about science is that the only thing to disprove it is further scientific research.

This discovery further tips the scale that dinosaurs are the ancient ancestors of our modern birds.

How is this significant?
Besides changing how we view the lineage of dinosaurs, it also changes how we view the behavior and nature of these animals. The feathers discovered in this amber were no ordinary feathers, but they varied in size, color and function - some fit for flying, others for diving, meaning that these dinosaurs were more than stupid lizards rumbling around, they were likely just as diverse as all of our modern bird species.

Clever Girl

Perhaps the most enticing part about this discovery confirmation is that it causes us to completely rethink how we envision dinosaurs. Don't get me wrong, reptiles are cool and all, but birds are so much better - think about how many different niches they fill and all the variations in function, size, etc. Very exciting. Just consider this classic Sir David Attenborough nature documentary about the variations in sexual selection amongst the birds of paradise:

Other, random, Dinosaur Musings
-Sadly, it is highly unlikely that dinosaur DNA will ever be recovered, RIP Jurassic Park.... or at least how Michael Crichton envisioned it.
-Still, other resurrections of extinct species might still be possible! 
-Another highly-debated topic discussed in Jurassic Park, dinosaurs were likely warm blooded, further distancing dinosaurs from reptiles.
-An asteroid was likely the cause behind the major extinction of dinosaurs, paving the way for the rise mammals, and thus humans. (old news, but still debated)

Reds Series Recap: You Don't Have to Go Home but You Can't Stay Here

Reds Take 2-of-3 from Pirates

Cincinnati's Magic Number drops to 2

Game 1
Cincinnati 6
Pittsburgh 5
W: J. Hoover (5-5)
L: K. Farnsworth (1-1)
S: A. Chapman (38)

Game 1 was an instant classic (for Reds fans at least). Mat Latos had a shaky start, lasting 6 innings and giving up 4 runs in the process. Pittsburgh took a 5-2 lead going into the 9th inning, and somehow, someway, the Reds evened it up. Ryan Ludwick singled with one out. Jay Bruce grounded out, but Todd Frazier reached second base on a Pirate error, bringing the score to 5-3. Zach Cozart singled and was replaced by Billy Hamilton who stole second base. Finally, Devin Mesoraco hit a infield single to third base and Hamilton scored the tying run.

In extras, Joey Votto sent a home run over the left field fence that in no way seemed it would make it there. But that was good enough to steal a Redleg win from the grasps of Pittsburgh.


Boy, this one barely made it over the fence. 

Game 2
Cincinnati 2
Pittsburgh 4
W: A. Burnett (9-11)
L: H. Bailey (11-11)
S: J. Grilli (31)

Homer Bailey struggled to find the strike zone in Game 2 and it was clear as he gave up four runs (two earned), four walks, and only struck out three batters through 5 2/3 innings. The Reds took an early 2-0 lead thanks to a Cozart home run in the second inning, but the Pirates pulled back and held out a 4-2 victory. 

Game 3
Cincinnati 11
Pittsburgh 3
W: B. Arroyo (14-11)
L: J. Locke (10-7)


In the "best" Reds pitching performance of the series, Bronson Arroyo parlayed an early lead into a 5 inning win in which he gave up 3 earned runs (two home runs) on 5 hits. It was honestly an ugly week for Reds starting pitching but the bullpen looked pretty stellar most nights. 

In Game 3 the Reds led 7-0 by the end of the second inning, highlighted by a Frazier home run, and doubles by Chris Heisey and Jay Bruce. Billy Hamilton was great once again in his second career start and the Reds didn't look back on their way to an 11-3 series clinching win. 

Billy Hamilton: The Redleg Surfer

3-for-7, 3 runs, and 3 stolen bases

Hamilton brought his average to .429 in the limited plate appearances he has received. He upped his SB total to 12, behind only Shin Soo Choo (18) for the Reds. Billy has looked very comfortable in CF and many fans will likely be clamoring for him to get a few starts in center while moving Choo to left field.

BHam scored Game 1's tying run from second base...on a infield single. The Reds have struggled with their base running lately, but I swear this kid can't do anything wrong. 

Hamilton has certainly secured himself on the playoff roster, and although Dusty will not want to hand the keys to the young burner right away, the effect he has made since his promotion to the big leagues is unquestionable.

This is the best 1:20 you will spend today. 

Please Don't Stop: 

Joey Votto (past 6 games): 7-for-22, 5 runs, 1 HR, 2 RBI, 8 walks
Jay Bruce (past 6 games):  9-for-26, 6 runs, 1 HR, 10 RBI, 4 walks
Zack Cozart (past 6 games): 7-for-22, 2 runs, 2 HR, 9 RBI, 1 walk

Bruce failed to record a hit in games 2 or 3 in Pittsburgh, but his September numbers are still fantastic. Bruce will force pitchers to pitch to Joey Votto and Brandon Phillips if he continues his great month.

Following a disaster stretch just a few weeks ago, Votto has been seeing the ball consistently and his game-winning home run on Friday hopefully put to rest any questions of his "clutchness."

By the way, great play Todd. 

NL Central Heat Check:

TEAM	W	L	GB	RS	RA
St. Louis	91	65	-	756	590
Cincinnati	89	67	2	687	566
Pittsburgh	89	67	2	606	564
Milwaukee	69	86	21.5	615	675
Chicago Cubs	65	91	26	593	660

This week, the Cardinals face the Washington Nationals (84-72) who are on the last leg of their playoff push. Washington currently has a 1.2% chance of making it to the playoffs so expect them to give the Cardinals everything they've got. Prediction: Nationals win 2-1.

The Pirates will head to Chicago for a 3-game series against the Cubs at Wrigley Park. Hopefully our friends over on the South Side can sneak out a win or two against the Buccos. 

Prediction: Pirates win 2-1. 

Finally, the Reds will take on the New York Mets (70-84) and an easier side of the NY pitching staff.
Prediction: Reds win 3-0

Rnk	Team	Win	Loss	Expected Win Pct	Sim Win	Sim Loss	Div Pct	WC Pct	Playoff Pct	Playoff Pct (Adj)	WS Win Pct	1 Day Delta	7 Day Delta
1	St. Louis Cardinals	91	64	.543	95.0	67.0	86.1%	13.9%	100.0%	93.0%	9.1%	0.0%	0.3%
2	Pittsburgh Pirates	89	66	.537	92.5	69.5	7.3%	92.5%	99.8%	51.8%	4.8%	0.4%	-0.1%
3	Cincinnati Reds	88	67	.556	92.0	70.0	6.5%	92.5%	99.0%	54.1%	6.5%	-0.5%	0.2%

Barring a great series from the Nationals, the Cardinals should expect to take home the division crown, but as of now the Reds should have the advantage in hosting the Wild Card Play in game at home. Next week's final series against Pittsburgh should be interesting.

Reds v. Mets Matchups: 

Sep 23, 2013	NYM (Harang) @ CIN (Cueto)	7:10 PM ET
Sep 24, 2013	NYM (Niese) @ CIN (Leake)	7:10 PM ET
Sep 25, 2013	NYM (Matsuzaka) @ CIN (Reynolds)	12:35 PM ET

As always, Viva Rojos!