Nick Drake - A Rough Guide

   From Wikipedia:
   "Nick Drake was an English singer-songwriter and musician. Best known
    for the sombre pieces composed on his primary instrument, the guitar,
    Drake was also proficient at piano, clarinet and saxophone. Although
    he failed to find a wide audience during his lifetime, Drake's work
    has gradually achieved wider notice and recognition; he now ranks among
    the most influential English singer-songwriters of the last 50 years."
     <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nick_Drake>

   He only released three full-length albums in the late 1960s and early
   1970s.  Sadly, he died from an overdose of a prescribed antidepressant
   when he was just 26 years old.

   Several of my favourite musicians have cited him as an influence, but
   I only got into listening to Nick Drake's music a few years ago.

   The links in the guide below are to YouTube movies.  Since Drake's work
   pre-dates the music video era, many of the clips are home-made by fans.
   Apologies in advance for any out-of-place Google ads.  Where possible,
   I've selected clips where the ads should lead to revenue for Drake's
   estate, and not for something crass.

   If the links are blocked, you can try listening to some clips on the
   Wikipedia link above, or at Bryter Music, the official website of the
   Estate of Nick Drake:
     <http://www.brytermusic.com/>

   The "rough guide" ...

   1. "Time Has Told Me"
     <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o1tWbJtBpyE>
   The opening track from Nick Drake's debut album, "Five Leaves Left",
   released in 1969.  He was only 21 when he recorded this album, and the
   lyrics display a maturity beyond his years.  On this album he was
   joined by some accomplished backing musicians.  This track features
   some electric guitar work by Richard Thompson of Fairport Convention.

   2. "River Man"
     <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=idcaRTg4-fM>
   Another strong track from "Five Leaves Left", this song features a
   delicate string arrangement.  According to Drake's manager, Joe Boyd,
   Drake considered it as the centre piece of the album.  The clip was
   produced by Drake's record label.

   3. "Way To Blue"
     <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S40DdlD9JxI>
   This is a home recording of a track from Drake's first album, with just
   Drake singing while playing the piano.  The album version is backed by a
   great string arrangement.  This clip was also produced by Island Records.

   4. "Day Is Done"
     <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y2jxjv0HkwM>
   Another beautiful contemplative piece from "Five Leaves Left".  The clip
   includes a nicely put-together montage of pictures from the album's
   original artwork.

   5. "One Of These Things First"
     <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QSlh8u8Nrig>
   In 1970, Drake released his second album, "Bryter Layter".  Once again
   he was joined by guest backing musicians.  This upbeat track features a
   couple of members of the Beach Boys.  The song was included on the
   soundtrack for "Garden State" (2005).

   6. "Fly"
     <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ShXHW_FrlM>
   This is a simple and moving track from Bryter Layter.  John Cale from
   The Velvet Underground plays viola and harpsichord.  This is probably
   my favourite track on the album.  A beautiful, stripped-back home
   recording of this song is included on the posthumous compilation, "Time
   of No Reply".

   7. "Northern Sky"
     <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vtyLL_BE-oo>
   Another favourite from Bryter Layter.

   8. "Hazey Jane II"
     <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qSZ9oX0rLgg>
   This track features some brass instruments as accompaniment.  Initially
   I found the brass and string arrangements on this album a little jarring,
   but over time I've come to appreciate them more.

   9. "Pink Moon"
     <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aXnfhnCoOyo>
   This is the opening and title track from Nick Drake's third and final
   album (1972).  Unlike his first two albums, this one was basically just
   Drake solo.  As such, it's a more personal and intimate record, as
   demonstrated by the opening track.  Bizarrely, it was used as the
   backing for a VW commercial a few years ago.

   To wrap things up, here's a trio of great tracks from Drake's final
   album...

   10. "Place To Be"
     <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rbutR2nvMCw>

   11. "Free Ride"
     <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l09L45RM2RI>

   12. "Parasite"
     <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q-2WSDtksj0>

Life and Times in the Office

   1. "Simple Desks"
     <http://simpledesks.tumblr.com/>
   "A collection of minimal work spaces."

   2. "Messy Desks"
     <http://messydesks.tumblr.com/>
   "A collection of messy work spaces."  This one is unbelievable:
     <http://messydesks.tumblr.com/post/563413422>

   3. "Your Office Chair Is Killing You"
     <http://www.businessweek.com/print/magazine/content/10_19/
        b4177071221162.htm>
   "Meet public enemy No. 1 in today's workplace"

   4. "The Gervais Principle III: The Curse of Development"
     <http://www.ribbonfarm.com/2010/04/14/the-gervais-principle-iii-
        the-curse-of-development/>
   "In the first two parts of this series, we talked about the archetypes
    that inhabit organizations (sociopaths, losers, clueless), what they do
    (the Gervais principle) and how (the four languages).  In this part,
    we'll use a somewhat unorthodox take on the idea of arrested
    development to explain why the three groups behave as they do, and use
    that to predict the outcomes of individual interpersonal interactions."

   5. "Two Interesting Gervais Principle Follow-Ups"
     <http://www.ribbonfarm.com/2010/05/06/two-interesting-gervais-principle-
        follow-ups/>
   "These two go further, in a couple of rather dangerous (and fun)
    directions."

   6. "The Seven Most Annoying Coworkers (Who are Actually Face-Eating
       Aliens in Disguise)"
     <http://bygonebureau.com/2010/04/28/annoying-coworkers/>

   7. "Why do big companies suck?"
     <http://www.scottberkun.com/blog/2010/why-do-big-companies-suck/>
   "There are some things that tend to happen when companies get big that
    are bad..."

Fibonacci and Fractals in Nature

   Examples where mathematics can be seen in the things around us...

   1. "Fibonacci Numbers and Nature"
     <http://www.maths.surrey.ac.uk/hosted-sites/R.Knott/Fibonacci/
        fibnat.html>

   From rabbits to shells to flowers to vegetables, Fibonacci numbers (0, 1,
   1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, etc) are everywhere in the natural world.

   2. "Fractals in Nature"
     <http://www.miqel.com/fractals_math_patterns/visual-math-natural-
        fractals.html>
   A fractal is "a rough or fragmented geometric shape that can be split
   into parts, each of which is (at least approximately) a reduced-size
   copy of the whole," a property called self-similarity. [Wikipedia]
   Not just theoretical constructs, fractals are present in nature.

   More good stuff at miqel.com:
   * "PHI: The Golden Ratio or Golden Section"
     <http://www.miqel.com/fractals_math_patterns/visual-math-phi-
        golden.html>

   * "The Mandelbrot Set"
     <http://www.miqel.com/fractals_math_patterns/visual-math-mandelbrot-
        magic.html>

   * "Various Fractal Types and Categories of 'Chaos'"
     <http://www.miqel.com/fractals_math_patterns/visual_math_fractal_
        types.html>

   3. More Mathematics in Nature
   * "Maths in Nature"
     <http://www.abc.net.au/science/photos/mathsinnature/>

   * "Nature by Numbers: linking math to nature"
     <http://blog.makezine.com/archive/2010/03/nature_by_numbers_linking_
        math_to_n.html>

   * "Geometry In Nature: The DNA of Design"
     <http://www.slideshare.net/MarkRosenhaus/geometry-in-nature>