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Viva apartments visualizations created for Adele Bates' interior design project in Brighton.
Software used: 3ds Max, Corona and Photoshop
sent to my group www.flickr.com/groups/abc-visualized for the letter B: 1. big small, 2. Boat floating on clouds, 3. harmony . . ., 4. Playin_de_Blues
Functions can also be plotted by generating a line that approximates the function. In fact, this is what happens behind the scenes when the 'plot' function is called.
for the Dictionary of Image and ABC Visualized groups
Large Format: view cameras (including pinhole cameras) and processes that use film or plates, generally 4 x 5 inches or larger.
Patrick van der Pijl: On January 4th 2011 Alex Osterwalder reinversed the business model of Facebook. On his blog he reconstructed together with his smart and loyal followers the model of Facebook. We thought it would be great to build on the work that has been done by visualizing this business model. More on www.businessmodelsinc.com - Illustration: Joeri Lefevre
I was astounded by Bill Rankin's map of Chicago's racial and ethnic divides and wanted to see what other cities looked like mapped the same way. To match his map, Red is White, Blue is Black, Green is Asian, Orange is Hispanic, Gray is Other, and each dot is 25 people. Data from Census 2000. Base map © OpenStreetMap, CC-BY-SA
If you look deep in to the image, you can visualize alot of funny stuff from this image...give it a try! :)
What you see from distance in the image is a sand bank with small trees which is eventually going to be an island.
I just started an excellent online class via Coursera titled Exploring Neural Data Exploring Neural Data that started 29 September 2014. Monica Linden and David Sheinberg of Brown University are teaching this class. Our first assignment was to detect spikes (action potentials) in a few seconds of recorded data from a neuron. The assignment was to modify some Python code to plot the data, and then detect and plot the spike activity, and plot all the detected spikes. This plot shows voltage versus time, there are about 88,000 samples in this data. To figure out the "spikes", a threshold is applied (in voltage and time) to separate the spike from the noise. The red lines were drawn for every spike detected.
It was very satisfying to work with this data, and to learn a bit more about neuroscience (and Python). We are using the Spyder environment, which is quite a nice development environment. This assignment took me a little longer than I thought it would (finished about 530 am Sunday morning).
I was astounded by Bill Rankin's map of Chicago's racial and ethnic divides and wanted to see what other cities looked like mapped the same way. To match his map, Red is White, Blue is Black, Green is Asian, Orange is Hispanic, Gray is Other, and each dot is 25 people. Data from Census 2000. Base map © OpenStreetMap, CC-BY-SA
this is a set of personal project - testing my skills with farnsworth house from architect mies van der rohe.
The last four years of my data from Facebook: gadgetwise.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/10/06/facebook-now-lets...
Visualized with GrandPerspective: grandperspectiv.sourceforge.net/
Part of a 5 house visualization project for ARCHIPOD.
Furniture models in this image are part of the model supplied in the latest 3dallusions - Charette#15 - Quinta House
Maps of racial and ethnic divisions in US cities, inspired by Bill Rankin's map of Chicago, updated for Census 2010.
Red is White, Blue is Black, Green is Asian, Orange is Hispanic, Yellow is Other, and each dot is 25 residents.
Data from Census 2010. Base map © OpenStreetMap, CC-BY-SA
A Dutch translation of the illustration of the four-fold micro- and macro-cosmos in the ‘Manual of Byrhtferth‘, Oxford St. John College ms. 17 fol.7v. The ages of man (pueritia (-14 years), adolescentia (-28 years), juventus (- 48 years) and senectus (70 – 80 years) make a clockwise motion.
P. 65 in: FOUR - Marten Kuilman (with coloured diagram):
quadriformisratio.wordpress.com/2013/07/01/four-ages/
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The original scheme is reproduced in:
Burrow 1986, pl. 2; Edson 1997, ill. 5.5 (91); English Romanesque Art 1066-1200, 104; Esmeijer 1978, fig. 53; Evans (M.) 1969, pl. 66; Kauffmann 1975, ill. 21; Kline 2001, fig. 1.9; Murdoch 1984, ill. 290; Singer 1917, 124; Singer and Singer 1917-1919, fig 3; Singer and Singer 1921, fig. 2.
Related manuscripts: Post-Conquest English Computus Manuscripts: Peterborough computus
1. Introduction, transcription and translation
2. Byrthferth's Diagram as symbolic diagram
3. The form of Byrhtferth's Diagram
4. Did the Diagram illustrate Byrhtferth's Enchiridion?
5. The Peterborough computus copy of Byrhtferth's Diagram and related schemata
1. Introduction, transcription and translation
Byrhtferth's Diagram is probably the most famous and most frequently reproduced item in MS 17. It is also a very complex composition, and its interpretation bristles with historical and exegetical problems. To avoid a disproportionately long commentary, we will limit our remarks here to a description of the Diagram, and some observations on its relationship to the copy in the Peterborough computus and to diagrams in Byrhtferth's Enchiridion. A longer interpretive article is in progress.
What follows is a transcription and translation of the text surrounding Byrhtferth's Diagram:
Hanc figuram edidit bryhtferð2 monachus ramesiensis coenobii de concordia mensium atque elementorum.
Hi sunt solares \scilicet dicuntur quia secundum ipsum cursum constant/ menses qui habent dies XXXI. Ianuarius. Martius. Maius. Iulius. Augustus. October. December.
Hi autem XXX \scilicet dies habent secundum solis cursum/ Aprilis. Iunius. September. November. Februarius uero ab omnibus erat.
Retinet hec figura XII signa et duo solstitia. atque bina equinoctia. et bisbina tempora anni. in qua descripta sunt IIII nomina elementorum. et duodenorum uentorum onomata. atque IIII etates hominum. Sunt insimul coniuncta bis bine littere nominis protoplasti ade;
Demonstrat enim uero quales menses lunam XXX quales XXIX habent;
(Byrhtferth, monk of Ramsey Abbey, set forth this diagram of the harmony of the months and the elements.
These are the solar months (so called because they follow the Sun's course) which have 31 days: January, March, May, July, August, October, December. These have 30 (that is, days according to the Sun's course): April, June, September and November. But February deviates from them all.
This diagram contains the twelve signs and also the two equinoxes and the twice-two seasons of the year, within which are inscribed the names of the four elements and the designations of the twelve winds, and also the four ages of man. The twice-two letter of the name of Adam, the first-created man, are also added.
It shows which months have a moon of 30 and which a moon of 29.)
2. Byrthferth's Diagram as symbolic diagram
Diagrams, schemata and tables found in computus manuscripts are of three basic types. The reference table like those which precede (fols. 8r-15v) and follow (fols. 22r-27r) the calendar in MS 17 are designed for consultation, or to manipulate data to solve a problem. Computists also inherited a tradition of pedagogical schemata illustrating scientific principles or providing a graphic summary of information:3 the taxonomy of knowledge on fol. 7r is such a summary, while the drawings accompanying the cosmographical anthology on fols. 35v-40v are essentially scientific illustrations. Derived from pedagogical schemata, but of a higher order of complexity, and with a different function, are symbolic diagrams in which interpenetrating systems of abstract concepts are brought into relation through graphic organization, numerical and geometrical symbolism, colour, and other visual strategies. Symbolic diagrams can contain more or less assertive pictorial representations which allegorize their contents; this diagramming iconography is one of the typical features of Carolingian and Romanesque art. But the symbolic diagram in the strict sense, like the pedagogical schema, presents contents which are primarily textual or conceptual in character. The diagram sidesteps the normally diachronic presentation of words and concepts by distributing them in a spatial arrangement, a diagram. This arrangement allows the material to be compared, juxtaposed, analysed, and interpreted on many levels at once, using a process of "visual exegesis." However, unlike the pedagogical schema, symbolic diagrams are not illustrations of a parent text; rather, they are either completely independent of, or in a kind of collegial relationship with a text. Essentially, the diagram itself functions as a text.
A scientific or pedagogical schema can become a symbolic diagram by the addition of an iconic reference, or by re-orientation to a more metaphysical purpose. When Gerbert of Aurillac wished to illustrate the different types of geometric angles, he used a pedagogical scheme consisting of circles overlapping in various degrees. But then he added an extra diagram, a figura composed of a number of circles, and which contained all the possible types of angles. It had no pedagogical value; it simply satisfied a passion for synthesis. Gerbert made the diagram, in his words, "so that all might be seen together in one. Likewise at the end of the copy of De natura rerum in Oxford, Bodleian Library Auct. F.3.14 (fol. 19v), Isidore of Seville's OT map of the world has been transformed into a maiestas Domini, with Christ seated atop the globe and three praying figures standing in for the three continents. In both cases, a scientific image has become a symbolic one.
3. The form of Byrhtferth's Diagram
Byrhtferth's Diagram, like Gerbert's, was designed "so that all might be seen together in one," and like the Auct. F.3.14 map, the organizing symbolism is that of the maiestas Domini. The rubric announces that this figura is a harmonization of two systems: the twelve months and the four elements. The first is represented by an 8-shaped green band on which is inscribed the twelve signs of the zodiac, and beneath these, the month of the year roughly corresponding to each sign, together with the number of solar days in the month and the length of the lunation that terminates in that solar month. Within this zodiac band is a double diamond. The outer diamond is pinned to the zodiac band by four roundels labeled with the names of the four elements -- earth (blue), air (cream), water (green) and fire (red) -- at the equinoctial and solstitial points. An arc with the date of the solstice or equinox passes over each element-roundel, so preserving the continuous flow of celestial time despite the interception of the static quadrilateral of the sublunary elements.
Within the continuous flow of time is the unmoving world of place, represented by the inner, blue diamond. The Greek and Latin names of the cardinal directions are inscribed in the "bites" in the corners of the diamond. These are linked to the four elements through the twelve winds, whose names lie inside the element roundels. Because they are twelve in number, and pertain to the upper atmosphere, the winds belong to the celestial realm of the outer band; but they also belong to the inner, terrestrial diamond because they are sublunar, meteorological phenomena, and because they are classed according to the cardinal directions. Byrhtferth compromised by grouping them in threes according to the cardinal directions, but locating them in the outer region.
The four elements themselves also bridge the worlds of time and of space. Each has a pair of qualities which link it to its neighbouring elements: these are transcribed on the bars of the inner diamond, which is particularly associated with space. But these paired qualities serve to connect time as well as the material creation. The paired qualities are assigned to the different seasons, and the bars on which they are inscribed form the outer diamond. The arms of this diamond thread through a second series of four roundels containing the name of the season, its length and the date on which it begins. The reminder that each season covers three months carries our eye outwards to the band of three months arching over each season-roundel. But the roundels also relate the four seasons to the four phases of the human life cycle and its duration: puericia lasts 14 years, adolescentia to age 28, iuuentus to age 48, and senectus until 70 or 80.
Hanging between heaven and earth, these roundels are a graphic statement of man's amphibious nature, linked to the heavens through the stages of life as microcosm of celestial time, and to the earth through the name of Adam, formed from the initial letters of the Greek names of the cardinal directions -- a conceit already encountered in the world-map on fol. 6v. Enclosed within ADAM is an eight-spoked wheel, resembling a sundial or horologium, above which is a narrow horizontal strip containing some symbols, a fragment of Ogham or pseudo-Ogham writing, and abbreviated words. These puzzling details (which incidentally are missing from the Peterborough computus copy of the Diagram) await further research and study. Here we will concentrate on the overall form and the explicit messages of the Diagram.
None of the separate components of the Diagram is particularly unusual, yet the Diagram as a whole bespeaks a high degree of synthetic creativity in the way in which it superimposes four common medieval schemata: the syzygia elementorum (the connection of the elements through their paired qualities, and their analogous relationship to the four seasons, four humours of the body, four ages of man etc. through these pairings), the rota of the zodiac, the rota of the months, and the windrose with its four cardinal directions. What binds them together is numerical analogies, particularly the number four, a subject on which Byrhtferth himself has much to say in his textbook on computus, the Enchiridion.
4. Did the Diagram illustrate Byrhtferth's Enchiridion?
Byrhtferth of Ramsey's significance to the origin and shape of MS 17 goes well beyond the few items formally ascribed to him in this manuscript, namely this Diagram, and the Proemium on fols. 12v-13r. The unique manuscript of Byrhtferth's Enchiridion is Bodleian Library Ashmole 328, a quarto volume written in English square minuscule of the early 11th century, but of unknown provenance. Illustrating Byrhtferth's text are a number of computus reference tables, pedagogical schemata, and symbolic diagrams. One of these is a rota of the months and zodiac signs, but without any indication of the number of lunar and solar days in each month.18 Directly after presenting this rota Byrhtferth announces, "Nu her ys gemearcod se circul þe ys zodiacus gehaten, 7 þaera XII monða naman, nu wille we furðor geican þurh Godes mihta" -- "Now that the circle called the zodiac and the names of the twelve months are here written down, we wish, with the aid of God's power, to continue further"). This "further" addition is a second diagram in the form of a Greek cross bound by concentric circles, which Byrhtferth introduces by explaining the dates of the equinoxes and solstices and connecting them to the twelve months and the four elements.21 The diagram, however, shows neither the months nor the elements, but rather the solstices and equinoxes in connection with the seasons.
Byrthferth then turns to a fresh topic ("Exceptis his rebus...") and proceeds to unroll a long chain of analogies between the twelve winds, the four seasons, the four ages of man, the four elements and their qualities, and the four humours of the human body. The diagram, he says, will explain it all. Unfortunately, the diagram has been torn out of the Ashmole manuscript, leaving only a corner.
In 1919, Charles and Dorothea Singer published Byrhtferth's Diagram as a copy of the missing schema in the Ashmole manuscript, claiming that the Diagram fulfilled all the requirements of Byrhtferth's introductory description. But does it? Byrhtferth's introduction does not mention the months, the zodiac, the solstices or the equinoxes; in fact, he had explicitly set these matters aside. Moreover, the Diagram mentions nothing about the humours, a fact that the Singers overlooked to the extent of christening the schema "Byrhtferth's Diagram of the Physical and Physiological Fours," and asserting that it illustrated the medical treatise on fols. 1v-2v of MS 17.24 They could not avoid noticing, however, that the Ashmole diagram was obviously rectangular, and that the legends still legible in the fragment do not correspond to the text in MS 17, but this cast no doubt on their "restoration." It has raised few questions since, though Lapidge and Baker, in their new edition of the Enchiridion, are very much more cautious than previous commentators about equating the MS 17 diagram with the Ashmole schema. Caution is justified: apart from the discrepancies identified above, the Ashmole page would not have been large enough to hold the Diagram, if the scale of the writing on the extant stub is taken as a module. But the major difficulty remains that Byrthferth's text does not permit us to look for a concordia mensium et elementorum at this point. This concordia is the central theme of the Diagram.
Many of the analogies expressed through the Diagram are indeed discussed in the Enchiridion, but not in the context of the missing schema; rather, they are included in an essay on number symbolism which forms the final part of the treatise, and particularly in the section devoted to the number four. Here Byrhtferth explicitly describes the relationship of the elements to the seasons and the ages of man through their paired qualities, the connection of the winds and the cardinal directions, and how the initials of the Greek names for the cardinal directions spell the name of Adam. But he mentions no diagram in connection with these. In sum, it would appear that Byrhtferth's Diagram, like many other symbolic diagrams, stands on its own, and is not an illustration of a particular text -- not even Byrhtferth's own.
The second distinctive aspect of the Diagram is its unusual and evocative shape. By far the most common shape for a schema of the zodiac, months, or winds is a rota, and almost every syzygia elementorum is a circle segmented by a four-lobed knot. Nowhere save in Byrhtferth's Diagram are these contents presented as an elongated diamond within an 8-shaped frame. This is the distinctive graphic framework of a maiestas Domini, that is, the representation, generally in an eschatological context, of Christ manifested in glory. In sum, unlike most symbolic diagrams, Byrhtferth's Diagram does not take a pedagogical schema and fill it with religious content, but takes a religious schema and fills it with computistical content.
digital.library.mcgill.ca/ms-17/folio.php?p=7v&showit...
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The theme of the four ages of man continued after the thirteenth century of the European cultural period, but its character became increasingly symbolic. Genuine four-fold thinking drifted towards a lower division environment. This move – which lasted for almost six-hundred years – increased the (visible) visibility, but decreased the character of real tetradic thinking. The invention of the printing press ‘enabled the widespread dissemination of the literature of symbolism including the new genres of emblem and device’ (RAYBOULD, 2009). The world of painting added to the visualization of the four-fold, but not necessarily to the understanding of a tetradic world view.
I can't see
I can't walk alone
I lack some physical skills
But, I won't knee to blindess
I won't be completely depedent on the others
I won't stay without any work
I have the heart to visualize the feelings
I have the mind to comprehend the life
I have the soul to be a free human
[Abraaj. January 2007]
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Series of Kuwait's portraits (winter 06-2007)
I saw this blind old man at Al-Mubarakiah Market in Kuwait City
Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L
editing: RAW processing and Photoshop editing
Blue pictures are by locals. Red pictures are by tourists. Yellow pictures might be by either.
Base map © OpenStreetMap, CC-BY-SA
Puri is a city and a Municipality of Odisha. It is the district headquarters of Puri district, Odisha, eastern India. It is situated on the Bay of Bengal, 60 kilometres south of the state capital of Bhubaneswar. It is also known as Jagannath Puri after the 12th-century Jagannath Temple located in the city. It is one of the original Char Dham pilgrimage sites for Indian Hindus.
Puri was known by several names from the ancient times to the present, and locally called as Badadeula. Puri and the Jagannath Temple were invaded 18 times by Hindu and Muslim rulers, starting from the 4th century to the start of the 19th century with the objective of looting the treasures of the temple. Odisha, including Puri and its temple, were under the British Raj from 1803 till India attained independence in August 1947. Even though princely states do not exist in independent India, the heirs of the Gajapati Dynasty of Khurda still perform the ritual duties of the temple. The temple town has many Hindu religious maths or monasteries.
The economy of Puri town is dependent on the religious importance of the Jagannath Temple to the extent of nearly 80%. The festivals which contribute to the economy are the 24 held every year in the temple complex, including 13 major festivals; Ratha Yatra and its related festivals are the most important which are attended by millions of people every year. Sand art and applique art are some of the important crafts of the city. Puri is one of the 12 heritage cities chosen by the Government of India for holistic development.
GEOGRAPHY AND CLIMATE
GEOGRAPHY
Puri, located on the east coast of India on the Bay of Bengal, is in the center of the district of the same name. It is delimited by the Bay of Bengal on the south east, the Mauza Sipaurubilla on the west, Mauz Gopinathpur in the north and Mauza Balukhand in the east. It is within the 67 kilometres coastal stretch of sandy beaches that extends between Chilika Lake and the south of Puri city. However, the administrative jurisdiction of the Puri Municipality extends over an area of 16.3268 square kilometres spread over 30 wards, which includes a shore line of 5 kilometres.
Puri is in the coastal delta of the Mahanadi River on the shores of the Bay of Bengal. In the ancient days it was near to Sisupalgarh (Ashokan Tosali) when the land was drained by a tributary of the River Bhargavi, a branch of the Mahanadi River, which underwent a meandering course creating many arteries altering the estuary, and formed many sand hills. These sand hills could not be "cut through" by the streams. Because of the sand hills, the Bhargavi River flowing to the south of Puri, moved away towards the Chilika Lake. This shift also resulted in the creation of two lagoons known as Sar and Samang on the eastern and northern parts of Puri respectively. Sar lagoon has a length of 8.0 km in an east-west direction and has a width of 3.2 km in north-south direction. The river estuary has a shallow depth of 1.5 m only and the process of siltation is continuing. According to a 15th-century chronicle the stream that flowed at the base of the Blue Mountain or Neelachal was used as the foundation or high plinth of the present temple which was then known as Purushottama, the Supreme Being. A 16th century chronicle attributes filling up of the bed of the river which flowed through the present Grand Road, during the reign of King Narasimha II (1278–1308).
CLIMATE
According to the Köppen and Geiger the climate of Puri is classified Aw. The city has moderate and tropical climate. Humidity is fairly high throughout the year. The temperature during summer touches a maximum of 36 °C and during winter it is 17 °C. The average annual rainfall is 1,337 millimetres and the average annual temperature is 26.9 °C.
HISTORY
NAMES IN HISTORY
Puri, the holy land of Lord Jaganath, also known popularly as Badadeula in local usage, has many ancient names in the Hindu scriptures such as the Rigveda, Matsya purana, Brahma Purana, Narada Purana, Padma Purana, Skanda Purana, Kapila samhita and Niladrimahodaya. In the Rigveda, in particular, it is mentioned as a place called Purushamandama-grama meaning the place where the Creator deity of the world – Supreme Divinity deified on altar or mandapa was venerated near the coast and prayers offered with vedic hymns. Over time the name got changed to Purushottama Puri and further shortened to Puri and the Purusha became Jagannatha. Close to this place sages like Bhrigu, Atri and Markandeya had their hermitage. Its name is mentioned, conforming to the deity worshipped, as Srikshetra, Purusottama Dhāma, Purusottama Kshetra, Purusottama Puri and Jagannath Puri. Puri is however, a common usage now. It is also known the geographical features of its siting as Shankhakshetra (layout of the town is in the form of a conch shell.), Neelāchala ("blue mountain" a terminology used to name very large sand lagoon over which the temple was built but this name is not in vogue), Neelāchalakshetra, Neelādri, The word 'Puri' in Sanskrit means "town", or 'city' and is cognate with polis in Greek.
Another ancient name is Charita as identified by Cunningham which was later spelled as Che-li-ta-lo by Chinese traveller Hiuen Tsang.When the present temple was built by the Ganga king Chodangadev in the 11th and 12th centuries it was called Purushottamkshetra. However, the Moghuls, the Marathas and early British rulers called it Purushottama-chhatar or just Chhatar. In Akbar's Ain-i-Akbari and subsequent Muslim historical records it was known as Purushottama. In the Sanskrit drama authored by Murari Mishra in the 8th century it is referred as Purushottama only. It was only after twelfth century Puri came to be known by the shortened form of Jagannatha Puri, named after the deity or in a short form as Puri. In some records pertaining to the British rule, the word 'Jagannath' was used for Puri. It is the only shrine in India, where Radha, along with Lakshmi, Saraswati, Durga, Bhudevi, Sati, Parvati, and Shakti abodes with Krishna, also known as Jagannath.
ANCIENT PERIOD
According to the chronicle Madala Panji, in 318 the priests and servitors of the temple spirited away the idols to escape the wrath of the Rashtrakuta King Rakatavahu. The temple's ancient historical records also finds mention in the Brahma Purana and Skanda Purana as having been built by the king Indradyumna of Ujjayani.
According to W.J. Wilkinson, in Puri, Buddhism was once a well established practice but later Buddhists were persecuted and Brahmanism became the order of the religious practice in the town; the Buddha deity in now worshipped by the Hindus as Jagannatha. It is also said that some relics of Buddha were placed inside the idol of Jagannath which the Brahmins claimed were the bones of Krishna. Even during Ashoka’s reign in 240 BC Odisha was a Buddhist center and that a tribe known as Lohabahu (barbarians from outside Odisha) converted to Buddhism and built a temple with an idol of Buddha which is now worshipped as Jagannatha. It is also said that Lohabahu deposited some Buddha relics in the precincts of the temple.
Construction of the Jagannatha Temple started in 1136 and completed towards the later part of the 12th century. The King of the Ganga dynasty, Anangabhima dedicated his kingdom to the God, then known as the Purushottam-Jagannatha and resolved that from then on he and his descendants would rule under "divine order as Jagannatha's sons and vassals". Even though princely states do not exist in independent India, the heirs of the Gajapati dynasty of Khurda still perform the ritual duties of the temple; the king formally sweeps the road in front of the chariots before the start of the Rathayatra.
MEDIEVAL AND EARLY MODERN PERIODS
History of the temple is the history of the town of Puri, which was invaded 18 times during its history to plunder the treasures of the Jagannath Puri temple. The first invasion was in the 8th century by Rastrakuta king Govinda-III (AD 798–814) and the last was in 1881 by the followers of Alekh Religion who did not recognize Jagannath worship. In between, from the 1205 onward there were many invasions of the city and its temple by Muslims of the Afghans and Moghuls descent, known as Yavanas or foreigners; they had mounted attacks to ransack the wealth of the temple rather than for religious reasons. In most of these invasions the idols were taken to safe places by the priests and the servitors of the temple. Destruction of the temple was prevented by timely resistance or surrender by the kings of the region. However, the treasures of the temple were repeatedly looted. Puri is the site of the Govardhana matha, one of the four cardinal institutions established by Adi Shankaracharya, when he visited Puri in 810 and since then it has become an important dham (divine centre) for the Hindus; the others being those at Sringeri, Dwaraka and Jyotirmath. The matha is headed by Jagatguru Shankarachrya. The significance of the four dhams is that the Lord Vishnu takes his dinner at Puri, has his bath at Rameshwaram, spends the night at Dwarka and does penance at Badrinath.
Chaitanya Mahaprabhu of Bengal who established the Bhakti movements of India in the sixteenth century, now known by the name the Hare Krishna movement, spent many years as a devotee of Jagannatha at Puri; he is said to have merged his "corporal self" with the deity. There is also a matha of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu here.
In the 17th century for the sailors sailing on the east coast of India, the landmark was the temple located in a plaza in the centre of the town which they called the "White Pagoda" while the Konark Sun Temple, 60 kilometres away to the east of Puri, was known as the "Black Pagoda".
The iconographic representation of the images in the Jagannath temple are believed to be the forms derived from the worship made by the tribal groups of Sabaras belonging to northern Odisha. These images are replaced at regular intervals as the wood deteriorates. This replacement is a special event carried out ritulistically by special group of carpenters.
The town has many Mathas (Monasteries of the various Hindu sects). Among the important mathas is the Emar Matha founded by the Tamil Vaishnav Saint Ramanujacharya in the 12th century AD. At present this matha is located in front of Simhadvara across the eastern corner of the Jagannath Temple is reported to have been built in the 16th century during the reign of Suryavamsi Gajapati. The matha was in the news recently for the large cache of 522 silver slabs unearthded from a closed room.
The British conquered Orissa in 1803 and recognizing the importance of the Jagannatha Temple in the life of the people of the state they initially placed an official to look after the temple's affairs and later declared it a district with the same name.
MODERN HISTORY
In 1906, Sri Yukteswar an exponent of Kriya Yoga, a resident of Puri, established an ashram in the sea-side town of Puri, naming it "Kararashram" as a spiritual training center. He died on 9 March 1936 and his body is buried in the garden of the ashram.
The city is the site of the former summer residence of British Raj built in 1913–14 during the era of governors, the Raj Bhavan.
For the people of Puri Lord Jagannath, visualized as Lord Krishna, is synonymous with their city. They believe that the Jagannatha looks after the welfare of the state. However, after the incident of the partial collapse of the Jagannatha Temple, the Amalaka part of the tower on 14 June 1990 people became apprehensive and thought it was not a good omen for the welfare of the State of Odisha. The replacement of the fallen stone by another of the same size and weight (seven tons) had to be done only in the an early morning hours after the gods had woken up after a good nights sleep which was done on 28 February 1991.
Puri has been chosen as one of the heritage cities for the Heritage City Development and Augmentation Yojana scheme of the Indian Government. It is one of 12 the heritage cities chosen with "focus on holistic development" to be implemented in 27 months by end of March 2017.
Non-Hindus are not permitted to enter the shrines but are allowed to view the temple and the proceedings from the roof of the Raghunandan library within the precincts of the temple for a small donation.
DEMOGRAPHICS
As of 2001 India census, Puri city, an urban Agglomeration governed by Municipal Corporation in Orissa state, had a population of 157,610 which increased to 200,564 in 2011. Males, 104,086, females, 96,478, children under 6 years of age, 18,471. The sex ratio is 927 females to 1000 males. Puri has an average literacy rate of 88.03 percent (91.38 percent males and 84.43 percent females). Religion-wise data is not reported.
ECONOMY
The economy of Puri is dependent on tourism to the extent of about 80%. The temple is the focal point of the entire area of the town and provides major employment to the people of the town. Agricultural production of rice, ghee, vegetables and so forth of the region meets the huge requirements of the temple, with many settlements aroiund the town exclusively catering to the other religious paraphernalia of the temple. The temple administration employs 6,000 men to perform the rituals. The temple also provides economic sustenance to 20,000 people belonging to 36 orders and 97 classes. The kitchen of the temple which is said to be the largest in the world employs 400 cooks.
CITY MANAGEMENT AND GOVERNANCE
Puri Municipality, Puri Konark Development Authority, Public Health Engineering Organisastion, Orissa Water Supply Sewerage Board are some of the principal organizations that are devolved with the responsibility of providing for all the urban needs of civic amenities such as water supply, sewerage, waste management, street lighting, and infrastructure of roads. The major activity which puts maximum presuure on these organizations is the annual event of the Ratha Yatra held for 10 days during July when more than a million people attend the grand event. This event involves to a very large extent the development activities such as infrastructure and amenities to the pilgrims, apart from security to the pilgrims.
The civic administration of Puri is the responsibility of the Puri Municipality which came into existence in 1864 in the name of Puri Improvement Trust which got converted into Puri Municipality in 1881. After India's independence in 1947, Orissa Municipal Act-1950 was promulgated entrusting the administration of the city to the Puri Municipality. This body is represented by elected representative with a Chairperson and councilors representing the 30 wards within the municipal limits.
LANDMARKS
JAGANNATH TEMPLE AT PURI
The Temple of Jagannath at Puri is one of the major Hindu temples built in the Kalinga style of architecture, in respect of its plan, front view and structural detailing. It is one of the Pancharatha (Five chariots) type consisting of two anurathas, two konakas and one ratha with well-developed pagas. Vimana or Deula is the sanctum sanctorum where the triad (three) deities are deified on the ratnavedi (Throne of Pearls), and over which is the temple tower, known as the rekha deula; the latter is built over a rectangular base of the pidha temples as its roof is made up of pidhas that are sequentially arranged horizontal platforms built in descending order forming a pyramidal shape. The mandapa in front of the sanctum sanctorum is known as Jagamohana where devotees assemble to offer worship. The temple tower with a spire rises to a height of 58 m in height and a flag is unfurled above it fixed over a wheel (chakra). Within the temple complex is the Nata Mandir, a large hall where Garuda stamba (pillar). Chaitanya Mahaprabhu used to stand here and pray. In the interior of the Bhoga Mantap, adjoining the Nata mandir, there is profusion of decorations of sculptures and paintings which narrate the story of Lord Krishna. The temple is built on an elevated platform (of about 39,000 m2 area), 20 ft above the adjoining area. The temple rises to a height of 214 ft above the road level. The temple complex covers an area of 4,3 ha. There is double walled enclosure, rectangular in shape (rising to a height of 20 ft) surrounding the temple complex of which the outer wall is known as Meghanada Prachira, measuring 200 by 192 metres. The inner walled enclosure, known as Kurmabedha. measures 126m x 95m. There are four entry gates (in four cardinal directions to the temple located at the center of the walls in the four directions of the outer circle. These are: the eastern gate called Singhadwara (Lions Gate), the southern gate known as Ashwa Dwara (Horse Gate), the western gate called the Vyaghra Dwara (Tigers Gate) or the Khanja Gate, and the northern gate called the Hathi Dwara or (elephant gate). The four gates symbolize the four fundamental principles of Dharma (right conduct), Jnana (knowledge), Vairagya (renunciation) and Aishwarya (prosperity). The gates are crowned with pyramid shapes structures. There is stone pillar in front of the Singhadwara called the Aruna Stambha {Solar Pillar}, 11 metres in height with 16 faces, made of chlorite stone, at the top of which is mounted an elegant statue of Arun (Sun) in a prayer mode. This pillar was shifted from the Konarak Sun temple. All the gates are decorated with guardian statues in the form of lion, horse mounted men, tigers and elephants in the name and order of the gates. A pillar made of fossilized wood is used for placing lamps as offering. The Lion Gate (Singhadwara) is the main gate to the temple, which guarded by two guardian deities Jaya and Vijaya. The main gates is ascended through 22 steps known as Baisi Pahaca which are revered as it is said to possess "spiritual animation". Children are made to roll down these steps from top to bottom to bring them spiritual happiness. After entering the temple on the left hand side there is huge kitchen where food is prepared in hygienic conditions in huge quantities that it is termed as "the biggest hotel of the world".
The legend says that King Indradyumma was directed by Lord Jagannath in a dream to build a temple for him and he built it as directed. However, according to historical records the temple was started some time during the 12th century by King Chodaganga of the Eastern Ganga dynasty. It was however completed by his descendant, Anangabhima Deva, in the 12th century. The wooden images of Jagannath, Balabhadra and Subhadra were then deified here. The temple was under the control of the Hindu rulers up to 1558. Then, when Orissa was occupied by the Afghan Nawab of Bengal, it was brought under the control of the Afghan General Kalapahad. Following the defeat of the Afghan king by Raja Mansingh, the General of Mughal emperor Akbar, the temple became a part of the Mughal empire till 1751 AD. Subsequently it was under the control of the Marathas till 1803. Then, when British Raj took over Orissa, the Puri Raja was entrusted with its to management until 1947.
The triad of images in the temple are of Jagannatha, personifying Lord Krishna, Balabhadra, his older brother, and Subhadra his younger sister, which are made of wood (neem) in an unfinished form. The stumps of wood which form the images of the brothers have human arms and that of Subhadra does not have any arms. The heads are large and un-carved and are painted. The faces are made distinct with the large circular shaped eyes.
THE PANCHA TIRTHA OF PURI
Hindus consider it essential to bathe in the Pancha Tirtha or the five sacred bathing spots of Puri, India, to complete a pilgrimage to Puri. The five sacred water bodies are the Indradyumana Tank, the Rohini Kunda, the Markandeya Tank, Swetaganga Tank, and the The Sea also called the Mahodadhi is considered a sacred bathing spot in the Swargadwar area. These tanks have perennial sources of supply in the form of rain water and ground water.
GUNDICHA TEMPLE
Known as the Garden House of Jagannath, the Gundicha temple stands in the centre of a beautiful garden, surrounded by compound walls on all sides. It lies at a distance of about 3 kilometres to the north east of the Jagannath Temple. The two temples are located at the two ends of the Bada Danda (Grand Avenue) which is the pathway for the Rath Yatra. According to a legend, Gundicha was the wife of King Indradyumna who originally built the Jagannath temple.
The temple is built using light-grey sandstone and architecturally, it exemplifies typical Kalinga temple architecture in the Deula style. The complex comprises four components: vimana (tower structure containing the sanctum), jagamohana (assembly hall), nata-mandapa (festival hall) and bhoga-mandapa (hall of offerings). There is also a kitchen connected by a small passage. The temple is set within a garden, and is known as "God's Summer Garden Retreat" or garden house of Jagannath. The entire complex, including garden, is surrounded by a wall which measures 131 m × 98 m with height of 6.1 m.
Except for the 9-day Rath Yatra when triad images are worshipped in Gundicha Temple, the rest of the year it remains unoccupied. Tourists can visit the temple after paying an entry fee. Foreigners (prohibited entry in the main temple) are allowed inside this temple during this period. The temple is under the Jagannath Temple Administration, Puri – the governing body of the main temple. A small band of servitors maintain the temple.
SWARGADWAR
Swargadwar is the name given to the cremation ground or burning ghat which is located on the shores of the sea were thousands of dead bodies of Hindus are brought from faraway places to cremate. It is a belief that the Chitanya Mahaparabhu disppaeread from this Swargadwar about 500 years back.
BEACH
The beach at Puri known as the "Ballighai beach} is 8 km away at the mouth of Nunai River from the town and is fringed by casurian trees. It has golden yellow sand and has pleasant sunshine. Sunrise and sunset are pleasant scenic attractions here. Waves break in at the beach which is long and wide.
DISTRICT MUSEUM
The Puri district museum is located on the station road where the exhibits are of different types of garments worn by Lord Jagannath, local sculptures, patachitra (traditional, cloth-based scroll painting) and ancient Palm-leaf manuscripts and local craft work.
RAGHUNANDANA LIBRARY
Raghunandana Library is located in the Emmra matha complex (opposite Simhadwara or Lion gate, the main entrance gate). The Jagannatha Aitihasika Gavesana Samiti (Jagannatha Historical Center) is also located here. The library contains ancient palm leaf manuscripts of Jagannatha, His cult and the history of the city. From the roof of the library one gets a picturesque view of the temple complex.
FESTIVALS OF PURI
Puri witnesses 24 festivals every year, of which 13 are major festivals. The most important of these is the Rath Yatra or the Car festival held in the month June–July which is attended by more than 1 million people.
RATH YATRA AT PURI
The Jagannath triad are usually worshiped in the sanctum of the temple at Puri, but once during the month of Asadha (Rainy Season of Orissa, usually falling in month of June or July), they are brought out onto the Bada Danda (main street of Puri) and travel 3 kilometrer to the Shri Gundicha Temple, in huge chariots (ratha), allowing the public to have darśana (Holy view). This festival is known as Rath Yatra, meaning the journey (yatra) of the chariots (ratha). The yatra starts, according to Hindu calendar Asadha Sukla Dwitiya )the second day of bright fortnight of Asadha (June–July) every year.
Historically, the ruling Ganga dynasty instituted the Rath Yatra at the completion of the great temple around 1150 AD. This festival was one of those Hindu festivals that was reported to the Western world very early. In his own account of 1321, Odoric reported how the people put the "idols" on chariots, and the King and Queen and all the people drew them from the "church" with song and music.
The Rathas are huge wheeled wooden structures, which are built anew every year and are pulled by the devotees. The chariot for Jagannath is about 14 m high and 35 feet square and takes about 2 months to construct. Th chariot is mounted with 16 wheels, each of 2.1 m diameter. The carvings in the front of the chariot has four wooden horses drawn by Maruti. On its other three faces the wooden carvings are Rama, Surya and Vishnu. The chariot is known as Nandi Ghosha. The roof of the chariot is covered with yellow and golden coloured cloth. The next chariot is that of Balabhadra which is 13 m in height fitted with 14 wheels. The chariot is carved with Satyaki as the charioteer. The carvings on this chariot also include images of Narasimha and Rudra as Jagannath's companions. The next chariot in the order is that of Subhadra, which is 13 m in height supported on 12 wheels, roof covered in black and red colour cloth and the chariot is known as Darpa-Dalaan. The charioteer carved is Arjuna. Other images carved on the chariot are that of Vana Durga, Tara Devi and Chandi Devi. The artists and painters of Puri decorate the cars and paint flower petals and other designs on the wheels, the wood-carved charioteer and horses, and the inverted lotuses on the wall behind the throne. The huge chariots of Jagannath pulled during Rath Yatra is the etymological origin of the English word Juggernaut. The Ratha-Yatra is also termed as the Shri Gundicha yatra and Ghosha yatra
CHHERA PAHARA
The Chhera Pahara is a significant ritual associated with the Ratha-Yatra. During the festival, the Gajapati King wears the outfit of a sweeper and sweeps all around the deities and chariots in the Chera Pahara (sweeping with water) ritual. The Gajapati King cleanses the road before the chariots with a gold-handled broom and sprinkles sandalwood water and powder with utmost devotion. As per the custom, although the Gajapati King has been considered the most exalted person in the Kalingan kingdom, he still renders the menial service to Jagannath. This ritual signified that under the lordship of Jagannath, there is no distinction between the powerful sovereign Gajapati King and the most humble devotee.
CHADAN YATRA
In Akshaya Tritiya every year the Chandan Yatra festival marks the commencement of the construction of the Chariots of the Rath Yatra. It also marks the celebration of the Hindu new year.
SNANA YATRA
On the Purnima day in the month of Jyestha (June) the triad images of the Jagannath temple are ceremonially bathed and decorated every year on the occasion of Snana Yatra. Water for the bath is taken in 108 pots from the Suna kuan (meaning: "golden well") located near the northern gate of the temple. Water is drawn from this well only once in a year for the sole purpose of this religious bath of the deities. After the bath the triad images are dressed in the fashion of the elephant god, Ganesha. Later during the night the original triad images are taken out in a procession back to the main temple but kept at a place known as Anasara pindi. After this the Jhulana Yatra is when proxy images of the deities are taken out in a grand procession for 21 days, cruised over boats in the Narmada tank.
ANAVASARA OR ANASARA
Anasara literally means vacation. Every year, the triad images without the Sudarshan after the holy Snana Yatra are taken to a secret altar named Anavasara Ghar Palso known as "Anasara pindi} where they remain for the next dark fortnight (Krishna paksha). Hence devotees are not allowed to view them. Instead of this devotees go to nearby place Brahmagiri to see their beloved lord in the form of four handed form Alarnath a form of Vishnu. Then people get the first glimpse of lord on the day before Rath Yatra, which is called Navayouvana. It is said that the gods suffer from fever after taking ritual detailed bath and they are treated by the special servants named, Daitapatis for 15 days. Daitapatis perform special niti (rite) known as Netrotchhaba (a rite of painting the eyes of the triad). During this period cooked food is not offered to the deities.
NAVA KALEVARA
One of the most grandiloquent events associated with the Lord Jagannath, Naba Kalabera takes place when one lunar month of Ashadha is followed by another lunar month of Aashadha, called Adhika Masa (extra month). This can take place in 8, 12 or even 18 years. Literally meaning the "New Body" (Nava = New, Kalevar = Body), the festival is witnessed by as millions of people and the budget for this event exceeds $500,000. The event involves installation of new images in the temple and burial of the old ones in the temple premises at Koili Vaikuntha. The idols that were worshipped in the temple, installed in the year 1996, were replaced by specially made new images made of neem wood during Nabakalebara 2015 ceremony held during July 2015. More than 3 million devotees were expected to visit the temple during the Nabakalebara 2015 held in July.
SUNA BESHA
Suna Bhesha also known as Raja or Rajadhiraja bhesha or Raja Bhesha, is an event when the triad images of the Jagannath Temple are adorned with gold jewelry. This event is observed 5 times during a year. It is commonly observed on Magha Purnima (January), Bahuda Ekadashi also known as Asadha Ekadashi (July), Dashahara (Vijyadashami) (October), Karthik Purnima (November), and Pousa Purnima (December). While one such Suna Bhesha event is observed on Bahuda Ekadashi during the Rath Yatra on the chariots placed at the lion's gate or the Singhdwar; the other four Bheshas' are observed inside the temple on the Ratna Singhasana (gem studded altar). On this occasion gold plates are decorated over the hands and feet of Jagannath and Balabhadra; Jagannath is also adorned with a Chakra (disc) made of gold on the right hand while a silver conch adorns the left hand. However, Balabhadra is decorated with a plough made of gold on the left hand while a golden mace adorns his right hand.
NILADRI BIJE
Celebrated on Asadha Trayodashi. It marks the end of the 12 days Ratha yatra. The large wooden images of the triad of gods are moved from the chariots and then carried to the sanctum sanctorum, swaying rhythmically, a ritual which is known as pahandi.
SAHI YATRA
Considered the world's biggest open-air theatre, the Sahi yatra is an 11 day long traditional cultural theatre festival or folk drama which begins on Ram Navami and ending in Rama avishke (Sanskrit:anointing) every year. The festival includes plays depicting various scenes from the Ramayan. The residents of various localities or Sahis are entrusted the task of performing the drama at the street corners.
TRANSPORT
Earlier when roads did not exist people walked or travelled by animal drawn vehicles or carriages along beaten tracks. Up to Calcutta travel was by riverine craft along the Ganges and then by foot or carriages to Puri. It was only during the Maratha rule that the popular Jagannath Sadak (Road) was built around 1790. The East India Company laid the rail track from Calcutta to Puri which became operational in 1898. Puri is now well connected by rail, road and air services. A broad gauge railway line of the South Eastern Railways connects with Puri and Khurda is an important Railway junction. By rail it is about 499 kilometres away from Calcutta and 468 kilometres from Vishakhapatnam. Road network includes NH 203 that links the town with Bhubaneswar, the capital of Odisha which is about 60 kilometres away. NH 203 B connects the town with Satapada via Brahmagiri. Marine drive which is part of NH 203 A connects Puri with Konark. The nearest airport is at Bhubaneswar, about 60 kilometres away from Puri. Puri railway station is among the top hundred booking stations of Indian Railways.
ARTS AND CRAFTS
SAND ART
Sand art is a special art form that is created on the beaches of the sea coast of Puri. The art form is attributed to Balaram Das, a poet who lived in the 14th century. He started crafting the sand art forms of the triad deities of the Jagannath Temple at the Puri beach. Now sculptures in sand of various gods and famous people are created by amateur artists which are temporal in nature as they get washed away by waves. This is an art form which has gained international fame in recent years. One of the well known sand artist is Sudarshan Patnaik. He has established the Golden Sand Art Institute in 1995 at the beach to provide training to students interested in this art form.
APPLIQUE ART
Applique art work, which is a stitching based craft, unlike embroidery, which was pioneered by the Hatta Maharana of Pipili is widely used in Puri, both for decoration of the deities but also for sale. His family members are employed as darjis or tailors or sebaks by the Maharaja of Puri who prepare articles for decorating the deities in the temple for various festivals and religious ceremonies. These applique works are brightly coloured and patterned fabric in the form of canopies, umbrellas, drapery, carry bags, flags, coberings of dummy horses and cows, and other household textiles which are marketed in Puri. The cloth used are in dark colours of red, black, yellow, green, blue and turquoise blue.
CULTURE
Cultural activities, apart from religiuos festivals, held annually are: The Puri Beach Festival held between 5 and 9 November and the Shreeksherta Utsav held from 20 December to 2 January where cultural programmes include unique sand art, display of local and traditional handicrafts and food festival. In addition cultural programmes are held every Saturday for two hours on in second Saturday of the moth at the district Collector's Conference Hall near Sea Beach Polic Station. Apart from Odissi dance, Odiya music, folk dances, and cultural programmes are part of this event. Odishi dance is the cultural heritage of Puri. This dance form originated in Puri in the dances performed Devadasis (Maharis) attached to the Jagannath temple who performed dances in the Natamantapa of the temple to please the deities. Though the devadadsi practice has been discontinued, the dance form has become modern and classical and is widely popular, and many of the Odishi virtuoso artists and gurus (teachers) are from Puri.
EDUCATION
SOME OF THE EDUCATIONNAL INSTITUTIONS IN PURI
- Ghanashyama Hemalata Institute of Technology and Management
- Gangadhar Mohapatra Law College, established in 1981[84]
- Extension Unit of Regional Research Institute of Homoeopathy; Puri under Central Council for Research in Homoeopathy (CCRH), New Delhi established in March 2006
- Sri Jagannath Sanskrit Vishwavidyalaya, established in July 1981
- The Industrial Training Institute, a Premier Technical Institution to provide education in skilled, committed & talented technicians, established in 1966 of the Government of India
PURI PEOPLE
Gopabandhu Das
Acharya Harihar
Nilakantha Das
Kelucharan Mohapatra
Pankaj Charan Das
Manasi Pradhan
Raghunath Mohapatra
Sudarshan Patnaik
Biswanath Sahinayak
Rituraj Mohanty
WIKIPEDIA
Sidebar on GSFC production from Digital Content Producer
(Sept, 2007)
digitalcontentproducer.com/hdhdv/depth/video_horizon/inde...
Visual Science Storytelling
Wade Sisler is the executive television producer at Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland, and he has also worked at NASA HQ and the Ames Research Center in California. Trained in journalism at Baylor University and Scientific and Technical Still Photography at the Rochester Institute of Technology, he began working at NASA Ames in the mid ‘80s while finishing up his degree at RIT, and he says he never looked back. These days, Sisler is heavily involved in what he calls “Visual Science Storytelling.”
Sisler and other NASA Center employees around the nation use the discipline of television and video graphics to tell the story of projects, research, and missions created and managed by their particular center. The video, animation, and multimedia products they produce are for a variety of audiences both public and internally within the agency, and some of this content is also broadcast on NASA TV.
DCP: What brought you to NASA, and can you tell me a little about the background of video production at Goddard?
Sisler: For me, NASA was a great place because every time you turned over a rock, a mind-blowing story and often wonderful visual opportunity would crawl out. I liked that there were many new challenges and that many of the things I was to document had never been captured before. By the late ‘80s, I was dabbling in emerging multimedia, digital photography, and video, and while I hated the quality of the video image, I loved being able to go deeper into a story. Eventually, painfully, I made the shift to video and television just as the tools became affordable to small groups like the one we had at Ames. We felt lucky to be shooting on 3/4in. tape and were thrilled to eventually upgrade to Beta and then BetacamSP.
I transferred to NASA HQ in 1994 and then came to Goddard in 1997. At HQ, I worked on the IMAX films Mission to Mir and [Space Station 3D], and I also worked on projects with NASA TV.
How is Goddard different when it comes to the kinds of things you document with video?
When I came to Goddard, I found my true niche in scientific storytelling. Working here is a curious person's dream come true. The 9,000-plus scientists and engineers are literally changing the way humans see the universe and changing world we live in. NASA science provides insights into some of the most pressing problems and biggest questions of the day. Communicating the results of our missions is now woven into the DNA of our agency, and I think our team feels lucky to be working with an organization so passionate about sharing their story with the widest possible audience.
What are the main aspects of what you do?
There are really four main areas of challenge:
Visual science storytelling — translating complex stories with pictures, sound, and video
Creating or capturing absolutely compelling core content
Making that content widely available in multiple formats and multiple distribution channels
Doing all of the above very efficiently.
You've seen a lot of changes in the visual tools you use.
Sure. These days, the quality of the image is not an issue, of course. We now have end-to-end HD and shoot on Panasonic P2 and Varicam. A great deal of our work these days involves working with and directing animation and data visualization. Most of our important images are no longer shot with cameras, but are captured by satellites or are rendered in our visualizers' minds.
Interesting. And how do you share that content?
The biggest challenge we see is the fragmentation of the production/media world. We consider our customers to be a continuous spectrum of traditional print and broadcast media, web media portals, educators and students, museums, scientists, stakeholders — and, of course, the general public. The user community is fragmenting as the new media world carves up distribution channels into narrower and narrower slices. This fragmentation means that there are many more users creating many more products with our core content.
Can you describe the process of distribution?
Let's say we're producing material to illustrate the NASA mission objectives of a new kind of climate-observing satellite. Our work plan would usually call for creation of an animation illustrating the satellite at work. We would show it in action and illustrate how it works. We might also create contextual animation to help folks visualize the science behind the mission. Our producer will make sure to capture a few signature sequences that define a project.
These days, momentum has shifted to creating two- to three-minute reporter packages that can be used on places like NASA TV, web portals, and distributed via iTunes. The second part of our strategy is actively producing resource collections, which can be obtained via our fulfillment house or, increasingly, directly via online download.
Has HD and Internet streaming made inroads at Goddard?
HD has more than made inroads. Everything is HD. Even satellites are beginning to deliver HD. We've been shooting almost all HD for the past two years. It has been a little reach, but because we have such a high rate of reusing previous footage, it's been worth it. When the Solar Dynamics Observatory is launched next year, it will be sending down an HD image of the sun every second. Here comes the sun! We'll see all of the incoming space weather as never before. As far as web streaming goes, the new NASA portal will stream content and allow users to pull it down on demand. To get the uncompressed satellite footage and animations, producers will still need to go to the home centers like Goddard and JPL.
Can you tell me anything about Goddard’s work with stereo video?
We are working stereo video, but not with traditional cameras, for the most part. We do some work with the stereo pair of solar observatories. They produce essentially right-left eye images and we conducted our first press conference using the 3D images last April.
When NASA TV wants/needs programming from Goddard, is the footage sent via the WAN or via tape or hard drive, or another way?
We can send it via the WAN or directly via fiber. Goddard, like HQ and some of the other centers, is very connected to the various backbones. We conduct interviews with the networks and cable news outlet directly via the Bell Atlantic AVOC [a dedicated satellite two-way feed].
What can you tell me about the Scientific Visualization Studio at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center?
The Scientific Visualization Studio [SVS] turns raw satellite data into images. But this is much more than translating numbers to pixels. Frequently, these folks combine data from many satellites and sensors into a single comprehensive story. The mission of the SVS is to facilitate scientific inquiry and outreach within NASA programs through visualization. All the visualizations created by the SVS [currently totaling more than 2,700] are accessible to everyone through the website. More recent animations are provided as MPEG-1s and MPEG-2s. Some animations are available in high definition as well as standard NTSC format. Where possible, the original digital images used to make these animations have also been made accessible. Lastly, high- and low-resolution stills, created from the visualizations, are included, with previews for selective downloading [see svs.gsfc.nasa.gov].
Eric de Jong at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab is probably the unofficial leader on 3D within the agency. He has done quite a bit of 3D camera data viz work. Visit him at science.jpl.nasa.gov/people/deJong.
If there was one thing you’d like to share about digital multimedia content creation at Goddard, what would it be?
Our goal, and our mini slogan: One message, in many formats, through many channels, for many users!
—T.P.M
I was astounded by Bill Rankin's map of Chicago's racial and ethnic divides and wanted to see what other cities looked like mapped the same way. To match his map, Red is White, Blue is Black, Green is Asian, Orange is Hispanic, Gray is Other, and each dot is 25 people. Data from Census 2000. Base map © OpenStreetMap, CC-BY-SA
I was astounded by Bill Rankin's map of Chicago's racial and ethnic divides and wanted to see what other cities looked like mapped the same way. To match his map, Red is White, Blue is Black, Green is Asian, Orange is Hispanic, Gray is Other, and each dot is 25 people. Data from Census 2000. Base map © OpenStreetMap, CC-BY-SA