The Number that is Lady Gaga
October 2010
Presented by Patrick Gaydecki
Part of the Manchester Science Festival at the Museum of Science and Industry. Free Admission.
A multimedia presentation, including stunning video effects, multi-channel surround-sound audio and audience participation of the power of digital signal processing and the fundamental meaning of information as a description of the universe itself.
Everything that you sense
Every thought you think
Every dream you dream
Every moment in time that was and will be
Every particle in this universe
The first and last rays of light...
... are written for all eternity in digital code
This is a story about information
Digital systems are all the rage these days. Mention that a consumer product is digital and it’s sure to sell. iPods, Android mobile phones, Blu-ray players and surround sound systems, sales have never been better. Why is this? What does digital mean anyway? Is it true that digital implies high quality, better than we could get from traditional analogue techniques? The answer to the last question is yes, but why this is so may not always be obvious. Digital signal processing (DSP) involves manipulation of signals, like sound that have their origins in the analogue world.
This lecture will focus on how digital technology – and digital signal processing - is transforming the world and the very meaning of reality. It will include a wide range of fascinating and illuminating video and audio effects, and will also discuss – in a very accessible manner – how mathematics, algorithms and digital systems engineering are making possible what really was impossible only a generation ago. The show will also touch upon some fundamental scientific and philosophical constructs relating to ultimate limits of understanding, consciousness and indeed what it means to exist in a material world. The talk will finally consider the anticipated progress in technology and society, as promised by the ongoing digital information revolution, over the next five decades.
A lecture not to be missed. For more information and to book tickets go to:
www.manchestersciencefestival.com/whatson/ladygaga