Tierra (computer simulation)

Tierra is a computer simulation developed by ecologist Thomas S. Ray in the early 1990s in which computer programs compete for time (central processing unit (CPU) time) and space (access to main memory). In this context, the computer programs in Tierra are considered to be evolvable and can mutate, self-replicate and recombine. Tierra's virtual machine is written in C. It operates on a custom instruction set designed to facilitate code changes and reordering, including features such as jump to template (as opposed to the relative or absolute jumps common to most instruction sets).

Simulations

The basic Tierra model has been used to experimentally explore in silico the basic processes of evolutionary and ecological dynamics. Processes such as the dynamics of punctuated equilibrium, host-parasite co-evolution and density-dependent natural selection are amenable to investigation within the Tierra framework. A notable difference between Tierra and more conventional models of evolutionary computation, such as genetic algorithms, is that there is no explicit, or exogenous fitness function built into the model. Often in such models there is the notion of a function being "optimized"; in the case of Tierra, the fitness function is endogenous: there is simply survival and death.

Tierra (newspaper)

Tierra ('Land') was a weekly newspaper published from Almería, Spain. It was close to the Social-Revolutionary Party of J. A. Balbontín. It had a short existence, and was published during 1932.

References

Tierra (L'Arc-en-Ciel album)

Tierra is the second album by L'Arc-en-Ciel, released on July 14, 1994.

Track listing

All lyrics written by hyde. 

Personnel

Perception

Perception (from the Latin perceptio, percipio) is the organization, identification, and interpretation of sensory information in order to represent and understand the environment. All perception involves signals in the nervous system, which in turn result from physical or chemical stimulation of the sense organs. For example, vision involves light striking the retina of the eye, smell is mediated by odor molecules, and hearing involves pressure waves. Perception is not the passive receipt of these signals, but is shaped by learning, memory, expectation, and attention.

Perception can be split into two processes Firstly processing sensory input which transforms these low-level information to higher-level information (e.g., extracts shapes for object recognition). Secondly processing which is connected with person's concept and expectations (knowledge), and selective mechanisms (attention) that influence perception.

Perception depends on complex functions of the nervous system, but subjectively seems mostly effortless because this processing happens outside conscious awareness.

Early Edu-Ware products

Most of the programs in Edu-Ware Service's initial product line, released in 1979 under the slogan "Unique software for the unique mind", were not typical of the intellectually challenging computer games and structured, pedagogically sound educational software for which the company would later become known. Quickly designed and programmed in Applesoft BASIC primarily by co-founder Sherwin Steffin, most of these text-based programs were dropped from Edu-Ware's catalog when the company began developing products featuring high-resolution graphics in 1981.

E.S.P.

E.S.P. is a game giving players the opportunity to find out whether they possess extrasensory perception. While displaying a constantly changing graphic design on the screen, the program briefly flashes emotionally charged words, randomly chosen from a word list, on the screen. The program then asks a series of questions to determine if the player's attitudes have been influenced by the subliminal messages. A file-builder is included to allow players to insert new words in the data base.

Perception (The Doors album)

Perception is a 40th-anniversary edition 12-disc box set by The Doors. The CDs contain the 1999 remastered editions of all the Jim Morrison albums, while the DVD-Audio discs contain new (2007) "40th Anniversary" stereo and surround remixes of those albums as well as visual extras. Each album includes extra tracks consisting of previously unreleased session outtakes. Exclusive to the box set is a DVD with several live performances and other extras.

Track listing

All songs written by Jim Morrison, Robby Krieger, Ray Manzarek, and John Densmore, except where noted.

Discs One & Two: The Doors

Characters of the Final Fantasy IV series

Final Fantasy IV, a role-playing video game released by Square in 1991, revolves Cecil Harvey, a knight of Baron who embarks on a quest to defeat Golbez, a man that is controlling the king of Baron. During Cecil's quest, he is joined by his childhood friends Kain Highwind and Rosa Farrell, as well as other warriors from around the world who also seek to stop Golbez. The visuals of the characters were designed by Yoshitaka Amano. After its initial release, Final Fantasy IV was later ported to multiple consoles. In 2007, Square Enix released an enhanced remake for the Nintendo DS that added voice acting to both the Japanese and English versions.

The game's 2008 sequel, Final Fantasy IV: The After Years is set seventeen years after Final Fantasy IV and includes most of the characters from the original game as well as introducing several new characters. The story of The After Years primarily revolves around Ceodore Harvey, the son of Cecil and Rosa. In 2011, a third game in the series was released. Set one year after Final Fantasy IV and sixteen years prior to The After Years, Final Fantasy IV Interlude, was released for the PlayStation Portable, and featured several of the original Final Fantasy IV protagonists.