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What is humanity's greatest achievement?

What is humanity's greatest achievement?

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@pianoman1 said
Very surprised by your comments, and I urge you to give the B minor Mass, as well as the great Passions - St Matthew and St John another listen. Bach’s music is interesting because he is the perfect culmination of the Baroque era, everything leads up to him and nothing from him.

Beethoven, on the other hand, the colossus bestriding the Classical and Romantic eras, is th ...[text shortened]... but hard to interpret.

Please PM me for further discussions of classical music if you would like.
I've not tried to play any Bach. Not really a fan of Baroque, every time I hear it, I hear harpsichords. 🙂 My keyboard heart is in jazz, I play classical for sight-reading and to challenge me to improve. As a result, Mozart is my pick for improving technique. Thank goodness recordings are so widely available on the internet these days. I've memorized a few Beethoven pieces, he's really my 'go-to' for classical. I've dabbled in some Tchaikovsky and Rachmaninoff, and I can listen to piano concertos for hours.

I hear your passion about Bach. I will heed your recommends, I can listen at work. Thanks for the insight.

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@ghost-of-a-duke said
Napoleon was 5 "2".
😮
I’m looking forward to the film in November.

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@Pianoman1

My favorite Bach piece is the violin concerto No.2 in E, BWV 1042. I have some favorite piano pieces, among them Beethoven's piano concerto no. 5, and a favorite recording of it: Barenboim/Rubinstein. I can't get anything going with Chopin though; probably because I have no technical understanding of music.


My father introduced me to classic music as a child. We had an audiophile stereo system at home when most people didn't know what that was. He had perfect pitch and sang in the Alaska Symphony Orchestra choir for many years; he had the ability to sing German with perfect intonation, although he did not speak German. I believe his particular favorite composer was Berlioz, which the AK Symphony Orchestra recorded.


I think I would place classical music in general pretty high on humanity's great achievements list. Little wonder a classical music recording was shot into space on Voyager!


@moonbus said
@Pianoman1

My favorite Bach piece is the violin concerto No.2 in E, BWV 1042. I have some favorite piano pieces, among them Beethoven's piano concerto no. 5, and a favorite recording of it: Barenboim/Rubinstein. I can't get anything going with Chopin though; probably because I have no technical understanding of music.


My father introduced me to classic music as a chil ...[text shortened]... s great achievements list. Little wonder a classical music recording was shot into space on Voyager!
The no. 5 is a great piece, I concur.

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1) Writing
2) Calculus
3) Toilet paper.

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@soothfast said
1) Writing
2) Calculus
3) Toilet paper.
Calculus? Really? Not Fibonacci numbers ??


@suzianne said
The no. 5 is a great piece, I concur.
This is a favorite of mine

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Communication in all its different forms.

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1) camera obscura
2) clones, cloning, clonathon
3) communications in general, human communication is essential, but alien camaraderie thru huge constructions by humans to welcome visitors not quite like us continues to be a rosetta stone in our face and still ignored by most humans
3A) the great wall of china, hadrian's wall to a lesser extent (good intention-feeble execution)
3B) pyramids (worldwide, in all their permutations)
3C) nazca lines

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@ponderable said
This is a hard one, since it has so many aspects as several posters pointed out before.

* abstract thought

* taming fire

* mastering high sea sailing with just sun and stars
After having read the following article, I’m inclined to agree that controlling fire was crucial:

https://edition.cnn.com/2023/09/05/world/ancient-human-population-collapse-scn/index.html


@torunn said
This is a favorite of mine

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TFIs0gwWCKo
That was sublime. Thank you Torunn.


@moonbus said
Calculus? Really? Not Fibonacci numbers ??
I'm fairly confident the moon landings would still have been possible were Fibonacci numbers not known, but calculus was essential. Or so my reasoning goes...


@soothfast said
I'm fairly confident the moon landings would still have been possible were Fibonacci numbers not known, but calculus was essential. Or so my reasoning goes...
The problem with math tools is: I think that discovering the fact, that the decimal system makes calculations easy and calculations with big numbers feasible was a mor step, but in itself it looks rather small...
To actually go beyond counting is something remarkable.

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@ponderable said
The problem with math tools is: I think that discovering the fact, that the decimal system makes calculations easy and calculations with big numbers feasible was a mor step, but in itself it looks rather small...
To actually go beyond counting is something remarkable.
Yes, to go beyond counting objects to recognizing the laws of mathematics is a quantum leap. Calculus is an example of that. Calculating with variables (e.g., algebra) is already a huge conceptual leap beyond mere counting.



Summer, Buddy Holly, the working folly
Good golly, Miss Molly and boats
Hammersmith Palais, the Bolshoi Ballet
Jump back in the alley and nanny goats
Eighteen wheeler Scammells, Dominica camels
All other mammals plus equal votes
Seeing Piccadilly, Fanny Smith and Willie
Being rather silly and porridge oats
A bit of grin and bear it, a bit of come and share it
You're welcome we can spare it, yellow socks
Too short to be haughty, too nutty to be naughty
Going on forty no electric shocks
The juice of a carrot, the smile of a parrot
A little drop of claret, anything that rocks
Elvis and Scotty, the days when I ain't spotty
Sitting on a potty, curing smallpox
Reasons to be cheerful, one, two, three
Health service glasses, gigolos and brasses
Round or skinny bottoms
Take your mum to Paris, lighting up a chalice
Wee Willie Harris
Bantu Steven Biko, listening to Rico
Harpo Groucho Chico
Cheddar cheese and pickle, a Vincent motorsickle
Slap and tickle
Woody Allen, Dali, Domitrie and Pascale
Balla, balla, balla and Volare
Something nice to study, phoning up a buddy
Being in my nuddy
Saying okey-dokey, sing-a-long a Smokie
Coming out of chokie
John Coltrane's soprano, Adie Celentano
Beuno Colino
Reasons to be cheerful, one, two, three
Yes, yes, dear, dear
Perhaps next year
Or maybe even now
In which case
Woody Allan, Dali, Domitrie and Pascale
Balla, balla, balla and Volare
Something nice to study, phoning up a buddy
Being in my nuddy
Saying okey-dokey, sing-a-long a Smokie
Coming out a chokie
John Coltrane's soprano, Adie Celentano
Beuno Colino

These are all reasons to be cheerful.

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