Susan von Seggern

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In Time for Marvel’s Multiverse, Epic Games’s Metaverse, and The Matrix Resurrections, MIT and Game Industry Alum to Release The Simulated Multiverse October 15

10/11/2021 by Susan von Seggern

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In a follow up to The Simulation Hypothesis, MIT Computer Scientist Rizwan Virk explores the idea of the Multiverse from the lens of Simulation Theory, Video Games, and the Mandela Effect

San Francisco, CA – September 20, 2021 – MIT computer scientist and Silicon Valley video game designer Rizwan Virk announced the much anticipated follow up to his bestselling book, The Simulation Hypothesis, will be published October 15. The book comes as interest in multiverses and metaverses are at an all-time high with the release of The Matrix Resurrections in December, Marvel’s ongoing Multiverse storyline, and the exciting developments of Epic Games’ Metaverse.

The Simulated Multiverse explores deeper questions about the nature of space and time in all possible universes. Virk explores the idea that parallel universes are a result of different runs of the simulation, with variables changed, an idea first proffered by Philip K. Dick, and a rational explanation for the mysterious Mandela Effect. By tying science fiction ideas and Virk’s extensive knowledge of computer science, quantum physics and video games, this book expands our idea of our world.

“When the Matrix came out in 1999, it was in the realm of science fiction,” said Virk. “With today’s advancements in Virtual Reality, Augmented Reality and the Metaverse, a simulated universe is not far away.

“With The Matrix 4 and Free Guy, this is the year of simulation movies; but multiverses are extremely popular too, appearing in everything from TV shows like Marvel’s Loki and What If… to The CWs The Flash and Superman & Lois. In this book, I explore how a multiverse might work.”

This book addresses the idea that there are multiple versions of us in different timelines, like multiple processes running inside a giant computer and explains everything from parallel universes in quantum physics to the Mandela Effect.

Virk is the founder of Play Labs @ MIT, a video game startup incubator at the MIT Game Lab, and co-founder, advisor and investor in many video game startups.

The Simulated Multiverse is for computer scientists, science fiction and comics fans, video game enthusiasts, and those looking to understand the nature of reality.

The author is also announcing that translation rights for his previous book, The Simulation Hypothesis, have been acquired will be published into a number of languages/countries, including Chinese (via China Machine Press) Portuguese (via Citadel), French (Editions Extraordinaires), and Japanese (via Tokuma Shoten).

The new book is available for pre-order in Paperback or eBook format now and will be released on October 15, 2021. Pre-ordering can be done at https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08XFR749T/ or by visiting the authors website at http://www.zenentrepreneur.com/.

About the Author:
A graduate of MIT and Stanford, Rizwan (“Riz”) Virk is a successful entrepreneur, angel investor, bestselling author, video game industry pioneer, and independent film producer. Virk was the founder Play Labs @ MIT (www.playlabs.tv) a startup accelerator for playful technologies held on campus at the MIT Game Lab, and is currently at the School for the Future of Innovation in Society at Arizona State University’s College of Global Futures.

His previously published books include: Zen Entrepreneurship (Bayview, 2013), Treasure Hunt: Follow Your Inner Clues to Find True Success (Watkins, 2017), The Simulation Hypothesis (Bayview, 2019), and Startup Myths and Models: What You Won’t Learn in Business School (2020, Columbia University Press).

Virk’s video games have included Tap Fish, which was downloaded over 50 million times, and games based on TV shows like Penny Dreadful and Grimm. Virk has been an investor and founder in many startups, including Telltale Games (creator of narrative games based on The Walking Dead and Game of Thrones), Tapjoy and Discord. He has been a producer on Thrive: What on Earth Will It Take?, Knights of Badassdom, starring Peter Dinklage, the TV show The Outpost, and adaptations of the works of Philip K. Dick and Ursula K. Le Guin.

Visit his author and professional websites at www.zenentrepreneur.com and www.bayviewlabs.com.

Praise for the Simulated Multiverse and the Simulation Hypothesis:
“How am I unreal? Riz Virk counts the ways. So many ways we might all live in one (or more) simulated worlds. Palpable ‘reality’ may be as delusional as our old notion that the heavens revolved around Earth. And just like Galileo did then, Virk may help open our eyes to a greater (if humbling) cosmology.”
—David Brin, author of EXISTENCE, The Postman and EARTH.

We are used to thinking of the afterlife as a sort of simulation with less reality than our world of solid objects … However, a few cutting-edge thinkers have posited that this world in which we live is a simulation. In his second book on the subject of simulation, Rizwan Virk walks us through the concept of a computer-generated reality that Philip K. Dick posited in the speech that he delivered in Metz, France, in 1977. This volume is well-researched and eminently readable for any interested reader. The topic is fascinating, and the writing is clear. Perhaps The Matrix is more than a science fiction film; perhaps it reveals some truth about our world and our lives in this world. Read this book, if you dare.
—Tessa B. Dick, author of Conversations with Philip K. Dick, wife of Philip K. Dick

Refining his impressions of the progress of AI since his research at MIT… Virk has expanded his thesis in the wider scope of the multiverse, building on the framework of pioneers such as Nick Bostrom and Kurzweil. The result is a new challenge not only to theories of simulation, but to what constitutes reality itself, and human illusions of our rightful place within it.
—Jacques Vallée, venture capitalist, author of Forbidden Science

Virk … makes a cogent, clear-eyed guide to the head-spinning science of parallel universes, quantum indeterminacy, and the possibility—terrifying or relieving—that our perceived reality is in fact part of a great simulation.
—Publishers Weekly

I’m grateful to be living in a branch of the multiverse where if I’m asked to go into more detail about the relationship between Total Recall and quantum physics, I can simply point someone in the direction of this comprehensive and entertaining book. To quote a certain 1999 blockbuster: Woah.
—Rodney Ascher, director of A Glitch in the Matrix

“In The Simulated Multiverse, Riz Virk takes simulation theory and The Matrix to a new level. Using computational tools – complexity, artificial intelligence, video games and quantum computing – Virk explains an interpretation of our world that sounds like science fiction: that we are living multiple parallel timelines. If you want to get glimpses not only of our possible digital futures, but also of multiple parallel pasts and presents, read this book!”
—Brad Feld, venture capitalist and author of The Startup Community Way

“MIT scientist’s ‘Simulation Hypothesis’ makes compelling case for The Matrix.”
—The Next Web

“Those looking to expand their brains for a few hours should enjoy this cerebral work. A well-crafted discussion of simulation that is unexpectedly persuasive.”
—Kirkus Reviews

“In The Simulation Hypothesis, Riz Virk provides a deft and knowledgeable blend of video game history, hard science speculation, and science fiction references. Whether or not you believe we all exist in a simulation, I found it both fascinating and entertaining.”
—Noah Falstein, former chair of the IGDA, former Chief Game Designer at Google

The Simulated Multiverse
An MIT Computer Scientist Explores Parallel Universes, The Simulation Hypothesis, Quantum Computing and The Mandela Effect

by Rizwan Virk
Bayview Books | October 15, 2021. Available as e-book and Paperback ISBN: 978-1954872004

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Filed Under: Books, Events, Tech

Counterculture Poet Melinda Kweskin’s Introspections in Flight is Out Now, Six Years After Her Death, on Noted Poetry Imprint Zeitgeist Press

03/11/2021 by Susan von Seggern

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Los Angeles, CA – March 5, 2021 – In the months before noted former Jungle and Breaks DJ and electronic music activist Kat Goldfarb’s mom Melinda Kweskin passed in 2015 Kat compiled her life’s poetry work into a manuscript. After several years of compiling the poems along with photos and tributes, that book arrives in stores today. Kweskin was a poet starting in the late 60s until her death, while some of her work was published while she was alive, much of it wasn’t, until now, in the resulting book Introspections in Flight.

Kat was able to arrange for the book to be published by noted San Francisco Bay Area based utopian literary publisher Zeitgeist Press and it’s due for release today, March 5.

Zeitgeist is part of monthly poetry readings the first Saturday of each month (now online on Zoom) hosted by the non-profit Poetry Promise, Inc. and sponsored by the National Endowment for the Humanities. Zeitgeist publisher and the first Poet Laureate of Clark County, Nevada Bruce Isaacson will read a selection and host other featured readers including bestselling author Dick Russell, and Melinda Kweskin’s family, giving life to her poems from Introspections in Flight in their first ever public reading tomorrow, March 6. To join the reading, please go here at 2pm PST on Saturday March 6.

Melinda Kweskin was known in artistic circles as noted folk singer Jim Kweskin’s wife. The Jim Kweskin Jug Band released eight albums on Vanguard in the 1960’s and launched the career of noted singer Maria Muldaur. He and Melinda had a daughter in the early 70s, and he has continued to record since.
Melinda started writing poetry in earnest in 1967 when some of her poems were featured in a Boston underground newspaper, Avatar. She began to take her writing very seriously and would type her poems on a classic typewriter. She continued both poetry and prose wiring as a contributor to Avatar, including a series featuring her correspondence with soldiers in Vietnam.

As she got older, she also began writing letters and kept up correspondence with a tremendous amount of people, and kept writing poetry, archived in both print and digitally.

She had a career as an accountant for many large companies around the country up until she had to have emergency quintuple bypass surgery in her early 50s that began a time of health challenges that continued for the rest of her life. She soon moved to Los Angeles with her daughters, and Kat’s twin sister Deirdre became her main caretaker. Her condition declined over the years and in the last years of her life, she was mostly home bound.

During this time, she was constantly writing, and she was able to bring her visions into her work, enabling a unique understanding of the emotional, spiritual, and intellectual realm of those around her. Her selected poetry works in Introspections in Flight seeks to share this understanding with the larger world.
The poems in the book are interspersed with remembrances from some of Melinda’s many friends as well as from her daughters. One friend, Jessie Benton (daughter of noted American painter Thomas Hart Benton) who didn’t contribute but loved the book noted, “I think it is the loveliest tribute to a mother that has ever existed, if perhaps the first.” (referring to some mother tributes that are more about the children working through their feelings rather than a celebration).

Introspections in Flight is available at Zeitgeist Press at https://www.zeitgeist-press.com/index.php/product/introspections-in-flight/, Amazon, and other online booksellers today, March 5. To join the public (Zoom) reading please go here at 2pm PST on Saturday March 6.

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Filed Under: Books, Events

Amazon Best-Selling Author, Tax Attorney and CFP® Rebecca Walser Presents Tax Reform & ‘Tax Traps’ Talks in California in February

02/05/2018 by Susan von Seggern

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Los Angeles, CA – With the new tax reform bill, millions of boomers getting ready to retire, and a tremendous retirement savings gap, Rebecca Walser’s book Wealth Unbroken: Growing Wealth Uninterrupted by Market Crashes, Taxes, and even Death (Atlantic), out in paperback earlier this month, is extremely timely.

The Kindle version of the book came out a few weeks ago and was #1 in the Kindle eBooks/Nonfiction category! It was also #1 in Personal Finance/Budgeting & Money Management, Personal Finance/Retirement Planning, Taxation/Personal, Business & Money/Business Life/Motivation & Self-Improvement, and Business & Money/Women & Business (see graphics below).

Walser will be hosting three talks in California in February where she will discuss the recent tax reform, the loss of some deductions for Californians, what the “IRA Tax Trap” is and how to leverage tax law changes for one’s benefit.

The talk will include info on: the ugly side of paying taxes in retirement; why large tax increases are coming even with the recent tax reform bill; and how to take back control of your wealth.

The California events are as follows:

 

City Date/Time Location
San Francisco February 19, 6:30pm Fairmont San Francisco Hotel
Los Angeles February 21, 6:30pm Beverly Wilshire Hotel (Beverly Hills)
San Diego February 23, 6:30pm US Grant Hotel

 

The events are free to those who RSVP at 866-929-3258 or at http://taxtour2018.com/.

Rebecca Walser truly brings a wealth of understanding to the personal finance book space. Leveraging her background as a tax attorney, a Certified Financial Planner® and an experienced wealth strategist, Rebecca Walser is uniquely qualified to assess, structure and implement the best income maximization, wealth maximization, tax mitigation/minimization and optimal legacy strategies for her clients. Now, she has expanded the reach of her unique message through the release of her first book, Wealth Unbroken: Growing Wealth Uninterrupted by Market Crashes, Taxes, and even Death.

Rebecca earned her bachelor’s degree, summa cum laude, in finance, and her Juris Doctor degree, cum laude, from the University of Florida, and her advanced law degree in taxation from New York University. Prior to law, she worked in finance for years with PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP and the global networking division of IBM, acquired by AT&T.

She continues to practice law in the areas of federal taxation, wealth preservation, trusts and legacy planning, business succession and estate planning, and asset management and protection, while also serving her clients financial needs as a Certified Financial Planner®.

Rebecca spearheads a national practice with clients across the country and enjoys working with high income professionals, business owners, retirees and pre-retirees, and high net worth families, to implement advanced financial planning and wealth management strategies that maximize income and legacy distribution while minimizing taxes and managing risk. With over twenty years of financial and legal experience combined, Rebecca capitalizes on her distinctive skillset and years of knowledge to the best advantage of her clients.

Rebecca can be heard coast-to-coast on iHeart radio and seen on the nationally syndicated “Daytime” morning television show weekly, and she has also been featured in numerous media outlets nationwide including the Wall Street Journal, CNBC, US News & World Report, Fox Business, Bloomberg Business, New York Post, New York Daily News, Yahoo Finance, ABC News, NBC News, CBS News, FOX News, CW, Miami Herald, Boston Globe, LA Daily News, International Business Times, Investing Daily, and the Street Insider.

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Filed Under: Books, Events

Noted Poet Brian Michael Tracy Returns to the South Bay for Release Party of his ‘Rock Poetry’ Album The Mystical Prism of Being at Live at the Lounge April 10

04/04/2016 by Susan von Seggern

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The Mystical Prism of Being Art Square

Noted Southern California poet Brian Michael Tracy will perform his ‘rock poetry’ album, The Mystical Prism of Being, at Hermosa Beach’s popular Live at the Lounge April 10 at 7:00pm. Tracy will be joined by noted musicians Bruce Springsteen collaborator Marty Rifkin, Andy Hill (Title Trackers, Hard Rain), and Renee Safier (Andy & Renee, Hard Rain), Dave Batti (John Stewart), and up and comer Edoardo Tancredi. Tickets for the event are $20 and are available here.

… Read More

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Filed Under: Books, Events

14th Annual DIY Convention ‘For Mature Audiences Only’ Takes Place March 6 and 7

02/24/2015 by Susan von Seggern

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diyconvention-logoThe 2015 DIY Convention: Do It Yourself in Film, Music & Books, produced by JM Northern Media, has themed the conference “For Mature Audiences Only.” No, they aren’t advising on how to create X rated content, but aiming the forum towards a more seasoned group of musicians, authors, and filmmakers who are transitioning away from corporate supported cultural creation models to a more DIY future. Honoring the best of independent content, the 2015 DIY Convention: Do It Yourself in Film, Music & Books, is pleased to announce the schedule for its 14th annual event.

“After 13 conferences we noticed that mature artists need somewhat different info than newer creators who have grown up in a more DIY era,” said conference managing director Bruce Haring. We are excited to focus on the challenges faced by over-30 content creators in the market.”… Read More

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Filed Under: Books, Education, Events, Film, Marketing, Music

Patriot, the first Brooke Kinley Adventure debuts at #13 on Amazon with rave reviews

05/20/2014 by Susan von Seggern

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patriot cover“UNSTOPPABLE thriller…I don’t believe I took a breath the entire time. As a thriller/political espionage aficionado, I rank PATRIOT in the pantheon of the BEST”                                                         – Mallory Anne-Marie Forbes, Mallory Heart Reviews

What would you do for your country? In Afghanistan, a US Army Patrol is devastated by an enemy with sophisticated weaponry, while in D.C., Pentagon staffer Scott Jenson tips off the ambitious young reporter Brooke Kinley about a billionaire businessman’s involvement in terrorism. But why is the White House determined to protect this businessman, and why does the answer seem to lie in the Canadian wilderness? In a dangerous journey to the remotest parts of the world and the darkest corners of men’s hearts, Brooke races to prevent a catastrophic attack on America, but can she uncover the real traitor?

Debuting at #13 on Amazon.co.uk for International Mystery & Crime, new bestseller Patriot is a pulse pounding, high octane adventure thriller with a heroine who is as happy running rapids as she is asking difficult questions at the Pentagon, its Homeland channeled through Bear Grylls. This debut novel by A.S. Bond will be appreciated by fans of Clive Cussler, Robert Ludlum and Tom Clancy.… Read More

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Filed Under: Books

Alt Comics Teen Heroine Emily the Strange Releases First Single for Halloween, Creator Cosmic Debris Celebrate 20 Years of their Outsider 13 Year Old in 2013

10/29/2013 by Susan von Seggern

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The alternative comics scene’s iconic teenage outsider heroine Emily the Strange has formed a band, Emily and the Strangers, who will be releasing their first single and video downloads “Calling All Guitars” in time for Halloween, on October 29, 2013. The song and animation will be downloadable through iTunes, with a limited edition 7” 45rpm single with etched vinyl available at the Emily the Strange online store. The animated clip will also be viewable on Emily the Strange’s YouTube channel. The song and video were enabled by a very successful Kickstarter campaign that raised almost $65,000 from over 700 Emily the Strange fans.

Emily the Strange creator and Cosmic Debris founder Rob Reger notes, “It has been a lifelong dream and vision to make Emily and the Strangers into a real band and to share her empowering message of ‘Be Yourself, Think for Yourself, Do it Yourself’ through animation, music, and a voice that rocks!” Adding, “We couldn’t think of a better way to celebrate 20 years of our favorite 13 year old in 2013 than with her first music release.”… Read More

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Filed Under: Art, Books, Childrens, Fashion, Music

Safe Water Nonprofit Wells Bring Hope’s Gil Garcetti Shows UNESCO “Water is Key” Photo Exhibition in Paris, Geneva and Vienna

06/08/2012 by Susan von Seggern

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African girl carries water back to her village. A photo by Gil Garcetti in the Water is Key exhibition.

African girl carries water back to her village. A photo by Gil Garcetti in the Water is Key exhibition.

Wells Bring Hope a Los Angeles based nonprofit dedicated to saving lives with safe water in West Africa is proud to announce that their Vice President and inspiration for the founding of the organization, former Los Angeles County District Attorney and noted photographer Gil Garcetti will have his acclaimed photo exhibition “Water of Key” mounted in Paris, France; Geneva, Switzerland and Vienna, Austria in the coming months.

The exhibition features photographs by Gil Garcetti that reveal the dire need for safe water in West Africa and the hopes and successes experienced when people get safe water. His photos capture the stories of women and girls who are faced with the daily task of walking many miles to get water for their families.  This exhibit first debuted in 2007 at the Fowler Museum at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).

Known for his long career as a prosecutor and a Los Angeles District Attorney, Gil Garcetti has spent more than 40 years as an urban photographer. In 2001, he travelled to West Africa for the first of what would be a number of visits, drawn to the land and the people.  It made him deeply committed to raising awareness of the need for safe water in the region. This exhibition showcases a selection of images from his book Water is Key.

The exhibition will run in Paris from June 4-11 at UNESCO, 4 avenue de saxe 75007 Paris; in Geneva from June 18 – July 3 at the United Nations Office at Geneva (UN) B. 32, Building B, Palais des Nations, 8-14 Avenue de la Paix, 1211 Geneva 10; and in Vienna from July 6 – July 20 at the Vienna International Center’s Rotunda Exhibition Space •  United States Mission to International Organizations in Vienna, Wagramerstraße 17-19, 1220 Vienna.… Read More

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Filed Under: Art, Books, Charity

Religious Studies Professor Darryl Caterine Journeys Through a Paranormal America with Haunted Ground, Out October 11 through Praeger Publishers

09/14/2011 by Susan von Seggern

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Millions watch popular television shows like “The X-Files,” “Medium,” and “The Mentalist” and hit movies such as Close Encounters of the Third Kind, The Sixth Sense, and Phenomenon. Why do Americans continue to have such a keen interest in the paranormal?

Haunted Ground is out in time for Halloween!

Religious studies professor Darryl Caterine has written Haunted Ground: Journeys through a Paranormal America to answer these questions. Visiting Lily Dale, New York – a thriving Spiritualist community established well over a century ago; Roswell, New Mexico – home of the Roswell UFO Festival that attracts nearly 30,000 attendees annually; and Killington, Vermont for the American Society of Dowsers conference; Caterine leads a fascinating and insightful tour through present-day meetings of Spiritualists, ufologists, and dowsers that illuminates our obsession with the paranormal and challenges the misunderstanding of the paranormal as a marginal or inconsequential feature of America’s religious landscape.… Read More

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Filed Under: Books Tagged With: Ahistoricism, Alien Abduction, Apocalypticism, Channeling, Dowsing, Earth Mysteries, Extraterrestrial Hypothesis, Liminality, Mediumship, Mesmerism, Nature Religion, New Age, Parapsychology, Pastoralism, Playing Indian, Roswell Incident, Science Fiction, Travel Literature, UFO Disclosure, Wonder

LA Press Club and KPFK Present a Reading by Maria Armoudian of her Upcoming Book Kill the Messenger: The Media’s Role in the Fate of the World

07/26/2011 by Susan von Seggern

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“Rich in contemporary world history, Kill the Messenger is exactly the book the world needs to read in our perilous times.”
— Robert W. McChesney, coauthor of The Life and Death of American Journalism

July 25, 2011 – Los Angeles, CA – The Los Angeles Press Club and Los Angeles’ Pacifica radio station KPFK 90.7 FM present the official launch of public official, political scientist, radio host, and journalist Maria Armoudian’s upcoming book Kill the Messenger: The Media’s Role in the Fate of the World. The event occurs at 7:30pm August 11, 2011 at the Los Angeles Press Club, in the Steve Allen Theater at 4773 Hollywood Blvd, Los Angeles 90027, and features a discussion by the author followed by a Q&A.

With the book set for release on August 23, by noted independent publisher Prometheus Books, Kill the Messenger is a timely tome, particularly in light of recent revelations about the Rupert Murdoch News Corp empire.… Read More

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