Archive for the ‘Society and culture’ Category

what’s on telly? Oh, I’ll tell you what’s on telly…

Unfounded statement: Cop shows are not good for anyone.
Not even people training to become cops, I’d hazard a guess.
There – I said it. I don’t even have proof. Bite me.

I have been out-pessimism’ed…

I introduce you to David Benatar, who hails from South Africa and writes books with titles like “Better Never to Have Been: The Harm of Coming into Existence.”
Just skimming through this third-person account of his antinatalist philosophies, I found myself fighting sporadic impulses for raucous laughter, interspersed with righteous eggings on (“yeah - you tell it like [...]

neuroscene : virtual worlds and social media

I stumbled upon Neuroscene today – have a listen to this podcast: an interview with Dr Susan Greenfield about the neuroscientific implications of our increasingly digital world…

the thermodynamic arrow of morality : take #2: it’s all an illusion…

After an incredibly long discussion with The Mei over plates of Ethiopean goodness at The Sheba, which conversation was mediated by ToyZ, mainly bcos we barely let her get a word in edgeways, it was grandly concluded that human morality is largely immutable… so that any perceived increase in morality/social consciousness (such as that posited [...]

Thoughts on Enterprise Social Media : Part I

In a short series of 3 nibble-sized posts, I’m going write about some of the things I’m learning about a rapidly expanding field: Enterprise intranets – specifically the inclusion of social media platforms with the attendant folksonomies and enterprise search functionality.
First off, I should declare my stance: I am a social media luddite. I am [...]

On following…

The other day, I noticed a new link in gmail. I am of course, talking of Google ‘Buzz’* : some facebook-esque, tweeterish thing that seems to have invaded the previously stark-and-therefore tranquil space that was my gmail account.
If only that was all.
Unfortunately being somewhat of a cat my curiosity got the better of me and [...]

It’s not all high tea and crumpets

What’s going on with the UK?
Like a billion little pin-pricks, the myriad stories of the UK turning into a giant big-brother, police state are circulating, just under the surface of the regular media. I hadn’t been paying it no mind; I don’t necessarily remember the UK being that way, and it’s always a bit jarring [...]

Running scared of ‘Precious’?

I don’t know why I’m writing this now, having seen this movie yonks ago… but I was recently thinking about it so I might as well post my thoughts.
The trailer for Precious hides little, and I find that more than a few people have been put off seeing it at all, possibly because of:
1) fear [...]

Poor directional hearing : a maladaptation that works?

I recently learned that, under certain circumstances, poor directional hearing can be a bit of a blessing. It works kind of like “ignorance is bliss”. Case in point:
There is a lunatic in my building. Statistically there always had to be one, so that is not the point of this story. The point is that the [...]

utility socialising : the future of social media?

Technology extends the reach of the average human being. Sometimes almost literally (eg the way a car kinda ‘makes your legs longer’  since it allows you to cover more ground).
In the same way, social media extends our reach in terms of our ability to connect with more people. What I hadn’t banked on, or expected, [...]

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