Month: January 2005

How to give people MP3 on your blog. [via Udell’s InfoWorld]

… and feed them to the Lesbians, went the line in “Jerry Springer – The Opera” screened on BBC2 last night. The tap dancing Ku Klux Klan probably took the biscuit in surreality though, that or the particular chorus line comprising entirely the c-word.

Obviously the humour is at the live alternative comedian level of right to offend, but the satire is clear and witty, and the performance and production quality excellent, so you’d have to be pretty repressed not to laugh and enjoy the experience. The satire is obviously aimed at the confessional TV culture represented by Jerry Springer, but it’s actually a pretty traditional Faustian morality play in there, and in places layed on a bit too thick, just in case the “tourists” don’t spot the moral of the story.

Those protesting strongly against it on grounds of offence and blasphemy have clearly only read the reports in the popular press concerning the f-word and c-word count and the fact that God, Jesus, Mary and Satan are all characters in the plot, but they are hardly the target’s of the satire. In fact a UK council of churches representative spoke before the transmission, to make this very point to his flock. This is real Divine Comedy. No absolute good and evil, just a daily fine line to be defended.

Carly Fiorina, CTO of HP says “The digital revolution is focused on letting people tell and share their own stories” [At Las Vegas CES, via BBC]

Obvious, but the telling point is the word “stories” – it’s not about data and information, even multi-media, it’s about stories. Part of the grand narrative view.

Some discussion on the MoQ Discussion Board about the wonder of maths underlying basic (quantum) physics and hence life, the universe and evrything else.

Picked up this link to Ray Girvan (Apothecary’s Drawer), on the wonder of maths (in real life) as an antidote to Billy Connolly’s rant about “f**ing algebra”.

Suspect his valid point may have been “Can anyone see the point of f**ing algebra – the way it is taught, as a subject disconnected from real life.”

Anyway, only just noticed today that Ray’s byline refers to “the triple point of science, arts, and culture” – I like that.

Some speculation, based on aparent coincidences concerning a series of earthquakes, whale beachings and oil industry seismic exploration around the Australian tectonic plate, that suggests the devastating earthquake and tsunami may not have been entirely natural. [Andrew Limburg of Independent Media TV via Robin Good].

Speculation only, but makes you think.

[Robin Good’s (Luigi Canali di Rossi’s) Master New Media is a feed I’ve been receiving only as an e-mail newsletter, but I’ve just added the blog link to the side-bar. He has a mind boggling number of different RSS feeds on many different topics.]

Last summarised here. I see the BBC is now reporting that

“The UN World Food Programme says it believes hundreds of Burmese fisherman died in the tsunami, unaccounted for in official government figures”

Recurring theme, here picked up from “Tripzine” by Corpus MMothra.

One quote relevant to the Pirsig story [Timeline, 1960] – [Quote] I had experienced with psilocybin mushrooms, or LSD. [DXM] was more like, “Here it is, this is the truth, do whatever you want with it”. [Unquote]

The full article ends with this [editor’s note: We have already contacted this individual and advised him to lay off the DXM for a while.] 🙂

Also like Corpus MMothras reminder from Mark Twain that truth also lies in madness (or vice versa) if you prefer – “When we remember we are all mad, the mysteries disappear and life stands explained.” ? Samuel Langhorne Clemens, AKA Mark Twain.

Or was it a case of synchronicity ? You may recall I linked to Mark Richardson earlier in summer 2004, when he was re-tracing Robert Pirsig’s “ZMM” motorcycle trip from Minnesota to California as part of researching a book he is writing.

Using his column in the Toronto Star, he’s just posted an uplifting little story from the trip. Enjoy.