Monthly Archives: February 2005

The Wikipedia Effect

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page I just tried contributing to Wikipedia, the wonderful free-for-all online encyclopedia that, despite being written by the likes of you and I, is actually factually accurate and increasingly comprehensive. (I like to think) I am articulate and well-informed individual … Continue reading

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vision things

http:// another new category.. you work it out. http://www.flickr.com/photos/onemonkey/

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Hunter Stockton Thompson

http://www.gonzo.org It is time to start a new category for quotations, and where HST is concerned it is only appropriate that it ought to be woefully inappropriate: Thatís why I live out here in the mountains with a flag on … Continue reading

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Letter to the Editor

It’s not often I write letters to public figures. But I spotted a bit of breath-taking stupidity in today’s Times that could not pass without comment. To the Editor, The Times Sir, It is unclear to me if it was … Continue reading

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Eavesdroppings

“You’re not going into Marks and Spenser if you carry on like that” “He could play the spoons OR the bagpipes!”

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beekeeper of the heart

As any foole knows, Saint Valentine is actually three different semi-legendary people all of who were grusomely martyred. http://www.catholic-forum.com/saints/saintv06.htm You probably knew that they are the patron saints of beekeepers, but far more disturbingly they are also the patron saints … Continue reading

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Laughing man breaks Necker

No, this is not a ‘Ha Ha Bonk’ joke. Some Australian optometrist has discovered that laughing makes your brain go funny. Prof. Pettigrew is a jovial chap who happens to be director of Queensland Uni’s Vision Thing. He noticed that … Continue reading

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Mutual mutilation at IN2U

I can’t quite believe that there is anyone as idosyncratically enthusiastic nor as enthusiastically reckless as me, but there is and now she is easy to spot in a crowd. That’ll be Ade and she’ll be the one with the … Continue reading

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Time Reversible Cellular Automata

http://sjsu.rudyrucker.com/~kwanghyung.paek/paper/ I’ve just finished reading Greg Egan’s Permutation City. As ever, he is way out there, describing (amongst other things) a massive cellular automata universe, the rules of which are such that it can act as interesting ‘toy model’ of … Continue reading

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making connections

It’s a small metropolis! My mate Mike (see this) reviews a new book by my blog-buddy and friend of a friend Tom Stafford. But what is most amazing, is that this is the first I’ve heard of it. Especially, when … Continue reading

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paralysed with joy.

Recently, in the wee small hours of the morning I’ve been waking up in a cold sweat, paralysed with fear, literally unable to move. Often, I may even feel that there is some sinister presence nearby, but that a heavy … Continue reading

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Deckchairs Rearranged.. Full steam ahead!

As you may have noticed, (to misquote Humphrey Bogart) there have been a few changes round here. Those charming Japanese whale crews have been consigned to history. I’d been threatening to move the blog to the front page for a … Continue reading

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Simple Heuristics that make smart

just finished reading Simple Heuristics that make smart – Gigerenzer & Todd (OUP, 2000) – on first appearance a dry academic psychology text on bounded rationality and how we use lots of shortcuts to get close to the right answer … Continue reading

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deadlines, creditlines and trendlines

My final year project is finished and handed in. It was inevitably a mad scramble in the last few days before the deadline and an exhausted anti-climax afterward. But now i’ve caught up on my sleep, i’d do it all … Continue reading

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