Archive for January, 2009
Reburial Redux
Jan 31st
Following Yvonne’s comment, I’ve uploaded the two podcasts I recorded on Pagan reburial in the UK to Box.net. You should be able to access them at: http://www.box.net/shared/z5k2bv7ao9 http://www.box.net/shared/sa1ojvzmnl
The reburial of remains issue is live again and it’s interesting for a couple of reasons. One is the ethics of studying and storing human remains and the claims a religious community can make on the rest of society. This makes good headlines. The other requires a bit more thought. Do the concept of the Pagan (or Christian or Muslim) community make sense?
The current reburial flap is centred around a fringe Pagan group. From the podcasts you’ll see it’s not a mainstream Pagan position. Yet really what the public and the news media want from Pagans is simple and daffy stereotype. White robes, long beards, made-up names and lineages. We’ll skip pointing fingers at the dresses prominent Christians wear. The point is what makes a good story are people who play up to the stereotype. Enter CoBDO®.
CoBDO® is/are the the Council(s) of British Druid Orders. Back in the day when they were CoBDO® they were, if I understand correctly a minority group amongst Pagans. Since then CoBDO® have split from CoBDO West following a More >
QR: A quick response
Jan 27th
Yesterday’s QR workshop was useful with some interesting ideas. Andy Ramsden has a blog post with ideas about the opportunities and barriers to QR we came up with. Most useful to me were the examples of where QR will not work. I was planning to throw them everywhere and see what stuck. Richard Mobbs gave a few few good reasons why this could be a bad idea. His group also came up with some worries about security. It’s a problem twice over.
One is that any URL is going to work best if it’s encoded as simply as possible. That means using URL-shortening services which raises issues of trust. Usually you don’t know where a tinyurl will lead. In the case of http://tinyurl.com/642wu3 it’s likely you do, which is why you won’t click the link. But on top of that the codes can be tampered with. This wouldn’t be by colouring the blocks, but by replacing the codes completely.
One of these QR codes leads to a Leicester departmental website. The other is a Rickroll. Can you tell which is which just by looking?
It’s a problem if you’re doing an advert for Big Bank, and put a code on the poster. Someone else with More >
Think of this as that grinding sound you hear when the computer starts to boot up
Jan 26th
I’ve decided to return here, once I’ve finished reading Andy Clark’s Supersizing the Mind. It’s very good, but I’m not sure if I can apply it to archaeology without reducing it to philosophy-lite. There’s plenty I can write about it’s just putting it in some sort of order.
In the meantime why not check out this abnormally interesting post on intellectual monuments.
YQR?
Jan 23rd
I’m planning to attend a meeting on QR codes for the ISciences dept at Leicester. I’ll be honest I don’t fully understand them, and you’re welcome to tell me how much I don’t understand them in the comments. I think if barcodes are like pagers what QR codes are likely to be like SMS. No-one in their right mind could have predicted how text messaging would grow to be so popular. After all pagers were nowhere near as successful. Neither has barcode scanning been massively popular. I have a CueCat for scanning book codes but despite that I’m likely to type in an ISBN into a catalogue than scan it. A QR code can pack much more useful information, including hyperlinks, than a barcode can.
So what is a QR code?This is a QR code. It’s one of the world’s more pointless QR codes because it links to this website. However as part of the header in my CV, or printed on my business card it becomes more useful. Certainly I could claim to be tech-savvy, but now I can link to that in print. My CV and cards mean links to my personal site can make intrusions into the More >
Is it only involuntary euthanasia which is acceptable?
Jan 21st
2008 was a lousy year. 2009 continues in the same way. I haven’t put anything about what happened in 2008 online yet. I’d skip the current problems too were it not for an article in the Times Higher Education this week recently: “It is monstrously wrong that patients cannot ask for euthanasia“. I’m tackling a problem. It’s not the one below, but it’s close.
I am in principle in favour of voluntary euthanasia. I know a lot of people aren’t and believe their beliefs should be imposed on other people. It seems particularly cruel form of bigotry to impose those beliefs on a dying person who may not have the strength to fight back. But there are good reasons to be wary of legalising euthanasia.
The most compelling reason I know is the precautionary principle. There is a concern that if euthanasia is legalised then people will be pressured to take it as a way it against their wishes. While I think I should have the right to end my life at my choosing, I certainly don’t think I should have that right if it means that other people lose theirs. The claim is that if you ban voluntary euthanasia then involuntary euthanasia More >
Away for a little longer
Jan 6th
I’ll be away for a while yet. Partly because I’m a little unwell, but also because I have other commitments at the moment. There may be some Vidi posts going up if/when I can work through my newsfeed.
