Monthly Archives: March 2006

Why are people arseholes online?

Posted on March 31, 2006 by acb

The other day someone sent me an email that was jeering, mean-spirited and pompous all at once. This had in fact been intended for publication, but the newspaper to which it was addressed declined, so the writer sent it on … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Net stories | 9 Comments

Incest and journalism

Posted on March 31, 2006 by acb

About three weeks ago, I was asked (along with others) to contribute questions and suggestions for Alan Rusbridger’s interview with Rowan Williams. This morning I was talking to Paul Handley, who is to interview Rusbridger for the Church Times. Do … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Journalism | 1 Comment

online transciption service

Posted on March 31, 2006 by acb

Could this (found through John Naughton) be an actually useful Web 2.0 app? I can’t see the use, if you have learned to read and write, of private podcasting, which is the main selling point — essentially, this service is … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Journalism | 1 Comment

Wednesday random letter

Posted on March 29, 2006 by acb

I’ve just thought of this: sort your music alphabetically by the first letter of the artist. Now choose one letter to take to your desert island. Without much thought, I vote, from my collection, for “R” Rachmaninov, Sergei Randolph, Robert … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Blather | 1 Comment

Rural excitements

Posted on March 29, 2006 by acb

Supper with Michael Ruse on Monday evening, at which I did not shine, since I had a cold whose unpleasantness, fortunately, was almost entirely internal. Got back about quarter to midnight; spent the next day in bed, reading variously To … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Blather | Comments Off on Rural excitements

Louise and the venomous snails

Posted on March 26, 2006 by acb

This is wonderful! Our learned commentator has finally got her snails on air. These are carnivorous beasties which live on coral reefs. Now, if you’re a snail, there is not much hope of running your prey down, or even following … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Science without worms | 1 Comment

The Onion and the neocon

Posted on March 24, 2006 by acb

OK — here are two quotes. One is from the Onion this week, and the other is from Charles Krauthammer’s column in today’s Washington Post. The hard thing is to decide which is which. Vote in the comments, please. People … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in War | 4 Comments

Mac advice needed

Posted on March 24, 2006 by acb

Dear lazyweb, (may I call you lazy?) When I hook my mother’s imac up to a broadband connection next week what kind of security measures should I take? I assume there is a built-in firewall in OSX, which will be … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in nördig | 3 Comments

Rowan, PZ, creationism

Posted on March 22, 2006 by acb

Very interesting piece of decontextualisation over at pharyngula. PZ picked up on a Register piece claiming that ABC “put the smackdown” on creationism. This was indeed the lead that the rather desperate Guardian put on the news story of their … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in God | 1 Comment

All downhill since Hume

Posted on March 21, 2006 by acb

I was brought up to suppose that Western philosophy is just a series of footnotes to Plato — not that this led me to learn enough Greek to read him. But Hume had the taste to write in English; and … Continue reading → Continue reading →

Posted in Blather | 1 Comment