Put up your hand if you are sick of having to be politically correct. I know I am. Don’t get me wrong - I am not advocating that we should all go around saying anything we please without any regard for the feelings of others. People who hide behind grand statements such as “I always speak my mind” annoy me as much as having to be politically correct. What I am annoyed about is the way that informed and intelligent debate tends to be quashed on some subjects due to political correctness gone mad.
A case in point is the issue of global warming and climate change. I recently listened to a rather zealous young person give a presentation on this issue. She spoke intelligently and demonstrated an admirable degree of passion for her topic. She also had a wealth of information at her fingertips and she used this information to make a compelling case. What was also quite apparent to me was that she worships at the alter that is Al Gore’s ego. “An Inconvenient Truth” is in her mind a depiction of the second coming rather than an entertaining examination of a serious issue.
And so to my point about political correctness gone mad. It seems that if one tries to debate an issue such as climate change and question some of the “facts” used to demonstrate how quickly we are hurtling towards certain devastation, one is labeled an eco-terrorist. It seems that some people are so determined to show their support for the current hot topic that they are not prepared to discuss both sides of the issue.
At last, I have found something really useful in the world of web 2.0
Floorplanner.com makes designing floor and room layouts simple and free. Here is my first plan done purely to see how it works (yes I know how ugly it is - I won’t be taking up interior design any time soon)
There is a nice user interface that takes no time at all to learn. You can also design outdoor areas.
I read over at MacApper (which quoted the Wall Street Journal) that a neurovascular surgeon had credited his new iPhone with saving a patients life. It seems that the good doctor was able to check the patient’s up to date electronic medical records just prior to the operation and thus was able to change the procedure and subsequently saved the patient’s life. Apparently the records are accessed through the Safari web browser and as “everyone” knows the iPhone comes with this pre-installed. The Blackberry that the doctor previously used does not have this feature.
Now let’s back the truck up here for a moment. A neurovascular surgeon is about to perform potentially life saving/life threatening surgery and only checks the most recent medical records for the patient because his shiny new phone has internet access? Is it just me or does everyone else want their surgeon to have the latest information about their condition prior to the operation, regardless of said surgeon’s choice of mobile gadgets. How hard is it to say “Nurse, the patient’s most recent medical chart please”?
Dr. Singer, who says he performs about 450 surgeries a year, uses his iPhone to access his practice’s electronic medical-records system. Thanks to the iPhone’s browser, he is able to review patients’ X-Rays, angiograms and medical histories while in the operating room. (Click on the video to the left for a demonstration.) He was never able to do this with his BlackBerry, he says; instead, he would review a patient’s file in his office the night before a surgery.
I wonder if a patient dies over night (God forbid) would he still go ahead with the surgery - no of course not, he has his iPhone to tell him not to. *sarcastic sneer*
As a technology junkie I am sick of getting ripped off. The price of living in the best country on Earth appears to be over-priced technology. A case in point is the Sony Playstation 3. Engadget have recently reported on the release of the 80GB hard drive model which will sell in the US for $599. At current exchange rates that is approximately A$700. The 60GB model in Australia retails for A$1,000. A $300 price difference and we don’t even get the larger hard drive. I can understand a price difference based on the fact the Australian market is considerably smaller than the US but this is ridiculous. Apparently if a container has destination Australia on it more zeros get added to the end of the price. The rip off is not restricted to games consoles. Cameras are another product where the price difference seems hard to justify. And don’t get me started on the price of broadband internet access.
Profiteering? Import duties? Someone is making a fortune at my expense.
When time permits I like to dabble in a bit of 3D modeling and animation. When I saw what is possible with a program like Mudbox and some artistic talent it really blew me away. This video (not my work obviously) is 10 minutes long so you may not want to watch it all but if you can stick it out for 2 or 3 you will get the idea of what is possible. If you do watch until the end you will see the level of detail around the eye is quite amazing. In real time it was an hours work.
Now where did I put that artistic talent? *said while searching under assorted junk on and around desk*
While many people might consider this old news, I have only learned of Blackle.com today. I received a chain email from a well-meaning colleague about saving energy with the “Black Google”. This sounds good in theory - a black screen doesn’t use as much electricity as a white screen (I probably should link to the research that made this claim but I am feeling a little lazy tonight).
Based on my limited knowledge in this area it would seem that the claims would be true for CRT monitors but not for backlit LCD displays. The backlight is always on but the light is filtered to produce pixels of different colour. Therefore as more and more people use LCD monitors the savings from using a black background are also reduced. Again I am too lazy to link to the research showing that only 25% of people are now using CRTs (seems a little low to me any way).
Another thing that comes to mind regarding Blackle.com is that it is not a google page as was claimed in the email I received today. It is operated by Heap Media group in Australia. I would assume that they are earning revenue from the google searches performed from their blackle search page. Perhaps that is the real motive behind promoting a black background for searches.
I don’t often write about my children but I couldn’t not mention this. My 6 year is very inquisitive, as are all 6 year olds, and often asks questions in a way that at first don’t seem obvious. Her latest question:
How do people NOT get babies
It’s hard enough explaining to kids where babies come from but how do you answer this one. I shouldn’t be surprised I suppose based on a recent conversation she had with her Grandmother that went something like this:
Grandma, where do babies come from?
Grandma: I think that is something you should ask your Mum
Oh I have asked her and she doesn’t seem to know so I thought you could tell me.
I have been using these keyboard shortcuts for a long time and was surprised today when speaking to someone today who had not heard about them. To auto complete the dot com at the end of a url hold control while pressing enter. To auto complete a dot net address hold the shift key and press enter. For Macs replace the “control” key with the “command” key.
Now if there was a shortcut for dot com dot au addresses I’d be even happier.
Do you have a favourite keyboard shortcut? I hate the mouse.
If you are remotely interested in technology and enjoy watching high definition movies then you probably have at least a passing interest in the battle between Blu-ray and HD DVD. Unfortunately for me it will probably be some time before I purchase a player capable of either of these but who would have thought that the Japanese porn industry would have a significant influence in which format comes out on top (no pun intended). Cnet via their Crave website are reporting that the indications are that the Japanese may be favouring Blu-ray as the media of choice for the rude stuff. One would hope that Mr Ochimura will remember to take the disc out of the Playstation 3 before giving it back to the kids.
My most devoted reader, Comedy Plus, included me on a seriously long link love list. While I never know whether to participate its seems that it is a popular thing to do at the moment with Google page ranks being updated soon. I am therefore doing my bit to help out and will see what it does for me in page rank terms. Thanks Comedy+ for including me. Here are the “rules” for anyone wanting to also join in:
1. Write a short paragraph at the beginning of your post and link back to the blog that put you on the list in the paragraph. This isn’t a suggestion. You need to break up the duplicate content. Someone took the time to add you so the least you can do is give them an extra link back.
2. Copy the list of originals below COMPLETELY and add it to your blog. If you would like a different keyword for your blog then change it when you do your post and it should pass to most blogs with that keyword.
3. Take the adds from the blog that added you and place them in the “Originals” list.
4. Add at least 1 new blog that you KNOW is using the DO FOLLOW plugin to the list in the “My Adds” section. (Add no more than 5!) Let the people you’ve added know, so that they can keep the list going! I would like to add (but place no expectations on):
Everyone has odd socks in their drawers. It is often assumed that the washing machine is somehow responsible for a sock going missing. But what if the washing machine is actually producing an extra sock instead of losing one? A machine conspiracy to mess with our minds?
Who is the Coach? - Self styled life coach to the masses; part time ballet critic; full time sports critic; nude twister umpire; unemployed still life model; "trust me, I'm on the internet"
A more serious look at who I am can be found on the About page.
