Is this Erroll Bottrell’s statue in Centennial Park Sydney?
1 January 2005
I don’t know who Erroll Bottrell is, but he’s carved his name into eternity… on the base of a statue in Sydney’s Centennial Park.
But the statue is a strange sort of ornament all up. It sits on top of what might be a ten metre high pseudo classic Greek column, making it kind of difficult to see. It’s one of several similar objects located near Busby pond in the park, but bears no inscription or plaque explaining what it is, or why it’s there.
It reminds me a little of the classic English landscape folly, being an “architectural construction which isn’t what it appears to be”. Something built for a bit of fun only. Maybe this is an Australian variation of the idea? How very eccentric.
Perhaps Erroll Bottrell designed these ornaments, and inscribed his name into the base for posterity’s sake. Maybe he was just another visitor to the park, who was handy with a carving chisel, one he just happened to be carrying at the time.
Update: Here, possibly, may be some information about Mr Bottrell.
Originally published Saturday 1 January 2005.
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Pioneers 10 and 11 courses inexplicably varying at Kuiper Belt
15 September 2004
Something weird is happening out on the boundary of our solar system, an area called the Kuiper Belt, where NASA space probes Pioneers 10 and 11 are presently located.
Both deep space probes, launched over thirty years ago, traversed the inner region of the solar system almost exactly according to plan.
Since passing beyond the orbit of Pluto though, events have taken an unexpected turn: both probes appear to be inexplicably deviating from their projected courses.
And no one can work out why. Some scientists think long held ideas on the effects of gravity over extended distances may be need to be re-thought. Others say that both probes may be leaking gases, which is contributing to the change in their trajectories.
This mystery has led to calls for a new deep space mission to see what’s happening out at the Kuiper.
By fitting a Pioneer follow-up probe with new measuring equipment, navigational device and communications gear, it should be possible to discover if the probes are in the grip of a new force of nature.
A new force of nature? Perhaps Star Wars director George Lucas’ far, far, away galaxy may not be all that distant after all…
Originally published Wednesday 15 September 2004.
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astronomy, legacy, Pluto, science
Revenge of the nerds: on naming Star Wars movies
28 July 2004
After much speculation — and discussion, heated at times, among fans — the official title of the next instalment in the Star Wars™ saga has been announced: Revenge of the Sith.
But the first question that comes to my mind is: revenge for what? Since when were the Sith so hard done by that they felt the need to extract revenge? So far everything has gone their way. Their clandestine plan to take control of the galaxy has all but succeeded.
Unless of course we are referring to their (almost) complete annihilation centuries ago. Even then revenge seems to somewhat understate what they are trying to achieve now. The other factor being no original Sith remain from that time anyway.
So it’s not as if the latter day Sith are avenging the demise of any contemporaries. Their comrades have been dead a thousand years (or whatever). If revenge is indeed what the Sith are seeking, it is certainly a dish served cold. Very cold.
I’d have thought a title like Rise of the Sith, or Rise of the Empire, would have been more appropriate. Well I just could be right (if I may say so). One or other of those titles were apparently being considered, but a change was required.
Why? Because Star War’s secrets are among the worst kept in the galaxy. It can’t be much fun for series creator George Lucas when fans keep figuring out the title of one of the most anticipated movies of all time.
But why announce the title now? After all, the movie is not due for release until May 2005. I’m guessing as just about all possible names had already been guessed, it was better to go ahead and make the name official, lest it leak later on.
There’s also of course that most basic tenet of marketing to factor into the mix as well: all publicity is good publicity.
Originally published Wednesday 28 July 2004.
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film, legacy, science fiction, Star Wars
Email is email, spam is spiced ham, talk is talk
2 February 2004
Bill Gates has unveiled a gallant plan to rid the world of email spam. A noble undertaking. I am not being sarcastic. I sincerely hope he succeeds. Especially as it is now estimated that half of all emails sent are unsolicited.
How annoying is it too see there are ten new messages in your in box, but nine turn out to be crap. But I suspect I am on the thin end of the spam email wedge. Some people receive way more.
Now there is a proposal to charge for each individual email sent. This charge, or e-stamp, may be as low as one cent per message. Not a lot, but it may be enough to deter the spammers who send out millions of messages, once they have to start paying for the privilege.
While it won’t stop the most determined or cashed up operators, it would make a welcome respite nevertheless. Many small spam operators would not only have to pay, but also make their identity known, in order to purchase e-stamps. This might be enough to see them give up.
That in turn would vastly reduce the amount of spam messages in the email system. So yes, bring it on, I say. I’m all in favour of the idea.
But a charge for email could have all sorts of intriguing ramifications. Take interoffice email messages, for example. Would they be chargeable as well? I certainly hope so. Working in an office — to my mind — is no fun at the best of times, but it gets worse when your manager and colleagues, who usually sit close by, communicate only by email. What’s with these people?
Can’t we just gather around and talk? Apparently not.
It would appear that it is far easier to correspond by email. Well maybe not for much longer. If it’s going to cost for each one liner that is dispatched to the next cubicle, we may be confronted with the prospect of a ban on interoffice email. How awful.
I’m not anti-email for work based communication though. Nothing of the sort. It is a vital tool in many situations. There is a time and a place though. Especially where distance is a factor.
My whole working relationship with some clients is purely email based. It’s of course an effective and economic method of communicating. The difference here being that they are often interstate (even overseas), and not just over the other side of a cubicle wall.
Originally published Monday 2 February 2004.
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For the common good: creative commons licences
21 January 2004
Creative commons licences are a way of allowing your online work (e.g. writing, photography, graphics, or sound samples, etc) to be used by other people, provided certain conditions are adhered to. And all without affecting your original copyright entitlement.
There are several licences for content creators to choose from, depending on the degree to which they are willing to allow their work to be reused and distributed.
Creative commons licences seem like a sensible development in response to the growing amount of material that is published in the public domain that often finds itself in a grey copyright area.
These licences, as the by-line “some rights reserved” implies, does not render copyright null or void. Instead, they serve as a guideline (of sorts) as to how people accessing material in the public domain can re-use it for their own purposes.
Originally published Wednesday 21 January 2004.
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Tim Berners-Lee, a knight of the World Wide Web
4 January 2004
Tim Berners-Lee, the inventor of the Web, is to be knighted:
Tim Berners-Lee, the inventor of the World Wide Web and director of the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), will be made a Knight Commander, Order of the British Empire (KBE) by Queen Elizabeth. This was announced earlier today by Buckingham Palace as part of the 2004 New Year’s Honours list.
More much deserved recognition for someone who changed the way we communicate and share information.
Originally published Sunday 4 January 2004.
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What is worth failing for is what is worth striving for
4 January 2004
New year, new start. A time to consider new opportunities. It’s been said a million times already, and it’s only day four of 2004.
Most of us though are afraid to try something new or different for fear of failing. One statistic suggests 98 per cent of people will never realise their loftiest ambitions. How alarming. It seems to suggest we are all settling for second best in life. Or less.
So frightened are we of inevitable doom, we won’t take a chance, and peruse our dreams. I could insert lashings of rhetoric here. You only live once. There are no rehearsals in life. Just do it. I’ll spare you the drivel though.
Jugglezine’s* latest article The Pain and (half) Pleasures of Rejection (Wayback Machine link), written by Todd Pitock, suggests that in order to succeed, we need to find a cause or goal worth failing for. Something so fundamental and intrinsic to our beliefs, that failure will not ultimately matter.
It’s almost another way of saying that failure is a signpost found along the road to success. Falling down is all part of the process. And the importance of being focussed and motivated cannot be overstated.
Aside from our own inhibitions, the criticism we receive from those closest to us is the next biggest stumbling block. Sometimes our own doubts are overweighed by the negative perceptions of friends and family. Their disapproval can cut the deepest. It’s often enough to dissuade many people from ever having a go.
But it’s mind over matter. If our dreams and ambitions are worth failing for, they must be worth pursuing. Where would any of us be otherwise? If everyone were too afraid to take a chance and try a new idea? Still living in caves perhaps?
Hmm, how affirmative. I really should listen to myself more often.
*Jugglezine is no longer being published.
Originally published Sunday 4 January 2004.
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Kennedy assassination was no conspiracy says Kenneth Rahn
27 November 2003
Last week marked the fortieth anniversary of the 1963 assassination of United States President, John F. Kennedy. Kenneth Rahn, Professor Emeritus at the University of Rhode Island, writing for The Guardian, says the horrific shooting was far more straight forward than many people believe:
It is over. We must realise that this horrible event was not some evil plot. It was the product of chance, not conspiracy.
Rahn is part of a group who have studied all aspects of Kennedy’s assassination and have concluded there was no conspiracy, and that Lee Harvey Oswald was the sole assassin. There was no second shooter on the grassy knoll.
The real story of the assassination is this: Kennedy was killed by one misfit guy, a cheap but effective rifle, a good vantage point from the building where he worked and a run of fortuitous events.
Originally published Thursday 27 November 2003, with subsequent revisions, updates to lapsed URLs, etc.
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history, John F. Kennedy, legacy, politics
Adobe Creative Suite transitions, both subtle and not so subtle
18 November 2003
For years Adobe have been sending me invitations to a variety of seminars, conferences, and product launches. And last week I finally decided to RSVP yes, and go along to the Australian launch of something called Adobe Creative Suite, held in Sydney.
Creative Suite is a collection of Adobe products rolled into one package, and includes new versions of Photoshop, Illustrator, Go Live, and In Design. Part of the reason, we were told, in bringing these products together as one package is to reduce confusion as to which versions of Adobe’s software products are compatible with each other.
To demonstrate the features and advantages of the new suite, two of the product developers acted out a nice little role-play, mimicking designers in a studio, working on a project to a tight deadline. Their work, on their computers was, meanwhile, projected onto a screen above the stage.
All rather cosy, fun, and informative, and topped off with a nice smattering of gags and one liners. For all the great choreography though, it was the ending of the playact that let the production down. The two actors decided, almost arbitrarily it seemed, that the “show” was over, and with no transition at all, one of them was suddenly hauling a lectern across the stage, so he could declare that segment of proceedings closed.
Then again, maybe I blinked and missed something. And another thing, what’s the fixation with Hawaiian shirts? Why do they seem to be regarded as an enduring statement of retro non conformist zaniness? From theme parties, to casual wear on office mufti days, the Hawaiian shirt seems to constitute the continual butt of a never ending joke.
I only mention this because the Adobe road show crew were wearing them, (er, so we would know who they were) but isn’t it time we did things another way? Nothing against Hawaii, or Hawaiian shirts either, of course, but surely, say, black t-shirts, with the Adobe logo, and, say, the word “staff” emblazoned upon them would work just as well?
Originally published Tuesday 18 November 2003, with subsequent revisions, updates to lapsed URLs, etc.
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Australia, design, events, legacy
Hal, of 2001: A Space Odyssey fame, inducted into Robot Hall of Fame
16 November 2003
I didn’t realise that Hal, AKA HAL 9000, the supercomputer in Stanley Kurbick’s 1968 film, 2001: A Space Odyssey, was regarded as a robot, but apparently he is. That’s why Hal was, recently, inducted into the Robot Hall of Fame.
There he joins other illustrious bots and ‘droids, including R2D2 from, of course, Star Wars. This hall of renown, brought to us by Carnegie Mellon University’s School of Computer Science, is not restricted to fictional robots though, as the Mars Sojourner Rover is also honoured with a place.
Originally published Sunday 16 November 2003, with subsequent revisions, updates to lapsed URLs, etc.
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2001: A Space Odyssey, artificial intelligence, film, legacy, science, science fiction, Stanley Kurbick