Saturday, November 5, 2005

Wanna go climb a tree or wait 'til its here And Sometimes, the Island Is Marooned on You By PAM BELLUCK, The New York Times, Published: November 6, 2005 ABOARD A ROWBOAT IN ISLAND POND, Mass. - The island of Island Pond had it in for Andrew Renna. Or so it seemed one Saturday evening a few weeks ago. In the middle of a pounding storm, Mr. Renna looked out across the pond, which borders his backyard "It was raining crazy," he recalled. "I said, 'That wind's going to blow that thing right over here.' Ten minutes later it did. When it moves, it moves pretty quick." The island, about the size of a football field, made a beeline for Mr. Renna's house - crushing his three-foot chain-link fence, swamping his red-blue-and-purple flagstone patio, wrecking his dock, flooding his shed, hobbling his weeping willow, and drowning the oregano, cilantro, tomatoes and peppers in his garden. Then, with an insouciant shrug, it came to a standstill in Mr. Renna's backyard, an interloper squatting in stubborn silence. "Normally when it floats you can actually hear the roots rip - it sounds like ripping up carpet," said Mr. Renna, 51, a roofing and siding sales manager. "But this time, it didn't make any noise." Island Pond's island has been floating for as long as anyone can remember, buoyed by a mat of sphagnum moss and gases from decomposing plants. It is a curiosity and sometimes a nuisance for the 20 or so homes around the shoreline of this nine-acre pond in Springfield, Mass.... Such islands appear across the country and around the world - familiar enough that Minnesota issues removal permits to homeowners, and prevalent enough in some lakes in Florida that they are chopped up or pulverized by large machines with sharp blades.... The islands, which can be as big as an acre and six inches to six feet thick, are rich environments for wildlife, allowing small creatures to outfloat predators. Many of the islands sprout trees, which act as sails; the 20-foot birches, alders and pines on the Island Pond island can ferry it across the entire pond in as little as 20 minutes, residents say.... You really need to read this, this excerpt is pale and wan compared to the article. 1:29:34 PM    comment []

Rx for Survival Must-see TV Tara C. Smith, Molecular infectious disease epidemiologist Be sure to check out Rx for Survival: a Global Health Challenge November 1-3 on your local PBS station. Program synopsis: Over the past 150 years, stunning breakthroughs in public health have enabled humans to live longer, healthier and more productive lives. Clean drinking water, modern sanitation and good nutrition, along with the development of highly effective vaccines and antibiotics have increased average western life expectancy by an astonishing 35 years. But, the benefits of public health have yet to be extended to many of the poorest nations in the developing world. Meanwhile, in the past two decades, infectious diseases that had nearly been conquered, such as tuberculosis, have come surging back, while devastating new diseases such as AIDS, SARS and West Nile Virus have emerged. Microbial resistance to many modern drugs is rising, threatening people everywhere. And in our world of globalized travel, the latest epidemic is only a plane ride away.... I'm hoping for a re-run. Seems likely, given the topic [can be purchased, if you can't wait]. 12:53:28 PM    comment []

Going hmm about who will live where Countervailing trends & demographics Tech will cause a real estate crash ...Nielsen said that technology would make it ever more attractive to live in small towns and rural areas, which would undermine many of the advantages currently held by big cities, including:... [CNN] Monday, July 4, 2005 One advantage cities have as our population ages - medical care, specialists and state-of-the-art facilities. 10:03:20 AM    comment []

The latest big bang State of the Blogosphere, October 2005, Part 1: Blogosphere Growth It is that time of the year again, and I've got some new information on the continued growth of the blogosphere. I made this presentation as part of my 10 minute talk at Web 2.0 on October 6, 2005. You can download the entire presentation, complete with underlying data as well, for research use, or to make part of other presentations. All I ask is that you keep attribution and the Technorati logo in a prominent place wherever the data is used.... The chart below shows the continued growth of the blogosphere. Technorati is now tracking 19.6 Million weblogs, and the total number of weblogs tracked continues to double about every 5 months. This trend has been consistent for at least the last 36 months. In other words, the blogosphere has doubled at least 5 times in the last 3 years. Another way of looking at it is that the blogosphere is now over 30 times as big as it was 3 years ago:... To summarize: As of October 2005, Technorati is now tracking 19.6 million weblogs The total number of weblogs tracked continues to double about every 5 months The blogosphere is now over 30 times as big as it was 3 years ago, with no signs of letup in growth About 70,000 new weblogs are created every day About a new weblog is created each second 2% - 8% of new weblogs per day are fake or spam weblogs Between 700,000 and 1.3 million posts are made each day About 33,000 posts are created per hour, or 9.2 posts per second An additional 5.8% of posts (or about 50,000 posts/day) seen each day are from spam or fake blogs, on average What's Next? Of course, one important question rears its head - how to make sense out of this monstrous onrush of conversation, and just get what you want - the best information from the most authoritative or influential people, in the most timely manner. More on that in my next two posts, covering the growth of tags and of context in search and discovery. [The Technorati Weblog] Sounds like we may be beyond 6 degrees of separation. adrift, even. 8:30:55 AM    comment []

In this age, a common secret desire is to re-invent everything Craigslist founder pro-community journalism Craig Newmark wants to shake up mass media, much the way his online classifieds site Craigslist.org has rocked the world of the newspaper business by siphoning off their advertising... [News.blog: Media (CNET News.com)] So, dad, what did you do today? I changed journalism. How about you? Oh, I watched Internet TV. You hear about what mom's team did with DNA? 8:14:43 AM    comment []

In this age, a common secret desire is to be narcissistic characteristic of those having an inflated idea of their own importance The Economy of Attention Georg Franck 07.12.1999 Decline of material wealth What is more pleasant than the benevolent notice other people take of us, what is more agreeable than their compassionate empathy? What inspires us more than addressing ears flushed with excitement, what captivates us more than exercising our own power of fascination? What is more thrilling than an entire hall of expectant eyes, what more overwhelming than applause surging up to us? What, lastly, equals the enchantment sparked off by the delighted attention we receive from those who profoundly delight ourselves? - Attention by other people is the most irresistible of drugs. To receive it outshines receiving any other kind of income. This is why glory surpasses power and why wealth is overshadowed by prominence. This is also why it is becoming popular in our affluent society to rank income in attention above money income. When rising numbers of people are able to afford the insignia of material wealth, then the desire for distinction will create a demand for attributes which are more selective than a large money income. In accordance with the law of the socialisation of luxuries, such attributes will be found among privileges which are still élitist. The undisputed common denominator of present-day élites is prominence - and prominence is nothing but the status of being a major earner of attention. When material wealth is spreading in an inflationary way, then the socialisation of this still élitist status is imminent.... 7:49:22 AM    comment []

There's a right way And there's a wrong way. Always. Poul Anderson. "I have yet to see any problem, however complicated, which, when you looked at it in the right way, did not become still more complicated." [Quotes of the Day] 6:56:54 AM    comment []

Mashup (as a good thing) and Web 2.0 (as a good thing) Mashup (web application hybrid) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. A mashup is a website or web application that seamlessly combines content from more than one source into an integrated experience. Content used in mashups is typically sourced from a third party via a public interface or API. Other methods of sourcing content for mashups include Web feeds (e.g. RSS or Atom) and JavaScript includes.... Many people are experimenting with mashups using eBay, Amazon, Google, and Yahoos APIs.... The Recombinant Web Phil Windley Lately, I've been seeing more and more examples of what could be termed the recombinant Web, but are more affectionately called "mash-ups." A mash-up happens when someone takes two or more different services on the Web and combines them in a new and interesting way. Usually the person who creates the mash-up has nothing to do with either of the services being combined. Mash-ups have been around for a while, but they're exploding now, partly because of Google maps.... 5:55:19 AM    comment []

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