Becycle

Becycle is an interesting project being run up at Aberdeen University.

In September 2007 a number of students started to develop a fully free bicycle repair workshop and bicycle lending library. The workshop supplies tools and know how to students to assist them in bicycle repair works. Additionally it has shown very successful to repair unused bicycles- gathered through sponsorships- to send them back onto Aberdeen’s roads in form of a lending library- again free of charge.

The workshop managed not only to circulate a number of bikes in the University community but also gained access to repair tools, spare parts and knowledgeable folks and runs a web page that has been having over 1250 visits since it went online in October 2007.

In only three months this project has proven very popular and could potentially grow to great things.

The aim of the workshop is to support sustainable transport, to encourage students to do simple repair works by themselves and to provide a space for exchange and skill development complementing the University’s sustainable transport policies. Source

I wish it success.

SpeedCabling

Perhaps we could run SpeedCabling competitions? Maybe a book-token for the winner?

A new "sport" based around unravelling the mass of wires that can typically be found beneath computer desks the world over is taking off in the western US.

The first "speedcabling" competition took place in an art gallery in Los Angeles and was won by LA-based web developer Matthew Howell.

The challenge was devised by IT professional Steven Schkolne. Contestants are faced with a tangled mass of six ethernet cables of various lengths. Their task is simply to separate them in the fastest time.

To get them to replicate the conditions of the wires found snaking and choking their way around hard drive units, monitors and printers in offices worldwide, Schkolne first started by tangling them in a figure eight. Then he threw the bundles in a clothes dryer - no longer attached to any computer unit, naturally.

Full story from BBC News

How To Behave On An Internet Forum

Fun and rude - does what it says on the tin

How To Behave On An Internet Forum

Scottish Natural Heritage

I'd just like to recommend the Scottish Natural Heritage to you. I've been playing pine marten snap and reading up on Scottish geology. All for free on their site.

www.snh.org.uk

Well done to the SNH.

Woohoo, just found their educational resources - handy for parents taking their kids out.

Something wicked this way comes

I was sure i saw a squirrel on they way in to work. I was sure it was grey. I am not sure if i have to report it though, nor who to.

Pods and Blogs

Pods and Blogs on Radio 5. First time listener. Show link.

Hmm - not sure why an American voice introduces the show.

Film piracy, as the recent mooted desire of the film companies to lock people off the Net for piracy. I wonder if that includes YouTube/Google? No, of course it doesn't - they are trying hard to lock down illegal posts to their site.

Interesting investigative piece by a blogger, who is then interviewed for the radio, which I'm listening to via a podcast. Strangely it is still headed as "Radio 5 Live".

7-year blogger, Neil Gaiman, is giving away a book on his site. Yup, that guy. 2 of his books/graphic novels have been made into movies recently. Interesting thoughts on how people "discover" authors. Discussion what he gets out of blogging: immediacy with readers. 16,000 votes on his site in 24 hours. Great Douglas Adams quote about books and sharks - the reason sharks are still around is that there's nothing as good as being a shark as a shark - the same is true of books. I miss Douglas Adams, he was an inspiration.

Beagle Bloggers - Charles Darwin's 200th next year. Or is it a figment of intelligent design?

Food blogs. football club podcast.

Nipped across to Radio 4's iPM show to see if there were similarities. I'm going to have to listen to the earlier shows.

That's Alright

Watched some of the "Elvis: '68 Comeback" dvd from June 1968. (trailer)

Just under 40 years ago. The youngest person in the audience looked to be around 10 years old. Some 50-, 60-, 70- year old folk are walking the streets, being pestered by thieves and wasters because they are old, but they have the knowledge that they experienced something unique. Something that the modern stolen, downloaded, processed music can't reproduce.

So; go and see live music when you can.

Will it be enough to save the Lemon Tree? Who knows, but you'll have the experience in your brain and no-one can take that away from you.