Telling stories

Those who write publicly almost always have power over those they write about, particularly if they have a wide audience. I do not have a particularly large following, either on this blog or in academic circles, but I nevertheless use the stories that other people share with me in my writing. And many people who … Continue reading Telling stories →

Revolutionary technology: ukuleles!

ukulele small and forceful brave and peaceful you can play the ukulele too it is painfully simple play your ukulele badly, play your ukulele loudly ukulele banish evil ukulele save the people - Amanda Palmer There's a lot of hype around about the Internet's inherently liberatory effects on society, because of its tendency to support … Continue reading Revolutionary technology: ukuleles! →

Broadband and Society: International Perspectives and Research Challenges

Broadband and Society is a symposium addressing some of the issues surrounding the National Broadband Network as it will be implemented in Australia. The session opened with a number of short talks: I'll put my initial notes up here, and if anyone has questions I'll raise them during the discussion session. Jim Wyatt - Department … Continue reading Broadband and Society: International Perspectives and Research Challenges →

The violence we don’t see

Occupy Wall Street was forcibly evicted last night: as I watched my Twitter feed explode with news about the police action, I saw reports of violence from police (including at least one being taken away in an ambulance) and media being kept out of the area. I saw expressions of surprise, dismay, and outrage at … Continue reading The violence we don’t see →

Occupy Perth: Inclusion

I went to Occupy Perth yesterday, along with quite a few friends. On the whole it was a good experience and the people who I talked to mostly felt positive about it. The message that's mostly being used to frame Occupy events, 'We are the 99%', encourages participation: it's open to interpretation and it's broadly … Continue reading Occupy Perth: Inclusion →