brainbytes

Blogging on wordpress

2007-04-28T19:28:00.000-07:00

I'm blogging here: http://brainbytes.wordpress.com I'm slowly transfering posts over, since there doesn't seem to be any useful tool to transfer ftp-posted blogger sites to wordpress.com

Posting at "The Levelers"

2007-02-05T13:30:00.000-08:00

Update: Back to posting primarily on brainbytes Yes, I've been gone awhile. ~~I'm mostly posting now at http://www.thelevelers.org~~ - journaling my adventures using new forms of communication and new technologies to catalyze social change.

Followup on Mendocino

2006-09-08T17:52:00.001-07:00

Follow up on Mendocino restaurants. Had a mixed experience at Rendezvous. But the breakfast the next morning was excellent. The inn it self is very bare bones, so really just expect to crash there. We did eat at Mendo Bistro, great vibe, food was okay. I did their mix and match menu, and my 1/4 chicken was grilled superbly, but somehow the mix of grilled chicken with sauce that you put on top, and polenta (felt dry to me) and veggies somehow didn't make for the feeling that we were having a phenomenal meal.

Food & Mendocino

2006-08-27T16:01:00.000-07:00

We're looking forward to going up to Mendocino county early in the Labor Day Weekend. We'll be trying two restaurants, both of which - in different ways - emphasize local food and drinks. Rendezvous just got top-rating from Zagat, but it's the description of the inn owners - one of whom is the chef - that made me feel that this was the real deal. A labor of love. Plus, it set the right tone for me when I read on their web-site, that children were allowed as long as they were well-behaved. Mendo Bistro seems quite different and not just on ground rules for kids. It has a much more actively claimed relationship with local food and farmers, clearly thought-through attitude towards 'organic' rather than superficial, and what looks like a hip and creative space for eating in downtown Fort Bragg. I'm excited. On the complexities of understanding organic and local, from Mendo Bistro (written in 2005):

While USDA organic standards have pushed the concept into the mainstream, some farmers and consumers think the regulations make it easy to subvert the purpose of organic farming. Indeed, when you see labels like "Dole Organics" you have to wonder. With organic certification comes a mountain of paperwork to file and fees to pay. Affordable for large corporations but not small farmers. One of our main suppliers, an organic farmer in the foothills, is considering dropping his certification. "Why should I pay fees and fill out paperwork to do what I'm already going to do?" is his argument... ...How should we define local? According to Gussow the most commonsense principle to follow is that the fewer miles the food travels from the farm to your table, the better.... ...We try to get our products locally as often as possible. Being in Mendocino County that means many of them are certified organic. Many aren't however, but they would be if the farmers wanted to jump through hoops instead of tending the soil... More Here. (Scroll to "The New Organics")

Foodies: Don't forget to check out Marco's "Cook Here & Now". technorati tags: food, mendocino, localfood, organic

Smashcast hits "Jet Set Show"

2006-08-21T16:28:00.000-07:00

Just watch it - make sure you're plugged in and/or wait for the show to download once. I'm very sorry for some of the girls comments on 'why such few girls in Smashcast'. We'll see if we can't prepare a podcast on this at our next session. But cheers all in all. Just that moment with Vincent talking about downloading audacity, open source software etc. takes us miles ahead in breaking those dastardely stereotypes. Cameo by Moi. I had said 'no' to their videotaping me at the conference, figured it should be all about the Smashcasters. The cameo's from some clever interjection of still photographs into the video. Permalink to show.

Better if heard to music, Part 1

2006-08-13T16:57:00.000-07:00

Running around the lake the other day, I realized that it really all boils down to aesthetics, to beauty. Freedom is the most beautiful thing, on the rare chance we get to observe it. I've decided that all that's needed to change the world is in fact a mass adoption of my sense of aesthetics, my preferences in beauty. On that note, I've also always claimed that exercise messes with one's mind in deep and insidious ways.

A Roman in San Francisco

2006-08-07T19:16:00.000-07:00

Raj writes about food and politics - watch out for his book - coming soon... but in the meanwhile, in the here and now, Marco has launched his new group that seeks out good local produce, farmers markets and the like. Not one to simply do, he steps beyond to the world of blogging, capturing his unique sensibility and talent with food at Cook Here and Now. Visit with Marco to get a small small taste of what it's like to be at his place eating off his plates and engaging in passionate conversation about ... something, anything. Then know, I'm having it much better, because I get it all for real ...

Welcome Strangers ...

2006-06-03T00:36:00.000-07:00

World Cup is on us (begins June 9th). This is where true world citizens get separated from the chaff (that's you, if you're thinking 'soccer' as you read this) In the spirit of global citizenship, a little German town has reached out and touched ... the African nation of Togo. "For the last two weeks, Wangen's citizens have been busy turning their idyllic little town into a corner of Africa as the Allgau region plays host to the Togo national team’s pre-FIFA World Cup™ training camp. Indeed, some 3,000 people turned out wearing scarves and shirts to bid their adopted side the warmest of welcomes at the Marktplatz on 15 May. There was even a song composed in their honour by local soul band, the bizarrely-named Double Cooked Pork Slices, entitled Miawo-ezon-Lo-o (Welcome strangers who have travelled so far)." 'Welcome strangers who have travelled so far'

Goodbye Coffee Cart Days

2006-04-30T10:48:00.000-07:00

Bostoners had Cheers, or at least TV-watchers had Norm. I and a few other lucky ones had Lydia, Ricardo, and 'the coffee cart'. They've now left. I'm still here. In memory of what to me now was an Oakland institution. Small enough to know everyone's names, a welcome stop on the way to BART and work, it always put my mind in another space where it was okay to take a few minutes to loiter, chat, commiserate, catch up. Kathy and Chris. Julio. Endo. Theresa. The man with the snazzy neckties. The woman that called in her orders of nonfat vanilla flavored drinks. The Mexican Chocolate I never tried. Ricardo's famous latte with designer 'hearts' swirled on top. Walking in one day to notice Raj's CV on the counter ("What a talented guy!") Jaunts to the coffee cart with mummy and papa to introduce them to the gang. I'll miss it all - but hopefully this sets the stage for the next exciting phase for Lydia and Ricardo, away from the heartaches and stress of entrepreneurial life, and towards some stability and security.

Unreal Quotes from the Serious Games Summit

2006-03-23T15:16:00.000-08:00

Grassroots effort within the military simulation community - straight-faced.
Life is a game. Money is how we keep score - Ted Turner, as quoted on Philip Rosedale's opening slide at his plenary talk.
Family killed by ninjas, need dollars for Kung Fu Lessons. - by critter (from, guess where).
Some industry-leaders, like the government and the military … - they-meant-it.

From Serious Games Summit at the GDC '06

Hard out there ...

2006-03-14T08:37:00.000-08:00

Blackprof.com blogger Paul Butler talks about two articles in the Washington Post on "Hustle n Flow" - a black article and a white article.

The white article (front page of the Style section), by Philip Kennicott, begins hilariously:
"At dinner, say a month from now, perhaps it will be your very unhip great aunt who says it. Someone skimps her on dessert, so she looks plaintively down the table, waits for a moment of silence and then delivers the line -- 'It's hard out here for a pimp.' "

The other day, Boondocks had this to say (thanks Eric!)

Durban: House of Immigrants

2006-03-07T22:39:00.000-08:00

Conversations overheard, statements delivered. Zimbabweans in South Africa, one finds out her study permit has been 'lost' by the university - her life is on hold as she frantically calls up office after office. Another is on the phone checking on the status of something, quickly moving from a polite enquiry to an emotional exchange - "you know I don't want to be here, I'm just asking for information", tears in his eyes as he slams down the phone. Someone stuck. And the handsome young man who came while we were here, and left while we were still here, back and forth from Zimbabwe, under the radar, fighting the fight. When he left, I said as one might in my world, 'hope it's a good trip'. His response was determined. "It will". Immigrants, fighters, homeless and transient. All over the world, it's the same, and yet another gulf that separates people - those that have and those that haven't moved across boundaries in any way other than those predetermined, for the few predetermined. And this is only middle-class strife. Sunpuppy (left) has found a home finally but still shakes when we take her out of the house (she was dognapped once), straining at the leash in the direction of the house of immigrants.

Sundowners, Books, and a Party

2006-02-25T07:55:00.000-08:00

We will be hosting a party at Ike's bookstore in Durban to celebrate our matrimonials in South Africa. Ike's is on the second floor of a two-story colonial building, with shelves of books all over, books laid out on tables, many old and rare, especially from/about countries and lands in Africa. It's not packed with serpentine towers of books facing you at every step, like bookstores in Mumbai or Delhi, but has broad walkways and much mulling space between bookcases. There's a little room off the main one, with a lovely old table and nicer bookshelves with some of the more precious finds. But the best part is stepping out of the large french doors onto the balcony that encircles the store. There, there's ample room for a sofa, chairs, table - calling out for marrying the cocktail hour with a good sunset, conversation or perhaps that simplest of pleasures - reading a good book. Very civilized. Ike's is now owned by Vishnu Padayachee, professor and head of the school of development studies at the University of Kwazulu-Natal, influencer of South African national finance, and all around rennaissance man, with an ability to combine social analysis with a subject even dryer ... cricket. He and his co-owner bought the bookstore from Ike when he was forced to sell it. In this way, they've done a national service, and given us a place for a party. We all shared a drink on the balcony the first time I was in Durban, and indeed considered the option, even then, of hosting our reception at Ike's. I was elated then - and am elated now - at the prospect. More on Ike

An Example To Follow

2006-02-18T15:45:00.000-08:00

A friend read the recent businessweek article on Dan Gillmor and Bayosphere in which I'm quoted (accurately) and said "guess who got the negative quote". I hope he was kidding, but it forced me to think about the quote, and any future quotes. What's the difference between a negative quote and a critical quote? There are rare cases where I feel the former is justified, whereas the latter is probably the norm for me. But to the readers eye, perhaps the line is blurred. If you have a tip to help differentiate one from the other, I'm all ears. But the real shame for me was that I hadn't read Dan's thorough self-evaluation of the Bayosphere experiment before speaking with Heather Green of Business Week. I would have then built off his own points. The emphasis also could not then have been on anything but the net positives from the experiment. Just wrote a followup on Bayosphere, with this conclusion: Another version of (Esther) Dyson's "always make new mistakes" is the standard in science: You only progress by proving something wrong. Dan's allowed us a calculus whereby he's made mistakes and we've progressed. Very generous indeed. The rest of my Bayosphere post. Also, here's what I said as a comment to a followup post on Businessweek, re: Bayosphere "...it's important to note somethings that I think distinguished Bayosphere from start. Primarily, that Dan, better than anyone or any site I know, created a space for the expression of diverse opinions. Blogs and their related communities are generally quite partisan, especially when it comes to Politics. I thought (and think) that Dan, through his personality, focus on quality of discourse, and through the openness he engendered, created a unique space for differing viewpoints, across the spectrum of opinion and politics. This is hard to do, and rarely seen on the net, so for those looking for lessons on what to keep from Bayosphere, I'd recommend an analysis of Dan's explicit and implicit sculpting of the space for community expressions. ..."

Bad School

2006-02-16T13:21:00.000-08:00

Synablog, new entrant on my blogroll, reminds us about how crazy life can be when he tries to log onto smashcast at school. Read More.

Bizweek on Smashcast

2006-02-06T11:17:00.000-08:00

Heather Green from business week captures the spirit of smashcast.org in her most recent blog entry.

Secret Killer: School Transfers

2006-01-31T10:19:00.000-08:00

Smashcast.org goes live tomorrow (Preview here; Brainbytes preview here). This week's post, and next week's post are going to veer away from talking directly about science and technology, but instead bring up environmental and contextual issues that impact whether smashcasters have the peace of mind to allow them to focus on their academics. This week's post, "Top High Shcool Acceptance", describes the travails of a top student who has to move to Kentucky and wants to get into a good public school. The school has its own rules about who gets in, how and when. None of these seem flexible enough to accomodate families that need to move to deal with financial hardship. When these families move, the timing isn't perfect, and rarely aligns with expected application dates. So if you don't move proactively and control your moving time to school application deadlines, sounds like there are not many options for your child ... In related news, from a recent series of articles in the LATimes - "Why Does High School Fail So Many?" (thanks Jessica): The more students transferred, the less likely they were to graduate; an ominous development in a district in which one-quarter of the students change schools annually. Of 18 students who attended three or more schools, only one graduated.

Playing With Dolls

2006-01-24T19:57:00.000-08:00

This is very cool. It's a physical 3D rendering of a 2d/3d 'world of warcraft' character. It comes from the folks at Eyebeam - who's Jonah Peretti was, a long time ago in Internet time, behind the crazy, controversial, viral "blackpeoplelikeus" website. But this is from other fellas (called 'fellows' in Eyebeam-speak) at Eyebeam labs. What I got is that they manage to print a rendering of the in-world character. Does that mean, that this little guy/woman/thing on the left is a paper doll? I think it's the same little part of me that plays with the Winnie-the-Pooh Fisher-Price models (there, it's out) - that is so enthralled by my friend up there. Even though it's quite silly to get so excited about starting with simulation/VR design and recreating clunky physical dolls. (Image from Eyebeam CC sharealike license)

The Relevance of Visual Design: Zero

2006-01-22T12:12:00.000-08:00

Blue & black, dry as ice. Bookfinder's web-site seems to have stayed the way it is forever. And that hasn't done a damned thing to it's runaway success, which I'm defining as the passion and loyalty it inspires in it's customers, and the number of back-handed compliments from critics.

Mountaineer, Missionary, Researcher

2006-01-22T11:35:00.000-08:00

India hasn't allowed dual citizenship in the past. But recently - especially since the South Asian diaspora is a significant source of investment 'back home' - many schemes have been devised to give us outsourced Indians a sense that we still belong. First there was the PIO card - Person of Indian Origin. But now we have an Overseas Citizenship scheme. I'm certainly applying, at the very least it gives someone of Indian origin visa-free entry for life, and no need to register at a police station for any length of stay. Even with the PIO card I would have needed to register at a police station near my residence if I stayed for longer than 6 months. So, full steam ahead. But in reviewing various FAQs about the scheme, I ran into a strange tidbit. Apparently, with the OCI card in hand I can do anything I want in India - except "mountaineering, missionary and research work". What strange bedfellows. More from the Home Ministries website. And on a practical note, for those like myself confused about the different schemes, this chart (PDF) describes some of the differences between NRI/PIO and OCI rights, privileges and requirements. Btw, the motto above under our 4-lion symbol reads 'satyamev jayate' or "truth will always win". On the Internet, I've seen it mis-used on lopsided sites that are a thin cover for a grotesque anti-muslim bigotry - a far cry from the truth of our motto.

Cutting Edge Hype

2006-01-20T10:20:00.000-08:00

As my job has evolved into a direction bringing together my myriad interests - and chunks of experience - I've been using the catch-phrase "cutting-edge" for the ideas and technology I'm supposed to be exploring and integrating into our programs. But everytime I use that word, I cringe a little. It sounds so ... pompous. But how else do I capture that my job is about looking at what's new in science, technology, ideas ...? Hmm, perhaps I should just say that. "New" rather than "Cutting-Edge" - a little more humble and precise. After all, really, what does 'cutting-edge' mean that isn't captured by "New"? Is it, like, Really New? Probably just marketing lingo that I've unconsciously absorbed ... ick.

Coming Soon

2006-01-18T21:39:00.000-08:00

Who Killed Birjinder Anant?

2006-01-17T22:51:00.000-08:00

I want to hunt them down. Was it the spider splotch on the pavement? The sly neighbour who slunk away? The radio blaring tinnily under the sink? The gleeful portrait on the wall? Did Birj kill Birj? Did we kill Birj? How can someone die without us knowing who killed him? How can he dissapear, and we not demand, WHO KILLED BA? A bird-watching guide, cavorting Elks, sequined robes on book, that hated film, yet another mixed cd, and the bad joke about dino-sores heard post-mortem, once again. With all this, you couldn't just slip away. One of us would have grabbed you, caught you, just then, at the last minute. And it would have all be fine.

More In His Own Words

2006-01-16T13:13:00.000-08:00

mum - finally we are no one. Sometimes I would open a window - other times it would be the other way around. (from Birjinder's old homepage - now irrretrievable)

More Birj

2006-01-16T12:06:00.000-08:00

Books, Movies, Food, Manifestos, Music, CDs lent to you, Books given to me, Granular Sugar from India as a gift to an emigrant, Beats, "No", straight-faced make-believe words, Cucumber mocktails, Bycycle, Apartment-hopper, Emo. More: Birj on Flickr (tag: birj)