Good article on the science behind the aurorae. Take a look here.
So how biased is discussion on /.?
on
Republic.Com
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· Score: 3
This is one of the things I watch for as I meta-moderate -- are moderators modding down good statements they don't agree with? It happens but that's fairly rare. The/. audience is pretty polarized on a few issues but in general it's relatively diverse in its opinions.
I think there is probably some degree of the polarization that Sunstein describes. But I think more of the problems with discussion stem from two areas. For one, extreme opinions tend to get better airplay than moderate ones. This is not/. specific, but a trend in society (US, anyway) at large. People select for polarized discourse because it's more exciting or fun.
Second, I think online discussion suffers from a lack of in-depth thought. I'd love to see a graph of posts over time look like for a/. story. Most of the widely-read comments are probably posted in the first two hours that a story's up. It's much easier to quickly post a rant compared to a balanced, well-thought comment.
I only wish I had improvements to suggest... it's like the Churchill quote, democracy is the worst form of government, except for all the others.
The Indianapolis Star has printed a more detailed story. This ordinance was created by the previous Republican administration; the current (Democratic) mayor says he will carry the case forward but I wonder how high a priority it is for him?
The article also makes reference to a bill pending in the Indiana state legislature that would require parents to be present when kids play violent games. Check out that bill here.
Sure, there will be lots of ways to get around the system (either screening out ads or sharing a premium login). These methods only have one problem -- they only work as long as Salon keeps publishing.
With Napster, it's harder to see why you should pay for the music because you're pretty sure the musicians and record labels will do just fine no matter what. This is different 'cause you know Salon is probably hanging on by their fingernails. If this model doesn't work then you lose the content, period.
Personally, I'll pay. I enjoy the writing (despite its flaws) and would hate to see it go away. Frankly, I'd rather be paying for content directly than be at the whims of advertisers, not that this solves that problem.
I still have an irrational hope that a working micropayment scheme will be here Real Soon Now...
The plot is rather well done. There is a bit of sleight-of-hand in getting Vasily out of some tight spots. But the story is gripping; there's plenty of tension in the sniper duels. Quite a few times where it's tough to say what will happen next -- rare in a Hollywood movie.
The romance is good but it could probably be de-emphasized somewhat. Amusing to read all the comments about how unrealistic it is, when it basically happened. One of the better sex scenes in a while.
Some great performances. Ed Harris is outstanding -- that role could easily be one-dimensional; he makes Koenig frightening but human. Fiennes is good. Law is OK. Hoskins does a lot with a small role. Gabriel Thomson is excellent as the Sasha, best kid performance I've seen in a while (better than Osment for sure). Rachel Weisz is a bit off as the love interest. But she looks great...
Overall I'd recommend it; it's not a must-see but it's easily worth a matinee price. I'd put it on a par with Saving Private Ryan, which was rather overrated IMHO. Enemy probably has more flaws but also a more interesting plot. Solid performances on both sides, with Harris getting the nod over Hanks by a thread.
This is why it's vitally important to have quality public schools. It also points out the central problem with school vouchers*. We need schools that are accountable to the public so that we have alternatives to this kind of extreme behavior. Funny how the current political climate calls for school accountability in terms of test results but seems willing to forgive schools all kinds of trampling over students' freedoms. (Whether it's legal for schools to do this and whether they _should_ are two different questions.)
Of course the school shootings are damn frightening too. It's easy to understand why a school wants to check on a quote like that one. However calling in the cops -- and all the attendant interrogation and record-keeping -- shows an appaling willingness to abdicate authority.
(*School vouchers refers to a current political debate in the US. A voucher would enable a student to opt out of public education and use the corresponding government support to attend a private school. The idea is to improve the sometimes horrid public education by subjecting it to economic competition. Sounds good if you believe that the problems in public education stem from teachers and administrators who aren't motivated to solve the problem, and that economic fears will supply that motivation. Exercise for the reader: how many individuals choose a career in public education because they care deeply about economic rewards?)
Slashdot Mirror
Good article on the science behind the aurorae. Take a look here.
This is one of the things I watch for as I meta-moderate -- are moderators modding down good statements they don't agree with? It happens but that's fairly rare. The /. audience is pretty polarized on a few issues but in general it's relatively diverse in its opinions.
/. specific, but a trend in society (US, anyway) at large. People select for polarized discourse because it's more exciting or fun.
/. story. Most of the widely-read comments are probably posted in the first two hours that a story's up. It's much easier to quickly post a rant compared to a balanced, well-thought comment.
I think there is probably some degree of the polarization that Sunstein describes. But I think more of the problems with discussion stem from two areas. For one, extreme opinions tend to get better airplay than moderate ones. This is not
Second, I think online discussion suffers from a lack of in-depth thought. I'd love to see a graph of posts over time look like for a
I only wish I had improvements to suggest... it's like the Churchill quote, democracy is the worst form of government, except for all the others.
The Indianapolis Star has printed a more detailed story. This ordinance was created by the previous Republican administration; the current (Democratic) mayor says he will carry the case forward but I wonder how high a priority it is for him?
The article also makes reference to a bill pending in the Indiana state legislature that would require parents to be present when kids play violent games. Check out that bill here.
Sure, there will be lots of ways to get around the system (either screening out ads or sharing a premium login). These methods only have one problem -- they only work as long as Salon keeps publishing.
With Napster, it's harder to see why you should pay for the music because you're pretty sure the musicians and record labels will do just fine no matter what. This is different 'cause you know Salon is probably hanging on by their fingernails. If this model doesn't work then you lose the content, period.
Personally, I'll pay. I enjoy the writing (despite its flaws) and would hate to see it go away. Frankly, I'd rather be paying for content directly than be at the whims of advertisers, not that this solves that problem.
I still have an irrational hope that a working micropayment scheme will be here Real Soon Now...
The plot is rather well done. There is a bit of sleight-of-hand in getting Vasily out of some tight spots. But the story is gripping; there's plenty of tension in the sniper duels. Quite a few times where it's tough to say what will happen next -- rare in a Hollywood movie.
The romance is good but it could probably be de-emphasized somewhat. Amusing to read all the comments about how unrealistic it is, when it basically happened. One of the better sex scenes in a while.
Some great performances. Ed Harris is outstanding -- that role could easily be one-dimensional; he makes Koenig frightening but human. Fiennes is good. Law is OK. Hoskins does a lot with a small role. Gabriel Thomson is excellent as the Sasha, best kid performance I've seen in a while (better than Osment for sure). Rachel Weisz is a bit off as the love interest. But she looks great...
Overall I'd recommend it; it's not a must-see but it's easily worth a matinee price. I'd put it on a par with Saving Private Ryan, which was rather overrated IMHO. Enemy probably has more flaws but also a more interesting plot. Solid performances on both sides, with Harris getting the nod over Hanks by a thread.
Cheers,
Dave
This is why it's vitally important to have quality public schools. It also points out the central problem with school vouchers*. We need schools that are accountable to the public so that we have alternatives to this kind of extreme behavior. Funny how the current political climate calls for school accountability in terms of test results but seems willing to forgive schools all kinds of trampling over students' freedoms. (Whether it's legal for schools to do this and whether they _should_ are two different questions.)
Of course the school shootings are damn frightening too. It's easy to understand why a school wants to check on a quote like that one. However calling in the cops -- and all the attendant interrogation and record-keeping -- shows an appaling willingness to abdicate authority.
(*School vouchers refers to a current political debate in the US. A voucher would enable a student to opt out of public education and use the corresponding government support to attend a private school. The idea is to improve the sometimes horrid public education by subjecting it to economic competition. Sounds good if you believe that the problems in public education stem from teachers and administrators who aren't motivated to solve the problem, and that economic fears will supply that motivation. Exercise for the reader: how many individuals choose a career in public education because they care deeply about economic rewards?)