'The Matrix' is a step closer to reality
http://www.physorg.com/news7879.html In the sci-fi movie The Matrix, a cable running from a computer into Neo's brain writes in visual perceptions, and Neo's brain can manipulate the computer-created world. In reality, scientists cannot interact directly with the brain because they do not understand enough about how it codes and decodes information. Now, neuroscientists in the McGovern Institute at MIT have been able to decipher a part of the code involved in recognizing visual objects. Practically speaking, computer algorithms used in artificial vision systems might benefit from mimicking these newly uncovered codes. The study, a collaboration between James DiCarlo's and Tomaso Poggio's labs, appears in the Nov. 4 issue of Science. We want to know how the brain works to create intelligence, said Poggio, the Eugene McDermott Professor in Brain Sciences and Human Behavior. Our ability to recognize objects in the visual world is among the most complex problems the brain must solve. Computationally, it is much harder than reasoning. Yet we take it for granted because it appears to happen automatically and almost unconsciously. This work enhances our understanding of how the brain encodes visual information in a useful format for brain regions involved in action, planning and memory, said DiCarlo, an assistant professor of neuroscience. In a fraction of a second, visual input about an object runs from the retina through increasingly higher levels of the visual stream, continuously reformatting the information until it reaches the highest purely visual level, the inferotemporal (IT) cortex. The IT cortex identifies and categorizes the object and sends that information to other brain regions. To explore how the IT cortex formats that output, the researchers trained monkeys to recognize different objects grouped into categories, such as faces, toys and vehicles. The images appeared in different sizes and positions in the visual field. Recording the activity of hundreds of IT neurons produced a large database of IT neural patterns generated in response to each object under many different conditions. Then, the researchers used a computer algorithm, called a classifier, to decipher the code. The classifier was used to associate each object -- say, a monkey's face -- with a particular pattern of neural signals, effectively decoding neural activity. Remarkably, the classifier found that just a split second's worth of the neural signal contained specific enough information to identity and categorize the object, even at positions and sizes the classifier had not previously seen. It was quite surprising that so few IT neurons (several hundred out of millions) for such a short period of time contained so much precise information. If we could record a larger population of neurons simultaneously, we might find even more robust codes hidden in the neural patterns and extract even fuller information, Poggio said. xponent Coming Attractions Maru rob ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
The Emperor Doesn't Disclose
http://www.prwatch.org/node/4059 Like much news that's damaging to the Bush administration, the report came out on a Friday. Since then, it's gotten little media attention -- just 41 mentions in U.S. newspapers and wire stories, according to a news database search on October 11. That's remarkably sparse coverage for a story showing that the U.S. government has been engaged in illegal propaganda aimed at its own citizens. On September 30, the nonpartisan, investigative arm of the U.S. Congress, the Government Accountability Office (GAO), announced that several aspects of work done for the Department of Education by the public relations firm Ketchum violated federal law. Taxpayer-funded projects carried out by Ketchum or its subcontractors -- including Armstrong Williams and Karen Ryan -- constituted covert propaganda or purely partisan activities, according to the GAO. More On Site.. xponent All About Crooks Maru rob ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Work photos
- Original Message - From: Robert G. Seeberger [EMAIL PROTECTED] To: brin-l@mccmedia.com Sent: Thursday, November 10, 2005 9:01 AM Subject: Work photos http://www.flickr.com/photos/[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ These are pictures of a project I have been working on, off and on, over the last few months. I suppose it is worth a mention that this is a job paid for by FEMA as a result of damage from TS Allison in June of 2001. Proof that rebuilding takes a very long time. xponent Additional Content Maru rob ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Methodist Bishops Repent Iraq War 'Complicity'
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,175245,00.html Ninety-five bishops from President Bush's church said Thursday they repent their complicity in the unjust and immoral invasion and occupation of Iraq. In the face of the United States administration's rush toward military action based on misleading information, too many of us were silent, said a statement of conscience signed by more than half of the 164 retired and active United Methodist bishops worldwide. President Bush is a member of the United Methodist Church, according to various published biographies. The White House did not return a request for comment on the bishops' statement. Although United Methodist leadership has opposed the Iraq war in the past, this is the first time that individual bishops have confessed to a personal failure to publicly challenge the buildup to the war. The signatures were also an instrument for retired bishops to make their views known, said bishop Joseph H. Yeakel, who served in the Baltimore-Washington area from 1984 to 1996. The current bishop for the Baltimore-Washington area, John R. Schol, also signed the statement. The statement avoids making accusations, said retired Bishop Kenneth L. Carder, instructor at Duke University's divinity school and an author of the document. We would have made the statement regardless of who the president was. It was not meant to be either partisan or to single out any one person, Carder said. It was the recognition that we are all part of the decision and we are all part of a democratic society. We all bear responsibility. Stith, who spent more than three years after his retirement working in East Africa -- including with Rwandan refugees -- said going to war over the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks did not solve the real problems behind them. The real issues are that much of the world lives in poverty, desperation and depression, he said, while an affluent minority of the world often oppresses them. Americans need to take responsibility for their world, Stith said. To ignore things and to assume that persons in the government have all knowledge is to reject our franchise and our democracy, Stith said. About six weeks ago, Carder discussed the idea of a public statement with other colleagues who had concerns about the war, and the idea just grew, Carder said. Last week, the statement circulated during a biannual meeting of the Council of Bishops, and before the week was out, we had 95 bishops, Carder said. In their statement, the bishops pledged to pray daily for the end of the war, for its American and Iraqi victims and for American leaders to find truth, humility and policies of peace through justice. We confess our preoccupation with institutional enhancement and limited agendas while American men and women are sent to Iraq to kill and be killed, while thousands of Iraqi people needlessly suffer and die, while poverty increases and preventable diseases go untreated, the statement said. Some bishops declined to sign their names, although they supported the statement, Carder said. This week's statement follows years of public opposition to the Iraq war by the church. In May 2004, the Council of Bishops passed a resolution that lamented the continued warfare and asked the U.S. government to seek international help to rebuild Iraq. The church's women's division called for an end to the war in 2002. And in 2001, the church's head of social policy, Jim Winkler, said the push for war was without any justification according to the teachings of Christ, according to a report by The (London) Observer. Public approval of the war has steadily declined since the United States invaded Iraq in March 2003. At the time, seven of 10 Americans said the U.S. did the right thing. By this October, only four of 10 Americans did, according to CBS polls. About 11 million people belong to the United Methodist Church, including 200,000 in the Baltimore-Washington area. Carder and Stith said they hoped their statement would encourage more people to think about peacemaking. The only solution seems to be to stay the course. But if you're on the wrong course, you don't stay the course, Carder said. At the heart of the Christian faith is the willingness to acknowledge mistakes. xponent Tide Maru rob ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Brin: Hippies, South Park and 'movie' The Core
Has anyone seen that? There's a South Park episode where hippies invade South Park and Eric Cartmann comes up with a plan to get rid of them with a mockery of the 'movie' The Core. Alberto Monteiro ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Republicans for Humility
A point of view I found very interesting: http://republicansforhumility.com/ -- Nick Arnett [EMAIL PROTECTED] Messages: 408-904-7198 ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Legalese Rootkit
http://www.eff.org/deeplinks/archives/004145.php If you thought XCP rootkit copy-protection on Sony-BMG CDs was bad, perhaps you'd better read the 3,000 word (!) end-user license agreement (aka EULA) that comes with all these CDs. First, a baseline. When you buy a regular CD, you own it. You do not license it. You own it outright. You're allowed to do anything with it you like, so long as you don't violate one of the exclusive rights reserved to the copyright owner. So you can play the CD at your next dinner party (copyright owners get no rights over private performances), you can loan it to a friend (thanks to the first sale doctrine), or make a copy for use on your iPod (thanks to fair use). Every use that falls outside the limited exclusive rights of the copyright owner belongs to you, the owner of the CD. Now compare that baseline with the world according to the Sony-BMG EULA, which applies to any digital copies you make of the music on the CD: 1.. If your house gets burgled, you have to delete all your music from your laptop when you get home. That's because the EULA says that your rights to any copies terminate as soon as you no longer possess the original CD. 2.. You can't keep your music on any computers at work. The EULA only gives you the right to put copies on a personal home computer system owned by you. 3.. If you move out of the country, you have to delete all your music. The EULA specifically forbids export outside the country where you reside. 4.. You must install any and all updates, or else lose the music on your computer. The EULA immediately terminates if you fail to install any update. No more holding out on those hobble-ware downgrades masquerading as updates. 5.. Sony-BMG can install and use backdoors in the copy protection software or media player to enforce their rights against you, at any time, without notice. And Sony-BMG disclaims any liability if this self help crashes your computer, exposes you to security risks, or any other harm. 6.. The EULA says Sony-BMG will never be liable to you for more than $5.00. That's right, no matter what happens, you can't even get back what you paid for the CD. 7.. If you file for bankruptcy, you have to delete all the music on your computer. Seriously. 8.. You have no right to transfer the music on your computer, even along with the original CD. 9.. Forget about using the music as a soundtrack for your latest family photo slideshow, or mash-ups, or sampling. The EULA forbids changing, altering, or make derivative works from the music on your computer. So this is what Sony-BMG thinks we should be allowed to do with the music on the CDs that we purchase from them? No word yet about whether Sony-BMG will be offering a patch for this legalese rootkit. I'm not holding my breath. xponent Erosion Maru rob ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Legalese Rootkit
Robert G. Seeberger wrote: If you thought XCP rootkit copy-protection on Sony-BMG CDs was bad, perhaps you'd better read the 3,000 word (!) end-user license agreement (aka EULA) that comes with all these CDs. I never bought a pirate CD. But if I ever want to buy a CD with some nasty copy protection, I will consider changing this paradygm. Alberto Monteiro ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Al-Qaeda calls Queen an enemy of Islam
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2087-1869849,00.html AL-QAEDA has threatened the Queen by naming her as one of the severest enemies of Islam in a video message to justify the July bombings in London. The warning has been passed by MI5 to the Queens protection team after it obtained the unexpurgated version of a video issued by Al-Qaeda after the 7/7 attacks. Parts of it were broadcast on Al-Jazeera, the Arabic satellite channel. In the video, Ayman al- Zawahiri, second-in-command to Osama Bin Laden, targets the Queen as ultimately responsible for Britains crusader laws and denounces her as an enemy of Muslims. A senior Whitehall official said: MI5 is aware that there are some pieces of that video that have not been aired. They are aware of the bit of al- Zawahiri talking about the Queen and they have notified the relevant authorities. The Sunday Times has obtained the full 27-minute video, which is circulating on secure jihadist websites in the Middle East used to recruit and inflame prospective terrorists. In Britain it has been posted by Muhammad al-Massari, the London-based Saudi extremist, on his website Tajdeed. It also contains inflammatory material from Mohammad Sidique Khan, ringleader of the London bombings which killed 52 commuters. He is urging Muslims to take part in jihad and seek martyrdom. Khan, 30, incites British Muslims to ignore the moderate Islamic leaders who want integration with British society. Our so-called scholars of today, he said, are content with their Toyotas and semi- detached houses in their desire for integration. The message is believed to be the first of its kind in which a British suicide bomber calls on fellow UK Muslims to follow his example. The attack by al-Zawahiri prompted intelligence officers to alert Buckingham Palace that the Queen had become a specific target of Al-Qaeda. Her security had already been upgraded after September 11, 2001. In the video al-Zawahiri not only labels the Queen as one of Islams severest enemies but also sends a warning shot to British Islamic leaders who work for the pleasure of Elizabeth, the head of the Church of England. He said those who followed her were saying: We are British citizens, subject to Britains crusader laws, and we are proud of our submission . . . to Elizabeth, head of the Church of England. In a possible reference to the role of the Muslim Council of Britain, which had issued instructions to mosques to inform on potential terrorists, he criticised those who issue fatwas, according to the school of thought of the head of the Church of England. In the previously unseen footage, Khan, from Dewsbury in West Yorkshire, said: It is very clear, brothers and sisters, that the path of jihad and the desire for martyrdom is embedded in the holy prophet and his beloved companions. By preparing ourselves for this kind of work, we are guaranteeing ourselves for paradise and gaining the pleasure of Allah. And by turning our back on this work, we are guaranteeing ourselves humiliation and the anger of Allah. Jihad is an obligation on every single one of us, men and women. Khans message was condemned by Sir Iqbal Sacranie, the Muslim Councils secretary-general, as a perverse interpretation of Islam. The victims of Sidique Khan were innocent people . . . Its clearly inciteful. Its trying to incite people to commit murder, he said. xponent Warrior Queen Maru rob ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Hippies, South Park and 'movie' The Core
- Original Message - From: Alberto Monteiro [EMAIL PROTECTED] To: Killer Bs Discussion brin-l@mccmedia.com Sent: Sunday, November 13, 2005 10:32 AM Subject: Brin: Hippies, South Park and 'movie' The Core Has anyone seen that? There's a South Park episode where hippies invade South Park and Eric Cartmann comes up with a plan to get rid of them with a mockery of the 'movie' The Core. I've seen it a couple of timesquite by accident. xponent Funny Maru rob ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Brin: Hippies, South Park and 'movie' The Core
Agh you had to remind me about My second movie? The Core ripped off six or seven scenes concepts from EATH... and even more from Paul Preuss's novel CORE. sigh --- Alberto Monteiro [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Has anyone seen that? There's a South Park episode where hippies invade South Park and Eric Cartmann comes up with a plan to get rid of them with a mockery of the 'movie' The Core. Alberto Monteiro ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Irregulars Inquiry: how to judge unique, rivalrous item
On the Internet, how does one provide a mechanism for judging a certain kind of unique item and reporting the results? You can build trust for a online news story or encyclopedia article: give some `points' for a few days to a regular and ask that person to allocate them in judgements of news stories or articles, along with others. Few need be asked at any one time, and most who are asked will be willing to do the task gratis. I know, from personal experience with Slashdot, that the method succeeds probabilistically. Generally, `level 5' items are better than `level 1' items and there are far fewer of them. Slashdot provides only one judgement number. Another entity might offer more. For example, an encyclopedia could have a `how truthful' judgement as well as a `how well written' one. (My hunch is that more people will be able to judge `how well written' an entry is than `how truthful' it is. For example, do you know whether the first Secretary of the Treasury of the United States was born in 1747, 1755, or 1757; do you know about his birthdate controversy?) But what about an item such as an apartment for rent? (In economists' jargon, an apartment is `rivalrous': your use of it `rivals' mine, much like a shoe or shirt. On the other hand, because the cost of manufacturing a new instance -- what we call `copying' -- has dropped so low, a news story on a computer, a Brin-L posting, or software is `non-rivalrous'.) Recently, I helped a friend post an apartment for rent on Craig's List, a gratis Internet service that lists apartments (and other items) for rent or sale. If you are looking for an apartment, Craig's List permits you to search according to various criteria. This reduces the number of entries you see. But you may still see too many. In my case, to check the posting, I set the criteria for what I figured would be a reasonable search and ended up with 497 ... Unlike a single news story or a single encyclopedia article, I do not see how anyone else can judge `how truthful' such an entry is and provide you with the appropriate trust-building and evaluation information. Moreover, repeat business is or should be sufficiently infrequent that no one can judge the reputation of the poster as is done for frequent sellers on EBay. To reduce spam, Craig's List makes it time consuming to enter the details. In addition, Craig's List has a `five letter verification word' in an image that is hard for robots to read. An alternative to forcing humans to spend time on each transaction is to charge, as is done by hardcopy newspapers with classified ads. Both methods are designed to reduce the number of entries as user sees by costing the enterer resources: either of time or of money. Morevoer, electonic search is supposed to reduce the number of items for an online user. But as far as I can see, none succeed. Can you tell me of some way to convey selection information to a person online, as can be done with comments, stories, encyclopedia articles, and the like? -- Robert J. Chassell [EMAIL PROTECTED] GnuPG Key ID: 004B4AC8 http://www.rattlesnake.com http://www.teak.cc ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Legalese Rootkit
Alberto wrote: I never bought a pirate CD. But if I ever want to buy a CD with some nasty copy protection, I will consider changing this paradygm. I'm for a boycott of all things Sony, and for letting the artists whose music I may buy know about my feelings. I buy CDs exclusively because of the greater freedom they afford (among other things.) I also would consider pirating music if these rights are compromised. -- Doug ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Brin: Hippies, South Park and 'movie' The Core
David Brin wrote: Agh you had to remind me about My second movie? Yes, because the South Park episode was dedicated to making ridicule of the 'movie' :-) Alberto Monteiro ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Work photos
On 11/10/05 10:55 PM, Robert Seeberger [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: I ought to take some pics of the Remote Box Terminations in some of the Fire Alarm Boxes. The Fire Alarm company did the terminations themselves thinking that we were not as qualified as they were. Their work looks like hammered shit in comparison to our work and now everyone can plainly see why we get paid as much as we do. I liked the pictures, very cool stuff. I used to work in a special automated machine company, so I know how much effort goes into something like that. Those people were absolutely incredible in the neatness. Their near obsessive compulsive disorder wiring skills resulted in control panels that made grown men cry. I don't think they could have been as fast as they were without being so neat. They weren't union, but most of them had journeyman cards from previous jobs. But then again, we paid them more than union wage to keep them around. And although they were awesome electricians, it was the only skill they were neat in. You didn't even want to look into their cars. Nasty. Keeping the Snap-on man in good spirits, Matthew Bos (I am seriously considering taking some pictures of what I am working with...just so you can have a laugh) ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Star Wars criticism anthology
Announcement: The (apparent) success of my anthology of essays KING KONG IS BACK has inspired the publishers to go for another -- one taking off from my infamous denunciations of Star Wars. bThe Politics of Star Wars - A discussion of the underlying politics and of the Star Wars saga Religion Ethics in Star Wars/b It will be organized as a itrial/i with prosecution and defense arguments in a number of categories: i Star Wars and the battle for SF readers and shelf space - A hot button issue for many SF writers - the shelf space and mindshare that Star Wars books take up; is this a positive or a negative thing? The Impact of Star Wars on SFF writing today - To what extent is current SF writing influenced by Star Wars and how? Star Wars as an SF Film and the impact on SF Film - To what extent is current SF filmmaking influenced by Star Wars and how? The impact of SW on the public's perception of SF/F - To what extend does SW define how the general public sees SF, and is this a good thing? Star Wars is a fantasy hitching a ride on the tropes of science fiction The Evolution of an SF Writer: The impact of Star Wars - This is a chance for essayist to reflect on how Star Wars impacted them. Star Wars as Fiction: Plot Holes and Logical Gaps Women in Star Wars Summation For the Prosecution For the Defense/i Most of the essayist positions are already assigned. But if any of you know individuals who have written on these topics elsewhere, who might be especially well-suited, feel free to speak up. Deadlines are going to be rapid... before the end of the year. -- ion other matters/i The political world keeps catching up with things I was saying months and years ago. (I know that Truthout is a biased source of information. So? Look at the SOURCES that they cite.) In 2003 I began predicting what has relentlessly gone farther than I ever imagined possible. After the shocks of 9/11, we have relentlessly seen an administration do everything in its power to REDUCE our ability and flexibility to respond to NEW unexpected surprises! Military readiness (except at sea) has plummeted to levels not seen since Pearl Harbor. iUS 'Can't Maintain Iraq Troop Levels' http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/111305A.shtml/i I cannot prove that a myriad disparate and separate events add up to a systematic ipurge of the United State Officer Corps./i Oh it's proved enough at the State Department, when political cronies and former S'audi hands have been appointed to every possible supervisory slot... but who cares about State? And it is blatantly obvious at the CIA... but they hate the administration anyway, so it's biased reporting. The REAL scandal, though, the ferocious political culling of flag officers, is harder to back up because these men traditionally bear anything in loyal silence. Here, however, is more on the iother/i end of the Scudder Plan the stocking of the Officer Corps from below with religious zealots. Not satisfied with the 1/3 of every class that is appointed by extremist Congressmen, they are starting to do yet more. iAir Force Ministers Evangelize Cadets http://www.truthout.org/docs_2005/111305F.shtml A private missionary group has assigned a pair of full-time Christian ministers to the US Air Force Academy, where they are training cadets to evangelize among their peers./i === ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Irregulars Inquiry: how to judge unique, rivalrous item
At 12:39 PM Sunday 11/13/2005, Robert J. Chassell wrote: For example, do you know whether the first Secretary of the Treasury of the United States was born in 1747, 1755, or 1757; do you know about his birthdate controversy? No, but I know I have the same problem (although the dates are roughly a century and a half later) with my father's father's birth date, in that I have original or copies of three official records (census, marriage certificate, WWI service papers) which each give a different year (same month and day) for his birth. --Ronn! :) Since I was a small boy, two states have been added to our country and two words have been added to the pledge of Allegiance... UNDER GOD. Wouldn't it be a pity if someone said that is a prayer and that would be eliminated from schools too? -- Red Skelton ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Irregulars Inquiry: how to judge unique, rivalrous item
Ronn!Blankenship wrote: At 12:39 PM Sunday 11/13/2005, Robert J. Chassell wrote: For example, do you know whether the first Secretary of the Treasury of the United States was born in 1747, 1755, or 1757; do you know about his birthdate controversy? No, but I know I have the same problem (although the dates are roughly a century and a half later) with my father's father's birth date, in that I have original or copies of three official records (census, marriage certificate, WWI service papers) which each give a different year (same month and day) for his birth. How many census records do you have for him? If you have, say, 3 different census records, and 2 of them agree with either the marriage certificate or the WWI service papers, the year for which more things agree is more likely. If the WWI papers give an earlier year of birth, he may have been lying to get in. (Though I'm sure you've thought of all this already) Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Legalese Rootkit
On Nov 13, 2005, at 12:42 PM, Doug Pensinger wrote: Alberto wrote: I never bought a pirate CD. But if I ever want to buy a CD with some nasty copy protection, I will consider changing this paradygm. I'm for a boycott of all things Sony, and for letting the artists whose music I may buy know about my feelings. I buy CDs exclusively because of the greater freedom they afford (among other things.) I also would consider pirating music if these rights are compromised. Thankfully, the uproar over the ham-handed way that Sony tried to infect the music world (and the fact that they were sued, and the fact that crackers quickly figured out how to hide under Sony BMG's rootkit's skirts) has led them to suspend production of those discs. http://www.zdnet.com.au/news/software/print.htm? TYPE=storyAT=3914-261733t-1002c http://makeashorterlink.com/?T1B82472C http://tinyurl.com/buxks http://url123.com/85b7p A victory for the little guy? I doubt it very much. A battle lost, but the war far from over? Exactly. Dave ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Work photos
On Nov 13, 2005, at 1:51 PM, Matthew and Julie Bos wrote: On 11/10/05 10:55 PM, Robert Seeberger [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: I ought to take some pics of the Remote Box Terminations in some of the Fire Alarm Boxes. The Fire Alarm company did the terminations themselves thinking that we were not as qualified as they were. Their work looks like hammered shit in comparison to our work and now everyone can plainly see why we get paid as much as we do. I liked the pictures, very cool stuff. I used to work in a special automated machine company, so I know how much effort goes into something like that. Those people were absolutely incredible in the neatness. Their near obsessive compulsive disorder wiring skills resulted in control panels that made grown men cry. I don't think they could have been as fast as they were without being so neat. They weren't union, but most of them had journeyman cards from previous jobs. But then again, we paid them more than union wage to keep them around. The guys who wired Lucas Ranch and parts of Apple TV weren't union, either. And I certainly wasn't in a union when I did the rest of Apple TV (and re-did the work that the guys who wired Lucas Ranch did: all the inputs and outputs for a 64x64 video routing matrix). That said, somewhere around here I still have my card from when I *was* a member of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employee and Motion Picture Machine Operators (IATSE)/Television Studio Broadcast Engineers Local 620. Dave ... And I Vote Maru ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Irregulars Inquiry: how to judge unique, rivalrous item
At 09:09 PM Sunday 11/13/2005, Julia Thompson wrote: Ronn!Blankenship wrote: At 12:39 PM Sunday 11/13/2005, Robert J. Chassell wrote: For example, do you know whether the first Secretary of the Treasury of the United States was born in 1747, 1755, or 1757; do you know about his birthdate controversy? No, but I know I have the same problem (although the dates are roughly a century and a half later) with my father's father's birth date, in that I have original or copies of three official records (census, marriage certificate, WWI service papers) which each give a different year (same month and day) for his birth. How many census records do you have for him? If you have, say, 3 different census records, and 2 of them agree with either the marriage certificate or the WWI service papers, the year for which more things agree is more likely. If the WWI papers give an earlier year of birth, he may have been lying to get in. (Though I'm sure you've thought of all this already) And I'm sure you can guess that those are the only three official records I have which contain his birth date. :D --Ronn! :) Since I was a small boy, two states have been added to our country and two words have been added to the pledge of Allegiance... UNDER GOD. Wouldn't it be a pity if someone said that is a prayer and that would be eliminated from schools too? -- Red Skelton ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Brin: The Governments All Seeing Eye
http://www.drudgereport.com/flashmav.htm The device, a hovering robot carrying video cameras and other sensors, is being created and tested at HONEYWELL's Albuquerque, NM plant. - The pessimist says, Things couldn't possibly get worse! The optimist replies, Oh, now, now! Of course they could! --unknown ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
