where

Fwd: 學蜘蛛人趴趴走

noreply@blogger.com (whereisitwritten) — Sun, 18 Nov 2007 17:40:00 +0000

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Dasein Who <luo.pda@gmail.com>
Date: Nov 19, 2007 12:30 AM
Subject: Re: 學蜘蛛人趴趴走
To: luo.pda@gmail.com

James Gordon
The New Science of Strong Materials
Structures: or Why Things Don't Fall Down
1992 高登在里丁大學設立英國第一所仿生學系

On Nov 18, 2007 4:38 PM, Dasein Who < luo.pda@gmail.com> wrote:

加拿大 Nexia Biotechnologies
基因改造的山羊乳汁大量生產蜘蛛絲
BioSteel

On 11/18/07, Dasein Who <luo.pda@gmail.com> wrote:
> 第三章天然尼龍蜘蛛絲
> 一隻蜘蛛能單獨造出七種不同的絲
>
> 蜘蛛絲製成手套獻給路易十四
> 1709,Francois Xavier Bon de Saint-Hilaire
> Rene Reaumur斷言只有蜘蛛卵囊的絲質適合用來編織
> 1876清使節贈維多利亞女王蜘蛛絲製的禮服
> 十八世紀後期的澳洲在蜘蛛網上作畫,其中一幅陳列在英國Chester Cathedral
> 蜘蛛吐絲器內的吐絲管,顯微攝影
>
>
> On 11/18/07, Dasein Who < luo.pda@gmail.com> wrote:
> > 蠟
> > 可穿透薄膜(塑膠膜,角質層)
> > self-assembly
> >
> > On 11/18/07, Dasein Who <luo.pda@gmail.com > wrote:
> > > 印度物理學家
> > > L. Mahadevan
> > > 哈佛
> > > 蚜蟲
> > > How aphids lose their marbles
> > >
> > >
> > > On 11/18/07, Dasein Who < luo.pda@gmail.com> wrote:
> > > > Namibian Darkling beetle
> > > > 集水能力
> > > > 帕克
> > > > QinetiQ
> > > > Farnborough
> > > > 吸水區與防水區
> > > >
> > > >
> > > > On 11/18/07, Dasein Who <luo.pda@gmail.com> wrote:
> > > > > Nanotex
> > > > > Nano-Care
> > > > > 自潔纖維
> > > > >
> > > > > On 11/18/07, Dasein Who <luo.pda@gmail.com > wrote:
> > > > > > 自潔玻璃
> > > > > > 反蓮花效應
> > > > > > Pilkington Activ
> > > > > > 英國, Merseyside, St. Helens
> > > > > > float glass
> > > > > >
> > > > >
> > > >
> > >
> >
>

The science of blog reading

noreply@blogger.com (whereisitwritten) — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 04:29:00 +0000

由 luo 透過 Google 閱讀器傳送給您：

The science of blog reading

經由 Rough Type: Nicholas Carr's Blog (日期為 2007/10/24)

The problem of detecting contaminants in a public water system is analogous to the problem of figuring out what's going on in the blogosphere, write a team of Carnegie-Mellon researchers in an award-winning paper called Cost-effective Outbreak Detection in Networks: Given a water distribution network, where should we place sensors to quickly detect contaminants? Or, which blogs should we read to avoid missing important stories? These seemingly different problems share common structure: Outbreak detection can...

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Radar Networks: Twine

noreply@blogger.com (whereisitwritten) — Thu, 25 Oct 2007 02:58:00 +0000

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What a Week!

via Minding the Planet by Nova on 10/20/07

What a week it has been for Radar Networks. We have worked so hard these last few days to get ready to unveil Twine, and it has been a real thrill to show our work and get such positive feedback and support from the industry, bloggers, the media and potential users.

We really didn't expect so much excitement and interest. In fact we've been totally overwhelmed by the response as thousands upon thousands of people have contacted us in the last 24 hours asking to join our beta, telling us how they would use Twine for their personal information management, their collaboration, their organizations, and their communities. Clearly there is such a strong and growing need out there for the kind of Knowledge Networking capabilities that Twine provides, and it's been great to hear the stories and make new connections with so many people who want our product. We love hearing about your interest in Twine, what you would use it for, what you want it to do, and why you need it! Keep those stories coming. We read them all and we really listen to them.

Today, in unveiling Twine, over five years of R&D, and contributions from dozens of core contributors, a dedicated group of founders and investors, and hundreds of supporters, advisors, friends and family, all came to fruition. As a company, and a team, we achieved an important milestone and we should all take some time to really appreciate what we have accomplished so far. Twine is a truly ambitious and pardigm-shifting product, that is not only technically profound but visually stunning -- There has been so much love and attention to detail in this product.

In the last 6 months, Twine has really matured into a product, a product that solves real and growing needs (for a detailed use-case see this post). And just as our product has matured, so has our organization: As we doubled in size, our corporate culture has become tremendously more interesting, innovative and fun. I could go on and on about the cool things we do as a company and the interesting people who work here. But it's the passion, dedication and talent of this team that is most inspiring. We are creating a team and a culture that truly has the potential to become a great Silicon Valley company: The kind of company that I've always wanted to build.

Although we launched today, this is really just the beginning of the real adventure. There is still much for us to build, learn about, and improve before Twine will really accomplish all the goals we have set out for it. We have a five-year roadmap. We know this is a marathon, not a sprint and that "slow and steady wins the race." As an organization we also have much learning and growing to do. But this really doesn't feel like work -- it feels like fun -- because we all love this product and this company. We all wake up every day totally psyched to work on this.

It's been an intense, challenging, and rewarding week. Everyone on my team has impressed me and really been at the top of their game. Very few of us got any real sleep, and most of us went far beyond the call of duty. But we did it, and we did it well. As a company we have never cut corners, and we have always preferred to do things the right way, even if the right way is the hard way. But that pays off in the end. That is how great products are built. I really want to thank my co-founders, my team, my investors, advisors, friends, and family, for all their dedication and support.

Today, we showed our smiling new baby to the world, and the world smiled back.

And tonight , we partied!!!

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On Google's Mobile Strategy

noreply@blogger.com (whereisitwritten) — Fri, 19 Oct 2007 02:37:00 +0000

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On Google's Mobile Strategy

via Google Operating System by Ionut Alex Chitu on 10/18/07

A guest post by Chad Bam

Chad Bam is the founder and chief writer for Ga Ga Gooogle.com, a blog that discusses Google's strategy, stock trends and the latest Google news. Here is a summary of a three-part series titled: Google's Mobile Strategy (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3).

Today Google is a pure money machine. The company has done a phenomenal job maximizing ad revenues. They also know they need to think, plan and executive for the long term. To remain a viable long-term powerhouse, Google will need more than just landline PC Internet search advertising. Which brings us to their long-term focus: Mobile.

Unplugging the PC / landline Internet. Mobility is where Google will create a greater fortune, and put a big hurting squeeze on it's competitors. As Eric Schmidt puts it:

"Mobile, mobile, mobile - it's probably the most wide open space out there right now."

We are on the cusp of a new revolution: the untethered Internet; the mobile Internet. I'm talking about going beyond a "cell phone." This revolution is just starting (the iPhone is a prime example), and Google's covering all their bases to be the key player and money maker.

Let's look at the wireless infrastructure and how Google will "own" it. All wireless companies (Verizon, AT&T, Sprint) own spectrum. It's the air waves that all cell phone calls run over. Spectrum is also a finite asset, which means it's limited. This is why the wireless carriers spend billions at these spectrum "auctions". If they don't own spectrum, they can't run their business.

There has been a lot of buzz about the 700Mhz spectrum auction taking place in January 2008 because Google stepped into the fray. This spectrum was used by TV companies for analog television. The government is requiring the TV companies give the spectrum back as they convert to a digital signal (which needs to be completed by the 2009 deadline).

The spectrum is valuable real estate because it covers 196 million people in the U.S. and will be true mobile broadband (much faster than today's current 2.5 G or 3G networks). Enter Google.

We believe Google has no intention of bidding on the spectrum, owning the spectrum, or running a wireless network. It's not their core business. Google is sitting at the spectrum card table, holding their cards tight, and bluffing--- with a straight face. They are trying to loosen the hold wireless carriers have on us, the end users.

Today, wireless carriers control the phone and applications that run on their networks, and how long we are committed to them. Google wants an open wireless Internet (network), just like the landline Internet. In an open market, Google can thrive. Specifically, Google wants the following, as stated on the Google Public Policy Blog:

Open applications: consumers should be able to download and utilize any software applications, content, or services they desire;

Open devices: consumers should be able to utilize a handheld communications device with whatever wireless network they prefer;

Open services: third parties (resellers) should be able to acquire wireless services from a 700 MHz licensee on a wholesale basis, based on reasonably nondiscriminatory commercial terms; and

Open networks: third parties (like Internet service providers) should be able to interconnect at a technically feasible point in a 700 MHz licensee's wireless network.

Of course the major wireless carriers don't want this, as it will just increase competition and lower their profit margins. They don't want to lose control. So Google has been hard at work lobbying the FCC [PDF].

But even Google doesn't always get what it wants, in this case, half. Google's words:

"In essence, the FCC embraced two of the four openness conditions that we suggested several weeks ago: (1) open applications, the right of consumers to download and utilize any software applications or content they desire; and (2) open devices, the right of consumers to utilize their handheld communications device with whatever wireless network they prefer. Today the FCC took some concrete steps on the road to bringing greater choice and competition to all Americans."

But Verizon is now pushing back. As Verizon won't get pushed around without a fight. And neither will AT&T, as they just bought a boat load of 700Mhz spectrum right under the nose of Google and Verizon. Holly crap!!! That was a slick move. Google, how did you miss that? Now AT&T is not beholden to the spectrum auction, but they will still bid on it, just to bid the price UP UP UP.

So where is Sprint in all this? Enter Xohm.

Sprint already owns 4G wireless spectrum in the 2.5Ghz band, so it doesn't not need the 700Mhz spectrum. Sprint will launch Xohm (a WiMAX 4G mobile broadband technology) on it's 2.5Ghz band and has already partnered with Google, Intel, Motorola, Samsung and others..

Sprint plans to launch it's WiMAX in April 2008, a full year or two before any vendor will be able to use the 700Mhz spectrum. So Sprint has an advantage (if they can get out of their own way). Xohm is like WiFi, but runs long distances. It will have mobile broadband speeds averaging 2-5 megabits, with bursting speeds of up to 10 megabits. It will be the mobile Internet.

From Xohm.com:

"Xohm customers will be able to experience a new form of interactive communications, high-speed Internet browsing, social networking tools, local and location-centric services, and multimedia services including music, video, TV and on-demand products through a new mobile portal."

So Google gets the open devices and open applications on the 700Mhz spectrum and partners with Xohm. What does this mean?

It means the Gphone will debut on April 1, 2008 (on the 4th anniversary of Gmail). But it may not be what you think.

It will debut on the Xohm mobile Internet (see Google's Mobile Strategy, Part 2). It will be a data-only device, but don't fret, you'll still be able to make voice calls. You'll pay a flat fee and won't sign a contract. That's right, no contract! Pay to use it just for the day, or pay monthly; or yearly. You decide.

The voice calls will be VoIP (voice over IP) leveraging an integrated version of Google Talk and GrandCentral. The device will be Google's "unified communications" platform. This Linux-based platform (OS or framework) will also include search, maps, gmail, reader, calendar, docs, texting, location-based services, presence, social networking and, of course, ads. And the monthly fee will be much lower than your standard cell phone plan, partially offset by unobtrusive click ads. Talk away, text away, surf away... it doesn't matter, it's unlimited! The device will be manufactured by HTC with a full qwerty keyboard and run all Google's mobile services. But unlike today's scattered apps, they will be tightly integrated, all having the Google UI feel, like Gmail and Maps.

Why run it on Xohm? Simple. Xohm has no restrictions on applications, devices or services. Use it at will. Plus Xohm is IP-based with less latency (better performance) with a more efficient use of the spectrum (it can scale very well). Plus Xohm (WiMAX) is being rolled-out internationally by other carriers, so it will eventually be a global standard for the mobile Internet. In April, Xohm will be as close as you can get to the Mobile Internet today and will distinctly outperform today's 3G networks.

Google will then follow-up with more devices on the 700Mhz spectrum (whichever carrier wins it). Today's carrier's have Google boxed-out with end user restrictions (see Google's Mobile Strategy Part 2). Sprint, on the other hand, needs to use the 2.5Ghz spectrum (or they'll lose it) and desperately needs differentiators against Verizon and AT&T. Google needs the free open mobile Internet (Xohm). End users need lower cost plans and no commitments or contracts with better Internet capabilities.

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群眾外包(Crowdsourcing)浪潮的興起(三) - 愛修機器的業餘人士

noreply@blogger.com (whereisitwritten) — Wed, 10 Oct 2007 02:58:00 +0000

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群眾外包(Crowdsourcing)浪潮的興起(三) - 愛修機器的業餘人士

于 07-10-5 通过 Mr./Ms. Days - 網路, 資訊, 觀察, 生活作者：Days

作者：Jeff Howe

譯 : Mr. Friday

3. 愛修機器的業餘人士

合眾研發的未來可以在Kelly的Auto Body上找到。它位在安大略省Barrie城的Shanty Bay路上。這是57歲的Ed Melcarek，放置他的「週末毀滅臺」的地方。那是只有一個房間的公寓，有一個音響擴大機，一把吉他，變壓器，兩台桌上型電腦，一把小號，半個浮船，以及一些足以組成一整間RadioShack電子專賣店的小玩意。大多數的禮拜六，Melcarek會進來這裡，倒上一杯St. Remy，點上一根Player雪茄，開始嘗試解決那些深深困擾著財星100大公司的技術問題。

不是所有人都想要弄愚蠢的影片。有些人天生有一些科學天份與能力，而美國大公司們正努力發掘這潛力。在這段追尋過程中，站在前端的公司正改變研發的面貌。白色實驗室外套再見；歡迎Melcarek – 九萬名「問題解決者」之一。這些人組成了InnoCentive上的科學家網路，這可以說是iStockphoto的科技研發版。

(more...)

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Smooches for Bookworms, now on BookMooch

noreply@blogger.com (whereisitwritten) — Sat, 06 Oct 2007 06:05:00 +0000

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Smooches for Bookworms, now on BookMooch

via Mashable! by Kristen Nicole on 10/5/07

BookMooch, the network for exchanging used books, has released a few updates. There is now a secret admirer feature, which lets you send smooches to cuties you're crushing.

There's also some new widget offerings, which involves a rather extensive list of options. BookMooch has created a text list for all the widget variations you can choose from, and it makes my head spin a bit. But variety is always good, right? There are widgets to show what books you have available to give, those you've received, those that are on your wish list, etc. Then there are options for each of these categories. I think combining a lot of these widget choices into one actual widget could be helpful.

Next up is the BookMooch Angel Network, which provides helpful "middlemen" for getting books to people overseas. Another minor upgrade is the invite feature, which lets you invite friends to join BookMooch. See here for BookMooch's previous updates.

Recommended: MySpace News - MySpace Launching News Site

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Help the People of Burma -- Post this Meme on Your Blog!

noreply@blogger.com (whereisitwritten) — Fri, 05 Oct 2007 09:12:00 +0000

由 luo 透過 Google 閱讀器傳送給您：

Help the People of Burma -- Post this Meme on Your Blog!

經由 Minding the Planet Nova 著 (日期為 2007/10/1)

Note: This is a new kind of online protest that uses blogs to spread a petition globally. To participate, just add your blog by following the instructions in this blog post.

This not an issue of partisan politics, this is an issue of basic human rights and democracy. Please help to prevent a human tragedy in Burma by adding your blog and asking others to do the same.

By passing this meme on through the blogosphere hopefully we can generate more awareness and avert a serious tragedy. As concerned world-citizens this something we bloggers can do to help.

How to participate:

1. Copy this entire post to your blog, including this special number: 1081081081234

2. After a few days, you can search Google for the number 1081081081234 to find all blogs that are participating in this protest and petition. Note: Google indexes blogs at different rates, so it could take longer for your blog to show up in the results. Also note -- if you want an accurate count of the number of blogs that joined this petition, make sure you scroll to the bottom of the Google results and click to view results that were omitted because they were similar.

3. If you know how to add tags to your blog posts, add the Technorati tag 1081081081234 to your post as well. This will make your post findable sooner in Technorati.

THE SITUATION IN BURMA AND WHY IT MATTERS TO ALL OF US

There is no press freedom in Burma and the government has started turning off the Internet and other means of communication, so it is difficult to get news out. Individuals on the ground have been sending their day-by-day reports to the BBC, and they are heartbreaking. I encourage you to read these accounts to see for yourself what is really going on in Burma. Please include this link in your own blog post.

The situation in Burma is increasingly dangerous. Hundreds of thousands of unarmed peaceful protesters, including monks and nuns, are risking their lives to march for democracy against an unpopular but well-armed military dictatorship that will stop at nothing to continue its repressive rule. While the generals in power and their families are literally dripping in gold and diamonds, the people of Burma are impoverished, deprived of basic human rights, cut off from the rest of the world, and increasingly under threat of violence.

This week the people of Burma have risen up collectively in the largest public demonstrations against the ruling Junta in decades. It's an amazing show of bravery, decency, and democracy in action. But although these protests are peaceful, the military rulers are starting to crack down with violence. Already there have been at least several reported deaths, and hundreds of critical injuries from soldiers beating unarmed civilians to the point of death.

The actual fatalities and injuries are probably far worse, but the only news we have is coming from individuals who are sneaking reports past the authorities. Unfortunately it looks like a large-scale blood-bath may ensue -- and the victims will be mostly women, children, the elderly and unarmed monks and nuns.

Contrary to what the Burmese, Chinese and Russian governments have stated, this is not merely a local internal political issue, it is an issue of global importance and it affects the global community. As concerned citizens, we cannot allow any government anywhere in the world to use its military to attack and kill peacefully demonstrating, unarmed citizens.

In this modern day and age violence against unarmed civilians is unacceptable and if it is allowed to happen, without serious consequences for the perpetrators, it creates a precedent for it to happen again somewhere else. If we want a more peaceful world, it is up to each of us to make a personal stand on these fundamental issues whenever they arise.

Please join me in calling on the Burmese government to negotiate peacefully with its citizens, and on China to intervene to prevent further violence. And please help to raise awareness of the developing situation in Burma so that hopefully we can avert a large-scale human disaster there.

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From Nand to Tetris in 12 steps

noreply@blogger.com (whereisitwritten) — Fri, 05 Oct 2007 09:08:00 +0000

由 luo 透過 Google 閱讀器傳送給您：

From Nand to Tetris in 12 steps

經由 Google Video - Video Search [source:18274856443884224265] Google engEDU 著 (日期為 2007/10/3)

From Nand to Tetris in 12 steps
Google engEDU
1 hr 1 min - Oct 3, 2007

Google Tech Talks October 10, 2007 ABSTRACT We describe a new approach and a course that aims to demystify the integrated function of computer systems, using a hands-on approach. The course presents many abstractions, algorithms, and data structures learned in CS courses, and makes them concrete by building a complete computer system from the ground up. In particular, we guide the students through a modular series of projects that gradually construct and unit-test a simple hardware platform and a modern software hierarchy, yielding a surprisingly powerful computer system. The hardware projects are done in a simple hardware description language and a hardware simulator supplied by us. The software projects (assembler, VM, and a compiler for a simple object-based language) can be done in any language, using the APIs and test programs supplied by us. We also build a mini-OS. The result is a GameBoy-like computer, simulated on the student's PC. We start the course (and this talk) by demonstrating some video games running on this computer, e.g. Tetris and Pong. Building a working computer from Nand gates alone is a thrilling intellectual exercise. It demonstrates the supreme power of recursive ascent, and teaches the students that building computer systems is -- more than anything else -- a triumph of human reasoning. We are able to squeeze all this into a single course since we deal with neither efficiency nor advanced features, leaving these subjects to other courses in the program. The resulting approach is completely self-contained, requiring only programming as a pre-requisite. Hence, courses based on the approach can be given at almost any stage in a CS program.

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World Reaction to the UN Declaration on Indigenous Rights

noreply@blogger.com (whereisitwritten) — Wed, 03 Oct 2007 09:01:00 +0000

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World Reaction to the UN Declaration on Indigenous Rights

via Global Voices Online by Jennifer Brea on 9/24/07

In every society in which they find themselves, the world's 370 million indigenous peoples are among the most vulnerable and marginalized.

After over 22 years of negotiations and consultations, the United Nations approved the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples earlier this month, a broad, non-binding agreement articulating basic individual and communal rights to cultural self-preservation, self-determination and natural resources.

The Declaration sparked conversations in blogospheres around the world about the situation of indigenous people today, the Declaration's value and limits, as well as harsh condemnation of the four member countries that voted against: Canada, the United States, Australia and New Zealand.

K sums up the main provisions of the Declaration:

la Declaración consta de 46 artículos y establece parámetros mínimos de respeto a los derechos de los pueblos indígenas, que incluyen propiedad de la tierra, acceso a los recursos naturales de los territorios donde se asientan, respeto y preservación de sus tradiciones y autodeterminación...El texto también hace hincapié en la importancia de la educación bilingüe y alude a la implementación de medidas especiales para asegurar el mejoramiento continuo de las condiciones económicas y sociales de los ancianos, mujeres y menores, en particular. La Declaración no es jurídicamente vinculante, pero representa un instrumento dinámico en las normas internacionales, que ayudaría a proteger a los indígenas contra la discriminación y marginación.

The Declaration consists of 46 articles and establishes minimum parameters for respecting the rights of indigenous peoples, including land ownership, access to the natural resources in the lands where they live, respect and preservation of their traditions and self-determination...The text also stresses the importance of bilingual education and alludes to the implementation of special measures to ensure continual improvement of the economic conditions of the elderly, women and children in particular. The Declaration is not legally binding, but it represents a dynamic instrument of international norms that will help to protect indigenous peoples from discrimination and marginalization

On the plight of indigenous people around the world

Democracia Multicultural:

Los pueblos indígenas afirman que sus tierras y territorios están siendo amenazados por la minería, tala, contaminación ambiental, proyectos de privatización y desarrollo, las designaciones de tierras como áreas protegidas o reservas y el uso de semillas genéticamente modificadas, entre otros.

Indigenous peoples say that their lands and territories are being threated by mining, logging, environmental contamination, development and privatization projects, the designation of land as reserved or protected areas, and the use of genetically modified seeds, among others.

Kenya Environmental & Political News Weblog writes that in Kenya, the Maasai and Ogiekrg face serious social problems that "stemmed mostly from eviction from their ancestral land and being denied the right to continue living in forests as their forefathers."

Ever since colonial times, most of what used to be Maasai land has been taken over, for private farms and ranches, for government projects or for wildlife parks. Mostly they retain only the most arid and least fertile areas. The stress this causes to their herds has often been aggravated by attempts made by government of Kenya and Tanzania to 'develop' the Maasai.

Similarly, since colonial times, there have been persistent attempts to evict the Ogiek from their ancestral forest, usually on the pretext that they are degrading it. But when the Ogiek are removed, their forest is not protected but rather exploited by logging and tea plantations - some owned by government officials. In some parts of the Mau forest, groups of Ogiek are now resisting eviction, while in others they face influxes of settlers onto their land. The most serious threat currently facing them all comes from the government's plan to open up around one tenth of Kenya's forests - most of it in the Mau forest - to outsiders.

Censored News posts a statement by civil society organizations on the conditions of indigenous peoples elsewhere in Africa:

au moment ou des milliers de Batwa dans la région des grands lacs sont affectés par des guerres dont ils ne connaissent pas les raisons, des familles de San sont expropries de leur terre par des fermiers et des parks nationaux. Les forets qui constituent les ressources de survie des autochtones (Baka, Bageli, Batwa, endoroi, Massai, Ogiek, M'barabek ...etc.) d'Afrique centrale et de l'Est sont détruites, le peuple touareg entre l'Afrique du Nord et de l'Ouest est pris dans le feu d'un conflit d'intérêt d'exploitation de ressources naturelles et géopolitiques des Etats

Currently, thousands of Batwa in the Great Lakes Region are affected by wars whose purpose they do not know, the lands of San families are expropriated by small farmers and national parks. Forests, upon which indigenous peoples (Baka, Bageli, Batwa, Endoroi, Maasai, Ogiek, M'barabek, etc.) rely for their survival are being destroyed in Central and Eastern Africa. The Touareg people between North and West Africa are in the grips of a conflict of interest over the exploitation of natural resources and the geopolitics of states.

Citing a World Bank report, Pepitorias writes that in many countries in Latin America, 75-90% of indigenous peoples live in poverty and that indigenous peoples are more vulnerable to global warming and natural disasters.

Settler states vote "No"

The passage of the Declaration was heralded as an historic milestone by indigenous groups, but many bloggers were highly critical of four "settler states" that voted against it: Canada, the United States, Australia and New Zealand.

Although legally non-binding, many of the document's provisions were controversial, according to Democracia Multicultural (es), including one ensuring that indigenous land cannot be "sin el consentimiento libre, previo e informado de los pueblos indígenas interesados, ni sin un acuerdo previo sobre una indemnización justa y equitativa" and another requiring restitution or just compensation for confiscated lands.

Wampum observes that states which voted against the Declaration were all former colonies of England in the Americas and the South Pacific, and that the states most active in promoting it were former colonies of Spain and Portugal in the Americas.

The MySpace blog save the sacred sites (via Angry Indian)

I have prayed many times that the world would recognize the rights of Indigenous Peoples. I knew that the US & Canada and of coarse Australia, who have done to the Aborigines what the US & Canada have done to Natives, would vote no. The big surprise to me was that Mexico, with their horrible treatment of Indigenous People there, wasn't the 5th country voting against the UN resolution for Indigenous rights. Another amazing thing to me is that even the countries who decimated the Native populations on the Caribbean Islands voted for it. The world is changing. And the US, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand had better catch up.

La Tribu du Verbe posts a video of a demonstration in Montreal organized by Femmes Autochtones du Quebec and writes about Canada's opposition to the Declaration:

Mais voilà que depuis l'entrée des conservateurs au pouvoir en janvier 2006, le Canada est devenu un farouche opposant à cette déclaration. Dernièrement, à quelques semaines du vote final pour l'adoption de la déclaration, le Canada, appuyé par l'Australie, la Nouvelle-Zélande, la Russie, la Colombie, la Guyane et le Surinam, a demandé de reprendre les négociations, manoeuvre qui a pour but de paralyser l'adoption de la déclaration.

See how since conservatives' arrival in power in January 2006, Canada has become a voice in the wilderness opposing this Delcaration. Near the end, a few weeks away from the final vote to adopt the Declaration, Canada, supported by Australia, New Zealand, Russia, Colombia, Guyane and Suriname demanded further negotiations, a manoeuvre whose goal was to paralyze the adoption of the Declaration.

The CAC Review calls the vote against the Declaration by these four "settler states" a "serious tactical error" that will not diminish the Declaration's symbolic value:

To be seen to act against the contents of the Declaration will be equated with acting against international public opinion. What stands out is not that "the liberal democracies with the most intense engagements with indigenous issues" voted against the Declaration, as some have said, since many other countries, with larger indigenous populations, and arguably more intense engagements, voted for it. What stands out instead is how settler states are still in the process of trying to settle themselves, how much "engagement" has really been disengagement, distance, friction, and conflict, and how much wishful thinking plays a part in reigning fantasies that, one day, Europe Part 2, will be as embedded in its foreign soil as Original Europe can claim to be on its soil.

The vote against the Declaration was a serious tactical error: these four states now sorely stand out as colonial, white states, anachronistic entitites in a world where "decolonization" has become part of the international vocabulary. They have also handed the Chinas of the world a powerful argument–that they too flout the will of "the international community," that they too do not recognize the rights of disadvantaged minorities, and that liberal democracy is really little more than kleptocracy. If accepting the Declaration could have been symbolically binding (even if not legally so), then surely rejecting the Declaration will also come at a political cost. Some of us will see to it that it does.

soup is good food, the blog of a Canadian political science student, writes that even non-binding declarations can turn into political liabilities for governments unfriendly to native issues:

some might point out that the declaration is non-binding. The Canadian government could have easily signed it to look good and then ignored it like we do with other declarations. I wouldn't use this excuse.

I think the Harper government knows exactly how dangerous declarations can be.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights is/was non-binding. Now many parts of it are customary international law. It's not perfect and violations still occur, but it's there. It's a global rallying point for change and justice. And that's something.

Politicians have learned from this "mistake" of allowing non-binding seemingly harmless feel-good declarations in. It eventually causes problems. Which is why we now have four powerful countries with ongoing histories of disgusting abuses against indigenous populations having temper tantrums over the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People. Because heaven forbid we should sign onto something that would oblige us to do the right thing.

What impact will the Declaration have?

In Martinique, le blog de [moi] predicts the declaration may prompt new rumblings from pro-independence elements.

Martinique is an overseas department of France, which had long opposed the Declaration on a "principal of the indivisibility of the Republic" and its refusal to recognize communal rights. France changed its position under former president Jacques Chirac, who was personally interested in "first peoples."

indigenouspeoplecongobrazza (Fr) writes that although the Declaration, and in particular the sections pertaining to the use of land and natural resources and the principle of informed consent, might appear to be a victory for pygmies in Congo, "the absence of national legislation regarding indigenous peoples and the low level of education among most indigenous peoples" will remain major barriers to their benefiting from the Declaration.

Criticisms of the Declaration

Polysocial (es) notes that the Declaration was amended at the last minute, without input from an indigenous groups, after an agreement was struck between its cosponsors, a group of African and Latin American countries, including Peru, Guatemala and Mexico to include a clause which states the intention of the Declaration is not to authorize or stir any action threatening the territorial integrity or political unity of sovereign states.

Many Central and South American organizations demonstrated against these amendments, Polysocial writes, believing that the Declaration "had suffered changes that diminished its content...in the spirit of debilitating and restricting its scope."

In a comment on le blog de [moi], WK, a reader, writes:

il y a quelque chose qui me heurte profondément dans cette déclaration c'est que j'y trouve une sorte d'abdication à créer des sociétés multiculturelles et un encouragement à des replis identitaires. Par ailleurs, une déclaration aussi globale me paraît mal venue dans le sens ou elle est tellement vague qu'elle pourra rester lettre morte alors qu'il y a bien urgence dans certaines cas, je pense par exemple à l'Alaska où des ressources et des modes de vie sont menacées par l'avidité des compagnies pétrolières.

Something that really struck me about this declaration is that I find it in a sort of rejection of the idea of creating multicultural societies and an encouragement of identity politics. Additionally, a declaration this global seems to me unwelcome in the sense that it is really vague and will stay a dead letter, even as there is a real urgency in certain cases, for example in Alaska where resources and ways of life are threatened by the of oil companies.

One Japanese blogger voices concern about how indigenous peoples are defined. The UN has long relied on self-definition and purposely vague standards.

気になるのは、用語に関することです。宣言の英語表記ては「indigenous peoples」の諸権利に関する宣言となっていて、nationでもethnic groupでもありません。朝日も産経も記事の見出しは「先住民」ですが、本文では「先住民族」と「先住民」を併用しています。不統一で、あいまいです。

What concerns me is something about the terminology that is used. The English version of the declaration is a declaration about the rights of "indigenous peoples", and there is no mention of "nation" or "ethnic group". In the headlines of articles in Asahi and Sankei
[newspapers], there is the word "先住民" [senjuumin, literally "former inhabitant"], but in the original text they interchangeably use both "先住民族" [senjuuminzoku, "indigenous people"] and "先住民" [senjuumin]. This usage is inconsistent and ambiguous.

The blogger also writes that Japan is not the homogeneous society it claims to be:

日本ではしばしば単一言語、単一民族などといわれがちですが、子細に見れば、多元的、多様な文化が伝わっていることが分かります。文化的な多元性、多様性をもっとも端的に示しているのは、民族宗教といわれる神社の祭りの多様さです。縄文の火祭りをいまに伝えるものもあれば、伊勢神宮のお膝元で東南アジアの畑作農耕文化と共通するお田植えが行われてさえいます。

In Japan it is often said that there is only one language, only one people, and so on, but if you look more closely, you see that a
pluralistic, diversified culture has been passed down [for generations]. Most clearly demonstrative of this cultural pluralism and diversity is the variety of shrine festivals of the so-called ethnic religions. Of the things that have been passed down from the fire festivals of the Jomon period, we even have, in the territory around the Ise Shrine, the practice of a form of rice planting common to the culture of upland farming and agriculture in southeast asian [countries].

And explains the role of semantic issues in the Ainu people's campaign for cultural rights, and the influence of the declaration:

「民族」だといってしまえば、やれ「民族自決」だ、「独立」だ、ということになりかねません。日本でも、政府は、たとえばアイヌに対して、「先住民族」とは認めていません。萱野茂さんが尽力して10年前に成立した「アイヌ文化振興法」も「アイヌの人々」と表現しています。しかし、今回の採択を受けて、「アイヌ民族の尊厳確立」を目的に活動する北海道ウタリ協会はさっそく、「先住民族として認めることを要求していく」と表明しています。

If the term "民族" [Minzoku] is used, then it becomes [associated with] "民族自決" [minzoku jiketsu, "self-determination of peoples"], or "独立"
[dokuritsu, (political) independence]. In Japan, for example, with respect to the Ainu people, the government does not recognize the
[term] "senjuu minzoku". Kayano Shigeru made great efforts, and ten years ago when the "Law for the Promotion of the Ainu Culture" (jp) was established, the expression "アイヌの人々" [Ainu people] was used. However, when the interpretation used in the current [declaration] was received by the Hokkaido Utari Asssociation, who had been campaigning for [the expression] "establishment of the dignity of the Ainu People" [アイヌ民族の尊厳確立, "Ainu minzoku no songen kakuritsu"], they immediately [responded by] declaring: "We demand that we be recognized as indigenous people."

Japanese translations by Chris Salzberg.

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他弱視加夜盲，卻開了我們的心

noreply@blogger.com (whereisitwritten) — Wed, 03 Oct 2007 08:54:00 +0000

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他弱視加夜盲，卻開了我們的心

via 中時部落格 by 伊甸社會福利基金會（中時分格） on 10/2/07

文／鍚慧

　今天中時電子報專題「弱視加夜盲阿忠為工作每天展開「迷途」公車之旅」講的是阿忠的故事。

　在伊甸，每天都可以看到阿忠，他是個非常特別的心智障礙者，他每天看報、聽收音機，週末假日安排社教館或國父紀念館等優質的休閒生活。每次和阿忠聊聊假日的生活，真是自嘆弗如。感嘆自己假日像是歐巴桑的縮影，時光在買菜洗衣、整理家務中流逝，時值十月了，今年尚未去過社教館或國父紀念館享受藝術的饗宴，看看阿忠他可是充分善用台北市的文教資源，把握參與藝文活動的機會。即使弱智加上弱視都影響不了阿忠融入社會的決心。

　有時在辦公室做的很悶，空氣、氣氛都不太好，讓人想逃。手邊工作做不完，只好繼續做，但一定得想個辦法換個心情，否則難受的對不起自己。

　去沖杯咖啡時，聽到往日熟悉的西洋音樂(AIR SUPPLY唱的)，我感動的想哭，想起當年的種種浮現腦海，但....音樂從哪裡來？原來是阿忠在洗流理台時聽的廣播，我差點兒就想抱著他，感謝他的收音機，為我帶來的感動。我停下腳步與阿忠聊天，問這是哪一個電台，怎麼播放這麼好聽的音樂？他說是健康電台，原來聽歌不是他的重點，聽這個電台因它有很多的生活小常識，阿忠說這樣可以增廣見聞。

　怪怪！阿忠很酷吧！阿忠給我上了一課，要在工作中自己找樂趣的。

　我端著咖啡杯，心甘情願的回去上班了。

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以新混合語書寫部落格

noreply@blogger.com (whereisitwritten) — Sun, 30 Sep 2007 16:16:00 +0000

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以新混合語書寫部落格

via Global Voices 全球之聲 by Leonard on 9/24/07

早自全球網路對話出現以來，眾人便不斷論辯，究竟現代資訊科技對全球語言多樣性是好是壞：就益處而言，網路不斷演變以符合區域族群需求，讓人民擁有發展與保護固有語言的平台；就壞處來說，網路加速全球化吞噬世界的速度，讓少數幾種「通用語言」更加快速普及，也讓數千種人口較少的語言被巨大全球融爐所吞沒。

全球部落格圈也突顯語言多樣性的問題，當人們希望向區域以外的民眾散播訊息時，大都傾向於使用英文，但人們是否可能在不放棄母語的前提下，跨越語言藩籬，與其他民眾溝通呢？有沒有一種語言，可以擺脫複雜的語音、不規則的文化、國際英語的文化意涵？我們能否創造一種語言，讓世界各地人民共用？

這些念頭讓居住於日本的部落客Jens Wilkenson設計新混合語，他也在自己的部落格裡固定教授這種混雜語言，另一名部落客Jack Parsons也參與語言設計。我訪問Jens Wilkenson，和他聊聊新混合語的源起、過去與未來。

最初讓你想要創造新混合語的動機為何？你覺得它與其他人造語言有何不同？

現今幾乎所有人造語言大都以歐洲語言為基礎，我希望創造一種真正揉合多樣文化的語言，我覺得既然希望大家共用一種語言，就該加入世界不同文化特質才公平。

以英語作為國際語言有什麼不好嗎？

全球英語人口確實眾多，但這個現象令人無法接受的原因有二：其一是說其他語言的人們相當不易學會英語，不僅母音太多，還有如「sixths」這種成串子音的單字，連我自己發音都有困難，而且英語的不規則變化與俚俗語也太多。

其二，若以英語為國際語言，以英語為母語的人士便佔盡優勢，就社會現象而言，也好似一種文化優於其他。

所以我們能做些什麼呢？我覺得當人們開始使用新混合語，縱然只是小眾，也能讓民眾意識到，我們不該以英語為母語的部分人士，決定跨語言傳播走向與未來。

新混合語的文法、字彙及形式如何而來？

我從各地的混雜語（pidgin）和克里奧爾語（creole）得到許多啟發，因為這都是不同母語人士試圖溝通而發展出的現象，這也正是國際語言的功能，例如當初阿拉伯貿易商試圖與說班圖語（Bantu）的人們往來，才逐漸發展出斯華西里語（Swahili），馬來語也是由不同語言的貿易商交流而來。我也嘗試將英文、中文等世界主要語言的元素添入新混合語，例如新加坡式英文（Singlish）也給我許多靈感，因為那就是混雜英文、中文與馬來文而形成的語法樣貌。

你目前以新混合語書寫部落格的感想如何？

我是為了練習使用新混合語，所以才以此書寫部落格，雖然新混合語已可使用，不過仍有許多部分有待修正，我希望和會說其他語言的人們合作。

你覺得新混合語的下一步是什麼？

此刻我正努力搜尋有興趣實驗的人，並希望聽取他們的改善建議，我真心希望與通曉非歐洲語言的人們合作，以避免產生偏見。

原文作者：Chris Salzberg
校對：FoolFitz

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All Videos Uploaded by a Google Video User

noreply@blogger.com (whereisitwritten) — Sun, 30 Sep 2007 15:16:00 +0000

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All Videos Uploaded by a Google Video User

via Google Operating System by Ionut Alex Chitu on 9/29/07

One of the reasons why YouTube became successful and Google Video didn't is that YouTube built a community around videos. Each registered user has a profile, a list of uploaded videos and favorite videos. You can subscribe to the videos uploaded by a user and send him a private message.

Google Video doesn't have any of these options: the only thing you can see about someone who posted a video is a list of other uploaded videos. But what if you want to get notified when this unknown person posts other videos? In Google Video, each user has an unique alphanumeric ID. To find all the videos posted by a user, you need to search for: [source:USER_ID]. The ID can be retrieved from the page's source code, but I made a bookmarklet that gives you the URL of a feed that contains all the videos posted by a user, sorted by date.

GVideo Author Feed

How to add the bookmarklet?

1. Make sure the link toolbar is visible in your browser. You can enable it if you go to the View menu in your browser, click on Toolbars and check:
* Bookmarks Toolbar in Firefox
* Personal Bar in Opera
* Links in Internet Explorer

2. For Firefox and Opera, drag and drop the blue box above to the toolbar. For Internet Explorer, right-click on the blue box, select "Add to Favorites", ignore the security warning and choose "Links" from the list of folders.

A good example of interesting Google Video channel is "Google Tech Talks", that shows presentations on different topics from Googleplex. If you go to this tech talk and use the bookmarklet, you'll obtain a feed for all the tech talks uploaded by Google. You can subscribe to the feed using any feed reader, but Google Reader is a good choice because it lets you play videos without opening a new page.

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Surf Canyon's Mind Mapping Search Tool

noreply@blogger.com (whereisitwritten) — Sat, 29 Sep 2007 04:23:00 +0000

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Surf Canyon's Mind Mapping Search Tool

via Mashable! by Kristen Nicole on 9/28/07

Surf Canyon is an upcoming web search technology that filters your queries and learns your preferences accordingly. This isn't a search engine in itself, but will pull results from other engines like Google, re-organizing them in a manner more suitable for you. The site is not yet live, but is currently in private beta.

When you get your list of search results, they're displayed in a type of mind-map format. You can mouse over a link or click on a target icon in order to get more results that are related to this page. The new, related results will display beneath the original result, and searches can branch out fairly wide in this manner. This is somewhat similar to Microsoft's Tafiti.

All the while, Surf Canyon will take in data of your search preferences and essentially train the system for future use. The way in which Surf Canyon re-organizes web search from existing search engine data speaks to the necessity of engines like Google to provide more qualitative results, which was brought up in a Compete study released yesterday. Other tools include Tileplex and MindMeister.

[via cnet]

Recommended: MySpace MP3 Player at Mashcodes!

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部落客討論非洲的非正規經濟

noreply@blogger.com (whereisitwritten) — Fri, 28 Sep 2007 16:42:00 +0000

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部落客討論非洲的非正規經濟

via Global Voices 全球之聲 by nairobi on 9/25/07

非洲的非正規經濟的研究討論向來集中在學術專業圈，如大學教授、學生，經濟學者和發展經濟專業人士等。最近在非洲部落格圈裏，則興起對地下經濟的探討。雖不是精妙的言語、但也無傷大雅，部落客圈與學術專業者在這個議題上，分享著相近的話語。

此事聽起來稀鬆平常，但令人興奮的是部落客們做出了一些搞學問的人所做不到的事，擴展了相關的討論，真正跨入了進入了現實的生活。

所以就讓我們進入部落客們所討論的非洲非正規經濟話題吧。

從非洲發展經濟部落客圈的主腦，Femka Okafor開始，看看非正規經濟的勇往精神。

非洲製品展覽說明了這件事：在馬利和塞內加爾，正式經濟部門的工作者多只限於城市菁英。非正規經濟包括了發生在市集交易，它為創新、有冒險精神的人提供了許多的機會。

我們把焦點移至IBM的全球創新表現部落格，看看他們如何看待非洲非正規創業家所面臨的障礙：

非正規經濟的存在不完全是一件壞事。事實上，許多人將其視為非洲急速成長的企業精神象徵，就像在幾千萬個非洲人的餐桌放上了食物。

問題是這些企業不能夠成長僱用更多人創造更多財富，他們就必須在規範的範圍運作。他們也沒法取得融資或是基本的商業技巧訓練來幫助改善營運。

德國部落客Loomnie，原籍Lago奈及利亞，指出非洲非正規經濟和農村的關連：

想想這點：非洲大部份都居住在農村，有多少政府與正式經濟活動曾經伸入農村人民？政府官方經濟統計遺漏掉許多商業活動。即使研究非洲非正規經濟的學者，他們花了許多時間研究都會區的地下經濟，尚未能對農村的經濟生活投助足夠的注意。

再看Imnakoya，寫出了奈及利亞經濟金字塔底層的深刻觀察。

當我思慮 Robert 的記錄片時，腦中不斷盤旋的，是如何幫助一些貧民窟的個體企業。這正是社會底層。我相信在那個地方，沒有任何一個政府政策有意義：大部份的政策並不是為了培力小人物。除此之外，能做的只有微型貸款或小額借款。

有人提出了聰明的想法讓地下經濟可以在非洲運作。住在美國的Nii Simmonfds 有許多親人仍在迦納，他告訴我們非洲的非正規經濟如何地成長。

多半非正規經濟的活動者和農業部門有緊密的關聯：採收水果鋪地磚馴養乳牛等等。另外還有手工業製造面具、串珠、手環衣服等。是否能夠促進不同產業的合作，變成非正規經濟工作者的一個公司企業？

有一篇令我一再回味的文章，仍是Ethan Zuckerman 最近所用的"Incrememental infrasuture"（漸增式的基礎建設）。它提醒我從Carol Pineau 記錄片所學到的東西。創業者使用自己的收益來投入基礎設施的建設，別人同時也從這些建設中受惠。這就是Ethan所說的：

我的朋友和同事Mike Best曾質疑我所提出的案例，是否真的是「微型」；最令他感興趣的就是「極小規模基礎設施」之定義。以移動電信產業為例，小型社區以幾千元建立資料建設、而不是數百萬元。Mike 描繪了一個「自力供應」模式，以滿足所需，過去沒有人曾建設過這類的基礎設施。

自力供應的系統持續增加，當所得超過個別所需時，便可將多餘的電力出售給其它鄰居。在非洲大陸，礦石和石油公司的能源供應設施遍布。參觀迦納的黃金開採中心，會在許多二級城市看見基礎設施的成長。可以想見「漸進式基礎設施」以迷你、微型及極小型之規模遍地萌芽。一個農民若投資抽水設備，建造極小規模基礎建設，便可灌溉自己的田地和附近的農田；然而一間行動電信公司建立的發電廠，除了提供基地台電力能源，還可以利用過剩的能量來供應其它灌溉設備，讓它在個體或是迷你水準下運行。

你已聽到了具創業經驗的部落客意見，現在讓我們看看其它人獨特角度的觀察：Sokwanele是辛巴威公民團體，旨在提供人民的日常基本需求。以下這篇文章檢視了辛巴威非正式金礦部門的興起。

礦業部長Chris Anderson 表示淘金者向來被認為是非正式部門。與其取締，不如鼓勵他們把黃金賣給國家貯備銀行。他甚致建議小規模的礦工應該要給予比市價更高的價錢，以避免他們把黃金賣到黑市。有遠見的淘金者能夠從各方面委員會得到許可來善用黃金存底。

合法經濟臨近崩潰造成了生產的落差，用從地下部門所買來的貴重金屬來替代，所以貯備銀行從非法採礦者買了許多黃金。

淘金者目前在黑市賣出或是貯備銀行購買的價錢，仍低於市場價格。

我們接著看看辛巴威另一個部落格的專家說法，儘管政府再怎麼禁止，辛巴威的非正規經濟仍不會消失。

祕魯經濟學者Hernando De Soto 終身研究這個奇特的現象。其研究結果反對開發中國家消除非正規經濟，因為許多合法產業無法解決的問題，非正規經濟卻有辦法應付。看看他的二本書：《另闢蹊徑》和《資本的軌跡》。

問題的根源是土地法律。目前並不足以保障產權，需要有執權者來修法以適應實情，讓法律可以完全開放正規市場。非正規經濟又是怎麼做到這點的？他們只在自己的市場運作（合法產業和政府稱它們為黑市），由成員自行協商負責其中的律法規則。別擔心，黑市不死，你無法用破壞基本建設來消滅它，它永遠存在人心觀念之中。

最後，回顧引發這一連串討論的起源，是來自南非的 Gavin Chait、或如大家所知的Whythawk）。那篇文章引起辛巴威專家的迴響，超出原本對非正規經濟成因的討論，更深入地尋找解決之道，很值得一讀。以下是其摘要：

中央集權的國家大部份會保護合約，並確保產權的執行；個人權利與福利國家則是相對晚近的事。要達成這些，就必須要有稅收，而得有企業和收入才能進行課稅。然而收入和企業則需要合約和產權執行的保障。

如果他們相信跟利益被剝奪比起來，支持國家較為划算，那麼就會有一個穩定中央政府；然而當政府介入經濟、產權受到威脅，投資人和企業主會退出他們對政府的支持。

如果有能耐，投資者會跑到其它安全的國家；反之，他們則會將投資從本國地下經濟抽出。

非正規 vs. 正式是主觀的，技術上我們討論的是第三者的產權。非正規經濟市場確實是當地市場的一部份，人們因為直接的信任而願意進行交易。

原文作者：Benin Mwangi
校對：FoolFitz

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