There’s a lot of material out there on the internet. And the nature of the internet means that it’s easy to reuse that material without paying any attention to copyright. If my browser can display an image, then I can save that image to my local disk and then, perhaps, use it on my own… Continue reading Checking Copyright
Tag: media
Defending Homeopathy (Or Not)
Neal’s Yard Remedies are purveyors of the finest magic water. Water that remembers magic ingredients that have been dissolved into it and diluted until no memory of the ingredients can possibly remain. Yes, they sell homeopathic treatments. Someone in their PR department decided it was a good idea to get involved in the Guardian’s “You… Continue reading Defending Homeopathy (Or Not)
A Missing Blog
Looks like Nadine Dorries might have gone too far this time. She’s been on extremely dodgy ground for the last week, since the Daily Telegraph’s investigation into MPs’ expenses started looking at her. Over the last week she’s been posting an increasing bizarre stream of consciousness on her blog. She tried to explain what was… Continue reading A Missing Blog
Stardate 90210
I’ve never been much of a trekkie. Or a trekker, or whatever they like to call themselves. If I’m flicking through channels looking for something to watch and I come across an episode of the original series, or The Next Generation, then I might sit and watch it. But I don’t go out of my… Continue reading Stardate 90210
Eenin Stannet
I’ve lived in London for over twenty-five years. In that time I can’t have bought more than a dozen copies of the Evening Standard. And I don’t think that makes me particularly unusual. From what I can se, the Standard is pretty universally despised by people who live in London. The people who you see… Continue reading Eenin Stannet
Wasting Prime Ministerial Time
I’ve submitted a petition to the government’s petition site. Here’s what it says. We the undersigned petition the Prime Minister to stop leading tributes to pointless celebrities and to spend more time running the country Since when was it part of the Prime Minister’s job to lead the country in public displays of grief for… Continue reading Wasting Prime Ministerial Time
Mail Watch
Blimey, is it really that long since I posted anything. Sorry about that, I’ve been busy on other projects – in the last week I’ve presented two and a half days of Perl courses and that’s on top of my last few weeks at LoveFilm all being a bit manic. There have also been a… Continue reading Mail Watch
Changing Your Story
One of the things I despise most about parts of the British press is the way they assume that their readership has the memory of a goldfish. This means that they are free to make outrageous claims on the flimsiest of evidence on one day and then take the story in a completely different direction… Continue reading Changing Your Story
42 Days is Dead
It’s a strange world when you have to rely on the House of Lords to throw out ridiculous legislation from a Labour government. But that’s exactly what happened yesterday as the Lords voted against the government’s proposals for 42-day detention of suspected terrorists. Pretty much everyone in the country now agrees that the proposals were… Continue reading 42 Days is Dead
Michael Reiss: Creationist
Following last weeks entry about the media and MMR I have another post brewing which goes into more detail about the central message of Ben Goldacre’s excellent book. That central message is that you usually can’t trust science and health stories in the press because they are usually written by people who don’t understand the… Continue reading Michael Reiss: Creationist