Wednesday, July 16, 2014

Gaza Facts

There are 3 common mistakes I'm tired of seeing. I don't want to get into political arguments right now, just set straight some facts.

English: Map of Gaza Strip, Stand December 200...1. Gaza is the most densely populated city in the world:

Gaza city is not even in the top 85(a). In fact, there are many cities that are denser than Gaza. For example, London, Cairo and New York.

2. Gaza is occupied by Israel:

Gaza has been 100% cleansed of Jews in 2005. In the same year, Israel also formally declared an end to Israeli military occupation of the Gaza Strip. Presently, There isn't a single Israeli soldier on Gazan soil. Israel doesn't fully control Gaza's borders either, since the strip has a Southern border with the sovereign state of Egypt. The latter fully controls at least one crossing, but chooses to keep it closed for their own political and economic reasons.


3. Gaza is one of the poorest regions in the world:

Gaza Strip's Human Development Index is usually around the 100th in the world (out of 177) (b). Higher than Egypt or Syria, but lower than the Palestinian average.
Life expectancy in Gaza is around 107th in the world, higher in fact than Glasgow (SNP likes to flaunt this). The Palestinians are the largest per capita recipients of foreign aid in the world and the 8th fattest nation in the world. By all global accounts, Palestinians are neither rich, nor poor, but strongly in the middle.

(a) WikiPedia - List of cities proper by population
(b) WikiPedia - Human Development Index

kthanxbai!

Jumblerant

Tuesday, July 15, 2014

Sirens, Home and the Iron Dome

A few people have asked me to write about my experiences in the last week or so, here in Israel.

Just a few fun facts for you: I'm a father of 2, husband, employee, manager and, obviously, like to think of myself as just another normal guy.

Siren Song

It was with a sense of disbelief that I walked into the air-raid shelter at work last Wednesday morning. This is the kind of thing everyone was expecting:



But this is more like what it was:



So it didn't phase us that much.

And then that evening we had the siren at home.

A different kettle of fish altogether when you have to gather up your kids and put them in the protected room.

The mere fact that every structure built after the Gulf War has to have a reinforced room, by law, tells us all a bit about what kind of area we live in!

Luckily, this time around, we need only stay int he shelters for 10 minutes, and there is no 'all-clear' sounded. People just decide when it works for them.

English: Iron Dome CRAM launcher near the town...

Iron Dome

What a game changer! Or is it? Similar to the Patriot Missile System int he Gulf War, I think we're going to be hearing a lot about 'near misses' and shrapnel falling all over the place, but for right now, it is keeping us mentally safe too.



Not to give too much away, but there is an Iron Dome unit about 1km from our home, and boy is it reassuring when the rockets blast off! Scary, loud and somewhat worrying just how thin our defensive line is, but altogether I wouldn't say 'no' to it.

Funny side note - I was reading the blog post Game Changer by In From The Cold all about Iron Dome and its benefits, when I heard a couple of loud bangs yesterday. yes, it was the Iron Dome at work again.

Politics

I don't care about the politics. I care about people I don't know throwing explosive rockets at my house.

Here is a politician talking about the situation:




So for now there is talk of a cease-fire. Thats great. It just doesn't take the threat away, it just leaves it standing. An en passe that cannot be resolved.

Having said that, Hamas is getting attacked on TV and elsewhere by it's old friend, Egypt:



So whatever happens in this region in the next 12 months is anyone's guess!



Although I doubt we'll see a one state solution any time soon.

kthanxbai!

Jumblerant

Thursday, June 19, 2014

Print is Dead! Long Live Print?

In todays modern age, it is argued, people don't have time to read a newspaper. Even more critical, newspapers are no longer the 'go to' medium for the latest news, but is print dead?
Newspaper vendor, Paddington, London, February...
Newspaper vendor, Paddington, London, February 2005 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

For years there have been articles in online magazines stating for a fact that print is dead such as in this great article by Jordan Kurzweil Print is Dead! Long Live Print? And then there are the counter articles 'Who Said Print Was Dead?' and of course, 'The beautiful magazines setting out to prove print isn't dead'

What we forget whenever we see an 'old', stereotyped industry having issues is that there is always new blood coming through, pushing the boundaries of what we thought we knew.

Many people ask 'How can the fuddy-duddy old print industry live in 2015 and onwards?'. I don't need to give an answer when I can show you:



Energy. Passion. Cutting edge technology and a winning smile!

On top of those pioneers in an old field who are using twitter, youtube and other social media to get the word out, there is still digital journalism, and it appears that whenever it is not used to prop up an old and failing newspaper, it does rather well as this Interview with Mathew Ingram of GigaOM on Journalism, Social, and The Next Big Thing - will show you.

Anyway, I'm off to read a book.

On my Kindle.

kthanxbai!

Jumblerant

Wednesday, June 18, 2014

All Inked Up

I'm not a great fan of tattoos, I can see how they are art and how others may enjoy them, but for me, I prefer to keep my skin 'clean'. I even used to watch Miami Ink with Ami James, Darren Brass, Chris Garver and of course, the irreplaceable Kat Von D.

An old friend of mine in the Royal Navy used to tell me not to get tattoos. He had arms full of them, the names of each of his kids, his wives (yes, more than one!) and a little symbol for each ship he'd served on. They were all beginning to fade somewhat, his kids are all in their 30's now so I guess the 'tats' were that old too.

Here a father shows his displeasure at his son's tattoos



And here is the main reason I'll never get a tattoo. Tattoo mistakes:









kthanxbai! Jumblerant

Friday, June 13, 2014

Coca Cola - An Interesting Angle

The Coca-Cola logo is an example of a widely-r...
The Coca-Cola logo is an example of a widely-recognized trademark representing a global brand. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
I grew up believing that Coca-Cola was a refreshing, thirst quenching drink that would get everyone singing together.

Today I hardly touch the stuff. I've become a bit of a soda water addict ever since SodaStream had an awesome ad campaign near us - and then, of course, they ruled the SuperBowl with this:



There was also the hate-filled vitriol that came out against SodaStream that made me support them - SodaStream and Hating Israel

I have a degree in marketing and I know that Coke is one of the top brands in the world. Ever. Just as McDonald's was stung by the documentary 'Supersize Me', the video below may be a nail in the coffin of Coca Cola, which is already, no longer seen as the consumer's friend:



That doesn't put you off? Then what about this:



23 sachets of sugar! 44 in the bigger cup!! I would not like to drink a JUG of coffee with 23 packets of sugar in it.

And don't get me started on the lava/coca cola action

kthanxbai!

Jumblerant

Wednesday, June 11, 2014

A Peak Behind the Photographic Curtain - Update

Last year I wrote about Yosef Adest, in 'A Peak Behind the Photographic Curtain' as an up and coming photographer and cinematographer - I'd go so far as to call him a very talented, high level 'visualist', but then again, that's just me.

Well he just gave a great TEDx talk:




kthanxbai!

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What To Do When You're All Alone?

Bored? Tired? Ready to get on that plane home already?

So what would you do if you were stuck in Las Vegas airport all by yourself over-night?

Not make a Celine Dion fan video I guess.

But he did:




Please share this before some copyright lawyer has them take it down for copyright infringement!

kthanxbai!

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Monday, June 9, 2014

Rik Mayall: 1958 - 2014

Rik Mayall was an amazing comedian. He was funny in his own right, yet was one of those performers who just takes over the whole screen whenever you see them, like Will Ferrel or Oprah Winfrey.

His big break came at The Comic Strip Club, performing with comedy partner Adrian Edmondson as 20th Century Coyote in the 1980s, which led to cult television hit The Comic Strip Present where he starred opposite Dawn French and Jennifer Saunders as well as Nigel Planer, Keith Allen and Alexei Sayle.

He co-wrote The Young Ones with Lise Mayer and Ben Elton, which ran for 12 episodes between 1982 and 1985. It shared cult status and schoolboy humour with later sitcom Bottom in which he starred with his best friend Adrian Edmondson.

The Young Ones





Here is Rik on the David Letterman Show:



The New Statesman





The real Rik comes through here;




He also appeared as a voice on many cartoons and animated films and shows, and it was always with a warm feeling that I'd recognize his voice and visualize who was behind the character.

Blackadder, The New Statesman and Bottom were some of his more glorious moments where he really came to the fore as a performer. His dedication, fun and saucy look to camera will always be how I best remember him.

Rik Mayall, rest in peace.





kthanxbai!

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Sunday, May 18, 2014

Recognisable Music

I've written before about music I adore, such as the great folks over at Pomplamoose, and OKGO!, so I thought I'd share my latest experience with you.

Working in a relatively open plan office I inevitably find myself wearing thick headphones when I need to focus on something. I had some reports to write so put them on and cranked up Grooveshark and decide to listen to some classical music. A good channel called 'Instrumental FM - Music to Study, Work and Relax' had in the past been a good way to block out the background noise without the distraction of catchy tunes or new music.

Suddenly I stopped working and realised that I knew the tune being played. It wasn't the theme tune to Game of Thrones, nor was it a Pomplamoose album as there were no words.

And then it hit me, being played by no less than the London Philharmonic Orchestra:

Click on the link to play

AB: Main Theme by London Philharmonic Orchestra on Grooveshark

kthanxbai!

Jumblerant

Thursday, May 15, 2014

Michael Schumacher Showing Signs of Improvement



Back in the end of December, Michael had a nasty skiing accident that left him in a medically induced coma.

In April, we were informed:

"There are short moments of consciousness and he is showing small signs of progress," Schumacher's manager Sabine Kehm told German broadcaster ARD.
"There are moments when he is awake and moments when he is conscious.
"Of course I am not a doctor, but medically, there is a distinction between being awake and being conscious, the latter meaning there is an ability to interact with his surroundings.
"I don't want to disclose details out of respect for the family, but we have no doubt at all in the abilities of the doctors treating Michael, they are experts in their field."

So, many weeks have passed and sadly there is still no further news.


Hero: 'Schumi' Schumacher is idolised by many Formula One fans across the world




kthanxbai! Jumblerant
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Tuesday, May 13, 2014

What Is 3D Printing Anyway?

The relatively new, old joke is: "I'm going to start a new business, I'm going to buy a 3D printer and print my own 3D printer!"

3D printing is quite simply the layered printing of an object in 3 dimension (height, width and depth). So who actually 'needs' this 3D printing? We've done quite well until now without it, so who can benefit from it? I guess people who are far from home or away from the normal lines of production can get unique items printed for them. A model replica of an expensive car, like a 1960 Aston Martin DB5 in a 1:3 scale could be built and then crashed and burned for entertainment, like how the makers of the James Bond flick,Skyfall did.

What can be made and why print it as opposed to buy it? Money. Filthy lucre. Dollars, Pounds, Euros and even Zlotys. The cost of certain items makes them unavailable to the larger market, printing them is cheap and even though the quality won't be the same, the result is still better than nothing:

A Perfectly Functioning Rifle Magazine

Magazine restrictions is the way in which the US government has restricted the proliferation of automatic firearms. So will gun laws ever be enforceable? Not any more I guess:




Your Unborn Baby




Parts For Decommissioning A Nuclear Power Plant

Sellafield, western Europe’s largest and most complex nuclear waste site, is using 3D printing to help them decommission some of the most potentially hazardous plants in the world.

It will use 3D printing to replace parts that are no longer made – many of which were one-off designs from 50 years ago – to save time and money when those running the nuclear facility have faced growing criticism for soaring decommissioning costs. These are estimated to total £70bn.

3D printing could save millions of pounds at Sellafield, with the company already identifying several hundred thousand pounds worth of benefit. It is believed to be one of the first nuclear sites to use 3D printing to manufacture parts.

A House - For $5,000

A Chinese company harnessed 3D-printing technology to build 10 one-story houses in a day — a cheaper, faster and safer alternative to more traditional construction.



Or there is the Dutch company that is building a canal house (which can be seen here), where each room is being made individually. A great idea!

A Knife

So who cares about printing a knife? Well I guess the TSA or FBI because x-ray machines can no longer rely on such implements being made of metal. We all know that prisoners make all kinds of lethal weapons using nothing more than a toothbrush and a paperclip - so will the knife cut paper?



Your Face

The survivor of a serious motorbike crash has made surgical history after his entire face was rebuilt using 3D printed parts.

Stephen Power is thought to be one of the first trauma patients in the world to have 3D printing technology used at every stage of the medical procedure to restore his looks.

Doctors at Morriston Hospital, Swansea, had to break his cheekbones again before rebuilding his face in an eight-hour operation.

Despite wearing a crash helmet Mr Power, 29, suffered multiple trauma injuries in the accident in 2012, which left him in hospital for four months.

“I can't remember the accident - I remember five minutes before and then waking up in the hospital a few months later. I broke both cheek bones, top jaw, my nose and fractured my skull," he said.

___

3D Printing in medicine - 3D Printed Cast Speeds Bone Recovery Using Ultrasound

How to manufacture your 3D Printed object: http://t.co/Hc2pwrWA1v







kthanxbai!

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Thursday, May 8, 2014

Oh, The Good Old Days

I can see it now, my grandson on my knee, a hovercar zipping past our 345rd floor window, as I explain to him that people used to have talent:



And then there were the British, who were misunderstood:



And of course, what video blog would be complete without a Game of Thrones parody?





kthanxbai!

Jumblerant

Friday, April 18, 2014

Storytelling in 2014

Chaucer wrote the Canterbury Tales in the end part of the 14th century. The stories (mostly written in verse, although some are in prose) are presented as part of a story-telling contest by a group of pilgrims as they travel together on a journey from Southwark to the shrine of Saint Thomas Becket at Canterbury Cathedral. The prize for this contest is a free meal at an inn on their return.

Storytelling is a way of sharing and interpreting experiences and are universal, insofar as they involve the sames basic tenets - hero + goal - baddie = story.



English: The Boyhood of Raleigh, 1871
English: The Boyhood of Raleigh, 1871 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Sketch of "The Story of the Bunyip",...
Sketch of "The Story of the Bunyip", an Aborigine telling the story to two European children (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

According to Wikipedia;
Human knowledge is based on stories and the human brain consists of cognitive machinery necessary to understand, remember, and tell stories. Humans are storytelling organisms that both individually and socially, lead storied lives. Stories mirror human thought as humans think in narrative structures and most often remember facts in story form. Facts can be understood as smaller versions of a larger story, thus storytelling can supplement analytical thinking. Because storytelling requires auditory and visual senses from listeners, one can learn to organize their mental representation of a story, recognize structure of language, and express his or her thoughts.
So there you go. Man was made for stories, and stories were made for man.

But where does this leave us in 2014 when technology means that we can be told stories 24/7? Well, StoryCorps has come up with a great way of combining oral storytelling and video imaging. And I think it hits the nail right on the head;



Why there have only been 370,000 views at the time of this going live, I do not know, but what a story and what a great vehicle for telling it.

kthanxbai!

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Wednesday, April 16, 2014

Playing Catch Up

Since I last blogged a few fun things have happened:

Pomplamoose released their interpretation of James Brown's 'I Feel Good', which is pretty awesome, with an even more stunning video.



My favourite April Fool's joke did the rounds - and with 26 million views, I guess I'm not alone in liking it!





kthanxbai!

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