This year (starting last week) the only fiction I will read (novels and short stories) is by women, as per suggestion from the wonderful wife (7 years hitched!!). It occurred to me, both before and after reading Ursula Le Guin's comments on her 'The Eye of the Heron' that this might not mean I was... Continue Reading →
Two different papers on the history of #Australia and environment may be of interest.
In Ward (2015) "Tea Party imitators? The campaign against the carbon tax, the media and a new uncivil politics", Australian Journal of Political Science, 50:2, 225-240, there is a very handy account of the bizarre and distasteful year of 2011, when Julia Gillard as Australian Prime Minister skilfully steered the ‘Clean Energy Futures’ legislation through... Continue Reading →
The #HungerGames and #militainment
So, am only reading fiction by women this year. Polished off books 2 and 3 in the Hunger Games trilogy last weekend. If you've been living under a rock this last 5 years, here's the recap. Sometime (hundreds of years?) after a nuclear war, American civilisation is based around a hyper modern Capitol, with 12... Continue Reading →
Star Trek, innovation theory and “dominant designs”
Article discussed: Rebecca M. Henderson and Kim B. Clark (1990) “Architectural Innovation: The Reconfiguration of Existing Product Technologies and the Failure of Established Firms” Administrative Science Quarterly, Vol. 35, No. 1, pp. 9-30. There's an episode of Star Trek: the Next Generation called I, Borg, which is useful for thinking about innovation theory and 'dominant... Continue Reading →
Attack of the Bots!! Twitter and its fake accounts problem
Just read a fascinating article; "The Influence and Deception of Twitter: The Authenticity of the Narrative and Slacktivism in the Australian Electoral Process" by the following people Benjamin Waugh, Maldini Abdipanah, Omid Hashemi, Shaquille A. Rahman and David M. Cook, all from Edith Cowan University, While I would quibble with their definition of slacktivism, I... Continue Reading →
When will we give up on “two degrees”? And what will that mean?
Climate change is going to be an unmitigated disaster. It already is, in fact. But for all the talk of solar panels from 3-D printers this, and Paris that, we miss the big picture. The big picture is that we are screwed, more and more people know that we are screwed, and that it won't... Continue Reading →
The year of reading women… starts today
Yesterday I was looking over my book-a-holic wife's shelves, hoping she had a couple of early Gillian Slovo novels (nope). While we were talking about the wonderful Barbara Kingsolver today, the wife suggested today that I spend a year where all the fiction I read is all by women, (with a bias towards non-Western). And... Continue Reading →
Seminar Report: On fields, entrepreneurs, Jaws and The Wire. No, really
A glorious late summer’s day. What better way to spend it than being a mouse in the maze that is Manchester Business School, and chancing upon the first “Manchester Institute of Innovation Research” seminar of the academic year? It was on “Institutionalisation of the Field of Entrepreneurship” The presenter, Prof Benson Honig, set about demolishing... Continue Reading →
Academic Conference Bingo Card #mylifeiscomplete
Aside from the sudden arrival at my side of the wife, nothing could have made me happier five minutes ago than this magnificent 'Conference Bingo' card!! If only I had had it two weeks ago before going to Brighton... via @TheSocReview, by Kat Gupta (here, I think) and Heather Froehlich (here, I think). UPDATE -... Continue Reading →
Tony Abbott and his #climate record since becoming Prime Minister 2 years ago #auspol
“By their fruit ye shall know them.” Since September 7th 2013 Tony Abbott has done his best to undermine Australia’s response to climate change. Here’s a guide to the ruins, under the following headings Opposing robust climate action Attacking green groups In favour of coal Undermining renewables Symbolic action [If I've missed anything, please let me know!... Continue Reading →