Archive for May, 2010
The start of Life 2.0
May 21st, 2010 by Roger Darlington
If the essence of Web 2.0 is user generated content (UGC), then arguably the key point about anything which can be classed as Life 2.0 is that one form of life creates a new form of life – in which case, it seems that we are there with the news this week that scientists have […]
Posted in Science & technology | Comments (0)
What have the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats agreed? (2)
May 20th, 2010 by Roger Darlington
Following the relatively short agreement on policies published when the new coalition government was first founded, the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats have today published a much longer and more comprehensive agreement. It is a remarkable document, the like of which we have never seen before, and we shall have to see whether the parties can […]
Posted in British current affairs | Comments (0)
The racial divide in the USA
May 19th, 2010 by Roger Darlington
As explained in this article, a report released this week by Brandeis University in Massachusetts reveals that a typical white American family is now five times richer than its African-American counterpart of the same class. White families typically have assets worth $100,000 (£69,000), up from $22,000 in the mid-1980s. African-American families’ assets stand at just […]
Posted in American current affairs | Comments (0)
Does India have a middle class?
May 19th, 2010 by Roger Darlington
According to the thinking outlined in this article, it seems that India has no middle class. The central point is that there are essentially two ways to measure inequality, one is in absolute terms and the other is in relative terms. The problem with the definition of middle class used in the article is that […]
Posted in World current affairs | Comments (0)
China trip (6): photographs
May 18th, 2010 by Roger Darlington
It’s now five weeks since Vee and I returned from our three-week trip to China with our Chinese ‘family’ Zhihao, Hua & Joshua. It’s taken me some time to complete my account of the holiday for my web site, but I’ve now finished the exercise by adding a selection of 64 photographs. You can read […]
Posted in My life & thoughts | Comments (0)
The British Airways dispute
May 18th, 2010 by Roger Darlington
You’ve heard the management case. Now check out the staff view.
Posted in British current affairs | Comments (0)
My participation in a medical research project
May 17th, 2010 by Roger Darlington
In the Spring of last year, I took part in a 12-week medical trial of a new ‘polypill’ and wrote about the experience on this blog, the last entry being this one. This morning, my wife and I spent two and a quarter hours at an assessment centre in Hounslow in west London as participants […]
Posted in My life & thoughts | Comments (4)
The elephants are here
May 15th, 2010 by Roger Darlington
Recently, everywhere I go in central London, I see elephant sculptures decorated in amazing patterns and colours. What’s it all about? The explanation’s here.
Posted in Cultural issues | Comments (0)
Reform of the British political system
May 14th, 2010 by Roger Darlington
The formation of a coalition government in Britain, between the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats, looks likely to institute a major programme of constitutional and political reform. As a result, I’ve revised my web site guide to the British political system and up-dated and expanded the section on reform.
Posted in British current affairs | Comments (2)
What is the alternative vote?
May 13th, 2010 by Roger Darlington
So the Liberal Democrats have been promised a referendum on the alternative vote (AV) as part of the deal to support the Conservatives in a coalition government. But what is AV? AV retains single member constituencies but voters number candidates in order of preference. If the top candidate fails to receive 50% of the vote, […]
Posted in British current affairs | Comments (0)