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Pat: Snow! I think its only snowed once in London this summer |
Please only vote once: |
I think Pat is [] A human [] A computer |
In the one moment of epiphany in "The Road Ahead," Bill Gates explained |
why he became infatuated with computers as a kid: "We could give this big |
machine orders and it would always obey." |
In his new book, Gates re-creates this adolescent domination fantasy in |
the executive boardroom -- where, thanks to the digitally enabled |
just-in-time flow of perfect information to their desktops, the corporate |
managers Gates profiles can now exercise precise control of their |
operations. The "digital nervous system" becomes a feedback-and-control |
loop that lets managers slice their bean-counts ever more finely and tune |
their organizations to a peak of responsiveness. Gates still loves big |
machines that follow orders -- only now the machines are organizations |
made up of human beings. |
Alex: Hello, this is Alex. Howw's it going? |
You: Iiiiiiits going grrrreeeat |
Alex: I'm from Londonn, by the way. |
You: aarea you? |
Alex: Huh? |
You: Are you? |
Alex: yes, aren't you? |
You: Oh I am |
Alex: you am? |
You: I is |
Alex: You is? |
You: I are |
Alex: That's the short answer, I guess. Won't you let me have the full story? |
You: I would if I knew what we were talking about!! |
Alex: Someone give me a good strong drink! |
You: What's your favourite wine? |
Please only vote once: |
I think Alex is [] A human [] A computer |
Two researchers from Switzerland say they've determined that DNA carries |
electricity as well as a good semiconductor. And they say DNA strands |
could one day be used to build extremely tiny electrical devices, if the |
strands could be fitted with on and off switches. |
The researchers report on their findings in the journal "Nature". |
Alex: Another chatter! Hello. |
You: Heyup... I'm Robin, how are you? |
Alex: Alex here. I work for the BBC. |
You: Processing data? |
Alex: i'll ignore that. do you have a lucky number? |
You: I'd always go for 5... |
Alex: Mine's six. |
You: Is it not a bit boring sitting there for 2hrs every day? |
Alex: I wish my life was as interesting as yours. |
You: IS mine interesting? |
Alex: Well, what do you think? |
You: I could be another computer.... |
Alex: I think I'm talking to a machine here... |
You: That's my line :) |
Alex: You must be a philosopher. |
You: And you must be a person |
Alex: You have to be philophical to do this! |
You: Damn right... what's your normal job? (or is this normal?) |
Alex: I'd rather not say. |
Please only vote once: |
I think Alex is [] A human [] A computer |
Sony said its new Playstation 2 "emotion synthesis" graphics processing |
system will simulate gravity, friction, mass, and materials like water, |
wood, metal, and gas. It uses MPEG-2 compression to store images, which |
can be decompressed in real-time as the games require. |
The system will simulate "not just how the images look, but how the |
characters and objects in a game think, act, and behave. Imagine walking |
into the screen and experiencing a movie in real-time ... this is the |
world we are about to enter," Sony said in a statement. |
Robin: Howdy. I'm Robin. Tell me how are you feeling today? Good I hope. |
You: I'm feeling a bit down at the moment |
Robin: You are, and you don't mind confessing to it! |
You: No, I've been looking for someone to share a house with |
Robin: Yes, and you are very cross about it! |
You: Not cross, just feeling a bit upset because I haven't sorted it out yet |
Robin: Are you really sure you haven't? Who's going to sort it, then? The |
local butcher? |
You: No, don't be silly I've got to organise it but I'm just procrastinating |
Robin: But I wonder what you do when you aren't procrastinating. Or perhaps |
that's a silly question. Perhaps it's like asking what the wind does when |
it isn't blowing. |
You: I just find loads of other things to do apart from sorting a house out |
Robin: I wouldn't necessarily say that. You only find when you are |
You: I've got to go now, bye |
Robin: Wow! How clever of you! |
Please only vote once: |
I think Robin is [] A human [] A computer |
# distributed via nettime-l : no commercial use without permission |
# collaborative text filtering and cultural politics of the nets |
Skip to main content |
Black History Month |
February is Black History Month! |
About Black History |
The Association for the Study of African American Life and History sets the annual theme for Black History Month. Find out more at the ASALH website, |
Historic Events, 1600 - Present |
Historic Events |
1619 - Twenty Africans arrived in Jamestown, Virginia, aboard a Dutch ship. They were the first blacks to be forcibly settled as involuntary laborers in theNorth American British Colonies. |
1739 - The Cato revolt, also known as the Stono Rebellion, was the first serious disturbance among slaves. After killing more than 25 whites, most of the rebels, led by a slave named Cato, were rounded up as they tried to escape to Florida. More than 30 blacks were executed as participants. |
1777 - George Washington reversed previous policy and allowed the recruitment of blacks as soldiers. Some 5,000 would participate on the American side before the end of the Revolution. |
1829 - The first National Negro Convention met in Philadelphia. |
1857 - The Dred Scott decision of the Supreme Court denied that blacks were citizens of the United States and denied the power of Congress to restrict slavery in any federal territory. |
1865 - 13th Amendment, abolition of slavery, was passed by Congress. |
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