There’s plenty to ponder when the Freakonomics lads (with help from their readers) interview security guru Bruce Schneier — including the news that he doesn’t bother securing his wireless network at home!
Herald falls for joke, will they withdraw?
This morning the Sydney Morning Herald tells us how an economist’s research shows that AC/DC’s Bon Scott wasn’t as good a singer as Brian Johnson. Alas, it’s been exposed as a joke. Will the Herald give as prominent a place to their “correction”?
Tagged! 5 favourite feeds
Oh dear, Zhasper tagged me with one of those “tell us your 5 favourite feeds” memes. At least it wasn’t “5 things you may not know about me,” or I’d be forced to emulate Hugh MacLeod’s sarcastic reply. OK, here we go…
The Pointlessness of News
When I posted about the astronaut attempted kidnapping story the other day, I hadn’t realised it had already become a major global story. Now Freakonomics co-author Stephen Dubner asks: Why?
I realize the story represents a sort of perfect storm of media stickiness — a female perp and a female victim, lust, revenge, NASA, pepper spray, and of course the diaper — but I have to confess that I am overwhelmed that this has become such a round-the-clock story. Who cares, and why? They were even talking about the story on the two ESPN shows I saw pieces of last night (SportsCenter and Pardon the Interruption); in each case, the anchors sheepishly acknowledged that the story had zero to do with sports but… they simply couldn’t resist.
With 63 comments so far, there’s plenty of interesting ideas. Well worth the read. The highlights for me…