Just read this in a comment section of someone else's blog.
"From being a white middle class male and suffering years and years and years and years of all sorts of accusations I have become sensitive. Just like other groups are sensitive after years and years and years and years of similar (tho different) accusations."
Build a bridge buddy. If you are part of a generic group of abusers you are going to cop a bit of flak even if you're not personally a baddy.
I'd say go and find a planet where being white, male, and middle class puts you in an oppressed group and has done for over 4,000 years (total lack of knowledge of human society history here) and then try that sentence again. White middle-class men have been getting stick for about 40 years. Deal with it.
Try being a woman. Rich and white, you're still worse off than the average white middle-class man. Look around at how many women are in top jobs compared to men. Don't just look at the few women in top jobs, add up the totals. Mostly men, mostly white, all rich. Just because girls are getting educated doesn't mean they're getting the jobs.
Try being not white, even in your own country. White people still dominate, ask any african if they don't think the IMF isn't still sticking it too them. Even worse if you're in a white dominated country. How many black, brown, and yellow people are there in top jobs?
Try being poor in any part of the world.
What are the chances of McCain getting in? Can't vote for a woman, wont vote for a black man.
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Information Illiteracy
Information illiteracy
I am becoming a grumpy old woman. Not as a result of this blog, but maybe this blog gives expression to my general grumpiness and allows it to grow.
Kids today!
Don’t get me wrong I was a very lazy student, and will still always take the easy way out if I can. I’d rather sit on the couch and read a book, or watch TV, than do research into my pet peeve any day, or night. I passed exams by being a good bluffer and essay writer, I also discovered that you could drop a course at Uni and the world didn’t end. Of course I was at uni in the days when fees were minimal and we got an allowance, so the extra half year to complete my degree was no great hard-ship. In fact having to go out and get a 9-5 job at the end of it all was much harder.
We didn’t have the internet back then, googling was something we did to each other visually and then it was more oogle that google. My Dad was one of the handful of NZers who had a computer at home. I used it for a couple of essays. We were told that a typed essay got better marks but that didn’t stop me from sitting down and bashing out an essay in 5 hours of exhaustive hand-writing. It’s probably why my right middle finger is slightly bent. The computer was an early model and the word processor was basic. You had to type in little scripts at the start of the file to determine font, and line and page length. Of course the computer memory was probably a deci-byte or something equally tiny. Did the trick though. I got my best marks for those two essays typed on the computer and printed out.
Now where was
Research, it was harder then too. We had a card catalogue in the library, and helpful staff. (From memory, but it isn’t what it used to be and I did avoid going into the library if I could at all help it.) all 100 level papers would include a reading list and usually a collection of copied chapters and articles. I sometimes did some extra research. But usually not (see above). The reading lists were pretty comprehensive and reflected what the library had to offer. For 200 and 300 level papers some extra reading was expected but not compulsory. Most of my tutors and or lecturers met with me before a major essay to discuss the topic I was going to address and give me a suggested reading list. In year two I even went so far as to use the Library.
What is my point. Not too sure yet. Something to do with life being easier, and harder.
Harder, because we didn’t have computer based catalogues, databases, the internet, and Google. Easier for the same reasons. We weren’t expected to be able to find the latest research on our chosen topic. When I did research into some obscure topic in the 1950s I read US newspapers on microform for hours trying to find relevant articles. I had a couple of useful books but the library didn’t stretch to any resources beyond the microform and those books. So I wasn’t expected to come up with more.
Students can now use Google to find articles and web pages on every topic under the sun. In writing an essay they have all the resources you could wish for right at the click of a mouse, or tap of a key. Or I guess if they have a Blackberry they use some form of ‘pen’ and/or magnifying lens to see what they are doing and reading. I just used Google scholar to find articles on the topic (not mentioned above). Amazing!
Fortunately for me I work in an academic library so I have the training and the smarts to know when I’m looking at a reputable source. The two articles can be accessed by me from academic databases and so I can be fairly certain what I am reading is worth using in any essay I might write. Aand thankfully they were both written a decade after my essay was due in.) I have also taken classes in evaluating web sites so I can feel fairly assured that I can tell a good/useful web site from a poor/biased one.
I recently read a feature in the Otago Daily Times about web searching and results and research. Or something like that. The title of the article, originally from the Washington Post is Going Where No Fact Has Gone before. It covers the issue of how an untruth or not-fact can become ‘true’ of a ‘fact’ to millions if enough people read and repeat it. The article goes on to look at a Librarian sitting in a “grubby employee workroom” answering questions on-line to rude and impatient questioners. It is hard to know but I infer that the questioners are young people. Hurumph!
Quotes such as "u respond slow. please consider taking a typing class." The librarian in question is concerned not so much about the rudeness and impatience of the questioner but that if he, the librarian, isn’t fast enough in his response time, then the questioner will go elsewhere and get the answers from a less reliable source. The librarian is careful in most instances to provide links to reputable web sites so the questioner can check the answers.
This is where I got worried. “The user seems annoyed - it's just science homework, dude. No need for such crazy accuracy” The librarian is concerned he will lose the questioner if an answer isn’t provided pronto. “then [the librarian] answers three more questions from the same patron, including "In what continent is
Why give him the answer, let the little shit fail his homework. Tell him
We’re training people to think instant gratification is the only way. Faster, faster, faster and don’t tell me I can’t have it now. Library literature is all about how we can respond to the user who only uses Google and can’t be bothered coming into the library. Virtual reference may be a wonderful resource but not if it makes librarians answer machines.
I say lets fight them. In an academic library don’t say how can we meet the ‘needs’ of the new user who thinks Google has all the answers. Let’s say “how can we help our students become top researchers?”
Insist that students get answers that are factual. Insist they spend time finding answers and checking their facts. Tell them to do it the hard way. Fail them if they give you crap in their assignments.
Secondary schools are the gateway to university. It is here that research skills need to be taught. Students should arrive at university with an understanding of how, where and why to research. They should know that at university they’ll be expected to show that the sources they use are academic and authoritative.
Once at university the research ethic should be followed through. Lecturers and tutors check those references. We spend so much effort on worrying about plagiarism, what about essays based on entries in Wikipedia? If you don’t expect students to use academic journals in writing their essays give them reading lists and tell them that if they use a web site they must show that the site is worth referencing. If you do want students to use these tools get a librarian in to teach how to use the databases and catalogues. Set course work that will demonstrate a student’s understanding of these tools. Teach web site evaluation, or get a librarian in to teach it. Or insist that students attend a library run class, make their attendance compulsory, take a roll. It is so bloody simple.
I’m sorry that I had it easy. Not sorry for me I hope you understand, whew. Actually, imagine if I’d had a database or ten, and access to the New York Times archives on-line. I could have saved those hours of research in the basement of the library reading microfilms. I might have got an ‘A’ for that essay instead of a ‘B+’.
Well, I guess I lost you a long time back. Sorry. But I do feel a lot better and that is what this rant blog is all about.
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Winter
June is not mid-winter, Christmas is not mid-summer (in
They call it mid-winter, but of course it isn’t. The Winter Solstice is really the beginning of the really cold weather. It’s all to do with sea temperature taking a while to catch up (or down), and keeping us warm longer.
My totally unscientific mind has come up with this explanation.
As the planet tilts into winter the sun gets lower and we get less solar heat. The land cools quickly, but the sea cools more slowly. Water takes longer to heat up and is slower to cool down. Fact. Those funny old winds blowing off the sea during the day keep the land a little bit warmer for longer.
So, just because June 21 is the shortest day of the year doesn’t mean it is the middle of the cold season. In fact it is just a little beyond the beginning. Say a week or three. We had snow two weeks ago for the first time this year. Of course in
Feijoas, avocados, bananas, pineapples, tamarillos, oranges – all reasons to move to a warmer climate. I’d miss the cherries and apricots a bit but not as much as I miss having feijoa trees in my garden.
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Buses in Dunedin, or Why I wont catch the bus!
Why I wont catch the bus in Dunedin
I was raised in Wellington. I caught the train to school nearly every day through my Intermediate and Secondary school years. Later I took buses to University and work every day. I have taken trains to Auckland, Gisborne and when I moved to Dunedin, we arrived by train. I have taken buses around NZ and the world.
I believe in public transport and think it is what makes a city and a country work. When we moved to Dunedin a bus system was one of the factors that helped us choose this city.
I live in Brockville. We bought our house in Brockville10 years ago partly because, despite being an outer suburb, it was serviced by buses. What we didn’t realise until too late was that the bus timetable would be confusing, erratic and the service split between two companies. 10 years later, despite a review, nothing has changed, except the cost. Take a look at the timetable some time. In the morning the first bus is 7am, then 7:15am, then 7:40am, 7:55am, 8:20am 8:40am, 9am, 9:15, 10am… This erratic timetable goes on all day, until the evening service. In Wellington I lived in the middle of a circuit route. The buses went every 15 minutes at rush hour and every half hour at other times. If I needed a bus about 2pm I knew there would be one at 1:45pm the next would be 2:15pm and then another at 2:45pm. I can remember those times even after 20 years.
For several years I worked in the Octagon/Exchange area. Taking bus to and from Brockville was a reasonable choice. I could leave home at 7:30am and be at work by 8am, or leave home at 7:45am and be at work by 8:20am. Brockville buses run on a circuit, some going first to Halfway Bush then to Brockville then to the Octagon, and others to Brockville then to Halfway Bush then to the Octagon. So the later bus in the morning takes 5 minutes longer to get to the Octagon.
A few years ago I started working at the University of Otago. Dunedin’s largest employer. The Brockville bus goes nowhere near the University. Perhaps it was thought that no-one employed at the University would live in a state housing subdivision. I caught the bus most mornings with at least two other people working or studying at the university. The walk from the George Street stop to the University was not too unpleasant, on most days. It takes about 10 minutes, brisk walking. The bus home was a different story. Because the Brockville bus route continues on to St Kilda and then back, it does not travel down George Street, rather heading up Stuart Street after coming along Princes Street. The walk from the University to the Octagon takes about 20 minutes, brisk walking. Again, on most days, not unpleasant. But here’s the problem. If it is cold and wet and I want to take a bus to the Octagon from the University, they all leave at 5pm. That’s when I finished work. In that job leaving 5 minutes early was not possible, in fact leaving 5 or 10 minutes past 5pm was usual. So I would miss the bus to the Octagon. To make matters worse, if I didn’t get out of work until after 5:15 (to pick an arbitrary time) I could well miss the 5:35pm bus from the Octagon to Brockville. “So what” you say. “Get the next bus” The next bus is 6:20pm. That’s 45 minutes later. Who decided that 5:35pm was the end of ‘rush-hour’? After two years in that job I gave up trying and got a University car park and drove every day. It was worth it.
After a break of two years I came back to work, this time on Union Street East. Just a bit further away from George Street and the Brockville buses. It takes me 15 minutes brisk walking to get from the bus stop to work and 25 minutes to get from work to the Octagon. Making catching that 5:35pm bus even harder if I am held up at work. If I am able to leave work a minute or two early I can catch a bus to the Octagon and then transfer to the Brockville bus. Of course I have to pay more because the two buses are run by different companies and I can’t get a transfer ticket.
In my current job, taking the bus I leave home at 7:45am and get to work at 8:30am. In the afternoon if I leave at 5pm and walk to the Octagon I get home at 6pm. Driving I leave home at 8am get to work between 8:15 and 8:20am (depending on traffic and parking). Getting home can be slower because of traffic and my tendency to combine a stop at the supermarket with the journey (something I can’t do on the bus) but I can still walk in the door between 5:15pm and 5:45pm.
From Brockville to the city is $2.40, or $2.16 if I use a Go Card. That’s at least $4.32 each day. If I add the bus trip from the University to the Octagon that’s another dollar. Petrol cost about $2 a litre and the drive is about 15km return (less actually but I like rounding up). In my car doing about 10km per litre that’s a cost in petrol of $3.00. I could add wear and tear costs but I wont. I travel to Hampden every weekend and the return journey is almost 200km. When I take into account that most weeks I will drive to work on Friday morning from Brockville and then go directly to Hampden and often drive down on Monday morning the 45-60km extra per week isn’t that significant.
So how much am I saving taking the bus?
Let’s also take into account the stress of running for a bus when I’m late, missing the 5:35pm and having to hang around for 45 minutes (or pay $20 for a taxi), the risk of catching a cold off other bus travellers, the interesting odour of wet commuters, the inane and colourful language of school students, etc.
Now, why would I catch the bus? I’ll happily pay the extra to drive and park.
Brockville is not a wealthy suburb. Its residents are more likely to find owning a car too costly, or own older less fuel efficient cars. They are more likely to work in jobs that are not regular ‘9-5’ jobs. Cleaners, shift workers, etc. They are also likely to work outside of the city centre. Who needs buses most? Dunedin is too small to accommodate multiple bus companies that don’t work together. We should have one bus ticketing system that allows for transfers across companies. We need routes and timetables that meet the needs of commuters.
Making parking harder doesn’t appear to have altered the driving habits of many University workers, why not try making catching a bus easier.
Ah, my first rant. Boy does that feel good.
I was raised in Wellington. I caught the train to school nearly every day through my Intermediate and Secondary school years. Later I took buses to University and work every day. I have taken trains to Auckland, Gisborne and when I moved to Dunedin, we arrived by train. I have taken buses around NZ and the world.
I believe in public transport and think it is what makes a city and a country work. When we moved to Dunedin a bus system was one of the factors that helped us choose this city.
I live in Brockville. We bought our house in Brockville10 years ago partly because, despite being an outer suburb, it was serviced by buses. What we didn’t realise until too late was that the bus timetable would be confusing, erratic and the service split between two companies. 10 years later, despite a review, nothing has changed, except the cost. Take a look at the timetable some time. In the morning the first bus is 7am, then 7:15am, then 7:40am, 7:55am, 8:20am 8:40am, 9am, 9:15, 10am… This erratic timetable goes on all day, until the evening service. In Wellington I lived in the middle of a circuit route. The buses went every 15 minutes at rush hour and every half hour at other times. If I needed a bus about 2pm I knew there would be one at 1:45pm the next would be 2:15pm and then another at 2:45pm. I can remember those times even after 20 years.
For several years I worked in the Octagon/Exchange area. Taking bus to and from Brockville was a reasonable choice. I could leave home at 7:30am and be at work by 8am, or leave home at 7:45am and be at work by 8:20am. Brockville buses run on a circuit, some going first to Halfway Bush then to Brockville then to the Octagon, and others to Brockville then to Halfway Bush then to the Octagon. So the later bus in the morning takes 5 minutes longer to get to the Octagon.
A few years ago I started working at the University of Otago. Dunedin’s largest employer. The Brockville bus goes nowhere near the University. Perhaps it was thought that no-one employed at the University would live in a state housing subdivision. I caught the bus most mornings with at least two other people working or studying at the university. The walk from the George Street stop to the University was not too unpleasant, on most days. It takes about 10 minutes, brisk walking. The bus home was a different story. Because the Brockville bus route continues on to St Kilda and then back, it does not travel down George Street, rather heading up Stuart Street after coming along Princes Street. The walk from the University to the Octagon takes about 20 minutes, brisk walking. Again, on most days, not unpleasant. But here’s the problem. If it is cold and wet and I want to take a bus to the Octagon from the University, they all leave at 5pm. That’s when I finished work. In that job leaving 5 minutes early was not possible, in fact leaving 5 or 10 minutes past 5pm was usual. So I would miss the bus to the Octagon. To make matters worse, if I didn’t get out of work until after 5:15 (to pick an arbitrary time) I could well miss the 5:35pm bus from the Octagon to Brockville. “So what” you say. “Get the next bus” The next bus is 6:20pm. That’s 45 minutes later. Who decided that 5:35pm was the end of ‘rush-hour’? After two years in that job I gave up trying and got a University car park and drove every day. It was worth it.
After a break of two years I came back to work, this time on Union Street East. Just a bit further away from George Street and the Brockville buses. It takes me 15 minutes brisk walking to get from the bus stop to work and 25 minutes to get from work to the Octagon. Making catching that 5:35pm bus even harder if I am held up at work. If I am able to leave work a minute or two early I can catch a bus to the Octagon and then transfer to the Brockville bus. Of course I have to pay more because the two buses are run by different companies and I can’t get a transfer ticket.
In my current job, taking the bus I leave home at 7:45am and get to work at 8:30am. In the afternoon if I leave at 5pm and walk to the Octagon I get home at 6pm. Driving I leave home at 8am get to work between 8:15 and 8:20am (depending on traffic and parking). Getting home can be slower because of traffic and my tendency to combine a stop at the supermarket with the journey (something I can’t do on the bus) but I can still walk in the door between 5:15pm and 5:45pm.
From Brockville to the city is $2.40, or $2.16 if I use a Go Card. That’s at least $4.32 each day. If I add the bus trip from the University to the Octagon that’s another dollar. Petrol cost about $2 a litre and the drive is about 15km return (less actually but I like rounding up). In my car doing about 10km per litre that’s a cost in petrol of $3.00. I could add wear and tear costs but I wont. I travel to Hampden every weekend and the return journey is almost 200km. When I take into account that most weeks I will drive to work on Friday morning from Brockville and then go directly to Hampden and often drive down on Monday morning the 45-60km extra per week isn’t that significant.
So how much am I saving taking the bus?
Let’s also take into account the stress of running for a bus when I’m late, missing the 5:35pm and having to hang around for 45 minutes (or pay $20 for a taxi), the risk of catching a cold off other bus travellers, the interesting odour of wet commuters, the inane and colourful language of school students, etc.
Now, why would I catch the bus? I’ll happily pay the extra to drive and park.
Brockville is not a wealthy suburb. Its residents are more likely to find owning a car too costly, or own older less fuel efficient cars. They are more likely to work in jobs that are not regular ‘9-5’ jobs. Cleaners, shift workers, etc. They are also likely to work outside of the city centre. Who needs buses most? Dunedin is too small to accommodate multiple bus companies that don’t work together. We should have one bus ticketing system that allows for transfers across companies. We need routes and timetables that meet the needs of commuters.
Making parking harder doesn’t appear to have altered the driving habits of many University workers, why not try making catching a bus easier.
Ah, my first rant. Boy does that feel good.
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