Monthly Archives: September 2010

John Shook is Selling a Book

Wow! That’s a pretty blatant bit of self promotion. Start by asserting that everyone is arguing from ignorance but don’t do anything to dispel that ignorance in the article, and end with a promo for the book that you claim … Continue reading

Posted in arts and culture, religion | Leave a comment

Learning Theories

. . . are something about which I have no expertise – but that’s never stopped me from sounding off about anything else, so here goes:

Posted in education | Tagged , | 6 Comments

Network Environments for Personal Learning

In week 2, the focus of #PLENK2010 shifted from the basic terminology, and emphasis on user “client-side” tools to the “server-side” area of support tools

Posted in education, web | Leave a comment

myPE(N)L ctd

So here is my current Personal Environment for Networked Learning (which I think of as the interface with physically remote people and information):

Posted in education, web | Tagged , | 3 Comments

My PE(N)L

is a mess (like this post) because my data streams are not well integrated.

Posted in education, web | Tagged , | Leave a comment

PLENK10: PEL vs EPL

Much of the discussion in the first week of the #PLENK2010 course was devoted to the (often quite subtle) distinctions between the Personal Learning Environment and the Personal Learning Network which it supports (and which is itself part of the … Continue reading

Posted in uncategorized | Leave a comment

Spectral Atheism

Jean Kazez distinguishes between  Hard and Soft Atheism in a post on her blog whose title leads me to think of the range as a spectrum. In the opening paragraph she identifies atheism as a belief, saying  “It’s not enough … Continue reading

Posted in religion | Tagged | Leave a comment

Moore vs Lavallee on iPod “tax”

Howard Knopf reports on the exchange between James Moore  and Carolyn Lavalleeon about inclusion of iPods in the Canadian media tax. The idea of a tax on ipods is no more “toxic” or “dumb” than the one that presently exists … Continue reading

Posted in canada, copyright | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Dawkins on Ratzinger on Godlesness

If the pope [1] can blame Hitler [2] on godlessness and atheist extremism, then it is not surprising that the truly godless might have something to say in response: the full text;       the video.

Posted in politics, religion | Tagged | Leave a comment

PLENK Feeds

My Sept 13 post on PLEvsPLN does show up in the link from the #PLENK2010  Feeds List, but never seems to have been captured by the aggregator for the Daily.  So I’m giving it another go here just to see … Continue reading

Posted in education, web | Leave a comment

Spirituality, Metaphor, Myth, and the True Meaning of Truth

The discussion following this comment is actually more interesting than the post itself (in which Jerry Coyne mocks Chris Mooney’s recent discovery of 1970’s style “spirituality” as the bridge between science and religion).  The commenter, one Timothy F Simpson, is … Continue reading

Posted in religion | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

More Music Industry Copyright Madness

From Michael Geist – Cdn Music Industry Assoc Chair: Format Shifting, User Generated Content Keep Piracy Sites Going.  According to J.P. Ellson, the Chair of the Canadian Council of Music Industry Association and board member of the industry’s Balanced Copyright … Continue reading

Posted in canada, copyright | Tagged , | 1 Comment

PLENK Week 1

Week 1 of the #PLENK2010 course on Personal Learning Environments,  Networks and Knowledge is devoted mainly to getting used to the terminology.

Posted in education, technology, web | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Save the Long Gun Registry

In Canada, there is a law requiring the registration of all firearms, with a period of amnesty having been provided for failure to register hunting rifles and other “long guns”. The amnesty period is due to expire in May, and … Continue reading

Posted in canada | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Nothing to Apologize for?

Maher Arar, in ‘Muslims have nothing to apologize for‘ (Vancouver Sun Sept9) exemplifies the pattern identified in recent studies which show that members of identifiable groups are more inclined to notice criticism of their own group than that of others.  … Continue reading

Posted in canada, social issues | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Who Needs Saving?

It is disappointing to see a supposedly sophisticated voice of religion still so literalistic.

Posted in christianity, religion, science | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Freedom from Rationality

Quinn O’Neill at 3quarksdaily has commented on both tone and content of the reason vs religion “debate”, suggesting, among other things, that freedom of religion requires that all views be treated with respect and tolerance.

Posted in religion, social issues | Tagged , | Leave a comment