Ultimate Blogger Contest - the cast is reduced

Per the Selection Process the 30 finalists will be reduced to a final 12 for the actual contest, names to be announced on Monday. My picture is on the board...does that mean I'm in???

Posted by prolurkr at 08:13 PM | TrackBack

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galazy

Last night hubby and I went to see the opening presentation of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. We are big Douglas Adams fans having listened to the original (well not in the original) radio shows of Hitchhiker's Guide, we've read the books, seen the amazingly campy BBC TV series made from it, and even seen Adams read from his work live. Four years ago I told everyone I was "The answer to life, the universe, and everything" when I turned 42.  Yes we are fans, though not so far gone that we arrived with our own towels, as some at the live performance did...devotion can take many forms. *backs away slowly*

If you are a fan the movie is great. They kept the pacing of the original, that frenetic energy that infuses the whole story...Adams paced the stage the entire time he read when we saw him live. Hubby was so pleased they kept The Hitchhiker's Guide itself as the narrator and that they had great graphics to illustrate the entries in the Guide. Personally Zaphod's flipping double-head thing wasn't nearly as funny as the giant rubber head from the BBC series.

If you are new to The Hitchhiker's Guide I expect some of the jokes will be lost on you...like why are there a pair of white mice running around through multiple scenes? But after 25 years who, in the English-speaking world, hasn't been exposed to some of The Hitchhiker's Guide. If this is all new to you read the books, you can find them in any good bookstore.

Oh gosh and BBC Radio is doing the last three books on radio with most of the original performers. Wish I had known this when they started last fall.

Twenty-five years after the original radio series of Douglas Adams' The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy exploded into the public consciousness, the further exploits of its bewildered hero, Arthur Dent, are being brought to life in their original medium and with the (mainly) original cast.

The last three books of the 'trilogy in five parts', Life, The Universe And Everything; So Long And Thanks For All The Fish and Mostly Harmless, have been dramatised as three new series (none of them were previously produced for radio).

As the original two series were dubbed the Primary and Secondary Phases by Douglas Adams, these new series form the Tertiary, Quandary and Quintessential Phases.

Thanks to the wonders of digital technology, Douglas Adams himself can be heard playing the part of Agrajag.

The BBC has lots of cool CD's and DVD's available on their site, The BBC Shop.

Posted by prolurkr at 09:19 AM | TrackBack

Madison - the movie

Last weekend hubby and I went to see Madison, the movie. I was pleasantly surprised with this film, you see...while it was filmed in and around one of my favorite small towns in Indiana aka Madison, and it is filled with gorgeous scenery from the town and along the Ohio River; the film has been in the can for four years which pretty much made me think it was going to be a major dog. I figure they only released it now because James Caviezel is hot, having come off two huge movies last year - The Passion of the Christ and Bobby Jones, Stroke of Genius. When they were running around the area filming the big name in the project was Jake Lloyd - the young Anakin Skywalker in Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace.

Well it's not a complete dog of a movie. It has a distinct "made for TV" feel to it. But what the heck go see it for the setting and if you like the look of the town, pack up and go visit. Madison is a great place to hang out.

From Michael Esposito's Chicago Tribune Movie Review: Loosely based on a true story, "Madison" tells the familiar tale of a small town struggling with a waning primary industry (here, river transportation) that seeks respect through athletic enterprise (hydroplane boat racing) - think "Hoosiers" or "Breaking Away," but with boats.

The sad part of Esposito's comments is if all you know about Indiana is taken from those three films you think the whole state is made up of depressed little towns with "can do" attitudes. Ok so we do bear some resemblance to both of those comments. *sigh* It is the midwest after all.

p.s. The only time there was ever a fighter plane on the lawn of the Courthouse in Columbus Indiana was for the filming of this movie. It sat there for about two weeks, turning many of the locals heads as we drove by. "What is THAT doing there?"

Posted by prolurkr at 08:26 AM | TrackBack

Ultimate Blogger Contest

Last week I saw a mention of the Ultimate Blogger Contest come across one of the newsfeeds. So I checked out the site and ended up applying, figured I kinda had the corner on the "middle aged academic broads who blog" market so what the heck. Well surprise surprise, I made the finals. "After a night of grueling eliminations we have whittled the 300+ applicants for The Ultimate Bliogger down [to] 30 and you are one of the top 30."

The competition will be at the Ultimate Blogger Contest Blog. I don't have all the details, such as when this starts or how the voting will work. But if you are interested keep checking their site. Obviously this is a different kind of writing then I do here, more topical more humor less *booming voice* deep thought. Should be fun. We shall see if I can outlast the competition and win the $500+ prize package, which could save me some money on hosting my webpage for a year...that would be good for this grad student. *S*

The winner of The Ultimate Blogger will receive:

* $100 dollars cash money!

* Transmit 3 FTP Client for Mac ($29.95)

* Panic, Inc Limited Edition Rainbow Transmit T-Shirt ($19)

* Free Domain Registration and 1 Year Webhosting ($99)

* Assistance with a Movable Type install and blog customization ($100)

* 1GB iPod Shuffle loaded with the entire musical library of States Rights Records ($150+)

* A Flickr Pro Account ($25)

"Again, congrats on making it this far. Thanks so much for applying. You stand out from the crowd." Kind of a foregone conclusion when you are a 6'1'' redhead...you tend to stand out just by standing. Now if winning were just that easy.

Posted by prolurkr at 07:17 AM | TrackBack

CFP - "Abuse: the darker side of human-computer interaction"

                           CALL FOR WORKSHOP PAPERS
--------------------------------------------------------------------
"Abuse: the darker side of human-computer interaction"
An INTERACT 2005 Workshop
====================================================================
Date: Monday, September 12 (Full day)
Location: Rome, Italy
Submission Deadline: 23 May 2005
Web-site: www.agentabuse.org
====================================================================

AIMS AND SCOPE OF THE WORKSHOP
==============================
Computers are often the subject of our wrath and often, we feel, with good reason.  There seems to be something intrinsic to this medium which brings out the darker side of human nature.  This may be due to the computer complexity which induces errors and frustrations in the user (bad interface design), to the human tendency to respond socially to computers (media equation), or to a disinhibition effect induced by the interaction with a different form of information processor, perceived as inferior (master/slave relationship).  

As software is evolving from the tool metaphor to the agent one, understanding the role of abusive behaviour in HCI and its effect on the task-at-hand becomes increasingly important.  The reaction of traditional software to abuse is obvious - it should, like a hammer, ignore it.  With the agent model, however, software can be autonomous and situated.  That is, it should be possible to create software that takes note of its surroundings, and responsibility for its actions.  Conversational agents are a clear case of a software entity which might be expected to deal with abuse.  Virtual assistants, to take a classic application instance, should not just provide timely information; a virtual assistant must also be a social actor and participate in the games people play. Some of these games appear to include abusive behaviour.  

This workshop aims to bring together papers that transcend disciplinary boundaries. Papers are solicited from researchers and practitioners who have encountered the occurrence of abuse in HCI and CMC and given some thought to why and how it happens. Papers that explore virtual abuse and the abuse of agents as cultural artifacts are particularly welcome. We hope this will provide a forum for discussing both the reasons behind aggressive behaviour and suggestions for how software should deal with abuse.

Relevant topics include but are not limited to
* determinants and correlates of end user frustration
* emotional reactions to computing technology
* emotional interfaces – how to deal with negative emotions
* conversational agents and abusive language
* conflict resolution in face-to-face communication and CMC
* flaming and disinhibition in HCI and CMC
* art on the edge
* relationship of the virtual and the real, the literal and metaphor
* outing, passing, hiding, covering -- how are agents designed to seem "normal" and what are the assumptions about "being human" that inform design?

INTENDED AUDIENCE AND WORKSHOP FORMAT
=====================================
The workshop will bring together an interdisciplinary group of researchers and practitioners in human computer interaction, computer mediated communication, intelligent virtual agents, game design, social psychology, cultural critics and art.  The program will feature the presentation of refereed papers, demos and poster followed by interactive sessions drawn on a number of scenarios which will be distributed prior to the workshop.  A part of the discussion will concentrate on the definition of a roadmap for future research.

SUBMISSIONS AND DISSEMINATION
================================
We seek:
- Position papers (4 pages) reporting on experiences, theories, case studies and experiments.
- Theoretical papers (4 pages) discussing cultural, artistic, political, and philosophical issues.
- Demo submissions (4 pages).
- Poster submission (1 page description of the poster or 1 page sketch of the poster)

Position and theoretical papers as well as demo submissions will be peer reviewed and should be formatted according to the LNCS (Lecture Notes in Computer Science) format (templates are available at Springer-Verlag LNCS Authors Instructions page and at www.Interact2005.org at the Submission page ).  

Please e-mail your submission in PDF to
Antonella.de-angeli@manchester.ac.uk
(cc pwallis@acm.org)

Accepted papers will appear in the workshop proceedings and will be posted on the web (www.agentabuse.org). Outcomes of the workshop will be summarised and posted on agentabuse.org, which is intended to become a dynamic repository for relevant research.  If enough interest is gathered from the participants, we will explore alternatives such as a special journal issue or a book collection.

IMPORTANT DATES
===============
   May 23: submission
   June 6: Notification of acceptance
   June 10: Registration dead-line for presenters    
   July 1: camera ready copies
   September 12: workshop

REGISTRATION
===============
Registration will cost 150 Euro before June 10 and 200 Euro after this date.  Participants will register through the conference website (http://www.interact2005.org/).  

ORGANISING COMMITTEE
===================
Co-Chairs:
  Antonella De Angeli (University of Manchester), UK
  Sheryl Brahnam (Missouri State University), US
  Peter Wallis (University of Sheffield), UK

Programme Committee
  Pamela Briggs (Northumbria University), UK
  Alan Dix (Lancaster University), UK
  Dirk Heylen (University of Twente), Holland
  Graham Johnson (NCR), UK
  Catherine Pelachaud (Universite de Paris 8), France
  Daniela Petrelli (University of Sheffield), UK
  Laurent Romary (INRIA), France
  Daniela Romano (University of Sheffield), UK
  Oliviero Stock (IRST), Italy
  Alistair Sutcliffe (University of Manchester), UK
  Sean Zdenek (Texas Tech University), US
  Yorick Wilks (University of Sheffield), UK

Contact Information.  
For information, expressions of interest and/or submission please contact
Antonella De Angeli
Centre for Human-Computer Interaction Design
School of Informatics, the University of Manchester,
M60 1QD United Kingdom
Antonella.de-angeli@manchester.ac.uk

Posted by prolurkr at 09:22 PM | TrackBack

Gender and diaries

I will be spending today and probably tomorrow working though issues of gender for my DG chapter. Central to this process are the following five, non-gender studies books, and one women's studies text.

This book is so new Amazon doesn't have a picture of the cover on file. I can't wait to read though this book with a fine toothed comb, the quintessential "close reading." It appears to hit many of the aspects of online life that fascinate me particularly the documentation of the mundane daily lives so many of us lead, and which belie the amazing amount of information we pass by, and casually pass on, not realizing the wealth of resource found in our simple daily living. From Saved from Oblivion page at the Peter Lang site: What lies behind our need to rigorously document the thoughts, deeds, images, and sounds of everyday life? And more curiously, why would anyone what to spend time going over such material? At any given point someone is using a pen, a camera, a web cam, or a computer to document with varying degrees of detail, personal thoughts, observations, or glimpses of private space and life. And for each of these, there is usually at least one person reading, watching, and even responding. Saved from Oblivion is a comparative analysis of how individuals have used various media technologies to document their everyday lives. More specifically, this book focuses on the major forms of self-documentation that have been in use since the late nineteenth century and covers traditional diaries, snapshot photography, home movies/videos, and web-based media such as web cams and online diaries or journals.	Saved From Oblivion: Documenting The Daily From Diaries To Web Cams (Digital Formations, V. 11)
Unlike the Kitman above, this book is too old to have a picture in Amazon's archive. This book is a wonderful 1974 study of English Diaries, most of which were written by men. This book makes a great counterpoint to my two favorite book length academic works on diaries, see the next two entries.	Private chronicles: A study of English diaries
My exploration of adolescent online diaries would not have progressed as quickly or as deeply as it has in the last 18 months had I not found the work of Suzanne Bunkers. I return to this book often rereading sections of the excellent Introduction with its overview of the study of diaries, particularly womens diaries. I also overview the first two sections American Girls and Coming of Age to remind myself of the similarities and differences between the lives of the girls and young women whose diaries Bunkers studied and the lives of the girls and young women who post their writing online.
Not sure why this book doesn't have a picture at Amazon. This edited volume on women's diaries covers a broad range of topics including sections on theory, culture, and the act of writing. Bunkers and Huff pulled together a volume that probes so many facets of diaries that I have yet to climb though all the chapters. I hope to do that soon.	Inscribing the Daily: Critical Essays on Women's Diaries
This book is new to me, I found it at the IUPUI Library. Has a chapter on "The universal subject, female embodiment, and the consolidation of autobiography" which looks potentially very useful for either this project or the new book chapter I have to revise for a June 1 submission date.	Subjectivity, Identity, and the Body: Women's Autobiographical Practices in the Twentieth Century
I found this book at the IUPUI Library, it looks like a good general volume on gender theory. Something I really need to bring this book chapter up to the place the editors want it to be with that branch of study.

So needless to say I got a bunch of reading to do so I can nail the "gender theory" section of the paper.

Posted by prolurkr at 02:00 PM | TrackBack

It is an amazing world

An amazing story came across the news feeds today. It seems that early last year an Ivory Billed Woodpecker was sighted in the swamps of Arkansas. Check out the full story at Woodpecker Thought to Be Extinct Is Sighted in Arkansas.

"This great chieftain of the woodpecker tribe," as John James Audubon described the ivory bill - with its 30-inch wingspan, stunning black and white coloration with red on the male's cockade and a long, powerful bill - was once found in hardwood swamps and bottom land through the Southeast. As the forests were logged the numbers of birds decreased, until the ivory bill, the largest American woodpecker, faded from view. The last documented sighting was in Louisiana in 1944.

Though it appeared lost, the ivory bill haunted birders and ornithologists and others, and over the years there were dozens of reports of sightings. But each effort was unmasked as a hoax or wishful thinking - until Feb. 11, 2004.

Posted by prolurkr at 02:04 PM | TrackBack

New reports from "UK Children Go Online"

Two new reports have been issued by the UK Children Go Online project.

UK Children Go Online: Final report of key project findings (pdf)

From the press release: 'Net baffled' parents may reduce children's job and education prospects

The lack of internet skills and experience among many UK parents is potentially harming their children's education and job prospects and could be placing them on the wrong side of a growing digital divide, says new research by academics at the London School of Economics and Political Science.

According to the research, many parents lack the skills to guide and support their children's internet use, yet it also demonstrated that internet-literate parents have internet-literate children.

Sonia Livingstone, Professor of Social Psychology based in LSE's Media and Communications Department, said: 'Now that many young people rely on the internet for information, homework help and careers guidance, the more it matters that some of them are getting left behind. Not knowing how to best use the internet may have a negative impact on their education and employment opportunities.'

The report notes that a group it terms 'disengaged youth' are the least likely to engage with the net, least likely to have access at home and are less expert internet users. These young people find themselves 'on the wrong side' of the digital divide and are at risk of missing out on the many opportunities the internet has to offer.

These are some of the key findings of a major two year research project investigating 9-19 year olds' internet use, UK Children Go Online (UKCGO) , carried out by Professor Sonia Livingstone and Dr Magdalena Bober of LSE. They analysed results from a national, in-home, face to face survey of 1,511 young people aged 9-19 and a written questionnaire to 906 of their parents. The research was funded by an Economic and Social Research Council grant under the e-Society Programme.

They found that children who are daily and weekly users have parents who also use the internet more often and are more expert. These tend to be middle-class teenagers, and those with home access. Greater online skills are associated with the take up of a wide range of online opportunities for children and young people, and a divide is growing not just of access but also centred on the quality of use. For some, the internet is a rich, stimulating resource, for others, a narrow, unengaging medium.

One way to help is ensure that literacy initiatives are also targeted at parents. Fearful parents may take too rigorous an approach to restricting online access completely and thereby leave their children less aware of online risks, such as chat room dangers, when they do use the internet.

The report notes that one way parents can improve their awareness of the online risks faced by their children is by increasing supportive activities, such as going online together. This needs to be balanced with respect for their children's privacy, an approach that, according to the report, improves trust and ensures safety issues are more likely to be discussed in future.

The report also calls for action by the government and industry. Professor Livingstone said: 'Of the parents we surveyed, 18 per cent, nearly a fifth, said they don't know how to help their children use the internet safely. Many recognised their own responsibility - 67 per cent wanted more and better advice for parents, but 75 per cent also wanted more and better teaching guidance in schools. A total of 85 per cent of parents wanted to see tougher regulation of pornography.'

The report compared UK findings with other countries: 

* UK parents seem more restrictive than parents across the EU, where according to a recent Eurobarometer survey half of parents don't allow their children to give out personal information (in the UKCGO survey, this figure was 86 per cent of parents) and one third of parents ban chat rooms (this was two thirds of parents in the UKCGO survey). 

* However, UK parents are less restrictive than those in the US. According to a recent Pew Internet and American Life survey, 62 per sent of parents said they check up on their children's internet use afterwards, but only 41 per cent of parents in the UKCGO survey did.

Karen Thomson, CEO of AOL UK, one of the sponsors of this report, said: 'The Internet, particularly as we move to broadband, is a massive potential driver of social change. It is important for a healthy society that no group is left behind, so we need to make sure that learning opportunities for adults and children are not ignored in the rush to deliver new technology benefits.'

Inequalities and the Digital Divide in Children and Young People's Internet Use (pdf)

This report presents findings from the UK Children Go Online survey (UKCGO) in relation to internet access, low users and the digital divide.

Posted by prolurkr at 08:14 AM | TrackBack

Lack of posting

I've been kind of sporadic in posting for the last week or so. My apologies gentle reader. Last week I was embroiled in one of those administrative email exchanges that just seem to sap all of ones excess strength. So I wrote but I didn't post. Thankfully the exchange is over.  And I now understand what is going on, it's amazing what one can learn by simply picking up the phone and making a few calls.  *S*

As is to be expected after running full throttle this long, I have had a cold this week that put my horizontal for a few days. But on the good side I caught up on sleep which should be a good thing heading into the final sprint for the book chapters and quals.

Posted by prolurkr at 07:55 AM | TrackBack

An Evening with David Sedaris

David Sedaris, read his work at the IU Auditorium on April 19, 2005. I found out about the performance earlier in the day from Pete's post over at Sampo. I hadn't checked the listing of the Auditorium's performances this year - one can only watch so many performances of Oklahoma! in a lifetime, even when you love musical theatre - so I was ignorant of something I would have instantly known I would enjoy.

Sedaris reading of his new works had the audience in stitches. In on of the pieces, about the disconnects between appearances and behavior, he referred to "shit" as "the tofu of cursing. You can shape it into anything you need." Following with an example I can identify with from my days in manufacturing. You have undoubtedly met similar people who sprinkle their speech liberally with "shit"s as though the word is linguistic salt. And when the salt is removed there is nothing left.

Hubby was not as familiar with Sedaris' work as I. I've been trying to get him to read Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim since I finished it last year, but he has his own reading list. So last night was an introduction for him. It was interesting to watch.

In both his written work and oral performance, Sedaris has a rhythm. A unique set of rhythms actually, in that the structure of the story has very distinct beats. Likewise his reading style has a distinct cadence. Hubby noticed how the audience was so familiar with the rhythms that they started laughing on the beats without waiting for the punchline.

He also noticed that when Sedaris replied to the question "What's the best part of living in France?" with "I can smoke anywhere," the audience laughed heartily. Now this is amusing because Bloomington is one of the first cities in Indiana to regulate smoking, to the point that there is no smoking in restaurants in the city. Sedaris' comment is so un-PC that the audience, amazingly, found it ever funny.

If you get a chance to hear Sedaris read live I strongly encourage it. I think the New Yorker is right, he is the funnest New York writers since Dorthy Parker. Either way read the books, there is a little bit of all of us embedded in his stories.

Posted by prolurkr at 08:52 AM | TrackBack

CFP - special issue of IRIE on e-games

- Deadline for abstracts: June 30, 2005
- Notification of acceptance to authors: August 15, 2005
- Deadline for full chapters: September 30, 2005
- Publication: December, 2005
 
The Ethics of E-Games
Call for Papers - IRIE, Vol. 2/2005 International Review of Information Ethics.
 
Deadline for abstracts: June 30, 2005
 
Introduction
 
Computer-based or e-games, in both standalone and networked incarnations (including ³Massive Multiplayer Online Games² or MMOGs), represent one of the most popular ­ and an economically profitable ­ uses of ICTs and CMC in the contemporary world. Such games not only simulate a range of human social interactions, from building (perhaps utopian) societies to historical and fantasy warfare of every age: the games further occasion and catalyze a range of human interactions that rightly inspire research from a variety of disciplines and specialties.  Especially violent games (e.g., Quake, Doom, Grand Theft Auto III, and others) have generated some critical discussion, ranging from ³moral panics² in popular media to social science investigations into possible effects and consequences of participating in such games.  But e-games represent a relatively neglected subject in Information Ethics. At the same time, however, if broader discussion of e-games is to include responsible and informed ethical reflection, much more critical reflection from the various perspectives of Information Ethics upon the multiple dimensions of e-games and game-playing is needed.  Hence this special issue of IRIE calls for such critical ethical reflection.
 
Possible Topics and Questions
 
1. The Rules ­ and thus Ethics ­ of Play
 
While much has been written about potential psychological and social consequences of e-games, very little academic research has focused on the ethics of e-games.  The ethical questions and issues here, however, are many ­ for example:
A. What ethics ­ if any ­ may be expected of gamers (e.g., honesty, fairness, respect, integrity - see: Code of Ethics http://investors.egames.com/ethics.asp)?
B. On the contrary, is it ethically justified to suspend such ethical expectations within specific games (e.g., Grand Theft Auto III) ­ precisely because these are ³just a game,² i.e., a kind of psychological and/or social
exercise that, like Carneval and other traditional events that temporarily invert prevailing social norms, may have cathartic and/or other beneficent effects?
C.  Are there ethical norms to be expected of game designers ­ e.g., avoiding designs that intentionally or inadvertently reinforce questionable (if not dangerous and unethical) stereotypes regarding gender, ethnic and
national identities, etc.?  Or is anything justified as long as it sells in the marketplace?
D. How do different cultures shape and shade these ethical questions and responses?  For example, are concerns with illicit sexuality in games primarily only an issue for U.S. (puritanical) parents, while European
parents are more concerned about violence, while parents in Asian countries are concerned about Å ? Do different cultures understand the role of games differently ­ and thus, the ethical questions and ways of responding to these questions in different ways?
E. Additional questions / issues?
 
2. Virtue Ethics and Ethics of Care
 
E-games, especially in their online versions, bring together participants from around the globe.  A specific approach to the ethics of e-Games invokes virtue ethics ­ e.g., in Aristotelian and/or Confucian traditions ­to ask
the question, what human excellences and potentials are fostered by our playing such games (e.g., Coleman 2001)?  Contemporary feminist ethics, including an ethics of care (e.g., as developed by Nel Noddings) would also raise critical questions regarding what we learn and develop ­ specifically, what capacities for caring, if any
­ as we play such games.  What would such ethical analyses suggest to us regarding contemporary games? Are these analyses legitimate to use ­ and/or do they beg several questions regarding the nature of games, gamers, and game-playing?
 
[Coleman, Kari. 2001. Android Arete:  Toward a Virtue Ethic for Computational Agents,  Ethics and Information Technology, 3 (4): 247-265.]
 
3. Social Dimensions
 
The larger social impacts of computing and information technologies are one set of consequences that are ethically relevant to design and use of ICTs ­and thus are of importance in Information Ethics.  Many negative consequences of game-playing are thematic of both popular and scholarly literature, e.g., concerns with encouraging violence, potential addiction, and other anti-social impacts. At the same time, however, at
least some games may be argued to have ethical and social value as they enhance social and other sorts of skills, serve as an attractor in e-learning environments, etc.  What can reliable research in fact tell us regarding these impacts ­both positive and negative? And: given the best available research on these impacts ­ what ethical conclusions (if any) may be drawn regarding the production and consumption of e-games?
 
4. Gender, Culture
 
It is not hard to find examples in especially the more popular e-games of gender and cultural stereotypes ­ stereotypes that are ethically reprehensible insofar as they ideologically justify a range of inequalities and the violation of basic human rights. If certain games only work to reinforce prevailing ³masculinist² stereotypes regarding how to be male; and if certain games teach us to see ³the Other² (whether as a female and/or as
a member of a cultural/ethnic identity different from our own) as naturally inferior, the legitimate target of violence, etc. ­ then a strong ethical case against such games could be made.  On the other hand, gamers may be perfectly aware that ³this is just a game² ­ i.e., they may well approach such stereotypes with a distance and irony that helps diffuse rather than reinforce them. Moreover, not all games work by presuming such gender and/or cultural stereotypes. And finally, a growing community of women gamers directly challenge these stereotypes about games.  Are there games and ways of playing games that help us explore our identities as gendered beings in positive and fruitful ways, rather than simply playing off and thus reinforcing stereotypes that may be questionable, if not oppressive?  Are there games and ways of playing games that in fact help us overcome ethnocentrism and come to see ³the Other² in ways that teach us to respect the irreducible differences that define diverse gender and cultural identities ­ perhaps even teach us to communicate more effectively across these differences?
 
5. None of the Above
We do not imagine that this initial list of suggestions exhausts all possible topics and approaches to ethical reflection on e-Games.  On the contrary, we encourage interested authors to propose additional frameworks,
questions, ethical and analytical approaches, etc., that will add to our insight regarding ethics and e-Games.
 
The Rules of the Game
 
Potential authors are asked to provide an extended abstract (max. 1,500 words) by 30. June 2005. The abstract should be written in the mother tongue of the author. An English translation of this abstract has to be included, if the chosen language is not English or German. The IJIE will publish accepted articles (3000 words or 20,000 letters including blanks) in German, English, Spanish, French or Portuguese. For further details see the
submission guidelines <http://ijie.zkm.de/About#submissionguidelines> .
 
The abstracts will be selected by the guest editors, Dr. Charles Ess and Dr. Elizabeth Buchanan. Authors will be notified by 15. August 2005.
 
Deadline for the final article (according to IRIE format guide) is 30.  September 2005. All submissions will be subject to peer review. Therefore the acceptance of an extended abstract by the members of the editorial board does not imply the publication of the final text unless the article passed the peer review.
 
For more information about the journal see: www.ijie.org 
 
A list of documents, which potential authors might find useful, can be requested by e-mail. Members of the ICIE will get a copy of the list via the ICIE mailing list.
 
Contact
 
Please send queries and proposals to guest editors,
 
Dr. Charles Ess: <cmess@drury.edu>
 
Dr. Elizabeth Buchanan: <eliz1679@uwm.edu>

Posted by prolurkr at 10:29 AM | TrackBack

CFP - Book Chapters

Posted by prolurkr at 10:21 AM | TrackBack

It's not just corn in Indiana...but sometimes it is

Indiana is the second largest producer of popcorn in the U.S.  According to the Indiana Agricultural Statistics Service, last year Hoosier farmers produced 254.1 million pounds of popcorn worth $29.7 million. There are many more interesting popcorn facts on the The Popcorn Board site, even has teaching resources...and popcorn animation in Flash.

Now personally I love the stuff...could eat it everyday. I'm talking plain popcorn...no flavoring or sugar required. Just pop it in tiny bit oil and I'm good to go. But it seems that no matter how I pop it I end up with lots of dead kernels in the bottom of the pan or bag. Well the smart folks at Purdue have figured it all out. Popcorn connoisseurs check out Pop Star Secrets Revealed!. 

While a poppable kernel must have a precise amount of moisture in the endosperm, or starchy center (about 14.5 to 15 percent), the Purdue researchers say the real explosive secret lies in the hull, or pericarp.

In some varieties, the pericarp becomes more moistureproof as it is heated, sealing in the steam until the pressure gets so high that the hull fractures and the kernel goes pop.

In other varieties that don't undergo heat-induced change, the moisture escapes, the hull never breaks and then the kernel goes pfffft.

I think I should test the theory with a bag of hot fresh popped corn.

Posted by prolurkr at 03:03 PM | TrackBack

Registeration for First International Congress of Qualitative Inquiry

I am finally allowing myself to take the time, as non-writing time, to attend a conference. Today I registered, late sadly, for the First International Congress of Qualitative Inquiry to be held May 5-7, 2005 at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The following was drawn from the CFP:

The theme of the First International Congress of Qualitative Inquiry focuses on "Qualitative Inquiry in a Time of Global Uncertainty." We call on the international community of interpretive scholars to gather together in common purpose to address the implications of the recent attempts by federal governments and their agencies to define what is 'good science', and what constitutes 'good scholarship'. Around the globe governments are attempting to regulate interpretive inquiry by enforcing bio-medical, evidence-based models of research.

These regulatory activities raise basic philosophical, epistemological, political and pedagogical issues for scholarship and freedom of speech in the academy. Their effects are interdisciplinary. They cut across the fields of educational and policy research, the humanities, communications, health and social science, social welfare, business and law.

In the United States, the evidence-based experimental science movement, with accompanying federal legislation (Leave No Child Behind), threatens to deny advances in critical qualitative inquiry, including rigorous criticisms of positivist research. This legislation marginalizes indigenous, border, feminist, race, queer, and ethnic studies. The international community of qualitative researchers must come together to debate and discuss the implications of these new developments.

The mission of the First International Congress is to provide a forum for these critical conversations, to build and expand the already robust tradition of Qualitative Inquiry. This congress gathers together vibrant strands of qualitative research to produce innovative futures. We seek to generate lively, critical debate, foster contacts and the exchange ideas, and draw inspiration from each other. We encourage international participation from different countries, disciplines and cultural backgrounds, as well as from a wide range of research areas, including the humanities, medical and health care scholars.

If WiFi is available I will try to blog as many sessions as I can.

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