Many years ago I used to watch snooker on BBC2. It's one of the odd little things I occasionally missed after moving to Australia. But it's OK now, because I've made a wonderful discovery. Curling is even more exciting than snooker. Who would have guessed?

I'm working for an employer this year (I know, I should update this journal more often). Compared with being self-employed, there are some pros and cons. Today, for the first time in my life, I'm being paid to stay in bed and watch YouTube videos. It's a pretty fine way to spend a day, apart from the coughing and sneezing ( Read more... )

I'm posting this link here as a way of remembering it myself: http://www.davidairey.com/frequently-asked-questions/#3

Adorno used the phrase "the commodification of music" (or something in German that translates thus) back in the 1930s.

Anyone for a used press release, going cheap? Check out the customer reviews: it's amazing how much joy is packed into those 400 words.

One of my new hobbies is watching stupid arguments unfold on Wikipedia. It's a vegetative activity, entertaining and undemanding, and you occasionally pick up some interesting trivia. Much on a par with television shows that have names like When Meringues go Wrong. (OK, I haven't actually seen a TV show about meringues, but you can substitute ( Read more... )

The ERA results are now out. Various university departments have been given a score between 1 and 5, where 3 is "world standard" and 4 and 5 are even better [1]. So is this an official acknowledgement that you need to be an alien to thrive in Australia's modern university system? And the media commentary so far suggests that scoring less than 3 ( Read more... )

Seen in a local newsagent: Santa's Magic Key (multiple copies thereof).

I haven't heard of this before, but it's a neat invention for modern homes without chimneys. (And it's inspired a certain amount of bad poetryI'm a little puzzled though. With Santa's awesome magical powers, why does he need a separate Magic Key for each house? Why not just ( Read more... )

Muscular memory is an amazing thing. Yesterday my brother gave me a Rubik's Cube as a belated birthday present. It's some years since I've handled one of these devices, and I was curious as to whether I could still solve it. I enjoyed the odd feeling of saying to myself "I want this piece to go over there without moving that other piece" then ( Read more... )

Just found http://www.oldversion.com/about.php Glad it's not just me that (sometimes) thinks this way.

I gave my Major Review Seminar (first year) for my Ph.D. today. My topic has now settled down (approximately) to "something in Oka theory" (complex geometry); if you really want to know the gory details, go to http://www.ams.org/notices/201001/index.html and download the ( Read more... )