Bruce Schneier has written a fascinating piece on the security aspects of the papal election, in the course of which he addresses my thought about bugging.
Eavesdropping on the process is certainly possible, although the rules explicitly state that the chapel is to be checked for recording and transmission devices “with the help of trustworthy individuals of proven technical ability.” I read that the Vatican is worried about laser microphones, as there are windows near the chapel’s roof.
Aaron Schwartz was asked to speak to the Bay Area Law School Technology Conference about blogging as compared with conventional journalism. Here is the transcript of his extraordinary talk, which was based on a close reading of the way the New York Times covered the presidential election.
The iTunes store sells songs for 99p each. Some people think this is too much. But the band Coldplay has found an even more profitable way of selling their music. They’ve signed up with Cingular Sounds to sell fragments of their stuff as ring tones. Fans can fork out $2.49 to purchase a 15-second snippet from the band’s new single, Speed of Sound, that can be used as their phone’s ringtone. Assuming that the average track lasts for three minutes, that’s equivalent to $29.88 per track. No wonder the ringtone business is now reckoned to be worth $209 a year. It even has a Top Ten chart.
… if only they knew how to operate them. Lovely item in today’s Guardian about politicos’ musical tastes. Reminds one that music provides a window into the soul. Could one love someone who loved Wagner?
Interesting conference happening in Copenhagen in June. Participants include Cory Doctorow, Jason Fried, Robert Scoble, Doc Searls, Jimbo Wales and David Weinberger. Hmmm… wonder if RyanAir flies to Copenhagen.
… in 1912, the Titanic sank off the coast of Newfoundland. When I was growing up in Ireland, there was an urban legend that the Cork Examiner, a relentlessly provincial publication, carried a huge headline in 96-point type saying, “Corkman Drowns” and below it, in smaller type, “Titanic sinks on maiden voyage”. As the Italians say, if it isn’t true then it ought to be.
In the last quarter, Apple sold 5.3 million iPods, a 558 percent increase from a year ago. More astonishing though is the news that the company sold 1 million Macs — 43 percent more than in the same period last year. And 40 percent of those were sold to customers who had never owned a Mac before. Wow! Something’s up.
The conclave of cardinals to elect the next pope assembles in the Sistine Chapel next Monday. Wonder if any enterprising media organisation has thought about bugging the building? A wireless webcam would be just the ticket. This one, for example, can be remotely controlled.
The first two television election broadcasts by the two main parties concentrate not on throwing mud at each other but on hosing the manure off their own reputations.
Mark Lawson, the Guardian, April 12 , 2005.
The Ed Matts story gets better and better. The Guardian solicited further creative photoshopping from readers. The results are hilarious. This one by James Smith is my favourite.
