Returning to my regularly scheduled service ...

[tamaranth]

Graffiti closeup, a photo by tamaranth on Flickr.

Photos from Paris trip over on Flickr

Reviews of Sword at Sunset (Rosemary Sutcliff) and Cooking with Fernet Branca (James Hamilton-Paterson) on Blogspot

Some links I meant to post last week:

Misattribution of Arousal

Like a coterie of prairie dogs standing alert as if living periscopes, your ancestors were built to pay attention when it mattered, but with cognition comes pattern recognition and all the silly ways you misinterpret your inputs. The source of your emotional states is often difficult or impossible to detect.

Separate Identity vs Integrated Identity (G+-related)

The types of people with a pseudonymous online life tend to live, I think, in geographical environments very unlike their online worlds. ... the normal people they meet in everyday life, the family members that they love, the work colleagues they go drinking with, are largely clueless about and uninterested in the online world.

On identity and G+ policy

Ancient Lives - help transcribe and measure Oxyrhynchus papyri -- part of Zooniverse, "home to the internet's largest, most popular and most successful citizen science projects." Their list of projects is engaging.

Comments

[lamentables.livejournal.com]

I'm fascinated by all the 'real name' fuss - I keep losing time to reading the comments on these articles. I had no idea that the concept of a single identity/passport name would be something people cling to with such fervour, nor that the equation of pseudonyms with flaming & trolling would be so deeply embedded. And that's without getting into the real, philosophical questions about identity.

[tamaranth.livejournal.com]

So far my only G+ post is about real names versus pseudonyms: there are 618 other {my real name}s on Google Profiles, and 0 tamaranths. It's pretty easy for anyone to link the two, but it's not explicit, which adds to my air of mystery and intrigue. Or keeps my family at bay. Something.

[lj_stowaway]

Thanks for these links. The G+ situation is riveting, in a trainwreckish sort of way.

[tamaranth.livejournal.com]

I cannot believe how badly Google are handling the pseudonym situation.

[lj_stowaway]

INORITE? It's a pretty stunning level of fail.