Heroes and Villains

Kev — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 00:25:58 +0000

Alan Turing is a true hero of mine – as a computer scientist and a philosopher. He was clearly a genius and a good man too I think, humble and introverted yet authoritative when necessary. It was a few years after studying Turing’s work academically that I learned about the great tragedy inflicted upon him – his forced chemical castration and subsequent death by suicide due to his conviction for ‘gross indecency’, a tragically ironic charge given what was done to him in the name of decency. The story always makes me profoundly sad.

When I saw this event that’s being organised by Manchester City Council in Turing’s honour it was anger I felt more than anything. The apologies of a couple of opportunistic MPs is possibly the cheapest tribute that can be paid to the man. The establishment which they represent did not make a mistake 57 years ago – it demonstrated its moral bankruptcy and its intractable power.

A government apology is a like mafia apology and the only way we should accept it from either is if it is accompanied by a laying down of guns, of power and threats because otherwise it will just happen again – oppression of those who cannot defend themselves, in some other form.

Avoid procrastination by doing very little

Kev — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 21:51:53 +0000

My favourite tip for avoiding procrastination has always been this: concentrate on doing the smallest amount of work possible. If you’re writing a novel, try writing a sentence. If you’re learning a new programming language, try a hello world. Instead of taking a break to check your email or the news or making a coffee, aim to do the very tiniest of tasks first.

The idea is that once you get started, it’ll be easy to keep going.

So instead of putting it off forever more, here is the smallest unit of work I can do towards this blog… and the theory is put to the test.

Kevb.org

Heroes and Villains

Avoid procrastination by doing very little