Blog:Observations

<Erkan_Yilmaz> one day - after perhaps 1000 rebirths - I may read all things I wish to read
<darkcode> perhaps this is your 1000th rebirth, perhaps you've already been reborn 999 times before
<Erkan_Yilmaz> oh no, don't point me to that possibility

Though it has been a long day, it started good (with some smiling caused by “A Caravan from Hindustan - the complete Birbal tales from India” by James Moseley. I still recommend this book.) and also ended good

Decided to do an upgrade of Mediawiki to 1.16.0. As expected (see also: never change a running system) some problems appeared - known ones so far are:

• Done wikilog 0.6.5 throws error: Fatal error: Call to undefined method Title::userCanEdit() in .../extensions/wikilog_revision_411/WikilogPager.php on line 132
  • fix: upgrade to: 0.8.2 and then to a current version (1.1.0)
  • much thanks to Juliano, who answered prompt and what counts: with a working solution
• thumbnail problem: Error creating thumbnail: convert: unrecognized option `-set'.

sidenote: is it just me or is the wiki faster?

edit 2010-08-30: this was actually the reason why I upgraded.

new learning program called: Thoughts on Interaction uses Insight Maker (previously known as: Insightica) - a web based model development environment. One can create stock & flow diagrams, causal loop diagrams. One can embed the models later in pages, e.g. User:ErkanYilmaz/TOI. Have fun,

From now on I will try to use modelling techniques in every post. Thanks, Gene + Kerry

In this simple causal loop diagram (CLD) you see some "learning by doing". I guess I will select at begin boundaries, otherwise the CLDs might get too large. Probably adding explanatory text will help then.

At first I thought I have a simple reinforcing loop, but well, there is always a limit to growth. Perhaps the more experience in ST (systems thinking), it will also accentuate on the thinking part in systems thinking. One "just" has to define what activities really includes (e.g. thinking also is an activitiy?), or not? Anyways, this will also lead to activities. On the other hand, when doing more activities perhaps one doesn't even have enough time anymore? One might get lost in the details than focusing on the big picture. Let's see...

edit: my first attempts with CLDs included many +/- on the arrows, I guess one approach then is to split the node in more parts. So much to the boundaries

Do you remember using this sentence or the idea at least once in your life? When? After something bad happened? When someone complaining to you about something? Was this "bad" really bad or just a bad thing at that moment? And later on it proved something better?

What might cause this reaction? Fear? Fear of losing, what? time? data? ... Simple know-all behaviour?

But, isn't this just an illusion? All things change, somehow, sometime, ... Can one really make something NOT change? panta rhei

please do not inhale now

breathing: life critical task, you can do it on your own, with the help of a device, conscious, while sleeping. Do you observe how breathing actually goes on? Do you observe what influences exhalation and inhalation have? E.g. when you do sports (swimming,...), when you are emotional, when you smoke, when you play an instrument, ...

We are looking for 3-4 people willing to experiment with a learning program for the Systems Perspective stage (Systems Thinking World).

Time to start: earliest Monday, February 8th 2010.
run time: 2 weeks

Interested? (in case you read this later on: there will be more, just read that linked page)

see also health maps of the world

GHI 2008

GHI winners and losers from 1990 to 2008

did the snake got lost?

If you want you can tell any story to any situation, you just have to find a good junction

• "This too shall pass" [1], also a Sufi story and probably in many more cultures
• Gordian Knot
• What MUST one really do?

it is not just black and white, is it?

Just with black + white great things can be established. How about using just one color? Adding more colors/effects gives more or less value? Using no color and utilizing other senses? Don't try to find a final answer, just feel it. Feelings change!

• pencil+paper
• optical illusions, e.g. Benham's top / disk (if you do not see the effect, you might try another browser: FF3 worked for me)
• ...

is there really only this circle?

When looking back: which came first, the chicken or the egg ?

Consciousness and the Biology of the Brain (talk between Christof Koch + Harry Kreisler)

Please be more interested than the interviewer, Koch tries with so much associations (zombie behaviour, drunks losing keys, coalition of neurons, binocular rivalry, magic circle, little man in the brain, perception is organized in discrete snapshots, two minds in a skull, 50000 people studying the brain, ...)

only, all, always, forever, never, continually, permanent, ...

really?

does he actually feel comfortable?

one way: get ill when vacation starts. How unlucky must one be, really.

P.S.: I probably could win a Mr. Wet-Shirt contest by my sweat produced these last days

all roads lead to Rome?

So, which perspective did you pursue more - recently?
The good, the bad? The positive, the negative? The advantages, the disadvantages?
Are there only x sides to a story? How many perspectives can you identify? More than x?

edit 2010-07-15: see also It Depends!

BoA (Beat of Angel) - an incredible voice. I try to stop all I do when I hear her. (Music I like/Erkan Yilmaz)

Snow leopard (Uncia uncia) range map

None atm, mine is working.

I have seen over the past months different people buy new ones. Well, if I need one, I want to buy one with an open source OS.

Before that probably I'd buy a Snow Leopard with hardware.

edit 2010-07-20: I'm using an Android phone, but I guess I'd prefer to have a mobile with Maemo or Meego.

Well, reading with the laptop is fine. But for some enjoying moments I need the feeling of having a book in my hands - and a cup of coffee within reach

what about the air inside?

While using a spirit level today I thought: what a nice invention. Also crossed my mind: the water inside is cut from the other water. I wonder when it will join the family ? On the other hand the other elements of the spirit level are also (far) away from their kind.