DavidM/20100614: Difference between revisions

From zooid Wiki
Jump to navigation Jump to search
(Created page with 'I don't like talking about myself, but after I was chastised for simply describing myself as a "big nerd," I decided to try to summarize some current interests for people I've me…')
 
No edit summary
Line 1: Line 1:
I don't like talking about myself, but after I was chastised for simply describing myself as a "big nerd," I decided to try to summarize some current interests for people I've met recently.
<noinclude>
 
This is the "AAType" template.
After moving to Montréal from Toronto in December 2007, I've managed to take some French instruction, complete [http://scpa-eapc.concordia.ca/en/graduate-diploma-in-ced/ Concordia's one-year Graduate Diploma in Community Economic Development], and participate in a few local, national and international projects. Transitioning to Montréal hasn't been easy, without strong French it's like living in a small town with a big city's bureaucracy. I'll take full blame for not learning French better, but I need to find a way to study it full time for an extended period without sacrificing all I'm developing, and even then it will take years of dedication to become fluent. (And, I have to admit I still enjoy feeling like I'm living in a foreign city but I know I'm missing out on a lot.)
It should be used with the form.
 
</noinclude><includeonly>
<div style="float: right">
{{ #if: {{{Image|}}} |
http://semantic-mediawiki.org/w/images/smw.gif
{{ #set:Image={{{Image|}}} }}
[[File:{{{Image}}}|200px|thumb|left|{{PAGENAME}}]]
| }}
{{ #if: {{{Home page|}}} |
<div class="tpldiv"><span class="tpllabel">Home page</span>
<span class="tblvalue">[[Home page::{{{Home page|}}}]]</span>
</div>
</div>
| }}
{{ #if: {{{Location|}}} |
{{#arraymap:{{{Location}}}|,|x|[[Category:x]] |<nowiki> </nowiki>}}{{ #set:GPS Location={{ #geocode: {{{Location}}}, Canada }} }}
<!-- {{#arraymap:{{{Location}}}|,|x|[[Location::x]] |<nowiki> </nowiki>}} -->
| }}
{{ #if: {{{Arts|}}} |
{{#arraymap:{{{Arts}}}|,|x|[[Category:x]] |<nowiki> </nowiki>}}
<!-- {{#arraymap:{{{Arts}}}|,|x|[[Arts::x]] |<nowiki> </nowiki>}} -->
| }}
{{ #if: {{{Type|}}} |
{{#arraymap:{{{Type}}}|,|x|[[Category:x]] |<nowiki> </nowiki>}}
<!-- {{#arraymap:{{{Type}}}|,|x|[[Type::x]] |<nowiki> </nowiki>}} -->
| }}
{{ #if: {{{Aspects|}}} |
{{#arraymap:{{{Aspects}}}|,|x|[[Category:x]] |<nowiki> </nowiki>}}
<!-- {{#arraymap:{{{Aspects}}}|,|x|[[Aspects::x]] |<nowiki> </nowiki>}} -->
| }}


My work and interests from [http://zooid.org/~vid/io/short_history_of_io.html way back] have revolved around developing participatory systems. I'm a strong believer in government, but today's service oriented bureaucracy, with many gatekeepers and alpha-leaders, is just wrong. I want to help get people involved any way they can. So I focus on digital systems and literacy, trying to make Web based systems that are read-write, not brochures. Wikis have been a key tool; I used to develop low-level custom software (source code and database stuff) but now I find [http://semantic-mediawiki.org/ Semantic Mediawiki] has ways to do most of the things groups need, while preserving the ideals of wiki. Wiki is Hawaiian for quick, while wiki systems can be used for restricted Web publishing, their best application is to allow anyone to quickly edit, as well as follow the low level development of a site, and make activity and content transparent. Semantic Mediawiki adds in database features, which makes managing structured data easier, so a wiki can contain both free-form pages and reusable data like tables, events, map data, and so on. (see more thoughts [[SMW as Lego blocks|here]].) Add in a [[http://www.creativecommons.org clear and fair content license]] and it's a pretty good model for shared public data.
{{ #ask: [[Category:Event]][[People::{{PAGENAME}}]]
 
|?Start date
I expect the long term results to be significant. As data becomes more linked, quality will increase, and like a puzzle missing pieces will become evident. With the ability to easily find out answers, useful participation will become something like playing video games, using Facebook, or stamp collecting; creating fun visualizations, adding data, asking simple questions, fulfilling our natural desires to organize in commonly useful ways. It will include young and old people. The only thing holding this revolution back is cynicism.
|?End date
 
|?Location
Among the many examples today of this today, http://www.openfile.ca is a standout. It's a geographically focused "newspaper" that follows up on community submitted stories, and encourages full community participation in their development. They don't wiki, but they use a Creative Commons license. The [http://data.gov.uk/wiki/RDF UK], led by [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tim_Berners-Lee Tim Berners-Lee] (a truly great man), also appears to be sincerely attacking publishing their data in re-usable formats in an open way. Along with many other government initiatives, open inquiry individual and citizen group efforts. Unfortunately, many businesses and non profits still take an opaque, silo approach.
|intro=<h2>Events with {{PAGENAME}}</h2>
 
}}
== Current work ==


On to my current work, where I try to balance ideals with realities. To pay the bills, refine technical skills and spread wiki, I work part-time at Concordia's Fungal Genomics lab.  That's right, the programme in CED led to supporting scientists working on things like "directed evolution."  The goal of the group is to find more efficient enzymes for biofuels. Today's [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethanol#As_a_fuel ethanol] solutions hardly make sense from an environmental perspective, but growing cellulosic material — trees — is beneficial in the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carbon_cycle carbon cycle]. Fungi are pervasive in nature as part of the cycle of breaking things down, necessary to create efficient biofuels. So our group analyzes tens of thousands of digital genomic samples, and when a likely candidate is found — they grow it. It's pretty cool stuff, and a breakthrough would be huge.
{{#forminput:form=Event|||button text=Add an event|query string=Event[People]={{PAGENAME}}&Event[Arts]={{{Arts}}}|}}


[[User:DavidM|Work and interests]]
<br class="cleared" />


{{Blikied|June 14, 2010}}
</includeonly>

Revision as of 15:43, 14 June 2010

This is the "AAType" template. It should be used with the form.

Retrieved from "https://wiki.zooid.org/index.php?title=DavidM/20100614&oldid=3348"