[Gllug] OT, but funny

[John Hearns]

On Wed, 2001-12-12 at 12:37, will wrote:
> The title of this piece was a little inconsidered possibly :-)
> 
> http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/world/americas/newsid_1705000/1705436.stm
> 


I see on the same BBC Webpage:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/sci/tech/newsid_1705000/1705414.stm
A celebration of the first US website at SLAC, ten years old today


http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/sci/tech/newsid_1705000/1705485.stm
A celebration of Marconi's first transatlantic radio message,
100 years ago.


I hate, hate, hate to be my normal cynical self,
but does anyone else note that the British are again celebrating
something 100 years old?
Why didn't the UK have a celebration of the first web site in Europe,
or maybe in the UK?
I bet you that there was a University site (maybe UCL?) at around that
same time. There certainly was one in Glasgow around then.


ps. I'm not saying for one minute that there's anything WRONG
with celebrating Marconi - just that I find it a maddening,
but maybe endearing, aspect of the British culture that we wait
till a 'technology' is obsolete before it is considered worthwhile
for the chattering classes and the upper classes to pursue it.



Some examples - show jumping and horse riding. 
Last century, a vital means of transport. This century, a plaything.

Steam trains, and obsession with Victorian machinery.

Teaching Latin in public schools (no debate, please. I'm just making
a general point).


Compare us with e.g. Germany where the heads of companies like
Porsche and BMW have engineering degrees, and are proud of it.

Though I bet you if Lord Kelvin was alive today he'd be an internet
millionaire, and running a Linux box.



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