And Did Those Feet

As Churchill apparently said: "Success is the ability to go from one failure to the next without loss of enthusiasm". quted by Ian Russell BIG-chat from The British Interactive Group http://www.big.uk.com/chat/ [Chat help & BIG info] I've now followed this up and the quote is: 'Success consists of going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm' Source: brainyquotes

Here is a local example kindly sent to my by James Hatts http://www.london-se1.co.uk/news/map.php

Draft Letter to the Museums Association, re London Museum Hub Expenditure I was startled to hear, at the recent London Museum Group meeting, that Archives, Libraries, Museums, London (ALM) had a mere £155,000 to implement its proposed Museum Development programme over the years 2006/7, while the London Museum Hub had a budget of £5.8m. Of course these figures do not tell the entire story as the Hub are paying for the new Museum Development Officer network out of their £5.8m and the projects they support involve other Museums. As a member of the former Hub Advisory group I can vouch for the fact that the Hub have tried hard to make a reality of the 'trickle-down' effect to spread the benefit of Hub money. Also ALM have another £60,000 saved up to add to its total. However, despite the best intentions of the Hub, the comparative figures do tell their own tale about the flawed logic of the whole Renaissance in the Regions project. Here we have an excellent Museum Development...

Interesting sites using Google Maps, suggested to me from post on Diversity Forum. The following sites show examples of how to integrate google maps into your sites. ProgrammableWeb: Google Maps API Profile < http://www.furl.net/forward.jsp?id=7663509 Google Maps API < http://www.furl.net/forward.jsp?id=7663522 London Panoramas Google Map < http://www.furl.net/forward.jsp?id=7663426 CommunityWalk < http://www.furl.net/forward.jsp?id=7663541 >

Attending a meeting of the London Museum's Group, of which I am a committee member. I was rather struck by the fact that ALM, London gets £155, 000 for 2 years to spend on its museum strategy while the London Hub gets £5.8m! Ofcourse it isn't quite as simple as that (as some of the £5.8m goes towards the wider Museum community) but it enabled me to have a go at the whole stupid 'Renaissance in the Region' system which allows such inequalities to exist. Ben Travers of ALM, London presented his plans for spending the £155.000. which seemed very sensible, but I asked him what could he do if he had £5.8m! This sum of money would allow his strategy to be properly rolled out but as it is he has far too little money to make much of an impact.

According to Laurent Vernet, Master of Beef, animals from small farms taken to local abattoirs by a farmer the cow knows will taste better than one stessed out during their anonymous final hours. Reason being less stress hormones find their way to their bloodstream. This seem strangely like good news - the world is arranged right, a happy cow is a tasty cow. Or on second thoughts, isn't that rather ghastly, you treat an animcal nicely JUST so it tastes nice. How would you feel if that was why your friends and neighbours were nice to you! Makes you want to be a vegetarian.

The Royal Free was the first hospital in London to give free health care to anyone who needed it. It was initially set up in Greville Street, Hatton Garden and then moved to Grays Inn Road before a further move to Hampstead.

Elizabeth Blackwell trained as a doctor in Geneva Medical College, New York. In 1859 she met Elizabeth Garret Anderson who was inspired to become a doctor. She enrolled as a nurse at the Middlesex Hospital but was soon banned from medical lectures. She discovered that there was no regulation banning women enrolling at the Society of Apothecaries. She passed her exams and thus became Britain's first female doctor. But this loophole was soon closed, and so in 1874 a group of women set up the London School of Medicine for Women This was set up in Handel Street near Russel Sq, it soon gained a connection to the Royal Free Hospital which by this means became a teaching hospital and which allowed women to practice medicine.

An email about Manure provoked some interesting research. Manure was a prized item both as fertiliser and in use in some of the manufacturing processes in London 19th Century Industry - they used dog manure for treating leather for example. The Britannia Works, Drummond Road., Southwark was brought to my attention by a descedent of Thomas Knights - proprietor of Knights and Mundy, (proprietors of Salmon's manures) Britannia wks, Drummond Rd, SE. Source: 1895 trades directory The following is an example of a manure manufactory in Spitalfields. ( Sanitary Ramblings , Being Sketches and Illustrations of Bethnal Green, by Hector Gavin, 1848) CHARLES-ST., 38.-At the boundary of the parish in this street, and partly within it, and partly in the parish of Whitechapel, is an extensive dairy or cow- shed, in a most offensive state. The soil was collected in a large wooden tank, and the surface of the whole place covered with decomposing refuse. The smell from the place was mos...

London Calling Arts Cultural & Tourism Marketing Survey Report This free report can be downloaded here.

I gave a talk to a infant class today from Deptford. Very sweet they were and listened. It was a little hard to do as not so used to giving talks in the Crypt - the Operating Theatre is so good for storytelling that you have to adapt the content. What was interesting was how much they were 'intrigued' by the skeleton. I was not sure what to say - they asked: 'Why is it hard' 'Why has it no bum?' 'Do we all have one of those inside us' 'Do parents die before children' 'Can it talk' All these questions show a curiosity about the subject - which I must research to prepare better answers.

Just discovered that the first UN meeting was held in Westminster Central Hall (the hall across from Westminster Abbey run by the Methodists.) Find out more: Here are some of the opening remarks of chairman: DR. ZULETA ANGEL of Colombia 1. OPENING OF THE FIRST PART OF THE FIRST SESSION OF THE GENERAL As- SEMBLY The CHAIRMAN (Translation Jrom the French) : The meeting is open. Determined to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war which, twice in our lifetirne, has brought untoId sorrow to mankind, and imbued with an abiding faith in freedom and justice, we have corne to this British capital, which bearing upon it the deep impress of a heroic majesty; to constitutë -thé General Assembly of the United Nations and to make a genuine and sincere beginning with the application of the San Francisco Charter. That instrument, having been freely and democratically debated, bas been unreservedly accepted by a11 in the knowledge that the machinexy set up under its provisions Will prove...

Currently, reading Peter Barry's 'Beginning Theory - An Introduction To Literary And Cultural Theory' Manchester University Press, 2002 - in order to refresh my knowledge about (post)structuralism etc. Seems competent enough, but a bit of bore, to be honest and too literary and not enough Culture. What surprises me was how long ago Barthes and Derrida constructed their theories - this was in the 60's - a very long time ago and yet the theory still sheds its baleful shadow over the world - a core of gold taken to extremes.