Prototype of a Person

Volunteer for Science

This Metro advertisement caught my eye a few weeks ago.

From the Institute of Neuroscience at Trinity College Dublin:

We wish to recruit members of the general public age 18-90 to our volunteer research panel. We study various aspects of human behaviour such as memory, attention and thinking. Our research aims to increase our understanding of how the mind and brain work, with a view to trying, in the longer term, to develop methods for assessing and treating conditions such as age-related memory problems and attention deficit disorder.

Volunteers who can easily reach central Dublin may be invited to take part in one or more studies, and if they do, a nominal honorarium will be offered.

Please leave your name and number at 01 89628684 before 3rd August.

I’ve called them up and left my name and number on the answering machine and I’m very much looking forward to volunteering my time to Science. 

It’s a pity that Irish research projects don’t reach out online, the same way that the Irish Blood Transfusion Service don’t, as pointed out by Damien. They are really missing out on the abundance of altruistic internet users and the numerous socially persuasive situations online (blogging, twitter, messageboards, etc.,) that would enable researchers and organizations to recruit many more volunteers. These kinds of blog posts are the first step though.

Spotted: Cyarr!

Photos: Operator Please

Have a listen to the band here and there are more photos on my Flickr page.

Spotted: Designer Diet Coke

Brown Thomas, Dublin, is over-run with these “limited edition” Patricia Field created Diet Coke bottles, their recommended retail price is €10, but are currently going for €5. Perhaps BT should have put these in refrigeration to help sales? Overpriced, but visually pleasing nonetheless.

Photos: Tegan and Sara

For more photos see my Flickr homepage and this is a nice review of the gig.

Trying To Move Forward

In my previous post, I mentioned that Google had yet to contact me and that I was considering being more aggressive in my attempt to secure a position. Perhaps I was being over-dramatic about my tactics, as all I did was e-mail them a revised copy of my CV. Within minutes of e-mailing them, however, I received a phone call to set up a second phone interview. I had this interview with a member of the Dublin based Adsense team on the 31st of August and I also had a third interview with another member of the team last Wednesday, the 6th of September.

These two interviews were rather different from the first one, as I was speaking directly to Adsense employees, and both seemed considerably more interested in my previous work experience, personality and education. It was actually really interesting to speak to them, both were very well educated and quite nerdy (in that good way, that I just love) - at certain points throughout each interview I found myself feeling like I was just chatting to them, rather than being interviewed, I really enjoyed speaking to people “on the inside”. With each interview I am becoming more confident, and I am becoming more prepared for the face-to-face interview(s) I am hoping to secure. As usual, as soon as I’ve more information about all this, it will be posted here.

As the Google recruitment process is so thorough (long), I have stopped actively searching for work elsewhere, but it has been pointed out to me (by many a friend) that I should probably not put all my eggs in one basket. This is difficult, as I am so certain that this job will fit me so perfectly. I’ve even been speaking excitedly about moving out, and finally getting my own place, more than likely in Dublin City Centre. Right now, the little day-dreams I have in my mind are of moving into Dublin, working in Google and spending each weekend happily lazing around with my partner. The urge to move out is increasing everyday, as the commute (on public transport unfortunately) into Dublin, to work, is getting longer and harder due to extensive road works. Speaking of work, actually, I got a nice little bonus of a weekend away in Ireland (to the value of €300) from Eircom for being a top-seller of Broadband throughout the summer months. It’s always nice to get a pat on the back.

Age Discrimination?

Recently I noticed that a number of Spar newsagents in Dublin City Centre have introduced a policy of only selling alcohol to persons over the age of 21. Despite the Intoxicating Liquor Act 2003 stating that the legal age for the purchase of alcohol is 18.

The argument here is always: management of licensed premises have the right to refuse admission to a person under the age of 21 (or in some places 23). However, the law is different with regards to the actual sale of alcohol in off licences; the law clearly states that 18 is the legal age for the purchase of alcohol.

In my opinion their “store policy” is similar to some retail stores that state that their refund policy covers only 14 days or that they only issue credit notes (or vouchers) as refunds - in other words, their “store policy” is completely invalidated by the law.

This reminds me of the policy that Tesco supermarkets have; to only accept an Age Card as a valid form of photo ID. Despite the Intoxicating Liquor Act 2003, SECTION 15 clearly stating that an “age document” (a document containing a photograph of the person and information that enables the age of the person to be determined) can be any of the following: an age card (aka Garda ID), a passport, an identity card issued by a member state of the European Communities or a driver licence.

The question is, by not selling alcohol to a person that is over the age of 18 and has a legal document to prove so, are they breaking the law?

Personally Spar isn’t a problem for me, as I am over the age of 21. However, with regards to Tesco no longer accepting my Passport… I had a nasty incident in a Tesco supermarket locally, where I argued with the staff that their notices read “If you are under 21 you must show a valid Garda age Card” and being as I am over 21 I did not have to produce a Garda Age Card - and yet they still refused to accept my Passport as proof that I was over 21. Very annoying. I’ll be bringing my business elsewhere from now on.

There is an article on Checkout.ie if you want more information.

Ireland: according to the CIA

I was fortunate enough to get Sufjan Stevens tickets this week, right before it sold out (he’s playing in the Olympia in November). I’m lucky I remembered that the tickets were going on sale, as the heat this week has really melted my brain.

Thankfully though the “heat wave” has finally begun to subside. Waking up on Tuesday at 8am to find it’s already 22′c is not pleasant, apparently it was the hottest day of the century (so far), with temperatures reaching 30′c here in Dublin. The horror. This kind of freakish weather always make me ponder global warming, I was so worried in fact that I actually rejoiced when it started to rain yesterday.

Since I’m having a rant about Ireland I might as well mention the CIA World Factbook. Which contains various facts about every country in the world, the most interesting fact on Ireland that I found was: as of 2003 the annual electricity generated in Ireland was 23.41 billion kWh. That figure is the lowest when compared to other European countries.

It’s no wonder that we import so much gas, and why the state agency Forfas is promoting Nuclear Power - which is actually insane considering how radioactive the Irish Sea already is because of 1 Nuclear Power plant, that isn’t even IN Ireland.

Nuclear Power is like a “get rich quick scheme”, it seems like an obvious and easy solution to a country’s energy crisis, but all get rich quick schemes involve some kind of illicit activities. If only someone could wake up and realise that we are sitting on a gold mine of electrical power, and it comes from the 4 elements that nature provides for us: wind, water, earth and sun. We’ve plenty of those, so why not use them? Yes, the initial setup costs would be expensive, but the after-care costs of Nuclear Power are far greater.

Another interesting fact that I read in the CIA World Factbook: the ethic groups residing in Ireland are; Celtic and English. I think this needs a dramatic overhaul, from personal experience working in Dublin, almost 80% of my customers are neither Celtic OR English.

Meeting My Hero

I think Im finally ready to write something about the amazing experience I had on Monday. So here goes… More »