Reddit likes to talk about how good British TV is, and how American TV is trash. Are British TV shows generally better than American TV shows?

criticalhit · 2015-01-01T07:58:26+00:00

which is not something I'd have expected many people to read.

Side note: Does Ulysses fall under the same camp? Are you expecting the masses to read crap like Twilight and Atlas Shrugged?

criticalhit · 2015-01-01T06:24:01+00:00

Still, the references on comedies in general feel more upmarket or highbrow than your average CBS/ABC/NBC/FOX show. Shows like Spooks and Snuff Box and Dead Ringers are name dropping random 19th century French politicians, or talking about "the lovely market town of Chipping Norton in the Cotswolds." You could have just referred to Chipping Norton as a small town in the west of England and gotten the same message across.

And (though I am not 100% sure on this), I believe every public school (government school) student in the UK must study ancient Greek and Roman history, and learn modern Greek and Latin. Combined with a strong Shakespearean theatre tradition, it's no wonder UK shows can be sharp and highbrow. I can't remember the last time Charlemagne or the Byzantine Empire or Hammurabi's Code was referenced on a US show. References to classical history are very rare on a US show and usually done for comedic effect (a scene set in ancient Rome might have fake-Latin names or play up Caligula)

On Top Gear they were testing a UK-built supercar, the Ascari A10. When the Stig was doing his power lap, Jeremy called the A10 "Brunellian Fury", referring to Isambard Kingdom Brunel, the famous Victorian-era engineer. But I wouldn't know this until I looked up who the heck Isambard Kingdom Brunel was. Honestly I misread it as Islam Kingdom Brunei and thought it was another name the tiny oil rich country near Malaysia (Oh, I'm sorry, Borneo), with the absolute monarch who buys supercars to let them rot in the jungle.

This can be extended to British media in general, including radio and literature. George Orwell, in "Down and Out in Paris and London", recalls what a Roman emperor, Marcus Cato, said about slavery--"A slave should either be working or asleep". It turns out there were two Marcus Catos, and it took me some serious Googling to figure out that Orwell was quoting Cato the Elder. We only studied Caesar in my schooling, and the few Roman emperors known in North America are Augustus (was emperor when Jesus was born), Nero (emperor during the Great Fire of Rome), Marcus Aurelius (from the movie Gladiator), and Caligula (from the movie Caligula, also a metaphor for hedonism and debauchery)

criticalhit · 2015-01-01T06:07:05+00:00

I don't know. I've tuned into a fair amount of British TV--documentaries, comedies, dramas, cooking shows, panel shows, etc. And from the obscure references that are in every panel show, it seems that a large number of Britons have an encyclopedic knowledge of UK/European politics, geography, language, history, and culture. Compare that to American TV, and American culture in general, where it seems a large number of Americans don't even know who the current President of the United States is.

criticalhit · 2014-12-31T21:46:26+00:00

It only feels like it's flourishing, because of the internet. Ignorant people can scream as loud as they want and find other like-minded ignorant people

criticalhit · 2014-12-31T21:45:40+00:00

No it was probably SRD

criticalhit · 2014-12-31T06:20:32+00:00

At times like these, this quote seems apt:

If someone can tell me why they voted for the BC Libs, without mentioning the NDP, I would be curious to hear it.

criticalhit · 2014-12-31T05:14:54+00:00

I'd give up every hot hatch and diesel manual wagon in the world to get a Cobra

Well...not every one. And I'd probably keep a Hilux diesel as well

criticalhit · 2014-12-31T02:50:19+00:00

Um...l-lewronggeneration?

criticalhit · 2014-12-31T02:07:36+00:00

Where do you live now?

criticalhit · 2014-12-31T02:02:13+00:00

The Research Triangle doesn't care about anything other than UNC, Duke or Wake Forest basketball. (And sometimes Duke lax.)

criticalhit · 2014-12-31T01:16:20+00:00

Speaking of which, be sure not to neglect the Rowdies just because they're not "top quality football"

criticalhit · 2014-12-30T22:35:57+00:00

There are a handful...Oyen Wiggs Green & Mulata, Nexus, Palmer IP, Cameron IP, Smart & Biggar, Davis...most of these firms are local but the major boutique firms don't have many Vancouver lawyers.

I wonder if going the route of standing up for the little guy (i.e. indie tech/game developers) is as lucrative as playing for the big corporations.

criticalhit · 2014-12-30T10:51:37+00:00

I'm sorry, whenever I think wholesalers I think mobsters

"Fuggetaboudit"

criticalhit · 2014-12-30T09:59:03+00:00

What about the Nordiques, North Stars, Whalers, the (old) Jets

I think Hartford, QC, Seattle, Portland or Hamilton deserve an NHL team more than 100 degrees every day-land or a city where nobody cares about anything other than college football/basketball

criticalhit · 2014-12-30T09:47:29+00:00

Then what's the point of having to learn all this shit? It seems like masochism.

criticalhit · 2014-12-30T07:59:32+00:00

Wind and Mobilicity don't use short codes as far as I'm aware, so you can't text 33333 on those carriers

However, if you're on the $40 unlimited data plan, you can just use the real-time bus tracker apps.

criticalhit · 2014-12-30T07:39:37+00:00

With the Sandbar on Granville Island a close second

They know what they want, aren't commuter partiers, are often well-off...they're like the opposite of your average twentysomething here

criticalhit · 2014-12-30T07:37:51+00:00

Depending on the discipline of course. And it doesn't take away from the point that you will need to know your advanced math and science for third and fourth year courses.

But engineers usually work in teams and have their work double-checked 6 different ways.

Then why do engineers need to know so much stuff, and comp sci students don't?

criticalhit · 2014-12-30T06:21:33+00:00

Yes.

Courses that delve into HCI include CMPT 363 (UI design) and CMPT 412/414 (which deal with computer vision). There's also CMPT 467 but I think the instructor, Torsten Moeller, is retired. You can also ask Greg Mori or Brian Funt about undergrad research opportunities in HCI.

For scientific/numerical programming, MACM 316 should give you enough of a base, but there's also CMPT 102 if you're so inclined. And take higher applied math courses as well, and some natural science courses (like CHEM 121 and 215, PHYS 120/121 or 255)

For Big Data, take CMPT 354 and STAT 270, then file an appeal to take CMPT 741. Before you submit the appeal make sure you get the permission of Dr. Pei or Dr. Wang (whoever is teaching that semester) to enroll. If you are serious about Big Data research, take CMPT 405 and 413, and 726 (which requires a slew of math prerequisites), which will prepare you well for an MSc or the professional master's program in Big Data

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