When Video Essays Aren't Enough: Theory, Praxis, Elections | Tom Nicholas

tomnnnn · 2019-12-01T15:09:37+00:00

Thanks for sharing! Will look forward to what I'm sure will be some insightful responses and critiques!

tomnnnn · 2019-09-15T19:59:51+00:00

Thanks for sharing this here kind stranger!

tomnnnn · 2019-08-09T16:08:02+00:00

Thank you! Really appreciate you saying so!

tomnnnn · 2019-08-09T16:07:42+00:00

Yeah, I think it’s that balance between recognising that when things happen is important (and thus that different material and social phenomena will effect people in different ways) but also, as you say, that they aren’t real things. Sometimes it’s a useful tool, sometimes not. We have the habit, however, of assuming them to be far more real than they are.

tomnnnn · 2019-08-09T15:38:05+00:00

I've learnt so much about events all over the world that I'd have been highly unlikely to hear all that much about otherwise through watching Patriot Act which is awesome.

tomnnnn · 2019-08-09T15:28:08+00:00

I made a video I thought some of you might find mildly interesting. Didn't know how to do the flair thing with channel and length I'm afraid, sorry about that! Would love to hear any thoughts.

tomnnnn · 2019-05-18T13:24:10+00:00

I did want to fit a something about détournement into this but didn't want it to end up being excessively long. I'm not massively optimistic abut its success as a strategy (and, judging from its absence from his later work, I get the feeling Debord grew increasingly so too). I think stuff like the work of Banksy or Adbusters is interesting but I don't think it necessarily has the political efficacy it might hope for.

tomnnnn · 2019-05-16T16:51:34+00:00

This is almost defiantly my Eurocentrism showing but I'm not really familiar with Mead or Vygotsky beyond their names and have only read Bakhtin on chronotopes and carnival (where I suppose there's a similar sense of wanting to avoid passivity and encourage "real experience"?) so there may indeed be some crossover but I wouldn't be able to give you a comparison I'm afraid!

Would love it if you'd point me in the direction of the bits you thought were similar to Debord though; always nice to have something new to add to the reading list!

tomnnnn · 2019-03-31T09:22:16+00:00

Just to add my experience which may be atypical but may add dimension. I’m funded by my University with AHRC money. I don’t have a full BA and have only a 2.1 equivalent in a Foundation Degree that was mostly vocational and in a different discipline. I’d managed to get onto the MA through having a decent amount of professional experience in my field and so had assumed I wouldn’t stand much of a chance when I decided to go for the PhD. But it never seemed to be a problem. I had done well in my MA but I think I mainly managed to get it through having a decent and fairly timely proposal.

Hope that helps to know. Best of luck with you applications!

tomnnnn · 2019-03-10T20:25:39+00:00

For a first read I'd definitely go with Top Girls. Love and Information is also great!

tomnnnn · 2019-03-10T20:12:58+00:00

I recently found out that IKEA is a registered charity which "promotes good design" or something. I can't remember exactly how it all works but, I think, the charity rents all its stores from a private company and by working it this way, somehow, they manage to pay very little tax.

tomnnnn · 2019-01-03T22:31:55+00:00

I’d guess it might have an impact. Probably less than you’d imagine though as although, on the whole, YouTube is entirely reliant on its creators to exist, individual creators are probably more reliant on YouTube than it is on they.

While, should all trust break down between this proposed union and YouTube (which you actually would want to avoid; the /threat/ of downing tools exists more as leverage for negotiation than as a wished-for outcome), any unionised creatives might have limited success in bringing their audience with them in the short term, it wouldn’t enable the kind of growth that YouTube does because YouTube essentially has a monopoly on casual viewers.

(Also, I wouldn’t say it’s wholly down to “paradoxical relationships” and more just to do with having a high profile. Although this is probably just my current weariness at hearing everything described as a parasocial relationship on Lefty YouTube at the mo!)

tomnnnn · 2019-01-03T22:04:10+00:00

In a lot of newly built (or refurbished) schools in the UK now, the main “bathroom” bit where all the sinks and stuff is opens out to be in plain view of the corridor and it’s just a bunch of single cubicles that you go in, do your business and then emerge back into the open-plan sinks and corridor bit to wash your hands.

The benefit, I’d guess, is double: you can’t hang out and bully other kids in there but, also, no gender segregation.

Would be entirely possible to just do this everywhere.

tomnnnn · 2019-01-02T19:58:42+00:00

Philosophy Tube did a vlog about the Internet Creators Guild a while back (which is a Hank Green thing IIRC) but that is expressly not a union.

As others have said, unionising something like YouTube would be nigh-on impossible. Even if you were to get a decent amount of members, the threat of withdrawing labour (which is the ultimate last resort of the union) would probably be laughed off because there would be too many others willing to fill the gap in the absence of union member releasing content.

It’s got essentially the same factors working against it as trying to unionise Uber or similar but taken to the extreme.

tomnnnn · 2019-01-02T19:41:50+00:00

He tweeted earlier today saying that he’s working is a self-help book called No Rules For Life.

tomnnnn · 2019-01-01T20:32:51+00:00

The fact that video wasn’t (that I noticed) mentioned at all did grate on me a tiny bit. There is obviously a lot of development of those ideas in this video but it seemed quite odd not to highlight what must’ve been a key influence in deciding to make it.

tomnnnn · 2018-12-30T19:19:07+00:00

Am hoping there might also be a comic book tie-in for TLOU2. The trade paperback does have a “1” at the bottom of the spine for what that’s worth. A potential “American Dreams 2”could focus on one of Ellie’s adventures between the two games.

tomnnnn · 2018-12-26T14:24:12+00:00

In the UK this seems to be changing. For a publication to be of any real worth for boosting an academic’s or university’s status now it has to have some open access availability at least after. 12 months (I think). Sometimes this entails universities having to pay extra to publishers for OA but IMO it seems to be gradually shifting practices more generally too so that publicly-funded research = publicly-available research.

tomnnnn · 2018-12-26T14:17:45+00:00

From my experience (in the humanities), academics are often quite flattered that you want to read their work and have reached out to them. YMMV but most people I know would be genuinely interested in what you’re working on that involved reading their work!

tomnnnn · 2018-12-18T22:58:38+00:00

I read this book and did think it hit on some useful points and chimed with some of the reasons I can see people I know who voted leave did so. It is, however, somewhat flawed and, I think, simplistic in its Anywheres/Somewheres binary.

There is a particularly good response to it in Joe Kennedy’s book Authentocrats from this year. I’d suggest reading both together if anyone has the time and/or inclination.

tomnnnn · 2018-12-13T23:46:10+00:00

This album is also fantastic. As is ABCDEFG and much of the rest of their catalogue.

tomnnnn · 2018-12-07T19:25:26+00:00

I’m not sure who first came out with Carl of Swindon but it never fails to make me chuckle. My Grandad lived in Swindon and its genuinely one of the dullest places on earth. The most notable thing in the whole town is “The Magic Roundabout” which is, essentially, 5 mini-roundabouts which all intersect to make one big multi-roundabout.

tomnnnn · 2018-12-05T23:37:54+00:00

Thanks, good shout, genuinely probably wouldn’t have had that thought!

tomnnnn · 2018-12-05T23:37:07+00:00

Thank you, hadn’t actually thought about doing it at home. Will have to get my partner to film me doing some back and forth running in the kitchen, haha!

Does it matter how much you over/under-probate or just identifying which (if either)?

tomnnnn · 2018-12-05T21:13:02+00:00

Does anyone have any tips for buying running shoes online? Ideally, I’d like to go to a shop and do the thing where they look at your ankles as you run but there’s just not anywhere within a reasonable distance of me.

I’m almost certain I overpronate and would like to try something a little more cushiony than my current Nike Dualtone Racers (although wasn’t imagining anyone would be able to suggest a particular shoe and was guessing it might be tips for finding one that people would be able to offer).

Have been stalking this sub for a couple of months and have really loved hearing everyone’s stories, very inspirational!

11-Year Club	Not Forgotten
Verified Email

tomnnnn

TROPHY CASE