The Future of Bangkok’s Mass Transit

Ahhh, the new year. Time to put the diseased, pockmarked wreck of the last year behind us and stare at the glorious, unspoilt landscape of the next 12 months in front of us. In the spirit of new beginnings, I finally completed a little project I've been working on for a while. I've had on my desktop for some time now a high-resolution map of the proposed future of Bangkok's mass transit lines. The original was all in Thai, but I whipped out my mad Photoshop skillz and roughly translated the names of the stations (with a bit of help) into English. It's still a bit busy, and I'm not sure what the timeframe on all these routes are, but it gives you an idea of what Bangkok's overlords have in store for the future. Bangkok right now is woefully underserved by its mass transit network, but when/if this is all complete, it will likely rank up near Tokyo and Hong Kong for mass transit awesomeness. Take a look.

2016-11-17T15:48:25+00:00Bangkok, Technology, Transport, Travel|0 Comments
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What the World Writes about Thailand

Google's a pretty neat tool, and it's fascinating to see how it's evolved over the past ten years. When I first came to Thailand in 2001, I did all my searches using either Lycos, HotBot, or Excite, but now I - indeed, most of the world - simply uses Google. It's pretty amazing how far their shadow stretches, touching pretty much every corner of the internet, no matter how insignificant. For non-insansely smart computer geeks, it's a bit hard to wrap your mind around exactly how access to all this seemingly minor information can congeal into a useful whole, but a new Google tool called Ngram consolidates an incredible amount of information - 200 years' worth, to be precise - and lets you search. Just for fun, I did some popular searches for Thai terms.

2016-11-17T15:48:26+00:00Current Events, Language, Print Media, Technology, Thailand|0 Comments
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The Role of Twitter in the Bangkok Protests

Well, despite my vow to avoid writing about politics, here's another post about the situation in Bangkok. As the redshirts tear up the city, again, and the army tries to beat them into submission, again, it's like some sick version of Batman vs The Joker - neither side wins, everyone loses, wash, rinse repeat. I don't mean to crack wise - the situation is tense, deadly and will have long-term repercussions for the entire country. Being stuck amid events like these is not something that us North Americans are used to, and I've written before about how it changes your perceptions of reality. It also really opens your eyes into the machinery behind situations like this, most notably the machinery of how information is distributed and consumed. In this regard, it's been a salient - although deadly - crash course in the power of Twitter.

2016-11-17T15:48:32+00:00Bangkok, Current Events, Politics, Technology, Thailand, Web Media|0 Comments
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ExciTED, MotivaTED, ExhausTED: Anatomy of a TEDx Conference

Up until about 6 months ago, I only had a few basic tatters of information about TED Talks. I knew it was an annual conference, or... something. I'd seen a few talks on the website and thought it was an interesting concept, but it was only when I was invited to help organize Thailand's first TEDx event, TEDxBKK (the 'x' stands for an independently organized TED event under the main TED umbrella), did I truly get an understanding of what a powerful, important and tremendously enjoyable event they can be. The big day was February 13, 2010, and it went of superbly, thanks to a great team that really personified what TED is all about. Another reason I got a backstage view of the whole thing? I was asked to be the host.

2016-11-17T15:48:34+00:00Bangkok, Culture, Movies, Music, Politics, Pop Culture, Technology, Thailand, Web Media|0 Comments
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IMAX is Awesome – Except When They Lie

(This post might get a bit technical and nerdy, but I'm technically a nerd, so no apologies).

There are many things that make me proud to be Canadian, such as our diverse cultural heritage, our laid-back nature and the fact that our cases of beer have handles big enough to allow mittens to fit through them. Another thing is that IMAX is actually a Canadian company, which not a lot of people know. But the way that the famous giant film screen company has been behaving lately has made me wonder what they're thinking. Indeed, their current expansion efforts are progressing in such a way that will likely piss people off, and may even kill the once-rad name.

2016-11-17T15:48:35+00:00History, Movies, Pop Culture, Technology|3 Comments
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Careful! That DVD May be Fake!

thumbThe longer you live overseas, the bigger the chasm between 'normal' in the motherland and 'normal' in your new adopted home becomes. The things that seemed crazy, strange, unique, weird or even offensive when you first moved here eventually become normal, and it's often hard to remember which aspect of your new life your friends back home would find odd. I was struck with this feeling today when I read a Wired.com article on an MPAA press release instructing people how to detect counterfeit DVDs. How cute.

2016-11-17T15:48:40+00:00Asia, Bangkok, Movies, Technology|0 Comments
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A Beginner’s Guide to Greg’s DNA

thumbAs I get older, I start to wonder about my past. Not because I forget what I did yesterday (although that's a bit hazy thanks to tequila); I mean my PAST - my genetic history going back thousands of years. Ever since DNA (more commonly known as deoxyribonucleic acid... or is it the other way around?) was isolated in 1953, it's given us an incredible tool to do everything from trace lineage to clone steak. My curiosity might have been piqued because I live in such a racial melting pot, where discussions of nationality, race and ethnicity come up all the time. So, I decided to head over to the National Geographic Genographic Project to see what they could tell me about me.

2016-11-17T15:48:43+00:00Education, Fun Stuff, History, Technology|0 Comments
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Self-Censorship in Thailand

zip2Free speech has the ability to make you behave in much the same way that a child does after a bowl of sugar-coated Corn Flakes - once you've tasted it, going back to how you had it before is a kick in the head. Be it a rant against The Man or a punch-bowl full of sugary goodness, it feels good to exercise our freedom to speak and/or eat. (It's in the Constitution, I checked). So it was interesting a while back when something happened and I thought to myself, "I should put this on my blog" but then decided against it. But the thing that stuck in my craw was the reason I decided against it.

2016-11-17T15:48:46+00:00Asia, Culture, Politics, Print Media, Technology, Thailand, Web Media|0 Comments
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Thoughts on Piracy in Thailand

thumb1No, not the type where heavily armed Somolian teenagers try to board 330-foot long oil tankers from an inflatable dinghy with a cake-mixer motor. Rather, I'm talking about the type where you can buy fake name brand stuff for really cheap! Everyone knows that Thailand is one of the best countries to buy worst offenders when it comes to selling fake stuff. Thailand has recently seen a crackdown on illegal goods vendors, ramped up as a direct result of a United States Trade Representative report saying, essentially, Thailand sells pirated goods, so they're bad. Here's my thoughts on piracy in Thailand...

2016-11-17T15:48:47+00:00Bangkok, Politics, Pop Culture, Technology|0 Comments
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