Saturday, September 19, 2009
Ben's European Adventure: Week One Update
Hello all and greetings from London. Sincere apologies for the paucity of updates over the past few days, but until now my Internet access has been surprisingly restricted. One would think that a conference being held at a major site in the history of French telecommunications would have considered the importance of reliable wireless networks, but such was not to be. Thankfully, my colleague at The Sleeper Cell has been kind enough to put me up in his flat where the couches are comfortable, the cats are appropriately afraid of humans, and the wifi connection is reliable.
This is not to claim that I disliked my time in France. Overall, in fact, the "summer school" I attended on the history of the electronic image was among the most enriching experiences I have ever had in my short career as an academic. Imagine fifteen graduate students and a half dozen professors gathering in Brittany to present a diverse range of papers on everything from media studies to the history of television technology. Unlike at a typical conference, where interactions are largely limited to a single session, at this school we spent five days getting to know one another, both in formal workshops and discussions and less structured field trips and delicious (i.e. French) meals. Rather than just a venue to present research findings, this was meant as an opportunity to build lasting connections between an international community of similarly motivated scholars. Hopefully, all of us who attended will keep this in mind as we return to our geographically distant home institutions.
OK, enough of this boring methodological reflection. What sort of exciting and fun-filled adventures have I had so far during this trip?
Since my arrival in Europe on Monday, I have:
-struggled to remember any of the French I learned a few years ago for my departmental reading exam and eventually mustered enough courage to go to a local patisserie and order breakfast (Next time, maybe I'll be able to hold a five minute conversation.)
-received a medal from a French mayor
-walked barefoot in the English channel
-confirmed that obtaining tenure provides time for professors to dramatically improve their bowling scores
-discovered the proper European way of eating mussels (Tip #1: Use the shell of one mussel to both pry open and eat the next)
-wandered around a centuries-old chateau
-tried my hand (or feet) at traditional Breton dancing
-watched soccer on a prototype 3-D television display (It's coming to markets sooner than I expected!)
-more likely than not doubled my previous lifetime consumption of wine...and learned the perils of switching midway through a meal from from red to white
-traveled to the conference on the TGV (a four-plus hour trip from Paris) and then to Britain via the Chunnel (first impressions: it was dark.)
-braved the perils of traveling both the Paris Metro and London Underground with a large piece of luggage
-avoided getting killed due to my lack of familiarity with British traffic patterns
-successfully met up with the Sleeper despite my near total lack of Internet access during the past few days
And that only begins to scratch the surface. Eventually I plan to post some pictures, but for now you'll just have to use your imaginations.
Hello all and greetings from London. Sincere apologies for the paucity of updates over the past few days, but until now my Internet access has been surprisingly restricted. One would think that a conference being held at a major site in the history of French telecommunications would have considered the importance of reliable wireless networks, but such was not to be. Thankfully, my colleague at The Sleeper Cell has been kind enough to put me up in his flat where the couches are comfortable, the cats are appropriately afraid of humans, and the wifi connection is reliable.
This is not to claim that I disliked my time in France. Overall, in fact, the "summer school" I attended on the history of the electronic image was among the most enriching experiences I have ever had in my short career as an academic. Imagine fifteen graduate students and a half dozen professors gathering in Brittany to present a diverse range of papers on everything from media studies to the history of television technology. Unlike at a typical conference, where interactions are largely limited to a single session, at this school we spent five days getting to know one another, both in formal workshops and discussions and less structured field trips and delicious (i.e. French) meals. Rather than just a venue to present research findings, this was meant as an opportunity to build lasting connections between an international community of similarly motivated scholars. Hopefully, all of us who attended will keep this in mind as we return to our geographically distant home institutions.
OK, enough of this boring methodological reflection. What sort of exciting and fun-filled adventures have I had so far during this trip?
Since my arrival in Europe on Monday, I have:
-struggled to remember any of the French I learned a few years ago for my departmental reading exam and eventually mustered enough courage to go to a local patisserie and order breakfast (Next time, maybe I'll be able to hold a five minute conversation.)
-received a medal from a French mayor
-walked barefoot in the English channel
-confirmed that obtaining tenure provides time for professors to dramatically improve their bowling scores
-discovered the proper European way of eating mussels (Tip #1: Use the shell of one mussel to both pry open and eat the next)
-wandered around a centuries-old chateau
-tried my hand (or feet) at traditional Breton dancing
-watched soccer on a prototype 3-D television display (It's coming to markets sooner than I expected!)
-more likely than not doubled my previous lifetime consumption of wine...and learned the perils of switching midway through a meal from from red to white
-traveled to the conference on the TGV (a four-plus hour trip from Paris) and then to Britain via the Chunnel (first impressions: it was dark.)
-braved the perils of traveling both the Paris Metro and London Underground with a large piece of luggage
-avoided getting killed due to my lack of familiarity with British traffic patterns
-successfully met up with the Sleeper despite my near total lack of Internet access during the past few days
And that only begins to scratch the surface. Eventually I plan to post some pictures, but for now you'll just have to use your imaginations.
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