Friday, May 26, 2006

Seekers of Importunate Agents,

I have not been able to watch television much over the last few months, I only turned on to watch favourites like The West Wing or Have I Got News For You. I have ample time now but I haven't watched any more television than I did during that difficult spell, however, I did watch the David Attenborough documentary on climate change, Are We Changing Planet Earth?. The programme seemed very lazy, preferring to show old clips of David in jungles, instead of tackling the real issues. Climate change doesn't depend solely on carbon dioxide from the burning of fossil fuels, other species such as methane and ozone are potent greenhouse gases. Atmospheric particulate matter, such as sulphate particles derived from sulphur dioxide pollution and biogenic emissions, enhanced at times when atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration is high, offsets global warming by blocking solar radiation. Climate change is a multi-faceted subject and the insipid review was disappointing. David kept pleading for the audience's sympathy for animals who faced extinction, however, I saw them as animals who faced evolution - I don't wish to see animals suffer nor do I condone the heedless actions of society, but life has had to adapt from the very beginning.
If the current climate trends are caused by man, not due to astronomical or terrestrial cycles, a solution will be hard to come by and won't be simply a case of planting more trees as Monday's £25 Daily Express Letter of the Day Prize Winner says. Trees take many years to grow and they eventually emit carbon dioxide, but more trees would at least be effective in keeping up the spirits of the public.
I travelled into Embra today by train to attend an employment recruitment fair. I spent some time wandering around the city before going to the fair, I walked down the Royal Mile to the Scottish Parliament. I love that building, there's imagination in every nook and cranny, there's no plain areas, it's astounding. The Cow Parade is currently under way in the city, a saltire adorns the cow that grazes upon the front lawn of the Parliament.
I did not fare so well at the fair, most of the stalls were emblazoned by banners filled with buzzwords, deciphering what each company did was a formidable task. I don't possess the ambition to travel the globe outsourcing business acumen from affiliate networks. I approached each stall and asked "Can you tell me what your company actually does?" and if that didn't meet with sense "I'm an Environmental Chemistry student, am I relevant?". There were a only few companies whom I deemed to be in my field, whatever that is now, and who were interested in talking to me. There was a clear ranking system in operation amongst the representatives at each stall: if the was wholly unsuitable candidates; they'd be turned away completely, if their qualities were loosely related to the company; they'd be told of the companies website address, if the candidates seemed fairly relevant to the company; they'd be given some leaflets, if the candidates seemed suited to the field; they'd receive leaflets and a complimentary pen, in the event of a the representative deeming a candidate's credentials really suited, they'd get the leaflets, the pen and complimentary snacks. Of course, I soon became more interested in accruing as many freebies as possible, however, earning just a leaflet from the stubborn representatives was a trial. After 30 minutes at the fair, I left with plans to contact three companies, just 7 pens, a mini-marker and a box of mints, but I did have to pilfer some of those pens. Although the fair is probably just a PR stunt on the part of the participating companies, I was still mildly disappointed that they didn't seem so interested in what I could offer; I wonder if was it my attire, height, hair or the book I had brought to read on the train, unfortunately, appearance is everything. I didn't even scare them with flash photography.
I spent the remainder of my time in the city perusing the Royal Museum and the adjoining Museum of Scotland. With so many exhibitions, it's easy to become disorientated. I spent my time looking for articles related to space - it's that book I'm reading - but I never found much apart from a Gemini spacecraft. Each time I'm in the museum, a different exhibit takes my curiosity, today, the brightly coloured minerals and the volcanic glass in the geology and mining exhibits were of particular delight. I also went out onto the newly-opened roof terrace, where the views over the rooftops was novel, if not spectacular, the building isn't so tall. Downstairs, Dolly the Sheep has recently been put on display in a rotating tank, as though to prove a whole sheep was cloned and her opposite side is not that of a newt. I could spend a month in the museum, I'd be amused just reading the desciptions of every exhibit, but it's probably best to visit periodically and try to look at only a few exhibitions each time, in order to avoid becoming an exhibit myself.

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