weer in ur valley of deth, chargin rong gunz

[oursin]

I don't know why I'm still boggled by manifestations of the sheer know-nothingness of meedja researchers.

Today it was asking whether we had, or knew of, film footage of someone who died when even still photography was still in its embryonic stages.

One of these days I'm convinced someone is going to ask us how to access Florence Nightingale's

Comments

[wordweaverlynn]

That's brilliant.

I think Dr. Barry is no gentleman needs to be a Lolhistory.

[forthwritten]

Oh dear. I'm meant to be working and instead I want to do a facebook style thingy for suffragists falling out with each other.

- Sylvia Pankhurst doesn't actually hate men that much.

- Christabel Pankhurst is increasingly fed up of wishy-washy suffragettes. Even if they're your sister. Especially if they're your sister.

- Sylvia Pankhurst has created a new group: East London Federation of the Women's Social and Political Union

- Sylvia Pankhurst has left the Women's Social and Political Union.

etc etc.

[oursin]

I really liked this - all last evening I was trying to think up further things. Without much success.

[sollersuk]

Today it was asking whether we had, or knew of, film footage of someone who died when even still photography was still in its embryonic stages.

WTF???

1. The past is another country.
2. Other countries exist.

[oursin]

I'm used to media researchers assuming that video cameras operable by members of the public were available and in use much earlier than was the case, and therefore that there will be all sorts of 'footage' of events from e.g. the 60s; but this one really boggled me.

[veejane]

Speaking as a non-historian, I am constantly flummoxed at the things I discover people could not have known or seen in their lifetimes. For example, inhabitants of New Mexico did not see a train until well into the 1860s, although the first locomotive came to the US in 1829.

(I am reading a book right now about a daguerrotypist on a western expedition in 1853 -- he was chosen for the expedition because daguerrotypes were easier and faster to make than paper photos. Also because you don't need to cart a darkroom all over the Rocky Mountains to know how your photos came out. Although my subject did endlessly argue with the muleteers who hated trying to pack his apparatus, and several of them appear narrowly to have avoided drinking up his developing -- the fatal kind of -- alcohol.)

[green_knight]

Err, you did see the Pride and Prejudice Facebook thing when that was going around?

(I am now desperately wondering where I had the URL because OMG, it was good, and it's the sort of thing I'd expect you to see before I do.)

[forthwritten]

Here!

[katesnotes]

Haha - that was wonderful