tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3885727023696409895.post1730583127366043804..comments2023-07-17T16:30:39.663+01:00Comments on Colganology: War of the Material Worlds Stevyn Colganhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15004087474719566102noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3885727023696409895.post-53468525076179710582013-03-07T22:35:46.885+00:002013-03-07T22:35:46.885+00:00Maybe I'm being cynical, but I often wonder if...Maybe I'm being cynical, but I often wonder if TV companies are competing to find the minimum achievable Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR).<br /><br />Here's the algorithm:<br />i) Start with some TV material (or 'Signal') which is capable of meaningfully engaging a viewer's attention for T minutes.<br />ii) Interleave (f x T) minutes of pointless stodge (or 'Noise'), the aim being to find the largest value of f which will still retain viewing figures above some threshold value.<br /><br />The resultant SNR is therefore = 1/f.<br /><br />(Just as an example, I would estimate the SNR for "The Only Way is Essex" to be somewhere in the region of 1/1000).<br />Billnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3885727023696409895.post-56573041417801961522013-03-07T14:21:46.963+00:002013-03-07T14:21:46.963+00:00The BBC died about ten years ago. A succession of...The BBC died about ten years ago. A succession of soulless director-generals and their senior managers obsessed with ratings and their own careers, culminating in that shameless numpty Tim Davie popping up as interim DG. All new TV shows are designed as anodyne palliatives when they should be a kick in the neurons.John Traynorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13205466433147842860noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3885727023696409895.post-58434148516919556912013-03-07T13:51:52.193+00:002013-03-07T13:51:52.193+00:00Some thoughts on who to address letters to in prio...Some thoughts on who to address letters to in priority order (Radio before TV[1]):<br /> <br />Feedback obv.<br />Radio science editor: Deborah Cohen<br />Gwyneth Williams: Radio 4 controller<br />David Shukman: @davidshukmanbbc The BBC's Science Editor. [2]<br />John Lynch: Head of Science for BBC London Factual<br />Kim Shillinglaw: Commissioning Editor, Science and Natural History<br /><br />Addressed to broadcasting house[3].<br /> <br />[1] "Radio [science] staff rarely talked to television, while news and current affairs works to its own imperatives and contacts its own pool of established experts, the report found."<br />http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2011/jul/21/bbc-science-coverage<br /> <br />[2] "The BBC executive said that Shukman had started building relationships with Vision and BBC Radio science teams and started to act as a link between science programme makers and news outlets.<br />The science forum meets to provide strategic oversight of BBC science coverage, bringing together Shukman with radio and TV commissioners and production heads, "<br />http://www.broadcastnow.co.uk/news/broadcasters/bbc-science-praised-for-tackling-gender-imbalance/5049453.article<br /><br />[3] "Also, for the first time, the Radio Science Unit and the Science News team will be united in the renovated Broadcasting House, with colleagues in Television Science a few floors up. Anyone familiar with a large organisation historically divided on tribal lines (like a university?) will appreciate the significance."<br />http://www.britishscienceassociation.org/people-science-magazine/june-2012/bbc-science-coverageAnonymousnoreply@blogger.com