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James Boxall

@jamesgis.bsky.social

6K followers 2K following 5.2K posts

Geography/GIS educator FRCGS FRGS. Climate SLR. #Dal #SMU #QE2PlatMedal. Semple GeogEd Award. Apoplectic-adorable. Shot 67. Book addict (socialtechfuture) CBCIdeas. Sci-fi. Old movies. WHU COYI. Parkinsons sucks | michaeljfox.org | Mi’kma’ki (Nova Scotia)

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Pinned

James Boxall @jamesgis.bsky.social · Nov 13

Yes, my profile pic is me at a very young age crying because my stuff toy fell off the table. Ya can't have it all. So I pinned this in case folks wanted to know if I was real and had a real face. Well....if you can stomach it...here it is... in my office doing GIS and lovin it.

Me in my office with a computer showing mapping imagery

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James Boxall @jamesgis.bsky.social · 40m

Like a plane's wing, if it moves you are ok, if not....
Oh how I remember the parties pharmacy students threw.
Things were passed between floors from the balconies.
Thankfully, my long passed parents never knew how bad their good boy could be. But that was eons before Juan, 20 years before Juan! :-)

James Boxall @jamesgis.bsky.social · 48m

Phone # :-) cheers

James Boxall @jamesgis.bsky.social · 49m

There's also the length of time it has been part of the normal aspects of life. Meaning, it is a cultural feature everyone "gets."
We are new to the game. A young continent that is large and open, so that space is great for cars! Europe - mature and aged.
North American - childlike.

James Boxall @jamesgis.bsky.social · 52m

But I hear hip replacements are top notch in Spain..so... :-)

James Boxall @jamesgis.bsky.social · 53m

So true. In the end, the hip was the factor "Pre-existing" :-)

James Boxall @jamesgis.bsky.social · 1h

We are so much better off because of health (and newly dental) care. Not perfect, but no comparison with southern cousins.

Now...tuition? Oh how we wish for that low cost/free model. We've hit an inflection point. (It's not the first I've been through).

Reposted by James Boxall

Aarne Granlund @aarnegranlund.bsky.social · 19d

"In one of Oulu's biggest schools Metsokangas, more than 90% of the children get to school by bike or on foot, according to the school's headteacher, even during the coldest winter months."

Oulu and Joensuu invested in cycling infrastructure and all-season maintenance.

www.bbc.com/future/artic...

How Oulu became the winter cycling capital of the world

Through a series of simple changes, the city of Oulu encourages its residents to cycle through the snowy winter. What can other cities learn from the pioneer of winter cycling?

www.bbc.com

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James Boxall @jamesgis.bsky.social · 1h

I hope the ceasefire grows. My worry is the longer there is a vacuum in Gaza, with few or no international peace keepers present, then groups/gangs will fill that vacuum. No matter how bad things are, someone will take advantage of it, even if it's their own people. Time to organize was yesterday

James Boxall @jamesgis.bsky.social · 5h

:-) love it. I was thinking of spinning it to Schrödinger's cat but by the time I thought of it, it was dead.

James Boxall @jamesgis.bsky.social · 5h

To avoid numb-brain while editing, some distractions and randomness enter my mind. I write one page starting like:

Sitting on the café stool, time passed by without notice as he was staring at the wasp in the corner of the window, slowly dying, and he wondered if it knew the end had arrived.

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Reposted by James Boxall

Julia M. Wright @juliamwright.bsky.social · 6h

Squint a little, and all of that investment in AI starts to look like subsidies to keep an unsustainable service afloat--so they're starting to charge for it. Will they get enough ongoing revenue to pay for all of the server farms burning down the planet, as more and more talk about "AI Slop"?

a woman in a hat says anyone else curious in a forest

Alt: someone in a forest saying "anyone else curious?"

media.tenor.com

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James Boxall @jamesgis.bsky.social · 7h

Ya might recognize one or two Canadians in this.
Reminded of song in light of...these times.
I know there are others so post as you please.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=YVhn...

NEW 📀 For What It's Worth - Buffalo Springfield -4K- {Stereo} 1966

YouTube video by Smurfstools Oldies Music Time Machine

www.youtube.com

James Boxall @jamesgis.bsky.social · 8h

You'll need a strong stomach for this one. www.bbc.com/news/article...

Nobel Peace Prize: Inside room where it gets decided – but will Trump get his wish

For the first time in its 125-year history, the committee allows an exclusive behind-the-scenes glimpse.

www.bbc.com

James Boxall @jamesgis.bsky.social · 9h

It happens...to everyone, in time. :-)

James Boxall @jamesgis.bsky.social · 10h

I think I've seen this before. It didn't end well in 1999.

www.cbc.ca/news/science...

Canada eyes putting nuclear reactors on the moon | CBC News

In order to maintain a presence on the moon, there’s going to be a need for energy. How do you maintain a colony of people in a place that has roughly 14 days of sunlight followed by 14 days of darkne...

www.cbc.ca

James Boxall @jamesgis.bsky.social · 10h

Sometimes you watch a football match and get angry the other team recruited a 12th player - the woodwork. Tough loss Tides. But we're still here for you!
@hfxtidesfc.bsky.social

James Boxall @jamesgis.bsky.social · 10h

I still find it amazing how "we" in education think we can harness this technology while keeping the power of the creators and rationale for design under "our" control.

How's that worked out for us so far?

Center For Humane Technology @humanetech.bsky.social · 5d

CHT co-founder Tristan Harris returns to "The Daily Show" for an incisive conversation about the reckless AI path we're on, driven by the race to achieve market dominance: "This is an insane way to roll out a technology."

Check it out: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=675d_6WGPbo

Tristan Harris – The Dangers of Unregulated AI on Humanity & the Workforce | The Daily Show

YouTube video by The Daily Show

www.youtube.com

James Boxall @jamesgis.bsky.social · 1d

Crap. I loved what she did. At the age when the people I enjoyed and admired are leaving. Another bit of youth gone www.cbc.ca/news/enterta...

U.S. actress Diane Keaton dead at 79: reports | CBC News

Diane Keaton, the Oscar-winning star of Annie Hall, The Godfather films and Father of the Bride — whose quirky, vibrant manner and depth made her one of the most singular actors of a generation — has ...

www.cbc.ca

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James Boxall @jamesgis.bsky.social · 1d

sounds like too much fun for me. Mind you, I spent part of the day with ArcGIS looking at climate equity risk matrix...i have way too much.....?"?

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James Boxall @jamesgis.bsky.social · 1d

$27/hr living wage in Halifax. Nope
Only of working 6 days a week? not happening.
Pay 67,392
Rent (30%) 20,220
Expenses (no health ins) 18,500
Payroll deduc: 20,400
Total 60,100 = net 7,300 working SIX DAYS/WEEK EVERY WEEK
Work 5 days/week means $500/month short
(NS Gov est. rent $1770 avg 1 bed)

James Boxall @jamesgis.bsky.social · 1d

It’s fall.

It’s Saturday.

The clean café windows let you see and

absorb the secrets of the sidewalk.

And there is an infinite number

of stories with every secret.

Thankfully.

fin

/16

James Boxall @jamesgis.bsky.social · 1d

The sun is up. Clouds, the very few, are floating by fast, just like the air filled with dust and dead leaves soar and swirl along the street. It’s the type of day you have to decide whether to take out that sweater from the high shelf in the closet or to stay with the light summer jacket.
/15

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James Boxall @jamesgis.bsky.social · 1d

A med-school student sits down; a knapsack provided free from medical society, each year a different colour, with tags saying what year they'll hopefully graduate. The intensity with which they stare at the laptop screen gives a vibe of success, desire, hope & fear. They go get another coffee. /14

James Boxall @jamesgis.bsky.social · 1d

And then there are people sitting alone staring at their drink and scanning their phone wondering why they haven’t been called or texted back. The night before started badly or didn't start at all. They are the opposite of giddy, because they worry, once again, that nothing true will happen. /13

James Boxall @jamesgis.bsky.social · 1d

Now comes the difficult time in the café. Sadness and joy walk in side-by-side. Couples who had their first date or first romantic night-long experience come in holding hands, hugging, staring at each other, giddy because nothing true has happened yet. /12

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