‘Thefacebook is an online directory that connects people through social networks at colleges. We have opened up Thefacebook for popular consumption at Harvard University. You can use Thefacebook to: search for people at your school; find out who are [sic] in your classes; look up your friends’ friends; see a visualization of your social network.” On 4 February 2004, this rather clunky announcement launched an invention conceived in the dorm room of a Harvard student called Mark Zuckerberg, and intended to be an improvement on the so-called face books that US universities traditionally used to collect photos and basic information about their students. From the vantage point of 2019, Thefacebook – as it was then known – looks familiar, but also strange. Pages were coloured that now familiar shade of blue, and “friends” were obviously a central element of what was displayed. However, there was little on show from the wider world: the only photos … [Read more...] about Death of the private self: how fifteen years of Facebook changed the human condition
Who sees my facebook profile the most
62 of the most inspirational Plymouth men alive today
Plymouth is full of inspirational, high-flying men and for International Men's Day we celebrate them in an ever-expanding list. International Men's Day is a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of men. It highlights positive role models, and raises awareness of men's mental health and well-being, being held during the month of Movember. The men on this list might be charity workers, business leaders, mental health advocates, artists, sportsmen or politicians, but they all have one thing in common - they are all inspiring and taking bold steps to create increasing gender equality. The list is in no particular order, and features 62 men from the city who make us proud. Edward Butcher The Tamar Bridge is used by thousands of people daily, but many do not know the astonishing story of how it was built. According to Edward Butcher, who worked on the bridge, he was "one of the lucky ones". The 90-year-old diced with death on several occasions, … [Read more...] about 62 of the most inspirational Plymouth men alive today
Revealed: The North East MP who claimed the most expenses this year
The North East MPs with the highest expenses claims have been revealed. Paul Williams, Labour MP for Stockton South, has claimed £44,938 so far this year. It makes him far and away the most expensive MP in the North East. He said his costs were higher than those of other MPs partly because he was elected for the first time in the 2017 general election, taking a Conservative-held seat. He said: “These are the costs of train travel to and from London, rent of a flat in London, setting up an office in my constituency and running that office. My costs for this period are higher than most other MPs because of the £6,000 start-up supplement and because of my family caring responsibilities.” Much of the money, £10,833 of the amount claimed, was for accommodation. Some £3,857 was for business rates and £528 was spent on renting a constituency office. Mr Williams spent £2,247 on new computer equipment, and £392 went on food and drink for staff. In … [Read more...] about Revealed: The North East MP who claimed the most expenses this year
‘I found serial killer who murdered my brother and his girlfriend on Facebook’
A woman used Facebook to find the serial killer who murdered her 25-year-old brother and his girlfriend 40 years ago. For the best part of four decades, a nagging sense of injustice gnawed away at Penny Farmer, now 57. She was just a teenager growing up in Chorlton-cum-Hardy, Manchester, when her brother Christopher Farmer, who had just qualified as a doctor, set off on a round-the world trip with his sweetheart Peta Frampton, who had just qualified as a lawyer. They left Manchester in December 1977 and never came back, the Manchester Evening News reports . Their families were not to know that seven months into their adventure and some 5,000 miles away in central America, they would be murdered. The couple had written home regularly as they had travelled through Australia, the Pacific islands and then to the west coast of America before heading south through Mexico and on to Belize. They reported they had met a charming American called ‘Dwayne’, a man who had offered to … [Read more...] about ‘I found serial killer who murdered my brother and his girlfriend on Facebook’
‘I used Facebook to find the serial killer who murdered my brother’
For the best part of four decades, a nagging sense of injustice gnawed away at Penny Farmer - someone had brutally murdered her older brother and his girlfriend, and the killer had got away with it. Penny, now 57, was just a teenager growing up in Chorlton-cum-Hardy, south Manchester, when her brother Christopher Farmer, a Manchester Grammar School old boy who had just qualified as a doctor, set off on a round-the world trip with his sweetheart Peta Frampton, a former Whalley Range High School girl who had just qualified as a lawyer. They left Manchester in December, 1977. They never came back. Their families weren’t to know that, seven months into their adventure and some 5,000 miles away in central America, they would be murdered in grotesque circumstances. The couple had written home regularly as they had travelled through Australia, the Pacific islands and then to the west coast of America before heading south through Mexico and on to Belize. They reported they had met a … [Read more...] about ‘I used Facebook to find the serial killer who murdered my brother’