Interesting Links for 01-07-2024

[andrewducker]

1. 10 major cartoon characters entering the public domain between 2024 and 2034

(tags:comics copyright )

2. These Stunning Butterflies Flew 2,600 Miles Across the Atlantic Ocean Without Stopping

(tags:butterflies migration viaPatrickHadfield )

3. Buzz Lightyear saves the galaxy in Mass Effect

(tags:games remix toys movies video )

4. How do people get to work in different cities? (a visualisation)

(tags:visualisation cities transport )

5. The dioceses of the Church of England are in a tricky financial situation.

Most of the forty-two dioceses are now in a structural deficit position, with thirty of them reporting underlying operating deficits in 2022 and thirty-five expecting to report a deficit in 2024 and beyond. Aggregate diocesan deficits of £29m in 2022 are anticipated to more than double to £62m in 2024. Moreover, half of dioceses face some short-term liquidity risk, with twenty-three holding less than three months' cash reserves, thirteen of which do not have any easily available investment assets to liquidate.
(tags:ChurchOfEngland money doom )

Comments

[greenwoodside]

4 is a lot of fun, if nothing hugely unexpected. I need to go live in Quelimane, Mozambique, among my fellow pedestrians and avoid most of the USA.

5 is entertaining too -- most of it is typical 'here, have some graphs and infographics; and now have some more; hope you enjoyed those because we've got some more right here' like in almost any organisational report made for public consumption. Then you get to the annex at the back and suddenly there's an extra 'theology' column. Even universities don't normally bother to footnote their strategic plans!

My mother is very involved in the CoE, and I feel sad for her, sad for the buildings to a varying extent, and sad for some of the people because I can't see a future for it. I'm not suddenly going to get belief in God, and neither are most of my Millennial peers or my juniors in Gen-Z. (I guess, unless there's some really persuasive TikTok trend.)

So even if the CoE did reform and get better at speaking to people born after 1950, it still wouldn't be able to reverse the decline in its congregations.

[snippy]

I walk to work. That is, after breakfast I get up off the couch and walk to my desk. I do have to go to the office about once a month, usually just for a half a day, to meet with clients.