[Noisebridge-discuss] unannounced groups of non-members at Noisebridge (esp. kids)

Mon Jun 1 23:04:46 UTC 2009

On Mon, Jun 1, 2009 at 3:20 PM, Christie Dudley <longobord at gmail.com> wrote:

> You hit the nail on the head as to what I was thinking, aestetix.  I just
> spent the weekend peeling children off of heavy sharp metal balls only to
> have their parents complain to me that their children not be treated thus
> (if they even notice).  I say our obs should not be treated thus.  We pretty
> much came to the consensus that the orbs were not for children, and it was a
> mistake to ever think otherwise.
>
> Noisebridge is not FOR children.  It is for hackers.  Helping people to
> understand this prevents Bad Things.
>

+1

>
> Christie
>
> ---
> "I want us all to think about new and creative ways to engage young people
> in science and engineering, whether it's science festivals, robotics
> competitions, fairs that encourage young people to create and build and
> invent -- to be makers of things, not just consumers of things."
>
> - President Obama in address to National Academy of Sciences April 27, 2009
>
>
>
> On Mon, Jun 1, 2009 at 3:01 PM, aestetix aestetix <aestetix at gmail.com>wrote:
>
>> I think the real issue here is not that NB is "adult themed", but that it
>> is NOT "kid themed". I can imagine a lot of people bringing their kids by
>> with the illusion that NB is a public facing science fair exhibit, with all
>> kinds of activities with a friendly nature geared towards children. After
>> all, we were at the Maker Faire, right?
>>
>> Those same people could come to NB, expecting the same amount of
>> extroversion and outgoingness that all the vendors at Maker Faire had, only
>> to discover (1) there's a lot of discussion, conversation, swearing, etc
>> that is not intended for children's ears (2) nobody is going to drop
>> everything and gently explain what they're doing and get the kid involved.
>>
>> If such parents arrive with heightened expectations, they will be really
>> disappointed, and even offended. I don't mind the occasional "can you tone
>> it down a bit, my kid is here" from a member who brings their kid, but if
>> the conversation and action turns into an expectation of targeting children,
>> it will stifle a lot of what's going on. It's the same ethic that parents
>> use when they mute their TV during a racy scene in a tv show because they
>> don't want their kids exposed.
>>
>> Ultimately the fault of such conflicts is on the parents/teachers for
>> being retarded. I would almost be in favor of a monthly "open house" for the
>> public, but that puts pressure on people to create projects for kids to see,
>> and also turns noisebridge into a museum of exhibits, which it isn't. I
>> don't want to be completely xenophobic, but I also don't think we need to
>> overextend ourselves to people who ultimately contribute nothing and are
>> there to gawk.
>>
>> aestetix
>>
>>
>> On Mon, Jun 1, 2009 at 2:39 PM, Christie Dudley <longobord at gmail.com>wrote:
>>
>>> Well, the determination to keep plans, once made, might propel them into
>>> our space on Weise.  Ever had a kid you told you were going to do something
>>> fun and then not done it?  Besides, it's only a few hundred feet to our door
>>> - barely enough distance to get nervous and turn back, especially if you
>>> aren't observant.
>>>
>>> As for adult themes, I was thinking specifically of the Arse Technica
>>> poster at the top of the stairs and the "map of kink" at the bottom of the
>>> stairs.  Not a question of nudity or whatnot, so much as "what does that
>>> mean?" questions that are hard to answer.  (Although it doesn't take a lot
>>> of imagination to interpret the Arse Technica poster.)
>>>
>>> Although Kelly's comment illustrates my point pretty well.  Many of us
>>> are not accustomed to having children around and don't really even notice
>>> things that most parents worry about.  Many of the parents associated with
>>> our space are pretty cool with their kids and the exposures they have, but
>>> this doesn't translate to all parents.  I think it's an excellent thing to
>>> do to give people enough information to make an informed decision for
>>> themselves and any children they may be responsible for.
>>>
>>> Christie
>>>
>>> ---
>>> "I want us all to think about new and creative ways to engage young
>>> people in science and engineering, whether it's science festivals, robotics
>>> competitions, fairs that encourage young people to create and build and
>>> invent -- to be makers of things, not just consumers of things."
>>>
>>> - President Obama in address to National Academy of Sciences April 27,
>>> 2009
>>>
>>>
>>> On Mon, Jun 1, 2009 at 2:25 PM, Kelly <hurtstotouchfire at gmail.com>wrote:
>>>
>>>> See, here's one of the perks of our location.  If they can make it
>>>> down Weiss, I'm not sure we can offend them.
>>>>
>>>> Incidentally, I don't particularly think that Noisebridge is "adult
>>>> themed" at present, but I would welcome a decor trend in that
>>>> direction.  And as to warning people on the wiki, I guess I'd say do
>>>> what thou wilst.
>>>>
>>>> -K
>>>>
>>>> On Thu, May 28, 2009 at 7:41 PM, Christie Dudley <longobord at gmail.com>
>>>> wrote:
>>>> > It seems to me that "policy" would be the wrong word to use in a place
>>>> where
>>>> > the running paradigm is "do what thou wilst".  If people feel like
>>>> letting
>>>> > folks into the space, then that will probably happen.
>>>> >
>>>> > It strikes me as wise to have maybe a page on the wiki advising
>>>> potential
>>>> > guests of what to expect in the space.  I can see difficult situations
>>>> > avoided if parents understand that we prominently display adult themed
>>>> > materials as well as our "use your own judgement" safety policy.
>>>> Maybe
>>>> > getting a visitor contact up there who can make arrangements to meet
>>>> them
>>>> > would be neat.
>>>> >
>>>> > Then again who reads the wiki anyway.  People will continue to come
>>>> > unannounced and unprepared.
>>>> >
>>>> > On May 28, 2009 5:40 PM, "Josh Myer" <josh at joshisanerd.com> wrote:
>>>> >
>>>> > On Thu, May 28, 2009 at 05:36:40PM -0700, Seth David Schoen wrote: >
>>>> > Christoph Maier writes: > > > ...
>>>> >
>>>> > They've clearly picked up the hope others have abandoned on the hack
>>>> > shelf.
>>>> >
>>>> > (It's stashed behind the dead CD-ROM drives, if you've missed it)
>>>> > --
>>>> > Josh Myer   650.248.3796
>>>> >  josh at joshisanerd.com
>>>> >
>>>> > _______________________________________________ Noisebridge-discuss
>>>> mailing
>>>> > list Noisebridge-discuss...
>>>> >
>>>> > _______________________________________________
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>>>> > https://www.noisebridge.net/mailman/listinfo/noisebridge-discuss
>>>> >
>>>> >
>>>>
>>>
>>>
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>>
>
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-- 
----------
San Mehat
Staff Software Engineer
Google Inc.
o: 650-253-7422
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