new york and london. phone in your sightings on
us 1 212 998 3394
uk 0 207 987 0655
press 2 for sparrow
BIT RELEASE Whitechapel UK 1 JULY 2003: THE SPARROW CRASH
The Uphone Sparrow Report uses the pervasive network of mobile phones to capture live data on the vanishing network of distributed sparrows around New York and London. Population decrease in London has been measured at 94%. Speculation as to the causes & effects of this phenomenon is rife:
CALL FOR BIRD CALLS
Amateur and community ornithologists are invited to call the uphone line [press 2 for sparrow] & report sparrow sightings, theories, or loss. This is an open & publicly read-writeable audio database. Your recording can be deposited at the cost of a local phone call.
UPHONE
the UPHONE is a public news utility. Enables every phone [home/cell/booth] to act as a networked microphone. Your recording will upload automatically & in near-realtime, to the online listening database within 3 to 5 minutes.
[ INSTRUCTIONS ]
dial the BIT uphone line
on newyork 1 212 998 3395 or london 0 207 987 0655
press 2 for sparrow report.
-------------- HELLO
-------------- YOU ARE RECORDING A SPARROW REPORT
-------------- THANKYOU, YOU HAVE 5 MINUTES
The Bureau is preparing comparative data, with live sparrow lines London v. New York, to anaylse variations between UK and US responses
"Folks have generally frowned upon it (the sparrow)" Keith Pardieck, head of the North American Breeding Birds Survey at the Patuxent Wildlife Research Center in Maryland"The sparrow followed man around the world. It's always been at man's right arm. Now it's turning its back on us. I think it's very important to know why." Roy Sanderson, East London sparrow watcher.
[ THE SWAN FACTOR ]
The Sun Newspaper, Sun, Jul 6, 2003:
Swan populations drop in London, Wiltshire, Hertfordshire & Essex
"Gone ... swans are vanishing in places like Hyde Park in London"
All swans in the UK [except those in Orkney] belong to the Crown. Injuring or killing one means a £5,000 fine or 6 months in jail. Immigrants are blamed for eating the birds, the Sun reveals. " Callous asylum seekers are barbecuing the Queen's swans. A police source said: It.s tragic that people from abroad don.t respect our traditions" [read more]
THE UGLY SWAN: In North American states, conversely [Wisconsin, Rhode Island] where swan culls are planned, the birds are described as menacing, polluting and dangerous. [read more]
[ FAQ ]
