“If you really want to get to know someone, try rummaging through their CD collection. An study has proved that when it comes to judging a person’s character, their favourite music is one of the most valuable clues….Almost anything about a man or a woman – from their looks, intelligence and fitness, to politics, wealth and even conversational ability – can be gleaned from the tunes they enjoy most.” —You Probably Think This Song Is About You (The Age)

You can also tell a lot about a person’s personality by the way they dress, what they have on their hard drive, what books they read, what TV shows the watch, and what they link to on their weblogs. While the science behind the academic article being reviewed is probably sound, this is a fairly puffy news story.

Music is simply not a huge part of my life — I go for days without listening to any, and months or years without buying any.

I can hear the shocked voices now — “Oh! How can he hate music! Has he no soul?”

Of couse I don’t dislike all music… it’s just that I’m not particularly passionate about the music I do like (and I couldn’t even classify that for you).

This isn’t a rant against music… I gather that other people’s passion for music just seems as strange to me as my passion for writing and cybertext probably seems to some of my non-technical associates.