Archives for November, 2007
The Bible as Ethnography ~ 02 ~ In The Beginning…
Posted by Greg Laden on November 28, 2007 Genesis 1 and Genesis 2 (5 – 25) are distinctly different and contradictory origin stories. The biblical origin story represented in this text has long been known to resemble a set of Sumerian stories that mainly deal with a multitude of gods interacting (some of these gods are converted to humans in the biblical version).…
Open Source College
Posted by Greg Laden on November 28, 2007 Are there really open source colleges? Not really, but there are regular colleges that offer some degree of OpenSource learning.
Only nerds get this
Posted by Greg Laden on November 28, 2007 [hat tip]
Who needs a body?
Posted by Greg Laden on November 28, 2007 … when you can have an Exoskeleton! [hat tip: Geekologie]
Fox Sex. News. You know the drill.
Posted by Greg Laden on November 28, 2007 The Gaping Maw
Posted by Greg Laden on November 28, 2007 This is a web site dedicated entirely to the collection of photographs of animals with gaping maws. Worth a look. But not too closely.
Origin of Native America
Posted by Greg Laden on November 28, 2007 The origin and early history of Native American people has always been an issue of debate and contention. There has never been a moment when all, or even most, interested parties agreed on anything close to a single story. New research published in the Open-Access journal PLoS Genetics tends to support a very traditional (among…
Science News Tidbits
Posted by Greg Laden on November 28, 2007 Discovery of gene for black coat color in dogs has broad implications Discovery of gene for black coat color in dogs has broad implications from PhysOrg.com The discovery of a gene responsible for black coat color in dogs may help researchers understand fundamental processes in humans, including the regulation of body weight and stress hormones.…
I’m Rich, I’m Rich!
Posted by Greg Laden on November 28, 2007 Hey, look what I just got in the mail. Does this mean I”m rich?
Facial Processing and Human Cognition: New Findings
Posted by Greg Laden on November 28, 2007 …rapid judgments of competence based solely on the facial appearance of candidates predicted the outcomes of gubernatorial elections, the most important elections in the United States next to the presidential elections. In all experiments, participants were presented with the faces of the winner and the runner-up and asked to decide who is more competent. …Predictions…
Open Source Phone Coming?
Posted by Greg Laden on November 28, 2007 From Verizon Wireless: BASKING RIDGE, NJ — Verizon Wireless today announced that it will provide customers the option to use, on its nationwide wireless network, wireless devices, software and applications not offered by the company. Verizon Wireless plans to have this new choice available to customers throughout the country by the end of 2008. In…
Interesting Reads from my Neighbors in the Blogosphere
Posted by Greg Laden on November 28, 2007 Kirshenbaum Outs Self; Mit the Moron Mormon; John Locke’s Denialism; Evolution for Creationists.
Gorilla Tool Use?
Posted by Greg Laden on November 28, 2007 It may be nothing more than slinging shit, but when you run out of shit: Wild gorillas have been seen using “weapons” for the first time, giving a new insight into how early man learned to use sticks and stones for fighting and hunting millions of years ago. Researchers observed gorillas in the Cross River…
George Bush Stumbles (dog bites man)
Posted by Greg Laden on November 28, 2007 well, he got his own name right, at least… I think he also mispronounced “people” …
Big Surprise: Romney is a bigot
Posted by Greg Laden on November 28, 2007 Asked if he would ever nominate a Muslim for his cabinet, he replied: “…based on the numbers of American Muslims [as a percentage] in our population, I cannot see that a cabinet position would be justified. But of course, I would imagine that Muslims could serve at lower levels of my administration.” In a way,…
some wise guy sent this to me
Posted by Greg Laden on November 28, 2007 Blind Watchmaker Video
Posted by Greg Laden on November 27, 2007 Blind Watchmaker Video
War on Christmas Update
Posted by Greg Laden on November 27, 2007 Uncle Jay Explains the News
The Human Eye and Intelligent Design
Posted by Greg Laden on November 27, 2007 Creationism disproved, again:
Do you want to be a Super Geek?
Posted by Greg Laden on November 27, 2007 RAIDs (Redundant Arrays of Inexpensive [sic] Disks) are considered pretty handy for a number of things. This is an example of productive and practical use of a RAID. Granted, this project does not have the archaic grandeur of a Floppy Disk RAID, but then again, the capacity and performance of this system are utterly superior…
The Bible as Ethnography ~ 01 ~ Introduction
Posted by Greg Laden on November 27, 2007 As a child in Catholic school, and later in public school and being sent off to “release time” religious instruction, I had the opportunity to read most of the Old and New Testaments of the standard bible. Later, in junior high school, I became interested in comparative religion, and read it all again, together with…
Good Blog Stuff from my Neighbors i the Blogosphere
Posted by Greg Laden on November 27, 2007 The latest news on Dembski’s arrest and imprisonment for stealing a science video from Harvard for use in his ID lectures is here, at Pharyngula. OK, I was only kidding about the arrest and imprisonment part. But seriously, do you know what an IZOD-LACOSTE cloud is? It is an atmospheric phenomenon first discovered, simultaneously buy…
Early Earth Atmosphere
Posted by Greg Laden on November 27, 2007 Ohio State University geologists and their colleagues have uncovered evidence of when Earth may have first supported an oxygen-rich atmosphere similar to the one we breathe today. The study suggests that upheavals in the earth’s crust initiated a kind of reverse-greenhouse effect 500 million years ago that cooled the world’s oceans, spawned giant plankton blooms,…
The Vista Bounce
Posted by Greg Laden on November 27, 2007 It could be called the Vista Bounce. Here is how it works:
Science News Tidbits
Posted by Greg Laden on November 27, 2007 Lincoln may have had rare genetic disease Lincoln may have had rare genetic disease from PhysOrg.com A California doctor who studies rare ailments said Abraham Lincoln was probably dying of cancer from a rare genetic syndrome at the time he was assassinated. [...] Scientist says Hittites began bioterrorism Scientist says Hittites began bioterrorism from PhysOrg.com…
Boot Faster Than You can Say “Debian Linux”
Posted by Greg Laden on November 27, 2007 Technologic Systems has announced a single-board computer (SBC) claimed to boot Linux 2.6 in under two seconds. The TS-7800 is equipped with a Marvell 500Mhz ARM9 CPU running a full Debian implementation, and includes a user-programmable on-board FPGA (field-programmable gate array) with 12,000 LUTs (look-up tables). [amazing. click here]
Beware Evildoers
Posted by Greg Laden on November 27, 2007 A French businessman tells AFP his company is working on putting TASER stun guns on a flying saucer that would zap protesters, evil-doers, and anybody else that authorities there don’t like. [source]
Genes and Behavior
Posted by Greg Laden on November 27, 2007 Genes determine basic behavior, like the behavior associated with being a predator. Or avoiding being eaten by a predator. This we know to be true because millions, zillions, of years of evolution must have shaped genes … especially in mammals with with their whopping big brains and all … to have genetically coded behaviors.http://www.bloggingwv.com/love-everybody-even-the-squirrelly-ones/
Linux Google Search
Posted by Greg Laden on November 27, 2007 Check it out: (click on the bird)
Black Rhino
Posted by Greg Laden on November 27, 2007 Diceros bicornis. Africa has two species of rhinoceros, the “black” and the “white” rhino. Experts disagree on the origin of the two names, and there has been an effort to change these colloquial terms to something else. This is because the “black” rhino is dangerous and shifty, and the “white” rhino is cute and well…
, which is now available for the 
