Archives for April, 2010
Massey Energy: “If you attend the funeral of your co-workers, you’re fired”
Posted by Greg Laden on April 14, 2010 … if you take time off from work to do so. Nice. Massey Energy told employees that if they miss work to attend the funerals they would be fired, workers said. A Massey worker, who did not give his name because he is afraid of losing his job, said that his coworkers were outraged that…
The Anti-Christ lives in Golden Valley, Minnesota?
Posted by Greg Laden on April 14, 2010 … Or is he the Congressmember from the Fifth District of Minnesota?
What is skepticism?
Posted by Greg Laden on April 14, 2010 There are two things I’ve learned over the last year. 1) If you get a room full of self-described skeptics, gathered to converse skeptically about something, a minor tweaking of the conversation can cause an alarmingly large percentage of said “skeptics” to start spewing utter nonsense; and 2) Manyself-described skeptics seem to believe (yes, believe)…
I for one welcome our Overlords from Galaxy M82
Posted by Greg Laden on April 14, 2010 There is something strange in the cosmic neighbourhood. An unknown object in the nearby galaxy M82 has started sending out radio waves, and the emission does not look like anything seen anywhere in the universe before. “We don’t know what it is,” says co-discoverer Tom Muxlow of Jodrell Bank Centre for Astrophysics near Macclesfield, UK.…
Alert: Evolution Suppressed in Connecticut
Posted by Greg Laden on April 14, 2010 “Mr. Tangarone, a 17-year veteran of the Weston school system, claims that a program he wanted to teach about Charles Darwin and Abraham Lincoln was rejected by the school administration because it involved teaching evolution — the scientific theory that all life is related and has descended from a common ancestor.”
More on Reference Managers
Posted by Greg Laden on April 14, 2010 There’s been a flurry of interest on reference managers, and especially Mendeley, so I thought I’d throw up a few links that you will find useful.
High Level Assembly Language Programming Book
Posted by Greg Laden on April 14, 2010 Randall Hyde’s book is now out in it’s second edition.
Mendeley: A Reference Manager and More
Posted by Greg Laden on April 13, 2010 It is said that the forceps … for delivering babies … was invented by a doctor working in the American Midwest* who used it only to deliver the babies of people to whom he was related. The forceps caused babies who might have died during childbirth to live and may have increased the survivorship of…
Jonathan Klein: Photos that changed the world
Posted by Greg Laden on April 13, 2010 Michael Specter: The danger of science denial
Posted by Greg Laden on April 13, 2010 You know who finds out about you know what.
Posted by Greg Laden on April 13, 2010 The Bridge
Posted by Greg Laden on April 12, 2010 What was that sound? A hand-cranked railroad cart that needed oiling? An old firetruck with a broken siren? A group of boy scouts with a dying hippopotamus? No, no, not a hippopotamus. Too artifactual sounding. Too human-made sounding. More like the siren, like an old fashioned air raid siren. And as I listened, not only…
It’s the 21st Century. Do you know where your files are?
Posted by Greg Laden on April 12, 2010 I would wager that you don’t know where many of your most important files are. If you are into music, and use iTunes, you can’t find a particular song file using your file manager. You would need to locate it using iTunes. iTunes would then give you limited access to that file. It does not…
Science Education on Skeptically Speaking Talk Radio
Posted by Greg Laden on April 12, 2010 How are today’s teachers sharing the wonders of science and critical thinking with the next generation of students? With cognitive psychologist and university lecturer Barbara Drescher, and Mike McRae, former science teacher and current science writer/illustrator for the education division of CSIRO. Friday. Click here.
My windows box inches its way towards …. the window.
Posted by Greg Laden on April 11, 2010 A while back I would have said that I have three reasons to maintain a Windows computer. 1) iTunes; 2) a couple of games; 3) tax software. Yes, yes, I know, these things can be done with Wine or an emulator. But really, having the relic Windows machine sitting there has simply bee easier.
Huh. Sarah Palin Hates Science.
Posted by Greg Laden on April 11, 2010 Check out this report at The Raw Story: Up yours, scientists. That’s essentially the message sent by former politician Sarah Palin during a recent speech to the Southern Republican Leadership Conference, where she disparaged the work of thousands of the world’s top minds to the delight of a large crowd that laughed, clapped and cheered…
Richard Dawkins to Arrest Pope*
Posted by Greg Laden on April 11, 2010 Rumor has it that Richard Dawkins, along with Christopher Hitchens, plan to use the same legal gambit that allowed the arrest of Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet in 1998, to arrest Pope Benedict XVI for his alleged involvement in the cover-up of Catholic priest sexual abuse cases. Do you think Dawkins has gone to far?
In Celebration of World Homeopathy Week
Posted by Greg Laden on April 10, 2010 Vote for Evolution!!!
Posted by Greg Laden on April 9, 2010 Credo (as in Working Assets) gives a percentage of its charges to various organizations. Now, there is a way for you to vote for which organization will get an infusion of cash. One of the choices is the NCSE.
Americans, this could be your future
Posted by Greg Laden on April 9, 2010 … if you don’t act now.
Atheist Barbie Now Available
Posted by Greg Laden on April 9, 2010 Tarryl Clark’s Campaing Video
Posted by Greg Laden on April 8, 2010 I would have been happier without the background music, but at least she’s not you know who.
Knee Update
Posted by Greg Laden on April 8, 2010 I was fairly optimistic after my recent doctor’s visit, in part because he was able to tell me that nothing bad was happening. I immediately started to make plans for a few short term changes in what I did every day to help with post-operative recovery, to be followed in a couple of weeks with…
BAT 2010: The Secular School
Posted by Greg Laden on April 7, 2010 This is my belated contribution to Blogging Against Theocracy.
The iPad and Skeptical Computing
Posted by Greg Laden on April 7, 2010 I’m going to make an argument that you should buy an Apple iPad despite widespread rumors of hardware problems and despite widespread criticisms of its design as funky and flawed. And by “you” I mean yooz guyz who are skeptics.
Who’s gonna beat Michele Bachmann?
Posted by Greg Laden on April 7, 2010 People keep asking this question, and now I know the answer.
Fulton … The end of the line.
Posted by Greg Laden on April 7, 2010 I have not been able to blog about the Fulton Idiocy largely because I can’t bring myself down to the cool, calm, collected level I usually operate at being that I’m a professional blogger and all. I will blog about it, but later. I’ll blog about it mainly because I want this to come true:…
Science Blogs Takes Over Intertubes.
Posted by Greg Laden on April 6, 2010 Science Blogs grows bigger. See this PDF file for details. Also, tell us what is wrong with the graph!?!?
Do you have a terrible song stuck in your head?
Posted by Greg Laden on April 6, 2010 Listen to this. Rinse, repeat. It will go away.
, which is now available for the 
