All manner of human creativity on display
David Ng is Director of the Advanced Molecular Biology Laboratory at the University of British Columbia - this is a just a fancier way of calling himself a science teacher.
Benjamin Cohen is an Asst. Professor of Science, Tech., and Society at the University of Virginia. He studies the place of S & T in environmental history, policy, and ethics. He also writes other stuff.
Trying to find your way around this place? Like most expositions, we offer a map: Map of The World's Fair
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August 31, 2006
Category: Nature as in Earth, as in Global, as in Global Issues Generally
In response to the "Hooray for Global Warming" article as queried by this week's Ask a ScienceBlogger, I offer this public message from a representative of the glacier community:...
Posted by David Ng at 12:01 PM • 1 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: The Art/Science (Non?)Divide Building
Oh, how to load a question, eh? And a dangerous one, at that. I mostly think of this topic, of progress and science and technology, as one of faith. Saying that doesn't explain much about what I'm talking about, but...
Posted by Benjamin Cohen at 10:40 AM • 2 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Knoxville '82: Where Miscellany Thrive
Today, the SCQ in preparation for its second year run, has a sort of a housekeeping post, which talks about haiku projects, its print edition woes, but more importantly an interesting sidebar which has all the makings of a conspiracy...
Posted by David Ng at 8:26 AM • 1 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
August 30, 2006
Category: Nature as in Earth, as in Global, as in Global Issues Generally
Remarks by Stephen Lewis, UN Special Envoy for HIV/AIDS in Africa, to the Closing Session of the XVI International AIDS Conference, Toronto, Canada...
Posted by David Ng at 8:50 AM • 1 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Nature as in Earth, as in Global, as in Global Issues Generally
In AIDS Crisis, Listen to UN's Lewis: CBS News.com / American Prospect, by Ezra Klein...
Posted by David Ng at 8:40 AM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
August 29, 2006
Category: The Art/Science (Non?)Divide Building
Geez, it looks like our traffic stats are really taking a beating lately, so I am compelled to assume that this has something to do with the whole Pluto thing....
Posted by David Ng at 8:59 AM • 4 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Nature as in Earth, as in Global, as in Global Issues Generally
It's been a year since Katrina hit New Orleans, and although sometimes it seems like we've learnt a lot, other times it seems like we've learnt almost nothing at all....
Posted by David Ng at 8:28 AM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
August 28, 2006
Category: Knoxville '82: Where Miscellany Thrive
Spirit has done well in past years, jabbing and ducking, bobbing and weaving, while Matter has met every lunge, every uppercut, everything. It's a stalemate, for any reasonable viewer, but the odds-makers are still booking it and the networks are...
Posted by Benjamin Cohen at 10:34 AM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
August 25, 2006
Category: The Art/Science (Non?)Divide Building
It's all that. Ars Medica, or The Ars, as British hipsters call it, is a fascinating "literary journal that explores the interface between the arts and healing, and examines what makes medicine an art." It's run out of Toronto, begun...
Posted by Benjamin Cohen at 12:35 PM • 1 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Knoxville '82: Where Miscellany Thrive
Last night, before she went to sleep, Hannah (my eldest) said to me, "Daddy, in two more sleeps, I'm going to be 5 years old." Man, do they ever grow up fast. Takes me back to the beginning......
Posted by David Ng at 11:29 AM • 1 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
August 24, 2006
Category: The Art/Science (Non?)Divide Building
Well, it looks like units of our Psyche Strainers are shipping robustly. So much so, that we are perhaps close to thinking about bankrolling a possible movie venture. In this respect, we're thinking specifically of adapting a screenplay from a...
Posted by David Ng at 4:02 PM • 2 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
August 22, 2006
Category: About writing generally
Well, this is just a heads up to let you know that the SCQ is preparing to start its year two. For a while, we've only been presenting academic review type pieces, which, to be frank, has just not been...
Posted by David Ng at 1:37 PM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Humor stuff, and in the best of worlds, science humor stuff
Posted by David Ng at 9:05 AM • 3 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
August 21, 2006
Category: Knoxville '82: Where Miscellany Thrive
I'll have to work on putting this new building together - The Worlds' Fair Gift Shop - but know that one of our first items will be a scientifically backed, technologically robust Psyche Strainer. This strainer, which is still technically...
Posted by Benjamin Cohen at 4:47 PM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: About writing generally
My favourite pieces in The Believer are their non-book reviews. For a while, they had a certain order about them, whereby the subjects broached were of a consistent nature. For instance, "light" was a theme, "tool" was a theme, and...
Posted by David Ng at 11:59 AM • 1 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
August 18, 2006
Category: Knoxville '82: Where Miscellany Thrive
Specifically, he said: Well, I think if you're going to focus on the similarities of your three examples, it's almost as if an inherant goofiness is key for the spreading phenomenon. Mel Gibson drunk? That's goofy. Zidane with the headbutt?...
Posted by David Ng at 11:26 PM • 2 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: The Book Building
Called: "Dale Peck Reviews Einstein's Latest." I'm serious. This is a failed piece. Failed because it's too obscure, although it was fun to do. But it requires too much from the audience, and who really cares and wants to do...
Posted by Benjamin Cohen at 11:32 AM • 3 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
August 17, 2006
Category: Nature, as in parts, bits, molecular and stuff
I felt bad not putting up the answer to the Puzzle Fantastica in the previous post, so to compensate, I'm prepared to give out the answer to a previous question I had concerning a mysterious looking contraption. In fact, here...
Posted by David Ng at 12:52 PM • 1 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Knoxville '82: Where Miscellany Thrive
Posted by David Ng at 11:23 AM • 4 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Links to Other Conversations and Articles
Mario Biagioli, a historian of science at Harvard, wrote a book a dozen or so years ago called Galileo, Courtier. It's a study of the context of patronage, courtly virtue, and shifting credibility between philosophers and mathematicians in and around...
Posted by Benjamin Cohen at 8:30 AM • 3 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
August 16, 2006
Category: The Art/Science (Non?)Divide Building
Two things seem to be front and centre lately on the media circuits, one of which being the HIV/AIDS conference, and the other (in direct contrast) is the release of "Snakes on a Plane." Both have a viral connotation, whereby...
Posted by David Ng at 4:22 PM • 15 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Humor stuff, and in the best of worlds, science humor stuff
(This is an oldish attempt at the "Speaks to a Geneticist" series, but was never sure if it was on or not) - - - BONO: Why am I so weary? GENETICIST: From a genetic point of view, I would...
Posted by David Ng at 10:16 AM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Ethics Palace: Where ethical questions go to live or die
This is not a clue. More a hint, mostly....
Posted by David Ng at 8:08 AM • 23 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
August 15, 2006
Category: Humor stuff, and in the best of worlds, science humor stuff
If Duffless gave us Skinner's perception of the pursuit of science -- "Every good scientist is half B. F. Skinner and half P. T. Barnum"-- then Bart's Comet gives us his perception of amateur astronomy. Plus, it's got a few...
Posted by Benjamin Cohen at 9:48 AM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Humor stuff, and in the best of worlds, science humor stuff
A list that first appeared here. I'm interested in hearing out other contributions....
Posted by David Ng at 9:16 AM • 6 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
August 14, 2006
Category: Humor stuff, and in the best of worlds, science humor stuff
Of course you haven't. What a silly question. I'm the only one who knows about this unearthed gem. Now what of Science and The Simpsons? We've already blogged here at The World's Fair about classroom Simpsons and science utility, but...
Posted by Benjamin Cohen at 10:01 AM • 3 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Humor stuff, and in the best of worlds, science humor stuff
Timing is everything. That (I'm pretty sure) was the case of my first piece getting into Maisonneuve. And again, it is something that comes up with consistent frequency in my quest to publish. For instance, my gnome piece (shouldn't everyone...
Posted by David Ng at 8:56 AM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
August 11, 2006
Category: Links to Other Conversations and Articles
In lieu of the conference coming up, here are some choice readings that I've had the pleasure of presenting at either terry.ubc.ca or the SCQ:...
Posted by David Ng at 9:25 AM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Nature as in Earth, as in Global, as in Global Issues Generally
This has to be one of my favourites, written pretty much the day after I listened to Stephen Lewis talk. Anyway, it also ties in with the start of the International AIDS Conference this Sunday. I'm hoping our Canadian government...
Posted by David Ng at 9:14 AM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
August 10, 2006
Category: Links to interesting sites and discussion of them
Scienceblogs, as is widely known, is devoted mostly to fashion and men's neckwear. This makes sense: the most pressing concerns in the scientific and technological landscape have, for many years, been dominated by practitioner questions about what to wear, how...
Posted by Benjamin Cohen at 7:58 PM • 2 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: The Art/Science (Non?)Divide Building
Mr. Vonnegut has quite the extensive collection of silkcreens you can purchase at his website, and even includes a genetically flavoured piece, called "One-Liner #3 Genome"...
Posted by David Ng at 3:58 PM • 4 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Knoxville '82: Where Miscellany Thrive
(Click here for the large version) What's all this then? P.F. #1 has become born and grown and lived and shown its charity and, to quote Whitman, it will forever "be curious, not judgmental." It has not been solved....
Posted by Benjamin Cohen at 8:28 AM • 53 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
August 9, 2006
Category: The Book Building
Encyclopedia Brown is back and more political than you might remember, with Encyclopedia Brown And the Mysterious Presidency of George W. Bush.
Posted by Benjamin Cohen at 2:33 PM • 2 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: The Book Building
(previous Stuff I've Been Reading) Books Read: "The Thinking Fan's Guide to the World Cup" by Various (finished) "The Educated Imagination" by Northrop Frye (finished) "A Man Without a Country" by Kurt Vonnegut (finished) "Me Talk Pretty One Day" by...
Posted by David Ng at 2:26 PM • 2 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: The Book Building
Ode to "Report on the Barnhouse Effect" (1950). The "Report on the Barnhouse Effect" was Vonnegut's first published story, appearing in Collier's. That was while he was working at GE in public relations, and after he was a chemistry major,...
Posted by Benjamin Cohen at 10:00 AM • 2 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Knoxville '82: Where Miscellany Thrive
Since we were on the topic of replication yesterday, here is a gem of a personal ad I found several years back....
Posted by David Ng at 9:15 AM • 7 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
August 8, 2006
Category: About writing generally
So I'm in the midst of trying to write a book, with a genetics theme and all. And so far, things look pretty good. I'm having fun anyway. But this is not what this post is about. This post is...
Posted by David Ng at 5:41 PM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Knoxville '82: Where Miscellany Thrive
This is from chapter 15 (The Value of Philosophy) of B. Russell's (1912) The Problems of Philosophy . A friend sent it to me a while back, asking if I thought the sentiment was relevant for any President in particular....
Posted by Benjamin Cohen at 3:12 PM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Humor stuff, and in the best of worlds, science humor stuff
Posted by David Ng at 12:00 PM • 5 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: The Art/Science (Non?)Divide Building
Herein is a first take on a few cabinets of curiosity for the digital age. They are websites that represent curious collections of non-traditional knowledge, wonder-filled artifacts, and the like. They're not actually just "for the digital age," since, as with the MJT, they are physical too.
Posted by Benjamin Cohen at 10:20 AM • 4 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
August 7, 2006
Category: Books that are just good - literature in general
How great is this book? It's that great, that's how much. But beyond superficial (and meaningless) qualifiers like "great," this book does a remarkable job of fascinating me, interesting students, and standing alone as entertaining fiction. I use it in...
Posted by Benjamin Cohen at 2:56 PM • 3 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Humor stuff, and in the best of worlds, science humor stuff
Example 1: It was difficult to get motivated knowing that both Season 9 of Friends and Season 4 of Felicity came out on DVD at the same time. This particular excuse would be completely ineffective. The review panel would need...
Posted by David Ng at 9:17 AM • 2 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Nature, as in parts, bits, molecular and stuff
I gave a talk to some folks at UBC's School of Music this past weekend, on biology, genetics and the odd reference to music. One of things I mentioned (with an auditary theme) was the interesting case of the use...
Posted by David Ng at 8:29 AM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
August 4, 2006
Dave and I have been talking about Mountain Top Coal Removal, in two parts so far (one, two) of an on-going discussion, and I had yet to mention this article from early July, in The Roanoke Times. (That's southwestern Virginia.)...
Posted by Benjamin Cohen at 1:52 PM • 4 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: The Film Building
Scienceblogger question is asking the following: What movie do you think does something admirable (though not necessarily accurate) regarding science? Bonus points for answering whether the chosen movie is any good generally.... I'm surprised no one has mentioned Star Wars...
Posted by David Ng at 12:40 PM • 5 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: The Film Building
Asking a Scienceblogger... What movie do you think does something admirable (though not necessarily accurate) regarding science? Bonus points for answering whether the chosen movie is any good generally.... The first legitimate answer that occurred to me was the 1995...
Posted by Benjamin Cohen at 9:20 AM • 3 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Video links (archive.org samples, for example; Youtube.com; others...)
Man, talk about creativity - I got this from inkycircus (Hi Anne). Truth is, I can't really say more than what the title gives away. The good stuff starts about 3 and a half minutes in....
Posted by David Ng at 8:53 AM • 1 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Humor stuff, and in the best of worlds, science humor stuff
So, a while back I did my yearly pilgrimage to my wife's grade one class, where I did my usual liquid nitrogen thing (freeze stuff, smash it, make ice cream, scare young kids with overly large safety goggles, etc), and...
Posted by David Ng at 8:04 AM • 2 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
August 3, 2006
Category: The Art/Science (Non?)Divide Building
I just read Ben's post on an article recently published at the Columbia Journalism Review, and also agree at the neatness of the quote as highlighted in the title of this post. It just brought me to mind of like...
Posted by David Ng at 12:26 PM • 10 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Links to Other Conversations and Articles
An article from the Columbia Journalism Review I saw linked from Arts and Letters Daily (where they seem to be upping the number of science links of late) discusses "Why editors must dare to be dumb." The author notes that...
Posted by Benjamin Cohen at 9:55 AM • 5 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Links to Other Conversations and Articles
Well, I have to say that this radiohead fellow has me quite impressed. Not only did his band, Radiohead, at one point, propel a song about human cloning to the #1 Billboard Chart spot (no mean feat), but now, he's...
Posted by David Ng at 9:25 AM • 3 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Humor stuff, and in the best of worlds, science humor stuff
I quite enjoyed this Shouts and Murmurs piece by Paul Rudnick. Wish I thought of it first....
Posted by David Ng at 8:45 AM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
August 2, 2006
Category: Knoxville '82: Where Miscellany Thrive
Lake Louise Well, it's nice to be back from our little Canadian Rockies roadtrip, and I have to say I was pleasantly surprised by the relative ease of having two young kids stuck in the back of our minivan...
Posted by David Ng at 4:03 PM • 3 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: Links to Other Conversations and Articles
This link about really, really long experiments is from the Athanasius Kircher Society, and I have no idea what that is, and I'm looking to you to tell me. But, for what it's worth, an interesting link to an interesting...
Posted by Benjamin Cohen at 10:50 AM • 3 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
August 1, 2006
Category: The Art/Science (Non?)Divide Building
Science and metaphor aren't just for Lakoff and Johnson anymore (okay, they never were, but Metaphors We Live By (1980) was the first thing to pop in my head). From the Toronto Star comes a story, "It's Like This, You...
Posted by Benjamin Cohen at 11:22 AM • 3 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Category: The Website Building
Posted by David Ng at 8:23 AM • 2 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
