January 2, 2011
Hacktivists have struck a blow against the regime in Zimbabwe by attacking a number of government websites. The cyber-assault appears to have been in support of newspapers who published secret cables in the ongoing WikiLeaks saga, to the annoyance of the-powers-that-be in the country.
Grace Mugabe…
January 2, 2011
Except when it does not work.
A glitch on Apple's iPhone has stopped its built-in alarm clock going off, leaving many people oversleeping on the first two days of the New Year.
Angry bloggers and tweeters complained that they had been late for work, and were risking missing planes and trains.…
January 1, 2011
Atheists Talk, #98, January 2, 2011
As 2010 rolls out, we all hope the future is bright for 2011. Along with hope, there's always hype. Bringing us a reality check from their areas of expertise are these savvy thinkers:
Greg Laden, bio anthropologist and bogger for Scienceblogs.com, will give his…
January 1, 2011
Almost Diamonds has two interesting posts on the Julian Assange sexual assault/rape accusation/charges. I want to make a comment on part of the second post, but this may not make a lot of sense to you until you read both of them. They are concise and compelling so you will not regret the time you…
January 1, 2011
This year, I will:
Totally empty my email inbox every day.
Read one classic novel published before 1950 each week.
Learn the names of the capitols, mottos, bird and mineral of all of the fifty states.
Learn to play five new musical instruments.
Lean to speak five new languages
In the spring,…
December 31, 2010
... is temporarily suspended due to technical difficulties. I am experiencing the equivalent of a denial of service attack from our friends in Turkey.
Commenting has been turned back on, but seems to be broken at least on recent posts. Sorry for the inconvenience. Should the situation persist…
December 31, 2010
Thanks, Gwen for the tip on this must see, soon to be viral video (or is it something that's been around for years and I didn't notice?)
December 31, 2010
When it comes to ease of use, there is no difference between a computer with Windows and a computer with Linux, assuming both systems are installed properly. That there is a meaningful difference is a myth perpetuated by Windows fanboys or individuals who have outdated experience with Linux. Also…
December 31, 2010
The latest epic viral fail, designed for maximum wow factor but that hardly qualifies as an a-ha moment, is the Lake Superior University list of words to be banned in 2011. I heard the back story from my BFF, well, it's not very interesting.
Some would say that Lake Superior U should man up and…
December 30, 2010
The last Kodachrome processing machine, at Dwayne's Photo in Parsons, Kansas, shut down and will be sold for scrap. This is a bummer, because I think I still have some film laying around that I've not gotten 'round to getting developed. They figured out why Skype crashed earlier this month, and…
December 30, 2010
Atoms are the smallest things stuff can be and still be an element. So, why should the periodic table be so huge? Like, covering almost an entire piece of paper?
December 30, 2010
Today's falsehood1 is the idea of "The Missing Link." You've heard about The Missing Link. You'll hear that some palaeontologist has discovered something and they tell us it is "The Missing Link." Often, it is a supposed "link" between some ancestor of humans (a fossil ape, a monkey, whatever)…
December 30, 2010
This is what I was thinking:
Nationally and globally, the most important events probably included the Earthquake in Haiti (not to minimize the importance of the current, ongoing cholera epidemic there); the dramatic increase of the use of stem cells in therapy (and research) with some real…
December 30, 2010
Imma post something substantive in a minute, but for now have a look at this:
December 30, 2010
Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy
Hat Tip: Ana
December 29, 2010
Here's why it would be bad (click the image to see the cartoon):
December 28, 2010
Sarah Palin has accidentally revealed her own 500 dollar haircut, her own Chappaquiddick, her own Monica Lewinsky. On a recent trip to Canada, during a speech, she revealed the fact that when she lived in rural Alaska as a child, her family regularly slipped across the Canadian border to avail…
December 28, 2010
A debate with Jaclyn Friedman and Naomi Wolf:
Hat tip feministing.
December 28, 2010
I just read this Action Alert and pursuant to it I sent this note to AMC theaters:
Thank you for NOT running the anti vaccination add by the so called "Safeminds" organization. The mercury in flu shots is in a form that is not absorbed into human tissues, but is an important part of an anti-…
December 27, 2010
The first thing you need to know about my list of the top ten science stories of the year is this: There are not ten. Well, as I write this, I've not settled what's on the list and what's not, so maybe there will be ten. Or six. Or one hundred and eleven. In any event, it will likely only be…
December 27, 2010
The Rap Guide to Evolution (including vignettes by Richard Dawkins:
December 26, 2010
Biology is harder to learn than quantum physics. Why? Because most people think they totally get biology, but everyone knows nobody gets quantum physics. Therefore, any effort to explore quantum physics will result in new learning, but people rarely learn new biology. The bottom line is that our…
December 26, 2010
Obamadog. Barack Obama's first serious mistake since the election.
Many of you heard the question at President Elect Obama's first news conference, which was mainly about the economy, regarding what kind of dog the girls would be getting as per a deal apparently made some time ago. The only safe…
December 26, 2010
I hereby nominate Oklahoma as the Stupidest State in the Union.
According to KTEN, Brecheen is using the tired old argument that because creationism exists as a belief it must be taught in science classes. This is exactly like saying that because some crazy people think bigfoot is real, bigfoot…
December 26, 2010
It is very common, across the U.S., for science teachers to dread the "evolution" unit that they teach during life science class.
As they approach the day, and start to prepare the students for what is coming, they begin to hear the sarcastic remarks from the creationist students. When the day to…
December 26, 2010
... will focus on Christmas.
Actually, he's wrong in comparing his ability, or yours or mine, to trace back a genealogy with Luke and his buddies. Back in those days, and in that culture, people did indeed walk around with pretty deep genealogies attached to them (though the extensive and…
December 25, 2010
Hat Tip Advice Goddess.
December 25, 2010
Merry Christmas! OK, now that I've got you smiling and thinking of Santa and Elves and Snow flakes, Sugar Plum Fairies (hey, sugar, are you reading this?) and dancing gingerbread boys, let's look at some of the more dangerous yet popular items from this blog's past.
Item 1: It is OK to be an…
December 25, 2010
The cookies. THE COOOOKIESSSSSS!!!!!!
Hat tip: Doug
