clock | July 7, 2006You really think I am going to put this above the fold? No way - you have to click:
Today's lesson is on the reproductive anatomy of the domestic pig (Sus scrofa domestica), which probably applies to the wild species in the pig family as well. Although we may reflexively think about invertebrates when pondering diversity of copulatory organs, mammals are not too bad in that department either. After all, the sperm is delivered in some species into the vagina (e.g., dog), in others into the cervix (e.g., pig) and in yet others into the uterus (e.g., horse), so different strategies are needed…
clock | July 7, 2006As I have noted before, there is an opera about Tesla, called Violet Fire in preperation for the grand opening in the Belgrade's National Theater on July 9th, on the eve of 150th birthday of Nikola Tesla. I have since received a little bit more information about it. Here I translated some snippets from Belgrade press:
Violet Fire ("Ljubicasta Vatra") is a multi-media opera composed by John Gibson. It was co-produced by by Belgrade's summer festival BELEF and American non-profit organization Violet Fire. Director is Terry O'Reilly.
The conductor, Ana Zorana Brajovic told reporters that…
clock | July 7, 2006Robert Anson Heinlein was born at Butler, Missouri on this day in 1907. One of the "Big Three" authors of science fiction (along with Asimov and Clarke), his stories offered vivid characters who consistently were independent in both thought and action. He used his stories to comment on politics, religion, and sexuality, and described the waterbed so clearly that when it was actually invented it was impossible to patent it. I've spent many delightful hours in his worlds. Here are a few quotes from the grand master.
Today's Quotes:
It may be better to be a live jackal than a dead lion, but it…
clock | July 6, 2006The second installment of The Synapse, the neuroscience carnival, will be held right here this coming Sunday, on July 9th. Please send your submissions to me by Saturday night at 8pm EDT at: Coturnix1 AT aol DOT com.
clock | July 6, 2006George Lakoff has a new book out - Whose Freedom?: The Battle Over America's Most Important Idea. You can read short blurbs and reviews on Rockridge Isntisute site, Salon and Washington Post. I have placed it on my wish list as well.
clock | July 6, 2006Next edition of the Carnival of Homeschooling will be hosted by Why Homeschool next Tuesday. Send your submissions by 6pm PST on Monday for the inclusion in the carnival.
clock | July 6, 2006First, there were The Boys From Brazil
not to mention a lof of other science fiction:
like, for example, the cloned dinosaurs of the Jurassic Park:
Then came Dolly, the cloned sheep:
Then came the AskThe ScienceBlogger weekly question: On July 5, 1996, Dolly the sheep became the first successfully cloned mammal. Ten years on, has cloning developed the way you expected it to?...
What followed were (not in chronological order) a bunch of other cloned animals, including:
some cute mice:
piglets: Millie, Christa, Alexis, Carrel and Dotcom:
a rhesus monkey, a male named Andy (a female named Tetra…
clock | July 6, 2006I just finished listening to Fresh Air on NPR. Terry Gross had an interview with Geoffrey Nunberg whose book, Talking Right: How Conservatives Turned Liberalism into a Tax-Raising, Latte-Drinking, Sushi-Eating, Volvo-Driving, New York Times-Reading, Body-Piercing, Hollywood-Loving, Left-Wing Freak Show just came out. As you know, I am interested in the way the Right has appropriated English language in the US so I listened carefully. You can also hear the podcast (a little later today, I assume) and read a little excerpt from the book on the link above.
While most of what he said is pretty…
clock | July 6, 2006OK, today I'd like you to superimpose a couple of very different articles that all look at the difference between patriotism and nationalism, but each from a different angle and see if, and how, they inform each other. First, I'd like you to read one of my old posts (which I may decide to re-post here one day, but for now, check it out on my old blog) - Nationalism is not Patriotism. That would be a bare-bone introduction to political psychology of patriotism and nationalism:
Why is there a widespread belief that the difference between patriotism and nationalism is one of degree: loving one…
clock | July 6, 2006When I posted this originally (here and here) I quoted a much longer excerpt from the cited Chronicle article than what is deemed appropriate, so this time I urge you to actually go and read it first and then come back to read my response.
From Dr.Munger's blog, an interesting article: Liberal Groupthink Is Anti-Intellectual By MARK BAUERLEIN, The Chronicle Review Volume 51, Issue 12, Page B6 (that link is now dead, but you can find a copy here):
Hmmmm, why was the poll conducted only in social science departments (e.g., sociology, psychology, philosophy, history, anthropology, perhaps…
clock | July 6, 2006"Science is but a perversion of itself unless it has as its ultimate goal the betterment of humanity."
"Let the future tell the truth, and evaluate each one according to his work and accomplishments. The present is theirs; the future, for which I have really worked, is mine."
"Even matter called inorganic, believed to be dead, responds to irritants and gives unmistakable evidence of a living principle within. Everything that exists, organic or inorganic, animated or inert, is susceptible to stimulus from the outside."
On Invention: "It is the most important product of man's creative brain.…
clock | July 6, 2006Again, an article echoing Lakoff's argument, with which I agree:
Why Conservatives Can't Govern:
If leaders consistently depart in disastrous ways from their underlying political ideology, there comes a point where one has to stop just blaming the leaders and start questioning the ideology.
The collapse of the Bush presidency, in other words, is not just due to Bush's incompetence (although his administration has been incompetent beyond belief). Nor is it a response to the president's principled lack of intellectual curiosity and pitbull refusal to admit mistakes (although those character…
clock | July 5, 2006Oh-oh! As if I needed yet another way to mess up my credit rating! Now, they are rolling out Coke machines that take credit cards! The way I drink Coke, this is a path to sure bankrupcy!
I always wanted to install a sink in my kitchen with three faucets: cold water, hot water and cold Coke, piped in straight from the nearest Coke factory. As much Coke as I have consumed to date, the CocaCola company should just provide me with free Coke (and free delivery) for the rest of my life - I deserve it - I singlehandedly kept their company afloat over all these years. Thus, there is no need to…
clock | July 5, 2006Journal Nature has published a short article about science blogging. You do not need a subscription to read it - you can find it here.
In it, they highlight Top 5 science blogs according to Technorati rankings. Those five are, quite deservingly, Pharyngula, Panda's Thumb, Real Climate, Cosmic Variance and Scientific Activist. Interestingly, three of the top five are group blogs, and all five delve, either partically or entirely, on various religiously and politically motivated attacks on science. I guess this is what sells better than pure science commentary, for good reasons, and the…
clock | July 5, 2006I wrote this book review back on February 18, 2006. Under the fold...
I see that Joan Roughgarden has a new paper in Science this week: Reproductive Social Behavior: Cooperative Games to Replace Sexual Selection
Theories about sexual selection can be traced back to Darwin in 1871. He proposed that males fertilize as many females as possible with inexpensive sperm, whereas females, with a limited supply of large eggs, select the genetically highest quality males to endow their offspring with superior capabilities. Since its proposal, problems with this narrative have continued to accumulate,…
clock | July 5, 2006"Our virtues and our failings are inseparable, like force and matter. When they separate, man is no more."
"The scientists of today think deeply instead of clearly. One must be sane to think clearly, but one can think deeply and be quite insane." (Modern Mechanics and Inventions. July, 1934)
"The scientific man does not aim at an immediate result. He does not expect that his advanced ideas will be readily taken up. His work is like that of a planter -- for the future. His duty is to lay foundation of those who are to come and point the way."
"Universal peace as a result of cumulative effort…
clock | July 5, 2006Tangled Bank #56 is up on e3, Information Overload
New Carnival of the Liberals is up on Uncredible Hallq