gregladen | January 22, 2010Cats:
Dogs:
Oh, sorry, that second one was actually cats too. I guess cats win this week!
gregladen | January 22, 2010The general told them to stop. The manufacturer agreed. Fox news is now calling the US Armed Forces unpatriotic. Or something.
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gregladen | January 22, 2010Remember this?
Divining sticks that consist essentially of an antenna not even attached to a radio (which might make it slihgtly useful for listening to music and stuff), and costing between 16 and 60 THOUSAND DOLLARS each, are being used as the main technology for detecting bombs at check points staffed by the Iraqi army. (source)
Well, now we have this ...
The boss of a British company that has sold million of dollars worth of "bomb detectors" to Iraq's security forces has been arrested on suspicion of fraud.
Jim McCormick, 53, the managing director of ATSC which is based in a former…
gregladen | January 22, 2010Southern white racists in the US think of themselves as a repressed minority. Which, probably, they should be.
Note the use of the word "fundamental" in this context.
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I wonder what the backstory on the "strike" is!?
gregladen | January 21, 2010... talking about some guy named "Bora" or something ...
I thought the same thing when I met Bora last year!
gregladen | January 20, 2010Cognitive Daily, the blog, is one of the blogs that made science blogs (both in general and at scienceblogs.com) a legitimate, valid enterprise instead of a bunch of random jackasses screwing around on the Internet. Like a nice hat on a man who could be part scoundrel or a great pair of shoes on a woman with ill intention, Cognitive Daily made the rest of us look ... valid. Like we shouldn't be taken off the air. Like we had a reason to call ourselves important.
But Cognitive Daily is now gone. Greta and Dave wrote their last post today, just a few minutes ago.
Crap. Now what are we…
gregladen | January 20, 2010You probably don't know that I went to Harvard, because I rarely mention it, but I did, and when I was there I literally worked and studied around the Divinity school. The lab I worked in was on one side of the Div School, and the Peabody Museum (home of the Anthro Dept) was on the other side of the Div School, which was, in turn, half surrounded, like a morsel of food about to be eaten by a voracious amoeba, by the Biology Building.
And, I was amused to learn that the Harvard Div School was a hotbed of atheism. Or so I was told. But I did not pay much attention.
Well, I'm reminded of all…
gregladen | January 20, 2010Last Fourth of July Weekend, I attended Skepchicon, which is a "track" at a "con" (where a con is a thing where everyone dresses up like Darth Vader or a Twilight character or whatever). I was on the panel for a couple of sessions and participated in others, and had a blast.
The most interesting thing that those of us involved noticed, on later reflection, is the sophistication of the audience. This is not a case of capturing the interest of a few hundred crazy woo-meisters and trying to talk them into science. Rather, the audience largely consisted of skeptical type people who wanted to…
gregladen | January 20, 2010An exit survey of Massachusetts voters confirms that "decreased turnout among constituencies that historically have voted for progressive candidates," combined with a strong Republican performance among independents, delivered Scott Brown the margins he needed to win.
think progress
gregladen | January 20, 2010On the next episode of Skeptically Speaking, a panel discussion on skepticism and race. Is the face of modern skepticism really as monochrome as it appears? How do we make our message appeal to a broader, more diverse audience? And how do racial demographics influence belief in pseudoscience and the paranormal?
Our panel includes LaVerne Knight-West, Stephanie Zvan, and Girl 6.
This Friday!
Details here.
gregladen | January 20, 2010Or so says the new Pray for Healing web site, formerly known as the Pray for Trig web site.
The idea is to pray for a miracle. It is not clear what miracle they are looking for, but
...[t]he miracle must be something which can turn the hardest-hearted atheist to the Lord, helping bring us as a nation and as a planet back to He who made us.
So. Something that will make PZ Myers believe in god and accept the word of Jesus into his stone cold heart, for instance.
Any suggestions?
gregladen | January 19, 2010... from his position as Chair of the DSCC. The motto of the DSCC is "Committed to Electing a Democratic Senate." Just now, there was one ... ONE!!!!!! ... race in play. One that would be hard to lose. One that would be disastrous to lose.
Bob. Menendez. Needs. To. Resign. Now.
gregladen | January 19, 2010This is bible thumpers breaking military rules, US law, and endangering the troops.
The war profiteers who do this admit it, and retorts that those who do not like the bible references printed on US military hardware are "not Christians." Presumably this means that their complaints are irrelevant.
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gregladen | January 19, 2010In a very very bad way. The FBI needs to get a grip.
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gregladen | January 19, 2010Being right or wrong, being smart or not so smart, being religious-born vs. atheist-born, skeptical or not, or recovered faithful, figuring out what to think or believe vs. receiving the way or the wisdom. . It's complicated.
Read: Core Values, Atheism and Religion, Mike's latest installment at Quiche Moraine.