Mad rantings about politics, evolution, and microbiology. Comment policy: say what you want, but back it up with an email address. I don't like anonymous trolls.
mikethemadbiologist
Posts by this author
July 13, 2011
There's been a spate of abortion restrictions passed by state legislatures around the country. And they'll have tragic consequences for women's health (italics mine):
Indiana recently defunded Planned Parenthood clinics throughout the state. The new law makes any organization that performs…
July 12, 2011
It's a skorcha! Cool down with some links. Science:
On Algae Fuel
Ancient China: The 15th Century Fleet
The biology of Mauritius: part 2
The practice does not invalidate the principle
Other:
Fundie Americana
The three fundamentalisms of the American right
Guest Blogger Starling: Schrödinger's…
July 12, 2011
I think one reason that the Obama adminstration (including the preznit) don't comprehend the level of anger about the economy is that many of them dwell in a world where they possess economic agency, whereas too many people do not. John Lanchester writes (italics mine):
From the worm's-eye…
July 12, 2011
With last week's release of the latest month's unemployment data, it's worth remembering that the official figures would be far worse were it not for our policy of mass incarceration (aka the War on Drugs). Why? Because people in jail (mostly men) are 'disappeared' from unemployment and…
July 11, 2011
Links for you. Science:
The end of E. coli
E. coli: A Risk for 3 More Years From Who Knows Where
Bayesian vs Frequentist. A pragmatic bioinformatician's view
Can evolutionary psychology walk the walk over walking?
Other:
Bible's Different Authors Revealed By New Language Software
Cash Is Not the…
July 11, 2011
There's a lot heat that has been shed over the last week based on what struck me as a brief comment by Rebecca Watson about getting hit on in an elevator at 4am, as part of a much longer vlog:
Um, just a word to wise here, guys, uh, don't do that. You know, I don't really know how else to explain…
July 11, 2011
I recently was in a conversation with a collaborator who isn't in the genomics biz, and said collaborator remarked that there was a lot of online criticism of the quality of the genomic data that has been generated for the E. coli O104:H4 outbreak isolates. I've been following it very closely (not…
July 10, 2011
Or something. A while ago, in "Michele Bachmann, Light Bulb Vigilantes, and the Dim Bulbs of the Tea Party", I described the fear that the psychiatric wing of the Republican Party (and its dominant wing) has towards more energy efficient light bulbs. This is what appears to drive that fear:
On…
July 9, 2011
Links for you. Science:
Ye Olde Kitchen Garden
DNA is now DIY: OpenPCR ships worldwide
John Smith's genome sequenced
Turnabout is fair play and Can religious teachings prove evolution to be true?
Other:
Why Do We Fetishize Budget Deficits and Not Trade Deficits?
Systematic Cheating Is Found in…
July 9, 2011
So GOP Senator Orrin Hatch has decided to embrace his inner douchebag:
"I hear how they're so caring for the poor and so forth," Hatch said in remarks on the Senate floor Wednesday, in reference to Democrats. "The poor need jobs! And they also need to share some of the responsibility."
...But it…
July 9, 2011
A while ago, I discussed the record low rate of male employment in the U.S. Well, Mike Konczal also has that figure (why read anyone but the Mad Biologist. We are always firstest...). But he notes some other jarring data:
You have to go back to pre-1988 to find an era when there were a fewer…
July 8, 2011
Links for you. Science:
We've heard that obesity and divorce can be passed from one person to another. Critics now wonder how the "social contagion" studies ever passed peer review.
The New Mathematical Formula To Determine Penis Size
Stop Experimenting With Science
Ten Simple Rules for Building…
July 8, 2011
Before I get into the meat of the post, if, after reading this, you end up obsessing over trade deficits too, then I've failed (just wanted to make that clear). But imagining what the possible consequences of placing the trade deficit über alles would be demonstrates why the current budget…
July 7, 2011
Links for you. Science:
Five myths about NASA
Why couples look more alike as time passes
Jokes About the Democratic Party
Scientists Discover That Antimicrobial Wipes and Soaps May Be Making You (and Society) Sick
Other:
The Chinese Century?
14 Propaganda Techniques Fox "News" Uses to Brainwash…
July 7, 2011
File this under 'heartless in the heartland.' One of the things that is so awful about the current deficit reduction fetish (well, other than at submaximal employment, increasing deficits are not a problem, so we're keeping millions of people needlessly unemployed) is that budget cuts always fall…
July 6, 2011
Links for you. Science:
Fisheries: How Much Damage Can One Hook Do?
Spiders Fleeing Pakistan's Floodwater Take to the Trees
Assassin Bugs, the Insect World's Most Cunning Killers
Trusting your instincts: Conservatives may actually be natural liberals at heart (the key part has to do with the role…
July 6, 2011
Or something. From The Boston Herald:
A purported firearms instructor for the National Rifle Association pulled a handgun on a pizza deliveryman and ordered him to, "Stay out of my neighborhood" after objecting to the frightened pie guy's driving style, Boston police said....
Robert Michael…
July 6, 2011
In light of the recent E. coli outbreak in Germany that has killed nearly forty people, one would think the U.S. would be strengthening, not weakening microbiological surveillance in agriculture. One would be very, very wrong:
At a time of rising concern over pathogens in produce, Congress is…
July 5, 2011
Links for you. Science:
Why is Anthropogenic Global Warming Denialism Important?
Evolution machine: Genetic engineering on fast forward
100 Years of IBM in Pictures
The Intelligence of Beasts: Cognition researchers move past 'chimpocentric' theories, raising new questions about human uniqueness…
July 5, 2011
I know that sounds like I'm channeling my inner Yogi Berra, but bear with me. A recent article by David Leonhart refuting claims that college is a waste of money has led to a further round of related posts (as you'll see, I agree). But the reason the 'college is a waste' arguments have any…
July 4, 2011
Fireworks in a few hours. Links for you right now. Science:
When The Words "Just" And "Before" Foreshadow Bad Things For Medical Research
F#%& you and your red tape
Risky business
The Global Warming Crisis
Other:
Lindsay Lohan, financial pundit
Andrew Cuomo's Flawed Liberalism: Yes, he…
July 4, 2011
By way of Lambert, I came across this awesome video of Loukanikos, a stray dog in Athens, Greece, who apparently has a history of not liking riot police (the action kicks in at about the 1:10 mark):
I guessing Louk isn't upset about the EU forcing contractionary policies on an economy with already…
July 3, 2011
Links for you. Science:
Four mysterious retractions in the JBC for a group whose PI recently passed away
Finches use their own form of grammar in their tweets (so do humans. Snare drum, please)
UC fears talent loss to deeper pockets: The departure of three star scientists from UC San Diego has…
July 3, 2011
It appears the de facto Congressional retirement plan is spreading to the lower orders. For those who aren't familiar with the Congressional retirement plan, here's what I mean:
One of the dirty secrets about many, if not most, congressmen and senators is that they like Washington, D.C., rhetoric…
July 2, 2011
I haven't talked about Big Shitpile (the housing-initiated economic collapse in a while), but this report from the Essex County Register of Deeds (Massachusetts) describes nothing less than the breakdown of the property title system in the U.S.:
Yesterday at the Annual Conference of The…
July 1, 2011
Links for you. Science:
Process: How Horseshoe Crab Blood Helps Save Lives
UCHIME: Fast, accurate chimera detection
What sort of user are you?
Why Your Mentor Sucks (and how to fix it)
Other:
God has called me to defend Michele Bachmann (another must-read by Lance Mannion)
DO YOU SMELL THAT? I…
July 1, 2011
When I read about Google, I often encounter a claim that Google's emphasis on engineering and mathy stuff has hobbled its ability to keep up in the social media world, and is in danger from Twitter and Facebook--although maybe Google+ will change that. It's usually something like this from the NY…
June 30, 2011
Links for you. Science:
Ion v. MiSeq - Is There a Competition, And If So, Why?
Is Drug Resistance in Humans Coming From Chickens?
Amazing looking fly (biodiversity is cool)
Is Rape Natural?
Did the PhD Kill the Masters Degree?
Other:
10 Of The Craziest Things Michele Bachmann Has Ever Said
At the…
June 30, 2011
This post might have to get filed under "careful what you wish for", but Martin Robbins' latest column about the cozy relationship between science journalists and the scientists they cover seems to have struck a nerve, if The Twitter is any indication. Here's a good snippet:
Churnalism is a real…
June 29, 2011
Links for you. Science:
Believe it: man flu is real
Ignorance, Fake Turing Tests, and Bads
MiSeq Aims for Ion Torrent
Irradiating organic food would save lives
Other:
Deforming the Graduate Degree
Current Test-Based Incentive Programs Have Not Consistently Raised Student Achievement in U.S.;…