pharyngula

Several readers have noticed that lately we've had a plague of whiny, entitled, childish Men's Rights Activists in the comments. They're usually clueless and petty and annoying…and now I've found out why. And the source of my information is unimpeachable: it's Whirled Nut Daily. According to Kay…

I think this one was more of a wrong number. Found you online and had a question… Hi, my name is Susan Dahl. I did a search online for Christians and I came across you. It would be great to have more info about what you are sharing online for the benefit and help of others. I am writing because I…

Some poor embryo acquired a pair of embryonic axes, and look what resulted. It's 7 weeks old, so all the internals seem to be functioning all right, so maybe it has hope for a long life.

Dang. Now I'm quoted on the Fox News website, as the guy who called the bacteria from outer space "garbage". Yay, me. Unfortunately, most of the story there is an acceptance of the excuses from the crackpot Journal of Cosmology, with "more measured" responses from a collection of sources apparently…

I'm sitting here in Minnesota, anticipating another midweek snowstorm that's on the way, and what do I learn? If I were in Rio de Janeiro I could be watching Carnaval. Heck, I could be dancing in the streets with a big fruity drink in my hand, blowing kisses to the lovely girls in exotic costumes.…

That was sarcasm in the title, everyone. NASA has released a public statement in which they gingerly edge away from Hoover's paper. NASA is a scientific and technical agency committed to a culture of openness with the media and public. While we value the free exchange of ideas, data, and…

Since the World Atheist Conference is in Dublin this June, you should go just to test this scientific conclusion: the Guinness does taste better in Ireland. I think so, too. So here's the experiment: buy a glass of Guinness in your airport bar, fly to Ireland, drink some more there. Attend the…

Religion is toxic. Here's a case in London in which both the acute and the chronic poison are in clear view: a Moslem scientist has been threatened with murder over his views on evolution. He tried to explain how Islam and evolution are compatible. Masjid Tawhid is a prominent mosque which also…

There's a certain evilutionist infatuated with cats — but has he ever considered what could happen if cats evolved in a new direction? It can't be that far-fetched! I think cats are just snakes with fur and legs, so adding thumbs is a relatively minor increment. We just have to hope that we get…

I saw the Baby Jesus Butt Plug, and I just laughed. But now, someone has made a cephalopod butt plug and matching ball gag, and my laughter fades to a nervous tittering while my eyes dart about confusedly. Should I be outraged? Aroused? Amused? Disturbed? All of the above? A boundary has been…

It's in the works: Skepticon IV will be held in October, and the organizers are straining to bring the resources together they need to make it happen. If you'd like to donate, this is a good time, since Polaris Financial is providing matching funds for any contribution made in March. They haven't…

It's too bad, too, since I would have learned weeks ago who our ascended master was. It's Stephen Hawking, of course: "Most of you know who Stephen Hawking is, right? He talks through a computer and that makes him even more bizarre. People sit with their mouths open, taking it all in like this is…

Stephen Fry is a lucky man to have someone willing to make that big an investment in him…except, well, that kind of commitment is actually common in the human species. Who would the Pharynguregulars invest a few decades of their biology to? (Current totals: 11,980 entries with 1,301,366 comments.)

No. No, no, no. No no no no no no no no. No, no. No. Fox News broke the story, which ought to make one immediately suspicious — it's not an organization noted for scientific acumen. But even worse, the paper claiming the discovery of bacteria fossils in carbonaceous chondrites was published in ……

You're all going to the World Atheist Convention in Dublin, Ireland on June 3-5, right? You wouldn't want to miss it, and it's an excuse to visit Dublin, anyway. Well, go to that link and get discounted tickets right now! Save £40! I'm also supposed to remind you, if you're Irish, that there's a…

This is a local reminder: we're gathering at the Morris Public Library today at 3pm to discuss the lies of our recent creationist visitor. All are welcome, if you want to try to defend him, please do…just be aware that there will be a group of intelligent, well-educated UMM students present who…

I really am catching up! Today, I tallied up the votes for the Molly for January, and the winners are…Iain Walker and Ing. Huzzah! Fireworks! Clink of glasses! Screams and alarums! Now moving right along to the next order of business, you need to forget Iain and Ing and think back to last month and…

Brooks has this new book out called The Social Animal(amzn/b&n/abe/pwll), which has pretensions to being all sciencey, which is, I guess, why Salon asked me to review it, because so do I. Only it turned out to not be very sciencey at all, but a lumpy mélange of sciencey anecdotes tied together…

I'm teaching human physiology this term, and those of you who have done it or taken it know that this kind of course is a strain to get through the huge volume of material. I think I must simply be a horrible teacher, though, because here's an online physiology course that does a much better job…

He's been back. The sock puppeteer who made up lies about the Gnu Atheists and spread them through a collection of false identities on the internet has been at his old tricks again — the long tawdry story is not something I'm going to go over again, though. Since he has been conjuring up sock…

We'll be getting to human reproduction sometime near the end of the term, but I don't think we'll have any demonstrations like this: More than 100 Northwestern University students watched as a naked 25-year-old woman was penetrated by a sex toy wielded by her fiancee during an after-class session…

You may not have noticed, but a certain insane troll best known for repetitive spam to multiple blogs and fora, and who makes frequent references to Depeche Mode and decapitating certain atheists (including yours truly), has been relatively absent from blog comments for a while. That's because he…

I am astounded. Alister McGrath wrote something that was correct! Reason needs to be calibrated by something external. That's one of the reasons why science is so important in the critique of pure reason — a point that we shall return to in the next article. Of course, it's only two sentences…

You all ignored my last command to dance, so we shall try again…this time, with Engrish. (via Robert Popper) (Current totals: 11,969 entries with 1,299,548 comments.)

(via Zooborns)

I wonder if all the people who send me nasty emails are using this keyboard? Comic sans on the keys, and it's yellow. I'm really curious about who would buy such a thing.

You'll have to listen to the whole thing to be sure. [video removed] If you're not sure yet, maybe you should listen to it a few more times. Sorry, everyone, that was an unauthorized release of Tim Minchin's music, so it had to come down. I hear he'll be touring the US sometime, so show up for…

Just a reminder that I'm making the long drive into Minneapolis after class today just so I can say I occasionally exercise my responsibilities as the faculty advisor to CASH. I'll be one of several sitting on a panel to answer your random questions, which could be loads of fun. Stop in and say…

Mr Stangroom has developed an obsession — an obsession with civility. It's an unfortunate condition that leads to tunnel vision, an infatuaion with the superficial, and most alarmingly, an increasing incivility on the part of the proponent of civility. I fear it can only end in an implosion of self…