humor
oracknows | September 17, 2006Here's something that tells me, that should I ever visit Russia, I will need to be very, very careful crossing the street or going anywhere near traffic:
About 25 percent of Russians have had sex while driving, a poll released by KRC Research and Goodyear revealed. And this is just one of the things that make them the worst drivers in Europe.
According to the research, Russians do not use seatbelts, break speed-limits, drive through red lights, drive drunk and have sex while driving much more often than other Europeans do.
The odd thing is they don't think all this is bad.
According to the…
pharyngula | September 17, 2006Rocket science isn't my bag, but I have done brain surgery (on animals, not people), and I've done a lot of single cell neuro work, so I have to agree with this report that assesses the relative merits of the two disciplines:
"It does require a superior intellect to function as a rocket scientist," the article concedes. "Having said that, though, rocket science is not brain surgery."
The real clincher in the article, the one that demonstrates the perspicacity of this research, is this final assessment by a University of Minnesota expert:
"The fact of the matter is, the smartest people in…
oracknows | September 16, 2006This reminds me of what the result might be were Monty Python to do a public service announcement encouraging organ donation, except Monty Python would have done it in drag rather than using a real female:
clock | September 15, 2006...and it will stay hard for another 4 hours.
[That is Friday Weird Sex Blogging for this week....]
tsmith | September 15, 2006Okay, so you've probably seen this guy on the new Mac commercials. He's the one who plays the PC, the nerdy guy with glasses. He's also a contributor to the Daily Show, where he first appeared to talk about his book, The Areas of my Expertise (website), apparently, spending a disproportionate amount of time talking about hobos. And, he's an Eli, like so many of the cool kids are. So, I was already slightly in love with him. But a bit on the Daily Show the other night sealed the deal. Head lice, intestinal parasites, and commensal bacteria were never so funny.
pharyngula | September 15, 2006More information is always good, so I have to endorse this brand new initiative from our government.
It doesn't go quite far enough, though. Evolution has screwed mankind over by making women's fertility cryptic—many primates express overt signals as they become receptive, such as swelling and reddening of the vulva, and we don't get any visible signs at all. Let's use technology to return to those halcyon days, and imbed women with LH monitors that change color: from gray on infertile days, to pink as hormone levels rise, to flashing red to announce, "She's ovulating, boys!" I wouldn't…
pharyngula | September 14, 2006
You'll have to read the whole thing to find out what everyone knows.
j7uy5 | September 13, 2006There's a kerfuffle in Washtenaw County, Michigan, over the use of a
website that promotes the sale of "Impeach Bush" yard signs.
According to the
href="http://www.mlive.com/news/aanews/index.ssf?/base/news-19/115807203398650.xml&coll=2">Ann
Arbor News, the host,
href="http://www.hvcn.org/">Huron Valley Community Network,
is "indirectly operated using Washtenaw County resources."
Local political figures are complaining that tax dollars should not be
used in this way. Perhaps they have a point.
Perhaps not. One could equally well argue that the
County is not in the…
oracknows | September 12, 2006Sometimes there are things that happen when blogging. You get accolades from unexpected sources, little ego boosts that make it all worthwhile. Such a thing happened yesterday, on the basis of my little blurb mentioning Skeptico's takedown of Hank Barnes's misuse of logical fallacies. The reaction, as reflected in the comments in Hank's blog, was quite hilarious. One reader whined:
Whenever somebody claims to be debunking something, it always means that somebody revealed an uncomfortable truth and now they've got to stuff it back in the bottle.
Well no, actually, the only thing "uncomfortable…
clock | September 12, 2006Fly Paris Hilton Airlines:
Thank you all for being here. With the fifth anniversary of 9/11 upon us, the Federal Aviation Administration has been asked to project developments in air safety over the next five years. We thought this could best be conveyed from the perspective of a typical passenger in the year 2011.
Read the whole thing - it is hillarious, yet scary.
mikethemadbiologist | September 11, 2006...I think? I received this email from a friend:
Hey Mike,
Are you aware that you are the #1 webpage that comes up when you Google "Christopath"?
Well, I am now (and it's this post that does it).
Nobody tell driftglass...
pharyngula | September 11, 2006
Strangely enough, in Christian philosophy apparently the one on the left is the pessimist, and the one on the right carries the message of hope.
oracknows | September 10, 2006...to feel a bit of schadenfreude over this?
I know, I know, I usually don't stoop to celebrity stuff unless it relates to my interests (science and science fiction, Holocaust denial and Mel Gibson, etc.), but the expression in the picture in the link above was just too priceless for me to resist.
I feel so dirty now. Forgive me.
mikethemadbiologist | September 9, 2006These bad Viagra-related jokes came to me through one of those internet tubes you might have heard about:
In pharmacology, all drugs have two names, a trade name and generic name. For example, the trade name of Tylenol also has a generic name of Acetaminophen. Aleve is also called Naproxen. Amoxil is also callAmoxicillin and Advil is also called Ibuprofen.
The FDA has been looking for a generic name for Viagra. After careful consideration by a team of government experts, it recently announced that it has settled on the generic name of Mycoxafloppin. Also considered were Mycoxafailin,…
oracknows | September 9, 2006Just what every kid wants! For children of extreme fundamentalists looking to be raptured, Harry Potter, Star Wars, Spider-Man, or Superman just won't do! What would Jesus think when He returns? Harry Potter represents witchcraft, an abomination! Star Wars replaces God with The Force. Superheroes are too frivolous, and Superman is too obviously a Christ-figure.
So what's the answer if you're a concerned fundamentalist parent who wants to maximize the chance that her child will be one of the chosen when the Rapture comes?
Why, Armor of God PJ's, of course!
Yes, according to the manufacturer…
pharyngula | September 9, 2006
A new xkcd comic hits the right note: science isn't about belief. Read the whole thing.
pharyngula | September 9, 2006The Scienceblogs Nerd-off contest should have this for a new theme song: Weird Al's "White and Nerdy".
First in my class here at MIT
Drop skills, I'm a champion at D&D
M.C. Escher, that's my favorite MC
Keep your 40, I'll just have an Earl Grey tea
My rims never spin, to the contrary
You'll find that they're quite stationary
All of my action figures are cherry
Stephen Hawking's in my library
My MySpace page is all totally pimped out
Got people bangin' for my top eight spaces
Yo, I know pi to a thousand places
Ain't got grills but I still wear braces
I order all of my sandwiches with…