Misc
ejohnson | July 21, 2009If you've been running into time-outs and submission errors while commenting lately, you're not alone—our system has been suffering some growing pains and it's time for a network-wide rehaul of sorts.
Tonight we'll be transferring over to shiny new servers, and we hope that this will make things run more smoothly for everyone. To make this transition, however, we'll need to shut down the system overnight, and we've asked our bloggers to refrain from posting as well. Starting at 7:00 pm EST, commenting will be disabled. It should be back when the system resumes running tomorrow morning.
We…
tqa | July 15, 2009
I just saw a shuttle launch! I haven't been this excited since Christmas Eve, 1985!
I would have mentioned I was going to the launch ahead of time here, but things happened kinda quick. Here's a condensed version of events:
As you might expect, there's extensive medical support at shuttle launches. One of the layers of support falls more or less into the "let's really, really, really hope we don't need these guys" category - medical personnel who support a rescue operation, if one is needed. Many of the doctors who work those standbys are military personnel, because the job description…
jricco | June 30, 2009In our timezone we've nearly reached the end of day three of the Nobel Laureates Meeting 2009. As before, the conference has been dominated by two conjuctures: The atmosphere of pure wit that about 600 scientists spread and scorching temperatures.
Nevertheless it is time to sum up what has been concerning us on ScienceBlogs Germany: First of all our two fellow bloggers from your site arrived - Bora and PZ Myers reached Lake Constance after a supposedly looong trip on planes and trains. Now our team of bloggers is complete.
The day started with a panel on climate change - six Nobel Laureates…
stoat | June 28, 2009
I've been a little weighed down with various activities recently. So anyone keenly awaiting the next round of me-vs-Romm-vs-Pielke will just have to wait.
Meanwhile, in-joke of the day.
tqa | June 16, 2009
For those of you who are wondering where I've been, we're currently in the middle of our third family move in the last 25 months. We're starting to get good at it, but it still takes a while. Since I've got a few minutes to spare this morning - and I'm fed up with boxes and tape - I thought I'd share a few of the tips I've picked up.
Given how often academics move, I'd guess that some of you have your own hard-learned moving tips. Feel free to share them in the comments.
U-Haul Rocks: Seriously. Yes, sometimes Budget is cheaper, but unless you're getting a 10' truck U-Haul has something…
ejohnson | June 7, 2009
Early detection can prevent almost 100 percent of colorectal cancer cases. Combating the disease is a question of social innovations that convince people of regular testing.
The Felix Burda Foundation, founded in 2001 by Dr. Christa Maar and Dr. Hubert Burda, with the quest to decrease the mortality rate of colon cancer in Germany, recently took their expertise to America. During a one-day symposium, hosted by the German Consulate, an international line-up of experts and activists came to share their perspectives on prevention, treatment, how to raise awareness and change attitudes,…
tqa | June 3, 2009
James Kirchick has an op-ed up in today's Wall Street Journal that addresses the reaction to the murder of Dr. George Tiller. Or so he might want to believe. In actuality, Kirchick is responding to the portion of the reaction that he wants to see, and not to the range of opinion that is out there.
There is no appreciable number of people in this country, religious Christians or otherwise, who support the murder of abortion doctors. The same cannot be said of Muslims who support suicide bombings in the name of their religion.
Not only has Kirchick clearly missed the moral munchkins…
tqa | June 1, 2009
It's easy, as Nicholas Kristof points out, to think and talk about international affairs in abstract terms. Most of us are living comfortable lives in comfortable countries. We have the luxury of being able to afford to think about things that are happening beyond our own borders, even when they're unlikely to affect us directly. We can talk and think about what's happened or what is happening in Bosnia, in Darfur, in Cambodia, in the Sudan. We can think and talk about things we can do to make things better in those places, and sometimes we can carry through with our plans.
It's not as…
tqa | May 31, 2009
Wichita NBC affiliate KSHB-TV is reporting that the suspect being held in the assassination of Dr. George Tiller is a man named Scott Roeder. Posters in the forums at the DemocraticUnderground have identified at least one posting at Operation Rescue's website (currently down, link to Google cache here) that's written by a Scott Roeder and refers to Dr. Tiller.
There is also information that indicates that a suspected Freeman named Scott Roeder was arrested in Topeka in 1996 for parole violations related to his having bomb making materials in his car trunk. At that time, he was identified…
tqa | May 26, 2009
Just to give those of you who might care a heads-up, my blogging is likely to become somewhat sporadic over the next two-to-three months, mostly due to family commitments. We're moving again in early July. This time, it's a relatively short move - Pensacola to the Dothan, AL area, but there's still that whole pack, load, unpack thing to deal with. We're also going to a wedding (my brother's) in mid-June, and may be following that up with a trip to the Kennedy Space Center (my wife's got some business there in late June). I'll blog as opportunities arise, but there's no way to know how often…
tqa | May 21, 2009
As many of you know, my family circumstances do not put me neatly within the American norm. I've got a functioning Y-chromosome, but even though I'm happily married, I've done single parent duty for months at a time. Even when my wife is home, she has very little control over her schedule, and very little flexibility when it comes to things like taking time off when one of the kids is sick. There are few women working in her specific field, and not many of the ones who are there have families.
A while ago, I'd have told you that this gives me about as close to a first-hand understanding of…
ejohnson | May 18, 2009
In this week's episode of Science Saturday, philosopher Michael Murray and psychologist Paul Bloom debate whether naturalistic explanations for religious psychology should cast doubt on religious beliefs. They also discuss Paul's reasons for thinking religion is an accidental byproduct of evolution, rather than an adaptation, and the possibility that humans are wired to be polytheists rather than theists.
tqa | May 16, 2009
Dear Moms and Dads,
When I work at a swim meet as a deck official, I'm always happy to see parents there who are happy and excited to see their children compete. It's almost as cool to see parents taking an interest in their children as it is to watch kids working hard and trying their best. Your children deserve your support, and it's wonderful that you're there to give it to them.
That said, there can sometimes be too much of a good thing.
I know I've only been working as a stroke and turn judge for a year or so, but I think I've seen enough meets to be able to offer a little…
ejohnson | May 15, 2009
With the levels of obese individuals continuing to rise worldwide, new research hopes to illuminate some interesting associations related to this epidemic. On Gene Expression, Razib discusses an abstract that explores the idea that obesity might be related to the acquired genetic ability to process lactase late into life, which is common in European populations but uncommon in other parts of the world. On The Frontal Cortex, Jonah Lehrer gives us some insight on delayed gratification and the implications when it comes to certain foods. Also from Kevin Beck, a bit on Atkins mythology. Dig in…
hrynyshyn | May 12, 2009The "whither twitter" debate is irrelevant. Evidence hinting that its popularity may be short-lived is not hard to find, but I wouldn't place any money on it either way. It's just too hard to predict what will take hold in the ever-shifting sands of the semi-arid intellectual desert that some still call cyberspace. I doubt tweets will go away any time soon, and I'm not sure that they should go away, despite the legs my "Twitter is Evil" parody have acquired.
Rather than dwell on the merits or shortcomings of the 140-character medium, I'm more interested in doing my part to improve the signal-…
amillikan | May 9, 2009Johnson and Horgan are back on this week's Science Saturday diavlog on Bloggingheads.tv:
From BHTV:
In this week's episode of Science Saturday, John Horgan and George Johnson explain how the latest Jarmusch film, "The Limits of Control," conveys a message of significance for struggling science journalists everywhere. They also discuss how neural implants might improve your sex life, whether it's time to declare defeat in the war on cancer, and whether human civilization is going to be crushed by food shortages.
stoat | April 28, 2009 Stretham Old Engine is a former pumping engine out in the fens; visiting it is not too dissimilar to the Museum of fenland drainage that James visited a while back. You can see it from above and you can visit it's own website: strethamoldengine.org.uk/.
It is best to visit it by boat, though, which we managed on a wednesday during the school holidays, and were even lucky enough to find it open. Sadly it is trapped in something of a vicious circle: they don't open often so get few visitors; and since they get few visitors they can't afford to open very often.
Pix here; and I'll in-line a few.
stoat | April 25, 2009Anyone who was anyone (and some who aren't :-) went to the great Cam clean up. Unlike James, I didn't bother turn up for the speeches. This may have been a mistake, as not only did I not get on the grapple teams but also by the time I'd come along most of the litter had gone too. I walked from the FSG (G not J to keep Andy happy!) to the railway bridge and found somewhat less than a bin liner's worth. Still, it was a lovely day for it, I got to abuse Meg in the tub (sorry) and I saw some nice lichen:
Weird sight of the day was the diver finding stuff under the Elizabeth Way bridge, as…
tqa | April 24, 2009
...because there's something about the culture here in the South that I just don't understand.
I was driving earlier, when a funeral procession started to pass from the opposite direction. While I was waiting for them to pass, I was looking at some of the drivers in the procession. A significant fraction of the people in the funeral procession cars were dressed in uniform.
Confederate uniform.
Based on where I was and the direction they were heading, the funeral was clearly going to be in the nearby national cemetery. I just don't get it. How on earth is it appropriate for people to…
stoat | April 20, 2009I would have thought that saying the Israeli state was racist was just the bleedin' obvious; but apparently it is controversial. Odd. Maybe the "totally" was OTT. I suppose having the Iranians saying it must be irritating. So what was the conference for? To discuss racism without at any point admitting that anyone is?