What happens when you post random medical maladies into a public form and ask folks to comment?
You get the Goon Doctor:
My girlfriend's vagina is all out of whack.
Holy shit, my tooth just broke
Help me learn about Opiods
A Tick on my Glans
What the hell is growing on my arm?
Tell me why I sweat so much?
and more. TMI
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
Glenn vs. Glenn
here
UPDATE: Glenn Reynolds defends Joe Klein and "responds" to my post by (a) accusing me of rooting for the U.S. to lose and (b) re-printing an e-mail he received from Michael Yon who claims that, in Anbar, "the guns are mostly quiet now" and the Infantry Task Force with which he is embedded "hardly have fired their weapons." Yon claims that things are so peachy in Anbar that the meetings of the Task Force are "more administrative than combat oriented."
Associated Press reports today (h/d David Sirota):
Two US soldiers were killed while conducting combat operations in Iraq's volatile Anbar Province, the military announced Thursday.
The soldiers, assigned to Multi National Force-West, were killed Wednesday, the military said. The military declined to release the names of those killed pending notification of their relatives.
The deaths raised the number of members of the US military who have died since the beginning of the Iraq war in March 2003 to at least 3,433, according to an Associated Press count.
And then there is this. And this. But the real fault lies with anyone who points any of this out, because they want the U.S. to lose. What is most amazing is that the same people (like Reynolds) who have been lying to the country for four straight years about all of the Glorious Progress being made in Iraq continue to expect that when they speak, anyone other than the shrinking band of hard-core war supporters will listen.
Many, many times over the last four years -- in numerous places in Iraq -- violence has ebbed temporarily. Yet Iraq, contrary to the ongoing claims from the Bush administration and its followers, has inexorably descended into total chaos and violence. Pointing to three-day lapses in violence in a single place as proof that things are improving is so transparently irrational that, particularly at this point, it merits as much response as the desperate claim that anyone who opposes the war "wants the U.S. to lose."
Do I want the US to lose? No, certainly not, and I never have. However, I have thought, since before the first bombs fell on Baghdad, that the key to non-losing was not to invade. I have been skeptical about this since before the invasion and, frankly, I dont see any reason to stop now.
GG makes a great point about anonymous sources too. What is the purpose of anonimity if the material is boilerplate administration text? Is the credibility of the president so low that he has to release information anonymously for it to get any play? And if so, why would it deserve to be called news?
UPDATE: Glenn Reynolds defends Joe Klein and "responds" to my post by (a) accusing me of rooting for the U.S. to lose and (b) re-printing an e-mail he received from Michael Yon who claims that, in Anbar, "the guns are mostly quiet now" and the Infantry Task Force with which he is embedded "hardly have fired their weapons." Yon claims that things are so peachy in Anbar that the meetings of the Task Force are "more administrative than combat oriented."
Associated Press reports today (h/d David Sirota):
Two US soldiers were killed while conducting combat operations in Iraq's volatile Anbar Province, the military announced Thursday.
The soldiers, assigned to Multi National Force-West, were killed Wednesday, the military said. The military declined to release the names of those killed pending notification of their relatives.
The deaths raised the number of members of the US military who have died since the beginning of the Iraq war in March 2003 to at least 3,433, according to an Associated Press count.
And then there is this. And this. But the real fault lies with anyone who points any of this out, because they want the U.S. to lose. What is most amazing is that the same people (like Reynolds) who have been lying to the country for four straight years about all of the Glorious Progress being made in Iraq continue to expect that when they speak, anyone other than the shrinking band of hard-core war supporters will listen.
Many, many times over the last four years -- in numerous places in Iraq -- violence has ebbed temporarily. Yet Iraq, contrary to the ongoing claims from the Bush administration and its followers, has inexorably descended into total chaos and violence. Pointing to three-day lapses in violence in a single place as proof that things are improving is so transparently irrational that, particularly at this point, it merits as much response as the desperate claim that anyone who opposes the war "wants the U.S. to lose."
Do I want the US to lose? No, certainly not, and I never have. However, I have thought, since before the first bombs fell on Baghdad, that the key to non-losing was not to invade. I have been skeptical about this since before the invasion and, frankly, I dont see any reason to stop now.
GG makes a great point about anonymous sources too. What is the purpose of anonimity if the material is boilerplate administration text? Is the credibility of the president so low that he has to release information anonymously for it to get any play? And if so, why would it deserve to be called news?
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
PZ Meyers' Hate Mail Bag
Thousands of years ago, when I was an astronomy grad student, I was in charge of the Pre-Print Library. The PPL is sort of a way of getting your idea out into circulation before it gets published, but after it has completed the peer-review cycle. Since the lag time can be a couple of months between acceptance and publication, the "pre-print" allows you to let folks know what you've done, that it's been reviewed and to start debate. In astronomy this isn't so critical because there just aren’t that many astronomers and generally everyone who would care has already seen your work in development or as a peer-reviewer. As such, the PPL was a boring, low-maintenance job (unless it was a Karen Strom paper, that's a whole other kettle of fish).
The librarian also gets a lot of "self-published" articles. Stuff that has not been through peer review or is even generally written by a trained professional scientist. It's often weird, kooky stuff and occasionally it's extraordinarily clever. Once or twice a year I'd get something so clever I'd have to think for awhile about why it wouldn't work, (usually it's a subtle variation of dividing by zero or conservation of energy, but buried so deeply in it's hard to see). In short, it was excellent work for a grad-student as it tests one's ability to reason and spot flaws.
That said, most of it was just sheer crazy fun in a paranoid tone, but all of the crazy stuff encapsulated one flawed assumption: Science works by endorsement, in the same way as religion e.g. there were quotes by Einstein that would be made to support the argument, because Einstein was an “authority” and couldn’t be questioned. Their goal was to get some professor somewhere to endorse their idea this making it “Science”. This was wrong, of course. Einstein was wrong about lots of things, most notably quantum mechanics, as is everyone else who ever gets quoted. Science is about error correction not endorsement or doctrine.
Reading PZ Meyers hate mail bag reminded me very much of the kinds of crazy stuff we’d get once every week or two. It’s nice to know some things never change.
The librarian also gets a lot of "self-published" articles. Stuff that has not been through peer review or is even generally written by a trained professional scientist. It's often weird, kooky stuff and occasionally it's extraordinarily clever. Once or twice a year I'd get something so clever I'd have to think for awhile about why it wouldn't work, (usually it's a subtle variation of dividing by zero or conservation of energy, but buried so deeply in it's hard to see). In short, it was excellent work for a grad-student as it tests one's ability to reason and spot flaws.
That said, most of it was just sheer crazy fun in a paranoid tone, but all of the crazy stuff encapsulated one flawed assumption: Science works by endorsement, in the same way as religion e.g. there were quotes by Einstein that would be made to support the argument, because Einstein was an “authority” and couldn’t be questioned. Their goal was to get some professor somewhere to endorse their idea this making it “Science”. This was wrong, of course. Einstein was wrong about lots of things, most notably quantum mechanics, as is everyone else who ever gets quoted. Science is about error correction not endorsement or doctrine.
Reading PZ Meyers hate mail bag reminded me very much of the kinds of crazy stuff we’d get once every week or two. It’s nice to know some things never change.
Sunday, May 27, 2007
Department of Happy Endings
"Vice President Cheney isn’t not on the phone records of the alleged D.C. Madam, who is accused of running a high-price call-girl ring in Washington, the accused madam’s lawyer said on Tuesday."
Wonkette
Wonkette
Friday, May 25, 2007
ISO 3103, A Standard for Brewing Tea
Also in the "they must be kidding" category Dr. Nick has found the ultimate tea-brewing standard.
ISO 3103From Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaJump to: navigation, search
ISO 3103 is a standard published by the International Organization for Standardization (commonly referred to as ISO). It specifies a standardized method for brewing tea, originally laid down in 1980 as BS 6008:1980[1]. It was produced by ISO Technical Committee 34 (Food products), Sub-Committee 8 (Tea).
ISO 3103From Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaJump to: navigation, search
ISO 3103 is a standard published by the International Organization for Standardization (commonly referred to as ISO). It specifies a standardized method for brewing tea, originally laid down in 1980 as BS 6008:1980[1]. It was produced by ISO Technical Committee 34 (Food products), Sub-Committee 8 (Tea).
I Honestly Thought He was Kidding
In chatting with an old friend from Certco, he mentioned he was heading to the cape this weekend for a little R&R. I mentioned how remote we are here in Russian River Valley, and he responded with a joke about having a "gas-powered blender" for making mudslides and daiquiris. I laughed
but he wasn't kidding
I know what I want for Father's Day now...
but he wasn't kidding
I know what I want for Father's Day now...
Thursday, May 24, 2007
Everything Bigger than 200 Miles
This awesome image of everything in the Solar System larger than 200 miles in diameter!
Not as many, numerically, as I would have guessed.
Also, they missed my ego
Not as many, numerically, as I would have guessed.
Also, they missed my ego
Like Robinson Caruso, It's as Primative as Can Be
I am currently in the Russian River Valley, taking a sort vacation and a few wine tours. It's nice and all, and the trees are ... well, wild! Huge, skyscraper trees, hoooooom hooooooom.
Anyway, it turns out, I have gone to the first place in America I have been to since ... ... 1998, that doesn't have wireless phone service! None, nada, zip!
This is a Bad Thing, since my boss' boss (Brian) wants to talk to me about my boss(who is temporary) getting to keep his job. Not surprisingly, I have a fully thought out opinion on this subject, but may not get to deliver it because my fucking phone wont work!!!!!!
Dammit!
and, perversely, I have decent internet access. If only there was some way to get phone service over the internet (there's a business plan!).
Anyway, it turns out, I have gone to the first place in America I have been to since ... ... 1998, that doesn't have wireless phone service! None, nada, zip!
This is a Bad Thing, since my boss' boss (Brian) wants to talk to me about my boss(who is temporary) getting to keep his job. Not surprisingly, I have a fully thought out opinion on this subject, but may not get to deliver it because my fucking phone wont work!!!!!!
Dammit!
and, perversely, I have decent internet access. If only there was some way to get phone service over the internet (there's a business plan!).
We Lose Yet Another Atheist to Religion
and, truthfully, I could see myself making a similar, deathbed conversion.
Dear Friends and Family;
I know that all of you have been concerned about my emotional and spiritual welfare, especially since the stroke. I know I have lacked direction, conviction, and integrity. I am writing to tell you that I have admitted to the error of my ways and have reached a turning point in my life.
Many of you feel that my lack of faith is the root of my problems and you were right. But I have been saved and want to spread the word; I hope that you can share in the blissful savior I have found. I love all of you so much, I want you to benefit from my new faith.
So, please take a moment to share in my redemption and go to the website below and rejoice in the truth.
http://www.venganza.org/
Peace and noodles,
Laurie
Mortal by birth, Pastafarian by choice.
Dear Friends and Family;
I know that all of you have been concerned about my emotional and spiritual welfare, especially since the stroke. I know I have lacked direction, conviction, and integrity. I am writing to tell you that I have admitted to the error of my ways and have reached a turning point in my life.
Many of you feel that my lack of faith is the root of my problems and you were right. But I have been saved and want to spread the word; I hope that you can share in the blissful savior I have found. I love all of you so much, I want you to benefit from my new faith.
So, please take a moment to share in my redemption and go to the website below and rejoice in the truth.
http://www.venganza.org/
Peace and noodles,
Laurie
Mortal by birth, Pastafarian by choice.
Creationist Museum Opens in Kentucky
here
PETERSBURG, Ky. — The entrance gates here are topped with metallic Stegosauruses. The grounds include a giant tyrannosaur standing amid the trees, and a stone-lined lobby sports varied sauropods. It could be like any other natural history museum, luring families with the promise of immense fossils and dinosaur adventures.
But step a little farther into the entrance hall, and you come upon a pastoral scene undreamt of by any natural history museum. Two prehistoric children play near a burbling waterfall, thoroughly at home in the natural world. Dinosaurs cavort nearby, their animatronic mechanisms turning them into alluring companions, their gaping mouths seeming not threatening, but almost welcoming, as an Apatosaurus munches on leaves a few yards away.
What is this, then? A reproduction of a childhood fantasy in which dinosaurs are friends of inquisitive youngsters?
Yes! That's exactly what it is!
This is what happens when you let folks without a Fungineering Degree design rides...
PETERSBURG, Ky. — The entrance gates here are topped with metallic Stegosauruses. The grounds include a giant tyrannosaur standing amid the trees, and a stone-lined lobby sports varied sauropods. It could be like any other natural history museum, luring families with the promise of immense fossils and dinosaur adventures.
But step a little farther into the entrance hall, and you come upon a pastoral scene undreamt of by any natural history museum. Two prehistoric children play near a burbling waterfall, thoroughly at home in the natural world. Dinosaurs cavort nearby, their animatronic mechanisms turning them into alluring companions, their gaping mouths seeming not threatening, but almost welcoming, as an Apatosaurus munches on leaves a few yards away.
What is this, then? A reproduction of a childhood fantasy in which dinosaurs are friends of inquisitive youngsters?
Yes! That's exactly what it is!
This is what happens when you let folks without a Fungineering Degree design rides...
This Looks Like a Job for... The Comma Police!
From the NYT:
When the attack began, it was Dec. 7 at Pearl Harbor but Dec. 8 in Japan. The book is subtly subtitled “A Novel of December 8th” to signal its attention to the Japanese point of view. On the basis of that detail, you might expect a high level of fastidiousness from “Pearl Harbor.”
And you would be spectacularly wrong. Because you would find phrases like “to withdraw backward was impossible,” sounds like “wretching noises” to accompany vomiting, or constructions like “incredulous as it seemed, America had not reacted.” Although the book has two authors, it could have used a third assigned to cleanup patrol.
This is not a matter of isolated typographical errors. It is a serious case for the comma police, since the book’s war on punctuation is almost as heated as the air assaults it describes. “One would have to be dead, very stupid Fuchida thought,” the book says about the fighter pilot Mitsuo Fuchida, “not to realize they were sallying forth to war.” Evidence notwithstanding, the authors do not mean to insult the fighter pilot’s intelligence — or, presumably, the reader’s.
Historian Newt Gingrich (R-Georgia) is one of the authors. If you like grammar humor (and I do!), read the rest of it, it's jaw-droppingly bad.
When the attack began, it was Dec. 7 at Pearl Harbor but Dec. 8 in Japan. The book is subtly subtitled “A Novel of December 8th” to signal its attention to the Japanese point of view. On the basis of that detail, you might expect a high level of fastidiousness from “Pearl Harbor.”
And you would be spectacularly wrong. Because you would find phrases like “to withdraw backward was impossible,” sounds like “wretching noises” to accompany vomiting, or constructions like “incredulous as it seemed, America had not reacted.” Although the book has two authors, it could have used a third assigned to cleanup patrol.
This is not a matter of isolated typographical errors. It is a serious case for the comma police, since the book’s war on punctuation is almost as heated as the air assaults it describes. “One would have to be dead, very stupid Fuchida thought,” the book says about the fighter pilot Mitsuo Fuchida, “not to realize they were sallying forth to war.” Evidence notwithstanding, the authors do not mean to insult the fighter pilot’s intelligence — or, presumably, the reader’s.
Historian Newt Gingrich (R-Georgia) is one of the authors. If you like grammar humor (and I do!), read the rest of it, it's jaw-droppingly bad.
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
Where Did This Man Go?
It was a shameful thing to ask men to suffer and die, to persevere through god-awful afflictions and heartache, to endure the dehumanizing experiences that are unavoidable in combat, for a cause that the country wouldn’t support over time and that our leaders so wrongly believed could be achieved at a smaller cost than our enemy was prepared to make us pay. No other national endeavor requires as much unshakable resolve as war. If the nation and the government lack that resolve, it is criminal to expect men in the field to carry it alone.
John McCain, Forward to The Best and The Brightest
As readers know, I was never convinved that the Iraq part of the war was the Right Thing to Do and opposed it (as opposed to the Afgahn part which I did and still support), largely because the evidence seemed to suggest we'd be where we are today.
I'd happily vote for the John McCain who wrote that quote. I wonder if we'll ever see him again.
John McCain, Forward to The Best and The Brightest
As readers know, I was never convinved that the Iraq part of the war was the Right Thing to Do and opposed it (as opposed to the Afgahn part which I did and still support), largely because the evidence seemed to suggest we'd be where we are today.
I'd happily vote for the John McCain who wrote that quote. I wonder if we'll ever see him again.
Monday, May 21, 2007
I Can't Decide
Parody or Not?
At first I thought, "well done! very funny!", but looking through the rest of the blog..... I dunno... It's a lot of work to go through just to lampoon Brownback. I'm not ruling it out, but I am beginning to fear these folks are serious.
At first I thought, "well done! very funny!", but looking through the rest of the blog..... I dunno... It's a lot of work to go through just to lampoon Brownback. I'm not ruling it out, but I am beginning to fear these folks are serious.
Fat people more religious than skinny people
Passed along without comment except to say that Half Sigma often claims strong conclusions from incomplete data.
Sunday, May 20, 2007
Presidential Candidate Pros and Cons
From McSweeney:
HILLARY CLINTON
Pro: Known commodity; strong fundraiser.
Con: Polarizing; unlikely to woo those already opposed to her.
JOE BIDEN
Pro: Technically still running for president.
Con: Dude. Come on.
DICK CHENEYIN AN ELABORATE LATEX DISGUISETHAT TAKES FIVE HOURS TO APPLY
Pro: Trojan horse, my friend. Trojan fucking horse.
Con: Ruse would be so exciting that he would surely drop dead of a massive stroke about a month before Iowa.
WALTER MONDALE
Pro: Has spent last 22 years going over tape, reviewing mistakes, plotting, scheming, waiting, watching, preparing to pounce like a 79-year-old Minnesotan panther.
Con: None.
SAM BROWNBACK
Pro: Serves as a positive role model for ethnic brownbacks all over the country.
Con: Such an ethnicity does not technically exist; lacks the pen-gripping power of Kansas Senate predecessor Bob Dole.
NEWT GINGRICH
Pro: Well known.
Con: See above.
HILLARY CLINTON
Pro: Known commodity; strong fundraiser.
Con: Polarizing; unlikely to woo those already opposed to her.
JOE BIDEN
Pro: Technically still running for president.
Con: Dude. Come on.
DICK CHENEYIN AN ELABORATE LATEX DISGUISETHAT TAKES FIVE HOURS TO APPLY
Pro: Trojan horse, my friend. Trojan fucking horse.
Con: Ruse would be so exciting that he would surely drop dead of a massive stroke about a month before Iowa.
WALTER MONDALE
Pro: Has spent last 22 years going over tape, reviewing mistakes, plotting, scheming, waiting, watching, preparing to pounce like a 79-year-old Minnesotan panther.
Con: None.
SAM BROWNBACK
Pro: Serves as a positive role model for ethnic brownbacks all over the country.
Con: Such an ethnicity does not technically exist; lacks the pen-gripping power of Kansas Senate predecessor Bob Dole.
NEWT GINGRICH
Pro: Well known.
Con: See above.
Saturday, May 19, 2007
Dear Anonymous Atheist Complaint Box
My act of linking approvingly to this thread does not, in any way, constitute an endorsement.
In exactly the same way that Glenn Reynolds linking approvingly to pro-torture arguments and administration apologia does not.
Heh, read the whole thing...
Friday, May 18, 2007
More Hitch
He goes on Fox but refuses to really play the game.
here
"you took up all my time to answer with your rather long and unlettered question"
here
"you took up all my time to answer with your rather long and unlettered question"
There Is Nothing out of Bounds
From the Wapo:
Attorneys for Cheney and the other officials said any conversations they had about Plame with each other and reporters were part of their normal job duties because they were discussing foreign policy and engaging in an appropriate "policy dispute." Cheney's attorney went farther, arguing that Cheney is legally akin to the president because of his unique government role, and has absolute immunity from any lawsuit.
"So you're arguing there is nothing -- absolutely nothing - these officials could have said to reporters that would have been beyond the scope of their employment [whether it was] true or false?," U.S. District Judge John D. Bates asked.
"That's true, your honor.
Attorneys for Cheney and the other officials said any conversations they had about Plame with each other and reporters were part of their normal job duties because they were discussing foreign policy and engaging in an appropriate "policy dispute." Cheney's attorney went farther, arguing that Cheney is legally akin to the president because of his unique government role, and has absolute immunity from any lawsuit.
"So you're arguing there is nothing -- absolutely nothing - these officials could have said to reporters that would have been beyond the scope of their employment [whether it was] true or false?," U.S. District Judge John D. Bates asked.
"That's true, your honor.
Lawyer/Posers
TJIC has a pretty good (and sadly typical) interaction with a customer and his lawyer about copywrite law. I'd happily agrue a lot with Travis on any number of topics (and do), but never one where he had a financial stake unless I was ab-so-lute-ly sure I was right and had 2 or more expert opinions to back me up.
Read here, it's very good.
Read here, it's very good.
The Tributes Keep Coming in...
From field Correspondent Tara, a Tribute from Betty Bowers*:
When CNN called, Jerry would drop everything except pounds for a chance to squeeze much of his face into unforgiving aspect ratio of pre-HDTV television. With his smarmy smile and affable facility for slapping a perfunctory "but I love him in Christ" at the end of even the most vicious, artless insults, he was rather effective in putting a charming, folksy face on demeaning other human beings and their children.
*She's a better Christian than you, just ask her
When CNN called, Jerry would drop everything except pounds for a chance to squeeze much of his face into unforgiving aspect ratio of pre-HDTV television. With his smarmy smile and affable facility for slapping a perfunctory "but I love him in Christ" at the end of even the most vicious, artless insults, he was rather effective in putting a charming, folksy face on demeaning other human beings and their children.
*She's a better Christian than you, just ask her
Wednesday, May 16, 2007
Why I Am a Bad Person
Because I don't disagree with any of this
I think it is impolite and uncivil to voice this in wake of the person's death, however that doesn't take away from the underlying truth of the piece.
Sorry, in this case I am failing to rise to my better nature.
I think it is impolite and uncivil to voice this in wake of the person's death, however that doesn't take away from the underlying truth of the piece.
Sorry, in this case I am failing to rise to my better nature.
Tuesday, May 15, 2007
McCain Wins!
well, at least he's free-er to say what he really thinks.
I'm a little afraid though that's what he's been doing all along.
I'm a little afraid though that's what he's been doing all along.
Our Boys in Blue
Cop Rock!
BTW, this recent spurt of blogging is largely because I am back home after 10 days on the road. I am home for 8 days, then back on the road until late July (with a few at home breaks thrown in).
BTW, this recent spurt of blogging is largely because I am back home after 10 days on the road. I am home for 8 days, then back on the road until late July (with a few at home breaks thrown in).
The 7 Signs!
One wonders how hard they had to work to make sure it came out to exactly 7:
http://www.hanford.gov/oci/video/7signsofterrorism.wmv
This is both foolish and dangerous. Foolish because the guidance is so generic and silly as to be useless (other than the idea that you should "be afraid, all the time". Dangerous because it ties up resouces with false positives and diseminates misinformation. Even the examples are stupid, e.g. why would a terrorist steal a suit from a dry cleaner? Its that terribly risky? Wouldn't it be likely they could be caught or identified by in-store recording? Would a suit grabbed at random even fit? Better to buy one at a store (or even a Goodwill Store) and avoid the risks.
I hate pointless, useless security and when it's disseminated by the government, it's even worse. What a waste of money.
(via)
http://www.hanford.gov/oci/video/7signsofterrorism.wmv
This is both foolish and dangerous. Foolish because the guidance is so generic and silly as to be useless (other than the idea that you should "be afraid, all the time". Dangerous because it ties up resouces with false positives and diseminates misinformation. Even the examples are stupid, e.g. why would a terrorist steal a suit from a dry cleaner? Its that terribly risky? Wouldn't it be likely they could be caught or identified by in-store recording? Would a suit grabbed at random even fit? Better to buy one at a store (or even a Goodwill Store) and avoid the risks.
I hate pointless, useless security and when it's disseminated by the government, it's even worse. What a waste of money.
(via)
I Agree, 100%
Gabriel Sylar
Powers: Flaw Discernment, ranging from mundane machinery to anomalies of the brain. This discernment also seems to allow him the ability to sense the powers of other people who possess them, and integrate them into his own genetic makeup. Powers that have been acquired through this method include Advanced Telekinesis, Cryokinesis, Eiditic Memory, Short-range Matter Disruption, and Wide Scope Hearing.
Last Seen: Painting a portent of the future explosion. In his mother’s blood. After he stabbed her in the chest with a pair of scissors. There is no possible way those three sentences could be any cooler to write.
From the Goon's Heroes thread
Powers: Flaw Discernment, ranging from mundane machinery to anomalies of the brain. This discernment also seems to allow him the ability to sense the powers of other people who possess them, and integrate them into his own genetic makeup. Powers that have been acquired through this method include Advanced Telekinesis, Cryokinesis, Eiditic Memory, Short-range Matter Disruption, and Wide Scope Hearing.
Last Seen: Painting a portent of the future explosion. In his mother’s blood. After he stabbed her in the chest with a pair of scissors. There is no possible way those three sentences could be any cooler to write.
From the Goon's Heroes thread
Where does the Internet go at Night?
A conversation 18 years ago:
Me: We're going to go see Grandma and Grandpa Manley in California!
Geoff: Ohhhhhhh! That's far away!
Me: Very far.
Geoff: I think that's where the sun goes at night!
Me: ... to California?
Geoff: Yes!
Last week, he answered found where the internets go at night...
To the Liberace Museum
Me: We're going to go see Grandma and Grandpa Manley in California!
Geoff: Ohhhhhhh! That's far away!
Me: Very far.
Geoff: I think that's where the sun goes at night!
Me: ... to California?
Geoff: Yes!
Last week, he answered found where the internets go at night...
To the Liberace Museum
Star Trek Day!
What do you do when, after advocating a lost lost cause for years it starts to sink in that you may have been in error all this time?
Regroup, research and rethink?
Nope.
Hold a Star Trek Day!
nerds!
Regroup, research and rethink?
Nope.
Hold a Star Trek Day!
nerds!
Friday, May 11, 2007
Religion is Good For Kids!
... if and only if you want docile, easy to control children who never question authority. Otherwise, not so much.
Oh, and there are some problems with the methodology:
Titled "Religion and Child Development: Evidence from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study", the study begins with three admirable caveats: (1) The benefit is defined primarily by how well-behaved children are, (2) the data, based on parent and teacher interviews, are entirely subjective, and (3) the data were gathered from a survey conducted for a different purpose and from a cohort consisting almost entirely of first graders.
the rest here. Naturally, since it's a dubious study with questionable data and a diffcult to support conclusion, it's all the rage on Fox!
Oh, and there are some problems with the methodology:
Titled "Religion and Child Development: Evidence from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study", the study begins with three admirable caveats: (1) The benefit is defined primarily by how well-behaved children are, (2) the data, based on parent and teacher interviews, are entirely subjective, and (3) the data were gathered from a survey conducted for a different purpose and from a cohort consisting almost entirely of first graders.
the rest here. Naturally, since it's a dubious study with questionable data and a diffcult to support conclusion, it's all the rage on Fox!
Thursday, May 10, 2007
More on "The Secret"
I covered some of this already, but Slate has an extended write-up today. While the "Secret" seemed like the familiar Oprah-ish do-what-feels-good philosophy, I hadn't fully realized where I had seen this all before until I read this paragrpah:
At this point I should add that The Secret is not only drivel—it's pernicious drivel. The obvious question that arises from its claim that it's easy to get what you want, is: Why do so many people get what they don't want? As Byrne writes, "Imperfect thoughts are the cause of all humanity's ills, including disease, poverty, and unhappiness." Yes, according to The Secret, people don't just randomly end up being massacred, for example. They are in the wrong place because of their own lousy thinking. Cancer patients have long been victims of this school of belief. But The Secret takes it to a new and more repulsive level with its advice not just to blame people for their illness, but to shun them, lest you start being infected by their bummer thoughts, too.
Recognize the idea? It comes from the only world religion that has it's head so far up it's ass that it doesn't beleive in matter.
Yup, it's Christ Science (with less Christ and even less Science).
At this point I should add that The Secret is not only drivel—it's pernicious drivel. The obvious question that arises from its claim that it's easy to get what you want, is: Why do so many people get what they don't want? As Byrne writes, "Imperfect thoughts are the cause of all humanity's ills, including disease, poverty, and unhappiness." Yes, according to The Secret, people don't just randomly end up being massacred, for example. They are in the wrong place because of their own lousy thinking. Cancer patients have long been victims of this school of belief. But The Secret takes it to a new and more repulsive level with its advice not just to blame people for their illness, but to shun them, lest you start being infected by their bummer thoughts, too.
Recognize the idea? It comes from the only world religion that has it's head so far up it's ass that it doesn't beleive in matter.
Yup, it's Christ Science (with less Christ and even less Science).
Saturday, May 05, 2007
Liberals Defend 2nd Amendment, Defeat Gun Control Laws
no, really!
If only as a matter of consistency, Professor Levinson continued, liberals who favor expansive interpretations of other amendments in the Bill of Rights, like those protecting free speech and the rights of criminal defendants, should also embrace a broad reading of the Second Amendment. And just as the First Amendment’s protection of the right to free speech is not absolute, the professors say, the Second Amendment’s protection of the right to keep and bear arms may be limited by the government, though only for good reason.
I have to admit, my own awakening to the 2nd amendment came a little late. While never a fan of arbitrary gun laws, I sort of came to full understanding it after reading the Federalist Papers (Fed 8, I think). I believe that guns should be regulated exactly like other potentially deadly items are, i.e. a lot like prescription drugs, with proper training, they can be handled safely and responsibly. (In the spirit of full disclosure, I have to cop to both rifle training and a membership (now lapsed) in the NRA). Like abortion, I think the problem is at the boundaries and how they are set. I certainly see a right to own a gun, but I’m also pretty sure folks don’t have a right to a nuke. Where, between those poles, do the limits lie? I don’t know but I think that’s the debate our society is now having.
Oddly, I have a hugely better chance to build a working nuke than a working gun. Phrased another way, if I had to build them both, I am fairly certain the nuke would work, offering me a pain-free death. The gun, on the other hand, I would be terrified to try, as it’s as likely to blow my face off as hit anything.
Weird.
If only as a matter of consistency, Professor Levinson continued, liberals who favor expansive interpretations of other amendments in the Bill of Rights, like those protecting free speech and the rights of criminal defendants, should also embrace a broad reading of the Second Amendment. And just as the First Amendment’s protection of the right to free speech is not absolute, the professors say, the Second Amendment’s protection of the right to keep and bear arms may be limited by the government, though only for good reason.
I have to admit, my own awakening to the 2nd amendment came a little late. While never a fan of arbitrary gun laws, I sort of came to full understanding it after reading the Federalist Papers (Fed 8, I think). I believe that guns should be regulated exactly like other potentially deadly items are, i.e. a lot like prescription drugs, with proper training, they can be handled safely and responsibly. (In the spirit of full disclosure, I have to cop to both rifle training and a membership (now lapsed) in the NRA). Like abortion, I think the problem is at the boundaries and how they are set. I certainly see a right to own a gun, but I’m also pretty sure folks don’t have a right to a nuke. Where, between those poles, do the limits lie? I don’t know but I think that’s the debate our society is now having.
Oddly, I have a hugely better chance to build a working nuke than a working gun. Phrased another way, if I had to build them both, I am fairly certain the nuke would work, offering me a pain-free death. The gun, on the other hand, I would be terrified to try, as it’s as likely to blow my face off as hit anything.
Weird.
Friday, May 04, 2007
Thursday, May 03, 2007
Blingdexes
A note on the current bifurcation of the economy:
Warning: Horrifying attempts to hip up these indices comes from God knows where (iBankers? PR flacks?), leading to a word that leaves aghast readers in its awful wake: "blingdexes"
~~~
"Still, the new crop of "blingdexes" offer further proof the wealthy are increasingly creating their own consumer economy. The number of millionaire households in the U.S. has more than doubled since 1995, according to the Federal Reserve. The total wealth held by the nation's richest 1% has increased more than 50% since 1998, to $16.7 trillion in 2004, the latest period measured by the Fed."
Interesting stuff.
~~~
NOTE TO MIDDLE-AGED WHITE PEOPLE, ESPECIALLY BANKERS, INDEXORS, PR FLACKS AND MEDIA STILL USING THE WORD "BLING": Stop. Right now. For your own sakes. It does not make you look hip if you use hip-hop, urban, or black expressions -- most especially those that are circa 1998. Please stop it immediately. All it does is reveal you to be a clueless middle-aged white guy.
The term Bling long ago jumped the shark. And because I am a middle-aged white person, I was more than a year late in making that observation -- over two years ago. (See RIP Bling-bling for more details).
here
I love it when brokers get jiggy with it! It's the ... shiznuts!
Word homes!
Warning: Horrifying attempts to hip up these indices comes from God knows where (iBankers? PR flacks?), leading to a word that leaves aghast readers in its awful wake: "blingdexes"
~~~
"Still, the new crop of "blingdexes" offer further proof the wealthy are increasingly creating their own consumer economy. The number of millionaire households in the U.S. has more than doubled since 1995, according to the Federal Reserve. The total wealth held by the nation's richest 1% has increased more than 50% since 1998, to $16.7 trillion in 2004, the latest period measured by the Fed."
Interesting stuff.
~~~
NOTE TO MIDDLE-AGED WHITE PEOPLE, ESPECIALLY BANKERS, INDEXORS, PR FLACKS AND MEDIA STILL USING THE WORD "BLING": Stop. Right now. For your own sakes. It does not make you look hip if you use hip-hop, urban, or black expressions -- most especially those that are circa 1998. Please stop it immediately. All it does is reveal you to be a clueless middle-aged white guy.
The term Bling long ago jumped the shark. And because I am a middle-aged white person, I was more than a year late in making that observation -- over two years ago. (See RIP Bling-bling for more details).
here
I love it when brokers get jiggy with it! It's the ... shiznuts!
Word homes!
Army Training, Sir!
A note from my son this morning with photos:
Here are some pics of me getting the SMI Leadership Award at ourAwards Ceremony. The man presenting is my CO, LTC Flood. The award wasgiven to one Sophomore and one Junior who demonstrated the biggestimprovement in leadership in the past year, instead of a ribbon or somethingthey gave me and the other guy a very nice eagle statue with our names onit. Since I was a new Cadet and now am going to be the third highestranking Cadet in our leadership, they said that was big a big enoughimprovement and gave it to me. Don't be upset that you weren't invited, theceremony was at 6am and lasted about an hour, no one's parents showed up...
http://www.pages.drexel.edu/~gch23/ceremony1.jpg
http://www.pages.drexel.edu/~gch23/ceremony2.jpg
http://www.pages.drexel.edu/~gch23/ceremony3.jpg
http://www.pages.drexel.edu/~gch23/ceremony4.jpg
Here are some pics of me getting the SMI Leadership Award at ourAwards Ceremony. The man presenting is my CO, LTC Flood. The award wasgiven to one Sophomore and one Junior who demonstrated the biggestimprovement in leadership in the past year, instead of a ribbon or somethingthey gave me and the other guy a very nice eagle statue with our names onit. Since I was a new Cadet and now am going to be the third highestranking Cadet in our leadership, they said that was big a big enoughimprovement and gave it to me. Don't be upset that you weren't invited, theceremony was at 6am and lasted about an hour, no one's parents showed up...
http://www.pages.drexel.edu/~gch23/ceremony1.jpg
http://www.pages.drexel.edu/~gch23/ceremony2.jpg
http://www.pages.drexel.edu/~gch23/ceremony3.jpg
http://www.pages.drexel.edu/~gch23/ceremony4.jpg
Wednesday, May 02, 2007
Tuesday, May 01, 2007
Predictions for 2001 from 1901
Surprisingly accurate given the time frame. If one is very slightly generous in their interpretation of the descriptions, there is better than an 80% accuracy rate. The just missed on the bit about giant fruits...
and the pneumatic tubes...
and the killer Walrus invasion...
here
and the pneumatic tubes...
and the killer Walrus invasion...
here
Day by Day
I've read it occasionally and failed to see what the fuss is about. This critique however is excellent:
If Chris Muir drew Charles Schulz's Peanuts, for example, he wouldn't have bothered drawing a panel showing Lucy pulling the football away at the last minute when Charlie Brown tries to kick it. That would be too Old School for him. Instead, Muir would just have Lucy say, "Democrats always pull the football away at the last minute when you are trying to kick it, Charlie Brown." Lucy and Charlie Brown would also probably be in their underwear.
The rest of the post is about some conservatives giving themselves permission to use "blackface" in their criticism of Hillary. If a liberal did this, the talking heads would be swarming on them.
If Chris Muir drew Charles Schulz's Peanuts, for example, he wouldn't have bothered drawing a panel showing Lucy pulling the football away at the last minute when Charlie Brown tries to kick it. That would be too Old School for him. Instead, Muir would just have Lucy say, "Democrats always pull the football away at the last minute when you are trying to kick it, Charlie Brown." Lucy and Charlie Brown would also probably be in their underwear.
The rest of the post is about some conservatives giving themselves permission to use "blackface" in their criticism of Hillary. If a liberal did this, the talking heads would be swarming on them.
Monday, April 30, 2007
Product Placement
PZ entones:
And really, my initial impression that here was a device that would allow women to fire debilitating high voltage sparks out of their nether regions did get me a little bit excited, so you can't blame me for mentioning it.
here
And really, my initial impression that here was a device that would allow women to fire debilitating high voltage sparks out of their nether regions did get me a little bit excited, so you can't blame me for mentioning it.
here
A Very Distrubing Result
"Reality" may not exist when no one is looking at it.
They found that, just as in the realizations of Bell's thought experiment, Leggett's inequality is violated – thus stressing the quantum-mechanical assertion that reality does not exist when we're not observing it. "Our study shows that 'just' giving up the concept of locality would not be enough to obtain a more complete description of quantum mechanics," Aspelmeyer told Physics Web. "You would also have to give up certain intuitive features of realism."
Alan Aspect has been working on this for a decade and a half, in part to build an instantaneous communication device. This observations could have some odd and weird effects.
I imagine folks who are more religious and less grounded in math are already warming up their word processors to talk about how this proves the existance of god...
They found that, just as in the realizations of Bell's thought experiment, Leggett's inequality is violated – thus stressing the quantum-mechanical assertion that reality does not exist when we're not observing it. "Our study shows that 'just' giving up the concept of locality would not be enough to obtain a more complete description of quantum mechanics," Aspelmeyer told Physics Web. "You would also have to give up certain intuitive features of realism."
Alan Aspect has been working on this for a decade and a half, in part to build an instantaneous communication device. This observations could have some odd and weird effects.
I imagine folks who are more religious and less grounded in math are already warming up their word processors to talk about how this proves the existance of god...
Is the Global Economy in a Bubble?
Some interesting observations and thought:
1. Global fundamental economic conditions are nearly perfect and have been for some time.
2. Availability of global credit is generous and cheap and has been for some time.
3. Animal spirits and optimism are therefore high and feed on themselves through reinforcing results and through being universally shared.
4. All global assets reflect this and are overpriced and show, probably for the first time, a negative return to risk taking.
5. The correlation in global economic fundamentals is at a new high, reflected in the steadily increasing correlation in asset price movements.
6. Global credit is more extended and more complicated than ever before so that no one is sure where all the increased risk has ended up.
7. Every bubble has always burst.
8. The bursting of the bubble will be across all countries and all assets, with the probable exception of high grade bonds. Risk premiums in particular will widen.
9. Naturally the Fed and Fed equivalents overseas will move to contain the economic damage as the Fed did last time after the 2000 break. But the heart of thelast bubble, the NASDAQ and internet stocks, still declined by almost 80% and 90%, respectively.
10. What is wrong with this logic? Something I hope.
11. Of course the tricky bit, as always, is timing. Most bubbles, like internet stocks and Japanese land, go through an exponential phase before breaking, usually short in time but dramatic in extent. My colleagues suggest that this global bubble has not yet had this phase and perhaps they are right.
I'm not sure I agree with each step, and the global market is a lot of more complicated than Japanese Land market. Still there is a lot to be said for going short.
1. Global fundamental economic conditions are nearly perfect and have been for some time.
2. Availability of global credit is generous and cheap and has been for some time.
3. Animal spirits and optimism are therefore high and feed on themselves through reinforcing results and through being universally shared.
4. All global assets reflect this and are overpriced and show, probably for the first time, a negative return to risk taking.
5. The correlation in global economic fundamentals is at a new high, reflected in the steadily increasing correlation in asset price movements.
6. Global credit is more extended and more complicated than ever before so that no one is sure where all the increased risk has ended up.
7. Every bubble has always burst.
8. The bursting of the bubble will be across all countries and all assets, with the probable exception of high grade bonds. Risk premiums in particular will widen.
9. Naturally the Fed and Fed equivalents overseas will move to contain the economic damage as the Fed did last time after the 2000 break. But the heart of thelast bubble, the NASDAQ and internet stocks, still declined by almost 80% and 90%, respectively.
10. What is wrong with this logic? Something I hope.
11. Of course the tricky bit, as always, is timing. Most bubbles, like internet stocks and Japanese land, go through an exponential phase before breaking, usually short in time but dramatic in extent. My colleagues suggest that this global bubble has not yet had this phase and perhaps they are right.
I'm not sure I agree with each step, and the global market is a lot of more complicated than Japanese Land market. Still there is a lot to be said for going short.
Sunday, April 29, 2007
Creationist Builds Noah's Ark
Cool!
Of course, it's only a replica of the biblical Ark, built by Dutch creationist Johan Huibers as a testament to his faith in the literal truth of the Bible. Reckoning by the old biblical measurements, Johan's fully functional ark is 150 cubits long, 30 cubits high and 20 cubits wide. That's two-thirds the length of a football field and as high as a three-story house. Life-size models of giraffes, elephants, lions, crocodiles, zebras, bison and other animals greet visitors as they arrive in the main hold. "The design is by my wife, Bianca," Huibers said. "She didn't really want me to do this at all, but she said if you're going to anyway, it should look like this." A contractor by trade, Huibers built the ark of cedar and pine - biblical scholars debate exactly what the wood used by Noah would have been. Huibers did the work mostly with his own hands, using modern tools and occasional help from his son Roy. Construction began in May 2005.
I encourgae biblical literalists to do things like this and always happy when they do. Why? It points out how unlikely this actually is. Sure the true believers will crow over it, I dont care about them. Reasonable people though look at this and cant help but compare it with their everyday experience at, say, the zoo. Trying to fit an entire zoo into a structure that size starts to seem a little silly, especially when you factor food and zebra shit into the equation.
Personally, I would head straight for the dinosaur compartment.
Of course, it's only a replica of the biblical Ark, built by Dutch creationist Johan Huibers as a testament to his faith in the literal truth of the Bible. Reckoning by the old biblical measurements, Johan's fully functional ark is 150 cubits long, 30 cubits high and 20 cubits wide. That's two-thirds the length of a football field and as high as a three-story house. Life-size models of giraffes, elephants, lions, crocodiles, zebras, bison and other animals greet visitors as they arrive in the main hold. "The design is by my wife, Bianca," Huibers said. "She didn't really want me to do this at all, but she said if you're going to anyway, it should look like this." A contractor by trade, Huibers built the ark of cedar and pine - biblical scholars debate exactly what the wood used by Noah would have been. Huibers did the work mostly with his own hands, using modern tools and occasional help from his son Roy. Construction began in May 2005.
I encourgae biblical literalists to do things like this and always happy when they do. Why? It points out how unlikely this actually is. Sure the true believers will crow over it, I dont care about them. Reasonable people though look at this and cant help but compare it with their everyday experience at, say, the zoo. Trying to fit an entire zoo into a structure that size starts to seem a little silly, especially when you factor food and zebra shit into the equation.
Personally, I would head straight for the dinosaur compartment.
For Whom the Bell Curve Tolls
I was catching up on Dr. Nick's blog and ran across a posting from TJIC that he links to about the subject of race and IQ. I've long known that TJIC's opinions were pretty far to the right on this subject, but wow. Read the post here.
To be honest I was pretty shocked.
We all have a tendency to read books and articles which confirm our inner biases and self-image, espeically when that self-image sets us apart from the rest of the population. That's understandable. OTOH, this is a question of science, and science, when it's done correctly, is a model of an objective reality. After the inital shock of reading TJIC's post I had to think through the question, "Shocking, but is it true?" I had read the Bell Curve when it came out and as some of you know, I spent a lot of time in college training as a teacher to work with gifted kids. I ultimately chose not to follow that career, but it involved a lot of training around human intelligence, it's measurement and it's manifestation. Also, as some readers know, I had a full bore neuropsych evaluation last year, so my own inteligence has been measure as best as can be done with current technology and some of the results surprised me (and the testers). Given this, after a few hours of thinking, I came to the conclusion that the Bell Curve, even after almost 15 years, is still a bad piece of science. Here's why:
There are a bunch of cumulative assumptions the authors of the Bell Curve (Herrnstein and Murray) make which lead to their results, any one of which if not true results collapses their hypothesis:
Intelligence may be depicted as a single number. This is based on Spearman's hypothesis that "g", a measure of general intelligence that synthesizes multiple aspects of exists and is dominant. While a useful concept, psychometrics moved way beyond the concept of g in the 80s (early critiques of this date back to the '30s). Howard Gardner and Bob Sternberg both have proposed different, measurable models of multiple intelligences (Sternbergs theory is actually very useful from a practical point of view). The use of multiple tests to catalog mental processing in different areas is pretty well established at this point in time, and is certainly the norm moving forward. Online IQ tests are fun and sometimes (if you score well) can make you feel good about yourself, but they really don't have a lot of value as a tool of science. The Bell Curve is based almost exclusively on the approach that g is the central measure of intelligence and is reflective of a more complicated reality. It is however, too simple a measure for them to deconvolve their entire theory. Kind of like judging your entire physical health based on your bowling score. Bowling requires coordination, speed, strength, good vision, fast reflexes and mental discipline, all factors measured in physical exam. It is reflective of those aspects, but loses a lot of information in the integration. A better, more accurate approach would involve designing an intelligence test which controlled for multiple environmental and cognitive module biases. However, that would be work and the authors of the Bell Curve are economists, not psychometricians. Simply put, a single number IQ score is too coarse a measure on which to base these kinds of sweeping conclusions.
Intelligence is primarily genetic. While there is absolutely a genetic component to intelligence, the degree to which your potential intelligence as dictated by your genes' control of your brain structure is translated into your functional intelligence which you use every day is determined by lots of factors in your environment many of which no one has any control over. To draw the conclusions Herrnstein and Murray have come to, i.e. that one group of people has a overall lower genetic potential for intelligence than another, they would have to de-convolve all the relevent environmental factors. They don't do this, in part because no one could do this with the data they are using. One possible explanation for the Flynn Effect is the improving environmental and educational environment is allowing people to realize more of their genetic potential (another is that improved access to education is making a larger number of people better readers and they are doing better with the cultural bias of the test).
Intelligence is a fixed, unchangable value after a certain age. I don't even know where to begin. The general effect of the physical environment (disease, pollution, trauma, etc.) is to lower functional intelligence over time for populations exposed to these hazards. In the absence of external factors, IQ scores do tend to be stable, however the Herrnstein and Murray do not control for these factors to any significant degree in their data. I think that have cooked into the data the very effect they are looking for.
Testing Bias. A lot of the data they use is old, and while they attempt to correct somewhat for this, it's lipstick on a pig. I dont think you can meaningfully compare data in the 60s with data from the 80s. The tests are different, built with different assumptions and testing for different effects. It's simply not possible to integrate results in the way they do, not without adding apples and oranges.
Correlation and Causation: All that said, there is one more beef I have with the Bell Curve, at least as work of science, they bury the regression analysis in the back of their book. Their entire premise is based on an R2 value of 0.4. While interesting statistically, no one in a physical science would publish a result like that, much less base a public policy on it. Further, that is their *best* result. Read Appendix 4 of their book, then read this analysis.
Race: Finally, they define a "race" fairly loosely. Their functional definition is, basically, dark people with lots of ancestors from Africa. Unfortunately for them, modern genetics doesn't actually bear out on this, although it turns out there *are* distinct races within the human family. It's a very complex (and very interesting) subject, but again the Bell Curve simply integrates over this complexity. For a researcher to really support the Bell Curve's conclusions, they would need to deconvolve intelligence scores along genetically important racial lines. Obviously this was not possible to do in 1994, so I don't fault the authors, however in science all conclusions are tenative and need to be re-evaluated in the light of new evidence and new models. Depending on the Bell Curve's definition of race too much is unsupportable at this late date.
And that's why I disagree with the Bell Curve. :)
To be honest I was pretty shocked.
We all have a tendency to read books and articles which confirm our inner biases and self-image, espeically when that self-image sets us apart from the rest of the population. That's understandable. OTOH, this is a question of science, and science, when it's done correctly, is a model of an objective reality. After the inital shock of reading TJIC's post I had to think through the question, "Shocking, but is it true?" I had read the Bell Curve when it came out and as some of you know, I spent a lot of time in college training as a teacher to work with gifted kids. I ultimately chose not to follow that career, but it involved a lot of training around human intelligence, it's measurement and it's manifestation. Also, as some readers know, I had a full bore neuropsych evaluation last year, so my own inteligence has been measure as best as can be done with current technology and some of the results surprised me (and the testers). Given this, after a few hours of thinking, I came to the conclusion that the Bell Curve, even after almost 15 years, is still a bad piece of science. Here's why:
There are a bunch of cumulative assumptions the authors of the Bell Curve (Herrnstein and Murray) make which lead to their results, any one of which if not true results collapses their hypothesis:
Intelligence may be depicted as a single number. This is based on Spearman's hypothesis that "g", a measure of general intelligence that synthesizes multiple aspects of exists and is dominant. While a useful concept, psychometrics moved way beyond the concept of g in the 80s (early critiques of this date back to the '30s). Howard Gardner and Bob Sternberg both have proposed different, measurable models of multiple intelligences (Sternbergs theory is actually very useful from a practical point of view). The use of multiple tests to catalog mental processing in different areas is pretty well established at this point in time, and is certainly the norm moving forward. Online IQ tests are fun and sometimes (if you score well) can make you feel good about yourself, but they really don't have a lot of value as a tool of science. The Bell Curve is based almost exclusively on the approach that g is the central measure of intelligence and is reflective of a more complicated reality. It is however, too simple a measure for them to deconvolve their entire theory. Kind of like judging your entire physical health based on your bowling score. Bowling requires coordination, speed, strength, good vision, fast reflexes and mental discipline, all factors measured in physical exam. It is reflective of those aspects, but loses a lot of information in the integration. A better, more accurate approach would involve designing an intelligence test which controlled for multiple environmental and cognitive module biases. However, that would be work and the authors of the Bell Curve are economists, not psychometricians. Simply put, a single number IQ score is too coarse a measure on which to base these kinds of sweeping conclusions.
Intelligence is primarily genetic. While there is absolutely a genetic component to intelligence, the degree to which your potential intelligence as dictated by your genes' control of your brain structure is translated into your functional intelligence which you use every day is determined by lots of factors in your environment many of which no one has any control over. To draw the conclusions Herrnstein and Murray have come to, i.e. that one group of people has a overall lower genetic potential for intelligence than another, they would have to de-convolve all the relevent environmental factors. They don't do this, in part because no one could do this with the data they are using. One possible explanation for the Flynn Effect is the improving environmental and educational environment is allowing people to realize more of their genetic potential (another is that improved access to education is making a larger number of people better readers and they are doing better with the cultural bias of the test).
Intelligence is a fixed, unchangable value after a certain age. I don't even know where to begin. The general effect of the physical environment (disease, pollution, trauma, etc.) is to lower functional intelligence over time for populations exposed to these hazards. In the absence of external factors, IQ scores do tend to be stable, however the Herrnstein and Murray do not control for these factors to any significant degree in their data. I think that have cooked into the data the very effect they are looking for.
Testing Bias. A lot of the data they use is old, and while they attempt to correct somewhat for this, it's lipstick on a pig. I dont think you can meaningfully compare data in the 60s with data from the 80s. The tests are different, built with different assumptions and testing for different effects. It's simply not possible to integrate results in the way they do, not without adding apples and oranges.
Correlation and Causation: All that said, there is one more beef I have with the Bell Curve, at least as work of science, they bury the regression analysis in the back of their book. Their entire premise is based on an R2 value of 0.4. While interesting statistically, no one in a physical science would publish a result like that, much less base a public policy on it. Further, that is their *best* result. Read Appendix 4 of their book, then read this analysis.
Race: Finally, they define a "race" fairly loosely. Their functional definition is, basically, dark people with lots of ancestors from Africa. Unfortunately for them, modern genetics doesn't actually bear out on this, although it turns out there *are* distinct races within the human family. It's a very complex (and very interesting) subject, but again the Bell Curve simply integrates over this complexity. For a researcher to really support the Bell Curve's conclusions, they would need to deconvolve intelligence scores along genetically important racial lines. Obviously this was not possible to do in 1994, so I don't fault the authors, however in science all conclusions are tenative and need to be re-evaluated in the light of new evidence and new models. Depending on the Bell Curve's definition of race too much is unsupportable at this late date.
And that's why I disagree with the Bell Curve. :)
Friday, April 27, 2007
Well Said on Masculinity
A version of the same advice I've given to my son on many occasions. It didn't occur to me at the time to view it through this lens, but it's quite apt.
The basic good code of a certain brand of masculinity, as opposed to macho, is that you don't pick fights, and that you never tolerate the strong bullying the weak. Bullying, in fact, is seen as a declaration of weakness - if you were strong, you wouldn't be picking fights with weaklings, now would you? And if you were confident, you wouldn't need to prove anything, would you? Certainly you don't back down from a fight - but you don't go looking for it either.
It also summarizes my early, instinctive opposition to war, i.e. we were picking a fight, not finishing one.
The basic good code of a certain brand of masculinity, as opposed to macho, is that you don't pick fights, and that you never tolerate the strong bullying the weak. Bullying, in fact, is seen as a declaration of weakness - if you were strong, you wouldn't be picking fights with weaklings, now would you? And if you were confident, you wouldn't need to prove anything, would you? Certainly you don't back down from a fight - but you don't go looking for it either.
It also summarizes my early, instinctive opposition to war, i.e. we were picking a fight, not finishing one.
You Had me at "Opportunist"
God is not Great
If the followers of the prophet Muhammad hoped to put an end to any future "revelations" after the immaculate conception of the Koran, they reckoned without the founder of what is now one of the world's fastest-growing faiths. And they did not foresee (how could they, mammals as they were?) that the prophet of this ridiculous cult would model himself on theirs. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints—hereafter known as the Mormons—was founded by a gifted opportunist who, despite couching his text in openly plagiarized Christian terms, announced that "I shall be to this generation a new Muhammad" and adopted as his fighting slogan the words, which he thought he had learned from Islam, "Either the Al-Koran or the sword." He was too ignorant to know that if you use the word al you do not need another definite article, but then he did resemble Muhammad in being able only to make a borrowing out of other people's bibles.
If the followers of the prophet Muhammad hoped to put an end to any future "revelations" after the immaculate conception of the Koran, they reckoned without the founder of what is now one of the world's fastest-growing faiths. And they did not foresee (how could they, mammals as they were?) that the prophet of this ridiculous cult would model himself on theirs. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints—hereafter known as the Mormons—was founded by a gifted opportunist who, despite couching his text in openly plagiarized Christian terms, announced that "I shall be to this generation a new Muhammad" and adopted as his fighting slogan the words, which he thought he had learned from Islam, "Either the Al-Koran or the sword." He was too ignorant to know that if you use the word al you do not need another definite article, but then he did resemble Muhammad in being able only to make a borrowing out of other people's bibles.
Better Dead than Red
From Cryptogram:
Announcing: Second Annual Movie-Plot Threat Contest
The first Movie-Plot Threat Contest asked you to invent a horrific and completely ridiculous, but plausible, terrorist plot. All the entries were worth reading, but Tom Grant won with his idea to crash an explosive-filled plane into the Grand Coulee Dam.
This year the contest is a little different. We all know that a good plot to blow up an airplane will cause the banning, or at least screening, of something innocuous. If you stop and think about it, it's a stupid response. We screened for guns and bombs, so the terrorists used box cutters. We took away box cutters and small knives, so they hid explosives in their shoes. We started screening shoes, so they planned to use liquids. We now confiscate liquids (even though experts agree the plot was implausible)...and they're going to do something else. We can't win this game, so why are we playing?
Well, we are playing. And now you can, too. Your goal: invent a terrorist plot to hijack or blow up an airplane with a commonly carried item as a key component. The component should be so critical to the plot that the TSA will have no choice but to ban the item once the plot is uncovered. I want to see a plot horrific and ridiculous, but just plausible enough to take seriously.
I spent an inordinate amount of time in security lines, usually 2 a week but sometimes more. It irks me to no end to watch people give up their small amounts of hair jell, baby formula and toothpaste for no constructive purpose what-so-ever. While waiting, I have often wondered what the TSA could try to ban that would clearly be ridiculous and would point out to everyone just how foolish the banning business is.
I decided on the color Red.
I think I have worked out a way that the color Red could be critical to hijacking plot so that the TSA would no longer allow red objects though security. No red soda cans, no red lipstick, no red childrens' toys, no red sneakers, maybe even no red hair. I think it would take something of that catastrophically stupidity to wake folks up to the security theatre of the TSA. I'm going to winkle out the last details and enter Bruce's contest. Obviously I'll post here too
Announcing: Second Annual Movie-Plot Threat Contest
The first Movie-Plot Threat Contest asked you to invent a horrific and completely ridiculous, but plausible, terrorist plot. All the entries were worth reading, but Tom Grant won with his idea to crash an explosive-filled plane into the Grand Coulee Dam.
This year the contest is a little different. We all know that a good plot to blow up an airplane will cause the banning, or at least screening, of something innocuous. If you stop and think about it, it's a stupid response. We screened for guns and bombs, so the terrorists used box cutters. We took away box cutters and small knives, so they hid explosives in their shoes. We started screening shoes, so they planned to use liquids. We now confiscate liquids (even though experts agree the plot was implausible)...and they're going to do something else. We can't win this game, so why are we playing?
Well, we are playing. And now you can, too. Your goal: invent a terrorist plot to hijack or blow up an airplane with a commonly carried item as a key component. The component should be so critical to the plot that the TSA will have no choice but to ban the item once the plot is uncovered. I want to see a plot horrific and ridiculous, but just plausible enough to take seriously.
I spent an inordinate amount of time in security lines, usually 2 a week but sometimes more. It irks me to no end to watch people give up their small amounts of hair jell, baby formula and toothpaste for no constructive purpose what-so-ever. While waiting, I have often wondered what the TSA could try to ban that would clearly be ridiculous and would point out to everyone just how foolish the banning business is.
I decided on the color Red.
I think I have worked out a way that the color Red could be critical to hijacking plot so that the TSA would no longer allow red objects though security. No red soda cans, no red lipstick, no red childrens' toys, no red sneakers, maybe even no red hair. I think it would take something of that catastrophically stupidity to wake folks up to the security theatre of the TSA. I'm going to winkle out the last details and enter Bruce's contest. Obviously I'll post here too
Thursday, April 26, 2007
Open Mouth, Insert ... garlic?
I was talking to a colleague a few motnhs ago about the various, unusual foods I have eaten in my travel career and how, oddly, I have taken a liking to some of the spicy ones, kimchi being a prime example. This is odd becuase I don't really care for spicy Tex-Mex food, but like a lot og garlic and exotic spice.
"You know, I bet you would like pickled garlic", he said.
"!!! They make that?"
"Hahaha, oh yes! I'll bring you some"
Today, on my desk when I came back from Vegas, I found a jar of Mother's Garlic Pickle (South Indian Style) with a note reading, "Hot Style! Go Easy on this!!!"
Time to put up or shut up....
"You know, I bet you would like pickled garlic", he said.
"!!! They make that?"
"Hahaha, oh yes! I'll bring you some"
Today, on my desk when I came back from Vegas, I found a jar of Mother's Garlic Pickle (South Indian Style) with a note reading, "Hot Style! Go Easy on this!!!"
Time to put up or shut up....
Book-Learned Liberals Destroy the World
Damned elites with their book-learning! They're the ones causing global warming....
As you know, Daylight Saving Time started almost a month early this year. You would think that members of Congress would have considered the warming effect that an extra hour of daylight would have on our climate. Or did they?
Perhaps this is another plot by a liberal Congress to make us believe that global warming is a real threat. Perhaps next time there should be serious studies performed before Congress passes laws with such far-reaching effects.
From PZ (with some skepticism)
As you know, Daylight Saving Time started almost a month early this year. You would think that members of Congress would have considered the warming effect that an extra hour of daylight would have on our climate. Or did they?
Perhaps this is another plot by a liberal Congress to make us believe that global warming is a real threat. Perhaps next time there should be serious studies performed before Congress passes laws with such far-reaching effects.
From PZ (with some skepticism)
Wednesday, April 25, 2007
The Aladdin Hotel
I'm currently in Las Vegas, giving a security speech at Computer Associates World. When I booked the trip, I decided to stay at the Aladdin Hotel. It's one of the new mega-properties that have gone up in the last few years, so it;s built arcology style, i.e. it's a self-contained hotel/mall/entertainment complex. These things cost about $5B to build, and I've been making it a habit to staying in as many as I can before the bubble breaks.
I noticed something odd on the way in... the cabbie took me to the Planet Hollywood arco, not the Aladdin arco. The PH arco seemed odd. Clearly finished, the entire outside of the complex was an shambles of recladding and brickface... this isn't right...
"I'm sorry", I said, "I wanted to go to the Aladdin"
"This is it!"
"Really? I hadn't realized they changed the name. When I booked it said Aladdin"
"Oh, they changed it and ... re-educating? it."
So I asked at the front desk...
"Why did you change the name?"
"Well, we didn't think it was very good business to be catering to .... that crowd... with the war and all"
that crowd? Yes, I am sure all middle eastern terrorists heading to Las-Fucking-Vegas, would stay at the Aladdin hotel, to remind them of the comforts of home... Clearly all things middle eastern are now verboden. They are attempting to remove every single scrap of middle eastern myth from the hotel (which, btw, is owned by the multinational Hilton corportation). It looks like a cheap rip-off of Mandaley Bay now, with a crapier mall.
utter foolishness.
One wonders what the hotel's fortune would have been if everything in Iraq had worked out.
I noticed something odd on the way in... the cabbie took me to the Planet Hollywood arco, not the Aladdin arco. The PH arco seemed odd. Clearly finished, the entire outside of the complex was an shambles of recladding and brickface... this isn't right...
"I'm sorry", I said, "I wanted to go to the Aladdin"
"This is it!"
"Really? I hadn't realized they changed the name. When I booked it said Aladdin"
"Oh, they changed it and ... re-educating? it."
So I asked at the front desk...
"Why did you change the name?"
"Well, we didn't think it was very good business to be catering to .... that crowd... with the war and all"
that crowd? Yes, I am sure all middle eastern terrorists heading to Las-Fucking-Vegas, would stay at the Aladdin hotel, to remind them of the comforts of home... Clearly all things middle eastern are now verboden. They are attempting to remove every single scrap of middle eastern myth from the hotel (which, btw, is owned by the multinational Hilton corportation). It looks like a cheap rip-off of Mandaley Bay now, with a crapier mall.
utter foolishness.
One wonders what the hotel's fortune would have been if everything in Iraq had worked out.
Sunday, April 22, 2007
Friday, April 20, 2007
As I Suspected...
The Strawberry Woman writes in with a quick field report:
The Boston Phoenix has compiled a list of the 100 unsexiest men of 2007, which, yes, it would get yelled at for if it had ranked the other gender. Speaking of which (spoiler alert), No. 1 is Donald Trump, No. 54 is Dr. Phil and No. 80 is Ann Coulter.
My son once thought Ann Coulter was the sexiest woman alive, which I thought was odd because she's older than I am. I found a shot of her from a few years ago, before she was famous and, if you knew it was her, you could tell, otherwise not so much. I sent a link of the photo to Geoff with the question, "Could this drag queen pass as a woman? I think the hands are a give away."
His reposnse, "No Dad, she can't pass"
Then I told him who she was. Problem solved!
Hooray for push polling!
The Boston Phoenix has compiled a list of the 100 unsexiest men of 2007, which, yes, it would get yelled at for if it had ranked the other gender. Speaking of which (spoiler alert), No. 1 is Donald Trump, No. 54 is Dr. Phil and No. 80 is Ann Coulter.
My son once thought Ann Coulter was the sexiest woman alive, which I thought was odd because she's older than I am. I found a shot of her from a few years ago, before she was famous and, if you knew it was her, you could tell, otherwise not so much. I sent a link of the photo to Geoff with the question, "Could this drag queen pass as a woman? I think the hands are a give away."
His reposnse, "No Dad, she can't pass"
Then I told him who she was. Problem solved!
Hooray for push polling!
Thursday, April 19, 2007
Poorly Constructed Logic
While I have no strong feelings on the second Amendment (I support sensible gun control regulations in the same way I support sensible prescription drug regulations, both help make society a better place and impove the quality of life without unduely restricting freedoms, when they are done correctly), the torrent of calls for more gun control is illogical. More exactly, it's based on creating a universal rule based on the reasoning derived from a single (or handful of) example(s). This is very poor reasoning.
Salon resurrects the idea of prohibition, but that almost never works except to make the mob wealthy.
Yes it's a tragedy. Thats not a reason to change everything.
Salon resurrects the idea of prohibition, but that almost never works except to make the mob wealthy.
Yes it's a tragedy. Thats not a reason to change everything.
Wednesday, April 18, 2007
Tuesday, April 17, 2007
Monday, April 16, 2007
Moving Closer to a Draft
I have said since shortly after the "Mission Accomplished" sign went up that we need a national draft to get us to focus on the War. This idea has a lot of pluses, not the least of which would be a sense of involvement, sacrifice and participation by the vast majority of the American public. It would also, I think, put some scrutiny on the government's handling of the war.
That said, a friend of mine sent me this today: McCaffrey
Read it, especially past the "Facts" section, it's surprisingly hopeful.
Some Interesting bits:
Waivers in US Army recruiting standards for: moral turpitude, drug use, medical issues, criminal justice records, and non-high school graduation have gone up significantly. We now are enlisting 42 year old first term soldiers*. Our promotion rates for officers and NCOs have skyrocketed to replace departing leaders. There is no longer a national or a theater US Army strategic reserve. (Fortunately, powerful US Naval, Air Force, and nuclear capabilities command huge deterrence credibility.)We are at the “knee of the curve.” Two million+ troops of the smallest active Army force since WWII have served in the war zone. Some active units have served three, four, or even five combat deployments. We are now routinely extending nearly all combat units in both Iraq and Afghanistan. These combat units are being returned to action in some cases with only 7-12 months of stateside time to re-train and re-equip. The current deployment requirement of 20+ brigades to Iraq and 2+ brigades in Afghanistan is not sustainable.We will be forced to call up as many as nine National Guard combat brigades for an involuntary second combat tour this coming year. (Dr Chu at DOD has termed this as “no big deal.”) Many believe that this second round of involuntary call-ups will topple the weakened National Guard structure— which is so central to US domestic security. The National Guard Bureau has argued for a call up of only 12 months instead of 18 months. This misses the point—DOD will without fail be forced to also extend these National Guard brigades in combat at the last minute given the continuation of the current emergency situation.
We are rapidly getting to the point where a Draft is going to be the only option to get this cleaned up, especially if it will take another 36-48 months to do so. When that day comes, the whole game will change. The administration has been selling this as a WW-II-like war, but without the sacrifice (except when it comes to personal liberty). Once we start drafting kids, you're going to see the American public get behind this and get it done, and you're going to see full engagement around what to do with the architects of this fiasco. If you wondered what the "Surge" is really about, it's about stalling the draft until the culprits are out of office.
IMHO
also, I don't want this to get buried, it's critical:
The US Tier One special operations capability is simply magic. They are deadly in getting their target—with normally zero collateral damage—and with minimal friendly losses or injuries. Some of these assault elements have done 200-300 takedown operations at platoon level. The comprehensive intelligence system is phenomenal. We need to re-think how we view these forces. They are a national strategic system akin to a B1 bomber. We need to understand that the required investment level in the creation of these forces demands substantial dedicated UAV systems, intelligence, and communications resources. These special operations formations cannot by themselves win the nation’s wars. However, with them we have a tool of enormous and decisive strategic significance which has crucial importance in the global war on terrorists.
*It's not too late for all you hawks out there to get your pizza-fattened asses over to Iraq and show us what you're made of.
That said, a friend of mine sent me this today: McCaffrey
Read it, especially past the "Facts" section, it's surprisingly hopeful.
Some Interesting bits:
Waivers in US Army recruiting standards for: moral turpitude, drug use, medical issues, criminal justice records, and non-high school graduation have gone up significantly. We now are enlisting 42 year old first term soldiers*. Our promotion rates for officers and NCOs have skyrocketed to replace departing leaders. There is no longer a national or a theater US Army strategic reserve. (Fortunately, powerful US Naval, Air Force, and nuclear capabilities command huge deterrence credibility.)We are at the “knee of the curve.” Two million+ troops of the smallest active Army force since WWII have served in the war zone. Some active units have served three, four, or even five combat deployments. We are now routinely extending nearly all combat units in both Iraq and Afghanistan. These combat units are being returned to action in some cases with only 7-12 months of stateside time to re-train and re-equip. The current deployment requirement of 20+ brigades to Iraq and 2+ brigades in Afghanistan is not sustainable.We will be forced to call up as many as nine National Guard combat brigades for an involuntary second combat tour this coming year. (Dr Chu at DOD has termed this as “no big deal.”) Many believe that this second round of involuntary call-ups will topple the weakened National Guard structure— which is so central to US domestic security. The National Guard Bureau has argued for a call up of only 12 months instead of 18 months. This misses the point—DOD will without fail be forced to also extend these National Guard brigades in combat at the last minute given the continuation of the current emergency situation.
We are rapidly getting to the point where a Draft is going to be the only option to get this cleaned up, especially if it will take another 36-48 months to do so. When that day comes, the whole game will change. The administration has been selling this as a WW-II-like war, but without the sacrifice (except when it comes to personal liberty). Once we start drafting kids, you're going to see the American public get behind this and get it done, and you're going to see full engagement around what to do with the architects of this fiasco. If you wondered what the "Surge" is really about, it's about stalling the draft until the culprits are out of office.
IMHO
also, I don't want this to get buried, it's critical:
The US Tier One special operations capability is simply magic. They are deadly in getting their target—with normally zero collateral damage—and with minimal friendly losses or injuries. Some of these assault elements have done 200-300 takedown operations at platoon level. The comprehensive intelligence system is phenomenal. We need to re-think how we view these forces. They are a national strategic system akin to a B1 bomber. We need to understand that the required investment level in the creation of these forces demands substantial dedicated UAV systems, intelligence, and communications resources. These special operations formations cannot by themselves win the nation’s wars. However, with them we have a tool of enormous and decisive strategic significance which has crucial importance in the global war on terrorists.
*It's not too late for all you hawks out there to get your pizza-fattened asses over to Iraq and show us what you're made of.
Friday, April 13, 2007
The Sun is Green
Literally!
The Sun is a pretty good blackbody at 5500K and, via the Wein Displacement Law, peaks around 5000 Angstroms, just about the color green. This has 2 consequences in your normal life:
1) your eye has evolved to take advantage of this. You are twice as sensitive to green photons as red and are most sensitive to the peak of the Sun's light, well into the green.*
2) its why plants are green.
When I was teaching Astronomy or doing shows at Buhl Planetarium in Pittsburgh, I used to do a show called "Life under Other Stars" exploring this phenomenon and speculating what the world would look like of the Sun were hotter (bluer) or cooler (redder).
I used colored lights and a metric shitload of speculation (not being trained as an astrobiologist).
Here, it's done right!
(via)
*so why doesn't the sun look green? You eye is a fairly narrow band, integration bolometer. While there is a peak in the BB radiation curve at the solar peak, compared to your eye's narrow bandwidth, that peak seems relatively flat, e.g. there are 1000 red photons, 1500 green photons and 1000 blue photons at the peak within your bandwidth (approximately). You eye and brain integrate across the whole bandwidth and make the sun look white.
The Sun is a pretty good blackbody at 5500K and, via the Wein Displacement Law, peaks around 5000 Angstroms, just about the color green. This has 2 consequences in your normal life:
1) your eye has evolved to take advantage of this. You are twice as sensitive to green photons as red and are most sensitive to the peak of the Sun's light, well into the green.*
2) its why plants are green.
When I was teaching Astronomy or doing shows at Buhl Planetarium in Pittsburgh, I used to do a show called "Life under Other Stars" exploring this phenomenon and speculating what the world would look like of the Sun were hotter (bluer) or cooler (redder).
I used colored lights and a metric shitload of speculation (not being trained as an astrobiologist).
Here, it's done right!
(via)
*so why doesn't the sun look green? You eye is a fairly narrow band, integration bolometer. While there is a peak in the BB radiation curve at the solar peak, compared to your eye's narrow bandwidth, that peak seems relatively flat, e.g. there are 1000 red photons, 1500 green photons and 1000 blue photons at the peak within your bandwidth (approximately). You eye and brain integrate across the whole bandwidth and make the sun look white.
Czars
It is reasonable to say that my son has been a solid supporter of the President and is policies, especially as relates to the Ieaq War and the Global War on Terror. That said, the first tiem I have seen him strongly disagree with him was around the War Czar,
"He already has someone to do that, it's the SecDef!"
Slate has a breakdown of other presidental czars and why "that trick never works"
"He already has someone to do that, it's the SecDef!"
Slate has a breakdown of other presidental czars and why "that trick never works"
Thursday, April 12, 2007
I wonder if they get virtual votes too?
From Wonkette:
This picture — by TechPresident writer Ruby Sinreich — pretty much sums up the Second Life political experience: It’s a half-naked furry, obviously, with a very tight John Edwards’ shirt stretched over its engorged cartoon breasts, standing in front of an empty yet luxurious beach cabana, which is obviously the new campaign headquarters for the shiny-haired candidate.
I Just Can't Tell Anymore!
Parody? I thought so at first, but the more I see of it, the more I think they are serious. The message of Jesus in the 21st Century.
So it goes...
Said better than I could say:
We all have a request from Kurt Vonnegut.
I am, incidentally, Honorary President of the American Humanist Association, having succeeded the late, great science fiction writer Isaac Asimov in that totally functionless capacity. We had a memorial service for Isaac a few years back, and I spoke and said at one point, "Isaac is up in heaven now." It was the funniest thing I could have said to an audience of humanists. I rolled them in the aisles. It was several minutes before order could be restored. And if I should ever die, God forbid, I hope you will say, "Kurt is up in heaven now." That's my favorite joke.
Kurt is up in heaven now.
I think it is also only fair to give him Kilgore Trout's epitaph: "We are healthy only to the extent that our ideas are humane."
As many of you know, I have standing instructions for my funeral that anyone speaking in any eulogy-like capacity *MUST* take a hit of helium before speaking. I defy you to be depressed at such an event...
We all have a request from Kurt Vonnegut.
I am, incidentally, Honorary President of the American Humanist Association, having succeeded the late, great science fiction writer Isaac Asimov in that totally functionless capacity. We had a memorial service for Isaac a few years back, and I spoke and said at one point, "Isaac is up in heaven now." It was the funniest thing I could have said to an audience of humanists. I rolled them in the aisles. It was several minutes before order could be restored. And if I should ever die, God forbid, I hope you will say, "Kurt is up in heaven now." That's my favorite joke.
Kurt is up in heaven now.
I think it is also only fair to give him Kilgore Trout's epitaph: "We are healthy only to the extent that our ideas are humane."
As many of you know, I have standing instructions for my funeral that anyone speaking in any eulogy-like capacity *MUST* take a hit of helium before speaking. I defy you to be depressed at such an event...
Wednesday, April 11, 2007
Flame On!
Something guaranteed to generate some controversy, the increasing understanding of the sexual wiring of the human brain.
Such experiments do not show the same clear divide with women. Whether women describe themselves as straight or lesbian, “Their sexual arousal seems to be relatively indiscriminate — they get aroused by both male and female images,” Dr. Bailey said. “I’m not even sure females have a sexual orientation. But they have sexual preferences. Women are very picky, and most choose to have sex with men.”
...
It so happens that an unusually large number of brain-related genes are situated on the X chromosome. The sudden emergence of the X and Y chromosomes in brain function has caught the attention of evolutionary biologists. Since men have only one X chromosome, natural selection can speedily promote any advantageous mutation that arises in one of the X’s genes. So if those picky women should be looking for smartness in prospective male partners, that might explain why so many brain-related genes ended up on the X.
Seems like what we've been hearing for decades might be true, gay men are just born that way.
Such experiments do not show the same clear divide with women. Whether women describe themselves as straight or lesbian, “Their sexual arousal seems to be relatively indiscriminate — they get aroused by both male and female images,” Dr. Bailey said. “I’m not even sure females have a sexual orientation. But they have sexual preferences. Women are very picky, and most choose to have sex with men.”
...
It so happens that an unusually large number of brain-related genes are situated on the X chromosome. The sudden emergence of the X and Y chromosomes in brain function has caught the attention of evolutionary biologists. Since men have only one X chromosome, natural selection can speedily promote any advantageous mutation that arises in one of the X’s genes. So if those picky women should be looking for smartness in prospective male partners, that might explain why so many brain-related genes ended up on the X.
Seems like what we've been hearing for decades might be true, gay men are just born that way.
Maps!
As some of you know, I love maps! Don't know what to get me for my Christmas? Get me a map! Especially an interesting, data rich affair with lots of interesting bits to think about.
PZ has found a site that caters to this and I pronounce it delightful!
PZ has found a site that caters to this and I pronounce it delightful!
Tuesday, April 10, 2007
News You Can Use
This is actually pretty funny, although I'm not sure I *quite* get the tie-dye on the bear. Capital Markets humor at it's finest!
Reincarnation Explained
Guess what? It's explained by brain function! Surprising I know.
here
People who believe they have lived past lives as, say, Indian princesses or battlefield commanders are more likely to make certain types of memory errors, according to a new study.
Subjects were asked to read aloud a list of 40 non-famous names, and then, after a two-hour wait, told that they were going to see a list consisting of three types of names: non-famous names they had already seen (from the earlier list), famous names, and names of non-famous people that they had not previously seen. Their task was to identify which names were famous.
The researchers found that, compared to control subjects who dismissed the idea of reincarnation, past-life believers were almost twice as likely to misidentify names. In particular, their tendency was to wrongly identify as famous the non-famous names they had seen in the first task. This kind of error, called a source-monitoring error, indicates that a person has difficulty recognizing where a memory came from.
Another religious myth bites the dust.
here
People who believe they have lived past lives as, say, Indian princesses or battlefield commanders are more likely to make certain types of memory errors, according to a new study.
Subjects were asked to read aloud a list of 40 non-famous names, and then, after a two-hour wait, told that they were going to see a list consisting of three types of names: non-famous names they had already seen (from the earlier list), famous names, and names of non-famous people that they had not previously seen. Their task was to identify which names were famous.
The researchers found that, compared to control subjects who dismissed the idea of reincarnation, past-life believers were almost twice as likely to misidentify names. In particular, their tendency was to wrongly identify as famous the non-famous names they had seen in the first task. This kind of error, called a source-monitoring error, indicates that a person has difficulty recognizing where a memory came from.
Another religious myth bites the dust.
Because that's what Christmas is all about!
It would be uncivil to use the word bribe, so I will refrain.
Fortunately the gifts that atheism bring keep giving all year round.
Fortunately the gifts that atheism bring keep giving all year round.
Monday, April 09, 2007
The Spanish Prisoner
Interesting run down of the history of the Nigirian EMail Scam.
Some truly terrifying tid-bits:
This swindle is commonly known as "419 fraud," after the section of the Nigerian penal code covering cons. According to the anti-spam software vendor Brightmail, 419 come-ons are the Web's second-most common form of junk mail, ranking behind only those incessant "herbal Viagra" ads. Though most people merely laugh at the pleas' awful grammar and all-caps style ("I WILL LIKE YOU CONTACT MY LAWYER ..."), about 1 percent of recipients actually respond. Of that number, enough people fork over enough cash to sustain an industry that ranks in Nigeria's top five, right up there with palm oil and tin. The U.S. Secret Service has estimated—conservatively, by its own admission—that the scammers net $100 million per year.
...
Although last year only 16 Americans claimed financial losses, totaling $345,000, that's probably a fraction of the full amount. Most victims are too embarrassed by their own stupidity to ever come forward.
16????!!!!???
Some truly terrifying tid-bits:
This swindle is commonly known as "419 fraud," after the section of the Nigerian penal code covering cons. According to the anti-spam software vendor Brightmail, 419 come-ons are the Web's second-most common form of junk mail, ranking behind only those incessant "herbal Viagra" ads. Though most people merely laugh at the pleas' awful grammar and all-caps style ("I WILL LIKE YOU CONTACT MY LAWYER ..."), about 1 percent of recipients actually respond. Of that number, enough people fork over enough cash to sustain an industry that ranks in Nigeria's top five, right up there with palm oil and tin. The U.S. Secret Service has estimated—conservatively, by its own admission—that the scammers net $100 million per year.
...
Although last year only 16 Americans claimed financial losses, totaling $345,000, that's probably a fraction of the full amount. Most victims are too embarrassed by their own stupidity to ever come forward.
16????!!!!???
Sunday, April 08, 2007
Blog Back Up
The blog was down for awhile this afternoon, but it seems like it's back up. Let me know if there is trouble.
Little Known Easter Facts
From Jay!
Had the Gregorian calendar not been introduced in 1582 to correct increasing inaccuracies in the earlier Julian calendar, within a century, Christians would have found themselves in the confusing situation of commemorating Jesus Christ's rebirth on Easter Sunday three days before his death on Good Friday, rather than the other way around. In addition, the fast of Lent would have extended almost year-round, leading to widespread malnutrition, while the holiday of Pentacost would have been bloated into Hexacost.
Had the Gregorian calendar not been introduced in 1582 to correct increasing inaccuracies in the earlier Julian calendar, within a century, Christians would have found themselves in the confusing situation of commemorating Jesus Christ's rebirth on Easter Sunday three days before his death on Good Friday, rather than the other way around. In addition, the fast of Lent would have extended almost year-round, leading to widespread malnutrition, while the holiday of Pentacost would have been bloated into Hexacost.
Friday, April 06, 2007
Sunshades and Global Warming
Could a cloud of two-foot wide sunshades 60,000 miles long save the Earth from a global warming emergency? Roger Angel (Steward Observatory, University of Arizona) has been studying the idea of making the spacecraft out of micron-thick glass weighing one gram per sunshade. That’s the weight of a butterfly for each unit, but we’re talking about trillions of them out at the L1 Lagrangian point, an almost fixed zone in relation to Earth whose mild orbital instability can be overcome by onboard intelligence. Total sunshade mass: 20 million tons.
here
here
the Jesus Nut
Saturn's Hexagon gets a name:
The judges very nearly went for the Jesus Nut, which was suggested by the novelist Christopher Buckley. That’s what soldiers call the hexagonal nut on top of a helicopter that that keeps the main rotor from falling off. According to Wikipedia, the term was coined by soldiers in the Vietnam War who figured that if the nut came loose, you would spend your final seconds praying to the Lord.
The judges very nearly went for the Jesus Nut, which was suggested by the novelist Christopher Buckley. That’s what soldiers call the hexagonal nut on top of a helicopter that that keeps the main rotor from falling off. According to Wikipedia, the term was coined by soldiers in the Vietnam War who figured that if the nut came loose, you would spend your final seconds praying to the Lord.
My Secret: Revealed!
Yes, it's true. I've been deliberately wasting the time of doctors and neurologists the last two years. My real strategy has been revealed!
Meetings I Don't Get Invited to
So I was walking down the hall to get some lunch, glanced into a room where a meeting was gathering and had the following internal conversation:
hmmm thats a big meeting...
... wait! Is that woman showning her naked ass???
It is! ... are her jeans cut away just to show her ass? like that movie with Ryan O'Neal?
... ohhh it's a plastic ass
on the outside of her jeans...
...and it's covered with ... candy?? yes candy!
How come I never get to go to meetings like that?
hmmm thats a big meeting...
... wait! Is that woman showning her naked ass???
It is! ... are her jeans cut away just to show her ass? like that movie with Ryan O'Neal?
... ohhh it's a plastic ass
on the outside of her jeans...
...and it's covered with ... candy?? yes candy!
How come I never get to go to meetings like that?
5 Stages of GOP Grief
Humorous, with a point:
We seem to have discovered a new stage in the traditional Kübler-Ross process:
1. Denial: “The media doesn’t show the good news in Iraq.”
2. Anger: “The treasonous far-left-liberals and their media lapdogs are making us lose in Iraq.”
3. Bargaining: “If we send x-thousand more troops to Iraq, victory will be ours.”
4. Depression: “Did you catch 300 yet? [munch-munch-burp] God, it made me hate liberals even more. [channels flipping] They wouldn’t last a day in ancient Sparta.”
5. Advanced Literary Theory: “The hegemonic binary of ’success’ and ‘failure’ traumatizes the (re)interpretive possibilities of an ethos of jouissance regarding the War in Iraq.”
on point 1, which has been in the comments, I still have trouble with the "unreported Good News" thesis for the following reasons:
"embedded reporters", the practice of putting reporters in with combat units, and having them report from there for months at a time was the Bush Administration's way of getting in front of the news and getting a pro-Administration message out. This has worked very, very well, to the point that the journalists themselves identify more with the troops than with their audience at home. Much of the news, good and bad, is being viewed through this, the Administration’s hand crafted lens. If I were to have to do a bias correction on a piece of news, it would have to be the "other" way. Regardless of bias correction though, I think the administration has a fairly straight channel to the airwaves.
Pat Tillman, Jessica Lynch, and the latest kerfuffle with John McCain's stroll through Baghdad are all telling examples of the Administrations willingness to lie, bold-faced lie, to the American people when they think no one can check on them. Add to this any number of credibility ruining press-releases from the AG, NASA, and the Department of Labor, and I find I simply have to be extremely skeptical of any news from the administration, good or bad. I'm not even suggesting this is a quality solely of the current administration (see my description at the right for my stance on this).
Finally, while it's assumed there is a left-bias in the news, studies generally show this is untrue for news and true in the other direction for analysis and opinion.
I think there are spots of good news, yes. I think we win battles, I think the troops are brave and I think some the Iraqis genuinely want a western style democracy. But I think these are bright stars in a dark sky, and the long term, structural changes required to turn this around are missing. Why is the place still such a shithole after 4 years? This is the question the american people are asking now. If, as they say, it isn't, then I will be happily wrong, I will apologize and I'll even start watching Fox (as they will have been the only news organization to get it right).
But until the country has nationwide power, water and economic niceties like a central bank again, I will continue to be skeptical of "unreported good news" there.
We seem to have discovered a new stage in the traditional Kübler-Ross process:
1. Denial: “The media doesn’t show the good news in Iraq.”
2. Anger: “The treasonous far-left-liberals and their media lapdogs are making us lose in Iraq.”
3. Bargaining: “If we send x-thousand more troops to Iraq, victory will be ours.”
4. Depression: “Did you catch 300 yet? [munch-munch-burp] God, it made me hate liberals even more. [channels flipping] They wouldn’t last a day in ancient Sparta.”
5. Advanced Literary Theory: “The hegemonic binary of ’success’ and ‘failure’ traumatizes the (re)interpretive possibilities of an ethos of jouissance regarding the War in Iraq.”
on point 1, which has been in the comments, I still have trouble with the "unreported Good News" thesis for the following reasons:
"embedded reporters", the practice of putting reporters in with combat units, and having them report from there for months at a time was the Bush Administration's way of getting in front of the news and getting a pro-Administration message out. This has worked very, very well, to the point that the journalists themselves identify more with the troops than with their audience at home. Much of the news, good and bad, is being viewed through this, the Administration’s hand crafted lens. If I were to have to do a bias correction on a piece of news, it would have to be the "other" way. Regardless of bias correction though, I think the administration has a fairly straight channel to the airwaves.
Pat Tillman, Jessica Lynch, and the latest kerfuffle with John McCain's stroll through Baghdad are all telling examples of the Administrations willingness to lie, bold-faced lie, to the American people when they think no one can check on them. Add to this any number of credibility ruining press-releases from the AG, NASA, and the Department of Labor, and I find I simply have to be extremely skeptical of any news from the administration, good or bad. I'm not even suggesting this is a quality solely of the current administration (see my description at the right for my stance on this).
Finally, while it's assumed there is a left-bias in the news, studies generally show this is untrue for news and true in the other direction for analysis and opinion.
I think there are spots of good news, yes. I think we win battles, I think the troops are brave and I think some the Iraqis genuinely want a western style democracy. But I think these are bright stars in a dark sky, and the long term, structural changes required to turn this around are missing. Why is the place still such a shithole after 4 years? This is the question the american people are asking now. If, as they say, it isn't, then I will be happily wrong, I will apologize and I'll even start watching Fox (as they will have been the only news organization to get it right).
But until the country has nationwide power, water and economic niceties like a central bank again, I will continue to be skeptical of "unreported good news" there.
Thursday, April 05, 2007
A Charlie Brown Kwanza
Wow.
I have to say, I would never have thought of this. On the bright side, I'm now all hooked up on my hip-talk refresh of the English language...
I have to say, I would never have thought of this. On the bright side, I'm now all hooked up on my hip-talk refresh of the English language...
Wednesday, April 04, 2007
KITT for Sale
(AP) KITT, the flame-throwing, river-jumping, talking muscle car from the American '80s TV show "Knight Rider" starring David Hasselhoff is up for sale. Restored to its debut-season glory, the modified black 1982 Pontiac Trans Am is offered at $149,995 at a California auto dealership. Johnny "Vette" Verhoek of Kassabian Motors has had the car, officially called Knight Industries Two Thousand, on display for about a month.
via
Not mentioned is the upgrade from KITT's orginal 8088 to Pentium CoreDuo
via
Not mentioned is the upgrade from KITT's orginal 8088 to Pentium CoreDuo
Tuesday, April 03, 2007
Train Sets New French Speed Record
ABOARD TRAIN V150, France (April 3) - A French train with a 25,000-horsepower engine and special wheels broke the world speed record Tuesday for conventional rail trains, reaching 357.2 mph as it zipped through the countryside to the applause of spectators.
the secret? It's powered by fear of the Germans.
the secret? It's powered by fear of the Germans.
Rolling WIth The Big Boys
I had to calculate the amount of revenue pull-through for a stack of products for some Capital Markets solutions I am proposing we build. It's important to the sales teams for them to know how much of their quota they will satisfy by selling the solution, and important to the product teams as they want to make sure that their products are being correctly untilized. E.g. a sale of one product results in 16 Windows server licences, 10 copies of office, 10 copies of MSDN, 16 copies of MOM/SMS etc. As a result, it's a fairly complex calculation with a surprisingly high number of opinionated stakeholders, and I have to do it for 4 products.
Below is the exact email I sent to the person who is in charge of coordinating this exercise:
Took a look at the product pull through and talked a bit with the product teams to get an idea of the pull through. There has been much lively debate about how to count CCE revenue in the taxonomy but that’s really just change compared to everything else. I also looked at how Digipede and some of our other partners count this, but that seems to over count a number of products not listed here and undercounted some of the server revenue.
So I just rolled 3d6+3.
Claw, Claw, Bite FTW!
I finished days ahead of the others :)
Below is the exact email I sent to the person who is in charge of coordinating this exercise:
Took a look at the product pull through and talked a bit with the product teams to get an idea of the pull through. There has been much lively debate about how to count CCE revenue in the taxonomy but that’s really just change compared to everything else. I also looked at how Digipede and some of our other partners count this, but that seems to over count a number of products not listed here and undercounted some of the server revenue.
So I just rolled 3d6+3.
Claw, Claw, Bite FTW!
I finished days ahead of the others :)
Kites and Pakistan
Yeah, the Pakistanis *really* know how to Par-Tey!
"At least 11 people have died and more than 100 injured at an annual kite flying festival in eastern Pakistan…. The deaths and injuries were caused by stray bullets, sharpened kite-strings, electrocution and people falling off rooftops
The festival is regularly marred by casualties caused by sharp kite strings or celebratory gunshots fired into the air…Kite flyers often use strings made of wire or coated with ground glass to try to cross and cut a rival's string or damage the other kite, often after betting on the outcome…. He also said that a 16-year-old girl and a school boy, 12, died after their throats were slashed by metal kite strings in separate incidents.
A 13-year-old boy fell to his death from the roof of his home as he tried to catch a stray kite, and a 35-year-old woman fell off the roof of her home trying to stop her son from running after a stray kite."
The goons , of course, are on the case!
"At least 11 people have died and more than 100 injured at an annual kite flying festival in eastern Pakistan…. The deaths and injuries were caused by stray bullets, sharpened kite-strings, electrocution and people falling off rooftops
The festival is regularly marred by casualties caused by sharp kite strings or celebratory gunshots fired into the air…Kite flyers often use strings made of wire or coated with ground glass to try to cross and cut a rival's string or damage the other kite, often after betting on the outcome…. He also said that a 16-year-old girl and a school boy, 12, died after their throats were slashed by metal kite strings in separate incidents.
A 13-year-old boy fell to his death from the roof of his home as he tried to catch a stray kite, and a 35-year-old woman fell off the roof of her home trying to stop her son from running after a stray kite."
The goons , of course, are on the case!
Maybe It's a Good Thing the 70s are gone after all
Shatner vs. Borgnine!
Key scenes: Early in the film, Shatner challenges Borgnine to an epic faith-off in which Shatner prays to his god and Borgnine worships his satanic majesty. God totally gets served.
Plot: Back in old-timey days, Satanic minister Ernest Borgnine swears vengeance when the wife of his disciple William Shatner rats Borgnine out to the town holy man. Three centuries later, Shatner's descendents are bedeviled by a Borgnine-led cabal of Satan worshippers out to retrieve a book pledging various souls to Satan. Shatner travels to a spooky ghost town to confront Borgnine, but ends up among the hooded, chanting, pentagram-happy damned. Shatner's brother (Tom Skerritt), an ESP expert, investigates his brother's mysterious disappearance by going undercover as one of Satan's minions. He seemingly succeeds in smashing Borgnine's ring of satanic evil, but Borgnine gets the last laugh when he uses his dark powers to possess Skerritt's wife.
Actually, I remember this movie. It was during the whole series of "Omen" rip-offs.
also, somehow I missed this movie in my formative years:
Plot: Mother Goose (played by Hal Smith, a.k.a. Otis from The Andy Griffith Show) gets put on trial for obscenity. When she takes the stand, she says, "I guess I'd better start at the fucking beginning. Um, I mean, 'Once upon a time…'" Then she proceeds to tell the real stories of Jack and the beanstalk, Cinderella, and Little Red Riding Hood, in X-rated detail, aided by a group of Disney animators moonlighting from their day jobs.
Key scenes: The movie shoots most of its figurative load in the first segment, which has a breast-obsessed Jack trading his cow to a flasher in a trenchcoat for a sack of beans, which he later ejaculates on, causing an enormous phallic beanstalk to erupt out of the ground. He climbs the stalk to an erotic fairyland in the clouds, where plates of food have sex with each other while a magic harp plays. Inspired by the music, Jack attempts to get it on with the giant's wife, but when her husband comes home, he has to hide inside her vagina, and avoid the thrusting of the giant's penis. Um… trippy?
Otis played Mother Goose? Holy Dr. Girlfriend!
Key scenes: Early in the film, Shatner challenges Borgnine to an epic faith-off in which Shatner prays to his god and Borgnine worships his satanic majesty. God totally gets served.
Plot: Back in old-timey days, Satanic minister Ernest Borgnine swears vengeance when the wife of his disciple William Shatner rats Borgnine out to the town holy man. Three centuries later, Shatner's descendents are bedeviled by a Borgnine-led cabal of Satan worshippers out to retrieve a book pledging various souls to Satan. Shatner travels to a spooky ghost town to confront Borgnine, but ends up among the hooded, chanting, pentagram-happy damned. Shatner's brother (Tom Skerritt), an ESP expert, investigates his brother's mysterious disappearance by going undercover as one of Satan's minions. He seemingly succeeds in smashing Borgnine's ring of satanic evil, but Borgnine gets the last laugh when he uses his dark powers to possess Skerritt's wife.
Actually, I remember this movie. It was during the whole series of "Omen" rip-offs.
also, somehow I missed this movie in my formative years:
Plot: Mother Goose (played by Hal Smith, a.k.a. Otis from The Andy Griffith Show) gets put on trial for obscenity. When she takes the stand, she says, "I guess I'd better start at the fucking beginning. Um, I mean, 'Once upon a time…'" Then she proceeds to tell the real stories of Jack and the beanstalk, Cinderella, and Little Red Riding Hood, in X-rated detail, aided by a group of Disney animators moonlighting from their day jobs.
Key scenes: The movie shoots most of its figurative load in the first segment, which has a breast-obsessed Jack trading his cow to a flasher in a trenchcoat for a sack of beans, which he later ejaculates on, causing an enormous phallic beanstalk to erupt out of the ground. He climbs the stalk to an erotic fairyland in the clouds, where plates of food have sex with each other while a magic harp plays. Inspired by the music, Jack attempts to get it on with the giant's wife, but when her husband comes home, he has to hide inside her vagina, and avoid the thrusting of the giant's penis. Um… trippy?
Otis played Mother Goose? Holy Dr. Girlfriend!
Damned with Faint Priase
At work yesterday I was talking to a colleague about an assignment which was coming in a little late. He assured me that, while late, I was actually way ahead because the other folks workng on this had even started yet, leading me to exclaim, "Woohoo! I am in last place in the race to the bottom!"
...
Well *I* thought it was funny!
...
Well *I* thought it was funny!
Monday, April 02, 2007
Sunday, April 01, 2007
Saturday, March 31, 2007
Curses! I Didn't Count on Them Having a Teleporter!
Tetsubo takes Marvel's Civil War art and re-writes the dialog. It's pretty funny!
Friday, March 30, 2007
Opposite Day
In early 2001, at the start of the Bush Administration, there was a policy in place to distinguish itself from teh Clinton Administration, "Whatever they did, do the opposite". I'm being more than comic here, it really was phrased that way by Bush himself (as reported by Colin Powell). The problem with it was, of course, not *everything* Clinton did was wrong and there are not always 2 polar choices.
I didn't realize until today though that this policy actually had a name: The Costanza Doctrine.
I didn't realize until today though that this policy actually had a name: The Costanza Doctrine.
Thursday, March 29, 2007
Support the Troops!
Fighting in an unpopular war, in a coalition lead by a country without a clear strategy, a soldier is captured and an Armchair General who has never seen the business end of an enemy rifle or served a single active duty hour, offers aid and comfort:
http://corner.nationalreview.com/post/?q…
I think the Iranians gravely miscalculated by making that female British soldier appear on TV dressed in a Shiite black headscarf and white robe to deliver an apology that was obviously dictated and almost certainly coerced. The British are going to go ballistic over this.
I’m not saying that I could never be coerced into denouncing the US on a foreign state’s TV broadcast (I’m absolutely sure that there are levels of torture that would make it happen), but I sure as hell would be pretty bruised and bloodied before I turned traitor.
Do the British not have a Creed of the Fighting Man, like we do?
I am, frankly, nauseated by this sentiment.
http://corner.nationalreview.com/post/?q…
I think the Iranians gravely miscalculated by making that female British soldier appear on TV dressed in a Shiite black headscarf and white robe to deliver an apology that was obviously dictated and almost certainly coerced. The British are going to go ballistic over this.
I’m not saying that I could never be coerced into denouncing the US on a foreign state’s TV broadcast (I’m absolutely sure that there are levels of torture that would make it happen), but I sure as hell would be pretty bruised and bloodied before I turned traitor.
Do the British not have a Creed of the Fighting Man, like we do?
I am, frankly, nauseated by this sentiment.
Wednesday, March 28, 2007
The 11 Least Interesting Words in the English Language
Let me tell you about the dream I had last night…
Unless you’re House MD..
Unless you’re House MD..
Results of a Typical Phone Conversation Between my Son and I
From today's call, a letter to the programming deparment of the SciFi channel:
Dear Scifi:
I have a suggestion for a possible spinoff of both Stargate SG-1 or Atlantis, and Battlestar: Galactica. Once Season 4 ends, many have speculated that the series will as well. My suggestion takes the setting of the Battlestar armada at Earth and merges it with the universe of Stargate. The series could be tentatively called BattleStargate and be set in either the Atlantis Pegasus galaxy or the Milky Way galaxy of SG-1. The SG teams could be merged with the Viper pilots with Lee and that guy from Farscape both heading a SG team. A third spinoff is possible with President Rosalyn running for President of the United States (with some help from SG-1). That spinoff could be called A Caprican in the White House. Starring Karl Rove as Giaus Baltar...
What think?
Dear Scifi:
I have a suggestion for a possible spinoff of both Stargate SG-1 or Atlantis, and Battlestar: Galactica. Once Season 4 ends, many have speculated that the series will as well. My suggestion takes the setting of the Battlestar armada at Earth and merges it with the universe of Stargate. The series could be tentatively called BattleStargate and be set in either the Atlantis Pegasus galaxy or the Milky Way galaxy of SG-1. The SG teams could be merged with the Viper pilots with Lee and that guy from Farscape both heading a SG team. A third spinoff is possible with President Rosalyn running for President of the United States (with some help from SG-1). That spinoff could be called A Caprican in the White House. Starring Karl Rove as Giaus Baltar...
What think?
Hilarious!
Why peanut butter is the atheists nightmare!
Wow. Let's just say the authors don't have a really strong grasp of how big and old the universe appears to be. Most of the other errors come out from there.
To it's credit, it's short, punchy and memorable in a way that cosmology almost never is.
Thanks Brian!
Wow. Let's just say the authors don't have a really strong grasp of how big and old the universe appears to be. Most of the other errors come out from there.
To it's credit, it's short, punchy and memorable in a way that cosmology almost never is.
Thanks Brian!
Hexagonal Structure on Saturn
Saturn's north pole is sporting a strange hexagonal structure.
I've never seen anything quite like it. I could imagine (and this would be going out on a limb) that there are six deep convection structures surrounding it, producing a stable area at the pole, but that would be a wild-assed guess.
Pretty cool though!
I've never seen anything quite like it. I could imagine (and this would be going out on a limb) that there are six deep convection structures surrounding it, producing a stable area at the pole, but that would be a wild-assed guess.
Pretty cool though!
Tuesday, March 27, 2007
2nd Amendment
So my son Geoff often criticizes me for defending the Bill of Rights "except for the second amendment". You know, the one about keeping the King of England out of your face. I freely admit my support for it hasn't been as strong as for the First, but having read the Federalist 8, I believe I have a better feeling for the whole purpose and structure of it than I think most folks do.
That said, like nuclear power, I learned to support it when I took away the irrational emotion and looked at it logically. I disagree with TJIC's extreme "Might makes Right" position, but I do believe that people can responsibly use guns in society. I also believe people should be free not to use them and that both sets should enjoy the same freedom from fear and crime provided by concentrating the source of sanctioned violence with the police. The police force also can and should be a source of good in society.
Why the preamble? Because I was surprised (and more than a little disappointed) at the Republican reaction to Jim Webb's aid carrying a gun. Far more so than the democrats, the GOP has supported people's right to carry a gun, so I was shocked at their eagerness to jump on this guy simply because he's a democrat with a gun. I know I shouldn't have been, there is seemingly no principle at all underlying the modern republicans except the quest for power, but this was one of the few things I thought they had right.
That said, like nuclear power, I learned to support it when I took away the irrational emotion and looked at it logically. I disagree with TJIC's extreme "Might makes Right" position, but I do believe that people can responsibly use guns in society. I also believe people should be free not to use them and that both sets should enjoy the same freedom from fear and crime provided by concentrating the source of sanctioned violence with the police. The police force also can and should be a source of good in society.
Why the preamble? Because I was surprised (and more than a little disappointed) at the Republican reaction to Jim Webb's aid carrying a gun. Far more so than the democrats, the GOP has supported people's right to carry a gun, so I was shocked at their eagerness to jump on this guy simply because he's a democrat with a gun. I know I shouldn't have been, there is seemingly no principle at all underlying the modern republicans except the quest for power, but this was one of the few things I thought they had right.
Monday, March 26, 2007
A Group of Rational Decision Makers
From this:
Our ability to duck that which is not yet coming is one of the brain's most stunning innovations, and we wouldn't have dental floss or 401(k) plans without it. But this innovation is in the early stages of development. The application that allows us to respond to visible baseballs is ancient and reliable, but the add-on utility that allows us to respond to threats that loom in an unseen future is still in beta testing. [8]
A lot of what I write in the following sections are examples of these newer parts of the brain getting things wrong.
And it's not just risks. People are not computers. We don't evaluate security trade-offs mathematically, by examining the relative probabilities of different events. Instead, we have shortcuts, rules of thumb, stereotypes, and biases -- generally known as "heuristics." These heuristics affect how we think about risks, how we evaluate the probability of future events, how we consider costs, and how we make trade-offs. We have ways of generating close-to-optimal answers quickly with limited cognitive capabilities. Don Norman's wonderful essay, "Being Analog," provides a great background for all this.[9]
This is a pretty good analysis of the neuropsychology that goes into making security (and to a greater degree economic) decisions. Worth a read.
I'm blogging a lot today for some reason. I must be a little bored.
And I haven't even gotten to the analysis of the polyamoury problems in tjicistan!
Our ability to duck that which is not yet coming is one of the brain's most stunning innovations, and we wouldn't have dental floss or 401(k) plans without it. But this innovation is in the early stages of development. The application that allows us to respond to visible baseballs is ancient and reliable, but the add-on utility that allows us to respond to threats that loom in an unseen future is still in beta testing. [8]
A lot of what I write in the following sections are examples of these newer parts of the brain getting things wrong.
And it's not just risks. People are not computers. We don't evaluate security trade-offs mathematically, by examining the relative probabilities of different events. Instead, we have shortcuts, rules of thumb, stereotypes, and biases -- generally known as "heuristics." These heuristics affect how we think about risks, how we evaluate the probability of future events, how we consider costs, and how we make trade-offs. We have ways of generating close-to-optimal answers quickly with limited cognitive capabilities. Don Norman's wonderful essay, "Being Analog," provides a great background for all this.[9]
This is a pretty good analysis of the neuropsychology that goes into making security (and to a greater degree economic) decisions. Worth a read.
I'm blogging a lot today for some reason. I must be a little bored.
And I haven't even gotten to the analysis of the polyamoury problems in tjicistan!
Bomb or Not a Bomb?
This is pretty good! Not sure how I'd have classified the One Ring, or a bowl of Chili...
Also, from Cryptogram this month:
Is everything a bomb these days? In New Mexico, a bomb squad blew up two CD players, duct-taped to the bottoms of church pews, that played pornographic messages during Mass. This is a pretty funny high school prank and I hope the kids that did it get suitably punished. But they're not terrorists. And I have a hard time believing that the police actually thought CD players were bombs. http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/02/22/... Meanwhile, the British Police Force blew up a tape dispenser left outside a police station in Northern Ireland. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/6387857.stm
And not to be outdone, the Dutch police mistook one of their own transmitters for a bomb. At least they didn't blow anything up. http://www.playfuls.com/... Okay, everyone. We need some ideas, here. If we're going to think everything weird is a bomb, then the false alarms are going to kill any hope of security. http://www.schneier.com/blog/archives/2007/02/...
If you're having trouble identifying bombs, this quiz should help. http://www.bombornot.com And here's a relevant cartoon. http://www.geekculture.com/joyoftech/joyarchives/...
The Boston police blew up a traffic counter. I'm beginning to think that something is seriously wrong with the police chain of command in Boston. Boston PD: Putting the "error" in "terror." http://www.boingboing.net/2007/02/28/...http://wbztv.com/local/local_story_059122735.html http://www3.whdh.com:80/news/articles/local/BO44642/http://www.schneier.com/blog/archives/2007/03/...
Also, from Cryptogram this month:
Is everything a bomb these days? In New Mexico, a bomb squad blew up two CD players, duct-taped to the bottoms of church pews, that played pornographic messages during Mass. This is a pretty funny high school prank and I hope the kids that did it get suitably punished. But they're not terrorists. And I have a hard time believing that the police actually thought CD players were bombs. http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/02/22/... Meanwhile, the British Police Force blew up a tape dispenser left outside a police station in Northern Ireland. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/6387857.stm
And not to be outdone, the Dutch police mistook one of their own transmitters for a bomb. At least they didn't blow anything up. http://www.playfuls.com/... Okay, everyone. We need some ideas, here. If we're going to think everything weird is a bomb, then the false alarms are going to kill any hope of security. http://www.schneier.com/blog/archives/2007/02/...
If you're having trouble identifying bombs, this quiz should help. http://www.bombornot.com And here's a relevant cartoon. http://www.geekculture.com/joyoftech/joyarchives/...
The Boston police blew up a traffic counter. I'm beginning to think that something is seriously wrong with the police chain of command in Boston. Boston PD: Putting the "error" in "terror." http://www.boingboing.net/2007/02/28/...http://wbztv.com/local/local_story_059122735.html http://www3.whdh.com:80/news/articles/local/BO44642/http://www.schneier.com/blog/archives/2007/03/...
The Pattern
It usually goes:
Denial
Clinton did it
Silence/Change the Subject
Talk the White House Story of the Day
The Cunning Realist tells us where we stand today.
I can't help but notice the silence from the people who, 10 years ago, seemed to think that Lying to Congress was an offense and required loads of special prosecutors.
Denial
Clinton did it
Silence/Change the Subject
Talk the White House Story of the Day
The Cunning Realist tells us where we stand today.
I can't help but notice the silence from the people who, 10 years ago, seemed to think that Lying to Congress was an offense and required loads of special prosecutors.
Sunday, March 25, 2007
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