Coming out as a bugger
Sat, 3 May 2008 09:53:53 -0700 (PDT)
The topic of homosexuality continues to occupy far too many column
inches. Here's a recent example:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/main.jhtml?xml=/opinion/2008/05/03/do0303.xml&CMP=ILC-mostviewedbox
To me, what people wish to get up to in the privacy of their own homes
is entirely their affair, so long as ...
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Not the age of globalisation...?
Fri, 2 May 2008 06:57:53 -0700 (PDT)
NYT
May 2, 2008
Op-Ed Columnist
The Cognitive Age
By DAVID BROOKS
If you go into a good library, you will find thousands of books on
globalization. Some will laud it. Some will warn about its dangers.
But they?ll agree that globalization is the chief process driving our
age. Our lives are being transformed ...
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Nice point
Thu, 1 May 2008 00:05:47 -0700 (PDT)
I don't really want to get into another long, and fruitless discussion
on quantum mechanics. However there was an interesting article that I
read recently, I think in the New Scientist, though I don't have the
reference.
I liked the point made about hidden variables. A mathematician was
quoted as saying that it ...
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Working memory and fluid intelligence
Wed, 30 Apr 2008 02:59:04 -0700 (PDT)
Brain-training to improve memory boosts fluid intelligence
Brain-training efforts designed to improve working memory can also
boost scores
in general problem-solving ability and improve fluid intelligence,
according to
new University of Michigan research.
"Considering the fundamental importance of fluid inte ...
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Commonalities across synaesthetes
Wed, 30 Apr 2008 02:56:43 -0700 (PDT)
New research shows consistency in synaesthetic experiences
A quirky psychological phenomenon known as "grapheme-color
synaesthesia"
describes individuals who experience vivid colors whenever they see,
hear, or
think of ordinary letters and digits. A hallmark of synaesthesia is
that
individuals seem to be idio ...
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Hofman's Obituary
Tue, 29 Apr 2008 21:06:56 -0700 (PDT)
From the Telegraph:
"
Albert Hofmann
Last Updated: 2:07AM BST 30/04/2008
Albert Hofmann, who died on Tuesday aged 102, synthesised lysergic
acid diethylamide (LSD) in 1938 and became the first person in the
world to experience a full-blown acid trip.
Albert Hofmann
The day, April 19 1943, became known amon ...
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Concrete examples may hinder maths learning
Tue, 29 Apr 2008 03:12:20 -0700 (PDT)
Concrete examples don't help students learn math, study finds
A new study challenges the common practice in many classrooms of
teaching
mathematical concepts by using "real-world," concrete examples.
Researchers led
by Jennifer Kaminski, researcher scientist at Ohio State University's
Center for
Cognitive Sci ...
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Biobigotry
Tue, 29 Apr 2008 02:22:59 -0700 (PDT)
NYT
April 29, 2008
Basics
Noble Eagles, Nasty Pigeons, Biased Humans
By NATALIE ANGIER
The other day I glanced out my window and felt a twinge of revulsion
delicately seasoned with indignation. Pecking at my bird feeder were
two brown-headed cowbirds, one male and one female, and I knew what
that meant. ...
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No longer the great pox
Tue, 29 Apr 2008 02:16:38 -0700 (PDT)
NYT
April 29, 2008
Essay
A Great Pox?s Greatest Feat: Staying Alive
By MARLENE ZUK
The findings were hardly earth-shaking. They dealt with an obscure
bacterial infection found in an equally obscure group of natives in
Guyana. Nonetheless, they made headlines.
Why? Because the disease was syphilis. The ...
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The Religion of Faith-filled Fundy-Atheists !
Mon, 28 Apr 2008 19:07:25 -0700 (PDT)
1. Everyone is religious.
Did you ever notice that people often give their opinions about
religion but then caveat it by saying, ?But I?m not a theologian??
Well, the truth is everyone?s a theologian. Some are more informed
theologians than others, but everyone has some set of religious
beliefs. If we define re ...
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