thescian
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August 29, 2007
Technorati tracks blogs. But, google may tell you more.
August 28, 2007
Warren Ellis, the colorful British writer, writes about Burst Culture.
* Every day, millions of people download single lumps of data that take them three minutes to consume. They're called mp3s. It's a burst culture. Embrace the idea for a while.
* Bursts aren't contentless, nor do they denote the…
August 27, 2007
Check it out. There's a lot of tips for writing science as fiction. Rebecca Goldstein, MacArthur fellow, novelist, writes
I have come to believe, over the years, that literary fiction is remarkably suited to grappling - as philosophy and science grapple - with the difficulties of reconciling…
August 26, 2007
From the TheScian.com August Newsletter:
I want to share an incident that happened yesterday at my 3 year old neice's birthday party. A few families were invited and the kids were playing inside an inflated house - they call that bouncy-castle - with two entranes through which the kids could crawl…
August 26, 2007
CBS likes Lord of the Flies. What better way to show the appreciation than to use it for a reality show[NYT]. What did you say? Kids are not adults? Come on, don't be so naive. Kids acting like adults makes for a more entertaning show. No?
"Kid Nation," which is scheduled to have its premiere on…
August 24, 2007
Poverty is part of India's story writes Peter Foster (Telegraph) in his blog that expands on his earlier article. I am in agreement with Foster on the apathy among well-to-do Indians although I think he makes some generalizations about middle class that are not necessarily true. His statements…
August 24, 2007
A CBS Video with, shall we say, new revelations on Mother Theresa.
Shortly after beginning work in Calcutta's slums, the spirit leaves her.
"Where is my faith?" she writes. "Even deep down ... there is nothing but emptiness and darkness. ... If there be God -- please forgive me."
...
The letters…
August 22, 2007
The first essay in a series of science essays to be published at TheScian.com is out. It is titled The Joy of Questioning and is written by Sunil of balancing life blog. Yours truly imagines that he has improved his reading skills. Give it a listen. An excerpt:
...Even the most educated seem to…
August 22, 2007
Dear Neelam Shah,
Glad to see your note submitted via TheScian.com Contact Form. Unfortunately, the email you provided seems to be incorrect and my response to that email bounced. If you were wondering why I haven't replied, you now know. Here's my reply.
You asked if there is any age limit for the…
August 22, 2007
Don Pedro: You embrace your charge too willingly. I think this is your daughter.
Leonato: Her mother hath many times told me so.
Benedick: Were you in doubt, sir, that you asked her?
-From Much Ado About Nothing
My first encounter with Shakespeare was in school at the age of 13. We had the play…
August 21, 2007
New Scientist reports on a study that indicates paedophiles may have less grey matter. The legal implications are enormous. What if a court finds such anomalies in brain as admissible for a plea?
You can run away but you can't forget. MIT Technology Review on How Ads Affect Our Memory
Physicist…
August 21, 2007
The second part of Enemies of Reason, the two part series hosted by Dawkins, aired yesterday night here in the UK. At some point, Deepak Chopra, the quantum quack, was interviewed by Dawkins. Mr Chopra said the word quantum is used as a metaphor in alternative therapies, and then - to the eternal…
August 20, 2007
I've been reading a bit of european history (because science is too exciting and I needed a history break) and waded into the time of french revolution (1789) and what the british were upto at that time. In the last decades of eighteenth century, continental europe was pre-occupied with social…
August 16, 2007
A discussion at reddit. Is it ethical to block online ads using your brower? My personal opinion: Hell, yes. I don't block Google Ads and I don't block flash ads at many sites where ads are relevant and show some taste. Site owners and advertisers who invoke guilt ethics could do better.
August 15, 2007
There were reports earlier in the media (BBC, for instance) that Chernobyl has become an oasis for wildlife running away from humans.
Well, it seems someone was too optimistic. The media (BBC again) now reports that Chernobyl is no haven for nothing.
August 15, 2007
But, why should an adult digest milk? This and many other evolutionary hilarities in this debate on Complexity and Evolution. Featuring Richard Dawkins, Steve Jones, Lewis Wolpert.
August 14, 2007
Salil Tripati compares the two uneasy neighbors who began self-rule at the same time 60 years ago, in an IHT article:
One could argue Pakistan had little choice, once it had chosen to be a theocracy. The more Pakistani society modernized, the more its people sought freedom, the more Pakistan would…
August 13, 2007
Enemies of Reason is a two part series presented by Dawkins on Channel 4. The first part was broadcast yesterday. I missed the first half hour but did watch later half.
As always, Dawkins is passionate and eloquent in identifying and rallying against the enemies of reason. He takes us into the…
August 13, 2007
In Japan, robots are going to save that last dance. They would be used to store and replay dance moves of Japanese folk routine called the Aizu-Bandaisan, sez New Scientist. Oh, joy. The video (link below) where the Dance Librarian Robot HRP-2 "Promet" dances is fascinating to watch. It's like…
August 9, 2007
Via Rationalist International
Bangladeshi author Taslima Nasreen [was attached] today by the radical political outfit Majlis Ittehad-ul-Muslimeen (MIM) at the Hyderabad Press Club. She was releasing the Telegu translation of her book "Shodd"...
MIM activists, led by three state Legislative Council…
August 9, 2007
We need to reach an accommodation with uncertainty. Not only is the universe uncertain, but so too is human knowledge. Science as a process should never have fostered any illusions about this: it was always about provisional truths - and knew it. Perhaps it's time for us to finally accept that we…
August 8, 2007
News in IHT
A teenage boy carrying a severed head walked into a Japanese police station Tuesday saying he killed his mother, the latest in a series of grisly dismemberments that have horrified a nation renowned for its low crime rate.
The 17-year-old suspect led officers to his house in northern…
August 8, 2007
Baiji, the Yangtzse River dolphin, is now extinct after having lived in the Yangtzse river for the past 20 million years.
In the 1950s several thousand baiji, as the dolphins are known in Chinese, were thought to swim in the Yangtze. The last authenticated record was in 2001. By the end of 2006,…
August 7, 2007
You have been up early and are at your desk, your brows are tangled in deep concentration, you squeeze your eyes for a moment, and voila! A dream-breaking thought! You punch the computer keys quickly and catch the thought into your electronic potter's wheel to sculpt it into a work of art.
Do…
August 7, 2007
Beebs reports that you can now drink many a cuppa joes to stay sharp as you age.
"French researchers compared women aged 65 and older who drank more than three cups of coffee per day with those who drank one cup or less per day.
Those who drank more caffeine showed less decline in memory tests over…
August 6, 2007
An NDTV report on confinement compounds for mentally ill people. Another instance where the financial buden, social stigma and scientific illiteracy leads to vulnerable people being incarcerated.