clock | October 7, 2006On Thursday night I went to the Chapel Hill-Carrboro blogger MeetUp. Actually, I did not plan on going - my wife was out of town and I had kids on my hands on a schoolday, so I told Anton in advance that I would not be coming this time.
But, the previous day both of my kids bugged me about some online stuff, asking me how certain things are done and I had no idea how to help them! I promised I'd ask my blog friends. But then, I had an Eureka moment and asked my kids if they would rather ask my blog friends in person! They were quite enthusiastic about it so we went all three of us to Open…
clock | October 7, 2006Apparently, there is a big debate between Pinker and Lakoff going on. Both of new Lakoff's books are still on my wish list, i.e., I have not read them yet and I have been out of the Lakoffian loop for a while - too much other stuff is vying for my attention these days.
But I have read the two articles, kindly provided by Razib here and my first impression was: "Pinker's article is one of the most intellectually dishonest pieces of writing I've seen from a cognitive scientist"
Interestingly, Chris had the opposite response:
Lakoff's reply is one of the most intellectually dishonest pieces of…
clock | October 7, 2006This Monday, Elizabeth Edwards will be reading from and signing her book Saving Graces: Finding Solace and Strength from Friends and Strangers at two places in the Triangle:
The Law School Rotunda, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, North Carolina
(sponsored by Bull's Head Bookstore)
Monday, October 9th, 2006 at 3:00 p.m.
Quail Ridge Books & Music
3522 Wade Ave
Raleigh, North Carolina
Monday, October 9th, 2006 at 7:30 p.m.
I'll go to the Quail Ridge Books events (that is my most favourite book store in the world), so if you go and you recognize me, say Hello - I'd…
clock | October 7, 2006Earlier, I wondered how many familial relationships there were among Nobel Prize winners. Commenters gave some examples. Now, Ruchira Paul did the research and found them all. Biggest surprose for me: Nikko Tinbergen's brother got a Nobel in economics three years before his more famous brother!
clock | October 7, 2006I just discovered (on my Sitemeter referrals list!) a cool new blog - Biology In Science Fiction. Several good posts so far. Go check it out!
clock | October 7, 2006
Mr.Sun is coming to the 2007 North Carolina Science Blogging Conference. Are you?
Technorati Tag: sciencebloggingconference
clock | October 6, 2006Considering that circadian clocks were first discovered in plants, and studied almost exclusively in plants for almost a century before people started looking at animals in the early 20th century, it is somewhat surprising that the molecular aspects of the circadian rhythm generation mechanisms have lagged behind those in insects, vertebrates, fungi and bacteria. It is always nice to see a paper reporting a discovery of a new plant clock gene:
New function for protein links plant s circadian rhythm to its light-detection mechanism:
Plants set their clocks by detecting the light cycle, and…
clock | October 6, 2006David Neiwert: God, evolution, and guns and Naming the enemy
Sara Robinson: The Irony of It All
clock | October 6, 2006
Hmmm, after a whole week of fantastic traffic, it has suddenly gone down through the floor today, so I better act quickly and post something really provocative - an old anti-Libertarian screed that is bound to attract trolls (and traffic)....
Much of the stuff on this blog is based on the bimodal (bipolar?) view of the world: there are Conservatives and there are Liberals, and that's it. Lakoff, Ducat, Frank and the like spend much time explaining the two, or just trying to explain the strange Conservative animals to the Liberals.
But, as I stated before, only about a third of Americans are…
clock | October 6, 2006
Reed Cartwright is coming to the 2007 North Carolina Science Blogging Conference. Are you?
Technorati Tag: sciencebloggingconference
clock | October 5, 2006..but were too afraid to ask. Or, why do I, unlike some people, like stale cookies.
clock | October 5, 2006Bill Bailey reports that an organization called 'Screening for Mental Health' offers free screenings for Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). But then, they push drugs on people they "diagnose". The only problem - SAD is not treated with drugs!!! It is a circadian disorder, treated with light therapy and behavioral therapy. Quacks!
clock | October 5, 2006...not to write a blog post. Advice for the next generation, but some of it applies to us old geezers as well.
clock | October 5, 2006'Hip Happy Prof' teaches over MySpace, bosses protest:
N.C. State Professor Tom Hoban is offering Sociology 395-M, "Social Movements for Social Change," on the popular social networking site that claims to have 100 million active users worldwide. But administrators say it's the wrong space for teaching a university course.
Hoban says he received approval over the summer from his department head to teach via MySpace. But last week, Katie Perry, senior vice provost for academic affairs, told Hoban to move the course to university servers.
Hoban has refused.
"N.C. State's distance education is…
clock | October 5, 2006Prince George and the return of the Sheriff of Nottingham
People are working harder, earning less, and the rich are raking it in. Where's Robin Hood when we need him?
By Hal Crowther
There was a time when no one could be elected president of the United States without representing himself as the nemesis of Wall Street and Park Avenue, the champion of the dispossessed and downtrodden. A century ago, this was no perfunctory nod to the bleacher seats. On Labor Day 1906, House Speaker Joe Cannon rallied his Republican troops with a speech praising President Theodore Roosevelt: "He is honest and…
clock | October 5, 2006We are what we eat: corn and petroleum
Interview by David Auerbach in this week's Independent Weekly.
clock | October 5, 2006...to Shakespeare's Sister. It is her second blogiversary today.
I am always amazed when I realize that some of the bloggers I most look up to have been blogging less time than I have, and Shakes is certainly one of those bloggers I most look up to - has been a daily must read for a long time now.
clock | October 5, 2006Norwegian scientists have discovered a "treasure trove" of fossils belonging to giant sea reptiles that roamed the seas at the time of the dinosaurs.
The 150 million-year-old fossils were uncovered on the Arctic island chain of Svalbard - about halfway between the Norwegian mainland and the North Pole.
The finds belong to two groups of extinct marine reptiles - the plesiosaurs and the ichthyosaurs.
One skeleton has been nicknamed The Monster because of its enormous size.
The Monster is an 8m long pliosaur with a most complete skeleton of such an animal ever found:
Read the details...