clock | October 13, 2009In the study of ideas, it is necessary to remember that insistence on hard-headed clarity issues from sentimental feeling, as it were a mist, cloaking the perplexities of fact. Insistence on clarity at all costs is based on sheer superstition as to the mode in which human intelligence functions. Our reasonings grasp at straws for premises and float on gossamers for deductions.
- Alfred North Whitehead
clock | October 13, 2009Follow me on Twitter to get these, and more, in something closer to Real Time:
Blinded by the Light - ecological light pollution.
"Newsroom as cafe is not a concept but a practice in the Czech Republic" - Full Throttle to Hyperlocal News in Czech Republic
Thanks @justarikia for a re-do of my homepage. I love it!
Guardian gagged from reporting parliament and When is a secret not a secret? and Mugging the rich bastard lawyers.
J-School: The Next Generation
On the future of scientific communication - "Within the next decade, papers will be resembling press releases...", Interesting to note in…
clock | October 13, 2009There are 23 new articles in PLoS ONE today. As always, you should rate the articles, post notes and comments and send trackbacks when you blog about the papers. You can now also easily place articles on various social services (CiteULike, Mendeley, Connotea, Stumbleupon, Facebook and Digg) with just one click. Here are my own picks for the week - you go and look for your own favourites:
Chimpanzees Help Each Other upon Request:
The evolution of altruism has been explained mainly from ultimate perspectives. However, it remains to be investigated from a proximate point of view how and in…
clock | October 12, 2009Proverbs are jewels five words long, that on the stretched forefinger of all time sparkle forever.
- Alfred, Lord Tennyson
clock | October 12, 2009Follow me on Twitter to get these, and more, in something closer to Real Time:
In which I have seen the future of science, and it is male - first issue of Eureka extremely male and even sexist!?
Sell the Vatican, Feed the World - Sarah Silverman's ambitious plan for feeding the world (video).
"Krugman on "destructive power of bad ideas" and how falling dollar can help economic recovery:" Misguided Monetary Mentalities
The podcast of the This American Life healthcare Explainer is now up: More Is Less - Gavin Yamey of PLoS has a 2sec appearance.
Google Wave: A Complete Guide
Announcing the…
clock | October 12, 2009Lots of interesting articles in PLoS Biology, PLoS Medicine, PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases and PLoS ONE today. As always, you should rate the articles, post notes and comments and send trackbacks when you blog about the papers. You can now also easily place articles on various social services (CiteULike, Mendeley, Connotea, Stumbleupon, Facebook and Digg) with just one click. Here are my own picks for the week - you go and look for your own favourites:
The Perfect Family: Decision Making in Biparental Care:
Previous theoretical work on parental decisions in biparental care has emphasized…
clock | October 11, 2009A professional is a person who can do his best at a time when he doesn't particularly feel like it.
- Alfred Alistair Cooke
clock | October 11, 2009Follow me on Twitter to get these, and more, in something closer to Real Time:
'Male slashes female's throat in UCLA chemistry lab': Violence in a UCLA Lab
'Check out these gorgeous photos of small things': Nikon Small World 2009
Quoting 'Psychics' Like Experts: How Low Can News Judgement Go? - loved to see James Randi himself post a comment there!
Compare it to this article on the same topic - 'psychic' financial advisers: Paranormal Wall Street
Women to stop liking Sean Connery?
The Times' new magazine about science: Eureka
Avoiding the Community Manager Superstar
Uselessness is in the eye…
clock | October 10, 2009If you really want to do something, you'll find a way; if you don't, you'll find an excuse.In times when the passions are beginning to take charge of the conduct of human affairs, one should pay less attention to what men of experience and common sense are thinking than to what is preoccupying the imagination of dreamers.
- Alexis de Tocqueville
clock | October 10, 2009Follow me on Twitter to get these, and more, in something closer to Real Time:
Struggling Museum Now Allowing Patrons To Touch Paintings
A Harvard Skirmish in the Copyright Wars - 'Do your lecture notes violate your prof's copyright?'
60 people ready to discuss ScienceOnline2010 on FriendFeed
Why Obama deserved the Nobel Peace Prize
PLoS ONE in the NYT twice this week: Aerial View: Albatrosses Following a Killer Whale and Paper Challenges Ideas About 'Early Bird' Dinosaur
The era of objectivity is over - 'Pro journalism didn't self-correct. It doubled down on neutrality'
The psychology of…
clock | October 10, 2009
I realize it's been a while since the last blog update on ScienceOnline2010, though bits and pieces showed up on Twitter, FriendFeed and Facebook over the past few weeks. You should follow the updates on the News and Updates page and also on the Blog and Media Coverage page on the wiki in order to stay up to date.
There are two new important pages on the wiki for you to check out: Travel and Hotel Information page has the relevant information (the exact rate for the hotel rooms will come shortly, probably Monday) on how to get here, where to stay, and how to get around. If you are driving in…
clock | October 10, 2009
Here are the submissions for OpenLab 2009 to date. As we have surpassed 420 entries, all of them, as well as the "submit" buttons and codes and the bookmarklet, are under the fold. You can buy the 2006, 2007 and 2008 editions at Lulu.com. Please use the submission form to add more of your and other people's posts (remember that we are looking for original poems, art, cartoons and comics, as well as essays):
10 days of science: Astronomical art: Representing Planet Earth
2020 Science: Hooked on science - ten things that inspired me to become a scientist
A Blog Around The Clock: On Being a…
clock | October 10, 2009Let's look back at the week and see what's cool. As always, you should rate the articles, post notes and comments and send trackbacks when you blog about the papers. You can now also easily place articles on various social services (CiteULike, Mendeley, Connotea, Stumbleupon, Facebook and Digg) with just one click. Here are my own picks for the week - you go and look for your own favourites:
ECG Response of Koalas to Tourists Proximity: A Preliminary Study:
Koalas operate on a tight energy budget and, thus, may not always display behavioral avoidance reaction when placed in a stressful…
clock | October 9, 2009I prefer rogues to imbeciles, because they sometimes take a rest.
- Alexandre Dumas, pere
clock | October 9, 2009Follow me on Twitter to get these, and more, in something closer to Real Time:
Are you asleep? Exploring the mind's twilight zone - 'How do you know you're not sleeping right now?'
50 Useful iPhone Apps for Science Students & Teachers
OA Week at the University of Belgrade in Serbia
Let's have the ScienceOnline2010 program finalized in ten days
Science class at SI Academy gets worldwide play (with Miss Baker)
The 'WiFi At Conferences' Problem
Uses of Nobel Causes: the case for Obama
- RT @ezraklein Obama also awarded Nobel prize in chemistry. "He's just got great chemistry," says Nobel…
clock | October 9, 2009Yesterday, North Carolinians woke up to some very unpleasant news that Dell decided to close its computer manufacturing plant in Winston-Salem, Forsyth Co, NC by the end of this year and lay off its entire workforce of 905 employees.
While I may not like it, I can understand the economics of shutting down a textile mill or a furniture plant. It's a new world we are living in. But Dell? Computers?! If the leading computer manufacturer is suffering during the recession, what can anyone else hope for? Is there any industry that can still compete and grow?
And it seems that the answer may,…
clock | October 9, 2009Carnival of the Blue #29 is up on Cephalopodcast
The 121st Meeting of the Skeptics' Circle is up on The Mad Skeptic
Scientia Pro Publica 13: Nobel Prize Edition is up on Living the Scientific Life
Friday Ark #264 is up on Modulator
Grand Rounds Vol 6, No 3: The Art of Medicine and Nursing is up on Pallimed
clock | October 9, 2009There are 17 new articles in PLoS ONE published last night. As always, you should rate the articles, post notes and comments and send trackbacks when you blog about the papers. You can now also easily place articles on various social services (CiteULike, Mendeley, Connotea, Stumbleupon, Facebook and Digg) with just one click. Here are my own picks for the week - you go and look for your own favourites:
Was Dinosaurian Physiology Inherited by Birds? Reconciling Slow Growth in Archaeopteryx
Background
Archaeopteryx is the oldest and most primitive known bird (Avialae). It is believed that the…
clock | October 8, 2009Many of us spend half our time wishing for things we could have if we didn't spend half our time wishing.
- Alexander Woollcott