‘Waterless’ Concrete Seen As Building Block On Moon
There are little details in this report, but it says sulphur could be used as the binding agent on lunar concrete. But where does that come from?
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Doctors and the "E" word
Erectile Dysfunction Gives Early Warning Of A Heart Attack, Warns Expert
Interesting to note:
Interesting to note:
...the link between erectile dysfunction and the risk of heart disease is being ignored by doctors, writes Dr Geoffrey Hackett from the Good Hope Hospital in Birmingham.This part is amusingly put:Over many years Hackett reports regularly seeing patients referred with erectile dysfunction after a heart attack, only to hear that they had developed erectile dysfunction two to three years before—a warning sign ignored by their general practitioners.
"Continuing to ignore these issues on the basis that cardiologists feel uncomfortable mentioning the word 'erection' to their patients or that they may have to deal with the management of a positive response, is no longer acceptable and possibly, based on current evidence, clinically negligent"
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Shut up Sam
What the hell? Sam de Brito, possibly the most undeservingly paid blogger in the world (well, I assume he gets paid something by Fairfax, despite the fact that he uses his blog constantly to promote his own books), confesses recently to spending a $1000 on cocaine on a weekend.
But that's OK, because he then writes how much he regrets it, in the process telling us that he lied to friends and (apparently) partook in some particularly perverse sexual activity. (Oh, why hold back Sam, you're usually talking about men needing to be more sensitive and open, aren't you?)
So, what's the upshot of this? An invitation to talk at the Garvan Institute of Medical Research on some panel about stress, drugs and mental health! He then finds the audience was not compassionate enough to a woman with a rambling question.
de Brito recently said of himself:
Look, I suppose there may at least be some redeeming value to confessional memoirs written by people towards the end of their life once they feel they have obtained some wisdom from the experience. But it's simply unedifying, and serves no public benefit, to publicise exploits you regret as soon as they have happened, even if you purport to be doing it as a mea culpa.
In particular with any talk about drugs, anything short of painting the experience as horrific almost certainly just has the effect of confirming to the young and impressionable that its worth trying it for themselves, to see what the fuss is about. (And even then, showing a near death from an overdose in Pulp Fiction was said to have caused an increase in heroin use in Australia. The person who claimed this: Phillip Adams, who is not exactly know to be into promoting moral panics.)
I find it a remarkable indictment of modern corporate mores that Fairfax should give this guy the space to run his tedious self-analysis on their pages. I can imagine quite an outcry if his stuff had appeared in mainstream newspaper 30 years ago. By all means, he could do this schtick on Blogger; then, while he may be as annoying and objectionable as he is now, at least it wouldn't be compounded by the fact that he is getting corporate support to share his faults with us all.
And why can't Sam get enough insight to realise that less "sharing" and navel gazing, and more "doing" (of worthwhile, responsible and mature acts) may be the way to become the better person he says he wants to be.
But that's OK, because he then writes how much he regrets it, in the process telling us that he lied to friends and (apparently) partook in some particularly perverse sexual activity. (Oh, why hold back Sam, you're usually talking about men needing to be more sensitive and open, aren't you?)
So, what's the upshot of this? An invitation to talk at the Garvan Institute of Medical Research on some panel about stress, drugs and mental health! He then finds the audience was not compassionate enough to a woman with a rambling question.
de Brito recently said of himself:
I like to think of myself as a New Age Yobbo, someone who knows a bit about books and fashion and sociology, uses some ten dollar words but can also regress to the grubbiest of Australian stereotypes if the situation calls for it.Like telling us about the time he caught crab lice from a one night stand with a backpacker.
Look, I suppose there may at least be some redeeming value to confessional memoirs written by people towards the end of their life once they feel they have obtained some wisdom from the experience. But it's simply unedifying, and serves no public benefit, to publicise exploits you regret as soon as they have happened, even if you purport to be doing it as a mea culpa.
In particular with any talk about drugs, anything short of painting the experience as horrific almost certainly just has the effect of confirming to the young and impressionable that its worth trying it for themselves, to see what the fuss is about. (And even then, showing a near death from an overdose in Pulp Fiction was said to have caused an increase in heroin use in Australia. The person who claimed this: Phillip Adams, who is not exactly know to be into promoting moral panics.)
I find it a remarkable indictment of modern corporate mores that Fairfax should give this guy the space to run his tedious self-analysis on their pages. I can imagine quite an outcry if his stuff had appeared in mainstream newspaper 30 years ago. By all means, he could do this schtick on Blogger; then, while he may be as annoying and objectionable as he is now, at least it wouldn't be compounded by the fact that he is getting corporate support to share his faults with us all.
And why can't Sam get enough insight to realise that less "sharing" and navel gazing, and more "doing" (of worthwhile, responsible and mature acts) may be the way to become the better person he says he wants to be.
Tipler's back
How to test the many worlds interpretation of quantum mechanics
Frank Tipler, the physicist who every other scientist thought went over the top with "The Physics of Immortality", only to see him outdo his idiosyncratic application of science to religion in "The Physics of Christianity," has recently published a possible way to test whether the "many worlds" interpretation of quantum physics is correct.
How neat. We may soon know if there are multiple versions of ourselves spread out across the multiverse. Can you imagine the number of books that would be written on the philosophical implications of that? (Well, there probably are quite a lot already, but establishing that it's true would be a philosopher's playground for another century or two at least.)
My hunch, however, given the vigorous debate that already goes on about what quantum physics means, is that most scientists won't accept that Tipler has provided a proof at all. (The fact that he starts using capital letters in one part of the arXiv paper is not too encouraging.)
Still, many years ago on The Science Show (Radio National), I remember someone was talking about a potential way that MWI might be testable in future. I can't remember the details, but it was certainly different to what the relatively simple method Tipler is suggesting.
Frank Tipler, the physicist who every other scientist thought went over the top with "The Physics of Immortality", only to see him outdo his idiosyncratic application of science to religion in "The Physics of Christianity," has recently published a possible way to test whether the "many worlds" interpretation of quantum physics is correct.
How neat. We may soon know if there are multiple versions of ourselves spread out across the multiverse. Can you imagine the number of books that would be written on the philosophical implications of that? (Well, there probably are quite a lot already, but establishing that it's true would be a philosopher's playground for another century or two at least.)
My hunch, however, given the vigorous debate that already goes on about what quantum physics means, is that most scientists won't accept that Tipler has provided a proof at all. (The fact that he starts using capital letters in one part of the arXiv paper is not too encouraging.)
Still, many years ago on The Science Show (Radio National), I remember someone was talking about a potential way that MWI might be testable in future. I can't remember the details, but it was certainly different to what the relatively simple method Tipler is suggesting.
Tiny nuclear power plants actually coming?
Nuclear-In-A-Box Startup Hyperion Raising More Cash - NYTimes.com
Interesting, the idea of nuclear power becoming very local. (Hyperion says their model will power about 20,000 homes.)
The Greens will love the idea. Ha.
Interesting, the idea of nuclear power becoming very local. (Hyperion says their model will power about 20,000 homes.)
The Greens will love the idea. Ha.
Don't tell Andrew Bolt
Less Ice In Arctic Ocean 6000-7000 Years Ago
Andrew Bolt and others have been posting a lot about the Arctic ice melt (and apparent recent rapid re-freeze), so he's bound to take encouragement from this article that suggests that the Arctic ocean had much less ice 7,000 years ago too, before our modern CO2 increase, of course.
My general impressions are as follows:
* the issue of the coming and going of Arctic ice is clearly not fully understood.
* of course there are AGW advocates who leap too quickly onto anything that appears to prove greenhouse warming. Those who wildly overstate the case as to the short term effects of AGW (such as Tim Flannery, Al Gore, etc) are usually not the scientists themselves.
* most climate scientists were actually somewhat cautious in what they said about the big 2007 melt. At Real Climate, for example, they said:
Methane coming out of the Arctic ocean may well end up being a major concern too. We will hear more about that soon, it seems.
* Above all, remember my official line is that ocean acidification is a big enough issue alone to limit CO2 anyway. Doesn't matter if temperatures go up or down: a huge gamble with what will happen to ocean ecology is in play if CO2 is allowed to soar to levels not seen for millions of years.
Andrew Bolt and others have been posting a lot about the Arctic ice melt (and apparent recent rapid re-freeze), so he's bound to take encouragement from this article that suggests that the Arctic ocean had much less ice 7,000 years ago too, before our modern CO2 increase, of course.
My general impressions are as follows:
* the issue of the coming and going of Arctic ice is clearly not fully understood.
* of course there are AGW advocates who leap too quickly onto anything that appears to prove greenhouse warming. Those who wildly overstate the case as to the short term effects of AGW (such as Tim Flannery, Al Gore, etc) are usually not the scientists themselves.
* most climate scientists were actually somewhat cautious in what they said about the big 2007 melt. At Real Climate, for example, they said:
The disappearance of the ice was set up by warming surface waters and loss of the thicker multi-year ice in favor of thinner single-year ice. But the collapse of ice coverage this year was also something of a random event. This change was much more abrupt than the averaged results of the multiple IPCC AR4 models, but if you look at individual model runs, you can find sudden decreases in ice cover such as this. In the particular model run which looks most like 2007, the ice subsequently recovered somewhat, although never regaining the coverage before the meltback event.* even if the current round of substantially lower than average summer ice is caused by completely different cyclic factors from CO2 increase, it may be a worry if the cycle continues because of its potential to have an enhancing effect on any warming that is caused by CO2 in coming decades.
Methane coming out of the Arctic ocean may well end up being a major concern too. We will hear more about that soon, it seems.
* Above all, remember my official line is that ocean acidification is a big enough issue alone to limit CO2 anyway. Doesn't matter if temperatures go up or down: a huge gamble with what will happen to ocean ecology is in play if CO2 is allowed to soar to levels not seen for millions of years.
Curious...
Doctor shares secrets to calm your child
A doctor who has written a book about soothing babies and toddlers says this in the above interview:
A doctor who has written a book about soothing babies and toddlers says this in the above interview:
Q: Do you have any ideas on how to have the happiest teenager on the block?I can't quite tell if the duct tape bit is a joke or not.
A: I can't tell you the whole secret approach, but I can tell you part of it uses a lot of duct tape. In a lot of ways, they're like toddlers - they want a lot more authority than they're prepared to handle, and they've got a lot of immaturity. A lot of the communication techniques that work with toddlers works with them as well. What hasn't been acknowledged is how important the nonverbal part of communication is. The way you acknowledge someone's feelings is actually more important than what you say. Even with the right words, if it's done in a very flat, psychiatrist voice, it makes you want to be more distant and find someone who does understand you. These books deal with discipline as well, but it turns out that 90 percent of getting your kids to behave well is respectful communication.
The noddy girls identified
Labor's script is showing, brown noses out of joint - Annabel Crabb - Opinion
Annabel Crabb's column today answers the question: just who are those two nodding women MPs who always manage to get their face in shot on TV behind Kevin Rudd in Parliament?
What it doesn't tell us is: how do Parliamentarians score those seats? They must be worth an absolute mint in terms of free publicity to your own electorate.
The rest of the column (about how the Dorothy Dixers got emailed to journalists yesterday) is pretty interesting too.
PS: Christian Kerr's take on the day goes into more detail about the issue of how Rudd got his Reserve Bank advice second hand. Seems Kevin was hyperventilating at certain points during Question Time, but I don't recall seeing that part on the TV news.
Annabel Crabb's column today answers the question: just who are those two nodding women MPs who always manage to get their face in shot on TV behind Kevin Rudd in Parliament?
What it doesn't tell us is: how do Parliamentarians score those seats? They must be worth an absolute mint in terms of free publicity to your own electorate.
The rest of the column (about how the Dorothy Dixers got emailed to journalists yesterday) is pretty interesting too.
PS: Christian Kerr's take on the day goes into more detail about the issue of how Rudd got his Reserve Bank advice second hand. Seems Kevin was hyperventilating at certain points during Question Time, but I don't recall seeing that part on the TV news.
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
Onsen appreciation
The Gangster In My Tub - The Atlantic (November 2008)
The Atlantic has a short article explaining the pleasures of Japanese onsen which is right on the money:
Speaking of tattoos: God I've seen some awful examples on women at the shopping centre lately. What are they thinking?
The Atlantic has a short article explaining the pleasures of Japanese onsen which is right on the money:
Why is all this fun? Japanese people sometimes explain the attraction with mumbo-jumbo about how onsen provide a spiritual experience. Personally, I think there’s something in the lizard part of our brain that really likes sitting around in hot water with no clothes on in a beautiful mountain setting. Also to be taken into account is that after the onsen, you can put on your yukata (a bathrobe-like garment provided by every ryokan) and eat wonderful food—the culinary quality at Japanese inns is amazingly high.As the article mentions (and has photos of) the Yakuza at an onsen, I should mention that I have never seen a tattooed Yakuza in an onsen or sento. (I understand that they are not welcome at the great majority of such establishments.) I did read in an old edition of the Lonely Planet guide to Japan that a member of the Yakuza may be quite happy if you show an interest in his tattoos. I thought this odd advice: generally speaking, isn't it more prudent to avoid engaging gangsters in conversation about mutual interests?
Speaking of tattoos: God I've seen some awful examples on women at the shopping centre lately. What are they thinking?
Godless England
There's a God-shaped hole in Westminster | Rachel Sylvester - Times Online
Seems about right, this column.
Seems about right, this column.
Fighting over Radio National
One thing I have learnt about Radio National since Stephen Crittenden spat the dummy about losing his show is that they don't update their presenters' photos often. (Have a look at Stephen's unflattering unhappy photo in the News.com story on this compared to his RN bio.)
I am being needlessly bitchy, I suppose, as in fact I would prefer The Religion Report stay. He doesn't do a bad job, I reckon, and I occasionally get to listen to it.
However, there is a lot of dross on RN and, apart from Crittenden's show and (perhaps) the Media Report, the other ones mentioned for axing will not be missed by more than a handful of listeners.
The really great presenters of the Radio National are, I reckon, Alan Saunders and Norman Swan. Both just come across as good natured polymaths, and don't wear their political ideology on their sleeves as do so many other Radio National presenters.
If you have a spare half hour, you could do much worse than listen to Saunder's "By Design" show of last week which featured Paul Keating and Elizabeth Farrelly talking about Sydney's Circular Quay. Quite entertaining in parts.
I am being needlessly bitchy, I suppose, as in fact I would prefer The Religion Report stay. He doesn't do a bad job, I reckon, and I occasionally get to listen to it.
However, there is a lot of dross on RN and, apart from Crittenden's show and (perhaps) the Media Report, the other ones mentioned for axing will not be missed by more than a handful of listeners.
The really great presenters of the Radio National are, I reckon, Alan Saunders and Norman Swan. Both just come across as good natured polymaths, and don't wear their political ideology on their sleeves as do so many other Radio National presenters.
If you have a spare half hour, you could do much worse than listen to Saunder's "By Design" show of last week which featured Paul Keating and Elizabeth Farrelly talking about Sydney's Circular Quay. Quite entertaining in parts.
Excrementally interesting
Excerpts from The Big Necessity: The Unmentionable World of Human Waste and Why It Matters.
It's all about China and excrement, but it is interesting.
The Japanese, incidentally, followed the Chinese system of really appreciating the value of their poo. Have a look at this Youtube entitled "The role of human excrement in Japanese agriculture" for a brief summary.
It's all about China and excrement, but it is interesting.
The Japanese, incidentally, followed the Chinese system of really appreciating the value of their poo. Have a look at this Youtube entitled "The role of human excrement in Japanese agriculture" for a brief summary.
Monday, October 20, 2008
Strange missiles
UFOs, alien abductions and Tina Turner feature in Close Encounters secret files - Telegraph
The Telegraph reports that some more recent government UFO files have been released, including some on a few very odd "unexplained missile" cases from 1991.
These cases don't particularly suggest aliens involvement (not in the traditional flying saucer sense), but they remainpuzzling nonetheless.
The Telegraph reports that some more recent government UFO files have been released, including some on a few very odd "unexplained missile" cases from 1991.
These cases don't particularly suggest aliens involvement (not in the traditional flying saucer sense), but they remainpuzzling nonetheless.
Proposed end of the world update
Also while I was away, Rainer Plaga made his response to the criticisms of his original paper suggesting that the Large Hadron Collider could create a dangerous, earth threatening, mini black hole.
He added an appendix to his paper on arXiv, here, saying that Giddings and Mangano's criticism that he used an equation incorrectly is just wrong. For the earlier explanation of the background, see my posts here, here and here.
I'm in no position to judge the accuracy of Rainer's rejoinder, just as I had trouble understanding Giddings and Mangano's criticism. And no physicist on the Web seems to have commented on Rainer's response.
So: who knows? Some informed comment on this would be welcome, but I guess money worries are more important that the end of the world...
UPDATE: the accident that shut the LHC down appears to require more work to fix than first thought. Nature is reporting it won't be turned on again til June 2009, but even then some seem to think that is optimistic.
He added an appendix to his paper on arXiv, here, saying that Giddings and Mangano's criticism that he used an equation incorrectly is just wrong. For the earlier explanation of the background, see my posts here, here and here.
I'm in no position to judge the accuracy of Rainer's rejoinder, just as I had trouble understanding Giddings and Mangano's criticism. And no physicist on the Web seems to have commented on Rainer's response.
So: who knows? Some informed comment on this would be welcome, but I guess money worries are more important that the end of the world...
UPDATE: the accident that shut the LHC down appears to require more work to fix than first thought. Nature is reporting it won't be turned on again til June 2009, but even then some seem to think that is optimistic.
Australian supermarkets note
Supermarkets slash prices to keep fearful customers | The Japan Times Online
Some very strong supermarket competition in Japan:
Some very strong supermarket competition in Japan:
Major supermarkets are engaging in price cuts to keep customers as a sagging stock market and worsening corporate earnings pressure consumers to tighten their purse strings.
Aeon Co. began its biggest discount campaign ever Saturday at about 2,000 stores run by group companies, slashing prices on about 1,000 items by an average 20 percent until the end of February.
Maher miss
I see that while I was on holiday, a Bill Maher documentary on religion was released in the States.
Although Rotten Tomatoes indicates it was generally well received by the critics, it seems when you read the reviewers' key comments at RT that many of those who liked it still had reservations about it being basically one big cheap shot. (It is a curious thing, sometimes, as to how RT decides whether a particular review is, overall, positive or negative.) Kenneth Turan of the LA Times explains well the reasons he and others didn't like it.
Anyhow, the main reason this is mentioned here is because I thought David Wolpe wrote a good rebuttal to this type of criticism of religion.
Surprisingly, I see that the movie has made $9,000,000 in the States, in 3 weeks. (The production budget is said to be $2.5 million.) I take it that counts as a success. Athiests with a liking for a grating liberal comedian are willing to pay for it, then. Unfortunately, more completely one sided liberal docos are probably on the way.
Although Rotten Tomatoes indicates it was generally well received by the critics, it seems when you read the reviewers' key comments at RT that many of those who liked it still had reservations about it being basically one big cheap shot. (It is a curious thing, sometimes, as to how RT decides whether a particular review is, overall, positive or negative.) Kenneth Turan of the LA Times explains well the reasons he and others didn't like it.
Anyhow, the main reason this is mentioned here is because I thought David Wolpe wrote a good rebuttal to this type of criticism of religion.
Surprisingly, I see that the movie has made $9,000,000 in the States, in 3 weeks. (The production budget is said to be $2.5 million.) I take it that counts as a success. Athiests with a liking for a grating liberal comedian are willing to pay for it, then. Unfortunately, more completely one sided liberal docos are probably on the way.
Sunday, October 19, 2008
The Madonna divorce post
Catherine Bennett: Now's the time for Guy to rise above Madge's material world The Observer
Catherine Bennett doesn't have much time for Madonna. Writing of her children's books:
PS: I had somehow missed the fact that Madonna has directed a movie just released in the States. (Her soon-to-be-ex-hubbie Guy has one out too.) Anthony Lane therefore has a lot of fun reviewing both films, neither of which he likes. Here's his take on Ritchie's film (noting that he has just rubbished Madonna's movie - "Filth and Wisdom" (!) - for being incompetent on every level):
Catherine Bennett doesn't have much time for Madonna. Writing of her children's books:
....in The English Roses Madonna commands young readers not to judge people by appearances. Just because a person might seem to be, say, meretricious, materialistic, foul-mouthed and youth-obsessed, with disturbing musculature and a habit of waggling her venerable crotch in front of hundreds of thousands of complete strangers, doesn't mean she might not, in reality, inhabit a rarified spiritual plane from which - to the great good fortune to those around her - she occasionally returns with important messages about the sacred side of life.Heh.
PS: I had somehow missed the fact that Madonna has directed a movie just released in the States. (Her soon-to-be-ex-hubbie Guy has one out too.) Anthony Lane therefore has a lot of fun reviewing both films, neither of which he likes. Here's his take on Ritchie's film (noting that he has just rubbished Madonna's movie - "Filth and Wisdom" (!) - for being incompetent on every level):
“RocknRolla,” by contrast, has competence on its side. Whole scenes go by in which one shot actually matches the next. In place of the bleak fuzz that veils half the setups in “Filth and Wisdom,” the images here are crisply defined, even if Ritchie has proved unable to shed the fondness for muted mud-tones that graced “Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels.” Why, there are even proper actors! Giving reasonable performances! This film’s got everything, although purists might quibble that it lacks any sliver of plausibility or dramatic interest.As for the title of Madonna's movie, apparently the narrator says: "Without filth, there can be no wisdom." Deep, Madonna, very deep.
Saturday, October 18, 2008
Psychoanalysing Obama
David Brooks: Thinking about Obama - International Herald Tribune
David Brooks' column on the unexpected (in terms of what a psychologist might predict given his childhood) and somewhat un-nerving coolness and unflappability of Obama makes some good points. (Although it is always dangerous to make too much out of just the public persona.)
Of course, Brooks fails to mention the obvious explanations: it could be he's either a robot (has he ever lived near the place where Disney builds their animatronics?) or the Terminal Man (with a mood controlling chip in his brain). Investigative journalists should be looking for unexplained hospital admissions. (Good thing I read Michael Crichton and can see what is going on.)
David Brooks' column on the unexpected (in terms of what a psychologist might predict given his childhood) and somewhat un-nerving coolness and unflappability of Obama makes some good points. (Although it is always dangerous to make too much out of just the public persona.)
Of course, Brooks fails to mention the obvious explanations: it could be he's either a robot (has he ever lived near the place where Disney builds their animatronics?) or the Terminal Man (with a mood controlling chip in his brain). Investigative journalists should be looking for unexplained hospital admissions. (Good thing I read Michael Crichton and can see what is going on.)
Bubble waiting to be burst
Dubai prices rising as fast as buildings - International Herald Tribune:
By the way, Richard is not your average investor. On page 2 of the article, we read this:Richard Waryn has lived in Dubai for only two months but he already is certain that the glitz capital of the Mideast lives up to its go-go reputation. What he is not so sure about is whether to sink his money into the sleek apartment towers springing up everywhere.
With property prices up 40 percent this year - and critics warning that a slide is coming - other potential buyers are asking themselves the same question.
In the end, Waryn and his wife, Liz, a lawyer, opted to rent a 550-square-meter duplex penthouse with private pool and terraces overlooking the sea. The $100,000 annual rent seemed a better deal than buying an equivalent property for about $4 million, although he said they still may buy an investment property.He's got a bit of loose change lying around, it seems.
Friday, October 17, 2008
Tuna must be in trouble...
BBC NEWS | Closure call for tuna 'disgrace'
If even Japan is calling for a moratorium on fishing Mediterranean tuna, then you know the stocks must be very low indeed:
If even Japan is calling for a moratorium on fishing Mediterranean tuna, then you know the stocks must be very low indeed:
In 2006, Iccat scientists recommended catches be limited to about 15,000 tonnes per year.
But the government appointees that make the decisions chose to allow quotas twice as big, and it is estimated that a further 20,000 tonnes are landed illegally each year.
As a result, the number of fish has fallen to about one-third of its level in the 1970s.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)