BBC NEWS | Science/Nature | Lighting the key to energy saving
The article above notes how much electricity could be saved if lighting was more efficient.
I wonder if an authoritarian country like China could just ban the production and importation of incandesent bulbs as a way of saving on electricity. (They probably make most of the rest of the world's bulbs, though.)
Here's my personal theory: if nations legislatively banned 7-Eleven Stores from using so much internal lighting they are like being in the inside of the sun, there would be an immediate detectable reduction in global greenhouse gases.
(Is it just Australia, or are all 7-Eleven shops so painfully lit?)
Monday, July 03, 2006
Cats, toxoplasma & madness (again)
There have been a few more recent articles on cats and madness. (Another issue you can trust Opinion Dominion to follow for you.)
This article from the New York Times is mainly a look at research about how toxoplasma gondii spreads and works. It is a pretty weird infection:
Once Toxoplasma enters a host, it spreads quickly. Within hours it can be detected in the heart and other organs. It is even able to infect the brain, which is protected from most pathogens by a tight barrier.
Antonio Barragan ...[was] puzzled at first about how Toxoplasma managed this swift journey.
"When we looked for parasites in the blood, we found very few that were just swimming around," said Barragan, an associate professor. But the scientists observed many of the parasites inside immune cells known as dendritic cells.
Barragan was intrigued. Dendritic cells, common in the gut, often come into contact with pathogens. They respond by crawling to the lymph nodes or the spleen, where they communicate with other immune cells.
"That led us to think, what if this parasite is directing these cells to move and to disseminate through the body?" Barragan said. He and his colleagues put dendritic cells in a dish and injected them with Toxoplasma. They noticed that the parasites triggered a peculiar change: the dendritic cells became hyperactive, crawling for an entire day.
Erk.
Also, as noted on the web in many places, studies indicate that the infection in rats makes them lose their fear of cats. How this happens is very odd:
Scientists at Stanford University recently followed up on these experiments, studying rats and mice. "They actually show a mild attraction to the cat odor," said Ajai Vyas, a Stanford neurobiologist. "It's not just the loss of an old behavior. A new behavior is being induced."
Vyas and his colleagues found that Toxoplasma's effects were precisely aimed at cat odor. The rats were still afraid of dog odor but not of rabbit odor. They could also acquire new fearful responses. "Only the innate fear to the cat was different, which was very surprising," he said.
How Toxoplasma incites this change is a mystery. It is possible that the parasite alters the production of certain neurotransmitters. "But I don't know how some global change could have such a specific effect," Vyas said.
This article is a summary of research going on about schizophrenia and infections, with this comment on studies looking at the possible treatment for toxoplasma (and other infections) for those suffering schizophrenia symptoms:
...we are conducting several double-blind treatment trials that involve the use of adjunctive antibiotics and antiviral medications in persons with schizophrenia and bipolar illness. To date, these medications show some promise in patients with recent-onset disease. The results are less remarkable in persons with long-standing illness. In the future, it might even be possible to develop a vaccine to protect children against possible infections that contribute to these 2 mental illnesses.
Even with what is known today, in clinical settings, some patients who present initially with symptoms suggestive of schizophrenia or bipolar disorder could instead be in the initial stages of viral encephalitis. Some physicians would argue that patients with first-admission psychosis should have a lumbar puncture and CSF analysis, adding other studies as appropriate if indicated by an increase in CSF protein or lymphocytes.
If you feel you are going mad, maybe this should be suggested to your doctor. Just don't mention that you read it on a blog.
This article from the New York Times is mainly a look at research about how toxoplasma gondii spreads and works. It is a pretty weird infection:
Once Toxoplasma enters a host, it spreads quickly. Within hours it can be detected in the heart and other organs. It is even able to infect the brain, which is protected from most pathogens by a tight barrier.
Antonio Barragan ...[was] puzzled at first about how Toxoplasma managed this swift journey.
"When we looked for parasites in the blood, we found very few that were just swimming around," said Barragan, an associate professor. But the scientists observed many of the parasites inside immune cells known as dendritic cells.
Barragan was intrigued. Dendritic cells, common in the gut, often come into contact with pathogens. They respond by crawling to the lymph nodes or the spleen, where they communicate with other immune cells.
"That led us to think, what if this parasite is directing these cells to move and to disseminate through the body?" Barragan said. He and his colleagues put dendritic cells in a dish and injected them with Toxoplasma. They noticed that the parasites triggered a peculiar change: the dendritic cells became hyperactive, crawling for an entire day.
Erk.
Also, as noted on the web in many places, studies indicate that the infection in rats makes them lose their fear of cats. How this happens is very odd:
Scientists at Stanford University recently followed up on these experiments, studying rats and mice. "They actually show a mild attraction to the cat odor," said Ajai Vyas, a Stanford neurobiologist. "It's not just the loss of an old behavior. A new behavior is being induced."
Vyas and his colleagues found that Toxoplasma's effects were precisely aimed at cat odor. The rats were still afraid of dog odor but not of rabbit odor. They could also acquire new fearful responses. "Only the innate fear to the cat was different, which was very surprising," he said.
How Toxoplasma incites this change is a mystery. It is possible that the parasite alters the production of certain neurotransmitters. "But I don't know how some global change could have such a specific effect," Vyas said.
This article is a summary of research going on about schizophrenia and infections, with this comment on studies looking at the possible treatment for toxoplasma (and other infections) for those suffering schizophrenia symptoms:
...we are conducting several double-blind treatment trials that involve the use of adjunctive antibiotics and antiviral medications in persons with schizophrenia and bipolar illness. To date, these medications show some promise in patients with recent-onset disease. The results are less remarkable in persons with long-standing illness. In the future, it might even be possible to develop a vaccine to protect children against possible infections that contribute to these 2 mental illnesses.
Even with what is known today, in clinical settings, some patients who present initially with symptoms suggestive of schizophrenia or bipolar disorder could instead be in the initial stages of viral encephalitis. Some physicians would argue that patients with first-admission psychosis should have a lumbar puncture and CSF analysis, adding other studies as appropriate if indicated by an increase in CSF protein or lymphocytes.
If you feel you are going mad, maybe this should be suggested to your doctor. Just don't mention that you read it on a blog.
The pomegranate cure
ScienceDaily: Pomegranate Juice Helps Keep PSA Levels Stable In Men With Prostate Cancer
The report above seems to show strong results from pomegranate juice in helping men with prostate cancer. Not a cure, but a significant help. (At the end of the report, it would seem that the study was paid for by a pomegranate grower, but still...)
Who thought of pomegranates as a possible important help for prostate cancer in the first place? I will check around the internet later.
The report above seems to show strong results from pomegranate juice in helping men with prostate cancer. Not a cure, but a significant help. (At the end of the report, it would seem that the study was paid for by a pomegranate grower, but still...)
Who thought of pomegranates as a possible important help for prostate cancer in the first place? I will check around the internet later.
Jellyfish will save the planet!
ScienceDaily: Jellyfish-like Creatures May Play Major Role In Fate Of Carbon Dioxide In The Ocean
Previously this blog covered the importance of krill poo as a CO2 sink. Now (see the above link) it's jellyfish poo too:
Transparent jellyfish-like creatures known as salps, considered by many a low member in the ocean food web, may be more important to the fate of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide in the ocean than previously thought.
In the May issue of Deep Sea Research, scientists report that salps, about the size of a human thumb, swarming by the billions in “hot spots” may be transporting tons of carbon per day from the ocean surface to the deep sea and keep it from re-entering the atmosphere. Salps are semi-transparent, barrel-shaped marine animals that move through the water by drawing water in the front end and propelling it out the rear in a sort of jet propulsion. The water passes over a mucus membrane that vacuums it clean of all edible material....
“Salps swim, feed, and produce waste continuously,” Madin said. “They take in small packages of carbon and make them into big packages that sink fast.”
In previous work, Madin and WHOI biologist Richard Harbison found that salp fecal pellets sink as much as 1,000 meters (3,280 feet) a day. The scientists also showed that when salps die, their bodies also sink fast—up to 475 meters (1,575 feet) a day, faster than most pellets. If salps are really a dead-end in the food web and remain uneaten on the way down, they could send even more carbon to the deep.
Who else can readers trust to keep them up to date on the developing science of marine poo?
Previously this blog covered the importance of krill poo as a CO2 sink. Now (see the above link) it's jellyfish poo too:
Transparent jellyfish-like creatures known as salps, considered by many a low member in the ocean food web, may be more important to the fate of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide in the ocean than previously thought.
In the May issue of Deep Sea Research, scientists report that salps, about the size of a human thumb, swarming by the billions in “hot spots” may be transporting tons of carbon per day from the ocean surface to the deep sea and keep it from re-entering the atmosphere. Salps are semi-transparent, barrel-shaped marine animals that move through the water by drawing water in the front end and propelling it out the rear in a sort of jet propulsion. The water passes over a mucus membrane that vacuums it clean of all edible material....
“Salps swim, feed, and produce waste continuously,” Madin said. “They take in small packages of carbon and make them into big packages that sink fast.”
In previous work, Madin and WHOI biologist Richard Harbison found that salp fecal pellets sink as much as 1,000 meters (3,280 feet) a day. The scientists also showed that when salps die, their bodies also sink fast—up to 475 meters (1,575 feet) a day, faster than most pellets. If salps are really a dead-end in the food web and remain uneaten on the way down, they could send even more carbon to the deep.
Who else can readers trust to keep them up to date on the developing science of marine poo?
Sunday, July 02, 2006
Death by asteroid later this century?
Friday 13th asteroid a close call - National - smh.com.au
Most readers have probably heard of the asteroid that is due to zip past earth tomorrow, fortunately at a safe distance. However, as the short story above notes:
But astronomers fear Earth could be in very real danger on Friday, April 13, 2029, when another 400-metre-wide asteroid, called Apophis, is predicted to pass at a distance of just 35,000 kilometres.
"If an asteroid [that big] hit Earth it could destroy an area half the size of NSW," Dr Nick Lomb of Sydney Observatory said.
Apart from direct destruction, the effect on the climate would presumably be enormous for some years.
Wikipedia has a pretty detailed entry about Apophis:
As of February 2005 it is predicted that the asteroid will pass just below the altitude of geosynchronous satellites, which are at 35,786 km (22,300 mi).
Now that is close. But it could get worse:
A pass on April 13, 2036 still carries some risk.
Apophis remains at level one on the Torino scale because of a very low but non-zero probability of impact in 2036. However, the close approach in 2029 will substantially alter the object's orbit, making predictions uncertain without more data. "If we get radar ranging in 2013 [the next good opportunity], we should be able to predict the location of 2004 MN4 out to at least 2070." said Jon Giorgini of JPL [3].
So I guess we have some years notice. What worries me is if the close visit in 2029 causes enough of a change in orbit for it to hit in 2036, that is only 7 years to do something about it.
And if it hits Earth, how much energy will it release?:
NASA initially estimated the energy that Apophis would have released if it impacted Earth as the equivalent of 1480 megatons of TNT (114,000 times the energy from the nuclear bomb Little Boy, dropped by the United States on Hiroshima, Japan). A more refined later NASA estimate was 880 megatons, which is still around 65,500 times the energy of the bomb mentioned above. The impacts which created the Barringer Crater or caused the Tunguska event are estimated to be in the 10-20 megaton range. The 1883 eruption of Krakatoa was the equivalent of roughly 200 megatons.
So about 40 times bigger than Tunguska, which according to Wikipedia, caused damage over an area of 2,150 square kilometers.
Start building your kid's asteroid shelters now. I'm sure a good one takes a lot of time.
Most readers have probably heard of the asteroid that is due to zip past earth tomorrow, fortunately at a safe distance. However, as the short story above notes:
But astronomers fear Earth could be in very real danger on Friday, April 13, 2029, when another 400-metre-wide asteroid, called Apophis, is predicted to pass at a distance of just 35,000 kilometres.
"If an asteroid [that big] hit Earth it could destroy an area half the size of NSW," Dr Nick Lomb of Sydney Observatory said.
Apart from direct destruction, the effect on the climate would presumably be enormous for some years.
Wikipedia has a pretty detailed entry about Apophis:
As of February 2005 it is predicted that the asteroid will pass just below the altitude of geosynchronous satellites, which are at 35,786 km (22,300 mi).
Now that is close. But it could get worse:
A pass on April 13, 2036 still carries some risk.
Apophis remains at level one on the Torino scale because of a very low but non-zero probability of impact in 2036. However, the close approach in 2029 will substantially alter the object's orbit, making predictions uncertain without more data. "If we get radar ranging in 2013 [the next good opportunity], we should be able to predict the location of 2004 MN4 out to at least 2070." said Jon Giorgini of JPL [3].
So I guess we have some years notice. What worries me is if the close visit in 2029 causes enough of a change in orbit for it to hit in 2036, that is only 7 years to do something about it.
And if it hits Earth, how much energy will it release?:
NASA initially estimated the energy that Apophis would have released if it impacted Earth as the equivalent of 1480 megatons of TNT (114,000 times the energy from the nuclear bomb Little Boy, dropped by the United States on Hiroshima, Japan). A more refined later NASA estimate was 880 megatons, which is still around 65,500 times the energy of the bomb mentioned above. The impacts which created the Barringer Crater or caused the Tunguska event are estimated to be in the 10-20 megaton range. The 1883 eruption of Krakatoa was the equivalent of roughly 200 megatons.
So about 40 times bigger than Tunguska, which according to Wikipedia, caused damage over an area of 2,150 square kilometers.
Start building your kid's asteroid shelters now. I'm sure a good one takes a lot of time.
Bjorn Lomborg on priorities
The Observer | Comment | Climate change can wait. World health can't
Nothing particularly new in Bjorn's article above (talking mainly of the "Copenhagen Consensus") but he is always interesting to read.
I note that the Wikipedia entry on the Copenhagen Consensus quotes criticisms of it by bearded blogger economist John Quiggan.
Nothing particularly new in Bjorn's article above (talking mainly of the "Copenhagen Consensus") but he is always interesting to read.
I note that the Wikipedia entry on the Copenhagen Consensus quotes criticisms of it by bearded blogger economist John Quiggan.
On Islam in Leeds
Focus: Undercover on planet Beeston - Sunday Times - Times Online
This is an interesting article by a British Muslim journalist who went "undercover" in Leeds for 6 weeks to get a feeling for the
Islamic community there.
The journalist does not try very hard to make it clear how widespread the more radical opinions are held, but it is disturbing enough.
This is an interesting article by a British Muslim journalist who went "undercover" in Leeds for 6 weeks to get a feeling for the
Islamic community there.
The journalist does not try very hard to make it clear how widespread the more radical opinions are held, but it is disturbing enough.
Saturday, July 01, 2006
Saturday's Aussie newspapers
It'll take more than a fraction of fiction to overcome way too many chords
Richard Glover's column today (above) sticks to his family and life, with his usual witty approach on those topics.
Mike Carlton recounts this story about what he had to do once to get a pay rise:
It was always bare knuckle at the Packer fun factory. I once had to inch my way along an exterior wall of the main building, three storeys from the ground like a human fly, to dive through Sam Chisholm's office window to demand a pay rise. (He gave it to me, laughing like a drain, the wicked old bastard).
He doesn't seem to be joking. Some detail as to why he had to do this would be worthwhile.
Over at The Australian, the start of the lead story ("HUNDREDS of thousands of middle-income families are shouldering a heavier tax burden today than they were 10 years ago, despite the Howard Government's latest tax cuts") turns out just to be following Labor spin on some rather confusing financial analysis, a lot of which (further down in the report) reads quite favourably for the government.
And some interesting work for historians coming up:
POPE Benedict has decided to open all Vatican archives from 1922 to 1939, giving new insight into what the Catholic Church knew and did as Europe saw the rise of Nazism in Germany and the Spanish Civil War.
At The Age, they give a column to a euthanasia advocate trying to drum up support for legislative change in Victoria. Then, in fine print at the bottom of the web version of the article, it says:
For assistance or information visit www.beyondblue.org.au, call Suicide Helpline Victoria on 1300 651 251 or Lifeline on 131 114.
Isn't that sort of like saying "if you believe this article, please call these organisations so you can be talked out of it."
Richard Glover's column today (above) sticks to his family and life, with his usual witty approach on those topics.
Mike Carlton recounts this story about what he had to do once to get a pay rise:
It was always bare knuckle at the Packer fun factory. I once had to inch my way along an exterior wall of the main building, three storeys from the ground like a human fly, to dive through Sam Chisholm's office window to demand a pay rise. (He gave it to me, laughing like a drain, the wicked old bastard).
He doesn't seem to be joking. Some detail as to why he had to do this would be worthwhile.
Over at The Australian, the start of the lead story ("HUNDREDS of thousands of middle-income families are shouldering a heavier tax burden today than they were 10 years ago, despite the Howard Government's latest tax cuts") turns out just to be following Labor spin on some rather confusing financial analysis, a lot of which (further down in the report) reads quite favourably for the government.
And some interesting work for historians coming up:
POPE Benedict has decided to open all Vatican archives from 1922 to 1939, giving new insight into what the Catholic Church knew and did as Europe saw the rise of Nazism in Germany and the Spanish Civil War.
At The Age, they give a column to a euthanasia advocate trying to drum up support for legislative change in Victoria. Then, in fine print at the bottom of the web version of the article, it says:
For assistance or information visit www.beyondblue.org.au, call Suicide Helpline Victoria on 1300 651 251 or Lifeline on 131 114.
Isn't that sort of like saying "if you believe this article, please call these organisations so you can be talked out of it."
How helpful...
Cleric Vows Iran Will Never Talk With U.S. on Nuclear Program - New York Times
From the above:
...European leaders had pressed for years for the United States to join earlier rounds of talks with Iran, and when the Bush administration decided in late May to offer to join any new discussions, the move was seen as a major concession and a prime inducement for Tehran.
On Tuesday, however, Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said he saw "no use" in talking with the United States.
And today, Mr. Khatami went further, declaring that "with regards to our nuclear case, we have nothing to do with the U.S. and principally, our officials will have no talks with the U.S.," according to the state-run Islamic Republic News Agency.
The rest of the story is worth reading too. It's a difficult world.
From the above:
...European leaders had pressed for years for the United States to join earlier rounds of talks with Iran, and when the Bush administration decided in late May to offer to join any new discussions, the move was seen as a major concession and a prime inducement for Tehran.
On Tuesday, however, Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said he saw "no use" in talking with the United States.
And today, Mr. Khatami went further, declaring that "with regards to our nuclear case, we have nothing to do with the U.S. and principally, our officials will have no talks with the U.S.," according to the state-run Islamic Republic News Agency.
The rest of the story is worth reading too. It's a difficult world.
Thursday, June 29, 2006
Don't bet on Hillary Clinton
Marty Kaplan: Hillary's Daou Jones - Yahoo! News
The story above notes that Hillary has engaged Peter Daou to help her campaign.
This is a bad sign for Hillary. As I noted earlier this year, Daou has no grip on reality when it comes to assessing what the "media bias" is. Maybe he makes the common mistake of calling it a "right wing bias" when all he really means is "to the right of me".
If Hillary hopes to regain Lefty "street cred" by hiring someone well to the Left of her, I can't see it working. The Daily Kos crowd are just not that open to rational argument anyway.
UPDATE:
Here are some quotes from Daou's Huffington Post gig (click the asterisk for the link):
* We hear a lot about "angry" bloggers, but very little about the disturbingly lobotomized demeanor of certain administration officials (and ex-officials) -- Cheney, Powell, Gonzales, and Rice come to mind. There's something exceedingly peculiar about their ultracalm delivery and Mona Lisa-like permasmirk, especially when discussing issues like the Iraq war, a bloodbath they helped instigate...
* Bush's clownish banter with reporters - which is on constant display during press conferences - stands in such stark contrast to his administration's destructive policies and to the gravity of the bloodbath in Iraq that it is deeply unsettling to watch. This may be impolitic, but wouldn't refraining from frat-style horseplay be appropriate for this man? Or at the least, can't reporters suppress their raucous laughter every time he blurts out another jibe... the way they did when Colbert put them in their place?
* Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, and their ilk have made an industry out of liberal-bashing. Coulter fits in perfectly with those hate-traffickers. And contrary to the false Michael Moore comparisons made by Leno and others, there is no progressive counterpart to these people on the national stage.
See what I mean? That last line floors me. No grip on reality at all, I say, and a pretty clear deep and personal loathing of Bush and all of his administration. Regardless of how well "connected" he is in blogging, having a guy with such a lack of personal judgement on your team is not a good idea.
The story above notes that Hillary has engaged Peter Daou to help her campaign.
This is a bad sign for Hillary. As I noted earlier this year, Daou has no grip on reality when it comes to assessing what the "media bias" is. Maybe he makes the common mistake of calling it a "right wing bias" when all he really means is "to the right of me".
If Hillary hopes to regain Lefty "street cred" by hiring someone well to the Left of her, I can't see it working. The Daily Kos crowd are just not that open to rational argument anyway.
UPDATE:
Here are some quotes from Daou's Huffington Post gig (click the asterisk for the link):
* We hear a lot about "angry" bloggers, but very little about the disturbingly lobotomized demeanor of certain administration officials (and ex-officials) -- Cheney, Powell, Gonzales, and Rice come to mind. There's something exceedingly peculiar about their ultracalm delivery and Mona Lisa-like permasmirk, especially when discussing issues like the Iraq war, a bloodbath they helped instigate...
* Bush's clownish banter with reporters - which is on constant display during press conferences - stands in such stark contrast to his administration's destructive policies and to the gravity of the bloodbath in Iraq that it is deeply unsettling to watch. This may be impolitic, but wouldn't refraining from frat-style horseplay be appropriate for this man? Or at the least, can't reporters suppress their raucous laughter every time he blurts out another jibe... the way they did when Colbert put them in their place?
* Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, and their ilk have made an industry out of liberal-bashing. Coulter fits in perfectly with those hate-traffickers. And contrary to the false Michael Moore comparisons made by Leno and others, there is no progressive counterpart to these people on the national stage.
See what I mean? That last line floors me. No grip on reality at all, I say, and a pretty clear deep and personal loathing of Bush and all of his administration. Regardless of how well "connected" he is in blogging, having a guy with such a lack of personal judgement on your team is not a good idea.
Matt Price on the union rallies
Talkback callers blitz the Bomber | Matt Price | The Australian
I liked this line:
More than 80,000 people turned out in Melbourne, which is mightily impressive until you remember it's Melbourne, where 80,000 would turn out to see Jana Pittman recite blank verse.
My personal assessment: the numbers were not enough for Labor to consider it a resounding success. It is also likely that repeating such rallies would backfire. The Newspoll CE Sol Lebovic on Radio National yesterday put it all in perspective. Unfortunately, no transcript is up, but you can hear it here. Essentially, the story was that yes, voters are rating IR as a bigger issue than they did before, but it is still far from the top of the list of their concerns.
I liked this line:
More than 80,000 people turned out in Melbourne, which is mightily impressive until you remember it's Melbourne, where 80,000 would turn out to see Jana Pittman recite blank verse.
My personal assessment: the numbers were not enough for Labor to consider it a resounding success. It is also likely that repeating such rallies would backfire. The Newspoll CE Sol Lebovic on Radio National yesterday put it all in perspective. Unfortunately, no transcript is up, but you can hear it here. Essentially, the story was that yes, voters are rating IR as a bigger issue than they did before, but it is still far from the top of the list of their concerns.
Scorpionman danger
ScienceDaily: Radioactive Scorpion Venom For Fighting Cancer
Obviously prepared to ignore the scientific dangers of radioactive insect venom (well known to all readers/viewers of Spiderman), these researchers actually may be onto something good.
Obviously prepared to ignore the scientific dangers of radioactive insect venom (well known to all readers/viewers of Spiderman), these researchers actually may be onto something good.
Wednesday, June 28, 2006
No responsibility taken
I just watched ABC's Lateline, with a pathetic interview performance by a member of the Palestinian government (sorry, transcript is not yet available for me to check the name) about the current Gaza crisis.
The transcript should be up at this site tomorrow. He would not call for the release of the hostage soldier, and made out as if the Israelis just sit there taking pot shots at anyone and everyone in Gaza for no reason at all. He mentioned "restraint" on the Palestinian side several times.
Interviewer Tony Jones did not really do much to challenge the deceptive claims, and in particular did not mention the continual rain of missiles from Gaza into Sderot, including some since they took young CPL Shalit. Jones did try to get him to be clear as to what the Palistinian government's position was, and did succeed to some extent in cutting short the rambling.
Frankly, with government members taking such a weak position, the Palestinians cannot expect to receive more than lukewarm support even from their usual sympathisers in the West.
UPDATE: Yes, the transcript is up at the ABC Lateline link above. Some extracts:
....the Israeli Minister was saying that the Israelis have shown lots of restraint in the past few days. I'm not sure that's correct because the Palestinians are the ones who have been showing the most, the utmost restraint in the past one-and-a-half years. The Palestinians have committed themselves to a calming and they have strictly abided by their position and during this one-and-a-half years there was no military action from the Palestinian side. Basically, the military action was all the time before the withdrawal from the Gaza Strip and after it. The military action was always directed to Palestinian civilians, all the time killing children, women, elders, all the time only from the Palestinian side....
This soldier, first he's a military man. He's a soldier. He's sitting in his tank on the border of the Gaza Strip. He's shelling the children of the Gaza Strip every day, all the time for a one-and-a-half years or more and now when one group, one small group of the Palestinians, have tried to do something to avoid this continuous shelling and continuous massacre in the Gaza Strip, now the whole world is very touchy about a thing like that....
TONY JONES: I'm sorry. You now have the Israeli Army camped outside the city of Rafah. They've invaded Gaza and they want this man back. They clearly are not going to leave until they get him back. Do you believe without conditions the kidnappers should give him back?
DR ABDUL RAHMAN ZAIDAN: I'm not going to interfere in this. I've not interfered as a Government.
The transcript should be up at this site tomorrow. He would not call for the release of the hostage soldier, and made out as if the Israelis just sit there taking pot shots at anyone and everyone in Gaza for no reason at all. He mentioned "restraint" on the Palestinian side several times.
Interviewer Tony Jones did not really do much to challenge the deceptive claims, and in particular did not mention the continual rain of missiles from Gaza into Sderot, including some since they took young CPL Shalit. Jones did try to get him to be clear as to what the Palistinian government's position was, and did succeed to some extent in cutting short the rambling.
Frankly, with government members taking such a weak position, the Palestinians cannot expect to receive more than lukewarm support even from their usual sympathisers in the West.
UPDATE: Yes, the transcript is up at the ABC Lateline link above. Some extracts:
....the Israeli Minister was saying that the Israelis have shown lots of restraint in the past few days. I'm not sure that's correct because the Palestinians are the ones who have been showing the most, the utmost restraint in the past one-and-a-half years. The Palestinians have committed themselves to a calming and they have strictly abided by their position and during this one-and-a-half years there was no military action from the Palestinian side. Basically, the military action was all the time before the withdrawal from the Gaza Strip and after it. The military action was always directed to Palestinian civilians, all the time killing children, women, elders, all the time only from the Palestinian side....
This soldier, first he's a military man. He's a soldier. He's sitting in his tank on the border of the Gaza Strip. He's shelling the children of the Gaza Strip every day, all the time for a one-and-a-half years or more and now when one group, one small group of the Palestinians, have tried to do something to avoid this continuous shelling and continuous massacre in the Gaza Strip, now the whole world is very touchy about a thing like that....
TONY JONES: I'm sorry. You now have the Israeli Army camped outside the city of Rafah. They've invaded Gaza and they want this man back. They clearly are not going to leave until they get him back. Do you believe without conditions the kidnappers should give him back?
DR ABDUL RAHMAN ZAIDAN: I'm not going to interfere in this. I've not interfered as a Government.
Building lifeboats
TCS Daily - The Ultimate Lifeboat
James Pinkerton does a good job in explaining why space colonization is a good and important goal, as a lifeboat for humanity.
Funny how this idea seemingly got lost from any mainstream airing for something like three decades!
Of course, science fiction readers (at least those who liked it before the genre went mostly interior and pessimistic with cyberpunk, the rise of fantasy, and the dubious quality of neverending reincarnations of Star Trek and Star Wars) always understood that this was the point of having an active space program, but they just weren't able to say it out loud without fear of ridicule.
The ridicule is indeed still there, and, as Zoe Brain noted, a surprisingly large amount of it can now come from young scientist types. Shame on them.
Anyway, good to have it out in the open again, and NASA actually going back to a place where there might be somewhere you can live without having to take even your own water. (The Moon.)
James Pinkerton does a good job in explaining why space colonization is a good and important goal, as a lifeboat for humanity.
Funny how this idea seemingly got lost from any mainstream airing for something like three decades!
Of course, science fiction readers (at least those who liked it before the genre went mostly interior and pessimistic with cyberpunk, the rise of fantasy, and the dubious quality of neverending reincarnations of Star Trek and Star Wars) always understood that this was the point of having an active space program, but they just weren't able to say it out loud without fear of ridicule.
The ridicule is indeed still there, and, as Zoe Brain noted, a surprisingly large amount of it can now come from young scientist types. Shame on them.
Anyway, good to have it out in the open again, and NASA actually going back to a place where there might be somewhere you can live without having to take even your own water. (The Moon.)
Wrong
Saddam death would worsen Iraq violence: lawyer|Reuters.com
The lawyer in question is, however, nutty Ramsey Clarke. Just as a reminder, remember this, and Hitchen's article about him here. The best part of Hitchen's column is this:
He [Clarke] has now twice said in public that, given the war with the Shiite republic of Iran, Saddam was entitled to take stern measures. “He had this huge war going on, and you have to act firmly when you have an assassination attempt,” he told the BBC.
To this he calmly added that he himself had more than once been shoved aside by Secret Service agents eager to defend the president of the United States (and of course one remembers the mass arrests, beatings and executions that followed the assassination attempts on presidents Ford and Reagan).
The worst thing from the Reuters story is this:
On Tuesday a prosecutor said a separate trial is to begin in August in which Saddam would face genocide charges in the killings of tens of thousands of Iraqs' Kurds in 1988 in a military operation to force them from their villages.
Let's just hope that they don't want to spend years delaying punishment just to secure more and more death penalty sentences.
The lawyer in question is, however, nutty Ramsey Clarke. Just as a reminder, remember this, and Hitchen's article about him here. The best part of Hitchen's column is this:
He [Clarke] has now twice said in public that, given the war with the Shiite republic of Iran, Saddam was entitled to take stern measures. “He had this huge war going on, and you have to act firmly when you have an assassination attempt,” he told the BBC.
To this he calmly added that he himself had more than once been shoved aside by Secret Service agents eager to defend the president of the United States (and of course one remembers the mass arrests, beatings and executions that followed the assassination attempts on presidents Ford and Reagan).
The worst thing from the Reuters story is this:
On Tuesday a prosecutor said a separate trial is to begin in August in which Saddam would face genocide charges in the killings of tens of thousands of Iraqs' Kurds in 1988 in a military operation to force them from their villages.
Let's just hope that they don't want to spend years delaying punishment just to secure more and more death penalty sentences.
Calls for an engineering solution
How to Cool a Planet (Maybe) - New York Times
How timely. A short but interesting article on the "big" engineering ideas to counter global warming.
Hmm. No one mentions my idea of trying to create a volcanic eruption with H bombs on some island no one wants. (The best feature of my plan is that I can't think of a more perfect idea to upset Greenies.)
How timely. A short but interesting article on the "big" engineering ideas to counter global warming.
Hmm. No one mentions my idea of trying to create a volcanic eruption with H bombs on some island no one wants. (The best feature of my plan is that I can't think of a more perfect idea to upset Greenies.)
Bye bye tropical glaciers
ScienceDaily: First Compilation Of Tropical Ice Cores Shows Abrupt Global Climate Shifts
A not very encouraging study about what core drilling in tropical glaciers tells us about climate change.
A not very encouraging study about what core drilling in tropical glaciers tells us about climate change.
Further reason for Kyoto scepticism
BBC NEWS | Science/Nature | Germany to spark 'climate crisis'
From the above report:
The German government is about to trigger a new crisis in Europe's flagship climate policy, the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS).
BBC News understands the German cabinet is likely to agree a deal that will reduce carbon emissions from industry by only 0.6% between 2004 and 2012.
The decision is likely to influence other EU countries, including the UK, which still have to set their own caps.
Environmental groups describe the target as "pathetic and shameful"....
Climate analysts now fear a meltdown of EU climate leadership.
"I have been a big supporter of the EU ETS, but hearing the German news I feel more depressed than I ever have done about our ability to tackle climate change," said Professor Michael Grubb of the UK Carbon Trust, set up by the British government to help create a low-carbon economy.
"I really believed that Europe would lead the way through the EU ETS but now I wonder whether this will ever happen."
The news will offer comfort to US climate sceptics who predicted that Europe would talk big on climate change but fail to impose large carbon cuts on its own industries.
UPDATE: this post scored a link from Pajamas Media, but it said that my post "commented on" this report. In fact, this was one of my lazy posts, and the whole of it was just extracts from parts of the BBC report. (I didn't make it perfectly clear to newcomers that that was what I had done, but regular readers should know that I always highlight quotes in blue.) After I saw the PM link, I made it clearer at the top of the post that it was only an extract.
Sorry for any confusion. Just want to make sure people understood the words were not my own.
Anyway, newcomers should also note my other recent (lazy) post about reasons to be sceptical about Kyoto.
From the above report:
The German government is about to trigger a new crisis in Europe's flagship climate policy, the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS).
BBC News understands the German cabinet is likely to agree a deal that will reduce carbon emissions from industry by only 0.6% between 2004 and 2012.
The decision is likely to influence other EU countries, including the UK, which still have to set their own caps.
Environmental groups describe the target as "pathetic and shameful"....
Climate analysts now fear a meltdown of EU climate leadership.
"I have been a big supporter of the EU ETS, but hearing the German news I feel more depressed than I ever have done about our ability to tackle climate change," said Professor Michael Grubb of the UK Carbon Trust, set up by the British government to help create a low-carbon economy.
"I really believed that Europe would lead the way through the EU ETS but now I wonder whether this will ever happen."
The news will offer comfort to US climate sceptics who predicted that Europe would talk big on climate change but fail to impose large carbon cuts on its own industries.
UPDATE: this post scored a link from Pajamas Media, but it said that my post "commented on" this report. In fact, this was one of my lazy posts, and the whole of it was just extracts from parts of the BBC report. (I didn't make it perfectly clear to newcomers that that was what I had done, but regular readers should know that I always highlight quotes in blue.) After I saw the PM link, I made it clearer at the top of the post that it was only an extract.
Sorry for any confusion. Just want to make sure people understood the words were not my own.
Anyway, newcomers should also note my other recent (lazy) post about reasons to be sceptical about Kyoto.
Howard, Asia and books
Rowan Callick: A respected statesman in Asia | Opinion | The Australian
Today's piece in The Australian notes that Howard has established a strong relationship with China, and the dire predictions about how the opposite would happen:
Whole books were commissioned by excitable publishers on the theme - now too odd even to fill remainder trays - that we, Lee Kuan Yew's "poor white trash of Asia", were about to fall further into disrepute and doom on account of our leader's lack of empathy with Asians. His true sin, of course, was that he was not really "one of us", the cognoscenti.
Former diplomat Tony Kevin wrote in The Howard Years (2004): "It's a fact that Australia has lost most of its former sensitivity in its dealings with diplomatic associations of countries of the Asia-Pacific region." Another former diplomat, Alison Broinowski, wrote in Howard's War (2003): "We are now less in tune with our nearest neighbours than we have been since the 1970s."
Former prime minister Paul Keating said in 2000: "Australia's relevance to Asia, and our position and influence in Asia, has diminished enormously in John Howard's time."
Predictably, the criticism has been turned on its head, and Howard is being lambasted from the universities and elsewhere as an appeaser of Asian tyrants in Indonesia and China. He should be acting, they say, in a more Australian way and opposing the traducers of human rights in Papua and Tibet.
How true.
Just generally on the book trade, I am often surprised that publishers do commission books on political topics where the validity of the views expressed will soon be established within a short time of publication. Why do publishers take such gambles? For example, the flurry of books about Latham. The one by Micheal Duffy about Latham and Abbott was sort of a double whammy of dubious relevance, as Abbott's increasingly noticed religious views surely mean he looks less and less likely as a possible leader of the Liberals.
Today's piece in The Australian notes that Howard has established a strong relationship with China, and the dire predictions about how the opposite would happen:
Whole books were commissioned by excitable publishers on the theme - now too odd even to fill remainder trays - that we, Lee Kuan Yew's "poor white trash of Asia", were about to fall further into disrepute and doom on account of our leader's lack of empathy with Asians. His true sin, of course, was that he was not really "one of us", the cognoscenti.
Former diplomat Tony Kevin wrote in The Howard Years (2004): "It's a fact that Australia has lost most of its former sensitivity in its dealings with diplomatic associations of countries of the Asia-Pacific region." Another former diplomat, Alison Broinowski, wrote in Howard's War (2003): "We are now less in tune with our nearest neighbours than we have been since the 1970s."
Former prime minister Paul Keating said in 2000: "Australia's relevance to Asia, and our position and influence in Asia, has diminished enormously in John Howard's time."
Predictably, the criticism has been turned on its head, and Howard is being lambasted from the universities and elsewhere as an appeaser of Asian tyrants in Indonesia and China. He should be acting, they say, in a more Australian way and opposing the traducers of human rights in Papua and Tibet.
How true.
Just generally on the book trade, I am often surprised that publishers do commission books on political topics where the validity of the views expressed will soon be established within a short time of publication. Why do publishers take such gambles? For example, the flurry of books about Latham. The one by Micheal Duffy about Latham and Abbott was sort of a double whammy of dubious relevance, as Abbott's increasingly noticed religious views surely mean he looks less and less likely as a possible leader of the Liberals.
Tuesday, June 27, 2006
Not very likely
Saddam clings to hope US will enlist his aid: lawyer - Yahoo! News
Saddam Hussein is certain his trial for crimes against humanity will result in the death penalty, but clings to the hope that Washington will use the sentence as leverage to enlist his aid to tamp down the insurgency in Iraq, the New York Times reported on Sunday.
If Saddam believes this, surely some of the insurgents believe it too.
Saddam Hussein is certain his trial for crimes against humanity will result in the death penalty, but clings to the hope that Washington will use the sentence as leverage to enlist his aid to tamp down the insurgency in Iraq, the New York Times reported on Sunday.
If Saddam believes this, surely some of the insurgents believe it too.
Not smart
Four wounded as Kassam hits Sderot | Jerusalem Post
From the story above:
Even as IDF forces were massing in large numbers on Gaza's border for a possible ground incursion to rescue kidnapped soldier Gilad Shalit, three Kassam rockets were fired from Gaza into Israel Monday evening...
The rocket fire comes as Islamic Jihad claimed to have developed a new longer-range rocket to be used against Israeli targets, Channel 1 reported. The groups said the new "Quds 4" projectile has a range of 20 kilometers, three times longer then the crude Kassam rockets.
On Sunday, Fatah announced that they had biological and chemical weapons capabilities. They said that they would not hesitate to use unconventional warheads on missiles.
That Israel keeps getting taunted by a random rain of missiles, with promises of more to come, causes some readers of the Jerusalem Post to react rather strongly:
Israel showed goodwill and restraint while Kassams were falling on Sderot and soldiers paid the ultimate sacrifice. It is enough! Cut off all gas, electricity, water and other services to Gaza and seal them off from the civilised world hermetically. Let them suffer and suffer until they learn the lesson that terror brings suffering. The fait of Israel is more relevant than the biased world opinion.
And this:
I ask my fellow Jews when are you going to wake up. The only compassionate thing to do is to give the terrorists 24 hours to return the soldier unharmed, if they don't blow up every single person living in Gaza. Unfortunatley, this is the only language that these terrorists understand. If you do not kill them and their children, they and their children will kill you. When are the smartest-stupidest people on earth going to wake up to the facts.?
It does indeed seem that some major confrontational crisis over Gaza is on its way.
From the story above:
Even as IDF forces were massing in large numbers on Gaza's border for a possible ground incursion to rescue kidnapped soldier Gilad Shalit, three Kassam rockets were fired from Gaza into Israel Monday evening...
The rocket fire comes as Islamic Jihad claimed to have developed a new longer-range rocket to be used against Israeli targets, Channel 1 reported. The groups said the new "Quds 4" projectile has a range of 20 kilometers, three times longer then the crude Kassam rockets.
On Sunday, Fatah announced that they had biological and chemical weapons capabilities. They said that they would not hesitate to use unconventional warheads on missiles.
That Israel keeps getting taunted by a random rain of missiles, with promises of more to come, causes some readers of the Jerusalem Post to react rather strongly:
Israel showed goodwill and restraint while Kassams were falling on Sderot and soldiers paid the ultimate sacrifice. It is enough! Cut off all gas, electricity, water and other services to Gaza and seal them off from the civilised world hermetically. Let them suffer and suffer until they learn the lesson that terror brings suffering. The fait of Israel is more relevant than the biased world opinion.
And this:
I ask my fellow Jews when are you going to wake up. The only compassionate thing to do is to give the terrorists 24 hours to return the soldier unharmed, if they don't blow up every single person living in Gaza. Unfortunatley, this is the only language that these terrorists understand. If you do not kill them and their children, they and their children will kill you. When are the smartest-stupidest people on earth going to wake up to the facts.?
It does indeed seem that some major confrontational crisis over Gaza is on its way.
I was the Walrus
adn.com | alaska : Walruses lured to their deaths
This story reminds me of Douglas Adams' falling whale. Turns out some walruses in Alaska have a similar experience:
Federal wildlife biologists have erected a 250-foot-long fence to stop walruses from accidentally plummeting off cliffs to their death on a Bristol Bay beach....
No one is sure why the Cape Peirce walruses fall.
Abraham said the shellfish-loving animals have a strong sense of smell that may lead them over the seaside cliff. They don't see well, which may not help, he added.
"(They) follow their nose -- that's my theory," he said.
It's not suicide, said MacDonald, who's watched videotapes of the falling walruses recorded during the 1990s.
Once the first go over, others follow, many dropping headfirst in a free fall to the ground, he said.
"They land on the rocks below, crush their skull, and end of story," he said.
But others do a 180 while sliding off the top, desperately try to stop as if they've made a mistake. It doesn't work, he said.
This story reminds me of Douglas Adams' falling whale. Turns out some walruses in Alaska have a similar experience:
Federal wildlife biologists have erected a 250-foot-long fence to stop walruses from accidentally plummeting off cliffs to their death on a Bristol Bay beach....
No one is sure why the Cape Peirce walruses fall.
Abraham said the shellfish-loving animals have a strong sense of smell that may lead them over the seaside cliff. They don't see well, which may not help, he added.
"(They) follow their nose -- that's my theory," he said.
It's not suicide, said MacDonald, who's watched videotapes of the falling walruses recorded during the 1990s.
Once the first go over, others follow, many dropping headfirst in a free fall to the ground, he said.
"They land on the rocks below, crush their skull, and end of story," he said.
But others do a 180 while sliding off the top, desperately try to stop as if they've made a mistake. It doesn't work, he said.
Bill Gates helps prostitutes
Bill Gates Gives Smart Cards to 500 Hookers - Gizmodo
This story might attract more attention soon.
Nice of him, I guess.
This story might attract more attention soon.
Nice of him, I guess.
God talk
Beware the folly of clever men in power - Comment - Times Online
The Times column above talks of the problem of having intellectuals in charge of important organisations. It cites Dr Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury, as an example:
The first [trait] is an inability to communicate in a fashion that others find comprehensible.
This, for example, is Dr Williams discussing God in a recent address. “We need, not human words that will decisively capture what the Word of God has done and is doing, but words that will show us how much time we have to take in fathoming this reality, helping us turn and move and see, from what may be infinitesimally different perspectives, the patterns of light and shadow in a world where the Word’s light has been made manifest.” Er, yes, I suppose.
Give me CS Lewis any day.
But Catholics are in danger in getting in on the issue of confusing language too:
Australian bishops have voted in principle to accept a new translation of the Mass into English that the Vatican favours as being more faithful to the original Latin text.
Where the priest says, "The Lord be with you," and parishioners answer, "And also with you", Catholics will soon reply, "And also with your spirit."
But more complex phrases might still be vetoed by Australian bishops when they meet in November to consider any local modifications.
Changes to the phrase "one in being with the Father" in the Nicene Creed to "consubstantial with the Father", may not survive for long.
I am guessing that some common sense from the Bishops may prevail. Changing the language to make even clearer a theological issue that was settled 1,700 years ago, and which affects no one on a day to day basis, seems unnecessary (to put it very mildly).
The Times column above talks of the problem of having intellectuals in charge of important organisations. It cites Dr Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury, as an example:
The first [trait] is an inability to communicate in a fashion that others find comprehensible.
This, for example, is Dr Williams discussing God in a recent address. “We need, not human words that will decisively capture what the Word of God has done and is doing, but words that will show us how much time we have to take in fathoming this reality, helping us turn and move and see, from what may be infinitesimally different perspectives, the patterns of light and shadow in a world where the Word’s light has been made manifest.” Er, yes, I suppose.
Give me CS Lewis any day.
But Catholics are in danger in getting in on the issue of confusing language too:
Australian bishops have voted in principle to accept a new translation of the Mass into English that the Vatican favours as being more faithful to the original Latin text.
Where the priest says, "The Lord be with you," and parishioners answer, "And also with you", Catholics will soon reply, "And also with your spirit."
But more complex phrases might still be vetoed by Australian bishops when they meet in November to consider any local modifications.
Changes to the phrase "one in being with the Father" in the Nicene Creed to "consubstantial with the Father", may not survive for long.
I am guessing that some common sense from the Bishops may prevail. Changing the language to make even clearer a theological issue that was settled 1,700 years ago, and which affects no one on a day to day basis, seems unnecessary (to put it very mildly).
On Tokyo's busiest train line
The Japan Times Online - Tokyo's ring of steel
This is an interesting article about the Tokyo loop train line, the Yamanote Line. If ever you spend a day in Tokyo, there is every chance you will use this line. Some extracts that catch the eye:
With an estimated daily ridership of between 3 million and 5 million passengers, the Yamanote Line is easily on a par with New York City's entire subway system, which daily shuttles around 4.8 million passengers through no fewer than 468 stations.
[And just to clarify here: the Yamanote Line is but one of several different train lines that service Tokyo. This must mean that the total passenger number for Tokyo must way outstrip New York.]
None is more unwelcome than the chaos that ensues when someone ends it all by jumping in front of an oncoming train. Last year there were 18 so-called jinshin jiko (human accidents), JR East spokesman Koichi Ueno said in an assertion which may surprise many regular users, for whom announcements of jinshin jiko delays seem far more frequent. According to officials, most jinshin jiko are suicides...
Suicide delays generally last about 30 minutes, but can go much longer. JR East bills families of suicide jumpers for damages, with the requested amount commensurate with how many train lines are affected and for how long, said Shunichi Sekiguchi, another spokesman. Officials adamantly refused to discuss exact figures or the company's rationale for the policy.
Can you just imagine the reaction in the West to such a policy?
Train stations in big Japanese cities are just amazing places to be. The main Tokyo station is a particularly daunting complex, but deeply impressive in its complexity, huge flow of humanity, and convenience. (It has good shops, good food, lots of coin lockers, and (in one area in particular) really nice toilets. (Sorry, I have mentioned the toilet bit in a previous post.)
I also usually find myself wondering just how disastrous an earthquake would be in this station. (Short answer: extremely.)
This is an interesting article about the Tokyo loop train line, the Yamanote Line. If ever you spend a day in Tokyo, there is every chance you will use this line. Some extracts that catch the eye:
With an estimated daily ridership of between 3 million and 5 million passengers, the Yamanote Line is easily on a par with New York City's entire subway system, which daily shuttles around 4.8 million passengers through no fewer than 468 stations.
[And just to clarify here: the Yamanote Line is but one of several different train lines that service Tokyo. This must mean that the total passenger number for Tokyo must way outstrip New York.]
None is more unwelcome than the chaos that ensues when someone ends it all by jumping in front of an oncoming train. Last year there were 18 so-called jinshin jiko (human accidents), JR East spokesman Koichi Ueno said in an assertion which may surprise many regular users, for whom announcements of jinshin jiko delays seem far more frequent. According to officials, most jinshin jiko are suicides...
Suicide delays generally last about 30 minutes, but can go much longer. JR East bills families of suicide jumpers for damages, with the requested amount commensurate with how many train lines are affected and for how long, said Shunichi Sekiguchi, another spokesman. Officials adamantly refused to discuss exact figures or the company's rationale for the policy.
Can you just imagine the reaction in the West to such a policy?
Train stations in big Japanese cities are just amazing places to be. The main Tokyo station is a particularly daunting complex, but deeply impressive in its complexity, huge flow of humanity, and convenience. (It has good shops, good food, lots of coin lockers, and (in one area in particular) really nice toilets. (Sorry, I have mentioned the toilet bit in a previous post.)
I also usually find myself wondering just how disastrous an earthquake would be in this station. (Short answer: extremely.)
Monday, June 26, 2006
Anthony Lane on Superman, etc
The New Yorker: The Critics: The Current Cinema
Regular readers will note that I have been enjoying Anthony Lane reviews a lot lately. This latest one about the new Superman Returns shows that, just like me, he is generally underwhelmed by "superhero" movies:
Bryan Singer, who last worked with Spacey on “The Usual Suspects,” has since moved on, if not up, to two helpings of “X-Men,” and now “Superman Returns.” It is clearly the fate of a smart young director—Hollywood would call it a reward—to be garlanded with the opportunity to stop making films about human beings and start attending to the preternatural. Every time another Marvel or DC product is dusted off, lavished with computer programs, and pumped up into a motion-picture event, we hear the same inflated claims: this superhero is different; we will uncover this man’s art and that man’s scope; we will show you what makes them tick, or levitate, or spin. Even Ang Lee fell prey, rummaging around for the soul of the Incredible Hulk, until it became clear that the poor old minty monster didn’t have one.... I have listened to Batman moan about how he will never fit in, and to countless mutants voice the same complaint, and, frankly, I don’t give a damn. The ethical duties of Superman leave me cold; I just want to watch him catch a falling car.
Regular readers will note that I have been enjoying Anthony Lane reviews a lot lately. This latest one about the new Superman Returns shows that, just like me, he is generally underwhelmed by "superhero" movies:
Bryan Singer, who last worked with Spacey on “The Usual Suspects,” has since moved on, if not up, to two helpings of “X-Men,” and now “Superman Returns.” It is clearly the fate of a smart young director—Hollywood would call it a reward—to be garlanded with the opportunity to stop making films about human beings and start attending to the preternatural. Every time another Marvel or DC product is dusted off, lavished with computer programs, and pumped up into a motion-picture event, we hear the same inflated claims: this superhero is different; we will uncover this man’s art and that man’s scope; we will show you what makes them tick, or levitate, or spin. Even Ang Lee fell prey, rummaging around for the soul of the Incredible Hulk, until it became clear that the poor old minty monster didn’t have one.... I have listened to Batman moan about how he will never fit in, and to countless mutants voice the same complaint, and, frankly, I don’t give a damn. The ethical duties of Superman leave me cold; I just want to watch him catch a falling car.
About a priest
TCS Daily - The Creation Myth
You don't often find articles about significant scientist priests. This article is about one of them, about whom I had not heard before.
You don't often find articles about significant scientist priests. This article is about one of them, about whom I had not heard before.
A job in Iraq far from finished
ABC News: Al-Qaida-Linked Group Claims 4 Killings
More beheadings on video from Iraq. Apparently, this is about Chechnya, not Iraq itself. Ah yes, I can just see such tactics winning over the hearts and minds of Russians everywhere.
What complete idiots these "Al-Qaida" related murdering butchers are.
As to the general mayhem in Iraq, continuing unabated since Zarqawi's death, I still expect that the execution of Saddam will be an important practical step to discourage his loyalists, who (I am guessing) still harbour a hope that he may be liberated and somehow his regime quickly re-imposed. That this would be impossible in practice without a huge civil war probably doesn't cause any doubt in their minds. Mad Arabs don't often seem to be playing with the full pack.
Until then, seems nothing much will change. It does seem that ideas for promoting unity are finally being devised by the Iraqi government itself, with general approval. But they really have to act quickly.
(I note that Iraq the Model is very sceptical of the wisdom of the unity plan, and his reasons sound good. Sigh.)
More beheadings on video from Iraq. Apparently, this is about Chechnya, not Iraq itself. Ah yes, I can just see such tactics winning over the hearts and minds of Russians everywhere.
What complete idiots these "Al-Qaida" related murdering butchers are.
As to the general mayhem in Iraq, continuing unabated since Zarqawi's death, I still expect that the execution of Saddam will be an important practical step to discourage his loyalists, who (I am guessing) still harbour a hope that he may be liberated and somehow his regime quickly re-imposed. That this would be impossible in practice without a huge civil war probably doesn't cause any doubt in their minds. Mad Arabs don't often seem to be playing with the full pack.
Until then, seems nothing much will change. It does seem that ideas for promoting unity are finally being devised by the Iraqi government itself, with general approval. But they really have to act quickly.
(I note that Iraq the Model is very sceptical of the wisdom of the unity plan, and his reasons sound good. Sigh.)
A slow day at the Guardian
The Observer | World | Smelly yet highly sociable mini-robot proves fatally attractive to cockroaches
The Guardian website has a story about robot cockroaches, but no photo.
The first story appears to have run on the Discovery channel, a few weeks ago, and it does feature a picture. The robot looks a little like a tiny car to me. Maybe cockroaches are just all rev-heads who like checking out new cars in the neighbourhood.
That cockroaches have favourite hiding places, presumably marked by a smell, seemed clear to me some years ago when I lived in a townhouse. There was a particular place in the courtyard (a crack under a high beam on the wall), where I could always be assured that a squirt of flyspray would flush out one or two big roaches. Night after night, they just never got sick of going there, even though it was not an obvious source of food.
To have a robot to use to flush them out sounds sort of fun. Better than watching most TV these days anyway.
The Guardian website has a story about robot cockroaches, but no photo.
The first story appears to have run on the Discovery channel, a few weeks ago, and it does feature a picture. The robot looks a little like a tiny car to me. Maybe cockroaches are just all rev-heads who like checking out new cars in the neighbourhood.
That cockroaches have favourite hiding places, presumably marked by a smell, seemed clear to me some years ago when I lived in a townhouse. There was a particular place in the courtyard (a crack under a high beam on the wall), where I could always be assured that a squirt of flyspray would flush out one or two big roaches. Night after night, they just never got sick of going there, even though it was not an obvious source of food.
To have a robot to use to flush them out sounds sort of fun. Better than watching most TV these days anyway.
Saturday, June 24, 2006
More research needed
ScienceDaily: Global Atmospheric Carbon Level May Depend Primarily On Southernmost Ocean
The article above is about the importance of the cold southern oceans around Antarctica in taking up CO2.
It also mentions an idea for increasing carbon sequestration that has been around for a long time, but doesn't seem to get raised much lately:
"In the Antarctic, the circulation pattern moves the surface water carrying carbon dioxide deep into the ocean's depths, where the sequestered carbon could potentially be trapped for a long time," Marinov said. "According to the models we used, the deep Antarctic is the critical region where we need to concentrate our research."...
"An interesting idea of recent years is that we can sequester a lot of carbon if we dump iron into the ocean to encourage the growth of certain microorganisms, which incorporate carbon as they grow," Marinov said. "These organisms would then fall to the ocean floor after they die, taking the carbon with them. The overall effect would be to lower concentration of carbon in the surface waters, allowing more atmospheric carbon dioxide to dissolve into the sea. Our research has implications for future iron fertilization experiments, the focus of which we conclude should shift to the Antarctic."
I seem to recall that they have done small scale trials of this to check the effectiveness. Ah yes, I am correct. (The linked site seems entirely devoted to promoting the idea, which is somewhat controversial. Seems worth looking into further, though.)
The article above is about the importance of the cold southern oceans around Antarctica in taking up CO2.
It also mentions an idea for increasing carbon sequestration that has been around for a long time, but doesn't seem to get raised much lately:
"In the Antarctic, the circulation pattern moves the surface water carrying carbon dioxide deep into the ocean's depths, where the sequestered carbon could potentially be trapped for a long time," Marinov said. "According to the models we used, the deep Antarctic is the critical region where we need to concentrate our research."...
"An interesting idea of recent years is that we can sequester a lot of carbon if we dump iron into the ocean to encourage the growth of certain microorganisms, which incorporate carbon as they grow," Marinov said. "These organisms would then fall to the ocean floor after they die, taking the carbon with them. The overall effect would be to lower concentration of carbon in the surface waters, allowing more atmospheric carbon dioxide to dissolve into the sea. Our research has implications for future iron fertilization experiments, the focus of which we conclude should shift to the Antarctic."
I seem to recall that they have done small scale trials of this to check the effectiveness. Ah yes, I am correct. (The linked site seems entirely devoted to promoting the idea, which is somewhat controversial. Seems worth looking into further, though.)
Bad news for English beef eaters
Human mad cow infection could hide for 50 years - World - smh.com.au
What bad news for anyone who spent time in England in the 1980's. (Not good for former cannibals in New Guinea either.)
What bad news for anyone who spent time in England in the 1980's. (Not good for former cannibals in New Guinea either.)
You have been warned
Storm warning for mobiles - Technology - smh.com.au
Hadn't thought of this as a source of increased risk before.
Hadn't thought of this as a source of increased risk before.
Friday, June 23, 2006
Charles Krauthammer loves us
RealClearPolitics - Articles - Why I Love Australia
Well, at least he does under a Liberal government. The article above is full of praise for Australia. (He misses the first part of the "snivelling grub" story, though.)
One thing I didn't know about him:
Of course I'm prejudiced, having married an Australian
His recent column about the Palestinians chosing victimhood was one of the most forthright things written about the Middle East for some time. As it was widely quoted elsewhere, I didn't post about it here, but it is well worthwhile if you missed it.
Well, at least he does under a Liberal government. The article above is full of praise for Australia. (He misses the first part of the "snivelling grub" story, though.)
One thing I didn't know about him:
Of course I'm prejudiced, having married an Australian
His recent column about the Palestinians chosing victimhood was one of the most forthright things written about the Middle East for some time. As it was widely quoted elsewhere, I didn't post about it here, but it is well worthwhile if you missed it.
Reasons to be sceptical about Kyoto protocol
New Scientist News - Kyoto promises are nothing but hot air
From the start of the article:
Under Kyoto, each government calculates how much carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide its country emits by adding together estimated emissions from individual sources. These so-called "bottom-up" estimates have long been accepted by atmospheric scientists, even though they have never been independently audited.
Now two teams that have monitored concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere say they have convincing evidence that the figures reported by many countries are wrong, especially for methane. Among the worst offenders are the UK, which may be emitting 92 per cent more methane than it declares under the Kyoto protocol, and France, which may be emitting 47 per cent more.
From further down:
In the past, he says, estimates of greenhouse gas emissions were inaccurate simply because of the difficulty of measuring them, but that may have changed. "Now that money enters the picture, with the Kyoto protocol rules and carbon trading, so also can fraud. There will be an incentive to under-report emissions."...
The European Union recently shut down its pioneering programme of measuring atmospheric methane across the continent. "Ironically, the best monitoring is done by the US and Australia, which are both in denial over Kyoto," Nisbet says.
Well, "in denial" but with good reason, Mr Nisbet?
From the start of the article:
Under Kyoto, each government calculates how much carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide its country emits by adding together estimated emissions from individual sources. These so-called "bottom-up" estimates have long been accepted by atmospheric scientists, even though they have never been independently audited.
Now two teams that have monitored concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere say they have convincing evidence that the figures reported by many countries are wrong, especially for methane. Among the worst offenders are the UK, which may be emitting 92 per cent more methane than it declares under the Kyoto protocol, and France, which may be emitting 47 per cent more.
From further down:
In the past, he says, estimates of greenhouse gas emissions were inaccurate simply because of the difficulty of measuring them, but that may have changed. "Now that money enters the picture, with the Kyoto protocol rules and carbon trading, so also can fraud. There will be an incentive to under-report emissions."...
The European Union recently shut down its pioneering programme of measuring atmospheric methane across the continent. "Ironically, the best monitoring is done by the US and Australia, which are both in denial over Kyoto," Nisbet says.
Well, "in denial" but with good reason, Mr Nisbet?
Nasty stuff
ScienceDaily: Urine Collected And Purified Separately
Urine in sewerage is much worse stuff than I would have expected:
Urine accounts for less than 1% of our waste water, but it contains 50-80% of the nutrients in the waste water...
He concluded that if 50% of the urine is separately purified, it would save 25% of the energy needed for the entire purification system. Moreover, the stench of the sewer will be lessened, environmental pressure on the surface water will be reduced, and sewer pipes will be better protected against rot.
The method of keeping it seperate:
A requirement for separating urine is an appropriate toilet (on which men also sit to urinate) or a dry urinal, both of which are commercially available. The urine is collected in tanks on a per building or neighbourhood basis and must then be - preferably as undiluted as possible - periodically transported to a special purification installation. It is also possible to process the urine in a decentralized manner - concepts for this were developed in the research.
So, having the can collected from the backyard (which in many Brisbane suburbs, only stopped in the 1960's) may be on its way back.
UPDATE: Of course, not everyone agrees that urine is nasty. From the (somewhat too open minded "Berkeley Medical Journal") is this enthusiatic rant:
To some people, flushing urine down the toilet is a complete waste of what could be a refreshing breakfast - one’s own fountain of youth, an elixir of health and beauty....
Urine may provide energy, maintain youth, and make skin and hair beautiful. With such wondrous properties, it is amazing that science developed new medicines when a key to good health was already in the bottle, so to speak. Everyone is a walking pharmacopoeia.
The first world conference on auto-urine therapy was held in February of 1996 in Panjim, India. It drew about 600 delegates from nations around the world. The numerous applications of urine were discussed, including use in nose-, ear-, and eye-drops, as well as ingestion and external massage application.
Now there's a conference best missed.
Urine in sewerage is much worse stuff than I would have expected:
Urine accounts for less than 1% of our waste water, but it contains 50-80% of the nutrients in the waste water...
He concluded that if 50% of the urine is separately purified, it would save 25% of the energy needed for the entire purification system. Moreover, the stench of the sewer will be lessened, environmental pressure on the surface water will be reduced, and sewer pipes will be better protected against rot.
The method of keeping it seperate:
A requirement for separating urine is an appropriate toilet (on which men also sit to urinate) or a dry urinal, both of which are commercially available. The urine is collected in tanks on a per building or neighbourhood basis and must then be - preferably as undiluted as possible - periodically transported to a special purification installation. It is also possible to process the urine in a decentralized manner - concepts for this were developed in the research.
So, having the can collected from the backyard (which in many Brisbane suburbs, only stopped in the 1960's) may be on its way back.
UPDATE: Of course, not everyone agrees that urine is nasty. From the (somewhat too open minded "Berkeley Medical Journal") is this enthusiatic rant:
To some people, flushing urine down the toilet is a complete waste of what could be a refreshing breakfast - one’s own fountain of youth, an elixir of health and beauty....
Urine may provide energy, maintain youth, and make skin and hair beautiful. With such wondrous properties, it is amazing that science developed new medicines when a key to good health was already in the bottle, so to speak. Everyone is a walking pharmacopoeia.
The first world conference on auto-urine therapy was held in February of 1996 in Panjim, India. It drew about 600 delegates from nations around the world. The numerous applications of urine were discussed, including use in nose-, ear-, and eye-drops, as well as ingestion and external massage application.
Now there's a conference best missed.
What should Israel do?
Guardian Unlimited | The Guardian | Israeli PM apologises for air strike deaths
Further to my previous post about this :
Ehud Olmert, the Israeli prime minister, said today that he was "very, very sorry" about the death of 14 Palestinian civilians killed this week in Israeli air strikes in Gaza.
Mr Olmert expressed his regret when meeting Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president, in Jordan. "It is against our policy and I am very, very sorry," the Associated Press quoted him as saying.
Yesterday two Palestinians - a pregnant woman and her brother - were killed when an Israeli missile hit their home in Khan Yunis in the Gaza Strip. On Monday evening, three children were killed by an Israeli missile aimed at a car carrying militants.
Obviously, there should be concern about how many civilians are killed by Israeli attacks. But, I wonder if anyone has any other ideas about what Israel could do with respect to defence against the continual flow of home made rockets into its territory.
Further to my previous post about this :
Ehud Olmert, the Israeli prime minister, said today that he was "very, very sorry" about the death of 14 Palestinian civilians killed this week in Israeli air strikes in Gaza.
Mr Olmert expressed his regret when meeting Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president, in Jordan. "It is against our policy and I am very, very sorry," the Associated Press quoted him as saying.
Yesterday two Palestinians - a pregnant woman and her brother - were killed when an Israeli missile hit their home in Khan Yunis in the Gaza Strip. On Monday evening, three children were killed by an Israeli missile aimed at a car carrying militants.
Obviously, there should be concern about how many civilians are killed by Israeli attacks. But, I wonder if anyone has any other ideas about what Israel could do with respect to defence against the continual flow of home made rockets into its territory.
Thursday, June 22, 2006
Danger watch
San Andreas fault 'set for huge quake' | | The Australian
"The observed strain rates confirm that the southern section of the San Andreas fault may be approaching the end of the interseismic phase of the earthquake cycle," he wrote in Nature.
A sudden lateral movement of seven to 10 metres would be among the largest ever recorded.
According to the US Geological Survey (USGS), the earthquake that destroyed San Francisco in 1906 was produced by a sudden movement of the northern end of the fault of up to 6.4 metres.
"The observed strain rates confirm that the southern section of the San Andreas fault may be approaching the end of the interseismic phase of the earthquake cycle," he wrote in Nature.
A sudden lateral movement of seven to 10 metres would be among the largest ever recorded.
According to the US Geological Survey (USGS), the earthquake that destroyed San Francisco in 1906 was produced by a sudden movement of the northern end of the fault of up to 6.4 metres.
Wednesday, June 21, 2006
Only happy victims of the Holocaust, please
Islam Channel hosts London anti-Zionist debate | Jerusalem Post
From the story above about an anti-Zionist discussion in London, which included some Jewish anti-Zionists:
Karmi, a research fellow at the Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies at Exeter University and a former consultant to the Palestinian Authority, said the mistreatment of the Jews was a European affair that had nothing to do with Palestinians. "Why were we dumped with this problem?" she asked.
She offered her own interpretation of Zionism. "The Europeans did it to atone for their sins and guilt but the Jews who arrived in Palestine were not the Jews we knew, they were complicated and miserable and the problem is that they're still there."
From the story above about an anti-Zionist discussion in London, which included some Jewish anti-Zionists:
Karmi, a research fellow at the Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies at Exeter University and a former consultant to the Palestinian Authority, said the mistreatment of the Jews was a European affair that had nothing to do with Palestinians. "Why were we dumped with this problem?" she asked.
She offered her own interpretation of Zionism. "The Europeans did it to atone for their sins and guilt but the Jews who arrived in Palestine were not the Jews we knew, they were complicated and miserable and the problem is that they're still there."
Creative Arab history
What Jewish ties to Jerusalem? | Jerusalem Post
Daniel Pipe's article on Palestinian historical revisionism (with regards to denying a Jewish connection with Jerusalem - yes hard to believe isn't it?) is very interesting stuff I hadn't heard of before.
Daniel Pipe's article on Palestinian historical revisionism (with regards to denying a Jewish connection with Jerusalem - yes hard to believe isn't it?) is very interesting stuff I hadn't heard of before.
There's a sentence you don't hear often
Discovery Channel :: News - Animals :: Whales Slap Flatulent Prey
From the above story:
Norwegian killer whales slap their tails underwater to disorient and kill herring, which sometimes defend themselves from the assault by disappearing under the cover of their own bubbly flatulence, according to a new study....
While whales often are successful, some herring escape. The study's authors perhaps say it best: “Farting may save their lives.”...
Further down, how can you not chuckle at this comment:
As for the herring flatulence, Diachok agreed the fish may do this to facilitate escape, but he said it also might just be inadvertent.
From the above story:
Norwegian killer whales slap their tails underwater to disorient and kill herring, which sometimes defend themselves from the assault by disappearing under the cover of their own bubbly flatulence, according to a new study....
While whales often are successful, some herring escape. The study's authors perhaps say it best: “Farting may save their lives.”...
Further down, how can you not chuckle at this comment:
As for the herring flatulence, Diachok agreed the fish may do this to facilitate escape, but he said it also might just be inadvertent.
Maybe it blows itself up very quickly
The LHC Dashboard | Cosmic Variance
See the link above to a post about the dangers involved if the LHC malfunctions. (Dangers to the equipment itself, which is very expensive.)
I am tempted to post a comment there about micro black holes, but it is not exactly on topic.
See the link above to a post about the dangers involved if the LHC malfunctions. (Dangers to the equipment itself, which is very expensive.)
I am tempted to post a comment there about micro black holes, but it is not exactly on topic.
Youth unemployed
TCS Daily - The Kids Are Not Alright
Interesting article above on youth unemployment in Europe. An extract:
In the EU-15, the countries with the highest levels -- above 20 percent 00 are Greece, Italy, Sweden, France, Belgium and Finland. Indeed, it is generally acknowledged that France and Italy have serious economic problems. But Sweden and Finland might surprise some. (A new study by McKinsey shows that the real unemployment rate in Sweden is 15 percent -- three times what the government claims.)
Obviously, there is no "Nordic Model" when it comes to youth unemployment. In Denmark and Norway, the rate is 8-10 percent, whereas in Sweden and Finland it is 20-23 percent - the same level as in beleaguered France.
The numbers reflect real policy differences. In Denmark, there is the so-called flexicurity model, where the flexibility part is important when it comes to cutting youth unemployment. But in Sweden, the labor market is very regulated, unionized and collectivized, leading to high youth unemployment.
It all comes down to a divide between reforming and non-reforming countries, the latter clinging to a so-called European Social Model. That combination of a big state with high taxes on work, public monopolies and a regulated labor market simply prevents young people from working. And what kind of a social model is that?
Interesting article above on youth unemployment in Europe. An extract:
In the EU-15, the countries with the highest levels -- above 20 percent 00 are Greece, Italy, Sweden, France, Belgium and Finland. Indeed, it is generally acknowledged that France and Italy have serious economic problems. But Sweden and Finland might surprise some. (A new study by McKinsey shows that the real unemployment rate in Sweden is 15 percent -- three times what the government claims.)
Obviously, there is no "Nordic Model" when it comes to youth unemployment. In Denmark and Norway, the rate is 8-10 percent, whereas in Sweden and Finland it is 20-23 percent - the same level as in beleaguered France.
The numbers reflect real policy differences. In Denmark, there is the so-called flexicurity model, where the flexibility part is important when it comes to cutting youth unemployment. But in Sweden, the labor market is very regulated, unionized and collectivized, leading to high youth unemployment.
It all comes down to a divide between reforming and non-reforming countries, the latter clinging to a so-called European Social Model. That combination of a big state with high taxes on work, public monopolies and a regulated labor market simply prevents young people from working. And what kind of a social model is that?
More work for psychologists
BBC NEWS | Health | Counselling 'restores fertility'
The study reported above seems small scale, but with surprisingly good results:
Their preliminary study focused on 16 young women who had not had a period for six months, even though some already had children.
They had all been diagnosed with a condition called functional hypothalamic amennhorea (FHA), caused by a prolonged reduction in levels of a hormone which signals the release into the bloodstream of hormones that simulate ovulation.
The women had been shown to have increased levels of cortisol, a hormone linked to stress.
Half were given cognitive behavioural therapy, tailored to their own situations for 20 weeks.
Over the course of the study, six of the eight women given CBT regained full fertility, with one showing some signs of restored ovarian function.
Two later became pregnant within two months.
In the eight women who received no treatment, one recovered her fertility while another showed signs of ovarian function.
I have mentioned cognitive behaviour therapy before. It seems to have much going for it.
The study reported above seems small scale, but with surprisingly good results:
Their preliminary study focused on 16 young women who had not had a period for six months, even though some already had children.
They had all been diagnosed with a condition called functional hypothalamic amennhorea (FHA), caused by a prolonged reduction in levels of a hormone which signals the release into the bloodstream of hormones that simulate ovulation.
The women had been shown to have increased levels of cortisol, a hormone linked to stress.
Half were given cognitive behavioural therapy, tailored to their own situations for 20 weeks.
Over the course of the study, six of the eight women given CBT regained full fertility, with one showing some signs of restored ovarian function.
Two later became pregnant within two months.
In the eight women who received no treatment, one recovered her fertility while another showed signs of ovarian function.
I have mentioned cognitive behaviour therapy before. It seems to have much going for it.
Tuesday, June 20, 2006
Womb for improvement (boom boom)
Church mulls 'phrasing' change for Holy Trinity
If this is reported correctly, the silliness of some of it is both amusing and annoying at the same time:
Delegates to the national assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) voted yesterday to "receive" a policy paper on sex-inclusive language for the Trinity, a step short of approving it. Church officials are enabled to propose "experimental liturgies" with "alternative phrasings" for the Trinity, but congregations won't be required to use them.
Besides "Mother, Child and Womb" and "Rock, Redeemer, Friend," options include:
"Lover, Beloved, Love"
"Creator, Savior, Sanctifier"
"King of Glory, Prince of Peace, Spirit of Love"
When most Christians think of the Holy Spirit, it is surely with the Gospel images of a suddenly appearing dove, tongues of fire, or the mysterious breath of God. All of the images are dynamic, empowering, and not of the flesh; exactly in the way "womb" is not. Any internal organ is surely a ridiculous metaphoric image for a Holy Spirit that can appear in various forms. May as well go for the pancreas, it's vaguely got something to do with energy at least.
God the Father does not come out of it too well with being re-imaged as "Rock". While I share with liberals a certain disdain for the idea some Fundamentalists have that God is whispering specific directions into their ear, imagining God as an inert lump is taking a remedial image way too far in the other direction.
As for the Spirit as "Friend", well, how wimpy can you get. More an image of having a cup of tea and a chat to make you feel better, rather than someone giving you courage and power.
UPDATE: I have decided that I was a little unfair to fundamentalists. Many liberals these days (on issues like gay relationships or women's ordination) also take the view that God is informing them directly about the "right" attitude to these matters.
If this is reported correctly, the silliness of some of it is both amusing and annoying at the same time:
Delegates to the national assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) voted yesterday to "receive" a policy paper on sex-inclusive language for the Trinity, a step short of approving it. Church officials are enabled to propose "experimental liturgies" with "alternative phrasings" for the Trinity, but congregations won't be required to use them.
Besides "Mother, Child and Womb" and "Rock, Redeemer, Friend," options include:
"Lover, Beloved, Love"
"Creator, Savior, Sanctifier"
"King of Glory, Prince of Peace, Spirit of Love"
When most Christians think of the Holy Spirit, it is surely with the Gospel images of a suddenly appearing dove, tongues of fire, or the mysterious breath of God. All of the images are dynamic, empowering, and not of the flesh; exactly in the way "womb" is not. Any internal organ is surely a ridiculous metaphoric image for a Holy Spirit that can appear in various forms. May as well go for the pancreas, it's vaguely got something to do with energy at least.
God the Father does not come out of it too well with being re-imaged as "Rock". While I share with liberals a certain disdain for the idea some Fundamentalists have that God is whispering specific directions into their ear, imagining God as an inert lump is taking a remedial image way too far in the other direction.
As for the Spirit as "Friend", well, how wimpy can you get. More an image of having a cup of tea and a chat to make you feel better, rather than someone giving you courage and power.
UPDATE: I have decided that I was a little unfair to fundamentalists. Many liberals these days (on issues like gay relationships or women's ordination) also take the view that God is informing them directly about the "right" attitude to these matters.
Another sad case
Dad faces manslaughter charge | The Courier-Mail
A trial in a very tragic case is underway in Queensland:
RYAN Brooks, 18, arrived home after a late night out with his mates and asked his mother Cheryl to get him up early for work, and then disappeared into his bedroom.
Later, he went to the fridge to get a drink of cold water and took a mouthful of clear, odourless fluid from an unmarked glass spirit bottle.
Within moments he was screaming for his mother and writhing. The liquid he had swallowed was industrial-strength cleaner used to rinse beer-lines at the hotel where his father, Ian Francis Brooks, worked as a janitor.
Ryan died 2½ weeks later, during emergency surgery at the Ipswich Hospital from massive internal bleeding. Four years on, his father is being held criminally responsible and yesterday pleaded not guilty in the Brisbane Supreme Court to the manslaughter of the youngest of his two sons on February 24, 2002.
Criminal offences which are based on negligent or reckless behaviour with unintended effects have always made me feel somewhat uncomfortable. Some cases clearly call for criminal charges (eg, a driver who loses control while hurtling down a street and hits a pedestrian.) But when the victim is a loved member of the accused's own family, it raises the question of the value of prosecuting the accused if he has already gone through anguish over what happened. The defence will surely be playing on this, and I suspect that the jury will find it a difficult call. After all, I can see the counterargument that it would not be appropriate to abandon all cases where an accused shows sufficient grief.
Of course, if he is convicted, his personal anguish (assuming he has some) will no doubt be heavily relied upon in a plea in mitigation before punishment is decided.
A trial in a very tragic case is underway in Queensland:
RYAN Brooks, 18, arrived home after a late night out with his mates and asked his mother Cheryl to get him up early for work, and then disappeared into his bedroom.
Later, he went to the fridge to get a drink of cold water and took a mouthful of clear, odourless fluid from an unmarked glass spirit bottle.
Within moments he was screaming for his mother and writhing. The liquid he had swallowed was industrial-strength cleaner used to rinse beer-lines at the hotel where his father, Ian Francis Brooks, worked as a janitor.
Ryan died 2½ weeks later, during emergency surgery at the Ipswich Hospital from massive internal bleeding. Four years on, his father is being held criminally responsible and yesterday pleaded not guilty in the Brisbane Supreme Court to the manslaughter of the youngest of his two sons on February 24, 2002.
Criminal offences which are based on negligent or reckless behaviour with unintended effects have always made me feel somewhat uncomfortable. Some cases clearly call for criminal charges (eg, a driver who loses control while hurtling down a street and hits a pedestrian.) But when the victim is a loved member of the accused's own family, it raises the question of the value of prosecuting the accused if he has already gone through anguish over what happened. The defence will surely be playing on this, and I suspect that the jury will find it a difficult call. After all, I can see the counterargument that it would not be appropriate to abandon all cases where an accused shows sufficient grief.
Of course, if he is convicted, his personal anguish (assuming he has some) will no doubt be heavily relied upon in a plea in mitigation before punishment is decided.
Calling all benevolent time travellers
I've been posting quite a lot recently, rather to the detriment of my normal work.
The pace may need to slow a little in the lead up to the end of the financial year, unless my new scheme for how to make money from this blog succeeds.
All I need is someone from the future with access to next week's Australian lotto numbers, and a method of emailing information back in time, to provide the winning numbers for next weekend's Gold Lotto. Powerball, or any other mid-week Lotto numbers are also acceptable; I am not fussy.
If you are reading this in the future and are wondering "why should I benefit this particular jerk out of all others," well, there is no especially compelling reason, other than I have a family to support, no family riches coming my way, and have provided you with a way to test your machine. Maybe you could just email anyone, but how many people would take this seriously unless they had invited it? (Well, maybe I would try it once, but I am gullible.)
Of course, if you find out not only the winning numbers, but also who won (if it is not me) then I don't know that this scheme will work. I don't want to create any unnecessary splitting of universes. Also, don't go trying to email yourself in the past: if that worked, everyone would try it and (after a week or two of thousands of people sharing top prize) the whole lotto idea would be shelved permanently.
No, this is something you have to do benevolently to a single recipient.
So, go to it. Please send all winning (Australian) Lotto numbers to this temporary email:
2mc2ljfk3i3mqi0@jetable.org
Readers will be advised if and when I appear to have proved information can flow backwards as well as forwards.
For readers interested in time travel generally, this 1991 article by Hans Moravec is pretty good.
Also, people who have access to future information via methods such as spirit communication, ganzfeld experiments, etc, are welcome to submit numbers.
The pace may need to slow a little in the lead up to the end of the financial year, unless my new scheme for how to make money from this blog succeeds.
All I need is someone from the future with access to next week's Australian lotto numbers, and a method of emailing information back in time, to provide the winning numbers for next weekend's Gold Lotto. Powerball, or any other mid-week Lotto numbers are also acceptable; I am not fussy.
If you are reading this in the future and are wondering "why should I benefit this particular jerk out of all others," well, there is no especially compelling reason, other than I have a family to support, no family riches coming my way, and have provided you with a way to test your machine. Maybe you could just email anyone, but how many people would take this seriously unless they had invited it? (Well, maybe I would try it once, but I am gullible.)
Of course, if you find out not only the winning numbers, but also who won (if it is not me) then I don't know that this scheme will work. I don't want to create any unnecessary splitting of universes. Also, don't go trying to email yourself in the past: if that worked, everyone would try it and (after a week or two of thousands of people sharing top prize) the whole lotto idea would be shelved permanently.
No, this is something you have to do benevolently to a single recipient.
So, go to it. Please send all winning (Australian) Lotto numbers to this temporary email:
2mc2ljfk3i3mqi0@jetable.org
Readers will be advised if and when I appear to have proved information can flow backwards as well as forwards.
For readers interested in time travel generally, this 1991 article by Hans Moravec is pretty good.
Also, people who have access to future information via methods such as spirit communication, ganzfeld experiments, etc, are welcome to submit numbers.
Funny
Instapundit.com -
Glenn Reynolds explains in an amusing fashion why he is not a moderate:
My ideal world, in which, as I've said before, happily married gay couples have closets full of assault weapons, isn't exactly "moderate."
Glenn Reynolds explains in an amusing fashion why he is not a moderate:
My ideal world, in which, as I've said before, happily married gay couples have closets full of assault weapons, isn't exactly "moderate."
Monday, June 19, 2006
Curiouser and curiouser
Diary of Kovco's death dream - National - smh.com.au
The circumstances of his death certainly sound much stranger than expected.
The circumstances of his death certainly sound much stranger than expected.
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