Posts

April 11, 2013

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1:59 AM | Botanical Wednesday: One, two, three…ha ha ha…four, five, six, SEVEN. Seven purple tentacles, ha ha ha!

Sorry, I was looking at this Akebia flower, and for some reason I felt a compulsion to count the number of carpels, and I did it out loud in the voice of Sesame Street’s Count. It’s been a long day of proofreading and I’m home all alone, and I think I’m getting punchy. I should…

April 10, 2013

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4:00 PM | Buchrezension: „Mythos“ von Markus Schulte von Drach

Spoilerwarnung: Im Rahmen der folgenden Rezension werde ich zentrale Teile der Geschichte ansprechen, wodurch Nochnichtgelesenhabenden die Spannung verdorben werden könnte. Solche Abschnitte werde ich daher kursiv setzen und jede(r) liest auf eigene Gefahr. „Mythos“ wirkt mit seiner Buchdeckeldiagonale von gerade einmal 23 Zentimetern irgendwie unterformatig, doch zwischen den zollarmen Deckeln findet sich ein immerhin knapp…

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3:33 PM | Darwin vs. VIH

Por Martín Bonfil Olivera Dirección General de Divulgación de la Ciencia, UNAM Publicado en Milenio Diario, 10 de abril de 2013 Uno de los descubrimientos más útiles de la evolución es la propiedad que tienen muchas moléculas de poder unirse unas con otras. Para ello se necesita que sus respectivas superficies puedan encajar una con otra de forma bastante precisa –como una llave en una cerradura, se dice comúnmente en los libros de texto. Esta propiedad se conoce […]

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12:40 PM | Learn a little developmental biology

This is a cool video from a textbook publisher (Molecular Biology of the Cell, a very good text) illustrating how Spemann/Mangold’s famous organizer experiment was done. Also cool: those are apparently Edward De Robertis’ hands doing the experiment.

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7:27 AM | Tackling the Boundaries – Muslim Women and Footy

Closer Blog: Airlie Walsh talks to a group of Muslim Women playing AFL in Rugby League’s heartland. Read more: Tackling the Boundaries – Muslim Women and Footy

April 09, 2013

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3:49 PM | The dark side of open access journals?

The New York Times has an article on the rise of predatory, fake science journals — these are journals put out by commercial interests with titles that sound vaguely like the real thing, but are not legitimate in any sense of the word. They exist only for the resource that open access publishing also uses,…

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4:25 AM | El brujito de gulubu y el pensamiento crítico

Brujito de Gulubu Para los chicos que aprendan de chiquititos que la ciencia vence a las brujerias, de la gran Maria Elena Walsh: El brujito de Gulubu – Video Autor: Nicolas Perez Soy filósofo, enseño Filosofía y Epistemología en la Universidad Católica de Santiago del Estero. Más que ateo soy antiteista, y lucho contra [...]

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1:22 AM | Mary’s Monday Metazoan: The Too-Common Sludge Duck

This is a very special bird from Arkansas that will become much more common with more oil pipelines running through the middle of the country. Won’t it be great to be able to readily make an entry in your birding book, soon enough?

April 08, 2013

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11:50 PM | Potty Peer in Waikato

Well, Christopher Monckton’s “Freedom Tour” totters on. Peter Griffins has given an initial summary in his blog post Monckton’s nightmare week in New Zealand. This has links to some of the press coverage – which, as we might expect with … Continue reading →

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3:51 PM | The ark builders

Apoplexy is such an antique disease. I’d hate to die of it, just because is so unfashionable, but every time I read one of these stories about Answers In Genesis, I feel an attack coming on. Yeah, they’re working on building a replica of Noah’s Ark. It’s all part of their plan for defrauding the…

April 07, 2013

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9:38 PM | New Zealand Blog ranking Montage

Here’s something for the more visually inclined New Zealand bloggers. The NZ blogs from the March ’13 – NZ blogs sitemeter ranking presented as web pages. It’s the New Zealand Blogs Montage (or see this blog link) prepared by Andrew Stephens. … Continue reading →

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4:07 PM | Waanzin: Benoemen Benoemen Benoemen

Closer Blog: Sommige zaken moeten op een bepaalde manier 'benoemd' worden en mogen niet op een andere manier benoemd worden. Zoals het geval is met criminaliteit Marokkaanse Nederlanders. Wat is dat eigenlijk, dat benoemen?Read more: Waanzin: Benoemen Benoemen Benoemen

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1:13 PM | Happy 9th Paul Nelson Day!

It’s a dying holiday, I’m sorry to say — I completely forgot it last year. But I was reminded this year, so I’ll mention it again. I think the proper way to celebrate it is simply to laugh at a creationist today. The source of the holiday is a remarkable exhibition from Paul Nelson, who…

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2:49 AM | What is global temperature?

When I write here about climate change you can be sure one or more trolls will pop up and tell me about the snow in the UK. Or accuse scientists of relying on this year’s New Zealand drought in their … Continue reading →

April 06, 2013

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8:50 PM | International trade fractures along religious fault lines

International trade is made easier when nations share a common language. Geographical closeness, regional trade agreements, and common legal heritage also help trade along, and former colonies trade more with each other and with the ex-mother country. Chong Wha Lee, at Kongju National University in South Korea, wanted to know if a common religion could play a similar role in boosting trade. Although there's been a bit of research into this before, Lee was particularly interested to know if […]

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7:49 PM | Pseudomedicinas: algunas cuestiones

Me realizaron una pequeña entrevista sobre las pseudomedicinas (y otros temas) y luego de concluida me pareció interesante compartir con ustedes las partes más relevantes sobre el tema...

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5:02 PM | Syria’s Children – ‘Blood Like Water’

Closer Blog: A very disturbing but important report by filmmaker Marcel Mettelsiefen who has spent several weeks with children working(!) in Dar Al-Shifa city hospital in Aleppo. The film features children like Mohamed Asaf and Yussef Mohamed who treat Aleppo's war wounded.Read more: Syria’s Children – ‘Blood Like Water’

April 05, 2013

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4:10 PM | Het Racisme Drama – Racistische rituelen van het parlement

Closer Blog: Introductie: waanzin Gisteravond was misschien wel één van de meest beschamendste hoofdstukken uit de parlementaire geschiedenis. Op de agenda van de Tweede Kamer stond het ‘Marokkanendebat’. Men had het beter het racismedrama kunnen noemen. Een paar maanden terug kwam de Nederlandse samenleving weer tot ontploffing: jonge voetballers sloegen een grensrechter van de andere partij in [...]Read more: Het Racisme Drama – Racistische rituelen van het parlement

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3:08 PM | BMC Cancer, WDDTY and homeopathy: ‘new’ comment

It took (me) a month to get a comment posted on a paper on BMC Cancer’s site. My abbreviated version (which appeared five days after re-submitting it) has now sat there for three weeks alongside Kausik’s, both seemingly being roundly ignored. As is my query concerning the full text of my original blog post. What to do? Does it matter? Well, actually, as a QuackRag deems that the paper in question constitutes subject(ive) matter for (re-)citation, then yes, I think... Read more

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2:21 PM | Friday Cephalopod: Reach!

(via the Monterey Bay Aquarium. Hey, I just realized that it’s been about 25 years since I’ve been to Monterey Bay…I should go again.)

April 04, 2013

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2:09 AM | Dragones y elefantes: falsos problemas, falsas soluciones

Otro demérito de los falsos problemas es el de promover soluciones que son falsas también. A Plinio (Historia Natural, Libro octavo) no le basta observar que los dragones atacan en verano a los elefantes: aventura la hipótesis de que lo hacen para beberles toda la sangre que, como nadie ignora, es muy fría. -Jorge Luis Borges Dragones [...]

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12:54 AM | Definiciones curiosas #17

Definiciones curiosas Aquí algunas… Definiciones Curiosas Definición de Absurdo: Absurdo: Declaración de fe en manifiesta contradicción con nuestras opiniones. -Ambrose Bierce (Diccionario del Diablo) Definición de lengua: Lengua: órgano evolutivamente adaptado para encontrar pelos en la comida. -Lisandro Carnielli (aka DrGEN) Definición de ombligo: Ombligo : Especie de timbre que exhiben las [...]

April 03, 2013

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11:16 PM | El peligro de tener razón…

Donde no hay justicia es peligroso tener razón, ya que los imbéciles son mayoría. -Francisco de Quevedo Francisco de Quevedo

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10:30 PM | I was wrong about Lord Monckton

I must admit I was wrong about Lord Monckton. I thought his speaking tour of New Zealand, which started on April Fools day, would be a huge yawn. Local climate scientists have learned that debating the man may be a … Continue reading →

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6:14 PM | Anti-pseudoscience earphones!

Portal - Anti-Pseudoscience earphones Portal earphones* The only earphones that ensures pseudoscience and idle chatter get in the head by one ear and leave by the other. *If you cannot find these earphones you can replace them by reading science blogs and hearing podcast that teach critical thinking. There is a spanish version of this [...]

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6:02 PM | Nuevos auriculares anticharlatanes!

Ante la invasión de charlatanes varios a la que nos vemos sometidos ultimamente (léase Dr. Mühlberger, et al), y en un esfuerzo de producción sin precedentes, DrGEN se enorgullece (?) de traerles los primeros auriculares anticharlatanes del mundo!

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4:14 PM | Cuando los microbios se organizan

Por Martín Bonfil Olivera Dirección General de Divulgación de la Ciencia, UNAM Publicado en Milenio Diario, 3 de abril de 2013 Biofilme dental (placa), vista con microscopio electrónico de barrido (colores falsos) La cooperación es un comportamiento que puede ayudar a la supervivencia y bienestar de los individuos en una población. Por ejemplo, ahora que a los capitalinos nos cortaron el agua durante varios días (santos), un comportamiento cooperativo, como reducir el […]

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4:00 AM | Report Mainz – Unterfinanzierte Rechtsmedizin – Warum Gewaltopfer nicht zu ihrem Recht kommen

Ich hatte kürzlich erst wieder einmal auf die Misere der Rechtsmedizin hingewiesen. Gestern zog nun das Das Erste nach und brachte in der Sendung “Report Mainz” einen Beitrag zum Thema: die Konsequenzen der unterfinanzierten und in Deutschland mit ihren Leistungen bei weitem nicht flächendeckend verfügbaren Rechtsmedizin treffen zum Beispiel die Opfer von Gewaltdelikten, von denen…

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3:42 AM | New “Hockey Stick” but same tired old denial

Ian Wishart is on his climate change conspiracy high horse again (see New global warming scandal hits climate science). His fevered imagination has managed to produce a “scandal” out of the publication of a scientific paper. Of course the scandal … Continue reading →

April 02, 2013

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6:33 AM | Makamba’s: Dank voor de slavernij

Closer Blog: De neger komt wel uit het oerwoud maar het oerwoud komt nooit uit de neger of 'Jullie (de mensen van Curaçao) zouden ons (de blanke Nederlanders) dankbaar moeten zijn dat we in de 17e eeuw slaven hebben gebracht. Jullie hebben nu een beter leven'. Zomaar twee uitspraken waar tegenwoordig niemand wakker van ligt.Read more: Makamba’s: Dank voor de slavernij