August 2016

Brian Cox is so likeable, that it goes unnoticed that he's actually a fundamentalist, like many other physicists. The entire premise of this series is false. That physics is actually the most fundamental of all the sciences, and shows the deepest truth of reality. And that mathematics is the language of nature. All well-worn cliches in the physics community, and it's part of their skill that they've made members of the public believe it as well.

The core. One of the great silly myths.

This one is up against really deep habits of thinking.

This farm is an impossible wonder. And now it's going to be a hole in the ground.

Happy birthday big boy :)

31? Can that be true? Have a splendid day :)

That big blue globe NASA shows us isn't where we live. We - and as far as we know the only life in the universe - live in that tiny, thin blue line. Not local, not global, the spatial metaphors are all wrong. That thin blue line is a constantly changing mixture of all sorts of stuff. Life is that constant, swirling, changing mixture, a tiny veneer on the planet, thinner than a coat of paint.

The heart of all social life is imitation and comparison. FB doesn't create this, but it shows it so clearly. http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2015/04/ways-to-use-facebook-without-feeling-depressed/389916/

How much of life is just school repeating itself over and over. No matter how old people get. The same cliques, the same desperation to outdo other people in terms of possessions, status - whether it's cars, houses, which schools kids go to, who has the 'right'/coolest version of whatever product you buy. Parents have as many groupings as kids do, and the same focus on status. http://nymag.com/news/features/high-school-2013-1/index3.html

This argument just keeps on keeping on. Learn some basic biology and ecology George. Feedlot farming is a disgrace, absolutely. But you can't grow plants to eat without friggin' animals as part of those ecosystems.

The attention given to track sprinters in the Olympics is a shame for me. It's an event that is as full of corrupt drug practices as the Tour de France, and there are other athletes like Michael Phelps who put the achievements even of Usain Bolt completely to shame. I love Bolt though, who at last showed that tall people can run fast! And that the secret to performance isn't to strain.

48 years of testing, and the winner is...the wrinkly chip. Best of all the hot chips.

This debate will get somewhere when people stop thinking it's actually about the science. It's not, doesn't matter how many graphs and numbers people trot out, you won't change peoples' minds. What needs to be understood is why those who deny climate change have targeted this specific issue - why they don't target scientific consensus around fluoride in toothpaste, or cholesterol drugs, or quantum theory, or whatever (science is full of debates). Why do they target climate change? Understand that and the debate will move forward. (My two cents - they target climate change because firstly enormous commercial interests in fossil fuels pay them to do it. Secondly because they see climate change as synonymous with 'the Left', which is an empty, meaningless term for everybody they see as challenging ultraconservative views.)

Who has dimples where their knuckles should be? Not me, but I'm curious how widespread it is.

So - is ist true, that offence is entirely a personal choice? That the law should have nothing to say about whether something is offensive, that it's entirely up to each person? That's the argument doing the rounds.

I don't have pets, although have in the past. Some of the reasons are described well here.

Who'd have thought. Of the top 50 real estate growth areas in the country, Lithgow comes in at 11. And is the only location West of the mountains.

The blow job line is gold.

Guess who's having a birthday today? She's already started celebrating, as you can see. And smiling, always smiling. Happy birthday beautiful wife :) We love you xxoo

Have never understood the stupidity of this argument against God. That a God wouldn't allow for suffering. As if the only way life can make sense is if everything is happy, all of the time. Funny man, Stephen Fry, but on atheism he's embarrassing. Like most of the new atheists. Undergraduate clever dicks.

Hemsworth has to force Hiddleston into a mullet to get the ladies.

Parkie is a sweet guy, but I wonder if he cringes looking back at this one. A shocker. And it's not just the questions, you can see him constantly checking Mirren out with his eyes.

Happy birthday cuz Sax! 37 is a very good year.

Lithgow's street lighting is pretty feeble. Which is a great thing.

Anyone?

Happy Birthday Jan Christoph Kersig!!

To see the origins of this sort of culture, it doesn't hurt to ride the bus each day with boys from all-boy schools. The 'old boys' networks attached to these schools are also instrumental in running a lot of the on-campus accommodation at the older unis, like Sydney.

This is what i would describe as a very, very useful thing. http://52.64.243.5/nbnmtm.html

Is this sort of horseshit still going to wash, after the last election and what happened with Brexit? How stupid is this? The reason these people don't pay tax is they don't earn enough money to pay tax. Most wealth is concentrated in a small group of people, as is happening in other countries too, and not because those people work harder or more. They're the ones getting the 'handouts', from the wider community. They're like the kids who never share their food.

Still one of my favourite pictures.

Happy birthday!

A ripper. http://theunboundedspirit.com/drugs-dont-cause-addiction-this-short-animated-video-will-change-your-view-on-drugs-forever/?utm_content=buffer7e988&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=buffer

Happy birthday :)

People should post whatever they like to FB. But this was an interesting way to classify the results. A fun and maybe even important read, modern etiquette under development. The humour thing isn't quite right I don't think, people who just tell jokes. A bit like being stuck at a permanent stand-up comedy gig. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/wait-but-why/annoying-facebook-behavior_b_4081038.html

Hairy birthday :)

Hairy birthday :)

When we share things on FB, how often do we pause first and think - why am I sharing this? Who are the people I most want to read and respond to this, and will they care? What will all of my other FB friends make of it? Is the post just about me, explicitly or implicitly, or does it offer the reader something as well? FB is increasingly THE social space the world is living in. So these questions matter. Fascinating times. A lot of FB posting is still about the individual posting stuff, ignoring the social questions. It can change the way you view FB, to remember how you act there is a social thing, not an individual thing.

No joke.

Of course the Firebirds don't want the rule change, their entire winning formula is put tree trunk under post and lob everything into her.