Nycticebus

People that make me mad!

2006-10-24T18:50:00.000-05:00

You know what I hate? Self-righteous assholes who don't understand that you don't always have a choice about your cell phone ringing and sometimes it takes 30 seconds or so to get whoever called you off the phone.

I know if you're in a study lounge you shouldn't answer the phone, but I didn't recognize the number, thought it might be important and answered it. Turns out the call was just a union organizer trying to get me to sign-up as a representative. I made it clear within ten seconds that this was my cell-phone and that I didn't appreciate the call. I was off the phone in 1 min. 10 sec. Still, a woman in the study lounge felt the need to tell me to take it outside. As if I would leave my computer sitting here for someone to run off with! In any case, packing up my computer would have made far more noise and I think I'll try to be as loud as possible for the rest of the time I am here just to piss this woman off.

Furthermore, this woman acted like I had simply ruined her life by making any noise. Seriously, grow up. If you need to study in quiet that badly, go to the library.

What I find truly amazing is that when two men were having a ten minute conversation behind me (not on cell-phones) she didn't feel the need to tell them to shut-up. Just the cell-phone user. I hate that kind of behaviour. Truly. I admit my behaviour was rude, but if you're going to call people out for being rude, you should call all of them out or SHUT-UP!

Gas Prices are "annoying"

2006-05-20T20:29:00.000-05:00

At the end of Newsweek this week was a little column by George Will. He refers to the rise in gas prices as "annoying." Every time I read his column in Newsweek I'm shocked or appalled at what this man calls thought, but this is so ridiculously out of touch I just had to say something. High gas prices are not merely annoying to those of us who don't have much money, they're crippling. I drive a car that gets 30 mpg and gas still eats up more than 10% of my budget every month. $3.00 a gallon is not annoying, it changes the way I live my life. High gas prices mean I have to eat cheaper food, wear clothes that were worn out last year, fewer doctor visits, not have cable or internet at home among other things.

Many other working class and middle class Americans are feeling the pinch of high gasoline prices. Vacations are cancelled, meals are eaten at home, etc. Businesses too feel the pain. Shorter vacations to closer destinations mean major tourist centers get fewer customers which translates into lost jobs and lower incomes making high gas prices an even bigger problem. Maybe high gas prices are "annoying" for those in the upper middle class and upper class, but for those of us down here at the bottom pain at the pump has a very real, significant impact on our quality of life.

Graduation

2006-05-15T16:44:00.000-05:00

The brother graduated cum laude from college yesterday. I'm so proud of him for getting his B.A.

Now he can make lots of money and send it to his dear, poor sister in graduate school.

Congrats to all the graduates out there!

No more grading. Yay for sleep!!!

2006-05-15T16:18:00.000-05:00

Okay, I finally finished grading all the papers and tests for my classes. The grades are turned in and tucked away on Excell files. I'm free!!!! (sorta). Summer classes and candidacy exams loom in the distance, but for now I'm going to let loose and sleep for twelve hours in a row!

What sweet luxury sleep is. I remember being young and afraid to go to sleep, not because of the dark or bad dreams, but because I might miss out on something. My parents would stay up later watching Johnny Carson and I was totally convinced something wonderful happened after 9 P.M. Bedtime was a punishment for being young. I resented going into my bedroom and sleeping when others were awake and things were happening.

Today, sleep is what I'm missing after nine. I'm up reading for candidacy or that seminar again or grading papers I promised to hand back yesterday. Today I'm going to be at ten after CSI: Miami. I might get up tomorrow at ten or so.

I'm back

2006-02-26T14:39:00.000-06:00

I'm back to posting on my blog here. Everything has been really busy at work and such, so I haven't had the energy to devote time to my blog, but now I'm back!

Too much blood and guts?

2005-12-01T07:47:00.000-06:00

CNN.com has an interesting take on violence on TV.

"The popularity of CBS' "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation," its spinoffs, imitators and other crime or supernatural shows has made network TV home to an astonishing amount of blood 'n' guts, which has attracted little notice due to a preoccupation with sex."

I'm astonished that crime drama is now considered blood and guts, but this is true. A recent episode of CSI: Miami showed a nail imbedded in the orbit of a human being. The shot was close-up and pretty gruesome. That being said, I don't see crime drama on the same level as the gratuitous violence in many video games, movies and TV shows. Violence is almost pivotal to murder mysteries. Without a murder (usually violent) there is no mystery.

"The lead character in Fox's "Bones" discovering a badly decomposed body hanging in a tree, crows picking on the remains. The maggot-covered head falls off and lands in Bones' hands."

This is an example of unacceptable blood and guts? You can see half decomposed bodies every day if you drive on country roads. They're called road-kill. This hardly qualifies as a "body" any way. Decomposition distorts the body in such a way that it doesn't really look human, so I hardly think Bones finding a decomposing body is on the same level as gunshot victims or even the Discovery Health's real life surgery shows.

Here's my nomination for least accurate quote:

"Gore is not a goal in and of itself," said Peter Liguori, Fox entertainment president. Accurate storytelling is. When you look at a show like 'Bones,' Bones is a real-life orensic psychologist. This is what she sees on a daily basis when she's called in to solve a case."

Last time I checked Bones was a forensic anthropologist! While accuracy may be their stated goal, I find it difficult to believe this statement. How many forensic anthropologists do you know that routinely beat the crap out of suspects or security gaurds? Probably none. I have seen Kathy Reichs in true to life shows on forensics and she doesn't act anything like the Bones character. In fact, I don't think the show bears any resemblance to reality. (BTW anyone catch that hologram machine she's got on the show? Boy would I love to have one of those for the lab!) "Bones" is simply an example of how Kathy Reichs has sold her integrity to the media.

And then there's this

"The most difficult issue here is desensitization," said Whitney Vanderwerff, former head of the National Alliance for Non-Violent Programming. "People have become so accustomed to this that it no longer registers.

How does seeing the people who commit violence being punished for that violence as in CSI and Bones and numerous other shows add up to desensitization? Personally, I watch CSI (it's a guilty pleasure), but I don't feel inclined to commit violent acts, nor am I indifferent when real violent acts are commited. The problem doesn't appear to be one of violence on TV, but rather the ability to distinguish reality from fantasy.

My conclusion:

Don't let your kids watch these shows if you're worried!

I am an ENZYME!

2005-11-28T17:26:00.000-06:00

"You are an enzyme. You are powerful, dark, variable, and can change many things at your whim...even when they're not supposed to be changed. Bad you. You can be dangerous or wonderful; it's your choice."

I found out which biological molecule I am.

Take the test here.

I haven't posted, so here one is!

2005-11-28T16:07:00.000-06:00

Let's see, this past week was Thanksgiving Break. I intended to get some work done, but we all know what happens over breaks. I visited my family, concealed my true nature as an evolutionary scientist. This is becoming increasingly difficult and makes me very uncomfortable. I wish I could discontinue my charade, but my oh so Christian family would probably disown me. Hmmmm... what's a girl to do?

In an attempt to maintain family harmony, I steer the topic of conversation to weird weather, Southern Democrats and who got married and/or is expecting a baby. So far these have been safe subjects. My only consolation is that most of my family members are pro-choice, so we don't have to argue about that.

Does anyone have a better solution?

Big surprise, Apes are like us!

2005-11-18T14:10:00.000-06:00

The newest issue of American Journal of Primatology has a lead article on chimpanzee demography. The data were collected from a captive colony in Australia and reveal an interesting aspect of female reproduction. According to the author, Judith Littleton, reproductive success, fertility and mortality are highly related to "social circumstances."

Social arrangements in chimpanzee groups can dramatically alter overall reproductive success for females as can nutrition by decreasing the age at first birth and decreasing the interbirth interval.

What this means for human evolution is unclear at this point, but there must be some advantage to our (extremely) late maturation, seeing as how H. sapiens has exploded over the planet and has much higher fecundity than our Great Ape relatives.

I'm interested to see where this leads.

Veteran's Day

2005-11-11T14:18:00.000-06:00

Today is Veteran's Day. I just wanted to say that no matter how you feel about the current war situation, our young men and women are serving their country. This is a dangerous job that most of us will never have, and we should respect those who risk their lives.

Fox News gets served!

2005-11-11T14:16:00.000-06:00

Well, it looks like Fox News is in some trouble over a sex discrimination suit. Thats just too bad isn't it?

Kansas goes down the tubes

2005-11-09T09:37:00.000-06:00

This news greeted me when I logged on this morining. We lost Kansas. This is a terrible day in the history of science. In order to avoid teaching true science and evolution, the Kansas state school board has

"the board rewrote the definition of science, so that it is no longer limited to the search for natural explanations of phenomena."

I am horrified that a board of education believes that rewriting education is in the best intrests of students. People who support the teaching of Intelligent Design state that because the majority of people believe it, it should be taught. This is ridiculous. Education and science are not majority rule situations. The majority of Americans don't know how to properly conjugate verbs. That doesn't mean we should stop teaching ver conjugation or change the language standards.

I'm really depressed now, I think I'll go ponder this in silence.

Death of Rosa Parks

2005-10-25T14:19:00.000-05:00

Rosa Parks passed away at the age of 92. Her refusal to give up a seat on the bus sparked the famous Montgomery bus boycott leading the way to desegregating the South. While some in the media paint her as woman who did not understand the significance of her actions, Ms. Parks was fully aware of the consequences of violating the law. She deserves our continuing respect and admiration for a simple act of defiance in the face of injustice.

More from the Panda Trial

2005-10-24T20:36:00.000-05:00

Here's another article on the Panda Trial. The defense continues to present its case, but I don't where they found Steve Fuller, but he looks like he might be a normal guy to begin with. I think I might have to read his material before I make any assumptions though. Cross-examination begins tomorrow. Maybe he'll admit ID isn't science then.

The Dover Panda Trial

2005-10-24T20:12:00.000-05:00

So, I've been watching the Dover Panda Trial with anticipation for weeks now. Last week the superintendent and Michael Behe made fools of themselves on the stand. It's everything a biologist could wish for. Now hopefully the judge will see the light and rule that ID is not science and therefore has no place in a science classroom! Anyway if you want to check out the most recent news on the trial try the York Daily Record. They have pretty good coverage of what's going on.

Well, it's back to composing a lecture on skeletal trauma

Wow! Why didn't I think of that?

2005-10-10T22:40:00.000-05:00

So, I just found this post at http://www.infidelguy.com/ftopicp-269891-Those_crazy_creationists.html

"I was just reading about proofs of evolution, creationist claims, and all that fun stuff. And a contradiction in creationists slapped me upside the head. I have never seen it pointed out before, but it might have. It struck me as so funny, I had to share it.

In one instance you have creationists that love to use the old argument "What use is half a wing?". Right? Basically irreducible complexity before Behe coined the phrase.

They like to say that evolution is impossible because half a wing is no good. Half an eye is no good.

And then we go to another instance, where we discuss vestigials. When evolutionists say that ostriches wings are partly vestigial, the creatonists throw up thier arms and say "No way!" They aren't vestigial, they are useful for "so and so".

So the question is, Mr. Creationist; is "half a wing" useful or not?"

This post really got me because it's so simple. I like the argument. Besides, vestigial organs and such are good refutations of both Young Earth Creationism and Intelligent Design!

Why is Intelligent Design bad for kids?

2005-10-03T17:16:00.000-05:00

I've never posted anything to the WWW before, so this is my first shot. Lately I've been discouraged by the apparent support in both the media and the country at large for the theory of ID or Intelligent Design.

Sometimes people ask why it bothers me so much when creationists try to manipulate the education system to keep evolution out or to get any form of creationism included. What can you say to that? Well, I can say lots!

Anti-evolution movements grow out of something called religion. Now, religion isn't a bad thing on an individual level, but when you get a conglomeration of people professing to a religion it becomes a problem. Religion (particularly Christianity) has, by and large, prohibited the development of free thinking in many societies.

By forcing public school to teach evolution as a flawed theory without real support, anti-evolutionists are dooming our children to a sub-standard education. No wonder American children perform so poorly on tests! Children who are not shown the evidence in support of evolution and taught the reasoning skills to make an informed decision are at a disadvantage in today's global economy.

Further, children who could become great biologists are never exposed to real biology. Real biology is built on the foundation of evolutionary theory. Evolutionary theory governs our investigations into the natural world around us. In order to say anything meaningful about lie on Earth, one must accept evolutionary theory.

I believe that children are entitled to a quality education covering a wide range of relevant topics that have shaped the world we live in today. If a high school biology lecture on evolution so damages a student's faith in God that they become an atheist, their faith was not very strong in the beginning.

I've got to get back to work.