tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14695257Fri, 12 Mar 2010 07:01:52 +0000reflections on life as I see ithttp://www.brucealderman.info/blog/noreply@blogger.com (BruceA)Blogger419125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14695257.post-2006179824530746730Fri, 12 Mar 2010 07:01:00 +00002010-03-11T23:01:52.632-08:00bloggingmetaI have recently been notified that, as of the first of May, Google Blogger will no longer allow users to host their own blog content. This decision, says Google, affects less than one percent of Blogger users. Unfortunately I am one of those few users.Between now and May I must make a decision on what to do about my blog going forward. I have three options:Stop blogging entirelyStart using http://www.brucealderman.info/blog/2010/03/future-of-my-blog.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BruceA)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14695257.post-3753278283733550904Tue, 02 Mar 2010 20:57:00 +00002010-03-02T12:58:14.741-08:00haikustarsRural winter night:Gleaming of a thousand stars.City: Maybe ten.http://www.brucealderman.info/blog/2010/03/night-skies-haiku.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BruceA)1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14695257.post-6234847379033461551Fri, 26 Feb 2010 04:10:00 +00002010-02-25T20:17:23.908-08:00KansashumorIt's popularly believed that my home state of Kansas is flat. OK, it's not just a popular belief: It's a proven fact that Kansas is flatter than a pancake. Nonetheless, the western edge of the state is actually higher than the average peak in the Appalachian Mountains.In 1998, five men climbed to the summit of Mt. Sunflower, the highest point in Kansas at over 4,000 feet. Read Into Thick Air, thehttp://www.brucealderman.info/blog/2010/02/mt-sunflower.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BruceA)1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14695257.post-5934422894433790616Sat, 20 Feb 2010 06:28:00 +00002010-02-19T22:31:16.212-08:00natural disasterclimate changeAccording to the legend, Nero fiddled while Rome burned. Last week, while a hundred thousand Washington, D.C. residents found themselves without heat or electricity in the aftermath of a massive blizzard that some have labeled the "snowpocalypse," climate change deniers rejoiced.from my newly published article, "Snowpocalypse" and Global Climate Change, at Associated Content.http://www.brucealderman.info/blog/2010/02/does-washington-dc-blizzard-disprove.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BruceA)1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14695257.post-7634380949717706540Sat, 13 Feb 2010 01:00:00 +00002010-02-12T17:00:01.571-08:00charitypovertysocial justiceWhen a disaster hits the poorest nation in the hemisphere, should we simply take up a collection and send aid, or would it be better to confront the reasons they are so poor?Rick Steves:We can blame Haiti’s squalor on voodoo, on its heritage of slavery, on corruption, on the fact that its main export is topsoil (in a treeless land, each rainstorm flushes precious soil into the sea), or on many http://www.brucealderman.info/blog/2010/02/haiti-roots-of-problem.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BruceA)2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14695257.post-4731443569329318166Thu, 11 Feb 2010 05:40:00 +00002010-02-10T21:40:15.071-08:00historyscienceWally Wallington thinks he has the answer. To demonstrate, he's building a life-sized replica of Stonehenge in his back yard:http://www.brucealderman.info/blog/2010/02/how-was-stonehenge-built.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BruceA)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14695257.post-6784097245474292285Sat, 30 Jan 2010 03:45:00 +00002010-01-29T19:45:00.652-08:00speculativescienceAn animation by Roy Prol:http://www.brucealderman.info/blog/2010/01/if-earth-had-rings-like-saturn.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BruceA)3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14695257.post-2954506081219254556Wed, 27 Jan 2010 05:58:00 +00002010-01-26T21:59:12.399-08:00guiltfathreligionStephen Asma recently heard a sermon at the bathroom sink:Recently while I was brushing my teeth, my 6-year-old son scolded me for running the water too long. He severely reprimanded me, and at the end of his censure asked me, with real outrage, "Don't you love the earth?" And lately he has taken up the energy cause, scampering virtuously around the house turning off lights, even while I'm using http://www.brucealderman.info/blog/2010/01/is-guilt-religious-emotion.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BruceA)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14695257.post-5585142424288906084Sun, 24 Jan 2010 05:22:00 +00002010-01-23T21:22:38.930-08:00theologyworshipBosco Peters is concerned:I think the word “orthodox” might be in trouble. Let’s try and save it from losing its meaning.I am seeing a lot of people calling themselves “orthodox” Christians and using the term to put down others as “unorthodox”, “heterodox”. But actually I don’t think these particular people should be allowed to use the term “orthodox” – as they are changing its meaning (and hencehttp://www.brucealderman.info/blog/2010/01/homodoxy.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BruceA)3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14695257.post-8883926328292783335Thu, 21 Jan 2010 08:21:00 +00002010-01-21T00:34:16.616-08:00palindromeslanguageA palindrome is a word, phrase, or sentence in which the letters are identical whether read forward or backward.For example:kayakrotatorMr. Owl ate my metal worm.A man, a plan, a canal: Panama!In 1983, Jim Saxe realized that he could add a cat to that last one:A man, a plan, a cat, a canal; Panama?Two Guys soon extended the list even further. Guy Jacobson produced:A man, a plan, a cat, a ham, a http://www.brucealderman.info/blog/2010/01/panama-palindromes.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BruceA)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14695257.post-1448576346634695521Tue, 19 Jan 2010 06:35:00 +00002010-01-18T22:35:50.517-08:00natural disasterpovertysocial justiceNo, Mr. Robertson, the nation of Haiti did not make a pact with the devil.I don't suppose you are interested in the historical details, Mr. Robertson. An ideological defense of your prosperity theology is too important to let mere facts get in the way.So to explain why the earthquake hit Haiti and not the Dominican Republic on the other side of the island, you invented a story of how the http://www.brucealderman.info/blog/2010/01/on-haiti-earthquake-and-pact-with-devil.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BruceA)3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14695257.post-3216252245373838048Sun, 17 Jan 2010 23:12:00 +00002010-01-17T15:15:35.697-08:00illusionfunsciencetrickThese are really cool effects, and the tricks all are self-working:http://www.brucealderman.info/blog/2010/01/science-tricks-for-parties.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BruceA)1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14695257.post-1552915761775892701Thu, 14 Jan 2010 07:23:00 +00002010-01-13T23:23:36.994-08:00climate changecarbon emissionscurrent eventsRachel Smokler and Gary Houser are no fans of carbon cap and trade. They outline their objections in an opinion piece for CommonDreams.org.There are two leading theories on how best to compel a reduction of global carbon emissions. The direct approach would be to levy a tax on carbon emissions. The idea behind this is to set a minimum price for pollution. Some progressives see a carbon tax as an http://www.brucealderman.info/blog/2010/01/on-reducing-global-carbon-emissions.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BruceA)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14695257.post-7375188698876180721Sun, 10 Jan 2010 17:40:00 +00002010-01-10T09:41:35.144-08:00povertysocial justiceFather Tim Jones, parish priest at St Lawrence and St Hilda in York in Britain, has made international headlines by seeming to advocate shoplifting in a recent sermon:My advice in these circumstances, when people have been let down so very badly by the rest of society, is that they should not hurt anybody, and cope as best they can. The strong temptation is to burgle or rob people – family, http://www.brucealderman.info/blog/2010/01/shoplifting-as-christian-virtue.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BruceA)1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14695257.post-1169468544191299773Thu, 31 Dec 2009 20:00:00 +00002009-12-31T12:00:00.435-08:00illusionfuntrickHere's a cool card trick to end the year, with a surprise twist at the end:http://www.brucealderman.info/blog/2009/12/color-changing-card-trick.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BruceA)4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14695257.post-3218141967705253001Wed, 30 Dec 2009 15:58:00 +00002009-12-30T08:37:43.539-08:00climate changecurrent eventsMathematician and programmer John Graham-Cumming has taken a look at the climate data compiled by the Met Office, the UK’s National Weather Service.He has reconstructed the temperature trends since 1850, found an error in the Met Office's data, examined the "very artificial correction" to tree-ring data, mapped a grid of global temperature data, and produced an explanatory video:All in all, it's http://www.brucealderman.info/blog/2009/12/john-graham-cumming-analyzes-climate.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BruceA)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14695257.post-8060125172875763268Mon, 21 Dec 2009 15:55:00 +00002009-12-21T08:39:19.844-08:00cultureTim O'Reilly consideres the shortsightedness of new online comparison shopping tools:On the surface, these are great tools for consumers (and there are other applications besides price comparison.) But remember, cutthroat pursuit of the lowest price will hasten the demise of many retailers, while strengthening others (usually, the biggest and most efficient, who can make money on the slenderest http://www.brucealderman.info/blog/2009/12/buy-where-you-shop.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BruceA)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14695257.post-26108315074350264Sun, 13 Dec 2009 05:23:00 +00002009-12-12T21:23:00.650-08:00optical illusionWow:http://www.brucealderman.info/blog/2009/12/animated-optical-illusions.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BruceA)2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14695257.post-5175496550545080755Sat, 12 Dec 2009 15:45:00 +00002009-12-12T09:42:38.455-08:00commentsmetaI've never formally articulated my comment policy, but a few recent comments have made it clear to me that I need to outline what type of comments I will not accept.No, I'm not referring to the ongoing debate in Where's the Climate Data? Disagreement — even sharp disagreement — is fine.I'm talking about the commercial spam. If you leave an advertisement as a comment, it will be deleted.When I http://www.brucealderman.info/blog/2009/12/comment-policy.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BruceA)6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14695257.post-3219583871309138370Wed, 09 Dec 2009 06:57:00 +00002009-12-08T22:57:46.425-08:00atheismmoderatecreationismcurrent eventsSince 9/11, several atheists — most prominently Richard Dawkins, Christopher Hitchens, Sam Harris, and Daniel Dennett — have stepped up their criticism of religious beliefs. To these "New Atheists", religious moderates are as bad as religious extremists:Here's Dawkins:However, the moderate, sensible religious people you've cited make the world safe for the extremists by bringing up children -- http://www.brucealderman.info/blog/2009/12/problem-with-new-atheists.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BruceA)0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14695257.post-141079987555019798Wed, 02 Dec 2009 06:58:00 +00002009-12-01T22:58:46.020-08:00climate changecurrent eventsIn a late comment to my September post titled Has the World's Climate Date Really Gone Missing? William Shields asserts:Well, this all looks very different in light of the released emails from CRU that show deliberate moves to block FoIA requests and then delete relevant data, which is actually a crime.The problem with this allegation is the same weakness found in the original tabloid-style http://www.brucealderman.info/blog/2009/12/wheres-climate-data.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BruceA)23tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14695257.post-3547491044892760692Tue, 24 Nov 2009 07:11:00 +00002009-11-23T23:33:28.537-08:00climate changepovertyIt sounds like a scene from a low-budget sci fi/horror film:A blood-orange blob the size of a small refrigerator emerged from the dark waters, its venomous tentacles trapped in a fishing net. Within minutes, hundreds more were being hauled up, a pulsating mass crowding out the catch of mackerel and sea bass.But for Japanese fisherman, it's all too real:This year's jellyfish swarm is one of the http://www.brucealderman.info/blog/2009/11/giant-jellyfish-and-global-warming.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BruceA)2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14695257.post-4212476742854192972Thu, 19 Nov 2009 06:59:00 +00002009-11-18T23:00:02.254-08:00creationismevolutionintelligent designDr. Georgia Purdom of the young earth creationist organization Answers in Genesis (AiG) takes a look at "Intelligent Design" (ID):The definition of ID can be best summarized as a theory that holds that “certain features” of living and nonliving things were designed by an “intelligent cause” as opposed to being formed through natural causes.1 The ID concept does not name the intelligent cause, norhttp://www.brucealderman.info/blog/2009/11/creationist-infighting.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BruceA)1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14695257.post-7938052211467141936Mon, 16 Nov 2009 08:01:00 +00002009-11-16T00:01:00.530-08:00animal intelligencescienceHumans have known for a long time that dolphins are intelligent creatures. But the more we study them, the more intelligent we find they are.At the Institute for Marine Mammal Studies in Mississippi, dolphins are trained to clean their own pools; if they bring trash to the trainers, they will receive a reward of fish.One dolphin named Kelly has figured out how to maximize her payoff:When people http://www.brucealderman.info/blog/2009/11/dolphin-intelligence.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BruceA)2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14695257.post-834619095260737033Fri, 13 Nov 2009 23:37:00 +00002009-11-13T15:38:02.163-08:00creativitypsychologyAll you need to do is distance yourself from the situation:According to the construal level theory (CLT) of psychological distance, anything that we do not experience as occurring now, here, and to ourselves falls into the “psychologically distant” category.…According to CLT, psychological distance affects the way we mentally represent things, so that distant things are represented in a http://www.brucealderman.info/blog/2009/11/easy-way-to-increase-creativity.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (BruceA)0