Re: US Doomed
On Jan 16, 2008 10:25 PM, Charlie Bell [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Big and rigid isn't the best for passenger safety. Or for getting along with others. Or succeeding in business. Or government. Big and rigid is just bad, bad, bad. Well, I can think of one exception... and that wasn't really where I was headed with this, though it certainly is a cliche to buy a big rigid car to make up for a personal deficiency. Nick -- Nick Arnett [EMAIL PROTECTED] Messages: 408-904-7198 ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Young Earth Math?
I love the wikipedia - a source of information - and its parodies, the uncyclopedia and the conservapedia - sources of humor. But I didn't get this: http://www.conservapedia.com/Conservapedia:Critical_Thinking_in_Math What is it? Biblically correct math? Does the course prove that Pi = 3? Alberto Monteiro ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: US Doomed
On 18/01/2008, at 2:15 AM, Nick Arnett wrote: On Jan 16, 2008 10:25 PM, Charlie Bell [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Big and rigid isn't the best for passenger safety. Or for getting along with others. Or succeeding in business. Or government. Big and rigid is just bad, bad, bad. Well, I can think of one exception... and that wasn't really where I was headed with this, though it certainly is a cliche to buy a big rigid car to make up for a personal deficiency. I drive a very small car indeed... ;) Charlie ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
RE: Young Earth Math?
Hmmm. This looks like a random post by an inspired but misguided soul, who will never actually bring his 'experimental course' to any real students... I quote, Please feel free to add other topics and suggestions, and add your name below as a teacher or student interested in this field. This suggests that it's just a pipedream with no basis in reality. The guy's got no idea -- ignore with impunity. c -Original Message- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Alberto Monteiro Sent: Thursday, January 17, 2008 10:43 PM To: brin-l@mccmedia.com Subject: Young Earth Math? I love the wikipedia - a source of information - and its parodies, the uncyclopedia and the conservapedia - sources of humor. But I didn't get this: http://www.conservapedia.com/Conservapedia:Critical_Thinking_in_Math What is it? Biblically correct math? Does the course prove that Pi = 3? Alberto Monteiro ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Weekly Chat Reminder
On Jan 16, 2008, at 5:36 PM, Mauro Diotallevi wrote: On Jan 16, 2008 1:03 PM, William T Goodall [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: The Brin-L weekly chat has been a list tradition for over nine years. Way back on 27 May, 1998, Marco Maisenhelder first set up a chatroom for the list, and on the next day, he established a weekly chat time. We've been through several servers, chat technologies, and even casts of regulars over the years, but the chat goes on... and we want more recruits! I dropped by, and nobody was home. How sad :-( It's religion's fault. -- Warren Ockrassa Blog | http://indigestible.nightwares.com/ Books | http://books.nightwares.com/ Web | http://www.nightwares.com/ ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Young Earth Math?
Curtis Burisch wrote: Hmmm. This looks like a random post by an inspired but misguided soul, who will never actually bring his 'experimental course' to any real students... I quote, Please feel free to add other topics and suggestions, and add your name below as a teacher or student interested in this field. This suggests that it's just a pipedream with no basis in reality. The guy's got no idea -- ignore with impunity. ... But I didn't get this: http://www.conservapedia.com/Conservapedia:Critical_Thinking_in_Math What is it? Biblically correct math? Does the course prove that Pi = 3? Alberto Monteiro Hi, Curtis. Welcome to the list! (Unless you're not new, and I just missed your posts. If so, my apologies.) You're right, it does look like a course in progress. The topics are a list of those that would inspire philosophical discussions, but there doesn't seem to be much unity in them otherwise. But my guess is that it's a real course, meaning that the proposer could actually teach it. The progression of topics seems sensible, starting with elementary logic and proof, and moving on to the harder topics. ---David Homeschooled students NEED to do well on standardized tests, since there aren't many other ways to tell if they've learned anything... ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Young Earth Math?
David Hobby wrote: An interesting find! That's the first I've heard of the Conservapedia. It's sometimes hard to tell, but my sense is that it's not actually meant as humor? Conservapedia is 100% serious in its intent. There have been occasional articles in various places about it. --[Lance] -- Celebrate The Circle http://www.celebratethecircle.org/ Carolina Spirit Quest http://www.carolinaspiritquest.org/ My LiveJournal http://www.livejournal.com/users/labrown/ GPG Fingerprint: 409B A409 A38D 92BF 15D9 6EEE 9A82 F2AC 69AC 07B9 CACert.org Assurer ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Young Earth Math?
David Hobby wrote: An interesting find! That's the first I've heard of the Conservapedia. It's sometimes hard to tell, but my sense is that it's not actually meant as humor? They think they are serious - which makes it even more fun. A masterpiece of (unintentional) humour is... http://www.conservapedia.com/Kangaroo#Origins ... but the older versions were better, because they didn't included the alternate evolutioary view. And he made a molten sea, ten cubits from the one brim to the other: it was round all about, ... and a line of thirty cubits did compass it round about. Of course we _can_ be fundamentalists and yet don't accept that Pi = 3 - the 'molten sea' was elliptical, and the ratio comes from C/(2a). In the good old days I even calculated its eccentricity, using cartographic formulas. Alberto Monteiro ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Young Earth Math?
Alberto Monteiro wrote: I love the wikipedia - a source of information - and its parodies, the uncyclopedia and the conservapedia - sources of humor. But I didn't get this: http://www.conservapedia.com/Conservapedia:Critical_Thinking_in_Math What is it? Biblically correct math? Does the course prove that Pi = 3? Alberto-- An interesting find! That's the first I've heard of the Conservapedia. It's sometimes hard to tell, but my sense is that it's not actually meant as humor? The course could be intended for bright homeschooled students. A good teacher could present all the topics on the syllabus at a 9th grade level, in the sense that students would learn some of it, but remain fuzzy on the rigorous details. That proof that pi is 3 would probably come under alternative proof techniques, as uncritically believing EVERY SINGLE word in the King James Bible. ---David And he made a molten sea, ten cubits from the one brim to the other: it was round all about, ... and a line of thirty cubits did compass it round about. ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Weekly Chat Reminder
On Jan 17, 2008, at 3:47 PM, Warren Ockrassa wrote: On Jan 16, 2008, at 5:36 PM, Mauro Diotallevi wrote: On Jan 16, 2008 1:03 PM, William T Goodall [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: The Brin-L weekly chat has been a list tradition for over nine years. Way back on 27 May, 1998, Marco Maisenhelder first set up a chatroom for the list, and on the next day, he established a weekly chat time. We've been through several servers, chat technologies, and even casts of regulars over the years, but the chat goes on... and we want more recruits! I dropped by, and nobody was home. How sad :-( It's religion's fault. Score: 5 (funny) Slashgod Maru Dave ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Weekly Chat Reminder
On 17 Jan 2008, at 23:47, Warren Ockrassa wrote: On Jan 16, 2008, at 5:36 PM, Mauro Diotallevi wrote: On Jan 16, 2008 1:03 PM, William T Goodall [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: The Brin-L weekly chat has been a list tradition for over nine years. Way back on 27 May, 1998, Marco Maisenhelder first set up a chatroom for the list, and on the next day, he established a weekly chat time. We've been through several servers, chat technologies, and even casts of regulars over the years, but the chat goes on... and we want more recruits! I dropped by, and nobody was home. How sad :-( It's religion's fault. Actually Mauro met some of us before he had to go. We had four chatters online at one point which is a bit less than the halcyon days but not too shabby. The problem is that the 'opening hours' are a bit long and vague at the moment and my logs show that many people pop in for a few minutes, find nobody else there, and leave again. I would suggest that if you don't find anyone there when you look in that you hang around a bit for the next person to come along :) If someone wants to suggest more specific time(s) or another way of getting together simultaneously I'd be delighted to hear them. Also if anyone wants to use the chat for getting together about any topic at any time that's list related just post an email to the list with your time and topic and use it. The facility is available pretty much 24/7 apart from occasional maintenance. If (for example) the Australians want to have their own time-zone chat just go ahead! -- William T Goodall Mail : [EMAIL PROTECTED] Web : http://www.wtgab.demon.co.uk Blog : http://radio.weblogs.com/0111221/ Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities. ~Voltaire. ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: US Doomed
On 17 Jan 2008, at 22:02, Charlie Bell wrote: On 18/01/2008, at 2:15 AM, Nick Arnett wrote: On Jan 16, 2008 10:25 PM, Charlie Bell [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Big and rigid isn't the best for passenger safety. Or for getting along with others. Or succeeding in business. Or government. Big and rigid is just bad, bad, bad. Well, I can think of one exception... and that wasn't really where I was headed with this, though it certainly is a cliche to buy a big rigid car to make up for a personal deficiency. I drive a very small car indeed... ;) But you're a very honest chap :) Boom boom Maru -- William T Goodall Mail : [EMAIL PROTECTED] Web : http://www.wtgab.demon.co.uk Blog : http://radio.weblogs.com/0111221/ Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities. ~Voltaire. ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Fairness
http://tinyurl.com/2xekb4 Oscar Pistorius, a double-amputee sprinter, has been denied a shot at the Olympics... for being too fast. The runner -- who uses carbon- fiber, prosthetic feet -- was reviewed by the International Association of Athletics Federations (or IAAF), a review which found the combination of man and machine to be too much for its purely human competitors. According to the IAAF report, the mechanical advantage of the blade in relation to the healthy ankle joint of an able bodied athlete is higher than 30-percent. Additionally, Pistorius uses 25- percent less energy than average runners due to the artificial limbs, therefore giving him an unfair advantage on the track... or so they say. Obviously the only fair race is between clones who are only allowed to train using 'natural' methods :) Boxers have weight classes, horses carry weights to compensate for the weight of the jockey, golf and tennis have senior circuits... Why are some kinds of advantages OK and others not? Was it Chernobyl that made Maria Sharapova grow to be 6'2 Maru? -- William T Goodall Mail : [EMAIL PROTECTED] Web : http://www.wtgab.demon.co.uk Blog : http://radio.weblogs.com/0111221/ Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities. ~Voltaire. ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Contact lenses with circuits
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2008-01/uow-clw011708.php Movie characters from the Terminator to the Bionic Woman use bionic eyes to zoom in on far-off scenes, have useful facts pop into their field of view, or create virtual crosshairs. Off the screen, virtual displays have been proposed for more practical purposes - visual aids to help vision-impaired people, holographic driving control panels and even as a way to surf the Web on the go. The device to make this happen may be familiar. Engineers at the University of Washington have for the first time used manufacturing techniques at microscopic scales to combine a flexible, biologically safe contact lens with an imprinted electronic circuit and lights. Looking through a completed lens, you would see what the display is generating superimposed on the world outside, said Babak Parviz, a UW assistant professor of electrical engineering. This is a very small step toward that goal, but I think it's extremely promising. The results were presented today at the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers' international conference on Micro Electro Mechanical Systems by Harvey Ho, a former graduate student of Parviz's now working at Sandia National Laboratories in Livermore, Calif. Other co-authors are Ehsan Saeedi and Samuel Kim in the UW's electrical engineering department and Tueng Shen in the UW Medical Center's ophthalmology department. There are many possible uses for virtual displays. Drivers or pilots could see a vehicle's speed projected onto the windshield. Video-game companies could use the contact lenses to completely immerse players in a virtual world without restricting their range of motion. And for communications, people on the go could surf the Internet on a midair virtual display screen that only they would be able to see. People may find all sorts of applications for it that we have not thought about. Our goal is to demonstrate the basic technology and make sure it works and that it's safe, said Parviz, who heads a multi-disciplinary UW group that is developing electronics for contact lenses. The prototype device contains an electric circuit as well as red light-emitting diodes for a display, though it does not yet light up. The lenses were tested on rabbits for up to 20 minutes and the animals showed no adverse effects. Ideally, installing or removing the bionic eye would be as easy as popping a contact lens in or out, and once installed the wearer would barely know the gadget was there, Parviz said. Building the lenses was a challenge because materials that are safe for use in the body, such as the flexible organic materials used in contact lenses, are delicate. Manufacturing electrical circuits, however, involves inorganic materials, scorching temperatures and toxic chemicals. Researchers built the circuits from layers of metal only a few nanometers thick, about one thousandth the width of a human hair, and constructed light-emitting diodes one third of a millimeter across. They then sprinkled the grayish powder of electrical components onto a sheet of flexible plastic. The shape of each tiny component dictates which piece it can attach to, a microfabrication technique known as self-assembly. Capillary forces - the same type of forces that make water move up a plant's roots, and that cause the edge of a glass of water to curve upward - pull the pieces into position. The prototype contact lens does not correct the wearer's vision, but the technique could be used on a corrective lens, Parviz said. And all the gadgetry won't obstruct a person's view. There is a large area outside of the transparent part of the eye that we can use for placing instrumentation, Parviz said. Future improvements will add wireless communication to and from the lens. The researchers hope to power the whole system using a combination of radio-frequency power and solar cells placed on the lens, Parviz said. A full-fledged display won't be available for a while, but a version that has a basic display with just a few pixels could be operational fairly quickly, according to Parviz. xponent Future Collisions Maru rob ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Young Earth Math?
On Jan 17, 2008, at 12:43 PM, Alberto Monteiro wrote: I love the wikipedia - a source of information - and its parodies, the uncyclopedia and the conservapedia - sources of humor. But I didn't get this: http://www.conservapedia.com/Conservapedia:Critical_Thinking_in_Math What is it? Biblically correct math? Does the course prove that Pi = 3? The Wikipedia article on Conservapedia seems to believe that it takes itself seriously: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conservapedia It was founded by Phyllis Schafly's son, Andrew as a sort of fair and balanced alternative to the liberal, anti-Christian and anti-American Wikipedia. Dave ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Young Earth Math?
On 18 Jan 2008, at 01:57, Dave Land wrote: On Jan 17, 2008, at 12:43 PM, Alberto Monteiro wrote: I love the wikipedia - a source of information - and its parodies, the uncyclopedia and the conservapedia - sources of humor. But I didn't get this: http://www.conservapedia.com/Conservapedia:Critical_Thinking_in_Math What is it? Biblically correct math? Does the course prove that Pi = 3? The Wikipedia article on Conservapedia seems to believe that it takes itself seriously: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conservapedia It was founded by Phyllis Schafly's son, Andrew as a sort of fair and balanced alternative to the liberal, anti-Christian and anti- American Wikipedia. It's the inevitable result of thinking that 'faith' is in any way a good thing. Strong belief in God or in the doctrines of a religion, based on spiritual apprehension rather than proof. Why let mere facts or reason stand in the way of faith Maru? -- William T Goodall Mail : [EMAIL PROTECTED] Web : http://www.wtgab.demon.co.uk Blog : http://radio.weblogs.com/0111221/ Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities. ~Voltaire. ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Young Earth Math?
On Jan 17, 2008, at 12:43 PM, Alberto Monteiro wrote: I love the wikipedia - a source of information - and its parodies, the uncyclopedia and the conservapedia - sources of humor. But I didn't get this: http://www.conservapedia.com/Conservapedia:Critical_Thinking_in_Math Came across two interesting lists: the most-viewed pages on both Wikipedia and Conservapedia, which shows what each audience is thinking about pretty starkly: Wikipedia (http://hemlock.knams.wikimedia.org/%7Eleon/stats/ wikicharts/index.php?wiki=enwikins=articleslimit=100month=11% 2F2007mode=view) Numbers are views *per day* 1. Main Page [44,519,294] 2. Wiki [1,334,471] 3. Naruto [568,941] 4. Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock [537,882] 5. Wikipedia [522,353] 6. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows [514,588] 7. United States [490,588] 8. Heroes (TV series) [454,941] 9. Deaths in 2007 [438,000] 10. Transformers (film) [400,941] Conservapedia (http://www.conservapedia.com/Special:Statistics) Numbers appear to be *cumulative* views 1. Homosexuality [2,291,306] 2. Main Page [2,153,100] 3. Teen Homosexuality [377,426] 4. Homosexual Agenda [325,395] 5. Homosexuality and Anal Cancer [296,799] 6. Arguments Against Homosexuality [296,255] 7. Ex-homosexuals [282,848] 8. Homosexuality and Choice [277,907] 9. Wikipedia [272,304] 10. Homosexuality and Health [259,532] Dave One-Track Mind Maru ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Young Earth Math?
On 18 Jan 2008, at 02:18, Dave Land wrote: Conservapedia (http://www.conservapedia.com/Special:Statistics) Numbers appear to be *cumulative* views 1. Homosexuality [2,291,306] 2. Main Page [2,153,100] 3. Teen Homosexuality [377,426] 4. Homosexual Agenda [325,395] 5. Homosexuality and Anal Cancer [296,799] 6. Arguments Against Homosexuality [296,255] 7. Ex-homosexuals [282,848] 8. Homosexuality and Choice [277,907] 9. Wikipedia [272,304] 10. Homosexuality and Health [259,532] So a lot of fundies are using the nails of faith to keep the closet door shut? Self-hating Psychology Maru -- William T Goodall Mail : [EMAIL PROTECTED] Web : http://www.wtgab.demon.co.uk Blog : http://radio.weblogs.com/0111221/ Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities. ~Voltaire. ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Young Earth Math?
On Jan 17, 2008, at 7:27 PM, William T Goodall wrote: So a lot of fundies are using the nails of faith to keep the closet door shut? Could be they're either (1) looking for ways to strengthen themselves against their sinful urges; or (2) miserable teens trying to self- loathe into heterosexuality; or (3) perverted youth pastors trying to figure out what percentage of their summer-camp flock might be amenable to a little late-night hike down by the riverside, if you know what I mean. -- Warren Ockrassa Blog | http://indigestible.nightwares.com/ Books | http://books.nightwares.com/ Web | http://www.nightwares.com/ ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Contact lenses with circuits
At 07:45 PM Thursday 1/17/2008, Robert Seeberger wrote: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2008-01/uow-clw011708.php Movie characters from the Terminator to the Bionic Woman use bionic eyes to zoom in on far-off scenes, have useful facts pop into their field of view, or create virtual crosshairs. Off the screen, virtual displays have been proposed for more practical purposes - visual aids to help vision-impaired people, holographic driving control panels and even as a way to surf the Web on the go. The device to make this happen may be familiar. Engineers at the University of Washington have for the first time used manufacturing techniques at microscopic scales to combine a flexible, biologically safe contact lens with an imprinted electronic circuit and lights. Looking through a completed lens, you would see what the display is generating superimposed on the world outside, said Babak Parviz, a UW assistant professor of electrical engineering. This is a very small step toward that goal, but I think it's extremely promising. The results were presented today at the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers' international conference on Micro Electro Mechanical Systems by Harvey Ho, a former graduate student of Parviz's now working at Sandia National Laboratories in Livermore, Calif. Other co-authors are Ehsan Saeedi and Samuel Kim in the UW's electrical engineering department and Tueng Shen in the UW Medical Center's ophthalmology department. There are many possible uses for virtual displays. Drivers or pilots could see a vehicle's speed projected onto the windshield. Video-game companies could use the contact lenses to completely immerse players in a virtual world without restricting their range of motion. And for communications, people on the go could surf the Internet on a midair virtual display screen that only they would be able to see. But what it will be used most for is to run commercials 24/7 that you can't turn off or even close your eyes to avoid. Obligatory Second Line Maru -- Ronn! :) ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Young Earth Math?
On 1/17/2008 8:32:01 PM, Warren Ockrassa ([EMAIL PROTECTED]) wrote: On Jan 17, 2008, at 7:27 PM, William T Goodall wrote: So a lot of fundies are using the nails of faith to keep the closet door shut? Could be they're either (1) looking for ways to strengthen themselves against their sinful urges; or (2) miserable teens trying to self- loathe into heterosexuality; or (3) perverted youth pastors trying to figure out what percentage of their summer-camp flock might be amenable to a little late-night hike down by the riverside, if you know what I mean. Conservapedia Conservatives Republicans Gay Sex Scandals in Congress Maybe they can get Mercury Morris to do a commercial CONSEVAPEDERAST [Cat scan movie of hot oral action (you know what I'm talking about)] This is your brain This is your brain on cock Any conservatives? [Cue background music: Queen's I Want It All] PAID FOR BY THE COMMITTE TO RE-ELECT THE PRESIDENT AND HIS BUDDIES..AGAIN. I don't know if there is any real point to this, but it makes me LMAO G. (I find abject denial to be funny, does that make me a bad person?) xponent No Drinking At The Keyboard Please Maru rob ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Young Earth Math?
On Jan 17, 2008, at 8:01 PM, Robert Seeberger wrote: (I find abject denial to be funny, does that make me a bad person?) No. NO. NO, DAMMIT, NO! -- \/\/ ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
Re: Young Earth Math?
On Thu, 17 Jan 2008, Warren Ockrassa wrote: On Jan 17, 2008, at 8:01 PM, Robert Seeberger wrote: (I find abject denial to be funny, does that make me a bad person?) No. NO. NO, DAMMIT, NO! *snorfle* Julia ___ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
