December 6, 2010
Published by admin at December 6, 2010
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After decades of hope and many aborted attempts, it looks like a movie version of Ayn Rand’s monumental novel Atlas Shrugged is finally being made. Check out the interview with the producer, John Aglialoro. Like Lord of the Rings, it is going to be in 3 parts, mirroring the arrangement […]
December 5, 2010
I came upon this description of scientists’ fearful response to the recent U.S. Elections: Researchers Anxious and on the Defensive After Republican Gains Many researchers fear the worst after a Republican resurgence at the polls produced a 25-plus-seat majority in the U.S. House of Representatives and loosened the Democrats’ grip […]
November 26, 2010
A day at home. The sun is shining. < Knock, knock> Two ladies with umbrellas appear at my door. Robin (innocently, looking them up and down): Hello. Are you selling umbrellas? Ladies: No, they’re just for protection. Robin (stalling): I don’t blame you, it is very hot today. Ladies (still […]
November 26, 2010
At a scientific conference dinner the other night, a young woman named Eliza across the table was describing her family and how on the male side they first came to Australia in the 1700s – her great-etc-grandfather having been transported as convict for stealing a few yards of hessian. She […]
November 21, 2010
A Dave Allen classic on YouTube relates the story of Allen’s first encounter with The Church as a four year old boy. I have written before that if your starting point is reality, you’ll never derive the concept of God. Allen’s picture of religion through the eyes of such a […]
November 12, 2010
I was reading my pre-release copy of The Australian Book of Atheism on a plane flight on Wednesday when I noticed that verily had the plane become quite dark: except for a single bright beam of light, shining down upon The Book in my hand! I’m pretty sure I also […]
November 4, 2010
This excellent video on YouTube by “philhellenes” really concretises Douglas Adams’ sentiment (reprinted in The Salmon of Doubt) when describing his reaction to realising the explanatory power of evolutionary biology: It was a concept of such stunning simplicity, but it gave rise, naturally, to all of the infinite and baffling complexity of […]
October 11, 2010
Published by admin at October 11, 2010
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An interesting statement in a recent post in The Scientist on human embryonic stem cell (“ESC”) rules in the USA: “Other countries have laws that provide researchers with legal and moral clarity.” The assumption that laws can provide any kind of “moral clarity” is a fascinating one. In terms of […]
October 10, 2010
Published by admin at October 10, 2010
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You’ve got to see this YouTube video of the greenies’ vision of the future. The horror is that the greenies who wrote and produced it actually think it’s funny. But just imagine their reaction if it was someone else’s ad – by a company about people not buying their products, or about homosexuals, […]