Monthly Archives: December 2011

What I Would Like for Yontif: Sequencing to Solve the Library Construction Problem (and Stop Missing the Microbial Boat)

Posted on December 23, 2011 by mikethemadbiologist

OK, I’m Jewish, so I don’t the whole Christmas gift thing too much, but my birthday is right around Christmas, so that will do. So here’s what I want from sequencing technology manufacturers for my birthday: cheap, fast library construction. … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment

Links 12/22/11

Posted on December 22, 2011 by mikethemadbiologist

Links for you. Science: The wisdom of crowds: The strange but extremely valuable science of how pedestrians behave Nanopatch vaccines, no needles required MINUSTAH Must Take Responsibility for Causing Cholera Epidemic That’s Killed 7,000 People, CEPR Co-Director Says NIH Director … Continue reading →

Posted in Lotsa Links | Comments Off on Links 12/22/11

Lazy Media and the Romney Phoniness Fraud: One More Reason Why We Can’t Have Nice Things

Posted on December 22, 2011 by mikethemadbiologist

Brendan Nyhan attacks the claims that Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney is a phony. Nyhan: Mitt Romney, the leading Republican presidential contender in the Intrade futures market, is starting to be covered in a similar way. A Los Angeles Times … Continue reading →

Posted in News Media, Romney | 3 Comments

The Great Income Shift: Why You (Unless You’re in the Top Fifth) Can’t Have Nice Things

Posted on December 22, 2011 by mikethemadbiologist

(from here) From the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, we find this chart: How are you doing? And do you believe our Galtian overlords deserve that relative increase? Just asking.

Posted in Economics | 1 Comment

Links 12/21/11

Posted on December 21, 2011 by mikethemadbiologist

Links for you. Science: Large-scale data exploration, MIC-style Nature really is real This Time It’s Personal: Women In STEM Mr. Pearson, meet Mr. Mandelbrot: Detecting Novel Associations in Large Data Sets Other: The Religious Right Ain’t What it Used to … Continue reading →

Posted in Lotsa Links | Comments Off on Links 12/21/11

Even As Econ and MBA Professors Screw Up the Economy (and Their Students)…

Posted on December 21, 2011 by mikethemadbiologist

…their salaries skyrocket: Meanwhile, this is the ‘deliverable‘ (boldface mine, emphasis original): In line with previous research, what we found supported the Grinch stereotype. About 5 percent of economics majors donated to WashPIRG in a given quarter, compared with 8 … Continue reading →

Posted in Basic Human Decency, Economics, Education | 1 Comment

Links 12/20/11

Posted on December 20, 2011 by mikethemadbiologist

Links for you. Science: What genetics should all our students learn? (“Stop, you’re teaching the wrong stuff!”) On the Stability of IQ When Environmental Regulations Promote Ecological Devastation (the problem seems to be local disparity in regulations, but discuss amongst … Continue reading →

Posted in Lotsa Links | Comments Off on Links 12/20/11

When You Print Your Own Currency, Money Should Never Be a Limiting Resource

Posted on December 20, 2011 by mikethemadbiologist

This is a point I’ve been making for quite a while, and this misunderstanding is why your non-competitive grant renewal was cut. I’ll outsource this to Matthew Yglesias (boldface mine): There are many reasons you might lose a war. But … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics | Comments Off on When You Print Your Own Currency, Money Should Never Be a Limiting Resource

Just-So Stories and the ‘Evolutionary Biology Diet’

Posted on December 20, 2011 by mikethemadbiologist

Amanda Marcotte and Rebecca Watson pointed me towards this absurd article “Why women need fat.” In fairness, I don’t dispute the idea that the recent advent of a diet full of processed sugars hasn’t been good for us, or that … Continue reading →

Posted in Evo Psych, Evolution, Genetics, Hunger, Obesity | 1 Comment

Links 12/19/11

Posted on December 19, 2011 by mikethemadbiologist

Links for you. Science: Update on marketing to kids (about childhood obesity) Dinosaurs With Killer Claws Yield New Theory About Evolution of Flight Tiny $25 computer is designed to teach programming to kids Promiscuity and vaginal bacterial diversity Other: How … Continue reading →

Posted in Lotsa Links | Comments Off on Links 12/19/11