Monthly Archives: October 2013

How Could One Tell This Is Not a Republican Congressman?

Posted on October 18, 2013 by mikethemadbiologist

This is like a Turing test for the detection of insanity (boldface mine): “He [God] will not be mocked,”…yelled into the microphone as she was dragged off by security. “The greatest deception here is that this is not one nation … Continue reading →

Posted in Conservatives, Fucking Morons | 1 Comment

It’s Never Too Early to Teach Kids to Hate Learning

Posted on October 18, 2013 by mikethemadbiologist

New York’s high-stakes testing regime has now metastasized to kindergarten. Really (boldface mine): Because of a tough new curriculum and teacher evaluations, 4- and 5-year-olds are learning how to fill in bubbles on standardized math tests to show how much … Continue reading →

Posted in Bullshit As a Load Bearing Structure, Education, Fucking Morons | 14 Comments

Links Yom Government Reopened

Posted on October 17, 2013 by mikethemadbiologist

Gut yontif! Let’s celebrate with some links. Science: NIH campus endures slow decay: Experiments suffer from lack of lab materials and staff during US government shutdown Why Shutting Down U.S. Antarctic Research Will Have Global Repercussions On Science, Communication, Respect, … Continue reading →

Posted in Lotsa Links | Comments Off on Links Yom Government Reopened

Iraq: 400,000 Needless Deaths

Posted on October 17, 2013 by mikethemadbiologist

Here’s your abstract of the day (reformated slightly; boldface mine): Background: Previous estimates of mortality in Iraq attributable to the 2003 invasion have been heterogeneous and controversial, and none were produced after 2006. The purpose of this research was to … Continue reading →

Posted in Iraq | 1 Comment

How to Break the White Nationalist Stranglehold

Posted on October 17, 2013 by mikethemadbiologist

The most frustrating thing about the Tea Party is that it’s never been clear what it’s weakness is in the sense of what policies would weaken its stranglehold without screwing over vulnerable people. For example, the Tea Party trends towards … Continue reading →

Posted in Conservatives | 6 Comments

Links 10/16/13

Posted on October 16, 2013 by mikethemadbiologist

Links for you. Science: Exclusive interview: USDA’s Engeljohn on Foster Farms and salmonella Gigantiops destructor How is the shutdown going to affect this year’s DEB and IOS awards? Herd Immunity: Study Shows ICU Gown, Glove Use Can Cut MRSA Rates … Continue reading →

Posted in Lotsa Links | 1 Comment

Somehow I Don’t Think This Was Banksy

Posted on October 16, 2013 by mikethemadbiologist

Only in Boston, with all its colleges, would you see graffiti like this: (Observed on Louisberg Square, Beacon Hill, Boston)

Posted in Boston, Mathematics | 2 Comments

Adam Bly Shot a Man in Reno Just to Watch Him Die: Some Observations on the Science Bloggysphere

Posted on October 16, 2013 by mikethemadbiologist

What with ‘Sciamgate‘ fiasco over the weekend, there has been a lot of interesting writing. But this, by Greg Laden, really resonated with me (boldface mine): There is a great irony here. Just prior to the creation of Scientific American … Continue reading →

Posted in Bloggity Blog, News Media | Comments Off on Adam Bly Shot a Man in Reno Just to Watch Him Die: Some Observations on the Science Bloggysphere

Links 10/15/13

Posted on October 15, 2013 by mikethemadbiologist

Links for you. Science: The (full) NASA “ball-point pen story” Jewish Moms Alzheimer’s breakthrough: key questions answered. Everything you need to know about new research that could lead to future treatments for neurodegenerative diseases (this is the way medical discoveries … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | Comments Off on Links 10/15/13

The Conservative Long Game: Privatize Today, Privatize Tomorrow, Privatize Forever!

Posted on October 15, 2013 by mikethemadbiologist

Despite the outrage Republicans expressed over Obama shutting the national parks because Republicans are not funding the government, what conservatives really want regarding our national parks is quite instructive (boldface mine): Of course, as the Center for American Progress and … Continue reading →

Posted in Conservatives | 1 Comment