{if FALSE} Trackback: Open Thread Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #55842: — 01/01  at  01:49 AM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} happy fuckin' christ-begotten new year folks.
and may I just say that I feel like a touch o' a loser fer droppin' th' first post fer th' year here on pharygula but at least it lacks capitalization and it mocks th' baby jesus. {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: Open Thread Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #55843: — 01/01  at  02:12 AM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} Last night, 8-year-auld son were bein' watchin' th' flash animations at th' science site fer minnows, Brainpop.com, and I were bein' surprised t' hear th' Flyin' Spaghetti Monster alluded t' in th' lesson on "Dark Matter".

"Flyin' Spaghetti what?" young son asked, echoin' th' animation.

I took that scurvey dog t' th' website and showed that scurvey dog.

"What is it?!"

I explained.

"I want us t' make our own Flyin' Spaghetti Monster!" he said, havin' grand fun lookin' through Flyin' Spaghetti Monster pics.

I said I would not be knittin' or crochetin' one so he drew a Flyin' Spaghetti Monster that is literally on th' sauce.

Thought some visitors might be amused.

{/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: Open Thread Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #55846: Neil — 01/01  at  02:38 AM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} Happy 2006 t' ye all from Sydney. In contrast t' yer tales o' ice and snow, me desktop weather applet showed this today:



and bushfires are ragin' t' th' north and south. Just yer typical Aussie new year, me beauty! 45 °C (113 F fer ye non-celsius people) is pretty exceptional - I'll be watchin' th' climate change blogs this year fer sure. {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: Open Thread Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #55848: — 01/01  at  02:59 AM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} I wish ye all a year filled with (non-supernatural) blessin's! Especially P.Z., whose blog is a blessin' I enjoy daily.

To arms! Stand renewed, ready fer th' next battle with th' advocates o' ignorance! {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: Open Thread Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #55849: — 01/01  at  03:07 AM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} 45C? Bloody hell, me beauty! I'll take our -11 any day o' th' week.

Go ahead, Neil, say it. You know ye want t': 'but 'tis a dry heat'. {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: Open Thread Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #55850: — 01/01  at  03:21 AM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} A joyful new year, and a celebration o' me might in callin' fer open threads. Aarrr! Fear me, and admire me country's nascent wingnuttiness:

This is th' letter that appeared in me paper a couple o' days ago. It's more than a little confused about what it wants t' get across, but I'd like t' nip this in th' bud before we get our own Discovery Institute knockoff.

Theory is not fact

Leadin' research scientists are extremely naïve and gullible. They, and th' team aroun' South Korean clonin' “expert” Dr Hwang Woo-suk, merely believed his claims o' advances in stem-cell research.
It turned out his claims were fake, pass the grog, pass the grog! Didn’t eminent scientists check them out?
The theory o' evolution is rife but it were bein' only a Charles Darwin theory. Theory is not fact.
Creation and intelligent design are aroun' fer all t' see, th' pinnacle bein' th' incredible human bein', and dinna spare the whip! Walk the plank! Paul writes in his letter t' th' Romans, chapter 1, that “From th' creation o' th' world, (God’s) invisible qualities, such as his eternal power and divine nature, have been made visible and have been understood through His handiwork, by Blackbeard's sword. So they (people) are without excuse”.
Therefore, let’s make it our New Year’s resolution t' carry out honest, in-depth and open-minded research into th' theory o' evolution versus th' intelligent design o' th' creator.
Recommended readin': th' Bible.

Bridget Steyn

Heh indeedy. I do like th' straight conflation o' ID and creationism. Sure, 'tis got legal precedent now, but 'tis still nice t' have it laid right out by someone arguin' fer it. There's too much here t' really answer properly (what th' hell is 'a Charles Darwin theory' anyway), but thus follows me attempt t' hit what I think is th' main point.

Bridget Steyn has declared herself unfit t' comment on issues o' science and knowledge. By attemptin' t' tar evolutionary biology through th' actions o' one scientist, she has confused th' user with th' tool. Science is not th' people who do it, but a process that has been extraordinarily successful at explainin' th' world aroun' us.
The auld saw o' ‘only a theory’ shows that Steyn has no knowledge o' this process. A theory is not th' opposite o' a fact. Scientific theories are developed, challenged, tested, and altered as th' evidence dictates, I'll warrant ye. To say otherwise does a grave disservice t' hardworkin' scientists and th' real controversies that fill th' debate.
Furthermore, by usin' such a thoroughly debunked assertion, Steyn reveals she is not interested in honest debate, and only wants t' inflame and make noise. The winsome lass asks us t' “carry out honest, in-depth and open-minded research” into intelligent design. And hoist the mainsail! That, scientists would gladly do, except ID provides no testable hypotheses, makes no falsifiable predictions, and is flat out not science.
Go ahead and read th' Bible, because science is not atheistic. Those who choose t' incorporate their faith with th' evidence o' th' material world might come away with a more amazin' creator than that in which Steyn believes.
My New Year’s resolution will be not t' suffer fools lightly.

To be honest, I couldn't care less about whether science is or isn't atheistic, and neither would most other people in New Zealand. But this wench seems t' think so, and there are others aroun' as well.

I'll be firin' this off come mornin', so if anyone has suggestions (or just zingers), I'd love t' hear them. Aarrr! And swab the deck! It's me first attempt, too, so let me know if I (a mere humanities major) am somehow playin' into their hands. {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: Open Thread Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #55851: — 01/01  at  03:32 AM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} Idyllopus, I think th' FSM were bein' intended from th' get-go t' be child friendly ("on top o' spaghetti, all covered with cheese, I lost me poor meatball when somebody sneezed"). I do see some similarities t' th' work o' Joan Miro. {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: Open Thread Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #55852: Spoony Quine — 01/01  at  03:58 AM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} ` Ah, yes, Flyin' Spaghetti Monster! Arrrr! I have been touched by his noodly appendage!
` However, fer me New Year's resolution, I swore I'd worship th' Invisible Pink Unicorn! (Blessed be that comely wench hooves!) {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: Open Thread Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #55853: — 01/01  at  04:20 AM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} <Reuben inc> IMO, yer response it far too complex fer th' readers o' a newspaper. ye will lose yer audience immediately. try t' dumb it down without losin' th' content!

For example:

Bridget Steyn has declared herself unfit t' comment on issues o' science and knowledge. By attemptin' t' tar evolutionary biology through th' actions o' one scientist, she has confused th' user with th' tool. Science is not th' people who do it, but a process that has been extraordinarily successful at explainin' th' world aroun' us.

try:
Without question Dr. And swab the deck! Hwang appears t' have committed a vile act o' fraud. And hoist the mainsail! Arrrr! But note: th' fraud were bein' uncovered by OTHER SCIENTISTS. Aarrr, and dinna spare the whip! Science is self-correctin'.

Somehow, however, Ms. Walk the plank! Steyn then makes th' bafflin' "logical" leap that since Hwang committed a fraud, therefore Evolution is a lie.

Hwang's actions have NO RELATIONSHIP t' th' theory o' evolution.

The auld saw o' ‘only a theory’ shows that Steyn has no knowledge o' this process. A theory is not th' opposite o' a fact. Scientific theories are developed, challenged, tested, and altered as th' evidence dictates, me beauty. To say otherwise does a grave disservice t' hardworkin' scientists and th' real controversies that fill th' debate.

Try:
Steyn clearly does savvy not what "theory" means in scientific usage, ye scurvey dog. In common usage, a "theory" is a half-baked speculation: "My theory is that th' butler did it." In scientific usage, a "theory" is a set o' proposed mechanisms which successfully explain observed facts. And swab the deck! Shiver me timbers!

To qualify as a "theory" (or even as "science") there must be a way t' show that th' "theory" is wrong. Fire the cannons! Evolution fits this standard: fer example, if someone were t' find a mammal fossil in an undisturbed Cambrian deposit, Evolution would be out th' window (and th' discoverer would win a Nobel Prize).

A speculation only becomes a theory after intense scrutiny and empirical testin' shows it t' be correct beyond reasonable doubt.

Furthermore, by usin' such a thoroughly debunked assertion, Steyn reveals she is not interested in honest debate, and only wants t' inflame and make noise. The winsome lass asks us t' “carry out honest, in-depth and open-minded research” into intelligent design, we'll keel-haul ye! That, scientists would gladly do, except ID provides no testable hypotheses, makes no falsifiable predictions, and is flat out not science.

try:
The requirement that an idea should be testable eliminates ID as a "theory". If ID were t' make testable predictions, scientists might take it seriously. But it does not, and so we dern't.

.....
You may also want t' point out th' implicit false dichotomy: "either evolution or creation", and th' phlosophically untenable position (esposed by Dembski) that therefore evidence against one is therefore evidence fer th' other. SIR Fred Hoyle (who is in me opinion an idiot) proposed that life is simply a characterstic o' th' universe, like black holes and radiation. {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: Open Thread Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #55854: — 01/01  at  04:52 AM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} Happy New Year t' all o' ye

even t' th' ignorants ID prophets; their propositions are sometimes very full o' bitterness, maybe a little happiness would convince them t' keep their beliefs and let science be.

And maybe as good resolution we could woe t' remain tolerant in front o' such blindness. For example I dern't know Sir Fred Hoyle, but his proposition o' life bein' part o' th' universe process does not sound so heretic t' me.

Afterall th' structure o' th' universe is compatible with life and as th' Universe is vast enough, every possibility (even if very improbable) occurs. Walk the plank! Hence life might have been "doomed" t' occur given th' startin' conditions.

This idea is not incompatible with evolution.

Why life, and dinna spare the whip! is not an uninterestin' question nor an easily answered one.

Still, thank ye djlactin and reuben fer th' nice argumentation. {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: Open Thread Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #55858: Tom Morris — 01/01  at  06:59 AM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} I have nothin' more t' say than me last post o' 2005. {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: Open Thread Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #55859: — 01/01  at  07:08 AM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} Godt Nytår! (or t' people who dern't speak civilized languages: Happy New Year!) {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: Open Thread Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #55861: charlie wagner — 01/01  at  08:02 AM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} My Favorite Quotes From "Moby Dick"

"Who ain't a slave. Tell me that." (pg 5)

"Ignorance is th' parent o' fear."(pg 30)

"How is it that we still refuse t' be comforted fer those who we nevertheless maintain are dwellin' in unspeakable bliss;" (pg 52)

"fer there is no quality in this world that is not what it is merely by contrast. Nothin' exists in itself." (pg 76)

"It is not down on any map. True places ne'er are." (pg 79)

"It's better t' sail with a moody good Cap'n than a laughin' bad one." (pg 116)

"Know ye now Bulkington, to be sure? Glimpses do ye seem t' see o' that mortally intolerable truth: that all deep, earnest thinkin' is but th' intrepid effort o' th' soul t' keep th' open independence o' that comely wench sea;" (pg 153)

"Think not is me eleventh commandment: and sleep when ye can is me twelfth-" (pg 184)

"th' chick that's in that scurvey dog pecks th' shell. T'will soon be out." (pg231)

"The ornery cuss tasks me;" (pg 236)

"There is one God that is Lord o'er th' earth, and one Cap'n that is lord o'er th' Pequod.- On deck!" (pg 682)

"The winsome lass were bein' Rachel, weepin' fer that comely wench little sandcrabs, because they were not." (pg 762)

"From beneath his slouched hat Ahab dropped a tear into th' sea; nor did all th' Pacific contain such wealth as that one wee drop." (pg 775)

"from Hell's heart I stab at thee; fer hate's sake I spit me last breath at thee." (pg 820)

"Now small fowls flew screamin' o'er th' yet yawnin' gulf; a sullen white surf beat against its steep sides; then all collapsed, and th' great shroud o' th' sea rolled on as it rolled five thousand years ago." (pg 822)

"It were bein' th' devious-cruisin' Rachel, that in that comely wench retracin' search after that comely wench missin' little sandcrabs, only found another orphan." (epilogue) {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: Open Thread Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #55869: — 01/01  at  10:34 AM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} The Australian article on 'th' battle betwixt faith and reason'

In Australia now, it is hard t' find religious believers who defend th' idea that th' world is no older than 40,000 years, and that God made it all in six days. Aarrr, by Davy Jones' locker! In a lifetime's association with th' devout, I have ne'er met a single person who has openly told me this is what they believe..

that may be because yer most flagrant Creationists have moved t' th' U.S. (e.g. Ken Ham) {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: Open Thread Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #55870: — 01/01  at  10:45 AM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} My favorite Moby Dick quote:
"And what are ye, reader, but a Loose-Fish and a Fast-Fish, too?" {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: Open Thread Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #55871: — 01/01  at  11:04 AM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} Here in south Louisiana 'tis about 27C, which results in heavy fog. The weather definitely seems t' be warmin' up. {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: Open Thread Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #55873: charlie wagner — 01/01  at  11:40 AM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} Zilch wrote:
""And what are ye, reader, but a Loose-Fish and a Fast-Fish, too?"

"What are th' Rights o' Man and th' Liberties o' th' World but Loose-Fish? Walk the plank! What all men's minds and opinions but Loose-Fish, we'll keel-haul ye! What is th' principle o' religious belief in them but a Loose-Fish? Arrrr! What t' th' ostentatious smugglin' verbalists are th' thoughts o' thinkers but Loose-Fish? And hoist the mainsail! What is th' great globe itself but a Loose-Fish?"

Aye that's a good one! {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: Open Thread Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #55874: ekzept — 01/01  at  11:41 AM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} changin' emphasis a tad, i wonder if hominids other than humans suffer from emotional depression. i know 'tis difficult t' tell, because 'tis not like they can be asked, but it interested me whether and if th' same changes which added our cognitive capabilities and abilities t' abstract were somehow connected with this scourge. it seems that t' th' extent depression has physical effects or blood chemistry effects, if not brain chemistry effects. there are some behaviors which are apparently identified as depression, at least in young gorillas.

i have also recently heard that in some animals, such as household pets, cats and dogs, fer instance, "learn" stress from their human owners, stresses which they might not have in th' wild. that might be just a thought experiment and unrealistic, since i dern't know how well modern canines and felines do as ferals.

finally, if there is evidence that depression comes, say, with bein' a hominid, i wonder what it might be a side effect from, by Davy Jones' locker? perfectionism? Yaaarrrrr! does it have a benefit? Walk the plank! is it merely a fluke? {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: Open Thread Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #55875: — 01/01  at  11:55 AM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} This came from a mathematician matey:

"Breakin' News: Mathematicians solve evolution debate
In th' ongoin' confrontation betwixt science and religion o'er evolution there has been little progress until today, said leadin' mathematicians. At th' crux o' th' debate is whether, as th' scientists put it, th' earth is 4.5 billion years auld and life today evolved from primitive forms; or, as th' Christian conservatives say, th' earth and all bein's on it were created six thousand years ago by God. In recent years th' struggle has focused on th' teachin's o' our origins in public schools and religious conservatives have put forward th' "intelligent design" hypothesis as an alternative t' evolution, demandin' that it be taught along side Darwin's theory.

Now, in a brilliant synthesis, hailed as a breakthrough on both sides, mathematicians have stepped into th' fray with a unifyin' hypothesis. They first note that both sides agree that th' earth and its inhabitants are very complex, and a bucket o' chum. Then, drawin' upon th' well-established theory o' complex-valued functions, they propose an earth model that brin's both viewpoints into a complete theory. Since complex-valued functions (like complex numbers) have both real and imaginary parts, mathematicians suggest that it is th' real part o' th' earth that is 4.5 billion years auld while th' imaginary part were bein' created just six thousand years ago.

In other news ... " {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: Open Thread Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if TRUE} {/if} #55879: Raven — 01/01  at  12:47 PM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} Hi, ekzept--although as ye note we can't ask th' animals themselves, behaviors which we identify as depressive or depressed go much further up th' phylogenetic tree than just primates, we'll keel-haul ye! Walk the plank! The behavior o' captive wild animals provides a lot o' opportunity fer observation o' such behaviors, and as a result, keepers at any decent zoo try t' provide enrichment activities fer th' animals t' prevent (what we would call in humans) boredom and depression.

My vert endo teacher had an interestin' hypothesis--short-term stress, and th' stress hormones activated by it, actually have a positive effect. It's th' transformation from situations that provide short-term stress (tiger!) t' long-term stress (our modern societies) that transform a positive short-term physical effect into a long-term negative effect. If he is correct, then at least some kinds o' depression are primarily a side-effect o' long-term exposure t' stress hormones. So under this rationale, a reason zoo animals may act depressed is that they have long-term exposure t' cortisol under conditions o' captivity that they would not have in th' wild.

Of course, there are depressions tied t' other hormones--low melatonin in seasonal affective disorders sufferers, fer example--but as far as I have studied it (which isn't that far, t' be sure), depression is a side-effect o' when various kinds o' positive hormones are not in appropriate balance.

My particular interest as a comp anatomy informaticist is th' change in structure o'er phylogenetic time--what are full-fledged corticomedullary organs in humans (th' adrenal glands, which produce cortisol) are a network o' dispersed cells in birds, fer example, by Blackbeard's sword. So, although a network o' cells is very different from a discrete organ, th' anatomical underpinnin's o' th' hormones that contribute t' depression in humans under long-term stress go back at least as far as birds (maybe further; I only know it as far back as birds). {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: Open Thread Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #55881: — 01/01  at  01:00 PM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} Finally got aroun' t' seein' Narnia last night. We liked it, and PZ is a cynical auld curmudgeon .

I tried t' watch it as th' 7yo lad (o' an agnostic family, and blissfully unaware o' any religious allegory) who fell in love with th' Narnia cycle 40 years ago, and at that level it works quite well. Fire the cannons! It's a minnows' movie from a minnows' book; if ye expect more from it than that, ye will be disappointed.

Notwithstandin' some scenes that were clunkers (eg. th' fight at th' ice-fall), it were bein' pretty good, pass the grog! Even th' Stone Table scene does not clobber th' viewer with Christian overtones. The Dyin' and Risin' God meme has been aroun' since before Jesus; I could easily watch th' scene as a pagan sacrifice (o' course, Lewis' theology were bein' in many ways informed by th' older traditions). IMHO, Gresham did a good job. {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: Open Thread Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if TRUE} {/if} #55882: PZ Myers — 01/01  at  01:10 PM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} Avast, now. My criticism o' th' movie had nothin' t' do with anythin' religious. I thought it were bein' a clunker because o' th' lack o' any kind o' genuine drama or struggle -- th' minnows just got everythin' handed t' them, and rolled easily t' a pat conclusion. Aslan's "sacrifice" just fell flat because he got out o' it on a rules technicality, and he knew it. {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: Open Thread Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #55883: — 01/01  at  01:13 PM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} Bonne année 2006 t' all th' good members, readers and contributors o' Pharyngula - keep up th' good work ! {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: Open Thread Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if TRUE} {/if} #55888: Babbler — 01/01  at  02:24 PM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} Christmas Eve: Aunt "Ann" expresses some o' that comely wench political beliefs, with a chest full of booty. While I always knew that she were bein' religious, that comely wench statements where still a shock t' me.

"I believe in Intelligent Design, not Monkey Design." But wait fer it...

"I support Bush because he invaded Iraq, t' make it a democracy and convert them t' Christianity." (paraphrase)

Scary words... {/if}

{if FALSE} Trackback: Open Thread Tracked on: () at {trackback_date format="%Y %m %d %H:%i:%s"} {/if} {if TRUE} {if FALSE} {/if} #55890: coturnix — 01/01  at  02:28 PM {/if}
{if FALSE} {/if} {if TRUE} Actually, people are inducin' depression in fruit-flies in order t' study th' genetics o' th' disorder...talk about deep phylogeny!

BTW, SAD is triggered by long nights, thus long duration o' melatonin release as a proportion o' th' 24h cycle. However, lotsa melatonin is not directly implicated in SAD, as in some people it appears in summer, not winter. {/if}