Interesting Stuff Thread

mehfesto

ColmDawson wrote: »

Every bit of that site is creepy and intrusive and presumptuous and ignorant.

Yup. It's worse on Campaign for Conscience, the page it's linked to. But some great one-liners/headers there. Such as:

Homosexuals can have tens of thousands of partners in a lifetime.

"Lesbian" women were more than 4 times as likely to have had more than 50 lifetime male partners than women in the general population.

He seems to refuse to accept lesbians - they're always "lesbians" to him:D.

amacachi

mehfesto wrote: »

Yup. It's worse on Campaign for Conscience, the page it's linked to. But some great one-liners/headers there. Such as:

Homosexuals can have tens of thousands of partners in a lifetime.

"Lesbian" women were more than 4 times as likely to have had more than 50 lifetime male partners than women in the general population.

He seems to refuse to accept lesbians - they're always "lesbians" to him:D.

They don't sound like the kind of lesbians I've come across.

magicbastarder

evolution proves to have taken another wrong turn:

New species of monkey sneezes when it rains
A new species of snub-nosed monkey that sneezes when it rains has been
discovered in the remote Himalayan forests of Burma.

The monkey, measuring almost two feet high with a tail even longer than its body
size, has an extraordinary upturned nose and full lips. It is the largest
snub-nosed monkey species in the world.

Little is known about the habits of the black monkey with a white beard, but
locals say it is easy to find the animals because it sneezes when it rains.

To avoid getting rainwater in their noses they spend rainy days sitting with
their heads tucked between their knees, according to locals.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/earthnews/8087632/New-species-of-monkey-sneezes-when-it-rains.html

strobe

magicbastarder wrote: »

evolution proves to have taken another wrong turn:

New species of monkey sneezes when it rains
A new species of snub-nosed monkey that sneezes when it rains has been
discovered in the remote Himalayan forests of Burma.

The monkey, measuring almost two feet high with a tail even longer than its body
size, has an extraordinary upturned nose and full lips. It is the largest
snub-nosed monkey species in the world.

Little is known about the habits of the black monkey with a white beard, but
locals say it is easy to find the animals because it sneezes when it rains.

To avoid getting rainwater in their noses they spend rainy days sitting with
their heads tucked between their knees, according to locals.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/earthnews/8087632/New-species-of-monkey-sneezes-when-it-rains.html

An early and abandoned attempt by God to use evolution as his tool to turn monkeys into man by intelligently designing their noses in such a way as to encourage them to adopt a position conductive to prayer when the good Lord rewards them with life preserving rain. Obviously.

Pygmalion

mehfesto wrote: »

Yup. It's worse on Campaign for Conscience, the page it's linked to. But some great one-liners/headers there. Such as:

Homosexuals can have tens of thousands of partners in a lifetime.

Where can I sign up for this lifestyle?

mikhail

Pygmalion wrote: »

Where can I sign up for this lifestyle?

60*365.25 = 21915.

That's sixty years of one partner a day for just over two tens of thousands. To really get into the tens of thousands, I think you'd need to be participating in huge orgies pretty regularly. And all of this insists that you almost never sleep with the same person twice, while finding new partners at a rate of a couple a day. Most people don't speak with tens of thousands of people in their lifetime.

I'm never sure to what extent the sort of people who make this kind of claim are phenomenally stupid, and to what extent that they're just outright lying to attract attention. It's a bit like Poe's Law: you just can't tell.

Pygmalion

mikhail wrote: »

60*365.25 = 21915.

That's sixty years of one partner a day for just over two tens of thousands. To really get into the tens of thousands, I think you'd need to be participating in huge orgies pretty regularly. And all of this insists that you almost never sleep with the same person twice, while finding new partners at a rate of a couple a day. Most people don't speak with tens of thousands of people in their lifetime.

I'm never sure to what extent the sort of people who make this kind of claim are phenomenally stupid, and to what extent that they're just outright lying to attract attention. It's a bit like Poe's Law: you just can't tell.

He did say homosexuals, as in the plural, maybe he meant that all homosexuals in the world combined will have 10s of thousands of partners over the course of 70 years.

robindch

Pygmalion wrote: »

He did say homosexuals, as in the plural, maybe he meant that all homosexuals in the world combined will have 10s of thousands of partners over the course of 70 years.

Given that there are almost certainly between 200 and 500 million gay men and women around, but only tens of thousands of partners, then he must think that these fine individuals must be amongst the most celibate humans on earth.

I'm fairly sure that's not what he meant though.

Galvasean

Just masturbate in the ocean. That way you have sex with everyone who happens to be swimming at the time. Simples

mikhail

robindch wrote: »

Given that there are almost certainly between 200 and 500 million gay men and women around, but only tens of thousands of partners, then he must think that these fine individuals must be amongst the most celibate humans on earth.

Jayzus, if only priests had that kind of celibacy rate.

robindch

Massimo Pigliucci's maintains a web page where he puts the slides for his talks.

http://www.lehman.edu/deanhum/philosophy/platofootnote/PlatoFootnote.org/Talks.html

Pigilucci leans more towards Dennet's accommodationist stance than Harris' or Dawkins, and I'm not sure that I agree with many of his conclusions. But he's an interesting read all the same.

robindch

Meanwhile, in Paris, the luckiest kid alive fell from a sixth-story balcony and bounced off an awning into the arms of a passing doctor whom god had placed there for the purpose, thereby allowing for the "miracle" that has been proclaimed:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-11673774

sponsoredwalk

robindch wrote: »

Massimo Pigliucci's maintains a web page where he puts the slides for his talks.

http://www.lehman.edu/deanhum/philosophy/platofootnote/PlatoFootnote.org/Talks.html

Pigilucci leans more towards Dennet's accommodationist stance than Harris' or Dawkins, and I'm not sure that I agree with many of his conclusions. But he's an interesting read all the same.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xvPv3ANwAhg

Interesting guy, debates Hovind and that ilk a lot

Turtwig

sponsoredwalk wrote: »

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xvPv3ANwAhg

Interesting guy, debates Hovind and that ilk a lot

Oh fuck delete that video before JC infests this thread again!:mad:

Turtwig

You see these days it goes without saying if there is a thread about Evolution on boards, some anti-evolutionist will be there. If there is a thread about God some irrational theist will be there. If there is a thread about climate science, some pseudo skeptic will be there. If there is a thread about vaccines, some nut job denier will be there. And so on and so forth, in each of these cases there will be the folks who will spout the same old tired pathetic argument that will be more inclined to make you lose brain power rather than gain some. Also leaving those with the more valid and well thought out original arguments in an Oasis in a desert full of shit.


So let's get to it folks, let's create an automated boardsie response unit for instant response to tired old JC like arguments modelled on something similar to this beauty.

Nigel Leck, a software developer by day, was tired of arguing with anti-science crackpots on Twitter. So, like any good programmer, he wrote a script to do it for him.

The result is the Twitter chatbot @AI_AGW. Its operation is fairly simple: Every five minutes, it searches twitter for several hundred set phrases that tend to correspond to any of the usual tired arguments about how global warming isn't happening or humans aren't responsible for it.

It then spits back at the twitterer who made that argument a canned response culled from a database of hundreds. The responses are matched to the argument in question

In other news, a serpent had a virgin birth of 22 offspring - Snakes triumphing God since the 23rd October (A sunday mind you.) 4004 B.C.

Mark Hamill

Malty_T wrote: »

You see these days it goes without saying if there is a thread about Evolution on boards, some anti-evolutionist will be there. If there is a thread about God some irrational theist will be there. If there is a thread about climate science, some pseudo skeptic will be there. If there is a thread about vaccines, some nut job denier will be there. And so on and so forth, in each of these cases there will be the folks who will spout the same old tired pathetic argument that will be more inclined to make you lose brain power rather than gain some. Also leaving those with the more valid and well thought out original arguments in an Oasis in a desert full of shit.


So let's get to it folks, let's create an automated boardsie response unit for instant response to tired old JC like arguments modelled on something similar to this beauty.

To be honest, I've long thought that J C was a creationist chatbot.

robindch

Sister Stanislaus Kennedy tells the church to stop managing schools:

http://www.rte.ie/news/2010/1103/schools.html

RTE wrote:

The social campaigner Sister Stanislaus Kennedy has urged the Catholic Church in Ireland to begin to disengage from managing schools.

Sr Stanislaus Kennedy has told a conference in Dublin that it should be left to the state to provide schooling for a diverse and multi-faith society.

Speaking at a Royal Irish Academy event Sister Stan said that our society was now a diverse one and that it was no longer appropriate that most schools were under church management.

She continued, it was the role of the state to provide education for our children regardless of their faith.

Sr Kennedy said that the church's task was to spread its faith, ethos and values while recognising the ethos and values of other religions and faiths. She said it had a proud record in education.

She criticised the Government for rejecting almost half the applications for citizenship that it receives saying that Britain and Australia had a 90% acceptance rate.

Sr Kennedy said that those who had been lawfully resident in the Republic for five years were eligible to apply but that often those applicants who were rejected by the Minister for Justice were not told why.

President Mary McAleese told the gathering that, for the first time, the country had a cohort of immigrants who were steeped in the languages and cultures of the countries we hoped to export to. And she said they would attract foreign investment here.

Turtwig

I fucking love youtube.:D

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r6w2M50_Xdk

sponsoredwalk

Debate between Steven Pinker & Steven Rose
http://www.edge.org/3rd_culture/pinker_rose/pinker_rose_p1.html
http://www.edge.org/3rd_culture/pinker_rose/part2/part2_p1.html
(5 pages in each link).

Interesting discussion on what could be viewed as part of the discussion
between people like Gould and Dawkins on the interpretation of modern
biology and darwinism in that.

And:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KIXFeTx9r-g

(Guy takes 6 minutes to offer up his opening question & really annoys all
the youtube commenters but he seems to be an author in his own right
and makes a lot of interesting points).

The Mad Hatter

Carl Sagan: A Universe Not Made For Us

It's unusual he actually refers to religion as religion. He usually says Mysticism instead.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pxlPVSAnWOo

liamw

http://www.newgrounds.com/portal/view/525347

Coriolanus

liamw wrote: »

http://www.newgrounds.com/portal/view/525347

Wtf. 7m earthworm. I want one!

Galvasean

Didnt think they made it that big. 7 feet sounds more likely

magicbastarder

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pDN1WYwaJHY

recedite

Galvasean wrote: »

Didnt think they made it that big. 7 feet sounds more likely

Our earthworm only grows to 30 cm, but a Giant South African Earthworm was found in 1967 measuring 22 feet (7 metres).


Charles Darwin spent 39 years studying worms. When he eventually emerged from his studies, bleary eyed, he found his wife and family had left him a decade earlier.*

http://urbanext.illinois.edu/worms/facts/index.html

* actually I just made up the bit about the wife.

Turtwig

So a gal named Monica published an article about cooking on her own personal blog. Five years later Monica was congratulated by a friend for getting the article published in a magazine. Monica was confused and contacted the editor asking for a public apology and donation be made to the Columbia School of Journalism. Judith Griggs, the editor replied:


"Yes Monica, I have been doing this for 3 decades, having been an editor at The Voice, Housitonic Home and Connecticut Woman Magazine. I do know about copyright laws. It was "my bad" indeed, and, as the magazine is put together in long sessions, tired eyes and minds somethings forget to do these things.
But honestly Monica, the web is considered "public domain" and you should be happy we just didn't "lift" your whole article and put someone else's name on it! It happens a lot, clearly more than you are aware of, especially on college campuses, and the workplace. If you took offence and are unhappy, I am sorry, but you as a professional should know that the article we used written by you was in very bad need of editing, and is much better now than was originally. Now it will work well for your portfolio. For that reason, I have a bit of a difficult time with your requests for monetary gain, albeit for such a fine (and very wealthy!) institution. We put some time into rewrites, you should compensate me! I never charge young writers for advice or rewriting poorly written pieces, and have many who write for me... ALWAYS for free!"

And now all one has to do is look at the magazines facebook page to see how much of a **** hole the magazine is in. Not only that, but some companies that pay for adverts in the magazine have pulled their support for the mag. An editor of magazine with over 20,000 readers really ought to know better.

eoin5

liamw wrote: »

http://www.newgrounds.com/portal/view/525347

This is pretty much the best thing ever!

liamw

eoin5 wrote: »

This is pretty much the best thing ever!

It comes a close second..

strobe

Malty_T wrote: »

So a gal named Monica published an article about cooking on her own personal [.........] ought to know better.

Brilliant. It's a petty this isn't the kind of thing the internet hate machine takes an interest in. What a smug bitch.

sonicthebadger*

liamw wrote: »

It comes a close second..

If evolution had an end plan in mind, it just got there. :pac:

Coriolanus

strobe wrote: »

Brilliant. It's a petty this isn't the kind of thing the internet hate machine takes an interest in. What a smug bitch.

Well, you know where to post it. Odds are someone will take a bite.

liamw

sonicthebadger* wrote: »

If evolution had an end plan in mind, it just got there. :pac:

Proof of an intelligent designer!!!!!!111 :pac::pac::mad::rolleyes::P:):D:D:cool::P

How could a body like that just SPONTANEOUSLY arise

Genghiz Cohen

liamw wrote: »

Proof of an intelligent designer!!!!!!111 :pac::pac::mad::rolleyes::P:):D:D:cool::P

How could a body like that just SPONTANEOUSLY arise

Dunno but I've just witnessed something spontaneously arise...
Fnar fnar

vibe666

Genghiz Cohen wrote: »

Dunno but I've just witnessed something spontaneously arise...
Fnar fnar

looking at that pic and seeing what she was holding, i was about to say "stick not included", but mabye not.

condra

Who is she? I need to stalk her...

Anyway. Stuff of interest.

4OD - Unreported World- MANILA- PHILIPPINES
http://www.channel4.com/programmes/unreported-world/4od#3130647
Overpopulation in Manila, where poverty stricken Christian families will have huge families despite living in tiny shacks. Family planning is practically unheard of because of the huge influence the RCC has in the country.
Related article:
http://www.bellinghamherald.com/2010/11/11/1715410/philippine-lawmakers-to-push-family.html

..it will make you depressed.. and angry.

recedite

condra wrote: »

..it will make you depressed.. and angry.

Yeah, that one is depressing, but the next one will cheer you up;

http://www.channel4.com/programmes/unreported-world/4od#3137094

@1.50
Witchdoctor- "What's that love, you have a worm in your throat? Well come over here and take your top off, I have a special cure for you" :pac: :pac:

liamw

condra wrote: »

Overpopulation in Manila, where poverty stricken Christian families will have huge families despite living in tiny shacks. Family planning is practically unheard of because of the huge influence the RCC has in the country.

It's so frustrating watching this. All the women are like 'I don't want to have any more babies' and hoping that they don't get pregnant again... so why the massive fear of contraception but they are OK to undergo operations to render them infertile? Use contracption or stop having sex!!!

Someone please educate me here.

robindch

liamw wrote: »

so why the massive fear of contraception

Because (a) the priesthood tells them that they'll go to hell if they use contraception and (b) the church and political (but not NGO's) tell the uneducated that contraception causes cancer and other fatal diseases.

sponsoredwalk

I think the government & social structure share a lot of the blame in Manilla.
I don't think it's fair to give out about poor uneducated people having too
many children, even if they'd prefer not to, because there is a supposed
benefit to having many children in that it acts as a compensation for the lack
of adequate social care in old age. Combine this with an over-centralized
poverty trap where living in a graveyard is the best hope many have and
you've got misery, such as is the case in many parts of the world.

The Mad Hatter

A friend linked me to this series of Christmas lectures delivered by a very young Richard Dawkins to the Royal Society in 1991. I watched the first one, and realised I'd watched them in awe when I was a kid. You'll need five hours to spare, but it's great stuff.

Also featuring a guest appearance by Douglas Adams.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jHoxZF3ZgTo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xGyh1Qsw-Ak

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YT1vXXMsYak

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_igTWNidwnk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qm-0Z0ceezQ

liamw

The Mad Hatter wrote: »

A friend linked me to this series of Christmas lectures delivered by a very young Richard Dawkins to the Royal Society in 1991. I watched the first one, and realised I'd watched them in awe when I was a kid. You'll need five hours to spare, but it's great stuff.

Also featuring a guest appearance by Douglas Adams.

I watched these about a year ago and I was thinking why couldn't they teach me stuff like this as a kid?!

liamw

Watching this should be a prerequisite before posting:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sNDZb0KtJDk

Galvasean

recedite wrote: »

Our earthworm only grows to 30 cm, but a Giant South African Earthworm was found in 1967 measuring 22 feet (7 metres).

Always thought the Australian one was the biggest. We have a new champion!

ColmDawson

The Mad Hatter wrote: »

a very young Richard Dawkins

Fifty years old! :eek:

The Mad Hatter

ColmDawson wrote: »

Fifty years old! :eek:

Yikes. I want some of what he's drinking.

(Fun fact: I share his birthday. I always thought this extreme scepticism must be an Aeries thing.)

Turtwig

The Mad Hatter wrote: »

Yikes. I want some of what he's drinking.

(Fun fact: I share his birthday. I always thought this extreme scepticism must be an Aeries thing.)

Pfft I share my birthday with Einstein. Pisces must be best sign and Pi Day the best day as it's got Einstein and Michael Caine and Hank Ketcham (creator of Dennis the Menace).

amacachi

Pfft, I share my birthday with Roger Federer and The Edge.

Calibos

vibe666 wrote: »

looking at that pic and seeing what she was holding, i was about to say "stick not included", but mabye not.

Well she can vault off my pole any day of the week:D

Survival off the fittest alright and that applies 3 ways:D

Calibos

amacachi wrote: »

Pfft, I share my birthday with Roger Federer and The Edge.

Well how about sharing your birthday with a continent!! I share my birthday with Australia!!

sonicthebadger*

amacachi wrote: »

Pfft, I share my birthday with Roger Federer and The Edge.

Pffft, I share my birthday with nobody notable!


Except, wikipedia tells me, the Marquis de Sade... interesting...