Friday, January 18, 2008
Blowing (up)
In news that may, depressingly, be a real shock to many people, it turns out that you can't tell which guys have an STD just by looking at them. Emory researchers found that African-American girls often use "selective avoidance" - that is, only hooking up with guys they think are clean - as a substitute for proper prevention. This technique of course ignores the entirety of human history, wherein only a fairly small minority are likely to have sought to have sex with people they knew would give them chlamydia. But then again, this is Georgia, where sex ed isn't precisely comprehensive.
Chlamydia isn't usually fatal, however, so these girls may be in a better position, sexually, than the newly-discovered Malagasy palm Tahina spectabilis. When these tall characters finally go in to bloom, the show is so spectacular it kills them. I guess dying in the throws of passion is many people's fantasy, so maybe it's not all bad!
Chlamydia isn't usually fatal, however, so these girls may be in a better position, sexually, than the newly-discovered Malagasy palm Tahina spectabilis. When these tall characters finally go in to bloom, the show is so spectacular it kills them. I guess dying in the throws of passion is many people's fantasy, so maybe it's not all bad!
Labels: behavior, botany, death, disease, funny, health, Madagascar, research, science, sex, sex-ed, STDs, stupidity, trees
Thursday, November 15, 2007
An Oral Sex Gene?
Sounds fishy*. Swiss researchers found that certain male chiclids have fin markings that 'trick' females in to sucking up their sperm. While this is hilarious and awesome, I would really not call it an "oral sex gene." Not that I'm saying there shouldn't be one...it'd explain a lot.
* No, I have no shame, and could not resist.
* No, I have no shame, and could not resist.
Labels: biology, fish, funny, oral sex, science, sex, sperm
Monday, October 29, 2007
Fossils, Living and Otherwise
It turns out that Michael Crichton was right about Velociraptors. Sort of. Chinese geologists have found evidence in fossils that a similar dino species, Dromeosaurs, did seem to hunt in packs and walk upright. And were about the size of Jurassic Park's raptors, whereas the Velociraptors of old were turkey-sized.
A more modern fossil was dug up recently off the coast of Iceland. I say fossil, but the thing was really alive. 'Ming' is a 400-plus year-old quahog clam, who is being studied (no doubt at significant expense to its quality of life, whatever that means to a mollusk) in the hopes of discovering how it has avoided senescence so long.
Speaking of decreasing quality of life: I have another paper to write.
A more modern fossil was dug up recently off the coast of Iceland. I say fossil, but the thing was really alive. 'Ming' is a 400-plus year-old quahog clam, who is being studied (no doubt at significant expense to its quality of life, whatever that means to a mollusk) in the hopes of discovering how it has avoided senescence so long.
Speaking of decreasing quality of life: I have another paper to write.
Labels: age, clam, dinosaurs, fossils, funny, Jurassic Park, raptors, senescence
Thursday, October 18, 2007
My Newest Hero
Anyone who knows me knows that there are few companies I hate more than Comcast. Not just because their services are shoddy (random blackouts, digital cable that blips out all the time, etc.) and overpriced, but also because they consistently provide the worst customer service anywhere. Worse than the DC government, even.
Comcast knows it's the only game in town if you want cable TV and/or internet that's faster than DSL. Granted, some lucky folks can get satellite and FIOS, but those have never been an option where I live. So I deal with ever-increasing bills and shitty service and repairmen who show (or don't) at their own whim. Such is the power of a monopoly.
Mona Shaw, a 75-year-old retired nurse, had similar problems with Comcast, and reacted by doming something that, while completely ineffective in the long run, is gratifying just to hear of having happened: she stormed their local office with a claw hammer. This woman deserves a fucking medal. And better cable service.
Comcast knows it's the only game in town if you want cable TV and/or internet that's faster than DSL. Granted, some lucky folks can get satellite and FIOS, but those have never been an option where I live. So I deal with ever-increasing bills and shitty service and repairmen who show (or don't) at their own whim. Such is the power of a monopoly.
Mona Shaw, a 75-year-old retired nurse, had similar problems with Comcast, and reacted by doming something that, while completely ineffective in the long run, is gratifying just to hear of having happened: she stormed their local office with a claw hammer. This woman deserves a fucking medal. And better cable service.
Labels: assault, business, Comcast, corporate hijinks, evil, funny, monopoly, retirement
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
By the Balls
We don't generally think of a man's balls as the best place to search for cognitive performance. Cornell researchers are looking to change that: their research results suggest that testicular stem cells could be used to treat disorders like Alzheimer's and Parkinson's, among others.
The question remains, of course, how many men would be willing to give up bits of their bits to their brains. One can only hope...
The question remains, of course, how many men would be willing to give up bits of their bits to their brains. One can only hope...
Labels: balls, funny, health, science, sex, stem cells, testicles
Thursday, March 15, 2007
Solid Liquids
Australian researchers and artists should team up with Jesus. The latter is supposed to be able to turn water into wine, and the former is turning wine into dresses. This is really a pretty cool project - they're using the cellulose film produced when wine sours to make seamless dresses, and possibly someday ones that can actually be worn.
Speaking of liquids and things you have to be drunk to understand, physicists have found that the universe appears to be what they call a "string-net liquid." That is, that the electrons and whatnot we're used to considering as fairly basic particles are actually just the 'ends' of strings, that move about all over the place like noodles in soup. This sounds incredibly cool, and herbertsmithite is a pretty cool name for a new state of matter, but I still don't really get what it all means.
Speaking of liquids and things you have to be drunk to understand, physicists have found that the universe appears to be what they call a "string-net liquid." That is, that the electrons and whatnot we're used to considering as fairly basic particles are actually just the 'ends' of strings, that move about all over the place like noodles in soup. This sounds incredibly cool, and herbertsmithite is a pretty cool name for a new state of matter, but I still don't really get what it all means.
Labels: art, dresses, funny, herbertsmithite, Jeebus, Jesus, physics, wine
Saturday, January 27, 2007
Dance, Dance, Animation
Friday, January 05, 2007
Sing-a-Long
