Monday, April 7, 2014

Monday roundup

Stardust and interstellar gas and cosmic x-rays, oh-my!

If you're gonna invoke deterrence, get your deterrence principles straight.

Um, this talk of tenses and behavior is flawed not because it's written in English but because it's overly simplistic, but that's what I've come to expect of TED talks. (I'm no economist, but I am a lapsed linguist.)

Big data is not a panacea.

One of the things I wouldn't do for science.

Who is Richard Dawkins to think he owns truth? These aggressive atheists are growing very tiresome--and I'm not about to see any images of any messiahs on my toast anytime soon.

I attended a volunteer reception event the other day, at which one volunteer who was given an award thanked the shelter for opening up another day for a given volunteer activity, because so many people from her church were clamoring to help out. I'd rather agree to disagree with people like her than wallow in internet-smugness with people whose contribution to society is dehumanizing people of faith. Just sayin'.

Another take-your-pick: this guy (Osmel Sousa),
“I say that inner beauty doesn’t exist. That’s something that unpretty women invented to justify themselves.” 
And Human Barbie and her f*ed up perspectives, or Phenomenal-Woman Maya Angelou?

Yale made a healthy student eat unhealthily because she was arbitrarily deemed too thin. And I can understand how she must look crazy thin: at my height, she weighs eight pounds less than I do, and I don't have eight pounds to lose. But if that's her body, that's her body; let it go.

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