how to get more female scientists...

yes, another blatant reposting and repackaging of some pretty good material. this is kinda relevant based on an LA Times article today (see title link). I should mention that I got this from a google cache and it is not currently available live (AFAIK) enjoy!:

July 26, 2005 PM
The Depp Conspiracy by Aaron Voorhees

For Immediate Release: New Public Relations Director for Science announced. Yes, this may come as a shock for many of you, but I have officially nominated and voted myself in for the position. Already, I have designed up such ad campaigns as: “Science: Girls Get in Free”, “Science invented Rock & Roll”, and “Math - the Gateway Drug.”

You may be wondering what right a literature geek has to this title. “A man with the math and science skills of a trained poodle marketing science, pshaw” you may be muttering to your spouse or newspaper reading companion. Good for you I say, a sound observation. Let us take the hypothesis that I, like most Americans, am about as interested in Science as I am in soccer. As in, I like the uniforms and the concept, but I do not really dabble in it or even watch it that often. Can we change this law of science? Probably not. However, through clever advertising I aim to change this trend in America’s social science.
First, myself or one of my clever staff members need to write a clever screenplay about Galileo and get Johnny Depp to play the title role. This will fit in with my theory that Johnny Depp can make anything seem cool and that once he plays a dashing scientist that all the attractive women on the planet will begin to think hanging out in a laboratory is romantic and that lab coats are sexy.
The next test for our scientific method is to talk Sarah Vowel, or some other literate master, into writing a book about the history of one of the great Greek or Indian female scientists. Forget about the DaVinci Code and its holy grail quest. Let us see the New York Times Best Seller list when people realize that science was the godmother of religious scandal.
You may be wondering why such the fuss to get Americans back into science. Well, one day on an intelligent talk show I heard that the chance of the next Einstien coming from America are almost nil. That India had the best chance in the future. Not that I have any problems with India, but I would like to think that we could at least make a run for such an honorary title.
Now, as I go back to school to get my teaching credential, I want to someday be able to say, “2005, yes, that was the year I stopped caring so much about politics and started campaigning for Science.” Of course there is a good chance I will get fired from my self-appointed position, but if you think that is going to stop me from putting my foot in my mouth, then think again. Because I will keep on blindly cheerleading for science at least until next week when I put it on the back bunsen burner in order to play croquet with some college girls.
Hmmm. Historical aside here: Theano was the wife of Pythagoras and ran his school after his untimely death. She is credited with writing the treatise on the Golden Mean. Theano was born c. 546 B.C. which is many generations before Aristotle and his Golden Mean ethical treatise. Maybe this book or screenplay should have Johhny Depp, or I mean Galileo, travel back in time to meet the alluring Theano at a croquet match. Yes, you are correct, it was not invented yet. It will be a dream sequence.
Go ahead, start calling for my resignation. The good thing about being self-appointed; Nobody can vote you out.

Travelissimo – You Can Travel Easy, Or You Can Travelissimo

this is a guest post by fellow blogger Aaron Voorhees. I thought it was funny, so am blatantly (as in without permission) reposting here. so let's see if he can get a rise out of you readers:

August 12, 2005 PM

Why All The Opposing?

People often ask me, “Aaron why is it that you talk to an imaginary audience when you write your columns.” And I often say, “Please people, can you not see that I am writing an important piece of prose that may or may not save the world.” This is usually when my editor says, “Aaron are you arguing with imaginary people again. I think it is time you started seeing a psychiatrist.” Luckily, my editor fired me ages ago.
Let us get to the true meat of your question. You are wondering if this imaginary audience truly believes that I have something of relevance to say or if I just pay them to ask interested. To be honest with you, I am not quite sure myself. Sometimes I give mere acquaintances rides to the airport and then when they leave for the gate thanking me and promising to re-pay the favor, I casually mention I would appreciate if they read my column “at this web site, and here’s a card that has it in case you forget and if you are too busy to read these days maybe you could just read a paragraph on every commercial break for ‘Alias’ or ‘Spongebob Squarepants” or whatever you watch, and if the commercials are the Super Bowl quality ones you could always take a laptop with you to your next dental appointment.”
This brings us to the the little pink elephant of a question that you, my fantasy audience, are hinting at: “Why are you, Mr. Voorhees, writing a column for a web-site by the name of Deathtoallwhooppose.us? A jolly good question. The answer is simple. Although the opinions expressed by others on this web site do not always reflect my own, the people involved with creating content for this site all do have their own style of radical creativity. As a craftsman of written word, I look forward to being on this platform of spirited debate and quality artistic expression.
Thus, for the foreseeable future you can read my column every Monday morning here at Deathtoalloppose.us . . . Feel free to tell all of your imaginary friends too. I might even pretend to pick them up at the airport.
For those of you who have been following my mentor Mickey Buckle and his diatribe about the state of humanity in the Belltown Messenger of Seattle, rest assured that he is enjoying his sabbatical and still will not comment about the “artistic differences” that led to said break in his working relationship with the Messenger staff. He is currently living on his boat and writing his highly anticipated novel, “I believe the Flowers are our Future.” He has asked me to tell all of you that, “The commie-pinko, Rupert Murdoch-puppeted, newspaper-machine will never silence him.” It is my honor to be able to say that Mr. Buckle has promised to join me in writing occasional travel-related pieces for an upcoming novella entitled “Travelissimo.” There is still some debate between the two of us on whether the subtitle will be “You can Travel Easy or You Can Travelissimo” or “Ride Till You Find Them and Kill them All.” If you know which of us has thought up which subtitle you have definitely turned the television off and become part of my hip, happinin’ imaginary audience.

the intellectual snob test

are you a snob?
ok, just for yucks, I took the poll. here are the results (btw I'm not a snobby as the person who gave me the link):

The Snob!
You are 70% intellectual snob.
Congratulations, you're a bonafide snob. You probably know your James Joyce, your Salman Rushdie, and you've seen "Rashomon." You are the meat and pototoes of the black-wearing, novel-toating, library-frequenting intellectual crowd.
The UP side! Membership to any group feels pretty good...even those whose members all claim to be independent. It's fairly easy to spot your own; just crack open that well worn copy of Catcher in the Rye in front of some little greasy spoon and you've identified yourself as a member of the elite.

The DOWN side Intellectuals, just like high school preps, are constantly jockeying for position, and you're probably not at the top of the ladder. Y'know that one friend you have that you're constantly trying to impress? That's the alpha. Without some serious studying, he/she will forever look down on you as just slightly better than the slobbering illiterate masses you so despise.

quotes for today...

"Nothing defines humans better than their willingness to do irrational things in the pursuit of phenomenally unlikely payoffs." - Scott Adams

"Enjoy yourself. It's later than you think." - Chinese Proverb

"All generalizations are dangerous, even this one." - Alexandre Dumas

predestination for dummies (or "orange you glad I wore green"?)...

yesterday being a lenten friday, instead of celebrating st. patricks day with corned beef and green beer, we went to our local parish fish fry put on by the knights of columbus. there, during our meal, one of the topics my eight year old son was demonstrating to us his recent discovery of the middle finger hand gesture and it's meaning. some might have been shocked to see him do this at church, especially since just as he was showing this to my wife, a priest came wandering by to say "hi" and shake hands. I thought it was hilarious and was thinking "if I only had my camera!". it's that kind of funny crude humor that people really appreciate -- a little boy flipping off a priest to his face. but nope, that photo op was lost so you'll have to just picture it yourself (the pic of one of my favorite holy men - Johnny Cash will help). the priest seemed oblivious, he was just spreading good cheer and nicely shook Zach's middle fingered hand.

another dinnertime topic, it being st. paddy's day, was the tradition of the "wearing o' the green". do you know the significance of wearing orange on st. patricks day? it was done by protestants to distinguish themselves from the catholics as a form of protest or insult. historically this goes back to the Battle of Boyne in 1690 when the protestant King William (of orange, holland) defeated the british catholic King James. I asked my older son if he knew what a protestant was. nope. I explained they are christians that have some different beliefs from catholics. so inquiring minds want to know -- what's the difference?

I tried to explain with my rusty knowledge the doctrine of "by faith alone" and predestination - the split by John Calvin way back in the middle ages. I didn't get very far. so we moved on... to the fact that I had just noticed both my sons were wearing orange jackets over their green shirts. coincidence or...?

later, my interest piqued, I jumped on the net to do a little followup research. what is the significance of predestination? what were those people protesting that made them protestants? I remember one of the things was the practice of "indulgences" by which if you had enough money you could buy your way into heaven -- really! anyway, that's what some in the church wanted you to believe. to a certain degree that epitimizes what it was (and still is) all about. the catholic idea is that if you have faith, you will do the right thing; that faith without works is meaningless. and the "right thing" varies, but somehow "good catholics" all do it. protestants insist that they are saved from hell "by faith alone" - "solo fide"; that only God's grace and the forgiveness of Jesus wins us a place in heaven. the idea is that all knowing God already knows who will go to heaven, everyone will be judged and some will make it, some not. so if we are already doomed, there is nothing we can do, say, or think to earn a place in heaven. even if we have free will. contradictory?

both sides have plenty to say about the matter (see the links below).

so what is my take? are we all doomed because we're all imperfect sinners and have no choice? was it predestined that my son would accidently flip off the priest? was it predestined that I couldn't share a picture, but could share the story? was it predestined that you are reading this? who knows?

my favorite predestination example is about the lottery - your odds of winning millions are so small, there is nothing you can do to ensure a win. so you don't have to do anything - including buying a lottery ticket. because if it is meant to happen, it will happen and there is nothing you can do to prevent it. so don't bother trying because all effort is futile. and yet we still buy the tickets; without good reason people just won't give up. they still believe in luck or magical thinking. maybe that's the same with faith - we have no good reason to believe and yet we still do, still go through the motions and rituals even though it doesn't matter. because hey, you can't earn a ticket to heaven, it's a free ride. but we still try.
in the end, maybe that's what really matters.

references:
predestination as the catholic encyclopedia 'splains it.
Not by Faith Alone: A Biblical Study of the Catholic Doctrine of Justification - read the reviews, particulary the 2 star rating by "theologicalresearcher".
the "troubles" of northern ireland in a nutshell.
northern ireland: more in depth material from bbc

the effect of Chris Pirillo...

just heard a rumor about my old lockergnome buddy: that if you mention him in a blog post, he will leave you a comment. such is the amazing power of our search engines. hard to believe but apparently true. well, can you prove that it is really left by him and not one of his merry pranksters? yes, very easily as a matter of fact. if you subscribe to his email newsletter you know that he always has some funky phrase in the suubject line. so Chris, alls ya gotta do is post your comment here BEFORE that particular newsletter is sent. otherwise we all know that the Chris Pirillo effect is an urban legend. of course, another likely event (if you peruse at my blog's paucity of comments) is that Chris (or one of his trained monkeys) will miss my little niche of the 'net - thus disproving the effect. ok, the testing has begun! I will post the results...

PS: if it IS true, I will attempt the same feat - mention tomawesome in your blog and I will leave a comment. that is the "tomawesome challenge"!

just do it (anyway)...

this being Oscar sunday, what am I doing? went to church of course! first sunday of Lent, so seemed a good idea. (hey doesn't the statue look like he's praying?) heard a poem attributed to Mother Teresa that I wanted to share here. so as usual, I googled it to find the text and came across what seems to be just a bit of plagiarism. I guess we're all a bit sinner and saint eh?

1. The version found written on the wall in Mother Teresa's home for children in Calcutta:

People are often unreasonable, irrational, and self-centered. Forgive them anyway.

If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives. Be kind anyway.

If you are successful, you will win some unfaithful friends and some genuine enemies. Succeed anyway.

If you are honest and sincere people may deceive you. Be honest and sincere anyway.

What you spend years creating, others could destroy overnight. Create anyway.

If you find serenity and happiness, some may be jealous. Be happy anyway.

The good you do today, will often be forgotten. Do good anyway.

Give the best you have, and it will never be enough. Give your best anyway.

In the final analysis, it is between you and God. It was never between you and them anyway.

-this version is credited to Mother Teresa

____________________________

2. The Original Version:

The Paradoxical Commandments

by Dr. Kent M. Keith

People are illogical, unreasonable, and self-centered.
Love them anyway.

If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish ulterior motives.
Do good anyway.

If you are successful, you win false friends and true enemies.
Succeed anyway.

The good you do today will be forgotten tomorrow.
Do good anyway.

Honesty and frankness make you vulnerable.
Be honest and frank anyway.

The biggest men and women with the biggest ideas can be shot down by the smallest men and women with the smallest minds.
Think big anyway.

People favor underdogs but follow only top dogs.
Fight for a few underdogs anyway.

What you spend years building may be destroyed overnight.
Build anyway.

People really need help but may attack you if you do help them.
Help people anyway.

Give the world the best you have and you'll get kicked in the teeth.
Give the world the best you have anyway.
© 1968, 2001 Kent M. Keith

"The Paradoxical Commandments" were written by Kent M. Keith in 1968 as part of a booklet for student leaders.

on this day of rest
currently chilling to:
Q-Burns Abstract Message/Feng Shui Groove
Mr. Gone/Equation Boogie
Wagon Christ/Saddic Gladdic
VHS or Beta/Solid Gold

chances are...

I was lost inside a daydream
swimming through or sailing
I looked at you and you breathed in
but that's the way it's always been.
it all comes down to creating time
you don't always have to make it rhyme
we'll all drive far in our hybrid lives
chances are,
we'll make it back.

I was doing time in the L.A. jail
my crime was living inside a failure
no matter how, it don't matter now
rest assured, the rest is blurred.
it all comes down to doing time
you don't always have to make it a crime
we'll all drive off in our hybrid lives
chances are,
we'll make it back...

Terence McKenna said
it is better to explore within
we were apes before we spoke of sin
the cosmos sits on the tip of a pin
it all comes down to creating time.
you don't always have to make it alright
we'll all drive by with our hybrid lives
chances are,
we'll make it back...

see also: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terrence_McKenna

quote of the day...

"If we knew what it was we were doing, it would not be called research, would it?" - Albert Einstein

elemental states of being...

water: this represents our attitude -- a constant flow of spirit that shapes and persists; seeming the same, yet always changing.

air: our thoughts -- existence without substance. shifting and boundless flights of fancy. the realm of imagination where ideas fly and fall; communicated through the vibration of voices.

fire: our feelings -- emotional intensity, passion and metabolism. the breaking down and release of energy as heat in the transformation of the end product, which is of course the element...

earth: our actions -- the physical results of all the above. easily measurable concrete manifestations.

I'm not studying alchemy, astrology or anything like that. I just pulled this all from my head, so it's about as original as I can get. interesting, eh?

quote from my dad...

"If you're not detested, you're not taking care of yourself."
hmmm.

speak up! and let's hang together...

"In Germany, they first came for the communists, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a communist. Then they came for the Jews, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Jew. Then they came for the trade unionists, and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a trade unionist. Then they came for the Catholics and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Catholic. Then they came for me–and by that time there was nobody left to speak up."
—Martin Niemöller (1945) [he served seven years in a concentration camp]

more inspiration...

just finished an old (but new to me) classic: "way of the peaceful warrior" by Dan Millman. thx to Lisa Lipscomb for the reference (see her goal #16). it was a fun, easy and enlightening read. here's a snippet:

"There is no need to search; achievement leads to nowhere. It makes no difference at all, so just be happy now! Love is the only reality of the world... the only laws are paradox, humor and change..."

ok that sounds pretty flaky out of context; it is a hippy-dippy philosophy (similar to Carlos Casteneda's) but a good story nonetheless and I recommend it.

if you want something more logical, more cut-and-dried, try these lecture notes on free will and determinism I also read this evening (hint: he thinks we have free will).

psychotherapy and religion...

“If you meet the Buddha on the road, kill him!”. was a book I browsed years ago and was just reminded of. here’s a nutshell "eschatological laundry list" by the author that a reviewer on amazon shared:

1. This is it!

2. There are no hidden meanings

3. You can't get there from here, and besides, there's no place else to go

4. We are all already dying and we'll be dead for a long time.

5. Nothing lasts!

6. There is no way of getting all you want.

7. You can't have anything unless you let go of it.

8. You only get to keep what you give away.

9. There is no particular reason why you lost out on some things.

10. The world is not necessarily just. Being good often does not pay off and there is no compensation for misfortune.

11. You have the responsibility to do your best nonetheless.

12. It is a random universe to which we bring meaning.

13. You don't really control anything.

14. You can't make someone love you.

...so put that in your pipe and smoke it :)

nonviolence: Martin Luther King and capital punishment...

work in progress...

Clarence Ray Allen - sick old dude, ordered killings from jail cell

some murders are more important than others, but for the victims loved ones it's just the same

justice is a balancing out, making up for...
so capital punishment is a form of revenge? a dish best served cold? is that what we accomplish by killing an old man who's been in jail for 30 years?

is this the best balancing out we as society could do?
why was he allowed to talk to anyone?
interpretation of "cruel and unusual" in constitution allows execution but not more severe treatment e.g. solitary confinement.

capital punishment - from latin caput: head or top - the worst, most
severe punishment... getting "tough on crime"

bleeding heart liberals are "soft on crime" in other words do not support justice

everyone that participates (and in their actions is a de facto supporter) in the meting out is part of the official violence.

MLK preached that non-violence is a powerful tool (or was it weapon?). like Jesus not striking back at the enemy, this "withholding of justice" creates a potential, an imbalance that (maybe) must be rectified somehow - in other words let the universe be out of whack and overrule justice with love and compassion. this is the ridiculous idea that these guys preached -- let the murderers laugh. so where is the power that comes from nonviolence? to be continued...

Oskar Schindler to the sadistic concentration camp head - "think of the power you have in not killing them"
Ayn Rands objectivism - ultimate power lies with the individual

new name...

now my blog is not so blah :) "infosnack" is the trendy word of '05, so now it's not so trendy. and adoptable by me. I'm not good at being leading edge, but I'm pretty good at following the trend. anyway, my posts here are little morsels, tidbits of 30 second items, so it's more appropriate. so there you go!

"He is President, Not A King" -- Russ Feingold

constitutional crisis, impeachable offenses. hey, can we impeach Cheney too?

[UPADATE] ok, we need to censure first...

reference: democrats using the "I" word

tags: bushitler wiretap fisa impeachment

Bush above law and following it AG claims

since Jack Balkin et al say it so much better (them bein' law professors and all) I'll make like Instapundit and just refer you to their well written posts which I happen to agree with. To wit:

"...The latest version is Attorney General Gonzales' assertion that the September 18, 2001 AUMF [Authorization for Use of Military Force] -- which gave Congressional approval to fight terrorism militarily-- gives the President carte blanche to override the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978. On its face, the claim is preposterous. The logic of the claim, however, is far more important. If the AUMF impliedly alters federal laws that limit the President's power to fight terrorism, then there is no law that the President may not disregard in the name of fighting terrorism.

The second, and even more chilling argument is that the President has inherent authority to fight terrorism even absent the AUMF. Under this theory, the President can create exceptions to law whenever he determines that it is necessary to fight terrorism. If so, then not only is there no law the President may disregard, but all attempts by Congress to rein him in are presumptively unconstitutional because they interfere with his prerogative to determine the nature of the terrorist threat and the most effective means to fight it.

Thus, the strategy of "governing through terrorism"-- using the threat of terrorism as a justification for maximizing presidential power and minimizing presidential accountability inevitably produces bad incentives for executive officials. Ever-expanding power without accountability invites self-righteousness and overreaching."

in another great post there by Marty Lederman, he describes AG's twisted logic:

"But the Attorney General's press conference today makes it clear that that's their story, and they're sticking to it. The odd thing, of course, is that the Administration specifically went to Congress with a package of statutory authorities -- many related to wiretaps and surveillance -- that it thought were necessary to fight the battle against Al Qaeda. It was called the PATRIOT Act. Therefore, it's understandable that two reporters at today's conference asked the AG why they didn't simply ask Congress for a simple amendment to FISA, if this eavesdropping authority was as critical as the Administration now claims.

First, Gonzales is asked why, if this authority is so important, they didn't just "address that issue and fix it," i.e., through statutory amendment, rather than taking the "backdoor approach" [of pretending that it had already been authorized]. Here's his response:

"This is not a backdoor approach. We believe Congress has authorized this kind of surveillance. We have had discussions with Congress in the past -- certain members of Congress -- as to whether or not FISA could be amended to allow us to adequately deal with this kind of threat, and we were advised that that would be difficult, if not impossible."

Did you catch that? It's a two-part answer: (1) Congress has authorized the circumvention of FISA (in the AUMF); and (ii) We didn't ask Congress for an amendment to FISA because we were informed they would have denied it.

And then there's this exchange, in which the answers are inverted (1. We couldn't have gotten congressional authorization; 2. In any event, we got congressional authorization):

Q If FISA didn't work, why didn't you seek a new statute that allowed something like this legally?

ATTORNEY GENERAL GONZALES: That question was asked earlier. We've had discussions with members of Congress, certain members of Congress, about whether or not we could get an amendment to FISA, and we were advised that that was not likely to be -- that was not something we could likely get, certainly not without jeopardizing the existence of the program, and therefore, killing the program. And that -- and so a decision was made that because we felt that the authorities were there, that we should continue moving forward with this program.

The interesting question now, of course, is whether Congress will permit itself to be treated with such contempt."

recall Alberto is our same friend who advocates torture. Balkin has another good post on that. my sentiment echos commenter George Gregg who says:

"Basically, when the need for breaking a law is so extreme in one's estimation that it warrants doing so, one goes ahead and does it and accepts the consequences of that afterward. If I must break into someone's home to save them from a fire, I don't worry about the illegality of breaking and entering. I don't worry about destroying their front door, breaking their window, pulling their frightened child out of the burning house without permission. I trust, however, that the system of justice we have in a civilized society can take the context into consideration when determining whether to charge me for a crime or, if so, on what kind of punishment I deserve. We don't need a set of exceptions to the law against breaking and entering to factor in the possibiity of saving lives from a fire.

So with torture. Make a total ban, with the understanding that, if there is such a compelling reason to break the law, it is always within the realm of possibility. But that the one who does it will have to answer to the law afterward as to whether it was truly an overriding, compelling need that drove the breach."

tags: bushitler alberto+gonzalez wiretap torture

now that flu season is here...

let's discuss something good our president has done recently. as they say, "even a broken clock is right twice a day". you can question his motives (popularity polls and all that), but this could turn out be the best thing W has done for the country.

too bad his own party won't let it be funded. if only he hadn't already spent all his political capital. well you can't fault the most powerful man on earth for trying!

I'm speaking of course about his recent speech where he brought to national attention the need to prepare for a possible bird flu pandemic:

"I am asking that the Congress fund $1.2 billion for the Department of Health and Human Services to purchase enough doses of this vaccine from manufacturers to vaccinate 20 million people".

hmm, what about the other 275 million Americans? maybe we ought to do our own stockpiling despite what "experts" say. recall how helpful the government was in New Orleans...

references:
Tamiflu is not a panacea, experts say
"Republicans reject pandemic flu plan funding" -- dailykos
Roche Picks 12 Drugmakers for Tamiflu Production
official whitehouse policy
facts from cdc

tags:
epidemiology pandemic avian+flu tamiflu bush+phone

tagging issues...

so like it says at the top, this blog is a learning experience. this post is an experiment to see if technorati is really recognizing and publishing links to here. I've yet to see one of my posts appear there and I suspect that something is not working right (notice I'm not pointing fingers yet). I'm tagging this entry with "statistically improbable phrases" (as I think amazon calls them). and I'm pinging technorati, even though I think blogger is supposed to do it automatically. let's see if everything works as it should (just click on one of the tags below and see what technorati finds)...

UPDATE: it's been about 20 minutes since my post and nothing is showing up. looks like a bug to me. anyone have a clue?

tags: technorati+problem technocracy tomawesome complaints
UPDATE: here is code lifted directly from technorati and it still doesn't work --
tomawesome

12/15 UPDATE: well its the next day and voila! the tags are working. so now the question is, is it because I complained (I emailed technorati) or is this time lag normal? I'll keep playing with tags and post my results here.

12/17 UPDATE: something must have clicked into gear (even if it is low gear). my post on 12/16 is correctly showing on technorati - it did take 16 hours or so, but it did show up.