Monday, January 10, 2005

Here we go again, Scopes Trial for the 21st century Well, since America is (more or less) a democracy, why not put science's findings to a vote? Anybody would like to repeal the law of gravity? Because that's more or less what bozos from Pennsylvania to Wisconsin to Kansas are trying to do. Let me be as clear as I can possibly be on this: there is _no_ scientific controversy about the validity of the modern, Darwinian, theory of evolution. None. What is out there is a bunch of fanatics (some even sporting a tasteless blue, red and white crucifix, like Dover-PA's school board member Bill Buckingham) who just can't let go of the idea that their specific "sacred" text is not only the sole infallible one (with no evidence for that claim, of course), but that it has to be read literally, regardless of how much nonsense it contains from a scientific perspective (and why wouldn't it? It was written more than two thousand years ago by scientifically illiterate people!). And boy do they _hate_ the idea of being related to chimps, even though the latter should be much more offended by that undeniable fact! 8:47:54 PM    comment []

God and the tsunami, what a bunch of bullshit Here we are again, religious nutcases and assorted deluled people are looking at the disaster caused by the recent tsunami in south-east Asia and thinking about what god did or didn't. Aside from the fact that every rational person should clearly see that god is a human invention, it is revolting to hear self-appointed religious leaders telling us that god has punished more than a hundred thousand people (of all faiths) because of their past lives, their alleged sins, or simply destroyed them to remind us that he can do it. What the hell, he is the creator of the universe after all! This is sickening. Rather than understand that nature is morally neutral and concentrare on the human tragedy (and how to avoid another one), these people insult human dignity by "interpreting" the facts for the rest of us, even though none of them has actually talked to god or has any evidence whatsoever for why his particular interpretation of god's will is in fact accurate. Get off your stupid self-righteousness and down to work to help other people make this a better world, really, not in your fantasies. 7:33:58 PM    comment []

Natural = good? I don't think so! Herbal Remedies Found to Contain Toxic Heavy Metals [Scientific American] Philosophers call it the "naturalistic fallacy," the assumption that if something is natural it must be good (conversely, the implication is that non-natural things ain't good for us). It is an incredible piece of widespread idiocy: just consider that poisonous mushrooms are "natural," while anti-cancer drugs aren't. This article shows that many so-called "natural" remedies that can be sold over the counter, and do not undergo testing before being released for public consumption, are actually dangerous. Beware of nature, or at least of some of it... 8:38:40 AM    comment []

The national obsession with rankings! Top Science Stories of 2004 [Scientific American] I always wondered why people, especially in the US, are obsessed with rankings, "top stories," "hit parades," and other ways to measure things that often cannot be measured, or whose measurement makes no sense. This story about the top science findings of 2004 is not an exception. For example, is it really sensible to compare the discovery of a new species of fossil hominids (some of our ancestors), with NASA finding out with it did wrong in the case of the crush of the Genesis probe on Earth, returning from its mission to study the solar wind? Call me anthropocentric, but it seems to me that the first story is a hell of a lot more interesting than the latter. Anyway, if you haven't paid attention to what scientists have been doing last year, this is at least a quick way to catch up. 8:31:26 AM    comment []

No kidding! Fast Food Linked to Obesity, Diabetes [Scientific American] Well, one would want to say, duh! Of course fast food consumption is linked to obesity, but now we finally have scientific evidence that "Super Size Me" wasn't just a weird movie after all. Will people listen to science, given that they have been ignoring common sense? Nah (except for those briefly engaged in futile "New Year's Resolutions," of course). 8:25:40 AM    comment []

Nonsense on stilts, an example Ever wondered how much nonsense a philosopher can produce? Here is a case study, based on an article published by John-Francis Phipps in "Philosophy Now" (www.philosophynow.org/). When faced with a lot of apparently "deep" insights, just remember to ask the crucial question: what does it _mean_? 7:36:33 AM    comment []