worldsfair | September 4, 2008Just a quick delurking call. This site doesn't get a whole lot of traffic, but myself and Jennifer over at Shifting Baselines were thinking of seeing if there are any readers in Vancouver who want to say hello. More on this later, but I am curious to see if there are any Vancouver folks who check in at the World's Fair.
This might also work as a Science Scout call, and if you're a UBCer, I might even try to get some feedback/suggestions for the Terry talks.
bcohen | September 3, 2008That's how today's McSweeney's column began at least. In the course of revision, it became "An Anti-Environmentalist Writes His Next Column While Eating Take-out and Driving His Hummer." My motivation was this asinine column by Tierney a little over a month ago. Did I mention how unnerving this guy's reasoning is? It is. It's bad. Asinine, one might say.
If you don't meander over today, the permanent link is here.
worldsfair | September 3, 2008The Science Creative Quarterly is back in action today after a few months of only publishing students' works from our symposia program, as well as a few months where essentially the site was not showing off any new material. More or less to say that we haven't had our normal variety of pieces for about four months.
So this is just to say hello again, and to note that today's piece is a little list humour by me (called "LIKELY AND UNLIKELY THINGS THAT SIR ISAAC NEWTON STOOD ON DURING HIS LIFETIME" and reprinted below).
Likely:
Grass.
A stage of some sort.
Guard.
Tippy toes.
Unlikely
Astroturf…
worldsfair | September 2, 2008
I definitely think it's a contender.
This is a slide I quickly made for the "Things to avoid when speaking publicly" video (see below), where I tried my best to make it as jarring as possible.
Crazy thing is, is that this is actually a powerpoint template you can download! I'm at a lost to figure out who would (at least for something serious) would ever use this template. It gives me a headache just looking at it.
Anyway, other notable "evil slide" features include:
1. Text too small.
2. Conflicting colour scheme.
3. Deliberate but inconsequential change in font.
4. Filler and non-…
worldsfair | September 2, 2008So I'm pleased to show off a goofy little video I prepared using the great suggestions made at a previous post (Hopefully, the start of a definitive list of things to avoid at all cost when speaking publicly.).
It's being used to promote a student conference I'm helping with - the one that borrows the TED conference template and makes it available within a university setting. Anyway, more on that later. For now, let me know what you think.
Thumbs up? Then do spread it on - the student conference could do with as much viral love as it can get.
worldsfair | September 1, 2008(And again with the back to school theme, and again with a piece from the SCQ - this one written by me)
A UNIVERSITY JOB POSTING (OR BECOMING A PROFESSOR IS HARD THESE DAYS)
This is a call for outstanding candidates to apply for a tenure track assistant professor position within the context of the Department of [subject name] at the [institution name]. The successful applicant is expected to work in areas of interest to current faculty members, to interact with related groups within our network and to have demonstrated ability in producing research material of excellent quality and interest.…
worldsfair | September 1, 2008(As I gear up for back to school, here's a little gem reprinted from the SCQ)
- - -
MY NEW GRADUATE COURSE OFFERINGBy Vince LiCata
Title: Introduction to My Research Area
Course Instructor: Me
T Th 10:30 -12:00, Willams 205
Office Hours: by appointment
Course Syllabus: The course will consist of me, talking about my research area, for 15 weeks. Topics to be covered include:
1. My research area.
2. Why my research area is important.
3. Important contributions I have made to my research area.
4. Contributions other researchers have made to my research area, including an objective appraisal of…
bcohen | August 22, 2008I was struck by the comments over at Razib's blog on the matter of Jamaicans and genetic pre-disposition. I even left a skeptical comment there about it. I'll keep going on about it here.
I'm sure genetic make-up has something to do with pretty much everything; and I'm just as confident that other factors (coaching, money, environment, cultural value, education, prestige, discipline, etc.) have something to do with pretty much everything. So it's a wash. But if a Jamaican wins a race and everyone says its because of genes, then why isn't anyone asking if American women have the Beach…
bcohen | August 20, 2008"Over the past three decades, grosso modo discourses of militancy in AFNs in the US have been superseded by more circumspect, incrementalist narratives of change, better adapted to hegemonic notions of the market and consumer choice promulgated by the dominant neoliberal political economy."
Well duh.
[AFN = alternative food network]
[this sentence = let's see how it stacks up against this series of sentences]
Overall, I give it 1 star out of 5. Fearless syllable/word ratio, daring use of Italian ("roughly," I'm told by Webster), but not nearly enough acronyms.
worldsfair | August 19, 2008I just saw this video at McSweeney's (which in turn got it from Today's Big Thing). It's quite the stunner, watching the lightning seek out ground and then BOOM.
worldsfair | August 19, 2008
Recently used this graphic at a student conference opening, and it was met with a surprisingly good reaction. Weird how no matter how hard you look at this, you can't get past the Disney influence.
worldsfair | August 18, 2008Let's start this off with a mini-meme. Do you, or anyone you know, have apparent "superpowers"?
This request is not as weird as it seems - let me explain.
You see my wife has a superpower. And it's awesome in its own mind bending way. Best of all (and the reason why it's coming to mind recently), is that it appears that this same superpower has been passed on to my daughter. It's like it's hereditary or something, but whether this is an effect of genetics or environment, or (as the case may be) both, has yet to be determined.
So what is Kate's superpower? (Pause for dramatic effect)
It's…
bcohen | August 18, 2008This post was written by guest blogger Elizabeth Green Musselman.*
One year ago I began producing The Missing Link, a monthly podcast on the history of science, medicine, and technology. In case you are unfamiliar with the world of podcasting, which is a type of audio blogging that began in 2005, let me give you a brief equation that will explain what I am about to do:
1 year = grizzled, world-weary podcaster experience
When I was young, back in 2004, we got our history from books and articles and the occasional blog, and we liked it that way. Then along came podcasts and whole new…
worldsfair | August 14, 2008CELEBRITY: Who are you?
GENETICIST: I am a geneticist.
CELEBRITY: Like, is that a big word for someone who is not as cool as me?
GENETICIST: It is a word that describes my role as a scientist who can answer any questions you might have about genetics.
CELEBRITY: And why would I care about genetics?
GENETICIST: That, my friend, is a very good question! Genetics is more important than you would think. We are now living in a society where the progress we see in the biological sciences, and in genetics in particular, is impacting tremendously on the societal, economic, political and even…
bcohen | August 13, 2008I don't make it a point to keep up with the goings on at Lower Blakemere Farm, Blakemere, Herefordshire (UK). But they have a very well-developed series of podcasts that let me do so anyhow.
Here then, with a great name: Wiggly Wigglers. Criminy, there's a lot -- they're up to #144.
Fun to listen to folks ways away talk local food. Check out their blog too.
worldsfair | August 13, 2008OLD MACDONALD: Do you want to buy some beef?
GENETICIST: If the beef is not tainted with mad cow, then I would be very much interested in purchasing your beef. However, as there have been a few recent outbreaks of this disease in North America, I think I will abstain for now.
OLD MACDONALD: What is mad cow?
GENETICIST: Mad cow is a term that refers to something known as bovine spongiform encephalitis, a curious infectious agent that is neither a virus nor a bacterium.
Despite this, it is still an infectious agent that can cause the brain of said infected cattle to turn into a sponge, which,…
bcohen | August 12, 2008In a time of increasing concern for water quality and availability, nuclear power facilities require enormous quantities of water and put back effluent into those nearby water sources. At a time of carbon counting, they also generate considerable carbon emissions through the process of construction and with the life-cycle chain of fuel (uranium) mining, milling, transporting, and disposing. As Americans relearn the breadth of what an environmental issue is, nuclear plants all the while create new social and cultural problems for community stability and autonomy. Coal-fired plants quite…
worldsfair | August 12, 2008BONO: Why am I so weary?
GENETICIST: From a genetic point of view, I would say that your weariness is a reflection of your metabolism. That is, your ability to pull energy from the food you eat, and the ability to utilize that energy effectively. Both of which should not be a problem for a person of your age and affluent stature. My guess is that you are just overdoing things. Here, Mr Bono, would turning up the lights help wake you up?
BONO: You know, I am probably overdoing things. Sure, turn the lights on, although first let me put my sunglasses on. My eyes are quite sensitive to the glare…
bcohen | August 12, 2008MIT Press publishes a series called Urban and Industrial Environments. Several of the "author-meets-blogger" books were from that series. The main editor is Robert Gottlieb of Occidental College out in California. I was just made aware of a blog for his Urban & Environmental Policy Institute there, where one can find notices of new books, discussions of current issues in environmental justice, and, you guessed it, matters of urban and environmental policy more broadly speaking.
In addition to the well-stocked and premier Urban and Industrial Environments list, Gottlieb also edits a…
worldsfair | August 12, 2008GRIMACE: What am I?
GENETICIST: That is a very interesting question indeed. And we should begin by briefly discussing your known history. According to your records, you were born as "Evil Grimace," with four deft arms, and a penchant for amusing yourself by stealing milkshakes from small children. Then, in 1974, you experienced a change of heart, a loss of two arms, and a metamorphosis into what is your current incarnation--a supposedly warm, gentle, and seemingly living representation of the "embodiment of childhood."
GRIMACE: Is that why I have only one orifice?
GENETICIST: Perhaps so, as…