Links With Your Coffee - Wednesday
- Young Muslims begin dangerous fight for the right to abandon faith - Times Online
A group of young Muslim apostates launches a campaign today, the anniversary of the 9/11 attacks on America, to make it easier to renounce Islam.
The provocative move reflects a growing rift between traditionalists and a younger generation raised on a diet of Dutch tolerance.
The Committee for Ex-Muslims promises to campaign for freedom of religion but has already upset the Islamic and political Establishments for stirring tensions among the million-strong Muslim community in the Netherlands. - Salt Lake Tribune - Rebecca Walsh: For Leavitt, it's business before babies (tip to Nate)
- Comment is free: Ghettoes of superstition
So the schools secretary, Ed Balls, and faith group leaders have formed a partnership endorsing faith schools as a force to improve social cohesion in England. This gasp-inducing statement is on a par with "let us build and run more nuclear power stations Chernobyl fashion - oh, and let's put them in city centres". In the face of the failure of multiculturalism, with the awful example of faith-divided schooling in Northern Ireland over decades, with news of Deobandi control of half of British mosques where hostility to the host community is preached, the government is choosing to continue to fly in the face of all reason and experience, and to design and pay for - with our tax money - greater future divisiveness and trouble. It is staggering.
- The Frontal Cortex : McGinn Does Wittgenstein
Is it bad if your favorite philosophy comes in aphorism form? This is why I've always enjoyed Wittgenstein: his writing has the density of plutonium, since it's just pre-digested quotes. I can read it without having to remember what anomalous monism is. Now Colin McGinn, who's one of my favorite philosophers of mind, has entered the blogosphere. One of his first posts is a list of 79 meditations on laws, causality and the nature of reality.
- ScienceDaily: New CPR Promises Better Results By Compressing Abdomen, Not Chest
A biomedical engineer at Purdue University has developed a new method to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation that promises to be more effective than standard CPR because it increases nourishing blood flow through the heart by 25 percent over the current method.
- NEW BOOK “THE DAILY SHOWAND PHILOSOPHY MOMENTS OF ZEN IN THE ART OF FAKE NEWS"
In a new book to be published by Wiley-Blackwell, The Daily Show and Philosophy (The Blackwell Philosophy and Pop Culture Series) editor and contributor Jason Holt has assembled an impressive team of seventeen fellow philosophers who, in 19 chapters, take a good look at the Emmy and Peabody Award-winning “fake news” program, “The Daily Show with Jon Stewart”.
- Whose Human Rights Matter?
It's rare that a media outlet's news standards can be tested so directly. The human rights group released separate reports on violations by both Hezbollah and Israel, charging each side with indiscriminate attacks on civilians. When the first report was released, the Times placed an 800-word story (8/31/07) under the headline "Rights Group Accuses Hezbollah of Indiscriminate Attacks on Civilians in Israel War," and accompanied by a photo of Israeli civilians at risk from Hezbollah rockets.
But when Human Rights Watch's focus turned to Israeli actions, the paper's interest declined considerably; it ran a brief Associated Press report (9/7/07), sans photo, totaling 139 words. The headline: "Israel Criticized Over Lebanon Deaths." - Pope: Creation vs. evolution clash an ‘absurdity’ (tip to Tony)
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Comments
WOW! I thought the Pope was supposed to be a caveman!!!
Posted by: Krebster | September 12, 2007 9:25 AM
Re:Business before Babies,
That story was pretty surprising to me because nearly all of our friends who have had babies breast fed their babies.
I did about 30 seconds of digging to find out while Mrs. Walsh wasn't exactly lying with her figures of 31% of women breast-feeding after 3 months, she wasn't really telling the truth either.
The real statistic is that 31% of women EXCLUSIVELY breast feed their babies at three months. Many women begin to suppliment with formula after a few months for a variety of reasons including concern the baby is not growing fast enough.
The truth is that breast-feeding is on the rise in the US. If anyone is concerned with the truth instead of political sniping, here is a more honest look:
http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSN0226313220070802?feedType=RSS
Posted by: Syngas
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September 12, 2007 10:58 AM
re: The Frontal Cortex
I really think you are misrepresenting Wittgenstein on this one. The Tractatus (the only book Wittgenstein uses the form of aphorism) builds like an incredible geometric theorem. They are not independent nuggets of wisdom, along the lines of Nietzsche's Beyond Good and Evil, rather they are like proofs that build and reference in order to forward his thesis on philosophies ability to "speak truly."
Posted by: jimmy | September 12, 2007 12:46 PM
@syngas: Parsing over statistics has little to do with formula companies pressuring our government into supressing studies, it. You're starting to sound like Michael Moore and that CNN doctor arguing between $276 and $251.
Posted by: Willey | September 12, 2007 1:20 PM
It seems to me the Pope is merely trying to pull a draw from a loss. That seems (at least to me) indicative that he knows the superstitions he purports are ludicrous. He's no caveman, just clever.
And who the fuck said that evolution was the answer to every single question in the universe? The Scarecrow?
Posted by: DRS
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September 12, 2007 1:22 PM
Willey,
She misleads the reader into thinking that breast feeding is on the decline in the US when the exact opposite is true.
If all she wanted to do is complain about formula companies influencing policy makers, I have no problem. She really didn't need to mislead the reader in order to do that. 74% is still a number that should be improved upon.
Clearly you don't mind being misled as long as the writer is bashing a Republican.
Posted by: Syngas
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September 12, 2007 2:07 PM
Also, to add to the link list: Radio Frequencies Help Burn Salt Water
Posted by: Erick
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September 12, 2007 4:05 PM
I agree with Syngas. There's no need for something like breast feeding to be politicized.
I have a friend who was unable to breast feed and the La Leche League people made her feel guilty about it. They offered to breast feed her baby for her, but she didn't feel comfortable about that.
Posted by: Jo Ann | September 12, 2007 5:03 PM
Basically when you liberate hydrogen form Oxygen you are simply using energy to split the molecules. Some energy is in the hydrogen, some is in the oxygen and some is lost as heat.
Your not going to get more energy than you put in.
Posted by: Syngas
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September 12, 2007 5:10 PM
Depends if the frequency generator requires less energy than the energy produced by the burning of salt water. You could be right most likely though.
Posted by: Erick
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September 12, 2007 7:15 PM
Thanks for the FAIR link, I hadn't seen it.
Posted by: anon | September 12, 2007 10:17 PM
Syngas is definitely right. The RF generator can't "split water" using less energy than is released burning the hydrogen evolved - don't hold your breath waiting for a repeal of the first law of thermodynamics. I knew Rustum Roy was slipping, but I'm amazed how far he's fallen.
My chemistry colleagues and I had a good laugh over this silly story a few months ago.
Posted by: Tim
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September 12, 2007 11:40 PM
Thanks Jo Ann and Tim,
I'm not used to you two agreeing with me. I'm at a loss for words.
Posted by: Syngas
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September 13, 2007 8:21 PM
Hey I agreed too! Don't I get a pat on my hiney?
Posted by: Erick
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September 13, 2007 11:56 PM
Uh... would a handshake work?
Thanks Erick!
Posted by: Syngas
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September 14, 2007 9:19 AM
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