News and Views

The Economist published a poll a couple of days ago that asked (among other things):
“Do you think that Muslims have a constitutional right to build a mosque … near the World Trade Center site?”
The question wasn’t “Is it wise?” or “Does it make you uncomfortable?”, or “Do you hate the idea, and hate Muslims?”. […]

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I just finally watched the Ken Burns documentary, “The Civil War”. I think I was out of the country the first time it ran. I remember hearing rave reviews, but I didn’t see how 12 or so hours on a war could hold one’s attention.
Boy, was I wrong. It is probably the […]

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I watched the early rounds of American Idol this year, and was struck by how many people think they are good singers, so good that they have a chance in the American Idol competition. But in many cases the people who hear them sing think they are so bad that they laugh about it. […]

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I do have opinions about tolerating people’s differences, but that’s not what this post is about.
I’m talking about building up a tolerance to substances or environmental factors. For example, some people can tolerate much spicier food than others, or drink more alcohol without feeling drunk, or drink lots of strong coffee.
It’s not […]

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Have you ever thought about the long instructions you get when you reach the voice mail for a mobile phone?
“The number you have dialed, 480 555-1234 is not available. You can leave a message after the tone. After leaving your message, you can hang up, or press pound for other options. […]

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I must be either in the Twilight Zone, or I’m asleep and will wake soon. I just imagined that the Arizona Cardinals are going to the Super Bowl. What a ridiculous idea!

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Derek had a checking account with Chase a few weeks ago that he decided to close out. He had just $5.59 in the account, and by accident he withdrew $5.60.
For that one cent overdraft, Chase charged him a $25 fee. Jocelyn may argue that this is justified, but you can’t convince me that […]

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This quiz of basic American Civic Literacy is a sobering test of how much US citizens know about their government.
71% of Americans failed the test (less than 60% right). Less than 1% of the test takers scored above 90. How well do you know how our government was established and functions?
I’m proud to […]

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Tom Bradley ran for governor of California in 1982. Bradley, a black man, was leading in the polls by over 10%. However, he lost the election.
The so-called Bradley Effect was named after this event. In several other elections in the US the actual votes received by African Americans was significantly less than […]

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Nature magazine recently published an article that analyzed the position on and approach towards science of the two major party presidential candidates.
As one excerpt, it’s interesting to compare Obama’s Science and Technology team of advisers with McCain’s:
Obama’s:
Dan Kammen, University of California, Berkeley
Don Lamb, University of Chicago
Gil Omenn, University of Michigan
Henry Kelly, President, Federation of […]

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