As mentioned in passing in an earlier post. The Green Man makes his appearance in the Morris Dancers of England as Jack-In-The-Green. His is a disruptive character that attempts to distract the dancers from their dancing by playing the fool, as well as breaking away from the dance troope and accosting the onlookers.
Below is a picture from Breinton Morris with their Green Man in full flight. (click on the picture to visit their site and see lots more pictures of the Green Man in action.
To quote the piece "If A Thing's Worth Doing, It's Worth Overdoing". A motto they seemed to have embraced with enthusiasm. Long live the Green Man.
Update: Breinton Morris site seems to have disappeared. I have updated the image with one from Toronto High Park May Morning 2001 Morris Dancing courtesy of Mark Whitcombe
Interested in all those gross bodily functions, farting, belching, scabs, etc, well kids are. (So are scientists who are really fascinated in the things that most people grow out of being interested in)
To promote science an exhibition in London's Science Museum opened that addresses these base interests. Intrepid visitors can pump mechanical stomachs to make them vomit or belch, or climb a skin wall on scabs, spots and warts, even sample the aromas of the body all in the name of science.
Based on the introductory science books by Sylvia Branzei of Whale Gulch School in northern California it exploits a childs natural interest in the body.
Anyone anally fixated is bound to enjoy constructing a cacophony of artificial farts. "A tightened anus creates a higher-pitched toot," explains the text helpfully.
Concerned you might be a geek?
Well you probably are if you think you might be, still if you want to be sure here is a test you can take.
(notice I didn't tell you to click it, as a geek you already know)
Phil, of Signposts, don't go there, you don't want to know!
Terrorism is obviously a hot topic these days and it is refreshing to see some research into what motivates people to become terrorists. Too often they are dehumanised by polititians and the press, partly because it is so easy to do so and it suites the political agenda. Terrorists are, for the most part, ordinary human beings who have been motivated to do something extra-ordinary.
Interestingly, traditional military responses to terrorism have only limited success primarily because nature of warfare in a terrorism paradigm is substantially different to the traditional model. In particular, it is used in situations where there is a substantial power differential between the opposing forces.
To effectively combat terrorism we need to look beyond the horror of the acts and beyond looking at the perpetrators as some sort of monsters. Valuable research is currently being undertaken by Economic and Social Research Council in the UK into the mindset and motivation of terrorists.
By studying Polish migrants to France who became resistance fighters during world war II they are gaining a picture of the complex motivations that are the precursors to this type of behaviour.
Although hatred of the Germans and xenophobia were contributing factors neither in itself was sufficient to motivate people to join the resistance.
The research revealed that these emotions were deeply rooted in the moral system of family and social life that the migrants saw as central to their community.Mr Bicker said: "This moral system was the dynamo that provided both the motivation and the very basis for resistance by the migrants."
It is quite a different picture of the typical terrorist, that of a highly moral, family oriented person and one many will have big problems embracing. Never the less we cannot tackle this issue effectively without stripping away our own biases and looking at it in a more dispassionate fashion.
Now here is a cult really worth joining. It as been founded by Danny Wallace and currently has 2,500 members. The sole purpose of the cult is to perform unsolicited acts of kindness to unsuspecting strangers.
Joinees are required to perform an act of kindness, preferably for a stranger, every Friday. Hence "good Fridays". This can take any form, but the archetypal good deed, one that has almost acquired the status of a sacrament, is the unsolicited pint.
Read more about it here, or perhaps join.
Your worm farm is a very eco-friendly way of using up the vegitable scraps but what do you get - dirt. Admittedly its good dirt but it's still just dirt.
Cast your mind back to the movie "Back To The Future II". Well if your going to pretend you didn't see it, Michael Keatons character throws some scraps into the power source on the back of his future car to use as fuel. How prescient!
The National Science Foundation report on a new process to convert vegitable carbohydrates and sugars into pure hydrogen for use as a power source. Burning hydrogen produces only water as it's waste by-product. Just imagine throwing those old pumpkin and potato scraps into the fuel tank in preparation for a trip to town.
Last year close to 1 million human beings were estimated to have been sold as slaves. Whilst many young women and children, are simply abducted and put to work as domestic servants, many others are sold into the sex trade or suffer brutal lives as labourers in mines and factories.
To add insult to injury, in many countries they are treated as criminals, arrested, jailed, and deported. Both American and Australia can hold their heads in shame at this. Such treatment, by instilling fear of the authorities, only strengthens the hold traffickers have over these workers.
I see numerous Christian blogs consuming themselves with angst over the moral dilemmas of homosexuality and poligomy . Why, because they are easy. So we focus on this while we turn a blind eye to a moral and ethical dilema of 1,000,000 people a year being traded, often for less than the value of a horse or a pig.
Pesonally I have no problem with homosexuality, it is each persons own choice. For me a least, what someone get's up to in the privacy of their bedroom is so insignificant compared to some of the great human tragedies that are unfolding in the world today that to be agonising over it's morality or otherwise is obscene.
There is a fascinating world in our midst that we cannot see simply because it is so small. Wierd plants and animals that share our daily lives but of which we are completely ignorant.
The image above is a butterflies egg. If you want to see more of what occupies your world visit the University of Queensland's Nanoworld site.
I'm not particularly interested in geneaology however, if you are and you have ancestors from the USA, here is a fascinating site.
Find a grave has entries for 4.4 million graves across the USA. If you think this sounds morbid you are not a geneaologist. Graves are a valuable source of family information.
Dating back to Sumerian times, the story of Inanna's journey into the underworld encapsulates the cycles of the life that embrace us all.
Inanna is the goddess of the heavens and earth, she is beautiful, and powerful. Her many titles included Queen of Heaven and Earth, Priestess of Heaven, Light of the World, First Daughter of the Moon, Righteous Justice, Holy Shepherdess, Goddess of Fertility, and Loud Thundering Storm.
Jung uses this metaphore for journeying into the depths of our own minds and meeting our other selves.
Alternatively, if you look you can see the symbolism of the stripping of the forests of their leaves, the apparent death and the rebirth of the forest that occurs during the Autumn, Winter, Spring cycles.
Whether you look at her story from the perspective of a metaphore for the cycle of the seasons or the exploration of the depths within our own minds it is a fascinating story.
As the myth begins, Inanna has already established a relationship with Enki, the God of Wisdom and Waters. He has gifted her with the fourteen me, or blessings of power, which she readily accepts. Two of these blessings of power were the right of passage to and from kur, the netherworld.
Inanna hears the moaning of her sister Ereshkigal, Queen of the Underworld and abandons her realm of heaven and earth, even her temples, to descend into the "great below". Placing her crown upon her head, beads of lapis lazuli around her neck, sparkling stones fastened to her breast, a gold ring around her wrist, and a royal robe upon her body. She binds a breastplate about her chest and takes a lapis measuring rod and line in her hand, she sets out for the kur with her faithful servant, Ninshubur. When she arrives at the outer gates of the kur she commands Ninshubur to wait for three days, and if she has not returned, to call upon the elder Gods for help.
When Inanna challenges the gatekeeper to gain entry into the kur, he consults with Ereshkigal, telling her that a giant and powerful goddess, arrayed in splendor and with signs of authority, is waiting to enter Her realm. Ereshkigal becomes upset, then tells the gatekeeper to open each gate of the underworld a mere crack, and to remove Inanna's royal garments on her way through.
As Inanna passed through the first gate he removed her crown. At the second gate he removed her lapis beads; at the third, her sparkling stones; at the fourth, her breastplate; at the fifth, her gold ring; a the sixth, her lapis measuring rod; and at the seventh and final gate, her royal robe. Naked and disarmed, Inanna entered the throne room of her sister. Immediately, she was surrounded by the judges of the underworld, who ruled against her.
Then Ereshkigal fastened on Inanna the eye of death.
She spoke against her the word of wrath.
She uttered against her the cry of guilt.
She struck her.Inanna was turned into a corpse,
A piece of rotting meat,
And was hung from a hook on the wall.
After three days, Ninshubur went to Enki, God of Wisdom and Water, who originally blessed Inanna with the me of descent into and ascent from the kur. Enki was grieved and troubled. From under his fingernails he took dirt and created two creatures, neither male nor female, and gave them the food and water of life to carry to Inanna.
The creatures descend into kur and ingratiate themselves to Ereshkigal. Ereshkigal offers them a gift and they request the corpse of Inanna and take it with them as they leave. Using the food and drink provided by Enki they bring Inanna back to life.
A more complete version of this story with Jungian interpretation can be found at The Descent of Inanna
Albert Stringer was given a stern warning and a good behaviour bond after pleading guilty to being drunk in control of a horse.
Albert was arrested at 11:00pm on a Saturday when police stopped what they believed to be a wandering horse and buggy. They found Albert asleep in the back. At the time Albert protested his innocence saying that he had not been in control, since he was asleep in the back, and besides the horse new the way home and it was sober.
Here is a picture of me getting flamed for the last post, well not really. It is Puu Kiai fissures near the vent on the east rift of Kilauea. The image was taken at Hawaii Volcanoes National Park on Spetember 20, 1977.
This is one of a collection of magnificent images available free from American Geological Institute. Click here to browse these beautiful images of the natural world.
Recently a 17 year old blogger in the US posted an offensive entry relating to homosexuals and muslims which was subsequently removed, the details of the post are not relevant here. The blog Bene Diction pondered on the issue of otherwise mature adults reducing the quality and maturity of their discourse to the level of the original post when responding.
It seems that certain members of the US military are similarly incapable of retaining a mature attitude when confronted with some immature adolescent behaviour. Agence France-Presse report the capture of a 17 year old boy in Iraq whose crime it appears was heckling the soldiers. Apparently, he was arrested as a warning to others who may be considering exercising their right to free speech. A right that the Iraqis clearly have not been granted by the occupying forces.
Picture via The Memory Hole
State sponsored development of a huge tourist mall less than 300 metres from the Tal Mahal has been stopped when the federal government discovered that no environmental impact studies had been completed. Not only would changes to the flood plain have damaged the base of the momument but its golden glow in the evening reflecting from the planes would have been lost.
If you go to India for no other reason, you must go to see this. It was built by the Mogul emperor Shah Jahan as a monument to his love for his favourite wife, Mumtazmahal, who died giving birth to her 14 child. Commencing in 1632, it took 20,000 stone masons 22 years to construct. White marble is inlaid with countless pieces of jade, lapis lazuli, and other semi-precious stones. Inscriptions from theQuoran are inlaid in black marble surrounding the entrance.
Nestled amongst the squalor of India is one of humanities most precious gems. It is truely is awe inspiring.
The conventional wisdom is that women can tolerate pain better than men since women endure intense pain during childbirth.
HA! Wrong again. Men, in fact, have a much higher tolerance for pain and Gary Rollman, at the University of Western Ontario thinks he has found out why. It is a protein present in men called GIRK2 that inhibits pain sensations being transmitted to the brain. Removing this protein makes men as susceptible to pain as women.
On a less flippant note, this has important implications for pain management in women. Many pain killers work, in part, by activating GIRK2 protein. Researchers believe more research in this area may lead to new drugs or dose levels specifically designed to ease pain in women. You can read more about it in New Scientist here.
Well its seems that the days of the computer mouse are numbered. Aardvarks, it seems, are the pointing device of choice, well at least amongst children.
Studies by Economic & Social Research Council show that children in the 4 to 8 age group seem to take it for granted that a toy could communicate with a computer.
The aardvarks in question, Arthur and his sister DW, have a vocabulary of some 4000 words on their own, and 10,000 words when used with the computer. They have motors so that they could move, and a ROM chip so that they could respond to actions by children such as squeezing the hand, toe or ear. Dr Plowman of ESRC says
We found that children can co-ordinate the multiple links between toy and screen and don't appear to get confused. In fact, when it came to the unique selling point of the interaction between the computer and the toy, children rarely thought this anything special.
It seems that one thing that cheesed the children off was if it talked for too long. Don't you just hate it when your aardvark just won't shut up?
I know why you are reading this blog. Not enough to think about at the moment hey. Well your problem is solved http://www.gadzillionthings.net/ has around 10,800 questions that need answering.
Such demanding philosophical questions as
"Why do cockroaches die upside down?"
or
"Is it true that man's most precious possessions are his delusions?"
Hours of fun here.
In the past several years White-Backed Vulture numbers in India have dropped by 95%. This is a serious cultural problem, as well as being a tragedy for the bird species itself.
These magnificent birds have a bad reputation in the west however in India they perform the important function of consuming the remains of the dead that are left on a hill called "The Tower of Silence" near Mumbai. The burial practice, carried out by the Parsi, that has been in place for over 200 years is under threat because of the declining numbers of White-backed Vultures. The area is also experiencing a dramatic rise in the number of rabies-riddled feral dogs to fill the niche being vacated by the vultures.
Bird virologist J. Lindsay Oaks of Washington State University in Pullman is proposing that an anti-inflammatory drug called diclofenac may be poisoning the vultures. Vets in India use the painkiller in cattle. By eating cattle carcasses, birds might be building up toxic levels of the drug. Cattle carcasses are available to the birds because the cow is sacred and not consumed by humans.
Andrew Cunningham of the Zoological Society of London argues that the vulture symptoms point more to an infectious desease being the cause.
Well, for those of you that didn't know, a cryptozoologist is a person that studies creatures that are yet to be discovered, think Loch Ness monster, Big Foot etc.
All is not dry theory in the world of the cryptozoologist. Peak into his cabinet and find some strange and marvelous creatures.
In February 2001 the Taliban destroyed what was left of the collection of antiquities in the Afghanistan museum. This followed an edict by Mullah Mohammed Omar, the Taliban's leader, that statues from Afghanistan's pre-Islamic past were blasphemous.
Pieces such as the 1,500 year old buddha are being painstakingly reconstructed from the shattered pieces. The UK, US, Japan and Greece have all contributed funds and the British Museum has constructed a new conservation room.
I am trying not to be anti-muslim, really I am, but it makes it mighty hard when confronted with cultural and historic vandalism on the scale that has been perpetrated in Afghanistan. (from The Guardian)
Shoe specialist Petr Hlavacek has been studying the shoes found on the feet of a prehistoric iceman whose mummified body was found in an Alpine glacier in 1991. His conclusion is that they are more efficient and better for the feet than modern day hiking boots.
The sole was of thin bearskin, padded on the inside with hay as protection against the cold. Hlavacek's reconstruction is like a slipper, with no leather upper behind the heel, just a net. He says they are ideal for walking in cold and damp environments. Whilst they were not particularly waterproof they dried quickly and if, for example, you stepped in a puddle, your feet would only be cold for a brief period. Find out more here
I've just been doing some browsing through the web site stats, June 19th was a big day. I got a huge number of hits that day. Now let me see what were the topics on June 19th.
The Asteroid - Fictional piece (Flattering if this was it but I think not)
Get Out The Kilt and The Bagpipes (Perhaps there's a lot of celts in the blogosphere)
Harry Potter (I think we're on to something)
Terrorism In The Church (Well not much new there)
Ted The Titan Is Losing His Erection (Not a porn piece but it did have the word erection in the title)
Well that settles it next time I need a few hits it will have to be an entry on "Harry Potter's Erection"
I don’t know how anyone can accuse George W Bush of being a simpleton and a puppet of a right wing oligarchy. I mean who could accuse him when he makes such profound statements as
"There's an old saying in Tennessee — I know it's in Texas, probably in Tennessee — that says, fool me once, shame on — shame on you. Fool me — you can't get fooled again." —George W. Bush, Nashville, Tenn., Sept. 17, 2002
or
"I'm also not very analytical. You know I don't spend a lot of time thinking about myself, about why I do things." ——George W. Bush, aboard Air Force One, June 4, 2003
You can find more of his deeper thoughts go to Bushisms here
For those of you that want to pretend that you are a right-wing oligarchy controlling bush, you can make him dance at Dancing Bush
In the last five years there has been 17 gangland murders in Melbourne. Not one of them has been solved.
Are the police simply not interested in these crimes?
I suppose it could be argued that
1. Some of the perpetrators of the earlier ones were victims of the later ones,
2. The overall effect is less hard core criminals in Melbourne.
3. Live by the sword, die by the sword.
However, with the most recent killings, we have seen an escalation of the level of violence and it is time that it was taken seriously. One can only hope that the new taskforce established to investigate underworld killings will display a bit for focus and enthusiasm than has been displayed in the past.
In his book "How We Eat: Appetite, Culture and the Psychology of Food," Leon Rappoport of Kansas State University finds that the food and drink we choose reflects our social class, comparing preference for Martini to a Rum & Coke. Surely he can't be referring to Bundaberg Rum. I mean, I can understand Bacardi perhaps but not Bundaberg. Still he is from the US they have funny new fangled tastes over there.
Anyway, culture shock aside, he makes an interesting observation on how our view of a desirable body shape has changed over time. He says
As societies change, the foods that people eat and the body images they associate with status also evolve. ... in the 19th century, the working class typically performed physical labor, so the function of food was to fuel the body. Thus, a body we would now consider overweight was considered desirable because it was associated with prosperity, success and the sedentary lifestyle of the upper class.
I've got the overweight, how do I get the success and the sedentary lifestyle of the upperclass?
With the chimpanzee moving into the genus Homo (that's not a gay person for those non-scientist out there) talk of setting up a cross species co-operation committee has been rife.
Michael Pilarski, not content with keeping within our own genus, or even the real world for that matter, convened the Fairy & Human Relations Congress which will be holding it's 3rd annual convention on June 27-29, 2003 at the Skalitude Retreat Centre. The main theme of the conference will Fairy and Deva communication.
Call me old fashioned but I always thought it was spelt "Faerie", surely it's important to get the spelling correct when we are talking good relations.
Patrick R. Michaud reports on the flame thrower like properties of strawberry poptarts when they do not eject from a toaster. A particularly nasty little urban warfare weapon I say.
Click the image for the full article.
And to think this has been on the net since August 1994. One has to put boundaries on this free speech thing.
Is your life lacking excitement? Are you looking for a fast paced web site to get the adrenaline pumping? Well look no further than the Iowa Farmer Today's corncam. Hold onto your seats for a thrill packed ride as you watch this field of corn grow right before your eyes.
(via j-walk)
The issue of sexual harrassment in the workplace is complicated by the fact that men and women view the issue of what constitutes sexual harrassment differently. The Journal of Applied Psychology reports on meta-analysis of research into gender differences sexual harrassment perceptions.
The analysis found that in areas of "gross" sexual harrassment there was no significant difference in perception between genders; however in areas that were more subtle, such as where the perpetrator has no authority over the victim and the alleged harrassment was not of a personal nature, men and women exhibited significant differences in what they considered harrassing. Put simply, some behaviours that men considered "harmless social interaction", women considered "harrassing".
Clearly there is a role for education in the workplace for men in the nature of what women consider harrassing and this has been embarked on with vigour over the last few years. Something that has not taken place, to my knowledge, is education programs for women, to help them understand and correctly interpret male behaviour. Many situations of conflict may be defused if the woman understood that the man was not intending to harrass but was simply interacting in a way that was acceptable a male perspective.
Tattoos are forever, well almost, so when you get one it needs to be both meaningful and of good quality.
Sadly tattoo artists have to learn like everyone else. Here is a site dedicated to some of the art of tattoos less glorious accomplishments.
These poor people have to live with these!
The Black Death or Bubonic Plague swept through England and Europe from 1347 to 1350. By the time it was finished one third of Europe's population was dead, 25 million people. It was one of the worst disasters in human history.
Let's take a step or two back. At this time in history witches were viewed with suspicion and fear. The cat was considered to be the witches "familiar", the witches companion, and the disciple of the devil. Accordingly during this period cats also viewed with suspicion and killed. By the late 1300's the cat was almost extinct in Europe.
Cat's through out the ages have proved very efficient in rodent control in farm and domestic environments and so with the extinction of the cat the rodent population in Europe flourished. The rat carried, you guessed it, the bacteria for the Black Death in its blood. On its journey it had a companion, the Oriental Rat Flea (Xenopsylla cheopis) which drank infected blood from the rat. Transferring to a human host the flea regurgitated bacteria that had been developing in its gut into its new human host when it bit them.
Through fear, and subsequent elimination, of the Witches Familiar the people of Europe indirectly created the ideal environment for the spread of the Black Death and nearly caused their own demise.
One of the most famous witch trials was conducted in Salem in the US from June to September 1692. In all 19 women and men were convicted of witchcraft and hanged for their crime.
In the previous post I referred to the practice of blaming witches for unexplained misfortunes that befell a community, Salem is a perfect example of this.
It is now believed that the crop of rye cultivated that year was infected by a fungus called Claviceps purpurea. One of the products of this fungus is a drug called ergot. When ingested in sufficient quantities ergot produces two possible effects
1. Nervous disorders such as convulsions, wrything and tremors.
2. Gangreen where victims loose fingers, toes and even limbs
The drug of choice in the 60s LSD is from this family of alkaloids.
The conditions for the spread of Claviceps purpurea were excellent in Salem that year and one by one young girls in the village fell in a state where they were rything and hallucinating. Symptoms very like those attributed to ergot. The village began to panic. Clearly some dark force was possessing the girls of the town.
A first a black slave from the West Indies was accused of practicing voodoo. Later two girls mischievously accused accused a woman they did not like of being a witch.
By the time the witchhunt ended, nineteen convicted witches were executed at least four accused witches had died in prison, and one man, Giles Corey, had been pressed to death. About one to two hundred other persons were arrested and imprisoned on witchcraft charges. Two dogs were executed as suspected accomplices of witches.
It is perhaps an auspicious day, given the release of the new Harry Potter book, to have a look at the phenonemon of witches and the persecution of women in the middle ages (1100 - 1700). Estimates of the number of people executed vary quite considerably however 300,000 seems to be a realistic figure. Of this 85% were women.
So who were the women that were hung or burnt at the stake for practicing witchcraft? Predominately they were midwives and healers, although in the period of most fervent persecution (1500-1700) it was not uncommon for every woman in a village to be executed.
The persecution of women for the practice of witchcraft was controlled by a manual on the identification of witches called Malleus Malleficarum which was published by University of Cologne on May 9th, 1487. It states "No one does more harm to the Catholic faith than midwives".
So did witches actually exist? I think it is quite clear that they did and that today we would call them health care professionals. As indicated earlier some were midwives and some made potions for the sick, an example being the extraction of pain killing drugs from the bark of willow. In some cases their execution was a very final version of the medical malpractice law suits that occur today.
So why did the church have such a problem with witches? It didn't really, although it did have a big problem with paganism. When the Inquisition was created in the 13th century, several inquisitors requested permission to try Witches. Pope Alexander IV pointed out to inquisitors that there was nothing heretical about Witchcraft. It was not a religious crime, therefore it was not the Inquisition's business. He said that the Church would not assume, ipso facto, that a Witch was a Pagan. In fact only about 1% of the witches executed were executed by the church.
The problem was that scientific knowledge was so limited that events, such as a fungal disease in a crop, were not explainable. The tendancy was to blame witches for any unexplainable misfortune that befell a community. Thus the persecution of witches was carried out mostly by the lay community not the church itself.
The Australia Institute reports that, despite being 3 times as wealthy as in the 1950s, Australians are suffering unprecedented levels of mental illness. Over one quarter of Australians rely on drugs or alcohol to cope with life today.
I have this embrionic theory, not original probably, that, above a very low base, your level of happiness is inversely proportional to your wealth. That is the wealthier you are the less happy you are.
Perhaps it is time to invest in your emotional future and not your financial future.
As men, all of us get angry from time to time. It is a natural human emotion and we are deluding ourselves if we try and pretend that we don't experience it.
The mark of a man is not in whether he gets angry or not but in how he chooses to behave when he gets angry. The important concept here is the concept of choice. You cannot control your life so completely that you can prevent yourself from getting angry. You can however choose how to respond to that anger.
Cast your mind back to when you were angry and what you chose to do. It is a rare man who can look back and not feel embarrassment at some of his behaviour when angry. Spend some time thinking on how it reflected on you as a person. If you were violent, either physically or psychologically, do you think that made others think what a mature man you were? Probably it made them initially scared and ultimately made you look like a little boy throwing a tantrum.
There are ways of handling anger that are mature and responsible. Find someone who you trust and talk to them about how angry you feel. Get it off your chest and move on. Too many men waste the greater part of their adult lives being angry. You can choose not to take that path.
Now is the time to prepare yourself. Think to yourself "The next time I am feeling angry I will choose the mature path"
Well only just. The story is complete garbage of course however the science underlying the machine that supposedly triggers the change in Bruce Banner, a Gamma Sphere, is real science.
The Gamma Sphere is in Berkeley University's low-energy nuclear physics lab. Here is an image of the real Gamma Sphere.
It actually detects Gamma rays and doesn't emit them but that is a small obstacle for Sci-Fi writers. Below is an image from the film where Bruce seems particularly upset with his Gamma Sphere.
You can find out more about Gamma Spheres in this article in Nature
He had arrived at the asteroid alone. The darkness here was far more complete than anything that he had experienced on earth. He would have said that it had an oppressiveness, a malignancy but that was human nonsense. It was a merely a complete vacuum, a vacuum that was cold, dark, alien. His co-occupant of the asteroid arrived later that day.
How long did they sit huddled here together, one minute, one hour, one day? "Yes", and "No", to all of them. Days and hours and minutes marked the rotation of a distant planet that had no relevance here. They did not even know if that planet still existed.
His companion switched on a torch. Eyes at full dilation were instantly blinded by the meagre light source and attempts to shield their eyes were made ineffective by the convex face shields of their helmets.
As their eyes adjusted to the light they stood and turned to face each other, the reflecting face panels providing each man with only the distorted view of his own helmet where the other’s face should have been. Here was the greatest of all ironies. They may be the last two human beings. In fact, if the current state of the search for extra terrestrial life was to be believed, they might be the last two living things, if one excludes bacteria they were carrying and will die with them.
The last two living things and they could not see each other. They will die here together, each not knowing what the other looked like. Was this a malicious god playing his final card? That card that proved his existence by the display of his knowledge of man’s greatest need and hence his greatest weakness; the need, in the last minutes of your life, for human companionship; to be able to see a face, to feel a touch.
The light from the torch was slowly fading and their eyes dilating, it could have been because of the darkness or because of the fear. Huddling down, they clutched each other, but they could feel nothing through their suits.
Thought you had surplanted us did you, you Anglo-Saxon pig-dogs (Go and boil your bottoms, son of a silly person. I blow my nose on you, so-called Arthur-king, you and your silly English kiniggets. - Monty Python and the Holy Grail)
It seems that the Celts were not driven from southern England as has long been believed.
Analysis of Y-chromosome data by scientists at University College London and reported in the journal Nature finds that "The Celts weren't pushed to the fringes of Scotland and Wales; a lot of them remained in England and central Ireland,"
It seems that rather than fleeing in response to the invasion of the Anglo-Saxons many Celts choose to stay and integrate.
Ooooh the excitement is building, only two more sleeps till the release of the new book. Well it is for those of us that think it is well written teenage fiction and not the work of the devil.
I have my copy on order, even though it is so long since I was a teenager that it is embarrassing. But for those who can't wait here is an interesting competition being run by the Guardian to guess the next few lines following the few that we already know, which are:
"The hottest day of the summer so far was drawing to a close and a drowsy silence lay over the large, square houses of Privet Drive... The only person left outside was a teenage boy who was lying flat on his back in a flowerbed outside number four."
In the domain of unusual church practices Signposts talks of Christian paintball and prayer/walk run. South Knox Bubba guzumpts them with his entry on on the Forest Hill Baptist Church staging a "terrorist-like" kidnapping of some of their teenage members to, as I understand it, give them an empathy with the suffering and persecution experienced by early Christians. Needless to say the emotional abuse, as well as some physical abuse, severly tramatised some of these teenagers.
Here is their justification: the church "is committed to helping the youth develop a close-knit relationship with Jesus Christ and to one another. To this end, the youth participate in endeavors that cultivate spiritual maturity, which will help prepare them for the adult world." Some preparation if you ask me.
No this is not a porn related entry! Ted the Titan is actually a Titan Arum (Amorphophallus titanum) and he has been flowering for the last week at the University of California Davis campus.
Here is a picture of him in fully erect state
At 43 inches he was somewhat smaller than usual, the record of 9 feet being held by his relation in Bonn, Germany. "We may not have had the largest flower, but we're the longest lasting," said conservatory curator Ernesto Sandoval.
Apart from their size the flowers are distinguished by their aroma of putrid rotting flesh, used to attract flies to pollinate them.
And don't go thinking this allusion to the male genital organ is my idea. His name means large shapeless penis after all. Read more about Ted here
The BBC report primitive cave art found on stone walls at Creswell Crags, Derbyshire.
"This is an example of an extremely primitive mind a work" they said "Unfortunately it was done in the 1940's"
Underneath however was much more advanced art work produced around 12,000 years ago.
Fancy yourself as an artist but find the "grand canvas" a little daunting. Here is the site for you. The Post-It Note Gallery is running a competition for art work submitted on a 3"x3" Post-It note. (via J-Walk)
Check it out to see the current entries. I'll be posting mine shortly, well I have to draw it first!
I've often wondered about these late night bloggers, what keeps them on-line? Well it may the the computer monitor.
The American Pysiological Society report that looking at bright computer monitors late at night suppresses the nocturnal changes in melatonin concentration and other elements of our biological clocks. Thus interfering with sleep-wakefulness cycle and contributing to insomnia.
Blogs with black backgrounds presumeably produce a much reduced effect. So it is not the contents of the Signposts blog that is putting their readers to sleep after all.
The US has taken the first place in the percentage of its population that it has imprisoned reports the Charlston. The title that used to be held comfortably by Russia has been relinquished through a combination of increasing rates of imprisonment in the US and some large scale amnesties to ease overcrowding in the disease-infested prisons in Russia.
At 702 prisoners per 100,000 population (2,019,234 prisoners) the US easily beats Russia with 665.
According to the Australian Institute of Criminology, Australia has an imprisonment rate of approx. 139 per 100,000 having risen from 90 over the previous 15 years. The major contribution to this growth has been in the Northern Territory with 475, possibly due to the mandatory imprisonment enforced for some minor crimes there.
So Simon Crean has been reelected by the Caucus as leader of the Australian opposition with an overwhelming majority. Let's look at the facts
He became leader when Beasley resigned with no opposition now he has "decisively won the position"
In what was described as a "dirty campaign". Crean said he was the only one of the two that had policies and Beasley largely let him get away with it, even though the policies are the product of the Caucus not the leader.
Crean was having a great deal of difficulty getting his face on the Australian media. During this period he has been all over it.
When he won there was only some raps on the knuckles for Beasley supporters, not wholesale blood letting that is typical of the ALP.
ALP/ACTU are pushing the line that it shows what a magnificent leader and statesman Crean is.
I'm sure it is far to cynical to think that this whole thing was a magnificent piece of spin to recast Crean from "rabid pitbull" to alternative Prime Minister.
It's about time that the ubiquitous Barbie caught up with modern society. Here is tatoo artist barbie.
Click on the image about to see more of these interesting barbies that are definitely not from Mattel (via J-Walk)
p.s. I was going to put up the Latex Fetish Barbie (snigger, snigger)
A new report is available from the Society for Women's Health Research on sex differences in cardiovascular disease. Interesting, I don't recall a Society For Men's Health Research.
Quite naturally, given who they are, the report focuses on cardio-vascular disease in women which is a serious problem that needs to be addressed. Oh that men had such research devoted to the male specific aspects of the disease.
So that you can get it into perspective here are mortality rates for Australia and US.
Men |
Women |
|
210 |
139 |
|
406 |
268 |
In summary cardiovascular mortality is 151% greater in men than women. I don't think it is too much to ask for some research dollars and attention here.
Here is a chart compiled by Mike Harding charting the prevalence of Green Man images throught the ages.
He says "as you might expect the great periods of expansion in church building saw the flowering of the Green Man as an icon in Christian churches"
You can find more of his reseach here.
Last month the Allied troops in Iraq discovered two tractor-trailers (we'd call them semi-trailers) that were allegedly capable for production of biological weapons. What did people say?
Ari Fleischer "they have been caught red handed."
Tony Blair "People are asking for proof, well we have proof"
Iraqi scientists "They are facilities for the production of hydrogen gas to fill balloons"
Guess who was telling the truth. The Observer reports "An official British investigation into two trailers found in northern Iraq has concluded they are not mobile germ warfare labs, as was claimed by Tony Blair and President George Bush, but were for the production of hydrogen to fill artillery balloons, as the Iraqis have continued to insist. "
We all know the basic objective of a drinking game and sobriety doesn't feature largely in this objective. It is not at all good for you so if you are going to indulge it needs to be justified.
For those of you somewhat "shocked and awed" by the current behaviour of the US president here is a drinking game just for you
At the end of it you will either be pleasantly surprised by the Presidents new compassionate and moderate approach or you will be too drunk to care.
Three people were injured trying to recapture a bull as it rampaged through parliament builings. The owners had intended to slaughter it outside the parliament as a protest at land confiscation but it escaped and entered the building.
It happened in Yemen not Canberra but I just can't shake the mental image of John Howard high-tailing it around the chamber with a bull in hot pursuit. Ah the small things that brighten a Monday morning.
Have a look at the crowd scene in this front cover from the Evening Standard in UK.
Looks impressive doesn't it. That large crowd all cheering on the allies. The only problem is that it is two or three pictures of a smaller crowd all cobbled together to make the crowd seem much more impressive than it really is.
See if you can spot some of the duplications for yourself. For example there is a man in a white shirt in the middle distance that appears on both the left and right hand sides of the photo.
A full analysis of the duplications can be found here.
Here is a site that will satisfy your desire.
It is an opportunity to see how your preferences in a collection of tough choices rate against the crowd and I must say some are pretty tough choices.
The US Office of Naval Research (of all people) reports that they are prototyping a method for recreating bones that have been destroyed through accident or disease.
The method involves creating a 3D image of the reciprical bone in the other limb using MRI (magnetic resonance imaging).
This is then used to generate a micro-porous calcium phosphate coated polymer 'bone' which can be implanted in the damaged limb. The calcium coating allows bone cells to bind to the graft, which takes about 8 weeks.
Previously limbs this badly damaged usually required amputation.
Here's an important tip. If you are going to photograph an reflecting item for sale on eBay put some clothes on first.
Jospeh Campbell in his definitive book "The Hero with a Thousand Faces" defines a basic hero myth that has been repeated through the eons in countless variations. Basing his work on the theories of Carl Jung he proposes that stories that conform to the basic structures of this myth are inherently appealling to us. The theory was embraced by Hollywood script writers and as you read the elements of the myth below several movies will no doubt spring to mind. Not all elements exist in all scripts but you will begin to recognise the pattern.
It is also interesting to observe how elements of the myth are used by the political spin doctors to make our politians appealling at more fundamental level in our pysche.
It is interesting to try and apply these stages to the great hero stories of our time, Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter etc.
| The Call | The hero seems to be a normal person leading an ordinary life, although they may have some extraordinary aspect to their lives, such as a particularly impoverished upbringing, they may be orphaned. Something happens in their life that can be described as "a call to a heroic life" |
| The Hero' s Hesitation | In order to accept the challenge implicit in the call the hero must forsake their ordinary life. Understandably they are reluctant to abandon all that they currently hold dear. |
| Supernatural Aid | In order to overcome this natural hesitation, our hero in the making receives assistance from an older and wiser person, often a devine being such as a god, wizard or fearie. |
| The Belly of the Whale | This section of the story involves the transition from the ordinary person into a powerful hero like being. In an obvious allusion to the story of Jonah and the Whale, our protagonist is dies as a normal boy/girl and is reborn as a new powerful person.. |
| The Journey | Having found the courage and power they commence the great journey that is required of them. They successfully undertake the journey, facing and successfully completing many challenges along the way. This frequently represents the greater part of story. |
| Atonement with the Father | The undertaking of the journey requires breaking of bonds with the past. As part of this process the hero comes to see his/her father (or a father figure) as a fallible human being. Through enlightenment acquired on the journey the hero come to understand and atone with the father figure. |
| The Meeting with the Goddess | Part of becoming a separate human being requires separating from the mother figure from your childhood. In the hero myth this is represented as a goddess like figure who will try to turn the hero from his path. This figure may attempt this through either menace or seduction. The hero must get past this figure. |
| Apotheosis | Apotheosis means "to become a god," which, in effect, is what the hero does by mastering the challenges placed before him. Part of this process is, in some respects, to surpass those that have assisted him on his journey. |
| Master of Two Worlds | The hero is master now, both of his/her original world and the one he has conquered on his journey. . |
| The Return | The quest completed the hero now choses to return to the world that he/she originally left. The journey is often long and arduous. He/she beings back treasures, either real or esoteric, such as wisdom. On return he/she finds that the world they left is essentially unchanged and that the ordinary people in the story can neither understand or empathise with the hero. Generally, they are solitary because they are now apart from those who surround them. |
Ever wondered how safe your country was compared to the rest of the world.
Click on the "Continue Reading" below for a table of murder rates per 100,000 for each country. Some of the data is a bit old but it makes for interesting reading just the same.
| Country | Year | Population |
Total Homicide |
Firearm Homicide |
Non-Gun Homicide |
% Households With Guns |
| South Africa | 1995 | 41,465,000 |
75.30 |
26.60 |
48.70 |
n/a |
| Colombia | 1996 | 37,500,000 |
64.60 |
50.60 |
14.00 |
n/a |
| Estonia | 1994 | 1,499,257 |
28.21 |
8.07 |
20.14 |
n/a |
| Brazil | 1993 | 160,737,000 |
19.04 |
10.58 |
8.46 |
n/a |
| Mexico | 1994 | 90,011,259 |
17.58 |
9.88 |
7.70 |
n/a |
| Philippines | 1996 | 72,000,000 |
16.20 |
3.50 |
12.70 |
n/a |
| Taiwan1 | 1996 | 21,979,444 |
8.12 |
0.97 |
7.15 |
n/a |
| N. Ireland | 1994 | 1,641,711 |
6.09 |
5.24 |
0.85 |
8.4 |
| United States2 | 1999 | 272,691,000 |
5.70 |
3.72 |
1.98 |
39.0 |
| Argentina | 1994 | 34,179,000 |
4.51 |
2.11 |
2.40 |
n/a |
| Hungary | 1994 | 10,245,677 |
3.53 |
0.23 |
3.30 |
n/a |
| Finland3 | 1994 | 5,088,333 |
3.24 |
0.86 |
2.38 |
23.2 |
| Portugal | 1994 | 5,138,600 |
2.98 |
1.28 |
1.70 |
n/a |
| Mauritius | 1993 | 1,062,810 |
2.35 |
0 |
2.35 |
n/a |
| Israel | 1993 | 5,261,700 |
2.32 |
0.72 |
1.60 |
n/a |
| Italy | 1992 | 56,764,854 |
2.25 |
1.66 |
0.59 |
16.0 |
| Scotland | 1994 | 5,132,400 |
2.24 |
0.19 |
2.05 |
4.7 |
| Canada | 1992 | 28,120,065 |
2.16 |
0.76 |
1.40 |
29.1 |
| Slovenia | 1994 | 1,989,477 |
2.01 |
0.35 |
1.66 |
n/a |
| Australia | 1994 | 17,838,401 |
1.86 |
0.44 |
1.42 |
19.4 |
| Singapore | 1994 | 2,930,200 |
1.71 |
0.07 |
1.64 |
n/a |
| South Korea | 1994 | 44,453,179 |
1.62 |
0.04 |
1.58 |
n/a |
| New Zealand | 1993 | 3,458,850 |
1.47 |
0.17 |
1.30 |
22.3 |
| Belgium | 1990 | 9,967,387 |
1.41 |
0.60 |
0.81 |
16.6 |
| England/Wales4 | 1997 | 51,429,000 |
1.41 |
0.11 |
1.30 |
4.7 |
| Switzerland5 | 1994 | 7,021,000 |
1.32 |
0.58 |
0.74 |
27.2 |
| Sweden | 1993 | 8,718,571 |
1.30 |
0.18 |
1.12 |
15.1 |
| Denmark | 1993 | 5,189,378 |
1.21 |
0.23 |
0.98 |
n/a |
| Austria | 1994 | 8,029,717 |
1.17 |
0.42 |
0.75 |
n/a |
| Germany6 | 1994 | 81,338,093 |
1.17 |
0.22 |
0.95 |
8.9 |
| Greece | 1994 | 10,426,289 |
1.14 |
0.59 |
0.55 |
n/a |
| France | 1994 | 57,915,450 |
1.12 |
0.44 |
0.68 |
22.6 |
| Netherlands | 1994 | 15,382,830 |
1.11 |
0.36 |
0.75 |
1.9 |
| Kuwait | 1995 | 1,684,529 |
1.01 |
0.36 |
0.65 |
n/a |
| Norway | 1993 | 4,324,815 |
0.97 |
0.30 |
0.67 |
32.0 |
| Spain | 1993 | 39,086,079 |
0.95 |
0.21 |
0.74 |
13.1 |
| Japan | 1994 | 124,069,000 |
0.62 |
0.02 |
0.60 |
n/a |
| Ireland | 1991 | 3,525,719 |
0.62 |
0.03 |
0.59 |
n/a |
| Country | Year | Population |
Total Homicide |
Firearm Homicide |
Non-Gun Homicide |
% Households With Guns |
Notes:
Population: As of April 1999, Government Information Office, Taiwan.
Gun Homicides: Central News Agency, Taipei, November 23, 1997.
Population: 52.2 million in mid-1997, Office for National Statistics Monitor, press release.
Percent households with guns excludes East Germany.
National Drinking Water Week was May 4-10, 2003.
Bugger, missed it. Never mind I'll be sure to drink some water next year.
Unversity of California Santa Cruz has released the first public browser for the human genome. Just pick the chromosome of interest and choose a section and away you go. Click here to try it out.
Yes, I know it's not that spectacular but think of it in terms of the "Dancing Bear" analogy. "It is not how well the bear dances that is a marvel but that it can dance."
And please no comments on the treatment of bears. I know it has been, and is, appalling. Please put your money where you mouth is and support the "Free The Bears" fund.
Last February, a 17 year old stole the keys to a car belonging to his mothers friend and took the car for a spin. Unfortunately for him, he encountered a booze bus. Panicing he did a U-turn and spead off. Quite naturally a police car took up the pursuit.
Being unlicenced, extremely inexperienced and in a panic he ran across the road, whilst looking over his shoulder for the police car, and into an oncoming vehicle, killing the driver.
Today he was sentenced in the County Court to 3 years in a youth training centre. You may think that it is hard to find anything positive in this story but there is.
The parents of the young woman who was killed in this unfortunate accident were in court to hear the verdict. Outside the court the father was asked for comments on the sentence, he said his family had forgiven the boy and prayed that he would get a light sentence. "He's only a young fellow" the father said.
Here is a man showing maturity and genuine compassion for a fellow human being. If only we had more men of this calibre in our society.
One problem facing many men in Australia today is anger management.
In a society that trains its boys to display/acknowledge few emotions we create men who live in emotional black and white. They only recognise two emotions "happy" and "angry". The way to handle fear, disappointment, saddness, grief, stress etc is to get angry. Not only is this disfunctional but it is also very bad for your wellbeing.
John Hopkins Medical Institutions has found that men who are quick to anger when confronted with stress were five times more likely to have an early heart attack even when there is no family history of it.
So here is a good medical reason to seek assistance. Here is a better reason, you are wasting your life being angry. You are isolating yourself from your family and friends. It is time to "look after number 1" and address this problem for your own sake. Here is a place to start (if you are in Australia) ring Mensline Australia on 1300 78 99 78 and talk to someone who cares about how you feel and can help you.
Ever thought the drive to the local McDonalds was just too far and wanted to recreate that distinctive fatty overcooked and overwarmed texture and flavour at home. Well now you can!
Click here for a complete set of McDonalds original recipes. Page 5 gives you the traditional McDonalds Hamburger in all its glory, or should that be ignominity.
In deference to Signposts who are always interested in matters tasteful with regards Christianity, here is a link to site selling Christian gifts that are anything but.
My personal favourite was the nodding head Jesus for the car.
Sir Gawain And The Green Knight is one of the most important alliterative poems of Medieval literature. The Green Knight in question is actually the Green Man from mythology. Originating in the north-west midlands, it dates from the second half of the 14th century.
Gawain and other knights are in attendance at Arthur's court on New Year's Day. Arthur, as is his custom, refuses to eat until he has seen some marvel. A mysterious green knight appears and issues a challenge: One man may strike him one blow with an axe. If he survives, he will expect the knight who struck the blow to afford him the same chance in a year's time. Gawain takes up the challenge and beheads the man. The man grabs his head, laughs, and tells Gawain to fulfill his part of the bargain. The Green Knight leaves the axe as a memento and a sharp reminder of Gawain's promise: He must go to the Green Chapel in a year and a receive a blow just like the one he gave the Green Knight.
Not to be thought cowardly or vulnerable, Gawain agrees.
Fast forward to the following December:
Gawain reaches a splendid castle (as if by chance) at Christmas; he is entertained for a few days by the castle lord, his ravishing wife, and a mysterious black-shrouded older woman. The host tells Gawain that the Green Chapel is just around the corner and further invites him to stay the last three days of the year in the castle. Ever gracious, Gawain accepts.
The castle lord proposes a game: He and Gawain will each share with the other what they have gained at the end of a day. For the lord, this is game that he has hunted and killed; for Gawain, it is kisses that he has received from the lord's lady, who has tried to seduce him while her lord is away. She also gives him a talisman-laden green girdle, which he does not give up.
The next day, the first of the new year, Gawain and a guide from the castle set out for the Green Chapel. The guide tries to dissuade Gawain from fulfilling his part of the bargain by boasting of the Green Knight's fearsome deeds, but Gawain will not be swayed.
At the Green Chapel, the Green Knight appears and swings the axe three times: The first two are feints, and the third nicks Gawain slightly on the neck. The Green Knight then explains that he was Sir Bertilak, the lord of the castle where Gawain had stayed, and that he had deliberately set his wife to tempt Gawain and that the third knick was for the green girdle, which Gawain had not revealed. The Green Knight further reveals that the black-shrouded older woman at the castle was Morgan Le Fay, whose idea the whole challenge was. She, it seems, was trying to stir up trouble.
Sir Gawain triumphs not through his bravery, but his morality. This is somewhat ironic because Gawain was usually depicted as a womaniser!
According to the Observer, up to 3,000 Iraqis, including civialians are being held in conditions that are questionable under international law.
Reports leaked have indicated that they are being gagged, bound, hooded and beaten at US camps close to Baghdad airport. Requests by the International Red Cross for access to the camps have been denied and/or ignored.
Unlike Guantanamo Bay prisoners, the status of these prisoners is clear, they are POW's, and civilians held for civil crimes, and are entitled to rights granted under the Geneva Convention.
Is this another case of "ends justifying the means" approach to human rights and dignity?
Tasmanian woodchippers burning off have inadvertently killed the largest hardwood tree in the world.
The 350-year-old eucalyptus regnans, at 79-metre (260ft), was the largest hardwood tree in the world. It was accidentally 'cooked to death' when a fire started by woodchippers raged out of control.
This story was reported in the Observer in London on June 1st. Clearly it wasn't newsworthy in mainland Australia. We just don't care do we..
Remember that happiness is a method of travel, not a destination.
~ Roy Goodman ~
It appears that men participating in the housework has a positive effect on children, making them better adjusted and more socially aware. This is, in part, because of the social equity of the participation but also because it gives children more opportunity to interact with their father, something that is sorely missing in industrialised societies.
And if that wasn't reason enough, it also makes men more sexually attractive to their partners.
That's it, I sacking the housekeeper.
Nicole Gilbert of Mt Holyoak college found that men received fewer gifts and less attention on Fathers Day than women received on Mothers Day but were happier with what they got.
Why is Dad happier? Gilbert suggests three possible reasons:
Many fathers say that simply having time with their families is valuable and a change from the routine.
Fathers have fewer expectations. Unlike Mother's Day, which tends to be highly scripted around the woman's value as parent and nurturer, Father's Day is more loosely structured.
Research indicates that men are not defined by their role as fathers, while women are defined by their role as mothers. Therefore, recognizing their contributions as parents is not as crucial to their self-identity as it is for women.
Here is an interesting collection of quotations from the powers that be on Saddam's WMD.
It is interesting how the language has changed from prewar to now.
The federation of American Scientists report the US Army admitted to manufacturing weaponized anthrax in small quantities for defensive purposes. The anthrax was produced in a dry form and had a high concentration and small particle size. These traits increased its lethality considerably. This production of weaponized anthrax is also questionable under the BWC, which prohibits prohibits the possession of biological agents "of types and in quantities that have no justification for prophylactic, protective or other peaceful purposes."
BWC - Biological Weapons Convention, which was ratified by the US President on January 22nd, 1975.
It is now the 10th of the month and I suspect many of you may still not have taken the time to aquiant yourself with the fungus of the month, as published by mycologist and all round nice guy - Tom Volk.
Junes fungus is the "dog turd" fungus, Pisolithus tinctorius. You can find out more about this fine mycological specimen by clicking on the photo of it below.
The Observer reports
Number 10 officials now admit that the second dossier, which was largely culled from a 13-year-old thesis by a Californian PhD student, is damaging the Government's case for war against Iraq.
The dossier was published last February to coincide with Blair's 'war summit' with President George Bush in Washington. A week later it was revealed to be a mish-mash of intelligence reports, student work and publicly available briefings by Jane's Intelligence Review . None of the document acknowledged the sources, leaving the impression that it was all based on fresh intelligence.
I'm thinking "Wasn't Saddam Hussien bad enough that we could have come up with some real evidence to attempt to justify the war without fabricating it?"
If you have a picture of yourself in modelling your latest toilet paper creation you can submit it here and join similarly minded net surfers.
If you consider the whole thing totally ludicrous, well, click here to have a look anyway.
We have a serious problem in our society. How does a boy know when he has become a man. It may seem a rather unimportant issue on the surface but it underlies a number of problems that we have in our society today that rise from young men engaging reckless, dangerous or illegal activities to "prove themselves".
In primitive cultures initiation rites were a distinct turning point in a boys life during which he took the transition from boyhood to manhood. We have some lesser versions of this in our society, for example turning 18, but young men are looking for more definitive proof that they are now men. Unless we give them something then they will continue to create "tests" for themselves.
If you are a father of a adolescent boy, it might be time to consider some symbolic gesture to mark his transition into manhood. When my son turned 16 I told him that, since he was born, I had been planning a grand adventure for the two of us when he grew up. Later that year we headed off trecking in the Himalayas together. I was telling him that he was now grown up and we could do adventurous things together.
Those people who are kind enough to put up with my creative writing in person, rather than over the net, had the additional benefit of a Lumberjack Cake at our last meeting, which was rather nice, even if I say so myself. For those of you who only see my writing via the net, you may drool into your keyboards. Here is a photo
Accordingly requests were made for the recipe, so here it is.
In the comments on the previous post Niall raises the issue of the comet hypothesised to have hit the earth 65 million years ago. It looks like we wont have to wait long for the next one.
Geophysical Journal International report that the asteroid known as 1950 DA is due to collide with the earth, crashing into the Atlantic Ocean causing a massive tsunami on March 16, 2880.
Just a little something for my great great great great great great great great great great great great great great great great great great great great great great great grandchildren to worry about.
Well we once were. Standford University, using DNA to trace the movement of the human race estimate that, at one time, there was as few as 2000 humans.
This accounts for the minimal genetic diversity amongst humans as compared to other non-domesticated mammals.
Today science would class that as a species on the verge of extinction.
Makes you wonder. At the toss of a hypothetical coin 70,000 years ago the human species would become extinct or go on to dominate the earth.
Miss Dominican Republic Amelia Vega, an 18-year-old high school student, has won the Miss Universe 2003 title sparking concerns of species bias. A spokesbeing for the Intragalactic Council for Equal Exploitation said "It is disgraceful. We didn't even have one other carbon-based species represented in the competition, let alone an alien! Personally, I was outraged when sheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeek the dolphin was excluded on technical grounds."
Representations are being made to hold future competitions on a planet other than earth in an effort to minimise this bias in future competitions. "Personally, " said the ICEE representative "I think it is good for the competition to take a more galatic approach. This earth centric attitude will continue to cause us problems as long as we persist in holding the competitions on Earth."
I didn't know the word misericord, from the riddle below. Here is an explanation of the word and some of it's history from www.dictionary.com, fascinating:
1. Relaxation of monastic rules, as a dispensation from fasting.
2. The room in a monastery used by monks who have been granted such a dispensation.
3. A bracket attached to the underside of a hinged seat in a church stall against which a standing person may lean. Also called miserere.
4. A narrow dagger used in medieval times to deliver the death stroke to a seriously wounded knight.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Word History: A dagger, a support for someone who is standing, and a special monastic apartment share the same name because, oddly enough, they are all examples of mercy. The word misericord goes back to Latin misericordia, “mercy,” ... which is in turn derived from miserr, “to pity,” and cor, “heart.” In Medieval Latin the word misericordia denoted various merciful things, and these senses were borrowed into English. Misericordia referred to an apartment in a monastery where certain relaxations of the monastic rule were allowed, especially those involving food and drink. The word also designated a projection on the underside of a hinged seat in a choir stall against which a standing person could lean, no doubt a merciful thing during long services. Finally, misericordia was used for a dagger with which the death stroke was administered to a seriously wounded knight.
Danish scientists are adapting face reconition software to develop a robot that can recognise weeds that are growing amongst crops. Early versions of the robot simply report the location of the weeds. Later versions will be able to selectively place a few drops of herbicide on the weed, or possibly pull it out, cutting the use of herbicides in large scale crop production by over 70%.
This is science at it's best. Increasing food production whilst reducing our chemical impact on the environment.
I am born on May Morning - by sticks, bells, and ribbons
I am the sap - in the dark root
I am the dancer - with his six fools
I am the tump - behind the old church
I am the lost soul - under the misericord
I am the oak - against the stars
I am the face - that peers through the leaves
I am the fear - in a child' s mind
I am the demon - on the roof-boss
I am killed in October - and laid on church altars
I am the guiser - on the bright bonfire
I am the old grain - sown with the seed
I am the flame - in the pumpkin ' s grin
I am the spirit - in the kern-baby's bosom
Anonymous
From this piece on the history of The Green Man in Morris Dancing
I stand chastised.
Members of the blogosphere may be tolerant of, what I like to think of as, my creative spelling and grammer.
The writers group to which I belong are not so tolerant. Some have started to read the blog and they are not happy. We met last night and I was in strife. From now on the spell checker will be given a good working.
You're wrong!
University of Pennsylvania reports that if you keep a gun in your house you drastically increase the risk that you will die of gunshot wound.
They state "Wiebe's study found that people with a gun in their home were almost twice as likely to die in a gun-related homicide, and 16 times more likely to use a gun to commit suicide, than people without a gun in their home."
If you own a gun it is time to consider getting rid of it!
The namesake for my blog, The Green Man, appears through much of western Europe, including the UK. His image appears on many buildings and cathedrals. If you are interested in seeing what he looks like this site the documents some of the images to be found in Kent , Canterbury and Devon
Ever wondered how accurate your signature needs to be for it to be accepted by a store.
Here is an interesting, and humorous, experiment undertaken to investigate this very question.
You will be amazed, well at least I was.
In the rainforests of northern Guatemala lies the ruins of the Mayan city of Tikal. We visited these ruins in October last year. When we were planning our trip Guatemala seemed quite exotic and dangerous but it turned out to one of the highlights of the trip for me.
We stayed in a small town called Flores which is about 20kms from Tikal. Flores is a located on a small island connected to the mainland by a causeway. The town occupies the whole island and is a jumble of brightly coloured buildings. We booked into a hotel called the Vista del Lago (Lake View) and secured a 3rd floor room with a balcony for 70 Quetsales ($7) a night. It was about midday when we arrived and we spent the afternoon looking through the shops on the island then walking across the causeway to Santa Elana on the mainland.
Santa Elana was a typical third world town, with muddy streets, questionable electrical wiring clustered like cobwebs on the sides of buildings, cluttered markets of timber and corregated iron running in mazes from the streetfront, both dilapidated buses and undernourished dogs scouring the streets for likely customers.
On the morning of our visit we rose at 4am and caught a bus at 5am to the ruins, arriving at sunrise the tropical rainforest shrouded in mist. At the entrance we hired a guide, almost a necessity here because the site is so spread out and covered in dense vegitation.
For the next 4 hours we were lost in the jungle and the experience. Unlike the Mayan sites in Mexico, which are thoroughly excavated and manicured, Tikal is still predominately lost in jungle. It was easy to transport your self back to the late 19th century when it was discovered, well rediscovered actually. It had been discovered several times before. Each time only to be lost again and reclaimed by the rainforest.
As the morning mist rose these majestic and mysterious constructions revealed themselves. There is something other worldly about standing on a structure constructed thousands of years ago by people whose view of the world was so fundamentally different to ours.
You can find some more photos of Guatemala here and travelogs and photos here.
New Scientist reports that Manchester University has produced a material that mimics the minute hairs found on a geckos feet.
They say "Geckos can climb even the most slippery surface with ease and hang from glass using a single toe. The secret behind this extraordinary climbing skill lies with millions of tiny keratin hairs - called setae - on the surface of each foot. An intermolecular phenomenon known as van der Waals force is exerted by each of these hairs. Although the force is individually miniscule, the millions of hairs collectively produce a powerful adhesive effect"
Covering one hand with the material is enough to allow a person to stick to the cieling. It is removed by slowly peeling from one side.
Now this has really got my imagination working overtime.
Well if you are an Australian man, the chances are you may comit suicide. At a time in life when you would think, after having worked all your life, you could sit back and enjoy yourself, men are suiciding at a rate of around 28 per 100,000. (compare this with the murder rate of 1.8).
In this age group suicide amongst women is almost non-existant.
The question for society is "Why is it that so many men, when they retire, value their lives so little that they comit suicide?"
If you are a man, the question is "How are you preparing for retirement?" You hear ads on the radio all the time talking about making sure you are prepared financially for your retirement (you can't start too early apparently). I am asking you to consider how you are preparing emotionally for your retirement, you definitely can't start this too early.
Here is a question I would like you to consider carefully. "Apart from your paid employment, what meaning does your life have?" If the answer is "Not much" then now is the time to fix that. It is time to discover your great passion. It may be grand or it may be daggy, it doesn't matter. The only thing is that it matters to you. You need to start structuring your life so that towards it's end you can say to yourself "shit, that life was good!" You have the power to do it. Muster up the courage and start today!
I am seeking a name for a new award I am instigating for "Research into the blindingly obvious". This award seeks to recognise the use of taxpayer funds for research into things we all new anyway.
First canditate is The Centre For The Advancement of Health that report that "Women with HIV who are young, in poor physical health, in conflict with others, and who have been physically abused by a partner in the past are at greater risk for developing mental health and drug abuse problems" der!
Wouldn't the money spent on this research have been better spent on intervention programs?
All suggestions for a name welcome!!!
Ever wondered what the attraction of Train Spotting was. Here is an chance to find out in the virtual domain
http://motorrad.cx/tspotsim/game.html
Enjoy!!
The Harvard School of Public Health report that in the incidence of death by suicide or violence of children in the age group 5-14 is significantly higher in areas with high gun ownership compared to those areas that have lower gun ownership.
253 children suicided using a gun in high gun ownership areas compared with 15 in low gun ownership areas. Interestingly, non-gun suicides were also much higher in high gun ownership areas, 153 compared with 22.
There are two related factors here. Firstly, guns are extremely dangerous in a potential suicide situation because they are such a fast way to kill yourself. Slower methods give you the opportunity to change your mind and seek help. Even something such as hanging requires preparation time, giving you the opportunity for second thoughts.
Secondly, the chances of a person suiciding is greatly increased (by a factor of 40) if they know someone who has suicided. It is as if the person who suicides demonstrates that it is an acceptable alternative to others. Thus we see greater non-gun suicides as well as gun related suicides in the high gun ownership states of America.
The mystery to me is that so many Americans seem to view this as an acceptable price to pay for the right to bear arms.
Evolution of the story of Robin Hood, as an example.
The folk stories that we know today have not always looked as they do today. There are three major factors that cause the evolution of folk stories over time.
1. The meaning of words change over time. The word "merry", for example, has gradually changed its meaning over time. In the middle ages "merry" meant "brave". Thus when the folk tales talks of "Robin Hood and His Merry Men" the meaning at the time was "Robin Hood and His Brave Men". Interestingly our new meaning of this word has influenced the depiction of his men in the film versions of the tale.
2. New characters and situations are "grafted" on to the tale to keep it relevant and interesting to new listeners. The original Robin Hood was a mythical character that was the lord of native woods and of misrule generally. Later he was personified, he became a vagabond. Later still he became a displaced nobleman. The characters that we associate today with Robin Hood, Maid Marian, Sheriff of Notingham, Friar Tuck etc existed over a 800-1000 year period and each was added to the story at a different time.
3. Folk stories are highjacked to serve the current political agendas. In the case of Robin Hood this was the Richard the Lionheart and the Crusades.