[ weird things ] | 2011 [ weird things ] | February
articles for February 2011
waiting for reciprocity from the world of woo
# politics

waiting for reciprocity from the world of woo

Cranks, quacks, and peddlers of woo would love for skeptics to tone down their criticism. In fact, they'd like us to stop it completely.

arxiv stuffs a wormhole with perfect fluids
# space

arxiv stuffs a wormhole with perfect fluids

Another day, another exercise in nearly unfalsifiable numerology from arXiv...

of petty tyrants and self-appointed henchmen
# politics

of petty tyrants and self-appointed henchmen

Religious apologists sure do love their fantasies of how unbelievers will be tortured in the fires of Hell...

why the journey to the stars starts with us
# space

why the journey to the stars starts with us

The future of space exploration should be one of our top priorities as a species. Unfortunately, its continuation, much less success, is not guaranteed.

an anecdotal example of denialist logic
# science

an anecdotal example of denialist logic

Playing peekaboo with weather and mistaking it for climate across the entire planet is really not something to advertise publicly...

what scientology’s apostates can teach us all
# oddities

what scientology’s apostates can teach us all

Scientology presents itself as a religion of the future, but its former members tell the story of an abusive, criminal cult obsessed with money, power, and blackmailing its followers.

when alt med acts a lot like big pharma
# health

when alt med acts a lot like big pharma

The two rules of alt med business. One, there's no regulation strict enough for Big Pharma. Two, any regulation, no matter how token, is too onerous for snake oil manufacturers.

why we rule the land of the blind robots
# tech

why we rule the land of the blind robots

There's a reason why we can see and understand things robots can't, and that reason might be a cluster of neurons known as V4.

why you really need to pick the right experts
# science

why you really need to pick the right experts

Michio Kaku is an expert in theoretical physics. This is why it's not surprising that he's reciting for sci-fi cliches about evolution instead of the actual science.

why a search engine is playing a trivia game
# tech

why a search engine is playing a trivia game

Watson can easily win a trivia contest, but it needs to play anyway to learn how to talk to humans.

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