Random links
- Late night TV/computer sessions linked to depression
- It seems to be the lighting issue throwing off people that the researchers blame. I've actually been running f.lux for quite a while, software which changes the colour temperature of your monitor based on the time of day. I wonder as well if some of this might also be an issue of correlation rather than causation.
- Birds Switch Gears to Stay on Course
- "A recent study described how mosquitoes can survive in a rainstorm, even when hit by drops 50 times their size. Now researchers have answered a similar question about hummingbirds."
- Introducing "inattentional deafness" - the noisy gorilla that's missed
- Seems fairly common-sensical - that people concentrating on another activity don't hear conversations they're not concentrating on. A fairly typical complaint from parents about their kids or their spouses?
- Jane Eyre and Sherlock Holmes as mommy porn?
- An article about a company adding in sex scenes to classic novels. I'm in line with the detractors which, as the article notes, "say quite rightly that the lack of sexual contact between the characters in say Charlotte Bronte – the repression, you might call it – is not a result of mere archaic prudery but crucial to the plot. The story is very much about them not having sex." What fraction of classic novels fall apart for those not taking this into account?
- ChristianUnion
- An example of the sort of political party that fits in with the Dutch parliamentary system (which survives basically only with multi-party coalition governments) but wouldn't work well in a Canadian context: "The CU calls itself a Christian social party. The party has its roots in orthodox Protestant parties, often referred to as the "small right". It combines a conservative point of view on ethical and foreign policy issues, with more centre left ideas on economic, asylum, social and environmental issues. Its conservative reformed ideals are reflected in its program of principles: It believes that the state is the swordmaiden of God. It bases its politics directly on the Bible. However, it sees separate duties for the state and the church in public life: the church should spread the Word of God, while the state should merely uphold public morality. The state should respect the religion of its citizens. Other Christian principles, like neighbourly love and stewardship for the Earth, however have given the CU's political program a centre-left orientation." The Dutch parliament currently even has an animal rights party holding a couple of seats.