ARCHIVE: 2014
To link to ideas associated with a posting, click on topic heading.
Caveat: Inevitably, given the ever evolving state of the Internet, some of the links on past postings may be outdated.
Note: These 2014 entries are in reverse chronological order, with most recent posting at top.
2014-12-26—THEME: REAL TIME TV
Most reality TV isn’t. It’s staged. But surely a lot of its appeal is that it is –at least allegedly—presented in real time, where there is no absolute certainty of what is going to happen. Live TV is largely a thing of the past, and so we’ve lost the pleasure of sometimes watching the unplanned happen: e.g., the blooper when the actor falls out of character and bursts out laughing. The huge appeal of even the strangest current examples of live TV is demonstrated by these three incredibly popular examples.
THE WORLDS MOST BORING TELEVISION…
…that really isn’t.
…or rain fall—or even coffee percolate on a webcam.
…sometimes is real, disturbingly so.
2014-12-19—THEME: SCIENCE DENIAL
Along with the Golden Rule, science is a really good idea. The former is a good guide to what is morally right, and the latter is our best guide as to what is actually true. Behaving according to what is right and true defines the good life. And to deny science as a guide to our behaviour is as bad an idea as ignoring the Golden Rule.
It is commonly claimed that there is no harm in believing in nonsense if it makes us feel better. That is simply not true—at least for grownups..
THE POLITICS OF SCIENCE DENIAL
Science denial regarding global climate change is blatantly associated with conservative politicians. But liberals can be just as dangerously irrational about different issues.
THE CHARACTERISTICS OF SCIENCE DENIAL
Here are five characteristics of science denial, with examples taken from climate change deniers.
As Carl Sagan points out in “The Pale Blue Dot”, we have been wanderers for 99% of our time on this planet, so going to where no man has gone before must be hardwired in our genes because of its proven survival value. Now having populated the earth, our innate wanderlust can only be satisfied by leaving home, by venturing away from our small blue dot to go and explore the vast cosmos out beyond.
How will we get away? Who will take us?
Neil DeGrasse Tyson’s great speech at NASA on why the government needs to support manned space exploration.
Elon Musk’s SpaceX flight to Mars project.
2014-12-05—THEME: NEW TOOLS FOR OLD ARTISTS
Thanks to science and technology, artists have a cornucopia of new tools with which to create. Of course, using them effectively requires learning a new set of skills, but that rarely puts off creative people of any age. The renowned artist, David Hockney, is a perfect example.
Hockney was well into his seventies when the iPad was introduced.
These works combine modern photographic technology with the early 20th Century innovation of collage or montage.
Although Hockney established his reputation as a painter, “photography and digital media were a part of his creative process since the beginning.”
2014-11--28—THEME: THE SECRET AGENTS
Your Man Friday would like to recommend three excellent books on the similarities and differences in the creativity of artists and scientists. The author worked on this writing project for well over a decade, devoting much of his last sabbatical to it. (Personal disclosure: Your Man Friday is the author and will be signing copies tonight at Gulliver’s Bookstore during the North Bay Christmas Walk.)
SECRET AGENTS PAST: THE PARTING OF THE WATERS
Reasons and resolution of the “two cultures” divide.
SECRET AGENTS PRESENT: LOOKING THROUGH A GLASS DARKLY
Current understanding of the nature of creativity.
SECRET AGENTS FUTURE: GOING WHERE THERE BE DRAGONS
Speculations on future creative developments in art and science.
2014-11--21—THEME: URBAN UNDERWORLDS
Space is at a premium in major cities. When horizontal expansion becomes impossible the idea of vertical expansion is only natural. Hence, skyscrapers. But up isn’t the only vertical direction. And what lies beneath city streets is less obvious and more interesting than what rises above them.
2014-11-14—THEME: BREAKING WIND NEWS
Strangely some good ideas literally stink.
2014-11-07—THEME: THE ANIMAL MIND
Descartes thought all animals were automatons. We know better now, but scientists remain cautious about assuming we can really figure out what goes on in the minds of animals. Nevertheless, we can deduce some things. And animals seem to have a far richer mental life than we previously assumed.
ANIMALS HAVE MINDS OF THEIR OWN
They are smarter than you think.
A great three part series on the animal mind. Part 1 Part 2 Part 3
Animals can suffer from the same mental illnesses as humans.
2014-10-31—THEME: DEALING WITH DEATH
We all enjoy being frightened—as long as we know we’re really safe. And the most universally frightening thing is death, especially violent death. It’s interesting the various ways we decondition our fear of death by the different ways we express our obsession with it.
(Just the first section of a documentary on the history of Halloween.)
2014-10-24—THEME: MAN FRIDAY MISSING
Man Friday had to leave the island for medical treatment. Will be sending his weekly ideas again as soon as he returns.
2014-10-10—THEME: NOBEL LITERATURE
In 1901 Alfred Nobel inadvertently attained lasting fame by his generosity toward those individuals he felt should be honoured each year for having “conferred the greatest benefit to mankind”. The six categories he clearly felt of great value were Physics, Chemistry, Medicine, Literature, and Peace. Few would dispute any of these except literature. The others have more immediate and obviously practical value. Many people, unfortunately, consider literature mere entertainment. They must have never experienced how a book can change their lives or the how important the arts are to civilization.
LITERATURE: NOBEL’S OWN INTEREST
2014-10-03—THEME: USING ANIMALS
Nature is neither benign nor malevolent. It is neither friend nor foe of human beings. Animals can harm us or hurt us. Animals use us, and we use them. Here are some uses to which we put some of the ones we usually find disgusting and associate with disease and decay.
2014-09-26—THEME: THE SOURCE OF EVIL
The root cause of evil is a difficult philosophical question, but nevertheless one for which virtually everybody believes they have an answer. It should be obvious, but obviously isn’t to many people, that there is no single cause. But here are some likely suspects for being major perpetrators.
2014-09-19—THEME: HACKING AND HACKERS
Being hacked frightens us, and hackers have a bad rep. But is it justified? Here are three informative TED talks that deal with this topic.
Karen Elazari makes a good case for reconsidering the common stereotype.
Power corrupts—but just some people. It is good advice to “Know thy enemy”. (Sun Tzu) So is the observation that “Enemies are people whose story you haven't heard.” (Irene Butter)
Hacking, as we know it, is just the contemporary, technological form of an age-old practice that has done more good than evil. And still can—and sometimes does.
2014-09-12—THEME: THE UNIVERSALITY OF EMOTIONS
We like to think of ourselves as qualitatively different from other species, but our self-esteem has taken a beating from scientific advances: most dramatically by the discovery of evolution by natural selection. We grasp at straws, but the evidence indicates that other animals use tools and have some kind of language. Perhaps secondary emotions were our last stand. (It is unquestionable that animals feel the primary emotions such as fear.) But to suggest that any other animal feels the same emotions as we do gets one labeled as being anthropomorphic. Actually, if you think about it, it’s the opposite. We just aren’t that special.
2014-09-05—THEME: NOT A DROP TO DRINK—SAFELY
“Water, water, everywhere, nor any drop to drink,” bemoans Coleridge’s Ancient Mariner. It’s only too true. Impure water is responsible for an incredible number of illnesses from the relatively minor “beaver fever” Canadian canoeists occasionally suffer to often deadly diseases such as cholera that plague underdeveloped nations and disaster-stricken people everywhere.
“With 3.575 million people dying each year from water-related disease, our current water crisis is one of epic proportions.”
Reading is good for you, but clean water is essential.
This is not a relatively restricted application. Moringa may sound obscure, but it is actually fairly common in India and Africa and is being cultivated in many underdeveloped countries because of its value as a cheap source of food.
2014-08-29—THEME: IT AIN’T WHAT YOU SAY
Like other animals, we communicate a lot without words and even with what accompanies our words. Unlike other animals, we can’t always count on this type of communication being correctly understood for there are major cultural differences.
“Stand Closer!” or “Back Off!” Some of the conflict in the infamous L.A. Watts riots has been attributed to many of the store owners being Asian and their customers primarily black.
“Thumbs up!” or “Up Yours!” Students hitchhiking in foreign places shouldn’t use the gesture common in North America to signal they want a ride.
Tone obviously matters, and misinterpretation of the intended tone is why some people resort to emoticons in the emails. (Writers have to work hard to convey tone accurately.) That is why misinterpretation is extremely common even within the same culture—or family.
2014-08-22—THEME: THE OLFACTORY MYSTERY
What exactly is going on there? We don’t yet understand, but we’re working on it. Olfaction remains the most difficult of the senses to understand. It is more complicated than any of the other senses, and for many species the most important and far more developed than in us humans.
Since sex is a prime mover for most species, it is sad that we can’t figure out what smell can trigger desire in us.
Rats are our friends, and they have exceptional noses.
“Nothing stinks, but thinking makes it so.”
2014-08-15—THEME: PETS AS THERAPY
One way dogs are useful is well known: as service dogs for those with physical disabilities. But they are also useful for those having psychological problems. Of course, pet owners already know this, but the evidence isn’t just anecdotal.
2014-08-08—YOUR MAN FRIDAY’S IDEAS: TREE HUGGING
Every aspect of nature inspires ideas. (An obvious, specific example is the many ideas for inventions that are based on watching other creatures easily do things we humans can’t, such as fly.) Trees are no exception.
We are part of nature, for we are still animals. So we often feel alienated in such unnatural environments as our modern homes. So we bring plants into our homes. Tree houses are a natural extension of that urge.
There couldn’t be stronger evidence that trees are inspirational than the number of poems based on trees. Here is a great poem by Robert Frost.
Trees are just plain useful in many ways.
2014-08-01—THEME: THE JOY OF STATISTICS
Joy, never mind even pleasure, in statistics?! Seems a ridiculous statement. Most people don’t like math, and apparently statistics is even unpopular among mathematicians. Scientists often have to use statistics, but few seem to really appreciate their beauty, and unfortunately many use them incorrectly. But statistics are beautiful, aesthetically pleasing, sharing with art the ability to let us perceive the world with a new, brighter, and more illuminating light. And that is incredibly useful.
The topic should not result in skipping this. Watching this video is an hour extremely well spent. Watching it for ten minutes virtually guarantees wanting to watch the whole presentation. (In the side bar are links to some great TED talks by this same guy.)
PRACTICAL ADVICE FOR CLEAR THINKING
We’re not wired to think clearly or understand probability. This is worth reading and taking to heart. Being stupid is ‘natural’, but staying stupid when you know better is culpable.
WHAT MAKES THE NEWS CAN MISLEAD US
Our interpretation of events shapes our behavior, and interpretation of perceived risk is often completely erroneous. Here is a current example.
2014-07-25—THEME: DIGITAL SOCIAL NETWORKING
Email, Facebook, and Twitter are tools the Internet made possible. They have useful functions and many people simply enjoy using them. But, like just anything, they can have less than desirable effects. (Also, it should be remembered that not everyone wants to or even can.)
THE PROBLEM WITH EMAIL
Probably the one most needed in a modern
organization.
THE PROBLEM WITH FACEBOOOK
Probably the one most used for enjoyment.
THE PROBLEM WITH TWITTER
Increasingly popular with younger
people.
2014-07-18—THEME: ISLAND ISOLATION
Robinson Crusoe’s Man Friday was his devoted companion after years of feeling isolated and alone. It seemed an appropriate name for this project, because it is devoted to relieving the feeling of intellectual isolation many must feel when the joy of ideas seems to be of much lower priority than dealing with mundane matters and concerns. This Man Friday’s island is only a metaphor, but sometimes the isolation is very real.
CASTAWAYS
For some, island isolation was deadly serious.
For some, island isolation is better than living in the modern world.
ISLAND STORIES
For some, islands fuel the imagination.
2014-07-11—READING AND REASONS
Most of what we think we know (not counting memories or experience) is not learned in school. A large percentage of that ‘knowledge’ is obtained from reading, which is why reading is such an essential skill. One reasonable way of sorting reading is fiction, non-fiction, and opinion. The one thing essential to all categories is the quality of the writing. Of course, there is so much that is well written, it is helpful to read what is recommended by those whose taste you respect. (Personal disclosure: I love these writers.)
FICTION
It is easy to sort books into this category, unlike the other two categories. James Lee Burke is an excellent writer of ‘detective’ fiction that includes such a rich and accurate description of the New Orleans area that isn’t fictional.
NON-FICTION
Included here would be all books intended to be instructional such as travel information books, cookbooks, and self-help or “how-to” books. It also would include books about some topic such as science, history, or biography. Stefan Zweig is a writer most often associated with his insightful biographies of Mary Queen of Scotland, Freud, Balzac, Casanova, Stendhal, Tolstoy, and Nietzsche—although his fiction is again getting the attention it deserves.
PERSONAL
This category would include opinion pieces such as editorials, autobiographies, reviews, and most blogs. Christopher Hitchens is one wonderful contrarian and polymath that is a delight to read, even if you don’t agree with all his opinions.
2014-07-04—THE MOTHER OF INVENTION
It is said that necessity is the mother of invention. Prisoners’ ingenuity is good supporting evidence of that assertion.
2014-06-27—HUGE AND INTERESTING
Artists are no longer having their creativity constrained by conventions regarding scale and media. Anything goes! The only criterion is aesthetic value. Here are some ‘hugely’ successful creations in a variety of surprising media.
ODD MEDIA, INCLUDING BARNACLE COVERED PEOPLE
ART YOU CAN’T HANG ON YOUR WALL
2014-06-13—CREATIVE RANTS
Ranting is a normal response to perceived injustices, significant or trivial. Usually we don’t enjoy listening to other people rant, but sometimes the rant is so creative and witty that it is a work of art. Here are three examples.
RICK MERCER
Vaccination
JOHN OLIVER
“Net Neutrality”
GEORGE CARLIN
The whole enchilada
2014-06-06—IGNORANCE AND STUPIDITY
Almost everyone agrees on the value of education—and disagrees about how it should be defined. And almost everyone has an idea how to improve it, but the range of ideas is immense. Some of the proposed ideas are themselves evidence of a lack of education or—frankly—lack of intelligence. The following clearly are not.
WHAT GOOD IS EDUCATION, ANYWAY?
Among the stupid ideas about education is that its primary purpose is to make you wealthier or give you the practical skills to become wealthier. (Unfortunately and ironically most universities use this claim to recruit students.) Here is a charming rebuttal of that idea. One doesn’t read Shakespeare or learn chemistry just to become an English prof or a chemist.
DON’T BLAME THE SYSTEM!
Education is ultimately the individual’s responsibility. Sometimes formal educational systems offer the opportunity for it. Sometimes they really don’t. But even more often, people don’t take that opportunity even if they attend educational institutions—or bother to take advantage of the many informal opportunities. We make excuses for ignorance, but not stupidity. Well, for most people in the developed world, ignorance is chosen—and a sign of stupidity. Here are some resources for those who are smart enough not to choose to be ignorant.
“THE LETTER THAT SAVED MY LIFE”
Here the accomplished Stephen Fry describes how he took an educational opportunity and how it saved him from a disastrous life.
2014-05-30—FOOD PORN
Attractive images of food are often call “food porn”. The label is apt because, like traditional porn, part of their appeal is to one of our basic drives. And the most effective porn of both types is dependent on aesthetic quality, which in both cases involves some artifice: the reality rarely lives up to the image.
MAKING IT LOOK ATTRACTIVE
The secret of creating attractive porn is not your own pleasure, but the effect on the viewer: “…you need to prepare the food to look its best, not taste its best.”
IT DOESN’T EVEN HAVE TO BE REAL
Here are some literally (and literary) fictitious meals.
THE SCIENCE BEHIND FOOD PORN
Some research has really basic rewards.
2014-05-23—GET REAL
Many people wish art would get real again. It is true that one—but just one—function of paintings until the invention of photography was the realistic depiction of people, places, and events. When photography made that easier, artists focused more on other concerns than how much their work resembled what you would see in a photograph. Yet many people seem insensitive to anything other than ‘realism’, and express their appreciation by admiring the difficulty, special skills and time required to accomplish realism in a painting or sculpture. Of course, aesthetic judgments shouldn’t be solely based on that, but those factors can still be appreciated if the work has more value than simple ‘realism’. Here are some beautiful examples of just that.
MORE EVOCATIVE THAN A SNAPSHOT
These are impressive for more reasons than their realism, although admittedly that is amazing.
SIZE MATTERS
One important component of any artwork is scale. A miniature is perceived differently than a large canvas.
MORE REAL THAN REALITY
Here are some impressive examples of realist painting and a good, brief explanation of the nature of realism.
2014-05-16—THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THE UGLY
The idea that “money is the root of all evil” is oft repeated, so why then do most people spend their lives pursuing it? Of course, nothing is the root of all evil. And as for major causes of evil, there are more likely suspects, such as ideology and religion. What is important about money is how it is spent.
THE GOOD
Harris Rosen is an inspiring example of how successful entrepreneurship can serve the common good.
THE BAD
On the other hand, the infamous Koch brothers are an example of how money can be used to fund the most evil of causes.
THE UGLY
And even if wealth isn’t used to directly support evil doings, it’s very depressing that in a world with so much poverty it is so often wasted on expensive, ostentatious and ugly possessions.
2014-05-09—THE SECOND PRINT REVOLUTION
The world was revolutionized in the Fifteenth Century when Johannes Gutenberg invented printing. Words and images no longer had to be laboriously reproduced by hand. Although initially this had to be done by extremely expensive printers, now millions of people have very affordable, personal desktop printers. Then in 1986 Chuck Hull invented a printer that could reproduce more than mere 2-D images. These 3-D printers have started a second print revolution, and already relatively inexpensive ones are living with their parents on people’s desktops.
POTENTIAL OF 3-D PRINTING
“The future is now.”
PRINTING BODY PARTS
Want a new kidney? The doctor can print one for you.
PRINTING HOUSES
Design your own house and have it printed for you—inexpensively.
2014-05-02—THE HAZARDS OF FADS AND FASHIONS
It is unpleasant to contemplate the idea that whatever becomes fashionable greatly influences our biases, even if we claim it doesn’t. We especially don’t like to admit this about those interests that are dear to our hearts. Unfortunately, this unacknowledged influence can have deleterious effects.
SCIENCE
Science is not immune to infection by fashion. Neuroscience is justifiably of great interest to those who are passionate about science, for it’s one of the fields advancing at an exponential rate. And within that field, brain imaging is a powerful new tool, and research using it very popular. Combine that with the virtually universal interest in child welfare, and you have a good example of the hazards of fashion.
ART
We naturally tend to think our own art preferences are objective. This is evidenced by the common misconception that art is “in the eye of the beholder”. Performance art is relatively new and fashionable, and it tends to attract a lot of attention. Those who are passionate about art are quick to assume any critics of it are philistines, because philistines always reject anything they don’t behold in their myopic eyes as art. But just because philistines will dismiss a Monet landscape as a murky smudge, doesn’t mean that a lot of Impressionist style landscapes aren’t actually just murky smudges.
POLITICS
Political views have a particularly egregious effect on judgment. We may claim to be non-partisan, but we tend to automatically endorse all the policies and opinions of a political group we favour. For example, it is simply a fact that the majority of educated and intelligent people would describe themselves as liberals. And many will then slide down the slippery slope of endorsing the party line on everything. Presumably, we all care about our environment, but those that call themselves ‘environmentalists’ too often can’t objectively evaluate criticisms or alternatives to the party line.
2014-04-25—WHAT WE WISH
“Be careful what you wish for, lest it come true!” seems to be sound advice, and maybe even reason to believe that “May all your wishes come true!” is actually a curse.
IS MISFORTUNE REALLY GOOD FORTUNE?
Imagine something terrible happening to you. Can you imagine that it wouldn’t make you unhappier?
IS GOOD FORTUNE REALLY GOOD FORTUNE?
Who doesn’t wish to be rich?
GOOD FORTUNE IS NEVER UNADULTERATED
Just consider the guy with the ostrich.
2014-04-18—THEME: THE POWER OF MUSIC
Music is certainly one of the oldest arts, probably even predating the earliest cave paintings. It certainly is the most ubiquitous in modern life and probably the most powerful of the arts, with a virtually universal effect on people of all ages.
MUSIC AND OUR BRAINS
Here is a powerful video about the healing power of music.
MUSIC AND OUR BODIES
Seven ways we use music to enhance our bodies.
MUSIC AND OUR SOCIETY
About how music defines and shapes a culture.
2014-04-11—SEX DIFFERENCES
Perhaps the biggest sex difference of all is between how men and women interpret research about sex differences. It would be foolish to venture an opinion as to whether that difference of interpretation is primarily because of nature or nurture. We all respond to any new, controversial research with either an approving nod or a sceptical eye, depending on our existing beliefs and biases. This is almost as true of the scientifically literate as of the average Joe—opps—or Jill. It is certainly true of scientific findings on allegedly innate genetic (and assumed hard-wired) differences between men and women. We are male or female, and this is important to our sense of who we are. This is why ‘confirmation bias’ so powerfully shapes our evaluation of such research.
THE TOP TEN
Here are some of the most common current beliefs.
VARIOUS VIEWS
This web page contains links to a variety of articles on the topic.
THE RIFT BETWEEN THE SEXES
The ‘oculus rift’—not occultist rift.
2014-04-04—THE BIG THREE OF NEW TECH
Steve Jobs, Larry Page, and Mark Zuckerberg are three geeks that have changed the world. It is difficult to find an unbiased evaluation of them and their companies. Apple fans are not Android fans (although they use Google’s search engine), and Google is at war with Facebook. Facebook is hated by many, but has a billion users. Whatever your bias, it is undeniable that all three men responsible for the revolutionary innovations of their companies are interesting, creative individuals. Here are three videos by or about these guys. (Gates was one of the first and probably most influential modern tech revolutionary, but Microsoft is now ‘ancient’ history.)
2014-03-28—EMOTION DETECTION
We often misinterpret what other people are feeling. Sometimes it is because we are projecting our own feelings onto them, as when you assume someone is as eager to have sex as you are. Sometimes it is because some physical gesture means something very different to you than it does to the person making it. An example is trying to thumb a ride in the Middle East or many places in Africa or South America, where sticking out your thumb is interpreted as meaning “up your ass!” It would be nice if we could always accurately read other people’s emotions. Or would it?
DETECTING LIES
We all lie, and white lies meant to avoid being unflattering are best not detected. But one need not worry yet, for so-called polygraph ‘lie detectors’ are unable to do it reliably, even though, unfortunately, they are still being used only too often.
MAPPING EMOTIONS
Here is a recent example of using detecting physiological changes to determine emotional states that is considerably more successful than the polygraph.
READING FACIAL EXPRESSIONS
Almost everyone has had the experience of being told to smile for a photograph. The truth is it’s impossible to fake a smile, but you can still fool most of the people most of the time. Here is an interesting interactive test of one’s ability to determine if a smile is genuine. The test concludes with an explanation of the clues to doing so consistently.
2014-03-21—WHAT IF
One characteristic common to both art and science is the question “What if?” In science it tends to be “What if I do this?” In the arts it is “What if this were…?” Scientists answer the question by doing and observing. Artists answer by imagining and inventing. But we all sometimes wonder what if we had made a different decision about something that did or did not turn out well.
WHAT IF YOU HAD TO DECIDE WHAT TO DO WHEN…
Here are some questions about what you would do if you had to make any of these decisions.
WHAT IF THE FUTURE…
Science fiction, like philosophy, specializes in the “what if” questions. (Very occasionally sic-fi speculations about the future actually come to pass. Many concerned people fear that the only thing Orwell was wrong about is the date of his classic 1984!)
WHAT IF SOME UNLIKELY THINGS WERE TRUE?
Ever wonder what if some little thing was different? Here is some guy’s fun with that question.
2014-03-14—UNFREQUENTED TOURIST DESTINATIONS
There is something paradoxical about travel. Tourists travel to visit places very different from those at home, but those places are the destination of most tourists. But tourists don’t like to go to places that are full of tourists! Here are few solutions to that problem.
LIBRARIES
Libraries have a reputation for being stodgy, and besides who wants to spend their time away from home reading? But every major library has a unique collection that you won’t find at home. For example, the Medical Research Library of Brooklyn has a collection of plaster casts of female genitalia. Here is a list of interesting collections at various university libraries.
NEIGHBOURHOODS
Most travel includes urban areas, and most cities have interesting neighbourhoods that are rarely visited by outsiders, or even by most other residents of the city. There are the so-called “bad neighbourhoods”. Many aren’t really dangerous, at least during the daylight hours or in a car. Of course, there are neighbourhoods in many American cities that are as unsafe as third world war zones. Chicago has a lot of great tourist spots, but few tourists get to these four places. (Personal disclosure: I grew up in one of these.)
ACCOMMODATIONS
Often tourists consider their travel accommodations as little more than a place to leave their bags and get some sleep. But some places are of themselves sufficient reason to travel there.
2014-03-07—INTO THE ABYSS
The abyss may be dark and seemingly hostile, but it is full of incredible wonders. And as Robert Ballard points out in his TED talk, we haven’t even begun to explore 2/3rds of our planet just miles away from us.
DEEP SEA CREATURES
It seems sea monsters are real. These are creatures you wouldn’t want to find in your swimming pool, but then they wouldn’t be happy there either.
HISTORY OF EXPLORATION OF THE DEEP
Here is an excellent video on the history of our modest ventures into the deep.
VALUE OF PROBING THE DEPTHS
Here is Robert Ballard’s enthusiastic, whirlwind tour of the wonders of the deep, just so recently discovered.
2014-02-28—THE IDEA OF TRAVEL
The Holiday Inn used to have an ad promising “no surprises”, and one has to wonder why they thought that would have any appeal. The joy and pleasure of travel is largely in the surprises, even if some are less than delightful—such as a hotel room you have to cohabit with cockroaches. You would think anyone with any remnants of curiosity left from their childhood would remain fascinated by the idea of traveling to new and different places.
WHO?
Who travels? Often that is determined more by circumstances than desire. But one wonders why those with the resources so often choose not to leave home. Here are interesting data on the number of people in different U.S. states who don’t even have a passport.
WHY?
Why travel? Here is a great essay on what motivates us to leave the comforts of home.
WHERE?
Where travel? Most travellers would like to travel everywhere, but that is not possible. Virtual travel offers a substitution, not equivalent to the real thing, but far better than nothing and allows us to visit places we wouldn’t otherwise. And it is becoming more and more possible with Internet tools such as Google Earth and Google Street View.
2014-02-21—WHERE TO READ
Books are unquestionably the most portable of resources for entertainment and enlightenment. And they’ve become even more portable with the introduction of the eBook, which allows you to easily carry a huge library with you. But it’s interesting that we still often attach the personal significance of a book to where we first read it, just as we connect memorable moments in our lives with certain pieces of music. Here are some reading places that are memorable in their own right.
9 UNEXPECTED PLACES TO FIND BOOKS
2014-02-14—ENVIABLE UNCOMMON SENSES
It is easy and natural to assume everyone and every creature perceives the world the same way we do, but of course, this is not true. A lot of apparently inexplicable animal behaviour can only be understood if we realize that they might have senses we can’t imagine—but can sometimes envy.
TEN SUPER-SENSES
We have retained and developed those senses that evolved as useful for our survival, but they are different for other creatures with other needs. Here is a list of some amazing sensory capabilities that serve other members of the animal kingdom. (Any of them are worth following up on for fascinating reading.)
MAGNETIC FIELD DETECTORS AND INTUITIVE TRIGONMETRY
A surprising number of creatures can sense magnetic fields, including ants, bees, sharks, turtles, tuna, salmon, and homing pigeons, as well as many migratory birds. Even dogs, for some unknown reason, often poop in alignment with magnetic north! And many animals seem to be able to do trigonometry intuitively. (No math course and calculator—or huge cerebral cortex—required.) Here is an amazing example of foxes using this special sense and their intuitive grasp of trig to get dinner.
WE CAN’T KNOW WHAT A DOG’S NOSE KNOWS
Snakes have the equivalent of the olfactory epithelium we have in our noses (but tuned for different size molecules) called Jacobsen’s Organ. A snake’s forked tongue collects chemicals from the air and delivers it to this organ, which is located in the roof of its mouth! With it they can detect pheromones (which we can’t) that they use to find potential prey. Dogs have it too (but in their noses), and it partially accounts for their incredible sense of smell, which is estimated to be 10,000 to 100,000 times as powerful as ours.
2014-02-07—EVERYTHING CAN BE FAKED
How do you find reliable evidence of anything at all? Memories are notoriously unreliable, and there is plenty of scientific research showing that eyewitness evidence is not to be trusted. (For example, see the studies by Elizabeth Loftus.) YouTube has thousands of examples of the ease with which audio recordings can be altered. But the evidence we probably were most accustomed to trusting is photographic. But not anymore!
‘REWRITING’ PHOTOGRAPHIC HISTORY
Altering photographs has a long history of altering history. It’s too bad you can’t really erase some people from history by excising them from pictures.
THE MAGIC OF PHOTOSHOP ART
Photoshop has made alteration of photographs incredibly easy. But it is also a wonderful tool for digital artists, as in this clever idea.
WHEN ALTERATION FAILS
Sometimes, however, the alterations are done so clumsily as to be amusing.
2014-01-31—UNPLEASANT TRUTHS
Social psychologists have a bad rep, which is sometimes justified. This is the field to look into if you want to find research with dubious ethics. Part of the problem is that their scientifically rigorous experiments often have to involve deceiving their human subjects. When that deception involves any even potential harm to the subjects, one enters the gray area between ethical and unethical research. Nevertheless, the findings of social psychologists often have immediate relevance to understanding why we too often behave so badly. Caveat: the Asch and Milgram studies have been justly criticized for not being truly representative of typical human behaviour.
DOES MONEY MAKE YOU MEAN?
Disturbing empirical evidence that it at least inclines one that way.
WOULD YOU TORTURE PEOPLE IF TOLD TO DO SO BY AN AUTHORITY?
A famous experiment that suggests too many of us would—in some situations.
WOULD YOU IGNORE YOUR SENSES IF THE MAJORITY SAID YOU WERE WRONG
Another famous experiment that reveals many of us are pathetic conformists, again at least in some situations.
2014-01-24—PAY ATTENTION!
It could be said that everyone has ADD (attention deficit disorder), because we all sometimes fail to focus and keep our attention on what matters or what we intend. For example, most memory problems have nothing to do with memory itself, but rather with not really attending to what we intend to remember. Our memory system is efficiently tuned to only bother storing that to which we are giving our undivided attention. But paying appropriate attention often isn’t easy, as these videos demonstrate.
THE ART OF PICKING POCKETS
You would think that knowing you are in the presence of a pickpocket would focus your attention on his actions, but which actions? He knows how to direct your attention. If can catch this guy in the act even while watching this video, you are exceptional.
SOME SERIOUS MONKEY BUSINESS
Watch these videos for further demonstrations of the flaws in our attention abilities.
BRAIN MAGIC
Real magic is based on how our brains work—or don’t and then deceive us. Here is a famous video example of that by a master illusionist.
2014-01-17—UTILIZING INTERNET CROWDS
What is called ‘crowdsourcing’ is an amazing idea, and an important application in a world now so incredibly connected through the Internet. There has always been power in numbers, but at no time before the Internet has there existed such an effective and extensive resource to gather together enough numbers to accomplish something of importance. (Not referenced here, but also of great importance, are other applications such as online petitions and charity donation websites.)
CITIZENS AS SCIENTISTS
Science has more and more become a collaborative enterprise. From the overwhelming task of just harvesting data to the more active participation of contributing ideas and possible solutions to a theoretical problem, crowd sourcing scientific research not only advances science but also directly engages people in this most significant of human endeavours: understanding and appreciating our world. Here is a website with links to various citizen-as-scientist projects.
CONSUMERS AS VENTURE CAPITALISTS
These are sites set up to solicit financial support for creative endeavours and entrepreneurial ideas. Artists and entrepreneurs usually have a hard time finding individuals or organizations to cough up the necessary dough to start up their projects. Kick-starter is probably the best known of these alternative routes to finding funding.
MOBS AS ENTERTAINERS
The phenomenon of the ‘flash mob’ has attenuated the usually pejorative connotation of ‘mob’. YouTube has many popular videos of these very friendly mobs; one famous and inspirational one (easy to find and worth it) is that of a mob of professional musicians emerging from a crowd of pedestrians on the streets of a town in Spain to enrich their day with Beethoven’s “Ode To Joy”. Of course, these were professional musicians and this was carefully planned, but there are plenty of examples of flash mobs spontaneously organized to bring ordinary people together simply to amuse themselves and their unsuspecting witnesses—who may just join in.
2014-01-10—THEME: PUBLIC TRANSPORT INNOVATION
In this age of traffic congestion and parking problems, ideas are needed for making public transportation more attractive.
SUBWAYS
Subways don’t have to be ugly, damp and dingy tunnels through the earth. They can be art galleries—or even be works of art themselves.
TAXIS
Anyone who has waited interminably for a cab to show up, or been unable to even contact a dispatcher, knows there must be a better solution.
BUSES
If you’ve ever had to take an overnight bus, you know that trying to sleep on it is even worse than trying to sleep on a plane. Here’s an idea for a better bus for overnight or late night runs.
2014-01-03—THEME: SCIENTIFIC SCARE WORDS
Science frightens many people. This may be partially because of the fear of the unknown, for people aren’t being educated in the fundamentals of science. Furthermore, power is inherently frightening, and demonstrations of the power of science include some horrific applications, such as nuclear weapons. And so certain misunderstood words associated with every field of science now have acquired a pejorative connotation. These words are rhetorically useful to those who wish to sway our emotions and sell us some product or recruit us to some fashionable cause.
BIOLOGY:
“UNNATURAL”
“Vaccination
is unnatural. Genetic modification is unnatural. Modern medicine is unnatural.”
The fact is nature is “red in tooth and claw”. Predation, disease, and death,
these are natural—but not to be preferred.
“It’s full of chemicals!” Well, so is every single thing in the whole universe.
PHYSICS:
“NUCLEAR”
Nuclear
simply means relating to the nucleus of an atom. But for many people it is
taken as an adjective describing extreme danger.