A page for randomness

May 31, 2006

Perpendicular hard drives offer more storage density, but what about the performance?

Filed under: computers and technology, news — Mark @ 7:14 pm

Perpendicular hard drives offer more storage density, but what about the performance?
If there is one axiom that has never faltered during the entire personal computer industry, it is that you can never have too much hard drive space. My first hard drive was a 30 MB model on a Packard-Bell PC/XT, and while it looked like a massive amount of storage at first, I filled it up within a couple of months.

As hard drives pass the 500 GB mark, they are starting to reach a limit on the density that information can be packed on magnetic platters. Specifically, a problem called the superparamagnetic effect starts to become a concern, as ambient heat causes the tiny magnetic particles to “flip their bits” from 0 to 1 or vice versa, damaging data integrity. One solution, which we reported on in January, is to arrange these magnetic particles vertically instead of horizontally on the surface of the platter, allowing greater information density without losing integrity.
Perpendicular storage

Seagate delivered the first high-end SCSI drive using perpendicular technology in April of this year, and announced their first consumer drive, a 750 GB SATA model, shortly thereafter. Now this drive, the Barracuda 7200.10, has been released to the public, and Tech Report has an in-depth review of its performance.

Overall, the drive performed well, and at a retail price around US$414 (US$0.55 per GB), it is competitive with 500 GB drives from other manufacturers, which cost about US$0.52 per GB. For people who have high storage needs, a 750 GB drive makes a lot of sense at these prices.

Storage Technology

Filed under: computers and technology, geek — Mark @ 7:13 pm

Storage Technology

Video explaining perpendicular storage in harddrives.

May 30, 2006

How to Become an Early Riser

Filed under: random — Mark @ 7:12 pm

How to Become an Early Riser
It is well to be up before daybreak, for such habits contribute to health, wealth, and wisdom.
- Aristotle

Are morning people born or made? In my case it was definitely made. In my early 20s, I rarely went to bed before midnight, and I’d almost always sleep in late. I usually didn’t start hitting my stride each day until late afternoon.

But after a while I couldn’t ignore the high correlation between success and rising early, even in my own life. On those rare occasions where I did get up early, I noticed that my productivity was almost always higher, not just in the morning but all throughout the day. And I also noticed a significant feeling of well-being. So being the proactive goal-achiever I was, I set out to become a habitual early riser. I promptly set my alarm clock for 5AM…

… and the next morning, I got up just before noon.

Hmmm…

Lightsaber combat

Filed under: geek, wikipedia — Mark @ 7:09 pm

Lightsaber combat - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Lightsaber combat describes the fictional fighting styles employed by Jedi and Sith characters in the Star Wars multi-media franchise. The details of the lightsaber styles are never mentioned directly in the released Star Wars films, but they are explored in novelizations as well as Expanded Universe sources such as magazines, comic books, the Star Wars Role-playing Game and “Visual Dictionaries.” According to Nick Gillard, the various styles were devised for the prequels and intended to further characterize their practitioners.[1] The duels were even choreographed to be miniature “stories.”[2]

The stage combat used in the films are a combination of Kendo, Iaido, and various western sword styles including traditional fencing. Many of the names resemble the Japanese language to reflect this.

Tommy of Escondido’s Alien Fonts Page other SF font section

Filed under: geek — Mark @ 7:07 pm

Tommy of Escondido’s Alien Fonts Page other SF font section
New Aurabesh StarWars font, by Peter Schuster of Austria replaces our old version of Aurabesh by Mike E. Webb.
A note from Peter:
This is a “new and improved” version of the Star Wars Aurebesh font. The one done by Mike Webb is good, but a little incorrect. I took some authorized RBG books by Westend Games to do a completly new font. Now the punctuation marks are all correct, there are no invented characters and I did new numbers. Glyphs I corrected include comma, period, semicolon, quotes, the dollar sign, the numbers etc. I am not sure if the numbers are right. I took them from several technical readouts. They also could be “ten or hundred numbers”. Upper and lower case are the same since there is no uppercase or lowercase in the SW universe. The font is written from left to right of course. It was made with SOFTY, the shareware font maker.
Peter 7-12-98
Tommy’s Note: Although this was made with SOFTY, I had no problems with this version in any way, and it should run well on all systems.

List of changes in Star Wars re-releases

Filed under: geek, wikipedia — Mark @ 6:59 pm

List of changes in Star Wars re-releases - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The following are partial lists of changes in Star Wars re-releases. The commercial success of Star Wars has given George Lucas the opportunity to alter his original trilogy, which is composed of Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back, and Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi. Many changes were motivated by George Lucas’s desire to make the original films closer to his vision for them (although he directed only one of the films).

The new versions made heavy use of CGI technology and other new production techniques that emerged in the two decades after the original trilogy was produced. Other changes enhanced the cohesiveness of the films and eliminated continuity errors between the original trilogy and the three prequels (produced in the late 1990s and early 2000s). The changes are controversial, with opponents claiming that these changes detract from the character arc of the films and tend to be more distracting than expedient.

In a September 2004 CNN article, Lucas claimed that the original films were “25 to 30 percent” of what he intended. Despite this statement, the original films were massively popular and regarded as “groundbreaking”, and many of his changes have met with lukewarm reception. Along with obvious changes to various scenes, the re-releases improved the visual and audio quality of the films.

Changes to Star Wars films after the theatrical release aren’t always limited to the original trilogy. In the release of The Phantom Menace DVD, two deleted portions were either partially or completely restored.

According to Lucasfilm, the 2004 Special Edition is the canonical version of the original trilogy, even though the original, unaltered theatrical editions were released September 12, 2006.

May 29, 2006

Yoda

Filed under: geek, wikipedia — Mark @ 6:58 pm

Yoda - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Yoda is a fictional character from the Star Wars universe, who appears in all of the franchise’s films except for Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope. Frank Oz provided Yoda’s voice in each film, and lent his skills as a puppeteer in the original trilogy and The Phantom Menace. For the radio dramatizations of The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, Yoda was voiced by John Lithgow, while Tom Kane voiced him in the Clone Wars animated series and several video games.

Yoda first appears in the saga in The Empire Strikes Back as a Jedi Master, and trains Luke Skywalker in the ways of the Jedi. In the prequel trilogy, he serves as Grand Master of the Jedi Order. Additional fiction in the Expanded Universe fills in more details of his life.

Lightsaber

Filed under: geek, wikipedia — Mark @ 6:58 pm

Lightsaber - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The lightsaber is the name of a fictional weapon that plays a key role in the movies, games and novels that constitute the Star Wars universe. Lightsabers are science fiction versions of their namesake, the saber, but with the metal blade replaced by plasma set to about one meter long. Lightsabers differ in color based upon the specific crystal used in construction. Though they often behave like regular swords, they have been depicted as able to penetrate and cut through most matter with little or no resistance (due to their energy-based nature), and to deflect energy, such as shots from blasters (the ranged weapons used in the Star Wars franchise), Force Lightning thrown by Sith Lords, and other lightsabers. Obi-Wan Kenobi described them as “an elegant weapon from a more civilized age.”
An assortment of lightsaber hilts. Top to bottom: Luke Skywalker (Episode VI:Return of the Jedi), Darth Maul, and Asajj Ventress
An assortment of lightsaber hilts. Top to bottom: Luke Skywalker (Episode VI:Return of the Jedi), Darth Maul, and Asajj Ventress

The lightsaber first appeared in the film Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope (1977). At first, the effect was created by a handle with a motorized spinning reflector and pointing high-intensity light in their direction. The outcome was not satisfying, so in post-production the effect was augmented through rotoscoping. For Episodes V and VI the use of reflective tape was abandoned and the effect was achieved by rotoscoping rods made of aluminum and later carbon fiber rods. For the prequel trilogy, the effect was created using computer animation

Within the fiction of Star Wars, the lightsaber “blade” is made by a very tight loop of highly focused energy, possibly a loop of plasma contained in a strong magnetic or other field which compresses the circular loop so much that it looks like a cylindrical bar. When deactivated, a lightsaber appears as a polished metallic handle, about 30 centimeters long, with an ignition button. They are carried at the waist in this fashion by belt clip, and can be drawn by hand or by the Force. Lightsabers have a distinctive hum when active. Some carry a “dead-man trigger” that deactivates the saber automatically if dropped.

To carry a lightsaber is a reflection of confidence, dexterity, and attunement to the Force. Although use of the lightsaber is not strictly reserved to Jedi (see General Grievous), the only others widely known of being capable of handling the difficult weapon are the Sith: Darth Maul, Darth Tyranus (Count Dooku), Darth Vader and Darth Sidious (Palpatine), as well as other Sith characters in the Expanded Universe.

Palpatine

Filed under: geek, wikipedia — Mark @ 6:57 pm

Palpatine - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Palpatine is a fictional character in George Lucas’ science fiction saga Star Wars. He was introduced in the original Star Wars films as the Emperor of the Galactic Empire, an aged, cowled, and pale-faced figure who walks with a cane. Palpatine appears in the prequel films as a middle-aged politician in the Galactic Republic who rises to power through deception and treachery. The character is featured in the animated miniseries Star Wars: Clone Wars (2003–2005) and in Star Wars literature. Scottish actor Ian McDiarmid portrays the character in the Star Wars feature films.

Palpatine is a major antagonist in Star Wars fiction. Born on the planet Naboo 82 years before the events of Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope (1977),[2] he is a key politician in the Republic who claims to represent peace and democracy. In reality, Palpatine is Darth Sidious, a powerful Sith Lord who practices the dark side of the Force. He initiates and manipulates the Clone Wars to destroy the Jedi and establish the totalitarian Galactic Empire.

Lucas’ original scripts for Star Wars characterize Palpatine as a cunning but weak politician under the control of powerful bureaucrats. However, in Return of the Jedi, the prequel trilogy and Star Wars literature, the character is depicted as the personification of evil. Palpatine was incorporated into the Star Wars merchandising campaigns that corresponded with the theatrical release of Return of the Jedi and the prequel films. He has since become a symbol of evil and sinister deception in popular culture, particularly in the United States.

SkepticReport - Those Naughty Vestigial Bits and Other Bad Engineering

Filed under: science — Mark @ 6:54 pm

SkepticReport * Those Naughty Vestigial Bits and Other Bad Engineering
by Bob Riggins

Human Embryos

…especially very small ones, actually have tails and gill slits. So do all mammal, bird, reptile, amphibian, and fish embryos. One would almost think they are related somehow. Thank goodness for modern Creation Science, which has taught us how to ignore, deny, or find some rationalization (anything at all will do) to explain away this and all other evidence of evolution. (Yes, Ernst Haeckel fudged his diagrams of embryos to emphasize the similarities among the youngest ones. But he didn’t make up the tails and gill slits. They’re there. Look closely at some of your favorite fetus photos. Quit writing me about this until you’ve done your homework.)

Unusual Babies

…with such birth anomalies as being born with a tail, or covered with fur. Tails (abnormally extended coccyges ) are more common than most people realize, since they are, of course, surgically removed immediately, and often the child himself is never told. For furry people, refer to the famous Mexican family, several of whom are circus performers.

These would, of course, be some of the “throwbacks” which creationists assert must, of course, occur if evolution is real. But since evolution is, of course, not true, the good creationist, upon being presented the very evidence he demanded, will, of course, not be fazed in the slightest.

Of course.

A small footnote: back in the good old days, when everyone was a literal-creationist, and religion was science (known as the Dark Ages, with good cause), such babies were identified as the spawn of Satan, and killed instantly, along with their mothers, who were, naturally, witches.

Their Own Coccyges

…when examined closely via X-rays or a prepared skeleton, look disturbingly like the vestigial remnants of tails . They certainly serve no purpose nowadays (or very little–the few muscular attachments they still have could easily be re-engineered onto a less vulnerable structure), and if you’ve ever broken yours, you’ve probably wondered why we were Created with such a useless source of potential agony. (Besides, coccyx sounds downright obscene.)

Their Appendixes

Same problem as the coccyx , only it’s even more likely to cause the average creationist great discomfort, and occasionally death. The scientifically literate, when cursed with appendicitis, might bewail the incomplete evolution that has left him with a useless and sometimes dangerous abdominal organ. Perhaps the creationist praises his Creator for blessing him with a “cross to bear.” (Part of the Improving the Gene Pool Project: If you’re a young-Earth creationist, the next time you have an attack of acute appendicitis, or better yet a ruptured appendix, rush with it to the nearest Peter Popoff Healing Crusade. Stay away from those modern “doctors,” who actually think we’re mammals ! And for those folks who have heard that the appendix may serve some role in endocrine or immune functions, in the words of Carl Drews, “Something that explodes and kills people is definitely a mixed blessing, even if it does help somewhat with immune functions.” Folks whose “god-given” appendixes have been removed don’t seem to suffer from their absence, and I’ve never met one who wished he had it back.)

The Cause of Cancer

And who wouldn’t hate that? But I don’t mean the carcinogens that set it off, like tobacco tars, asbestos, or solar ultraviolet; I mean the root cause that makes it possible for things like those to start cancers growing. And that cause turns out to be evolution in action! A cancer starts when a carcinogen, or sometimes just a random accident, causes a mutation in a gene of one cell. That mutation “switches on” genes that are normally “off,” and makes the cell start reproducing wildly, as though it were an embryonic cell, and not a dedicated part of an adult body. A mutation is one unit of evolution. In this case it is harmful, but the ability to mutate is so valuable to DNA–it lets it adapt to new conditions–that that mutability cannot be given up, even if it sometimes produces fatal cancer. It is perhaps significant (it makes evolutionary sense) that cancers in people are very rare until after their peak reproductive years.

The Hair on the Backs of Their Necks

…which stands up at the very thought that their children might actually be exposed to an evil-lutionist at school. When they stop to think why the hair on the backs of their necks should stand up, at that or any terrifying situation, the only explanation that makes sense is that it’s a vestigial reaction inherited from our mammal ancestors. Other mammals’ hair rises in response to “hair-raising experiences” as a defense. It’s a warning sign of aggression, and may make the animal look bigger and fiercer. We’ve apparently given up that signal, maybe in favor of words or other body language. About the only trace left is that creepy feeling about nape of the neck and scalp, which is almost impossible for others to see.
(suggested by Ron Tolle)

Goosebumps

(the bumps, not the books [although many creationists hate those "occult" books, too]) Goosebumps were obviously “created” to erect and “fluff up” the hair or fur on a hairy or furry mammal ancestor, thereby improving its insulation value against the cold. Since most of us nowadays have so little body hair as to render it useless for insulation purposes, goosebumps are another vestigial reaction whose tool (fur) is no longer with us.

A creationary epiphany! : since God wouldn’t create a useless bodily function, goosebumps were originally useful! Adam and Eve had FUR! (For folks who have stockpiled food and weaponry in anticipation of the Coming Race War, an epiphany is a sudden realization of a great truth.)

Wisdom Teeth

Steven Gay reminds us that wisdom teeth are a bit of a problem for modern humans–and any parts of our bodies that serve no purpose, are in the way, or are just more trouble than they’re worth are a bit of a problem for creationists to rationalize. Why would a Master Creator give us more teeth than will fit in our jaws? I don’t think I know anybody who has had all four third molars grow into place with the others and serve as useful chewing teeth. In some people they never erupt. My top two grew out, but having no bottom ones to work against, they were useless for chewing. A great many people simply have to have them removed or suffer severe dental problems–because modern jaws are just too small to accommodate third molars. Wisdom teeth make sense as evolutionary leftovers (probably in the process of evolving away entirely). What sense can creationists make of them (especially if one lives to the biblically promised threescore and ten)? (Thanks to the folks who have written to me to tell me that they have all four functional third molars. All have noted that they and their dentists recognize that they are rare exceptions.)

The Last Little Piggy

…the one who went, “Wee, wee, wee!” all the way home. (For those with deprived childhoods, I’m talking about little toes.) They’re one more body part that is in the way, all too easily injured, and, when you stop to think about it, useless. We don’t use them in walking. In parts of the world where people go barefoot most of the time, little toes missing through accident or disease are quite common, and don’t hinder the person’s mobility at all. Think we need them for balance or something? Our cloven-hoofed fellow mammals get by with two toes on the ground. Horses manage to be mighty fast with just one! Predatory mammals generally put four down. Do we need the extra because we’re bipedal? Ostriches are on their feet all day, and can outrun anybody you know–how many toes do they use? Think about it: other primates have prehensile toes. Kids notice right away that monkeys really have four hands . A fifth digit is pretty useful if you’re scrambling through branches (and secondarily manipulating objects). Our little fingers are truly useful and probably in no danger of disappearing. But we quit climbing in trees with our rear “hands” and they became feet–which explains why they have useless fifth digits. And while we’re at it…

Doggie Toes

What is that thing hanging off the back of your dog’s lower leg? It’s his “dewclaw,” and it’s entirely useless. On some dogs it’s so much in the way that it’s surgically removed. It’s not a result of selective breeding, either. Cats have ‘em, wolves have ‘em, tigers have ‘em. What would it possibly be except a now-useless fifth toe, in the process of disappearing through evolution?

Lower Back Pain

Kate Harrop-Allin asks the perceptive question: Why should this condition afflict such a huge percentage of the adult population (I read somewhere that more working days were lost for this than for almost any other reason) when we were supposedly “created” in our present bipedal form? Other associated problems with our relatively recently-acquired bipedalism (that other animals don’t seem to have much trouble with):extreme difficulty in childbirth, varicose veins, arthritis ……. all of which indicate that we evolved, and quite recently too, from an animal that was predominantly quadrupedal.

Their Own Eyes

…defeat them doubly. First, creationists trot out that old saw about how “nothing as complex as an eye could evolve in stages, since a half-eye is no good at all.” Darwin himself trounced that one roundly by merely observing that there are creatures alive today with eyes in all “stages of development,” from a few light-sensitive cells, to a cup-shaped receptor with no proper lens, to eagle eyes far sharper than ours. Other creatures seem to get along fine with half-eyes and even 1/100 eyes.

Then for the final insult, human (the pinnacle of creation) eyes are clearly an engineering mistake! The retinas are inside out. The nerves and blood vessels come out through the light-sensitive area of the retina, producing a blind spot, then spread over the front of the light-receptor cells, so that light has to get past the fibers into the receptors. Why aren’t the nerves and capillaries behind the receptors, where they would be out of the way and there would be no need for a blind spot? Squid eyes are arranged just that way. Since ours aren’t, one is reminded of the maxim that evolution has to work with the materials at hand, adapting systems already in place, with results that often seem jury-rigged or needlessly complicated. Would an Ultimate Engineer make such an obvious blunder, especially having got it right in creatures created earlier?

Their Own Fingers

The problem is, there are five. That puts us firmly in the mammal “family” (layman’s term). All other mammals have five digits per limb, or the vestigial remains thereof, or we can trace the gradual shrinkage and loss of digits through the fossil record (as with horses). But the principle remains: Mammals have five digits–even when there’s no good reason. Why should whales have the bones of exactly five digits buried in their flippers? Why should bats have wings seeming awkwardly stretched over exactly five fingers? “Similarity of design”? Oh, come on. The “Designer” found more efficient ways of making aquatic fins and wings for other creatures. Same old song: the commonality of five digits among the mammal family makes sense only if we are all descendants of a five-digited ancestor. Some of us mammals have good use for five digits, some have already got rid of a few, and some of us are still stuck with useless ones (like dolphins). Remember, that’s what a family is: descendants of a common ancestor.
-suggested by Kjetil Furnes

Snake Hips and Whale Pelvises

No, I haven’t finally gone around the bend. Although there’s not a trace left on the outside, boas, pythons, and blind snakes all have completely useless vestigial hipbones buried in their bodies. So do whales. Now why would an as-is Creation ex nihilo include creatures with functionless bones that really look like the evolutionary leftovers of lost limbs?

Sandy Petersen adds the following: “Pythons and boas actually have tiny vestigial claws on either side of their cloacas, which are [associated with] their useless hips. So you can pick up any python (I suggest a small one, like my family’s pet ball python), turn it over, and SEE the tiny, useless claws that would never ever be there if snakes had been designed ‘from scratch.’”

Chicken Legs

The lower part of a chicken’s legs are not covered by fur, hair or feathers. What’s there? Scales. Is this a sign of their evolutionary past when they evolved from their reptilian ancestors? I think this solves the chicken or the egg riddle: the egg came first in the form of the chicken’s ancestors.
-verbatim from Jim Lobach

Male Nipples

My grandfather, down on the farm, used to have a quaint expression, usually leveled at some lazy individual: as useless as the tits on a boar. Creationists, think hard and send me a carefully reasoned answer explaining why God would create both boars and men (and all other male mammals) with useless nipples (which can even be dangerous–men can get breast cancer). The simple biological-evolutionary answer is that as embryos we are all structurally female first, including proto-breast tissue. Only later in fetal development do the male hormones kick in and modify the feminine genital structures into the masculine. But we men are left with useless breast tissue and nipples, which never get the hormonal signal at puberty to develop into functioning organs. The whole thing seems a messy and cobbled-up system for producing two sexes. Why in Heaven’s name would a Designer worth His salt come up with so inefficient a system, with useless (and sometimes dangerous) parts left over? (Evidence of our heritage: in some of our more “primitive” relatives, gender is changeable throughout life. Some species of fish and reptiles can switch genders without the help of a Danish surgeon. They just respond to environmental cues.)
-suggested by David Pickering…but hey, I was thinking of it too!

Blind Cave Fish

…and other cave critters that still have vestigial but absolutely useless eyes. Evolution can be that sloppy, but can a perfect Creator?
-Donald Wilson

Their Own Hemoglobin

If hemoglobin were designed by God, it was designed to have far too much affinity for carbon monoxide. This great affinity has resulted in countless deaths.

Carbon monoxide is a colorless and odorless gas. This is, if anything, an even nastier bit of “design.” At the very least, carbon monoxide could have been given a smell to help warn us (unless the Designer was constrained by the laws of chemistry–surely no impediment). It remains one of life’s traps for the unwary, with its victims often being infants in poorly ventilated winter homes. Or perhaps it is just one of evolution’s quirks, a chance attraction which natural selection has not eliminated because there is too little selection pressure against it. Evolution can play seemingly malicious tricks (think about it: the possibility of carbon monoxide poisoning is such a recent development in our evolutionary history that we have acquired no ability to detect it), but could a Perfect Designer? (suggested by Roger Scott)

Pseudogenes

Pseudogenes (also known as junk DNA) were discovered in 1994. They are remnants of genes that no longer function but continue to be carried along in DNA as excess baggage. Pseudogenes also change through time, as they are passed on from ancestors to descendants, and they offer an especially useful way of reconstructing evolutionary relationships. The more remote the last common ancestor of two organisms, the more dissimilar their pseudogenes will be. When the pseudogenes of a human and a chimpanzee are compared, the differences are relatively few. Slightly more differences are present when comparing the pseudogenes of a human with those of a rodent. Yet more disparity is evident between the pseudogenes of a human and those of, say, wheat. This is compelling evidence for an evolutionary origin of Homo sapiens.
(from Steven Mahoney)

And some cases in point from Kevin Dorner: Pseudogenes. One of the more “evolutionary” sets of pseudogenes I’ve read of are those of the sense of smell. There are about a hundred genes for odour receptors in humans. About seventy of them are pseudogenes (broken), but in other mammals they are all functional, indicating that our sense of smell was no longer as important at some time in our past, so is gradually disappearing. Dolphins also have a complement of odour receptors, but they have all become pseudogenes. As dolphins don’t have noses, this is difficult to reconcile with a sudden creation (without silly, untestable, ad hoc guesses, that is) but makes perfect sense if dolphins evolved from a terrestrial ancestor that returned to the ocean, as other cetaceans did, losing their noses in the process.

Vitamin C

Roger Scott has discovered that God is a dog’s best friend: Humans must have vitamin C in their diets. Without it they will develop scurvy and eventually die from vitamin C deficiency. Apparently we have a pseudogene for producing vitamin C. Dogs, on the other hand, have the real thing. Their copy of the gene actually works, and they do not need vitamin C in their diets. They make it themselves. Roger speculates that this may show how much more God loves dogs than humans. Being omniscient, God knew in advance that sailors on long sea voyages would suffer terribly, but did nothing about it. God made sure that dogs on these voyages would not suffer. Ships’ mutts were looked after, but not the sailors.

The Plantaris Muscle

Dr. Richard Brown of Bristol, UK, submits the following: Ever since I first dissected the plantaris muscle in the human calf as a medical student, I have been a convinced evolutionist. In the monkey it is a useful muscle which causes all the digits to flex at once, and thus is useful in swinging from trees by the feet. In the human it is atrophied, may be absent, and does not even reach the toes, but disappears into the Achilles tendon. There is no sensible reason for its existence in the human, except a common ancestry with monkeys. Try telling that to a creationist, however. In my experience they change the subject!

Shark Reproduction

J. E. Hill has a few questions for the Guy Who created sharks: Some sharks lay eggs, such as the horned shark; some sharks produce eggs which actually hatch inside of them, such as the gray, nurse and whale sharks; some sharks are placental, having live young, such as the great white and hammerhead. This seems so uneconomical for an intelligent designer or grand creator to spend his/her/its time on when one type would have been sufficient. Unless there is another explanation. Additionally, some snakes, such as the rattler, also have live young, while the majority of reptiles lay eggs. How did an intelligent designer determine which would and wouldn’t?

Their Own Eye Teeth

…which they would give for just ONE bit of evidence that would stand up. (From Michael Arndt) Another fact of the human body that cannot be explained without evolution is the size of the root of your upper canine teeth. In monkeys, the canine teeth are much larger than they are in humans, and as such, they require much larger roots to anchor them. In humans the canines are now much smaller, but if you run your finger over your upper gums, you can feel the bump of your unnecessarily large canine root (even through your lip).

Colorblindness

From yet another contributor: The ability to see colors in humans came from our “ape” ancestors. It evolved because a good portion of their diet (and the same goes for our modern cousins), when the fruits, berries, etc. were not in season, was leaves and stalks, etc. The most nutritious of these are the younger or new growth, which is red in a lot of cases instead of green. The ability to tell the difference would be a plus. Colorblindness, especially the difficulty in telling the difference between red and green, is on the rise in humans. With our ability to raise our own food, it is thought that this ability is not so important, and we are losing it. That’s a reasonable evolutionary explanation for the increasing incidence of colorblindness. Can you think of a “creationary” one?

The Human Genome Project

Here’s the shortest version: We have inherited our DNA from earlier species. We share genes with reptiles, fish, insects, worms, and even bacteria. We use the same DNA patterns to do things as other species do. We don’t have any more genes than an ear of corn, and only about twice as many as a fruitfly–and some we have in common with fruitflies. We have lots of useless “junk” DNA that was once useful to some remote ancestor. Bits of it can sometimes be “awakened,” with disastrous results. The scientists that have deciphered the human genome, and those of an ever-increasing number of other species, all agree that there is no other reasonable explanation for the cobbled-up mess of code that builds human beings except an evolutionary accumulation through a chain of ancestors leading back to bacteria.

Sudden Jerks

Not boors that surprise you by ringing your doorbell with a fistfull of Watchtowers, but those sudden jerks that you make when you’re asleep. A reasonable (but not proven) evolutionary hypothesis is that it was a defensive response that developed when we slept in trees. Any slight sense of unbalance would promote an automatic jerk and instant awakening. Sometimes it accidentally goes off even nowadays, even when you’re planted firmly on your Certa Perfect Sleeper. That’s the beauty of evolutionary explanations: there has to be one, and it has to make sense–but you don’t have to commit adamantly to it. A better one may present itself as more evidence is considered. Think of a good “creationary” explanation for those sudden jerks, preferably better than “God made us that way and He moves in mysterious ways.”

Their Prostate Glands

The urethra, essential for urination, runs through the prostate, which is vulnerable to infection. When the prostate becomes infected and swells, it pinches off the flow in the urethra, making urination painfully difficult.

Island of stability

Filed under: wikipedia — Mark @ 6:51 pm

Island of stability - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The island of stability is a term from nuclear physics that describes the possibility of elements with particularly stable “magic numbers” of protons and neutrons. This would allow certain isotopes of some transuranic elements to be far more stable than others, that is, decay much more slowly.

Superman

Filed under: wikipedia — Mark @ 6:51 pm

Superman - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Superman is a fictional character, a comic book superhero widely considered to be one of the most famous and popular such characters[1] and an American cultural icon.[2][3][4][5] Created by American writer Jerry Siegel and Canadian-born artist Joe Shuster in 1932 while both were living in Cleveland, Ohio and sold to Detective Comics, Inc. in 1938, the character first appeared in Action Comics #1 (June 1938) and subsequently appeared in various radio serials, television programs, films, newspaper strips, and video games.

With a premise that taps into adolescent fantasy, Superman is born Kal-El on the alien planet Krypton, before being rocketed to Earth as an infant by his scientist father moments before the planet’s destruction. Adopted and raised by a Kansas farmer and his wife, the child is raised as Clark Kent, and imbued with a strong moral compass. Upon reaching maturity the character develops superhuman abilities, resolving to use these for the benefit of humanity. With the success of his adventures, Superman helped to create the superhero genre and establish its primacy within the American comic book.[2]

While referred to less flatteringly as “the big blue Boy Scout” by some of his fellow superheroes,[6] Superman is hailed as “The Man of Steel,” “The Man of Tomorrow,” and “The Last Son of Krypton,” by the general public within the comics. As Clark Kent, Superman lives among humans as a “mild-mannered reporter” for the Metropolis newspaper The Daily Planet (the Daily Star in original stories). There he works alongside reporter Lois Lane, with whom he is romantically linked. This relationship has been consummated by marriage on numerous occasions across varying media, and the union is now firmly established within the current mainstream comics continuity.

The character’s cast, powers, and trappings have slowly expanded throughout the years. Superman’s backstory was altered to allow for adventures as Superboy, and other survivors of Krypton were created, including Supergirl and Krypto the Superdog. In addition, Superman has been licensed and adapted into a variety of media, from radio to television and film. The motion picture Superman Returns was released in 2006, with a performance at the international box office which exceeded expectations.[7] The character has been revamped and updated, most recently in 1986. John Byrne recreated the character, reducing Superman’s powers and erasing several characters from the canon in a move which attracted media attention. Press coverage was again garnered in the 1990s with The Death of Superman, a storyline which saw the character briefly killed.

Superman has also held fascination for scholars, with cultural theorists, commentators, and critics alike exploring the character’s impact and role in the United States and the rest of the world. Umberto Eco discussed the mythic qualities of the character in the early 1960s, and Larry Niven has pondered the implications of a sexual relationship the character might enjoy with Lois Lane.[8] The character’s ownership has often been the subject of dispute, with Siegel and Shuster twice suing for the return of legal ownership. The copyright is again currently in dispute, with changes in copyright law allowing Siegel’s wife and daughter to claim a share of the copyright, a move DC parent company Warner Bros. disputes.

May 26, 2006

Kryptonite

Filed under: wikipedia — Mark @ 6:49 pm

Kryptonite - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Kryptonite is a fictional substance from the Superman mythos, originating in the Superman radio show series. The material, usually shown as having been created from the remains of Superman’s native planet of Krypton, generally has detrimental effects on Superman. The name “kryptonite” covers a variety of forms of the substance, but usually refers to the most common “green” form.

The word “kryptonite” can be used in speech as a synonym for “weakness”.

Real-World Testing from PC Magazine: The New Power Generation

Filed under: random — Mark @ 6:46 pm

Real-World Testing from PC Magazine: The New Power Generation - Reviews by PC Magazine
Sure, shopping for electronics is no picnic. You drive to a store so large it’s visible from space and wander the maze-like aisles until you find what you need. But at least there’s a clerk or two there to help you—often poorly informed and commission-motivated, but it’s help nonetheless.

Shop for batteries, though, and you’re on your own. People usually buy batteries from grocery or drugstore racks. Asking a clerk which battery is best for your digital camera will probably earn you only a glazed look and a shrug.

This lack of information is really too bad, because given the way battery lines have been expanding in recent months consumers could use some direction. Suddenly, each of the big three battery makers—Duracell, Energizer, and Panasonic—is touting long-life batteries tailor-made for electronics.

Do they really perform better? Do they deliver enough extra juice to justify their higher price tags? And are they easy to find at the corner drugstore? With cash in hand, I set out to survey several ­local stores and scoop up their best batteries, then put them to the test during days of sightseeing and shooting on a conveniently timed trip to San Francisco. Once back home, I put them through further paces with an additional high-drain device (a battery-sucking portable television) and a low-drain test using a cheap flashlight.

May 25, 2006

Most Visited Web Sites

Filed under: computers and technology, geek — Mark @ 6:45 pm

Most Visited Web Sites
View most visited websites

Microsoft shows off JPEG rival

Filed under: computers and technology, news — Mark @ 6:44 pm

Microsoft shows off JPEG rival | CNET News.com
SEATTLE–If it is up to Microsoft, the omnipresent JPEG image format will be replaced by Windows Media Photo.

The software maker detailed the new image format Wednesday at the Windows Hardware Engineering Conference here. Windows Media Photo will be supported in Windows Vista and also be made available for Windows XP, Bill Crow, program manager for Windows Media Photo, said in a presentation.
“One of the biggest reasons people upgrade their PCs is digital photos,” Crow said, noting that Microsoft has been in contact with printer makers, digital camera companies and other unnamed industry partners while working on Windows Media Photo. Microsoft touts managing “digital memories” as one of the key attributes of XP successor Vista.

May 24, 2006

Cyrix

Filed under: computers and technology, geek, wikipedia — Mark @ 6:42 pm

Cyrix - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Cyrix was a CPU manufacturer that began in 1988 in Richardson, TX as a specialist supplier of high-performance math co-processors for 286 and 386 systems. The company was founded by former Texas Instruments staff members and had a long but troubled relationship with TI throughout its history.

Cyrix founder Jerry Rogers aggressively recruited engineers and pushed them, eventually assembling a small but efficient design team of 30 people.

Cyrix merged with National Semiconductor, November 11, 1997.

Sound and Vision: A Technical Overview of the Emotion Engine

Filed under: computers and technology, geek — Mark @ 6:41 pm

Sound and Vision: A Technical Overview of the Emotion Engine: Page 1
I’ll spare you the obligatory opening fluff paragraph that goes something like “when Sony first announced the Emotion Engine…,” and I’ll cut right to the chase. The Emotion Engine is weird. It’s so weird, in fact, that it took me quite a while to figure out how it works, and as a result, it’s going to take me quite a while to explain it. The result of this is that I want to approach this topic in two parts.

The first part of this article will not be as technically granular as most of my previous work because I want to provide a pertinent overview and a context for understanding the Emotion Engine in detail, without addressing some of the more complex architectural issues. For the technically uninitiated, the first part will suffice in bringing you the mojo you need (and hopefully wetting your whistle for more). With the foundation laid in part I, the second part of this article will, then, delve into the depths of the Emotion Engine. This second part is probably less accessible than the first, because to understand it, you’ll need to be familiar with CPU architectural concepts like pipelining, VLIW, SIMD, instruction latency, throughput, etc. If you are not familiar with these terms, I’d suggest checking out some of my previous work. [Update 10/05/00: I've since written a system-level comparison of the PS2 and the PC, which should be a bit more accessible than this article. I'd suggest reading it first.]

Also, a disclaimer before I get started. The literature on the PS2 offers conflicting numbers for the sizes of the various caches in the Emotion Engine. These numbers are usually the last to be fixed at production time, and I’m not sure of the latest ones. However, I used the numbers that I thought were most recent. Feel free to correct me if you know otherwise.

Ars Technica: Joshua

Filed under: computers and technology — Mark @ 6:41 pm

Ars Technica: Joshua - Page 2 - (2/2000)
After getting up at 4 in the morning and flying for about 2-3 hours, I sat in the lobby of the Doubletree Hotel in lovely San Jose, CA thinking about what kind of event could get me out of bed at such an ungodly time of the morning. “What the hell am I doing here… for a Cyrix press conference of all things,” I thought. That’s right… Cyrix — a company that’s been laughed at by many hard-core computer enthusiasts for quite a while. Much like S3 and their ViRge chip (which is still the butt of jokes because of its “quality” 3D graphics and speed), Cyrix has taken a lot of flack for the lackluster performance of their CPUs.

Now, it’s not that Cyrix makes a bad CPU; quite the opposite, in fact. Their CPUs are near-perfect for the market that they’re shooting for; however, they just aren’t the powerhouses that many of us enthusiasts are looking for. Integer performance on Cyrix CPUs has always been passable, and for business applications their CPUs offer near Pentium II/III performance at a fraction of the cost. Even now, with prices falling as they have on Intel CPUs, you can nab an entire Cyrix CPU/mobo/RAM setup for the price of an entry level PII/III Intel CPU. All of these things make Cyrix’s CPUs fairly attractive to the business market. In addition, one often-overlooked advantage to deploying Cyrix-based machines on the corporate desktop is that the crappy floating-point performance of a Cyrix CPU means it’s pretty much impossible for a user to bring Quake in from home and play it on their work machine. It just ain’t gonna happen.

This brings us to the reason why Cyrix is the laughing-stock of the CPU market. (Even Rise, who many people have never heard of, seems to get more respect than Cyrix, and Cyrix has been around since the olden-days.) See, as noted above, Cyrix’s floating-point performance has always been ummmm… er… well, “sub-par,” as has their MMX performance, and for that matter as have their clock speeds. But floating-point… that’s really what it comes down to doesn’t it? How many of us have clueless friends who got themselves a “good deal” on their first computer, a 300MHz computer that plays Q3 or UT slideshow-fashion? I have friends like this, and trying to enlighten them about the differences between CPU architectures is near impossible when they think that 300MHz is 300MHz and their $40 CPU should do just as well as the CPU that you spent $200-300 on.

PR fiasco

This is where the PR-rating really does the consumer a disservice. Cyrix is the only company still squeaking by on the old PR system. If you’re not familiar with the “PR” concept, here’s how it works. “PR” stands for “Pentium Rated,” a term that became necessary when the x86 market hit the 586 generation of CPUs and the simple MHz rating lost its status as a reliable measure of performance across x86 architectures. Intel introduced the Pentium processor, which featured some important architectural enhancements over the 486, while AMD and Cyrix were still making 486s. AMD had some particularly successful 486 CPUs that were clocked much higher than any other 486 CPU and gave near-586 performance. These were their 5×86 series CPUs, which AMD sold as the 5×86 133. They were actually 486 CPUs, but they performed on-par with Pentium 75’s. As a result, they were PR rated to 5×86 PR75. While the actual clock speed was higher than 75 MHz, the PR of 75 gives people an idea of what kind of performance to expect from the chip. AMD continued this PR-Rating scheme up to their K5 series, at which point they finally caved into consumer demand (and good sense) and ditched it. Cyrix, however, stuck with the PR system, and now, with the Pentium III/Athlon being the high-end of CPUs, saying your CPU is Pentium Rated to be a 333 or even a 400 is a bit of an outdated concept.

Now, Cyrix may be stuck in the stone age when it comes to rating their chips, but they haven’t been sitting back on their laurels and ignoring the changes in the CPU market. They weren’t able to compete in the high-end space, so they decided to tackle the low-end. The result of their new strategy was the Cyrix MediaGX processor, which incorporated the chipset, video, and soundcard all onto the CPU die. Not a screamer for the desktop, but for so-called “Internet Appliances” like the super-cool WebPad, this was the perfect CPU.

After the release of the MediaGX, financial troubles struck National Semiconductor (who owned and operated Cyrix) and things started looking bleak. Nevertheless, at the same Comdex where they showed their WebPad, Cyrix was also talking up a new CPU core, codenamed Cayenne. (For those of you who don’t hang out in the South much, a Cayenne is a spicy pepper). Cayenne was built around a redesigned and repipelined FPU, and it held some promise of actually being competitive, performance-wise, with Intel offerings of the same speed. Cyrix just recently got bought up by VIA (the chipset people), and VIA has taken the Cayenne core and come up with and a new processor based on it. This new processor is known as “Joshua”.

May 23, 2006

Ars Technica: AMD’s Athlon: Paranoia realized (8/99)

Filed under: computers and technology — Mark @ 6:40 pm

Ars Technica: AMD’s Athlon: Paranoia realized (8/99) - Page 1
It started life as the K7, a successor to AMD’s K6 that believers spoke about in hushed, hyperbolic tones. While Intel spent the bulk of its time and energy on a radical new EPIC architecture, AMD was working to deliver something less exotic–and more immediate: a seventh-generation x86-compatible processor core capable of filling the performance gap between Intel’s sixth-gen x86 core and its oft-delayed Merced.

Time has passed. Intel’s Merced is still a ways off, and Intel’s P6 core is starting to look a bit long in the tooth, as even its own next iteration–the .18-micron Coppermine–has seen delays. Meanwhile, AMD’s K7 is here, newly christened as the Athlon. Has Intel’s famous paranoia been realized? We’ve got a full report for you on what may be the biggest development in the CPU market for quite some time.

Ars Technica: RISC vs. CISC: the Post-RISC Era

Filed under: computers and technology — Mark @ 6:40 pm

Ars Technica: RISC vs. CISC: the Post-RISC Era - Page 1 - (10/1999)
The majority of today’s processors can’t rightfully be called completely RISC or completely CISC. The two textbook architectures have evolved towards each other to such an extent that there’s no longer a clear distinction between their respective approaches to increasing performance and efficiency. To be specific, chips that implement the x86 CISC ISA have come to look a lot like chips that implement various RISC ISA’s; the instruction set architecture is the same, but under the hood it’s a whole different ball game. But this hasn’t been a one-way trend. Rather, the same goes for today’s so-called RISC CPUs. They’ve added more instructions and more complexity to the point where they’re every bit as complex as their CISC counterparts. Thus the “RISC vs. CISC” debate really exists only in the minds of marketing departments and platform advocates whose purpose in creating and perpetuating this fictitious conflict is to promote their pet product by means of name-calling and sloganeering.

At this point, I’d like to reference a statement made by David Ditzel, the chief architect of Sun’s SPARC family and CEO of Transmeta.

“Today [in RISC] we have large design teams and long design cycles,” he said. “The performance story is also much less clear now. The die sizes are no longer small. It just doesn’t seem to make as much sense.” The result is the current crop of complex RISC chips. “Superscalar and out-of-order execution are the biggest problem areas that have impeded performance [leaps],” Ditzel said. “The MIPS R10,000 and HP PA-8000 seem much more complex to me than today’s standard CISC architecture, which is the Pentium II. So where is the advantage of RISC, if the chips aren’t as simple anymore?”

This statement is important, and it sums up the current feeling among researchers. Instead of RISC or CISC CPUs, what we have now no longer fits in the old categories. Welcome to the post-RISC era. What follows is a completely revised and re-clarified thesis which found its first expression here on Ars over a year ago, before Ditzel spoke his mind on the matter, and before I had the chance to exchange e-mail with so many thoughtful and informed readers.

In this paper, I’ll argue the following points:

1.

RISC was not a specific technology as much as it was a design strategy that developed in reaction to a particular school of thought in computer design. It was a rebellion against prevailing norms–norms that no longer prevail in today’s world. Norms that I’ll talk about.
2.

“CISC” was invented retroactively as a catch-all term for the type of thinking against which RISC was a reaction.
3.

We now live in a “post-RISC” world, where the terms RISC and CISC have lost their relevance (except to marketing departments and platform advocates). In a post-RISC world, each architecture and implementation must be judged on its own merits, and not in terms of a narrow, bipolar, compartmentalized worldview that tries to cram all designs into one of two “camps.”

The Warning label generator

Filed under: random — Mark @ 6:38 pm

http://www.warninglabelgenerator.com/

warning.jpg

May 22, 2006

The Stage is Being Set for Vista!

Filed under: computers and technology, news — Mark @ 6:37 pm

Techtree.com India > News > Software > The Stage is Being Set for Vista!
Dotting the countdown to the launch of its Gen-Next operating system, Windows Vista, Microsoft Corp has made a clutch of significant announcements; the launch of the Windows Vista “Get Ready” Web site, the worldwide availability of Windows Vista Capable PCs, the upcoming availability of Windows Vista Premium Ready PCs, and the availability of the Windows Vista Upgrade Advisor Beta.

Windows Vista is being touted as the first operating system to truly scale, basis the hardware capabilities of the computer on which it is installed. Vista, according to Microsoft, will deliver innovations in core operating system experiences including security, reliability, PC management, information search and management, etc.
Mike Sievert, corporate vice president - product management and marketing, Windows, Microsoft, said, “Customers have many options and choices to make, when it comes to buying a PC today. A wide range of form factors, price points, and new technologies figure into their decisions. With that in mind, Microsoft and OEMs are making it easier to prepare for the arrival of Windows Vista. Customers now have the information they need, to get a great Windows XP-based PC today that will deliver rich Windows Vista experiences tomorrow.”

The Windows Vista “Get Ready” Web site can be accessed at http://www.windowsvista.com/getready, and is designed to provide customers information and tools to prepare for the upcoming Windows Vista.

Further, Windows Vista Capable PCs or Windows XP-based PCs that are powerful enough to run Windows Vista, will now be available from leading PC manufacturers across-the-globe including Acer, Dell, Fujitsu, Gateway, HP, Lenovo, NEC, Sony, Toshiba, etc. Microsoft is also working with several PC manufacturers, to introduce Windows Vista Premium Ready PCs at a later date.

May 21, 2006

Anti-Christian Bias in American Society

Filed under: religious — Mark @ 6:35 pm

Anti-Christian Bias in American Society

1. During the 1988 election campaign, George Bush said that Christians should not be considered patriots or real American citizens.

2. Bill Clinton steadfastly refused to give any speeches at local churches.

3. Both major political parties are dominated by anti-Christians. The Republican party, for example, gave us such hard-core atheists as Pat Buchanan, Dan Quayle, Phyllis Schlafly and Ronald Reagan. And the Democrats have given us such personalities as the Rev. Martin Luther King and the Rev. Jesse Jackson– both noted for their vicious attacks on all forms of Christianity.

4. Let’s talk about the media. On Sunday mornings, nearly all major television channels broadcast pro-atheist shows; it is nearly impossible to find religious programming during that time period. Further, Madalyn Murray O’Hair has her own cable TV channel, while Pat Robertson has been unable to obtain one for himself.

5. Most major newspapers run a special weekly section devoted to atheism. There are no equivalent sections for religious news.

6. Anti-Christian shows such as the American Atheist Forum are broadcast by major national networks. Meanwhile, Billy Graham is only able to get on the air through public access TV, which is watched by few people.

7. On news programs and “reality” TV shows such as Rescue 911, nobody is ever shown giving thanks to God after surviving a disaster.

8. It is almost impossible to find a shopping mall with a Christian Armory book store, while Atheist Book Centers are featured prominently on every corner.

9. While atheists couples who marry rarely have any difficulty finding a place to do so, it is nearly impossible for Christian couples to find a church where they can marry.

10. For that matter, churches themselves are extremely rare, while atheist meeting centers can be found every few blocks.

11. Jurors must take an oath upon a copy of the Skeptical Inquirer before they can serve. There have even been court cases thrown out because one of the jury members was a Christian who insisted on swearing on a Bible.

12. Christians often find it nearly impossible to get time off work for religious holidays such as Christmas.

13. Even our language reflects the radical anti-Christian bias that pervades our society. For example, when somebody sneezes, most people say “Darwin bless you”. Similarly, “Voltaire dammit!” is a common cussword.

14. All of our money has the atheistic slogan “We do not trust in God” printed on it.

15. In school, our children are made to recite the pledge, “One nation, anti-God, indivisible….”

16. One cannot rent a hotel room without finding a copy of Nietzsche’s The Anti-Christ in the room.

17. Organizations such as the Boy Scouts deny membership to Christians.

18. In the military, it is nearly impossible to obtain Conscientious Objector status for religious reasons, even though those with philosophical reasons can obtain C.O. status relatively easily.

19. Christian churches are forced to pay exorbitant taxes.

20. You can’t drive anywhere without seeing a Darwin fish or a “Jesus Was A Fraud” bumper sticker stuck to a car.

21. Georgia recently passed a new law requiring schools to have a “moment of noise” during which children are encouraged to degrade Christianity.

22. College campuses usually have dozens of atheist organizations, but few if any for Christians.

23. Many Christians are afraid to admit their Christianity to their parents and friends, for fear their kin will consider them immoral Christian scum and want nothing to do with them.

24. At presidential inauguration ceremonies, Madalyn Murray-O’Hair (that well-known friend of several presidents) gives a short pro-atheism speech.

25. For decades, high school and college commencement ceremonies have included brief speeches at the beginning and end of the ceremony in which atheism is praised and Christians deemed irrational. Christians who object to the practice, or who ask for an opening prayer instead, are regarded as cranks at best and subversives at worst.

26. “There are no Christians in foxholes” is a popular slogan in our society.

27. Communities set up atheist brainwashing facilities, and apply social pressure to citizens to report to these facilities every Sunday morning. Furthermore, attendees are expected to contribute money to support these facilities, and to build others through “outreach” programs.

28. At baseball games, you can often spot people carrying signs that read “Origin Of Species, page 34″.

29. Businesses often refuse to admit that they are Christian owned and operated, for fear of being boycotted by their atheist customers. Meanwhile, atheist-owned businesses often feature Darwin-fish logos in their ads.

30. Atheists have often invented “deathbed deconversion” stories about famous Christians, claiming they became atheists just before they died.

31. Insurance companies refer to natural disasters as “Acts of Darwin”.

32. Forms for job applications, government aid and so forth often ask what type of atheist you are, with checkboxes for “atheist”, “agnostic”, “humanist” and so forth. If you are a Christian, the only thing you can do is check the “other” box– if one is provided.

33. Sports teams often read from the Humanist Manifesto prior to the game, in the hopes that doing so will increase their chances of winning.

34. Atheists constantly threaten television and movies producers with boycotts whenever they portray Christianity in a positive light.

35. Well-known atheists like Michael Martin and Quentin Smith have set up ministries to witness to Christians, but it is virtually impossible to find Christians who specialize in debating atheists.

36. The word “Christian” is recognized as a term which represents the worst of human attributes: cynicism, pessimism, selfishness, and moral turpitude. The word “Atheist,” on the other hand, is used to signify all that is virtuous, as in, “That’s mighty Atheist of you!”

37. On sitcoms and movies of the week, the parents make references to how their lack of faith in God helps them get through life’s troubles. Meanwhile, Christians are portrayed as pathetic folks who end up converting to atheism.

38. Atheists who convert to christianity are often told by their parents “It’s just a rebellious phase. Once you move through this stage of life you’ll realize that you never really believed in God.” Similarly, people who are raised as Christians are condesended to, and told that if they would give atheism a chance, it would fill the empty hole that Chistianity must be leaving in their lives.

39. Most people assume everyone else is an Atheist and are unbelievers as they are. It makes for uncomfortable social situations for Christians and other religious types.

40. Despite the overwhelming number of Atheists in the general population and in powerful legislative positions, when they don’t get their own way, Atheists whine that this is an anti-Atheistic country.

41. Atheists constantly cite, out of context, books of philosophy by noted Atheists to prove that Christians live irrational lives.

42. Atheists do everything possible to get laws passed that will prevent irrational Christians from making their own choices in matters of sex, procreation, life-styles, family units, etc.

43. In small towns and communities all over the U.S. Atheist horns awake Christians at midnight on Saturdays preventing them from getting a good night’s sleep before their Sabbath. Fortunately for much of the population, few church bells wake Atheists who want to sleep in on Sundays.

44. Atheist Army (and other Freethought) soup kitchens force homeless Christians to listen to Atheist propaganda before serving them a meal.

45. Hundreds of self-help groups replace codependence with the 12 Steps of A.B.A. (Atheist Brainwashing Anonymous), convincing people they don’t have the power to help themselves but must rely on the power of Darwin to overcome addiction.

46. U.S. Atheist organizations send missionaries to underdeveloped countries to convince people to renounce long-held local religious beliefs and become Atheists.

47. All prisons have a resident atheist philosopher, and inmates are encouraged to participate in weekly philophical dicussions on Bible Contradictions. This is often reported to parole board, who consider it a good indication of contritenes on the prisoner’s part.

48. A political candidate who declares himself a Christian will have far less chance of winning an election than one who flaunts his atheism.

49. Whenever an atheist commits a crime, invariably people will argue that this is not a sign that teaching atheism might not guarantee a better society, because anyone who would act that way “isn’t a true atheist.”

50. One often sees bumper stickers like, “Thomas Paine said it, I believe it, that settles it,” but seldom sees Christian bumper stickers.

From Scientific Paganism list…think about it Christians…if this list were real how would you feel?

May 19, 2006

Anti-aliasing

Filed under: wikipedia — Mark @ 6:32 pm

Anti-aliasing - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
In digital signal processing, anti-aliasing is the technique of minimizing the distortion artifacts known as aliasing when representing a high-resolution signal at a lower resolution. Anti-aliasing is used in digital photography, computer graphics, digital audio, and many other domains.

In the image domain, aliasing artifacts can appear as wavy lines or bands, or moiré patterns, or popping, strobing, or as unwanted sparkling; in the sound domain, as rough, dissonant, or spurious tones, or as noise.

Anti-aliasing means removing signal components that have a higher frequency than is able to be properly resolved by the recording (or sampling) device. This removal is done before (re-)sampling at a lower resolution. When sampling is performed without removing this part of the signal, it causes undesirable artifacts such as the black-and-white noise near the top of figure 1-a.

In signal acquisition and audio, anti-aliasing is often done using an analog anti-aliasing filter to remove the out-of-band component of the input signal prior to sampling with an analog-to-digital converter. In digital photography, optical anti-aliasing filters are made of birefringent materials, and smooth the signal in the spatial optical domain. The anti-aliasing filter essentially blurs the image slightly in order to reduce resolution to below the limit of the digital sensor (the larger the pixel pitch, the lower the achievable resolution at the sensor level).

See the articles on signal processing and aliasing for more information about the theoretical justifications for anti-aliasing; the remainder of this article is dedicated to anti-aliasing methods in computer graphics.

May 18, 2006

Gherkin - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Filed under: wikipedia — Mark @ 6:32 pm

Gherkin - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Gherkin (French cornichon) is a young cucumber (Cucumis sativus), picked when 3 to 8 cm (1 to 3 in) in length and pickled in jars or cans with vinegar (often flavoured with herbs, particularly dill; hence, ‘dill pickle’) or brine.

The term can also be used to refer to the West Indian Burr Gherkin (Cucumis anguria), a related plant species, originally West African, that was introduced to the West Indies, probably by the Portuguese. This ‘true’ or Burr Gherkin or badunga cannot interbreed with the ‘true’ cucumber (Cucumis sativus), which is the condiment vegetable now generally known as the gherkin or dill pickle. The West Indian Burr Gherkin is edible and may be pickled but must be picked when no longer than 4 cm (1.5 in) long, since it becomes bitter and spiny if allowed to grow larger.

May 14, 2006

Disney Animation Reuse

Filed under: random — Mark @ 6:28 pm

Disney Animation Reuse
Disney reuses its animation but this is hard to spot unless pictures are put side by side for comparison. Here are pairs of pictures to be spotted for animation reuse. 24 more pics after the jump.

May 12, 2006

The Myth of Cybersexual Losers

Filed under: random — Mark @ 6:27 pm

The Myth of Cybersexual Losers
I estimate that I’ve been online at least 40,150 hours since 1996. That’s a conservative estimate but I don’t want to over-share. Ahem.

I’ve known a lot of people who spend more time online than they expected to. I’ve met people who have fallen into robust online lives at the expense of their (former) offline relationships.

But among the thousands I’ve interacted with online, in professional venues and in sexual communities, I have yet to meet more than a handful who have lost interest in offline romance, love or sex. And even they admit that their disinterest probably won’t last forever.

Yet almost every interviewer asks me something like, “Aren’t there millions of people spending their entire sexual/social lives online? Isn’t there a danger that all this technological whiz-bang sex stuff will replace real sex, and worse, real relationships?”

The tone is usually part incredulous, part pity and part … glee? Titillation? Schadenfreude? It’s like they have this vision of a geek utopia where we all log into an internet underground and have wild international orgies.

I don’t know if they think through the details of whether we do this through text, audio, video, avatars or maybe a holodeck we’re bogarting from the rest of the world, but if this place exists, I’ve never found it.

May 11, 2006

A List Apart: Articles: Hybrid CSS Dropdowns

Filed under: programming — Mark @ 6:24 pm

A List Apart: Articles: Hybrid CSS Dropdowns
I know what you’re thinking…“Do we really need another article about CSS dropdowns?” Allow me to convince you. What if we could have one clean, well-structured menu which would combine the dynamism and code-ease of dropdown menus and do away with their main problems (not to mention degrade beautifully)? The problems with dropdown menus are:

1. their secondary options are inaccesible unless you activate the entire menu system; and
2. they offer insufficient orientation cues for the user. It can be difficult to navigate within a particular section of the site because you have to go back to the dropdown to change pages.

This technique is a bulletproof way to ensure browser compatibility and to maintain usability even for people who have old browsers or difficulty accessing dropdown menus, either because of a disability or a low level of comfort with the dropdown paradigm. It also does a much better job than standard dropdown menus of orienting the user within the site.

May 10, 2006

A List Apart: Articles: Suckerfish Dropdowns

Filed under: programming — Mark @ 6:22 pm

A List Apart: Articles: Suckerfish Dropdowns
“DHTML” dropdown menus have notoriously involved nasty big chunks of JavaScript with numerous browser-specific hacks that render any otherwise neat, semantic HTML quite inaccessible. Oh, the dream of a lightweight, accessible, standards-compliant, cross-browser-compatible method! Enter Suckerfish Dropdowns.

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