Polymath's Guide to News and Ideas
Why Professors Blog
THE SCRIPTORIUM DAILY: MIDDLEBROW :Professors are people with full-time jobs teaching students, researching subjects, and publishing their findings. Why would they add to this schedule something that is not a part of their job description: blogging... READ MORE
Denialism: Sometimes there's no other way to describe it
SCIENCE BLOGS :Every so often, one of the--shall we say?--less popular members of our crew of science bloggers, someone who, despite being an academic whose area of expertise is ostensibly science communication, has stepped in it again...READ MORE
Cranks cry persecution, Nisbet listens
SCIENCE BLOGS :Ever since we began writing here about denialism we've emphasized a few critical points about dealing with anti-science. For one, denialists aren't interested in legitimate debate - they are not honest brokers and the tactics they use exist to artificially extend discussion of settled scientific issues... READ MORE
Engelbart: Insufficiently Recursive
OVERCOMING BIAS :When Robin originally suggested that Douglas Engelbart, best known as the inventor of the computer mouse, would have been a good candidate for taking over the world via compound interest on tools that make tools... READ MORE
David McMahon: String theory demystified
THE REFERENCE FRAME :I actually love the book, its format, and its focus. Imagine that your task is to take Polchinski's textbook on String Theory and compress both volumes to 320 light pages or so...READ MORE
Small Towns
FIRST THINGS: ON THE SQUARE :Small towns have been in the news lately. The past election featured them often. Barack Obama commented on the bitterness of those who cling to guns and religion. Sarah Palin and the McCain campaign celebrated small town virtues to contrast with “big city elitism” of the Democrats... READ MORE
It's Science: Ninety-Nine Percent of Texas Science Professors Surveyed Don't Believe in Intelligent Design
UNFAIR PARK : Moments ago, the Texas Freedom Network posted to its Web site a study conducted by Dr. Raymond Eve, a professor of sociology and anthropology at the University of Texas at Arlington... READ MORE
Recognise bad faith
GUARDIAN :One of the biggest complaints about us non-religious types is that ours is essentially a negative position. Rather than being "for" something in a thrusting positive "yes-we-can" type of way what defines us is that we are against – God... READ MORE
Taking Atheism for a Ride Around Town
WASHINGTON POST : If you sometimes find yourself praying for a seat on a crowded Metrobus, some atheists have a message for you: Don't bother... READ MORE
Octopuses share 'living ancestor'
BBC NEWS :Many of the world's deep-sea octopuses evolved from a common ancestor, whose closest living relative still exists in the Southern Ocean, a study has shown... READ MORE