The Sycologist

Why does time go by faster as you get older?

2010-10-12T06:27:00.000+01:00

As people get older, they tend to notice that time goes by faster than it did when they were young. And the older they get, the more they notice this phenomenon. So what the heck is going on?Well, first to dispel a myth – and that is the idea that time seems to progress faster as you get older - simply because you are older!For a five year old, a year is one fifth of their life. Hence a period

The Abraj Al-Bait Mecca clock: the world's largest clock!

2010-08-11T06:02:00.002+01:00

Where is the center of the world? And does it really matter?Well, many years ago, when nations were insular and proud - it DID matter.There must be a center point where time begins – even though the Earth is a globe – and London was chosen and Greenwich Mean Time came into being.The Big Ben clock in London is symbolic of London’s place at the “center” of the globe, where time is set at 0 - and

George, the world’s tallest dog!!!

2010-02-24T11:00:00.001Z

Say hello to George.The world’s tallest dog!When standing he’s nearly 43 inches tall from paw to shoulder.His weight? An astonishing 245lbs!!! So when you’re playing with him be careful – else you could be squashed as flat as a pancake if he managed to get on top of you!From nose to tail he’s 7feet 3inches!!And boy does he eat – his appetite his so huge that he guzzles down 100lbs of food every

The Joe Stack manifesto (complete!)

2010-02-19T05:01:00.006Z

I saw it written once that the definition of insanity is repeating the same process over and over and expecting the outcome to suddenly be different. I am finally ready to stop this insanity. Well, Mr. Big Brother IRS man, let’s try something different; take my pound of flesh and sleep well.> Andrew Joseph Stack, in the closing lines of the “Joe Stack manifesto”This is an utterly fascinating

Does the UK recognize polygamy? YES, now it does!!!

2010-01-28T05:03:00.003Z

"When I was going to St. Ives,I met a man with seven wives.Every wife had seven cats,And every cat had seven kits.Kits, cats, man, and wives;How many were going to St. Ives?"Polygamy has always been against the law in the UK and punishable by a jail sentence of up to seven years. In the past it’s never been a big issue because, let’s face it, who’d want to have more than one wife? Divorce is (

Can Christians call God "Allah"?

2010-01-04T05:35:00.004Z

There’s a bizarre dispute going on in Malaysia at the moment and it revolves around the right of Christians to call God “Allah”.And all has come to a head now that the Herald - a Catholic weekly published in the country – has surprisingly won a court case allowing the publication to still refer to God as "Allah".However, the matter is still far from resolved and strong protests are now being made

Sacked for buying Zhu Zhu Hamsters!

2009-12-29T05:05:00.002Z

Although I’m essentially libertarian I find it quite unbelievable that citizens of so-called “free” countries put up with greedy corporations that basically consider their employees to be worthless and replaceable sub-humans who do nothing for the company and who can be sacked at will with no consideration whatsoever for the welfare of that individual and/or the welfare of that individual’s

Norway, bright lights: first contact or not?

2009-12-11T05:00:00.001Z

This is by far the most incredible “UFO” picture I have ever seen. Period.It’s not a fake, has many independent eye witnesses, and has been recorded on film.But what the hell is it?1) Proof we are not alone in the universe and that this is the big one – FIRST CONTACT with alien beings via a worm hole. 2) A Russian missile launch gone wrong, with the missile burning up in the atmosphere. 3)

Tiger Woods: the serial cheater?

2009-12-08T05:03:00.003Z

Bad Tiger. Bad, bad, bad Tiger. Bastard tiger. Bastard, bastard, bastard…But does Tiger Woods really look like a nasty bastard to you? Well, not by a long shot! I mean you couldn’t come up with a more polished and wholesome looking dude than the affable Tiger Woods. So what went wrong with the guy?Well that’s just it. Nothing, really. Nothing went wrong. It’s not that Woods is a bastard - it’s

How to get more hits on your blog?

2009-11-20T05:32:00.003Z

How to get more hits on your blog?I’m certainly not going to make this blog into yet another one of those SEO blogs, but here’s my two cents worth on the matter anyway – with tongue firmly in cheek!1. Write a blog post called “How to get more hits on your blog?” so that people searching for the phrase “How to get more hits on your blog?” will come to your blog.2. Offer ridiculously cool prices

Michael Jackson and Warhol

2009-11-13T05:04:00.003Z

Find a magazine with a picture of Michael Jackson in it. Cut out the picture using a pair of scissors. Now the creative part: scan it into a PC and then mess around with the colors a bit using Photoshop.And hey presto: you have a masterpiece worth $812,500!A "Thriller"-era silk-screened portrait of Michael Jackson created by Andy Warhol has sold for $812,500 to an anonymous collector.The 1984

Happy Bonfire night!

2009-11-05T05:01:00.000Z

Today is the day in which bonfires are lit across the UK to celebrate the failed attempt of a bunch of embittered Catholics to blow up the Houses of Parliament in 1605 (now over 400 years ago!) I always liked this day as a kid as it gave me an excuse to make a bonfire in the garden – something I would not usually be able to do otherwise. The key to making a good bonfire is to only use dry woods

Love still makes the world go round

2009-09-14T06:18:00.002+01:00

There’s a hilarious story from Thailand in which a young Iranian couple have been arrested:-- Police arrested and fined an Iranian couple for having sex on the Jomtien beach early Friday.Hashom Abdli, 28, and his girlfriend, Margam Ziyace, 25, were charged with indecency and were fined Bt500 each and were released.Police Captain Chamrasthong Jinda, deputy inspector of the Pattaya police station,

09/09/09 and consumer psychology

2009-09-09T06:06:00.000+01:00

Today is the ninth day of the ninth month of 2009 - or 9-9-9. Only once a century does this number appear on a calendar. So take note.The number 999 has no real significance to me as a date but that does not mean it is not an important number. In fact, in the field of consumer psychology, the number 999 is probably the most studied and important of numbers there is. And the reason? Well, because

All your base are belong to us (Zero Wing)

2009-09-09T06:02:00.006+01:00

Google’s search doodles (Xmas, Halloween, the lunar landing etc) are pretty easy to understand but its latest one of a UFO beaming up one of the o’s in Google had a lot of people scratching their heads.So what does it all mean?That Google are closet UFO apologists?!!Well, if they are, then we are in real trouble, because as I pointed out previously, anyone who believes that green men like to

Unresolved duality and Barack Obama

2009-09-04T06:01:00.009+01:00

It was the Greek philosopher Pliny who noted that the two sides of the human face are physically asymmetrical. This, of course, is no bad thing as it is the asymmetry which makes a human face interesting to look at.Aware of this phenomenon, portrait painters have often accentuated the asymmetry in their paintings in order to create a more attractive portrait. And photographers have also been

Britney Spears and the color psychology of purple

2009-08-26T06:03:00.003+01:00

Colors have strange affects on the human psyche and we readily make associations based on colour. One of my favourite colours is purple: it’s fun and happy but not girlish like pink.For some reason that I can’t explain, purple is also associated with royalty.Interestingly, purple is very rarely found in nature and that explains its attraction to those who crave the exotic – as perfectly depicted

Jared Rohrig: guilty or not?

2009-08-25T06:14:00.001+01:00

Imagine that you are an identical twin and that your twin brother – who looks exactly like you of course – is married.You then go over to your brother’s house to see your brother but he is not there as he has gone out.However, his hot wife – you can pretty much guess what I am going to say now – is there and she wrongly believes you to be her husband!It’s a beautiful day, the sun is shining and

Jasmine Fiore pictures

2009-08-21T06:01:00.004+01:00

Sexy model Jasmine Fiore was dealt a bad hand. She could have met anyone at the Las Vegas casino but fate – destiny, call it whatever you will – brought about her meeting with Ryan Alexander Jenkins, a contestant in the reality show “Megan Wants a Millionaire”.But the good times didn’t last, and according to Fiore’s mother, the two of them fought frequently because Jenkins was jealous of Fiore's

On the pinhead of universal irrationality

2009-08-20T12:02:00.003+01:00

If you really want to get your head into a twist take a look at these dice:Mind bending huh?But not nearly as bizarre as what the scientists and astronomers tell us about the Universe.Like what I was told by my teacher when, as an inquisitive kid, I asked him about the origins of the Universe. He then – as you might guess – went on to tell me about the Big Bang and how EVERYTHING in the universe

Christopher Langan the bouncer

2009-08-12T06:07:00.005+01:00

How clever do you think the bouncer pictured below is?Not too bright? Pretty average?Well, you’d be wrong by a long shot, cos he is in fact America’s most intelligent man with a measured IQ of between 195 and 210 – or 35 points higher than Einstein’s!!!His life story is pretty incredible: he grew up in poverty and was beaten by his step dad until he took up weight training and booted him out of

The British police dress up in burkhas

2009-08-11T06:02:00.002+01:00

Alterity is swapping one’s own perspective for that of the other, as demonstrated by three British police officers in Sheffield, South Yorkshire:The move, which was part of a police initiative, has been widely condemned – and rightly so – by people who believe that the job of the police is to arrest criminals and not to stage publicity stunts.Obviously, people should be allowed to wear what they

Liu Bolin and when concealment becomes a strategy

2009-08-03T12:03:00.004+01:00

Someone has pointed me to the art of Chinese artist Liu Bolin, and I have to say I’m impressed.Liu Bolin asks whether humans are animals, and comes to the conclusion we are not since we have lost our ability to conceal ourselves from a hostile environment, unlike, say, a rattlesnake (which can bury itself in the ground), or a chameleon (which can change its hues to match the color of its

Jazella Moore (Anabela Mota Janke) picture

2009-07-29T06:03:00.002+01:00

This is stupid; really, really stupid:Scott Janke has been fired for marrying Anabela Mota Janke, a pretty much unknown porn star best known for her “performance” in “My Friends Hot Mom”.The town manager who married a porn star last year was fired at an emergency meeting after the mayor and council members learned about it.Fort Myers Beach town council voted 5-0 to fire Scott Janke "without cause

Kartika Sari Dewi Shukarno to be spanked for drinking beer!

2009-07-24T08:17:00.005+01:00

Most people in the West take it for granted that we can enjoy a beer if we want one. Sure it's not a good idea to drink too many – hangovers are never much fun – but we would never expect that a glass of the amber nectar would lead us to be canned in public. But that's the fate of Malaysian woman Kartika Sari Dewi Shukarno who will be flogged for drinking beer in a nightclub last year.But

Katy Perry and pizza in the bath

2009-07-21T10:27:00.004+01:00

In the old days it was simple – those that wanted attention got attention and those that didn’t didn’t.But now things are different.This is because the internet means virtually unlimited content and to get a share of the attention-pie you have to do some really strange stuff.Just like Katy Perry who, on a whim it seems, decided to post up a picture of herself in the bath with a large sized pizza

'Perfectly executed murders' -- but suspects failed to turn off surveillance camera

2009-07-16T08:35:00.003+01:00

It's a sick world out there but at least these seven men will have to face the full force of the law.http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,532825,00.html?mrpGet Clipmarks - The easiest way to email text, images and videos you find on the web.

Did man walk on the Moon?

2009-07-14T09:36:00.003+01:00

On 21 July 1969, some 40 years ago to the day (if you are reading this on 21 July, obviously!), Neil Armstrong became the first human being to walk on any celestial body other than good old planet Earth.Or did he?Because, just perhaps, it was all just an elaborate hoax engineered by CIA agents to boost US nationalism at a time when the communists posed a real threat to the capitalist system (now

Mayan crop circle appears at Silbury Hill in Wiltshire

2009-07-09T10:29:00.005+01:00

Another crop circle. This one's of an ancient Mayan symbol and apparently foretells the impending apocalypse.I just hope I get the chance to see the new Harry Potter film first… clipped from http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/5777580/Mayan-apocalypse-crop-circle-appears-at-Silbury-Hill.html The Mayan-themed crop circle formation found atSilbury Hill, Wilts Photo: MYNEWSAGENCY

Uluru (Ayers Rock) climb to be banned?

2009-07-09T09:05:00.003+01:00

It's great to be culturally sensitive but should we still be culturally sensitive if that means our rights are removed because of mere religious sensitivities?Well, the answer is yes apparently if you live in Australia because tourists will no longer be allowed to climb the ancient monolith Uluru (Ayers Rock).The authorities give three reasons for the ban:1) SAFETY - 35 people died in the 25

Fiat are using pandas as crash test dummies!!

2009-06-30T11:18:00.004+01:00

Omg!!This is just too sick –European car manufacturer Fiat are using wild animals as crash test dummies!!Nope, I could hardly believe my eyes at first either, but in their latest ad campaign, Fiat subject a Panda, a couple of penguins, and what looks like a walrus, to horrific crashes in a Fiat 500!!!It’s particularly sick and totally senseless – when was the last time you saw a panda driving a

Wax model of Obama in Paris

2009-06-30T04:08:00.003+01:00

Who wants to live forever? sang Freddy Mercury.Obviously not him, because he lived a carefree life and died of Aids at the age of just 45.But immortality – never having to die – is one of those things that will, I think, eventually become a real possibility rather than just a matter a speculation or fantasy.Because it must just be a matter of time before the scientists locate the genes in DNA

Michael Jackson arrives in Purgatory

2009-06-29T07:41:00.004+01:00

Michael Jackson arrives in Purgatory, and is told that in the new kinder, gentler, more customer-focused Purgatory, each person is offered three choices of torture to redeem themselves of past sins. Michael is told that the torture will last one week and after that he can pack his bags for Heaven.Michael is taken to the first room where a man is hung up by his feet and is being whipped with

Killing a fly is wrong, Obama!!!!

2009-06-23T11:19:00.002+01:00

When is killing animals wrong and when is it right?Philosophers have come up with all sorts of fancy arguments over the ages to answer this question, taking into account, among other things, the reason the animal is killed, the intelligence of the animal, and the rarity of the animal, but in the final analysis it has to be said that it basically boils down to whether we think the animal is cute

What would the Malaysians make of Deep Throat?

2009-06-22T17:46:00.001+01:00

How far does a girl have to go to untangle her tingle?More tongue-in-cheek than hardcore horror, Deep Throat was a cult porn film made in the early 70s which featured the luscious Linda Lovelace whose clitoris was located – surprise surprise – deep in her throat.But now, some 37 years on, newly released documents reveal that the FBI tried to stop the showing of the film (as if they didn’t have

The Javelin train vs. the Indian train

2009-06-19T08:03:00.004+01:00

clipped from http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2009/jun/18/high-speed-train-commuterA 140mph Javelin train at London's St Pancras International. Photograph: Johnny Green/PABritain's first high-speed commuter rail service was unveiled today as a Javelin train ferried travellers from London's St Pancras station at 140mph.Normally a plodding journey lasting almost an hour and a half, the trip to Ashford

God punishes drug users in Malaysia

2009-06-15T09:23:00.004+01:00

Good to see justice being meted out old-fashioned style. clipped from news.xinhuanet.comThree drug addicts killed by lightning in Malaysia KUALA LUMPUR, June 15 (Xinhua) -- Three men were killed by lightning when they were taking drug in southern Malaysia, according to a local newspaper on Monday. The accident happened in an palm oil estate in Kota Tinggi, about 300 kilometers southwest from

Chastity Bono becomes Chaz Bono in sex change!

2009-06-15T06:09:00.005+01:00

clipped from abcnews.go.comChastity Bono in 2005 and in 1993(R). Bono has announced her decision to moveforward with a female-to-male gender transition.(Getty Images)Get Clipmarks - The easiest way to email text, images and videos you find on the web.Forget gay marriage, that is so passé.Instead just take things to their natural conclusion and transform yourself sexually. From man to woman, or

Crop circles in Ashbury, Oxfordshire

2009-06-12T06:00:00.003+01:00

Crop circles were a frequent phenomenon a number of years back, so I was interested to see on the BBC that a new one has just been discovered in a field in Ashbury, Oxfordshire.The origin of the circle remains unknown but it could be either:1) some pranksters looking for attention and making use of specific lengths of string to help them make nice neat concentric crop circles in creating an

Dangerous ideas

2009-06-08T06:00:00.002+01:00

In her latest post Skepbitch wonders why people pray. I’ve touched on the same idea before (in my World’s Greatest Conspiracy post) and so have many other skeptics. This particular idea is an interesting one but dangerous nonetheless (in certain countries having this idea could mean losing your life if the authorities ever found out). But while most dangerous ideas might not have such extreme

Captcha and Chess

2009-06-05T06:13:00.002+01:00

I’m having problems beating my computer at chess. In fact I’m losing every time I play.But I shouldn’t be ashamed. Computers make good chess players and International Master David Levy famously lost to Deep Thought back in 1989. The next to fall was the then reigning world champion Garry Kasparov. He lost a 1996 match with IBM's Deep Blue.And then in November-December 2006, World Champion

Bruno the film is coming…

2009-06-04T06:40:00.004+01:00

Think back to Borat and that scene in which Borat introduces the black American politician – Alan Keyes - as a “genuine chocolate face”.And then try to imagine the scene again, but this time with a working class comedian like Bernard Manning trying to pull the same stunt. What would happen? Well, they’d be mayhem that’s what. The guy would be crucified on a lefty cross of self-righteousness

Will humans get much taller?

2009-05-25T12:01:00.004+01:00

saw this man stick out his neckwith his binoculars intactHe couldn't tell the right side of his brainHad just lost all interest in his left...> This Here Giraffe, by the Flaming LipsAn Australian diver has discovered a new seahorse near Derawan island off Kalimantan island in Indonesia:Nothing special about that you might think except that this seahorse -which has been named Hippocampus Satomiae

Art for atheists: Kader Attia’s “Ghost”

2009-05-15T12:02:00.002+01:00

My first attempt at a very short art review. Here goes…In “Ghost”, French artist Kader Attia shows us the true face of organized theist dogma. And guess what? There isn’t much to see! Because once the inquisitive mind has been torn out, the humanity has been lost - and an empty shell is all that remains. But the zeitgeist moves on – aluminum the future fashion code. And as cloth shall become an

On the toss of a coin

2009-05-13T12:05:00.005+01:00

It’s strange why things turn out like they do.A number of years back when I was at university in the 1990s we had an Apple Lab and everyone said that the Apple operating system would dominate the PC market in years to come. It didn’t turn out that way of course as the rival Microsoft Windows operating system became the dominate player with only a handful of graphic design geeks and fashion

Google Goof

2009-05-13T12:02:00.001+01:00

I’ve received this email from Google. Have you too?Dear AdSense publisher,We apologize for the broken links in the previous email. Here are the corrected links for the new publisher feature and media planning tool. We’re sorry for the inconvenience and appreciate your understanding.Sincerely,The Google AdSense Team

Pope calls for Palestinian state!

2009-05-13T11:11:00.001+01:00

Breaking news: Pope Benedict XVI has offered his support for the Palestinians' right to a homeland, during his trip to Israel and the West Bank... clipped from www.worldcat.org

The short and long of blogging

2009-05-11T06:07:00.001+01:00

My previous blog post was my shortest ever - but was it the shortest blog post ever written? Most probably I reckon. Sure it’s possible that someone really has posted a completely blank page at one time or another, but, then again, why would they do that? After all, you wouldn’t write nothing to say something would you?At the other end of the scale are long blog posts. There aren’t many of them

Oxymoron No. 753

2009-05-08T12:17:00.002+01:00

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Scottish cops list Jediism as their official religion!

2009-04-17T11:34:00.002+01:00

clipped from www.inthenews.co.ukEight officers in Strathclyde Police list their official religion as Jedi Back in 2001, a census for England and Wales revealed that there were about 390,000 Jedis in those two countries.As a result, the authorities should have declared Jediism as an official religion. But no

Brave New World Revisited?

2009-04-13T08:55:00.001+01:00

In Aldous Huxley’s vision of a dystopian society, natural reproduction is done away with and children are decanted and raised in Hatcheries and Conditioning Centres. Could this ever happen? Well, here’s one reason why it possibly could: clipped from www.denverpost.comStudy: Marital bliss plummets after birth of

To buy or not to buy the 802.11n supported iPod Touch?

2009-04-06T12:28:00.001+01:00

Of all of Apple’s music players, the one that tickles my fancy is the iPod Touch.Besides being a MP3 player and video player, you can also use it to surf the web as it is Wi-Fi equipped. That is pretty cool and means that some very interesting applications can be developed for the iPod Touch – including, just recently, Skype.So now, if you have access to a Wi-Fi spot, you can call other Skype

Flying Penguins

2009-04-01T06:04:00.002+01:00

Penguins have a Welsh name but can’t be found in Wales.In fact, they are geographically challenged and only live in cold places in the Southern hemisphere.Hell, I’d love to take a bunch of them up to the Arctic and see what they’d do. Sink or swim? Or perhaps hitchhike the 13,000 kms back home?Penguins are also cute and the symbol of a well known book publisher.And they can even fly, can’t they?

Cat marriage, how long must we wait?

2009-03-25T05:23:00.002Z

The zeitgeist moves on and Vermont is now the third US state after Massachusetts and Connecticut to approve same-sex marriage.Makes you wonder what’s gonna come next really.I mean will we be reading articles like the following in another 20 years down the line?Today, the Cats Make Good Life Partners Association filed a suit in federal court in Boston, MA to challenge the denial of critical

Why are Jews clever?

2009-03-23T05:05:00.000Z

There’s nothing like a controversial post to get your hits up, so I thought I’d look at a bit of conventional wisdom that has baffled researchers for centuries: why are Jews so clever?Personally I’ve never been one for judging people by their race or color of their skin, but to simply brush questions like this aside – as many researchers are required to do in the States (else face being fired on

Fun with language

2009-03-18T05:05:00.000Z

Cna yuo raed tihs? Olny 55 plepoe tuo fo 100 anc.i cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdanieg.The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid, aoccdrnig to a rscheearch atCmabrigde Uinervtisy, it dseno't mtaetr in waht oerdr the ltteres in awrod are, the olny iproamtnt tihng is taht the frsit and lsat ltteerbe in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitllraed

JF Crook says he has solved Sudoku!

2009-03-17T05:17:00.004Z

I’ve never been a big fan of Suduko but a scoop in US Today that a computer scientist has discovered a mathematical formula to solve the puzzle is – if true – big, big news.Sudoku, strangely enough, isn’t Japanese but was invented by an American architect called Howard Garns, who had the puzzle first printed in Dell Magazines under the name "Number Place", starting in 1979.News that the puzzle

Happy Pi day!!!

2009-03-14T03:14:00.006Z

Sex toys and sabre saw blades

2009-03-13T05:01:00.004Z

Okay here’s a question for you:Take a look at the picture below and decide if:1) it’s a sex toy, or2) it’s a rather dangerous piece of equipment with an extremely sharp sabre saw blade attached to itAnd the answer? Well, it’s a trick question actually –both answers are right!Couldn’t make it up could you?clipped from The Australian Power tool sex toy lands woman in hospitalThe Maryland woman was

The US$500 million maths error!

2009-03-12T05:01:00.002Z

You’ve got to be careful when doing maths. One little mistake and the answer ain’t right. This is because maths isn’t like some other disciplines where you can get away with making some mistakes; you are either right or wrong. There is no such thing as “nearly right” or “mostly right”. It’s everything, or nothing.And if you don’t believe me, just ask the guys at the US Energy Department (DOE) who

Madonna falls for Jesus (and fails the age test)

2009-03-04T06:58:00.002Z

clipped from http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2009/mar/04/madonna-relationshipMadonna and model Jesus Luz are seen on the streets of Manhattan on March 1, 2009 in New York City. Photograph: Arnaldo Magnani/Getty ImagePayback time! Take this Guy Ritchie: "I've got a man 28 years younger than me and he’s called Jesus!

Moaner Lisa

2009-03-03T05:01:00.003Z

Oh shit!Yet another omen that the recession will be long and deep and that the global economy won’t start to recover until 2047 by which time only 5% of the global workforce will still have jobs –- and it’s that the Mona Lisa’s famous grin is gone!! >Mona Lisa, by by Leonardo da Vinci Yep folks – what 500 years of madness and two world wars and natural disasters and tsunamis and earthquakes and

Hypermiling

2009-02-27T05:08:00.002Z

Him: Are you into hypermiling?Me: Hypemiling? What the fuck’s that?Him: You mean you don’t know?! Don’t you want to save the planet or not, dude?-----------------------------------------------------So what is hypermiling?Well, basically driving in the most fuel-efficient way possible. But it doesn’t just mean driving like an old granny at 30 mph and breaking softly at the lights. Oh no. Cos

Anuradha Bali: religion of convenience

2009-02-26T07:27:00.001Z

There are few things that will shake a man’s religious resolve. But there is one thing. And that one thing is love. And this is probably the only thing – bar money perhaps – that can melt down those seemingly formidable icy walls of theist dogma…Now that’s all very well. Until they get divorced of course! Derrrr!!! clipped from news.xinhuanet.com"Thumbelinda", the world's smallest horse takes part in a toy fair with its trainer Michael Goessling in New York, Feb 15, 2009.The seven-year old horse received the title of "World's smallest horse" from the

Are atheists racists?

2009-02-13T11:03:00.002Z

There is an excellent opinion piece in the Independent about how freedoms to criticize thesist ideas are gradually being removed in the west.The writer of the opinion piece, Johann Hari, also points out the increasing tendency for atheists to be rubbished as “racists”:Underpinning these "reforms" (in the UN) is a notion seeping even into democratic societies – that atheism and doubt are akin to

Friday the thirteenth

2009-02-13T05:03:00.003Z

Paraskevidekatriaphobia, or fear of Friday 13th, is probably the most widespread superstition in Western countries.But is it mere superstition? I always used to think so. But what is really interesting is that a study conducted by the British Medical Journal shows there is very good reason to stay at home on a day like today:"The risk of hospital admission as a result of a transport accident may

Evolution and short-sightedness

2009-02-09T05:03:00.003Z

Eyes I was told are part of the brain. Yucks – part of our thinking organ actually sticking out of our head! But our eyes are not perfect and many people are short-sighted (in the UK about five million). But why? What terrible thing have these people done to be cursed by the affliction of myopia – the inability to see clearly beyond one’s own nose?Nowadays short-sightedness is no big deal. We

RealTouch

2009-02-09T05:01:00.001Z

Her: She really wants to hear from you… after all these years… you know it would mean so much to her if you contacted her again.Him: Sure… is she on facebook?------------------Also on a virtual theme is the “newest breakthrough in sex technology", a device that sci fi writers were talking about 20 years ago but which now threatens the livelihoods of gold diggers anywhere where men have access to

The arbitrariness of antiquated clothing items

2009-02-05T05:05:00.003Z

Are the fires of hell a glowing? Is the grizzly reaper mowing? Yes! The danger must be growing for the rowers keep on rowing, and they're certainly not showing any signs that they are slowing…> Wonka, Charlie and the Chocolate FactoryI was watching this magic show last night and the magician does the usual trick of pulling the rabbit out of the hat. The hat is a Top Hat of course as its large

Reefer Madness and Michael Phelps

2009-02-02T11:16:00.000Z

There’s a new drug…According to the BBC it can:Be beneficial to sufferers of various medical conditions, including cancer, HIV, multiple sclerosis, and glaucoma.AndIt has an effect on the heart, similar to the effects of exercise. It may be just as good for the heart as going to the gym.Its name? Marijuana. Okay, so it’s not new - marijuana has been used since time immemorial among some

Agus Noro is Captain Underpants!!!

2009-02-02T11:12:00.004Z

Captain Underpants has been unmasked!And he’s not a Yank like most of us expected but a religious wacko from the Republic of Indonesia who gives sermons to his followers in his underpants.So has Captain Underpants been putting his superhero gifts to good effect?Oh yes – you can bet he has:Agus, who is called Agus Imam Solihin or 'leader of the faithful' by followers, is alleged to have had sex

The world’s greatest corruption case

2009-01-29T05:09:00.006Z

The surest way to corrupt a youth is to instruct him to hold in higher esteem those who think alike than those who think differentlyFriedrich NietzscheThe global economy is tanking. And it wasn’t so long ago that some mortgage lenders in the US would make loans to people who didn’t even have any income from employment with which to repay the loan! The bet was simply that house prices would

Fiat and Aung San Suu Ky

2009-01-28T05:04:00.007Z

I’ve never liked Fiats: poorly designed rustbuckets with crap engines and a resale value only marginally higher than a 1980s VCR. And I like them even less now.Cos farty old Fiat have only gone and come up with an “advert” to “honor” Aung San Suu Ky’s work (what they really mean is that they are cynically exploiting her status as a highly respected democracy activist to try and sell their “cars”

Freedom of speech

2009-01-27T05:03:00.003Z

Freedom of speech. It’s what we are told we have but the reality couldn’t be more different – even in the so-called liberal countries of the west.Far-right Dutch politician Geert Wilders currently faces prosecution. And for what? Exercising his freedom of speech! Now we may not agree with what he says, and we may even find his views contemptuous and abhorrent, but does that mean he does not have

On midgets and golddiggers

2009-01-21T05:01:00.004Z

The excellent British film “In Bruges” - which features a weird dream sequence - got me thinking about the plight of our undersized brothers – midgets.It’s difficult not to empathize with these poor blighters. They are always looked down on and - whatever their moral standards - are still the lowest of the low. And there’s fuck all they can do about it. Sure they could walk around on stilts, but

Ilham Anas: Barack Obama's alter ego!

2009-01-19T11:03:00.005Z

There are six billion people on Earth and there are only a few features that define a human face – nose, mouth, eyes, eyebrows, shape of face, hair etc.So isn’t it surprising that more people don’t look similar?And what about YOU? Have you ever wondered that there could be another person walking around out there who looks exactly – or almost exactly – the same as you? And maybe not just one other

Atheism and Agnosticism

2009-01-14T05:02:00.004Z

Is there a difference? Well, I think there is. Both words may both mean the “disbelief or denial of the existence of God or gods” but atheism is a lot harsher, nay even fundamentalist.Bush once said that American atheists should not even be considered as “citizens” of that country. Few other groups – bar terrorists – are regarded so poorly. In short, atheism is a dirty word. Little wonder then

On Personal Responsibility

2009-01-13T05:16:00.004Z

I can hardly believe what I have just read.Let’s say you go out with some friends, get utterly smashed over two hours of voluntary hard drinking, and then decide – voluntarily – to take your nice Audi sportscar for a drive.The problem is, of course, that driving a high performance German sportscar when you are pissed out of your mind is not a very good idea. Especially when it leaves the road,

Dawkinsland

2009-01-09T05:05:00.000Z

Some people say countries should stay the same. I don’t. Can you find Prussia on a map now? Or Yugoslavia?So let’s form a new country. And call it Dawkinsland.The creation of Dawkinsland will not please everyone. But it’s the right thing to do. Those currently living in the area where the new state of Dawkinsland will be formed will only be allowed to live in Dawkinsland if they agree to give up

Octopus UFO crashes into wind turbine in Conisholme

2009-01-09T05:02:00.003Z

LL > Aliens crashed their tentacle shaped spacecraft into a wind turbine Wednesday.This was confirmed by Robert Palmer, Chairman of East Lindsey District Council, who said he saw a strange light in the sky the night before the turbine blade fell off:"There was definitely something there," he saidThis is pretty much unequivocally shows that the rogue aliens were responsible for the accident.After

I blog, therefore I’m not

2009-01-06T05:07:00.002Z

Cogito, ergo sum (I think, therefore I am). Probably the most famous phrase in philosophy - thanks Descartes - but one which really infuriates me because, well…, it doesn’t really say anything does it?After all, you may think you exist but what if you had never existed in the first place?Because paradoxically enough, the chances that you do exist (and the chances that you have found your way to

On Missionaries in Papua New Guinea

2009-01-05T05:02:00.001Z

Recently overheard conversation between a frizzy haired member of the remote Huli Wigmen tribe in Papua New Guinea and the missionary who brought him the “gift” of organised “modern” religion:Huli Tribesman: So, do you think I will now go to Heaven or Hell?Missionary: Oh, Heaven, if you are good.Huli Tribesman: But if you hadn’t come here and told me all about it then I wouldn’t go to Hell would

The Monty Hall Problem

2008-12-30T11:06:00.006Z

My mind is still spinning with the Monty Hall Problem. The problem is easy to understand but the solution is completely counterintuitive. It’s really weird – maybe we are just hardwired to be stupid. Try the problem yourself and see if you are stupid too. But even if you are, don’t get too upset about it – you are in good company and virtually EVERYONE unfamiliar with the problem will get it

Does Santa Claus exist?

2008-12-23T05:13:00.002Z

I take a pretty skeptical view on most things - especially when it comes to stuff like UFOs, Bigfoot, ghosts and the paranormal.But not when it comes to Santa Clause.Proof that Santa Claus exists:1) It’s been mathematically proven that he could theoretically deliver all the presents. Yes, there are 2 billion children in the world but Santa doesn't have to worry about Muslim, Hindu, Jewish and

Huang and kappas

2008-12-23T05:06:00.003Z

Huang, a Kappa girl in a Shanghai department store, is bored with her less-than-demanding job. And she wants more money.So what does she do?Well, she makes a 12-minute porno flick and then posts it up on the net for all to download, hoping that her fame – or notoriety – will allow her to sell interviews for up to 30,000 yuan each.But things don’t go to plan and the Shanghai cops eventually track

Max Planck and hot housewives

2008-12-16T05:03:00.002Z

> Never assume anything or U make an ASS out of ME.This is just too hilarious to pass up.Take a look at the front cover of the latest issue of the journal published by one of Europe’s most prestigious scientific research institutes:Well, it’s all very well to come up with some nice Chinese calligraphy to illustrate a special China edition of the publication, of course.But not when you can’t be

Jesus was born in June!!!

2008-12-15T05:03:00.004Z

Now this is a turn up for the books:Jesus wasn’t born in December after all – it was June!Yep I know what you’re thinking - but this isn’t the silly season and the facts come from some reputable scientists who have used computer technology to recreate the exact positions of celestial bodies over the Holy Land in 2 B.C. using St. Matthew's Gospel as a reference point."Venus and Jupiter became very

Jessica Cox: the world’s first armless pilot!

2008-12-11T05:06:00.002Z

It’s easy to be a cynical bastard in a cynical world.Often we forget that there are people far worse off than us and that they don’t get held back by mere inconveniences, such as, er, having no arms!And it’s not as if lovely Jessica wanted to paint pictures by using her mouth to hold a paintbrush either. Oh no. Because this lass from Tucson, Arizona has only gone and become the world’s first

High Rise

2008-12-10T05:11:00.002Z

I’ve never liked living in high rise towers.It is the dislocation from land that I find unnerving, a sort of suspension in space and the prospect that the plug could be pulled at any time and we would come crashing down to the land far below us. A sense of community is also lost: at ground level you are part of a social system but 16 floors up you are far removed from the social interactions

Walking from London to Singapore

2008-12-09T05:23:00.004Z

Technically, of course, not possible. But I did it a number of years ago after the pressures and stresses of the rat-race in London were starting to take their toll. My body needed a change and so did my mind; and the prospect of sipping Singapore slings in balmy Singapore proved too good an opportunity to pass by.I left my home at some ungodly hour, and began the long walk to Heathrow Airport,

The Gonzo Tapes and cryopreservation

2008-12-03T05:01:00.002Z

When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro> Hunter S. ThompsonIt’s one thing for a woman to want an ex-husband’s child but it’s another thing for a woman to want the child of an ex-husband three years after his death.But that is apparently what Anita Thompson (former wife of Hunter S. Thompson) wants."We knew that one day, because of our age difference, Hunter would die and I would still be

Roll of the Dice

2008-11-28T11:06:00.002Z

Some years ago in England, I used to ride a bicycle to get to my college every day. One day though, when classes were over and I went to the bike shed, my bicycle wasn’t there any more. Someone had stolen it.Anyway, a few weeks later I was outside keeping a close eye on the sparkling new bicycle that I had just bought, and which was now leaning – unlocked - against the college brick wall. A 12

News of the Fart

2008-11-25T09:06:00.001Z

America claims to be the nation of the free, but how can you be free if you can’t let rip once in a while? clipped from www.news.com.auA 12-YEAR-old American schoolboy has been arrested for farting in the classroom. Police were called when the boy became disruptive, shutting off the computers of classmates and "

Beating the system (1)

2008-11-25T05:26:00.001Z

It is some years ago now that one of my best friends – a really bright university graduate in pure mathematics from Hyderabad, India - told me how a little known quirk in probability theory (the exponential paradox) could be used to make money. At first I thought there must be some catch. But there wasn’t. And like all brilliant ideas it was devastatingly simple. A guaranteed winner.Here’s how

The US$1,800 school lunch

2008-11-21T06:17:00.001Z

School lunches are not considered to be high-end cuisine, so I was surprised to see that a school lunch can cost US$1,800 in Houston. Pretty expensive really. But that’s America for you! clipped from www.woai.comA high school student shared part of a lunch with a friend and wound up up costing the school close to

The UN and the Sistine Chapel

2008-11-19T07:17:00.000Z

They call it the 21st century Sistine Chapel:I say it’s a pompous piece of extravagant decadence.And the cost? A reported 20 million euros!!!Yep folks – cos that’s how much it reportedly cost to paint the ceiling of a room they now call “The New Human Rights and Alliance of Civilisations Chamber”.The painting was done by Miquel Barcelo, one of Spain’s leading contemporary artists, and a “small”