December 2010
Arsenate-based DNA: a big idea with big holes →
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November 2009
The Challenges of Pinning John Adams Down on... →
As I wrote yesterday, despite the Federalist Party’s portrayal of John Adams as a better Christian than Thomas Jefferson, the two men’s faiths were rather similar. Neither believed in the…
The paper boomerang airplane that actually works. ... →
Here is what you will be making…Enjoy! The basics. Fold your paper length wise and unfold again so you have a center crease.? Woot! Some more basic folding Use the classic folding style and…
Pop's large, moist Italian beef sandwich... →
For our first visit to Pop’s Italian Beef & Sausage one recent Saturday afternoon, my family members reached out for those foods with which they were familiar.
Incredibly Cool: NYT Infographic Shows Where... →
[Click me!] OK, this is awesome. The New York Times (whose infographics really are second to none) put together an index of searches from Allrecipes.com that maps out where queries…
Scottish brewery launches beer with 32% alcohol... →
‘World’s strongest’ beer with 32% strength launched. A warning on the label states: “This is an extremely strong beer; it should be enjoyed in small servings and with an air of aristocratic…
PERFORMANCE/TOUR: Umphrey's McGee (S2) | 11.13... →
Words and Image by: Guy Shechter Umphrey’s McGee (S2) :: 11.13 :: Higher Ground :: Burlington, VT Jake Cinninger - UM :: 11.13 :: Burlington, VT The third of Umphrey’s McGee’s improvisational Stew…
MUSIC INDUSTRY: U.S. Visa Restrictions Could Hurt... →
(CelebrityAccess MediaWire) Members of the touring industry warn that stricter enforcement of U.S. immigration regulations could interfere with the U.S. touring plans of international artists….
The Woman in White's 150 years of sensation →
Wilkie Collins’s novel caused unprecedented excitement when it appeared in 1859, and has not lost its capacity to thrill
One hundred and fifty years ago this week, Victorian readers opened…
Simon Reynolds's Notes on the noughties: When will... →
Our series of oblique angles on the muscial decade continues, with a look at how hip-hop’s vigour and invention at the start of the noughties made the last five years of rap seem stale
A month…
Biodiversity and literature: Why is it a... →
I was listen to the radio as we were coming to the lab this morning, and one of the things that caught my ear was a quick mention of collective nouns. Now these are instances where there is a…
Did Ezra Klein Just Say that Tim Geithner Should... →
Ezra Klein: Ezra Klein: Noam Scheiber defends Timothy Geithner against those demanding his resignation. Scheiber is right on the merits, I think, but the politics matter. Whether Geithner did…
What was really behind last year's market crash? →
In an exclusive extract from his new book, John Cassidy explains why the huge salaries of Wall Street bosses created a culture that helped trigger the financial crisis
Economics, when you…
Bley, Carla/Steve Swallow/Partyka Brass Qunitet /... →
Review by Decca
With Bley on keybords, Steve Swallow on bass & the Partyka Brass Quintet. Good stuff. Not “Christmas jazzed up” but traditional and familiar tunes played with respect and style….
One for the Ages: Bristlecone Pines Break... →
Bristlecone pine trees dot the White Mountains in eastern California, giving the stark and rocky landscape one of its few highly visible signs of life. These gnarly-barked trees can survive at…
Books of The Times: Power and Style, in the Ring... →
Wil Haygood’s biography of Sugar Ray Robinson captures the great midcentury boxer’s grace and power as well as it’s been captured.
Reborn Coma Man's Words May Be Bogus →
The Belgian man recently discovered to be conscious and not comatose for 23 years has given some interviews with the help of an aide. But experts say his words may actually be those of the…
Did Ezra Klein Just Say that Tim Geithner Should... →
Ezra Klein: Ezra Klein: Noam Scheiber defends Timothy Geithner against those demanding his resignation. Scheiber is right on the merits, I think, but the politics matter. Whether Geithner did…
Anti-energy drinks →
(CC-licensed photo by Francis Bourgouin)
As a gimmicky antidote to “energy drinks,” several companies are selling calming beverages in a can. (No, not beer.) DailyFinance recently…
james_nicoll: For the Children! →
Premise for the best genre novel EVER: “You know, presumably the undead do not have the same life support issues the living do. The implications of this for crewed spaceflight are obvious.”
The future of human evolution [Gene Expression] →
Since The Origin of Species was published 150 years ago many articles on evolution are seeing the light of day today. Normally I’m all in favor of this, I ♥ evolution. But it also means…
Blog - The Real Costs of Cellulosic Ethanol →
New figures get beyond startup company hype.
Darwin's Influence on Modern Thought →
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Those who follow Sarah Palin are sowing the seeds... →
The former Alaska governor represents thwarted aspirations and brooding resentment. But she backs policies which would increase them
In the film, The American President, the president’s…
How to Get Out of Afghanistan →
In its war in Afghanistan, the United States has come to a crossroads. President Obama will be forced to choose one of four ways ahead. The choices are expensive and dangerous for our country; so…
The Idea of Communism: An Interview with Tariq... →
Seagull Books has just published the latest in its “What Was Communism” series. The new title, “The Idea of Communism” is written by journalist, author and filmmaker Tariq Ali. This short…
Media onlookers getting ready to take notes on new... →
When brothers Mark and Gary Stern announced a new daily newspaper in Metro Detroit, it seemed there was only one question on everyone’s mind.”Can it be done?”Two-newspaper towns were already becoming…
Grateful Dead - Three From the Vault (Rhino, 2007) →
Taken from the Dead’s much loved run at the Capitol Theatre in Port Chester, NY in 1971, this dorm room staple was on regular rotation during my college years. Blasting from boom-boxes along…
Op-Ed Contributor: My Chocolate Meltdown →
How a corporate takeover ruined the perfect 82 percent cacao extra-dark bar.
C.S. Lewis Died on This Historic Day →
On Friday, November 22, 1963, C.S. Lewis died. While Lewis is known for his children’s Narnia series and writings on Christianity, he was a scholar trained in the Classics. Among my favorite…
Appeals court: Meijer can be prosecuted →
Alan Schneider won this round, but Grand Traverse County’s prosecutor must wait to restart a criminal investigation of campaign finance violations committed by Meijer, Inc.
[Book Review] Behavior: Selfless Memes →
De Waal uses observations from his own fieldwork to argue for the importance of empathy in social behavior of human and other animals. Author: Johan J. Bolhuis
Carla Bley | Jazz review →
Queen Elizabeth Hall, London
At first glance, Carla Bley’s current band, the Lost Chords, look like just another jazz quartet. Then you listen to what they play, and realise that Bley’s…
4:50 pm: Bellaire man succumbs to swine flu →
Dustin Robinson, 23, of Bellaire, died Wednesday at the University of Michigan Health System in Ann Arbor of suspected complications from the H1N1 strain of influenza known as swine flu, his family…
Colin Towns: Electric Period of Miles Davis| CD... →
(In and Out)
It’s hard to move for Miles Davis tributes these days (former Miles bassist and late-career inspiration Marcus Miller is doing it on Sunday’s London jazz festival finale), but…
Senators draw maps of their home states →
Marilyn sez, “To kick off Geography Awareness Week, National Geographic asked all the senators in Congress to draw their home states freehand. Some of the results are pretty funny!”
(Shown…
Questions for the new world →
Our need for a greener, life-enhancing economic model should make us seek answers in the unlikeliest of places
Perhaps it was when investigators realised that a mortgage had been given to an…
Music in Review →
Reviews of the Rumi Symphony Project and Luca Pisaroni.
Yo La Tengo, The Roundhouse, London →
Yo La Tengo have a certain way with a song. It can be trundling along nicely but not necessarily grabbing you, when a sound emerges that makes your ears prick up and suddenly all the divergent parts…
Senators draw maps of their home states →
Marilyn sez, “To kick off Geography Awareness Week, National Geographic asked all the senators in Congress to draw their home states freehand. Some of the results are pretty funny! Sen. Saxby…
The nervous, noncommittal noughties can't end soon... →
In a decade defined by fatalism and impotence, film-makers and writers have been quick to tap into our sense of impending doom
Just to make sure filmgoers leave the present decade on a high,…
Smoking Ban May Now Include Your Apartment →
Some city landlords have begun prohibiting tenants from smoking inside their apartments, because of the dangers of second-hand smoke. A study recently found that secondhand smoke causes at…
THE LEGEND OF BAGGE'S RAND →
Novelist, scenarist, actress, “objectivist” and basic propagandist for rapacious capitalism Ayn Rand is someone I’ve always tended to steer clear of. My aversion is due more to her muddy and…
On This Day in Ancient History - Tiberius Was Born →
Tiberius Denarius © Clipart.com.On this day in 42 B.C., the future Roman emperor Tiberius (Tiberius Claudius Nero) was born. He died on March 16 A.D. 37. Tiberius was the adopted heir of…
The Case for Books by Robert Darnton | Book review →
Dinah Birch praises Robert Darnton, a passionate defender of the printed word
Do books have a future? We’re used to being told that a digital age will make them redundant, yet they don’t seem…
Rethink for calorie eating levels →
Calorie counts used as the foundation for diets and healthy-eating guidance may be wrong, a report says.
Rants and eulogies →
Pete Brown has written a superb rant about the many headed beer industry. Read it here.
And then, for something completely different, a nice pair of posts on Pencil and Spoon, one where Mark…
September 2009
Here come the airport rectal exams! →
Uh-oh. Now that a terrorist has tried unsuccessfully to blow up a Saudi prince with a bomb shoved up his ass, the TSA is obliged to perform rectal exams on every flier for the rest of time. After…
Michigan Legislature cancels Sunday budget session →
The Michigan Legislature does not appear to be in a big rush to finish its work on the upcoming fiscal year’s budget.
Blog - Cognitive decline of the university... →