Science can be stranger than fiction

I came across a story in New Scientist this month that struck me as some bizarre plot for a b-grade Sci-Fi movie. In short, it describes a parasite that infects rats and mice brains, thus eliminating their fear of cats to ensure that they get eaten, so as to complete their life cycle through the cat.

You have now entered ... the Twighlight Zone! ! !

And today a friend points me to an equally strange account of the life cycle of a particular fluke. This just reinforces my doubt in the ability of any "intelligent designer" coming up with such random lunacy!

On a lighter note, I just don't get this report from the ABC that a material resembling the fictitious Kryptonite (of Superman fame) has been found by researchers in Siberia.

What has me concerned is that apparently ...

Scientists from the Natural History Museum in London, who studied its chemical composition, found it matched the description of kryptonite in the film Superman Returns.

Now, I may not be a scientist, geologist or a chemist, but one thing I do understand is the english language and, in this instance, the word "matched" and I fail to see how any fool could consider these two items to be a match.

The fictitious kryptonite used to thwart Superman glows green and is of a metallic or crystalline makeup, whereas the item discovered in Siberia is white and chalky and will "fluoresce pinkish-orange" when subjected to UV light.

What the ... ?

But seriously, what stunned me the most was that "scientists" actually made the effort to compare their find with a fictitious rock from a DC comic for no apparent reason! Go figure!

Tolkien rises once again!

As an avid fan of the works of J.R.R. Tolkien, I couldn't wait to get my hands on the new masterpiece, The Children of Hurin, pieced together by his son, Christopher.

Whether this story will live up to expectations or not is yet to be seen, but I have my copy and I look forward to setting aside some time to read it. My review will, of course, be blogged.

Two fathers ... or even three

This is just brilliant! A young boy singing about being adopted by two gay men ...

http://superbbluewren.livejournal.com/172586.html

You can also read my personal experience about parenting and what my daughter taught me about having three fathers.

Gun-toting Yanks hit back!

My last post has caused a bit of a stir in the "land of the brave". It seems you can't criticise the USers* love for murderous tools without being vilified.

The main point against me is that I accused Wayne Chiang of being no better than Virginia Tech shooter, Cho Seung-Hui. I stand firm on my statement, but rather than defend it allow me to add some context.

Wayne Chiang was quoted as saying

"I am a firm believer that if Virginia Tech students were allowed to conceal carry, this situation could have ended sooner."

Let's put that statement into the context of Bush's invasion of Iraq ...

"I am a firm believer that if Iraqi civilians were allowed to conceal carry, this situation could have ended sooner."

Now watch the comments light up as I get a barrage of abuse from pro-war USers* who insist that terrorising the middle east for the sake of black gold is a good thing. LOL!

The truth is that any lackadaisical attitude about guns is more likely to lead to widespread carnage and murderous mayhem than it is to swiftly and simply neutralise a situation like Virginia Tech, Port Arthur, Waco, etc

The promotion of a "right to bear arms" is ludicrous and there is no possible way that governments can ensure responsible gun ownership except through extremely tough gun control laws. Volacious says it best in his comment on my previous post:

"Gun control in America these days is a fairly academic argument... every idiot already has one"

NOTE * :I tried to find where I had first described the civilians of the USA as USers, rather than their incorrect, self-appointed nickname of "Americans" (which technically applies to any resident of the two American continents). Unfortunately I couldn't find it, hence my explanation for its use. Besides I like the double meaning involved in the term "USer" :-)

Falsely accused, but still a monster

He might have been the subject of internet rumour-mongering and false accusations of being the person responsible for today's massacre at Virginia Tech, but despite his protestations of innocence Wayne Chiang is no better than the man who killed 32 people, wounded more, and left a town mourning and a country in shock.

Chiang believes that guns should be allowed on the Virginia Tech campus.

"I am a firm believer that if Virginia Tech students were allowed to conceal carry, this situation could have ended sooner."

Wayne Chiang is a gun-toting cowboy who would have gladly seen even more people brandishing guns that day, with the inevitable end of a shoot-out to shame the OK Coral!

It doesn't concern me that Wayne is being falsely accused - one look at his blog and I'm instantly repulsed.

Care factor zero from me!

My heartfelt sympathy does, however, go to all the families, friends and neighbours affected by this awful tragedy across the globe.

PLEASE .... will the USA consider gun control laws to protect its own people?

Well, derrrrrrrrr !!!!!!

Steve Bracks is pushing "major reform" to "improve literacy, reduce obesity and create a national preschool system".

What appears to be a gigantic leap of faith for the east-coast ALP governments is really just a simple plan from the average punter's point of view. In fact, I can hear voters across the nation bellowing out to Premiers Bracks, Beattie, Iemma & Rann ...

"Well, derrrrrrrrr !!!!!!"

Time and time again, pollsters ask the average voters what the contemporary issues are leading into an election. Time and time again the same answers come forth ... education and health (aside from law and order). Everyone, it seems, thinks that health and education is low on the priority list for governments and that we all would like to see them both improved on an immense scale.

But, at the same time, we all are only too happy to blame the state governments for the obvious lack of will and fortitude while they in turn blame scrooge-like Commonwealth funding, despite record flows of cash through the GST ON TOP of the abomination of sneaky taxes, e.g.: stamp duty.

It has been my belief for many years, even before I read the policy papers from the Democrats, that States are somewhat redundant. I would dearly love to see our second and third (local government) tier bureaucracies replaced by a simple regional government similar to that seen in some other countries. In the UK, for example, the National Health System (NHS) provides funding to local councils that provide the services.

Such a move would, ideally, transfer ALL constitutional powers to the Commonwealth, whereby we would have one entity controlling the collection the tax revenue and the distribution thereof. One government to disperse ALL funds according to a fair and equitable rule of need, rather than the current rule of possession.

I dare the states to hand over jurisdiction in health and education to the Federal Government - lets have one national health system under medicare, but more importantly, we should demand a single education system with one national curriculum for all.

Being gay in a power-hungry world

As a country that thrives on wealth and power, and whose every breath is consumed by the who's who and the who's doing who, the USA is probably the only nation that could care less about who its top ranking homosexuals are.

But clearly, infamous queer mag "Out", believes that the punters are keen and curious and have published (outed?) the Top 50 for all to see.

Leading the dubiously formed list is one David Geffen, billionaire entertainment mogul who shares equal 50th ranking on the Forbes rich list with discount stock broker, Charles Schwab, just behind Steve Jobs of Apple fame. Geffen is the "G" in the Dreamworks SKG team, alongside Steven Spielberg and Jeffrey Katzenberg.

Ellen DeGeneres may not make the Forbes Rich List, but she does outrank every other non-straight woman to make the Power 50 list at spot #3.

The list is overwhelmingly full of names from the fashion and entertainment industries. But there are also a number of names and tangible links to politics that suggest a very interesting road ahead for the coming Presidential election next year.

It brings an insightful perspective together about the roots and drivers of the historical gay rights campaign and also the contemporary same-sex marriage debate. The media is powerful and if a group can have significant sway over the media, it naturally flows that the same power is present in politics.

Some would argue that the "gay agenda" exists only in the minds of the homophobic zealots. As a gay man who understands the machinations of politics, I see every agenda as a real and credible threat to a healthy liberal democracy. Even one that seeks to serve my freedoms and self interests.

I'll wait and see, but Barack Hussein Obama might have a bit of an edge against Hilary Rodham Clinton, despite his name bearing an eerie resemblance to both Osama bin Laden and Saddam Hussein.

Climate Conspiracy ... rebuttal

Further to my previous post on Climate Conspiracy comes news that the warming of Mars is probably caused by .... dust!

And a good thing it is too ... with temperatures on the red planet ranging between -107°C to -17°C (on good days), we may need some massive climate change before it can host Club Med style tourist resorts ;-)