I thought (but now, must say I thinked)
Tyrannosaurs were all extinct—
But now, a T-rex has been found
Alive! Not fossils in the ground!
The stories in the paper tell
This specimen’s alive and well,
And (if you can believe the News)
It’s even giving interviews! [Read more…]
Via Lousy Canuck, the news that a new production of Jesus Christ Superstar will feature Tim Minchin as Judas.
That’s the (very) good news. The bad news? After the jump: [Read more…]
For my money, one of the most powerful songs in all of musical theatre, as short as it is, is South Pacific’s “You’ve got to be carefully taught”. It was deemed inappropriate, controversial, anti-American…but it was perfect. More, after the jump: [Read more…]
No, not the skin of a Digital Cuttlefish. That would be icky. Rather, an installation at the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences:
10 feet wide and 90 feet in length, this sculptural ribbon winds through the five story atrium of the museum and is made of 3600 tiles of LCD glass. It runs on roughly 75 watts, less power than a laptop computer. Animations are created by independently varying the transparency of each piece of glass.
The content cycles through twenty programs, ranging from clouds to rain drops to colonies of bacteria to flocking birds to geese to cuttlefish skin to pulsating black holes. The animations were created through a combination of algorithmic software modeling of natural phenomena and compositing of actual footage.
Exceedingly cool video after the jump. Embiggening strongly suggested. [Read more…]
In December, I passed along the story of Hawa Akther, whose husband cut off the fingers of her right hand when he found she was attending college.
The BBC has an update, with both good and bad news. The good news is, Ms. Akther is a remarkable woman. Her right hand has been surgically modified by rehabilitation doctors so that she can hold a pen or pencil, and she is right back on her quest to become a lawyer:
“All those horrible things happened to me because I wanted to study. So, I will pursue my education. Doctors say I cannot write [in] my exam for three hours at a stretch. So, I need a writer for the exam. But I will continue practising with my right hand,” she said.
Her determination to fulfil this objective has even tempted her to break rules at home.
“I had to register and pay exam fees three days after my fingers were cut off. So, my parents told me not to sit for them this year,” she said.
“But I didn’t want to miss it. So I took money from my mother’s handbag without her knowledge and paid my fee,” she said with a giggle.
The bad news is that she is but one example of what is a growing problem:
The 2011 Human Rights Report by the Odhikar organisation points out that violence against women is on the rise in the country.
It said that more than 300 women may have been killed in dowry-related violence last year. In addition to this, dozens of women were also killed in rape and acid attacks.
There is social stigma attached to reporting such incidents; I can only hope that Akther’s case makes her an international hero, that she can model perseverance and courage, and that newly empowered women will change the world.
The War On Christmas used to be
A war without a casualty
A war of rhetoric and bile
Of right-wing spin and practiced guile [Read more…]
This morning, Cuttlespouse left for a weekend with friends. Cuttlehouse is, of course, significantly quieter. To compensate, the stereo is considerably louder right now, playing music Cuttlespouse does not care for. Don’t worry–there is plenty of Cuttlespouse-approved music that I love, so this is not a sign of hardship on my part. But that’s not what I am here to write about. That, after the jump: [Read more…]
The Church is a constant; unchanging; a rock;
The foundation of morals; the source of true light
The views of society shift like the sand,
But the church remains solid, and fixed in God’s Sight.
(Abuse is something we’d never allow—
Well, maybe before; that was then, this is now.)
[Read more…]
Ok, this is mostly personal, but I have to say it somewhere…
You might have noticed a lull in my productivity recently. In previous years, the entire month of April has been scorched earth, double-plus-ungood badness, so this year has been better than most. But still. (after the jump) [Read more…]
It’s time to raise our voice in prayer,
And pray to–well, there’s no one there.
No god to urge to do our bidding;
Go on and pray–just know you’re kidding.
It’s time to all sit on our asses,
And pray forgiveness for trespasses
(Or is that to forgive our debtor?
Who cares, as long as we feel better.)
It’s time we all embrace god fully,
Feel all righteous, good, and holy–
Or be some atheistic jerk,
Roll up your god-damned sleeves, and work!
It’s time to say “I do not care
To join you in this day of prayer.”
Sure, a day off looks like fun,
But there is work that must be done.
Our problems will not fix themselves
There is no god to send in elves
To do the work of human ranks
So… join, today, in prayer? No thanks.
First posted 4 years ago! My goodness, how time crawls!