Here’s a dialog between a gamergater and Leigh Alexander. She speaks truth.
Pharyngula
Evolution, development, and random biological ejaculations from a godless liberal
Here’s a dialog between a gamergater and Leigh Alexander. She speaks truth.
Yet again, another defender of Islam hangs the truth of his holy book on the scientific accuracy of the text. It’s amazing how defensive these fundies get over the possibility that the author was merely transmitting the guesswork of the time, and like any scientific hypothesis, stands a risk of being shown to be wrong by later work.
In this case, the apologists are confronted with a verse from the Quran, which they happily translate literally as (Man is) created from gushing water (which) comes out from between the backbone and the ribs.
I think the Arabs of the 7th century knew exactly where the spine and ribs are — you don’t need to chop a corpse open to find them — and saying that something was located between the spine and the ribs is clearly equivalent to saying the source of semen is in the chest. Which is wrong. Obviously wrong. And they know it is wrong. But watch as they spend 8 tortuous minutes explaining that it’s not really wrong, and all those old Greeks really got it wrong, anyway, unlike Mohammed.
You don’t want to watch that tedious video, I know, so I’ve pulled out a few key frames.
I normally don’t watch football, but I thought maybe I should get a little bit into the spirit of it all since I am from Seattle, and one of the teams has a corporate owner who has been gouging my relatives for a stadium and services for years. Besides, I’ve got my exams graded and my lecture prepared for Monday already, so any excuse to party, right? I’ve never been to a Superbowl party, either, so I’m not sure how one does it. But I’m sure there will be explanations and suggestions in the comments.
This is a demonstration of increasing technological refinement in computer games: images of Lara Croft over the years.
It desperately needs a key for dates of each of the images.
Regular readers know that lately one “Terry Dean, Nemmers”, or as I call him, “Comma”, has been on a crusade to get me in trouble — he’s been lashing out at anyone in any way in contact with me to tell his tale of woe. Which is kind of weird, since I’ve never met the guy, and his complaint mainly seems to be that the campus police haven’t given him a sample of my handwriting because he has these vague suspicions that I defaced a dozen copies of a free campus newspaper.
The world moves more slowly out here in Lake Wobegon, and especially in January and February, we have to make our own entertainment, you know.
Unfortunately, this event is not on my calendar: the Cephalopod International Advisory Council (CIAC) is meeting 8-14 November in Hakodate, Japan, to discuss recent advances in cephalopod science (pdf). It looks delightful. I’ve always wanted to visit Japan. But alas, all I can do is tell you you should go.
How would you feel if NOAA sent a camera to snoop around your most intimate moments, huh?
I was sorting out my calendar. It always helps to occasionally figure out where I’m going and where I am, and it’s also helpful for my wife, in case she’s wondering where I got to. These are my travel plans for the next several months, in case anyone wants to hunt me down.
Stephen Fry gives a fairly standard atheist answer to the question, “What would you do if you died and found yourself in front of God?” — exceptionally well-stated, of course, but unsurprising. The best part is to watch the expression on the face of the interviewer in the various reaction shots.
This is not helping my opinion of organized atheism: the rapey guy and the torture guy are agreeing with each other on the matter of morality. Next up: the Pope and the president of the Southern Baptist Convention will pat each other on the back over their ideas about science.
There is just an annoying aroma of smugness about it all.
