spherical earth

I was reading Sardi on what scientists aren't telling you about stem cell research and I saw a pretty bold claim that

Actually the Bible describes a circular Earth and it was the scientific community that mistakenly asserted the world is flat. [Book of Isaiah 40:22]

Naturally, I instantly got sidetracked. I looked at a few online bibles, most translate the word there as circle. From the Jehovah's witnesses there is The Watchtower web site's New World translation. Bible Gateway's KJV says circle although the New Advent catholic site has "globe".

Circle doesn't seem to me to be conclusive demonstration of the knowledge of the earth being spherical (although, certainly, the greeks knew about sphericality long ago). I did a google search and found a discussion on Does the Bible Teach a Spherical Earth? which finally determines (after analysis of "key Hebrew words and their translations in modern and ancient versions...") that "there is no substantive evidence and thus no warrant for this claim.

OK, digression over for the rest of the day, I hope. Well, actually, I'll read the article and then move on to real work :-). I'm not making any particular conclusion on the matter. It's not such a big deal, I was just struck by the very positive way Sardi makes the point in passing.

Alright, I have got to think about this article on genius junk food

Pork rinds good? Drinking good? Well, I've read about the second quite a lot. Not quite buying in completely, but I can sort of see how that might work. But pork rinds? And sour cream? and chocolate bars?

Hmmm, ok, I wish someone would debunk the evil of brownies too, and ice cream :-).

Disturbing - American Deserters

Stories of american soldiers who have deserted the war in Iraq. Wow, I wonder how much of that is true. Maybe half of it. Maybe most. Disturbing though. Another reason not to go to the United States for a few years. The common people are great, most of them. I've never had problems with Americans I knew personally (although there was the one time I was egged by some New Yorkers in a pickup truck, but I didn't know them :-).

But the government is wrong to be in Iraq, and it's wrong to be destroying and killing Afghans and not rebuilding much of anything for the locals. And frankly, I wouldn't be surprised if I were to be turned right back around because the government is a bit nuts and frustrated and paranoid right now. Maybe when GW Bush and his evil vice president are out of office. Or maybe one or two administrations after that.

I'm sure going to miss my brothers, sister, in-laws, nieces, nephews and Victoria and sunshine, beloved though.

Libraries, books, Wow

I don't quite care for the title, but yeah, those *are* Lovely pictures of books and libraries and stacks. I would love to visit each of those at least once. For a year each :-).

Tendai Marathon Monks

Tendai Marathon Monks, Wow

IQ lower

Wow.

I recently took two IQ tests (one at work, and one online. The test at work was pretty damn exhaustive (also exhausting, although it wasn't just IQ), while the online test was very short. Both give a result that's 10 points less than what I thought my IQ was :-).

Both my previous tests (10 points higher than the recent scores) were from more than 20 years ago though. And they were *more* culturally biased. They also had large knowledge components. The recent tests had much smaller knowledge components and much higher image and space manipulation components [both of which I do very badly at]). Apparently I'm relatively weak at the abstract stuff and my general knowledge and english skills were pulling my scores up.

On the other hand, if the tests are equivalent and haven't been renormed, well, I'll accept that I've lost some pure intellectual capacity then :-). Perhaps I can make it up in experience and general knowledge :-)

Oh yeah, hotmail thinks email from iqtest.com is spam. Fortunately, I looked in the Junk mbox :-).

Good budweiser ad

Now, I'm no fan of the U.S. military adventures in Iraq (Afghanistan was justified, Iraq was adventurism). But this budweiser ad is great

Miserable Failure

Wow, I see that GW Bush is being googlebombed as a miserable failure. I think I'll join in the fun because George W Bush really is a miserable failure. Not that I have any standing, not being an american. But clearly, the man has made the world a far worse place to live since he became president.

alright, it's pointing out the blinding obvious isn't much fun at all. never mind.

No Air Travel

I hope that, at some point, the security theater (which is prudent for the moment, but which seems likely to be extended indefinitely) that is due to the British arrests of the liquid bomb plotters (good intelligence work there, and perhaps some luck if it's true that the tip was from someone in the British Muslim community) recedes eventually and air travel gets more sane.

I think that the restrictions will remain while GW Bush remains president. But I can hope that after he steps down someone more sane will take over and rationalize those rules. As it is, much as I love my friends and family in the U.S.A., I don't think I'll be travelling there anytime soon. I left the U.S. because the working life there was too tense. It turns out that vacationing there would be similarly tense.

But that's just a feeling I get. On the practical side, all laptops and electronics need to be in checked in luggage. I know people who've already lost laptops in luggage. When the environment becomes *much* more target rich, it's likely that the incidence of lost laptops will increase. It's not that the loss of the laptop would be impossible to recover from (although, since I live in a third world country, it's going to be at least 3 times harder to buy a replacement than it would be for some random citizen of the USA), but I'm attached to my laptops. And to my cellphone too. And sol and I are very happy with the MP3 player that my brother sent to us for our birthday. I'm just not risking the laptop in checked luggage if I can avoid it.

Of course there are some trips for which I would check in the laptop. A trip to New Zealand, for instance, if we're granted the privilege of immigrating there. I'd check in the laptop, sure. I doubt if it would get lost in NZ anyway. And if it did, well, it would be an investment.

But the U.S.A., while GW Bush remains president, I'm staying away. Frankly, I don't even want to fly within the Philippines while this state of hysteria (again, prudent, for the next few weeks, stupid if extended beyond that for no good reason) prevails.