I’m tired of hearing about Nikola Tesla. He wasn’t the noble crusader and misunderstood genius many people try to make him. I have often been called stupid or ignorant for saying this. I have often been told to look into Tesla’s history, as though I hadn’t already done that. Some people just won’t accept the possibility that they haven’t learned the facts.
Continue readingA Rule Of Thumb
Where did we get the phrase, “Rule of thumb?” One common explanation is that it refers to a legal precept that states a man was entitled to punish his wife with a stick no thicker than the thickness of his thumb. This explanation is widespread. The notion is bizarre, which encourages people to share it. Spousal abuse has been widespread and accepted throughout much of history. It is easy to imagine that there might have been legal limitations on the accepted severity of the abuse.
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Posted in Little Questions, Rants
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Conquering Mountains
When someone climbs to the top of a mountain, he is often said to have “conquered” the mountain. What bullshit.
If an ant climbs to the top of a building, has he “conqured” it?
Posted in Social Commentary
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Boiled Frogs
There is some sort of motivational concept which says that if you put a frog into cold water and slowly heat it up, he won’t notice it, and eventually he will be boiled. If you throw the frog into boiling water, he’ll immediately jump out. The idea is that problems that grow gradually may not be recognized. This is silly.
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Disappearances
There are some websites and documentaries that are concerned with the disappearances of people in national parks. The gist of this seems to be that an unusually high number of people vanish mysteriously, never to be seen again. Sometimes later on their remains are discovered. Sometimes some of their possessions are found, but no body. No one knows what happens.
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The Rise Of The Machines
Sometimes people worry that one day, artificial intelligence will get out of control, and intelligent machines will massacre us. Maybe there will be an uprising of some sort. Maybe they’ll just stop working for us and let us die out.
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Posted in Science, Social Commentary
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The Madness of Crowds
Tens of millions of people in the US believe in bullshit. Somehow, these people believe that the 2020 presidential election was rigged, that there was a massive conspiracy to steal the election from Trump, and that Trump will soon be reinstated to office.
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Angels And Aliens
There exist some phenomena that we find difficult to explain with our current level of technology. How was the Great Pyramid built, using the technology available to the ancient Egyptians? In order to build this Pyramid, they would have had to set a block of stone, weighing tons, every two and a half minutes. How could they have cut and moved such immense blocks? We couldn’t do that even today. Similarly, how could humans have built Stonehenge, Machu Picchu, and the other megalithic structures?
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Thanks In Advance
I wonder why people say “thanks in advance.” I get that they’re trying to be polite, and to thank someone who has not yet been able to help them or do something for them. Any time I see courtesy on the Internet, I consider it a good thing. Still…
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Posted in Social Commentary
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The Sky Is Blue
OK, Captain Obvious here, trying to make a point.
Some people who profess an interest in science make claims such as, “The sky isn’t really blue,” and then go on to explain how the sky really isn’t blue. They’ll refer to things such as Rayleigh Scattering, wavelengths of different colors of light, yadda-yadda-yadda. It’s all wonderful, and they’re no doubt right about all their nattering, except… the sky stubbornly remains blue.
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