tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-61405782011-04-22T04:23:39.959Zfacts, ideas and values Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.comBlogger851100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-39943343167594404482007-07-08T09:17:00.000Z2007-07-08T09:24:36.733Z

Perspective Shift illusion via Mindhacks

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-79743672954170522452007-07-08T09:12:00.000Z2007-07-08T09:16:58.347Z

White is the New Green Don't ask where that turned up from. But it is interesting: a reasoned argument which stands out in stark contrast to the ignorance and vagueness off the celebrities asked to say their piece about global warming.

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-34715809828161806922007-05-15T16:26:00.000Z2007-06-27T07:33:33.516Z

How glad I am not to be a teacher any more:The wreckage of the Education SystemSpiked 10 May 2007. Emile MayNever mind by the time they leave school these kids will all be able to become model Police-people, finding the job perfectly understandable, what with all the form filling and computer-using they get so used to their teachers doing instead of teaching them.Having started in my previous

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-90791627664794737572007-05-12T07:44:00.000Z2007-05-23T12:33:10.113Z

OR, The Elephant in the Room or The Blind Men and the ElephantAfter watching Wajda's Danton a few decades ago, read an awful lot about the French Revolution. Developed a party game based on J.M. Thompson's Leaders of the French Revolution, selecting modern-day big-nobs in political world equivalent to the main characters. Recently, came a re-reading of Gubb's Lenin (a little bit of boning-up

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-55293714264241951172007-03-12T09:23:00.000Z2007-05-12T07:44:04.826Z

Stumbled on Henderson's pretty good creation of the Parody religion, and kinda got to thinking. It would be easier for a new religion to overtake an older on that it would be for atheists to persuade the religious it might be a better world without religion at all. Then for that new all-powerful, many-adopted religion to be superseded by another, such that you can hardly catch you breath from

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-59390512634797100792007-03-04T09:10:00.000Z2007-03-04T10:28:23.317Z

Stumbled upon Cognitive Daily:Casual faces: we can identify "mystery faces" just 6 pixels widewhich refers to a previous post:Why we see faces when they are not really there (with poll)which commends a 13 Feb 07 NYT article:Faces, faces everywhereI have an explanation (based on the way it is possible to see the picture clearer when squinting) but it just won't come into sentences! Another

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-44680935366478891142007-02-26T11:08:00.000Z2007-02-26T12:30:51.894Z

Under this heading I thought I might examine individual websites here and there in order to tease out what it is people think they gain by posting up to the web.Here (almost at random, but in fact in the course of a surf to find out something about Compeed plasters!) someone uses his for a combination of how he is developing his website, personal opinions, work and life, and psychotherapy. it is

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1166440066511926852006-12-18T11:04:00.000Z2006-12-18T11:07:46.523Z

What happens to you body if you drink a Coke right now?

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1160897905747551562006-10-15T07:06:00.000Z2006-10-15T16:22:51.933Z

Sorry for the sardonic tone. This article has me apoplectic. How the NHS has been taken over in this fashion (or was it always like this but we were never informed before?) and made into some sort of screen to healthcare provision, rather than a health service provider, is beyond my comprehension. Though, to be honest, I just experienced the dilatoriness and plain down-right inefficiency of the

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1159068020471001512006-09-24T03:13:00.000Z2006-09-24T03:25:20.823Z

This has always been a keen interest of mine because it represents the one the the core elements in political power: doshing out other people's money. Taxpayers foot huge bill for 'quango state' 882 different bodies costing £124bn…Blair's quango stateBoth by Robert Watts, The Sunday Telegraph, 24 Septemebr 2006 The Government's official definition of a quango is: "A body which has a role in

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1157307265127255372006-09-03T18:13:00.000Z2006-09-03T18:14:25.130Z

powered by ODEO

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1157307173130497522006-09-03T18:11:00.000Z2006-09-03T18:12:53.156Z

powered by ODEO

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1157294681386398462006-09-03T14:43:00.000Z2006-09-03T15:01:46.206Z

powered by ODEOBowie : Lyrics

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1157291912058938732006-09-03T13:55:00.000Z2006-09-03T13:58:32.086Z

The simplest test is the mirror....Animal Imagination?a post from blog Armed and Dangerous

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1156161898158695052006-08-21T11:41:00.000Z2006-08-21T13:35:28.510Z

Well we've seen some more of the nitty gritty on how half-witted politicans have afound a trendy way of wasting taxpayers money in order to make it seem as if the government is borrowing less money. I thought Liam Halligan's Channe 4 Dispatches effort extremely efficacious.A month or so ago I had the opportunity to have a decko at Norfolk and Norwich. My friend, as I wrote in a previous post, had

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1156158858120119752006-08-21T11:13:00.000Z2006-08-21T11:39:25.670Z

When all else fails (you don't have an answer to Islamic fundamentalism or why Americans are so obesssed with Liberals (they're a bit unrealistic but quite harmless folk really...look at their Shadow Chanmcellor of the exchequer....oh you mean those sort of Liberals...well why don't you say so.... Commies), the booze is in short supply and you can't have sex, listen to music. It always works when

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1154010681385213832006-07-27T14:27:00.000Z2006-08-12T09:15:53.510Z

No, never heard of it either.But there's an awful lot in it. Something for everyoneCheck it out from the topics page atflatrock.org.nz/topics/index.htmTry this link :Worldmapper

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1151143387265978672006-06-24T09:14:00.000Z2006-07-31T07:54:42.913Z

I am not the only one to notice how many food packages are emblazoned in prominent lettering with the words Omega 3 . I was talking to a friend the other day who offered me one of his very nice coffees. As I added milk to my cup from the plastic bottle I saw it on the side: "Omega 3" in large slanting letters. I remarked that milk always contained Omega 3, and that it had been there since the

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1151139088738910882006-06-24T08:50:00.000Z2006-06-24T08:51:28.756Z

Colleen AF Venable's Amazing Math Trick

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1150631984298582212006-06-18T11:48:00.000Z2006-06-18T11:59:44.310Z

well, no. But he would like to for personal and political purposes: BBC man's wife leads objectors to Conservative leader's plans A friend recently gave me a teelgraph cutting on the Wind Problem: whether to have it or not. Its here under Bricks and Mortar: Reader asks: I am trying to find a wind turbine for my house, which is on a windy hill facing the sea, and want to generate power

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1150100044198758352006-06-12T08:12:00.000Z2006-06-12T08:14:04.230Z

Fiasco as Reid abandons have-a-go campaign

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1150015401343986642006-06-11T08:29:00.000Z2006-06-11T08:50:33.646Z

John Reid, the Telegraph reports, expects us to "stop moaning and take action ". He will now receive hundreds if not thousands of reports by individuals who have done just that and ended up no better off and with the Police nit-picking about the methods used by members of the public to achieve the desired result. I remember once going ballistic because of tanuts as I got into my car and after

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1149665828025387372006-06-07T07:22:00.000Z2006-06-07T07:39:05.796Z

Free NHS of politics, says top doctorIs pretty much the sort of idea I espouse. It would never be implemented simply because of all the vestedly interested who would stand to lose through this sort of set up. I had thought a kind of national franchise could operate, the rules as to how to operate laid down in terms of standards expected, then each area allowed to get on with it. However, once a

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1147421225196783322006-05-12T08:00:00.000Z2006-05-13T12:16:42.096Z

My first visit to this new hospital, albeit delivering a friend for an op., gave me an long-for opportunity to snoop around. It is a bright and clean place, with layed-out garden and a fish-filled pond. But it is hell to get around. Once you have been there a few times, easier perhaps. I got the hang of it thesection of the maze I needed by retracing my steps a few times during the course of my

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1147288264279630962006-05-10T18:59:00.000Z2006-05-10T23:54:38.880Z

Though it is only a minor theory, I believe Blair is staying on as long as he thinks he can because it will make him richer afterwards not because he believes he can do anything constructive for the country. For example, by swanning around the world fixing other countries problems - being seen, in effect - he will be increasing the readership for his memoire opus, for which he will surely earn a

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1146368257821705122006-04-30T03:22:00.000Z2006-04-30T03:48:49.773Z

Council tax bills 'to rise by over 40pcBy Patrick Hennessy, Political Editor, The Sunday Telegraph 30/04/2006There are three areas of public life worthy of a revolution: the NHS, education and the bleeding (as in 'its a bleeding up by the back-door tax) Council tax.When I write 'revolution', I do not mean get out there with a stick and bash a police man type revolution, but using the power of

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1145797064324984642006-04-23T12:21:00.000Z2006-04-23T13:01:57.536Z

The money addicts: its your money they are gambling withNever mind the patient just tick the box It's the great NHS spending party - patients not invitedPay for nurses and surgeons doubles NHS overspend:: I worked in the NHS for 1 year in the early 70s. I think I am entitled on this basis to make the claim the NHS is more a job creation scheme than a medical service and had been so since its

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1144918520264475142006-04-13T08:50:00.000Z2006-04-13T08:55:20.273Z

A 26 March 2006 Scientific American article by Carel van Schaik of that title.Link from 3QD

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1143729457544897302006-03-30T14:31:00.000Z2006-03-30T15:05:31.506Z

But it seems it is worse than that. An estimated £200 million has been thrown down the gutter for these tripe-merchants to say the bleeding obvious with the aid or white-boards, PowerPoint presentations and longwinded, big-worded reports which top mangement is too scared to admit they can't understand a word of. Hence the clearly sane response to ask for another report to keep the MC's on the go

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1141314669642829652006-03-02T15:39:00.000Z2006-03-02T18:20:27.220Z

Cave-girls were first blondes to have fun Now lets check this again. (1) a blonde blue eyes cave-girl appeared (genetically speaking) and stood out from the crowd of mousy haireds. (2) The few cave-men who survived the trepidations of hunting were more attracted to her than the brown haired dark-eyed ones (3) Voila, lots of blue-eyed blondes in Sweden! Hang on! What happens if they weren't

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1141310479705596852006-03-02T14:37:00.000Z2006-03-02T18:17:54.646Z

If you ask people, ‘Which do you want right now, fruit or chocolate?’ they say, ‘Chocolate!’ But if you ask, ‘Which one a week from now?’ they will say, ‘Fruit.’ Now we want chocolate, cigarettes, and a trashy movie. In the future, we want to eat fruit, to quit smoking, and to watch Bergman films.The Marketplace of PerceptionsBehavioral economics explains why we procrastinate, buy, borrow, and

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1140829336381959982006-02-25T01:01:00.000Z2006-02-25T01:02:16.393Z

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1140610637587349482006-02-22T11:49:00.000Z2006-02-25T01:14:34.190Z

Saw the guy behind the anti-evolution organisation, Access Research Networkon TV a month or two ago. Well funded by all accounts.This interview with the late mathematician Marcel-Paul Schützenberger comes from there. I've got to the bit where he saysDarwinists imagine that it requires what? A thousand or two thousand genes to assemble an eye, the specification of the organ thus requiring one or

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1140001816306262852006-02-15T11:08:00.000Z2006-02-15T11:24:59.890Z

If anyone is having problems posting with one of their Blogger blogs, please let me know.

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1138975364353004682006-02-03T13:59:00.000Z2006-02-03T14:07:16.806Z

The Great Cholesterol MythMalcolm Kendrick Spiked Magazine 18 November 2005

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1138970155837542492006-02-03T12:32:00.000Z2006-02-03T12:35:55.850Z

Parents Get Look At Teens' BrainsPost 27 January 2006 in The Committed Sardine Blog

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1138376717091047902006-01-27T15:44:00.000Z2006-01-27T15:45:17.093Z

Phylotaxis

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1138376528122998082006-01-27T15:35:00.000Z2006-01-27T15:47:01.416Z

Seed MagazineScience is culturee.g. Dangerous Minds Thoughts from the Edge of science 12 January 2006 Reflections on Mirror Neurons Broken Mirror Neuron Systems May Cause Autism 7 December 2005

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1138193848771189212006-01-25T12:37:00.000Z2006-01-25T12:57:28.783Z

Selected Minor Works: The Heresy of Intelligent DesignJustin E. H. Smith

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1137922616463084332006-01-22T09:29:00.000Z2006-01-22T09:57:15.253Z

I think I'm doing a public service by linking to this item which shows: 26pc of council tax goes on public pensionsPatrick Hennessy, The Sunday Telegraph Sunday 22 January 2006which I had heard at least a year ago.Far be it from me to start a Council Tax riot, but if we don't like this tax we have to stand up and say so. One of the things you will also notice is that most District Council, and

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1137859543048353022006-01-21T16:02:00.000Z2006-01-21T16:05:43.060Z

Neuroscience gears up for duel on the issue of brain versus deity A letter from Kenneth S. Kosik* to Nature * Neuroscience Research Institute, Department of Molecular and Cellular and Developmental Biology, Bio II, University of California, Santa Barbara, California 93106-5060, USA

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1137751129557174522006-01-20T09:53:00.000Z2006-01-20T09:58:49.566Z

Pope's a Darwinian Stop teaching 'intelligent design,' Vatican paper demands

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1137686348611486972006-01-19T15:40:00.000Z2006-01-19T21:48:04.040Z

Shaun Bailey and Henry Bonsu Following from his Centre for Policy Studies sponsored pamphelet, No man’s land, How Britain’s inner city young are being failed, of which this is the pdf chapter one, two articles he has written based on this:Focus: My battle with liberal BritainThe Sunday Times 27 November 2005Don't forget the other three pages.The reason our streets are so violentThe Telegraph

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1136629024992358442006-01-07T09:58:00.000Z2006-01-07T10:17:05.006Z

Prof. Raymond Bradley of the University of Aukland in his short digi-piece Intelligent Design or Natural Design , in Butterflies & Wheels, works through the problem at a level which most intelligent people could grasp, plus he has provided a useful graphic as a pdf (concepts of design and their logical liasons).The An open letter to Anthony Flew from Bradley had a reply from Flew in an academic

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1135691584895912062005-12-27T13:44:00.000Z2005-12-27T13:53:04.906Z

Why "monkey see monkey do" isn't for apesJohn Hawk's weblog succintly explains the experiment carl Zimmer did comparing his daughter's ability with a chimp following experiments by Andrew Whiten and colleagues on chimps, which he also reports.

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1135689225765314342005-12-27T12:48:00.000Z2005-12-27T13:13:45.790Z

Dennett on evolution and religionA two part Der Spiegal interview with Daniele Dennett:"Darwinism Completely Refutes Intelligent Design"and a discovery from this of a weblog, Brain Ethics [consequences of brain science] by Thomas Zoëga Ramsøy and Martin Skov who pin-point two academic articles which look interesting:(1) Cognitive neuroscience of humn social behaviour(2) Functional anatomy of

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1135166402251593052005-12-21T11:56:00.000Z2005-12-23T09:34:21.786Z

You can't prove a pig can fly by showing that butterflies have wingsCardinal Schönborn's re-explanation, "The Designs of Science", in First Thingsfollowing much debate as to what he was on about : Finding Design in Nature, NYT, July 7, 2005This latter courtesy of The Schönborn Site which summarises the argument in its weblogI'm not too happy with the distinction the Cardinal makes between

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1130232727367985072005-10-25T09:11:00.000Z2005-10-25T09:32:07.376Z

You'll never squawk aloneNigel Bunyan, Telegraph, 25 October2005It's not just Liverpool. And its probably those memes in soaps that has done it. What they see in East Enders or Coronation Street must be the norm, presumably. Life reflecting art, or vice versa?Another of my pet theories is that we are so much just mere consumers we do not learn about the little things in our own lives that make

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1128593912100955832005-10-06T09:42:00.000Z2005-10-06T15:30:47.903Z

Watched the documentary - had a few ideas and suchBill Oddie with his starlings was one of the most spectular sights ever. Guess it must be available somewhere on the internet. No one could possibly look at this sort of phenomemon without going into explanation and analogy modes once the wonder of it all has sunk in. Well I can't.As a spectacle it is both miraclous and mysterious. They are

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1128441400783444472005-10-04T14:59:00.000Z2005-10-04T16:53:02.313Z

Not my cats, just visitors. Luckily for them I'm a fan.This plastic bowl has internal dimensions of 26 x 26 cm. Tabby from tip to tip is slightly over 45 cm. long, tail straight.When I went downstairs to do the measurement, Tonkinese was completely covering her friend....If only life was so simple for us.So what do you have to do to find happiness?It seem quite a lot more than cats and dogs, mice

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1128076400390010392005-09-30T10:27:00.000Z2005-09-30T10:33:20.396Z

Cross-National Correlations of Quantifiable Societal Health with Popular Religiosity and Secularism in the Prosperous DemocraciesJournal of Religion and Society Vol 7 2005* basic correlations of the elemental data* This is not an attempt to present a definitive study that establishes cause versus effect between religiosity, secularism and societal health.Check out the 7 graphs

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1127905773627110012005-09-28T10:13:00.000Z2005-09-28T11:17:14.713Z

THE GOD MODELViewing a model as a collection of facts which satisfies a theory, is not the same as viewing a model as something that explains or emulates some phenomenon or situation. This second concept of model is closer to the concept of a scientific theory .I have been getting myself thoroughly confused in moleskine modality over how to explain the concept of model and relate it to the idea

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1127674127165776322005-09-25T18:29:00.000Z2005-09-25T18:51:37.193Z

Last rose of summer 22 September 2005. Strangely, took this without realising 22 September was the autumn equinox.wiki : autumn equinoxThe rose was there in its prime, so clipped it, took it straight upstairs , photographed it and sent it to my beloved. Only later did the date come into play. Maybe since our weather is so mild now, there will be a few more. In which case there might be a real

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1125657860995250392005-09-02T10:32:00.000Z2005-09-03T10:18:30.163Z

Though Katrina has reaped a tragedy which we can all relate to, I am more interested in the American reponse to having to pay more for petrol. Not because as some people are writing {Spiked: After Katrina another putride deluge } it serves them right for being the major contributor to global warming, but because it helps them to think about whether they might be through having to consider

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1125225167565058512005-08-28T10:22:00.000Z2005-09-02T11:25:00.136Z

The theory of "Intelligent DesignNot many IDers {-ists} have actually done any science. Though it is not a bad thing for them to pick holes in evolutionary science. Always pleased to see Brian Appleyard on the evolution vs. Creationism, as here in George Bush and the Meaning of Life, in The Sunday Times 28 August 2005, where he does at least clarify the difference between ID (accepts age of earth

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1124643501239506762005-08-21T16:23:00.000Z2007-02-24T09:37:30.931Z

The evolution versus creation season is upon us once again.Oh, not again!I have a theory (as yet unproved but open to testing by the rigors of scientific method...) that there is an evolution versus creation season which runs roughly from the end of the parliamentary year to early autumn. It is characterised by a slew of articles and attendant letters to editors, in which creationists try to pick

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1124267296577994392005-08-17T08:26:00.000Z2005-08-20T09:07:40.810Z

Haven't I read this article somewhere before?Looking at Déjà Vu for the First Timeoriginally in The Scientist 31 January 2005

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1123230622731468862005-08-05T08:25:00.000Z2005-08-05T08:40:01.553Z

Just look up to find happinessThe Sunday Times July 24, 2005"If you feel down you look down."Depressiblog : beautiful revolutionGot to depressed or have been to watch his fine little movies...

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1122303240610597382005-07-25T14:32:00.000Z2005-07-25T15:58:00.203Z

I Think, Therefore I Am — Sorta :The belief system of a virtual mindby Margaret Wertheim in LA Weeklyought to interest anyone who wants to know how their brain works - the article itself doesn't really do that! However, it makes you think a bit in the way the Turing Test did/does, and all the other stuff that one could read about in Daniel Dennett's "Consciousness Explained".It does not use the

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1121934321057888242005-07-21T08:11:00.000Z2005-07-21T08:45:55.743Z

Been spreading out my weblog empire and finding it difficult to post to all of them, so have missed out on new blogs aroud including Jonny B's Private Secret Diary which naturally appeals because it is from NW Norfolk and am hoping to catch up on events and trends in my locality. These two articles go back to some vague recollection about the 'burger herds' of the American (N & S) plains being

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1112520743881071372005-04-03T09:28:00.000Z2005-04-03T09:32:23.883Z

Brain chip reads man's thoughtsBBC News 31 March 2005

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1111406148825411802005-03-21T11:48:00.000Z2005-03-24T10:26:30.860Z

A must for all barristers speed reading briefs, finger-nail- chewing solicitors wondering how they are going to pay the boarding school fees, writers with blocks, surfers with heads a buzzing:Sheep Dash!from BBC ScienceThen have a try at some of the others such as: Face memory test

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1111058429702388252005-03-17T11:14:00.000Z2005-03-24T10:32:24.403Z

Washington Post 14 march 2005Battle on Teaching Evolution sharpensBut note how they always get it jumbled up, mistaking origin of species with origin of life. Ought to be a way of finding common ground if this distinction was accepted by both sides: origin of life, uncertain, could be God's work; origin of species, mechanism pretty certainly evolutionary.

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1108399628188973512005-02-14T16:41:00.000Z2005-02-14T18:03:22.566Z

Two pages that interested me today:(1) from Red Nova : Can this black box see into the future?The Princeton site to which this refers : Global Consciousness Projecthas a page of various attempt at visualisation.Almost all psychology textbooks have a demonstration of how slight changes in the visual field are picked up by the brain. The oxford Companion to the Mind has quite a few monochrome

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1107610509509053692005-02-05T13:15:00.000Z2005-02-14T18:13:56.616Z

GREGORY BATESONWho hasn't been referred, in reading, at some stage, to Gregory Bateson's "Steps to an Ecology of Mind" and thought to yourself, that will be important/interesting? I bought it and read it about 15 years ago, being less knowledgeable than I thought I might be after struggling through it. At least you can dip into it when you think you might be thinking along the same lines. Bateson

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1107446039442459562005-02-03T15:27:00.000Z2005-02-03T17:36:32.670Z

Cycled to the shop to get fresh milk for an afternoon cup of tea: still shut. On the way back, milkless, hit a bump which jarred my spine. Checked the back tyre: it looked a bit flat. Tried to pump the tyre up, having great difficultly setting the valve right to let air in and not straight back out. Got mad, made a cup of tea with tinned milk. Switched on the radio. They were discussing a

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1107345964030864102005-02-02T13:01:00.000Z2005-02-12T11:33:11.260Z

Though this story below is not an example blindsight, as I first thought, it is interesting.Esref Armagan, a 42 year old Turkish man, has become something of a scientific curiosity with his uncanny ability to draw and paint. Read the new Scientist article first before looking at these galleries of his paintings, or if you can't resist :gallery 1gallery 2New Scientist 29 January 2005 The art

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1107108314784421202005-01-30T18:01:00.000Z2005-01-30T18:05:14.783Z

According to LiveScience the way to an autistic person's brain may be through a monkey's bottom. Check it out - it makes sense

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1106826376102575502005-01-27T11:26:00.000Z2005-01-27T11:48:43.626Z

On my chalk board for months....wind, rain and bird song..... stochastic. A riveting Radio 4 programme discussing stochastic or random phenomena, especially in bird song. Explanations of how specific birds adapt their song according to noise pollution: road side noise - bird uses higher frequencies.... The Pinocchio Theory weblog detailed reviews of science and philosophy books (

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1106574594671428192005-01-24T13:28:00.000Z2005-01-24T13:57:42.663Z

Last in the CH4 (UK) series Sunday, 23 January, 2005: Cocaine, mighty impressive if only for the honest woman, Maria Cristina Chirolla, [and other unnamed Colombians] willing to take on the task of dealing with the drug barons of her country, Colombia, even if, as she willingly admitted on screen, it meant, almost inevitably, her death at their hands. Then, serependipitously, in a search for

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1106407307830392382005-01-22T14:42:00.000Z2005-01-24T15:22:36.843Z

Been trying to think of a way to explain the intellectual level of my posts for ages. It became apparent - though not easily expressed - I was somehow, without being conscious of it exactly, writing to an intelligent sixth former [= High school high flier] (myself when I was younger?) or first year undergraduate. Even the links, which admittedly can be used for later reference by me to go over

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1105527009465142162005-01-12T10:28:00.000Z2005-01-15T11:47:49.266Z

What would Jesus Drive? the alluring title of a C4 (UK) documentary on the American love affair with the SUV. Hoped it would contain lots of interesting facts. Yes, but as much if not more about the psychology of the Americans, particularly those buying big cars, which we know much about already, being as they come from the dominant culture. Do SUVs make you stupid?, Blogdext # 51, covers a lot

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1104939869245259782005-01-05T15:37:00.000Z2005-01-05T15:44:29.246Z

A report at BBC News on the effect of alcohol on depth perception makes me rewonder about whether individual's visual systems vary, making for good and bad drivers. It is well known that some people cannot judge the edge of the road, only feeling safe if they allow an extra foot or so, which means they are too damn close to the centre of the road for my liking.

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1104756220919763512005-01-03T13:36:00.000Z2005-01-03T12:43:40.920Z

Stare at this picture and you will see a giraffe Courtesy of Martin Sewell at Web Frog, who also has a nice quote from Herman Goerring supposedly said at the Nuremburg: "Of course the people don't want war. But after all, it's the leaders of the country who determine the policy, and it's always a simple matter to drag the people along whether it's a democracy, a fascist dictatorship, or a

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1104522104187890592004-12-31T19:16:00.000Z2004-12-31T19:55:56.050Z

Quality on BBC is on the radio. The clock/radio is usually set to go off for 8am, but for some reason today I set it for 2.30 before the afternoon siesta, and was woken to most of Radio 4's New Years Eve Afternoon Play: Blue Veils and Golden Sands A dramatised biography of the BBC Radiophonic Workshop (now defunct) based around the composer Delia Derbyshire (5 May 1937 - 3 July 2001) who was

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1104244383705913832004-12-28T14:20:00.000Z2004-12-28T15:19:55.360Z

Inge Deutschkron talked on BBC Radio 4 this morning. A teenage Jew who hid during World War two courtesy of Good Germans, [about 10,00 were hid apparently] she went to England after the war, reunited with her father who had managed to get out before it was too late, and recently returned to live in Berlin as a result of her book, "Ich trug den gelben Stern", "I wore a yellow star", published

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1102673239928661532004-12-10T09:07:00.000Z2004-12-17T02:13:01.050Z

COMMONALITIES One of the things I am constantly aware of, and impressed by, re pets, is commonalities. In ordinary English, I keep on saying to White Cat that she walks, sees, eats, is warm, does lots of things just like me but just doesn't understand what I'm saying. Or does she? Warm cat on lap (though she's warming herself on your lap) is still a pretty comfortable and comforting association.

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1101730687691108342004-11-29T11:23:00.000Z2004-12-10T15:52:49.986Z

An easy access grave seemed like the best solution at the time. Now, I cannot look at it without thinking about how cold and damp my old dog is. Next body will be cremated. How can you stop yourself looking down at the ground as if a living thing was down there. I guess when we visit graves many years later, that has all gone, so we can honour more in recollection than emotion. If without a

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1099649574081111452004-11-05T09:35:00.000Z2004-11-11T10:27:46.026Z

After a month or so I am able to put up some really good A4 sized JPEGs of Greyhound on my study wall. They were taken in the garden on a great summer day . It has gone from a diffuse pain to a desire to remember and acknowledge my loss. I am able to look at the images without feeling a strong desire to look away, which I know I would have done in the first weeks. Something suddenly made me

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1094903568459143352004-09-11T11:24:00.000Z2004-11-05T09:35:46.976Z

Greyhound is now in good Norfolk earth below sunny autumn sky. A good age. About 15.5 years. There was a problem about what to do with Black Cat. The decision was not difficult. I would keep on going out each morning as normal to see if he came with me round the recreation field. Yesterday was the first day. He came as expected but behaved very differently, making many more vocalisations than

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1093386779341126802004-08-24T22:31:00.000Z2004-08-24T22:34:13.836Z

Frederick Von Schiller German philosopher and poet (1759-1805) If you want to know yourself, see how others behave; if you want to understand others, look into your own heart

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1092465718938320862004-08-14T06:19:00.000Z2004-10-25T10:57:58.203Z

Strange creatures..... I would be really mad if I dropped dead before noting two observations. (1) My cat - small, white, female, with a hint of the orient - chews tobacoo! - each morning, when I have my first roll-up with a a cup of tea waiting for PC to boot (old and under-powered, whirring into virtual RAM), I put a few strands of virginia on the window sill. Once saw her sniffing the

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1091789898953149582004-08-06T10:33:00.000Z2004-10-27T08:27:04.466Z

There was a medium sized, greyish bird just outside the door yesterday morning - I thought it had been got by one of my cats. It turned out to be a baby pigeon, and more likely flew into a window, stunning itself. Hence I was fooled into thinking it been a cat. There was no visible wound top or bottom, so I put it in a large cardboard box and let it be overnight. This morning pigeon was still

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1070923478707996412003-12-08T22:44:00.000Z2004-01-10T10:52:01.473Z

Frederick Von Schiller > German philosopher and poet (1759-1805)  If you want to know yourself, see how others behave; if you want to understand others, look into your own heart Frederick Nietzsche 1844-1900  To understand human values such as the belief in equal worth, we need to explore not so much human psychology as human history, society and politics The most characteristic quality

Adfero Afferohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09653378916912708463noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6140578.post-1070510982160592842003-12-04T04:09:00.000Z2004-01-10T10:57:56.453Z

MEMORY  "....we owe to memory almost all that we have or are; that our ideas and conceptions are its work, and that our everyday perception, thought and movement is derived from this source. memory collects the countless phenomena of our existence into a single whole... our consciousness would be broken up into as many fragments as we had lived seconds but for the binding and unifying force of

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