Michael Flynn's Blog, page 79

Galley Slave

Cargo

Got galleys just now for a short story - "Cargo" - to appear in Analog.  Not too bad a story, either. 

A bit nasty, and I flinched.  Still came out okay, though. 

What Goes Around

Punditry

A pundit comes from the Hindu word for a virtuoso or expert, as a on the sitar or other instrument.  The honorific is added after the name: so, Flynn pandit. 

As of now, the polls are still open on the MA Senate special election.  I will predict Brown over Coakley by 53-47.  This is estimated by averaging the past ten polls from ten different organizations over the past couple of days; so let's see how that goes. Since the polls obviously include undecideds, I took the 50-44 average a...

For Anyone Once a Kid

Now This is Kool


This is the evolution of Crayola Crayons from the original eight phyla to the many species now available. 

Crayola is now also the official name of the company, and not only of the product.  Formerly, they were Binney and Smith, which I found refreshingly old-fashioned. 

Shhhh

It May Be A Conspiracy

The following has some people exercised.  E.g., reason.com/blog/2010/01/14/mary-rosh-federal-agent  Quoting from an academic article by Cass Sunstein, a prominent FOO. 

[W:]e suggest a distinctive tactic for breaking up the hard core of extremists who supply conspiracy theories: cognitive infiltration of extremist groups, whereby government agents or their allies (acting either virtually or in real space, and either openly or anonymously) will undermine the crippled...

The Doom of Dilbert

Oh, the Humanity!

How the Greeks Lost Their Groove

On the Origins of Science

An alert reader wrote privately with the following question:

My understanding of Greek thought was that it made real science impossible by attributing "essences" and "natures" to things which acted according to their own powers, rather than according to physical "laws." Hence, ...attempting to experiment on such an object under artificial conditions is useless, because the object will have its nature "disrupted," .... Also, since things (chairs, plants, planets, etc...

The Definition of Evil

The Winter Wonderland of Canada



The definition of evil is to wipe the smile off a child's face. 
www.ottawacitizen.com/Ottawa+father+caves+agrees+take+down+mega+snow+fort/2432914/story.html

Lesson Learned: You don't need a government.  You only need something that acts like a government, and the iron law and mewling fear will get you every time.  Don't do that!  Something might happen!  

Is That Your Agenda Showing, or Are You Just Happy to See Me?

The Age of Unreason, Redux

Another item from the lovely Richard Carrier in Flynns Pile of Boners. 

I had been making a point about the unruly and riotous behavior and the Late Imperial Egyptians and noted:
In Julian's reign some Christian virgins of Heliopolis refused to surrender themselves for a night of sacred prostitution before their nuptials...."  followed by an account of their gruesome murder.   
Mr. Carrier puts words in my mouth to make me say:
We Should Believe the Bullshit in...

Poetry

Seamus Heaney is perhaps the greatest living poet.  I am listening as I write to a CD in which he collaborates with the piper Liam O'Flynn on a series of poems and airs. 

One of his poems contains the single most terrifying line in English poetry.

Midterm Break
Seamus Heaney

I sat all morning in the...

Fun with Charts

The Fifteen People Who Run America OK.  They don't. 

Of the interlocking boards of directors of Fortune 500 corporations, these fifteen people hold more active seats than anyone else - five apiece - but they hardly hold the majority of all board seats!  Still, we might call them the "most connected" board members.  If you want to start a rumor in the halls of Corporate America, whisper it to one of these folks.  You likely never heard of any of them:


Linda G. Alvarado, Alvarado...