Tuesday, June 21, 2011

Science by Press Release

I've been spending more and more time on Twitter, with a result of less time here. Partly that's because I've been having a slew of aging computer, connectivity and software problems (Seriously Adobe, your plug-ins couldn't cause more issues?), and partly it's because sharing a quick comment and link on Twitter is just so much faster and easier... especially when aforementioned problems are causing my computer to go into lockdown every 3 to 5 minutes.

The downside is that Twitter, like Facebook, is very much ephemeral. It is next to impossible to find a particular tweet unless it's pretty recent.

I got onto another Twitter rip today, with the theme of "If Science by press release existed in [...]'s day," satirizing the kind of sensationalistic, overly dramatic, factually challenged, and premature types of reports that pass for science journalism these days. So for the sake of a permanent record- for my own satisfaction, at least- here are my tweets (and one from another) on that topic:
If Science by Press Release existed in...
  • Newton's Day: "New Discovery May Lead to Space Flight: Report."
  • Stone Age: "Control of Fire May Resolve Transportation Problems Says Eminent Witch Doctor."
  • Pasteur's Day: "Animicule Theory Could Lead to New treatments for Bad Air."
  • Archimedes' Day: "Application of Density to Astronomy Suggests New Class of Exotic Space Objects."
  • Becher's day: "Phlogiston Theory Supports Existence of Human Soul, Angels, Demons, Study Says."
  • Eratosthenes' day: "Shape, Size of the world: Controversy and Conflict Among the Experts"
  • Agricola's day: "New Study to Examine differences between Dwarf and Kobold Mining Techniques."
  • Socrates' day: "Announcement: New Element Discovered, Named 'Aether.'"
  • Pliny's day: "The Next Supervolcano Eruption and You: Is YOUR Family Safe?"
  • Mendel's day: "Peagate 'Proves Inheritance is Hoax:' Scientific Report" (with followup comment from @, "Gene Skeptics Scoff at New Wrinkle in Mendelist Theory")
  • Hutton's day: "Claim: Earth May Be One Million Years Old. Theologists Express Skepticism, Outrage."
  • Mendelev's day: "New Periodic Organization Dismissed: Chemists Prefer Traditional, Alphabetic Order.
Also, from , If science by press release existed in Darwin's day: "It All Comes Down to Sex: New Study by Fossil Sleuth"

I'll add any others that I come up with, and, with appropriate credit, other folks post. How would your favorite scientist(s) have been misquoted, misrepresented or misinterpreted by today's so-called "journalism?"

Tuesday Tits


see more So Much Pun. I wasn't even expecting to open my blog today, but I came across this a moment ago and couldn't pass it up.

Monday, June 20, 2011

Moonday: Helene (Again)

I won't make a habit of using the same moon twice in a row, but this is too cool to pass up. NASA's image of the day is a high-resolution shot of Helene, captured by Cassini just two days ago. I'm struck by the evident streamers on the surface... I have some ideas what they might be, but I'll keep them to myself. Poorly informed guesses can cause more problems than they're worth. (Full size image here; definitely worthwhile)

Sunday, June 19, 2011

Sunday Funnies: Game of Thrones of Muppets Edition

I'm looking forward to watching the season finale, but not to waiting for the next season to start airing. Of course, that's nothing compared to the- what, 5 years? 6 years?- wait we've had to endure for book 5, A Dance with Dragons. Does anyone know when season 2 starts?
funny pictures - YOU LET THE CAT WATCH WUTHERING HEIGHTS AGAIN, DIDN'T YOU?
see more Lolcats and funny pictures, and check out our Socially Awkward Penguin lolz!
LOLReligion
demotivational posters - YOU KNOW IT'S TRUE
see more Very Demotivational
Just Outta Reach Gif - Just Outta Reach
see more Gifs
white trash repairs - A Flowchart For Fixers
see more There I Fixed It. A quick guide to fixing anything.
Bits and Pieces. Humor is a dish best served without taste.
Bits and Pieces
Married to the Sea
E.B. Misfit- "All We Are Saying Is Give Peace a Chan----
Ah, Fuck It, Let's Go Shoot Something."

Phil, this wasn’t fucking amateur hour. PEOPLE DIED BECAUSE OF YOUR LACK OF SUPERVISION. THERE WERE RAPTORS ALL UP IN THE KITCHEN PHIL. IN THE GOD DAMN KITCHEN.

YOU HAD ONE JOB PHIL. ONE JOB.

Stupid Gifs OregonLiveToles via Balloon Juice
Some Guy With a Website
...which then give rise to copious amounts of bacteria. And so the circle of life continues. Fake Science
Sofa Pizza... there's nothing quite like a well-choreographed museum!
Dr. Boli
Surviving the World
Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal- love the baby's expression at the end.
Calamities of Nature
epic4chan- “I got two fortunes in my fortune cookie. Should I be worried?”
epic4chan
Slowpoke
The Far Left Side
funny celebrity pictures - Mick's reaction when you don't get off his cloud.
see more Lol Celebs
Badtux the Snarky Penguin
Dr. Boli
Modern Classrooms Gif - Modern Classrooms
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The High Definite
Please give; it's for a good cause. The High Definite
What Would Jack Do? "Finger-licking good!"
Skull Swap- if it doesn't look quite right, that's because it's made entirely of balloons.
Monkey Muck
Peanutweeter has apparently been cease-and-desisted to death, so this is likely the last from them. :(
funny celebrity pictures - Who's Bizkit?
see more Lol Celebs
political pictures - weiner - American Logic
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J.K. Rowling Totally Looks Like The Garth (Dana Carvey)
see more Celeb Look-A-Likes
Bits and Pieces
Medium Large
The High Definite
xkcd... if you're a geotype, this is only the 30th or 40th time you've seen this.
epic win photos - Meeting Notice WIN
see more Hacked IRL - Truth in Sarcasm
funny puns - Pejoratively, He's Known as the Fe-Cow
see more So Much Pun... anyone remember Ironmandrill and Spiderspidercrab?
Thunderstorm Time-Lapse Gif - Thunderstorm Time-Lapse
see more Gifs. Not so much funny as awesome. I'm assuming those lights swooping across the sky are airplanes... it looks like they're leaving contrails behind.
Natalie Dee
The High Definite
Infographic of the Day
see more The Daily What
political pictures - sarah palin - Lamestream Media
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Comixed
Blame Canada... Sofa Pizza
The Joy of Tech