Creedocide, Harness the Power of Religion

 You know, are you unable to get rid of rats in the normal way? Then use creedocide. Duh! Are you questioning its efficacy? Of course it will work. It uses religion!

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Random Stuff I Feel Like Posting

I am here just trying to make up for missing days of posting (I had school work to do, inclucing an AP Bio project)

Firstly, me want this:

It has a freaking projector! Albeit I wouldn’t know what to do with it. It does show things in DVD quality, though.

Secondly, if there ever is a Half Life movie, Hugh Laurie HAS TO PLAY Gordon Freeman. He just have to. There is no other way. Look at this:

There are other comparisons made, some very creepily similar, others not so much.

Thirdly, there recently has been some sort of violence in Venezuela after the referendum to get rid of the term limit for a president, mainly by university students. Why are young people always so foolish! (I have the right to complain, I am 18) Young people always seem to be the reckless kind. If you ask me, that election was completely fair. In fact, recently I have kind of been changing my mind on Chavez. Note, I still don’t like him, but he seems to bring good stuff to Venezuela, a country which has a high division between rich and poor, and a vast amount of corruption that had seeped into the government. He is not the Eeeevvvillll kind of guy everyone believes him to be, or at least not yet. Time will tell, though he is still extremely obnoxious. In fact, what is the problem with term limits if both sides will be able to vote their positions? Albeit things under Chavez are getting more state controlled, there seems to be some suppresion to the opposition (I am becoming less sure of this one myself, though, so don’t take this one too seriously), and it just seems like an attempt to keep maintaining power. I think both of these people (one supports Chavez, the other one don’t) bring fair points to the conversation. Too bad I am not a Venezuelan history expert, since I don’t know how to separate between historical truth and falsehood. I don’t know how reliable this website is, though they do sound like they know what they are doing, and they do use data and stuff.

Fourthly, there is a cool experiment which extracts nucleic acid:

Get aroun the web site, it has great experiments! Also, there is a related page, and found an article on sex in space. (and since I posted something of sex, this will surely drive a spike in traffic… maybe ^_^)

Fifthly, a meteor fell recently:

(both of above: hat tip to badastronomy)

I also forgot carnival of space 90.

Finally, there is a youtube channel of JREF, which has James Randi speaking on videos. *screams like a girl* You should see other stuff from him. He basically pawns all the woo woo claimants, including astrology. He is an incredible skeptic, and his contributions and works, which promote critical thinking, debunk woos, and raise awareness of these issues, can’t be overstated enough. He is kind of like my hero. ^_^ Here is his first video of Randi speaks:

Oh Crap, Venezuela is Doomed

Something terrible happened in Venezuela right now, and I care because I lived there a few years ago. In a referendum for people to vote whether Chavez could amend the constitution whatever he wanted to, the result was yes. Also, he plans to run, as any dictator in history shows, indefinitely. If you understand spanish, then here you go, El Universal, a Venezuelan newspaper.

Bus Sign Editor

I have recently found the atheist bus sign editor. In England, they put the sign on buses: “There’s probably no god. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life.” It is a sentiment I wholeheartedly agree with, but it is kind of dull, so hey, that is why the editor exists! This is what I made up:

AP Night at Middle School

Two days ago, I volunteered with my psychology teacher for AP night at middle school, along with a few classmates. It was kind of boring. First, this jazz band was playing music, which I didn’t like. It is probably me, though. I don’t like a lot of musics. Then, this U of Delaware guy spoke about AP and “rigor” and whatever. Then my AP US history teacher spoke (Woo Hoo!) about the usual things and a warning I feel some of my classmates should have listened to: “don’t overload.” Anyways, she called upon all of us AP students who volunteered in front. Yay! Public spotlight! 🙂 Afterwards there were questions and then we were supposed to attend the table where the psych teacher set up her spot. We were going to do the “conservation” experiment. Basically, it is to show that children don’t understand that if you pour a liquid from a tall glass to a wide glass of the same volume, they are, well, the same volume, of course. We didn’t do it. 😦 Otherwise, we kind of answered questions and got to play with the plasma brain glass thingy. You know, a device with plasma along it, and if you touch it, the plasma follows your fingers. I felt I had the power, ya know what I am talking about? ^_^ I also met a middle schooler who knew more math than I did, including calculus and other math stuff in proving and etc etc etc. It’s just me, but it kind of gets me thinking that you know, maybe high school maths should have a little more substance than just memorizing formulas and solving numerical problems. Then, everything was over and we all left happily temporarily after after. (of course, temporarily ever after doesn’t sound charming, I guess that is why they never use that in fairy tales)

Now, I want to talk my opinion on AP, just because I feel like it. *jedi mind tric* and you will listen to me. */jedi mind trick* You know (there I go with my “you know” again), sometimes, I feel like they overexaggerate the importance, or the need to have AP. Seriously, unless you are really interested in the subject, and develop proper study and note taking methods, you shouldn’t. This rant follows a sentiment similar to mine.  Getting into one without readiness and without the mindset is like having a string tied to your wrist and a shotgun trigger. The moment you lower your hand, you get shot in the brain, metaphorically. I also recommend not to overload in AP. I have classmates with 5 and 6 AP classes. That is way too crazy even for a guy like me, and I am the “smart guy” in my class.  I can barely keep up with the assignments sometimes, I don’t know how others would do it except do homework everyday until midnight. And crap, they make you sign some contract in my school district so that I have to take the test. A fine print I wasn’t aware of until recently. The stupid collegeboard guys then will get their 88$ dough, times four for me! They used to give free exams for reduced or free lunch, but now it is a 22$ discount. Crap, I hate whoever in my district did this, I don’t want to pay for all that, nor do I want to take four AP tests! Seriously, is it too hard to get that maybe, just maybe, that some guys enter AP just because they want to learn? I swear…

But if you are ready and all, it can be rewarding. Yes, it is fast and there are more info. That is what I like about it. If you are the type of guy who thinks all the other classes are too slow, and you are getting bogged down, this one is perfect. Also, it is not the type of classes where you just sit down quietly and do worksheets and questions from textbooks. (Out of both of them, I don’t know which one I prefer, they are all Yuch!) In AP, you are actively able to discuss things, and usually, the boring kind of work, you do it at home. There are times in which the whole class is distracted into talking other things, sometimes involving the teacher. Those are fun times. Also, most people in AP are not a** holes. When I was in the so called “college prep” (I giggle everytime I pronounce those words, ’cause it is such an oxymoron), I was miserable and intermingling with half breeds and trolls. (don’t take this comment too seriously, I don’t really think they are half breeds or trolls, but they were terrible people, at times really stupid) So yeah, now you know my opinion. If you are taking AP, make wise choices.

Vaccines Ruled Safe in Court, Antivax People Melting

hahahahaha… HaHaHaHaHaH… WHAHAHAHA!

Oh boy, sorry, I lost my cool there for a moment. It’s just that some certain group of people had their butts kicked. Even  in science is not decided by the court, this will surely speak loudly in the minds of people who are not into the scientific method or medicine or whatever.

The group of people who got pawned are the people who think autism is caused by vaccines. They give out slogans like: “too much, too soon” and “there are toxins and metals OMG!” The first one is not true, the second one is really dumb since it is quantity that matters, and any substance can become poisonous with enough quantity. Also, they have a study from this guy named Andrew Wakefield, which despite its horrible methodology, they have dept citing it. Well, no more, his results are *dum dum dum* Falsified. *long 24 style breath after a plot twist* Not that it was surprising, it wasn’t.

Anyways, the sooner the antivax ideology, which is causing the resurgence of some diseases and death of preventable diseases, is gotten rid off, the better.

No Mercy.

Carina Nebulae: The Huge Picture

Badastronomy once again posted another HUGE picture of some parts in the universe. This time, it is a nebulae, a huge star forming region. The really bright star in the lower left is Eta Carinae, it is one of the largest and most luminous of stars, and it has two lobes of gas ejected from the star. Here is the picture:

Here is the link to download the picture. I tell you, it is HUGE, so yeah, if your internet is a bummer, well, you are out of luck.

Chocolate and Roses

In the periodicvideos channel of youtube, they made a Valentines special about chocolates and roses. Just posting it ’cause they are talking about my favorite food, chocolate.

365 Days of Astronomy Song

I just recently put the link to a year long podcast 365 days of astronomy on the links sideways, as you can see. I also found its “official song” (hat tip badastronomy)

If you are interested in this guy, you can check out his blog.

Here is the lyric:

You ponder the universe and a look comes ‘cross your face
You try to fathom distances of all the stuff in space
But you can’t wrap the bacon of your mind around the fig
Of all the terms required to describe how big is big

So let me get specific, and use words scientific
Go whip out your thesaurus, for this exacting chorus

This stuff is far, [it’s really far] this stuff is far far far away
We’re talkin’ far, [like über far] you can’t get there by car in a day
It’s super duper crazy far but not just pulsars quasars and stars
I mean it’s far, far, far, if there’s some doubt listen to us shout [THIS STUFF IS FAR]

I sense all the explosions going off inside your brain
As your mind gets blown by what I just did explain
Sorry if my words might drive you all insane
But that’s what happens when precision is your middle name

So with an exacting factor, like some sextant or protractor
Using details quite semantic, I’ll show how huge is this gigantic

CHORUS

…far too big to explain in any concise ways,
it might just have to take 365 days

I hope that I have offered up some technical assistance
And haven’t caused your ticker too much ventrical resistance
But you have got to listen and trust my insistence
That I am very accurately describing the distance

CHORUS

Carnival in the Moon Society

Welcome to carnival of space 85, lunar edition, whatever that means.