Free land, up for grabs, in Iowa.
The land giveaway is the first step in the process of increasing the town’s population from 149 to 200 in the next four years.
Yep, the best things in life really are free.
Monthly Archives: February 2006
You knew there had to be a catch
From news.com.au:
A WAVE of international victories for Dutch darts players has prompted an increase in the number of injuries as people take up the game at home, according to the Dutch consumer safety association.
Fortunately, few eye injuries have been reported, proving that the worst fears of Dutch mothers weren’t well-founded after all.
Neuroplasticity strikes again
A couple of weeks ago, I posted about research that suggests the brains of some Buddhist monks generate more gamma waves than the brains of ordinary folks.
Science and Consciousness Review now has posted an interview with Dr. Sara Lazar. She and other researchers at Harvard University and Massachusetts General Hospital have been comparing brain scans of meditators and non-meditators. The scans suggest
that longterm meditation may increase the thickness of the gray outer layer of cortex, where cortical cell bodies are located . . . An increase in the gray matter thickness could mean an increase in the number of neurons, but also, as the author points out, an increase in dendrites, glial cells or in the cerebral vasculature. Indeed, the finding may reflect a combination of these factors, all of which may contribute to a high-functioning cortex.
The article touches on mainstream implications of the research — might meditating help us stay sharper as we age, etc. But what intrigues me most is a theoretical question that I’ve not seen posed, as yet: might some sort of meditative practice enhance our ability to access different “states of consciousness” more readily? Mystics, like the Christian mystic/metaphysician Neville Goddard, seem to have an inherent ability to switch their attention to non-physical phenomena. Is this a skill that can be learned? And if so, what are the implications for Western spirituality?
Somewhat less “romantic,” per se
I’ll let blogger Pharyngula explain this himself:
All across the world, people are wondering what the etiquette is if they should find themselves in a romantic situation with an amorous cephalopod, and it is my duty to provide the answers.
The protagonist of my new novel in progress has a degree in biology. And to think I was wondering if my setup would lend itself to comedy . . .
Romance novels, a friendly-like look
The Telegraph has published an article on romance novels.
But the real mystery is, why aren’t we preoccupied with writing and reading novels about work, or the environment or children? Why is it always about pair bonding? “Lord, what fools these mortals be,” Puck remarked, observing human lovers in a certain wood outside Athens – but then, even Shakespeare’s fairies were subject to and humbled by the velleities of passion.
Yeah, it’s a kind and respectful article. And that’s a good thing ;-)
If you’re a Garfield fan . . .
. . . you won’t like this.
I think it’s breathtaking genius :-)
No where to go but up?
Michael Caputo thinks that lawmakers may well choose to raise Monroe County sales taxes in the near future. The reasons he thinks this likely: County Exec Maggie Brooks will hold the line against a property tax increase, and lawmakers show no sign of having the political will to make significant budget cuts.
Bah to book overhype
I recently picked up a paperback because its cover sported a glowing blurb by an author whose work I enjoy.
The book was a resounding disappointment, and, no dummy, I, I made a mental note to never trust a blurb in quite the same way again.
I’m comforted to learn that I am not alone. Heck no, I’m part of a trend, according to Damian Horner on Bookseller.com, who says that readers have become cynical about the rave reviews and gushing quotes that accompany so many book launches today.
I suspect we will soon see publishers working much more closely with bloggers and reading groups. They will run ongoing focus group panels and maybe some will even follow the Miramax model and ruthlessly target awards and prizes.
They already are. In an interview with conservative blogger/radio pundit Hugh Hewitt, for instance, Robert Ferrigno talks about how the publisher of his new political thriller, Prayers for the Assassin, spent “six figures” on website and blog marketing. (The website lets fans enter, virtually, the futuristic world of the novel.) Ferrigno predicts that in five years, “publishers will not be advertising in print media, except in very rare cases.”
These tactics work by generating word-of-mouth, which has credibility because the Mouth generating the Word tends to be a peer–a reader, just like you are, who has no vested interest in praising something that’s no good.
The weakness of this tactic, however, is that an amateur’s recommendations can be worthless, as well. Fifteen minutes scanning the reviews on Amazon is all you need to convince yourself of that ;-)
Teleportation oh my
At SignandSight.com, an interview with Anton Zeilinger, Viennese physician, who has teleported light particles and, occasionally, larger atoms.
He says that in a thousand years or so we might be able to teleport larger objects, like coffee cups or, presumably, Rolling Stones tickets. We’re a long way from teleporting a human being, however, for several reasons. One is that a human represents such a vast amount of information. Says Zeilinger:
The atoms in a human being are the equivalent to the information mass of about a thousand billion billion billion bits. Even with today’s top technology, this means it would take about 30 billion years to transfer this mass of data.
Makes you feel kind of special, doesn’t it?
Curried Wodehouse
Stephen McClarence, in the London Times: “In a country where most books in English sell fewer than 1,000 copies and 5,000 constitutes a bestseller,” Penguin Books India “sells up to 70,000 Wodehouses a year.”
(P.G. Wodehouse is one of my all-time favorite writers. So I can relate!)
