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silveradeptDid an interview today. No idea whether or not I’ll get a ring for round two (which would involve me making plans for a flight to do an in-person interview - I hope this isn’t a regular thing for all those other jobs, too - flying or driving out for all of them would be expensive.) but I didn’t die or choke badly. So that’s encouraging, I guess. In the process, added in more applications today (just because you interview doesn’t mean you stop applying...) and wonder whether or not everyone’s going to want me to see them.
Talk To Action has an eye on the Bush Administration’s recruiting policies - Regent University, founded by Pat Robertson, is a popular choice. Regent, according to the founder, is supposed to “produce Christian leaders who will make a difference, who will change the world”. Which probably means exactly what it says, in Robertson’s world. Which may have no bearing at all on what the rest of us think. It might have a match with Bill Murchison, who ridicules what he calls “liberal guilt” and a “moral flabbiness” in They Always Blame America First as reasons why America doesn’t have conviction enough to face terrorists, bombers, and religious bigots. (Although I think he’s thinking more about Islam than Christianity...)
For those confused about just what the hell’s going on in regards to the firings of the United States attorneys and the developing scandal, The Morning News offers a primer what’s already happened. The author suspects that Gonzalez will resign his position and that will be the end of it, but if things continue to self-destruct, perhaps there will be more.
Sneaking in a few religious bits, the Anglican Church was told that there's no constitutional barrier to appointing women as bishops in Australia, only that the candidate must be baptized, a priest, and over thirty. The decision to admit women as priests appears to be having farther-reaching impacts than previously thought. Some of the debate on the matter, though, tried to suggest that a woman was not a “person” when the constitutional document was drafted. Much of the conservative element wants the matter to go through the general synod, rather than the legal courts, where it’s likely any women bishop issues would be defeated. The idea of equal rights marches on, even in the places where one might not expect to see it.
A solution to the rampant problem of fundamentalism rising all over the world, according to another writer in the Brisbane Times, is to ban religious fundamentalists from marriage. To protect the institution of marriage from people who have strange ideas and practice perverse things, among other things. No different, really, than prohibiting gays and lesbians from marrying, is it?
Some very interesting images to look at - Little UFO's of cream/milk above coffee. Taken, most likely, with a high-speed camera, these are a lot of fun to look at, and show what can happen when making a splash.
Going from inner space to outer space, a supernova in a purple-coloured galaxy is the second in 11 years. (Purple? How do they arrive at that color?)
A German breeder of giant bunnies has stated he won't be selling any more to North Korea after he has been denied the ability to go see them. The rabbits were aimed for a breeding program to assist with food shortages, and there is speculation that the rabbits were used for food rather than breeding. The farmer’s not likely to be hurting, as other buyers have lined up to possibly purchase some breeding stock of their own. Will it be only a matter of time before we see vicious rabbits and sorcerers named Tim?
Staying with animals, after engineering to make it produce florescent molecules in their nerves, removing the water, and placing it in a mix that has the same refractive index as proteins, then using a thin sheet of light to make the previously treated cells fluoresce, and finally, stitching it all together in a computer, a complete three-dimensional image of a mouse's neural network has been obtained. Gene tweaking of that nature for humans would be tougher, would it not? Plus, with all the extra preparation needed (as well as the removal of the brain from the body), is there any chance there would be human images achieved any time soon?
Too good to be true? Research beind done at the University of Copehagen may have found a way to turn A- and B-type red blood cells into O-type blood cells by cutting off the complex sugars that determine blood type. It doesn’t directly say, but it looks like ) the blood being tested is Rh negative blood. (Can Rh negative blood coexist with Rh positive blood?). The sugar-chopping process is still in testing, however, and may not be ready for another five years. If things go well, however, the blood supply could be processed into all being O-type blood, making everyone’s contribution more useful. (By the way, if you don’t give blood and are eligible for it, consider doing so.)
The continuing advances in science and technology are not going unnoticed in the echelons of government. While complaining about its lack of completeness, Responsible Nanotechnology praises a report from a New Jersey Senator that discusses the appearance and impact of accelerating technology, including the possibility of the Singularity event occurring soon.
Possibly related, for those who are fans of the science fiction writer Phillip K. Dick (was he returned safely to his keepers? Or is he still at large?), a new blog has appeared - Total Dick-Head. Maybe I should keep an eye on that after I have time to read a bit more of his work. Ubik was good, and at some point, I suspect I need to get around to Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?
In the “spinning in his grave” department, Smile, George Orwell. Big Brother is watching your apartment, and a lot of other places all around the world.
The last bit for tonight is a gigantic tiled mosaic with video game characters and situations. Tiles as pixels, making art that can keep the feel of the original, no matter what platform it comes from.
So, I’m going to bed now, turning in a project tomorrow and figuring out how much of what I’ve already done today needs modification and how much is just going to need practicing.
Talk To Action has an eye on the Bush Administration’s recruiting policies - Regent University, founded by Pat Robertson, is a popular choice. Regent, according to the founder, is supposed to “produce Christian leaders who will make a difference, who will change the world”. Which probably means exactly what it says, in Robertson’s world. Which may have no bearing at all on what the rest of us think. It might have a match with Bill Murchison, who ridicules what he calls “liberal guilt” and a “moral flabbiness” in They Always Blame America First as reasons why America doesn’t have conviction enough to face terrorists, bombers, and religious bigots. (Although I think he’s thinking more about Islam than Christianity...)
For those confused about just what the hell’s going on in regards to the firings of the United States attorneys and the developing scandal, The Morning News offers a primer what’s already happened. The author suspects that Gonzalez will resign his position and that will be the end of it, but if things continue to self-destruct, perhaps there will be more.
Sneaking in a few religious bits, the Anglican Church was told that there's no constitutional barrier to appointing women as bishops in Australia, only that the candidate must be baptized, a priest, and over thirty. The decision to admit women as priests appears to be having farther-reaching impacts than previously thought. Some of the debate on the matter, though, tried to suggest that a woman was not a “person” when the constitutional document was drafted. Much of the conservative element wants the matter to go through the general synod, rather than the legal courts, where it’s likely any women bishop issues would be defeated. The idea of equal rights marches on, even in the places where one might not expect to see it.
A solution to the rampant problem of fundamentalism rising all over the world, according to another writer in the Brisbane Times, is to ban religious fundamentalists from marriage. To protect the institution of marriage from people who have strange ideas and practice perverse things, among other things. No different, really, than prohibiting gays and lesbians from marrying, is it?
Some very interesting images to look at - Little UFO's of cream/milk above coffee. Taken, most likely, with a high-speed camera, these are a lot of fun to look at, and show what can happen when making a splash.
Going from inner space to outer space, a supernova in a purple-coloured galaxy is the second in 11 years. (Purple? How do they arrive at that color?)
A German breeder of giant bunnies has stated he won't be selling any more to North Korea after he has been denied the ability to go see them. The rabbits were aimed for a breeding program to assist with food shortages, and there is speculation that the rabbits were used for food rather than breeding. The farmer’s not likely to be hurting, as other buyers have lined up to possibly purchase some breeding stock of their own. Will it be only a matter of time before we see vicious rabbits and sorcerers named Tim?
Staying with animals, after engineering to make it produce florescent molecules in their nerves, removing the water, and placing it in a mix that has the same refractive index as proteins, then using a thin sheet of light to make the previously treated cells fluoresce, and finally, stitching it all together in a computer, a complete three-dimensional image of a mouse's neural network has been obtained. Gene tweaking of that nature for humans would be tougher, would it not? Plus, with all the extra preparation needed (as well as the removal of the brain from the body), is there any chance there would be human images achieved any time soon?
Too good to be true? Research beind done at the University of Copehagen may have found a way to turn A- and B-type red blood cells into O-type blood cells by cutting off the complex sugars that determine blood type. It doesn’t directly say, but it looks like ) the blood being tested is Rh negative blood. (Can Rh negative blood coexist with Rh positive blood?). The sugar-chopping process is still in testing, however, and may not be ready for another five years. If things go well, however, the blood supply could be processed into all being O-type blood, making everyone’s contribution more useful. (By the way, if you don’t give blood and are eligible for it, consider doing so.)
The continuing advances in science and technology are not going unnoticed in the echelons of government. While complaining about its lack of completeness, Responsible Nanotechnology praises a report from a New Jersey Senator that discusses the appearance and impact of accelerating technology, including the possibility of the Singularity event occurring soon.
Possibly related, for those who are fans of the science fiction writer Phillip K. Dick (was he returned safely to his keepers? Or is he still at large?), a new blog has appeared - Total Dick-Head. Maybe I should keep an eye on that after I have time to read a bit more of his work. Ubik was good, and at some point, I suspect I need to get around to Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?
In the “spinning in his grave” department, Smile, George Orwell. Big Brother is watching your apartment, and a lot of other places all around the world.
The last bit for tonight is a gigantic tiled mosaic with video game characters and situations. Tiles as pixels, making art that can keep the feel of the original, no matter what platform it comes from.
So, I’m going to bed now, turning in a project tomorrow and figuring out how much of what I’ve already done today needs modification and how much is just going to need practicing.
TheLastBoss game art
Date: 2007-04-04 06:42 am (UTC)