Maybe. But in general, when the media report "huge scientific controversy between boring explanation and interesting explanation", I find it's the boring explanation that tends to be true in the end.
Paul Campos runs prominent fat-activist blog the Big Fat Blog which is always worth a look. Their Big Fat Facts page explains what they're about.
However, I think while he's good on social issues and media hysteria, his medical science isn't that great. He prefers to look only at mortality rates, which have all kinds of confounding factors: people can lose weight because of ill-health, drug use, depression etc. Most of the medical evidence against obesity comes from disease rates: the increased incidence of heart disease, diabetes, cancer and so on.
Campos prefers to ignore disease rates: instead he usually tries to sneakily equate mortality rates with all ill-health. Suppose you don't want to get diabetes even if it doesn't kill you?
<delurks>
"Imperium" by Robert Harris
"The Mauritius Command" by Patrick O'Brian
"Charlotte Gray" by Sebastian Faulks
"Fool's Fate" by Robin Hobb
"History of the U.S. Economy in the 20th Century" by Timothy Taylor (assuming audio lectures count)
"War Trash" by Ha Jin (if they don't)
<relurks>
But panelist Steven Rattner, who recently wrote an epitaph for newspapers in The Wall Street Journal, said the real problems ran deeper. Because readers will never linger over news online the way they did on the page, the advertising profits of yesteryear are gone for good.
... in 2006 firms spent more hawking their wares online than they did in national newspapers. Total internet advertising budgets swelled more than 40 per cent in the UK to £2.02bn, overtaking the £1.9bn aimed at national print media.
Seems kind of stupid to say they're never going to make as much money online as offline, when in the UK they already do...
I don't comment much on either site, but I read both, and probably spend a roughly equal amount of time on each site.
Regarding commenting, I think if you're a stranger unfamiliar with local customs and personages; if you post on Metafilter you get flamed, if you post on Monkeyfilter you get ignored.
It depends which you prefer.
With 14 comments, probably don't count as a lurker. I love this site though: I steal the links all the time.
Nothing interesting to say though. Programmer, London, blog.
Never mind the cider, I love that website . Frames! "Just click on a fruit to learn more about cidermaking!" "beware - 1.3MB PDF download!" "This menu bar is scrollable and re-sizeable!" Visitors "since 1st June 1997"
At the time, I was working for a company that wrote software for retail banking.
I was doing Y2K testing: had to work two miserable nights to get the system to myself so that I could test it in isolation. Discovered one nasty bug that would have shut down a large part of the operations of one of the UK's biggest banks, and got it fixed.
Yes, some nutcases latched onto Y2K, some others exaggerated it, but it was a real problem. Nothing major happened, but that was because we worked to fix it.
Almost wish I hadn't bothered now.
Most UK police aren't routinely armed.
There are armed response units: small armed teams in cars who respond where necessary.
There is also a specialist unit called SO19 who partly train other officers, partly act as a kind of SWAT team. They've been accused of being too trigger-happy in the past after shooting innocent people.
Official info here.
I'd say...
Movies pre-1985: All the characters occasionally smoke cigarettes.
Movies post-1985: Some characters chain-smoke continously for every waking minute of the day, the rest never smoke at all.
Best place to look for accommodation is Loot magazine. Or you can subscribe online to get the latest offers.
Good way to find out about an area if she has web access is UpMyStreet.com.
Without knowing what area she wants to live in or what her price range is, it's hard to say more. London is expensive.
I followed that "beauty trail" not long ago. Some interesting stuff there: it also goes into obscure little sections of the museum that I'd never been before. I liked their case of antique and modern sound systems, though it makes me feel very old to see stuff like I used to owned sitting in a museum...
The Catholic Encyclopaedia has an entry on Pope Joan. Unfortunately she seems to be mythical.
posted by TheophileEscargot 17 years ago
In "Confirmed: Homo floresiensis was a distinct human species"
Maybe. But in general, when the media report "huge scientific controversy between boring explanation and interesting explanation", I find it's the boring explanation that tends to be true in the end.
posted by TheophileEscargot 17 years ago
In "Why Harvard Wants You To Be Unhealthily Thin."
Paul Campos runs prominent fat-activist blog the Big Fat Blog which is always worth a look. Their Big Fat Facts page explains what they're about. However, I think while he's good on social issues and media hysteria, his medical science isn't that great. He prefers to look only at mortality rates, which have all kinds of confounding factors: people can lose weight because of ill-health, drug use, depression etc. Most of the medical evidence against obesity comes from disease rates: the increased incidence of heart disease, diabetes, cancer and so on. Campos prefers to ignore disease rates: instead he usually tries to sneakily equate mortality rates with all ill-health. Suppose you don't want to get diabetes even if it doesn't kill you?
posted by TheophileEscargot 17 years ago
In "Curious George: What're the last 5 books you've read?"
<delurks> "Imperium" by Robert Harris "The Mauritius Command" by Patrick O'Brian "Charlotte Gray" by Sebastian Faulks "Fool's Fate" by Robin Hobb "History of the U.S. Economy in the 20th Century" by Timothy Taylor (assuming audio lectures count) "War Trash" by Ha Jin (if they don't) <relurks>
posted by TheophileEscargot 17 years ago
In "Left Behind? Not this book series."
To
be pointlessly competitiveput it in context, the first six Harry Potter books apparently sold 325 million copies.posted by TheophileEscargot 17 years ago
In "The BBC is the future of your newspaper. Maybe."
The Register reports Seems kind of stupid to say they're never going to make as much money online as offline, when in the UK they already do...posted by TheophileEscargot 17 years ago
In "Whatever happened to monkeyfilter?"
I don't comment much on either site, but I read both, and probably spend a roughly equal amount of time on each site. Regarding commenting, I think if you're a stranger unfamiliar with local customs and personages; if you post on Metafilter you get flamed, if you post on Monkeyfilter you get ignored. It depends which you prefer.
posted by TheophileEscargot 18 years ago
In "The day I found out I was an adult Indigo"
There was an interesting Guardian article by Jon Ronson about this movement a few weeks ago.
posted by TheophileEscargot 18 years ago
In "Pimp My Snack"
Maybe it's too UK-centric, but I thought this was a great link. Mmmmmm, giant food...
posted by TheophileEscargot 18 years ago
In "Curious, George: UNLURK!"
With 14 comments, probably don't count as a lurker. I love this site though: I steal the links all the time. Nothing interesting to say though. Programmer, London, blog.
posted by TheophileEscargot 18 years ago
In "The Wittenham Hill Cider Page"
Never mind the cider, I love that website . Frames! "Just click on a fruit to learn more about cidermaking!" "beware - 1.3MB PDF download!" "This menu bar is scrollable and re-sizeable!" Visitors "since 1st June 1997"
posted by TheophileEscargot 18 years ago
In "Is Bill Watterson working undercover?"
Following the links, Jef Mallet is doing a bunch of book signings, which doesn't sound too reclusive.
posted by TheophileEscargot 19 years ago
In "Almost six years later..."
At the time, I was working for a company that wrote software for retail banking. I was doing Y2K testing: had to work two miserable nights to get the system to myself so that I could test it in isolation. Discovered one nasty bug that would have shut down a large part of the operations of one of the UK's biggest banks, and got it fixed. Yes, some nutcases latched onto Y2K, some others exaggerated it, but it was a real problem. Nothing major happened, but that was because we worked to fix it. Almost wish I hadn't bothered now.
posted by TheophileEscargot 19 years ago
In "Jean Charles de Menezes was shot down in cold blood."
Most UK police aren't routinely armed. There are armed response units: small armed teams in cars who respond where necessary. There is also a specialist unit called SO19 who partly train other officers, partly act as a kind of SWAT team. They've been accused of being too trigger-happy in the past after shooting innocent people. Official info here.
posted by TheophileEscargot 19 years ago
Guardian front page.
posted by TheophileEscargot 19 years ago
In "Tapes"
Beautiful.
posted by TheophileEscargot 19 years ago
In "40 things that only happen in the movies."
I'd say... Movies pre-1985: All the characters occasionally smoke cigarettes. Movies post-1985: Some characters chain-smoke continously for every waking minute of the day, the rest never smoke at all.
posted by TheophileEscargot 19 years ago
In "Curious Flats:"
Best place to look for accommodation is Loot magazine. Or you can subscribe online to get the latest offers. Good way to find out about an area if she has web access is UpMyStreet.com. Without knowing what area she wants to live in or what her price range is, it's hard to say more. London is expensive.
posted by TheophileEscargot 19 years ago
In ""A regular lightsaber is normally used to attack someone but put the word 'rain' in front of it and you have an umbrella."
Those umbrellas with the glowing handle/rod that they had in Blade Runner looked pretty cool.
posted by TheophileEscargot 19 years ago
In "22 beautiful things, "
I followed that "beauty trail" not long ago. Some interesting stuff there: it also goes into obscure little sections of the museum that I'd never been before. I liked their case of antique and modern sound systems, though it makes me feel very old to see stuff like I used to owned sitting in a museum...
posted by TheophileEscargot 19 years ago
(limited to the most recent 20 comments)