Male, the weaker sex
It's true. :)

Dance your PhD dissertation!
Alright, you have successfully defended your PhD dissertation, but can you dance it? Here's the challenge... and the response.

Is commitment written all over your face?
It should be. Or not. :)

Do academics tend to be more skeptical towards belief in God than the general Population?
Here's one El Reg story on the affirmative. The actual provocative title: God makes you stupid, researchers claim

Feminist PCs, check out Camille Paglia!
Some people I know are feminists. But they're mostly the PC type, as they have become the orthodoxy in many places. This woman offers an alternative to the sorry state of feminism now.

Fascist who?
This ex-Dartmouth prof deserves it. < sarcasm >So have fun Northwestern! < /sarcasm >

Terrorism as piracy?
Still on the subject of pirates, this piece is a thoughtful reminder of parallels between terrorism and piracy.

Athenian versus Pirate Democracy?
Yes, you read it right. Read on... and check back on your choice.

Exercise!
"It's crazy not to do it," says NYT. :)

Security-compromising radiation from communications equipment
Here's the tale...

What an insult!
Here are some crazy feminists and church leaders insulting people from their moral high horses! If they don't want Playboy, then they shouldn't read or buy it. Better yet, why don't they publish their own magazine? Feminism and the Church together? What an historically odd couple! In the meantime, to show my support for liberty and the market, I can't wait to buy my first Philippine Playboy.

Goodbye, Arthur C Clark!
You will be missed. :(

What do McDonald's and a drug gang have in common?
Not cash but a solid corporate structure, say Columbia sociologist Venkatesh.

"Wir lassen nie vom Suchen ab, und doch, am Ende allen unseren Suchens sind wir am Ausgangspunkt zurück und werden diesen Ort zum ersten Mal erfassen."

The maestro on risk management
With all its mathematical sophistication, current financial and economic risk management breaks down. In an FT article, the maestro explains, "The most credible explanation of why risk management based on state-of-the-art statistical models can perform so poorly is that the underlying data used to estimate a model’s structure are drawn generally from both periods of euphoria and periods of fear, that is, from regimes with importantly different dynamics."

Adult neurogenesis
The orthodoxy is that we constantly loose our neurons as we age. Here's a heterodoxy. Plus, the idea that poverty could also be a matter of biology is something "free will" guys might not want to live with.

"Art will become a crucial source of scientific ideas"
So says Jonah Lehrer who himself has impeccable science credentials. See how Marcel Proust could be a neuroscientist!

Subprime woes
Here's the best comical presentation ever on the subprime crisis.