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Metabolism of fructose and glucose
So there's this result from a lab at Princeton which shows that rats fed high-fructose corn syrup (henceforth HFCS) display metabolic diseases associated with obesity. (Princeton press office, via Shakesville)
"These rats aren't just getting fat; they're demonstrating characteristics of obesity, including substantial increases in abdominal fat and ( Read more... ) -
Things that piss me off
1. The missing link. It's as bad as the directed evolutionary gradients thing (that stupid damn chart with the queue of primates going gradually from stooped to upright), and I suspect it is related. Seriously, people: Darwinius masillae is not "the missing link". Our knowledge of evolutionary history of life is not a chain with pieces missing, it ( Read more... ) -
Submitted without comment.
Steele: GOP needs "hip-hop" makeover (Washington Post)
ETA: Also, I'm putting this beautiful font called Catacumba in my LJ archives so that I don't lose track of it. Possibly I will be able to convince someone to buy it for me if I ever need a lot of labels, because this is the most gorgeous museum font I have ever seen. http://www.fountaintype.com ( Read more... ) -
Doing crazy shit with neural networks
So these two people put together a neural net that could tell Shakespeare and Marlowe apart, and concluded based on this that "Edward III" was indeed mostly written by Shakespeare, among other things. You should read the paper; it's free.
"Neural Computation in Stylometry II: An Application to the Works of Shakespeare and Marlowe", THOMAS V. N. ( Read more... ) -
(Untitled)
So, pursuant to my post below about the Jessica Joslin exhibit, I thought I might mention the eventual plan: On Saturday midday-afternoon, we're going to the gallery mentioned, as well as obsolete, the Jurassic Gallery (which is not the MJT), and Jadis (if it's open). Also probably going to drop by Little Ethiopia for food on the way.
Anyone who ( Read more... ) -
Yay, solar field!
Dude, eSolar was on CNN this weekend!
http://www.cnn.com/video/?/video/us/2009/02/01/finnstrom.solar.savior.cnn
I'm up at the Sierra plant right now, and it's actually pretty awesome. It might not be quite as clean as it is in the CNN clip (did they clean the mirrors for it, I wonder? I seem to remember something of the sort), but it's pretty damn ( Read more... ) -
Jessica Joslin exhibit in Culver City
There's an exhibition of Jessica Joslin's work at a studio in Culver City. If you don't know her work, follow this link. She does amazing sculptures, weird little bone and brass creatures.
Anyhow: anyone want to go? phyfutima ? slowbob ? montyy0 ?
If so, can I go too?
(address:
Billy Shire Fine Arts
5790 Washington Blvd.
Culver City, CA 90232
phone: 323-297-0600
fax: 323-297- ( Read more... ) -
RNA world
Some researchers at Scripps Research Institute have successfully induced RNA enzymes to reproduce and compete -- so successfully, in fact, that three populations of new mutants showed up in the soup that outcompeted their original designed versions. Srsly.
Go check it out.
http://blog.wired.com/wiredscience/2009/01/replicatingrna.html
(original paper ( Read more... ) -
Highway robbery.
Holy shit, I spent $400 today. I have spent, so far:- $290 on grad school application fees
- $80 on fucking GRE score reprints
- $28 on transcripts
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Tough town.
So two of my coworkers today saw me printing out my application to UC Riverside. Turns out they were undergrads at Riverside, and they started laughing about it, saying things like "Don't EVER be out on University Ave after 10 PM" and "When you get robbed, say hi to [police officer] for me". This went on for a while, implications of drug dealing, ( Read more... )