Gendered brains, gendered science, playful plaque ...

Jun 18, 2005 11:40

Yes, the brains of men and women really are different. Via wildilocks. An intellectually serious debate about why women are disproportionately absent from higher reaches of science and mathematics.

Local historical plaques are not normally this playful in spirit. Via the_christian.

Did I know Andre Norton died? Definitely do now. Via meninaiscrazy

Organising in favour of medical marihuana. Do we regard steroid use as OK if Hollywood actors do it? (Scroll down.)

Shakespeare versus Racine: is French and Anglosphere political history encapsulated in the differences?

Considering the possibility that folk on the left might listen to other folk once in a while. Examining distaste for the people in the EU and the US It is worth noting that while campaigners against the EU Constitution promoted diverse issues, they all expressed a sense of estrangement from their political institutions. and It appears that professional politicians attempt to account for their isolation from the electorate by pointing their finger at the incompetence of the public.

The global warming argument [for strong control of emissions] is about four successive propositions: (1) The Earth’s climate is getting warmer, (2) humans are a major contributing factor, (3) the net effect will be bad, (4) the best response is to stop warming rather than deal with its effects. Each proposition is clearly weaker than the one before it (not least because each relies on the truth of all the preceding ones) but you have to accept all four to support the need for major measures. As far as I can see, there is ambiguous evidence of mild warming (surface stations and some other evidence for; balloon, satellite and rural ground station measurements against), weak evidence of some human impact and no strong evidence what is likely to happen will be all that bad. On which point, many scientists hold that global warming might be, on balance, a good thing.

Gay men respond differently to pherenomes. Canada has its first military gay wedding. Increasing effort to end the US ban on openly gay soldiers. Arguing the case. Protesters at a ‘re-educate to be straight’ camp. Looking at statistics on same-sex marriage in Canada. Massachusetts opponents of same-sex unions want a referendum in 2008, but seem confused over civil unions.

A particularly noxious example of prejudiced bile.

Norm Geras dissects the Israel academic boycott argument.

I am not much concerned with the Corby issue, but the divisions over it are fascinating.

Snake eats man: they sold the snake as a local delicacy.

The autopsy on Teri Schiavo indicates what a shell of a person was on the life-support.

Reuters is leaving Fleet Street, the last news organisation to do so.

In the US, left-of-centre blogs are apparently getting more traffic than right-of-centre ones.

Being wittily rude about The Age.

Poland may manage to be the first real case of twin power.

Meanwhile, in China, peasants don’t really have property rights.

Looking at whither the EU (pdf, from the Economist Intelligence Unit).
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