SQL's Server

LHC Rap

2009-06-30T18:07:00.000-07:00

Old but good.

Blog Starting up again

2009-06-30T17:10:00.000-07:00

I have neglected the blog recently. Anyway, I'm going to start posting again.

Republicans are to blame...

2008-12-23T17:58:00.001-08:00

http://www.sadlyno.com/archives/15625.html

Age of the Earth

2008-12-23T17:43:00.000-08:00

A very excellent post:
http://www.unexplained-mysteries.com/forum/index.php?s=&showtopic=143200&view=findpost&p=2662662

And, also, remember that TalkOrigins can now be accessed at:
toarchive.org

-SQLserver

100 Bible contradictions

2008-12-17T17:20:00.001-08:00

Image from here

100 contradictions in the bible:
http://www.edwardtbabinski.us/fundamentals/100_contradictions.html

It seems like God isn't too decided on his own word.

List of Global Warming Denialist Claims

2008-12-17T17:11:00.000-08:00

Hello-
Here are the best resources for fighting global warming denialists. Many are from:
http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn11462-climate-change-a-guide-for-the-perplexed.html

Mars and Pluto are warming Myth
(Thanks Mattshark)

Chaotic Systems are not Predictable

We can't trust the Computer Models

Many leading Scientists question Global Warming

It's all a conspiracy

Global Cooling Myth:
http://www.realclimate.org/index.php?p=94

http://www.newscientist.com/blogs/shortsharpscience/2008/10/global-cooling-was-a-myth.html

Global Warming is from the sun, not humans

It's down to cosmic rays

And tons more here:

Also see:
Common Misconceptions

And more:
Global Warming Myths/Facts

Cheers,
SQLserver

Well here's a useful site

2008-12-17T17:08:00.000-08:00

Let me Google that for You

This is the hottest decade on Record by far

2008-12-17T17:05:00.001-08:00

The denialists have been particularly active recently, so this should put them down:
http://climateprogress.org/2008/12/07/very-warm-2008-makes-this-hottest-decade-in-recorded-history-by-far/

Pick up that can!

2008-12-17T17:01:00.000-08:00

After playing Half Life 2, I laughed so hard at this.

For anyone who hasn't played the game, the creator of the video used a cheat to get an advanced weapon at the beginning of the game.

Watch more video games and play free games at WeGame.

Obama: No more blank checks for Israel!

2008-12-17T16:59:00.000-08:00

Obama says Israel can no longer expect the large sums of cash they've been getting!
What? You mean Israel will actually have to fend for themselves?

http://rawstory.com/news/2008/Obama_spells_end_of_blank_cheques_1207.html

This reads like a Joke

2008-12-17T16:57:00.000-08:00

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/religion/3464073/Educated-Catholics-have-sown-dissent-and-confusion-in-the-Church-claims-bishop.html

While not naming names, he suggested that such people had been compromised by their education, which he said had a "dark side, due to original sin".

Societies better off without God

2008-12-17T16:54:00.000-08:00

From:
http://moses.creighton.edu/JRS/pdf/2005-11.pdf

"In general, higher rates of belief in and worship of a creator correlate with higher rates of homicide, juvenile and early adult mortality, STD infection rates, teen pregnancy and abortion in the prosperous democracies.

The United States is almost always the most dysfunctional of the developing democracies, sometimes spectacularly so. "

And from:
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article571206.ece
By Ruth Gledhill, Religion Correspondent

RELIGIOUS belief can cause damage to a society, contributing towards high murder rates, abortion, sexual promiscuity and suicide, according to research published today.

Science has confirmed the obvious.

Image from:
http://evolvefish.com/ShirtImages/TshirtImageSamples.htm

Evolution Science Standards

2008-12-17T16:51:00.000-08:00

These Science standards are excellent. Everyone, please help vote for them. If this can be passed, it will be great!
http://www.change.org/ideas/view/create_nationally_required_science_standards

New TalkOrigins Domain Name

2008-12-17T16:48:00.000-08:00

For a while I was devastated, because the TalkOrigins archive went down. However, it is still available at:
www.toarchive.org

Hurray!

Blog slowing, for now

2008-10-29T18:41:00.000-07:00

I've got a lot of stuff right now, so don't expect much besides the occasional post every once in a while...

Windows 7: Looks cool

2008-10-28T14:49:00.000-07:00

Micro$oft seems to be getting somewhere with Windows 7. Perhaps they will retain a little bit of dignity.

http://gizmodo.com/5069661/windows-7-walkthrough-boot-video-and-impressions

So True....

2008-10-28T14:48:00.000-07:00

The Christian Right killed the Republican party.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jane-devin/the-christian-right-kille_b_137946.html

Excellent Video

2008-10-25T18:57:00.000-07:00

From fish to land

2008-10-25T18:53:00.000-07:00

I just finished reading Your Inner Fish(an excellent book), and did some more research on the amazing transitional fossils from fish to land creatures.

TalkOrigins has an excellent article on them:
http://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/faq-transitional/part1a.html

Joe McCain: Just as obnoxious, and uglier

2008-10-24T19:24:00.000-07:00

John McCain's brother, Joe McCain, is reported to have called 911 because of traffic.
Source
Um, yeah. Talk about obnoxious.

Apple supports Civil Rights!

2008-10-24T19:21:00.000-07:00

For the first time in a long time, Apple started caring a little bit more about freedom!
They are donating to the movement to stop the anti-gay bigots trying to pass their BS in congress!

http://digg.com/apple/Apple_to_oppose_anti_gay_marriage_ballot_question

Creationist Bingo!

2008-10-24T19:18:00.000-07:00

Now THIS should be a fun game!
Rules:
Whenever a Creationist uses an argument on the board, check it off. 5 or 4 in a row means BINGO!

http://img509.imageshack.us/img509/9705/bingojc9.png

Ok, Ok, so it's not completely correct...

The Founding Fathers were not "Good Christians"

2008-10-21T18:31:00.000-07:00

Every once in a while, or rather, every day, some crazy babbling Christian will come around and tell you something like:
"LOLZ AMERICAN IS CHRIZTIANSZ! GOEGRGE WASHINGTONS WAS CVHRISTANSZ!!! LOZL"

Generally, however, they will say it even louder, with more misspellings, and even more idiocracy jammed into a few sentences.

This is, of course, not true.

While a few Founding fathers were Christians(and a few were clearly not), they showed criticism of Christianity, especially the church and the fundamentalists.

They all clearly supported the Separation of Church and State.

Here are some quotes, originally posted as a Youtube bulletin.

Ben Franklin:

"I cannot conceive otherwise than that He, the Infinite Father, expects or requires no worship or praise from us, but that He is even infinitely above it."
[Benjamin Franklin from "Articles of Belief and Acts of Religion", Nov. 20, 1728]

"Lighthouses are more helpful than churches."

"I have found Christian dogma unintelligible. Early in life I absented myself from Christian assemblies."
[Benjamin Franklin, in _Toward The Mystery_]

"The way to see by Faith is to shut the eye of Reason."
[Benjamin Franklin, Poor Richard, 1758]

"Revealed religion has no weight with me."
[Benjamin Franklin]

"in short, I soon became a thorough deist"

[Benjamin Franklin, "Autobiography,"p.66 as published in *The American Tradition in Literature,* seventh edition (short), McGraw-Hill,p.180]

George Washington:
There is nothing which can better deserve our patronage than the promotion of science and literature. Knowledge is in every country the surest basis of public happiness. [George Washington, address to Congress, 8 January, 1790]

...I beg you be persuaded that no one would be more zealous than myself to establish effectual barriers against the horrors of spiritual tyranny, and every species of religious persecution. [George Washington, May, 1789 from The Washington papers]

"I know that Gouverneur Morris, who claimed to be in his secrets, and believed himself to be so, has often told me that General Washington believed no more in that system [Christianity] than he did."
-- Thomas Jefferson, in his private journal, February, 1800, quoted from Jefferson's Works, Vol. iv., p. 572

"Sir, Washington was a Deist."
-- The Reverend Doctor James Abercrombie, rector of the church Washington had attended with his wife, quoted from John E Remsberg, Six Historic Americans

Thomas Jefferson:
Millions of innocent men, women and children, since the introduction of Christianity, have been burnt, tortured, fined and imprisoned; yet we have not advanced one inch towards uniformity.
-Thomas Jefferson, Notes on Virginia, 1782

Question with boldness even the existence of a god; because if there be one he must approve of the homage of reason more than that of blindfolded fear.
-Thomas Jefferson, Letter to Peter Carr, 1787

Where the preamble declares, that coercion is a departure from the plan of the holy author of our religion, an amendment was proposed by inserting "Jesus Christ," so that it would read "A departure from the plan of Jesus Christ, the holy author of our religion;" the insertion was rejected by the great majority, in proof that they meant to comprehend, within the mantle of its protection, the Jew and the Gentile, the Christian and Mohammedan, the Hindoo and Infidel of every denomination.
-Thomas Jefferson, Autobiography

I concur with you strictly in your opinion of the comparative merits of atheism and demonism, and really see nothing but the latter in the being worshipped by many who think themselves Christians.
-Thomas Jefferson, letter to Richard Price, Jan. 8, 1789 (Richard Price had written to TJ on Oct. 26. about the harm done by religion and wrote "Would not Society be better without Such religions?")

Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between man and his God, that he owes account to none other for his faith or his worship, that the legislative powers of government reach actions only, and not opinions, I contemplate with sovereign reverence that act of the whole American people which declared that their legislature should 'make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof,' thus building a wall of separation between church and State.
-Thomas Jefferson, letter to Danbury Baptist Association, CT., Jan. 1, 1802

I never submitted the whole system of my opinions to the creed of any party of men whatever in religion, in philosophy, in politics, or in anything else where I was capable of thinking for myself. Such an addiction is the last degradation of a free and moral agent.
-Thomas Jefferson, letter to Francis Hopkinson, March 13, 1789

Christianity neither is, nor ever was a part of the common law.
-Thomas Jefferson, letter to Dr. Thomas Cooper, February 10, 1814

In every country and in every age, the priest has been hostile to liberty. He is always in alliance with the despot, abetting his abuses in return for protection to his own.
-Thomas Jefferson, letter to Horatio G. Spafford, March 17, 1814

It is between fifty and sixty years since I read it [the Apocalypse], and I then considered it merely the ravings of a maniac, no more worthy nor capable of explanation than the incoherences of our own nightly dreams.
-Thomas Jefferson, letter to General Alexander Smyth, Jan. 17, 1825

John Adams:
John Adams signed the Treaty of Tripoli, which said:
""As the Government of the United States of America is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion""

The question before the human race is, whether the God of NATURE shall govern the world by his own laws, or whether priests and kings shall rule it by fictitious miracles?
-- John Adams, letter to Thomas Jefferson, June 20, 1815

As I understand the Christian religion, it was, and is, a revelation. But how has it happened that millions of fables, tales, legends, have been blended with both Jewish and Christian revelation that have made them the most bloody religion that ever existed?
-- John Adams, letter to FA Van der Kamp, December 27, 1816

Let the human mind loose. It must be loose. It will be loose. Superstition and dogmatism cannot confine it.
-- John Adams, letter to his son, John Quincy Adams, November 13, 1816, from James A Haught, ed, 2000 Years of Disbelief

God is an essence that we know nothing of. Until this awful blasphemy is got rid of, there never will be any liberal science in the world.
-- John Adams, "this awful blashpemy" that he refers to is the myth of the Incarnation of Christ, from Ira D Cardiff, What Great Men Think of Religion, quoted from James A Haught, ed, 2000 Years of Disbelief

Cheers,
SQLserver

New Poll: Obama 52, McCain 39

2008-10-21T14:37:00.000-07:00

The gap just keeps getting wider and wider.

http://people-press.org/report/462/obamas-lead-widens

CEO of Google to Endorse Obama

2008-10-21T14:35:00.000-07:00

Another important American is for Obama, it seems.

http://rawstory.com/news/afp/Google_CEO_to_endorse_Obama_WSJ_10202008.html

This is ridiculous...

2008-10-21T14:32:00.000-07:00

Found this on Pharyngula, and it shows exactly what's wrong with America.

Firefox Mobile Out!

2008-10-21T14:31:00.000-07:00

OK, so this is kind of old, but this looks awesome.

The Page Sprinting Game

2008-10-20T17:54:00.001-07:00

The Page sprinting game is a game played by ~~Creationists and Conservatives~~ trolls on online forums, especially during debates.

To play, you need to:
1. Have a debate thread.
2. Have people replying to you.
3. Be completely clueless about what they've said.
4. Be ridiculously stubborn.
5. Be lacking a Conscience.

Rules:
1. Start at page one. Do NOT read anything besides the title of the thread.
2. Go! Sprint to the bottom of the page! Try to read as little as possible!
3. Remember the number of words you accidentally read. Using them, try and formulate a reply. The more irrelevant the better. Bonus points are awarded for repeating the same thing over.
4. Your score is the number of words you accidentally read. A lower score is better.
5. The game continues. After waiting, refresh the page, and check if there is a reply. Then, sprint down again.

Tricks:
1. Watch out! Members may try and get you with Bolded words, or big font.
2. Try putting your fingers in your ears and screaming LALALALALLALALALA while manipulating the scroll wheel with your elbow.

High Scores:
If everyone could report their high scores, that would be great.

Laughing at Creationists

2008-10-20T15:27:00.000-07:00

In the Creationist news today?

They try and pass off a Rock as a brain... What are they trying to accomplish here?
http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/2008/10/well_maybe_it_is_exactly_like.php
Even better: They get a bunch of people from Conservative, Christian universities who tell them "It's a real brain!"
Somehow(They never explain) this is supposed to prove Creationism.

There's going to be a mock "Creationism vs Evolution trial" in Kentucky. Dear god...
http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/2008/10/creationists_gaming_kentucky.php#comment-1164482

That Creationist teacher, who tried to pass off Creationism in class, resigned. Thank God.
http://www.berkeleydailyplanet.com/issue/2008-10-16/article/31377?headline=Jefferson-Teacher-in-Creationism-Controversy-Resigns

Something is going down in Texas... There will be 3 Crazies, and 3 pro-science people on the Board of Education, and they will revise the Science standards...
http://www.ktrh.com/cc-common/news/sections/newsarticle.html?feed=&article=4429168

Dear god... Two Crazies from Maine both want Creationism taught in Schools "Alongside" Evolution...
http://knox.villagesoup.com/Government/story.cfm?storyID=131547

The Creationists are also trying to get a foothold in Washington County... Dear god...
http://www.herald-mail.com/?cmd=displaystory&story_id=206262&format=html

The moral? The Creo-Bots are on the move once again, idiotically prancing their way into schools. They must be stopped.

Android: Great for Tech-savvy people, not so great for your grandma...

2008-10-20T15:20:00.000-07:00

Here's the Lifehacker review of the G1, which is coming out soon!
http://lifehacker.com/5064117/a-hands+on-first-look-at-google-android

I'm actually quite impressed. Developing for Android is a breeze, and the G1 actually looks already quite polished. I like it. Plus, T-Mobile is the only service these days that isn't AT&T or Verizon, which are Internet Fascists, who I refuse to support.

Make sure you are absolutely registered to vote!

2008-10-20T15:17:00.000-07:00

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2008/10/18/172558/32/882/634737
Republicans are purging literally millions of voters, who will not be allowed to vote on Nov. 4! Make sure you are registered immediately!

Republican Voter Fraud

2008-10-20T15:16:00.001-07:00

While convincing the public that ACORN is committing fraud, Republicans are, as usual, committing actual voter fraud.
http://www.bradblog.com/?p=6534

I'm back

2008-10-20T11:53:00.001-07:00

Back from backpacking, I'll try and get some posts up and some pictures later.

One last thing

2008-10-16T17:41:00.001-07:00

Although I feel kind of guilty about it, I found this hilarious.
http://gizmodo.com/5064773/motion-detector-turns-on-blender-strobe-light-when-cat-nears-with-hilarious-results

Backpackin' for the weekend

2008-10-16T17:36:00.000-07:00

Well folks, I'm off to the woods for a while: I'm backpacking off the Susquehanna river Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.

I sure hope none of my dedicated readers die of withdrawal from my blog while I'm gone.

Cheers,
SQLserver

Windows 7: Instant On?

2008-10-16T16:34:00.000-07:00

It looks like Redmond might be doing something smart for once in the last 8 years.

http://www.itwire.com/content/view/21193/53/
"
"For Windows 7, a top goal is to significantly increase the number of systems that experience very good boot times. "

"
Anyway, it seems that Microsoft is taking the whole boot time thing very seriously indeed as far as Windows 7 is concerned. For now we hear of the leaking of a survey asking for feedback on a new concept called Instant On, new to Windows at any rate.
"

How the Right plans to win the election

2008-10-16T16:03:00.000-07:00

Obama may be ahead in the polls, and far ahead in the electoral vote.

But, the election season is not over yet. Far from it.

Here are the top 5 things the Right is betting on to win the election for them.

5. The Bradley Effect
See:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bradley_effect
Basically, the Bradley effect is the tendency for even decided voters to vote for a white candidate instead of a ethnic one.
Black candidates that have been ahead in the polls have lost elections, and many claim it is due to the Bradley Effect.

4. Denying new voters their registration

3. Playing up Obama's connection to Ayers.
There is no evidence that Obama was a friend, or barely knew Ayers, besides the fact that they both worked at the same school. Do not doubt the Right to continue to lie and slander about this, however.

2. Pretending ACORN is commiting voter fraud.
The Right and much of the media is convinced that ACORN is committing "Voter fraud", which, of course, it isn't.
They may use this against Obama and Democrats, acting as if the mythical voter fraud is "their fault".

1. Purging thousands, possibly millions of new and ACORN registrants the right to vote.
This is the worst. If the Right continues to say a lie loud enough and often enough, it may become true in the minds of the courts.
This could lie to a mass rejection of ACORN registered voters, and new voters in general.

The Right is prepared to cheat, lie, and steal their way through the next 3 weeks.
What can you do about it?
1. Fight the smears. Tell the truth about Ayers and ACORN to everyone you know.

2. Make sure you are safely registered, and everyone you know is, too.

Just a few more weeks until it's over people, hang in there!

Obama owns McCain

2008-10-16T12:47:00.000-07:00

McCain lies(again), and Obama catches and then destroys him on it. McCain's reaction to "Zero." is hilarious.

Being a Good Atheist is a Win-Win-Win answer

2008-10-15T19:27:00.000-07:00

See Above: Richard Dawkins is a Do-good atheist.(As far as we know...)

Hello:

Here's my quick guide to Atheism:
Be a good person.

You know, it works! Not only does it make this life relatively better, but no matter what the next one will be, it sure will make it more interesting too!

If we conveniently simplify and stereotype the beliefs of 6.something billion people, we get 4 basic afterlifes:
1. There is no afterlife. That's ok. After all, you spent an eternity in non-existence, so another can't be too bad.

2. There is an afterlife, and it is non-selective. That's fine. Whether it is bad or good, we are all in this together.

3. There is an afterlife, and it selects based on quality of your life. If you get in, great. If you don't, well, you deserve it. Being a GOOD atheist should help you get into this.

4. There is an afterlife, and it selects based on a certain religion. Look at it this way: Gandhi, Buddha, and Thomas Jefferson can't all be in this kind of heaven together. Only 1 of them got in. If so, wouldn't it be rater moraless to go, when people who were radically more awesome and better then you didn't? Could you live with the guilt for an eternity, knowing you made the wrong choice?
Nope, not me. As a good atheist, I'd go to hell here, where I'd like to be.

What's the lesson? Religion doesn't matter: Being a good person does.

News of the Day

2008-10-15T16:18:00.000-07:00

Well, here's some news...

The lawsuit against God has been stopped because the defendant's address was not available.
I'm serious.
http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/10/15/suing.god.ap/index.html?eref=rss_latest

CNN: If the Election was held today, Obama would win.
http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/10/15/electoral.change/index.html?eref=rss_latest

Flash 10 for Linux Released! YES!
http://linux.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/10/15/200226&from=rss

Glassbooth: A great tool that matches your views with the closest candidate.
http://lifehacker.com/5063771/glassbooth-matches-you-with-the-right-candidate

Every Single 2008 Nobel Laureate Endorses Obama

2008-10-15T13:28:00.000-07:00

http://digg.com/2008_us_elections/Every_Single_2008_Nobel_Laureate_Endorses_Obama

Once again, the Smart people choose Obama.

Adobe Creative Suite 4 now shipping

2008-10-15T12:36:00.000-07:00

Well, the new Adobe Suite is out, and I still am fine with CS2.
Humph.

See:
http://gizmodo.com/5063930/adobe-creative-suite-4-now-shipping

The Conservative News of the day

2008-10-15T12:14:00.000-07:00

Because this is a fair blog, I'd like to present both sides of the "Debate"!
Here we go, some news straight from Conservapedia!

Obama's Religious Ruse: 'I've Always Been a Christian' [4]
"The ruse that he is a Christian must be exposed for what it really is: Obama's cloak to conceal that he is a Marxist from a Muslim background, for which he holds widespread support in the Islamic world."

Ooooh Man, Marxist AND Muslim! Doesn't get any worse then that!
Oh man, and look at this evidence! He's able to recite a Muslim prayer(HEATHEN! Knowledge of any religion besides Christianity is EVIL), and oh man... He was from a Muslim family, with, *shudder*, AN AGNOSTIC mom, who isn't a real Christian, because she only "believes in Christ", she doesn't go to church, or kill abortion doctors!
Wait, even though he's gone to church for the past 10-15 years, it was in a liberal Christian church!
Oh man, why does he hate America?

The news of the day gets even more horrific!
Textbook bias: "A Wisconsin mother is furious that her tax dollars helped buy a middle-school textbook that includes a passage from Barack Obama's speech at the 2004 Democratic National Convention, but has no mention of John McCain." [5]
OH MY GOD! Textbooks are now recognizing that Obama's speeches have influence and are elegant(not to mention written by himself), and McCain reading note cards written by a staff member is not!

But look, even more awful news!
The voter fraud commited by ACORN on behalf of Obama continues, including the attempted registration in Tampa, Florida of a very famous mouse: [6]
OH MY GOD! ACORN once again had an employer who committed voter fraud, and once again ACORN stopped them with a simple and elegant process that makes sure nobody games the ACORN system!

Wait. The worst news of all:
"Obama didn't write 'Dreams' – Ayers did." The growing evidence is [11].
The stunning and empirical evidence for this claim is as follows:
1. A completely different piece of writing on Organization(an essay) written by Obama several years before hand doesn't look quite the same as the writing style of 'Dreams'.

2. Even though Dreams went through a Publisher and an elaborate editing process, which the previous article did not, they should still look the same.

3. So, this means Obama did not write 'Dreams Of My Fathers'. Who did? It therefore MUST be that guy who worked at the same school as Obama but whom he rarely saw or talked with!

OH. MY. GOD.

Obama Tax Cut

2008-10-14T18:11:00.000-07:00

Obama now has a wonderful widget on his website that can help determine how much you will save with his plan.

http://taxcut.barackobama.com/

Only 0.15% of Biologists and Geologists Are Creationists

2008-10-14T17:36:00.000-07:00

This should put Creationists in perspective.
http://www.gate.net/~rwms/EvoCreationScientists.html

Even funnier:
There are more NCSE registered Scientists with the name Steve then scientists who doubt Evolution!
http://www.ncseweb.org/resources/articles/3541_project_steve_2_16_2003.asp

Cheers,
SQLserver

5 Extraordinary pieces of evidence for Evolution

2008-10-14T16:22:00.000-07:00

Evolution of the Eye

2008-10-14T16:18:00.000-07:00

Hello:

Contrary to Creationist claims, scientists have a pretty good idea how our eyes evolved.

See:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evolution_of_the_eye
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/evolution/library/01/1/l_011_01.html
http://www.scienceagogo.com/news/20050822230316data_trunc_sys.shtml
http://www.teachersdomain.org/resource/tdc02.sci.life.evo.nilssoneye/

TalkOrigins raises an interesting point:

intermediate stages through which eyes might have evolved via gradual steps (Darwin 1872).

* photosensitive cell
* aggregates of pigment cells without a nerve
* an optic nerve surrounded by pigment cells and covered by translucent skin
* pigment cells forming a small depression
* pigment cells forming a deeper depression
* the skin over the depression taking a lens shape
* muscles allowing the lens to adjust

All of these steps are known to be viable because all exist in animals living today. The increments between these steps are slight and may be broken down into even smaller increments.

Read more:
http://www.talkorigins.org/indexcc/CB/CB301.html

5 Extremely Awesome webapps

2008-10-14T12:11:00.000-07:00

Webapps are pretty awesome, even if they are a little slow.
Here are some of the best.

1. Google Calendar

Probably the best calendar application out there.
http://www.google.com/calendar

2. ZoHo Office Suite

A fully functional office alternative, online.
http://www.zoho.com/

3. Aviary's Phoenix

Almost everything you'd expect in an Image editor. Plus, Aviary seems to be coming out with a heck of a lot more awesome apps.
http://a.viary.com/tools/phoenix

4. Jumpcut

Online video editing and retouching.
http://jumpcut.com/

5. Meebo

Chat using GTalk, Yahoo!, AIM, and MSN.
http://www.meebo.com/

This looks interesting...

2008-10-14T12:01:00.000-07:00

http://280slides.com/

Found on Lifehacker.

New Mac books released

2008-10-14T11:57:00.000-07:00

Yes! A new version of Apple's over-priced laptops! This time, completely impossible to upgrade or modify in any way, so now Apple has complete control over your Mac!

Another Myth down the tubes

2008-10-13T15:17:00.000-07:00

The idiotic myth about some "Obama connection to Ayers" is so absurd and ridiculous it is hilarious.

William Ayers is a professor of education at the University of Illinois at Chicago, with whom Barack served on the board of an education-reform organization in the mid-1990’s. According to the Associated Press, they are not close: “No evidence shows they were “pals” or even close when they worked on community boards years ago …”
Link:
http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=D93KD6Q00&show_article=1

Cheers,
SQLserver

The Truth about ACORN

2008-10-13T15:08:00.000-07:00

So, you've probably heard from the right winged crazies about some kind of "ACORN voting fraud".

The Truth:
ACORN to required BY LAW to turn in every voter registration they get, even if it is more then 1 per person. The multiple forms are disregarded. Even if they weren't, on Election day only 1 person comes in and only 1 vote counts.

It is no surprise that the Rove-Zombies went after ACORN. ACORN registers poor and middle class, ethnically diverse voter, who, of course, would probably vote against the crazies.
Source:
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2008/10/10

OpenOffice 3.0 out!

2008-10-13T14:45:00.000-07:00

OpenOffice 3.0 has been released.
Some new features include:
1. Zoom toolbar on the bottom.
2. Better Collaboration.

Not much else... Overall, kind of disappointing.

The Age of the Earth/Universe

2008-10-13T11:56:00.000-07:00

Hello-
Here's a bunch of excellent resources that provide evidence for the scientific age of the Earth and Universe.

Here's an excellent list of the evidence for an old Earth.
http://rationalwiki.com/wiki/Evidence_against_a_recent_creation

And how we calculate the Age of the Earth:
http://www.talkorigins.org/origins/faqs-youngearth.html

And the age of the universe:
www.astro.ucla.edu/~wright/age.html
http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/badastronomy/2008/03/05/the-universe-is-1373-12-billion-years-old/

Tech for Obama

2008-10-13T11:51:00.000-07:00

Why Computer geeks of all kinds should vote for Obama.
http://www.techforobama.com/
Obama's been endorsed by a ton of important people in the computer industry.

6 Linux Boxes in 1 = Wicked Server

2008-10-13T03:13:00.000-07:00

http://lifehacker.com/

Linux Wireless made easy

2008-10-12T18:40:00.000-07:00

For years I struggled with Linux wireless. Now, I struggle no longer.

Following these steps will get almost any wireless card working on Ubuntu. It does NOT require a working internet connection.

1. Insert your ubuntu cd. In it, navigate to pool:main:n:ndiswrapper.

2. Install ndiswrapper-common, and ndiswrapper-utils.

3. Go back up to pool/main/n, and go to ndisgtk.

4. Install ndisgtk.

5. run:
sudo aptitude remove b43-fwcutter

6. Insert your wireless card's CDrom. Go to the drivers section. You should see a bunch of sys files, and an .inf file.

7. Copy these somewhere in your home directory.

8. Go to System:Administration:Windows Wireless Drivers. Select the .inf file you copied, and install the driver. It should successfully install.

9. Run:
sudo gedit /etc/init.d/wirelessfix.sh

and in that file put:
#!/bin/bash

modprobe -r b44
modprobe -r b43
modprobe -r b43legacy
modprobe -r ssb
modprobe -r ndiswrapper
modprobe ndiswrapper
modprobe b44

Save it, and run:
cd /etc/init.d/ && sudo chmod 755 wirelessfix.sh

Finally, execute:
sudo update-rc.d wirelessfix.sh defaults

Reboot, and you'll have working wireless.

Fight the Smears

2008-10-12T18:35:00.000-07:00

The Obama campaign has launched an excellent website, if you are not already aware of it.

http://www.fightthesmears.com/

1. None of Obama's advisors are from Fannie Mae.

2. There is no evidence that Ayers was close to Obama, besides being a colleague in the same college.
William Ayers is a professor of education at the University of Illinois at Chicago, with whom Barack served on the board of an education-reform organization in the mid-1990’s. According to the Associated Press, they are not close: “No evidence shows they were “pals” or even close when they worked on community boards years ago …”

3. Obama does not, and never has, wished to "ban guns".

4. 95% of taxpayers will receive tax cuts from Obama.

5. Obama is not a Muslim.

Those are the facts contradicting the 4 biggest absurdities in the smears.

5 awesome wallpapers

2008-10-12T18:23:00.000-07:00

I have a lot of wallpapers in my Collection, just thought I'd share...
PS: I don't own the copyrights to any of these. Shoot me.

5. Vista Aura

4. Big Wave

3. Bridge

2. Drops of Green

1. Exploding with Water

News of the Day

2008-10-12T17:23:00.000-07:00

I'll end every day with the News of the Day post.

1. Palin is booed at a Flyers Game
http://slapshot.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/10/11/a-misplaced-hockey-mom-moment/?scp=4&sq=palin%20philadelphia%20flyers&st=cse

2. An interesting read on ChristoFascism:
http://digg.com/2008_us_elections/American_Fundamentalist_Right_No_Different_Than_Taliban

3. Polls show Democratic pwnage in the '08 elections...
http://www.eyesonobama.com/blog/content/id_33673/title_Democrats-On-Track-For-Best-Senate-Elections-in-60-Years/

4. McCain would control the internet.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_United_States_presidential_candidates,_2008#Network_Neutrality

5. The Crazies are crying in Brunswick:
http://www.starnewsonline.com/article/20081010/ARTICLES/810100242/0/ENTERTAINMENT11

That's enough for today.

Cheers,
SQLserver

McCain always aspired to be a dictator

2008-10-12T17:21:00.000-07:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P7GZheZbc7A

Obama's Experience

2008-10-12T17:14:00.000-07:00

Well hello again.

All too often the Right-nuts preach(off their index cards):
"Obama has too little experience to become president!"
Oh wait, sorry, that's not accurate. Usually, it will sound more like:
"LOLZ EXPERIENCE!!!!!11"

Sources for most of this are available here:
http://www.obamapedia.org/page/Does+Barack+Obama+have+enough+experience+to+be+president%3F
and
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Obama

Here's a quick overview of Obama's Experience:

---Constitutional Law and US liberties.
Obama got a Law Degree at Harvard University. He became the editor of The Harvard Law Review, a prestigious position in the college.
He then began working at a civil rights firm and went on to teach constitutional law at the University of Chicago.

He also, in 1993, joined Davis, Miner, Barnhill & Galland, a twelve attorney law firm specializing in civil rights litigation and neighborhood economic development, where he was an associate for three years from 1993 to 1996, then of counsel from 1996 to 2004, with his law license becoming inactive in 2002.

Obama was a founding member of the board of directors of Public Allies in 1992.

He also served on the board of directors of the Chicago Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, the Center for Neighborhood Technology, and the Lugenia Burns Hope Center.

---Time in government/politics.
He has ten years experience in public office: 2 in the US senate, and 8 in the Illinois Senate.
Compare this to:
Hillary Clinton (six-plus years as Senator from New York)
John Edwards (six years as Senator from North Carolina)
George W. Bush(six years as the Governor of Texas)
Abraham Lincoln (two years in the U.S.House)

During Obama's Time in the senate, he has done extensive work, and been an extremely active participant in the Senate. Here's a list of bills he's sponsored:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_bills...d_States_Senate

---Economics.
He worked for a year at the Business International Corporation and then at the New York Public Interest Research Group.

---Foreign Policy.
Obama majored in Political science at Columbia, with a specialization in international relationships. He graduated with a BA.
n the U.S. Senate Obama is unique among Senators in that he serves on three of the four Senate Committees dealing with foreign policy issues including the Foreign Relations; Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs; and Veterans' Affairs committees and is the Chair of the Foreign Relations Subcommittee on European Relations which is responsible fore U.S. relations with European countries, the European Union, and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (i.e., NATO).

Obama service on the Foreign Relations committee has placed him in an unique position in that he is the Chair of the Subcommittee on European Relations and serves on the Subcommittees on African Affairs; East Asia and Pacific Affairs; and International Development and Foreign Assistance, Economic Affairs, and International Environmental Protection. This cross-section of subcommittees places Obama in a unique position of having knowledge about Asian, African and European issues.

Obama has also traveled extensively in his capacity as a member of the Foreign Relations Committee and has visited Russia, Ukraine, and Azerbaijan in Asia; Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, and the Palestinian Territories in the Middle East; and Chad, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, and South Africa in Africa. He has also visited and even campaigned in Europe, which would be a joke to McCain, who is widely laughed at abroad.

Obama has also co-sponsored the "Lugar-Obama Act" with Republican Senator Richard Lugar who was Chairman of the Committee on Foreign Relations at the time. This act was a bi-partisan effort to increase U.S. security in terms of the elimination of conventional weapons and weapons of mass destruction. This legislation came out of Obama's trip with Senator Richard Lugar to Russia, the Ukraine and Azerbaijan.

Obama has also sponsored legislation such as the "Democratic Republic of Congo Relief, Security, and Democracy Promotion Act" which was signed into law by President Bush on December 22, 2006. Obama has co-sponsored immigration related bills related to his service on the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee including the Secure America and Orderly Immigration Act. His extensive foreign policy experience exceeds that of every other Presidential candidate including his trips abroad in the performance of his official duties as a member of committees dealing with foreign relation issues.

---Work with common voters and citizens.
Obama moved to Chicago to work as a community organizer for three years from June 1985 to May 1988 as director of the Developing Communities Project (DCP), a church-based community organization originally comprising eight Catholic parishes in Greater Roseland (Roseland, West Pullman, and Riverdale) on Chicago's far South Side. During his three years as the DCP's director, its staff grew from one to thirteen and its annual budget grew from $70,000 to $400,000, with accomplishments including helping set up a job training program, a college preparatory tutoring program, and a tenants' rights organization in Altgeld Gardens.

Obama also worked as a consultant and instructor for the Gamaliel Foundation, a community organizing institute.

Obama directed Illinois' Project Vote from April to October 1992, a voter registration drive with a staff of ten and seven hundred volunteers; it achieved its goal of registering 150,000 of 400,000 unregistered African-Americans in the state, and led to Crain's Chicago Business naming Obama to its 1993 list of "40 under Forty" powers to be.

---Anything else you would wish to add.
Obama has won 2 Grammy awards, and written two bestselling books.

Cheers,
SQLserver

New Blog

2008-10-12T17:13:00.000-07:00

Huh. I created a blog.
Hopefully I will continue posting on it this time.

Expect a buncha pinko commie crap.