Owner: Science Digestive URL:http://sciencedigestive.blogspot.com/ Join Date: Fri, 08 Aug 2008 10:50:51 -0500 Rating:0 Site Description: A satirical look at the latest Science news stories and issues, from the UK's only Stand-Up Comedy Neuroscientist Site statistics:Click here
Horoscopes! 2008-08-08 09:57:53 A lot of people believe in horoscopes. They shouldn't, but they do. As has been demosntrated several times in the past, Horoscopes are just a lot of vague generalisations that, by sheer law of averages, will prove accurate for some people. But there you go, they're generally harmless enough, I don't agree with astologers raking in money from gullible people, but then they don't offer to cure illne
In order to balance complaints... 2008-08-01 14:58:22 I've been getting some feedback form this Blog lately, which was nice. The general opinion is as follows:"It's really funny, but way too long".The only criticism I've received is that it's too long. Also, one person said it gave them vertigo. Seriously. I was oddly proud, but promised to address that.I apologise for the length of my posts, it's a habit of mine. I admit that 28.3783244 % of people
Shock! Horror! Incredulity! Homeopathy isn't real! 2008-07-25 14:05:30 20th Anniversary of Homeopathy... yayThis article gives a brief summary of the history of homeopathy, and the genuine scientific experiment which seems to have given it such 'credibility' by hoards of 'experts' who espouse on about it's 'healing properties' and that 'ignorant' scientists are 'covering up' the 'truth' about homeopathy, and there's me using up my entire ration of inverted commas in Read more:Shock
40 winks helps you think....s 2008-07-22 07:26:05 Believe it or not, sleep is good for you!Ha! A brain related article, now we're talking. And from the Guardian as well, not the often linked BBC website. I don't normally read papers at all, I don't really trust any publication that has a well defined political agenda. Although I'm aware that most science publications may well have a bias of some sort, they have to have the data to back up conclus Read more:think
Me, doing stuff 2008-07-20 11:59:40 Here's a video of me I made a while ago, filmed in the lab when I really should have been working, which attempts to combine Science and comedy. Whether I succeeded or not is up to you, but feel free to leave feedback/abuse. Saves reading long-winded rants that don't really go anywhere, at least. Read more:doing
, stuff
Up the Apples and Pears 2008-07-20 09:13:07 Apples: 1 - Pears: 0Another example of 'how long's that been going on?' science, once again courtesy of the BBC website. And even though the science that gets the most publicity these days is the kind that tackles big issues and fundamental problems, like climate change, fighting diseases and the origins of the universe, it's very reassuring to know that there are still people out there tackling t Read more:Apples
Singing with the Fishes 2008-07-20 04:25:45 Fish Vocalisations are very old indeedAmerican scientists have localised the part of a fishes brain that proceses vocalisations, or 'noises', if you prefer. I always enjoy reading stories like this, where you just say to yourself 'how long has that been going on?' and more importantly, 'why are they doing that?'. I'm not an ichthyologist, but I do find this fascinating. Although there are a few ex Read more:Fishes
, Singing
Disordered eating 2008-07-18 17:20:36 Pregnancy, nuts and asthmaThe guy who wrote the story above must have had a confusing time of it. Three health hot topics, Nut allergies, the effects of mothers diet on the foetus, and childhood asthma. Although admittedly, Asthma seems to have something of an 80's feel these days, it's a bit simplistic in these days of ADHD and MMR-Autism hysteria. It's a well understood disease that affects the Read more:eating
Pollution Threatens Olympics! (again) 2008-07-18 17:19:07 's not been long since the people of China were working round the clock to get rid of hideous amounts of bright green algae that were swamping their beaches (seriosuly, look it up, ). The authorities stated that this was a natural, if extreme, occurence, and that is possible, but the more likely explanation is extremely high levels of chemical fertilizers, flowing untreated into the chinese sea as Read more:Olympics
, Pollution
How much speed do we need? 2008-08-21 05:07:31 The fastest blowhard ever? Before I discuss the above story, it put me in mind of a trailer for a film I saw at the cinema yesterday (I saw Hellboy II, which was great, I'll never look at Barry Manilow in the same way again). The trailer was for a film called Death Race. From what I could gather, it's about a near future where the worlds major sporting event is a race to the death by prisoners i
Dolphins, Robots and all manner of other stuff. 2008-08-19 08:34:32 Seems to be a lot going on right now, so I'll attempt some sort of 'news round up' science style, with 'witty' headlines like the papers do. See if you can spot the theme of the subjects (answers at the ends)"Walking on the wild (dolphin) side!"It turns out that Dolphins
have been spotted 'Tail Walking', that thing they do in water parks after extensive training. Wild dolphins aren't meant to do t Read more:stuff
Prince Charles, the Green Man and why is opinion so important? 2008-08-18 05:43:06 Prince Charles
has to back up wild claimsApparently, Prince Charles
recently decided to voice off about GM crops, deciding that they are very bad. He would know, obviously. I don't actually dislike Prince Charles, he seems reasonably decent for someone who's had the upbringing he's had, as well as being vilified by the media because he wasn't a younger blonde woman. Controversial? Not any more, su Read more:Green
, opinion
, Prince
The Cyborgs are coming 2008-08-14 10:45:01 Rat brain controls robotsThere are just too many issues brought up by this experiment. Basically, researchers have taken neural cells from a rat foetus and connected them to a robot that navigates via sonar so they can be used to control its movements with the ultimate aim of simulating loss of memory in the neurones in an attempt to study the mechanisms of Alzheimer's disease.Got all that?Several
All hail the Whale! 2008-08-13 10:23:02 Whales no longer endangered, although some are.Yet another demonstration of the fact that, if you want any good news at all these days, you've got to go to the Science stories. Apparently it's not just global temperatures and incidences of knife crime that are on the increase these days, Humpback Whales are on the up as well.This is particularly significant for me, as when I was in primary school, Read more:Whale
Dean's Problem Page 2008-08-10 11:35:09 As I discussed with Horoscopes, Agony Aunts and Problem
Pages are another subcategory of modern media where people solicit and accept advice from individuals who don't seem logically qualified to do so. Most agony aunts use life experience as their credentials for what they do. But I'm actually in favour of this, because, with the obvious exception of psychiatrists and their colleagues, most scien
Large Hadron Collider, what else can go wrong? 2008-09-11 11:48:55 See, we haven't all fallen into a singularity after all!I really shouldn't be doing this as I have more pressing writings to attend to, but not since the whole Climate change debacle kicked off has a science story dominated so many headlines (although as people observed, on the day one of the most groundbreaking experiments ever began, which may advance humankind further than ever, the headline of
Fresh Faced Filth! 2008-09-03 06:32:31 Condoms Cure Spots!I know I said I'd cut back on the blogs, but how could anyone ignore this beauty? Cambodian women have discovered that condom lubricant cures acne. So many possibilities... First and foremost, who discovered that? We all know how condoms work (and if you don't I'm not going to tell you), and they should rarely, if ever, come into contact with someones face, let alone repea
Super Spiders! 2008-08-28 05:52:36 Really Big Spider Terrifies Family!The cliched comical hysterical reaction of women running around screaming when presented with a small creature like a mouse or moderate sized insect is hard to escape here. "Family forced out of home by spider", as the headline reads, clearly suggests a hysterical overreaction. Then they show you the thing. It's not pretty. The BBC article also shows pictures Read more:Super
UPDATE 2008-08-27 09:42:12 I seem to have caused a strange paradox with my last entry. To my shame, I didn't actually type 'Neuroscience PhD Jobs + Comedian' into Google, I just assumed it would provide no useful hits. Which it didn't really, but I admit I should have tested before assuming, like an actual scientist would. Which I am, so have no excuse.However, if you do type that into Google, now my blog is the first thing
A Day in the life of... me. 2008-08-27 06:59:53 Thought I'd go a bit personal for once, and tell you a bit about myself and what I'm doing at the moment. What's it like being the UK's only Stand-Up comedy Neuroscientist trying to write a thesis that summarises 3 years of his life? Well, it's hard to describe. But here's a run down of a typical day in my life at present. It's happening now, so it's technically news, and its got science in it, so
Another Round up of Science Stuff 2008-08-24 06:55:04 General perspective on Science
Stories and whatnot:Screw you, Icarus!Solar powered planes, seem like a good idea to me. The Icarus thing is clearly flipped over here, as the closer the plane gets to the sun the more power it gets, and the longer it can fly. Nice. It's a military thing, which explains why they could afford the best technology and support. The company 'QinetiQ' were involved, and I
Calm Weather in Space, not necessarily good news. 2008-10-02 02:54:26 Space Doesn't Blow As Much As It ShouldKeeping with the space theme established this week, what with moon landings and Dr Who mix-ups, the above story seems rather apt. According to readings, solar winds are at a 50 year low. For those of you that don't know, Solar Wind is the constant barrage of matter emitted by the sun. This isn't actual wind, this isn't air moving in a general direction at spe Read more:necessarily
, Space
Fake Moon Landings (and other hysterical ramblings) 2008-10-02 02:52:46 Did we really land on the moon?.... Yes! Of course we did!(First and foremost, I'd like to apologise to any Dr. Who fans that have wandered here by accident, as after my last blog I was added to boxxet.com without my knowledge, and they stated that "Science Digestive has great Doctor Who news, photos, videos and more". It doesn't, the best I can offer is that I will soon be a DOCTOR, WHO writes bi
Careering off course 2008-10-01 16:49:34 There should be a link to a science news story here, but there isn't, it's just a clip from Rhys Darby's new DVDEvening. Not done one of these for a while, but been busy. I'm now attempting to complete my thesis whilst simultaneously looking for a job I can do as soon as I complete my thesis but I can't really get a job yet as I haven't finished my thesis but the thesis is taking too long because Read more:course
Dr Who vs Gillian McKeith 2008-09-23 09:04:23 Remember when McKeith was stripped of her 'Doctor' title?
I enjoyed that, very satisfying read. Knowing her history, I wrote another spoof article about how she might react. I submitted it to The Cheek, but might not get in. So here it is for you all.
DR. WHO STRIPPED OF TITLE? Health Food Witch Gillian
McKeith’s Plans to Sue BBC Wales could face severe legal costs if a court
Some satire, which may be offensive, I'm not sure. 2008-09-22 10:09:11 The Cheek - Cardiff's Free Satire Publication
A quick break from Science. The legendary Gareth Baker appears to have set up a free satirical publication for the residents of Cardiff. Check the website above. It features my horoscopes (See previous blogs) which may become a regular feature. Anyway, for the next issue, I've submitted a satirical piece about racism. It may be offensive, but I don't Read more:satire
Fact v Fiction: Segregation of the positive kind 2008-09-16 09:54:38 Someone think the Internet should get it's facts straightPerhaps it's interesting that I should be drawn to this story, being someone who blogs about Science stories and attempts to put a positive 'spin' on things, can I really be trusted to be an accurate source of information? Not 100% obviously, but I've always stuck to the facts, proposing only crazy theories that follow on by some logical ste Read more:Fiction
, Segregation
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