Occam's razor is your friend, or, You,sir/madam, are insulting science (and society)

It's often said that the truth is much stranger than reality and in science, there are no shortage of instances where this is most certainly the case. Anyone that knows me would say that I would love to be the person to tell you that we are not alone in the universe and that the truth is out there but let's face facts here, the chances of us coming in contact with a civilized, extra-terrestrial race is slim to none. I can break out the math and show you but I figure I'll spare you the agonizing details. And yet, society (in a broad, world-view sense)seems to jump at the chance to claim first contact/evidence of ET/aliens among us whenever something slightly out of the ordinary presents itself.

This week was no exception.

While I won't judge anyone on their beliefs (hell, I'm a faithful Christian-Buddhist conglomeration of various religions who holds a degree in Anthropology, practises archaeology and studies various physical sciences) but, really? With such a vast spectrum of physiological extremes and characteristics, an anthropologist and some unnamed scientists are going to jump at claiming to have proof of ET? Spare me. While this report will undoubtedly be refuted by many members of the scientific community and prove to be a case of skull binding or one of the many congenital malformations of the skull or even a combination of the two, it is almost as if science, as well as reporters who are guilty of it often, has jumped to sensationalism before anything else.

Whatever the reason for the claim, and supposed supporting claims, an anthropologist should know better. After all, their job is to study human society and physiology so why make a claim otherwise unless you have mountains of proof ready to be peer reviewed.

So, why the critical rant? Boredom, mostly but also because it truly begins to wear on my sensibilities that society panders to the conspiracy theorists, the believers of ancient aliens (though I can often be found watching the show with my boyfriend or my cousin for the entertainment value which has even more often led into rants about why these people have a job and I don't), or the crackpot theorists. Maybe I'm just a dork but extreme body modification and skeletal deformities are much "cooler" than the quickly-refuted claims of an alien body but, hey, they got me to write a response.

Also, anyone with any basic knowledge of human anatomy can tell it's a human child from the photos.

Obligatory, random post

Since it seems to be necessary to blog at least once in a while about your personal life or some kind of nonsense, I present my random post of the month:

My boyfriend has bought a weight bench. It is positively horrendous and is something much worse than an eyesore. Granted, it isn't the safety hazard he had at the hell-hole which was being held together by masking tape so I suppose I must give it a few positive points for that... And it is pretty nice having gym equipment at home so I don't have to wait at the gym. Okay, so it's starting to grow on me but I still hold that it is the ugliest piece of furniture to enter the apartment and with it comes something that sets my teeth on edge: the boyfried's friend. We'll call him "douche" for now.

I should be pleased that the boy has friends come over and whatnot but this is different. For the duration of douche's visit, I am relegated to the bedroom (for sometimes 2hours) with my cats, Peanut and Jack, while they do their Jersey Shore douchebag gym thing and I study. Why, you ask? I make douche uncomfortable because I'm a girl and I'm mean or something. Also, I can't be trusted not to laugh in hi face when douche comes out with one of his outlandish, bold faced lies again. Simply, I lack tact. Even from the relative comfort of my bedroom I can often hear him tell the boy about his great plans for something and how he tutors for $100/hr and makes over 100k a year tutoring and how he's a teacher and has the third edition of my quantum mech text (which is only in it's second printing, btw) or something like that.

And so here I am, cross-legged on my bed listening to weights clanking and bullshit spewing in the other room.

Mini-rant of the moment: marriage equality

I come across some pretty stupid things being said on a daily basis either at work, on the bus, train, or standing in line at a store. Today, however, proved to have a particularly amusing instance that left me somewhat con fuddled and wondering if I was reading things correctly. In a twitter post, Pink Paper attached a link to an article about US presidential hopeful, Tom Pawlenty and his rather unique views on same-sex marriage. Granted, it was late morning before a coffee and I was a bit groggy but the argument I was reading just seemed ridiculous and mores than other ridiculous things I had heard before 10 am.

In conjunction with his usual anti-gay, anti-marriage rhetoric, Pawlenty made the argument stating that the purpose of marriage was procreation and child rearing. I have already had people presenting me the question of whether this would include marriages between senior citizens and couples that are infertile. Ignoring his generally ignorant, bigoted views on marriage and the like, this statement seems even more ridiculous than the oft herd "marriage is between a man and a woman" argument that these opponents of same-sex marriage have been touting. As far as I am aware, he hasn't come down on adoption or surrogate mothers or even a child that may have been conceived during a previous union. Perhaps I have been living a delusion but I always believed that it was the child's welfare that was most important.

As far as his comments about the idea of marriage being deluded by allowing same-sex couples to marry, does the fact that websites like Ashley Madison and drive-thru wedding chapels exist accomplish that as well? I would have to say that these undermine the sanctity of marriage quite bit more.

Following up on my post about Clint McCance earlier this week, I just wanted to express my relief at hearing the news lady night that he will be resigning his job as a school board member. So that's one asshole/idiot down, how many are left? People like him and countless others should never be allowed to be in a position of power where they may negatively influence the country's youth.

Bigotry has a new face

It seems that bigotry and anti-gay sentiments has a new poster boy: Clint McCance of the Arkansas School Board. After last week's refreshing and proud display of purple on Spirit Day, McCance posted on facebook some of the most hateful remarks I've seen in recent years in which he stated that he "enjoys the fact that they often give each other aids and die." In addition to this he made remarks about how spirit day was essentially a day honouring the sin that, he claims, lead to the recent suicides of gay teens around the country and that he believes they should all commit suicide.
Such behaviour should not be allowed or tolerated in a person who has the power to influence the youth of the country and thus spread his own brand of bigotry. this morning I signed the petition calling for his resignation and I urge everyone to do the same.
Though I whole heartedly support freedom of speech and believe that everyone should be allowed to express their opinion, I believe my grandmother said it best "if you have nothing nice to say, didn't say anything at all." And if your being a bigoted, prickish, asshole, I say you've got no one to blame but yourself when you get what you deserve! I support the comments stating that he deserves a good old fashioned southern beatdown that many people have posted on the HRC website. As a northerner, and more to the point, a New Yorker, I've got my own brand of justice.
Finally I pose a question: why does it matter who you love or sleep with so long as you are safe and responsible? You should be proud of who you love since there seems to be such a shortage of love out there.

Of all the things that truly irk me and have the potential to bring it the very worst of my attitude, ignorance, ignorant "creationists" in this case, ranks up there with homophobes, racists, and people who hurt animals. Before anyone jumps down my throat calling me a heathen or that I'm going to burn in hell, I'd like to point out that I am a person of faith who was raised around the church. Currently, I'm working on a project meant to explain evolution to children. In my research for this I find myself coming across numerous websites about young earth and old earth creationism claiming they can provide evidence that they are direct and that Darwinism is false. What bothers me most is that most of the writers of the articles posted on these sites that are supposedly giving this groundbreaking evidence for whichever branch of creationism they believe in are supposedly scientists who attribute the entire theory of evolution to Darwin and label everything having to do with human evolution to Darwin without mentioning other contributors to the theory. This being said, the very basis of their argument is flawed. What is also disturbing is that someone who is allegedly a scientist, often titled as a biologist of some sort does not know something taught in a first year biology course. This then leads to another interesting question: why would someone who so fervently believes that everything first appeared exactly as it does now without change, go into a field in which this change, rather obvious changes in many cases, is embraced and studied?
In researching how I might explain to children evolution and evolutionary processes, I began to wonder how I might explain why creationism simply does not work the way creationists say it does. While the reasons are numerous and it would take much longer to explain than any child would be interested, I still find it necessary to explain that recent archaeological finds disprove the notion of young earth creationism (which places the earth's age as about 6000 years old) with ease as well as the notion of old earth creationism (which places the earth's age around 10000 years). I would delight in hearing what their arguments for the finding of a 5000 year old door is and how to explain the recently found jewellery being attributed to neanderthals is. In response to the expected response of "God put it there to test non believers" I offer the question of "why?" Why would an omnipotent being go through all the trouble to falsify evidence simply to test a group of people? I would also care to point out that it seems Christianity is the only religion that simply cannot accept evolution.

An introduction

talk to anyone who knows me and you'll probably get a bunch of different responses. I'm a basket of contradictions. I pretty much dislike everyone and yet I'm a proud supporter of the Human Rights Campaign and NoH8, volunteer at the World Science Festival and generally like animals better than people. I believe in God but am firmly against the ideas being called creationism and a literal reading of the bible with a firm belief that creationism should more be taught in classrooms. Ask me and I'll tell you I'm a hybrid with a love/hate relationship with the world/nature. I'm against fossil fuels and non-renewable energy sources and for photovoltaic and hydroelectric power but I have a strong, and sometimes disturbing, love of gas guzzling muscle cars. I love dressing in pretty gowns and getting dolled up but am quick to be told by my chinese-when-she-wants-to-be mother that I'm not girly enough.
I : am quick to anger and have no patience for ignorance and stupidity; enjoy a drink or two while watching tv or gaming;
have a fighty attitude; am opinionated.
I am who your conservative parents warned you about.