I'm not saying the Mythbusters don't put on a good show, or aren't doing a good thing by getting people interested in science, but what they really do is mostly engineering, particularly the test to destruction kind. They certainly aren't doing science that's in any way rigorous, not even to 150 year old standards as the post I replied to insisted.
To nit pick your nit pick: A datum is distinguished from an anecdote by at least the possibility that it may become plural. That is, the experiment is repeatable. SOMETIMES the myth busters do repeatable experiments, but usually they don't. For example, the air conditioning vs. open window one. What they ended up with is a nice story about this time they tested the myth. It's not a datum because their experimental setup wasn't controlled enough to be replicated, by them or anyone else.
Anecdotes CAN become data. Much of science, maybe even most, is observational studies. You measure whatever you can and use stats to "control" for various factors you're not interested in, after the fact.
Must have been before that. The shows I remember had less Christ's blood and Noah's Ark discovered and more tracing the spread of Judaism (including the group in Ethiopia), tracing the myths behind the various claims for where the ark of the covenant ended up (nothing mystical, just is it possible that the box made it to Scotland?) and digging up biblical age ruins in the middle east. There was one program about the shroud of Turin. The conclusion was, given radiocarbon dating and paint analysis, that it's a fake from the middle ages.
I'm getting the feeling you're one of those cyclists who give the rest of us a bad name, with drivers, pedestrians, and anyone else who has to share the road with you.
Most cars have multiple microprocessors/microcontrollers. This article from Motorola (http://www.mcjournal.com/articles/arc105/arc105.htm) puts the number around 100 for luxury cars around 2002. Your home is also full of processors, but maybe not that many, particularly if you define a "computer" as a general purpose computing device that executes software instructions. Your remote, for example, may or may not have a computer in it. The less fancy ones will probably rely on an IR encoder chip that doesn't use software.
And the banks that depend on GPS time signals to timestamp transactions? Or the cell networks that (for some reason) depend on GPS time to synchronize their networks?
You didn't think GPS was only used by drivers who don't know where they're going, did you?
They run into pedestrians occasionally. But if I'm driving (I also run, walk and bike frequently) I'm going to be very unhappy if some idiot on a bike gets killed because he blew a stop light in front of me and I couldn't stop. He's just dead. I have to live with killing him.
I agree that parents need to instil a respect for the value of education, but students aren't going to take it seriously unless BOTH their parents and the schools do. If you make your way through school regardless of what you do, why take it seriously? If there's a real danger of failing, not making it to the next grade with your friends and not getting a diploma, suddenly there are actual consequences.
Hm. As a biker, do you obey all the traffic laws? Complete stop at all stop signs, never go through lights, no riding on sidewalks or using crosswalks or passing slow or stopped traffic on the right in the non-lane between traffic and parked cars or the curb?
Speaking as someone who moved from a place where bikers DO obey traffic laws to somewhere where nobody, bikes, cars or pedestrians, obeys traffic laws, if there's a problem it seems to very rarely be exclusively with the drivers.
If it interfered with GPS, they'd get caught awfully fast and LOSE a lot of money. Interfering with GPS doesn't just mean that someone's turn by turn directions get messed up. A lot of things now depend on GPS, mostly for the time information.
No it wasn't. It might have been a reasonably common belief at one time, when the Catholic church ruled much of Europe. It was never a scientific fact, nor was it ever believed (at least not in recorded history) by most educated people.
On the other hand, atheists might believe theists are a little naive, mistaken, or possibly even stupid. Most theists believe atheists are amoral, evil, and destined to be tortured for eternity. A couple of Slashdot posts one way or the other wouldn't seem to make much difference to the overall balance.
Nonsense. You're showing your cultural bias. The GP was being sarcastic about ALL monotheistic religions equally. Of course, what he said is a pretty accurate description. You just object to his unsubtle phrasing.
Actually, I quite enjoy the approaching pagan festival. Especially watching Christians bend over backwards trying to make celebrating a solstice with traditional pagan fertility symbols (evergreen trees, yule logs, mistletoe) about Jesus.
Now, now, he might be on to something. We need to get back to basics, give the lawyers swords or lances and let them go at it. So shh. His version is much better than letting them talk at each other wearing togas.
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I'm not saying the Mythbusters don't put on a good show, or aren't doing a good thing by getting people interested in science, but what they really do is mostly engineering, particularly the test to destruction kind. They certainly aren't doing science that's in any way rigorous, not even to 150 year old standards as the post I replied to insisted.
To nit pick your nit pick:
A datum is distinguished from an anecdote by at least the possibility that it may become plural. That is, the experiment is repeatable. SOMETIMES the myth busters do repeatable experiments, but usually they don't. For example, the air conditioning vs. open window one. What they ended up with is a nice story about this time they tested the myth. It's not a datum because their experimental setup wasn't controlled enough to be replicated, by them or anyone else.
Anecdotes CAN become data. Much of science, maybe even most, is observational studies. You measure whatever you can and use stats to "control" for various factors you're not interested in, after the fact.
Must have been before that. The shows I remember had less Christ's blood and Noah's Ark discovered and more tracing the spread of Judaism (including the group in Ethiopia), tracing the myths behind the various claims for where the ark of the covenant ended up (nothing mystical, just is it possible that the box made it to Scotland?) and digging up biblical age ruins in the middle east. There was one program about the shroud of Turin. The conclusion was, given radiocarbon dating and paint analysis, that it's a fake from the middle ages.
Thanks. I guess Clarke was a little too pessimistic about Russian and US cooperation and Chinese competition.
"Grow up."
I'm getting the feeling you're one of those cyclists who give the rest of us a bad name, with drivers, pedestrians, and anyone else who has to share the road with you.
Most cars have multiple microprocessors/microcontrollers. This article from Motorola (http://www.mcjournal.com/articles/arc105/arc105.htm) puts the number around 100 for luxury cars around 2002. Your home is also full of processors, but maybe not that many, particularly if you define a "computer" as a general purpose computing device that executes software instructions. Your remote, for example, may or may not have a computer in it. The less fancy ones will probably rely on an IR encoder chip that doesn't use software.
And the banks that depend on GPS time signals to timestamp transactions? Or the cell networks that (for some reason) depend on GPS time to synchronize their networks?
You didn't think GPS was only used by drivers who don't know where they're going, did you?
They run into pedestrians occasionally. But if I'm driving (I also run, walk and bike frequently) I'm going to be very unhappy if some idiot on a bike gets killed because he blew a stop light in front of me and I couldn't stop. He's just dead. I have to live with killing him.
I agree that parents need to instil a respect for the value of education, but students aren't going to take it seriously unless BOTH their parents and the schools do. If you make your way through school regardless of what you do, why take it seriously? If there's a real danger of failing, not making it to the next grade with your friends and not getting a diploma, suddenly there are actual consequences.
GPS is used mostly for things OTHER than navigation.
Hm. As a biker, do you obey all the traffic laws? Complete stop at all stop signs, never go through lights, no riding on sidewalks or using crosswalks or passing slow or stopped traffic on the right in the non-lane between traffic and parked cars or the curb?
Speaking as someone who moved from a place where bikers DO obey traffic laws to somewhere where nobody, bikes, cars or pedestrians, obeys traffic laws, if there's a problem it seems to very rarely be exclusively with the drivers.
Quite possibly more computers than your house.
If it interfered with GPS, they'd get caught awfully fast and LOSE a lot of money. Interfering with GPS doesn't just mean that someone's turn by turn directions get messed up. A lot of things now depend on GPS, mostly for the time information.
Is it? I like it better already. Makes sense that it's a little bigger than might be expected then - it has to have a copy of Qt.
Fresh crust absorbs carbon dioxide. So the reason is wrong, but the effect is correct.
You're contradicting yourself. The moon acts to slow Earth's rotation, not to "slow the rate at which the earth's rotation slows towards tidal lock."
If the universe is infinite, or anything like it, not so much. There will be copies all over the place.
No it wasn't. It might have been a reasonably common belief at one time, when the Catholic church ruled much of Europe. It was never a scientific fact, nor was it ever believed (at least not in recorded history) by most educated people.
Not if Einstein weren't completely correct. And even if he was, FTL doesn't necessarily mean useful time travel or causality violations.
On the other hand, atheists might believe theists are a little naive, mistaken, or possibly even stupid. Most theists believe atheists are amoral, evil, and destined to be tortured for eternity. A couple of Slashdot posts one way or the other wouldn't seem to make much difference to the overall balance.
Forget the Yule Tide and Christmas. It's the winter solstice. Sun worship for the win!
Nonsense. You're showing your cultural bias. The GP was being sarcastic about ALL monotheistic religions equally. Of course, what he said is a pretty accurate description. You just object to his unsubtle phrasing.
Actually, I quite enjoy the approaching pagan festival. Especially watching Christians bend over backwards trying to make celebrating a solstice with traditional pagan fertility symbols (evergreen trees, yule logs, mistletoe) about Jesus.
100 feet? Current estimates are 19-25 km (12-16 miles). http://www.lpi.usra.edu/resources/europa/thickice/
They tend not to survive the fall from orbit very well.
Now, now, he might be on to something. We need to get back to basics, give the lawyers swords or lances and let them go at it. So shh. His version is much better than letting them talk at each other wearing togas.